"I forgive you."
I heard the vicious sound of the circular saw being turned on. I was not even surprised. Jeff Denlon was not the kind of man who learned things easily. Like most of us humans, he had a common failure: the utter feeling of vengeance. The kind of vengeance that effectively blindfolds a human mind so severely that rational thinking is almost impossible. In fact, I didn't expect Amanda to refuse to let go Lynn. I was even shocked when she shot her in the belly. Failed as if she was, I didn't expect any of that from her. Looks like I failed my own test in the end. I knew my time was running out, and I so desperately wanted to choose a successor that I failed to see her flaws for a long time, even though Mark had warned me. Eventually I realized her still fragile nature and murderous tendencies, but too late. The moment she shot Lynn I knew that my game was over. Jeff was going to kill me, and her wife as well, because of the game I set up. I readied up the little cassette player in my hand just the moment he sliced my throat. Funny thing is, you don't die the very moment your throat is sliced open. I still had the power to push the Play button. As my previously recorded monologue went on, I lost consciousness step by step because of the blood loss. My field of vision narrowed to a tunnel, with an inviting white light at the other end. Then suddenly, the bright white light took it over all.
"Yes! I did it!" Twilight Sparkle was over-excited with joy as her new, improved summoning spell worked. "I managed to summon an alien being from another reality! Not even Star Swirl the Bearded had accomplished that!"
She looked over the being laying on its back on the marble floor of the workroom of her Friendship Castle. It had two very large rear legs and two smaller front legs, with five small and thin appendages similar to that of Iron Will, the Minotaur. Its rear legs were covered in shoes. It appeared to have no fur on its body, except its head, where there was greyish hair, but it didn't resemble a pony's mane. Its body was covered in strange clothing. Its rear legs were covered in something similar to pants, while its upper body was covered in a sweatshirt not fit to pony use and its color slightly resembling the mane and tail of Applejack. If its face was anything to go by, it appeared to be a he, and it appeared to be at least middle-aged. Its head was nothing similar to any animal of the planet Equis. Its build slightly resembled a minotaur, but even minotaurs have bigger eyes than it appeared to have, not to mention the lack of horns. The other species to compare with was the monkey, though monkeys had fur almost all over their bodies, just like any other mammals of Equis.
After a few more minutes of waiting, it opened its eyes and sat up.
"Where am I? I have never thought afterlife would exist". He mumbled to himself, barely audible to Twilight.
"Hi there. I am Twilight Sparkle. Who are you?"
"My name is John."
"John? What an unusual name."
"That coming from a purple winged unicorn by the name Twilight Sparkle. Back on Earth, John is a very common name. Is this the place where dead people live after their death?"
"What is people?"
"People, humans, persons. Humans like me."
"What is human?
"Human is the name of our species. Am I the first human to appear here?"
"Um... Yes."
"So, if I am the first to appear here, I must ask: What is this place exactly?"
"You are on Planet Equis, in the Kingdom of Equestria."
"Well, that explains a lot. On Earth, we have horses and ponies similar to you, but they cannot talk. In the classification of organical lifeforms, Equus is a group of horselike creatures like horses, ponies, zebras and donkeys. Though, back on Earth, horses don't have neither horns, nor such vivid coat colors. In fact, I must ask: are you a horse, or a pony?"
"I am a pony. We only have horses in the Everfree Forest, one of the most dangerous places of Equestria. They are very rare, very big, even bigger than Princess Celestia herself, very strong, and very feral. While they do not threaten ponies in general, they act violently when somepony is trespassing their territory. They are herbivores, just like us ponies, but they are not sentient, and they have no magic, nor flying abilities."
"Well, that is a lot to take in. Did you just say magic?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Well, back on earth, we don't have magic. Truth be said, this whole place looks like something taken out from a fairytale of Earth. Fairytale for girls, to be specific. Magic, unicorns, girlish colored cartoon ponies... I guess you have princesses and castles also."
"...Erm... Yes, we have." (I'm not sure I should tell him that I am actually a princess. I expected him to react far more extremely, though he seems to adapt very fast and very well. I can't even imagine where he is from, considering the bare concept of magic is surprising to him.) "You don't have any magic at your world?"
"No. Except the miraculous complexity of the human mind. But right now I have some very serious questions and I'd like to have proper answers."
"Go ahead."
"Last thing I remember that my throat was sliced open, and I was bleeding to death. I am pretty sure I am dead now, and this may be the afterlife. How come there are no other humans here?"
"Well... that's not exactly what happened. Yes, you were dying. I was testing my new summoning spell, and it accidentally locked on you, and dragged you here through a portal before you could die."
"I should have bled to death here then. How come my throat is intact, not to mention I have the bandage on my head because of a recent brain surgery, but", he carefully removed his bandage to examine it, "no blood?"
"Upon entering Equestria, a healing spell was cast on you. Though this is the first succesful summoning in Equestrian history, it looks like if an alien being is summoned to planet Equis then it gets its body restructured so its injuries disappear. Mind if I ask you something personal?"
"Go ahead."
"Why were all of you severely injured in that room? Did some monstrosity attack you or you did this to each other?"
There. The question I feared the most. Though I have learned my lesson. I failed my own game. No more games, no more deaths on my conscience. Especially not here. I know one individual is nothing to go by pattern, but if the majority of the ponies are like Twilight, then I don't even deserve to be among them. In fact, it would be the best for them if I disappeared to nothingness this instant. No need to bring and spread the epidemic of human violence and death in a wonderful fairytale world like this. Amanda herself declared that she was a murderer. Thinking it over, I am nothing but a murderer too. My own words jump to my mind and bite heavily at my conscience. "If you're good at anticipating the human mind, it leaves nothing to chance". Considering this, I should have known that almost all of my subjects would die, but I still placed them in my traps. Even if survival was possible, it wouldn't have come without a huge and scary sacrifice, one that most people are not up to.
"We did it to each other. Now listen Twilight. I am not a good person. I have done terrible things in my life, things that I am fairly sure no inhabitant of this world could ever imagine. I should be dead by now for what I have done. You either offer me death or I must perform it myself when I gather the strength to do it."
"Or... I could send a letter to Princesses Celestia and Luna. Truth is, I must inform them, because this is the first occasion a summoning spell has ever worked, and as rulers of Equestria, they must be informed. And by chance, they could offer you a home and job so that you could settle down. No matter what you have done in your world, you seem to have regretted it, and you seem to be a consciencious person. I bet the Princesses would accept you with open hooves."
Maybe she was right. After all, I have already failed suicide once. Truth is, my failed suicide attempt did no use to me, nor those around me. It alienated me from my wife. It did not bring me back my unborn son, nor did erase the memory of him. It only devolved me into becoming a serial killer. In the end, I broke those around me, those spared were very few. And I'm sick of hurting. Sick of thinking it's all I do. Sick of it all. I remember saying "sick of it all" then severely cutting a police officer in the neck. But no. I will not harm these ponies. Neither physically, nor emotionally. That's why I must face the princesses. I don't want Twilight to feel sad. Even if she doesn't know me. Even if she thinks of me far better than I deserve to be.