It was dark. You'd seen this darkness before. No, it wasn't the ever encompassing flood of negative emotions that crushed your very soul. This was more like... like when you were dreaming? Yeah, it felt a lot like that. You certainly weren't feeling the cold, heart rending sensation that the depression zone gave you. Course, you weren't feeling a whole hell of a lot right now. Like you were between hot and cold. And you definitely weren't feeling the tightness in your chest. Weird.

"Hey Luna, come out here before I start having an existential crisis!" you shouted, demanding she show up already. You were getting pretty damn good at traversing all this crazy dreamscape stuff by now... at least, you thought you had.

You stood there for a significant amount, what felt like a good ten minutes at least, but didn't see hide nor hair of the princess. Of course, you didn't just stand there the entire time, deciding to shout obscenities into the void, waiting for one of them to at least trigger Luna into action... but nothing. Sighing, you looked around, expecting to see her... then spied something in the distance. It wasn't too terribly far away, but that made it odder that you hadn't noticed it before. A simple, white door, with a bronze doorknob.

"When the fuck did tha- Ah, dream logic, right," you grumbled to yourself, starting in the direction of the door. Oddly enough, despite having felt this unusual balance where temperature didn't seem to affect you in the void, as a dream should really, you noticed a warmth as you approached the door. A soft, gentle, inviting warmth that seemed to sink into your flesh, reaching to the very bone, as if telling you that was where you needed to keep going.

When you were only a few feet from the door, something you heard stopped you.

"Are you sure you wish to go through that door, Anon Y. Mous?" a voice asked, one that was unfamiliar to you, yet at the same time seemed recognizable. It was a smooth, feminine voice that seemed to be both concerned and relaxed at the same time. What was even more concerning was the fact they had used your full name, which you never heard anyone use, mostly because you didn't want to answer what the Y stood for. Turning around, you saw something that nearly made you jump out of your skin.

Standing only a few feet from you was a skeleton. A motherfucking skeleton, standing all on its own. Only, it wasn't just any skeleton, but a horse skeleton... with a horn and skeletal wings. An alicorn skeleton? And unlike most ponies, it was wearing a long, flowing hooded robe that just left its wings free. You would have assumed it was just some weird prop, but the subtle motions, a slight sway of the body that you saw in living things, told you this wasn't just some dead thing.

"DEMON BE GONE!" you shouted, swinging your arm out to clock the skeleton in the face, hoping you'd knock the skull off its spine. To your surprise, your fist didn't so much as make it budge. Your hit landed, but you felt no pain, which would have reconfirmed this just to be a dream to you, yet at the same time you could feel the hard bone on your knuckles, an almost soothing cool coming from it.

While the skeleton clearly lacked the ability to show facial expressions, a sense of amusement seemed to radiate off of it, its skull turning a little so that the empty eye sockets would focus on your hand, then back to your face. "You know, you're not the first being that has done that, but I've never had any that have shouted such a thing before doing so," it, or rather she, stated, its jaw moving to confirm that it was the one talking, making you fairly certain that with this voice it was a female.

Drawing back your fist, you looked at it fearfully, then glanced over your shoulder at the door. Maybe you could make a run for it, but a winged horse monster was probably a hell of a lot faster than you. "Wh-what do you want?" you asked, trying not to sound like a scared little bitch, despite feeling exactly like a scared little bitch.

Tilting her head, the skeleton said "Come now, surely you've heard of my counterpart from your world before. I know the appearance is a bit... different, for obvious reasons, but the set up is pretty much all the same."

Looking her up and down once more, you connected the dots, then looked back into her eye... sockets. "You're the Grim Reaper?"

Shaking her head, she answered "Yes, but no. Grim Reaper is his name specifically, cause, you know, we have specific names too. I'm Soul Harvester, but I know you meant the same thing regardless, and lets just stick to the easy stuff, shall we? I am Death."

All at once, like someone stepped in front of you and delivered a punch to your face, it all came rushing back to you. Ap. Chrysalis. The duel. You trying to stop them. You getting impaled on Chrysalis' horn. Your amazing last words before... fuck.

"I'm dead," you groaned, falling to your knees as the realization weighed upon you.

"Yes," Death stated, slowly walking around you in a circle, coming round your right, before deciding to stop on your left. She sank down to a resting position of her own, letting her wing lay over your shoulders like the arm of a friend embracing you, still cold to the touch, but not uncomfortable. "And no."

Looking to the alicorn skeleton, your brow lifted in confusion, you asked "What do you mean? If I'm here, talking to you, then that means I've already died, right?"

"Yes, that's true, but despite what my counterpart would have you believe. You see, death, the act of dying, not me, is a more fluid event than he's allowed the people of your world to believe," Death stated, using her other wing to do what seemed like a rolling hand gesture. "Personally, I think he's just a pile of lazy bones. Let all of you think that you die and keep going in one direction so he can just keep moving on and get to his own down time. Don't get me wrong, he's usually a nice guy, but he doesn't take a lot of pleasure in the job. I enjoy my work."

"Saying you enjoy your work makes you sound a bit sadistic, considering what you do and all. Only inquisitors and DMV personnel are worse," you stated, leaning away from the personification of death, but her hold on your shoulder strong enough that you only bought yourself an inch or two.

You got the sense that she was rolling her eyes if she had them, then she answered "That's because you view death as this terrible thing. Yes, an untimely demise is sad. Being separated from your loved ones is hard. You leave behind so many you care for and had so much left to do. I won't deny that your life ending is hard, but that's why I'm here. To guide you forward, with as much care and consideration as I can... at least, that's how I take it. Again, I think Grim just likes to point you to heaven or hell or whatever other option there is for you."

"So heaven and hell are real?... Oh man, I'm fucked," you groaned, your shoulders sagging further. You'd always joked that you'd go to hell, but never really thought you did anything bad enough that warranted it, besides not being a worshipful sort. But now, in the recent days, with what you'd put so many through, you kinda felt like you were going to hell.

Shaking her head, Death said "Yes? No? I cannot honestly answer you on that. I can discuss the theologies that exist, if that's what you wish. There are many different beliefs on what happens to you after you die, and I offer you all the different views. If you believe in heaven, I can offer you that. If you believe in reincarnation, then I'll provide you the way. If you believe in hell... well, nobody willingly goes to hell, so I'd probably have to lie to you to get you there if that's what you deserve. But I'm not allowed to confirm what truly exists. God, gods, nothingness. That's above even my station."

"... those are some really fucked up rules you got. People don't even get the comfort of knowing they were right when they move on?" you complained, frowning at Death. It seemed to be the odd thing to be upset over, considering you weren't even a spiritual person yourself.

"Yes, but then people also get upset if they learn that they were wrong. I have to deal with ponies, Changeling, dragons, griffons, and so many more all upset that their life has ended as it is, and your Death does as well. Dealing with their varying beliefs being right or wrong is something neither of us, or any of the other deaths across the various worlds," Death stated, her wings digging in a bit as her grip seemed to tighten with the apparent anger that came with past experiences similar to such. Realizing what she was doing rather quickly, she relaxed, something like a comforting smile being directed at you. "My apologies, even as I've explained, many do not willingly move on without wanting to have a theological debate. With me, Death herself!"

Blinking as Death apparently got a little emotional about things, you spoke up. "By the way, you guys have gender? I would have pegged you guys as the sort that would present yourself as genderless forces of nature, not... I dunno, man or woman."

"We essentially are, but we can portray ourselves however we so please. I could have gone with the haunting, echoey voice that I know Grim likes using, but again, I take a softer approach to things, take pride in my job and all. Furthermore, in this world, females are those in generally higher positions of respect and authority, so it's actually easier for most to see me as such," she explained.

Hm, fair enough, seemed legit. At least as far as you had ever seen things when it came to death. It was surprisingly pleasant knowing that Death was rather human... despite being a horse. That was the weird part.

"So... Okay, I guess I need to know what my options are," you sighed, finding it harder to fight this than you'd have thought. Of course, fighting death seemed like such an obviously... stupid statement in itself. Death was always the winner in the end, you knew that. Time took all things. Given you'd learned that immortality was a thing from Chrysalis and the princesses were proof of that as well, but even that seemed limited by the way it had been explained to you. Of course, Death and Taxes after all.

Death hummed for a moment, letting her head sway as if she was listening to some sort of song in her head, but you had the impression she was still watching you, paying attention. "You are... a special case," she said at last, causing an undeserved sense of pride swell inside of you.

"Damn right I'm special," you declared, puffing your chest out.

"In more ways than one," Death snorted, making you smile even more. "As you're already well aware, you're not from this world. You're supposed to be Grim's case, not mine. When you came over here, I had to ask what he had down for you, because the course of your life never had any such indications of you ever leaving your world. Your projected death was... well, it wasn't much further off than yours here, but it was a different sort of violent."

"My death was already planned out? That sucks... how was I supposed to die?" you asked, morbidly curious about how things would have gone.

"Not telling," Death declared, shaking her head once more. "As I said, it was your projected death. We think things through, but life is as fluid as the afterlife. I've seen ponies I had expected to die shortly after birth from one thing or another go on to live long, happy lives. Despite the name, we are not in control of your death, just the guides through it."

"Huh... you know, you're not half bad. Way more chill than I thought you'd be... although, your bones are a little cold," you pointed out. Was that offensive? It felt like it might be taken offensively.

Shrugging her bony body, Death said "Sorry about that, but without blood and such, there's no real body heat for me to give." Patting you on the shoulder, she released you from her wing, rising back up to walk forward, regaining a sort of regal air about her. "But now we really should be discussing what to do with you, because the way I'm seeing it, the usual options I have don't really apply to you. Nothing personal, but a human in pony heaven is... well, it's just rough. And your soul is different than what I usually see, so the idea of sending you through any sort of reincarnation cycle feels like it would be... warped. Given you've already thrown Equestria up in arms, but trust me when I say that reintroducing your soul, even in a pony body, would have potentially far more dire consequences."

"So... what can I do? Where do I go?" you asked, hesitant to do so, as you figured she'd say you were going to hell and drop you down some chute to a flaming pit.

"The way we have this, we have two options for you right now," Death stated, marching around as she prepared to tell you of the choices. "The first one, which is the best you have, is that I send you home."

"Home? Home how?" you asked, feeling something for a moment you hadn't felt in a while. Hope? Was this hope?

Without stopping her motions, Death said "Simply put, we return you to your world. No more talking ponies. No more Changelings. Just humans and lizard people again."

"Wait, what's this about lizard people?" you inquired, taking that by surprise.

"You don't know about... forget I said that. Wasn't supposed to interfere with that," Death stated, waving her wings dismissively. "Fact is, when you were taken from your world, nobody knew what happened to you. There was no body left behind. To the people of your world, you simply disappeared. Grim and I will arrange it so that you will return, your body as it was before, and your memories of Equestria will be taken away so you won't have to worry about anything. You'll be allowed to continue your life as you had before," she explained, basically stating you could go back to the norm. You could live again and not have to worry about feeling guilt for all the shit you did while you were here.

"I can go home... not have to even think about the fact that I died..." you considered, the words oddly hollow as you spoke. Thinking about it, you looked up to Death and asked "What about everyone here?"

"They'll remember you. You've made far too big an impact for us to just... will it all away. I mean, you've seen what has happened at this point. Everything that has happened with the hive, with Canterlot at this point even, is set in stone. We cannot undo things that are so firmly set in place." Death admitted, a reservation in her voice that said she was holding something back. "But it won't be your problem anymore. I mean, it shouldn't be anyways, because you've died to them."

That hurt you a bit. Not the fact you were already dead to them because, well... you were. But the fact that you'd just get to move on, not even capable of feeling guilt over everything, meanwhile they'd be left with the mess that you left them with. War, sorrow, and so much more. Not that you could change any of that now, but the idea you'd walk away from it all without at least feeling the guilt of doing it, it just felt wrong.

Then, you remembered what she had said and looked back to Death. "What's the other option? You said there were two," you implored, needing to know it.

Stopping her little prowl around the void, Death looked down at you, emanating some level of sorrow and pity. "The other option is... I send you back to Equestria," she answered. You were totally confused for a moment, not understanding how both options didn't really seem to include any actual death, especially since you were already told you had flat out died. Seeing this, Death elaborated. "You asked earlier if you were dead. I told you yes and no. Your body is currently hanging on the very last strand of life, not giving up just yet. The only thing keeping you alive really is... well, you. The fact that you haven't totally accepted the fact you're dead yet. I can say what I will of you, but you're a fairly stubborn one."

"Yeah, that sounds about right," you admitted, nodding your head. This seemed good.

Sensing your pleasure at this statement, Death quickly continued. "But you have to know, you will return... but there's no guarantee you'll stay alive more than even a minute. I'll put your soul back into your mortal body, but the wound you suffered was incredibly grave. You might die all over again, and that... that will end differently than here."

"Won't I just come back here and talk to you again about my real options?" you considered, thinking that was fairly obvious.

Death shook her head slowly, solemnly so. "If I put your soul back in your body now, it will be a... traumatic experience for it. Your body is going to hurt as it is, but your soul will be in damaged in a way that, honestly, I can't say will ever truly heal. You could live the rest of your life and when you come to me next, you may not have an option for the afterlife. Your soul may very well... break," Death explained, her words emphasizing the risk that came with this option very clearly. "If your soul breaks, that's... well, for a lack of better terms, it's a fate worse than death. Trust me, I know."

"Well... fuck," you muttered looking down into your own hands as you weighed your options. Go ahead, return home, forget all that has happened, and never worry any further about things. You'll live your life, as meager as it was, and die with an option to have a proper afterlife. Then there's returning to Equestria, with a fucking hole in your chest, likely in pain physically and for sure on the spiritual level that, according to Death herself, will likely last until your next death, ending with... nothingness. It seemed so obvious which you should choose. One left you without any pain and another real chance at life, while the other left you with minimal chances and undeniable pain.

Seeing the struggle on your face, Death walked past you, dragging her wing along your shoulder to draw your attention. Turning around, Death stood by the same door you saw earlier, the frame hanging in the void, now stroking it with her wing. "Now that I've let you know the options, I want you to think of what you want. When you've decided, just open the door and step through," she explained, a mournful tone to her voice. "You can take as long as you need to think it over, time moves differently here than it does in the mortal plane, although I must confirm that time has already passed."

Sighing, you pushed yourself to your feet, slowly approaching as your knees wobbled. This was a tough decision. A shitty decision. But you had to do the sure thing. "I don't need to take any more time. I've been away from my life for long enough," you stated, you voice dry.

Despite your words, you could feel Death... smiling at you. "Yes, I suppose your friends and family have been without you for long enough as it is," she agreed, watching as you opened the door.

Author's Notes:

I got the reaction I wanted from everyone with the last chapter. Now I'm curious to see what I'll get here. The only thing I can say is... yes, I did consider Anon having sex with Death. But I think Ap's tired enough of Anon sticking his dick in every super powerful entity in Equestria as it is. Plus, she's a skeleton, so have some self control!