> The King Of Nothing > by Lighting Ace > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > End Of The Road (Edited By Phetia And D.R Fur) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- With a tired gaze and moving on autopilot, an extremely tall stallion with light blue fur and a very long and messy mane that reaches his hips marches through the middle of a forest without a care. His ragged and dirty clothes consisted of black fingerless gloves, a long open black sweater with mod and big stitches and cloth patches on top of a light discolored shirt, a long green scarf, light blue pants with a hole for his messy long silver tail, black boots with a series of thick stitches that barely held them together a red beanie with a hole for his dark blue horn and a dirty and big cloak tie together to a huge bag he carried over his right shoulder. Reaching a dirty road, the stallion looks both ways for upcoming traffic before continuing his march from the edge of the road until nightfall. At nightfall, he enters deeper into the forest and makes an improvised camp, sitting on a fallen log and eating from a can of beans while admiring the starry night. The next morning, the stallion manages to reach a town where ponies keep avoiding him like a plague, both in repulsion and fear, after taking a glance at him. Looking to his right, the stallion notices how a couple of ponies dressed in police outfits give him the stink eye and follow him around. Turning an alleyway, the stallion kneeled and put his hands behind his head, closing his eyes. Smirking, the two ponies took their batons and beat the stallion repeatedly, laughing and insulting him. By sunset, the stallion reached a street full of ponies dressed like him, gathered around a fire in a trash can. Joining the group, the ponies shared what little food they had with one another, and the stallion even shared some of his rations with them. Nobody said a word and just enjoyed a small moment of peace. Continuing his march, the stallion found himself on a train cart with other homeless ponies, admiring the blue sky from the open door and taking a deep, long sigh. Once reaching another town and feeling hungry, the stallion begs for change while resting at the edge of an alleyway. Managing to get a small amount, the stallion was surprised and attacked by another homeless man who only grunts and screams with a rusty knife on his bloody right hand and foamy mouth, demanding the change. The stallion remains stoic during the assault and calm and collected, almost bored by the crazy pony's actions. Moments later, the personnel of a help center for drug addicts were startled when the crazy pony that tried to assault the stallion was violently thrown inside the second floor of the building, unconscious and with a bloody mouth. The stallion walked away and put the rusty knife in his bag, using his earnings to buy a book. The librarian urges him to leave the place and virtually tosses books at him so he moves faster; the stallion remains calm and picks up all of them on his way out. Returning to the forest, the stallion found a small cavern big enough for him to lay down and read once he finished improvising a door with some logs and vines around the area.  A manticore soon found him and tried to claw his way inside, yet the stallion remained jaded. He looked at the animal before grabbing into a log and tying together the rusty knife on one edge. Walking slower, the stallion kept dragging the corpse of the manticore from the edge of another dirty road until he heard low growls in the distance, which made him stop. Sitting on top of a tree, the stallion saw a group of timberwolf eating the corpse. The stallion uses the tail and a piece of the mane of the manticore to fix part of his clothes. Once the coast was clear, the stallion stepped down from the tree with the manticore's tail safe in his bag. Grabbing a couple of the remaining bones, the stallion kept his march, repeating the process. Selling what he could beg in the street and let the local authorities have fun beating him up. Under the full moon's gaze, the stallion took advantage of his privacy and the nearby river to wash himself and his clothes, pouring water into his face. The stallion looked at his reflection in the water, seeing all the brushes on his tone and cut chest. The water dissipated gradually in front of his eyes before he looked at his hands and wept silently, closing his eyes and clenching his fist.  Eventually, the stallion reached his next destination, a sophisticated and glamorous city on the edge of a mountain with a castle at the far end of it. The stallion stops to consider stopping by or just keep walking until he has to hug himself from the cold and starts seeing snow falling, helping him make his decision as he marches inside, glancing at the city entrance. “Welcome to Canterlot” Read a giant sign. “Well, Canterlot, let's see if you are different from the other cities” 2 Months Later, With Hearth’s Warming Eve just around the corner, the streets of Canterlot were filled with decorations, and all sorts of activities, with the ponies enjoying the festivities with glee and eagerly awaiting the day of celebration. From his usual spot in an alleyway in front of Donut Joe, the stallion sits and smiles in contentment as families enjoy their day, and he takes personal joy in smelling the recently baked goods that Joe offers; his line of thought is suddenly interrupted when he heard a voice next to him. "You know, there are better ways to enjoy a donut, Ragged," The stallion looked to his right to find a unicorn stallion with purple fur and silver tail, the helmet on his face preventing the stallion from seeing his mane, dress on golden armor and with a red scarf over his neck offering a jelly-filled donut to the stallion. "Have you considered applying for a job?" Chuckling, Ragged shook his head and took the donut from the royal guard before leaning against one of the walls in the alley. "If only things were that easy, Purple. We have had this chat before. No pony in his right mind would hire a 10-foot-tall, analphabet homeless stallion," Ragged replied calmly. In the first few days, Ragged was fully prepared to deal with the local authorities and their propensity to use him to discharge some anger or just have a bit of sadist fun. Instead, he was blindsided by how the royal guards seemed more than respectful to those struggling and often offered help and guidance to escape their current situation.  Purple Heart, in particular, seemed to be almost a saint in how much he wanted to help Ragged get a better life via offering some food, some bits, or constantly offering tips and suggestions on how to improve his condition, most of the time involving he moving into a refugee and finding the correct ponies that could allow him to put his life back together, always ready to hear his past and what troubles him and respectful each time Ragged ask him not to dig further. All of that becomes the routine for both of them, as they have some casual chat before going their separate ways and joke around each time they want, like right now. "Not with that attitude; they won't. Seriously, Ragged, if only you cleaned yourself up a little, worked on your resume, and did some job interview practices. I wouldn't mind lending you a hoof and..." "Purple, please, let's not have this conversation again, I already told you. I don't like shelters, and it is not a matter of pride, either. You have never been on one, but the place is not as safe as you think; everyone is out to steal your stuff and pin you as a thief. Just to barely fit, I need two beds, the rooms are cubes that a pony of your size can barely stand, and they want two or more ponies to stay, so it is a no-go for me, and the less you know about the community showers, the better." "OK, fair. And, as I said before, Canterlot refugees are nothing like that nightmare you went through. I heard they have a mixed bathhouse now. Ragged, you know? Mares!... BATHING?! As in beautiful mares naked and helping each other bathe." Ragged looked at him with a stoic face before pointing at him. "Okay, first of all, ew, second of all, you need a cold shower, dude, and find a herd a.s.a.p and third. The refugee I was before also had a mixed bathhouse, and, believe me, when I say the idea you are having is less, the beginning of a porno and more, setting for a horror movie," He fired back with a stoic expression before sighing. "Look, Purple, I appreciate the gesture, and I understand what you are trying to say, but trust me, I can take care of myself here," He repeats before walking into the alley. "The weather team says that tonight there will be a snowstorm! A dangerous one that only an alicorn could survive. Please, Ragged, at least for one day. That's all I ask. I don't want to start patrolling tomorrow only to find a 10-foot popsicle of you lying on the street," Purple begs, making Ragged sigh and close his eyes. "One night! And I will not take any bed; I will go, eat, brace the storm, and then I'm out!" Ragged started turning around to see the royal guard and lift one finger in front of him. Satisfied, the stallion smiles and nods. "I can take that. Let's go together, and I can give you a tour of the place..." Purple offers yet Ragged step back. "Ja, nice try, but believe it or not, I have something to do first." "You got a job!?" Purple exclaims in complete shock. "Is not that? Thanks for the vote of confidence. You can close your jaw now," Ragged smirks and crosses his arms. "Well, what is it then? Can't it wait?" Purple asks with a raised eyebrow. "Afraid not. A mare on the upper side of the city asked me if I could find some berries she needed for a special dessert she was making. The berries can only be found on the city's outskirts near the forest in exchange for some bits." "That's on the other side of the city!" Purple exclaims. No, it's worse than that; she asks you to go outside the city during a storm alert, wander around the nearby forest, and then go there… for some berries?" Ragged nodded and shrugged. "Hey, bits are bits, and it seems easy enough, so I better get a move on," He said as he walked away. "Ragged, I swear, you better not be making this out; whatever that mare offers, you better demand that she double it. I'm serious about the storm. You cannot do this; start a fire to keep yourself warm. You stay out, and you will die!" Purple yells at him, yet Ragged waves at him before putting his hands in his pockets and casually exiting the alleyway from the other side. Picking his stuff, Ragged started his journey outside the city, ignoring the usual glares and disgust from the ponies that took a glance at him. Something he had grown used to and honestly preferred to the alternative as he saw a lot of mares acting like horny teenagers leering and looking at stallions with lustful eyes as if they were a piece of meat; some stallions even seemed to have a mare on each arm with a big grin on his face and not a care in the world and those singles, didn't seem to mind putting on a show for the mares who were anything but subtle in there advantages. Of all the places Ragged had visited, the same thing has happened, but Canterlot by far seems to have the horniest of mares that just because they think they are better than anyone else, they think they can pick any stallion as if they were a common candy. With a sigh and a disapproval shake of his head, Ragged keeps moving. God, enlighten them so that they don't seem to have any shame. He kept thinking until a particular group appeared in front of Ragged, bringing his mood down even further. "Well, well, well, if it isn't the Canterlot local freak," A teenage unicorn colt with light green fur, a blue polo shirt, beige short pants, and a white sweater that he was wearing a scarf proclaimed to the rest of his snobbish friend while they were carrying long cups of coffee, all of them smirking at him and wearing the same clothes with different colors. "Did you get lost, sticks? The circus is over there," The colt replies, pointing to his right as his companions laugh. "Now, now, Clink. Let's not be so mean to the monster; he probably doesn't understand us," Another stallion, a deep red one with a yellow and long mane, replied before addressing Ragged. "We should speak slower, Mop, home? Are you lost? You need help?" He starts addressing him in a crude cave-like tone as Ragged remains stoic and lets the colts have their fun, exchanging insults and trying to anger him to no avail until they stop laughing and there is an awkward silence around them. "Are we done?" Ragged asked with a raised eyebrow, catching the colts off guard. They were not expecting that reply, as he seemed to scold them like a parent, their child until Ragged sighed, closed his eyes, and shook his head. "Listen, junior, I'm kind of busy right now, and I don't have time to play with you or your fuck buddies," He mentions with a stern voice alerting the group and making them gasp as a group seemed to be gathering around them, yet Ragged wasn't done yet. "So why don't you go grab each other dicks somewhere else or go to your mommies for your daily nursing since you all seem cranky as it is." The group remains frozen as they hear some bystanders chuckle at the burn while Ragged resumes his journey until one of them trips him over and brings him to his knees. "Careful, freak. You better watch where you are going. You don't want to leave a crater, right?" Clink tells him as he and his group laugh at what happened while Ragged cleans himself up. "Thanks. I will keep it in mind." Ragged only smiled and started cleaning himself up, making Clink even angrier. So he approached the stallion and poured his beverage over Ragged's head. "Here you are so that you can chill with this hot weather," he replied sarcastically as Ragged discovered he was holding a frozen Frappuccino that was now bathing his beanie, part of his mane, head, scarf, and shirt. Some drops reached his mouth, which Ragged decided to taste and shake his head. "Thanks," Ragged continued to smile and stood up. "Anyway, as I say, I'm in a hurry, and you should too. I heard a mare's nipples start to hurt if they spend too much time without being milked." He doubled down and smirked at Clink as he growled and tossed his empty cup at his chest. "You freak of nature, don't forget your place! You are nothing compared to me; you are nothing, period!" Ragged stayed quiet and crossed his arms, irritating the group until they left. With a sigh, Ragged resumed his walk and soon found himself outside the city and into the forest, where he started looking for the special berries that a mare asked of him, smirking when he found exactly the ones he was looking for. In her pride, the mare never thought Ragged could tell the difference, so she asked him to pick poisonous berries, no dough in some strange political game of hers, where he could use him as a scapegoat. Yet Ragged knew exactly what she was trying to do and decided to play a little prank on her, picking a similar type of berry, harmless but useful as a potent laxative, starting a small bonfire and a metal cup he boiled some water from a nearby river, and using some petals and herbs to paint the berries red to match the ones in the description the mare wanted. Then he uses some leaves and rocks to make a powder that will have the same effect and power, although it will take time before it takes effect. He smears carefully on his globes to avoid getting affected as a parting gift to said mare. Enjoy your trip to the toilet bitch; let's see how you like being poisoned. Satisfying with his plan and the berries matching his desired color, Ragged returned to the city for the sun to start setting. Just as Purple informed him, the night was getting chillier than usual, not helped by Chip's "special gift" that made Ragged feel even colder, and making Purple suggestion all the more enticing, yet Ragged perceiver and march onwards to the upper-class district of Canterlot and more specifically the food avenue where after some time he manages to reach a local elegant bakery with the sigh of bread on the front door. "Ms. Beckley? Are you there?" Ragged knock hard on the back door a couple of times until a slightly chubby unicorn mare with yellow fur and ginger mane comb into a bulb and covered in a net answers the door and starts to look frantically everywhere. She wore a full white chef uniform, matching her white apron, and was currently covered in flour. "Not so loud!" she harshly whispered before asking him to enter the spacious kitchen. He agreed and stepped inside, docking his head and stepping aside so Beckley could close the door behind him. She then turned to look at him with a smile and expected glee. "Do you have them?" "Right here," Ragged showed her a plastic bag with the "red" berries she requested, making her squeak in delight and carefully grab them. "This is it, the berries I needed. Thank you so much, Ragged. And you make sure nobody saw you?" Rolling his eyes, Ragged crossed his arms. "Don't worry, I stick to the shadows and ensure none of your competitors see me. Your secret ingredient is safe." "Good, and thank you for taking the extra steps. I know it's weird, but in this throat-cutting culinary world, you would be surprised at the lengths the competition would take you out." She explained pouring the berries into a cake mixer and adding other ingredients before blending them. Raged internally, chuckling at his little prank and how it was taking form. "I could only imagine, so not to be rude, but if only you could pay me what we agreed, I would be out of your..." "Oh, of course, of course, your payment as we agree," Beckley said, stepping out of the kitchen for a moment before returning with a small sack full of bits on it. "Twenty bits, as we discussed," she smiled and handed it over before grabbing his hand and fluttering her eyelashes at him. "You know, Ragged, I was considering that despite being homeless, dirty, and freakishly tall, you have an appealing face for such a tall, attentive stallion. I may have other uses for you in the kitchen. If you play your cards right, I could make your life all the easier," she mentions, stepping closer and closer toward him. Smiling, Ragged grabbed her other hand and looked at her in the eyes. "I don't think your husband may approve of said use, ma'am." "I won't tell if you don't," She fires back, thinking they are on a game until Ragged snorts and pats her cheek. "Thanks, but no thanks. This is too much heat for me, and you know what they say about kitchens and heat. Do I smell something burning?" he asks out of the blue, sniffing the air. Immediately, Beckley turns around in horror and starts to sniff, but she doesn't detect anything burning, even though she remembers that she hasn't put anything in the oven yet. Looking back, she discovers the back door of her establishment open, and big footsteps lead out into the beginning of the storm. Putting on his hood for extra protection, Ragged starts to shiver and keeps hugging himself in a futile attempt to keep himself warm. The cold and wind pick up force and remind him of how part of his clothes are still wet, the holes in his boots increasing the cold and making each step more and more painful. AH, Damn it! Purple was right, I stay too long in this cold, and I will end up a frozen corpse; I am heading to that fucking refugee. Ragged started to run, trying to get away from the storm as fast as he could, yet with the wind and snow in his face, not to mention his mane getting in the way, it became increasable difficult to see where he was going and before he could make anything he stumbles and trip against some trash cans, that despite the raging blizzard produces just enough noise to alert a group of ponies dress in formal attired and exiting what looks to be a formal gala for the festivities. "Well, would you look at that, guys? It's our old pal Mud Stick." Clip's voice immediately made Ragged groan, and he closed his eyes. Oh, for pit's sake, no. Please, god, anyone but this asshole and his team of boot lickers. With a sigh, Ragged stood up and cleaned himself from some snow before looking back. His fears were confirmed when he saw the group of stallions in question wearing formal and elegant black tuxedos and grinning at him. Trying to remain calm, Ragged smiled and put the trashcans back in place. "Evening, gentlestallion, what a crazy night we are having, right?" "Indeed, Muddy, with such a big storm, any dangerous freaks might get desperate and try to do something stupid like break private property," Clip mentions as the group approaches. Understanding their indirect Ragged look around, realizing that in his haste, he must have made the wrong turn and, without realizing it, must have entered a private park connected to an elegant mansion that was having a party, and Clip either lived or was invited to said party. With that realization, Ragged looked at the group again. "Look, guys, please, you made your point; you have everything, and I don't. I'm the king of nothing and will ever be lucky to have the scraps on your table; I'm just dirt under hooves. Isn't that enough?" "It's a start, but you see, Mud Stick, there is the issue of you making us look like fools in front of everyone earlier," Clip reminds him before hitting his stomach. The colt was so pathetic that Ragged barely perceived it, and judging by how Clip was holding his hand and wriggling in pain, the action hurt him more than him. Yet, to not escalate the situation, Ragged played along and held his stomach, pretending that Clip had just punched the air out of his lungs, kneeling in front of him. "Right," Ragged whistle and chuckle. "That was wrong; I'm sorry, Mr. Clip." "Oh no! You are not, not yet, but you soon will," Clip demands, having recovered and looking at him with the same sick grin other guards have given Ragged in the past. "As I said, you are invading private property; we are just defending ourselves from a dangerous freak crashing our party before dragging him away." He points behind him, and Ragged sees a group of noble ponies admiring the show from the balcony as if this were part of the party. With a resigned expression, Ragged nods and extends his arms. "Just be quick, would you? The storm is picking up, and I must reach the refugee before it is too late." "Right, because it would be such a shame if you ended up frozen to death," Clip replied sarcastically before punching his face; the same thing occurred, and there was blood on Ragged face, except it wasn't his blood. The rush of adrenaline or the cold might have been the reason, yet neither Clip nor his friends noticed how, for each hit they made, their knuckles started to bleed as they laughed. The audience behind them was too far to notice either and were just cheering at the sigh of the blood being spilled and Ragged selling the act. They are just kids; better let them have their fun until they get tired and let me leave, Ragged thought as he lay on the ground face down as the group started stomping on him, their hooves starting to hurt him, yet he kept enduring. "What the heck do you have in your back? Your bed?" One asks, confused by the two lumps on his back, which confuses the others before they chuckle. "I bet you spent a lot of time picking the cardboard for it. Too bad it's broken now." They laughed when they heard an audible crack underneath his trenchcoat. "Maybe we are doing Canterlot a favor, considering everything the freak might have stolen it," They keep laughing as they continue to stomp his back, Ragged enduring and clenching his fist into the snow, waiting for them to finish their game until a familiar voice made them stop and for the first time in the evening made Ragged feel afraid. "What the heck is going on here?" The angry and exasperated sound of Purple alerted everyone as he, along with two other royal guards, one a pegasus mare with the same fur and a red earth pony stallion with muscle mass, rushed toward them and didn't waste time glaring at the teenagers who were starting to back away. "He was invading officers; we were just defending ourselves," Clip quickly answered as the mare and stallion started interrogating the group, and the nobles from the balcony corroborated their story. Meanwhile, Purple was tending to Ragged and helping him stand up. "Stay with me, Ragged; we will get you help." "Purple, you are making a mistake; you need to get away from me," Ragged warned him in alarm. "Like hell, I will! Dude, you are fucking bleeding right now?" Purple insists, bringing Ragged an arm over his shoulder. "It's not my blood, and more importantly," A high pitch startled the two as Ragged started to look around. "No, no, no, it's too soon. It can't be here already." "What? What is it? Ragged, is there something you are not telling me about?" Purple asks, looking around as the guards force the group to enter the mansion. They are more than alert that the blizzard is becoming so strong that nobody can see anything. Inside the mansion, no pony can see what is happening outside. A mare screams, getting everyone's attention. "My baby, what did that brute do to you?!" A very thin unicorn mare wearing a cocktail dress and a red boa holds Clip's hands as they finally discover how they are bleeding. Outside the mansion, the screech returns and circles the group as Ragged tries to push Purple away. "I need to get away, NOW!" He insists, yet Purple does not let him go. "Are you insane?! We are not leaving you." "There is a blizzard, you are wounded, and a monster is nearby. Like hell, we would let you fend for yourself," The pegasus says as she hoovers near them. "You don't get it; that thing is here for me. I'm cursed, and if any pony gets too close to me..." He can't finish the sentence as the stallion soon falls unconscious, a huge diagonal slash appearing on his chest; if it wasn't for his armor, he might have ended up cut in half. Taking out their weapons, the remaining guards look in horror as a pair of red eyes emerge from the blizzard. From a black mist appears what looks to be a creature with the lower half of a black snake, mantis arms, a woman with breasts, a chest, and the head of a jackal as she screeches at them with blood-red eyes and a snake-like tongue. "No!" Both the mare and Ragged exclaim as they rush at the creature, the monster easily dodging the attacks of the pegasus, who uses two small swords and blades on the edge of her wings to try and cut it. Yet, it had no avail as the snake-like creature managed to dodge them and was about to cut her right-wing if Ragged did not grab its arm and hold its place. "Forget about me; take your friend and run!" He yells at her in fear. The mare took advantage of Ragged, holding the beast, to take out a crystal ball and toss it at the monster, but it exploded in contact and trapped her in a crystal cocoon. "And like I say, not gonna happen; in case you forgot, we are royal guards! We made an out to protect everyone," She reminded him in irritation before poking his forehead. "That includes you." "Ragged, what is that thing? How did you know it was coming?" Purple asks in astonishment as he tends to the stallion's wound, which puts him in a healing dome. "I told you, I'm cursed. The longer you remain near me, the more at risk your life is," He repeated before they heard more growls and screeches starting to surround them. "Please, I beg of you, leave me alone," Ragged begged as he started to back away, only for the pegasus to get in his way. "Not. Happening, if you are cursed, then you need our help, end of the..." She doesn't have time to finish her statement as a maze hits the side of her head, sending her flying into a topiary, with Clip posing as a saint with his arms extended. The mare lay unconscious with some blood dripping from the side of her head as copies of the female monster appeared, alongside a creature with elephant legs, a boar face, and the upper half of a gorilla holding wooden and thick mace all of which were starting to approach Ragged and Purple. Holding the arms of one of the female monsters, Ragged glares at them. "You won. I'm still miserable. I don't have friends. You can leave me alone now." The monster doesn't reply, and they seem to be approaching Purple, which scares Ragged. "No!" Clenching the arm of the monster with all his force, Ragged managed to rip them off and slice her in half before launching one of the arms and decapitating the boar creature. Rushing to the pegasus, Ragged picks her up with one arm and rushes to Purple, putting her in the dome next to the stallion. With a stoic expression, Ragged points at the creatures with the remaining arm of the she-monster. "Not anymore; I will not let you kill anyone else," he promises before putting down his bag and taking out the edge of the manticore tail to have a second weapon. More shadow monsters kept appearing, running on adrenaline alone and ignoring his wounds. Ragged kept fighting and drawing their attention as they kept cutting and hitting his body constantly until he was coughing blood and was covered in cuts and wounds. One of the she-monsters managed to slash his back, ripping his shirt and revealing something that made Purple gasp in astonishment. Two long light blue wings emerge from his back as Ragged turns around to impale the head of the monster and keep the rest at bay, the royal guard noticing how the right wing seems to be broken. "R-R-Ragged, you… you… you are..." Purple tries to say something in between stutters until the monster almost kills him if not for Ragged using the manticore tail to stab her shoulder and drag her toward him to be sliced in half by the oz-like arm. "It's a true freak of nature, I know. Let's not make a big deal about it," Ragged complains before he keeps fighting. An enormous boar creature soon appeared when the other monsters fell and turned back into black mist. This one also had the nose and tusk of an elephant and was getting ready to charge. Finding his strength, he left his body and lost one of his weapons. Ragged, he kneeled and looked around for something that could help until he saw another fence near him. Getting an idea and grabbing the mare's sword, he rushed to the monster, who tried to swap him away as he charged. Jumping into his arm and running toward his neck, Ragged managed to impale the manticore's tail and barely wrap it around before jumping down and using the mare's sword to cut the tendon of one of its legs. Without the support and from the surprise, the creature started to lose his balance as Ragged used what was left of his shirt, tied it to the edge of the tail, and then created a rope that he pulled and made the creature fall backward and into the spiky fence impaling his head against it. Once it became mist again, Ragged sighed and kneeled on the ground, remembering how exhausted and wounded he was before falling face-first unconscious into the snow. At that moment, Purple teammates wake up with a startle, and their wounds partially heal. "Purple Heart? What happens? Did we win? The last thing I remember was being cut by something," The stallion asked before looking down at his open chest. What could cut steel this easily?" "Ah, guys, did I get a concussion, or is that stallion a...?" The mare asked until Purple interrupted her. "I know, Bliss, I'm freaking out too, but right now. He is wounded, and the storm is only gonna get worse. We need to bring him to safety and quickly! Help me out, Bricks." The stallion nods as they both take one of Ragged's arms and lift him. Bliss follows closely before looking back at the mansion. "And what do we do about the snot squads and snob nobles? If he is an alicorn, then those assholes pretty much attacked a member of royalty, even if he was pretending to be a homeless pony." "We will deal with that later; for now, he comes first," Purple orders as the group rushes to escape the storm > Welcoming Committee (Edited By Phetiamwantip) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Well, Mr. Whales, I must say, your resume is impressive. Your degree, colleague titles, and extracurricular activities almost make you look overqualified for the position here. Why did you apply instead of pursuing something closer to your expertise?" A man shrouded in shadows asks Ragged while sitting on a smaller chair opposite the mysterious man, with a desk between the two.  Instead of his usual outfit, Ragged had a simple red shirt with a lightning bolt on it and black jeans as he kept his head down; not only that, but Ragged seemed to be talking with a giant since he was small compared to the man in the shadows.  Shrugging and shaking his head, Ragged answered casually, "The same story as always, I'm afraid; I have the tools but not the experience, and that is something they keep demanding; that is why I need to build experience in the field, any field to tell you the truth so companies pay more attention to me."  "So if something were to come tomorrow, would you leave us?" The man asks, causing Ragged to start to panic.  "N-no, right away, of course! Maybe if the payment is… the point is, you can count on me; I will do my best if you could hire me." Ragged was virtually begging him for an opportunity as the man put his hands together.  "That's Good. Then, you can start your job as a dishwasher right away. I hope you don't mind, but we'll need you to supply your instruments."  "Ah… ok?" Ragged was taken aback by the sudden condition.  "You would work from 4 a.m. to midnight six days a week. We will let you know when your day off is."  "Wha… what? But that is far more than just 8... okay if that is what it takes."  "Also, I need you to slash this filly's throat." The stallion suddenly ordered, holding a young filly, no more than five years old, with tears in her eyes. This froze Ragged as he stood up. "Are you insane!?" He yells at the man as a flash of light acts as a smile on the shadow figure  "Come on, Mr. Whales, it's not like you haven't done this before. Do you want a job? You will obey blindly; now kill! Consume! Conquer!" The man demands in a more distorted and demonic voice. At the same time, horns start emerging from his forehead as Ragged starts to hyperventilate, his hand seemingly moving on his own, and even when he tries to hold it back, his hand keeps moving as a knife appears on his palm and it inching closer to the filly neck.  Yelling in horror, Ragged woke up and started thrashing around until a hand held him in place.  "Easy, Ragged. It's me, Purple. It's easy there. You are safe," Purple tells him, putting his hands on his shoulder and bringing him back to bed.  Still startled but more calm, Ragged looked back at the guard, noticing his mane for the first time since he didn't have his helmet on. Revealing a light blue short curly mane made Ragged think he was wearing a piece of toothpaste for a mane.  "Purple?" Ragged answer and then looked around, noticing the medical equipment spread all over the room, as well as the morning sunlight entering from the rows of windows at one end of the room, a series of empty beds minus two where the other two guards were, wearing hospital garments in the middle of a game of cards and the familiar smell of medicine in the room, give him all the clues Ragged needed to have an idea on where he was.  He also notices that he is on a specially made bed since he could fit inside without an issue and is currently shirtless. One of his wings was suspended on a bizarre trench next to whose ropes were suspended in mid-air and self-adjusted to his moments to make sure the wind remained outstretched and, with bandages matching the ones spread all over his body and an I.V and another cable connected to his right arm to display his heartbeats.  "Welcome back to the land of the living, buddy," Purple jokes before his expression morphs into one of concern. "Listen, Ragged, I know you must be having a lot of questions right now, and I know how reserved you are, but I give you my world. Everyone here is a professional, and they only did what they had to to treat your wounds, including the ones on your legs." Startled, he fell and sighed in relief when he noticed he was wearing pants. He ignored that he was not wearing his usual pants and had the same hospital ones Brick was wearing.  Taking a deep breath to calm down, Ragged lay on the bed and stared at the ceiling, thinking his next words carefully before speaking, "How many know?" He asks without looking, making the room go quiet.  "Know what, buddy?" Purple asks with a nervous chuckle, trying to lighten the mood.  "You know what I mean!" He reiterates and emphasizes his statement by pointing at the extended wing.  "Just us, the doctors that treat you, two nurses, a couple of royal guards, and the princesses; you have been asleep for the last three days. Happy Heart Warming Eve, I suppose," Purple finally answered after signing before raising his hands. "Don't worry, they all swear secrecy, Ragged; I imagine you have reasons to keep that a secret… your majesty."  "Stop!" Sitting up, Ragged glares and points at him, "You’re right; I don't want ponies knowing about my… situation, especially the sisters! But thanks for, at the very least, not exposing me to the world like some sort of parade animal. Also, let's leave something crystal clear here: I have no authority, I have no power, I'm just a freakishly tall homeless pony living off the street of Canterlot and nothing more."  "Yeah, right. Let's see how long that lasts," Bliss says, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms.  "Excuse me?!" Ragged angrily asked while looking at the mare. He noticed her head wrapped in bandages and that she had a soft, slightly curly, light pink mane. The stallion next to him had a short, spiky black mane and tail, and Ragged could see a bandage popping out over his shoulder, no dough going diagonal to tend to his wound.     "Hey, no need to get angry, dude; I'm just saying, I don't know how things work from wherever you come from, but in here, those little things on your back," she points at his wings. "And that little thing on your forehead," She points at his horn, "Are a big deal here. Ask anyone if you don't believe me, but no matter what you were before, the moment you got those, it meant you were chosen for greatness as royalty. I don't know why you abandoned the call, but something tells me the princess would want to chat with you about it. Who knows, maybe that is why you were cursed in the first place."  She elaborates with a shrug as Ragged only blinked a couple of times. "How did you know I wasn't born like this?"  Bliss smirked and crossed her arms. "Call it a hunch, but no pony born with wings could ever forget or never use them before," she demonstrated by lifting herself off the bed for a moment, simply standing up before sitting down again.  "Plus, you knew how to fight with your fist and have a strong grip, just like an earth pony would. So let's not poke around the bushes and confess; you started as an earth pony, didn't you?"   Ragged remains quiet and looks away before replying, "...yes, I am, but it doesn't matter anyway until I manage to get rid of these lumps; the only thing I'm the prince of is nothing; you can call me the cursed prince, nothing destiny to wander alone and always remain as that, just nothing. And this is not me just being dramatic; no, you saw those things that put us all here. I try to warn you; bad things tend to happen to anyone who dares get too close to me." The room remained silent as the guards weren't sure how to reply and just looked at one another until Brick broke the silence with a sigh.  "Well, since this is as good a time as any, better get over with the formalities. My name is Brick Breaker; just call me Bricks; all my friends do." The earth pony introduces himself. "For what is worth it. Thanks for saving us back then."  Ragged just remained quiet before looking down and grabbing the blanket with his two hands. "It was the least I could do since I brought those creatures. I just couldn't bear the thought of more ponies dying because of me."  "Idiot," The mare gets everyone's attention as she shakes her head. "You should have come to us for help. The castle is full of protection and containment spells. I'm sure the princess could think of something for this curse of yours. Did you ever consider that possibility?"  "And how was I supposed to ask for help? 'Hi, could you help me? I'm cursed, and now every time I try to make friends, monsters appear and kill them all.'" Ragged acts up in frustration.  "Yes! That would be a start," The mare kept complaining before sighing in frustration. "Like I say, idiot." She sighs in frustration and crosses her arms while looking away, making the room go tense again until Brick reaches out and grabs one of her hand  "Bliss, we talk about this."  "Oh, come on, Bricks! You know I'm right," she complained while glaring at the stallion, who smiled calmly.  "Blissy, your wrinkles are showing. Let's calm down and count to ten," Brick instructed as he held her hands and put their foreheads together. The mare closed her eyes and took deep breaths.  Ragged blinked several times before looking at Purple. "Are they...?"  "... They have been engaged since last month, so yeah, they are an item. Can you believe it was Bricks who proposed?" Purple interrupted his question with the answer before chuckling and rolling his eyes. "A stallion proposing to a mare, how have things changed, am I right?"  "...right." Ragged only nods while looking at the couple as Bliss calms down and opens her eyes to look at Ragged again more calmly  "Look, I'm sorry I yelled at you and called you stupid; it angers me that you didn't think we would help you. We don't go around in armor to play dress up. We live to protect you, no matter what, so whatever the hell is happening to you, know we will always help. Why don’t we start again? My name is Blessed Winds, but just call me Bliss. I prefer something less angelical. Also, only Bricky here can call me Blissy, so don't go get any ideas, you hear?!" She adds with a big blush, breaking more of the tension in the room.  "I will keep it in mind," Ragged replied with a tired sigh. "And it's about the insults; I have called worse, so it's not a big deal; as for why I don't ask for help, well, even if it is not an excuse, my previous encounters with the law have been… less than pleasant, that is why I'm kind of wary of asking for help."  "What do you mean by that?" Purple asks, tilting his head.  "An excellent question," A new female voice says as they all turn to the entrance in time to see a small unicorn mare with gray fur, a bowled-shaped black mane style with a string of gray showing, a royal guard uniform, and a folder in her side marching inside, flanked by two muscular guards with white fur, their faces hidden behind their helmets.  Ragged had to take a double take at the mare entering the room since his stature almost made him believe she was a filly at first until the other guards stood to attention and saluted the mare  "Mayor Shiitake, ma'am!" They all salute at the same time  "At ease!" She orders immediately while remaining focused on their guest. She glares at Ragged with her green eyes until she gets lost. When she reaches the side of his bed, she forces Ragged to stretch his head to look at the top of hers.  "Care to elaborate on those 'unpleasant' encounters, Mr. Ragged? That is, of course, if that is your real name," The Mayor demands, yet her attempt at sounding intimidating only made her look adorable.  "Ah… not really, that is just the nickname Purple gave me," Ragged admitted while looking at the said unicorn, who simply shrugged in confusion.  “You don’t say? That is interesting because…” She stops and starts grumbling nonsense. Ragged sees how the mayor is trembling and clenching her fist. "LADDER!" She yells/orders, startling the two guards following her behind.  One of them pulled out a foldable ladder and unfolded it beside Ragged bed so the mayor could climb it up and look him in the eyes, but the side difference was still present as she only reached to his shoulder. Once he could look at her more closely, Ragged noticed the wrinkles forming on Shitake's forehead and some spots marking her age, as if she were a mare entering her golden age.  "As I was saying, that is interesting. Let me see if I can get this straight. In short, you are the very first alicorn male in history who, for some reason, decided to hide his royal destine, refuses to use his name, and is plagued with a convenient curse that can take care of witnesses that may get too close to your activities, doesn't seem to be registered in the system or even has a birth certificate, and doesn't have the best track record with figures of authority. Is there anything else you would like to add to that?"  She questioned sarcastically, taking out a riding crop that she was wearing on her hip to try and press under his chin but had no choice but to try and do that by poking his arm. Ragged quickly noticed how her eyes were starting to wander off into his arm, and her riding crop was making small circles on his muscle before she shook her head and stared at him again.   Ragged remains jaded and ignores the clear list of accusations and pervert glances she is giving him. "Yes, can I ask what the point of all this is?"  Shiitake smirked and removed the riding crop, pressing it behind her back. "I just wanted to make sure I had all the facts before doing this," she snapped her fingers and pointed at him. "Arrest him," She commanded her two guards, who took up handcuffs and were approaching Ragged until Purple intervened and got in between them and Ragged. "Whoa there, Mayor. I don't want to question your authority. It's true that some days ago, a couple of nobles demanded Ragged be arrested, but I told you he didn't do anything, and from what we saw, those teenagers simply hurt themselves. There is no reason to go this far."  "On the contrary, soldier, unless this stallion starts giving us some answers, I have all the evidence right here to lock him up for good," Shiitake fired back and waved her folder in front of him. Since the altercation, I have been digging around for our steam guest here." Snapping her fingers, one of her soldiers put a table in front of her as she laid various photos, reports, and other documentation for everyone to see.  "Manehattan, Chickcago, Las Pegasus, Appleloosa, Trottiham, and Celestia know where else; you sure have moved around, Mr. Anonymous," Shiitake mentions with a raised eyebrow, looking at Ragged, who remains stoic at her accusation.  "I'm a wanderer; I travel a lot, so what?"  "So glad you said that because I also asked around and found those unpleasant encounters you mentioned. Disturbing the peace, extortion for information, illegal selling of animal skins and parts without a license!" She kept listening, pointing at the police reports in the folders. "Do I need to say more?"  To everyone's confusion, Ragged started to chuckle and shake his head before glaring at Shiitake with a smirk. "Let me guess, plenty of those so-called 'reports' stated that I was terrorizing citizens on my march, trying to steal their bits or demanding something or another. And all of them end with the ponies making the reports sounding like a fairy tale hero defending the peace and order from the strange monster that invades the city?"  His statement took Shiitake off guard, and he re-read some of the articles, making Ragged sigh in frustration.  "Oh, for the love of… tell me you didn't bother to read all the reports to the end!" Ragged's statement startled the mare, who almost fell off the ladder until one of the guards caught her and helped her stand up again.  "It doesn't matter; the point is that you have a record..."  "...They are lying, you shroom head moron!" Ragged states that sitting on his bed in front of Shiitake makes her realize even more the size difference between the two and makes her gulp at how easily his shadow covers her body.  "Wanna know what those unpleasant experiences were? Everywhere I went, ponies saw me with disgust and fear, rushing away from me, even when I was simply sitting on the street begging for some change; the only thing I'm guilty of is selling animal parts to survive. I will grant you that, but those assholes here!"  He pokes his finger on the table for emphasis. "Are just a bunch of spineless monsters that get off from beating others struggling in life and make themselves look like heroes?" He leans his head a bit while glaring at Shiitake. "If you are gonna open an investigation , Mayor, I suggest you do your freaking job and confirm the validity of your facts."  He sat straight again and sighed, "Then again, what is to be expected? I'm just a smelly homeless pony. It's my word against your royal guard pals. Who do you gonna believe?"  "I will believe the facts, justice, and the truth," Bliss immediately answered and stood next to them. "Mayor Shiitake, I want the list of all the ponies that made those reports and open an investigation to confirm if they are true or not; falsification of reports is a serious crime, and I have some choice of words for those ponies that lie about it" Bliss request, while her wings were extending and getting ruffle by the second until Bricks stood behind her and hold her shoulders before massaging them to calm the mare down.  The room got deadly quiet as the Mayor was suddenly in the spotlight before clearing her throat to recover control of the conversation. "Well then, if that is true, I still have the authorization to make an arrest. This stallion is just too suspicious. He doesn't even have a past; he has a fucking legend behind him, for crying out loud; the locals keep referring to him as ‘LongMane" She mentions pointing at Ragged.  Confused, Ragged grabs a piece of his mane before looking at the mare. "I have a legend?"  "Don't act as if you don't know; you are starting to become a local tale of a tall, mourning spirit walking the streets at night looking for his family or his killer or something. It just raises too many questions, and by the laws written by Princess Celestia herself, it is my right to arrest you."  “The only thing you are going to do is leave my patient this instant!” a stern voice calls from the entrance as they all look at a stallion unicorn with yellow fur and a brown mane walk inside the room wearing a formal square shirt, formal pants, and a doctor's shirt. He is followed closely by a pegasus nurse in a pink outfit, light pink fur, and a velvet-long mane next to him, holding a clipboard in front of her as she hides her blush while taking occasional glances at Ragged.  Ignoring the rest, the stallion marched straight to Shiitake and moved aside the two guards, who were startled to see how, despite being slim, the stallion managed to move aside the two muscular guards and stand in front of the Mayor.  “Shiitake, what in Celestia's name are you doing?” The doctor demands, crossing his arms.  “Stay out of this Backup. I’m only doing my job, this stallion…”  “...is injured, saved three guards, and is currently protected by the law that states that he will be cared for and healed as a member of the less. Fortunately, he is not going anywhere. He is under my care, and he is in no condition to be held accountable for any police investigation unless it is relevant to a murder, terrorist attack, or kidnapping case, which he is not. So I will say this one last time: you will leave this instant before I decide to report you for obstructing basic rights.”  “But…but he doesn’t even have a name! And everything I found, we can’t just…” Shiitake tries to argue, but Backup interrupts her from saying anything.  “Have a complaint? Talk to the princess, but right now, I have a job to do, so unleash you want to wear those handcuffs, leave my patients alone, and get out of my infirmary.” He points at the door with authority, leaving the room quiet until Shiitake gathers her things and gets down from her ladder,  “We are not done here, Mr. I have more than a few questions for you, and you are going to...”  “OUT!” Backup yells, startling everyone as the mayor and his guards rush outside and close the door behind them.  Once they were out, Backup sighed and clapped his hands together as he turned around and addressed the rest of the ponies in the room. “Well! Now that we took that out, how is everyone doing?”  He asked cheerfully and smiled before looking at Ragged. “I see our guest has finally woken up. It was so nice to meet you formally, Mr. Ragged. I hope you don’t mind me calling you that. We need to fill something out on your medical chart.”  Ragged just remains quiet and lowers his head in frustration, putting the room in silence  “Riiiiight, Mr. Purple told me about your shyness; it's okay. We can discuss that subject later. We have plenty to discuss, mister, particularly the sorry state of your wings and how terrible you have been treating them.”  Backup then approaches Bliss and Brick and starts asking them questions, inspecting Bliss's eyes and reaction time. The nurse stays close to the doctor but keeps taking glances at Ragged, who becomes aware of how he is shirtless, so he returns to bed and tries to cover himself up  During all that, Ragged sighed and closed his eyes until he heard Purple's voice beside him. “Ragged, I know you don’t want to talk about anything. I’m sorry I put you in this situation, but please, at the very least, I need you to give us a name. We want to help, but we won't be able to do much unless you help us out.”  Ragged took a glance at Purple with a stoic expression. “The more I share with you, the more in danger you will be. I’ve not been stubborn here, Purple; you must patch me up, return my clothes and bag, and let me go before something bad happens.”  “Something bad WILL happen if you don’t do that. Mayor Shiitake was out of line, but she had a point. I don’t know what you did before, and I believe those corrupt cops are harassing you, but if you don’t help us out, we won’t have any choice but to side with the Mayor.  I know you are worried about yours and our safety, but do you want to end up locked up in a dungeon?”   At that comment, Ragged just clenched his fist and eyes in frustration before relaxing both and sighing, opening them again and keeping his eyes down. “...Amon,” Ragged tells out suddenly in a whisper tone.    “What?” Purple asks in mild surprise.  “My name is Amon. If you need it that bad, there you have it.” Purple smiles and nods satisfied that she has seen the alicorn open up. “Nice to meet you, Amon; thanks for telling me.”  “Don’t get any ideas, Purple; I’m only doing this because I don’t want to give that bitch a reason to lock me up,” Amon mentions with a tired sigh. “So don’t expect me to start sharing my life story; trust me, you are better off knowing as little as possible.”  “It's okay. We can start there. Take baby steps. Don’t worry, Amon; we won’t let her do that. And don’t worry, as Bliss said, the castle is the most protected place in Equestria. Whatever this curse is, we will help you fight it, so just relax and let us know if we can do anything to put your mind at peace.”  “Can you keep my existence a secret from the princesses?” Amon asks, looking at Purple with a small grin and a raised eyebrow.  “...except that,” Purple mentions, maintaining his smile. “Sorry, dude. We are still guards. We can’t pretend we didn’t see an alicorn in the streets.”  “Yeah, I imagine,” Amon groaned, looking at the ceiling in defeat. “This will be one long day; I know it.”