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Chapter 8: Unexpected Responsibility

Author’s notes: Ran into some extra free time and wrote this for you. Just you. Yah, you right there in the front row. You know you’re my favorite right?

Alright, who is ready for another round of sadness? A show of hands?

<The crowd remains silent>

Who said I wasn’t going to show you anyway? Let’s roll!

“No plot, no problem!”
-NaNoWriMo

-

I had been walking for the better part of four hours before the sun started to rear its irritating head over the horizon. My walk was more of a limp at this point. Whoever this ‘Luna’ character was, I just hoped she wasn’t bullshitting me. I don’t want any more pointless blood on my hands.

The road ahead of me was lined with endless fields on both sides and seriously made me wonder how anyone but the pegasi can get anywhere. The road seemed like it was never going to end but it was familiar at least. I may have been in a blind rage last night, but I at least left foot prints in the dirt. As I limped along, my stomach gave the familiar grumble of hunger. All I had eaten in the past few days as two apples. I slid my hand into my pocket and snatched the last apple from it. I inspected the apple for damage and found that in my fight the night prior, one side of the apple had been smashed. I shrugged my shoulders and took a deep bite, savoring the flavor.

My body felt increasingly heavy as I trucked on down the road. Every muscle in my body cried out for rest that I wouldn’t grant it. My actions had created a time bomb in that town and I needed to defuse it before I’m labeled a lost cause. I took another bite as I reached the apex of the road and the town came into view. I figured the best thing to do would be to check out the area before blindly charging in. With that in mind, I scoped out the area surrounding the town. There was a tree line to my left that I could hide in and to my right sat a trail leading into a forest with a cliff overlooking the town at the end. I was always told the high ground was the best option, so I limped over to the trail.

The trail was long and was overgrown with vegetation. Yet again, it probably wasn’t made for someone my size. Ducking and weaving through the trail, I listened as the sounds of the forest would get closer to me and suddenly snake away. I drew my handgun and whipped around, trying to locate the source of the noise. As soon as I drew a bead on a shadow, it would disappear, and another would take its place behind me.

“Fuck this noise.” I said, back peddling on the trail.

The sound continued to flip around me as I saw an opening in the tree line. With my exit in sight, I summoned the last of my energy and dashed toward the exit. With my boots slamming against the ground and my eyes halfway closed, I pushed back out into the open. I was doubled over with exhaustion, sucking in air as I praised a god I didn’t believe in. The sun was now hanging high overhead as I walked up toward the edge of the cliff. The area wasn’t exactly amazing as I reached the edge of the cliff. The cliff was maybe 50ft above the city and 500ft feet from it. Part of me wished I had binoculars as I overlooked the town. I didn’t have the best eye sight and being this far away hampered my perception.

With my position secured, I sat down on the edge of the cliff and let my feet hang over the edge. With some free time, I lifted my hands into view, leaving my handgun in my lap. Most of the pain had subsided and the marks were apparent. I traced my finger along the outline of the mark and found that the same electric feeling from the gun was being emitted from my hand. I had no idea what the hell had happened, but I was pretty sure that Twilight would know. I rested my hands in my lap and lift my gun up. As I played with the gun, I noticed the town had come to life like clockwork. I smiled at the thought that I might have a chance still. I was a man stuck between worlds. I could stay here and try to settle down or return to my life of familiarity. Could I even go back at this point? What if Celestia couldn’t send me back? Do I even want to go back? I mentally locked these questions away and returned to the matter at hand.

I flipped the handgun over and found that the magazine was now seamlessly locked into the gun as if it had always been and that the bottom of the handgun was starting conform to my hand. I pulled the slide back and found that there was only a single bullet in the chamber followed by a glowing blue light being emitted from the magazine. I let the slide fall forward and set the gun back into my lap. By this time, I could hear shouting coming from the town. I let out a small sigh and leaned forward, placing my hands on my knees.

I had to make it right with this town. I have nowhere else to go. I could see that the town erupted in activity as the pegasi took the skies and shot off down the road I had come from. In no time at all, a large white spot on the horizon appeared and began to float down toward the town. I was too far away to determine what it was but it had to be important. I watched as it gracefully touched down in the middle of the town and was obscured by the various buildings. I needed to take action.

-

After letting the town’s activity die down, I climbed to my feet and took my handgun with my left hand. I peered over the edge of the cliff and found that it would be too high to jump from and too steep to climb down. I knew that the only way off of this cliff was back the down the trail I had come from. As I turned around, a shadow jumped out my line of sight and ran deep into the forest. I brought my handgun to chest level with the forest and walked over to the edge. The inside of the forest was unnaturally dark. With no other way, I walked back into the forest and wrapped both of my hands around my handgun. This forest seemed to emanate malice as I pushed my way through it. As I walked, the trail almost seemed to move on its own.

With almost an audible snap, all of the light disappeared from the forest leaving me in total, utter darkness.

*BANG*
*BANG*
*BANG*
*BANG*
*BANG*

I fired rounds in all directions out of panic. With each shot, the forest lit up for a second and immediately returned to darkness. I shakily brought my right hand into my pocket and retrieve my zippo. I flicked it open to see that the scenery had actually moved while I was in darkness. The trail was now gone and I was standing in the middle of a non-descript forest.

“Fucking show yourself, shit-stain!” I yelled into the woods.

With a grumbling coming from behind me, I turned to see a large bipedal lizard. This one was different from Spike in the fact that this one was 10ft tall, a dark green, and had a large horn protruding from its head.

What in the flying fuck are you?!” I said raising my handgun to its face.

I got a shrill scream in return and received a heavy blow to my stomach that sent me back 10ft right into a tree trunk. I hit the tree trunk with heavy force, knocking the wind out of me. I fell onto my hands and knees with the gun still firmly in my hands.

“*wheeze* Fuck *cough* you.” I grunted out as the creature laughed at me.

I pushed up with my hands and leveled the 1911 with the creature’s chest and fired three times. Each shot hit its mark and the creature fell onto the ground. I climbed to my feet and brushed myself off in annoyance. I was a filthy mess at this point. I was still covered in blood (both mine and other’s) and dirt was caked into my shirt. With a superficial cleaning, I casually walked over to the creature. When I was less than 5ft feet from the creature, it began to wildly flail in a sad attempt to run. I raised the gun and leveled it with the creature’s head. As soon as the barrel met its eyes, the creature stopped flailing and sat eerily still.

“You have bested me strange one.” The creature grunted out in pain.

“Did you just fuckin’ talk?!” I said, getting into a more aggressive stance “Don’t answer that. Of course you do. Everything in this damn world talks.”

The creature grimaced in pain as I lowered the muzzle of my gun.

“Why did you attack me? Why did I ever do to you?” I asked motioning with my gun.

The creature sat up in obvious pain “Hunger. I figured you for an unsuspecting meal.”

“Why is it that everything wants to attack or befriend me in this world?!”

“I don’t know how to answer that.” The creature answered, running a claw over its wounds.

Suddenly a squeak was emitted from the woods and I turned to see a smaller version of the creature. I raised my handgun and locked on to it.

“Please *cough* don’t hurt him.” The creature muttered out before clutching its wounds in pain “I’m not long for this world.”

With these words spoken, the small creature ran over to its… parent? The small one hugged my attacker and began to emit what I could only describe as a cry of sadness.

“Stranger,” the creature asked me with desperation in his eyes “can you take my son with you? Please do me this favor.”

The creature stared deep into my eyes as I lowered the barrel of my handgun. I noticed that the creature had eye quite similar to a cat’s in a way. They were of a light blue color that contrasted against his scale color. I could sense his pleading in its eyes.

“OK, so let me get this straight. You want me, who just shot you, to take your son with me?”

“I have faith in you for some reason. You seem like an honorable creature.” It said with a look of seriousness in its eyes

“Your trust may be misplaced. What’s its name?”

“Ulik. His name is Ulik.” The creature said with a gleam of hope in him eyes. The creature suddenly turned away from me and locked eyes with its ‘son’ “I need you to go with him. He will take care of you, or at least get you out of this dreaded forest.”

The creature’s horn started to glow and the world suddenly went black again before quickly returning to the trail.

“You have magic? Why not just heal yourself?” I asked as the creature pushed Ulik toward me.

“It… it doesn’t work like that.” He told me with his sympathetic eye locked onto me.

I gave the small lizard… thing, a once over. The creature didn’t have a horn yet and was maybe 3ft tall at the most.

“You realize this is a lot you’re asking for right?”

“I’m sorry.” She said looking at his kin before turning his attention back to me “I can’t beg you anymore.”

I gave a small exhale and place my hands back onto the slides of my head with the gun still in my left hand. I let them sit there on the sides of my head for a moment before letting them fall limp at my side.

“Fine.” I said, watching the larger creature giving me its equivalent of a relieved smile (I think). “I’ll see if I can find a home for him. Why does this shit always fall on me?”

“I can’t thank you enough.” It said before turning its child “Stay with this…”

“Human.” I interjected, crossing my arms.

“Human until he can find you a place to stay.”

Ulik ran over to his parent and gave a strong hug and ran over to my side. With its claws, he grabbed onto my shirt tightly and began to cry (I think).

With Ulik in tow, I began to walk back along the trail before the creature held out a claw.

“I need one more favor.” It said with its eyes locked on the ground.

“Please don’t ask me to do what I think you want me to do.”

“I am afraid I must. Please don’t leave me like this.”

I hung my head and said “I can’t do that.”

“It’s not a request.”

Suddenly the creature’s horn began to glow and my gun was brought to eye level with the creature.

“DO IT!” he yelled at me out of frustration.

“NO!”

“DO IT HUMAN!”

“Fine,” I muttered “but can I at least know your name?” I said with my left hand still locked on the gun.

“Kilika.”

“Ryan.”

With guilt laying heavy on my heart and my gun shaking in my hand, I motioned for Ulik to look away and he buried his head in my thigh.

“I’m sorry it turned out this way.” I said

“Me too.”

With the weight of hesitation holding my soul down, I slowly squeezed the trigger.

*BANG*

The creature immediately fell limp with a bullet hole in-between its eyes. I holstered my handgun and lifted Ulik up into my arms. Another life that I am now responsible for, I just hope I don’t have to end this one.

-

I had been walking for nearly an hour before the tree line eventually broke and the road came into sight. Ulik had fallen asleep roughly twenty minutes ago. He was not much heavier than Dash but carrying him for more than an hour had taken its toll and my adrenaline had run low a long time ago. I continued to push on and wondered how long I would carry on until I either worked myself to death or get myself killed. I watched as Ulik buried himself in my chest and couldn’t help but melt a little inside. Back in Youngstown, I hated children but for some reason, I felt a little responsible for this one. I did shoot its… father? Mother? It’s not important other than the fact that I did it. The worst part was that all I knew about Ulik was that it was a he and his name. I don’t know what he eats, his sleeping patterns, or even if he can speak yet. The poor… child, didn’t say a word during the whole ordeal.

As I walked, Ulik would give a stir here and there but would just try to bury himself deeper into my arms. I looked out to the road and saw that the sun was still hanging high in the sky. I knew that I could not falter now for I had too many things riding on me now. I stepped in the middle of the road, took a deep breath, and pushed on towards town.

-

As I walked toward town, I could hear doors and windows slamming in the distance. I gave a small chuckle and pressed on into town. With Ulik still in my arms, I walked towards the center of town. I watched as lights began to be cut off as I walked by and then would come back on behind me with shadows in their wake. I knew I had scared the town shitless but not to this degree. I expected an angry mob to be waiting for me, not for everyone to lock themselves like they are. As Twilight’s house inched closer with each step, the door flung open Twilight emerged. Before I could check her face for an expression, she charged at me.

“Look we-“ I tried to get out before Twilight latched to my leg “I wasn’t expecting that reaction.”

Please stop running off.” She said still attached to my leg.

“We need to talk. Things have happened since I left.”

“Like what?”

“It’s a long story.”

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