Operation Exquisite Corpse

by The Red Parade

Chapter Twelve (Stinium_Ruide)

The void in the victim’s eyes stared into her own, their emptiness filled with the darkness only she could see, staring lifelessly, yet judgingly into Bon Bon’s soul.

Like a pile of cards, everything within her collapsed into a forlorn heap.

The weapon collapsed onto the ground with a clatter that echoed throughout the surroundings, the noise reverberating through the thin, still air. Each echo that rang into her mind painfully reminded her of her regret, her hastiness, her rashness…

Time ticked by. Even though the weapon was now calmly resting on the dirt, the echoing continued in her mind, as its frequency resonated with that of her heartbeat. At this point, everything seemed to happen in slow motion from her eyes. Dragging her head up away from her eternal friend, her vision met with the figure that confronted her reality.

Lyra stood before her, grinning cruelly at the scene, her teeth glinting with a pale hue in the fading sunlight. She remained where she stood, but her eyes shifted around to turn and glance at the discarded weapon left on the dry earthen ground like a pile of trash. Her eyes then swivelled round to meet Bon Bon’s perturbed gaze.

But that wasn’t Lyra. That was not the mare Bon Bon would associate with Lyra. No, in fact, she saw nothing in front of her but a figure. A figure of shadows that haunted her conscience right to the core of her heart. A shadowy figure that fed her malicious lies, betrayed her friendship and crushed her sense of reality. Those lies it uttered, however malevolent, convinced her so easily to commit the unthinkable.

She bowed her head down instinctively, her neck giving away to the weight of her conscience that lingered in the depths of her mind.

A soulless body greeted her vision, prompting her legs to give way with a faint thump.

She brought her hooves over to the mint-coloured mane, running them along its length, appreciating every little bit of warmth that emanated from within.

This was the real Lyra. Yes, she could feel it, in the warmth radiating into her spirit, however weak it may be. She could feel the memories flowing from the tip of her hooves up to her brain as she felt her dear friend’s warmth dissipating into the cold. A flurry of emotions rushed through her as she remembered everything, pulling the strings of her heart.

As Bon Bon’s soul proceeded to relive each experience with her closest friend, tears shrouded her vision.

Her mind reminded her of the many years that they had together forging the friendship they treasured; the many experiences that they had together reinforcing the bond between them; the many acts of friendship that they had shared together fortifying the trust between them.

And then it was gone.

All gone.

Just like that.

Words failed to describe the pain that lingered within her beating heart. She needed something, something to relieve that throbbing pain, that pain that was crying out from the confines of her spirit. She needed to forget the moments that came rushing at her, the moments that hit her so hard, so fast.

She…she needed to do something…

With her head still bowed down, she turned sideways to bring that accursed weapon into view slowly, as she mulled over her decision.

No, no matter what, the deed must be done.

In a flurry of activity, she seized the weapon from the ground swiftly, bringing it to aim at the impersonator. Bon Bon’s eyes showed no mercy whatsoever when she prepared to fire the weapon at that spiteful figure.

Yet, the figure showed no fear or anxiety. It stood there, motionless, with a sly smile emerging from its face. A sly smile that spoke of confidence in its survival against the capability of the weapon that was tightly held by Bon Bon just metres away from it.

“Come on then, get on with it! Blast me with your little weapon NOW!” the figure goaded, as it trotted forth to close the distance between it and Bon Bon. “I dare you.”

Bon Bon did not hesitate. She squeezed the trigger, causing the embedded crystals within the weapon to activate, emitting a blast. However, her hastiness to attack forced her to be ill-prepared to counteract against the recoil of the weapon pushing her back, nearly causing her to be knocked down to the ground. This sudden, almost unexpected jerk of her weapon forced her to close her eyes for a short period of time as she tried to recover from her initial state of shock.

Straining the muscles in her legs, Bon Bon somehow managed to maintain her balance on all fours as she gradually reopened her eyes to observe the effects of her weapon on that hideous, shadowy clone.

No way.

Reflexively, her jaw collapsed onto the ground, prompting her mouth to gape at the sight before her. As her eyes widened in shock, she lifted her forehoof to rub her tear-soaked eyes, wondering whether her vision was up to playing tricks on her. She then shook her head vigorously, hoping to snap herself out of any illusion that she might be observing. She even slapped her cheeks with her forehooves, praying that that could magically change the situation that she was thrust into.

But no, despite all of her efforts, her eyes were gazing into nothing but a stark reality.

Author's Note:

Written by Stinium_Ruide