Six humans sat at a table, half of them counting wads of American dollars, while the other three counted up the amount of ammunition they had and loading it into pistols and other types of guns.

“Hey, Brutus!” One of the ones counting the cash said,his voice filled with a gruff German accent. and one of the others looked up.

“What do you want, Schwein?” Brutus asked, an American. Brutus was somewhat pale white, with a scar across his left eye, and a cigarette in his mouth. A typical American mercenary, to be perfectly honest.

“Oh verpiss dich, stechen.” The German Mercenary growled. His face was covered in a beard, his blonde hair helping in covering his tan and scarred face. The only things fully visible were his brown eyes, which glared at Brutus angrily. One of his large, bulky arms swung over the table, coming to a rest on one of the guns. “I was wondering what our next contract was gonna be. I did not ask to be named a pig, dummkopf.”

Brutus laughed. “Ah, but it's much more fun to call you what you are.” He quieted down when Schwein pointed a gun at his head. “Anyway, our next assignment is….” Brutus checked the file. “...we got a request to be met in person for a special assignment. The meeting place is in… Pennsylvania.”

“You think it's that merc killer?” Schwein asked.

“What Merc Killer?” Brutus replied, confused.

“You haven't heard?” Schwein asked, surprised. “Apparently, merc groups have been given assignments to meet up with their employer lately, but they never return from it.”

“So this guy might be planning to off us?” Brutus raised an eyebrow. “Even if it is, we gotta go. If this employer does try to off us, we can take him. Plus, if we don't go, he'll just kill some other merc group.”

“Bullshit.” Schwein chuckled. “You don't give a damn about our competitors. You are just worried about your pride.”

“Ah, you read me like a book.” Brutus chuckled. “So, shall we book a flight?”

“Sure thing, arschloch.” Schwein replied, frowning. “How are we gonna get our weapons there?”

“Duh, we will use the supply depot we have in America. It's around Pennsylvania anyway.”

“Right. Forgot about that.”

Two Days later, Pennsylvania

“So, any info on this guy?” Schwein asked, glancing around with his hand over his pistol.

“No, unfortunately. All we know is that he is willing to pay a lot of money, is potentially a Merc Killer, and has a special job.”

“Verdammt.” He swore, spitting on the cement sidewalk. “So how far away are we from the meeting point?”

“About five minutes. And stop holding your hand over your gun. If a cop sees you, then what?”

“If a cop sees me, and tries anything, he won't be a cop for much longer.”

“That's what gets you wanted in half of the U.S.” Brutus said, turning a corner.

“Fine.” Schwein reluctantly lowered his hand.

When they arrived, they found themselves in front of a large storage building. Metal shutters lined the walls, holding whatever they had inside locked away from the world.

“I don't like this.” Schwein said, motioning to the rest of the group. The other five with them took up positions around the area, waiting for something to happen.

“Ah, good. You're here.” A voice said from behind Schwein and Brutus suddenly, deep and filled with boredom. The two Mercenaries turned, guns pointed at the mysterious arrival. But they slowly looked up as they met the face of the newcomer, almost a full meter taller than them.

The man was bald, his head the only organic part of him revealed by the massive armor he wore. The armor itself was charcoal black, with a single amber eye in the center. In his left hand was a massive mace, almost as tall as a person, and the other ended in a metal claw, with two barrel-like things poking out the top.

“Who the fuck?” Brutus asked.

“Was zur Hölle ist das?!” Schwein asked, which translates into: ‘What the hell is that?!’

“I am Ahriman, your employer. Before we can begin, I have to give you a small test…” the massive person said, raising his head. His face seemed almost regal, though his eyes were unlike any normal human’s. Odd circles surrounded his pupils, with eight lines flowing out to the ends of the eye, almost forming a star.

Suddenly, he vanished, and up above, one of their men screamed in pain. They glanced up to see one of their friends impaled on Ahriman’s claws, the gunner’s eyes wide in pain and shock. Ahriman tossed the corpse of the now dead mercenary to the ground, before charging at one of the others.

The mercenary in question unloaded his pistol into Ahriman, the bullets bouncing off of his armor. In return, Ahriman pulled up his claw, and a thunderous roar erupted as the sight of muzzle flash Burst into existence in front of Ahriman, and the mercenary exploded as massive bullets tore him apart.

Everyone else blinked, before coming to their senses and opening fire on the massive monster. Unfortunately, they soon found their bullets could not even scratch the armor, and then even quicker found four blades in their chest, their own blood dripping out from the wounds as electrical energy flowed through his claws.

Soon only Brutus and Schwein were left, hiding behind one of the storage containers.

“Shit shit shit.” Brutus said, eyes wide as he watched his mercenary squad get torn apart. “How the fuck are we supposed to kill this fucker?”

“I don't know.” Schwein said.

“Fuck… well, I guess this ought to work.” Brutus said, pulling out a grenade. Schwein looked at it.

“Why didn't you use that earlier?!” He yelled, and Ahriman looked in their direction.

“Because it all happened so fast!” Brutus replied. “Look, you gotta run. I'll take him down with this.”

“Are you crazy?!” Schwein yelled again.

“Yes. Now go!” Brutus ran out of their hiding spot, pulling the pin on the grenade as he ran.

“If I can get it in his armor, I can kill the bastard!” Brutus said under his breath as he got closer. Ahriman’s claws raised upward.

Before Brutus could blink, he was suddenly in the grip of Ahriman’s left hand, the armored appendage wrapped painfully around his neck.

“You are different from the other Mercenaries I've tested…” Ahriman said as he looked into the distance. Brutus took this chance to toss the grenade at him, but it stopped in midair, before flying back where Brutus had started.

Brutus heard a scream as the grenade detonated, and he knew that Schwein was dead.

That done, Ahriman turned towards Brutus. “Well, Brutus, you have passed my test. You are not a coward like the rest of the mercenaries. Standing still and firing at me from a distance is one thing, but running up to me, grenade in hand? That takes the kind of Bravery I'm looking for.”

The giant of a man dropped Brutus to the ground, who coughed violently as air returned to his lungs.

“Do you really think I'm going to work for you after you killed all of my team?!” Brutus growled, grabbing anything, which happened to be a knife from one of his dead companions.

“No, but you don't have a choice in the matter.” Ahriman’s eyes met Brutus’s, and suddenly Brutus froze, unable to move.

The tall giant stepped closer. “I have a place I need you to fight for. It is simple enough. In return, I will give you an inhuman power.”

Brutus tried to tell him to kiss his ass, but he still could not move. Ahriman drew closer, and one of his claws lifted up Brutus’s head by his chin.

“Of course, your name will no longer be Brutus. Your name will be Zero.” The name rang through his mind, even as Ahriman’s claw sank into his throat. “I wish you the best of luck in defending what is left of Equestria. If you do, I will also return to you your teammates.”

As Zero’s vision faded to black, he said one word, almost as if forced.

“Deal.”

Zero slowly awoke in a grassy field. The sky was a dark red, with clouds blotting out the sun as dead trees waved in the wind. A surprisingly calm breeze flowed gently in the wind, stirring Zero.

“Fuck….where the hell…?” The Mercenary muttered, sitting up and looking around. “Damn.. what kind of hellhole is this?”

The grassy plain he had found himself in was dead, the yellow blades crumbling to dust in the wind. A fire blazed in one corner of the area, burning a dark black. In the distance, he saw a mountain, though the mountain seemed almost to have been split down the middle, as if some divine power sliced it in two with a mighty blade.

“Well shit… looks like I've been deposited in the armpit of Hell. Damn that bastard..” Zero got to his feet, blinking as he prepped himself for moving out.

Then he blinked again.

“The fuck…?” He asked, waving a hand in front of his face. “Why can I see through my missing eye? Dammit, I need some sort of mirror…”

His thoughts were cut off by a scream from nearby, and he turned towards the source. Black smoke rose heavily into the sky just beyond the forest.

“Human life?” Zero said, sighing in relief. “They simply have to have a mirror or something so I can see what the hell is going on with me.”

His goal set, he ran towards the forest between him and his prize.

When he arrived, he found himself face to face with a town on fire. Wooden cottages blazed and collapsed, while the roars of inhuman creatures growled throughout the town. Zero walked forwards, sighting a massive, humanoid creature growling down at something.

The creature’s skin was gray, and its muscle-bound arm gripped a massive sword tightly. The creature itself was probably two meters tall, easily bigger than Zero or any ordinary human.

The thing it growled at screamed, and Zero shot forward on almost instinct, his sword slicing through the monster before it could blink. The creature stiffened, before falling into bloody pieces, blood and viscera pooling around the new puzzle.

Zero paused to look down at the woman he had just saved, only to stop short as his eyes widened.

Four cloven hooves backpedalled away from him in shock and fear, attached to a slim torso. A cartoonish amount of hair burst from the creature's head and rear, while it's muzzle opened again to let loose another scream. It was a tiny horse. Granted, a purple horse, but a horse nonetheless.

“It's...huh?” Zero said, shocked and at a loss for words. The equine screamed again.

“Help!” It yelled.

“Hey, why are you screaming at the guy who just saved your life?” Zero growled, and the equine stopped its screams.

“W-what? You're not going to kill me? It asked, and Zero shrugged.

“Well, I could, but I need a mirror. It is of utmost importance. He balanced his sword on his shoulder, before looking at it in confusion. “Wait….where did I get this?” He asked. It was unlike any sword he had seen before, with its center being a dark shade of violet, while the actual blade was pitch black. It was almost shaped like half of a rocket, except more like a sword. It's hilt was a long, twisted rod of metal, seeming more like some sort of garden metal than a sword hilt.

“Umm...I'm sorry, but you aren't here to kill me, right?” The equine asked again, and Zero sighed, putting aside the question of how he acquired the sword for later.

“Yeesh, how many times do I gotta tell ya? I'm not here to kill you. I'm looking for a mirror.”

The equine stood up, and Zero noticed three things he hadn't noticed before. The horn rising from the equine’s head, the wings protruding from it’s back, and the image of a six-pointed star on its rump.

“...tell you what. If you save the rest of the townsfolk, I can get you a mirror. Deal?” It asked, extending it’s left forward hoof.

“Sure.” Zero shook it. “So, I'm guessing there's more of those whatever they are roaming around?”

“Yes, the demons attacked five minutes ago. Unfortunately, the Guard was completely wiped out, and now we are being slaughtered like animals for a Griffon’s feast.”

“Well alright then. I guess I'll go clean up your mess for you.” Zero turned to leave. “By the way, what's your name? I'm not used to talking horses with wings and a horn, so I might as well attempt some form of greeting.”

“Oh, um, forgive me. I'm Twilight Sparkle, the current ruler of what's left of this nation.” The purple horse said.

“The ruler, eh?” Zero smirked as he walked away. “Well, Miss Sparkle, I am Zero, a lowly mercenary compared to someone of your standards. I'll go deal with your local demon infestation. Try not to die in the meantime.” He waved as he walked into the burning village.

“How rude. I can take care of myself!” Twilight said, and Zero chuckled.

“Oh really? Then why were you screaming to the heavens for help? Or maybe it was just a feint for that demon?” Zero said, before bursting out into laughter.

“Oh…. go save the town already!” Twilight yelped. Zero laughed again, before walking into the flaming village.

“So, she said that there were other...winged..horse..bird...things, around here.” Zero sighed. “I am never gonna get used to that.”

Before he could speak to himself any longer, another demon charged at him. This one seemed like a skeleton of a human, though it also had wings. A spear was in it’s hands as it charged at the mercenary, who ducked out of the way with his sword raised up. The skeleton, already flying fast, was unable to get out of the way, and was sliced in two.

“Okay, how am I killing things with a weapon I have no idea how to use?” Zero said, looking at the blade with a raised eyebrow.

His confusion was stopped as an arrow sunk into his leg, and he immediately went for cover.

“Ah, shit!” He cursed, gripping his leg as the arrow protruded from his kneecap. “My fucking knee! Alright, it's not like this has happened before…” he grabbed his new sword, charging at the archer that had attacked him. It was another skeleton. He quickly swung his blade, removing its head and torso in a series of attacks he didn't know how to do. The Skeleton archer collapsed, dead once again.

“What the hell? Are these some sort of fucking first level mobs in a video game?” Zero glanced down at the now vanishing monster as it turned to ash. “Well that's weird.” Two of the horse things slowly crept out of one of the nearby houses, looking at him with their giant eyes filled with fear.

“Oh for the love of…” Zero sighed, turning towards them. “Twilight Sparkle has me saving your sorry rears. Go find her.” He pointed back where he had come from, before a loud roar ripped through the sound of crackling fire.

A large beast stepped out from around a corner, growling at Zero. It had the head of a lion, probably the body too, but also bat wings and a scorpion tail.

“Is that a fucking manticore.” Zero deadpanned, slumping. He turned to the two equines, only to see that they had vanished, replaced by a cloud of dust. “Oh great.” He turned back to find the manticore right in his face, a paw careening towards his chest.

Zero dodged instinctively, jumping backwards a few feet. “I am going to ask someone about these abilities.” He looked towards the manticore. “So, I'm guessing you're the boss battle? Gotta say, the town could be more on fire. Oh well.” He rushed forward, only to find himself smacking the sword’s side on the beast, who then smacked him into a burning building.

He went through the already weakened wall, destroying furniture for his landing. He came to a stop at the other wall, gasping for breath as blood dropped from the three gashes in his chest. He glanced up, noticing a mirror, and stopped.

His body was completely different from what he had looked like before. Where muscle-bound arms once were, now were replaced by scrawny looking limbs. His hair had grown longer and changed to white with red highlights at the ends, while his eyes had turned red. His facial scars had vanished, replaced with smooth, pale skin.

His clothing was also weird. What looked like a biker jacket, with two shoulder pads and a useless zipper replaced his old jacket, while slim pants and boots replaced his military style equipment. A large scarf flowed down his back from his neck, seeming almost like a cape. Almost

“The fuck happened to me? I look more like an edgy teenager than a mercenary!” He complained, but before he could complain and think about his new body any further, the manticore charged in, stinger tail poised to strike.

Zero leapt out of the way of the charging beast, and it ripped through the wall he had been on. Burning wood pieces fell onto its head as it turned, and its eyes glared a bestial hatred. Zero took this time to stab it in the side with his sword like a smart person.

The manticore roared loudly at the intrusion in it’s side, backpawing the mercenary back outside. He barely managed to keep a grip on his sword, which flew out of the wound with a nice, slippery sound. He landed on his feet, before charging at it again, slicing his blade through it’s tail before it could turn around, the poisonous stinger landing into the wreckage of the house with a wet thump. The manticore roared in pain, rushing out of the house to the street. Zero followed, chuckling lightly.

“Man, I don't know why I'm able to do this stuff, but holy hell am I glad I can. I'd be dead ten times by now.”

The manticore roared again, before bounding into the forest. More skeletons ran out of the town after it, vanishing into the oddly dense forest. Zero raised an eyebrow, but then shrugged, turning back to the blazing city.

He walked back to where he had found Twilight, noticing a growing crowd of the equines. As he grew closer, he overheard her giving a speech to the survivors.

“...and though we have lost many of our friends and family, we must be strong for them. We are some of the last survivors of Ragnarok, and we must fight against the demon horses that threaten our existence. Celestia and Luna will watch over us, and give us their protection.” She finished, and the survivors began shuffling away, getting to work on repairing the town. As they trotted away, Zero walked up to Twilight.

“On behalf of the surviving ponies of Equestria, I thank you.” Twilight said, lowering her head.

“Don't worry about it. I've been assigned to help you. I think.” Zero shrugged, scratching his head.

“Assigned?” Twilight asked, before her eyes widened with joy. “Then the summoning worked!”

“The what?” Zero asked, confused as he looked down at the purple pony.

“The summoning circle!” Twilight said, leaping from side to side in joy. “It was a last ditch effort to call for help, and it worked!” Her horn lit up faintly, and Zero felt himself forcefully dragged away as Twilight trotted towards a relatively untouched building. Like everything else, it was made of wood with a roof of hay and sticks. It looked more like a hut than anything else.

Twilight dragged Zero inside with her strange power, depositing him next to a circle made in the dirt with what looked like chalk or some other thing.

“Okay. I can deal with talking horses. I can deal with demons and a new body. I cannot, however, deal with whatever the fuck that was. What the hell was that?”

“That was a simple levitation spell. Do you not have magic from where you're from?” Twilight asked, looking at him in slight confusion.

“Nope. We have technology and whatnot, but magic doesn't exist.” Zero replied, before blinking. “Wait, this place has magic?!”

“Um, yes.” Twilight replied.

“Huh. I guess it's a different world or something.” Zero said, looking up at the hut’s roof. “God damn that fucking Ahriman guy…”

“Who?” Twilight asked.

“Nothing. So, what's with the circle?” Zero said, changing the topic.

Twilight visibly brightened. “It's a special type of magic that can bring forth a spirit from death back to serve the one who summoned them. Normally you can tell a summoned being by the summoner’s cutie mark on them, but I don't really see one on you…”

“If you try to take my clothes off, I'm leaving you to die.” Zero warned, and Twilight stiffened.

“A-anyway, I attempted this summon just before the monster attack. They might have sensed the large amount of magic I used though...the attack must have been my fault….” Twilight slowly slumped down, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

“Hey, don't cry. I doubt it was your fault. So, how the hell did your world get like this? I seriously doubt it was always a hellscape.”

“Oh...where to begin….” Twilight instantly snapped up, pondering.

“No place better than the start.” Zero shrugged.

“Alright. It all began two years ago…” Twilight began.

Author's Notes:

Hello, and welcome to my latest story, 'Phantom of Equestria: The Beast's Blood!

Might need to work on that name, might not.

Anyways, I hope you enjoy the story! I think I worked pretty hard on this one!

As always, helpful and constructive critiscism is always welcome! I have plenty of plans for this story, and I hope you come to enjoy those plans!

Hmmm....
What to say now?

....

Oh!

Sorry if this chapter is a bit rushed. I wanted to get through the beginning a bit quickly, since I've got a lot to do still!

Also, if you want to add me on Phantom of the Kill, my friend code is

2970810083