Chapter 11
Chapter 11
He was blind. That or somebody had blindfolded him because he couldn’t see a damn thing.
Well, that wasn’t exactly true; he could still see, it was just that everything was pitch black. He was literally surrounded by darkness. What, did he get sucked into another black hole?
He strained his eyes looking into the darkness, trying to spot anything that could clarify where he was. But no matter how hard he looked, all he could see was the same black void that seemed to stretch on forever.
“Hello!” He called out, his voice echoing in the darkness.
No repsonse.
“Is there anybody there?!” He yelled much louder this time, hoping to hear an answer.
Silence.
Perfect. Just fucking perfect. He didn't think it was possible, but somehow, this world was more fucked up than the one he was in before! How could this day get any more fucked?!
“Well, well, aren’t you in quite the dilemma Jimmy.”
Son of a bitch.
He recognized that voice. Only one person’s voice dripped with such smug arrogance.
“Mercer.” He growled.
“So you remember me. I’m touched.” Mercer’s voice taunted from the darkness.
“Mercer! Stop hiding you motherfucker!” He yelled, swerving his head to locate where the voice was coming from.
“Still as loud and as crude as ever I see. Aren’t you supposed to be a church man?”
“I SAID STOP HIDING MOTHERFUCKER!” He yelled again, his rage reaching its peak.
“Fine, fine. Jesus, you’re so bossy.”
Heller was on high alert as he watched a figure slowly emerge from the darkness. The more of the figure that became visible, the more he felt his anger increase. By the time the familiar form of Alex Mercer fully emerged, Heller was literally growling with anger, teeth clenched to the point that he was surprised they hadn’t shattered. He briefly took note that Mercer’s left hand was behind his back, almost as if he was trying to hide something, but he brushed it aside. Right now, all he could focus on was the many way's he was going to kill this sick bastard.
“Hello James, have you enjoyed your little vacation so far?” He sarcastically asked, grinning in satisfaction when Heller growled in response. “I’ll take that as a yes. I honestly didn’t think you’d enjoy it here. Didn’t figure you for a country man, but I suppose the residents made the transition easy. Gotta admit though, even I couldn’t have imagined that you’d end up in a place like this. I fully expected you to die, though I'm sure you would have preferred death over this. After all you-"
“SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH!!” He roared, absolutely fed up with hearing this bastard’s voice.
“Here’s how it’s gonna go down asshole! First, you’re gonna take me outta this fucked-up ass world and send me home! Then, after I’m done ripping your balls off and feeding them to you, you’re gonna tell me where Maya is, and-“
“Oh Maya? I’ve already met her. Sweet kid by the way.” He said calmly, shocking Heller into silence.
That shock only lasted a second before the horrifying implications of what Mercer just said began to set in.
He found Maya. He met Maya. He was alone with Maya.
“What did you do?” He asked, the smallest hint of fear in his voice. When he saw Mercer grin sadistically at him, he felt that fear increase tenfold. “WHAT DID YOU DO WITH MAYA?!”
“Would you like to see her?” He asked in a low voice, that sadistic grin never leaving his face. Slowly, he brought his left hand from behind his back, allowing Heller to see what he had been hiding.
‘No.’
That one word was all that repeated in his mind as he gazed in horror at what Mercer was holding in his hand. He fell to his knees, tears flowing freely down his face, his mind unable to accept what he was seeing, even as it stared him right in the face. A part of him prayed that this was just one of Mercer’s cruel tricks, a half-baked attempt to break him. But another part of him knew it was real. Knew that what he was staring at was the cold hard truth, no matter how much he tried to deny it.
The eyes were what gave it away. He could never forget those eyes no matter how much he tried.
They may have been dull and lifeless, they may have belonged to a severed head, but he could never forget the eyes of his daughter.
Splotches of blood marked her face, a face that was permanently frozen into a look of abject horror and fear. She hadn’t died easily, that much was obvious.
What could he do? Scream? Get angry? Kill Mercer? Make him suffer every bit as much as he made Maya suffer? Why? What was the point? It wouldn’t bring her back. It wouldn’t bring Colette back. It wouldn’t stop the emptiness, the pain.
Everything, including his revenge, just seemed so meaningless.
“What’s wrong Heller, aren’t you glad to see her?” Mercer mockingly asked, a massive grin on his face as he stared the broken man in the eyes. “If it makes you feel any better, her last words were about you. Would you like to know what they were?”
Heller didn’t bother saying no. Mercer was going to tell him anyway, so what was the point. Still, even he wasn’t prepared for what he heard next.
“Daddy, where are you?”
His eyes widening in horror, he suppressed the urge to scream at the terrifying sight before him. It wasn’t the words that were said that had frightened him, but the one who had spoken those words. Mercer was but a distant thought as he found himself the target of his daughters cold glare, her bloodstained mouth twisted into an angry frown.
“Why daddy, why didn’t you save me?” She asked in a tone so cold it sent a chill down his spine. “You said you were coming home. You said we would be safe. Why did you lie daddy, why?”
He couldn’t respond. As much as he wanted to deny her accusations, he knew she was right. He had promised to come home. He had promised to protect her. And he failed.
Taking his eyes off his daughter for just a moment to wipe away the tears, his heart nearly burst out of his chest when he looked back and saw that Maya was no longer there. In her place was another female, one that looked like an older version of Maya, one that he knew all too well.
‘Oh God, Colette.’
His wife’s eyes were glaring at him with as much intensity as Maya’s and when she spoke, it was with the same cold tone as well. “Stay put Colette. Don’t go causing any panic Colette. Listen to Blackwatch, they’ve got the situation contained Colette. Look where your advice got me Jimmy. You blame Mercer for killing me but it was you who left me in that situation. If you had just listened to me, just taken me out of the city before this all started, I’d still be alive right now.”
He had closed his eyes at this point, unable to look at his wife as she assaulted him with her scalding words. As much as it pained him to admit it, he was just as much at fault for Colette’s death as Mercer was. She had warned him beforehand that the virus was possibly spreading again. He should have heeded her warning the first time, but he had brushed it off, thinking she was just blowing the situation out of proportion. If he had just listened…
“James.”
‘Oh God, not him.’
The accent alone was enough to tip him off to whose head Mercer was holding now. He covered his ears in an attempt to drown him out, but Father Guerra’s voice still reached him nonetheless.
“I trusted you James, believed in you, though I suppose that’s my fault as much as yours. I was foolish to believe that we could take down Mercer. Look where it got me. Me, a man of God get’s ripped apart, while you, a murderer, a liar, a man who couldn’t even save his family, continues to live. God certainly does work in mysterious ways doesn’t he mijo?”
Father Guerra’s harsh words cut into him like a knife. Hearing this man, a man he had always seen as a father figure, speak to him with such hatred in his voice… it felt like a stake had just been driven straight through his heart.
Going against his better judgment, he opened his eyes to look at Father Guerra, hoping to see any semblance of the kind, old priest he once knew.
All he could see was cold hatred.
Even when Mercer’s grip on the head tightened, even when the head slowly changed into a mass of writhing tentacles, even when those tentacles began to disappear into Mercer’s hand, he could still feel those eyes, that hatred, piercing into his soul.
When the head had been completely consumed, he and Mercer looked at each other and much to his surprise, Mercer wasn’t smirking. Disturbingly enough, he held an expression similar to the one the others held: An angry frown complemented by a cold glare.
Even more disturbing was when he spoke. For he spoke not in his own voice, but in all three of their voices..
“You’ve failed Heller. Despite all your suffering, all your efforts, what do you have to show for it? A dead wife, a dead daughter, and a dead friend. That’s not even going into the number of innocent lives that have been lost because of you. How many people have you killed just trying to get to me? How many fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters have you slaughtered simply because they got in your way? You call me a monster because of the number of people I’ve killed, yet you’re willing to kill just as many to satisfy your revenge. Deny it all you want Heller, but you know the truth: You and I are exactly alike and I don’t just mean our powers.”
Heller could do nothing as Mercer taunted him. His voice was gone, his spirit broken. He wouldn’t deny Mercer’s accusations. How could he? They were the truth’s he had tried so hard to ignore. He had claimed he wasn’t a hero, but he had tried so hard to convince himself that he wasn’t a monster either. He couldn’t be angry at Mercer. All he was doing was speaking the truth.
He was broken. Mercer could see that, which is why he allowed himself a small triumphant grin before he spoke his final words, words that would haunt Heller to his last breath.
“I win.”
A loud gasp escaped Heller’s lips as he sat up startled, panting heavily as cold sweat poured down his face. He gripped his chest in an attempt to calm his rapidly beating heart, while his eyes darted left and right, surveying his surroundings. Jumping slightly when he saw nothing but darkness, he relaxed when he realized that he was not trapped in an endless black void like before, but was simply in a poorly lit room.
‘Where the fuck am-oh, right. Fucked up ponyland.’ Sighing in disappointment, he fell back and laid spread out on a king sized bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Damn, this bed felt nice. The whole room was nice to be honest. When Celestia said he’d be staying in the guest room he wasn’t expecting a fucking hotel suite. Hell, even calling it that wouldn’t do it justice. This place made even the best hotels from his world look like shit in comparison. The room was huge, big enough to hold not only a king sized bed, but several other pieces of furniture. It also had what was possibly the cleanest bathroom he had ever seen in his life. Seriously, he could see his reflection in the floor for god’s sake.
But what really sold him was the balcony next to the bed. Not only did it allow a cool breeze to wander into the room every now and then, but it also gave him a clear view of the entire city. It was really a sight to behold, and he remembered being so entranced by it that by the time he came back to reality, he found himself alone in the room, the guards who escorted him here having left long beforehand.
After doing a quick inspection of the room, he remembered sitting down on the bed and that was when he had fallen asleep. He actually hadn’t planned on it, but the bed had been so soft and inviting that the next thing he knew he was out like a light. He had only meant to sleep for about an hour or two, but judging from the night sky, he was clearly out a lot longer than that.
Kicking his legs over the side of the bed, he stood up and began to stretch his limbs, surprised at how relaxed his muscles felt. Damn, he was gonna have to take this bed back home with him. All his old bed ever gave him was back pains and muscle cramps.
Well, now that he was awake, what was he gonna do? He wasn’t going back to sleep that’s for sure. He briefly considered tracking down Celestia to see if he could help her with her research, but he brushed that idea aside. This palace was huge and he doubted he’d be able to find the Royal Archives without asking somebody for help. The only ones walking around at this hour was the night shift, and considering how they reacted to him earlier, he wasn’t too confident that they’d be giving him directions anytime soon.
Besides, he doubted there was much he could do to help. He never was much of a reader and even if he was, he probably wouldn’t have been able to understand even half of what he was reading. Magic followed completely different rules and logic from what he was used to, and even with the dragons knowledge, he still didn’t understand much of it. He’d be more of a detriment to Celestia’s research than anything else.
‘So I can’t go back to sleep and unless I want to give some random pony a heart attack, I can’t leave the room either. I’m basically stuck here until morning and who knows how long that is. My luck just keeps getting better and better.’
Needing some fresh air, he stepped out onto the balcony and leaned on the railing, silently admiring the view. He hadn’t had time to notice it before, him being so impatient to get home and all, but this city really was beautiful. It reminded him of New York before the outbreak, only much more quiet and serene. In New York, silent moments such as this were a rarity, but here it just seemed like the norm. He closed his eyes as he felt a cool breeze wash onto his face. Jesus, Colette would have loved it-
He paused, a frown on his face as he found his thoughts drifting back to his wife. She really would have loved it here. She loved calm, tranquil places like this. If only she could be here to enjoy it. If only he had-
‘Stop. You are not to blame for what happened. Colette’s death was not your fault and there was nothing you could have done to prevent it.’ He told himself for what must have been the 100th time since her death, and each time, it sounded more and more like an excuse.
Could he have prevented it? Colette had warned him days beforehand that Blackwatch soldiers had been seen around the area and that should have been his first clue that something was wrong. He had heard about Blackwatch, everyone in his squad had, and what they heard wasn’t pretty.
These guys were animals, beyond brutal. They were willing to do anything to accomplish their goals, including killing innocent civilians. There were even rumors that they were the ones who tried to detonate that nuke over New York during the first outbreak. Whether or not that was true wasn’t important; even if they hadn’t dropped the bomb, it was clear that these guys didn’t give a damn about civilian life and would have gladly put a bullet in the head of every family in New York if they thought it would make their job easier.
He should have hopped on the first plane ride back to New York the minute Colette told him she saw one of those bastards walking down the street, but he hesitated. He had his own duties to perform overseas and he didn’t want to abandon his post just to travel all the way back to New York and find that nothing was wrong. It was only after Colette’s death did he realize how foolish it was to ignore her warnings, and deep down, he knew that he was partly responsible for her death, but he refused to let the guilt eat him up.
It was the same with Father Guerra; deep down he knew he shouldn’t gotten the old priest involved in his war. Maybe he’d still be alive if he hadn’t, but he had no choice. Guerra had connections, and without him, he would never have been able to damage Blackwatch’s operations as badly as he had. Not only that, it was because of Guerra that he’d been able to save so many people from Gentek’s sick experiments , so at least he hadn’t died in vain.
Guerra knew the risks; knew that he would be killed for even affiliating himself with him, yet he still helped. He didn’t care for his own life just lives of others, strangers he didn’t even know. The man gave his life so that they would live and it would be an insult to his memory if he let guilt stop him getting revenge on his murderer. He would never forgive Mercer. He would never forget what that monster-
"You call me a monster because of the number of people I’ve killed, yet you’re willing to kill just as many to satisfy your revenge."
‘No! It’s not true, I’m not-
"Deny it all you want Heller, but you know the truth: You and I are exactly alike and I don’t just mean our powers."
‘I AM NOTHING LIKE YOU!’ He raged, pausing once he realized that he was yelling at himself.
It wasn’t true. Mercer was a killer, a sociopath, and a manipulating bastard who was willing to use anybody to accomplish his sick goals. He wanted to wipe out humanity and replace it with his own twisted idea of “perfection.” He lacked any qualities that would even identify him as human: No conscience, no regret, no guilt. Mercer was a monster, plain and simple.
But then what was he?
While he tended to avoid causing unnecessary casualties, and really, he had killed far more Blackwatch solder’s and Gentek scientist’s than innocent civilians, the fact of the matter was he had killed them. To be fair, most of them were accidents; when you’ve got Brawlers in front of you, tanks behind you, and an assload of Blackwatch soldiers shooting at you from every direction, it’s hard to pay attention to who your Claws hit. But a lot of them were on purpose; innocent people who’d either been consumed without a second thought or turned into Biobomb’s and thrown away like yesterday's trash..
But the worst part was that he didn’t even care. Whether it was on purpose or on accident he didn’t bat an eyelash as he took their lives. ‘Collateral damage’ he’d always say, and it wasn’t until now that he realized how sick those words sounded. Those were people! People with family, friends, hopes, and dreams and he had slaughtered them like animals!
Was Mercer right? Would he have killed millions of people just to satisfy his revenge? Did he ever have the moral high ground or was he just trying to convince himself that he was the "good guy" in this whole thing.
‘Jesus, I might as well go back to sleep at this rate. I’d rather deal with another round of nightmares than have to think about this crap any more.’
Deciding to deal with his guilty conscience another time, he went back to admiring the city, hoping its innate beauty would take his mind off the dream. Unfortunately for him, his mood had officially gone back to ‘angry’ and any beauty he once saw before was lost on him.
Great. Once again his good mood had been ruined because of one Alex Mercer and unlike last time, there were no Evolved around to take his anger out on. It wasn’t even morning yet and already his day was going to shit. Well, at least he could enjoy the peace and quiet without any annoying-ass ponies around to –
“It’s a beautiful night wouldn’t you agree?” A female voice said from behind him, breaking him from his thoughts.
Startled that someone was able to sneak up on him without him noticing, he turned around to face (and curse out) the owner of the mysterious voice but paused when he got a good look of who it was.
The pony before him was a mirror image of Celestia except for a few minor details. This pony’s body was a dark shade of blue, a stark contrast from Celestia’s pure white body, and her mane and tail, instead of the mash of pink, blue, and green that was Celestia’s, instead looked like the night sky, with star-like twinkles constantly sparkling in her hair. Other than those small differences though, they were pretty much exactly alike. Like Celestia, she was much taller than the average pony, though still smaller than Celestia herself, her height only reaching up to his chest. She also had wings and a horn and, for some godforsaken reason, her hair also moved like it was caught in some never ending breeze. Seriously, what was up with that?
“Forgive me if I frightened you, it was just that you seemed to be so deep in thought that I tried to make as little noise as possible as I approached you. I can leave if you’d like.” She offered.
“You’re Princess Luna aren’t you?” He asked, though it was more of a statement than a question.
“What gave it away?” She answered, taking his ignoring of her apology as a sign that she could stay, at least for now.
'The magical fucking hair thing that only you and your sister seem to bother doing, seriously what is the point of that shit?' is what he wanted to say.
Instead, what came out of his mouth was, “Oh I don’t know, maybe because only one other pony in this whole castle has wings and a horn, and the chances of you having them too and not being related to her in some way are pretty slim.”
Apparently she found his sarcasm funny because she gave a soft chuckle before responding, “Yes, well I suppose that is one way you could identify us. What about you? Aren’t you James Heller?”
“Now what gave that away?”
“You mean other than the fact that only a strange creature like yourself could have such a strange name? Tia told me.”
Tia? A deity who has the power to (supposedly) manipulate the sun and who basically controls whether anything on this planet lives or dies, is nicknamed Tia. Had Luna not been standing there watching him he would have laughed his ass off.
Instead he asked, “So I’m guessing “Tia” told you everything about me then, huh?”
“Actually all she told me was your name and that you were staying in one of our guest rooms. When I asked her any other questions about you, all she said was that it wasn’t her place to tell.”
Silently thanking Celestia for actually keeping her promise, his voice suddenly took on an accusing tone. “Let me guess, the reason you’re even here is because you want to ask me those questions now, right?"
The lunar princess, realizing that she had been found out, looked slightly embarrassed as she responded, “W-well if that’s okay with you I mean. If you’re not comfortable with me being here I can just leave, but…
“But what?”
“…I really want to get to know you.”
He should have told her to leave. He should have told her that he wasn’t in the mood for questions. He should have told her that he wasn’t looking to make any friends. But he hesitated, weighing the pros and cons of kicking her out.
Pro: He’d avoid having to answer a whole bunch of annoying questions, wouldn’t have to talk about his life (especially the parts he'd rather much forget), and he’d be able to avoid the mandatory nuzzling that he was undoubtedly going to get from her when he got to the really crappy parts of his life (he shivered as he recalled the one he received from Celestia. Still couldn’t believe she did that)
Con: He’d be stuck here alone for the next few hours with nothing to do but count the tiling’s on the ceiling.
Tough choice.
In the end it was Luna who made the decision for him. As calm and professional as she tried to make herself appear, he could see the eagerness and child-like excitement in her eyes.
‘Please say yes, please say yes, please say yes…’ Is what he knew she was thinking.
I guess it wouldn’t hurt to let her ask a few questions. Hell, it was better than sitting in this room all day with nothing to do. Besides, might be nice to have somebody other than Shining Armor to talk to for a change.
The eagerness in Luna’s eyes turned to disappointment when, instead of answering, Heller turned away from her and leaned on the railing of the balcony. Taking his silence as a sign of rejection, Luna lowered her head dejectedly as she turned towards the exit.
“What are you waiting for?” She stopped and turned her head to look at him, clearly confused.
“It’s nicer out here. Way better place to have a conversation.” He said, his back still facing her.
Her confusion lasted only a second more before realization struck her. Suppressing the urge to squeal like a little filly and skip over to him, she put on as serious a look as she could muster and joined him on the balcony.
“Thank you James, I promise you won’t regret this.”
“Yeah, yeah.” He muttered.
Occupying the spot next to him, Luna soon realized that he was not exaggerating. The tranquil atmosphere, the comfortable breeze, the jaw-dropping view – no wonder he wanted to have the conversation out here, it was perfect. She lived here and she rarely got to see moments like this. When she wasn’t attending late-night meetings or signing paperwork, she was asleep in her room. Both hers and Celestia’s schedules basically boiled down to work and sleep, work and sleep. It could be draining at times, both physically and mentally.
She wished she could just stand here and enjoy the view, the silence, the serenity that she rarely got to experience, but she knew her time was limited. Her next meeting began in 20 minutes and it would take at least 20 hours to get through all her questions, so she needed to be swift.
But where should she start? Everything about James was an enigma: What is he? Where did he come from? Do all his people wear clothing or is it just him? Why does he have so little fur? There was so much she wanted to know and she had no idea where to begin.
'I guess I’ll ask him where he came from and then wing it from there.’ Satisfied with her plan, she turned to Heller and just as she opened her mouth, Heller’s hand shot out and covered it, muffling her voice.
Both shocked and enraged at such a bold move, Luna thrashed her head back and forth, fighting hard to free herself from Heller’s grip. Heller didn’t loosen his grip in the slightest, patiently waiting for Luna to realize the futility of her situation and give up. His face was blank during the whole ordeal, the only emotion being a raised eyebrow when Luna attempted to yell something at him as she fought. Her voice may have been muffled, but he was able to pick out a few words – words that he was pretty sure a Princess wasn’t supposed to use in polite conversation.
Just as he was about to make a sarcastic remark about how Princess’ shouldn’t use such language, Luna suddenly stopped struggling. It seemed she finally realized that she wasn’t getting free no matter how hard she fought, so instead, she settled for glaring angrily at him, eyes demanding an explanation.
“Let’s set a few ground rules here.” He began. “First rule: No asking me about where I’m from or how I got here. I already explained that shit to Celestia and I don’t feel like repeating it. Ask her if you wanna know so badly. Tell her I gave you my permission. Second rule: No questions about my people or my culture. There’s way too much to cover and I don’t feel like giving a lecture. Third rule: If I’m gonna answer your questions, you’re gonna answer my questions, and I’ve got a lot to ask. Those are my rules. If you can’t follow them the doors over there. Nod your head your if you understand.”
‘You had to cover my mouth to tell me that!’ She thought indignantly, wanting nothing more than to scream that into his ear using the Royal Canterlot Voice until he went deaf.
Unlike Celestia, she did not appreciate being treated in such a disrespectful manner and being talked down to like she was a filly. And who was he to impose such restrictions on what kind of questions she could ask! If she were to follow his rules, her choice of questions would be severely limited, and she’d barely have time to ask them since she was going to be simultaneously answering his questions as well.
But what choice did she have? She could either choose to not follow his rules and leave without having any of her questions answered… or she could play his game and squeeze as many answers out of him as possible. Her curiosity winning out, Luna slowly nodded her head in defeat. Seeing Luna’s response, Heller removed his hand from her mouth.
The moment Heller’s hand was gone, Luna’s hooves shot up to massage her mouth, specifically the sore spots where Heller’s fingers had been.
“You do realize I could have you thrown in the dungeon for what you just did?” She warned, clearly irritated
“You wanna have a bitch fight or you wanna ask me those questions?” He shot back impatiently.
Luna narrowed her eyes at him, but said nothing. Suddenly, she was having second thoughts about coming here.
“Fine! I suppose my first question is this: What are you? The name of your species I mean.”
“Just so you know, that question goes into the whole ‘my people and culture’ category, but I’ll let it slide this time.” Luna huffed, wanting him to get to the point. “As for the name of my species, it’s Homo sapien, or human for short.”
“Human,” She repeated, letting the word roll off her tongue. “A strange name to call a species, but then again, who am I to judge. Alright then, my next question is-“
“You mean my question.” He interrupted. “That’s how it’s gonna go – I’ll answer your question, then you’ll answer mine. That way everyone gets a turn. It’s only fair after all.”
She wanted to hit him. She really did. First he touches her without her permission and now he interrupts her! Are all humans this rude or was it just him? Narrowing her eyes, she responded in a low growl, “Fine, what is your question?”
“My question is why are you here?” Noticing her confused expression, he clarified. “I thought you were supposed to be banished to the moon or something. What are you doing here?” This had been bugging him ever since he first laid eyes on her. From what he (or rather the dragon) remembered, Luna had been banished to the moon by Celestia nearly a thousand years ago, which is why it was quite the surprise to see her standing there in his room. Of course, the dragon didn’t really keep up with current events, so maybe something happened recently that he didn’t know about.
Raising an eyebrow, Luna replied, “I’m surprised you even know of that. You’ve only been here a few hours and already you know of my banishment?”
“Yeah well, the guards are pretty chatty when they want to be.” Well that was a boldfaced lie if he ever heard one. The guards were never chatty. He had only been here a few hours and even he knew that. Judging from the skeptic look on Luna’s face, she knew that too.
“Are they now? Tell me, what details of my banishment did they disclose to you?”
“First, that’s two questions in a row you just asked me.” Luna rolled her eyes. “Second, just the basics of how you went batshit insane and tried to kill everybody.”
“I was not trying to kill everypony.” She interjected.
“No, you just wanted to block out the sun. Don’t know how things work here, but where I’m from, doing that pretty much fucks everybody over.”
Luna gave an annoyed huff before answering. “Despite what you say, I was not trying to kill anypony. I just wanted them to-“ She stopped abruptly and frowned, a sad look in her eyes.
“You wanted them to what?” He asked, trying not to sound too concerned.
“… Nothing , forget it.” She said after some time. That same look was still in her eyes, and though a part of him wanted to use his next question to ask her what was wrong, he could tell that she didn’t want to talk about it. He had his own secrets to hide and he’d be one hell of a hypocrite if he forced her to reveal hers. He’d give her some time and if she chose to, she’d tell him on her own.
“So, uh… you still haven’t explained how you’re here.” He asked again.
“How I’m here?” She asked confused, before lightly smacking herself on the head. “Oh right, your question! Sorry about that James, I get lost in my own thoughts at times.” He nodded his head in understanding. At least she wasn’t sad anymore.
“As for the answer to your question, it’s a long story, so I’ll try to summarize it as best I can.” Taking a moment to clear her throat, she spoke, “The spell that kept me confined to the moon for a thousand years was weakening. Whether or not Celestia knew of this I’m not sure, though knowing her she probably did. About a year ago, the spell weakened to the point where I was able to break through it and escape my prison. Once I was free, I immediately made my way to Equestria to continue my plan: Plunging the world into eternal darkness and ruling over it. And I would have succeeded; Celestia was unable to perform the spell again and with her out of the way, nopony would have been able to stop me. I would have succeeded – if I hadn’t been stopped by six very special little ponies.”
Luna allowed a small smirk to grace her lips when she saw Heller’s eyes widen in shock; it didn’t take long for him to figure out who she was talking about. Before he could say anything, Luna continued. “Using the Elements of Harmony, those six ponies were able to stop me. They purged whatever had corrupted me out of my body, and I was turned back into the form that you see before you. That’s how I’m here.”
His mind was reeling. He had asked a question, gotten an answer, and the answer only led to even more questions. Those six stopped her? He knew they were tough, but he didn't think they'd be able to take down someone that was of equal power to Celestia. And how the hell were they able to use the Elements of Harmony? From what little the dragon knew of them, they were supposed to be these extremely powerful weapons that only Celestia and Luna could use, so how were those six able to use them?
He thought back to Celestia’s speech to Rainbow Dash and how she had referred to her as the ‘Element of Loyalty.’ He hadn’t thought much of it then, but maybe it tied into how they were able to use the Elements. Maybe-
“Now it’s my turn to ask you a question.” Luna’s ecstatic voice broke him from his thoughts.
Fuck
“Fine, ask your damn question.” He sighed
“Word around here is that you killed a dragon and ‘ate’ it’s body. I want to know how you did it.” She asked.
“You heard about that, huh.”
“Everypony has heard about it James. The castle may be large, but it took only a few hours for your deeds to spread. You’ve become quite the celebrity actually. Everypony wants to meet the being who saved the Elements of Harmony for themselves.”
He clearly hadn’t been expecting that answer if the surprise on his face was any indication. He kills a dragon, beats up their military, and insults their princess, and instead of coming after him with pitchforks and torches, the ponies in this place want to meet him and shake his hand? What a strange little world…
“Oh, and one more thing.” She added. He looked at her intently, thinking she had more surprising news for him. “That was two questions in a row you just asked me.” She finished with a playful grin.
“Smart ass.”
“Now you what it’s like dealing with you. Now answer my question.”
“Fine.” He sighed. He was really hoping to avoid this conversation. His powers weren’t pretty to look at and were even less pretty to explain. Hell, the main reason he avoided talking about them with Twilight and Shining Armor was because he feared they’d be less likely to take him to meet Celestia if they found out what he could do. Would you take a creature that could consume someone, take their form, and gain their memories to meet your leader?
He briefly considered telling her ‘it’s magic, I don’t have to explain’, but he knew that wouldn’t be fair to her. She had answered his question and he’d be a total dick if he couldn’t do the same.
‘Besides,’ He thought. ‘I’m already here. What are they gonna do, kick me out?’ He laughed at the thought.
“Before I explain my powers, let me just warn you now - my powers are meant to kill. Not to throw tea parties. Not to bake cakes. To kill. I use them for completely different purposes than what you use magic for. I’m telling you this because I don’t want to hear any bitching on how horrible or terrifying my powers are. Understand?” Luna looked slightly disturbed as he finished his explanation, but nodded anyway.
“Alright.” He looked her dead in the eye. “Whatever I kill, I can consume. I’m not sure how it works myself, but from what I understand, I transform organic matter into a type of biomass that I can consume. Whoever or whatever I consume, I gain that beings knowledge, skills, abilities, and if they’re the same species as me, their form.”
To demonstrate, he closed his eyes and imagined one of his many victims. A loud gasp escaped Luna’s mouth when she saw black and red tendrils surround Heller’s body, and when they dissipated, what stood in his place was a lighter skinned brunette woman. Heller let her soak in his new form for a few more seconds before changing back.
“I basically become them. A perfect copy.” He further explained. “That’s how I was able to breathe fire and grow armor. That’s how I know so much about you Luna. The dragon told me everything.”
Luna’s eyes were wide as saucers as he wrapped up his explanation, and several tense seconds passed as he waited for her to respond. Would she scream and run out of the room? Would she use magic to throw him off the balcony? Or would she just faint on the spot? He really hoped it was the third option. It was least painful one after all. For him at least. He visibly tensed when Luna took a deep breath, opened her mouth, and…
"Wow.”
“…’Wow’. That’s all you can say? I just described what was possibly the most amazing thing you’ve ever heard in your life, and all you can say is ‘wow’. What’s with you and your and sister giving half-assed reactions to everything?”
“I’m sorry, it’s just… I have no idea what to say. Your abilities are… nothing like I’ve ever seen before. They're amazing... godlike even.”
“Well I wouldn’t say godlike…”
“James, do you not even realize the potential of your abilities. You could have the magical prowess of a Unicorn. The flight speed of a Pegasus. The strength of an Earth pony. Your power could surpass both mine and Celestia’s and that’s just as you are now! If you were to consume one of us or even both us…” She gulped at the thought.
“Well, luckily for you, I need you both alive. Well, I need Celestia alive at least, but you’re alright, so I’ll let you live too.”
“I’m going to pretend that was a joke.”
“It wasn’t.”
He didn’t know if it was his dead serious expression as he said it or if she really thought he was joking, but Luna apparently found something funny because she was suddenly laughing her ass off, and the strangest part was, so was he (though not nearly as hard).
There must have been some kind of gas in the room, because that was the only explanation for how they were acting right now. They had been at each other’s throats not five minutes ago, yet here they were laughing like they were old pals. This place was getting to him, though he couldn’t decide yet if that was a good thing or a bad thing.
“Alright, alright, if we’re done acting like a bunch of assholes now, I’d like to ask my question.” He said, getting his laughter under control.
Luna managed to do the same, though it took her a bit longer. “Alright James, what’s your question.” She asked, fighting back a few giggles.
“You said those six used the Elements of Harmony to stop you. How? I thought only you and Celestia could use them.”
“Well… that’s kind of my fault.” She answered sheepishly.
“Which is codeword for, ‘it was totally my fault’.”
“Quiet James, I’m talking. You see, with my banishment, control over the Elements was left to solely Celestia. Now, Celestia is powerful, possibly the most powerful pony in all of Equestria, but the Elements of Harmony are on a whole other level. The magic contained within them is far beyond what one pony could ever hope to control, which is why both of us were needed to harness their power. Without me there to help her, Celestia slowly lost her connection to the Elements.”
“But what do those six have to with this?” He wondered.
“I was getting to that!” She snapped at him. “Although our connection to the Elements was lost, the Elements themselves still remained, waiting for a catalyst to channel their powers through.”
“And the six of them were chosen to be that catalyst.” He reasoned.
She nodded her head. “Exactly.”
“But why them?” He asked. “Why were they chosen? What makes them so special?”
Luna smiled softly in response. “Because those six represent the values that are held by all in Equestria. Values that every pony lives by, but are especially prevalent in those six. The bond between them is more powerful than any spell. The Elements could sense that, and the magic of their friendship was enough to awaken them once more.”
“Applejack, who reassured those that were in doubt, was chosen as the Element of Honesty.”
“Fluttershy, whose compassion allows her to tame even the mightiest of beasts, was chosen as the Element of Kindness.”
“Pinkie Pie, who giggled in the face of fear, was chosen as the Element of Laughter.”
“Rarity, who always put the well being of others before her own, was chosen as the Element of Generosity.”
“Rainbow Dash, who refused to abandon her friends, even in the greatest of danger, was chosen as the Element of Loyalty.”
“And Twilight Sparkle, the one who brought them all together, and the one whose gives them hope even when hope seems meaningless, was chosen as the Element of Magic.”
“You ask me what makes those ponies so special. Nothing. They’re just six ponies who have been able to overcome a number of obstacles through nothing but their friendship with each other.”
Heller was… speechless. He didn’t know if it was because of the revelation that the six ponies that he had once viewed as nothing more than mere annoyances could control a power even greater than Celestia or the fact that Luna spoke about them with such respect.
But really? Honesty, kindness, laughter, generosity, loyalty, and magic? Those six? He thought back to his encounter with them in the forest. How they had they had attacked him. How they had treated him like he was little less than an animal. For a brief moment he doubted her claims.
Then he remembered Twilight. Hadn’t she shown generosity when she begged him to spare the lives of her friends, without even thinking about her own. Hadn’t she shown kindness when she defended him and treated him like a human being for the first time since he had gotten here? Hadn’t they all shown loyalty when they risked their lives to save Rainbow Dash from that dragon? Even Rainbow Dash showed honesty when she admitted her mistake to the Princess and her friends and begged for their forgiveness. And despite how sappy he felt the whole group hug thing was, he couldn’t deny that their friendship was strong.
“Those six…” He asked slowly, his voice low. “There’s more to them than meets the eye, isn’t there?”
“That’s something you’ll have to find out for yourself James.” She responded.
He said nothing, but nodded his head slowly, still looking deep in thought.
“Well, I believe that’s enough questions for tonight, don’t you think.” Luna said, much to his surprise.
“You don’t have anymore questions?” He asked.
“Well… yes. A lot more actually, but you’re obviously distracted and I don’t wish to bother you anymore with my questions.”
“Oh,” He shifted awkwardly. “Well, uh, what do you wanna do now?”
“How about we enjoy the view and just… talk.”
He smirked. “Now that sounds like an idea.”
Matching his smirk with one of her own, Luna turned towards to look at the night sky, with Heller joining her soon afterwards. Nothing was said between the two. Nothing needed to be said. Both of them were just happy to finally have some peace and quiet in their normally hectic lives. They were kindred spirits in that sense, though whether or not they were actually friends was up for debate. For right now though, they were happy to be in each other’s company.
“Luna?”
“Yes, James?”
“Can I ask you something personal? You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.”
“Of course James, I don’t mind.” She turned her head to look at him, and saw that he was staring upward.
“What was it like? Up there I mean.” He gestured toward something in the sky.
Following his line of eyesight, Luna spotted what he was staring at, and instantly knew what he was asking about. Giving a sad sigh, she sent a sullen look towards her former prison.
“It was…lonely.” She answered sadly. “When ponies think of the moon, they usually think of some grand adventure; jumping in zero gravity, leaving hoofprints on the surface of the moon, discovering some unknown alien race. But it was none of that. It was just cold and dark.”
“You were conscious the entire time?” Luna swore he sounded horrified.
“Not really. I was asleep most of the time, but when I was awake… it really got to you, you know?”
“Yeah…” Honestly he didn’t know. Trapped on the moon for a thousand years, aware of everything that was happening around you, even if it was just for a few minutes? He couldn’t imagine what kind of hell that was like, and he wondered how Luna managed to keep her sanity throughout it all.
“Well, you’re home now, that’s a good thing at least.” He said, hoping his words would cheer her up.
Unfortunately, they only seemed to make things worse. “Yes, you’d think so wouldn’t you?” She answered, her face downcast.
He looked at her concerned. “What do you mean?”
She sighed sadly. “When I came back… I was treated to a less than warm welcome.” She explained. “Celestia was happy to have me back of course, and so were some others, but not everpony was so forgiving.” She sniffled. “Everypony avoided me like the plague. Children would run away from me crying ‘The Mare in the Moon is going to eat me!’ Even now I get a few stares and whispers whenever I walk down the street. I’ve tried to be a good ruler. I’ve tried to show them that I’ve changed, but…” She choked back a sob. “…they still don’t trust me. Nopony trust’s me.”
Heller was not an emotional man, anyone could tell you that. But even he felt pity as he watched Luna nearly break down into sobs before him. He wanted to help her, but he had no idea what to do in a situation like this. He hadn’t been nearly emasculated enough to hug her, so what else was there?
“I trust you.” The words came out of his mouth before he even thought of them.
Luna turned to face him, tears at the corner of her eyes as her mouth hung open in shock. “W-what?”
“I trust you.” He repeated. “Celestia trust’s you. And I’m pretty sure Twilight and the others trust you too. Who cares if a couple of assholes don’t trust you. If they can’t get over something that happened nearly a thousand years ago, then fuck’em.” He punched her lightly on the arm. “Listen, you can’t please everyone. If I got depressed over every guy that didn’t like me, I’d have committed suicide over 100 times by now. They don’t define you Luna, you do. If they call you a monster, be a saint. If they say you’re evil, do nothing but good. And if they call you a horrible ruler, well then, be the best damn ruler you can be and prove them wrong. That’s how I got through life. Who knows, maybe it’ll work for you too.”
“James…” Luna whispered.
“Yeah, I don’t know where that came from either.” He admitted, rubbing the back of his head. “Honestly, it sound’s like the kind of speech you’d hear out of a bad movie from the 90s. But I think it-“
He never got to finish that sentence. Luna had done something. Something very similar to what Celestia had done not too long ago. Oh, she hadn’t nuzzled him. She had done something much, much worse.
She hugged him.
SHE. HUGGED. HIM.
“James… thank you.” She whispered into his ear. “Thank you.”
“Don’t. Mention. It” He said through gritted teeth.
Is it invade Heller’s personal space day or something? Was it? Cause that was the only explanation for why this shit kept happening to him!
Thankfully, she let him go… and grinned mischievously when she saw his face. “Aw, James are you blushing?” She teased.
He turned away from her to hide his reddened cheeks. “Shut up.”
“Don’t be shy James, I don’t bite… much.”
“You want me to change my mind about not killing you don’t you?”
“Love you too.”
“Fuck you.”
"Maybe. If you buy me dinner first."
"It's gonna be a long night isn't it?"
"Don't worry, you have me to keep you company."
"...Fuck."
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I did a Prototype fic once, it did okay. Not nearly as good as this though.
Okay, I'll admit it. The ending made me grin as much as a Cr1tiKal gameplay video.
Fuck this I need sleep
perfect, that ending love it
I like Heller alot more than Mercer. Mercer was an evil douchebag even before he became infected with the virus. True, he did try to find good in humanity after the events of Prototype, but then he eventually decided "Nah. Fuck it. I'll be an insane douchebag with a god complex in the sequel instead. LOLZ!". Heller actually do seem to care about people despite being infected.
Still, I wonder what will happen if a 3rd game comes out...
(And please don't give me that wishful fanboy thinking where Mercer is "taking control of Heller's body" since Heller consumed him...)
Best boke-tsukkomi routine ever.
What a great couple
The end conversation was hilarious.
Best ending is best ending.
“Those six…” He asked slowly, his voice low. “There’s more to them than meets the eye, isn’t there?”
“There’s more to them than meets the eye, isn’t there?”
“There’s more to them than meets the eye"
tfwiki.net/w2/images2/thumb/3/37/Optimusg1.jpg/350px-Optimusg1.jpg
couldn't resist
make this REALLY long ok?
like 50 more chapters at least! please?
That ending was perfection I laughed so hard I fell out of my chair
Awesome story and I can't wait to see what happens with Heller!
I can expect much scared Fluttershy and more Luna and Heller conversations!
I can only think of one thing about how Heller's face would be at that very end word:
HellerXLuna ...........oh god i can hear the thousands of fanboy squees now............fangirls got nothin on a manly squee much less thousands of'em
...
Heller is just badass. No other words to describe him. Badass. I love this story, shame it updates once a month.
But whatever, Time=Quality.
OK WHO SHOULD JAMES BE WITH
CELESTIA
OR
LUNA
personnaly i think james should go out with luna
...... i lost it here rofling
gifs.gifbin.com/012010/1264091579_kirk_rofl.gif
Oh Luna you troll.
That was the best ending to a chapter I have ever read
1091503 She's inherited it from her sister.
You Sir/Madam deserve hugs . . . hundreds of them. The was a very very VERY! enjoyable couple of hours, a wonderful story so far you should be proud.
The end of his conversation with Luna was priceless.... Fuck you. Only if you buy me dinner first. HAHAHAHA!
dat ending bro... is epic
1090719
Yeah every week i need some of that stuff too.
Best. Ending. Ever.
Here, this is for you:
an applause i1.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/230/362/520.gif
m&m's enlightenedredneck.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/mms-image.jpg
and (if you want) a brohoof /)
Delightful! dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/emoticons/misc_Octavia_cake.png
802666 (sees title)
insta like, fav, and watch!
1091365 I don't think Heller needs that kind of emotional turmoil.
Oh, God yes. I love this story and it got updated again. Good job sage.
This is very well written. The cast are all good, the fun is all there, fun read.
Just one small issue. James Heller is constantly angry, sure, but thats for a whole different reason. He's not THAT much of a jerk. What you've done is exaggerated his main charachter trait: generic rage, and turned him into a poor imitation of the real thing. Heller talking to the cart ponies and Luna is a much closer indication of his personality than anything else I've seen here.
Never the less, I don't see anything that would keep me hooked, so while you do get a thumb, I'm simply not intrested as to what happens next.
i dont know why.... but i keep reading jame's lines in samuel jackson's voice
I love your story! Can't wait for more!
That ending was so awesome! Great job!
Don’t be shy James, I don’t bite… much.”
“You want me to change my mind about not killing you don’t you?”
“Love you too.”
“Fuck you.”
"Maybe. If you buy me dinner first."
"It's gonna be a long night isn't it?"
"Don't worry, you have me to keep you company."
"...Fuck."
I nearly died laughing.
dat ending
This doesn't seem so bad i do like Heller but i love Mercer he's a role model to me.
Dawww!
I really enjoyed reading about the day-to-day stuff that happened in Canterlot, and you did a really good job characterizing the princesses.
1090815
To be fair, the 180 change in character in the second game was more of the writers being terrible at their job and forcing him into the position of the common villain. Honestly, it would have been better if he actually was working to remove Blackwatch while also being good, because that's how it was in the first game.
"Mercer was an evil douchebag even before he became infected with the virus."
Uh, just to be clear, you did play the first game and completed the web of intrigue, didn't you? Because pretty much the main point of the game is that the sociopathic Alex Mercer was not the same Alex Mercer you play as in the game. At all. In fact, you don't even play as Alex Mercer infected with the virus, because you are the virus. I mean, this is made pretty clear through the entire game, and BlacklightAlex even makes several remarks about how horrible Alex was, talking about what he did and how he ignored his sister. Basically, BlacklightAlex =/= OriginalAlex.
I liked the second game and James, but I hate how they took an interesting character like Alex, took all the character development he went through in the first game, and completely removed it to have him be the common villain. Not to mention the really crappy ending of the second game.
1100152
Alex was one of the scientists working on that virus, correct? You must be pretty psycho to be willingly working on something like that.
1103154
BlacklightAlex is not the original Alex. The character you play in the game was never Alex at all. It was the virus which had taken his form after consuming him. Yes, Alex Mercer was a complete sociopath, and had no problem working on it, but you don't play as him; you play as the Blacklight virus which thinks it's him.
1091872
Thanks for informing me, though. I'll be sure to change that.
Actually, I didn't know.
Sassy Luna is sassy
I must apologize. I was shifting through random stories and thanks to this damned phone, I accidentally gave you a thumbs down. I have no idea how to take it back. I will settle by reading this story and seeing if I can change it to a thumbs up later.
this is too awesome for words