A story I was inspired to write after reading some other fan fiction. I'm a brony, and wanted to write as such. This is purely for my writing enjoyment and I hope you enjoy it as well. That being said. This chapter is mainly background. Chapter 2 will be up sometime later this week 9/14/12

"Stop staring at him and RUN!" someone yelled.

They didn't have to tell me twice, I took off. But can you really blame me for staring? It was my first time ever seeing a manticore. I mean if you saw an eight foot tall lion with a scorpion's tail and wings, wouldn't you stare too?

I don't think I've ever run so fast in my life, but looking back at my life, I haven't really done much running. In fact, I don't ever remember running before I came here. As I looked over my shoulder the manticore was catching up…and fast. I looked down the trail and hoped for something to slow it down. Nothing. I saw my friend Applejack running down the trail in front of me. Even in our present situation, she had a certain seductive grace as she ran. She really is a beautiful po-

"Hey Sparky!" I heard Dash yell from above me "You can fly remember?"

"Oh yeah…" I mumbled as I was still running, "Hey I knew that!" I yelled back up at her.

She just rolled her eyes, "Sure you did!"

I quickly stretched out my wings and started flapping, slowly but surely I started picking up some speed and rising off the ground. I flew over Applejack, hooked my front hooves under her shoulders, and took off.

Now I know what you must be thinking, "So you have wings? And hooves? What the hell are you?" Well I'm human, or should I say was human. Let me just start back at the beginning.

My name is Mark, I'm 18 years old. And I'm living in New York City, that's right, the Big Apple. Unfortunately it wasn't that great. I was orphaned very young when both my parents were killed by a drunk driver as we all were driving home from a late night trip to the grocery store. I was about 5. I managed to survive but both my legs were damaged beyond repair, so I had to use crutches as well as have metal rods tied to my legs. After filing through the foster system, and various foster homes that never really felt like a home. I just ended up a cripple on the street. And for some reason it was better than a foster home, I never had to talk to anyone, something I never liked doing anyway, and I could do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. I slept where I wanted and ate what I wanted.

One of my favorite things was going to central park early in the morning before it got crowded and watching the ducks swim on the ponds. It just made me feel good, you know that strange warm feeling you get when someone tell you they love you, or seeing someone you really missed, you know, happy. I would watch them fly away and wish that I could leap up and join them.

I begged and did whatever work I could to make money and bought only what I needed, food, clothes, and the like. All the other money I gave to people on the streets too weak or sick to work. That was another thing that made me happy.

Eventually I got sick as well, I went to the hospital but I couldn't afford the medicine, they said I had something called tuberculosis. I was dying and I knew it. All the nurses had tears in their eyes as I walked out, I smiled at them and told them not to worry. I mean I wasn't really worrying, why should they?

I spent the next few days gathering up as much money as I could, I wanted to do something special for myself, you know like make-a-wish but I was the giver and the receiver. So after gathering about $50 I walked all the way to Coney Island. I've heard a lot of people talk about it and how awesome it was and I had to see it for myself.

The late autumn afternoon was gorgeous; I walked down the boardwalk and treated myself to whatever I wanted. That was the last time I really felt happy. I had just a few loose coins left in my pocket. I walked to the end of the boardwalk and watched the waves and looked up at the stars.

I heard a loud bang from behind me and turned to see an old fortune telling machine that looked like it had been there for decades. But it was lite up and making noises so I took the three quarters out of my pocket and glanced down at them and ran my fingers over them, then I looked back up at the machine.

"Why the hell not?" I said to myself with a chuckle

I walked up to the machine and slid the first quarter in, nothing happened, so I put another one in, and it started to light up some more, after I slid the last one down the slot it was almost too bright to look at.

There was a clear crystal ball in the middle of the machine that was glowing. I stared into it hoping for something to magical to happen, nothing did, just a small bell rang and a slip of paper shot out of a slot right below the coin slot and fell to the boardwalk, I quickly bent over and picked it up, as I flipped it over it was blank.

"Great" I thought, "just the way to end my night"

I was about to crumple the paper and toss it when I looked back at where the machine was and it had disappeared. I quickly scanned the area to check to see if I had just missed it, but it was gone. I looked back at the paper in my hands and flipped it over. It said in plain print.

MAKE A WISH

I looked back out over the waves as I shoved the paper into my pocket. The calls of seagulls sounded overhead.

I started to say aloud "I want to run and fly away from here to somewhere ne-"

I was cut off by my body as I started coughing uncontrollably, I looked down into my hands that I used to cover my mouth, there were covered in blood. I don't know what happened next but everything went black.

Hope you people enjoyed, remember to R&R if you liked, and follow me as well.