Ten dead in Hoofington, read that morning's headline. A picture of three bodybags was displayed across the front page. I remember that headline specifically, as I marveled in how fast the information had reached the media. I had to admit, with the amount of ponies wanting to get out of Hoofington, I was a bit worried that I wouldn't be able to make my train.

Where are my manners? Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Keeper. I'm a stallion, a pegasus as well. I'm a bit silent, never one to speak too much, but I get around. I've been all over Equestria, from Buckingham, to Canterlot, and everywhere in between. My work takes me everywhere. But I'll go into that in more detail later.

I was able to keep my ticket and get on the train with no problem. Thank Celestia they closed down the ticket counter instead of selling tickets to half the town. It was still pretty crowded, but I was able to enjoy the view of the countryside as we sped off toward the destination of my next task.

I always enjoyed riding the train in the dining car. It always seemed so... convenient. Able to enjoy my vodka while looking out the window and enjoy the stunning countryside, even under the grey shroud of rain? Definitely, whoever designed this car obviously had me in mind. Everyone else around me was pushing each other around, or goofing off with their beer, but I remember the somber soul across from me was deep in thought, and deep into his whiskey. I always considered whiskey as an alternative to vodka, but never seriously, because thankfully, vodka was served almost everywhere I went.

Suddenly the loudspeaker rang out, and I knew that I was likely the only one to hear it. "Next stop, Ponyville." said the conductor. Though I could only barely hear it, I knew already where we were. I had spent enough time on these tracks to know them forward and back. I turned my eyes to the picture in my hoof. My mark was a small creature, barely old enough to have her cutie mark. In fact, she didn't. Her file had said that she was supposed to be something called a 'Cutie Mark Crusader,' a group of fillies who were all supposed to be trying to find their cutie marks. Such a shame, I thought, going through life without one, as the train slowed to a stop.

I grabbed my bag and stepped off the train. I didn't look around for comforting arms, though. I had long since abandoned the need for loved ones. Not that I didn't have a family. My brothers and sisters were almost always too busy to spend any time with me, and I was just the like. I never expected anypony to welcome me with open arms, and I had no permanent residence to go back to. All I ever wanted, or needed, was with me always, in my bag of handy. It was still grey and storming as I walked slowly down the street. I never had a problem with the rain, I found it to be rather calming, it's cool temperature, the way that it lightly massaged my back and slowly dribbled down my legs. The chill always left me reinvigorated, and in a wonderful mood. But alas, I tend to ramble.

There was a hotel that I was to stay at, for my entire brief visit to Ponyville, and I headed there, taking my sweet time as everyone rushed around me. They probably wanted to get out of the rain, and into someplace dry. Then, as if from nowhere, somepony decided that I wanted an umbrella, standing beside me and hoisting it high. I turned to look at them, and couldn't believe my eyes. There, beside me, was the sister of my mark. I recognised her from the file, she was marked under 'family.'

"I'll have you know, It's a beautiful day out, I shouted, just above the roar of the rain hitting the umbrella.

"Nonsense, deary, The rain will ruin your exquisite bag!" she scolded.

"It's waterproof. It was made for the rainiest of days." I retorted, picking up my pace to get back into the wonderful shower I enjoyed to the fullest. Nevertheless, she followed.

"Well, at least find someplace to dry off soon. Wouldn't want you catching a cold, now, would we?"

"Good day, Madame," I said, a bit more forcefully than I had meant, pulling back out from under her umbrella. Couldn't she take the hint that I didn't want company?

She persisted. "You could come stay with me! I'm not a murderer, I promise!" I hid a snicker, and shouted back, "That won't be necessary. Good Day!" and I turned into the hotel entrance. The main hall was full of ponies, with three of the four lines filled up, the fourth almost empty. I approached the almost empty one, pulling out an identification card. The line passed quickly, being reserved for members of some silly hotel club. I never attended the events, but I enjoyed being one of the few who could make reservations on very short notivce.

"Single." I said as the pony at the front waved me up for my turn.

"Ah, Mr. Keeper." said the rather thin stallion. "You have an outstanding value of points for your number of stays. Would you like to upgrade to a double at no extra cost?" he handed back my cad.

"No, I'm travelling alone, thank you." I enjoyed the reservations, but I never used the points. They could be used for upgrades, but I never wanted them. They just got in the way. The job was all that mattered.

I took my keycard and began climbing the stairs. I was on the second floor, third hall, fourth door on the left. No one had told me this, but I knew where room 237 was. This hotel chain was unique. The lowest room number they had was 211. I only shook my head, knowing there was little I could do to change the hotel chain, not that I would want to. It was clever, to say the least.

I arrived at the room and dropped my bag. After a quick check to make sure I had everything set up right inside, I zipped it shut, reading back over the file.

NAME: Sweetie Belle
AGE: 8
GENDER: Female
OCCUPATION: N/A
DESCRIPTION: White, unicorn, pink and purple mane and tail. A member of the 'Cutie Mark Crusaders,' usually can be found with friends Scootaloo and Applebloom, also crusaders. Pictures are included. She attends school at Ponyville Elementary, and spends most of her time either with the crusaders, at her parents house, or at school.
FAMILY: Rarity, Sister. Parent's names unknown. Pictures of the three have been included.
SPECIAL CONDITIONS: It is intended for her to missing, and not to be found. Either kill her where no one will find her, hide the body, or destroy it.
REWARD PICKUP: A courier will deliver it by hoof.

That's my job in a nutshell. I'm a cold-blooded killer. An assassin. I take the lives of other ponies for money. I must say that I'm very god at my job; never once have I failed to meet any special conditions. I'm afraid I'm retired now, though. I can't help you kill your neighbor, or any coworkers. You probably couldn't have afforded me, anyway. I never came cheap.

I left my bag, and the file, in my room, and headed out into town. It was still pouring, but I needed to scope out possible vantage points for seizing my prey. After all, that was the best way to operate in secret. To hide, and wait for it to come to you. If it saw no danger, it would be like taking candy from a foal. Or rather, taking life from it.

After a brief look around, I surmised that the school was too close to a populated area to be a good enough spot to grab her. The best place was either a very crowded area, or a clear area with no one for miles around. A semi-crowded area was debatably one of the worst places to abduct, or murder another pony, as you almost always got caught. No, I needed someplace more secluded, more out of the way. But, having only the location of the school, I didn't have anywhere to plan my maneuver.

I remember, right at that moment, the school bell rang, signaling the release of the students. I decided to just follow my prey at a distance, hiding in the shadows, out of sight, keeping up the appearance of somepony with ulterior business, not one having only the purpose of elimination. unfortunately, that proved difficult, as the market was void of most ponies due to the rain, so I couldn't pretend to look at curios and baubles, and I couldn't very well enter one of the shops, for fear of my prey escaping my vision long enough to disappear.

But I suppose that's not something you want to hear, right? You probably want to hear how it went. Patience. One of the first things they teach you in my line of work is patience. Wait for your quarry. Set everything up, if you can, and if you can't, improvise. I was never one for improvisation. I almost always set up my kills. Usually long before I even arrived. But this was a special case. I knew nothing about this pony, or her habits. I would have to set this up slowly, or wait for just the perfect moment, whichever came first.

Luckily, I'm a master of staying hidden, and bushes lined the walkways, providing a wonderful cover. However, when my quarry and her two friends turned to make their way away from town, I cursed my bad luck. I would have to find some other means of following. Stepping back into the rain, I noticed that it was, if fact, still raining. That made me remember another thing I loved about the rain. The clouds were usually low, and covered the bulk of the sky. I could follow inside of the clouds, without blowing my cover. I dared not fly above them, though, for the weather team usually stayed above to keep the lightning in check.

They had their own clubhouse, I soon found out, hovering above a farm called 'Sweet Apple Acres.' I was hovering, not the club house. I waited up there for several hours. The rain had stopped, and the sun was about to set. I managed to keep my cover inside a small cloud that was slowly fading away.One of them departed in one direction, the other two in the opposite. I cursed quietly; my mark was still not alone. She had left with the one I assumed was Scootaloo, based on the pictures. I hadn't looked at them for several hours, but I had a decent memory, and it didn't really matter anyway. She was not my prey.

I followed the couple back into Ponyville, now able to hold a decent cover as some of the stalls had opened up after the storm. They were only going to be open for another half hour, but it was still good for business. It helped me anyway, so who was I to complain? The two reached the opposite end of Ponyville, and split up, Scootaloo going one direction, around the outskirts, and my little job walked off, alone, along the road. I stifled a chuckle, keeping my illusion up. there was no cause for dropping it, even for a second. Nopony suspected me of any shady activity, and I aimed to keep it that way, leaving town with no suspicion cast at me.

Sweetie Belle seemed to live quite a ways from town, but I didn't mind. In fact, I prefered that. I followed, just out of sight, diving behind a tree when she started to turn around. As soon as town was out of earshot, I made my move. This is what I meant by the perfect moment. There was nopony around, save for myself and my prey, so I dove at her, full force, right in the middle of the road. I still don't like taking risks, though. If anypony was nearby, there would be hell to pay. So I aimed my strike carefully. I headbutted her chest at full force, completely knocking the wind out of her. As she lay coughing, almost motionless on the ground, I bound her, and gagged her, and picked her up, leaving for the forest nearby.

She was caked in mud, and it rubbed off onto me as I carried her further and further in. I knew there was a chamber nearby, I had helped make it. It was inside of a solid rock, one whose structure was incredibly powerful. The door was impenetrable, except by those who knew how to open it. I was one of them. It immediately dissolved at my touch, and sealed shut behind me, locking anyone else out.

Let me tell you a bit about these chambers. More than you would think, someone doesn't only want the contract killed, but disappeared. Gone entirely, never to be heard from again. No recognizable remains, nothing of that sort. They are simply gone after entering these sanctums. This is why they were built. I hesitated to stay here, instead of the hotel, because the place smelled of rot. I never enjoyed the place personally, but I did enjoy watching events unfold here. And I especially enjoyed joining in on the fun.

I tied Sweetie Belle's Forelegs to the rack, and removed the gag. "Hello, little one," I teased at her. "Do you know where you are?"

"No, but I know who you are!" she shouted, spitting in my face. "You're one of those child molesters, aren't you!?"

I chuckled at this. "If I were, I'd have strapped you to a different sort of rack," I said nonchalantly. "However, now I have the idea in my head, and I can't just leave it there." I grabbed a certain torture device that I hadn't used in a while, and jammed it into her mouth. With a sharp yank, three of her teeth flew out of her mouth, warranting and ear-splitting scream from her. I was used to this, though. Torture wasn't my forte, but I knew my way around it, and was used to the screaming. This one in particular was quite the high pitch, though. It managed to have a bit of an effect on me, causing a slight cringe. Luckily, the walls and door were sound-proof, and nopony but the two of us heard it.

I sent the device back to work, until only a few teeth remained, but they were at the back, and were thus insignificant to my new plan. Blood oozed from Sweetie Belle's mouth as she tried to scream again, being stopped by my member being shoved deeply down her throat. I pushed on, forcing it deeper and deeper, until I felt her nose touch my stomach. I pulled most of the way out, allowing her a few breaths, before sliding back in. I was a bit surprised at how good it felt, and how easily I slid in. I guessed that she probably sang, due to the uncommon width of her throat.

This time, I managed to slide down into her esophagus, and could feel the involuntary muscles trying to pull my shaft all the way in, massaging it gently. The feeling was absolutely divine, as I pulled it back out. I knew how much air she should be allowed for keeping life up, due to my training in torture. Interrogations weren't something I enjoyed, but this wasn't an interrogation. This was just for fun.

I pulled out a final time, after exactly twenty-five thrusts. I loved keeping count. It helps me stay sane, I believe. It kept my mind from wandering as I went about it. When my mind wandered, I could spend an entire week taking the time to finish them off. Without, I was only an hour or two away. And I had barely even started yet.

Blood dripped from her mouth, and she gathered it up and spat at me once again. She mentioned something, but without her teeth, I couldn't understand a word of it. Her head lolled about in front of her, as she admitted defeat. Usually, this would be the point where we returned them home, after carefully extracting any information they had. However, as was stated before, this was not an interrogation. If it were, I wold have let her keep her teeth.

I pulled her chin up, and looked directly into her eyes. The emeralds that returned to me almost made me want to let her go. But I had a job to do. And there was no possible way I was going to just quit in the middle. Especially since she knew exactly what I looked like. She was going to have to die in here, and we both knew it. I could see it in her eyes.

"Now, Sweetie, do you know what comes next?" I asked, attaching her rear legs to the rack as well. They weren't built for children, though some could be modified. This wasn't one of them, though, and her legs had to stretch to reach. She let out a sob, as tears, mucus, and blood dripped from her face. It was the little things like this that made my job so difficult to do well. You can't remove empathy. It's a piece of you, much like your past. You can cover it, but still it remains, locked away without any care.

I swung the rack around, and stepped into it. It was indeed a rack, most ponies ask how I could step into it. Most ponies hear tell of a table. It's not anything like that, actually. It's rigged to where it can spin in literally any direction you will it to. The braces at the sides and in the very center are the only solid pieces in the entire build, allowing you to torture your victim from any angle. And now, it was allowing me access from every angle.

I let her hang with her tail above her. I somehow felt that this would be a lot more natural, being the way most ponies went about it. A long, deep sniff was all I needed to harden back out, ready to take another round of Sweetie Belle. "Ready?" I asked rhetorically. She wasn't, but that didn't matter to me. I pushed in toward her, building up force until I finally popped inside. She let out another scream of pain. I only found this more arousing, though, as I continued to push inward. I discovered, that the further I pushed, the higher her pitch became. This gave me an idea. I pushed anf pulled, at different intervals of speed and depth, and was able to play Toccata & Fugue with her vocal chords. It sounded divine.

"You're quite the singer, Sweetie. Though I was never one for Screamo," I joked. Remember how I said my mind would wander? I played a few more of my favorites, specifically The 1812 Overture and Ode to Joy. I have a soft spot for classical music, you see. Eventually, I got bored of playing my orchestra, besides the fact that some of my instruments had quit. I was a bit envious. We had been at this for over half an hour, And I hadn't reached a single climax yet. So I stopped goofing off and tried to finish up, going into a casual pace, at a casual depth, but still pressing deeper and deeper in. Though I had enjoyed this quite a bit, her genitalia had become accustomed to me, and the tension was almost completely gone.Thinking about what I cold do to keep going, I remembered something that I had heard from one of my brothers of the void.

I immediately pulled back out, only just realizing that I was flared. Blood spilled out of her, likely locked in by the clog I had created. This would prove to be a bit more interesting than I had originally planned. I pushed up against her, using only her blood from the previous two ventures for any lubricant as I slid, deeper and deeper into her ass hole. Tiny needle pricks ravaged around my shaft, the tightness growing as I inched deeper and deeper in. I was about halfway in when her blood-curdling scream stopped, along with the tension. I slipped the rest of the way in with ease. I poked a hoof around her asshole and found out why. I had just torn her anal sphincter to shreds inside of her. I pulled out, as fecal matter oozed from the cavity without regulation. Now how was I to finish myself off?

I walked around to the other side. I was so very close. I needed to find a way, some way of finishing. I then saw her motionless mouth lying agape in front of me. She was still alive, no doubt about that... Her breathing was regular, albeit heavy, which was understandable, considering what she had just been through. Her blood was flowing far less freely from her maw, and it dribbled down her chin. She was half dead. Her torture, as it were, was almost finished though.

Still covered in her fecal matter, I rammed back down her throat. It was much more difficult this time, as I was no longer flaccid as a wet noodle, but stiff, and the size and consistency of a metal pole. It was no easy matter, but I managed. As I entered the final few strokes, I burst forward as far as I could, ejaculating almost directly into her stomach. With her muscles pulling me in as much as they were, you'd think she wanted me to do just that, for the rest of her life. I'm sorry to say, I couldn't just remain there forever, though it did seem tempting at the time. Never before had I done anything of that nature, but I was bound to do it again. This much was clear to me.

After my little episode, I took a shower, cleaning myself of any blood, fecal matter, and sweat that resided on my body. I was a bit tired, and it was well into the night. That aside, all of my tools were in my bag, back at the hotel. I would have to continue this tomorrow. I gave Sweetie Belle a peck on the forehead, and thanked her for the wonderful time, before walking back through the secret door, which dissolved in front of me and sealed behind me, leaving the impression that I had simply appeared from inside the rock. This forest was said to be cursed, so I didn't worry about anypony seeing me, telling myself that they would simply regard it as a piece of the forest's black magic.

I leaped into the air, taking flight out of the forest canopy. I enjoyed flying almost as much as I enjoyed the rain. The feeling of soaring through the air without a care in the world was second to none. I loved it so, it was the most powerful I ever felt. Tonight, though, I flew low, to the ground, conserving my spent energy. It wouldn't do to crash on the way in, would it? I made sure to step in a bit of mud, washing off the last of the blood from my hooves before entering town. It was okay to come in with mud, if you washed it off in the street, but not blood. That was a dead giveaway, no pun intended.

I arrived at the hotel and walked up to my room without a word. I almost literally fell asleep the second I hit the pillow-top. I remember because I woke up late the next morning. But I'll tell you that story next time.