The guards were dismissed shortly after they had delivered me to the ruler. They seemed to quickly leave the area, as if they were anxious to leave, or even scared of the Princess. I suddenly realized something. I should probably be scared too.

I looked at the white pony again, and I made eye contact with her. She narrowed her eyes again, and then spoke. The voice itself... well, I couldn't really hear the tone, per se, but there was something there betraying the mind of a... mother..? Something that would go to extreme lengths to protect that which it held dear.

"Who. In. Equestria. Do. You. Think. You. Are?" The voice was dangerously low. This was not going to end well... And on that note, my name is technically classified information. But to deny this creature information would probably get me killed... Time to play the peacemaker.

"Ma'am, I'm Virus." My call-sign wasn't exactly classified. "And I'm a billion year old creature fresh out of suspended animation." She probably wouldn't know what a cryo tube is.

She seemed slightly put off by the billion year old thing, but otherwise, she still seemed just as mad. Maybe I'd just be deep-fried, not vaporized.

"And what, Virus, gives you the right to attack helpless ponies as you see fit?" I had a feeling that whatever I said would make me guilty.

"My fight-or-flight response. They scared me. I reacted like I was taught. I hit the one who was above me touching my face, and then hid behind the pod." Hey, it's not my fault they spooked a killer. "I might have overreacted, but it was justified at the time. And then that one over there-" I pointed at the purple unicorn next to her, "- tried to shoot me with some sort of energy blast. I shot back." I'm totally telling the truth, but if the big horse thing tries something... Let's see how mag-rifle round work against these things...

Her face seemed to calm, ever so slightly, and then she looked at the unicorn with a sideways glance. Looking back to me, she then spoke again. "Virus, what a distasteful name. So you reacted in perceived self-defense? I technically can't punish you for anything other than threatening... and even then, it's not worth it. Are you a violent being? I know but a little on your species."

Are we violent? Let's see, war since the beginning of the Stone Age, and never stopping for longer than a few years. "No, I'm not a violent being." Assassination is not fighting. Fighting implies a two-sided conflict. Assassination is not really violent... from my point of view.

"So what exactly happened to your species, that led you to put yourself in suspended animation?"

Hmm... "A... cataclysm on our world. We destroyed the surface of the planet with weapons so powerful they could vaporize entire cities, emit pressure waves that crossed the globe, and blocked out the sun with the giant clouds of ash and dust they created. The world fell into eternal winter; radioactive dust and nuclear fallout covered the globe. I locked myself away, hoping to survive and be awoken shortly after. It obviously didn't work." I shrugged to her, and she stood there for a moment.

"Are... are you lying to me? You just said you are not violent." She seemed disbelieving still.

"I'm not lying... completely. I'm an assassin. I was sponsored by my country to kill people. Now, don't get me wrong. I could easily kill someone, but I never have and never will for no reason. Back then, I was killing people who were considered 'evil', people who oppressed their subjects, persecuted others, and had no hope for redemption."

Her eyes were wide, and her jaw seemed to lower a little, aghast at my profession. A moment passed, and she regained some of her composure. "You're... you're a monster... You... killed... other people as a job? You're no better than those you killed." She still seemed too shocked to respond in any other manner.

That hurt. It really did. For a man to be called a monster for doing what his country asked of him, for doing what was right... I exhaled sharply. My voice grew quiet and remorseful. "Do you think I enjoy ending men's lives? Do you think I'd put a hole in a person, a fellow human being, just because I felt like it? It was my job, my duty, and my obligation as a man to do what I did. If there was another way, do you think I'd resort to killing?" I sighed. "What do you know of war anyways? My race... since the beginning of time, since we discovered that sharp stone can cut flesh, we have been in conflict with each other. Why? Well, it's because of our nature. We were hunters, predators, feared by all creatures. We disagreed, and those disagreements turned to arguments. From there, it escalated into fighting and war. Not a single age in our history was spent in complete peace. All that was... we paid for...I paid for... heavily."

Just as I spoke, my mind decided to betray me. My thoughts began to drift on home, my four billion year-old planet, and all that I left behind. My friends, my family...

"Virus. Are you okay?" Suddenly, she cares. Damn this peace, damn it all to hell.

"Yeah. Just thinking about... prices..." Her face softened. She seemed to understand something about my loss. Now that I notice it, I think she was just kinda spooked about the pony being hurt. I sighed again.

I really wasn't feeling up to talking anymore. Everyone, to a certain extent, knows how it's like to lose a family member. Now, imagine that feeling thousandfold. I just realized, and the feeling had finally sunk into my brain, that I had lost everything I held dear, except my uniform, my rifle, and the majority of my sanity. I subconsciously dropped my hand into my pocket.

The princess seemed to notice this, and as her horn glowed a pale gold, an aura of the same color appeared around my hand, now closed on a slip of paper. Gently, like a mother raising her child's hand, the aura tugged on my hand, raising it out of the pocket with the slip of paper still in it. I looked her in the eyes, and an understanding passed between us. What she was about to see... it was something very dear to me.

My hand uncurled, out of my own free will, and the aura picked the slip of paper up. Raising it to her eyes, the Princess stared at it for a moment, and then turned to me, pity in her eyes, a sad smile on her face. Without a word, she placed the slip back in my open hand, and I replaced it in its pocket.

Feeling a slight bit of wetness rolling down my cheek, I turned back to the white pony, hardening myself against my own loss.

"I hope you understand just what I've lost. Four billions years... and more..." I sighed.

She nodded. "I understand. And I also believe that you deserve a rest. Please, meet us once more in the dining hall for dinner. If you would like, I can have the guards escort you to a guest room in the palace?" She really sounded even more like my mother...

Brushing away a second tear, I responded. "Yes. I-I would like that." My voice cracked once.

She stood up, the purple unicorn next to her somewhat confused, and called out. A pair of guards entered the doors, as if waiting for her call, which they probably were, and approached me. Without a word, I followed them out of the room.

Author's Note

I hate myself for this chapter. It feels so... off. But it also feels necessary. I'm probably going to end up redoing this...
Did I get Tia okay Duvagr?

EDITED AND REPUBLISHED!