> Death System Co. > by Kalreas > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Origin of Pinkamena > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Awakening on my bed as I had gotten used to recently, I open my eyes to greet the still darkness of my room. Grudgingly, I step from my bed to the door of my room. I prepare myself in the bathroom, making myself presentable for work. Luckily enough for me, I'm able to do so easier. Probably because I'm anticipating the new work I'm getting today. I have a high chance of picking a Stallion to work with today, and I always try to have a little fun with them. Helps their souls leave with more energy, more of a full feeling. It's delicious for the stallion I work for. I work as a Death Employee, I'll give you the details when I enter my work room.. which is in my very house. I'm greeted by my work room every day, whether I have a number to take or not. Numbers of the different ponies in the small town I'm in, Manehattan. There's a secret organization in the town called 'Death System Co.', and I enjoy my work now. At first, it was horrifying and torturous, I wanted nothing more but to get my work done as fast as possible. Now, I enjoy every second I can of every living pony I bring in here. Oh, and my personal number count of how many I've killed.. I've lost track, honestly, I take at least two ponies a day. There aren't many other ponies in town like me. I head to my work room when finished with breakfast and everything else and pick a number from the wheel. Sadly, I got a mare. My work goes by as usual, I talk to her, get her comfortable with my presence, get her to 'help' me with something, knock her out and bring her here. Like all the others, she desperately tries to get away, fighting, screaming and kicking. After hundreds of the same cases, my mind and body is dulled to that kind of stuff. I don't feel pain, I don't feel remorse, I don't feel anything. I finish playing with her, happily, and kill her off. I clean the area and go to the wheel to pick my second and last pony for the day. I'm relieved to see that it's a stallion this time. Oh.. how I enjoy working with a Stallion. Being a mare with a job where you can do anything to anybody you want definitely has it's advantages, and I'd say a Stallion would say the same thing. As a mare, though, you seem to enjoy either and any type of pony. I've learned to love my job and what I do. I take a shower and make myself as pretty as possible for the eyes of the stallion I'm taking. Around mid-day, the number card said. I sit under shade, waiting for him to step closer to me. I see him in the distance. He's handsome, that's for sure. He's carrying something... Oh. He's right in-front of me. "Hello." I greet kindly to the stallion in-front of me. He had a few bagfuls of items from his latest shopping trip in how mouth, yet still, he tried to greet me. "Meow." He ended up saying instead. He set down the bags and got a good look at my body, exploring every inches detail. "Yo, sexy." Playing along with his little game, I lifted one of my front hooves and turned my flank closer to his face. "Hi there." He took a moment to respond, stunned at the display before him. "What's up?" "Just looking for a good time." I winked when I finished my answer, using my seductive voice. Again, he seemed struck by something as he stood there speechless for a moment before finally giving what could be called a response. "Uuuuhhh.. well then... How about some chips? They're delicious." He said after a moment of thought, seeming to try to get away from me as if he had something to do. Reluctantly, I still played along. "Oh, thanks! Just one more thing to get." I said kindly. "What?" I turn and grab the closest, largest blunt object I could reach. "You." "What?" He said, confused. I walked over towards him, object in hoof and ready to strike. "Get away from me! AAH!" Screaming, he tried to run away from me. Luckily though, we were in a small part of Manehattan where screams like this weren't uncommon. "HELP!" "Get back here!" I yell to him frantically. "I need your body to help me!" I try to coax him, maybe attraction will work. "HE-..." He slowed to a stop, which confused me greatly, to the point where I stopped chasing him as if it was a planned event where nothing was going to happen anyway. "What do you need me for?" He asked, greatly confused at the situation he was in. Breathing heavily, I responded quickly. "Personal needs." I swiped towards his head, nailing him dead center as he made a loud 'Oumph' sound before thudding onto the ground. Thankful that my plan went better than expected with the situation, I started carrying his limp, resting body away to my house. Finished with tying him down, I lay down beside him, admiring his body, reveling in the wait for the fun part of the job. He awoke slowly. "Where the... What the fuck?" "Hey there, sleepy head." I replied to him softly, trying to calm him down, even though he was chained to the bed with both his hind legs. Confused, he frantically tried to get information from me. "WHAT?! Where am I?!" I reply with a calm tone in my voice, confusing him further. "My place." "Uuhh... Cool place you have, here." He's looking around frantically, poorly hiding his hilarious panic. "Oh, don't worry, it's a sound-proof room." I add for extra panic, just for fun. Terrified, he looked me in the eye. "For what?" Answering with pleasure, I stand and speak to him directly, standing mere inches from his face. "Anything and everything I want to do with you, and anyone or anything I want to do things with." My memory turns to a situation nearly exactly like this in the past. That stallion sure was the greatest victim I've taken yet. "I want to go home! Can I please go home? I have a family I need to get back to! PLEASE!" Seductively, I answer him, waving my entire body back and forth, intoxication entering his mind for only just a moment, after I answered. "Oh, don't worry about that, sweetie." "MY WIFE IS PREGNANT." He stated bluntly and loudly, catching my attention. "They're all fine, their number hasn't come up yet." I stated knowingly, proudly. I knew he wouldn't be alive much longer, so why not give him the information he wanted? "What.. number? What do you mean?!" "The number of days they are all allowed to live. Also, don't worry, I'll take good care of your foal. I'll be a good mommy." He ground his teeth in a snarl. "You stay away from my son! I'LL GET YOU SOMEHOW!" He stated frantically, unable to move past his binds to reach me when I stepped back. He nearly fell over trying to swipe at me with his bare hooves, but caught himself just in time. "Ooh, you're feisty. I like it when stallions play rough or hard to get." I state in an intoxicating, seductive tone of voice. "What kind of sick games are you playing here? How the fuck do I get out of here?!" "Oh, I take my job very seriously. It's just that I like to have fun every once and a while, when I can." I look at his body, taking in every inch of detail I can. "Believe me, this job.. oh so many stallions have been treated with the utmost greatest care." "So you're running a murder business? Or am I mistaken?" He asked, still wanting to delay my actions for as long as he possibly could. "Oh, that's putting it bluntly. It's more like the Death System. I, as well as several other ponies, mare and stallion alike, have the same job." He tried to piece together everything in his head, taking several long moments to think about his situation and what he was hearing. Meanwhile, I continue explaining. "They wait for ponies' numbers to come up, wait for the right time and situation, and take them away when needed. Just like I did with you, remember? The main point behind it all is to control the population." I add for security and a sense of justice. "So.. do you enjoy your job?" He asked yet another question. "Because the Death System just made a big mistake." "Oh, it can be difficult sometimes, but after your first friend or loved one or two, your emotions just kinda die in the cold, harsh wind. At least, mine did." I add solemnly. "And what do you mean by a 'mistake'? The Death System Company doesn't make mistakes, it makes facts." "Well the death system has been stealing.. precious things from me." He replied in a dark, saddened tone. "Oh? What things? They shouldn't be stealing items.. only ponies." I add viciously, harshness stinging into my words and into his mind. Seemingly unaffected by my tone, he carried on. "The souls you have stolen are mine. It's my job, after all." He looked me dead in the eye, and I took in every detail, every emotion. "I don't physically exist, you stupid pony." He added bitterly, insulting me with meaningless words. Carrying on, he still played his little game. "The number you drew.. was a fake." Playing along, I act the part flawlessly. "I.. b-but... Th-that can't be true! I've never made a mistake!" "Oh, it wasn't you. It was all me. I put the number into your slot so you would pick me.. and lead me here, giving me all the information I wanted." Starting to get a little worried, my voice sounds a slight bit more realistic with it's tone. "Wh-what? How?!" Staring coldly into my very soul, he spoke. "I am Death. How else could I? You've stolen things that belonged to me." He kept egging on the point of his little game. Proudly playing along, I still answer with a shaky voice and a terrified stare. "No.. you don't exist." However, to my true horror, I am actually, legitimately terrified. I tried to reason in my head that he had to be playing a trick on me. He had to be. "You.." "And I have come for your soul now, since you've taken a great deal of souls away from me." "You take forms of ponies like us! YOU CAN'T EXIST!" Smiling, he spoke two words that chilled me to the bone. "I don't." I've had enough of this. I grab the knife on the table beside me, readying myself to take his life. He just laughs in my face. "Hahaha! Really? Are you that stupid, mare pony?!" He taunted, starting to disappear into a cloud of souls. He spoke three more words that chilled me. In fact, I just noticed that every word he spoke chilled me ever since we came into this room and I started explaining things to him. I needed to kill him. "I AM DEATH." He disappeared from my view entirely with his last word. "Wh-what?! Where did you go?!" Shocking me and making my eyes open wide, I heard his voice behind me. "Trust me.. there's no use. You are pitiful. You run a Death 'Job', and that makes you even more pitiful in my eyes." He said, infuriating me to beyond my breaking point. Screaming, I swing myself around swiftly, driving the blade into his chest completely, in one swift, fluid move. The blade impaled him. He was bleeding. "Heh.. hehehh... Ahahahh.. AHAHAHAHA!" I burst out in laughter, figuring him out. He was a Unicorn, after all. I should have noticed earlier. "I knew it!" I spoke loudly, proud of my accomplishment. I shouldn't have let my fears get in the way like that. "You were a fake! Hahaha!" Spitting words at me harshly, he spoke yet again, driving chilling fear through my body again. "You are stupid. You can't kill a Death." He finishes talking and crushes the blade underneath his skin, absorbing it into his body and healing his wound completely. Out of my mind, I start speaking uncontrollably. "B-but... The ponies hired for this job-..." "By whom?" He tried to probe information out of me, and by the Princesses, he did. "...By General Whitemane of the Royal Guard. H-...He hires ponies to capture others, and.. and..." "So.. Whiteman... His name is Whiteman, not Whitemane. "What?" "That's what you fail to understand correctly, stupid mare. He is no physical pony, he is an escaped soul." He kept staring at me, creeping me out. "Th-thats.. you have to be lying. He's in the Royal Guard, how could that be possible?!" My eyes dart from one location to another, mind unsure what to do, body unwilling to answer to any commands I give it. Smirking, he continued. "Oh, believe me, I'm not lying. He's blending in, he knows his victims lifestyle, state of mind, personality.. everything about him, just so he can act exactly the part." "B-but-!" "His soul escaped from the underworld and started this sick 'Company' as an attempt to gain more power." He added, interrupting what I was about to ask. "Who let him do all of that?!" Frowning, he gave the only answer he could. "Nobody. There was a gap between realms for a few seconds, he must have slipped through into this world." Frantically, I try to speak. "J-just how many souls has he gathered?! I've.. oh, Celestia... I've... I've killed.. so many... "He's taken millions already, which were all killed too early, it wasn't those ponies' true times." "How many years has he been doing this?! WHY HAVE I NEVER KNOWN?!" I shouted to him, demanding the answers even if it was the last thing I ever heard. "You are a sinner, now. That's all you've become. A murderer, a tool used for his gain." He spoke harshly, but it was the truth. As much as I wanted to deny it, it was the truth. I murdered... "All of my friends.. all of my family... They were all chosen for me... Weren't they?" "Unfortunately... Yes." "One by one... I..." Tears started pouring down my face. "I killed everyone I loved.. one by one... Haven't I?!" "You have failed. Your destiny was torn from you by his hooves, and his desire for power!" "...No.. n-no! No! NO, NO, NO, NO!" Continuing on with his sickening rant, he kept talking, egging my emotions on. "The day you took a soul... You are a fool. Why did you accept this job?!" "... He... He promised... anything we wished for..... I got everything I needed... heh... hehehhh.. HHhhhheeeehehehehe.... AHAHAHA! I DON'T NEED FRIENDS! I DON'T NEED FAMILY! I HAVE EVERYTHING I NEED!" I stated, my mind an absolute wreck of thought. He started talking again, commanding power in his tone of voice. "Do you really? Do you have your destiny? Do you have your own life?! YOUR OWN SOUL?!" He screamed violently in my face, demanding an answer of any kind. Demanding any response at all. "I've taken so many destinies for myself. Of course I do! I-..." My mind went blank as I tried to think of something that I still truly had. He looked with a soft, saddened expression into my eyes. "You have taken others but lost the path.. your own true path given to you by the heavens. Your own soul was stolen from you." He added remorsefully. "... What do I have to do to get everything back..?" "You are dead." He stated flatly. "You can't do anything." His words stung harshly, envenoming my brain. "No..." I grab a second nearby knife, nearly the same size, but with a curved shape. "I'm still alive." I state, eyes not focusing on anything, limbs moving by themselves. "You're dead, face the fact." I feel the blade slice the skin on my arm apart swiftly. "I can still feel." I look down, seeing the blood slowly seeping from the wound that I created. "I can still bleed." "You're dead!" "NO!" I scream back at him, anger enveloping my voice. "He stole your very soul!" "I'M STILL EVERYTHING I USED TO BE!" I shout again, all of my anger centering upon him. "Oh really? You were a murderer before you joined this 'Job', weren't you? You were born a murderer." He stated coldly, chilling my spine and angering me beyond my control. I cut the small distance between us quickly and aggressively. "YOU CAN'T DECIDE FOR ME! YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!" I shouted angrily, stabbing and slicing frantically at his entire body. "Why do you even persist?! What more do you have?!" Not using a fraction of his strength, he shattered the blade just like before. "Useless." He muttered softly to himself. He was growing annoyed at the mare, if she kept trying to kill him it would just cause more problems. Exhausted and saddened, I fall to the ground in tears. "I... I still..." Looking down upon me, he snapped out words that pained me greatly. "You are evil." "Do I.. really.. not have... Anything?" I just barely manage to sob out the words, unable to understand anything but my pain, both physical and mental. "You are SOUL-LESS, WHAT ELSE DO YOU HAVE?!" He shouted yet again, demanding yet another answer. "..It hurts." I choke out, barely able to speak past my sobs. "My memories.. my body.. everything... Everything HURTS!" "Because you're nothing anymore. You have no more soul." "You're Death.. aren't you?" I sadly ask. "Yes." "Please... Please. Take me with you. Anywhere but here... It's true.. you're right.." I break down sobbing harder, still trying to croak out words. "I have... I have nothing!" "I told you, your soul belongs to him now. I can't do anything about your situation. Even death has its limits." "TAKE ME WITH YOU! CAN'T I HAVE PEACE?!" I frantically shout out, begging him to release me from my pain. "I CAN'T, DAMN IT!" He shouted at me. "I can't. You have no soul, YOU HAVE NO DEATH." "Am I stuck with whatever he gives me, like his puppet?!" I stop my questions and look at the ground tearfully. "No." Relief. I'm not bound to his service, his will. "He doesn't give you anything, he's already stolen your soul. There's nothing either of us can do. "If I have no soul.. why... Why do I still feel?" I ask, searching for the one answer I begged to know. It didn't seem logical that a body with no soul could even live, let alone feel everything that still happened to it. "Why do I still breathe?" His answer was simple. "You can never die. Because you can't live, and you're already dead." "B-but..." That didn't make any sense to me, but somehow, it works, because I'm still here. I still feel the throbbing pain in my right foreleg, I still feel the tears staining my face. I still feel the emotional scars bleeding profusely because of the recent events. "I did not.. take your soul myself. I am Death, if something besides Death himself takes your soul, you are forced to live forever. You have no soul available to me. I cannot give you my gift of death." He said, sadness dripping in his tone of voice now as well. "What if I remove all of my everything? What if I destroy what body I have? What will I become then? An empty shell, roaming the lands for time eternal?" I might as well ask as many questions as I can. "Then you will just exist. You will be beyond death, life, time and even space." "...Does my body... Do I even require my body anymore, then?" I ask sadly, imagining myself dropping from the highest point she could imagine and shattering her body on the impact, ridding her of her physical pain. His answer still plagues my mind, to this day. "Existences grasp.. is lost on you." "No..." "You are.. Invisible. You are.. in torment. I don't even know how to explain it, myself, and I am Death itself. All I can tell you is that it's practically life after death. Feeling with no consequence, no reward. No risk. You will survive no matter what you do to your body." Shocked, I asked him the most important question so far in my head. "How many others are there like me? Is there even a number, or am I the only one?" "You are thrown into the void. There are others, there aren't numbers. Just the time that it is for a soul to die." "And if I leave Whiteman... Can I?" "You can leave whenever you want, you're free. He's taken what he desired from you, he could care less. He still has more and more victims to control and have feed him the souls he desires." "Then I'll leave.. I'll go to another town... Start a new life... Can I?" "Do what you please, just remember this. The void does await." "One last question, then..." I looked into his eyes, waiting for permission to ask, unsure of anything else in my life. "Yes?" "Will I ever.. die? Truly, truly die?" "Nothing ever does, truly. Everything always exists in the void. You will be tormented forever." "What of my body? Will it be my eternal prison, or will it rot away, leaving me to be nothing but a spirit?" "If your original form dies, or is damaged too much, you will be a spirit as your original form... Walking eternally under the dark, gloomy skies, past the worn gravestones of the loved ones that you had when you still 'existed'. Walking eternally with no destination. Only forward." "...So I'll be nothing but a shell?" "Yes. Forever." "My choice.. my... everything is gone.. because of one job choice that gave everything I ever wanted." "Yes.. you're doomed for the void. You can still live and enjoy what's left for your life, start a new one, gain a new family, have kids even. However, as time goes on, you will never age. Everyone and everything around you will die eventually, leaving you eternally in the remaining rubble." Shocked, I close my eyes, fearing the time ahead of me that was forever cursed. "You're stuck in time, doomed forever. There's no hope for you but to live as many happy lives as you can or want." Looped in a depression, I ask the usual question. "...Why me?" "I... I don't know. You stumbled into another person's destiny." "Well..." I started, remorseful humor staining my voice. "I have eternity to think about my actions, I suppose." "That's IT! That's his destiny! I've figured it out!" I sat in confusion again, staring at him. "W-what?" "His destiny is to have puppets deliver him the souls he desired! You gave him all the souls he desired from you! He's through with you, and by fulfilling your own destiny, he's given your soul back! That's why you can still feel! Stupid me!" He cursed at himself for letting his logic fail. "I... How? Why? HOW CAN I TURN AWAY FROM THIS LIKE IT NEVER HAPPENED?! EVERYONE I KNOW AND LOVED IS DEAD! I killed them.. myself..." "You have actually fulfilled your destiny." He stated proudly. "I was gravely mistaken. You are still alive. Congratulations." "By being.. his puppet..?" "Your destiny was to be caged into the void after ages of pain, you were doom driven from the start." "..Everyone in my life.. was destined to be killed.. by me? How can I believe that?!" I shouted at him with new anger in my mind. "Because it happened, and everything happens for a reason. This just so happened to be your destiny. Enjoying it?" He asked playfully with a smile. "...I killed everyone, though.. am I destined to go to Tartarus, if I pass?" "..Yes. You were pain driven from the start." "Very well then. If available, I'll go whenever it's possible." Shocked, he stepped back, unsure of what he just heard me say. "Wait, what?! Really? Why? You have years of a less painful life here." "I've done horrible things. I... I deserve.. I deserve it... Don't I?" "No, it was your destiny. How can fulfilling your pure destiny be evil?" "So my destiny is mostly fulfilled? I.. I'll die, given time? Just like a normal mare? Like a normal living being?" "Yes." He stated coldly. Fearing the answer, I summed up my willpower to ask him one big question. "Will I.... Will I see you again?" "Maybe. I don't know, honestly. In fact, my time is supposed to be soon as well." "Death..." I start, confused one more time. "Has a time?" "Well, can I tell you something? I didn't tell you my whole story. You see.. I was just like you. I was a puppet to a stallion very similar to Whiteman, and.. well... I had years until I died, honestly.. but I chose to take those years as being Death throughout the time. I did things just like you." "Th-then... I'll start my new life... In a different town. Make new friends, wait.. until my last chance comes. I murdered my family and my friends, I-" "You have to be death." "Wh-what?!" "You have to be death," he enforced. "I'm sorry, but it's the endless role of passing down Death." "You just-... You just pass down the role like that?!" I ask, flustered and unable to respond correctly. "Yes." He replied flatly yet again. "It's been like that ever since Equestria was born, and it will always be like that." A large, dark scythe appears in-front of me, floating in the air. "...Then I accept. What will become of me?" "It's your true destiny. You become death, and you rule the Underworld. Or, as you like to call it, Tartarus. And you wait until another pony like you captures you and tries to kill you and you tell the story I told you and pass on the scythe to that pony. It's been this way for the longest time." "Can I interact with the ponies of the world, still?" "Yes but you will be feared slightly by all ponies, you are still going to be Death, after all." "Can I be rid of this body, hide anything that reveals who I am? Well.. who I.. really am." "Yes, but it won't be you. You must take the form of another pony." "Then I'll do just that. I'll make great friends, I'll share the greatest laughter..." "And you'll take innocent souls and guide them into the underworld. And when your time really comes to pass on the scythe and enter the void, you'll more than likely do what I've done with you." He spoke those words in more of a relaxed fashion than she hoped. "There's a rock farm with an unknown family there... taking a filly there wouldn't be too bad." "Hahaha, yes, i guess so. Whatever fits you, but.. I want to say something before I leave you." He set himself into position and started speaking. "May I see you in the void, and we shall walk forward, together." "We shall." I solemnly reply. "Pain be thy journey and Death be thy touch." A portal to black emptiness opened beside him, and he walked inside. The entire time it was slowly closing, I peered inside, watching him as he never looked back and never stopped walking. I put my new scythe down and work my way out of my room. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | It wasn't too long for me to notice the dull color of rocks glue itself to my vision. I look ahead of me and notice a small house with three working fillies. The one that drew my attention the most was the brightest one. The pink one. The vibrant, bright pink pony, stuck in a sea of grey where it didn't belong. "Small pony! Come over here!" I call out to the filly, and she looks towards me curiously. "Come over here, I need to speak with you alone! You can trust me!" Frantically begging her to trust me and understand me, I fall to the ground, my legs no longer wanting to cooperate. Thankfully, when she noticed that I fell down weakly, she came rushing to my aid, curiously worried about the stranger wanting to talk with her. As she starts getting closer, I start thinking about all the ways I can do this. "Thank you, kind filly." I say, sorrow enveloping my voice. "Lady, what's wrong? What do you need? Do you need water? Food? I've heard from my grandmother that laughter is a good medicine, maybe you need some of that! Is there any way I could help?" She kept showering words on me, leaving me no room to speak with her constant, worried babbling. "One, be quiet about this. Can you do that for me?" I ask the question in my head repeatedly. Stupid me.. this is a bad idea. You shouldn't be doing this... "Can you, and you alone, listen to what I have to say? Please? I need you to do this for me.. it's..." Tears were gathering in my eyes as I tried to force the words out of myself. "It's my last chance for.. anything." 'Stupid me, why are you making this so cryptic and difficult?! Just.. just do it. You know it's for the best of the both of you.' I argue to myself in my head again, contemplating what I'm doing, trying to reason with my state of mind. "Pinkie? What are you doing over there? Are you talking to yourself?!" A blue pony with a long, straight greyish-blue mane shouted over to the pink mare I was talking to. Quickly, before the pink one can speak, I spit out my words first. "She can't see me, just tell her you'll be with her soon. Please." I begged her, swiftly, praying that she would understand. Thankfully, she turned and spoke. "I'll be over there in a minute, Blinkie! I just found a cool rock over here, stay over there with Inkie so I can show you both at the same time!" She lied beautifully and effectively. This pony definitely was the greatest choice I've made for a pony to take the form of. "Thank you, little filly." I explain my intentions. "I can use my new powers and help us both greatly. I can wipe half of the both of our personalities and place them both in your head, leaving me dead but leaving you with both of us..." I pause my fearful explanation to gasp in for breath. Continuing, I begin to cry. "I remove half of the both of us, and I move what left I have and control one side of your mind, but none of your actions. You will know nothing but happiness..." I can't explain any further.. I don't want to. I know that I, myself, am going to be in eternal control of nothing but my sadness, and she... I openly sob as I look into her beautiful, small, understanding eyes. "Thank you." I force all of the bad out of myself, squeezing the sadness out of her mind and replacing all the knowledge she has of sadness and replace it with her foalish happiness. Right before I disappear into dust, I hear a loud boom and a great show of colors. I turn to see the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life, spreading through the sky. Unfortunately, it's the last thing I see, but it's the start of a whole new journey for this pink pony. All she'll know is happiness... I'll be stuck for infinity in half of another ponies mind... Knowing of nothing but abandonment and sadness... In my head, I know it's what I deserve. In my heart... I'm just glad to help another pony live her entire life in nothing but happiness and laughter.