*CLICK* “Damn,” I muttered and pulled the gun away from my head. I glanced at the clock; it was 12:05 AM, December 22, 2012. “So much for it being the end of the world.” I said to myself and spun the chamber of the revolver. My great grandpa had given me it before he died and I had it restored.
I was alone in the house; everyone had gone out to celebrate the ‘End of the World’. My parents went to go gamble while my sister went to party with her friends and drink. I sighed, wondering what friends were like. Sure I’ve had ‘friends’ in the past, but they all turned out to be liars and only used me till they grew tired of me and spit me out. Lately, I’ve become good friends with a few people, but even then, they couldn’t help me all the time. What’s the point in bothering them with my problems anyway; they would just use it to make fun of me.
So I sat on my bed, watching the final Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood episode, glancing at the suicide note next to me.
“There’s no such thing as a painless lesson. They just don’t exist. Sacrifices are necessary. You can’t gain anything without losing something first although if you can endure that pain and walk away from it, you’ll find that you now have a heart strong enough to overcome any obstacle. Yeah, a heart made fullmetal.” Ed said the final line as the episode ended with a picture of the main cast with the credits soon starting to roll.
“Ha, trust me Ed, I know.” I said and held the gun to my temple once more. I primed it and felt the cold chill of steel push against my skin. I had a feeling that after this time, I wouldn’t need to spin the chamber. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before pulling the trigger.
--**--
I opened my eyes, darkness my only friend as I floated around like a bird gliding on an updraft. “Well, looks like it worked.” I said, my voice echoed, distorted. I looked around, not seeing anything. “Look, I know I wasn’t perfect but sending me to hell is a bit much.” I said to no one. Suddenly I saw a faint light flash off in the distance. I squinted at it, the faint light pulsing in time with my heart. I headed there, having nothing else to do.
As I floated closer, I heard music, but not the church choir music I was expecting. I started hearing…Warrant?
{Click the link, don’t wanna get in trouble with FiMFic’s new lyric rules}
“Okay ha-ha, real funny.” I nervously muttered and hesitantly touched the light. It shimmered briefly before a door materialized, replacing the light. I blinked, startled as I stared at the marble white door. I grabbed the golden handle and paused for a moment. I sighed and opened it.
The room seemed to be in limbo, the backdrop switching from the darkness of space to the brightness of a summer morning. A narrow pathway of marble led to a floating platform, darkness and light orbiting it. I took a step forward, torches blazed to life, one after another. I gulped and continued forward and mist seemed to pour from nowhere, the torches dancing light off it.
I stopped as a black labrador retriever appeared out of the mist, its black eyes staring at me. I took a hesitant step back and it barked, the noise echoing endlessly. “N-nice doggy…” I muttered.
It glared at me when something brushed up against my leg. The hair on the back of my neck stood up and I quickly jumped back; a weasel stood there and watched me, its beady eyes staring at me. The blinding light dimmed and vanished, plunging the room into darkness, save for the torches. Stars twinkled into existence, the torches danced to each new one.
“It’s a polecat.” A voice said in the dim torchlight.
I whirled around, my eyes darting around and tried to find the source of the voice. The torches dimmed for a moment as I heard someone walk towards me. The mist parted and a woman stood there.
She was beautiful, with long blonde hair that shone even in the dim light. She was unnaturally pale, standing out in the gloom as the mist parted around her. Her gown seemed to flow from her, just appearing and billowed slightly, a faint breeze coming from somewhere. Her eyes were focused on me, a neutral expression on her face.
I gaped at her, my mouth wide open for a few moments before I finally found my voice. “A… a what?”
“Gale hates being called a weasel, she is a polecat.” She said simply.
“Err… alright. Wh-where am I?”
She looked around for a moment. “That’s a good question, where do you think we are?”
“I haven’t the faintest clue…” She raised an eyebrow and studied me in silence. “I mean… it looks like something from Ancient Greece.”
Pillars arose from the mist, the marble glinting of the torches. Statues followed the pillars along with a few fountains. The woman looked around, a faint smile on her face as she walked up to the statues, some turning into water fountains, the others shining. “Interesting…” She murmured, turning back to gaze at me. “Very few people can form anything more than a bed.”
“What do you mean? Where are we? Who are you?”
“So many questions, so many options… so many choices.” She said as the dog barked again. “Hush now, we don’t have that much time.”
“Time?”
She nodded. “Yes, we don’t have much of it or at least you don’t.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Well that’s quite obvious,” she said walking over to the dog and scratched it behind its ear. “You need to make a choice.”
“For what? Why?”
She looked at me impassively, her gaze sizing me up. “You killed yourself,” she said bluntly and I nodded. “Therefore, you have a choice. You can either move on and deal with your decision or try again...”
“What do you mean? Try again for what?”
“Life.”
I could feel my heart beating faster. “Why? Why would I choose to live again when I just killed myself?”
“Because it’s your choice.”
“My choice?”
Her hair billowed behind her as the mist thickened. “Yes, your choice. Let me be honest with you Leon, we weren’t and aren’t ready for you. We didn’t expect you to kill yourself. Therefore, it was decided you get a choice to try again.”
A shiver trailed down my spine and I gulped. “Ready? Ready for what?”
She sighed. “Charon won’t be pleased with unannounced guests…” She murmured, gazing off into the darkness.
“Charon?”
She ignored my question as the polecat, Gale, walked over to her and meowed. “Yes, yes I know.” She turned to me. “All will be explained in due time, but the point of the matter is thus; we were not prepared for you so you have the option to go beyond the veil or you can live again.”
“That’s it? Those are my only two options?”
She laughed, a dry humorless laugh. “Be glad you have options… most don’t.”
“I really don’t understand...”
She sighed, a hand rose and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’ve already explained it twice. Because you killed yourself, we are unprepared for your soul; it also helps what you did in your life.”
I blinked and scratched my head. “What I did? I didn’t do anything.”
“No?” she asked quizzically and waved her hand. A mirror shimmered to life before falling into her outstretched hand. She held it out and I tentatively took it and stared at the reflection, my green eyes twinkling for a moment.
It flashed for a moment before it showed me surrounded by three boys, the trio relentlessly pummeling me as I slid to the ground, bloody and battered. My friend Daniel was doing his best to get them off me and was getting punched off as well. It flickered again and showed me standing in front of a blonde girl, Ashley, and trying to console her as a fist landed in my back. I groaned and sank to my knees and she bent down to make sure I was alright.
“The mirror is special, some call it the ‘Mirror of Truth’. I’d like to think it shows certain parts of your life where you put yourself in harm’s way to help someone else out.”
“But… those were my friends.”
“Yes, but not everyone would do what you did.” She paused and Gale climbed up and rested on her shoulders. The woman patted the cat and it yawned before its eyes rested on me. “Humans are an interesting breed, Leon, and just because society teaches you to do something, not everyone agrees with it.” She said, watching my reaction.
I was silent, the mirror still showing me flashes, memories. My thumb mindlessly rubbed against the gleaming surface, my brow furrowed. “So… you’re saying I can live again?”
“Yes.”
“But what if I don’t want to?”
“Then you go into the veil.”
“What’s that?”
She got a faraway look in her eyes, the blackness vanishing for a moment. “It’s the final barrier that protects this realm… A most ancient creation but most important. If broken, could be the end of the universe.”
“What will happen if I go through it?”
Her eyes focused again, almost drawing me into them. “You die and cease to exist.”
I gulped, a drop of sweat trailing down my back. “Why?”
“Hm?”
“Why me? What is all this? Who are you?!”
Her eyes glowed again, a bright golden light. “I am a mere messenger; the goddess of crossroads and decisions. The holder of keys and the bringer of light. That is all you need to know mortal. For why, well… that’s something you’ll have to decide for yourself.” She said, the mist growing higher and higher. The dog and cat disappeared and suddenly it was day, the night gone. She walked deeper into the room and picked up two torches. The wall they were inhabiting turned into a doorway and the torches turned into keys. She held one in each hand and beckoned me closer.
I hesitantly walked forward and stood before her. “Here is your choice Leon,” she held up the key in her left hand, “this key will lead you to the veil and you’ll forever drift. Asleep, nonexistent and your consciousness will slowly fade.” She held up her right hand. “And this one will give you another life, another try at mending your soul. Be forewarned however, that it will not be Earth. Your time there is forever over.” She stopped and stared into my eyes, my heart skipping a beat. “Be warned however, if you die again, you will go beyond the veil. This is your one… and only redo.”
I stared at her before looking at the keys, each one the same as the other. They were dull copper, the light dancing off them. I licked my lips nervously and bit the inside of my cheek. “And… what is the other life? Is it worth going through all the pain again?”
“That is up to you, I cannot make the choice for you. All I can do is offer.” She said neutrally.
I paused, my hand going for the left key. I’ve been through enough… I just want to rest. My fingers were mere centimeters when I heard a voice.
Leon…
Something was calling me towards the other key. I didn’t know what, but it was calling my name. I looked at her again but she was impassive, watching me with glowing golden eyes. I sighed and grabbed the right key. At least it can’t be bad as the last time… and besides, that voice… it sounds so familiar… I thought as I stared at the key.
“Your choice has been made.” She said, the other key vanishing. “All you have to do is use the key to open the door and your new journey awaits.” She moved out of the way, Gale and the dog back, sitting on opposite sides of her.
I walked towards the door and put the key in the slot. I turned it and heard a loud click before I grabbed the handle and turned. The door opened, the joints creaking in protests. Nothing was there save a white void. I took a step forward and stopped, turning to look at her.
“But you never told me who you are.”
She smiled. “I’m simply a messenger, who is looking forward to watching you. Goodbye Leon.”
I nodded and walked through the door.
--**--
Wind whistled passed me as I looked around; I was falling from high in the sky, the ground barely visible. All I could see was snow on the ground. I gulped and hoped that it would soften the impact.
“Well… this is going to hurt.” I mumbled to myself. “I’m FREE! FREE FALLING! Damn you Tom Petty!” I chuckled, scratching my chin “Huh, thought I’d be a little more upset with dying as soon as I came back to life.” I said as the ground came closer.
I closed my eyes and braced for impact. I struck the ground and a huge cloud of snow exploded where I hit. It felt as if every bone in my body shattered, I couldn’t even scream in pain. I groaned and faintly opened my eyes, the world quickly becoming dark. I thought I saw a white rabbit hop towards me, leaving impressions in the snow.
“Help…” I trailed off, passing out from the pain.
--**--
Twilight had just sent Spike to bed after he accidently set one of her books on fire. She rubbed her eyes, exhausted from studying for so long. She yawned and shook her head, trying to keep herself awake. Suddenly there was a very quiet knock on her door.
Who the hay would want a book at this hour? She walked over to the door and opened it to reveal Fluttershy. “Fluttershy, what are you doing out this late? It must be freezing!” She said, grabbing her friend and pulling her inside.
“I’m sorry if I’m bothering you… but… um… I need your help.” Fluttershy said her voice barely audible.
Twilight did a double take, Fluttershy rarely asked for help. “Really, for what?”
“Um… well… you see, Angel discovered this animal buried in snow and I’ve never seen him before. It looks like he’s really hurt too.” She said with her face hidden behind her mane.
“Hmm… and you’ve never seen it before?” Twilight asked and Fluttershy shook her head no. “Alright hold on; let me get a few things.”
“Thank you so much Twilight. I know you must be really busy…”
“It’s nothing Fluttershy, anything I can do to help.” Twilight said and grabbed her saddlebag. She filled it with some quills and parchment, also tossing in a few books she thought would come in handy. She soon shut the flap and walked over to Fluttershy. “Is it at your house?” Fluttershy nodded. “Good, that’ll make this easier,” she said and promptly teleported both of them to the pegasus’ house, the library glowing like a beacon for a moment.
As the bright light receded, Twilight and Fluttershy shook their head, trying to get rid of the spots. When they could finally see, Twilight gasped as whatever Fluttershy had found laid on her couch.
She hesitantly walked over to it, her horn glowing. “Wait… why does it look familiar?” She mumbled to herself. She gently poked her horn into the thing’s side, eliciting a groan from the creature. Fluttershy jumped back with an ‘eep’ as Twilight’s eyes widened.
Twilight quickly backed pedaled, the thing’s eyes moving rapidly under its eyelids. She quickly grabbed a towel from the kitchen and tied it around the eyes. She pulled out one book, Ancient Equestrian Myths and Folklore, and rapidly skimmed through it. Now I know I’ve seen it before. She suddenly stopped on something called a ‘Human’.
She read what the book had to offer; humans were notoriously corrupt and they had an ‘everyman for himself’ mentality. But in the appendix, it noted some humans had actually tried to help, going into a quick synopsis of several important humans. The book also mentioned that the only times humans have appeared in Equestria, something bad usually followed.
She sighed and knew that the next few days were going to be hectic. The ‘human’ groaned again, with Fluttershy eeping once more. The human struggled to move as it looked like it was trying to wake up.
--**--
OUCH…. I struggled to open my eyes and they refused, almost like they’ve been taped shut. I finally got them open, however, only for darkness to greet me with a faint light slipping through some sort of cloth. “What the heck?” I struggled to say. My voice sounded as if I was drugged.
“Are you okay?” a feminine voice asked and I suddenly grew stiff.
“Oh you know, never better; just decided to skydive without a parachute.”
“What’s a parachute?” the same voice asked asked.
I laughed. “You know, the cloth thing that you jump out of a plane with?”
There was silence. “W… what’s a plane?” another voice asked, this one sounding very timid and quiet.
Oh wonderful, I’m surrounded by women. I cringed. Never been good with the opposite sex; always ended up saying stupid things. I tried to lean up but a wave of dizziness hit me.
“Oh… um… you shouldn’t try and move so much. I mean if you don’t mind me telling you what to do,” the second voice said, “you’re hurt pretty bad.”
I groaned as I leaned up again and relaxed against the back of the couch that I was sure that I was lying on. “So… what’s with the blindfold?”
There was more silence. “We thought it would be a good idea if you didn’t see for a while.” The first voice said, nervous.
“Why? It’s not like I’m in another universe or something.”
More silence. “Well I wouldn’t say that…” The first voice uncertainly said.
That’s it. I forced my arm to grab the blindfold, when it was suddenly encased in a purple glow. “What the hell?” I mumbled, startled.
“I’m sorry but it’s best if you don’t remove the blindfold for the time being.”
“Oh come on, what’s the worst that could happen?”
“You would start to panic and hurt yourself even more.”
“No I won’t, I promise.”
“Well…” she said.
As she was distracted, I grabbed the blindfold as fast as I could and pulled it off. I blinked a few times, trying to clear my vision. It was pretty dark, save for the lit candle sitting next to me on a table. I looked around and it looked like I was in some sort of zoo, animals running around everywhere and their cages taking up most of the room’s space. The couch was facing the front door and I saw through the windows that it was snowing outside, the moon covered by thick grey clouds.
“Wow, I’ve never seen real snow before.”
“Really?” the first voice curiously asked.
“Yeah where I come from, we don’t get…” I trailed off as my eyes adjusted to the darkness and saw two ponies standing in front of me.
One was purple with a horn sticking out of her forehead, a unicorn if I remember my mythology right. The other was a yellow pony with wings… a pegasus. My eyes grew as the pegasus eeped and hid under her pink mane while the unicorn stared at me.
“So where are the two girls I was just talking to?” I asked, stupefied.
The unicorn answered. “That would be us Mr. Human. My name is Twilight Sparkle”, she pointed to the pegasus, “and that’s my friend Fluttershy.” Her eyes grew wide as her horn glowed, a quill and parchment floating towards her. “I have so many questions to ask you.” She said, taking a deep breath.
I stared in shock, my brain shutting down and my jaw unhinged. ‘THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING’ or ‘we’re sorry, the number you are trying to call has been disconnected, please try again later’ were the only thoughts running through my head.
“So Mr. Human what’s your name?” The unicorn now known as Twilight asked.
I did the manliest thing I could think of; I gave a high pitched eep and tried to crawl over the couch but my arm got caught and fell backwards. Everyone heard a loud pop as pain exploded from my arm. “That… hurt.” I muttered, resting against the back of the couch..
“Oh my Celestia are you alright?” Twilight asked as she ran over to me, worriedly looking at my arm. The pegasus, Fluttershy, stayed where she was, staring at me in fear.
“Just… fine.” I said through gritted teeth. I sat up, holding my dislocated arm. I started to hyperventilate as I tried to stand up. I staggered backwards and hit my head on a birdcage. The birds inside squawked in fear as my head rang in pain. I caught myself and took a step forward, but something tripped me and I fell face first onto the wooden floor. The pain became too much and I blacked out again.
--**--
Twilight looked at the prone human before turning to her terrified friend. Fluttershy darted into the kitchen. “Fluttershy wait!” Twilight started to say, both unicorn and a certain white rabbit watched her disappear. Twilight sighed and lifted the unconscious human onto the couch. She stared at the limp arm, pretty sure it wasn’t supposed to bend that way.
She once again powered up her horn and lightly ran it over his body, grimacing at all the internal injuries. She took a deep breath and called upon all her healing magic she could think of and experimentally shot the beam at his dislocated arm. It slowly and probably, quite painfully, popped back into place. She gasped for air and realized that she couldn’t fix everything. She focused on major injuries and spent the next few hours mending him back together. After he was more or less stable, she sagged to the floor, exhausted. Suddenly she felt a blanket thrown over her.
“Come on Twilight, you can sleep in the guest room.” Fluttershy said as she led her exhausted friend upstairs.
“Thanks Fluttershy,” Twilight said, yawning, “what about him?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep watch tonight.” Fluttershy promised.Twilight raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything.
When they got to the room, Twilight fell onto the bed. “Good night Fluttershy.”
“Good night Twilight,” Fluttershy said, Twilight already asleep.
Fluttershy silently closed the door and made her way down stairs and looked at the animal. He looked more relaxed since Twilight had healed him. She was glad that Twilight could help him when all she could do is make things worse. She frowned and headed into the kitchen for a glass of water. She took a few sips before setting it down and quietly walked back into the living room and sat down on the chair across from the couch. She saw that the human was now sleeping peacefully, or as peacefully as he could. She looked around and grabbed a blanket from the closet and threw it over him. It barely covered his chest and she tried her best to make it cover as much as possible. She took a few steps back and smiled, her goal accomplished the best it could be. She sat back into the chair and soon fell asleep, the snow tapping against the window background noise..
--**--
I awoke nice, warm, and not in a lot of pain. I blinked a few times as the memories of yesterday came back in all their full painful glory. “What a dream.” I said, trailing off as I noticed the tip of a yellow blanket. It wasn’t a dream as I recognized the arm of the couch, matching the memory. I leaned forward and stretched, wincing at the dull pain. “Huh, I remember hurting a lot more yesterday…” I stopped as I saw the yellow pegasus asleep in the chair across from me.
She looked adorable sleeping, curled into a little ball. Her mane draped across her face as it moved with every breath she took. I smiled and gingerly stood on my feet, my hip popping back into place. I limped as silently as I could over to her and laid the blanket over her. She faintly smiled in her sleep as I headed towards the door.
I looked outside and saw several feet of snow waiting for me. Oh man, it’s going to be cold; I wish I could have my leather jacket, now that thing is warm. Suddenly I felt the comforting leather around my arms. “No way,” I said, looking down and sure enough, I was wearing my jacket. “Huh.” I said as. I zipped it up and silently opened the door and left. I could see a town in the distance. I saw a forest nearby and decided to investigate and I headed off into the forest.
--**--
Fluttershy yawned, starting to get up when she saw she had a blanket wrapped around her. What the… this is the blanket I put around...? She looked up and saw that the human was gone. She quickly checked the entire house before she saw prints in the snow. She gasped as they led into the Everfree Forest.
She rushed into the guest room and woke Twilight up. “Um… Twilight, Twilight, I hate to wake you up, but the human’s gone.”
Twilight woke up instantly and sat up. “What?” Fluttershy quickly told her what she found and Twilight grimaced. “Fluttershy, do you think you could look for him while I go get the others?” Twilight asked hesitantly.
Fluttershy paled, her legs quivered. “I… um… I guess… I mean, if that’s what you want me to do.” She said, her mane hiding her face.
Twilight smiled. “Don’t worry Fluttershy; I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
They both got up and separated, Fluttershy slowly going into the Everfree Forest; Twilight running into town, looking for their friends.