//------------------------------//
// Prologue 
// Story: Beyond Infinity 
// by Pen Dragon 
//------------------------------//

Prologue- A Fateful Meeting

    A low groan filled the air as sun rays filtered in through unfortunately drawn curtains. Hazel eyes briefly fluttered open before slamming back shut and a large comforter was drawn over top of them.  After a brief moment, a soul-wrenching blaring filled his ears and all he could do was groan in frustration. A hand peeked out from under the covers and reached out to a small dresser beside his bed. Like a frantic child that only recently gained motor control, he tapped in several different places on the phone before the blaring finally receded back into the recesses of hell where it belonged.  Grabbing his phone and seeing that it was 9:30 A.M. he groaned again before letting it die into a small sigh and setting his phone back down. 

    “Ugh, come on. Already?” He muttered to himself, grabbing the covers and moving them to the side as he sat up straight on his bed. His eyes were barely able to stay open as he let out a loud yawn and began to stretch his arms. 

    He ran a hand through his greasy black hair as he glanced around his room and the cogs in his brain slowly started to turn for the day. His room was relatively small, having only dark blue curtains over his window, a large gray wide dresser with a small TV on top of it with a DVD player, and a few posters hanging on his wall of an anime he got into watching lately and a large mirror hanging on his wall next to his door.

    He then hopped off his bed and began to make his way out of his room and proceeded to a small closet down the hall that was cracked open. Throwing it open, he caught the door and pulled out an orange towel. He made his way to the bathroom door further down the hall and scooted inside to start his daily rituals.

    An incessant rapping shook him from his thoughts and he had to tune out the roaring of the water cascading down from the showerhead to make out a high-pitched whining voice from outside the door.  “Marcus! Hurry Up! I have to get ready for my basketball game this afternoon!”

    “Just give me five more minutes and I’ll be out soon, Emy!” he said. Quickly, he washed away any remaining soap and shampoo on his body and turned the shower off. Marcus then reached out and wrapped the orange towel around his waist and proceeded to brush his teeth. By the time he was done he had exited the bathroom and made his way back into his room and opened his closet and grabbed a pair of underwear and jeans and put them on, before grabbing some socks and a red t-shirt with the words ‘Just Do It’ on it.

    With both hands on his hips, he scanned his gaze down his body in the mirror that stood before him. His messy black hair still wasn’t dry and his head didn’t even come up to the top of the mirror, nor did his frame seem to even make an attempt to fill out the sides of the mirror, but he smiled anyway.  As he exited his room, he made his way downstairs to the kitchen.

    There, he saw his mother standing at the stove with a pan full of sizzling bacon in one hand and a hip in the other. She glanced back briefly before sliding over to the other pan full of scrambled eggs.

“Morning Marcus, did you sleep alright?” She asked while reaching over to grab a spatula.

    “I slept fine. Anyways, what are we doing today?” he asked as he took a seat at the kitchen table. 

    “After your sister’s basketball game, we’re going to Applebee’s for lunch. Since it’ll be her last game of the season, we figured we should do something special for her,” she answered as Marcus nodded his head before being handed his plate filled with still sizzling bacon and steaming eggs with a glass of orange juice on the side. “Now be sure to finish your breakfast quickly, dear. We don’t want to be late.”

     “Thanks, Mom,” He said before nodding and grabbing a fork to dig in.





    Celestia’s sun cast its warm, motherly rays down onto the planet as a yellow pegasus trotted cheerfully out of her quaint wooden cottage with her pink saddlebags strapped on. She smiled as the little birds chirped from their little birdhouses. She couldn’t help but gently wave her hoof at the small birds before she continued to make her way to Ponyville’s Food Market.

    When she finally made the turn around the last house, she nearly shied away at the sight of all the hustle and bustle of the market. Earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns alike of all colors expertly dodged around each other as each of them made their way to various stalls around the circle. Shouts of sales, limited stock, and scrambling hooves filled the air as she tried to steel herself.

    Keyword: tried.

    She took a deep breath before pulling out a list from her saddlebags that she was wearing and going over it once again. 

Alright, let’s see, I need carrots, cabbages, bird feed, peanuts, and fish food. Maybe I can pick up a few apples as well from Applejack? I know Angel always loves those mixed in with the carrots. She thought to herself as she looked at her grocery list.

Looking back up, she mentally prepared herself before carefully lowering herself into the chaos.

    She began to look around the market for any carrot stands or even one of her friend's apple stands, but before she could continue her search there was a tiny scream that began to get louder.

 “fffffflllllllluuuUUUUUUUTTTTTTEEEEERRRRRRSSSSSSSHHHHHHYYYYYYY!!!”

    Before Fluttershy could even react, she was tackled to the ground by a pink blur that sent her crashing to the ground with a mighty THUD.

“Hiya Fluttershy! I didn’t think I’d run into you here, but then again this is a really, really, really, really small town, but what are the odds! Anyways I was on my way to Twilight’s to see Sombry, but when I saw ya, I was like ‘GASP!!!’ And I got this really great idea! Would you like to come over to SugarCube Corner with me and Sombry!?”

    Fluttershy shook her head in pain before looking up as her friend stood over her with a wide grin. “O-Oh, Hi Pinkie… I wasn’t expecting to run into you either… Um, could you please get off me please? If that’s okay with you?”

    “Oop! Sorry, Flutters.” Pinkie sheepishly got off of Fluttershy before offering a helping hoof to Fluttershy, which she kindly took. “Anyways, will ya, will ya, will ya?!”

    “I would, Pinkie, but I have to get a lot of things for my animal friends back at the cottage. Maybe some other time?”

    “Please?! It’ll be good for Sombry, since he’s a big meany mcmeanster meanpants! Although he doesn’t really wear pants, just a lot of metal and a red cape- Wait!!!” Pinkie shouted all of a sudden with an almost-manic look, before saying, “I just had the best idea! What if Sombry and I help you?! That way you can get all the food for your animals and you get to be with us for the day!” 

When Fluttershy heard that, a couple of thoughts ran through her mind. It would be nice to have some extra help… but the appearance of Sombra may scare some of my animal friends away and I don’t want that.

Fluttershy cringed as recalled what happened the last time she saw him. Sombra had tried to bite her hoof off with his sharp teeth and called her friend Rarity fat. 

“W-Well some more help would be nice…” she said hesitantly before receiving a very, very tight hug from the hyperactive pony.

    “I knew you’d like that idea! And don’t worry about Sombry, I’ll make sure he’s well behaved and helps out!” Pinkie assured cheerfully before releasing Fluttershy from her grasp and began to bounce over to the Golden Oaks Library, leaving Fluttershy alone. 

    I don’t need to worry, I’m sure Pinkie will keep him under control… I hope… 





    Marcus nearly winced again as another shoe squeaked across the gymnasium floor like a dying mouse. Out of habit, he glanced at the scoreboard again.

Twenty-one to nineteen with twenty seconds left. Come on, Emma!

Roaring cheers pounded against Marcus’ ears when Emma managed to steal the ball away. He watched with rapt attention as she dribbled the ball down the court and began to make her way over to the three-pointer mark and began to line up her shot as one of the girls from DC, trying to block her shot, but had only barely touched the ball before it hit the rail of the net and bounced off as a blaring alarm filled the air and the opposing team’s parents erupted into cheers.

    Both teams filed onto either side of half-court and walked in a line towards each other, shaking hands as they went. Afterward, Marcus and his parents found themselves waiting outside of the locker room.

“Emma did great, don’t you think, Marcus?” his dad asked.

    “Yeah, she did good and she was so close to making the last shot!” Marcus replied, laughing as his mother rolled her eyes at them. A few minutes had passed before Emma came out of the locker room and smiled at them.

    “Oh, Emy! You were amazing out there!” Their mother exclaimed cheerfully before hugging her.

    “Mom! You’re embarrassing me!” She rebutted, but her protests fell on deaf ears as Marcus snickered in the background.

    “It’s a mother’s prerogative, sweetie!” Mom replied with a smirk.

    “Still, you did great, sweetheart, and we’re all proud of you,” added Dad.

    Marcus could only smile before giving her a thumbs-up before pulling out his phone and taking a picture of Emma and their mother hugging. 

“Yep, and everyone is going to know about it too,” he announced as he pulled up his Instagram before his sister was finally released. She tried to reach up and take his phone, but she was too short. A few jumps and desperate pleas didn’t change that.

    “Marcus! Please just delete that photo! My social life will fall apart if everyone sees that!” she exaggerated as both Marcus and their mom laughed together while their father sighed.

    “Come on Emma, it’s just a picture of you and Mom hugging. It isn’t going to ruin your social life. If it makes you feel better, I won’t post it on Instagram.” Marcus promised, rolling his eyes as Emma’s expression finally softened.

    “Alright, if you're all done playing, we better get going before the wait at Applebee's gets too long, because I have a feeling that we’re not going to be the only ones on our way there,” suggested Dad.

Everyone nodded and exited the school, making their way towards the car. But as they started to cross the street, the only warning Marcus got was the sound of screeching wheels and police sirens.

    “Marcus, move-!!”

    He threw his body around to look at whoever shouted his name, but something stopped him.

Something big.

Something huge and hulking and metal that held no regard for human life.

Marcus heard a scream and felt a violent tidal wave of pain and agony crash across his body and his vision faded to black.

    After what felt like an eternity, he was finally able to open his eyes once again. It was when he did that he soon laid eyes upon a woman with black hair, and skin so pale it sent shivers down his spine. She was wearing a long black dress and had her hair done up in a braided bun. She had herself laying across a table lazily as she looked down upon Marcus in his leather chair.

    “Tough day, huh?”

    “W-What?! What is this?!” Marcus sprang to his feet before tripping over and landing on his back. He desperately crawled backward away from the pale women like a caged animal. “Where am I?!”

    “Calm yourself, Marcus…” the woman told him, snapping her fingers. A large leather armchair emerged from underneath Marcus and caught him. “It’s only five seconds in the afterlife and you're already making a commotion here.”

    “C-Calm down!? You're telling me to calm down when I’m who-knows-where and you're telling me to calm down?! Who are you!? And how do you know my name!?” Marcus shouted, standing from his seat before the woman motioned her finger, forcefully making him sit back down.

    “Normally I try to make myself look decent,” She said, waving a hand across her face. Suddenly Marcus found himself looking at what looked like the face of a skeleton. The cold, vacant eyesockets sent a shiver down his spine. “But since you asked… I am Death. And as for how I know who you are? Well, I know every soul both living and dead across the cosmos.”

    “D-De-Death?!” Marcus then placed his hands over his head, tugging on his hair as he looked away from the undead women. He tried to process everything before he stood up from his seat and began pacing back and forth. “No… No, no, no, no, no, no, NO! This… This is bullshit! If this is some sort of prank, well you got me! You can cut the act! I’d like to go home now!”

    “Really? You think none of this is real?” She asked, Her face restoring itself to its previous state with muscle tissue, then veins, and finally skin growing over the skull’s face and eyes appearing from opening eyelids. Marcus had to force himself to look away before losing his lunch. “This is real, Marcus. In fact, see this for yourself.” 

As She said that, a small box the size of a regular TV appeared before him and displayed a brief clip from a news program.

    “…Tragedy had struck when family murderer, James Matthews, had escaped prison and struck a young man by the name of Marcus Phillips with a 2006 Honda Accord. A twenty-one college student who had a bright future ahead of him. Matthews had died in the crash, but not before claiming the life of another family member.”

    “It is truly a travesty and a cruel way to die.” She said, having the box disappear with a snap of her fingers. “But other than that man’s soul destined for eternal damnation you should have lived all the way to your sixties.”

    It was unlike anything he had ever seen and after watching the news of his own death he couldn’t help but laugh. Not a happy laugh or an amused laugh or even a sad laugh. Rather, the kind of laugh that someone gives when they’re staring down the gates of hell..

“Hahaha! This… This can’t be real… None of this is real! I-I-I I’m obviously dreaming. Yeah, I’m asleep right now, in the car with my parents and sister who is probably drawing on my face right this second. You’re not real… this can’t possibly be real! All of this is a dream and I’ll be waking up at any moment!”

    He was so sure of himself that he began to pinch himself on his cheek as hard as he could, but even as he groaned from the pain, nothing had happened. He was still in the same place. His eyes widened slighly and stared off into the inky black void that surrounded him.

“You can try all you want Marcus but I assure you that you are indeed dead.” Death said bluntly.

    “Why? Why is this happening… this can’t be real… I… I can’t be dead!” he argued as he tried to fight the tears forming in his eyes before he sank to his knees and began to cry. 

As tears fell from his cheeks, he felt cold hands over his shoulders but he didn’t move as he felt death herself kneel beside him and embraced him.

    “What happened to you is cruel, but what if I told you that you could live again? Start over with a clean slate in a new world and… a new body?” She whispered as She grabbed his chin and turned him toward her. “Well, what do you think?”

    Marcus simply wiped away his tears before looking at her once more, before asking with tearful hope, “Y-You mean… I can go back?” 

    “No… I said you’ll live again. I never said anything about returning you to your old life.” She replied before standing up and walking over to her chair and plopping herself down once again. “But it is entirely up to you.”

    After hearing that, a little bit of hope had died, but living again meant a second chance. He would have hope. Something to light his way through the darkness.

    But a part of him had a feeling that this was still too good to be true. In so many movies, tv shows, and anime, there was always some kind of catch when dealing with Death. He had to take several deep breaths before he had the strength to speak again.“So everything you say is true? I’ll live again?”

    “Yes, that is what I said, no?” She said with a grin on her face.

    “W-What’s the catch?” he asked, standing up as he made his way back to his seat.

    “What do you mean?” She asked with an innocent look in her eyes, to which Marcus narrowed his in response.

    “I think you know exactly what I mean.” He started in a low voice. “If I’m really dead then you would have sent me to heaven or hell and we wouldn’t be having this conversation, now would we? Y-You obviously have me here for a reason and I want to know why!” Marcus said firmly, as Death got up from her chair and walked over to Marcus who stood back up.

    “Well… it seems you're a lot smarter than I give you credit for,” She replied, smirking at him before She went on. “I grow tired of this world. It gets dull and I’d like a change of pace. But when you died, you began to interest me.”

    “So, what? I’m special?”

    “No, you aren’t, you’re quite dull like the other millions of souls that pass through here. But like I said previously, you weren’t supposed to die today. That’s what makes you so interesting, and your ideals… interest me,” She answered slowly, almost as if she was drawing her words out for dramatic effect.

    “I am so flattered! You must say that to all the guys that go through here!” he responded sarcastically. “And what do you mean?! You don’t know anything about me!”

    “I know everything about you, Marcus. You have two loving parents and a little sister who looks up to you. You are kind to everyone you meet and wish to make the world a better place and desire nothing more than to be like a hero. But right now, you feel anger, hatred for having your life taken away and all you want is to return to your loved ones… so you can say goodbye. You never did get to say goodbye to them, did you?”

    “You’re right, I never got a chance to say goodbye to any of them. This… this sucks!” he said angrily, but Death had approached him and placed Her cold hand against his cheek, wiping away any tears remaining that had been streaming down his face.

    “You may be right, but I’m giving you a second chance: to live once again. However, you'll be running a few… errands for me,” She explained, causing Marcus to raise a brow at her.

    “What do you mean by ‘errands’?”

    “Like I said already, I grow tired of this universe and desire something more… ‘Thrilling’, I suppose, is the correct word? You see, this new world you’ll be living in is called Equestria, a world that holds stones of great power called Infinity Stones.” She explained, turning her head towards her guest before taking a seat once again. “Unlike Earth, this world has real magic and because of it, I can’t enter the world physically to guide lost souls to the afterlife. And that’s where you will come in. In your state, you will not be able to wield an Infinity Stone and your mortal body will disappear forever. So I shall transform you into something that’ll be able to wield all six of the Infinity Stones.”

    “A-Alright… What exactly am I supposed to do when I find them?” Marcus asked.

    “You will use their power to liberate their universe and ours. After that you can go free from there,” Death replied before placing both her hands on his shoulders. “Of course, there are rules that you must follow.”

    “Rules? Liberate? What are you talking about?” Marcus asked, shoving Death’s cold hands away as he backed up from her, only for her to chuckle.

    “I shall explain more about what you must do later, but first you must know that with every deal, there is indeed a catch and what you must do for me is nothing more than payment for what I shall be granting you.”

    “Alright, then tell me what it is that I need to do.” asked Marcus with a slight hesitancy in his tone.

    “Very well, I shall explain them to you as best I can,” She replied as she summoned a blank piece of paper and parchment covered in black ink. Marcus' jaw dropped as the parchment began writing on its own.

    Rule 1: You must never reveal your identity to anyone until you find an Infinity Stone.

    Rule 2: You can only respond with the new name given to you.

    Rule 3: Only one being you trust may know what you are doing.

    Rule 4: You must inform Death whenever you discover an Infinity Stone.

    “Okay hold on for a second! How am I supposed to report to you? I seriously doubt I’ll find a phone wherever it is I’m headed.” Marcus argued before his own cell phone appeared in his hands once more.

    “Your smartphone will allow you to message me through text while you're searching for the stones, but only me.” She replied. “And don’t worry about it running out of battery. It’s unlimited now.”

    “Okay then… moving on,” he said slowly, rolling his eyes as he continued to listen.

    Rule 5: A list of your new abilities will be on your phone and you must memorize them.

    Rule 6: You must learn how to harness your new abilities in order to find and use the Infinity Stones. 

    Rule 7: The Time you have is limited to ten years, by then your new body will dissipate to dust.

    “Uh… come again?” was all Marcus asked before Death began to laugh.

    “It’s exactly as it says my friend, my powers aren’t infinite and the new body I’ll be creating for you will only have a limited amount of time, but for good reason.” She explained as She took a seat on a large boulder.

    “H-How so?”

    “In this world, you’ll become superior to most of the planet's species which will allow you to possess all six of the Infinity Stones. But your time will be limited due to the amount of magic and energy I’ll be putting in to create your new body. However, the stones can extend your life fully,” She explained, and yet, Marcus couldn’t help but to cock an eyebrow.

He may have accepted that he was indeed dead, and accepted the fact that he was talking with Death, but there were still a lot of unanswered questions that he’d like to address. 

“So tell me, Marcus? What do you think of… Ponies?

    “Uh, excuse me?” he asked, wondering why She suddenly changed the topic. “What do you mean by that?”

    “What do you think of ponies?” She repeated before shrugging, “It’s a simple question, Marcus.” 

    “Well… I honestly don’t care about ponies. Not that there’s anything wrong with them, I just don’t find them interesting, but they're fine I guess.” he answered and that was all Death needed to hear as she gave the young man a sly grin.

    “Thank you for letting me know. Oh, and by the way, you’ll be going by the name of Obsidian Coal from now on,” She added as Marcus gave her a deadpan stare.

    “Why am I getting a name like that?” he asked with a flat look.

    “The rules that were written down should explain why, Obsidian. Oh, and before you go, is there anything you want?” She asked nicely.

    “Well,” He started, bringing a hand to his chin. “I guess having my music wouldn’t hurt with my headphones?” Suddenly his phone screen shone brightly and displayed more than two hundred songs had just downloaded and his old headphones appeared around his neck.

    “It was a pleasure having you here, Obsidian Coal, but I believe this is where we must part ways. Enjoy your time in Equestria… my little pony!” She smirked as the young man, now known as Obsidian Coal, had begun to go through immense pain. He groaned in pain as he watched his own hands vanish before his eyes and started to morph into black stubby hooves. Before he could say anything, his vision began to go blurry until he finally passed out.







    “If we’re done with carrying all of this pointless slop for your pets, then I’d like to retire for the remainder of the day!” Sombra shouted as both Pinkie and Fluttershy rolled their eyes.

    “Oh, come on Sombry, it wasn’t that bad! Besides, we still have to head over to Applejack’s to see if she’ll be showing up for Twilight’s picnic next week!!!” Pinkie replied with a smirk as she grabbed hold of Sombra’s hoof. “See ya later Flutters!”

    “Unhoof my hoof, you impudent mare!” he demanded, trying to pull away from the party pony only to be dragged away by her. 

Fluttershy couldn’t help but giggle silently as she watched the odd pair disappear from her view.

    “Maybe if he wasn’t such a bad pony, he’d be nice to have around,” she said to herself as she entered her home and closed the front door.She was greeted by a small bunny who rushed up to her and eagerly hugged her hoof. “Hi, Angel. Did you behave yourself while I was gone?”

    With a quick nod, Fluttershy couldn’t help but smile at her little friend. “Thank you for being good, Angel. I’ll get started on dinner right away.”

    Fluttershy had soon started cutting the carrots she had purchased and made a salad for both Angel and herself. But as she was munching away at the salad, a thought suddenly came to her.

Pinkie looked like she was having a lot of fun being with Sombra all the time, even if he isn’t the most pleasant pony to be around.

Fluttershy looked up from her salad to scan her living room. Bird cages littered the room, small cabinets and tables lined the perimeter and a few small windows with their curtains drawn let in the now fleeting daylight. 

I never realized how… quiet it is around here without somepony else to talk to. 

    But her own thoughts were soon interrupted by the sounds of groaning coming from outside her backyard. She wasn’t sure if it was one of her animal friends hurt or something scary, but she took a deep breath and slowly crept to her window and took a quick peek outside. She felt her eyes go wide as her eyes landed on a black stallion with a white mane and horn, wearing an old tattered cloak, who slowly limped towards her cottage. The last straw was when he collapsed.

    Without a second thought, she raced out the door of her cottage and ran over to where the stallion had collapsed, trying to see if she could lift him up with her hooves, but to no avail. 

“Oh, goodness! Are you okay?” she asked, seeing the stallion’s eyes barely open.

    “W-who… are you?” he uttered, groaning in pain before passing out. She noticed the many scrapes and burnt marks over his face and hooves as she helped him inside and did her best to carry him towards her cottage. 

    “Let’s get that cloak off you and see if there’s something I can do to help,” she said, gently taking his cloak off, but what she saw next only shocked her when her very eyes laid upon a pair of wings!

    What? An-an Alicorn?!

    She then noticed that this stranger was covered in many scrapes and cuts. Even parts of his fur were burnt off and blood was beginning to trickle from his wounds. 

“Angel, get the first aid kit! Hurry!” she said urgently before whispering to the stallion, “Don’t worry sir, we’re going to make you all better soon.” 

The stallion grunted before opening his eyes slightly, barely able to see what was right in front of him.

    “I-I… I’m sorry… that you have to… do this...” he groaned quietly before Fluttershy placed her hoof over his head.

    “It’s alright… We’re gonna make you feel better,” she assured as Angel struggled to carry a white box with a red plus. Fluttershy grabbed the small box from Angel and opened it up, pulling out a small bottle and cotton balls. “This’ll hurt a bit, but I promise it’ll help.”

    Fluttershy then opened the bottle and poured a little bit of the substance onto the cotton ball and gently rubbed it against his cuts, causing the stallion to hiss in pain before she began to wrap his leg that she treated with bandages. 

“I know it hurts, but we need to treat these wounds. I’m sorry if I’m hurting you too much.”

    “N-No… it’s alright… It’s just hard to see right now… I barely arrived here today,” he replied as he bit back a scream from the stinging medicine. Fluttershy then moved on to his torso, applying the medicine again and wrapping it in bandages.

    “Oh, well I’m sorry, but I’m sure you’ll feel better in the morning… B-by the way, what's your name?” She asked as she looked over to his wings and started to treat them next.

    “I’m… I’m Obsidian…Obsidian Coal.” he croaked, squinting at the yellow blur in front of him. “W-who are you?”

    “I’m… Fluttershy… it’s nice to meet you.”

    “L- ...likewise,” he whispered before his eyes slowly closed and he passed out into blessed slumber.