Life, liberty, and the Pursuit of Bits.by TimemasterChaptersI'm Rich!Times Gone By. (Part 1)The Taste of Freedom.A Nice Night...So Fun...I'm Rich!Beggar Gold is lying on his bed (made of the exotic cardboard!) as he starts to wake up from his dreams of luxury. For practical purposes, Beggar does not own a blanket to cover himself, mainly because it annoys him... But also because he can never find one not coated in slime. He starts to get out of his bed, making sure not to rip off the moldy pieces that are stuck to him, groaning through his broken, yellow toothed mouth. With Beggar Gold in the right light, somepony could see him as a normal, clean, brown pony... except that light doesn't exist. Beggar is one of those bums that hold out cups for money, but never gets any. His stained, brown coat is not the true color of his coat, but he has not seen its real color for so long he has forgotten what it looks like. He has no memory of ever getting his cutie mark either, making him even more of a bum than before. He is broke, in both memory and money, but he doesn't know why. Beggar takes some water from the puddle he called a sink and rubs his teeth with it, hoping to replace the taste of failure with the taste of muck and grime. He frowns as he sees a small frog in his puddle. "Kero-Kero" the frog went. With great speed, Beggar kills the frog with his hoof from above. The sound of the frog mushing pleased Beggar, making him smile the smile of failure. "Dinner is served..." After an interesting dinner, Beggar wipes his mouth with a stolen cloth from the small grape farm/store nearby, smiling. He scans the area around him again, making sure nopony was here to see him. The two tall buildings that he lived between were still there, providing some shelter against the elements, and the random dumpsters and rats were, as always, strewn about the place. "Squeak," goes one rat, seeming to find something in the dumpster of the tallest building of the two, the Hoofington Post National Tower, and a lighter "Squeak" is heard in the dumpster of the smaller building, the police department. Beggar quickly rises from where he was, running towards the H.P.N.T.'s dumpster. He opens up the dumpster, moldy and rotten with age, and starts looking for the rat. After about a minute or two of searching, he finds the rat in a recyclable bag with a sheet of paper. Looking at he rat first, he sees a weird fungus growing on the side of it... Gold is allergic to fungi. Frustrated of not finding a perfect meal, he grabs and tosses the rat away, leaving behind the sheet of paper. Curious, he grabs the paper, cautious with not damaging it in any way. The paper was thin, meaning it must have been printed by the government. Knowing this, Beggar is shocked to see what is printed on this paper. The paper showed a silhouette of a unicorn pony, with small describing words underneath reading, 'An unknown unicorn, likely female, has broken into Equestria First Bank, stealing 40 tons of gold in the process. Any ideas of her whereabouts will--' and the rest was stained and faded beyond recognition. "A unicorn female...?" Beggar says, smiling even wider. Unicorns are rare around these parts because of the racial prejudice against them in this town. There are very few unicorns around here and all of them are rich or a guard... and most of them are male. Beggar then frowns after realizing that this may be a false claim by a racist pony. He sighs, crumbling up the paper, and does his daily routine of searching through the trash.He starts to dig through the dumpster, throwing unneeded things beside him. After a few hours of finding no free food, he hits a hard bag. "Ow!~" He went, grasping his hurt hoof. He grabs the hard bag, hoping to find some pots and pans he could sell. Searching through the bag, he sees a shiny glint from the sun, and quickly closes it. He puts the bag into his 'chest' of cardboard and lays down on his bed. His eyes are wide open, his grin slowly growing. Before going to sleep, he grabs the stolen cloth and puts it over his face, while silently screaming one thing before falling into a deep slumber. "I'm rich!" *Klick-clack* pounded against the floor of the alleyway Beggar calls home. he opens his eyes ever-so slightly as to see in the direction of the sound. Through the small crack in his tired eyes, he sees a red, pony-shaped blur trot up to the H.P.N.T.'s dumpster, rummaging its hands throughout the interior of it when it gets there. Confuzzled, he opens his eyes, and sees that the blur also had a slim shape, but was still more fed than he was. *Klick-klack* The blur looks at him, making feel odd. Does Beggar owe that thing money, too? "H-- Y-- oo?" was all of what Beggar heard from the blur, a large well of wax in Beggar's ear. Beggar concentrates to listen, waiting for a repeat. "Hey you!" The blur said again, its voice sounding very light-hearted,yet dreadful. "Yes, Govna'?" Beggar said to the blur, rubbing his eyes to clarify the area. In front of him, he saw a beautiful unicorn mare with a scowl upon her face. He blinks a few times, thinking of reasons why she was here. Then, it hit him. 'This was the thief, or is a supposed thief, and the gold I have is what was stolen!' he thought, his mouth going agape. "Why do you have my gold?" She said authoritatively, looking at his sorry excuse for a body. He looks over to the bag, seeing it was wide open (probably from the side-ways wind) and made a scowl himself. "Before I give it to you, can I ask a question?" he says, staring at her with the eyes of a pauper. She scoffs and replies, "Sure, but you better hoof it over." "I am no racist, but is it true that you stole this?" he asked earnestly, no hostility in his voice. She stares at him, a grin of annoyance on her face, "Yes." He smiles back, getting up. He goes to the bag of gold, hoofing it over to the mare. The mare stares at him, blinking. "W-why are you," her eyes start to waver, "giving this without any fight?" Beggar Gold just looks at the mare with his eyes of true sorrow, staring directly into her own eyes, seeing something behind them. "Because, I know what you have been through, Lady Bountiful." He said to her She stared at him, "How does a pauper like you know my name and my struggles!?" she slightly yelled. "I live right next door to the news facility, so I have seen many newspapers about your loss." "How can you know how it feels to lose some--" she said, tears evident in her eyes. "You lost the only being you love, never being able to get him again, and I have lost the only thing that I loved, hoping it would someday return." She started tearing up, mascara smearing below her eyelids, "Letting a pauper like you see me cry..." He looked at her, "Take the gold and go. Do not go down Path 98, for I saw many undercover guards there, and be silent." "Why are you helping me?" she said, sniffling, "I mean, I am a thief!" He stares at her intently, "I am but a pauper, you need not know of what I am or think, for you are a kind soul." He turns around, heading back to his bed, "Now, just let a lone pauper die slowly..." "No!" she says, but then corrects herself,"I mean... I cannot go alone. I know nothing of the alleys!" "... What are you saying?" He asked, turning his head back to Lady Bountiful. She moves her hoof, hitting the ground slightly, "Will you run with me and protect me, pauper?" Beggar Gold has seen many things in his life; Murder in alleyways, rape, theft, and other such things, but he never helped... but he felt like helping this lady, for she has lost something equal to what he has lost... And because he had grown tired of living in that dump. The place may have been where he lived for awhile, but he might as well leave before he dies here as well. "..." he looks inside one of his 'chests'. "What are you doing?" She asked. "I'm moving," he says with a smile on his muzzle, " to wherever we end up." She nods her head with a "Hmpf" of approval, "We should go immediately, for it is already getting dark." He looks up, and indeed, it was nearing night-time. He smiles, grabbing the one item that he has always taken with him. A necklace. "What is that?" She said, looking at his necklace. "This is the only thing left of what I lost." Beggar said very stallionly. Lady Bountiful giggles, "So, I guess we are ready to depart?" With a slight sigh, Beggar says, "Do not be so cheerful. After we leave this place, I will go on my own to find someone I once knew..." A slight silence enveloped them, making the atmosphere a bit tenser, Lady figuring out that this is serious. With a nod of approval, Beggar moves slowly down his alleyway, and into his first step of the journey. He steps on an old newspaper, the date being smudged out, along the way... Hoofington Post: Breaking News! At 5:00 am, today, we will remember those we have lost, the people who built this town, and other historical ponies. Right now, however, we will celebrate the anniversary of the death of the unicorn terrorist, Sir Bountiful. This stallion was a confound lunatic, believing that unicorn magic had any reason to be in this town, bringing many unicorns to this town, and trying to make them replace our hard-working, earth ponies in many different kind of jobs. Though nopony knows who killed him, nopony cares either! Unicorns are evil, immoral, and use the power of Tartarus to dispose of anything they see fit. These ponies, excluding a few, are born with the eyes of Hades himself. They, and their flying demons, pegasi, are the main reason of greed and death in this world. They must all be stopped at all costs! Earth Ponies, FOREVER! Spo- (The rest of the paper is submerged in the sink) Times Gone By. (Part 1)Gold and Lady Bountiful both walk slowly towards a darkened alley. It smelled of mold and urine, had a couple of odd puddles, and was very cramped; but it has a certain charm to it that makes you want to hurl. Lady Bountiful looked absolutely disgusted, looking at Gold with slight anger. "Why are we in this wretched place?" She asks lightly, hoping she wouldn't make Gold angry. Gold just looks at her with a straight face, continuing on with the walk. Before fuming at Gold for dodging the question, he points in front of himself. Shifting the golden bag on top of her, she peers towards where he is pointing. A pile of cloths and pillows of all sorts laid there in disgrace. Rips and tears were apparent on the pile, feathers were falling by the dozen, and each had an individual stain; but what intrigued Lady the most was not the embarrassing state of the cloths and pillows, but what was on top of them. On the rather large pile laid 2 ponies, both pegasi-- a mare and a staillion, who were both sleeping in the middle of the day. Confused, Lady looks more closely and sees a sight of true horror. The stallion pegasus' wings were more than just damaged, as most pegasi get when they are roughed up around here. These wings were clipped and burned. Charcoal black markings cover the stallions perfectly blue feathers and mane; long scars brim his sides, seeming to be defensive wounds; and a weird insignia was placed over his cutie mark. Lady Bountiful is appalled that somepony could do this to another, so she is even more shocked when she sees the mare beside him. The mare is in perfect condition-- not even a scratch on her perfectly purple mane or body, yet the stallion had endured so much. "How--?" Lady says, but stops herself, for asking that would be offensive. Turning towards Gold, he says, with a slightly sorrowful voice, "She is going to be safe... as long as Blue Haven is with her." Lady stares blankly at Gold. Gold just stares off to his left, saying, "It doesn't concern you." he huffs, "It is time to leave this place." He begins to trot away (silently, as to not wake the couple), but Lady quickly says, "Aren't you going to say goodbye?" He continues on his walk, not even stopping for a second. Lady looks at the couple once more, seeing their happiness together... and walks back to join Gold--A little more bounce in her step. She looks at Gold's face, seeing only a slight smile. His eyes catch her watching and the smile disappeared. Annoyed, but knowing how Gold feels, she keeps to herself as they go through the alleyway... The day is bright and sunny... A young stallion walked towards his friend, both of whom are covered in mud, and laughs. They had their first fight over something that they did not even remember. They both sit down onto the mud, their laughs becoming smiles. The young stallion raised his small hoof to block the sun from his eyes, only to see another (younger) stallion walking towards them. The stallion, himself, had a smile upon his face and a pair of misty white towels in his saddlebag. The younger stallion hoofs his friends the towels, cracking up a bit. The other friend looks towards the younger stallion and giggles, her face becoming a little pink. The other stallion just sits beside them... A small scowl--that show his teeth, upon his face. Gold's face takes the form of a scowl upon remembering those days. Lady, being behind him (the gold in her saddlebag is very heavy), doesn't notice. Gold begins to walk a little faster, passing many smaller alleyways as he strides. "What is wrong, pauper?" Lady asks, not wanting to walk faster with the weight. "... Sorry." Gold says, slowing down considerably, "I just remembered something that I wish to not remember." Lady just shrugs and carries on, while Gold considered to go on a linear course. The alleys beside them were clattered with mess, but seemed very clean. Much cleaner than the other alleys, that is. Lady follows Gold as he turns a corner to an odd alleyway... A few hours of seemingly endless walking later... A large light shines from a source to their right, nearly blinding them in this evening darkness. Lady Bountiful jump a bit, but sees Gold is standing still. She does the same. The light grows slightly, but stops. The light changes tint, becoming an ominous grey. Lady Bountiful quivers in slight fear, while Gold stands still. Then, a metallic voice is heard. "Sector 4--Clear." Lady gulps, scared for her life. She finally knows what this thing is. She finally remembers... She is still. Gold starts moving, but notices that Lady is still standing still. He walks towards her, nudging her. No response. He nudges her again. She blinks and smiles in an embarrassed way. Gold smiles, too. Lady's face then becomes a face of pure terror. Her eyes seem to be screaming at Gold, but he doesn't know why. Gold looks behind him, but only sees stars... Author's Note I fixed a few things in the first chapter (Thanks Sypher), so you guys should re-read it if you are lost in any way. I cut this chapter a bit short because I have to take a break. My illness has gotten to the point of random headaches. I am sorry if this chapter was bad. The Taste of Freedom.Light. Light brighter than anything Gold has ever seen erupts into his eyes. The area around him is wet with morning dew, washing some dirt off of his scruffy coat. The stains from that dirt, though, remained. Gold lays on the ground, surrounded by grass and what appears to be the light of bliss. The pure, unadulterated, bliss he felt at that moment made him feel alive again. He sits up. Looking to his left, he sees a long road leading to nowhere; while on his right, he sees something off in the distance. For good measure, he looks behind him, hoping to find Lady... she wasn't there. He was on his own, just as he planned to in the beginning anyways, but he felt something odd. He felt guilt. He did not protect somepony he could have saved. He was pitiful. His eyes burned with pain, realizing he had been staring at many things without blinking. He blinks a few times. His vision begins to clear. He stands up all the way, popping many joints while doing so. He looks to his right once more, seeing a large dome. He knew what it was. It was the one city allowed to succeed from Equestria. It was home. It was Hell. He stares at the dome, wondering why he was outside and not inside the jail as he thought would happen... He thinks for a long time, blankly staring at the dome. The dome was nearly featureless, looking like a snow globe with nothing inside BUT snow, making it the perfect hiding place for what the place had actually become. This is the place where his life began and ended... And he has despised every moment of this place. He looks leftward, seeing the long road ahead... 'If I am out, then maybe Lady is out,too... She is probably having the time of her life without me, with all that gold, too!' Gold thought, slightly angry. He had trusted her, but like all things inside that dome, she cannot be trusted any longer. *Huff* The heat was getting to him. Sweat was apparent on his forehead. He was not used to this weather. Gold moves down the road slowly, trying to cool down a bit by flapping his hoof towards his face. He felt so hot, but why? Gold looks at himself, seeing something odd... A vest. a blue vest, with many pockets, was on him. It seemed to be stitched horribly, for the thing had many small holes on it. Gold, curious, checks the pockets... nothing. "Ah well." He puffed to himself, now knowing why he was so hot. Gold has always hated the real sun, for it was a much hotter mistress than the multi-colored sun of the Dome... He bangs his head. He has finally gotten away from the place and NOW he wants to complain about the real world? He grins slightly. "I have gotten away..." He stands up on his hindlegs, " I am FREE!" He says it many times until he became tired. He laughed. He finally got what he wanted--freedom. He looks down the left side road, grinning gleefully, "Look out world..." he begins to run, "here I come!" He began to sprint, leaving dust behind him. He ran and ran, the day turning to night and the hot sun replaced with the cooling, beautiful, moon. He smiles at the moon and saw something odd. It was different. There was no pony-shaped mark on the moon like he had remembered from his childhood. That could only mean... She was back. She must be back and armed to the teeth with an army. Gold wonders if this could be true, if this could hurt his chances at a good life, and if it can be fixed if so. During his thinking, he noticed, he had stopped sprinting. In act, he was huffing a lot. *Huff huff* He looks leftwards, seeing a thin area of trees. He believes it may have food in it. He walks towards the trees, seeing small apples growing on them, and gags. Apples were his most hated food, after all, because they had no nutritional or taste value at all. They were bland. He moves past the apple trees, hearing small sounds in the small forest in front of him. He began to notice the distinct sounds, each with their own tone, to decide which one was the weakest. He had done this many times before, when he was younger, but he still had a knack for it. *Sc-re-ech* went a critter around him somewhere. He moves closer the the sound, seeming to come from his left, and listens. *Scr-cough-ee* He looks towards the sound, coming from the inside of a small, yellowish-green bush under a big tree. Using his usual stealth, he comes closer to the bush, making sure not even a TWIG was below his foot. He edges closer and closer, beginning to see something. Fluffy and white, a creature he hasn't seen for awhile comes out of the bush in front of him. A bunny. The bunny looked very young, possibly just matured, and stared into the eyes of its predator. The eyes looked pale and glaringly bright, as if it has accepted its fate. The bunny is frozen, but not in fear. Its foot was injured severely, possibly from jumping from a high up place; and it tried, but failed, to move away. It was too injured and weak to move any longer. Gold stares at the bunny. "I am sorry." He says, opening his jaw. His fangs jut out of his normal teeth, slightly hurting himself, and he continues to look at the living, breathing creature. He sheds a small tear for the pure being, and attacks. The taste is riddled with the dreaded taste of fear, loneliness, and sadness. Since the bunny was so pure-hearted, Gold saw the bunny's entire life before his very eyes as he ate it. He saw its mother being mauled to death before it. He saw the pain of his father disappearing after trekking through the woods. He felt the agony of being alone for several years. He felt the hatred of ponies, for it is they who the universe gave power. He felt the acceptance of death... And the pain of causing it. Gold shed tears eating his meal. Savoring every last morsel of the cute being, he began to finish up his meal. ... He stood fully up, cleaning himself off with a leaf. He frowned, full. He picked up a twig, stabbing it through the ground--Marking the grave of the bunny. And with that act of eating fulfilled, he went back onto the road, continuing on his (slightly) merry way... He saw something far off into the distance, blocking the view of the glorious moon. Large rectangular things in the distance cut light from his vision. He smiled. He knew fully well what it was. A city. He ran to it, not bothering to stop for one second. The vest scratching his back as he went... Lady awakened to complete darkness. She , in fear, lights up her horn. She see shelves, each aligned with jars. She inspects the jars. She sees a vague red liquid in them and screams. She scrambles behind her, seeing only a chair. "Sit." A voice, bouncing off the walls in echos, said. She quivered. "Sit." The voice repeated. She did as told and sits on the chair. The chair was hard, pale, and cold. Lady has tears in her eyes, with full knowledge about what was to follow. A large arm, made of metal, comes from the ceiling, descending in at a fast pace. The arm holds a ring, which is placed onto Lady's horn in a quick swipe. Lady screeches, her magic being sucked from her very core. Arms jut from the sides of the chair, restraining Lady by grabbing her body and pulling it down. A second arm comes from the ceiling, holding a giant syringe... Before Lady passes out from the pain, she screams, "Curse you, Gold!" *Speuluch* A Nice Night...Chapter 4: A Nice Night... Over the horizon lies the city or town Gold is running to, but he isn't looking at the town right now. He is looking at the sky. Clouds, heavy with rain, are approaching--inching ever closer to Gold's general area. He scoffs a bit, quite angry that his first night free would be covering the stars, but nonetheless... He was free, after all. He smiles, slightly skipping to the town now, willing to enjoy his night. He looks toward the city again. it is much clearer than before, so he is able to make out houses and tall stores. He may not remember his age, but he feels like a small foal given a piece of candy. Beyond that horizon possibly held more than freedom... He starts running very quickly. ...It could hold what he truly desires. He starts sprinting, the blue vest scratching his back. He stops, feeling tired and burnt a bit from the vest. He goes to look at it, but sees something odd. His fur was different, somehow. He nudged at his fur, seeing what was wrong, and felt its hard texture... "What?" Gold said, scared a bit. He felt a sharp pain in his back, so he goes to take off the vest to see what is wrong, but sees that the coat was red for some reason... Gold's eyes open up, his body trembling. He takes off the coat, seeing a small hole in his back... He screams and gets up to run. His eyes dart around, his vision becoming very hazy. Due to fear, he runs without seeing his surroundings and smacks straight into a tree. He feels woozy. The pain from his back seemed to fade a bit, so he looks where the hole is... Only to see it is not there. He stares at the spot, knowing he had seen it. He KNEW he had seen a hole going through him. He started breathing a bit slower. "Probably a delusion..." He says, walking back onto the road after fixing up his attire. He looks to where he left the coat and sees that... it... is still red. His eyes open largely. He begins to breath much quicker, wondering what this means. He looks towards the city. "Maybe," he begins, "there is a doctor or somepony there to help..." Just like the past few hours, he runs towards the city--getting much closer each minute. After an hour or so of running, Gold arrives at the gates of the town. The gate is new and shiny, Gold seeing somepony in the reflection of it. He turns around, wondering who was behind him, only to find no one. He shrugs and enters the town, still hoping his delusions will not harass him too much. He turns his head in front of him again, seeing the lightly lit street before him. As it was around midnight, everypony was probably asleep by now. He smiles, for he did not know how to explain the delusions he had been seeing to any one who asked. He looks around, turning his head left and right, hoping to see the doctor or hospital of this town. He sees many buildings on his left, most likely homes; while he sees smaller buildings on his right. He investigates the right hoof side. He sees an indoor market, which would be good if it wasn't closed; a tall, yet skinny, office building; many small stores of different kinds; and another street. Figuring that this was where the doctor's office is most likely to be, he walks towards the street. Pain. He felt a large jolt in his back, making him gag. He felt like something was trying to break through his body--every muscle in his very being quivering on the intersection of the street. he tries to scream, but his throat swelled. He couldn't breathe. He gagged harder, his spasms becoming worse. He looked up, only to see the moon through his delusional eyes, seeing a large crater on the moon... smiling. He collapses, breathing in hard. The pain halts, but the echo of it remained on his bones and mind. He felt very different, but in this light, he saw nothing different about him. He did feel lighter, though. Using the rest of his energy, he screams, "Doctor!" Falling to the ground, his head clonks the stone hard. Knocking him into deep slumber... He wakes up to the sound of movement. He opens his eyes, but they are covered by some fabric, which also covers his ears, muffling the surrounding noise. He tried to lift his hooves to his face, only to find that they were above his head. He attempted to speak, but only felt a large piece of wood blocking his jaw's movement. Frustrated and scared, he begins to listen around him, knowing squirming may make it worse. "Burn the c--Burn Him!" Is all he was able to hear before having the wind knocked out of him by a pony beside him. "So, you thought you could come to our city--and try to--" the pony beside him said in a deep voice, presumably male. Gold shakes his head in fear, but to no avail. the pony strikes him again. The pony begins to laugh. "Mares and Gent--colts, we shall now begin the punishment!" Shuffling of more hooves is heard around Gold. many ponies begin to strike Gold over and over, hearing his own bones crack and possibly shatter. the fabric on his face becomes loose, and falls off. A collective gasp from the crowd in front of Gold is heard. "That is not a changeling!" yelled a mare. The ponies kicking Gold stopped for a moment. "What do you mean? He has fangs, don't he?" said the pony beside Gold, which Gold notices, through his hazy vision, is a light blue, old, stallion. He looks to Gold and gasps as well. "Get him off of this thing!" The stallion yells. The other ponies quickly follow suit and begin to lower Gold. Tears of fear and pain running down his bruised cheeks. The log is removed and his hooves are untangled from the 'Hangponies Noose' stand. Gold lays onto the ground, hearing pleas for apologies as he faints once more. The dome is being shined by a dozen slave-pegasi as the gate opens... A dark-blue colored mare exits the open gate, her horn seeming cracked and torn. She is wearing a blue vest as she leaves, taking out a small vial from her left pocket. She stares at it, having no idea what it does, and puts it back. From her right pocket, she retrieves a small, gold, letter. She re-reads the letter once more, so she wouldn't miss one thing from her objectives. Dear Agent-B, You have been chosen to hunt down a runner. He has betrayed my trust one too many times and must be stopped. But, be warned, for he is ruthless. Because we never found a way to train you, please hunt down these Class C runners before you take on a class B. Return once you have gotten at least five of them. Contract One-Class C | Payment: Ten-thousand bits | Name: Lock Breaker | Skill Level: 6/20 | Last Seen: Canterlot Square, wearing a grey hat and dyed gray coat. She stops reading there, frowning a bit. She begins trotting, her horn glowing brightly. "I will get you for this, Gold..." And she disappears from sight. So Fun...Chapter 5: So Fun... Beep... Beep... Darkness. An empty void, devoid of any form of substance whatsoever. Time and space are non-existent here, and as such, nothing is ever born nor dies. Color and light are abundant, for some inexplicable reason, and light seems to radiate from the ground itself. Beep... But just because this world is dead, doesn't mean nothing is alive in it. Beings from separate worlds are not allowed into this one without something special... By an unnaturally smooth rock lies a silhouette of a pony. The form is pure black, the eyes being replaced by a white ambiance, and it lays there in pain. A sound reverberates around it, seeming to lessen the pain. Beep... The shape moves its head upwards, looking into the pitch-black sky. As it looked, something odd happens in the sky. A hole. A blinding light emits from the hole, illuminating the ground below. Through the hole, the form sees a sort of room, itself pure white, and begins to question what it is. Beep... Beep... The form moves upwards all the way, feeling less pain as it went. A second hole opens up near the first one. The area of the hole is the same as the first, meaning something must be happening. The form leaps from its position, the body seeming to stretch over the distance. Beep... Beep... Be- Just before the form makes it all the way into the first hole, the hole shuts. The form is split in half, entering this new world it must explore... *Gasp!*, Gold wakes up on a soft bed, his eyes opening quickly. His eyes jutted around the area, only seeing an odd green tint. He blinks, breathing heavily. The tint remains, so Gold quickly moves his hooves to his eyes to see if anything was blocking them. There was nothing. He blinks once more, beginning to tear up a bit.When he opened his eyes, he saw everything, but something was largely off. everything was a bit GREENER. He looks at his fur, seeing an odd green color as well... but much darker than anything around him. He then noticed the incredible ringing in his ears, which begin to deafen him. 'Help!" He calls, feeling his blood run down his ears. He watches as a green... no, green-tinted stallion with a yellowish hat come to him. The pony, who Gold believed was a doctor, was saying things to Gold, but he could not hear them. Gold just began to shake his head up and down in pain, grasping his head. He felt a prick in his side, then he felt nothing. Gold collapses, in bliss, onto his pillow. ... *Gasp!*, Gold wakes up on a soft bed, his eyes opening quickly again. He attempts to raise his body upwards. His chest softly meets a small hood, halting his attempt. He opens his eyes once more, but to his dismay, it is tinted green once more... Except, only the pony beside him is tinted green. The tint did not only make the pony green, but moved in odd ways. It was like green water in a circular river... Gold was mesmerized, shocked at the beauty of the water. He then realized he was staring at this pony, and blinked... The tint was gone. All that remained was a young gray mare, a nurse cap on her head, who was staring at Gold with kind eyes. Gold opened his mouth, ready to speak, but only coughed up something nasty. He covered his mouth with his forehoof, as to avoid anything going anywhere. He stopped coughing soon after, and stared at his hoof. It was covered in some blood, sure, but there was something else. It was clean. The layer of brown dirt had been removed, and all that remained was a dark gray coat. His coat. He began to cry, snot clogging his nose runs down, and he covered his face with his hooves. He was injured in some odd ways, sure, but he is free once more. He is clean, free, and safe... safe... He looked at the gray mare once more, staring at her face more focused than before, and felt a click in his mind. "Your town is the one... " He began to cough once more, tears becoming sour instead of sweet. The gray pony looked at Gold and said, "We-- We are all so very, very sorry for what we had done to you... but..." She coughed a bit, "Why do you have fangs?" His throat clear from all that coughing, Gold looked back at the nurse, frowning, "That... That is because of my race." The nurse looked at Gold questioningly. "Your... race?" She asked, her eyes very confused. "Yes, but I will not tell any more than that..." Gold confirmed with a look that put some fear into the mare. Gold began to shuffle, feeling a lot better than before, and found that he was wearing some form of robe. The nurse tried to calm him down with some words, but Gold was oblivious to them and began to exit the bed. Half-way off, Gold asked one thing. The nurse answered his question and Gold quickly left the room. Seeing a bathroom down the hall, which was much whiter and cleaner than his room, he trotted to it... After washing off, Gold left the restroom, heading for the entrance to the building. He trudged down stairs, seeing nopony throughout this journey, and began to hum. He smiled when he saw the entrance, but stopped before exiting. He forgot to remove the coat. He quickly removes it and drops it over a sleeping pony behind the counter of the entrance. He then ran through the door and out into the night... And straight into another pony. The sound of the two's heads colliding was rather silent, even on the silent street. Gold quickly felt the sting of pain, but repeated small 'sorry's to the other pony. He looked at the other pony and is surprised that he can see her. Though it is completely black outside (No lanterns or anything), he was able to see, in clear detail, the mares individual hairs in her fur, but in a greenish tint. He is so shocked that he just freezes in front of her. She pokes at him. Gold moves his head upwards, seeing the mare's face. He frowned very quickly. Happily, she couldn't see the frown, so Gold just says something in a slightly deeper voice, "I am sorry ma'am, so very sorry, are you alright?" She looked at Gold's face with a smile, "Yes." Gold quickly got up and said, "I am sorry, but I have to get going." And then he quickly trotted down the street... Amazed at how illuminated it was by the odd green tint in his eyes... Agent B was trotting into an odd folk town, which couldn't even afford street lanterns of all things, when she saw her newest target. This one was requested directly from HQ after she captured the few on her list, meaning this is her biggest hit yet. She was after Headden Dis Guise, an escapee of the dome who seemed to be interested in disguises. Though he is a stallion, his last known location was in this town... dressed as a nurse. Not only that, but the ponies (and even the Dome Spy) believed him to be a female. The description of him went like, 'A grayish stallion, who has starved himself for a long time, has been able to become skinny enough to seems as if he was a mare. He has taken the occupation of a nurse, probably hoping that I, Dome Spy, would never catch him, but HAH!' and then it just began to rant in some odd language. She began to trot quickly to the large clinic where the stallion should be, nearly tripping of stones the whole way. She spots the clinic, seeing lights in it, and runs straight for the entrance... Straight into somepony. They began to have the awkward 'I'm sorry!' conversation and she watches as the odd stallion runs off... seeing he was gray. She almost ran after him, but saw, in the light of the clinic, a gray nurse waking up a pony behind the counter. Agent B smiles, taking out her staff... The screams of the pony echo through the clinic, while the sleeping one was knocked unconscious...
I'm Rich!Beggar Gold is lying on his bed (made of the exotic cardboard!) as he starts to wake up from his dreams of luxury. For practical purposes, Beggar does not own a blanket to cover himself, mainly because it annoys him... But also because he can never find one not coated in slime. He starts to get out of his bed, making sure not to rip off the moldy pieces that are stuck to him, groaning through his broken, yellow toothed mouth. With Beggar Gold in the right light, somepony could see him as a normal, clean, brown pony... except that light doesn't exist. Beggar is one of those bums that hold out cups for money, but never gets any. His stained, brown coat is not the true color of his coat, but he has not seen its real color for so long he has forgotten what it looks like. He has no memory of ever getting his cutie mark either, making him even more of a bum than before. He is broke, in both memory and money, but he doesn't know why. Beggar takes some water from the puddle he called a sink and rubs his teeth with it, hoping to replace the taste of failure with the taste of muck and grime. He frowns as he sees a small frog in his puddle. "Kero-Kero" the frog went. With great speed, Beggar kills the frog with his hoof from above. The sound of the frog mushing pleased Beggar, making him smile the smile of failure. "Dinner is served..." After an interesting dinner, Beggar wipes his mouth with a stolen cloth from the small grape farm/store nearby, smiling. He scans the area around him again, making sure nopony was here to see him. The two tall buildings that he lived between were still there, providing some shelter against the elements, and the random dumpsters and rats were, as always, strewn about the place. "Squeak," goes one rat, seeming to find something in the dumpster of the tallest building of the two, the Hoofington Post National Tower, and a lighter "Squeak" is heard in the dumpster of the smaller building, the police department. Beggar quickly rises from where he was, running towards the H.P.N.T.'s dumpster. He opens up the dumpster, moldy and rotten with age, and starts looking for the rat. After about a minute or two of searching, he finds the rat in a recyclable bag with a sheet of paper. Looking at he rat first, he sees a weird fungus growing on the side of it... Gold is allergic to fungi. Frustrated of not finding a perfect meal, he grabs and tosses the rat away, leaving behind the sheet of paper. Curious, he grabs the paper, cautious with not damaging it in any way. The paper was thin, meaning it must have been printed by the government. Knowing this, Beggar is shocked to see what is printed on this paper. The paper showed a silhouette of a unicorn pony, with small describing words underneath reading, 'An unknown unicorn, likely female, has broken into Equestria First Bank, stealing 40 tons of gold in the process. Any ideas of her whereabouts will--' and the rest was stained and faded beyond recognition. "A unicorn female...?" Beggar says, smiling even wider. Unicorns are rare around these parts because of the racial prejudice against them in this town. There are very few unicorns around here and all of them are rich or a guard... and most of them are male. Beggar then frowns after realizing that this may be a false claim by a racist pony. He sighs, crumbling up the paper, and does his daily routine of searching through the trash.He starts to dig through the dumpster, throwing unneeded things beside him. After a few hours of finding no free food, he hits a hard bag. "Ow!~" He went, grasping his hurt hoof. He grabs the hard bag, hoping to find some pots and pans he could sell. Searching through the bag, he sees a shiny glint from the sun, and quickly closes it. He puts the bag into his 'chest' of cardboard and lays down on his bed. His eyes are wide open, his grin slowly growing. Before going to sleep, he grabs the stolen cloth and puts it over his face, while silently screaming one thing before falling into a deep slumber. "I'm rich!" *Klick-clack* pounded against the floor of the alleyway Beggar calls home. he opens his eyes ever-so slightly as to see in the direction of the sound. Through the small crack in his tired eyes, he sees a red, pony-shaped blur trot up to the H.P.N.T.'s dumpster, rummaging its hands throughout the interior of it when it gets there. Confuzzled, he opens his eyes, and sees that the blur also had a slim shape, but was still more fed than he was. *Klick-klack* The blur looks at him, making feel odd. Does Beggar owe that thing money, too? "H-- Y-- oo?" was all of what Beggar heard from the blur, a large well of wax in Beggar's ear. Beggar concentrates to listen, waiting for a repeat. "Hey you!" The blur said again, its voice sounding very light-hearted,yet dreadful. "Yes, Govna'?" Beggar said to the blur, rubbing his eyes to clarify the area. In front of him, he saw a beautiful unicorn mare with a scowl upon her face. He blinks a few times, thinking of reasons why she was here. Then, it hit him. 'This was the thief, or is a supposed thief, and the gold I have is what was stolen!' he thought, his mouth going agape. "Why do you have my gold?" She said authoritatively, looking at his sorry excuse for a body. He looks over to the bag, seeing it was wide open (probably from the side-ways wind) and made a scowl himself. "Before I give it to you, can I ask a question?" he says, staring at her with the eyes of a pauper. She scoffs and replies, "Sure, but you better hoof it over." "I am no racist, but is it true that you stole this?" he asked earnestly, no hostility in his voice. She stares at him, a grin of annoyance on her face, "Yes." He smiles back, getting up. He goes to the bag of gold, hoofing it over to the mare. The mare stares at him, blinking. "W-why are you," her eyes start to waver, "giving this without any fight?" Beggar Gold just looks at the mare with his eyes of true sorrow, staring directly into her own eyes, seeing something behind them. "Because, I know what you have been through, Lady Bountiful." He said to her She stared at him, "How does a pauper like you know my name and my struggles!?" she slightly yelled. "I live right next door to the news facility, so I have seen many newspapers about your loss." "How can you know how it feels to lose some--" she said, tears evident in her eyes. "You lost the only being you love, never being able to get him again, and I have lost the only thing that I loved, hoping it would someday return." She started tearing up, mascara smearing below her eyelids, "Letting a pauper like you see me cry..." He looked at her, "Take the gold and go. Do not go down Path 98, for I saw many undercover guards there, and be silent." "Why are you helping me?" she said, sniffling, "I mean, I am a thief!" He stares at her intently, "I am but a pauper, you need not know of what I am or think, for you are a kind soul." He turns around, heading back to his bed, "Now, just let a lone pauper die slowly..." "No!" she says, but then corrects herself,"I mean... I cannot go alone. I know nothing of the alleys!" "... What are you saying?" He asked, turning his head back to Lady Bountiful. She moves her hoof, hitting the ground slightly, "Will you run with me and protect me, pauper?" Beggar Gold has seen many things in his life; Murder in alleyways, rape, theft, and other such things, but he never helped... but he felt like helping this lady, for she has lost something equal to what he has lost... And because he had grown tired of living in that dump. The place may have been where he lived for awhile, but he might as well leave before he dies here as well. "..." he looks inside one of his 'chests'. "What are you doing?" She asked. "I'm moving," he says with a smile on his muzzle, " to wherever we end up." She nods her head with a "Hmpf" of approval, "We should go immediately, for it is already getting dark." He looks up, and indeed, it was nearing night-time. He smiles, grabbing the one item that he has always taken with him. A necklace. "What is that?" She said, looking at his necklace. "This is the only thing left of what I lost." Beggar said very stallionly. Lady Bountiful giggles, "So, I guess we are ready to depart?" With a slight sigh, Beggar says, "Do not be so cheerful. After we leave this place, I will go on my own to find someone I once knew..." A slight silence enveloped them, making the atmosphere a bit tenser, Lady figuring out that this is serious. With a nod of approval, Beggar moves slowly down his alleyway, and into his first step of the journey. He steps on an old newspaper, the date being smudged out, along the way... Hoofington Post: Breaking News! At 5:00 am, today, we will remember those we have lost, the people who built this town, and other historical ponies. Right now, however, we will celebrate the anniversary of the death of the unicorn terrorist, Sir Bountiful. This stallion was a confound lunatic, believing that unicorn magic had any reason to be in this town, bringing many unicorns to this town, and trying to make them replace our hard-working, earth ponies in many different kind of jobs. Though nopony knows who killed him, nopony cares either! Unicorns are evil, immoral, and use the power of Tartarus to dispose of anything they see fit. These ponies, excluding a few, are born with the eyes of Hades himself. They, and their flying demons, pegasi, are the main reason of greed and death in this world. They must all be stopped at all costs! Earth Ponies, FOREVER! Spo- (The rest of the paper is submerged in the sink)
Times Gone By. (Part 1)Gold and Lady Bountiful both walk slowly towards a darkened alley. It smelled of mold and urine, had a couple of odd puddles, and was very cramped; but it has a certain charm to it that makes you want to hurl. Lady Bountiful looked absolutely disgusted, looking at Gold with slight anger. "Why are we in this wretched place?" She asks lightly, hoping she wouldn't make Gold angry. Gold just looks at her with a straight face, continuing on with the walk. Before fuming at Gold for dodging the question, he points in front of himself. Shifting the golden bag on top of her, she peers towards where he is pointing. A pile of cloths and pillows of all sorts laid there in disgrace. Rips and tears were apparent on the pile, feathers were falling by the dozen, and each had an individual stain; but what intrigued Lady the most was not the embarrassing state of the cloths and pillows, but what was on top of them. On the rather large pile laid 2 ponies, both pegasi-- a mare and a staillion, who were both sleeping in the middle of the day. Confused, Lady looks more closely and sees a sight of true horror. The stallion pegasus' wings were more than just damaged, as most pegasi get when they are roughed up around here. These wings were clipped and burned. Charcoal black markings cover the stallions perfectly blue feathers and mane; long scars brim his sides, seeming to be defensive wounds; and a weird insignia was placed over his cutie mark. Lady Bountiful is appalled that somepony could do this to another, so she is even more shocked when she sees the mare beside him. The mare is in perfect condition-- not even a scratch on her perfectly purple mane or body, yet the stallion had endured so much. "How--?" Lady says, but stops herself, for asking that would be offensive. Turning towards Gold, he says, with a slightly sorrowful voice, "She is going to be safe... as long as Blue Haven is with her." Lady stares blankly at Gold. Gold just stares off to his left, saying, "It doesn't concern you." he huffs, "It is time to leave this place." He begins to trot away (silently, as to not wake the couple), but Lady quickly says, "Aren't you going to say goodbye?" He continues on his walk, not even stopping for a second. Lady looks at the couple once more, seeing their happiness together... and walks back to join Gold--A little more bounce in her step. She looks at Gold's face, seeing only a slight smile. His eyes catch her watching and the smile disappeared. Annoyed, but knowing how Gold feels, she keeps to herself as they go through the alleyway... The day is bright and sunny... A young stallion walked towards his friend, both of whom are covered in mud, and laughs. They had their first fight over something that they did not even remember. They both sit down onto the mud, their laughs becoming smiles. The young stallion raised his small hoof to block the sun from his eyes, only to see another (younger) stallion walking towards them. The stallion, himself, had a smile upon his face and a pair of misty white towels in his saddlebag. The younger stallion hoofs his friends the towels, cracking up a bit. The other friend looks towards the younger stallion and giggles, her face becoming a little pink. The other stallion just sits beside them... A small scowl--that show his teeth, upon his face. Gold's face takes the form of a scowl upon remembering those days. Lady, being behind him (the gold in her saddlebag is very heavy), doesn't notice. Gold begins to walk a little faster, passing many smaller alleyways as he strides. "What is wrong, pauper?" Lady asks, not wanting to walk faster with the weight. "... Sorry." Gold says, slowing down considerably, "I just remembered something that I wish to not remember." Lady just shrugs and carries on, while Gold considered to go on a linear course. The alleys beside them were clattered with mess, but seemed very clean. Much cleaner than the other alleys, that is. Lady follows Gold as he turns a corner to an odd alleyway... A few hours of seemingly endless walking later... A large light shines from a source to their right, nearly blinding them in this evening darkness. Lady Bountiful jump a bit, but sees Gold is standing still. She does the same. The light grows slightly, but stops. The light changes tint, becoming an ominous grey. Lady Bountiful quivers in slight fear, while Gold stands still. Then, a metallic voice is heard. "Sector 4--Clear." Lady gulps, scared for her life. She finally knows what this thing is. She finally remembers... She is still. Gold starts moving, but notices that Lady is still standing still. He walks towards her, nudging her. No response. He nudges her again. She blinks and smiles in an embarrassed way. Gold smiles, too. Lady's face then becomes a face of pure terror. Her eyes seem to be screaming at Gold, but he doesn't know why. Gold looks behind him, but only sees stars... Author's Note I fixed a few things in the first chapter (Thanks Sypher), so you guys should re-read it if you are lost in any way. I cut this chapter a bit short because I have to take a break. My illness has gotten to the point of random headaches. I am sorry if this chapter was bad.
The Taste of Freedom.Light. Light brighter than anything Gold has ever seen erupts into his eyes. The area around him is wet with morning dew, washing some dirt off of his scruffy coat. The stains from that dirt, though, remained. Gold lays on the ground, surrounded by grass and what appears to be the light of bliss. The pure, unadulterated, bliss he felt at that moment made him feel alive again. He sits up. Looking to his left, he sees a long road leading to nowhere; while on his right, he sees something off in the distance. For good measure, he looks behind him, hoping to find Lady... she wasn't there. He was on his own, just as he planned to in the beginning anyways, but he felt something odd. He felt guilt. He did not protect somepony he could have saved. He was pitiful. His eyes burned with pain, realizing he had been staring at many things without blinking. He blinks a few times. His vision begins to clear. He stands up all the way, popping many joints while doing so. He looks to his right once more, seeing a large dome. He knew what it was. It was the one city allowed to succeed from Equestria. It was home. It was Hell. He stares at the dome, wondering why he was outside and not inside the jail as he thought would happen... He thinks for a long time, blankly staring at the dome. The dome was nearly featureless, looking like a snow globe with nothing inside BUT snow, making it the perfect hiding place for what the place had actually become. This is the place where his life began and ended... And he has despised every moment of this place. He looks leftward, seeing the long road ahead... 'If I am out, then maybe Lady is out,too... She is probably having the time of her life without me, with all that gold, too!' Gold thought, slightly angry. He had trusted her, but like all things inside that dome, she cannot be trusted any longer. *Huff* The heat was getting to him. Sweat was apparent on his forehead. He was not used to this weather. Gold moves down the road slowly, trying to cool down a bit by flapping his hoof towards his face. He felt so hot, but why? Gold looks at himself, seeing something odd... A vest. a blue vest, with many pockets, was on him. It seemed to be stitched horribly, for the thing had many small holes on it. Gold, curious, checks the pockets... nothing. "Ah well." He puffed to himself, now knowing why he was so hot. Gold has always hated the real sun, for it was a much hotter mistress than the multi-colored sun of the Dome... He bangs his head. He has finally gotten away from the place and NOW he wants to complain about the real world? He grins slightly. "I have gotten away..." He stands up on his hindlegs, " I am FREE!" He says it many times until he became tired. He laughed. He finally got what he wanted--freedom. He looks down the left side road, grinning gleefully, "Look out world..." he begins to run, "here I come!" He began to sprint, leaving dust behind him. He ran and ran, the day turning to night and the hot sun replaced with the cooling, beautiful, moon. He smiles at the moon and saw something odd. It was different. There was no pony-shaped mark on the moon like he had remembered from his childhood. That could only mean... She was back. She must be back and armed to the teeth with an army. Gold wonders if this could be true, if this could hurt his chances at a good life, and if it can be fixed if so. During his thinking, he noticed, he had stopped sprinting. In act, he was huffing a lot. *Huff huff* He looks leftwards, seeing a thin area of trees. He believes it may have food in it. He walks towards the trees, seeing small apples growing on them, and gags. Apples were his most hated food, after all, because they had no nutritional or taste value at all. They were bland. He moves past the apple trees, hearing small sounds in the small forest in front of him. He began to notice the distinct sounds, each with their own tone, to decide which one was the weakest. He had done this many times before, when he was younger, but he still had a knack for it. *Sc-re-ech* went a critter around him somewhere. He moves closer the the sound, seeming to come from his left, and listens. *Scr-cough-ee* He looks towards the sound, coming from the inside of a small, yellowish-green bush under a big tree. Using his usual stealth, he comes closer to the bush, making sure not even a TWIG was below his foot. He edges closer and closer, beginning to see something. Fluffy and white, a creature he hasn't seen for awhile comes out of the bush in front of him. A bunny. The bunny looked very young, possibly just matured, and stared into the eyes of its predator. The eyes looked pale and glaringly bright, as if it has accepted its fate. The bunny is frozen, but not in fear. Its foot was injured severely, possibly from jumping from a high up place; and it tried, but failed, to move away. It was too injured and weak to move any longer. Gold stares at the bunny. "I am sorry." He says, opening his jaw. His fangs jut out of his normal teeth, slightly hurting himself, and he continues to look at the living, breathing creature. He sheds a small tear for the pure being, and attacks. The taste is riddled with the dreaded taste of fear, loneliness, and sadness. Since the bunny was so pure-hearted, Gold saw the bunny's entire life before his very eyes as he ate it. He saw its mother being mauled to death before it. He saw the pain of his father disappearing after trekking through the woods. He felt the agony of being alone for several years. He felt the hatred of ponies, for it is they who the universe gave power. He felt the acceptance of death... And the pain of causing it. Gold shed tears eating his meal. Savoring every last morsel of the cute being, he began to finish up his meal. ... He stood fully up, cleaning himself off with a leaf. He frowned, full. He picked up a twig, stabbing it through the ground--Marking the grave of the bunny. And with that act of eating fulfilled, he went back onto the road, continuing on his (slightly) merry way... He saw something far off into the distance, blocking the view of the glorious moon. Large rectangular things in the distance cut light from his vision. He smiled. He knew fully well what it was. A city. He ran to it, not bothering to stop for one second. The vest scratching his back as he went... Lady awakened to complete darkness. She , in fear, lights up her horn. She see shelves, each aligned with jars. She inspects the jars. She sees a vague red liquid in them and screams. She scrambles behind her, seeing only a chair. "Sit." A voice, bouncing off the walls in echos, said. She quivered. "Sit." The voice repeated. She did as told and sits on the chair. The chair was hard, pale, and cold. Lady has tears in her eyes, with full knowledge about what was to follow. A large arm, made of metal, comes from the ceiling, descending in at a fast pace. The arm holds a ring, which is placed onto Lady's horn in a quick swipe. Lady screeches, her magic being sucked from her very core. Arms jut from the sides of the chair, restraining Lady by grabbing her body and pulling it down. A second arm comes from the ceiling, holding a giant syringe... Before Lady passes out from the pain, she screams, "Curse you, Gold!" *Speuluch*
A Nice Night...Chapter 4: A Nice Night... Over the horizon lies the city or town Gold is running to, but he isn't looking at the town right now. He is looking at the sky. Clouds, heavy with rain, are approaching--inching ever closer to Gold's general area. He scoffs a bit, quite angry that his first night free would be covering the stars, but nonetheless... He was free, after all. He smiles, slightly skipping to the town now, willing to enjoy his night. He looks toward the city again. it is much clearer than before, so he is able to make out houses and tall stores. He may not remember his age, but he feels like a small foal given a piece of candy. Beyond that horizon possibly held more than freedom... He starts running very quickly. ...It could hold what he truly desires. He starts sprinting, the blue vest scratching his back. He stops, feeling tired and burnt a bit from the vest. He goes to look at it, but sees something odd. His fur was different, somehow. He nudged at his fur, seeing what was wrong, and felt its hard texture... "What?" Gold said, scared a bit. He felt a sharp pain in his back, so he goes to take off the vest to see what is wrong, but sees that the coat was red for some reason... Gold's eyes open up, his body trembling. He takes off the coat, seeing a small hole in his back... He screams and gets up to run. His eyes dart around, his vision becoming very hazy. Due to fear, he runs without seeing his surroundings and smacks straight into a tree. He feels woozy. The pain from his back seemed to fade a bit, so he looks where the hole is... Only to see it is not there. He stares at the spot, knowing he had seen it. He KNEW he had seen a hole going through him. He started breathing a bit slower. "Probably a delusion..." He says, walking back onto the road after fixing up his attire. He looks to where he left the coat and sees that... it... is still red. His eyes open largely. He begins to breath much quicker, wondering what this means. He looks towards the city. "Maybe," he begins, "there is a doctor or somepony there to help..." Just like the past few hours, he runs towards the city--getting much closer each minute. After an hour or so of running, Gold arrives at the gates of the town. The gate is new and shiny, Gold seeing somepony in the reflection of it. He turns around, wondering who was behind him, only to find no one. He shrugs and enters the town, still hoping his delusions will not harass him too much. He turns his head in front of him again, seeing the lightly lit street before him. As it was around midnight, everypony was probably asleep by now. He smiles, for he did not know how to explain the delusions he had been seeing to any one who asked. He looks around, turning his head left and right, hoping to see the doctor or hospital of this town. He sees many buildings on his left, most likely homes; while he sees smaller buildings on his right. He investigates the right hoof side. He sees an indoor market, which would be good if it wasn't closed; a tall, yet skinny, office building; many small stores of different kinds; and another street. Figuring that this was where the doctor's office is most likely to be, he walks towards the street. Pain. He felt a large jolt in his back, making him gag. He felt like something was trying to break through his body--every muscle in his very being quivering on the intersection of the street. he tries to scream, but his throat swelled. He couldn't breathe. He gagged harder, his spasms becoming worse. He looked up, only to see the moon through his delusional eyes, seeing a large crater on the moon... smiling. He collapses, breathing in hard. The pain halts, but the echo of it remained on his bones and mind. He felt very different, but in this light, he saw nothing different about him. He did feel lighter, though. Using the rest of his energy, he screams, "Doctor!" Falling to the ground, his head clonks the stone hard. Knocking him into deep slumber... He wakes up to the sound of movement. He opens his eyes, but they are covered by some fabric, which also covers his ears, muffling the surrounding noise. He tried to lift his hooves to his face, only to find that they were above his head. He attempted to speak, but only felt a large piece of wood blocking his jaw's movement. Frustrated and scared, he begins to listen around him, knowing squirming may make it worse. "Burn the c--Burn Him!" Is all he was able to hear before having the wind knocked out of him by a pony beside him. "So, you thought you could come to our city--and try to--" the pony beside him said in a deep voice, presumably male. Gold shakes his head in fear, but to no avail. the pony strikes him again. The pony begins to laugh. "Mares and Gent--colts, we shall now begin the punishment!" Shuffling of more hooves is heard around Gold. many ponies begin to strike Gold over and over, hearing his own bones crack and possibly shatter. the fabric on his face becomes loose, and falls off. A collective gasp from the crowd in front of Gold is heard. "That is not a changeling!" yelled a mare. The ponies kicking Gold stopped for a moment. "What do you mean? He has fangs, don't he?" said the pony beside Gold, which Gold notices, through his hazy vision, is a light blue, old, stallion. He looks to Gold and gasps as well. "Get him off of this thing!" The stallion yells. The other ponies quickly follow suit and begin to lower Gold. Tears of fear and pain running down his bruised cheeks. The log is removed and his hooves are untangled from the 'Hangponies Noose' stand. Gold lays onto the ground, hearing pleas for apologies as he faints once more. The dome is being shined by a dozen slave-pegasi as the gate opens... A dark-blue colored mare exits the open gate, her horn seeming cracked and torn. She is wearing a blue vest as she leaves, taking out a small vial from her left pocket. She stares at it, having no idea what it does, and puts it back. From her right pocket, she retrieves a small, gold, letter. She re-reads the letter once more, so she wouldn't miss one thing from her objectives. Dear Agent-B, You have been chosen to hunt down a runner. He has betrayed my trust one too many times and must be stopped. But, be warned, for he is ruthless. Because we never found a way to train you, please hunt down these Class C runners before you take on a class B. Return once you have gotten at least five of them. Contract One-Class C | Payment: Ten-thousand bits | Name: Lock Breaker | Skill Level: 6/20 | Last Seen: Canterlot Square, wearing a grey hat and dyed gray coat. She stops reading there, frowning a bit. She begins trotting, her horn glowing brightly. "I will get you for this, Gold..." And she disappears from sight.
So Fun...Chapter 5: So Fun... Beep... Beep... Darkness. An empty void, devoid of any form of substance whatsoever. Time and space are non-existent here, and as such, nothing is ever born nor dies. Color and light are abundant, for some inexplicable reason, and light seems to radiate from the ground itself. Beep... But just because this world is dead, doesn't mean nothing is alive in it. Beings from separate worlds are not allowed into this one without something special... By an unnaturally smooth rock lies a silhouette of a pony. The form is pure black, the eyes being replaced by a white ambiance, and it lays there in pain. A sound reverberates around it, seeming to lessen the pain. Beep... The shape moves its head upwards, looking into the pitch-black sky. As it looked, something odd happens in the sky. A hole. A blinding light emits from the hole, illuminating the ground below. Through the hole, the form sees a sort of room, itself pure white, and begins to question what it is. Beep... Beep... The form moves upwards all the way, feeling less pain as it went. A second hole opens up near the first one. The area of the hole is the same as the first, meaning something must be happening. The form leaps from its position, the body seeming to stretch over the distance. Beep... Beep... Be- Just before the form makes it all the way into the first hole, the hole shuts. The form is split in half, entering this new world it must explore... *Gasp!*, Gold wakes up on a soft bed, his eyes opening quickly. His eyes jutted around the area, only seeing an odd green tint. He blinks, breathing heavily. The tint remains, so Gold quickly moves his hooves to his eyes to see if anything was blocking them. There was nothing. He blinks once more, beginning to tear up a bit.When he opened his eyes, he saw everything, but something was largely off. everything was a bit GREENER. He looks at his fur, seeing an odd green color as well... but much darker than anything around him. He then noticed the incredible ringing in his ears, which begin to deafen him. 'Help!" He calls, feeling his blood run down his ears. He watches as a green... no, green-tinted stallion with a yellowish hat come to him. The pony, who Gold believed was a doctor, was saying things to Gold, but he could not hear them. Gold just began to shake his head up and down in pain, grasping his head. He felt a prick in his side, then he felt nothing. Gold collapses, in bliss, onto his pillow. ... *Gasp!*, Gold wakes up on a soft bed, his eyes opening quickly again. He attempts to raise his body upwards. His chest softly meets a small hood, halting his attempt. He opens his eyes once more, but to his dismay, it is tinted green once more... Except, only the pony beside him is tinted green. The tint did not only make the pony green, but moved in odd ways. It was like green water in a circular river... Gold was mesmerized, shocked at the beauty of the water. He then realized he was staring at this pony, and blinked... The tint was gone. All that remained was a young gray mare, a nurse cap on her head, who was staring at Gold with kind eyes. Gold opened his mouth, ready to speak, but only coughed up something nasty. He covered his mouth with his forehoof, as to avoid anything going anywhere. He stopped coughing soon after, and stared at his hoof. It was covered in some blood, sure, but there was something else. It was clean. The layer of brown dirt had been removed, and all that remained was a dark gray coat. His coat. He began to cry, snot clogging his nose runs down, and he covered his face with his hooves. He was injured in some odd ways, sure, but he is free once more. He is clean, free, and safe... safe... He looked at the gray mare once more, staring at her face more focused than before, and felt a click in his mind. "Your town is the one... " He began to cough once more, tears becoming sour instead of sweet. The gray pony looked at Gold and said, "We-- We are all so very, very sorry for what we had done to you... but..." She coughed a bit, "Why do you have fangs?" His throat clear from all that coughing, Gold looked back at the nurse, frowning, "That... That is because of my race." The nurse looked at Gold questioningly. "Your... race?" She asked, her eyes very confused. "Yes, but I will not tell any more than that..." Gold confirmed with a look that put some fear into the mare. Gold began to shuffle, feeling a lot better than before, and found that he was wearing some form of robe. The nurse tried to calm him down with some words, but Gold was oblivious to them and began to exit the bed. Half-way off, Gold asked one thing. The nurse answered his question and Gold quickly left the room. Seeing a bathroom down the hall, which was much whiter and cleaner than his room, he trotted to it... After washing off, Gold left the restroom, heading for the entrance to the building. He trudged down stairs, seeing nopony throughout this journey, and began to hum. He smiled when he saw the entrance, but stopped before exiting. He forgot to remove the coat. He quickly removes it and drops it over a sleeping pony behind the counter of the entrance. He then ran through the door and out into the night... And straight into another pony. The sound of the two's heads colliding was rather silent, even on the silent street. Gold quickly felt the sting of pain, but repeated small 'sorry's to the other pony. He looked at the other pony and is surprised that he can see her. Though it is completely black outside (No lanterns or anything), he was able to see, in clear detail, the mares individual hairs in her fur, but in a greenish tint. He is so shocked that he just freezes in front of her. She pokes at him. Gold moves his head upwards, seeing the mare's face. He frowned very quickly. Happily, she couldn't see the frown, so Gold just says something in a slightly deeper voice, "I am sorry ma'am, so very sorry, are you alright?" She looked at Gold's face with a smile, "Yes." Gold quickly got up and said, "I am sorry, but I have to get going." And then he quickly trotted down the street... Amazed at how illuminated it was by the odd green tint in his eyes... Agent B was trotting into an odd folk town, which couldn't even afford street lanterns of all things, when she saw her newest target. This one was requested directly from HQ after she captured the few on her list, meaning this is her biggest hit yet. She was after Headden Dis Guise, an escapee of the dome who seemed to be interested in disguises. Though he is a stallion, his last known location was in this town... dressed as a nurse. Not only that, but the ponies (and even the Dome Spy) believed him to be a female. The description of him went like, 'A grayish stallion, who has starved himself for a long time, has been able to become skinny enough to seems as if he was a mare. He has taken the occupation of a nurse, probably hoping that I, Dome Spy, would never catch him, but HAH!' and then it just began to rant in some odd language. She began to trot quickly to the large clinic where the stallion should be, nearly tripping of stones the whole way. She spots the clinic, seeing lights in it, and runs straight for the entrance... Straight into somepony. They began to have the awkward 'I'm sorry!' conversation and she watches as the odd stallion runs off... seeing he was gray. She almost ran after him, but saw, in the light of the clinic, a gray nurse waking up a pony behind the counter. Agent B smiles, taking out her staff... The screams of the pony echo through the clinic, while the sleeping one was knocked unconscious...
