//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: Rock Bottom // Story: Le Retour // by k12314 //------------------------------// CHAPTER 3 I'd been avoiding everypony for the past two weeks. I didn't have the courage to face Fluttershy or Applejack, as I knew they would hate me too. But one thing was on my mind: Dashie. "She was so disheveled... Why was she waiting for me for so long...? It's all my fault for going against Torrentican even though Omnius told me not to. I stole her heart, then ripped it to shreds..." I took another swig of the apple cider I was drinking. I was sitting in a bar, trying to drown my sorrows with alcohol. I was lost and broken... Defeated. I hadn't been caring for myself either. I wasn't shaven, so I had stubble all over my face, I had dried mud and dirt all over my clothes, I had bags under my eyes, said eyes being red and bloodshot from crying and lack of sleep. "Hey, Kyle, I really think you've had enough..." The bartender had a worried look on his face. I glared knives at him. "I'll tell you when I'VE had enough. Now give me another bottle..." "Alright..." He sat the bottle down, and I just yanked the cap off. I chugged it down in a matter of seconds. I was feeling a bit tipsy, but nothing too bad... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (Third Person) All the girls, asides from Rainbow Dash, had gathered at Twilight's Library to discuss Kyle's return. "... And he was gone for so long... I even asked the princesses for help with the return spell. Luna was so determined to bring him back..." Twilight had an expression of anger and sorrow. "I just don't understand why he was gone for so long... The rifts are there, he could have just found one and come back." Rarity, as with the rest of the ponies, had no idea that Torrentican had destroyed the controller crystal, closing the rifts. "He's just a meanie-weenie-bo-beanie..." "Ah' don't think that's th' case, girls... Ah' think Torrentican's the reason 't took so long fer' 'im t' come back. Ah' fer one wanna see 'im again, but Ah' think he's hidin' from us. He prolly thinks we hate 'im." "Oh... My... I hope not. I'm not really angry with him... I'm just shocked that he was gone this long and then just shows up again..." Fluttershy had a slight blush. "Welp, lets go lookin' then! He can't be that far away!" Applejack made a mock heroic pose, and everypony giggled. Pinkie even perked up a bit. They all fell in behind her, and followed her out on the hunt for the runaway human. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (First Person) "Ugh..." "Yeah, Kyle, you've had too much." I was extremely drunk. And even though I felt great, I felt all of the stress catching up with me. "Why're they so mad at me...? I just wish they would have listened... But I probably deserve it..." I felt all the sorrow and pain beginning to well up in my throat. I thought I heard the bar door open, but I payed no mind to it, and just kept crying and talking to myself. I was broken. I hated myself. I wanted everything to go back to normal. I wanted my life back. I wanted my friends back. I wanted my family back... But I couldn't have any of that. I didn't deserve it. I knew I didn't. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (Third Person) Applejack and everypony else walked into the bar after Pinkie noticed Kyle sitting there, drinking. But when they approached him, what they heard shocked them. (Listen to this) "I... I didn't mean to leave you guys..." He was mumbling to himself, in a drunken pit of self loathing. "I didn't know Torrentican would take me back... I would never leave here willingly... I'm so sorry I forgot... I just wish I could have come back sooner... I never wanted it to be like this... I love you all so much..." He buried his head into his arms, and began sobbing. "Y-You w-were the b-b-best friends I-I ever h-h-had, and I j-just ruined i-it by g-going against him, thinking I w-w-would win... L-Look what m-my p-p-pride got me... I'm a w-worthless loser... I'm n-n-nothing... I'll never a-amount to a-a-anything... I r-ruined your l-lives... I d-don't deserve y-your friendship... I-I just d-deserve the a-anger... The h-hate... P-Please, d-don't s-stop hating me... I-I-I deserve e-every ounce of th-the anger... I'm so sorry... I'm so, so, so sorry... I ruin everything... I can't do anything right..." The girls just stared in shock. Twilight, Pinkie, and Rarity hadn't had the thought that Torrentican was the one who locked Kyle away wherever he had gone. They were just upset that they had spent so much time trying to bring him back, that they had lost sight of what really mattered: His friendship. He had slipped away. He was a shell of his former self, broken and depressed. They couldn't even say anything, so they just slowly backed out of the bar, leaving Kyle to his self hatred. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (First Person) I sat there, crying into my arms, wishing I hadn't let myself be beaten. I had left all my friends behind, and ruined their lives. "Some f-friend I w-was... I shouldn't e-even b-b-be here... I... I d-don't deserve Equestria..." (Stop the music) With that, I knew what I had to do. I left the bar, leaving the bits for the drinks on the table, and stumbled outside. But before I could go anywhere, I saw a familiar orange mare leaving the restaurant nearby. It was Scoots. She was in a waitress uniform, so I assumed she was working there. She was talking to Apple Bloom, I didn't know about what. When Apple Bloom left, Scoots just stood there, a dreamy look in her eyes. Then, I saw a brown pegasus with strange hair and three basketballs as a Cutie Mark fly down and land in front of her. "Hey there filly-fooler! I see you were eyeing up your marefriend! You're disgusting, you know that?" He just laughed at her as she scooted back a bit, afraid of the pegasus. "Hoops... Just leave me alone... I don't feel like dealing with your small mind today." "What did you just say to me? I'll teach you some respect!" He raised his hoof, and brought it down hard on her face. Then, all I could see was red. I smashed the bottle off the side of the wall, and set off full sprint towards Hoops, murder in my eyes.