The next morning came not long after Fluttershy and I had walked back to her cottage. The ever-present sun sending rays throughout Equestria. As I took notice of it, I thought back to the conversation I had with Lathyrus. He said that Celestia, one of the two princess rulers, had direct control of the sun. While her sister, known as Luna, was in direct control of the moon. One could only imagine the power needed to do such acts as raising and lowering the stellar bodies... but then again I'll have to see it to believe they are capable of such a feat... Though, with the description of them that Lathyrus gave me, I doubt I could tolerate them for prolonged periods of time.
After finishing our breakfast, which included the same broth from before, Fluttershy was collected by another mare for a meeting of some sort. With the wave of my hand she left the cottage to me. But of course, I could only take so much of the insufferable stillness that manifested the empty abode... Not to mention the pain in the ass bunny inside.
"Put that ladle down you sorry excuse for a sewer rat!" That little rodent, if he keeps coming at me with that thing I'll stuff him down the nearest john...
Wanting to get away from the furred devil, I left the cottage. Anything was better than spending another minute with the little bugger.
As I departed I realised that the only people...err... Ponies. To see me were Fluttershy, Ditzy Doo, Rainbow Dash, and Lathyrus. Going directly into town would probably not be the best idea, perhaps I should...
"LOOK OUT!" What...?
THUD
--->: /)(\ :<---
Am I awake?
I try to open my eyes but find some unyielding force resisting my efforts. The area around me smells dank, and rotted with hints of feces. I can hear a cacophony of thunderous booms from overhead. I also hear a faint whistle intertwined with the marching of footsteps...
I feel... as if I've been here before...
"...Calhoun..."
Calhoun...? That's... me.
"Specialist Calhoun! Get your ass up!"
My eyes dart open of their own accord; my body disobeying my every command. A sharp pain tore through my legs as I stood, leaving a numbing feeling in its place. As my sight adjusted, I found that I was in a dark tunnel of some sort. The walls and ceiling were supported by beams of rotted wood, the floor... or rather what I assumed to be the floor, was a slurry of mud, urine, and fecal matter from its indignant stench. There were also several crates filled with different ammunitions lining a corner, as well as several large trunks spaced throughout the, for lack of a better word, 'room'.
"Calhoun, the Germans have arrived. We will need every man at the ready if we want to keep them from crossing through Belleau-Wood."
As this man, a sergeant from the look of his insignia, finished his sentence we moved to the opening of the small crevice we were in. Upon our exit there was a deafening explosion to our left. I sat in a daze as my body played out actions in its own free will. I stood up and reached for the sergeant, as I was pulling him up the ringing in my ears subsided and I could make out the noises around me.
Screams...
Explosions...
Gunfire...
and the most prominent of all...
The word "Clear!" being shouted, impossibly louder than everything else. Suddenly, I felt a searing pain over my entire body. And my vision failed once more...
--->: /)A short while earlier...(\ :<---
I stepped into the office of one Post Haste to ascertain what ordeal I might go through to receive my weekly salary.
In other words...
"Good morning Mr. Haste! What do you have for me today?"
"Eh...? Oh! Ditzy, there you are. I was just about to send somepony out to get you... Anyway your saddlebags are loaded with today's mail for Ponyville; same route as usual." He gave a light smirk as he finished.
I began to strap into the twin satchels with the practiced fashion and ease of a professional postal worker. The load felt lighter this time around, definitely less cumbersome than some of the other deliveries I've had. Foremost being the piano from my earlier days in my career. That incident could have placed my employment on thin ice if Twilight Sparkle was not so forgiving.
With my uniform adorned I began to set out to carry out the most perilous of tasks, the most dangerous quest in ages... I was going to deliver the mail.
I took to the air, letting the wind conform to my frame and carry me to my first destination. Golden Oaks Library.
As I approached the looming oaken structure, I could see its resident librarian starting to leave.
I haven't spoken to Twilight for quite some time... perhaps I should catch up with her sometime soon.
I descended towards the ground at my leisure, mostly due to the fact that I was ahead of schedule for once. I savored the feeling of relaxation as I fell towards the ground. For once in a great while, I felt at peace with myself... I felt as if the world revolved around me and I around it. A celestial dance for all eternity. Nothing could ruin this moment for me. Once I was close enough to my destination I pumped my wings breaking my velocity-fueled dive. As I touched down I deposited the letters and scrawls within the mail slot and took to the sky once more.
Next stop Fluttershy's cottage.
On my way to the secluded home, I looked out to the Everfree forest remembering the event that had occurred just last night. How I was saved from petrification by cockatrice. How Danny had saved me. How he treated me... I felt my cheek become wet as a stray tear escaped at the upbringing of others' insinuations and insults. How, due to my eyes, they felt I was lesser than them. How that due to my condition they ascertained I was not capable of rational thought, that I lacked common sense. And the hatred they had harbored to curse me with shunning discrimination... to imply that not only was I incapable of mental achievement but to outright alienate me for fear of stupidity. No.. I am by far the lesser of two evils in this situation... and only a handful of beings are able to come to this conclusion.
Then the dam burst.
The tears I withheld began to free fall from my eyes, blurring my already suffering vision. I quickly began to lose my composure and was sent spiraling towards a nearby structure. Outside of said structure was something or rather somepony vaguely familiar whom happened to be within my path of impact...
"LOOK OUT" I screamed forth hoping to move the pony unfortunate enough to be the target of my descent.
THUD
As my body compressed against its unwilling counter-part, we were sent rolling. I had the good fortune to decelerate completely in my tumble, the other of the two was not so lucky. As they were sent rolling towards the tree line, which they promptly collided with.
I sat there, prone and motionless for Celestia knows how long. Pondering whether or not I was injured or worse. After detecting the faint taste of copper within my mouth, I attempted to move one appendage at a time. Amazingly enough, I was completely unharmed save for few a scratches and a slight contusion on my leg. I rose to my feet easily enough and considering I happened to land in front of a mailbox I peered over it to look at the dwelling behind it. It was Fluttershy's home. I took the time to place her group of letters and magazines with in the reservoir and then hurried over to see who I might have injured during the crash. As I came closer I realized whom it was that I had sent lurching toward the wood work.
None other than the kind soul to spare me from insults and belittlement. Danny Calhoun...
--->: /)(\ :<---
Numb and cold...
They could be the only words to describe what I felt. Just complete...nothingness. As I laid in the black void, I began to hear a faint cackle... or what I assume to have been one. It sounded harrowing and... distorted. Just the thought of it wracks my being with distraught discomfort. Even more so once I found its source...
"You're finally waking up are you? Well up and at 'em Mr.Calhoun. We've got quite a number of topics to discuss."
I was never known to have many fears, few knew of the phobias that rendered me useless. I could handle confined spaces, massive heights, complete darkness, even being within a submersible... but the...creature... that came to face me brought with it an array of terrors. It was a monstrosity in every sense of the word. Its entire being was composed of a multitude of animals, a gazelle, a lion, an avian, and a reptilian of some sort if I had to guess. The worst feat of this abhorrence incarnate... was the eyes... those eyes... they...they just... peer straight into you... undressing the flesh from your very bones... all the while their crimson and yellow clad gaze burn into your mind, tearing at it with sheer animosity. I...I still see them when I close my eyes...
"You know Mr. Calhoun... I've watched you. I have seen your every action, heard every sentence, and read the thoughts that pass through your mind. And I feel as though I must say one thing... You interest me Mr. Calhoun. More so than anything that has gained my eye in the past thousand years...well I suppose that's not entirely true as there was my little protégé... nonetheless I'll have you know that I have my eyes on you... I hope you don't disappoint me with the antics you seem to be dragged into. Oh! Before you go... you might want to clench your teeth... You're about to be in a lot of pain."
Before I could answer this... monstrosity. The searing pain from before reawakened, causing my entire body to spasm. During my torturous trance, light began to flood around me as well as another pair of eyes that, after the previous set, looked a sight more caring. The eyes were accompanied by a voice calling my name, it was saccharine as it sang "Danny!". I began to feel warm and... content as I felt this mysterious figure grab at me. By now the pain had stopped and my vision begun to clear and I came face to face with those eyes...
Crossed as they may be...