The Unforgiven

by Trigger_Finger

Chapter 9: I blame me

Luna awoke peacefully as the warm sunlight set along her body, entering the room through the window which somewhat amplified the temperature of the light. She felt warm, content and… ouch, her wing still hurt from last night.

She looked around, “How did I…” she trailed off as soothing, yet somewhat depressing, musical tunes filled her ears. She listened closely as she tried to recognize the song but couldn’t, it wasn’t anything she remembered but then again she usually didn’t go listening to music on her free time.

She crawled out of bed and stretched gently, as to not hurt her wing, before she trotted out into the dwelling of the house which was a stranger to her. She had never been in this house and had no recollection of how she got here. The musical tunes began to play lyrics which made Luna sort of sad from the depressive voice that sang it.

The rain has moved on

And left a new day

Nothing seems to move, everything is still

It's just a perfect day...

Luna’s heart beat painfully from the heart touching music and she slowly trotted towards the source of the sound. She reached the front door when she realized that one of the window panels were missing from the window ceil beside the door. She shrugged off any thought she had about why the window would be missing and quietly opened the door.

There she found the stallion whom she had met last night before fainting from the fear that had stricken her. He was relaxed and leaned back in his porch rocking chair, slowly rocking back and forth. He had a Desperado cowboy hat tilted down in front of his face. He looked to be asleep peacefully.

The shadows and light

That move with the wind

Hidden violets grow, splashed with summer spray

Just another perfect day…

Metal Jacket chuckled as he sensed Luna’s presence without even hearing her or looking at her. “My wife… Karen… she used to make me…(Sniffle) listen to this song with her while we sat on our porch in the morning… back in Ponyville” he said with deep sadness in his voice. Luna stepped up beside him as she continued to listen to the lyrics which Metal Jacket whispered along with in a depressed tone.

On the wild and misty hillside

Fear is nature’s warning

Hunger here is never far away…

As the lyrics continued Metal Jacket wiped a tear from his face. “I used to hate it when she’d put this song on… it made me feel so… so sad… and now it’s all I ever listen to, yet it makes me even sadder when I listen to it because it makes me remember her… and how she’s gone” he said as he tried to hold back his tears.

And all of this world

Is for children who play

Days that never end should always remain

Another perfect day…

The song ended soon after and Metal Jacket simply turned off the record player. He sat in silence for a moment before Luna broke it. “I’m sorry…about your wife” she whispered soothingly. “Don’t be… it’s not your fault, not some-pony else’s… not even those good for nothing fucks that call themselves the element of harmony bearers… it’s my fault” he told her and she stepped ever closer to him.

“How… how would it be your fault?” she asked and he brought his hoof up to his face to wipe more tears from his eyes. He had cleaned up the yard last night and it was clean, as it should be.

“I don’t know… but it makes me feel worse about myself if I figure that it was my fault and that she should have been with some-pony better than me” he told her, Luna took another step forwards.

“But why would you want to make yourself feel worse?” she asked and he leaned back in his rocking chair. “I never always blamed myself… but after those fucking mares back in Ponyville gave me the boot out of my home… where I first met her… let’s just say it’s never been the same” he told her.

She took a deep breath. “You shouldn’t blame yourself… not for what happened to your wife” she said, trying to sooth his nerves. He chuckled, “What does it matter now. I’ll be dead in a few years and no-pony will give a fuck. No-pony will come to bury my body. No-pony will miss me. Just some old stallion who withered away in the Everfree. So might as well blame me for all the world’s problems… probably make every-pony feel better… then maybe they’d remember me” he said in a low depressed voice.

“No! Don’t say such things. You’re more than just a scapegoat” Luna told him positively. He chuckled then tipped his hat up so he could look into her eyes.

“Alright princess… tell me. Do you know who I am?” he asked but she shook her head. He laughed in a saddened tone. “Exactly… no-pony knows” he said then took a deep exhale. “I am the one and only Metal Jacket” he said and she gasped as she remembered all the stories her sister had told her about him back when he served in the military.

He was just a sergeant but he had honours beyond that of even Shining Armor himself. He had saved Equestria from imminent doom more than once from opposing forces that threatened Equestria all by himself. He earned his honour in blood, unlike most ponies in today’s society who were called heroes.

“You’re… the legendary… Metal Jacket?” Luna asked hesitantly and he nodded. “I know right. Thirty fucking years of serving my country and this is what I get. Exiled into some shitty ass goddess forsaken forest and because what? I shot a gun in city limits? I killed some rabbits that were eating my fucking garden. Respect from today’s youth is just fucking pathetic. I’m just waiting for the day when I finally die. Then maybe I can be in peace” Metal Jacket told her.

She was at a loss of words but he stood up and stretched. “Well princess, I guess I should be getting you home now shouldn’t I?” he chuckled as he grabbed his old Russian rifle from the porch and slung it around his back then led her to his garage, which at the moment was still missing the front door.

“You own… vehicles?” Luna asked as she eyed his two motorized vehicles. Generally speaking not many ponies drove vehicles, mostly because of gas prices and the economy or something about the natural havoc that carbons caused or something ruther.

He nodded as he pulled out a set off keys for his old Camaro. He had tuned it up himself during his exile. He put a 454 big block with a supercharger then tuned the timing before reinforcing the pistons and combustion chamber to allow nitrous and other sorts of speed enhancing formulas to be used.

“Nice car” Luna commented and Metal Jacket smirked. “I called her… Karen” Metal Jacket told the princess before they both embarked into the vehicle. Usually Metal Jacket didn’t drive the old muscle car but he supposed that this was a special occasion so he keyed the ignition and the car roared to life.

Author's Note:

Ahhhh, the depressing back story of a war veteran. Made me shed a tear, well actually not really but close enough