//------------------------------// // Rage // Story: Into the Darkness // by Subject 19 //------------------------------// Christopher was in a hospice room, sitting by the bed of an older man, half asleep from having been there so long. The man lying on the bed was 60 years old. Diagnosed with stage four colon cancer just a year ago, now barely clinging to life. The man was Christopher’s father, George Razka. “Christopher,” George whispered weakly. Chris immediately opened his eyes and grabbed his father’s cold hand. “I’m here, dad. I’m here.” “When you go to my house… open the safe in my closet. The code is your birthday. There’s a flash drive. Open it on my computer. On it, are the tools for… you to build… an empire. You can change… the world, Christopher. You can create a new country. Ever since you were born… I’ve been working to… give you the opportunity I never had. This is my life’s work. I trust you… to do what I couldn’t.” Christopher’s dad closed his eyes, going back to sleep. “I’ll make you proud, or die trying,” Christopher swore before letting go of his father’s hand. The chairman spent most of the early morning thinking over his discussion with Sombra. As unlikely as it was, Razka couldn’t completely dismiss the possibility that the princesses could betray him. After all, it’s what he would do. He needed to think of a contingency plan just in case their deal went sour. For now though, he had to focus on starting the war against Sombra. As Razka entered the dining room for breakfast, he noticed six extra ponies at the table. He internally groaned when he realized it was those fucking bearers of the elements of harmony he read about. He contemplated just turning around and leaving, but Celestia looked up at him just before Razka could bail. “Ah, Christopher, I’m glad to see you’re finally up,” Celestia said, causing all eyes at the table to land on him. He could see that the purple unicorn, Sparkle, was about to say something, so he beat her to it. “Celestia, I need to talk with you in private,” the chairman quickly requested. The alabaster goddess rose from her seat and walked over to him. They moved far enough away to make sure no one could hear them. “Is something wrong?” Celestia asked in a hushed tone. “What are THEY doing here?” Razka demanded, struggling to keep his voice down. “I invited them here. I thought we could use some company. I know Twilight has been dying to meet you ever since I told her you were here.” Razka wanted to strangle the life out of Celestia. “I’m trying to orchestrate an entire war and you want me to entertain that purple freak!?” “Luna agreed to take care of organizing things for the next few days. I’d like you to get to know Twilight and her friends during that time.” Something in Razka’s head snapped. He grabbed Celestia by the ear and twisted hard, causing her to shriek and kneel down in pain. “NOW YOU FUCKING LISTEN TO ME! I AM HERE TO WIN YOUR GOD DAMN WAR! DO YOU THINK THAT IS EASY, YOU PACIFISTIC FUCK!?” The two guards standing by the main entrance rushed to the princess’s aid, but Razka whipped out his pistol from inside his suit and shot them both. “YOU WILL NOT ROB ME OF MY DESTINY! NOW DO YOUR FUCKING JOB AND LEAVE ME TO DO MINE!” Razka yelled before releasing her. Twilight and the others just stood paralyzed in shock and fear. Razka simply stood over Celestia, the rage and anger never leaving his eyes. “Now get those six fuckers out of this castle.” Celestia slowly rose, giving Razka an equally hateful glare. “Against my better judgement, Christopher, I’m going to pretend that this never happened. That is, as long as you go to my room and wait for me there so we can talk.” The chairman silently nodded and left the room, walking over the two lifeless bodies in his way. Christopher waited in Celestia’s quarters for at least half an hour. The time had given the chance to cool down. This was the first time in ages that he had ever lost control like that. “Feeling bad aren't we?” Razka turned his head to see a very familiar shadow lurking in front of him, with eyes of pure emerald. “Little boy being sent to time-out?” “Fuck off.” Razka was in no mood for dealing with more of Sombra’s bullshit. “She treats you like a child and you just accept it?” “I don’t have explain my reasoning to you. And I’d like to know just how the fuck you know what happened.” “Oh poor little delusional Razka.” Sombra cooed at Razka with a hint of mockery. “I have spies in your ranks. They allow me to see and hear what they do. And I must say, you sure have a way with children. Do your veins usually pop up like that when you’re angry?” “You’re lucky you’re not really here. Otherwise, I’d probably chop off your hooves then skin you alive.” “Now, now there is no need to get violent Razka. I’m here to talk to you on what just happened.” “Go to hell.” “Nah I’ve been there already. Believe it or not but hell can be a bit...Chilly.” “Let’s cut the shit. What do you want now?” “Humph...Straight to business I see?” Sombra said with an unamused look but then grinned. “Fair enough. Now I know about the little freak out that you just had with the Elements of Harmony and Celestia and how you didn’t feel bad at all. But you must of had a reason for doing so? Unless you have something stuck up your ass.” “My disdain for the elements should go without saying. They’re nothing more than a bunch of freaks with bullshit powers that they call the magic of friendship. I don’t care about any of them, all I care about is securing my destiny and that won’t happen as long as Celestia keeps thinking I’m one of her beloved subjects,” Razka said but then saw the expression on Sombras face, as if he just captured his king chess piece. “Oh really? Well if that’s the case, then let me ask you this...What are you doing?” “We made a deal, and I have made it abundantly clear what will happen if they back out. I’m not fucking around, and if you were really smart, you’d give up now.” “*Sigh*...You are so unbelievably stupid.” Sombra groaned as he rubbed his temples. “You’re only prolonging the inevitable. When this war ends, the dust settles, and I’m standing over you, barely clinging to life, just remember: you wanted this.” “Tell me this Razka, how can you be this naive on how the outcome will end.” “I have two immortal gods on my side and an army better equipped and trained yours could ever be. You’re the one fighting an uphill battle, not me.” “Maybe. But let me ask you this, remember that talk we had before but you were too ignorant to listen?” “Yes, that pathetic ruse. What of it?” “When I asked you on what you would do if the Princess went behind your back and you said you would kill them?” “Without mercy.” “Well, if that’s the case then take this into a consideration, lets say you did beat me and you won the war. What do you think will happen next, I know I said this before but before you lash out at me with your death threats, I want you to honestly think about it.” “I have and I’ve come up with a contingency plan. And I’m not even going to waste the breath explaining it to pony who’ll already be dead.” “Fair enough. After all, I may be a cruel monster but I’m one with class and cunning. You on the other hand would rather lash out at his allies. Don’t you see Razka, it’s like I said. You try so hard to hide that monster inside you, but I think we both know that they just got a little taste of the REAL you. And where I was watching, it was beautiful.” Sombra said with a venomous tone. “You’re looking at the real me right now. The one you saw was… someone who is even darker than I am now.” “Humph...I see. Well I think that will be the end for now.” Sombra said but right at that moment Razka hears cloping sounds coming from outside the door. “Oh you're in trouble, we'll continue this talk later. Have fun with Celly…..hahahah.” The king disappeared in a cloud of black mist just before the door swung open and Celestia trotted in. The princess had a deep frown on her face. “You killed those two guards,” she stated. “I got a little carried away trying to make a point,” Razka replied dismissively. “It won’t happen again.” “I’m willing to put this behind us only because we still need your help. But what I said earlier will happen. Luna will take over for the time being you WILL spend time with Twilight and the others.” “Is that my only option?” “It’s either that or I imprison you for life. Which do you want.” Razka remained silent for a moment. “I’m thinking.” "Do you know why I didn't simply use my magic to overpower you?" "No, why?" “Because I was afraid I would have seriously hurt you. Despite what you may think, I do care about your well being. I’m not asking you to become best friends with Twilight and the others, I’m simply asking you to relax. And I think this will help you do just that, despite what you may think." “Fine,” he sighed, seeing no way out of it. “When do I have to deal with them?” “An hour.” “Ugh... “ Chris groaned. “Whatever, just send them to my room when it’s time. There’s something I need you to do for me.” “What?” Celestia cautiously asked. “I have reason to believe there are traitors among the ranks. I want you to do an extensive search and find as many as you can. I think Sombra might be using them to eavesdrop on our plans.” “Fine.” “Your world is very strange compared to mine. Everything here is so much more… peaceful.” Twilight and her friends were sitting in a circle with Razka, listening to his story. It had taken them some time to get over their initial fear of the chairman, but eventually they decided to give him one more chance. The four guards standing close by in the room helped too. “On Earth, there’s no such thing as peace. The world is in a constant state of some form of war. The biggest problem was the United States, the most powerful country on our world. And that’s where I enter the picture. I devised a plan, Operation: Defiance, to overthrow the United States and take control of the country for myself. And right as I started my war with those pricks, I end up here. Luckily though, my army is in good hands.” The six ponies just sat in silence, processing and trying to picture this strange alien world. “Is everyone on your planet as...um…” Twilight stopped, trying to find the right words to say without insulting Razka. “As cruel and mean as me?” Razka finished. The lavender unicorn slowly nodded her head. “No, they’re not. Most of them are like ponies on your world actually. But the people in charge are a lot like me. The only difference is why we do it. I appear evil to most people because that is what the world needs me to be. In order to restore balance, I have to be ruthless if I hope to gain control of the country.” “Well if the people in charge are so evil, then why doesn’t everyone just kick them out of power?” “Because most people are fucking idiots. They don’t know any better and just think their leaders have their best interests in mind.” “Do you have any friends back home?” “When you spend God knows how many years planning to overthrow the most powerful nation in the history of man, you don’t waste time making friends. So to answer your question, no I don’t have any friends back on Earth. Only allies and enemies.” “It must be lonely,” Twilight said sympathetically. Earlier today she had been terrified of the human, but now she was starting to see him for who he really was. A man trying to make his world a better place. Even if he had more than a few flaws, she knew he meant well in the end. “What will you do when you’re done and you’ve made the country a better place,” she asked curiously. This caught Razka off-guard. “I’ve never thought about it. All I’ve been focused on is reaching the end goal. It’s never once occurred to me what I’ll do once I’m done.” Before anymore could be said, General Strike entered the room, much to Razka’s relief. “Chairman Razka, we found the traitors,” Swift Strike informed. Razka gave a dangerous grin. “Excellent. Take me to them,” he said as he rose and walked over to the general. “This will be fun.”