The Great Epiphany exposed the onmi-verse to everyone.

One day, with absolutely no warning, three marvelous things happened that signaled the beginning of a new age. The first was the sudden and instinctual understanding of their being more than what one knew, with no further details to go on provided. At least, until the second signal, the unexplained appearance of the Shards of the Not, crystals with unique powers that came from globs of light that fell from the skies, all skies, everywhere. Those two events lead to the third, the true epiphany of the Great Epiphany.

There were Realms outside of yours. Everything anyone in the onmi-verse ever knew, even an entire multiverse, was merely a single Realm out of probable trillions. Universes and multiverses were like marbles on a table. Each was unique and detailed in their own right, and yet only a small piece of a larger whole.

At first, the most shocking part of the Great Epiphany was the understanding that these others Realms were not all together unfamiliar. They were usually previously known. But not as reality, per say. They were usually known as fiction, or what had been thought as fiction before the Great Epiphany. But as it turned out, every book, movie, TV show, video game, or other example of fiction was a reality somewhere out there in existence.

The hefty philosophical implications of this were often put aside amongst practical concerns. The newly revealed omni-verse soon became a warzone the likes of which none had ever seen. Two factions arose from the infinite possibilities to battle. The first to form was the Organization, a cabal of unrivaled scale and ruthless ambition made up of by the lion's share of all the evildoers of Existence, from all Realms, who would tolerate this alliance of convenience only until all their traditional enemies were obliterated. Those traditional enemies, the noble and extraordinary defenders of the innocent and righteous, united into the Society, dedicated to opposing the Organization and improving the omni-verse for every single living thing in its truly infinite Realms.

Due to a heroic sacrifice early in the Great Epiphany, the Society gained a stronghold and base of operations in the Shield, a barrier surrounding twelve Realms that is impossible to enter without the direct permission of a one of a dozen beings known as a Shield Bearer.

The omni-verse was a stage on which the ultimate drama would play out, good versus evil. Both sides were aiming to not just destroy the other but also claim new lands, new Realms, for their own. Whether it was by legitimate alliance or conquest, the desired end result for both was the same, more allies and resources for them to use against the other.

But there were wildcards that no one could have predicted that could tip the scale of the largest war in all of Existence one way or the other. Random chance had a lot of potential.

This was what led to what occurred one stormy night on a successful farm in Realm 15.

The fates of unknown billions across the omni-verse could have been swayed based on the decisions of a little filly and an apathetic god...

(6.5 months AGE, Realm 15, Sweet Apple Acres, height of harvest season, late at night)

Apple Bloom had been sleeping in her room. Well, it would be more accurate to say she was trying to sleep. But the raging thunderstorm outside made that proposition a difficult one. The sheets of rain stomping on the Apple Family Home's wooden roof like the boots of a marching army, the cracks of lightning flashing harsh light upon the night's inky darkness, the peals of thunder roaring and booming like the voice of some dark deity. Any of those natural phenomena would have warranted an inability to get much needed rest. And the tired filly most assuredly cursed the pegasus who had arranged for this downpour and accompanying thunderous aplomb under her exhausted breath. But deep down, the youngest member of the farming family knew they weren't the true reason.

She noticed her throat was parched. That spurred her to get out of her bed. Maybe a glass of water would somehow help her sleep better? Her addled mind wasn't the most logical of minds. Even so, as she walked, she pondered the true source of her restlessness.

An entire apple tree's worth of fruit…gone, vanished, seemingly eaten. The first of many.

It had been the filly that had first noticed what would prove to be the starting point for a depressing pattern. For the past week, apple trees started to become bare of their fruit to varying degrees. While concerning and looked into, it didn't become a matter of obsession until it happened two more days without fail, despite efforts to stop it. After the fourth day, Applejack swallowed her pride and called up her friends to see if they could help.

From the initial sighting of a tree without delicious crimson fruit adoring its branches, Applejack and Big Mac had gone to work right away to determine the cause of this. What their efforts had in zeal, they lacked in results. Seven days in and they were mostly just as clueless as they were when it began. Even bringing in Applejack's friend didn't help much. The two older Apple siblings discussed, well, Applejack did most of the talking, with the other Mane Six about the possible causes for this, everything from vampire fruit bats to sabotage or theft by the disgruntled Flim Flan Brothers. All such causes were swiftly discredited. The vampire fruit bats hadn't left their sanctuary. And even if they had, the brown, withered apples left after their feedings would have littered the ground. But none were found. And as for sabotage, there were no signs of forced entry, or any kind of destruction. The apples weren't smashed. They had simply vanished without a trace. And the possibility of simple theft by the proven pair of con artists was also ruled out because along with the lack of forced entry, there weren't even any signs of ponies being there at all. The grass around the trees wasn't flattened, as it would unavoidably be if anypony had come trotting along it. And the spots covered in mud showed no signs of hoof prints. Even if the twin light olive coated brothers had used telekinesis to take the apples, they would have needed to stand under the trees to commit their crime, and thus walked on the unspoiled grass beneath them.

While disheartening because this threatened the family's livelihood, Apple Bloom hadn't been truly affected by her discovery…at least until fourth night. On that evening, Big Mac had been tasked by Applejack to watch the apple trees the entire night, constantly patrolling around for anything that might shed some light on the culprit. The result of this endeavor was a tired and thoroughly annoyed scarlet stallion. Only one reveal saved it from being a total loss. There were still apples missing, but it wasn't total. For every apple obviously taken from any number of trees, another remained. The unsettling part was that some of the stolen apples had come from patches of tree that were directly in Big Mac's line of sight. Somehow, despite Big Mac walking around the entire night and never letting them out of his sight, somepony or something had been taking apples right in front of him. If nothing else, it proved there was some intelligent force behind this.

It had been Pinkie Pie who had suggested an increasingly crazy list of possible explanations for this, ranging from ghosts to an invisible pegasus named Johnny who desperately wanted the apples to make the best apple pie in all of Equestria for a super-duper secret party! Taking her manic friend's words with a grain of salt, Twilight Sparkle did see some merit to them. This was clearly something supernatural. She began to place magical protections over the entire apple orchard, spells whose purpose was to expose what was hidden by invisibility hexes mingled with enchantments crafted to ensnare the intangible.

Three more days of missing apples proved the effectiveness of these magical measures. Similar to Big Mac's previous failure, this lack of success had one silver lining. It suggested whatever this force was it wasn't native to this Realm. Twilight's obsession towards this mystery soon started to rival that of Applebloom's older siblings. The alicorn had been locked away in her castle, reaching out to those from other Realms for possible suggestions of what this unknown apple thieving force could be. After all, it wasn't unreasonable to imagine it sometime soon focusing on things other than apples.

The yellow furred filly had reached the kitchen, trotting lazily towards the sink. The pelting rain and booming thunder had long since become white noise at this point, easily ignored. And made the presence of other sounds all the more vexing to her young mind. Crunching…and chewing?

Her orange eyes surveyed the familiar surrounding in search of a possible culprit, possibly either of her older siblings having a midnight snack. She saw no one there. Apple Bloom looked around a few more times before deciding she was just hearing things. The youngest Apple sibling had begun to turn back towards the sink when she noticed something odd out of the corner of her eye. It was over a nearby big bowl of freshly gathered apples, some of the ones that were used for the family's personal use. It was unhidden, but once again she doubted what her senses were telling her. How else could she explain an apple hovering in mid-air, without the aura of a unicorn using telekinesis?

She stared dumbly at the floating fruit until a large bite mark suddenly appeared on its shiny red skin. The loud crisp crunch told her that she wasn't just seeing things, this was really happening. The filly watched as a few more of the mysterious bites finished it off, core and all. Then another apple from the bowl took the previous ones' place in the air.

In her tired state, the Cutie Mark Crusader didn't even consider getting her two siblings. She thought of nothing more than seeing what the deal was up-close. Apple Bloom proceeded forward, focusing very hard on drowning out the boisterous thunder and shunning the dazzling lightning. The unknown sounds and impossible things she could see made those mundane factors feel more menacing. Step after shaky step continued until she collided with empty air. The little filly reeled as a frightened gasp escaped her. She didn't grasp what had happened, as illogical as it was, until her back hit the kitchen floor. She stared up at the ceiling, not knowing how to make heads or tails of what she just felt.

There had been nothing in front of her, but she had hit something. Something tall, thin, hard, bony, and not there. Her confusion only grew as she heard what seemed to be startled gasp, from a throat other than hers. It came from a raspy throat, far above her. Before she could dwell on that, she felt something else, a thud against her head. The blow didn't hurt, but its lack of warning caught her off guard and she uttered a brief startled yell. The Cutie Mark Crusader then heard a second thud, this time on the floor beside her. Her tiny neck pivoting towards the source of the sound on reflex, Apple Bloom saw something on that ground right next to her turned face that hadn't been there mere moments before.

A book.

Doubting what she was seeing, forgetting about the first invisible thing she had bumped into, Apple Bloom arose to her hooves and looked the odd object over. It was bound entirely in black, except for two words written in white upon its cover.

Death Note

Apple Bloom stared at the two simple words as if they were an alien language. The filly had never been the biggest fan of reading, so it didn't shock her that the title was unknown to her. But more than that, there was something about the title that scared her. She couldn't have explained why but those words elicited a fear comparable to any of the times the less friendly creatures of her world had threatened her or her family and friends. This certainly didn't feel like the books she had to read in school with Miss Cheerilee.

Partially to take her mind off the silly fear she felt, Apple Bloom decided to look over the bizarre book in more detail. The cover was completely clean and smooth. It didn't bear any of the tatters of mistreatment, no stains or creases. For a split second, the filly mused about how Twilight would have approved. Then again, maybe not, she thought. Though nice looking, it perhaps looked too nice, almost discomforting in its lack of flaw. The subtly unsettling aura of it was further enhanced by how barren of detail it was. There was no art on the front or spine to help her find out what the book entailed, just as there wasn't any sort of blurb or summary on the back. So there was only one way to find out.

Seeing no harm in simply opening up a book, Apple Bloom flipped over the cover and stared at the first page. There was a picture of a strange skull surrounded by a weird circle with numerous spikes protruding from it. The words "Death Note: How To Use It" were written below the skull in a rather creepy manner. Directly below that, the words began to look more normal, but their message was not. She read the first of several listed entries.

'The human whose name is written in this note shall die.'

For some illogical reason, perhaps her current state, perhaps the roaring storm outside, the written words filled Apple Bloom with horror. Though she never would have believed that writing somepony's name down could kill them, the idea was unsettling regardless. Still, the filly was curious, and about to read more.

"Like what you see?" A voice in the empty room asked. The voice seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere; a creepy whispering voice that sent chills down her spine. Apple Bloom's eyes darted around frantically trying to find their source in the darkness. A flash of lightning filled the lightless room, casting every shape in stark, dramatic clarity. Within that flash, everyday objects like the table, chairs and such were dreadful images. But they weren't what Apple Bloom soon found her eyes locking onto. It was something else. A different kind of silhouette, one standing tall, one with long spindly limbs and ratty wings. Of something strange and terrible, of something seemingly birthed from nightmare itself.

It just stared at the filly, its bulbous, glassy mustardy eyes never blinking, never turning away. Apple Bloom matched his unblinking gaze, her eyes looking high into the air. Not since facing the Chimera had the Cutie Mark Crusader felt such unmitigated terror.

Thick, elongated lips the color of fresh blueberries spread further in a savage grin, revealing the teeth of a predator. "Let me guess," the creature asked, its voice just as unsettling, but now sounding amused, "you've never seen anything like me before?"

Apple Bloom tried to be brave, tried to not just be some sad, scared little filly. Her body quivered and quaked with the effort. She fought against every impulse to scream her lungs out, to summon her older siblings who would make this monster go away.

The winged creature looked at Apple Bloom for a moment longer before turning away. That insignificant amount of moment shattered any resolve that Apple Bloom possessed. Before she was even aware of it, she started screaming, screaming as loud as her underdeveloped lungs and mouth would allow. Forget bravery! Forget pride!

Every yell became louder and shriller than the last, the effort to bellow and convey even just a fraction of her terror slowly chipping away at her voice box, straining her voice. Within the first few manic shouts, a louder chorus accompanied it as eight hoofs banged on the floor with a power surpassing even the thunder outside. Acting like rampaging bulls, both Applejack and Big Mac came rushing into the kitchen, barreling towards their younger sister, who was frozen with fear on the floor, shaking like a leaf in a hurricane.

"Apple Bloom!" Applejack shouted in loud concern as she nearly tackled her screaming sister. She embraced the yellow-coated filly on instinct, running her left forelimb through red mane. "What in tarnation has gotten into you!?" she asked, with worry overpowering tact.

The Cutie Mark Crusader didn't answer for a few seconds, savoring the safety and warmth of her sister's embrace. It gave the strength she needed to say what needed to be shared. "A—a mon—monst—a monster!" Apple Bloom forced herself to say. The filly looked from Applejack to Big Mac several times, and didn't see any change in their faces. Not even any attempt at hiding fear. How could that be? "It—it's right there! Right there!" she shouted, jabbing her right front hoof in the general direction for emphasis.

Both Applejack and Big Mac focused on where their little sister was furiously pointing, preparing for any number of horrible creatures. But they saw nothing aside from a bowl that had the majority of the apples that had been gathered before the storm on the counter. Even a conveniently timed lightning flash revealed nopony else in the empty room. They looked at each other, making sure they were on the same page. The looks returned confirmed that opinion.

"Now come on, Apple Bloom," Applejack said, her voice soft and understanding but firm. "ya'll probably just saw something that wasn't there in a lightnin' flash or somethin'."

"Eeyup," Big Mac seconded with a nod of his head.

Apple Bloom's panicked mind barely heard their words, though she understood their meaning. She reached out a shaking foreleg towards the direction of the creature again, her mind boggling at how her older siblings couldn't see it. "It—it's right there! WHY CAN'T YOU SEE IT!? WHY!?"

"If you want them to see me," the creature spoke over its shoulder, not turning to face the frantic family, having lost any interest in their fear, "then get them to touch that notebook."

Apple Bloom's terror froze for a few seconds as she processed that information in silence. The older Apples thought she had finally calmed down. What the youngest of them did next dispelled that idea. Without warning, Apple Bloom grabbed the notebook on the floor with her mouth and shoved it into Applejack's chest as hard as she could.

"Apple Bloom!" Applejack shouted in reflex. "What's gotten into ya—!?" She turned, noticing something out of the corner of her eye. Those same eyes widened like saucers. "EEEEAAAGH!"

Big Mac flinched at his more reserved little sister suddenly screaming her head off. He might not have been the smartest stallion around, but he was insightful enough to figure out that something might actually be wrong. Before he could voice such concerns, he felt something hit against his front legs. Looking down, he saw Apple Bloom hitting him with the same book as Applejack. He was about to ask what the big idea was, when he looked at something that hadn't been there before. His emerald eyes widened in disbelief as his red face briefly became ghost white.

None of the three ponies found the ability to speak for quite some time afterwards. The creature simply stared at them, as if waiting for one of them to instigate a conversation. In that silence, the bulk of the Apple Family studied the bizarre thing, as freaky as it was. And none of them could figure out what this disturbing looking thing was supposed to be.

Like in every Realm, the Great Epiphany had been an unexpected development in Equestria. But unlike some, the Realm of magical talking ponies had taken it quite well. Rather than fear, worry, or rage, the general opinion to the knowledge of the omni-verse was optimistic and curious. The curiosity had many causes, no matter if the Equestrian was a unicorn, pegasus, or earth pony. One component of this was how unique their Realm was. Realms with sentient horses as the primary species seemed to be mostly nonexistent. In fact, there Realm seemed to be the only one, but it was still considered 'mostly' because there were plenty more Realms out there that had yet to be explored. The basic omni-versial norm appeared to be a bipedal primate species known as human beings. For reasons most didn't understand, a mint-colored unicorn, which had a peculiar habit of sitting like the bipeds, had reacted to this reveal with jubilation. And while not as zealous, matching their thoughts towards the Great Epiphany as a whole, most ponies reacted to the shocking information positively. Frequent visits by human tourists and recurrently important collaborations with the Society helped grow this appreciation for the largely hairless primates.

By now, every pony knew what humans looked like, even little fillies like Apple Bloom. And though this thing had the general form of that bipedal species, it most assuredly wasn't one. The Cutie Mark Crusader had never seen a human so horribly repulsive.

For one thing, this creature was way taller than any human, seeming at least double the height of Big Mac, the biggest pony the filly had ever seen. He towered over everything in the room even with his hunched over standing posture. His overall figure was absurdly gaunt, so unnaturally thin it didn't seem possible for it to still be alive.

Apple Bloom had thought of human limbs generally speaking as too long and spidery. But they were little stumps compared to the elongated arms, legs, and fingers of the thing before her. His fingers alone looked like they were about half her body's total length. And his arms seemed long enough to carry an entire cart's worth of apples in their grasp.

A pair of wings sprouted from his back, wings that were covered in mangy black feathers. The hair atop his head was a slightly less total shade of pitch black. And rather than flowing downward, it stood up straight in thick, spiny tufts. Dozens of what seemed to be thick white stiches connected the exposed flesh of his neck to spike-like gatherings of dark feathery hair that adorned his bony shoulder blades. The majority of his body was covered in what appeared to be a skin-tight bodysuit made of dark blue-black cloth.

Silver jewelry of various kinds—earrings, bracelets, rings, belt buckles—shined like they were freshly polished. Aside from their color, the uniform motif was they were all skull-shaped. At his waist were a brown leather belt, an equally auburn tattered skirt, and a square, book-sized pouch that hung off his right hip connected to the rest by a glittering chain. They really stood out against the predominantly black color scheme of this thing.

But it was the features of his upper torso and face that stood out the most. The most obvious reason was because they were bone-white, popping against the blacks and browns and silvers seen elsewhere on his person. And there was also the fact his face seemed plastered unevenly across his misshapen skull. Even so, it was the other features within that malformed expense that really made it stand out. His eyes, nose, and mouth.

His eyes were huge, round and yellow. Their stare was similar to what she had seen in fish, each eye seemingly capable of looking in different directions, apparently lidless. At the centers of the ochre orbs were bright red irises that seemed to glow in the faint light. Beneath the eyes was the nose, like any human, but that's where the similarity ended. His trampled up nose didn't have nostrils, but rather slits resembling those of a skull, looking asymmetrical, like a reeling blow from Big McIntosh had flattened his face. Below the mockery of a nose was an equally unsettling fascicle for a human mouth. The lips were dark blue, and unusually far-reaching, stretching from just below the ears on both sides of its face, showing a lingering smile with playfulness perfectly commingled with savagery. Visible behind those parted cobalt lips were many irregular sharp teeth.

"No reason to act surprised," The creature said, its voice just as unfazed as before. The trio of ponies still fighting off the tremors of terror coursing through them would have strongly disagreed, if they had been able to speak in that moment. As it was, they all remained silent, allowing this scary winged thing to explain itself if it so chose to. It did. "I am the Shinigami Ryuk. And that is my Death Note on the floor."

It took a few moments for one of the ponies to react to the simple sentence.

"She—shema—shinawhata?" Applejack finally attempted to ask, the foreign term mangled by her ascent and her inability to imagine the way it was supposed to be said.

"Shinigami." Ryuk clarified. "It means a god of death."

The trio of equines looked at each other in confused horror at the concept presented. "G—god of death?" Applejack asked, needing to be sure she heard this creature right.

"Yes, god of death!" Ryuk snapped, his previously unfazed tone turning to one of bitter annoyance. "There's nothing I hate more than explaining something twice!"

The Apple Siblings were silenced by that rebuke. This creature could have a temper. Applejack and Big Mac realized this at the same time and turned to face each other. With a silent nod, they reached an agreement. Big Mac would guard Apple Bloom while Applejack attempted to learn more about this Ryuk, and if he posed any kind of threat.

"Just whata doin' 'ere, Mister She-In-Mo-Guy-Me?" Applejack asked through gritted teeth, saying the foreign big-city sounding word phonetically. She repressed her fear of this being. Protecting her family was what mattered most.

Ryuk turned his back to the ponies once again. Without bothering to ask or comment, he grabbed another apple from the bowl, before taking an enormous bite out of the bright, shiny fruit. He grunted in joy and licked his lips, smiling widely. "Mmmmm… juicy." Without another word he shoved the remaining apples into his gigantic mouth. When the last of the apples was gone, he turned back to the Apple family. "Eating apples," he said, as if that should be obvious, while squirming in pleasure, licking the last of the juice from his talons. "Apples this good are worth traveling through the omni-verse for. So juicy."

The trio of farmers stared at the shinigami dumbly, their fear replaced by bewilderment. Though she knew profiling was wrong, thanks primarily to her mildly disastrous first meeting with the zebra Zecora, Applejack had instinctually imagined several possible answers for this strange creature to give. 'I'm here to conquer all of Equestria.' 'I'm here to eat ponies.' 'I'm here to scare the ever-loving bejesus out of your family.' Such a prosaic answer, 'Eating apples,' hadn't crossed her mind. It confused her greatly.

"You're in 'ere…just to eat apples?" asked Applejack, unable to hide her disbelief.

"It's raining outside." Ryuk said, as if that explained everything. To further prove his point, he shook himself, knocking the lingering water clinging to his body as if a dog.

Seeing the droplets falling to their kitchen floor made something in Applejack's mind click, and that click had transformed the confusion into white-hot anger. "It was you!" she shouted loudly, powerfully, making her two siblings flinch automatically. "You're the one that's been eatin' all our apples, ain't ya!?"

Ryuk laughed, seemingly amused by the pony's righteous indignation, unfazed by her wraith. Applejack found her future words dying in her throat as she recoiled. It was an awful laugh, a raspy crackling cough of a laugh. The mocking cadence of that chuckle made every strand of the mare's blonde mane stand up on end, like static electricity. "Sorry," the death god said in a tone suggesting he was anything but. "Don't care."

Only concern for this creature reacting with violence held Applejack's tongue. Both for the disrespect and this thing literally eating her family's livelihood without a care.

"Speaking of which," Ryuk commented offhandedly, "if you really want to know more about me, I'm gonna need some more apples. Go get them."

The brazen gall of Ryuk struck the family. "If ya'll want 'em so badly," Applejack began with narrowed eyes and grit teeth, not wanting to be ordered around by something that was probably dangerous and full of ill intent. "Why don't you go get 'em yourself?"

"It's raining outside." Ryuk responded in the same glib, obvious manner as before.

Increasingly, Applejack was more amazed by the apparent laziness of this thing than anything else. He was a death god and he was scared of rain? The pony stared down the god, neither of their gazes unyielding in the unspoken staring contest. After a prolonged period, the pony relented with an annoyed sigh. "Fine. Big Mac, would ya'll mind—?"

"Nope!" The stallion shot back firmly before his sister could finish. His face was resolved, showing the legendary Apple family stubbornness that was a kind of trademark. Normally Applejack would have been proud, but she felt more annoyed, though understanding. It didn't take someone like Twilight to figure out why Big Mac refused out of hand. He didn't want to leave his two younger sisters alone with this monster.

"Look, Big Mac, I'm worried too. But right now, we is talkin' with 'im, not fightin'. 'N I mean no offense, brother, but talkin' ain't exactly your strong suit, now is it?" Applejack asked sarcastically, forcing her lips into an attempt at a cocky grin.

The gesture wasn't that convincing but her brother appreciated the effort. He matched her expression in kind, before his honest worry came back onto his face. "Ya sure, sista?"

"If talkin' fails, I'm sure there'll be plenty of screamin'. 'N if there is, ya'll can buck 'im inta next week."

A weak chuckle escaped Big Mac's typically tight lips. "Ya promise?"

"I was the Element of Honesty, remember. Now get. 'N try not to take too long."

The red-coated stallion nodded, and after one final threatening stare at the god of death, he left to enter the raging storm outside. He didn't want to waste time putting on a coat.

A second or two after the eldest Apple entered the fury of nature happening right outside, Applejack's big green eyes were drawn towards the bizarre book still in Apple Bloom's mouth. Ryuk had deflected every question so far but maybe he would talk about it as opposed to himself more openly? "While Big Mac's gettin' ya some more of our apples," Applejack said cautiously, "why don't ya pass the time 'n tell us just what this 'ere Death Note thingy is all 'bout?"

"Read the inside the cover," Ryuk offered, disinterestedly. "You seem to be able to read the language just fine."

At that, the youngest Apple sibling removed the black notebook from her mouth and placed it on the floor. Acting as if she were handling explosives, she delicately lifted the cover to expose its inside. The two mares of different ages then did as instructed and read the contents of the back cover. They both read the entirety of the page that Apple Bloom had only skimmed before.

'The human whose name is written in this note shall die.

'This note will not take effect unless the writer has the person's face in their mind when writing his/her name. Therefore, people sharing the same name will not be affected.

'If the cause of death is written within the next 40 seconds of writing the person's name, it will happen.

'If the cause of death is not specified, the person will simply die of a heart attack.

'After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds.'

Applejack hadn't noticed anything within the book until this moment, so it was only now she felt the intangible dread that her younger sister had experienced when just reading the first sentence.

The middle child of the Apple Family had encountered evil in various forms and individuals, but somehow these words written in fancy white letters felt more like distilled malice than any of the tyrants or fiends who had loudly proclaimed how monstrous they were and did actual harm to others. There was nothing boastful about these instructions. They were simply how to use this book. And yet somepony with the desire to use this accursed thing could do a lot of damage. Though she was far from stupid, Applejack wasn't a high concept thinker. But even she could easily grasp how anypony using this notebook could do more than any of the foes she had faced.

This book might be able to kill any being in any Realm...it could destroy the Society by itself.

She wished for many things right now, but near the top of the list was that Apple Bloom wasn't here. Someone so innocent shouldn't be around something so evil, both Ryuk and his notebook. But, she reluctantly had to acknowledge, there was no way to undo what had already happened.

Proof of this came from how after reading the words the Cutie Mark Crusader fled until she was behind her. Her young mind had already been exposed to this vile corruption, but the protective older sister instincts forged over the years in Applejack were grateful that Applebloom had enough sense to hide, to seek her out to do her job and ensure her safety to the best of her ability.

That drive, that indomitable urge to protect her kin, allowed Applejack to push through her personal revulsion. She knew that at first light she would need to rush to Twilight for help. But that wouldn't help her now. All she could do was keep her family safe and hope this thing left. Of the two options, she would have preferred the latter but she knew it wouldn't happen until Big Mac got back with more apples. And so far talking to Ryuk has kept the death god at ease. As much as she didn't want to learn more, the best way to keep her family safe was to keep talking.

"Is this all there is to it, Mr. Re-Uck?" asked Applejack with a slightly pinched voice.

The towering and drying off death god sighed in minor annoyance. "It's Ryuk," he clarified, before elaborating with, "And no. There are lots of other rules. But I'm not going to cramp up my wrist writing them all down. Anyone who wants to learn the other rules is free to do so through trial and error. That's what the last person who possessed my Death Note did, anyway."

"L—last? Ya mean somepony's gotten their hooves on this cockamamie thang 'fore!?"

"Hands, but yes." Ryuk corrected, before uttering a long, rumbling laugh, which seemed almost tinged by nostalgia. "Now there was a guy to watch. Name was Light Yagami. He had this funny idea to kill all the bad people in our Realm, and become the god of a new world. Killed a lot of people to make that happen. It didn't work, ultimately, but I ain't gonna complain. It was so much fun while it lasted. He made things so…interesting."

"Interestin'…he killed lotta folks, and ya call that interestin'!?" Applejack asked loudly, deeply offended and horrified as Apple Bloom hid further behind her shaken big sister. "What's da matter with you? Why did ya'll give it to a feller like that!?"

"I didn't give it to him," Ryuk casually rebuked with a theatrical roll of his huge glassy eyes. "I just dropped it one day and he just so happened to be the first person who picked it up. That's all there is to it. It was nothing more than an accident."

Applejack realized something that didn't match up with that idea. "Why did ya'll drop it in the first place? 'N why write down with instructions and everythan'?" she asked.

"You're asking me why?" Ryuk's grin grew even wider. "I did it because I was bored."

The older mare blinked a few times, doubting what she just heard. "B-bored?" Applejack asked.

"The truth," Ryuk said, "is us Shinigami ain't got much to do these days. Most of the time we are either taking naps or gambling. If you take the time to write down any names in your Death Note, the others just laugh at you and think you are working too hard. Even if you wrote down the name of another Shinigami it would be pointless because they can't die. And since we live in the Shinigami realm, it gives us no amusement to kill those in the human world either. So I figured I'd have more fun if I came down there myself after dropping my Death Note. And I was right. Those seven years were some of the best I've ever seen."

After processing what she had just heard, it was Apple Bloom who asked the next question, though she kept most of her hidden behind her older sister. "Why do ya write other's names down at all? 'N why is that called workin'? Writin' ain't that hard." Her confusion was sincere.

To this, the Shinigami again chuckled in that awful laugh of his. "We look down into the human world of our Realm below us and see the lives of all things go by. If we write down the name of a human being in a Death Note, their life ends and their remaining lifespan is added to ours. So long as we don't get too lazy, we can extend our lives indefinitely and live... forever."

"That's... horrible..." Apple Bloom shuddered. Being still in her early education, she didn't have the vocabulary required to convey her revulsion. "Why do thangs like you fellers even exist!?"

Ryuk shrugged. "I never asked. Why does your species exist? Why does any? We just are."

"So...ya writin' down names is kinda like eatin'? It's something ya gotta do to keep on livin'?"

"Yeah. I guess you could look at it like that."

As horrible as that concept was, the filly absentmindedly nodded her head in reluctant understanding. She didn't like it, but when viewed like that this terrible thing made more sense. Her grasp of any conceptions more complicated than farmwork or basic education was rudimentary but she did understand that many Realm had things that came after someone died. With the optimism of a child, she sought a silver lining amongst thunderheads as she asked, "What happens to those fellers who you...uh...who's names ya write down? Where do they go?"

"Don't know," Ryuk answered with what was seemingly his trademark disinterested glibness. "Never mattered to me."

"Ya'll 'ave no idear!?"

"Nope. Other Shinigami sometimes wonder but I've never really cared."

"Well...what do they say? What do they think?"

"Some say they go to Heaven or Hell, unless they use a Death Note. Others say they go to Mu."

"Moo?" the filly asked, obviously perplexed. A strained chuckle escaped her maw at making the sound that cows sometimes made. She always thought it was a funny sound. "What's that?"

"Nothingness."

The minuscule amount of levity that had managed to crop up in the youngster was swiftly beheaded at that. She wasn't completely sure why that idea scared her so but it chilled her blood. "Like, nothin'...as in, nothin'-nothin'?" she asked, unsure how to phrase her existential dread.

Ryuk nodded. "They think they just stop existing as if they had never been born. I don't care either way but if you want my opinion, I think Mu's more likely. Makes more sense to me."

The filly's face was a painting of terror, but not the more visceral kind as that of staring at the true-blue god of death. Instead, it was a more abstract kind of fear, the kind of gaze that looked unnatural on a creature with as few years under her belt as the youngest Apple sibling. It was the idea of nothingness that got to her. As the description implied, she couldn't even grasp what it was. It couldn't be coldness or pain or fear or sorrow or black void. Those were all things. They were things one could imagine in one way or another. But nothingness had to be their opposite. The idea of ponies and other things that had once been many things being turned into that unsettled in her in a way she would have been utterly incapable of expressing to anypony. Her mind was like a lake that had a whale dropped into it. Everything else there was pushed away. The litany of questions she had were being pressed to the sides of her mind by this whale.

Any further questions were preemptively ended when the kitchen door opened with bombstatic fanfare. In accordance with the omni-versial laws of dramatics, a lightning bolt flashed just then, offering blinding backlighting for a towering crimson furred stallion drenched to the bone. The good-natured smile normally present on Big Mac was nowhere to be seen and it was a matter of debate if this was more connected to the thunderstorm he had just weathered or if he was still reasonably against leaving his younger sisters alone in a room with a literal god of death. Evidence pointed more towards the latter as his countenance softened at seeing his family okay. After savoring the sight of his sisters for a moment, he strood his way into the kitchen with a cart full of freshly bucked apples washed by the furious downpour being pulled by him. He didn't stop until the apple cart was right in front of the standing Shinigami, at which point he unconnected it and made his way over to Applejack's side, sure to be in front of Apple Bloom.

The haunting humanoid simply stood there for a few moments, eyeing the apples disbelievingly. His tall and gaunt body seemed ramrod stiff as minuscule shakes erupted across its entire frame. That face which always seemed to have a lidless stare and a disturbingly smiling mouth was unchanged. His glassy yellow eyes seemed to shine with a new inner light. He was unmoving. Then, with no warning, Ryuk uttered a raspy cheer of pure bliss as he greedily shoved as many apples in his mouth as he could. The air was overburdened with the loud crunching of eaten apples. Once again, the plight of the ponies had been completely ignored by this death god.

He hadn't even thanked Big Mac for going into the pouring rain to get him this treasure trove.

For some reason, this act of disrespect proved to be the straw that broke the pony's back.

"Listen 'ere, ya big varmint with your ratty wings 'n your book that kills fellers," Applejack began, summoning forth as much of her ability to instill intimidation as she could at the death god, "I don't care how much ya like our apples, you're gonna leave and take that book with ya!"

"That's not up to me anymore," Ryuk said, completely unfazed, after chomping down on seven apples all at the same time. "I am no longer that Death Note's owner."

This brought up Applejack short. There was a pregnant pause. "Say what now?" she asked.

"The notebook apparently becomes part of whatever Realm it lands in the moment it touches the earth, same as in mine. And it seems the first sentient being to touch it becomes its owner. In other words, that notebook is now yours," he pointed a finger at Apple Bloom, "tiny girl horse."

"Th—this is mine?" Apple Bloom asked, not believing it, even with the proof, Ryuk, staring her in the face. This monstrous thing, which killed so many, now was hers?

The Shinigami seemed to sense the child's trepidation. "If you don't want it," he added, "you can give it back to me, but then I'd have no choice but to erase your memories of the notebook. The same goes for all of you."

"That—that's all? Ya won't hurt us or nothin'?" Applebloom asked through some shivers. She was quite eager to be rid of this horrible thing and it's even more horrible keeper.

"Uh?" Ryuk grunted, confused. "Why would I? You mortals think the oddest things."

The gears in the filly's head were turning, as she realized a few possibilities that the Shinigami either was omitting or didn't even consider. "If I gave ya back this 'ere book,'' Apple Bloom began, working up the courage for what she had in mind, "what'll 'appen to it and ya?"

"Then I'll eat my fill of these wonderful apples and be on my way to who knows where else after it stops raining. I won't be your problem, if that's what you mean. You'll never see me again unless I get hungry for more of these apples again. And even then you won't actually see me."

"But somepony else will?" the filly asked slowly, deliberately, her face scrunching up as if hashing out ideas that were just beyond her years. "'N then, they'll…uh, get this book?"

"Possibly. I don't know. And I don't really care."

Having nothing more to say on the matter, Ryuk turned back towards the cart and ate many more apples. The ambiance of the storm outside was accompanied by the loud crunching of apples. With these conflicting sounds as a kind of background score, Apple Bloom pondered all of this. Many thoughts bobbed and floated within a skull so small and too young for such subject matter.

Her first instinct, the one that came so naturally, was to simply tell Ryuk to leave and never come back!

No one should have something like this book, something that could do so much evil so casually. There wasn't a moment where she doubted everything she had heard was completely true. This book would kill anypony whose name was written in it. But even believing that...she wanted to try it. She wanted to see it, to know for sure. It wasn't any desire for death, but rather the mere curiosity of a child with something new and unlike anything encountered before. That notion disgusted her but it was there. Part of her wanted to try it out. Even if only just once...just once.

Better to just get rid of the book and remove the possibility of this gruesome temptation. After all, as horrible as this creature and his book was, it appeared to have no ill will towards her and her family. Once it ate these apples and once the storm outside was done, he would leave to never return. If nothing else, Apple Bloom was convinced that the death god was telling the truth about how he wouldn't bother her family after she released possession of this Death Note.

As much as she wanted to be rid of these evil things, a rogue thought had revealed itself to her. A rogue thought that then sprouted others from it, like a seed growing into a tree full of branches. The storm outside raged as who knew how many apples vanished into the blueberry colored maw that laughed so evilly when remembering the deaths of others. Time lost all meaning as Apple Bloom pondered so much. Without anything to signify it, with no obvious outside occurrence to mark it, she reached a decision. A decision she knew would change her life, a decision she truthfully would rather be able to avoid...all the while knowing that she couldn't.

"No…" the filly said softly, barely more than a whisper. "I won't be givin' ya this book back."

"Apple Bloom!" Applejack shouted. "Why would ya wanna keep this cockamamie thang!?"

"It's not that surprising really," Ryuk offered. "There seems to be something about the Death Note that makes those who possess it want to use it, at least once. Their reactions are always...so interesting." That awful laugh was uttered yet again.

"N-no…" the Cutie Mark Crusader said, her voice somehow even harder to hear than before. "I-I ain't gonna-gonna do that…"

Despite the low volume of her words, it seemed that the shinigami had heard her just fine, as was proven by a grunt of confusion that cut through the otherwise silent atmosphere. "Uh?" Ryuk bellowed. "What do ya mean?"

"W-well...ya'll don't really seem to care what 'appens to this 'ere...uh, Death Note thingy," Apple Bloom began. "Ya'll wouldn't care if some other pony got their hooves on this ev-evil book. You wouldn't stop 'em. You'd just sit there 'n let it 'appen without a care in the world. 'N, well, they might-might...kill others with it. 'N I don't like that idear!"

With that, the filly stomped one hoof on the floor in what was meant to be a gesture of defiance. It was as much an attempt to strengthen her own nerves as an effort to convince the others present that she wasn't making the single most bone-headed decision of her short life.

"Ya can't leave without me givin' ya this book back, but I ain't gonna do that, ya hear!?" she yelled. "See, if I keep this book 'ere with me on this 'ere farm of ours...then you ain't gonna be able to give it to somepony else who might wanna use it! This thang is evil! No two ways about it! N' as long as I'm 'ere with it, you can't use it to 'urt anypony else, ya oversized chicken!"

The storm continued as it always had, without any interest in the drama occurring in the kitchen. The rain and thunder were the only sounds in the air. The churching of apples had ceased. Breathes were held captive within their throats. Anything could happen in this abyssal void.

Apple Bloom hadn't truthfully known what the god of death would do after she had said her piece. Her youthful imagination conjured up vividly tangible scenarios of Ryuk shouting his head off in rage, lunging towards her on those mangy wings and putting his claws around her tiny throat, or even just leaving in a huff despite the thunderstorm still roaring in the night.

Rather than any of that, Ryuk said nothing as he reached for the second Death Note, the one on a book-shaped pouch of his belt. Acting with surprising speed, he opened the book with a single hand while his other limb pulled out a quill with a handle covered in many overlapping silver skulls. The Shinigami's eyes never left the trio of ponies as the quill approached the notebook. His face never betrayed any change as Applejack's countenance showed looks of pure horror.

The older sister knew exactly what Ryuk was planning.

He was going to write her little sister's name in his Death Note! He was going to kill her!

Big Mac, who had been outside for the lion's share of their earlier conversation, didn't know what was happening but judging by the look in Applejack's eyes, he knew not to ask any questions. Whatever was going on, it was bad and he figured out it was targeting Apple Bloom.

Hooves slammed against the kitchen floor as the duo charged the god of death with the righteous fury full of the absolute hatred that could only come from the deepest and purest kind of love. Applejack darted away from the towering creature to reach a rope curled up on the side wall while the bigger stallion barreled forward like a missile of solid muscle, his eyes full of wrath.

The tip of the quill, so much like a small sword, was dragged across the dark magical parchment. The letter A was formed.

The Element of Honesty's teeth plunged into the coarse twine of the rope and before it was fully extended she had already shaped it into a perfect lasso that spun around zealously in the air.

Otherworldly ink stained the pages made from a mineral unknown to any mortal in any Realm in the shape of APPL as it continued its journey across the page. Death would come in six letters.

The lasso was hurled forward with more gusto than the experienced rope thrower had ever thrown it before. It cut through the air tense for reasons other than the storm raging outside.

The first of two O was written. The distance to life's end was cut in half within a second.

Just as the rope was thrown, the lone stallion present was within striking distance of the thing that was threatening his littlest sister. Ryuk would get no mercy. Big Mac wouldn't hold back. Once the god of death was ensnared in the rope, he would tackle him to the ground as hard as he could, and probably buck him in the face a few dozen times until he stopped seeing pure red.

The rope's loop reached the Shinigami's torso and with a practiced pull it was tightened around his limbs. The elder sister looked forward to the look of shock as the foul human-like thing discovered he couldn't finish writing Apple Bloom's name before Big Mac slammed him down.

But, to her horror, it never came.

The rope passed through Ryuk's body as if he had been made of mist. His body even rippled like the surface of a lake after a stone had been skidded across. Any thoughts of this being an error in her accuracy were dispelled as Big McIntosh had his heroic lunge forward undercut by him phasing through their foe and crashing into a collection of cooking pans.

"Sorry guys," Ryuk said indifferently as he finished writing and took the quill off the page. "I'm a Shinigami so I'm afraid your efforts aren't going to cut it." He shut the second Death Note.

The closing of that book sounded more like thunder to those ponies in the kitchen than any of the louder peals roaring outside. At that instant, a nearby clock rang, revealing it was a new hour.

Had he the inclination, Ryuk could have explained to Applejack and Big Mac how they weren't able to touch him because he knew they were there whereas Apple Bloom had been able to do so due to catching him by surprise. Or how even if they had been able to touch him, they wouldn't be able to kill him no matter what they tried. But he didn't. Instead he merely watched passively. This wasn't the first child who's name he had written in his Death Note, after all. The number of years the death of a child gave to a Shiminagi was always much more than any adult would.

Being an Element of Harmony, Applejack was fairly used to major struggles and serious danger. She had faced powerful forces like a corrupted alicorn, a spirit of chaos, an army of shapeshifters, and an eons-old fiend who had enough magical power to rival all the princesses. She had stayed strong during life-changing ordeals like the passing of her parents. And occasional lapse aside, she had been able to be a bedrock for both her family and her friends.

But not once in her life had she felt as powerless as she did when that awful book was shut. The sound ringing in her ears sounded like a solemn bell, the death knell for Apple Bloom's funeral.

For a few precious seconds, the elder sister was parayzled, trapped between so many powerful emotions that had her body feel at once like it was stuffed with concrete and yet full of energy. Part of her wanted to stomp and shout with the zenith of vulgarity to which she was capable. Part of her wanted to thrash impotently against the foul beast that had taken her little sister away.

But then she saw out the corner of her eye the look on the Cutie Mark Crusader's face. It was an absolute despair that had no right being on a face so young, a face that conveyed she knew exactly what was going to befall her. That she had less than a minute left to live.

When Applejack next understood what was happening, her little sister was being held so tightly and she was crying her eyes out, her tears staining the adorable filly's crimson mane. Her mouth had been moving on its own and it was trying to be as reassuring as it could despite the futility. Through tear-smeared eyes, the middle Apple Sibling saw that the clock's second hand was five seconds from reaching the forty second marker, from reaching the time that Applebloom died.

Her embrace grew even tighter as the filly uttered the most tragic wail anypony ever heard.

Time dragged on so cruelly as the seconds fled into the same void that might claim her sister.

Nothing else mattered to Applejack but holding onto Apple Bloom for as long as she could. She wouldn't end her embrace, even as she knew there would be a moment too horrible to contemplate. There would come a moment where she would feel her sister take her last breath. Each new rising and falling of the filly's body against hers might be the last contact they would ever share. Any second now, she would wait for the familiar contact only to never feel it again.

She waited for that moment. She waited, and waited, and waited, and waited…

But, to her ever mounting confusion, it never came.

Apple Bloom's breathing was still felt against her body. The rhythm was never broken.

Eventually, simple confusion overpowered her primal worry enough to give Applejack enough frame of mind to gaze at the clock and notice that a few minutes had passed in the new hour.

The surging tide of emotion dulled the logical implications of what this new data revealed, at least until the filly seemed to catch on to the same thing and cheered the loudest cheer she ever did. Tears now stained Applejack's orange fur, but they were tears of unbridled jubilation. Similar tears again fell upon Apple Bloom as the truth was finally grasped by the older sister.

Apple Bloom was going to live!

"Uh," a creepy whispering voice grunted to itself noncommittally. That brought the sisters' attention back towards Ryuk. "Guess the Death Note doesn't work on horses." He shrugged. "Seems the rules are more literal than I would have assumed. Only affecting humans alone."

The two mares blinked uncomprehendingly at the otherworldly horror.

"I didn't think that would work but there was no harm in trying anyway, right?" Ryuk added.

They stared for a long moment, grasping how none of that had even fazed the god of death. How the terror and triumph had been unable to touch this being who would kill an innocent little girl.

Again, Applejack lost control of herself. Still holding onto Apple Bloom so tightly, she unleashed upon the Shiminagi the most hate-filled outpouring of profanities that had ever been uttered in Equestria. Not even the presence of her little sister could lessen the colorful language she used. After the first few words from her older sister, the child covered her ears as best as she could. That didn't allow her to block out of the words, due to how loudly Applejack was yelling. Most of the words the filly didn't know but she could just tell they were things a pony shouldn't ever say. Apple Bloom got a more thorough real-word lesson on the finer points of verbal communication than she had in all of her years in the classroom, though she quickly understood that there was basically no situation where she could repeat even a tenth of what she was hearing.

Despite its volcanic intensity, eventually the ire within the former Element of Honesty faded. As the orange fur-covered mare panted she heard some clutter as pots and pans were scattered about. In all the commotion, Applejack now realized with some guilt, she had forgotten about Big Mac. Her older brother shook off a pan on his back and a pot that had landed on his head before walking over towards his sisters. If he had any grudge against his sibling, he didn't show it. And he was usually as transparent as cellophane.

"Everythin' okay?" the scarlet stallion asked calmly while looking at Apple Bloom.

"Ya...ya…" the filly said shakily, "I-I think it is…"

"It most certainly isn't!" Applejack snapped, her voice iron-clad in its vigorous conviction. "Not as long as she's got that awful thang with her!" She turned to her younger sister and glared. "Apple Bloom, I'm orderin' ya to get rid of this evil thingy right now!" She stomped a hoof.

Despite all the terror of the book and the death god it belonged to, and all the love she had for her older sister, that stomp caused something to flare in the filly's chest. Apple Bloom was feeling the timeless desire of defiance. The simple, childish drive to defy authority added fuel to the righteous flame of a higher maturity already burning within her core.

"Don't ya get it, Applejack!?" Apple Bloom yelled. "If I don't keep this, some other pony might get it! Do ya wanna take the chance that the next pony who gets it won't try to use it!?"

Applejack bristled at that. "Even if that's true, that ain't your problem," she said, soft but sharp. "You're just a filly! A little kid! Ya ain't the pony that should gotta deal with this kinda thang!"

"That don't matter no more! The Death Note is mine now! Not yours, not Big Mac's...mine! I gotta do what I need to with things bein' the way they are, not the way they should be!"

An indeterminable number of exchanges revolving around these points with different words and levels of intensity backing them were slung between the Apple sisters as if they were thermonuclear warheads. The uproar managed to go unabated and surpassed the storm's volume. But eventually, like all outbursts of emotion, it died down, as those arguing ran out of steam. For all their vigor, they were still at an impasse.

"Ya know," Big Mac butted in. Amidst all the shouting, he kept his voice its composed default. "We don't gotta make every choice tonight."

Applejack regarded the towering stallion for a moment. "Whata mean by that?" she asked.

"This whole thing is clearly some kinda magic," the oldest Apple sibling explained calmly. "'N we don't know much of anythin' 'bout magic. But we know some fellas who do know about it. Like Miss-er, Princess Twilight Sparkle, for one thang. We already know that this magic can't hurt any ponies. So, I think we should all go back to bed and go ask her about it the first chance we get tomorrow morning. Can ya at least agree to wait and see what Princess Twilight says?"

The middle Apple considered this. She considered this for far longer than she wanted to. As much as she hated to admit it, Big Mac's words made sense. As much as she hated Apple Bloom's idea on sheer principle, she had to concede that she didn't know squat about magic. Outside of getting her bull-headed little sister to give up the Death Note, her only real hope was to bank on the magically talented friend of hers to whip up some hocus-pocus to deal with Ryuk. Though it pained her to admit it to herself, Applejack knew that she couldn't stop the shinigami. Her failed efforts earlier offered enough proof to overwhelm even her legendary stubbornness.

Applejack would have relented, bitterly admittedly, but nevertheless she would have relented...if it wasn't for one last point. "How do we know he won't just pick her up with those big claws of his 'n break her neck while she's sleepin'!?" She shouted, further venting her displeasure at this insanity from her own flesh and blood.

The filly seemed to consider this, suggesting she either hadn't thought of that possibility or she had but was trying to figure out the right words in order to convey her musings effectively. In her current state, despite her high opinion of her kin, Applejack's opinion leaned towards the former.

"Nah," Apple Bloom said eventually. "I don't think he will."

"Why not!?"

"That would be too much work, I reckon."

Apple Bloom's answer had come quick, quick and easy. That threw the other Apples for a loop.

The older siblings both blinked several times, looked at each other, and then blinked a few more times. "Say what now?" Applejack asked, speaking for both herself and Big Mac.

The filly noted how her older sister's voice had lost its mighty zeal. Her conviction seemed to have mollified the crippling worry that was readily apparent. A brief twitch here or there showed it was still there but it was being suppressed for the time being. Applejack was sincerely listening rather than just waiting to rebuke whatever the Cutie Mark Crusader said next. That made her feel better, as if she gained a victory before even having to explain herself. Clearing her throat, in an effort to seem more like an insightful grown-up, Apple Bloom shared her thoughts.

"This feller thinks writin' is a lotta work, but I do writin' in school, 'n it ain't that hard once ya learn how to spell things right. If that's what he thinks of as hard work, then he ain't' gonna wanna do anything like hurtin' somepony. He doesn't care enough about anythin' to do that".

Applejack stared at her younger sibling in stunned silence. At this moment, she didn't seem like an overly eager child who had blindly jumped into any harebrained scheme to determine her Cutie Mark. Instead, the filly seemed like somepony smarter than her despite her years of life experience and various magical adventures with her friends. She seemed like a true Apple.

The feeling of awe was washed away as she heard that horrible cackling chuckle once again. Applejack turned her gaze back to its source, to see that indeed Ryuk was laughing up a storm.

"The tiny girl horse has got my number, all right!" The shinigami said with something like prideful approval. "She isn't worth the effort to kill with my own hands. If anything, I find this turn of events to be...interesting." All of the Apples winced at the disturbingly eager and hopeful way he said that particular word. "I've never heard of anyone so opposed to using a Death Note. Maybe that will change? Maybe it won't? Either way, I'm sure I'll find something to keep my boredom at bay. Besides, even if she never uses it and things are dull here, I'll just wait her out. I've got enough years saved up to where I can just wait for her to die. I've been bored before. Not much point to rush it. Especially when I'll be around these wonderful apples for that time."

Ryuk made good on his word by returning his attention to what really mattered, and soon enough the familiar crushing sound of apples being chewed or swallowed whole filled the tense kitchen. As he did so, none of the Apples said a word. So much had happened in so little time. They were all exhausted, eager to return to their beds while being bitterly aware that they wouldn't sleep long. There was an unspoken agreement they would see Twilight first thing tomorrow morning.

After a quick shared family hug, the trio of ponies started to leave the kitchen. None of their heads were empty of unwanted thoughts, but it was the Death Note's newest owner who had the most vivid imaginings bubbling in her tiny mind like a cauldron of witch's brew. Apple Bloom wondered what chain he had wrapped around herself. What would the Death Note's presence do to her? Would she be tempted to try it out for some reason she couldn't currently fathom? Would she ever take another's life? Would her friends and family eventually shun her if she kept it for long enough? Would there be a day where Ryuk wasn't hovering unseen by the lucky majority?

With that last thought, the yellow furred filly turned back towards Ryuk and saw him still going to town on the cart brought before him. He hadn't stopped since he conveyed his new intentions.

Amongst all the grand and moral terrors that were squirming within her very core, Apple Bloom found some solace in an unlikely place, in a more mundane but nevertheless concerning fear.

The Cutie Mark Crusader feared that the shinigami would eat every apple in Sweet Apple Acres.

And that was this one-shot! As always, I hope you liked it!

This was a random idea that just came to be one day, about how if the omniverse was a thing that something like Ryuk would visit My Little Pony to get those delicious apples at Sweet Apple Acres, and from there, I thought about what if one of the ponies accidently came to possess a Death Note. And from there, I thought it would be the most interesting if the pony to obtain this unholy object was a child, and given the setting, Apple Bloom was the obvious choice. So now Apple Bloom holds the power of life and death in her hooves!

That's the kind of crazy concept that only something like Ultima can provide! Lol

This one-shot was something of a fun challenge for two reasons. The more obvious was trying to make two things as diametrically opposed in terms of tone and presentation as My Little Pony and Death Note feel like they could exist in the same space. The other challenge was that among the Mane Six, Applejack and by extension her family are my least favorites. I don't hate them or anything but I'm largely indifferent to them most of the time, enjoying them whenever they appear but not thinking about them much beyond that.

On that note, please let me know how you think I handled writing the Apple Family, okay? Also, I should note, I haven't seen much of MLP since season 5 so if anything I say or suggest runs counter to what was revealed in later seasons, please let me know.

Even though the answer is obvious to you if you are familiar with Death Note, what did you think of the initial mystery of the missing apples? Do you think the ponies reacted believably to that? Please share how you thought that was handled.

The idea of Apple Bloom just walking into Ryuk when he's invisible and accidentally touching the Death Note as a result was the key image that inspired this story. That's perfectly in keeping with the random chance that's a huge part of Death Note.

What do you think of Apple Bloom's first reactions to both the Death Note and Ryuk?

The scene of Apple Bloom screaming, summoning her family, and then having Applejack and Big Mac react in terror to Ryuk is very similar to a scene in Death Note. If you've seen Death Note, you know what scene I'm talking about. The one that occurs on a highway.

I didn't address this directly in the story but don't worry, Granny is still around. She's just asleep. Once you get to her age, you can sleep through pretty much anything. Lol

One of the fun things to unpack is how the different Realms react to the Great Epiphany. Honestly, Equestria is one of the Realms that reacted the best! Lol. Outside of the twelve Shield Realms, it was the Realm of talking magical friendship ponies that benefited the most. Their positive outlook combined with their surprising magical power makes them a very useful ally. At the moment, the only Realms other than the dozen Shield ones that got more are those for both Marvel Comics and DC Comics. You'll learn why eventually. ;)

I hope you liked the little shout-out to the human obsessed unicorn Lyra. lol

What are your thoughts on how Ryuk was described?

I had a blast writing out the times where Applejack says Ryuk's name or species wrong. Lol

One of things I hoped to do with this story was put Ryuk's lazy and couch potato nature on full display. He is an immortal god-like being who has mastery over the forces of life and death...but he wants to do nothing but eat apples and avoid being caught in the rain. Lol. Aside from the obvious fun of this idea, I also wanted to show how the ponies would react to a figure who while undeniable evil wasn't interested in harming them or anyone else really. What are your thoughts on how those things were handled?

There is a lot of stiff competition but the scene between Applejack and Big Mac might be my favorite moment of this story. What are your thoughts on it?

The more I thought about, the more I realized that the Death Note is actually even stronger in the omniverse than it would be otherwise! Think about it, all you need is a name and a face and you can kill someone. And since the Great Epiphany, most secrets have gone the way of the dinosaurs, including secret identities. And the fact that the Shinigami can kill those on Earth from their realm shows that being in a different dimension isn't going to help save you from that. One Death Note in the hands of an Organization member could destroy the whole Society! Some thought has been given to the limitations of the Death Note in Ultima and these will be explored in later stories but for now let's just say the Society is very happy this ended up in Equestria, one of the Realms that is the most closely linked the the Society and debatable one of the best defended aside from the Shield Realms, of course. Please share if you have any speculations about how the Death Note would work in Ultima.

Do you think Ryuk's musings on Light fit his character?

One element that came up fairly late in the writing process was Apple Bloom piecing together Ryuk's nature and the reveal of what Mu is. That seemed like such a natural lead-in with how a child would easily think the name Mu sounded funny until she learned what it actually is. This is also addressing a contradiction in the lore of Death Note. After all, in the first episode of Death Note Ryuk says to Light that anyone who uses a Death Note can't go to Heaven or Hell (implying they exist) but the rules of the Death Note say that there are no afterlives of this type. So, which do we believe? Personally, I think Mu is more likely given the tone of Death Note. But either way, the laziness of the Shinigami was the PERFECT way to address this issue in-universe! Lol

As I'm sure you can guess, the recurring story question of Apple Bloom possessing the Death Note is simple: will she ever use it? We already have an answer of course...but we're not telling! Lol ;) This is something that Death Note addresses several times, that there is something about the Death Note that makes those who possess it want to use it at least once. We have seen that you can refuse the temptation...but that doesn't mean it's a certainty. Please share your thoughts about if Apple Bloom will ever use the Death Note.

I hope you liked Apple Bloom stepping up to the plate and not being willing to risk the Death Note falling into the hands of a person or pony who might use it. Consider she's just a child. And she's showing more moral gumbation than many adults!

I think the sequence of Ryuk writing Apple Bloom's name in his Death Note might be my favorite. It was my attempt to recreate the overly dramatic way the show Death Note depicts everything, from writing in a notebook to eating potato chips. I hope it was properly tense. And this also allowed me to show one of those limitations of the Death Note that I mentioned earlier. The Death Note only kills humans. Not ponies, not aliens, not purely supernatural beings. Only humans. Don't get us wrong, just with that limitation alone it could do major damage! Also, I was originally going to just have Ryuk say that the Death Note wouldn't work on ponies but that didn't feel right. He would have checked that. He's too lazy to do that. Lol. And this allowed me to show and not tell. Win-win.

I must here confess the part that I question the most...Applejack cursing up a storm. I went back and forth on if this was in-character for her to do. I almost didn't include it. In most situations I would say 'hell no!' But here, after her little sister was targeted by an evil being who is truly indifferent to Life itself? I'm unsure. This might be one of the few contexts where this behavior would make sense. But that being said I completely understand any arguments against that idea. Please share with me your thoughts on this decision. Do you think this is in-character for Applejack or not?

Though he isn't featured nearly as much as his younger sisters, can we all just take a moment and appreciate that Big Mac is the voice of reason that allows his sisters to not argue until the sun comes up. Lol. Despite how little play he gets, he was fun to write.

What are your thoughts on Apple Bloom accurately predicting Ryuk's nature by being so lazy he won't try to hurt anypony if he can't write down their names in the Death Note?

So, that concludes this one-shot! Please let me know if you are interested in more stories that show Ryuk hanging around Sweet Apple Acres and Apple Bloom being tempted by the Death Note. If you have any story ideas, no matter how small, please feel free to share them.

Until the next Ultima story (which will hopefully be uploaded within the next few weeks), please read, review, favor, and spread the word!