//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Fighting the Truth // Story: Devil's Due // by All American //------------------------------// Author's note: Got tired of waiting for my prereader and I decided that I would post this early. I'm not sure if this is in the same state of mind as the last but hey, at least I tried. Enjoy, All American --Chapter 2: Fighting the Truth-- They say that when you die, you see a blinding white light at the end of a long tunnel. They lied. I felt like I was falling into a never ending black hole. I could feel my eyes slam shut as I accelerated downward. There was a howling wind that consumed me as I fell ever onward into the darkness. The wind continued to blast my back as I reached terminal velocity. I felt like I was going to fall for all of eternity. “You’re safe now.” A feminine voice called from the darkness. The voice was one I was unfamiliar with. My mind wanted to open my eyes in hopes of identifying the person that call out, but my eyes were sealed. “He is going to get violent when he wakes.” A male voice chimed in. My mind was still trying to cope with what had just transpired and their words seemed foreign to me, like they weren’t of human vocal chords. “I know he will be. I’ll try to calm him when the time comes. Tell Twilight that I may have something to study.” With the voices swirling around me in the darkness, I felt my back connect with something relatively soft and decelerate rather quickly. I wanted to cry out but I felt like I was having an out of body experience, like I could tell what was happening but had no power to intervene. I lay on the soft area for a moment before I felt something sucking me down. I wanted to scream in fear but had no control over my voice. I could feel something soft envelop me before my mind shut down. - I flew awake, sitting upright immediately. I brought my hands to my face and took a deep breath. ‘Still breathing.’ I thought, almost disappointed. I let my hands disconnect with my face and drop to my sides. The room was the same as I had left it from the prior night except for one extremely important detail; I WAS STILL BREATHING! I was lying on my bed with a blanket covering me and a glass of water at my side. I grabbed the water and downed it with all my might. Whatever had transpired last night had made me extremely thirsty. Honestly, I was just lucky not to have a hangover. I threw the glass to the floor and climbed from the bed. I felt cold and suddenly realized that I was stark naked. I ran over to my closet and opened it to reveal that the shoe box I had retrieved last night had been moved from where I had left it. I grabbed the box and tossed it to the bed. With what had transpired the night before, I decided that I needed a day off to get my head straight, so I didn’t need to get in uniform. I grabbed a black t-shirt with Smith & Wesson logo on it, a pair of blue jeans, another set of fingerless gloves, and my Timberland steel toed boots which had somehow made it back into my closet. I ruffled my hair and got dressed. - Now that I was dressed, I searched for my handgun and holster. I was getting furious because ever since I got my carry permit, I had had that gun at my side and I wasn’t going to end that newly formed tradition today. I started to tear the place apart, throwing cloths and other useless items around before grabbing the shoe box from the bed and dumping its contents onto my bed. With the contents spread out, I found everything that I had on me last night. ‘Who the fuck put this here?’ I asked myself as if I knew. I shrugged of the notion and grabbed the holster. I threw the strap over my head and buckled it into place. I felt much better with the 1911 under my shoulder. I snatched the pistol with my left hand and pulled the slide back revealing a shiny brass casing. I let the slid fall forward and shoved the handgun back into its place. With all my daily equipment accounted for, I grabbed my hat from a nightstand and threw it on. I walked up to the door and wrapped my hand around the knob. I went to push it open and walk through it at the same time. I slammed my face into the door with a soft thud. “Goddammit! Why the hell did I lock this door?!” I grunted in an unhappy tone. That’s when it hit me; my bedroom door didn’t even have a lock on it! I jiggled the door handle a few more times as if it might change fate before giving up and kicking the door in anger. I wasn’t in the mood for this shit. I had already fired my gun in my apartment twice, how much more trouble could I get it? I wrapped both of my hands around the knob and placed my shoulder against the door. I pulled myself back from the door and counted to three. 1… 2… 3… With all my strength, I ran all my weight into the door and felt the door give little. I wasn’t small either at six foot, 220 pounds. I pulled back once more and shoved my weight into the door once again and heard a delightful snapping noise as my shoulder connected with the door again. Third time’s the charm, I pulled back and my shoulder against the door on last time and felt the door fling wide. I stood there for a moment after my victory, trying to take in what I was seeing. My apartment had been replaced by a long stone hallway. Large windows lined the hallway from one end to the other and were about my size in comparison. With a little bit of hesitation, I walked up to the window and was immediately blinded by the sun. I recoiled back into the hallway before letting my eyes adjust to the light. I returned to the light and saw that I wasn’t in Youngstown anymore. There was a large courtyard with various trees and shrubs lining the walls before letting out to a city square. The architecture reminded me of something from medieval England. “I see you’re awake.” A familiar voice called to me. Keeping my eyes locked with the window, I said “You’ve got to be shitting me.” “Watch your language around the Princess!” A male voice said. I turned to my right to see Celestia and two smaller ponies in golden armor approaching me as I slowly started to back away. Seriously?! So, Celestia wasn’t bullshitting me. “Fuck you! I didn’t ask for this!” I yelled. “Please, stay calm.” Celestia spoke in a soft motherly voice. I placed my hand on my pistol and continued to back away. “Shall I subdue the…” the one of the guards started. I pulled my handgun from the holster and leveled it in their direction “Human. Take another step and I plaster your brains against the wall.” The trio stopped in their tracks and locked eyes with me. I could see the anger in the guards’ eyes. One attempted to take another step and I pointed the gun at him. The guard immediately stopped and stepped back. I placed my free hand against the window for support. Celestia took a step forward “Can we talk?” As soon as she finished her sentence, an army of footsteps sounded behind me. I turned my head to see a group of guards blocking my rear exit. ‘SHITSHITSHITSHIT!’ my mind sounded off. I looked forward and saw that a guard was less three yards from me. I raised my handgun to the window and fire two shots that deafened everyone in the hallway “Forget this!” I yelled as I braced myself and ran through the window. I felt the wood that created the support for the window snap and the window shatter around me. I fell about a story before I felt my arms connect with what felt like gravel. I cursed at my new found pain before climbing to my feet and began to run. “Come back!” Celestia yelled from the broken window before turning to a guard “Bring him back.” I snapped my head back and saw that two guards had begun hot pursuit. I mouthed a string of curses before turning my head back toward the direction I was running. I ran along the length of the courtyard toward an open gate that led to a small plaza. I watched as various ponies gasped in horror at what they thought was a monster. I ran past a large group of ponies and I could sense that the guards were gaining on me. I ran toward a small door and kicked it open before slamming it shut behind me. I looked forward to see that a small group of brightly colored ponies were cowering under various tables. I ran up to a table and snatched a chair from one and wedged it against the door. “You’re all having fun I hope?” I said trying to cover up my displeasure in my voice. I watched as a few of the ponies poked their heads out from under the table. I heard as the guards bashed against the door. I needed a way out and quickly. The business that I had barged in to was a restaurant. There was a large bar set up toward the back of it with a window above it. Bingo. I ran past the ponies and made my way to the bar. The bar was made of a dark metal with various bottles sitting on top of it but only the window concerned me. I jumped up on the bar and fired a shot into the window. I jumped up and grabbed the window sill. With my bruised arms, I pulled myself up and ran my fist into the window, shattering it. I pulled myself through watched as the guards busted through the door, smashing the chair in the process. I ran for a few more minutes before finally finding a dark alley to take a breather. I walked over to a nearby trash can and sat down. “Holy fuck, did that just happen?” I asked myself out loud. Did I seriously just meet a figment of my imagination and run for my life ‘Jason Bourne’ style? I tried to run all the possibilities through my head. Am I dead? Am I in hell? Was Celestia really real? Am I high? None of this made any logical sense. First I argue with a figure in the mirror for the better part of a year then I blow my brains out only to end up in a fucking fairy tale? I shoved all the thoughts from my head as I focused on the task at hand: I need to get the hell out of dodge. I placed my hand against the corner of a brick building to my right since my left hand held my handgun. ‘Shit, how many rounds do I have?’ I asked myself. I tried to take into account all the rounds I had fired so far. Two were fired in the apartment, two into the window during my escape, and another one into the window at the bar. Considering that the magazines held seven that left me with two. I had another 10 magazines on me so I didn’t have to worry for now. I pushed myself toward the opening at the opposite side of the alley and poked my head out in both directions. I could see that this was a happening area of the city. Many locals crowded the plaza as I tried to find an exit. I figured the entire guard would be looking for me by now. “Freeze!” a familiar voice call to me from behind. That was all the push I needed. I ran out into the plaza, resuming the chase. I pushed past the various ponies as I ran toward an open street. ‘Run!’ my mind repeated over and over again. I pushed past the crowd as many began to get out of my way either due to fear or shock. I ran lifting my feet as fast as they could carry me. I watched as a group of three ponies rounded the corner. The group consisted of an orange pony with golden hair and a brown cowboy hat (not the strangest thing I’ve seen in my short time here.). The next was a small purple unicorn and the last was blue Pegasus and a flowing rainbow mane. I was lifting my feet as fast as they would carry me and my boots weren’t helping. In Youngstown, I would merely beat my attackers into a pulp or pull my gun on them but here I was totally out numbered. I continued to run toward the group as they watched me with apprehension. I was less than 10ft from them when the rainbow maned one jumped in my path. I had too much speed built up to stop. I plowed right through, throwing me off balance. My feet shot out from under me and before I could realize what was happening, I felt my back connect with a stone road. A sharp pain shot through my back as I landed and I shouted “God fucking dammit!” I laid there for a moment before the guard pony jumped onto my chest. “You are under arrest!” he shouted as a hoove connected with my face. The attack only made me furious and I kneed the guard in his soft under belly. The guard grunted in pain and I threw a punch into the side of his head, knocking him off me. I climbed to my feet and shot a look at the pony that had crossed me. I turned and booked it before they could attack me again. I continued to run as a road out of the city came into sight. I let myself have a breather at the gates since the guards were nowhere to be found. ‘Probably called in to join the manhunt.’ I tried to reason with myself. I turned and began to walk out of town. The road was paved in stones that made my journey slightly easier but I knew that tomorrow, I would be out of commission from the strenuous exercise. I wasn’t a slouch but I never had run that much before. I took all these things into consideration as I watched the city become a distant spec behind me. - I had been walking for almost two hours before my feet finally gave out from under me. I landed on my knees and then I felt my face connect with the dirt. My body was screaming like I had been hit by a train. I laid in the middle of the stone road for a moment before dragging myself over to the nearest tree. With my legs useless, I propped myself up against the tree and tried to collect my thoughts. My mind had been racing ever since I escaped the city. This day was probably the most confusing day of my entire life. I had killed myself only to end up in a fairy tale land. I’m honestly not sure what was worst, ending up in hell or this dreaded place. Not to mention that I’m probably the only human in the world if this truly the place Celestia was talking about. It made me laugh to think that I’m a single human trapped on an entire planet of talking ponies. My mind continued to tell me that I had to keep moving and that if I didn’t I would be capture. I needed to put as much distance between me and that castle as possible but I couldn’t even keep walking. I pulled my 1911 from my holster and placed the barrel against my head. I let the barrel cool the side of my head as I sat under the tree. I watched as the sun began to set in the distance and I could feel the gun shake in my hand. I wanted to pull the trigger but the more I tried, the harder the gun shook in my hand. “Fuck!” I yell as the gun slumped into my lap “I’m such a coward.” I couldn’t bring myself to try again. My mind wanted answers. I let the gun fall into my lap as my mind drifted away and I passed out.