Bullet Storm

Chapters

C1: The Second Coming
C1: Grace Period
C1: Prima Facie
C1: Lay Bare
C2: Tipping The Scales
C2: Balance Of Probabilities
C3: Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind
C3: Hidden In Plain Sight
C3: Nothing To Hide
C4: Truth And Consequences
C4: Asylum
C4: Occam's Razor
C5: Carpe Diem
C5: Feeling Good
C5: Burden Of Proof
C6: Out Of Time
C6: Necropolis
C6: Transcendence
Epilogue: Broken Promise
See As I See...
...Save As I Save
The Plan
Prologue: New Game
C2: Live And Learn

C1: The Second Coming

Day 1, 10:07

Pinkie Pie’s let out a pained moan. The first thing she felt upon regaining consciousness was a dull throbbing in her temple. Eyes still clenched shut; she reached up with a heavy hoof and gingerly touched her forehead. The wound was small, hardly substantial. It was already clotted, and from there she followed the trail of dried flaking blood that ran down to just over her left eye. It wasn’t anything to worry about, but still, how had it happened?

Forgetting the pain which was now more prevalent in her head than around the wound, she struggled to remember what had happened.

She had been at the gala; she had been talking to… Fluttershy? No, she definitely remembered leaving Fluttershy, well, running away from her. After that she returned to the entrance hall, or somewhere nearby it. She remembered seeing Celestia and… Fleur. She had interacted with somepony, but it wasn’t them, it was… Derpy. She had a letter for Pinkie, a letter that said…

Pinkie’s eyes snapped open and she leapt to her hooves, only to scream out as a sharp pain shot up her left foreleg, and she collapsed back to the cold masonry beneath her. Breathing heavily, Pinkie twisted herself around to see what was wrong with her leg. When her eyes fell over what was causing her discomfort, they widened in horror.

A familiar metal hoof cuff was clamped around her fetlock, bolted into her very leg, more blood congealed around the screws. Turning it around Pinkie saw the ominous black screen, all the while muttering pathetic denials to herself.

No! This can’t be happening again! It’s over! It can’t…

Pinkie stared at her hoof for what felt like forever, feeling something growing inside of her, something she couldn’t quite identify. Anger? Despair? It didn’t feel… negative.

As her breathing began to regulate, and her mind cleared she was able to focus. Unfolding her legs from beneath her, she fought once more to get to her hooves, this time taking it slowly. Despite the pain in her leg where the hoof computer had been forcibly augmented to her, she was able to stand on all four legs and get her first bearings of her surroundings, as well as her own appearance. She was still wearing her red gala dress, along with the pendant and link belt. Besides a little dust it looked as good as new, which she wasn’t going to complain about. Reaching up she found her mane was still lying flat.

Looking around she saw she was in a courtyard of some sort, she would have called it cosy but that might have made it feel warm. On the contrary, the space she found herself in was confined, dark and overbearing, like the walls were watching her and steadily moving in when she wasn’t looking. Looking up past the tall, dark brick walls, Pinkie gazed into a vast sea of inky blackness. The sky was utterly devoid of light, no sun, no moon, no stars, only darkness.

Through the infinite blackness she could vaguely make out the tall twisted shapes of buildings in the distance. Turning her attention back to ground level, Pinkie examined the courtyard itself. A plain, stone well sat in dead centre, edging closer, Pinkie peered in but saw nothing but more impenetrable blackness. Beyond a couple iron drainage grates, the courtyard was bare and featureless.

Satisfied there was nothing of further interest for her here, she turned her attention to the wrought iron gate set into one of the walls. Walking over, Pinkie found it lying ajar. Pulling it open she found a long, plain key in the other side.

Odd, why would this just be left here? I could understand locking me in, but what would be the point of leaving me here with the key?

Curiously, Pinkie pulled the key out. She had nothing to carry it in, so she settled for tucking it down her dress, the tightness of which made doing so slightly uncomfortable, but she ignored it and continued out through the gate. She now stood in a narrow alleyway, this too was comprised a dark stone walls, giving Pinkie a vaguely gothic vibe from the place. This certainly didn’t feel like Canterlot anymore, which raised the question, where was she?

As she crept down the alley way, both to avoid putting too much weight on her injured hoof and to remain wary of anyone watching her, she thought back once more, trying to remember what happened after Derpy had delivered the accursed letter.

It had been chaotic, no doubt. A lot of ponies running and screaming, and yet amidst the panic, Pinkie could not have for the life of her, known what was actually happening. What she did know however, is what happened to her head. It had been one of the dull waiters, who had chosen that moment to spring into what Pinkie could only describe as ‘fervent’ action. The stallion seemed zoned out, but not like before when he looked like a zombie, this time he looked like a man with a mission, although that mission probably didn’t involve running head first into Pinkie, unicorn horn and all.

That was all she remembered, blinding pain followed swiftly by collapsing and loss of consciousness around the horde of screaming guests. Certainly not the most dramatic or indeed refined ways of getting knocked out, although beggars can’t be choosers, if they could, Pinkie would have chosen not to be knocked out at all.

Reaching the end of the alleyway without incident, Pinkie found herself at a fine wooden door with yet more black iron fixtures. This one had a lock, but when Pinkie pushed lightly against it, it opened without a struggle. Stepping through, closing the door gently behind her, she found herself in… another courtyard. Pinkie would have groaned if not for the fact that this one seemed to be considerably less bare than the previous two areas.

This new courtyard was pressed between two slightly taller buildings, Pinkie could even see windows in them overlooking where she stood. The courtyard itself was filled with crates, loose planks and barrels. It was messy, and yet Pinkie got the feeling that it was all intentional, that every box was purposely placed all as part of some odd aesthetic. Carrying on forward, Pinkie hobbled across to a narrow stone archway opposite of where she came out.

Pressing herself flat against the wall, Pinkie glanced around the archway, ready to snap her head back at a moment’s notice, however there was no need to. Pinkie stepped out, now standing in a cobblestone street, lined with various squat stone buildings with wooden buttresses, iron brackets and slate roofs. Looking to her right, Pinkie saw a small, tightly packed town traveling down a slight gradient. Beyond this lay only blackness.

Turning to her left, Pinkie’s jaw dropped open. A little further up the street stood a tall, imposing iron gate, beyond which stood the tall structure she could make out from the place she woke up. It was a castle, tall, twisted spires and warped towers jutted out in random directions, giving the whole thing a bizarre, yet frightening quality.

Looking around once more, Pinkie confirmed the street she was in was deserted, from the looks of it the whole town could have been. Turning back to the castle, she began marching forward, only to be swiftly distracted by a light hovering around her hoof.

Coming to another dead halt, she looked down at her hoof computer which had come to life at some point. Lifting it up she examined the screen, on it was a digital image of herself, surprisingly still with her straight mane and gala dress on. To the left was a table displaying random facts like her date of birth, her height, her weight, and heading it all was her name alongside an unfamiliar accolade.

Pinkie Pie, Detective.

Day 1, 10:16

Pinkie Pie wasted no time in traversing the final few steps to the caste gates, as she stepped up; she couldn’t help but be reminded of the gates outside the Arcane Manor. In fact, they almost looked exactly like them, same intricacies and colour…

Pinkie shook her head; she didn’t know what to think, of the gate, the letter, the computer bolted to her leg, of any of this. Looking through the gate she saw the main castle courtyard, it was incredibly spacious, but despite being so close to her, Pinkie found it almost impossible to make out any details through the veil of shade that seemed to lie across the gate. Reaching out she unlatched the heavy gate and pushed forward, with a little difficulty she managed to push it open several inches, enough to squeeze through.

As she did, the shade that was impairing her sight of the courtyard was lifted, revealing the entire area to her in full. At the very end lay the castle gate, a gargantuan archway with a thick metal portcullis blocking the way. Directly above the gate was a large, ornate clock, which looked completely out of place being made from some delicate gold metal on a stark white face. The hands indicated it was roughly a quarter past ten; Pinkie would have had no clue whether it was morning or evening if not for the digital clock on her hoof computer telling her it was still a.m.

The rest of the castle was typical gothic fashion, dark stone, gargoyles, ornate buttresses and lattice windows. Turning her attention down from the castle itself, Pinkie looked at what lay dead in front of her, and forgot exploring her surroundings entirely when her eyes fell on a circle of unconscious ponies.

They were all there, her friends, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy. But the pony that really drew her attention was…

“Maud!” Pinkie exclaimed, rushing forward and crouching down beside her sister, cradling her head in her forehooves.

Maud appeared uninjured, in fact Pinkie could have believed looking at her there that she was sleeping peacefully, but then she saw the identical computer similarly attached to Maud’s leg.

“Maud,” Pinkie said, shaking her sister slightly, “please, wake up.”

After a few seconds, Maud’s eyes flickered slightly before cracking open. She let out a small moan, attempting to reach up and grab her head; Pinkie imagined she was also suffering a small headache.

“Oh,” Maud groaned, seeing Pinkie there for the first time. “Pinkie? What’s going on?”

Pinkie opened her mouth to reply, but found that she couldn’t muster the words. Everything that she’d seen, the computer on her fetlock, the letter, the fifteen ponies gathered in the courtyard all pointed to one thing, one thing she didn’t want to believe.

“Pinkie?” Maud repeated, her voice clearer now, apparently picking up on her sister’s hesitation.

Maud then flinched and looked down at her own hoof computer. Pinkie could see the confusion in her face fade, as she began putting the pieces together.

“Pinkie, is this…” Maud began, her voice trailing off.

Pinkie let her sister go and backed up slightly, looking over the other ponies while Maud also began taking in their surroundings.

“We… we should wake the others up,” Pinkie said stiffly. Maud nodded, saying no more on their current predicament.

As Pinkie made to walk over to Rainbow Dash who lay on Maud’s right, she noticed the screen on her computer had changed at some point. It now bore Maud’s image along with her own details, headed with the usual message.

Maud Pie, Rock Scientist.

Looking over at her sister, Pinkie saw Maud too was looking at her own screen, her normally passive face betraying her curiosity. Carrying on to her friend, Pinkie began trying to rouse Rainbow Dash. It took a little longer than it had been with Maud, but eventually she too came around, signalling a beep from Pinkie’s hoof computer. Looking down she now saw Rainbow Dash’s details as well as her title.

Rainbow Dash, Wonderbolt.

Pinkie wasn’t surprised when Rainbow began having a small freak out, but she held off answering any of Dash’s questions, and was saved when Dash noticed Soarin lying on the other side of the circle. As Rainbow rushed over to him, another beep alerted Pinkie to Soarin’s details.

Soarin, Wonderbolt.

Pinkie then continued around each of her friends, receiving yet more beeps and information after each rousing.

Applejack, Apple farmer.

Rarity, Fashion Designer.

Fluttershy, Animal Carer.

Like Rainbow Dash, who was too focused on Soarin to pay the others any attention, they were all full of questions and varying degrees of panic at their current situation. Pinkie couldn’t blame them, she knew only too well what awaited them all, but she asked them to hold off for a bit and help her wake the rest, to which they obliged.

Pinkie crossed over to Shining Armour, while the others busied themselves in waking Cheese Sandwich, Filthy Rich and Derpy, all proceeded by more beeps.

Shining Armour, Captain.

Cheese Sandwich, Party Planner.

Filthy Rich, Business Pony.

Derpy, Mailmare.

Leaving Shining Armour to her sister’s attention, Pinkie crossed to the opposite side of the circle to where a very familiar unicorn lay. It didn’t take long to wake Fleur, who took the situation she found herself in surprisingly calmly considering her intimate relationship with it.

Fleur Dis Lee, Noble.

The familiar grey earth pony with her simple pink bow tie was next, Pinkie was surprised at how easily she was awoken and how unlike everypony else, she didn’t appear weary or in any kind of discomfort upon doing so.

Octavia, Cellist.

Finally were the remaining two Wonderbolts, Spitfire who accepted Rarity and Fluttershy’s care gratefully, and Fleetfoot who gruffly brushed Applejack off.

Spitfire, Wonderbolt.

Fleetfoot, Wonderbolt.

With everypony now awake and tending to each other, Pinkie took this opportunity to examine the area they were in more. It hadn’t escaped her notice the pattern that they were laid out in on the ground, as well as the carvings of circles and runes beneath each of them. The centre of the courtyard was laid out almost exactly like the courtroom at the Arcane Manor, only without the railings, benches and dials. Still, Pinkie was quick to realise that once again there were sixteen circles etched into the floor, despite there only being fifteen present. There were two which had been empty upon her arrival, one directly in front of the gate she came through, between Maud and Derpy, and the other directly opposite between Fleur and Octavia.

Something that caught Pinkie’s attention however, was the centre of the courtyard, which was very different from what she remembered. lying between them all was a circular pool of water, only an inch deep admittedly, but it remained eerily still, and throughout the waking process Pinkie had intentionally walked around the outside, not wanting to step into the pool for reasons she couldn’t put her hoof on.

“Alright Pinkie,” Rarity announced, approaching the pink pony who was still staring thoughtfully at the pool. “Everyone is awake, now could you explain what’s going on.”

Pinkie sighed, and bowed her head, not wanting to look at her friend when she told them.

“It’s a game.”

“Pardon dear,” Rarity said, sounding confused at Pinkie’s answer. Pinkie was about to repeat her answer, but a voice cut her off, a voice that caused her eyes to widen and her whole body to stiffen.

“Oh, don’t play coy Rarity,” the voice said, echoing across the courtyard, reverberating in their heads. “You heard her. This is a game.”

Pinkie had subconsciously walked over to the circle that had lay between Maud and Derpy and turned to face the castle.

“And am I to take it, that you are the Mastermind of this game?” Pinkie asked coldly.

“You are correct my dear,” the Mastermind said in a voice that sent chills up everypony’s spine; however Pinkie refused to react to it.

Looking around at the others, Pinkie wasn’t surprised to see almost all of them were just staring around in bewilderment. Maud was looking at Pinkie warily, knowing full well what was going on, Fleur stood with her eyes closed, remaining calm as always. Soarin however was sat on the ground trembling from head to tail, his eyes wide and terrified.

“So, here we are again,” Pinkie muttered bitterly before raising her voice. “I suppose this is the part where you tell us you want us all to live together here.”

“Oh Pinkie, I know full well you wouldn’t fall for that old lie,” the Mastermind responded, sounding amused. “No, I’ve decided to cut out the middle mare and skip straight to the chase. The fifteen of you stand here, and here you will remain unless you play the game.”

“What game?” Rainbow demanded from where she sat holding onto Soarin who was still shaking uncontrollably.

“I’m so glad you asked,” the Mastermind continued, “In this game, you must kill one other pony in this courtyard without the others finding out who is responsible.”

Pinkie wasn’t surprised when this elicited an uproar from most of the assembled ponies, but she chose to remain silent, her eyes fixed dead ahead.

“When somepony has been killed, you will be given time to investigate the murder, which will then be followed by a trial at this very spot. If the murderer is correctly identified, they will be duly punished for their crime, if they get away with their crime, they shall be free to leave this place, while everypony else will be punished in their stead.”

“Now why in the hay do you think any of us will be killin’ anypony?” Applejack demanded furiously.

There must be an incentive, something to kick start the murders.

“Oh, of course, I almost forgot,” the Mastermind said, feigning ignorance. “If the murderer does indeed get away with their crime, then not only they will be set free, but so will my hostages.”

Pinkie quirked an eyebrow, but at that moment a loud rumbling was heard as at each of the four corners of the courtyard, the stone slabs began shifting as something began rising up. Pinkie watched the corner to her rear left, and witnessed as a tall pedestal emerged, atop which stood a statue of a familiar figure.

Princess Luna encased in stone.

The gasps and yells from the others signalled for Pinkie to look around at the other corners where three other statues had emerged. Princess Celestia, Discord and…

“Cadance!” Shining Armour screamed, breaking away from the group and charging over to the statue to Pinkie’s rear right.

“As you can see, your precious princesses and their faithful jester are hardly in any state to be carrying out their royal duties,” the Mastermind explained. “I wonder how long Equestria will stand without them to guide it, hmm?”

“You asshole!” Shining bellowed at the sky, “If I get a hold of you, I will kill you!”

“Please Captain Armour, save that anger for your fellow players; as if you really want to save your beloved wife, it is them who will have to pay the price.”

“Why are you doing this?” Fluttershy begged, tears welling up in her eyes. “What did we ever do to you?”

“Oh Fluttershy, you did nothing, you’re simply a means to an end,” the Mastermind said in false pity. “The end.”

Pinkie had yet another eerie feeling that that final comment was somehow directed at her.

“If there are no further objections…” The Mastermind waited a brief moment, but everypony was either too stunned or furious to form a coherent response. “Then the only thing left for me to tell you is that you each have your own rooms inside the castle, your computers will lead the way. I suggest that you stay in your rooms between ten in the evening and six in the morning, this is not a rule, but I strongly advise you follow it none the less. Everything else will become apparent as time goes on, or will be filled in by certain members of your group who have more… experience with this sort of thing.”

Pinkie saw Fleur briefly glance her way before returning to her blind vigil.

“Now without further ado… Let the games begin!”

Day 1, 10:41

Pinkie was hardly surprised by the shouting that commenced following the Masterminds departure.

“This is nuts!” Fleetfoot declared loudest. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I don’t plan on sticking around here to get ganked.”

Fleetfoot spread her wings but was swiftly shouted down by Spitfire.

“Fleetfoot, I order you to stay put!” she shouted, “as Wonderbolts it is our duty to stay and help the princesses.”

“Well what about the rest of us?” Filthy Rich asked nervously, “I’m not saying I want to abandon the princesses, but…”

“Ah don’t believe any of this for a second!” Applejack stated, “There is no way that Mastermind really turned the princesses to stone, this is all just some sick prank.”

“But what if it isn’t?” Fluttershy asked, sounding terrified. “What if we really can’t leave unless we… unless we…”

“Hey, cheer up Fluttershy!” Cheese Sandwich said, still sounding as bubbly as ever despite everything that had taken place. “Just smile and we’ll all be able to get through this!”

“Could you please take this seriously!” Spitfire snapped at him.

“What about our friends? And families?” Derpy asked sounding panicked. “Won’t they come looking for us?”

“I’m not sure Derpy,” Rarity said sadly, “I haven’t a clue where we are, how is anypony supposed to find us in such a ghastly place?”

“I’m telling you…”

“I don’t think I should…”

“Just smile, smile, smile…”

“Really now, there’s no need for such…”

“Fleetfoot I am ordering you…”

“Enough!” Pinkie bellowed, finally sick of everypony arguing. “This is getting us nowhere. Now I never wanted to be in this situation again, but here we are. Now before any of you say anything, we cannot run away, so if we are going to have any hope of escaping this place, we need to work together.”

Everypony fell silent and was now staring at her, Pinkie panned over them all. Shining Armour was still collapsed against the statue of Cadance, paying no attention to what was going on around him, Fleur and Octavia stood in calm silence, neither getting involved in the debate, Rainbow was still too busy attending to the terrified Soarin, and Maud had been by Pinkie’s side throughout the whole argument.

“Now I need you all to listen to me, and do everything I tell you,” Pinkie continued. “But first I need to speak to Fleur and Soarin alone.”

Fleur nodded curtly and followed Pinkie over to the gate that led to the town; Soarin was a little slower on the uptake, seeming reluctant to leave the comfort Rainbow provided. When all three of them stood by the gate away from the rest of the group, Soarin finally opened his mouth.

“This can’t be happening, tell me this isn’t happening.”

“Soarin, get it together!” Pinkie ordered, cringing slightly at how mean she had just sounded. “I know you’re scared, so am I, but we’ve been through this before, we need to stay strong for the others if we’re going to make it through this.”

Soarin gulped and nodded, still shaking slightly.

“Now, no doubt we’re trapped in this area,” Pinkie continued, “just like we were back at the manor, so our best bet is figure out who’s behind this and take them on directly.”

“Do you think we can?” Fleur asked.

“As long as nopony panics and kills anyone,” Pinkie replied. “First we need to get a bearing of our surroundings, I think it will be better if we stick to the castle and ignore the town for now, less ground to cover that way.”

“Shall we go in groups of three again? Like last time?” Fleur asked.

“Yes and no,” Pinkie answered, “We do need to spread out, but I don’t trust this place, so we should stay in larger groups.”

“Three groups of five then?” Soarin suggested weakly.

“Yes, that should work.” Pinkie looked over her shoulder at the others who were eyeing them curiously. “One last thing. We’re going to have to tell them what happened back at the manor… but, if we could avoid telling them who the Mastermind actually was…”

Soarin and Fleur both stared at Pinkie in confusion.

“They… don’t need to know that,” Pinkie said quietly. “Just pretend she died before the first trial, like we all thought.”

Soarin and Fleur nodded and the three returned to the rest of the ponies.

“Alright everypony,” Pinkie announced, “we need to search this castle if we’re to figure out who’s behind this. We’re going to split into three groups so we can cover more ground. Maud, Rarity, Fluttershy and Applejack, you come with me. Rainbow, Spitfire, Fleetfoot and Derpy, you all go with Soarin. Octavia, Shining, Cheese and Filthy, you go with Fleur.”

Nopony argued with Pinkie’s instructions, they all looked too surprised at how she was taking command of the situation to do so.

“We’ll all meet back here at…” Pinkie quickly looked at the clock overhead, “two. Does anyone have any questions?”

“Yeah, I do,” Fleetfoot said coldly, “who put you in charge?”

“I did,” Pinkie replied neutrally. “Now if nopony has any less stupid questions, let’s spread out.”

Day 1, 11:00

After a quick investigation of the castle portcullis, they discovered that it could be raised via two mechanisms two either side, Applejack and Shining Armour being the two strongest of the group did the honours, and very quickly the barrier was raised and they were granted access to the castle entrance hall. The first thing Pinkie picked up on was the striking similarity it bore with the entrance hall of the arcane manor, and judging by Soarin’s look he noticed it too.

After another brief discussion, Soarin and the other pegasi retreated outside to search the castle grounds. Fleur then led her group down a side corridor to search the rest of this floor, and Pinkie planned to search the higher floors. Before she did however, she crossed the room to the large staircase that led up to the balcony. Crouching down she ran a hoof across the bottom step, memories of Vinyl Scratch swimming to the surface of her mind.

“Pinkie Pie, dear,” Rarity said, breaking Pinkie from her thoughts. “Could you perhaps… explain what is going on? I know what that voice said, but…”

“But there is no way in Equestria this is fer real!” Applejack cut in.

“I’m sorry Applejack,” Pinkie said forlornly, turning to face her friends. “But this is very real.”

“But, how do you know all this?” Fluttershy asked.

Pinkie opened her mouth, only to close it again. Feeling a hoof on her shoulder, she looked up to see Maud her gave her a solemn nod.

“Because this is exactly what happened at the manor all those months ago,” Pinkie answered quietly.

“You don’t mean…” Rarity began.

“As soon as we arrived,” Pinkie continued, preferring to get it out of the way now, “we were knocked unconscious. When we woke up we were trapped in the manor and grounds. We started planning to escape, but some of us ended up giving in… Twilight was the first to go, poisoned.”

Rarity gasped, Applejack bowed her head, Fluttershy simply stared at Pinkie, a hollow expression on her face.

“Celestia made us promise not to tell anypony the truth,” Pinkie said bitterly, “that it was all some crackpot experiment of Twilights. I wanted to tell you girls, I really did, but I…”

Pinkie was cut off by three ponies embracing her all at the same time.

“It’s alright Pinkie,” Fluttershy whispered into Pinkie’s mane.

“You should never have been made to carry that alone,” Applejack said angrily.

“But you’re not alone anymore,” Rarity finished. “We’re together now, and we will not let you suffer alone ever again.”

“Thank you girls,” Pinkie said, pulling back gently. She blinked and realised she had begun crying at some point. “But I never would have made it this far without my family.”

Pinkie turned to look at Maud who gave her a small smile in return. Taking a breath and blinking back her tears, Pinkie turned back.

“After Twilight… I was the one who took over the investigation,” Pinkie continued, “so you have to trust me when I say I know what I’m doing here.”

“Sure thing Pinks,” Applejack said nodding, “we’re right behind you, you give the word and we’ll follow.”

“Thank you,” Pinkie finished before returning to her professional tone. “Now the manor only had three floors, but this castle is clearly a lot bigger, so we have a lot of ground to cover.”

Pinkie Pie led the way up the stairs, the others following in her wake. When she reached the top she looked at her computer, she barely noticed the pain in her leg now. Tapping a few times led her to a new screen showing a digital map of the room they were in as well the courtyard they came from. Pinkie walked over to the left of the balcony and experimentally opened the door and edged into the room. The new room appeared on her map.

“Alright girls,” Pinkie said looking back, “these computers have maps on them, but unlike last time they only fill in as we discover rooms.”

Setting her hoof back down, Pinkie carried on into the new corridor. As the group travelled she couldn’t help but feel slightly guilty.

I didn’t lie, I told them the truth… maybe not the whole truth, but it’s for the best, better they remember Twilight for who she was than what she became.

Day 1, 11:39

The five ponies walked down what Pinkie imagined was some kind of chapel. The walls were lined with stone pews and columns, a red carpet running down the centre to the altar at the end. Rarity fell back, examining the statues that stood vigil alongside each pillar. The statues were identical, depicting a Pegasus pony with its wings spread out above it; however all of the statues had had their faces smashed off the rest of the head.

Pinkie Pie and Applejack arrived at the altar, looking up; Pinkie saw a rose window overlooking the chapel. This two depicted a Pegasus, but something dark had been smeared across its face, obscuring it from view. Turning their attention to the altar itself, they found it was a fairly plain structure, roughly carved from a lump of rock. Pinkie was sure Maud would be able to identify it as soon as she stopped looking at the seating.

Applejack was examining the objects that rested on the altar. One was a large tome; its cover bore a title in some strange runic language. Looking closer, Pinkie saw it was sealed shut with a clasp that had a strange indent, almost like the book was locked. Setting it to the side she joined Applejack in examining the second object, a flat wooden box with gold trimming. Applejack looked to Pinkie, as if seeking permission to open it, Pinkie nodded and she reached out.

Inside the box was a red velvet cushion, upon which was placed a large, ornate dagger. The blade was curvy etched with more runes, the hilt encrusted with red jewels.

“Some kind of… sacrificial thing?” Pinkie suggested her voice heavy with disgust. Applejack nodded and closed the lid.

“Ah don’t see a reason to keep a weapon just lying about,” she said. “Ah’m not sayin’ ah don’t trust everypony, but it might be best to keep these sorta things where we can see them.”

“I agree, do you think you can carry that box?” Pinkie asked, Applejack nodded and lifted it onto her back, expertly balancing it.

“Ah’m no stranger to haulin’ stuff about, how about that book?”

“It can stay for now,” Pinkie replied, “we need to find saddlebags; we all had our own last time and it made things much easier.”

“Maybe there’s something in our rooms,” Maud suggested, approaching the pair of them. “Didn’t the Mastermind say our computers would lead the way?”

Pinkie brought up her map, it now showed several rooms trailing from the entrance hall, mostly rooms that were empty or had had nothing of interest in them. Although the map did also take into account the number of locked rooms they had encountered, displaying their doors as red on the green lines that were the walls. The first time Pinkie had tried to open one of these doors, she received a beep on her computer, and upon checking it she found it displaying a familiar message stating that forcing open doors would result in punishment.

Shifting through her options, Pinkie found one labelled ‘Safety’. Curious she pressed it and a flashing line appeared on her map, leading back to the entrance hall down the right of the balcony.

“We’ll head there next,” Pinkie said, allowing the others to look at where her map was directing them.

Leading the way back to the corridor they came from, Pinkie stepped out through the double doors, only to be knocked down by a sudden gush of wind surging through the corridor.

“Pinkie!” Fluttershy exclaimed, crouching down to help her up. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” Pinkie answered, looking down the corridor for the source of the gale.

“I don’t like this castle at all,” Rarity said following her gaze. “It feels… alive.”

“Last time, the Mastermind observed us and communicated with us through monitors and our computers,” Pinkie explained. “I haven’t seen anything vaguely modern since we arrived.”

“Let’s get to our rooms,” Maud suggested, “we shouldn’t get distracted chasing ghosts.”

Pinkie nodded, and ascending to her hooves, led the way back to the entrance hall.

Day 1, 12:04

After passing through the entrance hall and a few short corridors they found themselves in one of the towers. It was a bizarre structure, the best way Pinkie could describe it was as a square spring, where the corridor rose in a gradual gradient, taking a sharp left turn every several metres. As they ascended the tower, Pinkie counted sixteen wooden doors along the right wall, each adorned with golden handles and knockers. While the gradient wasn’t so steep that they were at risk of falling down, the carpeted floor offered extra grip as they ascended.

Like the rest of the rooms they had explored, it was constructed of dark bricks, but this hallway was lit by ethereal balls dancing around the ceiling as opposed to the usual dim candles in iron brackets. It gave the corridor a much more homely feel; indeed the flashing trail on Pinkie’s computer led her to one of the doors, suggested these were their rooms. Upon turning the handle, she found it unlocked and together they all walked in. The room was very confined, but well furnished with a luxurious double bed, cabinets, wardrobe, desk and armchair.

“Now this is more like it,” Rarity commented, running her hoof up and down the red curtains, while Fluttershy stood next to her looking out the window.

“Well, I guess this is my room,” Pinkie said picking up a small framed portrait of herself from the bedside cabinet.

She shuddered slightly as she set it beck down, trying not to think when the picture of her in her gala dress was taken. Pinkie approached Applejack who was examining the inside of the door, specifically the large sliding bolt used for locking the door from the inside.

“I don’t know if I like the idea of not being able to lock the door while I’m not in the room,” Pinkie said, testing the locking mechanism. “But I suppose it will be good not having to keep an eye on our keys all the time.”

“Didn’t you say your old room had an en suit?” Maud asked, gesturing to the distinct lack of bathrooms.

“Yeah,” Pinkie said fiddling on her computer. “It also had a bunch of room service things that we don’t seem to have now.”

Pinkie then walked over to the wardrobe and opened it up, inside it was almost entirely empty, bar a pair of saddlebags hanging from the rail.

“Convenient,” Pinkie muttered, taking them out and throwing them on over her dress.

Rarity cringed at this, no doubt the two clashed horribly, but Pinkie wasn’t about to sacrifice function for form. After tightening the straps she walked over to Maud and took hold of her hoof, bringing up the map on Maud’s computer and hitting the ‘Safety’ option. Another blinking line appeared, leading them to the room neighbouring Pinkie’s own.

“Alright girls,” Pinkie said, “we’ll go to each of rooms so we all know where they are, then get back to searching.”

“Sure thing, do yah want me to leave this here?” Applejack said gesturing to the box still on her back.

“Put it on the desk for now,” Pinkie instructed, leading the way out as Applejack did so.

Upon stepping out, Pinkie nearly ran headlong into Rainbow Dash.

“Oh, hey Pinkie,” Rainbow greeted, backing up slightly so she was closer to the rest of her group trailing behind. “Sorry, didn’t know you guys were already searching this area.”

“It’s alright, if you don’t already know, these are our rooms,” Pinkie explained.

“Yeah we looked in a couple higher up,” Rainbow explained. “There’s an open balcony at the top of the tower so we were able to enter through the top while flying.”

“Are there many Pegasus doors?” Pinkie asked curiously.

“Yeah actually,” Rainbow admitted, “most of the towers seem to have them.”

“And what about outside?”

“Just a lot of gardens and courtyards,” Rainbow answered, “although there was a hedge maze as well, a bit like the one back in Canterlot.”

“I think we should steer clear of that,” Pinkie said warily, not fancying whatever surprises the Mastermind could hide in such a place. “Where are you headed next?”

“Well we were coming down this way, but if you’ve got this place covered we’ll head back up and search the other towers,” Rainbow replied.

“Alright,” Pinkie said checking the time on her computer. “We’ve still got a couple hours before we meet back up.”

Taking that as their leave, Rainbow and the other pegasi turned and returned back up the corridor, leaving Pinkie and the others to find the rest of their rooms.

Day 1, 12:28

Pinkie surveyed the room before her, it was… tall. Agonisingly, dizzyingly tall. All above her, her vision was marred by staircases and bridges jutting out and zigzagging across. According to her computer they were standing at the most central room in the castle, and Pinkie could believe it, it looked like she could go to just about anywhere from this one room.

“Have you had any thoughts about where we might be Sugarcube?” Applejack asked, approaching Pinkie from the side.

“Not really, it’s like nowhere I’ve ever seen,” Pinkie admitted, still looking above her.

“Actually Pinkie,” Fluttershy began awkwardly behind them. “I actually find this place… a little familiar.”

“Yah do?” Applejack said in disbelief.

“I’m not sure, but it feels like we’ve been here before,” Fluttershy clarified.

“Now that you mention it…” Rarity chipped in, joining the group with Maud. “I’ve been having a strange vibe for a while now.”

Pinkie Pie closed her eyes and thought about it while Applejack hummed contemplatively next to her.

There’s no way we’ve ever been here before, I’d definitely remember a place like this… but still, something about it seems…

“Of course!” Applejack exclaimed, snapping Pinkie from her thoughts.

“You know where we are?” Pinkie asked surprised.

“Yes! Well, no… Ah mean…” Applejack stammered, “it’s on the tip of my tongue, but ah just know we’ve been here before.”

“Maud?” Pinkie asked, looking to her sister.

“I’m sorry,” Maud replied in her usual monotone voice, “but I really don’t find any of this familiar.”

“We can discuss it more later,” Pinkie said, deciding they shouldn’t dwell on it. “Rarity, did you find anything?”

“I could only get onto one staircase,” Rarity explained, “I’m not sure how we get to all those other floors.”

“I guess I could fly up,” Fluttershy offered looking to the next lowest staircase.

“No, we need to stick together,” Pinkie stated. “Come on, we’ll check this way, we might find a way around.”

Day 1, 13:05

Pinkie closed the door of the furnace after confirming it to be completely empty bar soot and ash. Looking around she saw the others sifting through crates and stacks of armour and weapons. Walking across to them she tapped her hoof on an anvil in thought.

“I guess this was some kind of armoury,” she said, stating the obvious.

“Ah reckon so,” Applejack said holding up a halberd. “Not sure what we’re gonna do about all this, it seems easy to take one knife and keep an eye on it, but all this?”

“We’re going to have to find some way of sealing off this room,” Pinkie pointed out, “it probably isn’t the only one either.”

“Didn’t you say you had a master key last time?” Maud asked examining a helmet.

“Yeah, but we only had that because the Mastermind gave it to Blueblood to plant on me,” Pinkie corrected her. “No, we aren’t just going to come across one.”

Bringing up her map again, Pinkie scanned all the areas they’d been to. It was kind of demoralising that she knew despite how much they had filled in, there was still so much more they hadn’t searched, and that wasn’t even taking into account the grounds around the castle and the town. As it stood however, they seemed to have discovered all they could from this end. When they turned right from the entrance hall they were able to reach the bedroom tower and the central room, which in turn led them here.

We could always retrace our steps and go back to the chapel; there was still areas beyond it we hadn’t explored.

Pinkie opened her mouth, intent on conveying her plan to the others, but was cut off when Rarity spoke up.

“Where’s Fluttershy?”

Pinkie’s head snapped around, scanning the room. Applejack was stacking weapons, Rarity and Maud were sorting through the armour, but Fluttershy was nowhere to be seen. Pinkie sprinted from the room, returning to the corridor that led to the central room, she could hear the others following her, but she didn’t slow down for them to catch up. Arriving back in the room she saw Fluttershy at the bottom of the staircase they had climbed, looking ready to take off.

“Fluttershy!” Pinkie shouted, galloping down the stairs to her friend, who looked at her in surprise. “What are you doing?! Don’t run off like that!”

Fluttershy shrank under Pinkie’s gaze, her face stricken with guilt.

“I’m sorry Pinkie,” Fluttershy stammered, “I tried to get your attention, but you all looked so busy and I didn’t want to disturb you so…”

She was cut off by Pinkie grasping her in a tight hug.

“Don’t scare me like that again,” Pinkie muttered into Fluttershy’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry Pinkie, I won’t worry you like that again,” Fluttershy said, stronger this time.

“What were you doing?” Pinkie asked, pulling out of the embrace.

“I thought I heard someone calling my name,” Fluttershy explained, “I followed the voice out here, they sounded like they were in trouble, like they needed my help.”

Pinkie kept quiet, listening intently. After a moment or two of silence she turned back to Fluttershy.

“Can you hear anything now?” Pinkie asked curiously, Fluttershy shook her head. “Well if you do again, let me know, don’t go chasing it on your own, alight?”

“Alright,” Fluttershy replied. Maybe Pinkie had imagined it, but the look Fluttershy gave her and the tone in which she spoke seemed awfully akin to…

“Everything alright here?” Applejack asked, hurrying down behind them, snapping Pinkie out of whatever that had been.

“Yeah, everything’s okay,” Pinkie answered as the other two joined them. “Come on, we’ll go back in the direction of the chapel, we still have a little time before we have to meet back up with the others.”

Day 1, 13:44

The chapel was just behind them, Pinkie walked at the head of the group, but she kept glancing back to make sure none the others were straying off. She wasn’t sure what Fluttershy had heard, but she would bet money on it being one of the Mastermind’s tricks. However, she was playing safe this time, she beat the game once; she’d do again, this time without casualties.

Beat? I pretty much did what I was supposed to right up until the very end.

Pinkie grimaced, trying to ignore that grim reality. Once at the end of the corridor they found a spiral staircase on one side leading down, and a regular staircase leading up, and naturally they found no source of the gust of wind earlier.

“Up or down?” Applejack asked, trying to peer down the curve of the spiral staircase.

“Down there probably just leads to the area Fleur was searching,” Pinkie figured, “we’ll head up.”

Just as she was about to start ascending the steps however, she heard a faint noise in the distance, growing louder. Turning to the spiral staircase, she listened as whatever it was drew closer.

“Is that… singing?” Fluttershy asked confused.

Indeed Pinkie could start to make out the words as well as the melody with which they were being sung, and as she did she internally groaned.

“The super-duper party pony–that pony is me! I always knew that was the kind of pony I would be!” Cheese Sandwich sang as he bounced up the spiral staircase, almost smashing straight into Applejack who was forced to leap out of the way. “Oh hey girls, what’s cookin’?”

“Cheese, what are you doing here? Where’s your group?” Pinkie asked impatiently.

“Huh? Oh yeah, they sent me to find you,” Cheese explained happily.

“Why what’s happened?” Pinkie asked worriedly.

“We ran into the pegasus group in the entrance hall,” Cheese began, “one of them got injured, so Fleur suggested we regroup early.”

“Damn!” Pinkie swore, taking her hoof off the step. “Alright let’s hurry.”

She swiftly began walking back the way they came, the others matching her step while Cheese bounced ahead, continuing his song. Pinkie had to fight the rising urge to hit him.

Day 1, 13:49

“What happened?” Pinkie asked, trotting down the steps in the entrance hall to the rest of the gathered ponies.

“Maybe next time you group a bunch of pegasi together,” Fleetfoot began angrily, “make sure they can all fly first!”

“Excuse me?” Pinkie said, narrowing her eyes at the aqua mare who was scowling at her.

“Cool it Fleetfoot,” Spitfire ordered, approaching the pair of them. “Derpy had a bit of an accident in the air.”

“Is she alright?” Pinkie asked, pushing through to where Derpy lay on the ground being looked over by Shining Armour.

“A few bumps and bruises,” Spitfire explained, “luckily Rainbow Dash caught her before she was seriously injured.”

“Thank you Rainbow Dash,” Derpy murmured from the floor.

“Yeah, you already said that like… a dozen times,” Rainbow said awkwardly.

“So she’ll be okay?” Pinkie asked again, sounding relieved.

“Yeah, but I don’t think she should be flying,” Shining Armour pointed out. “I’m no expert at Pegasus anatomy, but these wings don’t look right formed to me.”

“Yeah, it’s a disorder I have,” Derpy said sadly, “I can’t remember what the doctors called it, but I can’t really fly at high altitudes well.”

“Hey, you were doin’ well kid,” Spitfire assured her, “it was my fault for forgetting you weren’t a professional flyer and expecting you to keep up with us.”

“Well, maybe Derpy should go lie down for a bit,” Pinkie suggested. “We’re probably not going to be doing any more, um, reconnaissance today anyway.”

“Alright I’ll go with her,” Spitfire offered, helping Derpy to her hooves and leading her up the steps.

“Should I go to?” Fluttershy asked. “In case she needs… medical attention?”

Pinkie opened her mouth, but then closed it and nodded, allowing Fluttershy to run off after them.

I do trust Spitfire, but it doesn’t hurt to be safe, I know Fluttershy sees it that way.

Turning back to the others who were now all looking at her expectantly, Pinkie addressed them.

“So are we all ready to report back our findings?” They all nodded, except Fleetfoot who was sulking off to the side and Filthy Rich who stood looking awkward, as if he felt out of place.

“Well, for starters we should address the living accommodations,” Fleur pointed out. “Now we managed to get around most of the first floor, a lot of it is empty rooms and corridors, but there is a kitchen and some kind of banquet hall, there’s also a wash area.”

Fleur lifted up her hoof computer, showing everypony the map of the first floor.

“No parlours or game rooms this time,” she continued, “but there is a small study area, it’s got a few bookshelves, nothing substantial, a fireplace and some seating.”

“We found a library so we did,” Soarin chipped in. “One of the towers, it’s basically nothing but libraries and studies.”

“You can get to it from this staircase,” Rainbow said, pointing to a particular spot on Fleur’s map. “After a few twists and turns that is, but it’s the only way we’ve found for non pegasi.”

“Is there anything else on the first floor?” Pinkie asked.

“We did find a number of entrances to what appear to be subterranean floors,” Octavia answered. It occurred to Pinkie this was the first time she’d heard the musician speak, her voice was very calm and measured, clearly hailing from the upper most districts of Canterlot. “Dungeons and cellars and the likes, but all of them are locked up tight, and we received a message indicating that we would be punished if we tried to force our way into them.”

“We got that message too,” Applejack chipped in, Pinkie nodded.

“What about food?” Pinkie asked. “You mentioned a kitchen.”

“Yes,” Fleur began, noticeably frowning. “It’s not good I’m afraid, there is a little stock, but not nearly enough to last us for a single week let alone three, and that’s assuming we aren’t trapped here any longer than we were last time.”

“It’s possible that there’s some food in the town,” Shining Armour pointed out.

Pinkie didn’t like the thought of that, she had hoped to keep them confined to as small an area as possible to manage their escape better, but if the food situation really was as dire as it sounded she probably wasn’t spoiled for choice.

“We’ll see about it,” Pinkie said, mentally noting to address it later. “What about your group Soarin?”

“Well, we stayed clear of the town like you said,” he began, “although from the air it doesn’t look that big, we could probably cover it in an hour or two tops.”

“I said we’ll see,” Pinkie repeated, her voice laden with authority. “And the grounds?”

“Well it’s like Rainbow said,” he continued, nodding towards said Pegasus. “A lot of gardens, not so much plants but fountains and statues. It’s all pretty samey, once you’ve seen one you’ve pretty much seen them all.”

“So what about the castle itself?”

“Well there are some battlements here and there,” Soarin explained, “there’s ballista’s and catapults, same models used by Equestrian forces.”

“Like we said,” Rainbow joined in, “one of the towers is pretty much one huge library. Apart from that we found living quarters and the likes, all pretty normal, although there was one observatory, pretty cool.”

“There were some towers we couldn’t get in,” Soarin stated, “You’d probably have to go up through the castle itself. Which reminds me, there seemed to be this alternating pattern in floors, like most staircases would bypass a floor and take you to the one above it.”

“So… a staircase on the first floor would take you to the third floor?” Maud queried.

“It seems like that for the most part,” Soarin said with a small shrug. “This whole place is a nightmare to navigate.”

“Well, it’s a good thing we have our maps,” Pinkie said looking at her own, biting her lip. “It’s a shame we can’t somehow… connect our computers to fill in each other’s maps. I bet Vinyl would have known how…”

“Alright, so we know our way around,” Fleetfoot said loudly, getting everyone’s attention. “That’s all well and good but how does it help us escape.”

“Are you always so negative?” Fleur asked, not bothering to hide her distaste. Fleetfoot shot her a glare but didn’t retort which Pinkie was thankful for.

“The Mastermind is playing a game with us,” Pinkie began to explain. “If we want to escape, we have to beat them in their own game, and to do that we need to figure out who they are and why they’re doing this. We can’t investigate if we don’t know where to start.”

“And do you know where to start?” Fleetfoot asked impatiently.

“Not yet,” Pinkie admitted, ignoring Fleetfoot’s derisive snort. “I’m going to have to see a lot of these places for myself, the library in particular.”

“We could head there now,” Fleur proposed.

“Not now,” Pinkie stated, “I want to check this food situation first, and I don’t want to be working after ten.”

“Why not after…” Filthy Rich began confused. “Wait, you don’t mean to say we should obey this maniac’s curfew do you?”

“Like hell that nutjob is telling me when my bedtime is!” Fleetfoot snapped.

“I’m not about to take any risks,” Pinkie said flatly. “This castle is every shade of creepy and I don’t think for a second the Mastermind was bluffing.”

“If you think that’s what we should do, then we’ll trust you,” Fleur said, offering Pinkie what she imagined was supposed to be a warm smile, but just looked strained.

“Whatever,” Fleetfoot muttered.

“Now,” Pinkie continued, “take me to the kitchen.”

Day 1, 14:18

The kitchen was very dingy, two old fashioned stoves was the height of their technology, none of the cutting edge equipment that had been available at the manor. From the looks of the cabinets, which were grimy and half rotting, there was probably an infestation of something at one time or another. What little food that was stored in them had clearly been put there recently, and in this environment the various fruits and breads wouldn’t stay fresh for long.

Most of the food was stored inside a chest freezer, which Pinkie was looking through with Shining Armour.

“You weren’t lying,” Pinkie said in dismay. “Even if we can make this stuff last longer than a week, it won’t all stay good for that long.”

“There must be more food in the town,” Shining insisted, “The Mastermind doesn’t want to starve us all to death.”

Pinkie thought about it for a long moment before nodding and closing the freezer.

“Alright, first thing tomorrow, you can lead a group into the town,” Pinkie instructed, “don’t go too far and don’t split up.”

“Alright,” Shining replied obediently.

“Right now we need to ration out what we’ve got, can I leave you in charge of that?” Shining nodded and Pinkie turned to Applejack who was examining the stove. “Applejack, could you manage the cooking and preparation?”

“Sure thing,” Applejack said standing up to face her. “But I’ll need fuel for this stove, and a light.”

“There’s bags of coal in one of the rooms down the hall,” Shining offered, “and I can use magic to light it up.”

“That reminds me,” Pinkie began, “have you been having any difficulty with your magic since you got here?”

“Not really, no,” Shining answered thoughtfully.

“What about teleporting?” Pinkie asked.

“I haven’t tried; leaving you all behind wasn’t on my mind.”

“We appreciate it,” Pinkie said sincerely, “but you should still try as it might come in useful.”

Shining nodded and closed his eyes, focusing energy into his horn. Pinkie wasn’t surprised when the energy dissipated but Shining remained firmly in place.

“Is something blocking you?” Pinkie asked, remembering the pain Twilight had suffered upon trying to teleport.

“Not exactly,” Shining admitted, rubbing his horn, “it just felt like something sucked out my magic at the last second.”

“We can see about looking into that,” Pinkie promised before addressing the pair of them. “So can I let you two get on here while I go check on the others?”

“No worries,” Applejack assured her, “we’ll take the food to that there banquet hall.”

Pinkie nodded, and departed from the room. Once outside, Pinkie saw Octavia walking down the hallway towards her.

“Fleur and some of the others have gathered in the study,” Octavia stated, anticipating Pinkie’s question. “The rest have gone to their rooms.”

“Thanks,” Pinkie stated. “Where were you going?”

“Your friend Rarity mentioned a chapel upstairs,” Octavia explained, “I wanted to see it for myself.”

“Well be careful if you’re heading off on your own,” Pinkie warned.

“Do you not trust the others?” Octavia asked in an odd tone.

“It’s not a matter of trust,” Pinkie stated, “everypony is capable of murder under the right circumstances, I’m trying to avoid those circumstances.”

Pinkie wasn’t sure, but for a brief second, it looked like Octavia had broken her calm demeanour and given Pinkie the tiniest of smiles. But by the time Pinkie had thought she saw anything, Octavia was already walking away. Pinkie found it odd, all the other ponies here she knew personally, but Octavia she had only encountered once very briefly. A long time ago in another life she would have leapt at the opportunity of meeting a new pony, a new prospective friend, now however…

Day 1, 14:25

Pinkie entered the study to find Fleur, Filthy Rich, Cheese Sandwich, Maud and Rarity all seated on various armchairs and sofas.

“Right now, our best hope lies in Pinkie Pie,” Fleur was saying, apparently unaware that Pinkie had entered the room. “She beat this game once, she can do it again.”

“Yeah, but from the sounds of it,” Filthy chipped in, “she only beat the game after most of you had kicked the bucket. Eleven if I remember correctly.”

“Really now Mr Rich,” Rarity said irritably, “have some faith in Pinkie, I trust that she’ll get us all home safely back to our friends and families.”

Pinkie took a deep breath, reassuring herself of that fact before making her presence known.

“That’s the plan,” she said loudly, announcing herself as she walked forward. “But don’t forget, it took all of us to get out of that manor, we all played our part.”

“And we will all play them again,” Fleur assured her, nodding before looking pointedly at Filthy Rich. “Won’t we?”

“Of course I will,” he replied hurriedly. “I trust you, I do, and I will help, but forgive me for being a little nervous, my family's probably sick with worry wondering where I am.”

“We all have loved ones we want to get back to,” Rarity said sadly, receiving a reassuring pat on the back from Cheese.

“I promise I’ll get you all out of here,” Pinkie assured them. “I just came here to tell you that Shining and AJ and preparing some food for us, so in a bit head on over to the banquet hall.”

After receiving four nods of affirmation, Pinkie was about to leave, but then the fireplace in front of the others caught her eye. Walking across the room with the others eyes on her, she crouched down, put her head in and looked about.

“Um, Pinkie dear,” Rarity began confused. “What are you doing?”

“Looking for secret passages,” Pinkie answered.

“Oh,” Rarity stated bluntly, “Of course you are.”

Day 1, 14:39

“Go fish.”

Derpy picked up another card from the deck, adding it to her ever expanding hand. She stared at it in confusion and scratched her head. Fluttershy looked nervously at her one card, while Rainbow reclined, having already ridded herself of cards and claiming first place. Pinkie watched all this from the side-lines, occasionally glancing over at Soarin who sat by the window, staring out forlornly.

“Derpy…” Fluttershy began awkwardly, “do you have any threes?”

“No…” Derpy said slowly.

“Oh that’s okay,” Fluttershy said quickly, scooping up another card from the deck, only to squeak and place it back. “Actually I don’t need another card right now.”

Pinkie rolled her eyes and approached Derpy’s bed where they were sitting; flipping up the card Fluttershy had just placed back in the deck, revealing a three.

“Fluttershy, it’s no fun if you just let ponies win,” Pinkie explained, slightly exasperated. “And Derpy… you have tonnes of pairs! You have all four aces!”

“But none of them are the same suit,” Derpy said innocently, eliciting a groan from Dash.

“Maybe we should play something else,” Fluttershy suggested quietly.

“Actually we should probably head down now,” Pinkie pointed out, looking at the time on her computer. “Where’s Spitfire and Fleetfoot?”

“Spitfire went looking for Fleetfoot,” Dash said grumpily, “she’s being a right bi…”

Fluttershy coughed loudly, giving Dash a warning look while her eyes flicked over to Derpy who didn’t seem to notice anything.

“Oh, uh, she went looking for Fleetfoot because she flew off somewhere,” Dash corrected herself.

Pinkie groaned, Fleetfoot was being incredibly difficult, if there was one weak link she had her worries about, it was her.

“It’s a shame these don’t tell us where the others are,” Soarin muttered, holding up his own computer.

Indeed, Pinkie had tested it, but they no longer displayed flashing dots to mark each other’s locations.

“Rainbow, can you go help look for them?” Pinkie asked.

“Sure thing,” Dash said, hoping off the bed and leaving the room.

The others left the room shortly after, descending through the hallways until they arrived at the banquet hall where the others were already gathered.

“Just in time,” Applejack commented, setting a bowl of stew down in front of Rarity. “Pinkie, ah don’t think that kitchen is suitable for cooking in.”

“Why not?” Pinkie asked, taking a seat.

“It’s filthy,” Applejack stated, “if we keep our food in there we’re all at risk of dying from poisons and diseases and the likes.”

“We’ll see what we can do about it,” Pinkie assured her, preferring not to deal with anything more until she got some food in her. “Speaking of filthy, where’s Filthy Rich?”

“He had to go to the little colts’ room,” Cheese explained, trying to clean a stew stain from his multi-coloured tuxedo.

Pinkie was about to start eating when the doors opened, she looked up expecting to see Filthy Rich walk in, but instead she saw Spitfire and Rainbow Dash march in, flanking a very pissed off looking Fleetfoot. While Fleetfoot sat down as far away from the rest of them as she could, and Rainbow sat next to Soarin, Spitfire came over and whispered into Pinkie’s ear.

“She tried to fly off,” she explained, “but that dark sky repelled her. We managed to catch up with her and have a talk; hopefully she’ll stay in line from now on.”

“Thank you,” Pinkie murmured back allowing Spitfire to go sit down herself beside Derpy.

Pinkie hoped that would be the end of Fleetfoot’s disobedience, but was she ever so lucky? At least it seemed Spitfire could keep her in check. As she finally started into her own stew, Filthy Rich appeared, still doing up the belt on his suit trousers along with Octavia who Pinkie hadn’t even realised wasn’t present up until that point.

Day 1, 16:10

While Pinkie had never seen Discord in his initial statue prison, she had later seen pictures of it, the statue she was looking at now reminded her heavily of that pose he once had, smug, flamboyant, always very sure of himself. Moving away from the draconequus, she approached the statue of Cadance. Even encased in stone she looked as beautiful as ever, Pinkie wondered how hard this must be for Shining, but then her thoughts drifted back to the gala, to the moment when Shining snapped at his wife.

“Do you really believe that’s them?” A voice asked from behind Pinkie. She turned to see Maud approaching her from behind. “That they are really imprisoned in those statues?”

“I’m not about to rule it out,” Pinkie stated. “Do you even know what kind of stone this is?”

“Marble maybe,” Maud suggested. “It’s difficult to tell, there’s something about them, enchantments maybe, but I don’t know enough about magic to be sure.”

Pinkie glanced up at the large clock face above the castle gate; they still had roughly six hours before they had to be in their rooms. A lot could be done in six hours, but everypony seemed so drained already, they were in a frightening and stressful situation after all, Pinkie couldn’t expect too much of them.

“Where are the others?” Pinkie asked, making up her mind.

“In the study,” Maud replied, “even Fleetfoot.”

“That’s fine; I’m going to look around myself for a while,” Pinkie explained, “could you keep an eye on everyone?”

“I can, but where are you going?” Maud asked.

“I’m not sure, there’s still so much ground to cover,” Pinkie said looking around. “I think I’ll take a look around the grounds myself.”

“Well… okay, but be careful,” Maud said in a worried tone.

“I will,” Pinkie replied flatly. “Now you go on get back to the others, I’ll talk to you later.”

Maud nodded and left, leaving Pinkie alone in the courtyard. Pinkie walked across between the statues of Discord and Cadance towards a gate covered in dead ivy. Pushing against the gate she found it unlocked, however doing so reminded her of something, something tucked inside her dress pressing against her barrel. Reaching down her dress, Pinkie fished out the key she had completely forgotten about. Up until this point she hadn’t questioned why she had been left in a different area from the others, but now…

Leaving the grounds behind her, Pinkie made for the entrance gates leading to the town. As she slipped out through them the shade descended around the castle once more, obscuring its details from view. Walking casually the way she had come, she dodged into the courtyard filled with crates squeezed between the two houses. As soon as she was in however, her eyes widened in confusion. There was no door.

Day 1, 20:59

Pinkie entered the study, pleased at finding all fourteen ponies gathered there. A few were chatting quietly with one another, most sat in silence and barely disguised dread.

“And where have you been?” Fleetfoot demanded from the bookshelf she was leaning against.

“I was just looking around the grounds,” Pinkie said, holding up her computer to show her map filled in with all the different gardens and patios around the castle.

“So it’s okay for you to go off on your own, but when one us tries to…”

“Fleetfoot, let me stop you right there,” Pinkie interrupted. Fleetfoot silenced, waiting for Pinkie to say whatever she was about to say, and while she waited Pinkie walked away.

“Did you find anything interesting?” Fleur asked as Pinkie approached.

“Nothing Soarin and the others didn’t already report,” Pinkie admitted, taking a seat. “I took a few steps into the labyrinth, hoping my map would fill in the details, no such luck.”

“Well, while you were gone,” Fleur began, glancing over at the others, “we took it upon ourselves to seal off the armoury you found.”

“How did you manage that?” Pinkie asked, surprised but pleased.

“A lot of heavy lifting mostly,” Shining explained. “Basically there’s no way anypony can get in there on their own now.”

“That’s good,” Pinkie said nodding, “we should probably retire now, it’s getting close to ten.”

“And you really believe something bad will happen if we’re not in our rooms by then?” Octavia asked from the corner where she sat.

“Better safe than sorry,” Pinkie stated, “besides, we’re going to need our energy for tomorrow.”

“Alright then,” Shining said standing up and turning to address the room. “Alright everypony, lights out!”

Day 1, 21:35

Pinkie patrolled the crooked corridor, making sure everypony knew where their own room was. She needn’t have bothered, besides a small mix up between Derpy and Cheese there were no issues. Satisfied everyone was in their own rooms, Pinkie turned to head to her own.

“Hey Pinkie,” a voice called, causing Pinkie to look over her shoulder.

“Oh, hey Rainbow,” Pinkie said as the prismatic Pegasus glided down the decline to her. “Shouldn’t you be getting to your room?”

“Yeah I’ll go in a sec,” Rainbow said in an odd tone, “but I was hoping I could talk to you for a moment… in private.”

“Sure, let’s go to my room.”

The pair walked down the tower to one of the lowest rooms, opening the door Pinkie walked in with Rainbow close behind.

“So what did you want to talk about?” Pinkie asked, opening the box on her desk to make sure the knife was still there.

“It’s… about Soarin.”

Pinkie closed the lid of the box and looked over at Dash, from the tone of her voice and the look on her face Pinkie could tell it was serious. Walking across the room Pinkie sat down on the bed and patted the duvet invited Dash to join her.

“What’s the problem?” Pinkie asked as Dash got comfortable.

“Well, ever since we got here,” Dash began awkwardly, “he’s been a lot more distant, he’s just not himself. I’m worried about him Pinkie, I didn’t know about any of that stuff that happened at the manor. I knew something had happened to him, but when I joined the Wonderbolts, Spitfire asked me not to bring it up, said he’d tell me in his own time. I never would have guessed it was to do with what happened to you and… Twilight.

“The gala was the worst I’d ever seen him,” Dash continued, Pinkie listening politely. “But then this happened. I know what happened at that manor must have been awful for you, but for it to have this kind of effect, I’m just… afraid for him, you know?”

“I understand Rainbow,” Pinkie said sincerely, “what happened was difficult on all of us; we saw and did a lot of things we aren’t proud of. When it was over all we could think about was the ponies we let down, the ones we couldn’t save. The last I heard of Soarin, all he wanted was to fly, to drown out the memories and pretend it never happened. Now I know I’m hardly the best example of coping mechanisms, but he could have dealt with it in better ways.

“It’s going to take time Rainbow,” Pinkie continued, “He has a lot he needs to work through, a lot that needs to heal. But I believe that we… that you can help him. You just have to be there for him.”

Dash nodded, gulping slightly.

“I hope I will, no… I will,” Dash said with determination, standing up. “Thank you Pinkie.”

“It’s no problem,” Pinkie said as Dash began walking towards the door. “Oh, and Dash…”

“Yeah?” Rainbow asked, turning around to face Pinkie once more.

“You two make a cute couple,” Pinkie said offering Dash a genuine smile. Dash blushed slightly, trying to supress a grin.

“I would have said we were an awesome couple,” she said leaving the room.

“That you are Rainbow Dash,” Pinkie muttered, lying down and smiling to herself.

Day 1, 21:59

Pinkie looked at her hoof computer, by now she couldn’t feel the pain in her leg. She didn’t doubt it would become infected, hopefully they’d find a lab or something tomorrow. Her gala dress was thrown across her armchair beside her desk along with her saddlebags which were empty bar from the key she found upon waking up.

Glancing at the digital clock she saw it was quickly approaching ten.

Five… Four… Three… Two… One…

Nothing, nothing but silence. Pinkie let out a breath she didn’t realise she had been holding in. No doubt Fleetfoot would leap on this tomorrow, claiming that she was right and Pinkie was a bad leader, but Pinkie would stick to her guns, it was better to be safe than sorry.

A knock on the door broke Pinkie from her thoughts.

Who’s not in bed? They could at least wait until morning before coming to complain.

Pinkie stood up and began walking towards the door which was currently bolted shut.

“Pinkie, can you open up?”

Pinkie froze, her eyes wide, her breath dying in her lungs.

“Pinkie, please open up… It’s me… Twilight.”

Author's Note

So This ended up being much longer than I had anticipated, but that's what happens when you try to establish an entirely new setting which is times bigger than the one used in the last story. As such the first chapter will be broken up into 4 parts as opposed to the usual 3 parts, the other chapter should remain the same.
Shout out to ClickClackTheBrony for getting 14/15 players correct... and being the only person to actual offer a guess.
Next part will be released on Tuesday.

C1: Grace Period

Day 2, 06:00

Pinkie stepped out of her bedroom, her entire body screaming exhaustion. Slowly she made her way down through the castle, threatening to keel over at any minute. By some miracle she managed to drag herself as far as the study and collapse face down on a sofa. For the first month or two following the last ordeal, she had suffered terrible nightmares; it was quite another thing spending the entire night with the nightmares right outside her door.

All night she heard her muttering, heard the soft sounds of her hooves on the carpet outside, heard her breathing. Every couple of hours, just as Pinkie would begin to believe it was over, the voice would return, begging Pinkie to let her in. More than once, Pinkie felt tempted to throw open the door, but she managed to restrain herself, managed to remind herself it was all a lie, but it didn’t make it any easier.

Pinkie was drained, both physically and emotionally, so when she heard hoofsteps approaching, she didn’t have the energy to look up and see who it was. It was only when she felt the weight sit down next to her, and felt the hoof brushing through her mane that she knew it was her sister. Rolling over slightly Pinkie looked up at Maud, no words were needed, they both knew the other one had suffered the same thing.

Pinkie noticed that like herself, Maud had put on her gala dress. As she had counted down the minutes to six, she had anxiously paced around her room, desperate for things to distract her, throwing on her dress and strapping on her saddlebags was one of the few things she could do. Over the next hour, pony after pony entered, all wearing their formal attire, all looking like they’d had their soul sucked from them.

There were very few words spoken, ponies just came in, greeted the others and sat in silence. Even Fleetfoot was severely lacking in her brash attitude as she entered, looking like she was about to throw up. Indeed it was only the last ponies who looked like they had gotten any rest at all. Rainbow and Soarin came in together, and while they both looked shaken up, Pinkie knew being there with each other helped greatly. Then came Octavia and Fleur, neither of which looked in the least bit off.

Must be a high class thing.

Once they were all gathered and seated, Pinkie stood up and addressed the group.

“I think it’s safe to say… we’ll obey the curfew,” she stated, nopony even thought to argue with her. “I had hoped we would all be well energised today, but that clearly isn’t the case… for most of us. First things first we need some food.”

“I’ll get right on it,” Applejack said, leaving the room without waiting for confirmation.

Pinkie didn’t mind, she could be filled in later, she was just glad Applejack was still so dedicated.

“Alright, as soon as we’ve eaten we need to get straight to work,” Pinkie continued. “Shining made it clear that we are in desperate need of food, so he’s going to lead a group into the town in search. I want Applejack, Fleetfoot, Spitfire, Soarin, Rainbow Dash, and Cheese to go with him. Remember, perishable food is fine, but we need stuff that will last.”

Derpy raised a timid hoof.

“Derpy you don’t have to raise your hoof,” Pinkie said, “if you want to say something, just say it. As it is however, what did you want to say?”

“You said stuff that will last,” Derpy repeated, “and yesterday you were talking about the last game going on for three weeks. We aren’t going to be here for that long are we?”

“I really hope not,” Pinkie answered, “but we have to be prepared for worst case scenarios.”

Derpy looked very upset about that response.

“As for the rest of us,” Pinkie continued, “I am going to be going to the library, carry out some investigation. I want Fleur, Maud, Fluttershy, Octavia and Filthy to come help me.”

“May I ask what it is you want me to do?” Rarity asked politely.

“Applejack pointed out a good point yesterday,” Pinkie explained, “the kitchen is no state for storing or preparing food. You’re meticulously neat if you don’t mind me saying, I’d like you to make the place suitable.”

“I will do my very best,” Rarity replied.

“Derpy can go with you to give you a hoof,” Pinkie finished. “Other than that I need everypony to be on the lookout for medical equipment, I’m not a doctor but I know we can’t leave our legs untreated.”

“Alright everypony,” Applejack announced, entering with a tray stacked with sandwiches. “I know it’s not a lot, but hopefully you’ll enjoy it all the same.”

Day 2, 08:51

It was as Rainbow had said, they left the chapel and the spiral staircase to the ground floor behind them and ascended the staircase up, and after a few twists and turns they found themselves at the ornate double doors of the library tower. Pushing on ahead, Pinkie lead the way into what appeared to be the main body of the library, a truly impressive room, one that would have made Twilight Sparkle collapse under the weight of her own excitement.

There were so many bookshelves, towering over them, most needing their own little ladders and walkways to access some areas. Pinkie wouldn’t have known where to begin reading; instead her attention was drawn to the mysterious centrepiece. It was a giant hourglass surrounded by various cogs and rings, all gyrating in alternating directions and speeds.

“A beautiful construct,” Octavia commented approaching Pinkie from behind. “Yet it feels so familiar to me.”

Pinkie nodded blissfully, she felt it too. It was only when Filthy Rich spoke that she finally snapped out of her daze.

“So what exactly are we supposed to be reading up on?”

“Anything,” Pinkie replied, “everything. Anything at all that can give us a better understanding of where we are, things we’ve encountered, who we might be up against.”

They weren’t the most specific instruction, Pinkie knew that, and what with the sheer size of the library tower Pinkie wouldn’t have blamed the others for showing the slightest bit of exasperation with her. As it was however, they admirably set straight to work without fuss, seamlessly coordinating around one another. With the others starting their own searches, Pinkie began searching the different shelves and sections for books on runes, both magical and linguistic.

For one she was still intrigued by the book in the chapel, and two she decided it couldn’t hurt to have a better understanding of the runes involved in the courtroom set up outside. As she wondered around half aimlessly for about twenty minutes, she began to wonder if there was an easier way to do this.

Day 2, 11:01

Pinkie slammed the heavy tome shut, placing it to the side along with all the others. A part of her thought she should re-shelve them, but the other part of her didn’t want to run the risk in case they would come in useful later. Standing up she cracked her aching joints and walked over to the other desks where the others were reading away.

“Anything at all?” she asked.

“I’ve been looking through history and geographical books,” Fleur began, “but I can’t find a mention anywhere of a place like this.”

“I’ve noticed a lot of marble used in the construction of this castle,” Maud pointed out. “So I’ve been looking into where marble has been quarried in large quantities.”

“And any ideas?” Pinkie asked, somehow not surprised that her sister was researching rocks.

“Actually the largest amount of quarried marble came from Canterlot Mountain,” Maud replied. “But it’s almost impossible to trace where it all would have gone, it could have been used in Equestria or traded overseas.”

“Well I’ve found that there’s a section of newspaper clippings,” Filthy Rich pointed out, holding up a book containing newspaper extracts.

“Well yeah, don’t most libraries have sections for that stuff?” Pinkie asked.

“Yes, but this library has cuttings from just about every paper right up to the day of the gala,” Filthy elaborated impressively, before realising that nopony was reacting to it. “Well… I thought it was interesting.”

“Every detail helps Filthy,” Pinkie assured him, not noticing him flinch at the use of his first name. “What about you Fluttershy?”

“Well I was looking into that chapel,” Fluttershy explained, holding out a book on religious history. “I noticed there was a lot of iconography around... a particular Pegasus, so I was maybe hoping to come across something about her.”

“Any luck with that?” Pinkie asked hopefully.

“No,” Fluttershy replied with a sigh.

“Well it’s a good lead, keep it up.” Pinkie assured her, before looking over to Octavia… only to realise she wasn’t present.

“She must be off looking for a book,” Maud suggested, realising who Pinkie was searching for.

“Alright, we’ll keep at this for another half an hour, then we’ll take a break,” Pinkie stated, walking back to her own desk.

As she did, she caught sight of Octavia standing in front of the hourglass, reading a book.

Day 2, 11:45

Filthy Rich was talking a way as the group began navigating the corridors from the library, but Pinkie still had her nose stuck in a small book entitled ‘reading magic for dummies’.

Well I guess I have to start somewhere...

“Pinkie?” Fluttershy said, snapping Pinkie out of her reading.

“Huh? What is it?”

“You’re going the wrong way,” Fluttershy informed her.

Looking around Pinkie saw she had indeed turned down the wrong corridor, while the others had walked straight on ahead, the staircase down the chapel corridor right ahead.

“Oh, woops,” Pinkie said embarrassed. She was about to follow them but then stopped. “Where does this way lead?”

“I’m not sure,” Fleur admitted, approaching Pinkie and looking down the corridor she had been about to walk down. “I don’t think we’ve searched it yet.”

“Well it’s not very long,” Pinkie pointed out, indeed the door at the end was only a dozen or so metres away. “I’m going to take a look.”

Without waiting for the others to follow, Pinkie strode down the hallway to the old wooden door that stood at the end. Turning the handle she found it unlocked, briefly glancing at her hoof computer showed another tower had been revealed on her map. Stepping on inside, Pinkie was hit with cold air. The tower was tall but narrow, with wooden ladders and walkways ascending all the way to the top where a Pegasus door was, letting all the cold air in.

“This looks like an aviary,” Fluttershy commented brightly, looking between the alcoves in the wall, the wooden perches, and the straw on the floor.

“I don’t imagine it’s kept birds for some time,” Pinkie commented.

“Maybe this is where the gust of wind came from yesterday,” Maud proposed. “Soarin’s team might have entered though there and opened the door.”

“I guess,” Pinkie stated.

Satisfied there was nothing more of interest in this room she turned to leave. As they did, she spotted a nail in the wall next to the door with a metal key hanging on it, not unlike the one she found after waking. Taking it off the nail as they left, Pinkie tested it on the once again closed door, hearing a satisfying click.

“We should hold on to this,” she said depositing it in her saddlebags. “It might work on other locks.”

With that, they carried on their way towards the kitchen to see if the other group had returned.

Day 2, 12:07

Pinkie nodded approvingly, pacing around the now sparkling kitchen, literally, it could have passed for the royal kitchen in Canterlot after Rarity had been allowed to work her magic on it.

“I don’t know how you did it,” Pinkie said happily, turning to Rarity and Derpy. “But this place looks amazing.”

“Thanks,” Derpy replied, “though really, it was all Rarity.”

“Now dear don’t be so modest, it was a team effort,” Rarity insisted.

Pinkie then turned to Shining and Soarin who were just about finished rearranging the freezer and cupboards.

“No trouble then?” Pinkie asked the pair.

“Not really,” Shining replied. “Fleetfoot stayed in line, everypony stuck together. We moved slowly but we managed to find a few houses with stashes in them. I’m pretty sure they were purposely put there for us to go find.”

“It would seem we aren’t getting everything served to us on a silver platter this time round,” Pinkie said despondently. “I’ll go tell Applejack the kitchens ready, I’m sure she’ll be over the moon when she’d sees the good work done in here.”

“I’m sure she would be if there was a moon in the sky,” Soarin muttered.

Pinkie left the kitchen and headed towards the study. She knew the first floor well already, but even if she did need help, she could just follow the raised voices. Pinkie groaned as she reached the study and heard the shouting; she then braced herself, ready to walk in and have to deal with Fleetfoot. As she entered however, she was surprised to see the source of the noise was in fact Applejack, who was facing off against Filthy Rich.

“And how in the hay is this the time to be discussin’ this anyhow?!” Applejack demanded. “Things are messed up enough here as it is, so I’ll tell you once more, Sweet Apple Acres is not for sale!”

All the other ponies in the room were just looking on bemused, Pinkie decided to stick her hoof in and put a stop to whatever was going on.

“You’re making a mistake Applejack,” Filthy stressed. “Granny Smith would have wanted you to do what’s best for…”

“You don’t get to tell me what mah granny would have wanted, you hear?” Applejack snapped.

“Applejack, calm down!” Pinkie ordered stepping up between the pair of them.

“Did you hear what he…” Applejack began, but Pinkie cut her off.

“Yes I heard him,” Pinkie stated flatly. “And I’m not saying he was right, but I am saying that this is not the time for this argument. We need to stay focused, but most of all we need to stay united. If we start breaking apart, we’re all put at danger.”

Applejack sighed and Filthy Rich scratched his head awkwardly.

“You’re right, sorry Pinkie,” Applejack said before looking to Filthy. “Sorry too Filthy, uh… Rich, I know Barnyard Bargains has been having a tough time and you’re not in the best state money wise. But I’ve made my decision; I’d like you to respect that.”

“Alright, I’ll drop it…” Filthy said in a neutral tone, although Pinkie had the distinct feeling he just caught himself on before adding ‘for now’.

“Alright, now that that’s sorted,” Pinkie said relieved, “Rarity and Derpy and finished in the kitchen Applejack, do you want to go take a look?”

“Sure ah do,” Applejack said, brightening up immediately. “And with the food we gathered up, ah’ll be able to fire us all up a decent lunch.”

Pinkie collapsed into an armchair, completely exhausted. She’d almost forgotten that she hadn’t got any sleep. Still, fighting her desire to drift off, she opened her eyes and looked around the room at the others. Filthy now sat off to the side, looking mildly put off by what had just occurred. Octavia was off to one side, pacing back and forth as if lost in thought. Cheese was making an admirable attempt at getting a smile out of Fleur, who seemed to be having none of it, remaining utterly focused on the empty fireplace. Rainbow, Spitfire and Fleetfoot sat in a group chatting amiably, and Maud sat opposite Pinkie, watching her carefully.

“Is something wrong?” Pinkie asked her sister.

“No, I was just thinking…” Maud began before hesitating. “You haven’t had any panic attacks since you got here.”

“Not really,” Pinkie admitted, not really having thought about up until now. “I guess I’ve just been too focused.”

Maud nodded, saying nothing. Pinkie could tell something was bothering her sister, but before she could ask, Derpy, Soarin and Shining re-entered the room.

“Alright, Applejack and Rarity are getting us some lunch together,” Shining said, sitting down next to Pinkie. “What do you want to do afterwards?”

“It hardly feels like we’ve made a dent in this castle,” Pinkie said looking over her map. “But I think we’ve got more than enough to wade through at the moment. I never did ask, the town, what’s it like?”

Shining shuddered slightly.

“Eerie,” he admitted. “The whole time it felt like we were being watched. The main road outside the castle is open, but everything else is confined and claustrophobic, feels like it’s squeezing in around you.”

Great, more spooky things for us to deal with.

“And then there was the houses themselves,” Shining continued, his voice sounding dark as he reached into his saddlebags. “For the most part they were stripped bare, but every now and then we’d find something… disturbing.”

Shining pulled whatever it was free from his bag and hovered them out in front of Pinkie. Reaching out, Pinkie took one at random and held it out before her. It was a framed photo, showing a mare and stallion along with what Pinkie presumed was their new-born foal. The frame was worn, the picture faded.

“Family photos?” Pinkie said quizzically, looking over the others, all displaying various ponies grouped together.

“Looks like it,” Shining said, telekinetically stacking the pictures and passing them across to Pinkie who accepted them. “Whatever or wherever this place is, it seems ponies used to live here, however long ago.”

“Maybe,” Pinkie began warily, “just don’t jump to any immediate conclusions, this could just be the Mastermind trying to throw us off.”

“I don’t know Pinkie,” Shining said unsure, “that town, this castle, it all feels so…”

“Soups on everypony,” Applejack announced cheerily, interrupting Shining Armour.

As the ponies began filing from the room, Pinkie put the pictures away in her saddlebags before following after them.

Day 2, 14:40

Pinkie peered through the bars into the darkness beyond.

“So you think it leads to a dungeon?” Pinkie asked, fishing the key she found in the tower out of her saddlebags.

“Possibly,” Octavia answered simply as Pinkie attempted to feed the key into the lock.

The key didn’t even fit, and after a few hopeless jangles, Pinkie accepted it wouldn’t fit and removed it.

“The locks are completely different Pinkie,” Octavia pointed out.

“Yeah I get that now,” Pinkie replied, slightly annoyed.

“Perhaps it will open other towers,” Octavia suggested helpfully.

“It’s a thought, yeah,” Pinkie replied, re-depositing it in her bag.

The pair continued walking until they arrived back in the entrance hall. As they walked up the main staircase, Pinkie slowed down, her thoughts drifting back to the entrance hall of the Arcane Manor and the stairs that led to the courtroom.

“Is something wrong?” Octavia asked, noticing Pinkie had stopped moving all together.

“In the last game,” Pinkie began, “there was a room that looked just like this one, but the stairs moved so we could access a floor below. That’s where the courtroom was.”

“Do you think these stairs would do the same?” Octavia asked curiously.

“Maybe,” Pinkie replied thoughtfully, “we never did figure out how to move them. My friend was obsessed with figuring it out, and I think she did in the end… but she died before I could ask her how.”

“Don’t dwell on it,” Octavia said, “we can consider that possibility later.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie said, her voice still sounding distant as she thought back to Vinyl.

The pair continued walking until they arrived in the central chamber where the Wonderbolts were already gathered discussing away.

“Found anything yet?” Pinkie asked Spitfire as the pair joined the group.

“A couple areas join to places we’ve already been,” Spitfire explained, pointing to the areas on her map as well the coordinating staircases and bridges above them. “But most of them, especially the higher up ones, don’t lead to anywhere we can get to.”

“So how are non-pegasi expected to get there then?” Pinkie asked, more to herself than anyone in particular.

“Well there’s always the locked rooms,” Rainbow suggested, “we’ve seen plenty of them. Although we’re struggling to see how most of them could lead back here.”

“There is the possibility,” Fleetfoot chipped in, sounding surprisingly professional, “that the staircases are mechanical, and there’s a way to move them.”

“That sounds reasonable,” Pinkie admitted, running her hoof along the railing of the nearest staircase and peering down to the bottom of the room.

They were currently standing on the lowest section of floor, everything below was just darkness. Pinkie looked around for something to cast down, like a stone chipped from the wall or floor, but everything appeared in perfect condition.

“Will this do?” Soarin asked, guessing what Pinkie must be looking for.

He handed her a wooden tankard he had been drinking water from. Knowing cups were one of the things they didn’t have a shortage of; Pinkie accepted it and dropped it into the abyss. To her surprise it didn’t take very long at all until she heard it clatter to the floor.

“Maybe it’s a spell or something,” Spitfire proposed, leaning over the edge. “A bit like when you look at the castle from the town.”

“Could be,” Pinkie agreed, “at least we won’t die right away if we fall down from here.”

“Do you want us to keep looking for a way to move them?” Spitfire asked.

“See what you can do,” Pinkie said, beginning to walk away with Octavia in tow. “If you don’t get anywhere in about an hour, just leave it and we’ll figure something else out.”

As the pair walked back the way they came, they passed by the residential tower. Outside it Cheese Sandwich and Filthy Rich were standing together, it appeared that Cheese was telling him a joke or singing a song or some combination of the two. As they got nearer Pinkie began to make out what was being said.

“Could you please give it a rest?” Filthy asked, sounding tired. “Honestly you’re more annoying than that stupid Mailmare.”

“I’m annoying?!” Derpy asked, sounding hurt as she stepped out behind Filthy Rich from the open door to the tower.

“Oh, uh, Derpy, I didn’t hear you there,” Filthy began to say quickly, “what I meant was… goodness, would you look at the time! I have to go… be… somewhere.”

With that he quickly dashed away just as Pinkie and Octavia reached Cheese and Derpy, the latter looking like she was about to cry.

“Am I annoying?” Derpy asked, sounding heartbroken.

“Of course not,” Cheese said giving her a reassuring hug. “He was just being grumpy; he didn’t know what he was talking about.”

“I know I didn’t give you pair any specific instruction,” Pinkie began, “but what have you been doing since lunch?”

“I was helping Rarity do some research in the study,” Cheese explained, “but she said I could take a break, said she could manage on her own.”

Yes, I can imagine one head would be better than two when the second one is Cheese Sandwich.

“Me and Fluttershy were looking for medicine like you asked,” Derpy said, “but we couldn’t find any.”

“That’s alright,” Pinkie said, glancing down at her hoof.

She could walk perfectly fine on it, and as far as she could see the others were having no trouble either. But she had noticed a light swelling beginning.

“At least they’re waterproof,” Cheese said, as if trying to put a brighter spin on it.

“Yes, that is a nice touch,” Pinkie said walking on from the pair towards the entrance hall once more.

As her and Octavia descended the steps once again, they saw Fluttershy and Shining enter from outside, talking quietly with one another. They stopped when they saw Pinkie and Octavia walking down the staircase.

“Oh, hi Pinkie,” Fluttershy greeted.

“Hey you two,” Pinkie said back. “Shining, what do you know about mechanisms?”

“Next to nothing,” Shining admitted curiously, “why?”

“Fleetfoot thinks the stairs in the centre room might be able to move,” Pinkie explained, “you were the only one here I thought might have known something about it.”

“Sorry Pinkie, not really my area,” Shining apologised.

“No, it’s fine,” Pinkie insisted, looking past Shining at the courtyard where the statues of the princesses and Discord stood. “Are they alright?”

Fluttershy fidgeted nervously and Shining just deflated.

“We’ll help them,” Pinkie assured them, “I promise you.”

Day 2, 20:20

Pinkie didn’t know how, despite there only being an old stove in the kitchen, they managed to get hot water for the showers in the wash room, but she wasn’t about to complain. She scrubbed her coat and washed her hair, occasionally bumping into Fluttershy, receiving a squeal and an apology every time.

“It’s fine Fluttershy,” Pinkie said, almost bored at this point, after this happened again.

Looking around she saw Fluttershy staring at her curiously.

“Is everything alright?” Pinkie asked.

“Oh, yes, it’s just…” Fluttershy began awkwardly. “Your hair…”

Pinkie looked over at the steamed up mirror where she could just about make out her hair hanging poker straight around her head.

“Yeah, I know it’s not as… lively as it used to be,” Pinkie admitted.

“I miss it,” Fluttershy said, Pinkie glanced at her just as she herself seemed to realise what she said and flushed furiously. “I mean…”

“Yeah,” Pinkie interrupted, “sometimes I miss it too, like it’s from a better time or something…”

The pair stood in silence for a few minutes, the only sound being that of the running water.

“So…” Fluttershy began. “When this is over, will you come back… to Ponyville I mean?”

Pinkie didn’t reply, she had been far too focused on getting everybody out of here to think that she might do if they did. Thankfully she was saved from answering by the arrival of Rarity and Applejack, the latter still singing Rarity’s praises at her job well done of cleaning the kitchen.

Pinkie and Fluttershy finished getting cleaned up, exchanged a few friendly words with the other two while getting dried, then took their dresses and saddlebags and departed for their rooms. As they neared the tower, Pinkie’s mind began drifting back to her unexpected guest the night before. Glancing over at Fluttershy, Pinkie could tell she too was dreading it.

“Hey,” Pinkie said, getting Fluttershy’s attention. “Don’t worry, whatever you hear, it’s not real.”

“I know that,” Fluttershy said sadly, “I just wish that made it easier.”

With that Fluttershy carried on to her own room, leaving Pinkie standing by her own door. Entering, Pinkie bolted the door behind her and draped her dress over the armchair once again, placing her saddlebags on the desk and opening them up. She now had two keys, both of which remained in her bag, lest she need them on short notice, a couple of books on magical runes which she set on the desk, and the photos Shining Armour had given her.

She looked once more at the couple and their foal, smiling slightly, they looked so happy in the picture. She propped all the pictures on her desk, looking at each one as she did, each happy family.

I hope Ma and Pa are alright, I hope they aren’t too worried.

Looking at the time on her computer, Pinkie saw she still had over an hour before the curfew technically started, so she sat down beside the desk and flipped open one of her books.

Day 3, 07:25

Pinkie walked down the hallway to the study, feeling in much better spirits than she had the morning before. A part of her wasn’t surprised that she didn’t hear Twilight again, instead she would wake up every hour or so to the distant sound of fillies and colts laughing and playing. It had been odd, it seemed so joyful compared to the night before, but it still gave her a bad feeling, and she was more than happy to keep her door locked and try to sleep.

Entering the study she found she wasn’t the only one who looked a little brighter this morning. Cheese looked his usual delighted self, Fleetfoot looked fine, and Applejack chatted warmly to Fluttershy who appeared fine as far as Pinkie could see. Still, Rarity looked stressed, Spitfire appeared exhausted, Derpy looked downright depressed, and Shining Armour looked like he was cradling a migraine. Pinkie took a seat as they waited for the others to arrive.

“You know what ah’ve noticed?” Applejack said suddenly, drawing everypony’s attention. “We’re all still wearin’ our gala duds.”

Indeed, it seemed to have become an unspoken dress code among them all. Pinkie had just put on her dress that morning out of habit mostly.

“And what’s wrong with being a little fashionable one in a while?” Rarity asked.

“But every day?” Applejack replied.

“Yeah, I mean I like my flight suit and all, but they’re gonna get filthy after a while,” Spitfire commented, rubbing absently on a black stain on the one the legs of her suit.

“Well we have a wash room for that,” Rarity reminded them.

While the discussion burned out over the next few minutes, Maud, Fleur, Octavia, Rainbow and Soarin all arrived.

“Alright, if that’s everypony ah’ll get started on breakfast,” Applejack said, making to leave before Pinkie interrupted her.

“Hang on; we’re still waiting on Filthy.”

“Well where is he?” Rainbow asked, “I’m starving here.”

“I’ll go wake him up,” Cheese offered, dashing from the room.

“Ah’ll go get started anyway,” Applejack said, leaving after him.

Pinkie reclined in her armchair while Fleur sat next to her.

“I can see love is in bloom,” she whispered to Pinkie, nodding over at Rainbow and Soarin who sat with Spitfire and Fluttershy.

Pinkie smiled and nodded subtly, Fleur grinned. Several minutes passed and Pinkie was just about to ask Dash to go see where Cheese and Filthy were, when the former returned, looking perplexed.

“Is he not here?” Cheese asked.

“No, you went to look for him, remember?” Fleetfoot said impatiently.

“Well yeah, but he wasn’t in his room,” Cheese explained, “I figure he must have headed this way from a different direction while I went looking for him.”

“Well we haven’t seen him,” Soarin said.

Pinkie sat up straight, a creeping feeling in her gut.

“Has anyone seen him?” she asked, receiving negative responses from everypony. “Well we should fan out and look for him, he’s probably just lost.”

The last comment was meant to reassure them, but they all knew what Pinkie was thinking. Pinkie left the room and headed for the kitchen where she informed Applejack what was going on. Together the pair left and headed off towards the entrance hall.

Day 3, 10:12

“Where has that pest gotten himself to?!” Applejack asked out loud for the dozenth time as her and Pinkie marched up the staircase towards the library.

From quick conversation with ponies they’d run into during their search, it seemed nopony had found him yet. Pinkie was seriously beginning to panic now, it only took one murder to get the ball rolling… There was still the town to search, hopefully for whatever reason they’d find him there, alive and well. As they began walking down the corridor they ran into Maud and Cheese walking down the corridor to the aviary tower.

“I think Pinkie has the…” Maud was beginning to say just as she noticed her sister. “Oh Pinkie, do you still have the key for the tower over there?”

“Yeah,” Pinkie said before turning to Applejack. “You head on to the library and see if there’s anypony already searching there.”

Applejack nodded and headed off while Pinkie followed Maud and Cheese down towards the wooden door. Fitting the key in, she turned it and heard the click of the lock. Pushing the door open, the trio stepped inside. Looking about the straw strewn floor, they found the room deserted. Pinkie was about to leave when Maud spoke up.

“What’s that up there?”

Pinkie followed Maud’s gaze, she was looking up at one of the rafters where a dark mound was barely visible over the edge. Cheese scurried up the ladders and made his way towards it.

“It’s just a bag,” he shouted down.

“Is there anything in it?” Pinkie asked.

“Yeah there’s something,” he called, crouching down and opening it up. “It looks like…”

His voice died and his normally upbeat, cheery face went pale as he looked inside the bag. Pinkie closed her eyes and sighed as the voice began echoing around her.

“Attention everypony, the first body has just been discovered!”

Author's Note

And so it begins.
As a reminder, here is how the game works: you can comment or PM your theories, if you're commenting be mindful of spoilers for other readers. You can alter or amend theories as much as you want, but only the last one will be accepted. You can mention other characters as possibilities, but you must come down on a single culprit, theories saying 'I think it was ?, or ?, or ?, or ?, or ?...' will not be counted. Anyone who correctly identifies the culprit will receive a shout out in the author notes of the trial chapter, if nobody guesses it correctly, then I'll give shout outs to anyone who was close in their theories regarding the process of the crime.
I hope you all have a go, and enjoy playing.
The next part will be released on Thursday/Friday.

C1: Prima Facie

Day 3, 10:30

Great job Pinkie. You’re supposed to be the leader; you were supposed to make sure this didn’t happen again.

Pinkie stopped her circling of Filthy Rich’s body and turned to the others who were all lined up around her and the victim.

“I hoped this wouldn’t happen,” Pinkie began, “I really hoped we could get through this without casualties. But now we have one dead pony, and either the culprit pays the price or we all do.”

“But Pinkie,” Fluttershy interrupted, her face drained of colour and her voice trembling. “There has to be another way, what good does it do for anyone else to… to…”

Pinkie sighed and looked pityingly at her friend. It had all felt so surreal for them; even when ponies started dying they only ever saw it as a game. It wasn’t until it was over, until Twilight joined the ranks of the fallen that they really understood what had happened, what they had done. Pinkie had told the others that she had played this game before, but only now did they truly realise what horror they’d been thrust into.

“It’s not my choice Fluttershy,” Pinkie replied. “This is the Mastermind’s game, if we want to beat it we have to play by the rules.”

Fluttershy sniffed back tears as she crouched down, tucking her limbs close to her body.

“Alright, who did it?!” Dash demanded, sounding furious although Pinkie could detect the faint tremor in her voice. “Fess up!”

Pinkie wasn’t surprised when nopony spoke up.

“It’s never that easy Dash,” Pinkie said, breaking the silence. “The trial is in a few hours, and if we’re to have any hope of figuring out the truth, we have to investigate.”

“Well, where do we begin?” Shining asked.

Unlike most others, he appeared to be taking the situation well, Pinkie had no doubt he’d seen his fair share of bodies, maybe even taken a life or two in the course of duty.

“For starters,” Pinkie said, crouching down beside Filthy, “we need to examine the body and identify the cause of death. Could somepony help me with his clothes?”

“Not to question your methods Pinkie,” Applejack began warily, “but don’t yah think that’s a might disrespectful?”

“No more so than letting his murderer walk free,” Pinkie answered, looking Applejack dead in the eye.

“I’ll help,” Rarity said, stepping forward.

Pinkie was surprised; she had expected Rarity to stay as far away from the body as she could. Indeed she noticeably grimaced as they worked together to remove Filthy’s formal suit. Everypony reared back as the stench of death hit then, Pinkie didn’t react, a part of her feared she had gotten used to it.

“Well he’s obviously been here for a while,” Pinkie commented, wishing she had a nose peg all the same. “Probably killed last night before we went to bed since I doubt anypony left their rooms all night.”

Pinkie mentally chastised herself, she had checked in on everypony the first night; she should have done it again the night before. Once Filthy’s body was exposed, it was clear the only wound on him was the one they had already seen. The temple of his skull had been caved in, fragments of bone jutting into his brain.

“The head injury is the only one visible,” Pinkie announced, “doesn’t rule out internal damage, but it’s most likely this was the sole cause of death.”

“So what?” Fleetfoot asked, “Filthy and the murderer were in here together for whatever reasons. The murderer hits him on the head and he dies. Not a lot to go on.”

“Maybe,” Pinkie said before adding, “maybe not.”

Standing up, Pinkie began pacing around the room once more. She had already done so but she wanted to be sure. The other’s watched as she prowled around the floor before climbing up into the rafters and searching there. Eventually she returned and delivered her verdict.

“He wasn’t killed here,” she announced. “He was murdered somewhere else and his body was moved here.”

“Seriously?” Spitfire said, sounding impressed. “How did you figure that out?”

“Simple,” Pinkie replied, trying not to sound smug while crouching down by the body and pointing to the wound. “All this blood over his face, this was clearly a very messy job, and yet there isn’t a speck of blood in this room.”

“Huh, ah wouldn’t have thought of that,” Applejack commented.

“This is a good starting point,” Pinkie continued. “We need to know where the murder took place, so everypony spread out. Blood is the obvious indicator, but be on the lookout for more subtle things as well.”

After a bit of shuffling and moving about Pinkie turned to see only Fluttershy, Derpy, Fleur and Maud remained.

“Still as clever as always Pinkie,” Fleur commented sagely.

“I’d rather I didn’t have to be,” Pinkie replied. “Fleur, you should go check Filthy’s room. I’ll be over once I’m done here.”

Fleur nodded and departed. Pinkie then looked over to Fluttershy and Derpy, both of which were still shaking and trying not to break down.

“Girls,” Pinkie said as gently as she could. “Could you search through his clothes? Check his pockets and saddlebags for anything of interest.”

Fluttershy nodded, scooping up the pile of clothes Pinkie and Rarity had removed and taking them to the side where she and Derpy began sorting through them. Pinkie then returned to the body, this time turning her attention to the computer bolted into Filthy’s leg. Maud crouched down at her side.

“I’m sorry Pinkie,” Maud said, her voice weak.

“For what?” Pinkie asked absent mindedly, flicking through different pages, unsure what exactly she was looking for.

“All those months, trying to take look after you and help you…” Maud began, “I thought, just because you told me what had happened, that I understood. But I could never have understood what you had to go through… I could never have helped you.”

“Don’t say that Maud!” Pinkie said sternly, turning to her sister. “The only thing you will never understand is just how much it meant to me that you were there for me, there to listen to me, there to comfort me. Don’t ever say you couldn’t have helped me, because you did! You really did!”

“I don’t think I did,” Maud said sadly, standing up and leaving the room without another word.

Pinkie looked over to Fluttershy and Derpy who were sitting awkwardly, trying to pretend they hadn’t overheard it.

“Anything?” Pinkie asked simply, Fluttershy shook her head rapidly, still not meeting Pinkie’s gaze. “Alright, you two take those down to the wash room and get them cleaned up. That seems… respectful.”

Derpy and Fluttershy hurried from the tower, leaving Pinkie alone with the corpse. Standing up she returned to her pacing.

Fifteen ponies, take Filthy and myself, that leaves thirteen. Thirteen suspects.

Pinkie didn’t want to believe that her sister or her friends could have been responsible for Filthy Rich’s death, but she knew all too well that anypony was capable of committing terrible things, even best friends…

Day 3, 11:18

Examining Filthy’s computer had served one purpose, after all it would have been rather difficult to find his bedroom in the tower had she not checked it. She hoped Fleur hadn’t had too much difficulty identifying it; however her doubts were dismissed when she opened the correct door and found Fleur staring out the window.

“Nothing?” Pinkie asked as Fleur turned to see her.

“Nothing,” Fleur clarified disappointed. “It seems he barely used his room, but then he was only here for two days.”

“I suppose,” Pinkie said opening the desk drawers.

“I already searched in them,” Fleur reminded her.

“I know you searched in them,” Pinkie said, wrenching the drawer from the entire desk.

Fleur watched on, her eyes wide with surprise. Pinkie turned the drawer over to reveal a sheet of paper stuck to the underside.

“How…” Fleur began bewildered, “how did you know that was there?”

“I heard the paper rustle as I opened the drawer,” Pinkie explained.

It hadn’t been the first time after all, her mind drifting back to the memory of a torn painting under a drawer of morphine. Pinkie pulled the paper free from the drawer, seeing immediately it was a newspaper clipping.

Did he find this while we were researching in the library?

On one side Pinkie read the headline ‘Thunderhead retires following love affair scandal’. Pinkie read through the story with mild disinterest, it talked about something that had occurred when she was just a filly where the Wonderbolt captain retired after negative publicity surrounding his affair with another member.

Pinkie flipped the clipping over, half expecting to see more drivel, but instead what she read made her heart stop.

Missing camper found dead in rock farm.

It was the news coverage of the body she had found when she fell into the pit in the quarry all those years ago, the one who’s smell she could remember so well. The newspaper article even made reference to the discovery being made by a young filly whose parents stated was ‘deeply traumatising for her’. Pinkie’s whole body shook as she read the article; she didn’t even hear Fleur trying to get her attention behind her.

Why did Filthy have this? What does that camper have to do with anything?

“Pinkie!” Fleur shouted, shaking Pinkie’s shoulders.

“Huh…” Pinkie muttered, snapping out of her daze.

“Are you alright?” Fleur asked, sounding deeply concerned.

“I’m fine, it’s just…” Pinkie began, staring back at the offending clipping. “Nothing.”

Pinkie shoved the article away in her bag, preferring not to think about it at all or why Filthy Rich was reading about that.

“Can you make sure there isn’t anything else hidden around here?” Pinkie asked, Fleur nodded. “I’m going to check in on the others.”

Standing up, Pinkie hurriedly made her way out of the room and didn’t stop striding until she found herself in the entrance hall running headlong into Shining Armour.

“Whoa, Pinkie, are you alright?” Shining asked, sounding concerned.

“I’m fine,” Pinkie lied. “Have you found anything?”

“Well no, not really,” Shining answered. “I went back to the tower to find you and tell you we were having no luck with the first task, but then I noticed something.”

“Really? What?” Pinkie asked, forgetting momentarily about the newspaper clipping.

“That bag Filthy’s body was in,” Shining began, “it was one of the bags used to hold coal in that store room, the one I told Applejack about when we were in the kitchen together.”

“Seriously?” Pinkie asked amazed, “Have you checked the store room yet?”

“No, I was heading there now,” Shining said.

“Alright let’s go together.”

Day 3, 11:50

“Are you sure you’re alright on your own?” Pinkie asked as she made to leave the store room.

“Yeah, I’ll keep looking here,” Shining assured her, “you go check on the others.”

Pinkie nodded and entered the corridor. The store room had been a bust, after an initial search they found nothing, but shining had offered to stay and keep looking while Pinkie did something more productive. Picking a direction at random Pinkie headed down, looking out for anyone else. Turning around a corner she spotted Maud crouching down, examining something on the floor.

“Maud!” Pinkie called as she approached.

Maud looked up and nodded before continuing her observation of the floor.

“Do you smell that?” Maud asked causing Pinkie to halt in her steps.

“Smell what?” Pinkie asked.

Maud didn’t answer, so Pinkie began sniffing the air. At first she was sure there was nothing and was going to call Maud up on it, but then she managed to detect then faint whiff of something.

“Is that… soap?” Pinkie asked, confused.

“That was what I thought,” Maud replied, “And take a look at this, notice anything?”

Maud was indicating the floor she was looking so hard at. Pinkie stared, panning from between where Maud sat and the floor she stood on.

“It’s really clean,” Pinkie answered.

“Exactly,” Maud stated, standing up. “It’s possible there was blood here, but the murderer cleaned it up.”

“Excellent deduction,” Pinkie replied happily. “That makes sense too, because if the murder took place here, then it stands to reason that the killer got the bag from nearby.”

“The bag?” Maud queried.

“I’ll explain on the way,” Pinkie assured her. “Let’s head to the wash room, any cleaning stuff used will have been obtained there.”

Day 3, 12:09

As Pinkie entered the washroom, she looked around, half expecting to see Fluttershy and Derpy, but instead only Rarity sat by the wash basin.

“Is Fluttershy and Derpy not here?” Pinkie asked, walking over to Rarity.

“No,” Rarity said stiffly, “poor dears, they’re taking this very hard. I offered to finish up here and let them go get some rest.”

Pinkie nodded, she didn’t mind. Walking past Rarity, Pinkie made her way over to the cupboards where Maud was already busying herself.

“This all looks fairly inconspicuous,” Maud commented, “it’s possible they disposed of anything they used elsewhere.”

“I guess,” Pinkie agreed with a sigh.

She felt like they’d hit a dead end. Turning around she saw Rarity watching them quizzically, still handling Filthy’s suit.

“Rarity,” Pinkie began, a sudden thought occurring to her, “do you know who was searching this area this morning? When we were still looking for filthy.”

“Oh, um,” Rarity said, pondering for a second, “I’m not sure, but I think I saw Fleur and Fleetfoot around this area.”

Pinkie glanced over at Maud briefly, who nodded.

“Alright, thanks Rarity,” Pinkie said standing up. “We’ll go talk to them.”

“Wait, you mean they might have done this?” Rarity asked disbelieving. “Fleetfoot has been quite crass I know, but Fleur? Surely not.”

“I’m just going to talk to them,” Pinkie reassured her. “They might have seen something.”

Rarity was still watching her as the pair left the wash room.

Day 3, 12:28

Fleur was lounging on a loveseat in the study when Pinkie found her, looking thoroughly exhausted.

“I feel my age catching up to me,” she said as Pinkie sat opposite her. “I just don’t have the same energy you do anymore for running around, investigating.”

Pinkie wanted to ask Fleur how old she was exactly, but decided against it, figuring it might be rude of her. Still, she doubted she could be that old, she still looked so young.

“This morning,” Pinkie began, “when we were searching for Filthy Rich, where were you looking?”

“Just the various rooms on this floor,” Fleur answered, “all empty, obviously.”

“What about the wash room?” Pinkie pushed.

“No, I looked in there but somepony was already covering it, so I decided to look elsewhere,” Fleur explained.

“Who was it?” Pinkie asked.

“That white manned pegasus, the one who’s always so snappy,” Fleur answered bitterly.

“Fleetfoot,” Pinkie muttered, not surprised.

“That’s the one,” Fleur agreed, “I mostly left just because I didn’t want to have to put up with her. That sounds awfully unprofessional of me, a noble and diplomat.”

“No, I think I can relate to that,” Pinkie said, thinking back to all her interactions with said Pegasus.

“Still, here we are again I suppose,” Fleur said enigmatically. “Did you really believe none of them would succumb?”

“I hoped,” Pinkie clarified. “I guess, in retrospect that was foolish of me.”

“What could you have done?” Fleur asked rhetorically. “Locked them all up in separate rooms and tried to find a way out yourself?”

“Maybe,” Pinkie said wistfully. “Do you think it was wrong of me to try and take charge?”

“Somepony had to,” Fleur reminded her, “and I don’t think anyone could have taken the mantle quite like you. I know you said our last victory was a group effort, that we couldn’t have done it without each other, but we both know… it was really down to you. It’s like she said, it was about you.”

Pinkie turned away from Fleur and began walking from the room, her head hanging low.

By that logic, it’s also all my fault.

Day 3, 12:46

Pinkie peered into the chapel as she passed by, finding it deserted. Continuing on her way she briefly glanced down the spiral staircase before ascending the stairs to the library and aviary. The hallway was abuzz with activity; outside the library Pinkie could see Fleetfoot, Maud and Rainbow Dash, while down the other corridor she could see Octavia, Soarin and Spitfire in the aviary.

Approaching the library first she overheard Rainbow talking.

“Actually I barely knew him,” she admitted, “I once had an argument with him because his kid was bullying Scootaloo, but beyond that we hardly spoke.”

“He had kids?” Fleetfoot repeated, sounding surprised.

“Just the one,” Pinkie clarified, walking up. “He spoiled her quite a lot, but then he always had the money to do so.”

“Still, I’m sure she’ll be devastated,” Rainbow commented, sounding uncharacteristically serious.

“Fleetfoot,” Pinkie began, “you were searching the wash room this morning, did you…”

“This again,” Fleetfoot interrupted, sounding annoyed. “Your sister already pestered me over this, I did not see anypony else come in. I wasn’t even there for very long, I went outside to search the grounds with Rainbow Dash for the most part.”

“It seems weird that they’d stash the body inside,” Rainbow stated, “they could have dumped it anywhere outside and we might never have found it.”

“Ponies make mistakes when they panic,” Pinkie informed her, “they don’t think clearly, which is good for us because that’s how we track them down.”

“Speaking of which, have you figured this out yet?” Fleetfoot asked impatiently.

“I’m still investigating,” Pinkie reminded her. “I won’t be able to form any solid theories until I have all the evidence.”

“Honestly I don’t see why we bother,” Fleetfoot stated. “I actually agree with your weedy little friend, we could just forget about what’s his face and nopony else has to die.”

“His name is Filthy Rich,” Pinkie said, gritting her teeth. “And Fluttershy is not weedy.”

“Could have fooled me,” Fleetfoot said nonchalantly, “hiding away in her room with Wall Eyes while we do all the work.”

“Hey!” Rainbow snapped before Pinkie could retaliate. “Those are my friends, so keep your mouth shut!”

“A cool chick like you needs to find some better friends then,” Fleetfoot responded, smirking.

“Oh yeah…” Rainbow began, but a voice cut them off.

“Would the pair of you quit fighting,” Spitfire ordered, approaching Pinkie from behind. “Fleetfoot, things are tense enough without you getting at everypony’s throats.”

Fleetfoot glanced away, scowling.

“Have you found anything yet Pinkie?” Spitfire asked Pinkie, more calmly this time.

“Bits and pieces,” Pinkie informed her. “We still don’t know anything about a possible murder weapon.”

“We were just discussing that,” Spitfire said, leading the way over to the aviary, Pinkie in tow.

Once inside Pinkie saw that Octavia had disappeared and Soarin was leaning down examining the body.

“We’re thinking it had to be something blunt, like a brick or a lead pipe,” Spitfire informed her.

“The injury resembles the one Trenderhoof had,” Soarin elaborated. “When Lightning Dust hit him with the fire poker. This one isn’t as bad, so maybe the killer only hit him once.”

“Wait, did you say Lightning Dust?” Spitfire asked, shocked.

“I’ll explain later,” Soarin said, grimacing slightly. “Right now we need to find the weapon.”

“I’m surprised we haven’t come across anything already,” Pinkie said, before adding under her breath, “but then it wouldn’t be the only piece of evidence that’s gone missing.

“Where did Octavia go?” Pinkie asked, louder this time so they could hear her.

“She said she wanted to check something,” Soarin relayed, “not sure what, she just kind of up and vanished.”

“She seems…” Spitfire began, trying to find the words. “Independent.”

“I’ll see if I can track her down,” Pinkie offered. “I’d like to think she isn’t hiding anything from us, but just to be sure…”

“Of course,” Spitfire agreed, “I’ll round up the others and we’ll start looking for the weapon.”

Pinkie nodded her approval and left the room.

Day 3, 13:07

Pinkie stopped outside the kitchen, she could hear clanging coming from within. Curious, she opened the door and saw Applejack busying herself with that mornings would-be breakfast.

“Applejack?” Pinkie asked, announcing herself, making her friend jump slightly. “What are you doing?”

“Oh hey Pinkie,” Applejack answered awkwardly. “Ah was just fixing us all up something to eat, I’m sure you’re all mighty hungry.”

“Yeah, I suppose I am,” Pinkie admitted approaching Applejack. “But do you really think now is the time for that.”

Applejack sighed and put down the pot she had been holding.

“Yeah ah know,” Applejack began, “it’s just… after seeing how you handled everything this morning, ah don’t really know what ah can provide. Ah don’t know the first thing about deducin’ a crime, it just feels like ah’d get in your way.”

“Well I’m not going to force you to do anything,” Pinkie said, “but I know you’re more capable than you give yourself credit for.”

“So what would you have me do?” Applejack asked, sounding almost desperate.

“Spitfire and the others are searching for the murder weapon,” Pinkie explained. “We suspect something blunt was used. If you really want to help, you can start there. Even if you don’t find anything, it’s still helpful for ruling things out.”

“Alright Pinkie,” Applejack said slowly, “ah’ll do that then. Sorry for bein’ all moody.”

“It’s fine,” Pinkie assured her, picking up one of the apples that had been placed out.

As she left the kitchen, munching on the piece of fruit, she encountered a very soot stained Shining Armour.

“Anything?” she asked, although the disgruntled look he gave her told her enough. “Go ahead and get cleaned up.”

Shining nodded, ambling past Pinkie in the direction of the wash rooms.

Day 3, 13:39

Fleur had indeed turned Filthy Rich’s room upside down and inside out after Pinkie had left earlier. It was an unrecognisable state as Pinkie looked in briefly on her way to Fluttershy’s room. Arriving at the closed door she pressed her ear to the wood, she could make out the faintest sniffling noises.

“Fluttershy,” Pinkie called out. “I’m just checking up on you.”

The sniffling stopped, and a few seconds later Pinkie heard the latch on the door and saw it swing open.

“Oh, hi Pinkie,” Fluttershy said, trying to sound like she hadn’t been crying, although her bloodshot eyes gave it away. “Thanks for checking, but I’m fine, really.”

“If you’re sure,” Pinkie said slowly, although she knew Fluttershy couldn’t be further from fine.

Fluttershy looked away, probably realising her eyes were a giveaway. Pinkie thought desperately of what to say. With everypony off doing their own thing, and so many details about the case missing to her, Pinkie was left at a loss of what to do, so she did the first thing that came to mind that wasn’t go to her room to review the evidence, and that was check in on Fluttershy. Now that she was here however she hadn’t a clue what to say.

“So, how are the animals?” she asked weakly.

“They’re good,” Fluttershy began, “I hope. Big McIntosh agreed to look after them while we were in Canterlot… I hope he still is, although I know he has his own responsibilities.”

“I’m sure he’s doing a great job. I did miss Gummy while I was away,” Pinkie said. “But I wasn’t worried about him. I knew you’d look after him.”

Fluttershy smiled briefly, Pinkie smiled back, then they both stopped when a voice echoed out around them.

“Attention everypony!” The Mastermind announced. “The trial is about to begin! Everypony please make your way to the courtyard in front of the castle.”

Pinkie looked over to Fluttershy who looked terrified once more.

“Well,” she said, bracing herself. “Let’s go.”

Author's Note

"Pinkie has not the tremors, yes"
Random factoid, I did have bad tremors while writing this chapter, don't know why...
Anyway, this is the last part before the first trial, so if you have a theory please share it, and if you are correct you will get ashout out in the next parts author notes.
Next part will be published on Sunday.

C1: Lay Bare

Day 3, 13:52

It always felt like a walk to the hangman’s gallows, walking down these steps. Pinkie could see the circle through the castle gates, could see the others gathering, the looks of anticipation and dread clear as day on their faces. Together, her and Fluttershy stepped out into the courtyard, joining the throng of ponies around the would-be courtroom.

“So… what happens now?” Cheese asked awkwardly, glancing around at the others.

“Now,” the Mastermind answered, “you take your positions, you’ll know them as the spots where you awoke on your first day.”

Pinkie led by example, walking over to the circle closest to the town gate, the one that had been vacant when she first arrived. As soon as she stepped into the centre, the runes flashed into life, a semi-circular banister carved from stone rising up between her and the pool in the middle of the courtyard. The others began to follow suit, Maud taking the circle to Pinkie’s right, Derpy on her left.

Soon all spaces but one were occupied, the circle directly opposite Pinkie remaining empty once again.

“Are there any questions before we begin?” the Mastermind asked, almost casually.

“What in the hay are these flashy symbols?” Applejack asked, gesturing to the various glowing runes at her hooves.

“They’re binding runes,” Pinkie answered, “stops us leaving until the trial is over.”

“And these dials?” Spitfire asked, fiddling with her own absently.

“That’s how we vote on who’s guilty,” Soarin explained.

“Would you like to demonstrate for everypony Soarin?” the Mastermind asked.

Soarin jumped slightly before reaching out, he hesitated momentarily before turning his dial. As he did the pool rippled, but quickly returned to its clear, still state.

“Come now Soarin,” the Mastermind said, sounding amused. “I asked for a demonstration, nothing more, there’s no animosity in that.”

Soarin frowned before turning his dial again. This time when the water rippled, it left an image of Soarin’s own face mirrored in the pool in front of him. Pinkie realised the first time he must have pointed the dial at the empty slot to avoid appearing antagonistic. Pinkie looked over to the right side of the court, at the now empty slot between Rarity and Cheese, where Filthy had been when she first arrived.

“Obviously we’d hate to exclude Filthy Rich from his own trial,” the Mastermind said, as if reading Pinkie’s mind.

As the words were spoken, Filthy’s circle lit up and something tall and narrow erupted through it. Once the stand was erected, a large rectangle warped into existence upon it, transforming into a large portrait of Filthy Rich’s face, much like an enlarged version of the portraits in their bedrooms. The only difference between that picture and this one, was the lack of colour in Filthy’s face, and the bloody red X drawn across it.

“There, now without further ado,” the Mastermind continued, “let the first trial commence.”

Trial 1: Filthy Rich

“So how do these trials work exactly?” Rainbow asked, speaking on behalf of most of the gathered ponies.

“We discuss the facts of the case,” Fleur answered, “present evidence, debate theories, and ultimately try to reach a conclusion.”

“I guess we should start with the obvious stuff,” Soarin said. “Filthy Rich was found, dead in the aviary this morning at around a quarter past ten.”

“So he must have died earlier that morning, right?” Cheese asked.

“Wrong,” Pinkie interrupted. “Forgetting the smell from his body, the killer would never have found the time to do it this morning as the search started not long after we were all getting up.”

“Oh yeah, sorry,” Cheese said, laughing nervously.

“No need to apologise Cheese,” Pinkie insisted.

“Alright, so the next point is where the murder took place,” Soarin continued. “Pinkie already pointed out it couldn’t have happened in the tower itself.”

“No, because there was no blood right?” Derpy said.

“That’s right,” Pinkie agreed.

“So then where did it occur?” Applejack asked. “We must have searched this place top to bottom, and ah know ah didn’t find any blood.”

“Actually,” Maud entered, “I believe the murder happened at the foot of the spiral staircase outside the chapel.”

“Now how do you figure that?” Fleetfoot asked. “I went by that area, and there wasn’t a speck of blood.”

“That’s because the killer washed up after themselves,” Maud explained. “The smell of soap is obvious, but then the floor around the foot of the stairs is much cleaner looking than the rest of the corridor.”

“That would make sense,” Pinkie added, “Because as Shining pointed out, the bag Filthy was hidden inside was one of the coal bags. The coal was being kept in a storeroom not far from that very staircase. That way the killer wouldn’t have had to go far to obtain the bag, as well as then hiding the body, as the aviary is one staircase away from the chapel.”

“So it’s safe to assume that the victim was killed last night in that area,” Fleur concluded. “That doesn’t however; tell us who could have been responsible.”

No it doesn’t, but could this…

Pinkie pulled the newspaper clipping from her bag and set it on the banister in front of her, straining her mind to figure out how that body she found as a filly factored into any of this.

“What about the murder weapon?” Shining asked, “I haven’t heard any mention of that.”

“Well we figured some blunt tool must have been used,” Soarin explained, “but we couldn’t find anything.”

“The killer could have easily disposed of something like that though,” Spitfire pointed out. “They could have dropped it down the central chamber, left it on the battlements, heck they could have thrown it into the labyrinth.”

“That seems surprisingly diligent for the same pony who tried to hide a corpse only a few rooms from the murder scene,” Octavia pointed out. “You’d think they could have done any of those things with the body and avoided this whole thing.”

“Yes, but if the body isn’t discovered then they don’t have a chance of winning the game,” Fleur reminded her, “and why would they go to the trouble of killing if not to that end?”

“You shouldn’t think so monocausal,” Octavia reprimanded. “Ponies are complex beings, there’s no guarantee any of this was done as part of the game.”

“And what’s that supposed to mean?” Shining demanded.

“Look lady, if you know something we don’t, then you’d better spill the beans,” Fleetfoot threatened.

“Or what?” Octavia asked calmly. “You’ll come over here and make me spill them? Except you can’t, because you’re trapped in that little circle.”

“Octavia…” Spitfire began, in a warning tone.

“I have every faith you can get to the bottom of this,” Octavia said smoothly. “Think about the victim, who would have had cause to bring him harm.”

“Applejack,” Derpy said quickly, before slapping her hooves to her mouth, horrified with herself.

“Derpy!” Applejack exclaimed.

“That’s actually a good point,” Fleetfoot said slyly. “If Filthy really did kick the bucket last night, it can’t have been that long after you two argued. If I recall you were pretty touchy when he mentioned your gran.”

“Watch it!” Applejack warned. “The Apples and the Richs have been close friends for generations. Now me and Filthy may have had ourselves some disagreements, but ah would never raise a hoof to cause him or anypony else harm.”

“I can vouch for that,” Rarity agreed haughtily. “You’d be hard pressed to find a pony more honourable than Applejack, you on the other hoof Fleetfoot…”

“Are you implying something?” Fleetfoot said in an icy voice.

“That’s enough girls,” Pinkie interrupted. “We’re getting off track; we need more facts before we can make any kind of accusation.”

“Well none of this changes the fact that we don’t have a murder weapon!” Fleetfoot snapped.

“Actually…” Maud began, causing everypony to turn and look at her. “I may have found something.”

She held up her hoof, a small object resting in it.

“A rock?” Fluttershy said, confused.

“Of course it is,” Rainbow muttered.

“Actually,” Maud continued, “this stone was broken from the bottom step of the same spiral staircase we believe to be the murder scene.”

“So you think the killer broke the step and used it to kill Filthy Rich?” Cheese queried.

“No, but I’m saying it is possible that the killer pushed the victim down the stairs, and he cracked his skull on the step,” Maud elaborated. “Therefor there wouldn’t be a murder weapon to find.”

“Hang on,” Shining interrupted, “what’s to say that step wasn’t already chipped, this castle is pretty old?”

Hang on…

“Actually Shining,” Pinkie began, “I noticed something yesterday while in the central room. Despite how old and dirty this castle seems, all of the walls and floors are in perfect condition, not a single one chipped or broken.”

“Which would indicate that this was broken since we arrived here,” Maud finished.

“Well done Maud,” Fleur praised.

“Yes, well done,” Fleetfoot said sarcastically. “Filthy Rich died from falling down the stairs. Now how does that tell us who pushed him?”

“Or that anyone pushed him?” Fluttershy added hopefully. “This whole thing might have been once big accident.”

“But then why hide the body,” Soarin reminded her, causing Fluttershy to droop slightly.

“As for how does that tell us who the killer is,” Pinkie picked up, “it doesn’t. We had hoped we could figure out who had taken the cleaning supplies, but as you yourself said, nopony came in this morning.”

“Wait cleaning supplies?” Fleetfoot repeated. “You never said anything about that.”

“What? Yes we did,” Pinkie insisted, indicating to Maud. “We both asked you.”

“No, you just asked if anypony had come in while I was there,” Fleetfoot said, taking off her saddlebags and fishing through them. “If you had bothered to tell me why, I could have told you I found these.”

Fleetfoot pulled a wash cloth, stained red, and a scrubbing brush caked in blood from her bag and showed them to everypony.

“What?” Pinkie said in disbelief. “Where did you find those?”

“In the library, just before you came to talk to me,” Fleetfoot answered. “Somepony stashed them behind a bookshelf.”

“And you didn’t think to tell us this until now?!” Rainbow demanded, sounding furious.

“I didn’t think it was relevant.”

“How is blood soaked cleaning supplies not relevant to a murder investigation?” Spitfire asked frustrated.

“Am ah the only one who’s beginnin’ to get an idea of who the killer is?” Applejack asked bitterly.

“You think I did this?!” Fleetfoot demanded.

“It’s like you said, nopony else was in the wash room this morning,” Shining pointed out. “And yet you manage to produce this piece of evidence you’ve been hiding up until now.”

“If I was the killer, why would I show you this at all?” Fleetfoot asked, giving Shining a deadpan look. “And I already told Pinkie, I was barely in the wash room this morning. Anypony could have come in after I’d left.”

“Plus Fleetfoot was in the study all of last night,” Fleur added. “So she couldn’t have committed the crime when we suspect it occurred.”

“Thank you,” Fleetfoot said, sounding exhausted. “Finally, somepony who sees sense.”

“So…” Derpy began suddenly. “Who is the killer?”

Everypony stood silent.

So the murder occurred last night, the killer pushed Filthy Rich down the stairs where he cracked his skull. They then got a coal bag from the store room and moved his body to the aviary. The cleaning up of the crime scene had been done recently, so they must have forgotten about it until this morning. So they probably did it while we were searching for him. They then went to the library to hide the cleaning supplies, which means…

“Applejack…” Pinkie began suddenly, drawing everypony’s attention.

“Yeah?” Applejack answered curiously.

“When you and I split up this morning,” Pinkie continued, “just before we found the body, you headed to library. Who else was in there at that time?”

Applejack put a hoof to her chin and pondered the question.

“Ah don’t rightly know off the top of my head,” she admitted. “Oh, Rarity was definitely there, ‘cause ah was talking with her just as we got the announcement. Other than that, I’m pretty sure Spitfire and Derpy were both there.”

“Alright, thank you Applejack,” Pinkie said slowly.

“Pinkie dear,” Rarity chipped in, “what ever are you getting at?”

Pinkie didn’t answer, appearing deep in thought.

It feels like I’ve got all the pieces, I just don’t know how they fit together yet. Is there something I’m missing? Something obvious…

Pinkie’s head snapped up, her eyes wide as realisation hit her.

Bingo!

“I think I know who the murderer is,” she announced.

Everypony began either muttering or staring in surprise at her as she reached into her saddlebag, pulling out a key.

“This is the key to the door of the aviary,” Pinkie explained. “I used it to lock the aviary yesterday after looking inside for the first time. I never unlocked it until we went and discovered the body.”

“But, if the door was locked,” Maud began, “how did the killer move the body there?”

“There is one other way into that tower,” Pinkie continued, “a Pegasus door. Now I’m sure I know who the killer is…

“Spitfire!”

“Wait, what?!” Spitfire exclaimed, jumping slightly in surprise.

“Spitfire?!” Soarin shouted. “Pinkie, that’s ridiculous.”

“We know only a Pegasus could have left that body there,” Pinkie said, “and that the killer handled the coal bag. After Shining searched the store room, he was covered in soot. Well I remember this morning, Spitfire made an offhand comment about her flight suit getting dirty. She was of course referring to the black soot stains on her legs.”

Everypony looked, even as Spitfire tried to subtly position her legs behind the banisters. The black stains against the blue where clear as day.

“And the killer was likely in the library this morning to stash the cleaning supplies they’d just used to clean up the crime scene,” Pinkie continued. “According to Applejack, there were only two pegasi in the library at that time, Spitfire and Derpy. But Derpy couldn’t have done this, because as she told us all on the first day, she has trouble flying at high altitudes, I doubt she would have been able to fly up to that pegasus door while carrying the body of a fully grown stallion. A trained athlete on the other hoof…”

“Hey now,” Spitfire tried to say, “You’ve got this all wrong. I have no idea where these stains came from, but I’ve never been in that store room.”

“Oh really,” a cool voice said, “then how do you explain this?”

Everypony looked over to Octavia who was holding out a yellow feather for the world to see. Spitfire began mouthing like a fish out of water.

“I recognised where that bag came from as soon as I’d seen it,” Octavia explained, “and so I went straight to the store after Pinkie had dismissed us. Care to explain how your feather ended up there if, like you say, you’ve never been in that store room.”

Spitfire stood stalk still, her eyes wide, her mouth hanging open slightly. Pinkie thought she was going to break down, but then her body sagged, her eyes shut and she let out a long sigh.

“I did it,” she muttered.

“What?” Soarin said in disbelief. “Spitfire no, you’re talking crazy, you couldn’t have done this, you wouldn’t…”

“I did,” Spitfire said, louder and clearer this time. “But I didn’t mean to.”

“He black mailed you,” Pinkie said without thinking, the final piece clicking into place as she flipped the news article over to the story about the Wonderbolt retiring.

Spitfire looked surprised and slightly panicked, but nodded none the less.

“Applejack, you said yesterday how he was having money problems,” Pinkie said.

“Yeah,” Applejack said, her voice sounding dry. “His business was hittin’ hard times.”

“But he overheard something,” Pinkie said, looking back to Spitfire. “At that first dinner in the banquet hall, he arrived shortly after you two.”

“I caught up with Fleetfoot outside the washrooms,” Spitfire explained. “We had an argument and she… brought up some stuff. We stopped as soon as Dash came and found us, but I guess he overheard everything he needed to hear.”

“I don’t understand,” Soarin said, his voice sounding weak. “What did he hear? What…”

Soarin drifted off as Spitfire looked him straight in the eye. Rainbow Dash was looking back and forth between them. Pinkie just stared on, remembering a conversation she’s had with Soarin so long ago.

She must be worried about you…

Probably, god I hope I see her again someday…

Sounds like somepony has a crush…

Pinkie, don’t say that. She’s like a sister to me…

Looking down at the article about the Wonderbolt love affair, it all suddenly made a lot more sense.

“I’d only ever told Fleetfoot,” Spitfire said. “Despite her attitude, she’s still my friend and I knew I could trust her with it. But when Filthy Rich approached me about it, I panicked. I tried to stop him walking away, but he must have thought I was attacking him because he leapt away from me and… fell.”

Spitfire was now leaning on the banister in front of her, her shoulders shaking slightly. Soarin was watching in utter disbelief.

“I didn’t want to hurt him,” Spitfire said, her voice trembling now. “Even if he told somepony, I wasn’t going to harm him over it. But now he’s dead, and I’m responsible.”

Spitfire stood up and looked over at the statue of Celestia.

“I can’t even say I did it to save the princesses I’d sworn to protect,” she said, her voice heavy with disgust now. “And yet when he was discovered, I remained silent, I put everypony here at risk because I was afraid to admit to my mistake. I’m so sorry.”

“I just don’t understand,” Soarin said. “Why did you never tell me?”

“You always said I was like a sister to you,” Spitfire said miserably. “I knew you didn’t see me that way, but so long as I never asked, I could continue living with the belief that just maybe, you did.”

Soarin never answered, he couldn’t seem to find the strength to look up anymore. Spitfire turned to Rainbow Dash who was looking completely at a loss of how to feel.

“And I’m sorry I never told you Rainbow,” she said, “You both deserved to know the truth. Just… promise me you won’t take him for granted.”

Rainbow opened her mouth, but seemed to decide against whatever she had been about to say, instead settling for a small nod. Finally Spitfire looked over to Pinkie.

“I killed Filthy Rich,” she said, her voice clear. “Now what happens?”

“Now,” the Mastermind said suddenly. “Now everypony must cast their vote, should be easy since the killer has confessed.”

“But,” Fluttershy began, horrified. “It was an accident. You heard her, it was an accident.”

“Yes, I heard her,” the Mastermind agreed, “I also saw her carry out the act so I know she isn’t lying. However, this changes nothing. Cast your votes.”

“No!” Soarin shouted out, “I won’t sentence my best friend to die! I’ll take her place if I have to!”

“Soarin, don’t be stupid!” Spitfire snapped at him. “I made my mistake, if anyone is going to pay the price for it, it will be me. Now I need you to stay and help get everypony else out of here, help them and help the princesses, that is an order.”

Soarin didn’t reply, his whole body was shaking. Spitfire looked over to Pinkie.

“I’ll be honest Pinkie Pie,” she said. “When Soarin told me you were the one who saved him, I didn’t believe him for a moment. But now I do, now I know if anypony can get everypony out of here, it’s you.”

“I will,” Pinkie assured her.

Spitfire gave her one final nod, and Pinkie turned her dial to Spitfire. One by one, ponies began following suit, none of them looking in the least bit happy about doing so. Finally, only Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Soarin and Fleetfoot remained. Fleetfoot looked over at Spitfire, an unreadable expression on her face.

“It’s been an honour captain,” she said, her voice measured as if to avoid showing any emotion.

Fleetfoot turned her dial. Now only three remained.

“You have to do it,” Spitfire told them, but none of them moved.

Sighing, she turned her own dial. The pool was now swimming with images of Spitfire’s face.

“I think we have a clear majority anyway,” Spitfire announced.

“I suppose you do,” the Mastermind stated, sounding a little put off. “Alright, now that the votes are in, it’s time to reveal the culprit.”

The pool rippled and cleared the images of Spitfire’s face, leaving two clock hands identical to the ones of the clock over the gate, both pointing at the blank circle opposite Pinkie Pie. Slowly they began moving in opposite directions from one another, the minute hand rotating clockwise, the hour hand rotating anticlockwise. The hands rapidly began to pick up speed until they were spinning blurs in the water. Finally, after what Pinkie assumed was an intentionally long time, they began to slow down.

The hands passed by Applejack and Octavia, coming to rest together in front of Spitfire. There was no victorious fanfare this time, just the Mastermind’s smug commentary.

“Congratulations, you correctly identified Filthy Rich’s murderer,” The Mastermind said, like there had been some final doubt on the matter. “Spitfire, you are hereby sentenced to death!”

“No!” Soarin shouted one last time, but it was too late.

The runes beneath Spitfire flashed once and the floor gave out under her, leaving her to fall into the black abyss below.

“At… at least it’s over,” Derpy said weakly.

“It’s not over yet,” Pinkie said coldly, everypony but Soarin turning to look at her.

As expected, the pool rippled, the clock hands fading away, it their place the image of a mound of random wooden debris, with a single stake jutting up through the centre, Spitfire tied to it. Fluttershy gasped, and she wasn’t the only one to cry out in horror at what they were seeing. Pinkie simply watched on, fully aware that it was out of her hooves.

It all began with a single, tiny spark falling into the base of the wood pile, then the structure went up like the sun. Flames engulfed the piles of junk, the barrels and crates, the pallets and planks, all of it was swallowed up by the fire as it climbed higher towards Spitfire, devouring everything in its wake, chewing it up and spitting it out as ash and cinder.

Spitfire struggled against her bindings, but it was hopeless, the fire didn’t give her a chance before reaching the stake and licking at her hooves. Spitfire yelled out in pain as her flightsuit began melting from her, her coat singing and burning away, leaving raw, scorched flesh beneath which only bubbled black and charred. Spitfire was now screaming in agony as the flames enveloped her whole body.

The ropes eventually snapped off her, falling into the pile below, but it was too late for Spitfire. All that was left of her legs were ash and embers, her wings merely scorched husks of their former glory, she hadn’t a hope of escaping as she too fell onto the pile of flaming wood. It was only as her face began peeling from her skull that her screams finally died away, leaving a silent, unmoving carcass upon the stack. Pinkie watched until the blackened body was lost to the fire and smoke, until the pool rippled and there was no more.

Pinkie looked around at the others. Fleur and Octavia both stood with their eyes closed, appearing unphased by what had transpired. Shining Armour and Fleetfoot looked hollowed out. Maud bowed her head. Applejack was shaking where she stood, her eyes refusing to believe what they had just witnessed. Rarity was bent away, as if throwing up. Derpy sniffled while Fluttershy sobbed openly. Cheese Sandwich looked deeply shaken, shaking his head as if trying to wake himself up. Soarin had collapsed in a heap; Pinkie was unable to see his face. Rainbow Dash just stood, staring into space.

Suddenly, all the banisters retracted into the ground, the runes ceased glowing, and they were free to leave, but nopony moved. After several long drawn out minutes, Pinkie finally found the ability to move her legs. Stepping away from her circle, she began making her way along, past Derpy and Shining Armour until she was standing behind Soarin. She placed a hoof on his shoulder to which he didn’t react.

“I’m sorry,” Pinkie murmured, so quietly he might not have even heard her.

Lifting her hoof, Pinkie walked past Soarin to where Fluttershy was still crying. Leaning down she put a hoof around Fluttershy’s shoulder, encouraging her to stand up. Reluctantly, Fluttershy obeyed, and allowed Pinkie to lead her away from the others into the castle.

Author's Note

Here we have it, the first trial, the first execution.
So firstly thanks to everyone who proposed theories, however only one person was in fact correct. Well done to ClickClackTheBrony for correctly guessing the culprit as well as noticing certain details like the soot stained flightsuit and how only a pegasus could have entered the aviary.
Hope you're all enjoying it so far, the first part of chapter 2 will be released on Tuesday.

C2: Tipping The Scales

Day 6, 12:05

Pinkie examined the splattered remains of Cheese Sandwich closely, the others gathered around, wearing mixed looks of revulsion and morbid curiosity. Not being able to attain anything more from the corpse, Pinkie stood up and turned to the others.

“Well it’s safe to assume that this happened sometime this morning,” she began. “The body looks fresh, and I was talking to Cheese shortly before bed anyway.”

“He wasn’t at breakfast,” Applejack pointed out. “Early or late, ah never saw him.”

“If we knew exactly when he died, we could rule out some ponies,” Fleur mentioned.

“Well I wouldn’t know how to begin figuring that out,” Pinkie said, craning her neck and looking up at the castle. “He must have been on the battlements outside the observatory; they’re the only ones non-flyers can access.”

“I’ll take a look,” Rainbow offered, rocketing into the sky.

“This is probably as simple as somepony lured him up there and pushed him off the edge,” Rarity suggested.

“I suppose, which doesn’t give us a lot to work with,” Pinkie added, as Rainbow fluttered back down.

“Well those battlements are right above here, and the door to the observatory is left open,” she reported.

“Alright then, Rainbow, you and the other pegasi get on up there and start examining the area,” Pinkie instructed. “I’ll go the long way up and check Cheese’s room while I’m at it.”

Rainbow saluted and her and the others took off, leaving Pinkie with the other earth bound members of her group.

“Shining and Applejack,” Pinkie said addressing them. “Can I leave the body with you? Search his clothes and bags, the usual.”

Applejack nodded, leaning down beside the body along with Shining who still looked queasy.

“The rest of us will head up to the observatory and check his room on the way,” Pinkie finished, looking over to Maud, Rarity, Octavia and Fleur.

Day 6, 12:27

Entering the residence tower was always a bizarre contrast with its bright dancing lights and soft carpeted floor. Following her map, Pinkie led them up the inclined hallway to one of the various indistinct doors which her map indicating to belong to Cheese. Without hesitating, Pinkie turned the handle and stepped on inside. The room was messier than any of the others Pinkie had seen, with the exception of Filthy Rich’s after they had turned it upside down. The bed was unmade, the curtains were ruffled and doors and drawers were left slightly ajar.

Rarity shuddered at the sight of such imperfection. Not being the least bit disturbed by a slightly untidy room, Pinkie went ahead and sat down at the desk while the others moved throughout the room in their own searches. Pinkie had been a bit wary upon agreeing to let Cheese help with the researching the day before, but he had taken his responsibility better than Pinkie had expected, indeed his desk was covered in books he had taken with him from the library.

Shifting through each of the history books, barley paying them any great degree of attention, Pinkie noticed a sudden flash of colour amidst all the dreary brown and forest green covers. Sliding one book aside, she revealed a brightly coloured square of paper. The paper was thin and flimsy, in the centre was a message written in big, multi-coloured letters.

Dear Cheese Sandwitch.

You are invited to a party in the observatory right now, please hurry.

Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie scowled at the party invitation. Somepony had used this to lure Cheese to the place of his demise, and they had made out that it was from herself. A small part of her was insulted just by how childish the invitation was, with its crooked letters, and crayon shaded background, that the killer actually thought this is what Pinkie’s party invitations looked like.

“What’s that?” Maud asked from behind Pinkie.

“Somepony must have slipped this under his door,” Pinkie said, passing it to her sister.

“What makes you say that?” Maud asked, “They might have handed it to him in person.”

“Maybe, but I think it more likely they did it anonymously so they could go on ahead and wait in ambush for him.”

“So he would have seen it when he woke up, and gone straight there,” Maud summarised. “That explains why he wasn’t at breakfast. If we knew when he got up we might be able to deduce the killer just by looking at who else was missing at that time.”

“It would be good to know,” Pinkie agreed, turning to the other. “Anything else?”

“I’ve found nothing,” Fleur called over, holding the mattress up in her hooves.

“Right, well let’s just head on,” Pinkie said, standing up from the desk chair. “I’ve already found something of interest.”

Day 6, 13:10

“And so, while there isn’t a strong wind,” Rainbow Dash finished. “He still would have to have been pushed from this spot, to end up where he did.”

Pinkie nodded approvingly, peering down over the section of wall Dash had indicated.

“What I want to know,” Fleetfoot interjected, “is how the killer managed to get him so close to the wall. I know he wasn’t the brightest light bulb, but you’d think he’d realise something was up when he was asked to look over the edge.”

“It does sound ridiculous,” Pinkie agreed. “We’ll just have to keep looking, we might find some evidence explaining it.”

Pinkie looked past Rainbow and Fleetfoot to where Derpy and Soarin were still flapping about.

“Where’s Fluttershy?” Pinkie asked.

“She said she was going to take inventory in the infirmary,” Dash relayed. “I told her this took priority, but she seemed pretty insistent upon it.”

“Alright, I’m going to see if the others have found anything on the inside,” Pinkie said, leaving Dash and Fleetfoot to join up with the other two.

Walking back through the door that Dash had claimed was left open, Pinkie began making her way down the mesh ramp to where Rarity was pacing around with her head bent close to the ground, her horn glowing with a blue aura, and Octavia who stood examining the orrery once again.

“What’s that you’ve got goin’ on there?” Pinkie asked, walking alongside Rarity.

“Well, I’ve been adjusting my gem finding spell in the hopes that it could detect discrepancies in the environment,” Rarity explained, sounding pleased with herself. “I was originally hoping it would help with keeping the boutique tidy, but it might also come in handy here.”

“Neat, and how’s that working?” Pinkie asked, impressed with Rarity’s intuition.

“Not great I’m afraid,” Rarity said, her voice dampened greatly. “The spell still needs a lot of refinement, as it is I’m detecting disturbances at a microscopic level, which isn’t a lot of help to unless the Cheese was killed using bacteria.”

“Well, I think it’s safe to say that wasn’t the case,” Pinkie replied, thinking of the mulched remains outside.

“Indeed not,” Rarity agreed. “Still, I’m not going to be able to adjust the spell without putting it to practice. Although I’m no Twilight when it comes to magic, this I can manage.”

“Now that you mention it,” Pinkie said curiously. “I never used to think of you as the experimental type.”

“Spike has been giving me a few lessons,” Rarity replied, perking up slightly. “He’s actually quite the genius, but then he was Twilight’s assistant after all. Oh, I miss him so much; I hope he’s not too worried about me.”

“You said he was feeling under the weather,” Pinkie reminded her, “and that’s why he wasn’t at the Gala.”

“Yes, well,” Rarity began awkwardly. “He’s still having a hard time coping with what happened to Twilight. He always seemed to blame Princess Celestia for it; he would become terribly angry if she was even mentioned. I never really understood why until you told us how she’d lied to us about the circumstances surrounding what happened.”

“So you think Spike knew the truth?” Pinkie asked. “Shining didn’t.”

“I really don’t know,” Rarity answered, no longer focusing on casting her spell. “We didn’t talk about it much, and any time I did bring it up, it wouldn’t go well.”

“Well once we get out of here, everything can start to go back to normal,” Pinkie assured her. “Everypony can start to heal.”

Letting Rarity get back to her casting, Pinkie walked over to Octavia.

“Can this not wait until after the trial?” Pinkie asked, a little frustrated with Octavia’s obsession with the machines.

“Don’t you see?” Octavia asked simply, still staring at the orrery.

Pinkie was about to retort, but then followed Octavia’s gaze and quickly realised what she meant.

“It’s not moving,” Pinkie pointed out.

“Precisely,” Octavia stated. “And I know for a fact it was still moving last night before we went to bed.”

“So what’s made it stop?” Pinkie asked.

Octavia pointed to the floor. Beneath the orrery, a bowl shaped pit was embedded in the floor, containing all the gears and mechanical components. As Pinkie looked where Octavia was pointing, she saw a delicate metal frame, twisted and broken, and ultimately lodged inside the mechanism.

“Should we remove it?” Pinkie asked, figuring Octavia had a greater understanding of the orrery than her at this point.

“We shouldn’t,” Octavia specified, “but you could ask your friend to pull it out with magic.”

Pinkie returned to where Rarity was still searching and brought her back, where she tugged on the obstruction with her magic. Once it was wrenched free, the gears jittered for a moment before returning to their previous rhythm, starting the orrery rotating once more. Rarity tried to reshape the metal mess to the best of her abilities using her magic, and despite it still being near unrecognisable; she was able to offer a good guess as to what it might be.

“I believe this is one of the wheel chairs from the infirmary,” Rarity proposed.

“I dare say you’re correct,” Octavia agreed, examining it closely.

“Well this is a good lead,” Pinkie said. “I’ll head over there now and see if I can dig anything else up, maybe Fluttershy’s noticed something amiss.”

Day 6, 13:51

“Well nothing’s gone missing!” Fluttershy insisted, thrashing through sheets upon sheets of paper before pulling one up and thrusting it into Pinkie’s face. “See! I’ve kept lists and charts, nothing else has gone missing.”

“Fluttershy, it’s alright,” Pinkie insisted, pushing the chart aside. “Nopony expected a wheelchair to go missing, and I trust that nothing else has gone missing on your watch.”

Fluttershy relaxed, placing the paper down on what had essentially become her desk in the infirmary.

“Sorry, I was just afraid that my negligence might have been the cause of… of what happened to Cheese.”

“Only one pony is to blame for this, and that’s the killer,” Pinkie reminded her. “Now I’m going to go check in with the ones downstairs, if I need anything else I’ll check in with you.”

“Okay, be careful Pinkie,” Fluttershy murmured as Pinkie departed.

Once in the waiting room, Pinkie jogged down the staircase in the central chamber just in time to see Shining Armour starting up.

“I was just coming to find you,” Pinkie said, stopping midway. “Did you find anything on the body?”

“Not a thing,” Shining informed her. “I was just on my way up to see if anypony else needed help.”

“Head over to the observatory,” Pinkie instructed. “Rarity is using a spell to look for disturbances; maybe you can lend her an extra horn.”

“Sure thing,” Shining said, walking up past Pinkie before coming to a stop. “I wanted to apologise again for everything that happened yesterday. I’m not going to pretend I don’t have a problem, but that shouldn’t have to interfere with the rest of you. So I promise I’ll keep better control from here on out.”

“It’s alright Shining,” Pinkie replied softly. “I know this must be difficult, knowing Cadance is on the line.”

Neither pony said anything more, both just took their leave. Once at the bottom of the staircase, Pinkie left the central chamber and headed out towards the entrance hall. Descending the main staircase, she saw Fleur walking across the ground floor.

“Ah Pinkie, have you found anything else?” Fleur asked upon seeing her.

“Yeah, the killer stole a wheelchair from the infirmary,” Pinkie informed her.

“A wheelchair?” Fleur repeated, raising an eyebrow. “Whatever for?”

“We don’t know yet,” Pinkie admitted. “Have you seen Applejack?”

“I think she’s in the kitchen, I was just about to head that way myself.”

Pinkie nodded and together the pair left the entrance hall and headed towards the kitchen. Once they were within earshot of their destination, Pinkie could hear a great deal of clattering and swearing. Stepping through the doorway they found Applejack tidying up after a tornado had apparently hit the kitchen.

“What happened here?” Pinkie asked, her eyes wide.

“Like ah said,” Applejack began, disgruntled. “Those ones who were late to breakfast made a huge mess of this place, and it turns out they didn’t have the courtesy to tidy up after themselves. Look, ah know this ain’t a pressin’ matter right now, but could yah possible lend a hoof? We’d get it done a lot faster if we work together.”

Pinkie nodded and together all three of them went around clearing up the fallen pots and pans and wiping up various spills and stains. Pinkie was leaning down picking up a fork that had landed just beneath the stove, but as she reached under she spotted another object rolled to the far end. Reaching as far as she could, she tried to grasp hold of it, but her leg was too short. Pulling out she looked over to Fleur who was closing one of the cupboards.

“Fleur, there’s something underneath here, could you get it out for me?” Pinkie requested.

Fleur nodded and walked over, crouched down and reached under the oven with her much longer leg.

“Well, I meant use magic, but I guess that works too,” Pinkie said as Fleur began drawing her hoof out.

“Here we are, it’s…” Fleur stopped talking the moment she rolled the object into view, Pinkie’s eyes went wide.

Lying on the floor just in front of the oven, was a cracked syringe and needle.

“What in tarnation was that doin’ in mah kitchen?!” Applejack demanded, looking over Pinkie’s shoulder at the object.

“I have no idea,” Pinkie said, picking it up.

“It had to have come from the infirmary,” Fleur pointed out.

“I was just up there,” Pinkie pointed out. “I guess I’ll head back, something’s not right with Fluttershy’s charts.”

Day 6, 14:38

Pinkie walked briskly through the waiting room, not slowing down as she pushed through the infirmary doors, causing Fluttershy to give a little start from behind her desk.

“Oh Pinkie, what’s wrong?” Fluttershy asked, calming down when she saw who it was.

“We found this in the kitchen,” Pinkie said, holding out the syringe.

“No!” Fluttershy exclaimed. “Nothing went missing, I was sure of it!”

“Fluttershy, calm down,” Pinkie tried to say.

“Look, see,” Fluttershy said, gesturing to random numbers on random sheets of paper. “There is exactly the same number of needles now as there was when I first took inventory.”

“Then maybe it was taken before I assigned you here,” Pinkie reasoned. “Where are the needles kept?”

“Um,” Fluttershy began, calming down after Pinkie’s suggestion. “Over here I think…”

Pinkie followed Fluttershy over to one of the cabinets where she shifted a heavy text book to the side, lifting up the box beneath it. Fluttershy opened up the box; the needles weren’t stored in the safest fashion, simply chucked into the box and allowed to rattle around loosely.

“There’s no way you would know if they were all there before you first took stock,” Pinkie pointed out. “Still, we need to figure out what this syringe was used for.”

“Well there’s still some dark residue in it,” Fluttershy said, indicating to the thin brown sludge stuck to the insides of the syringe. “We just need to figure out what it is.”

Fluttershy took the syringe and walked over to a different cabinet where she began taking out various bottles. Meanwhile Pinkie looked down at the text book Fluttershy had moved to get at the syringes.

“Fluttershy, did you bring this here?” Pinkie asked.

“Hmm?” Fluttershy hummed, looking up at what Pinkie was talking about. “Oh no, it was already there.”

Pinkie nodded, picking up the book. It appeared to be a modern encyclopaedia on medicine and chemicals. Turning the book over so the spine was turned away from her, she noticed a slight disruption in the corner of one of the pages. Opening the book to that page, she found the corner dog-eared.

“Curare…” Pinkie read aloud.

“Curare?” Fluttershy repeated, looking up when she heard Pinkie speak.

“It’s a section marked in this book,” Pinkie explained. “Does it mean something to you?”

“Oh yes,” Fluttershy said eagerly. “That’s the poison found in certain species of tree frog.”

“Poison?” Pinkie repeated, surprised. “What does it do?”

“It’s a paralysis,” Fluttershy explained. “It’s also found in certain plant extracts.”

“And is there any in here?” Pinkie asked, setting the book down at the open page.

“Give me a second,” Fluttershy said, hurrying over to yet another section where she began rummaging through more bottles.

Pinkie looked down at the book once again while Fluttershy searched.

Causes weakness to skeletal muscles…

“Here we are,” Fluttershy announced, holding out a bottle of dark, heavy looking paste.

“Only in this game could we find a bottle of poison in the infirmary,” Pinkie said walking over to inspect the bottle.

“The bottle isn’t full, it’s possible some of the contents were taken,” Fluttershy pointed out.

“And does it match the stuff in the syringe?” Pinkie asked.

“I think so,” Fluttershy began. “I’ll take a closer look.”

“Alright, I’m going to go check on the others quickly,” Pinkie said as Fluttershy placed both the bottle and the syringe on her desk. “If I’m not back before the trial is called, be sure to bring both of those as evidence.”

“I will,” Fluttershy said as she began busying herself with her new task.

Pinkie entered the waiting room and set off for the observatory, a good idea of what had happened forming in her mind. However none of it told her who could be responsible. Entering the observatory she found Rarity, Shining and Maud gathered around a specific spot on the floor.

“Did you find something?” Pinkie asked, joining the circle.

“Well it’s not clear,” Rarity began. “But it would appear some kind of struggle took place here.”

“So the killer and the victim struggled with one another?” Pinkie concluded. “That would make sense; we found evidence pointing to the involvement of drugs.”

“So do you have any idea who’s responsible yet?” Shining asked.

“Not yet,” Pinkie admitted.

“I had a thought,” Maud said, pulling out the invitation that Pinkie had discovered in Cheese’s room. “Where did the killer get the crayons?”

“Well that was the weirdest sentence ever to walk in on,” a voice said behind them.

Pinkie turned to see Fleetfoot standing with the other three pegasi.

“There’s nothing more we can find out there,” Soarin explained.

“How are we gonna figure it out though?” Derpy asked in a despairing tone. “Anypony could have pushed him off the edge.”

“Well we think there’s more to it than just pushing,” Pinkie replied, hoping to raise Derpy’s spirits. “As for the crayon thing, I actually have no idea. They certainly aren’t the kind of thing you would just randomly come across in a castle of all places.”

“My thoughts exactly,” Maud agreed.

“Alright, can you guys fan out and search for crayons?” Pinkie asked the pegasi. “I can’t believe I just said that, but still.”

“Sure,” Rainbow said slowly, sounding unsure.

“I know it doesn’t seem like a promising lead but it’s all I’ve got for you right now.”

“That’s fine, we’ll get on it,” Soarin assured her.

The three Wonderbolts zoomed off, and Derpy trailed after them.

Day 6, 15:30

Pinkie trotted towards the kitchen, Maud at her side. It might have been seen as an invasion of privacy, but Pinkie didn’t have any intentions of telling the others they had just searched all the bedrooms. They hadn’t found a single crayon or any other piece of obscure evidence to the case; however Pinkie was given the perfect opportunity to search the sixteenth room. Up until this point she had ignored the empty slot in the courtyard, but as they searched the rooms she was reminded of it, and having no other leads, decided to take a peek.

The empty room was the first in the residence tower, the very lowest, and it was completely identical to every other room with the single exception of having no framed portrait of the owner on the bedside cabinet. Pinkie was satisfied to conclude that the Mastermind had simply included a sixteenth slot as part of some twisted homage to the last game.

“Maybe the pegasi had better luck,” Maud proposed.

Pinkie was about to open her mouth to reply, but was cut off when she heard somepony shouting for help. Wasting no time she broke into a gallop, Maud right behind her. Passing the kitchen she ran to the cellar door, which was closed tight, a pair of orange hooves wrapped around the bars on the other side.

“Applejack,” Pinkie said, running up to the door and seeing her friend on the other side.

“Pinkie, thank goodness,” Applejack said, sounding relieved. “Ah was beginning to think nopony would pass through this way.”

“What’s going on?” Maud asked trying the door which wouldn’t budge.

“The damn things locked!” Applejack exclaimed. “Ah was down here looking about, thinkin’ maybe I’d find something to do with the murder down here. Then ah heard the door slam and the lock click. Ah ran up but whoever it was already gone, heard ‘em running towards the entrance hall.”

“Can’t you force your way out?” Maud asked.

“Ah tried, believe me,” Applejack said in a furious tone. “Bucked the door hard enough to put it through that wall, instead got a shock which put me on my ass.”

“We’re aren’t allowed to force doors,” Pinkie muttered.

“Tell me about it,” Applejack said bitterly.

“Hold on,” Pinkie said, stepping back and raising her voice. “Mastermind! I know you’re watching this, let Applejack out.”

“Now what fun is there in that?” the Mastermind asked rhetorically.

“The trial is soon, and we all have to be present,” Pinkie reminded him. “So unless you let Applejack out, you’re going to have to rethink your rulebook.”

“Oh, clever as always Pinkie Pie,” the Mastermind said, sounding disgruntled as the lock clicked, allowing the door to swing open. “Never let it be said I don’t play fair.”

“Good thinkin’ Pinks,” Applejack sad gratefully as she stepped out into the hallway.

“Now why would somepony lock this door?” Maud queried. “Perhaps there is something down here they don’t want us to find.”

“You mean the killer has the key?” Pinkie asked.

“Most likely,” Maud responded. “Although I can’t imagine what’s down there that has anything to do with this case.”

“Well ah didn’t find anything,” Applejack said, placing the torch she had taken with her back in its bracket.

“How long have you been locked in there?” Pinkie asked.

“Oh, around…” Applejack began, scanning her memory. “Ten? Twenty minutes? Ah was in only there for about five minutes before ah got locked in though, but ah certainly didn’t find anything of relevance.”

“They probably didn’t know you were in there,” Maud offered. “Still, it’s probably better that you were, now we know exactly when they locked the door, and probably why too.”

“Find Soarin and the others,” Pinkie instructed. “One of them might have seen something.”

“Or been responsible,” Applejack added, still sounding annoyed.

Day 6, 14:03

Pinkie was alone in the study. Unable to find any of the pegasi or reunite with Applejack or her sister, she had retired here. Sitting down in her armchair she examined the map on her hoof computer.

Applejack says whoever it was, ran in the direction of the entrance hall, but they could have gone anywhere from there.

Sighing, she turned the screen of her computer off and turned her hoof over into a more comfortable position. As she did, she noticed a familiar indent in the casing. She thought back to when she first noticed it the morning after the first trial, how she immediately forgot about it once Fleur came in.

Maybe if I lodge a narrow object in there…

Looking around, Pinkie saw a quill lying discarded on the coffee table. Reaching out, she picked it up and angled it towards the tiny slot in her hoof computer. Pushing it in, she gave the quill a little wiggle, feeling it jam against something. Giving it another hard twist, the quill snapped, but she had succeeded.

Her hoof jerked out as two metal prongs snapped out from the metal casing, extended and folded into little hooks at the end. Pinkie stared in confusion at the alteration to her hoof gauntlet, twitching the muscles in her leg ever so slightly caused one of the prongs to retract slightly, snapping back out as soon as she relieved the tension.

“What on earth?” Pinkie muttered to herself.

“Attention everypony,” the Mastermind announced. “The next trial is about to begin, please make your way to the courtroom so that we may begin.”

Pinkie looked down at her hoof computer one last time. Whatever this was, it could wait. Reaching out, she pulled one of the prongs back, the other following suit on its own as she folded them back in. Once they clicked back into place, it was almost impossible to distinguish them from the rest of the casing.

Standing up, Pinkie turned her attention to the study door. She took a single deep breath, before setting off to the second trial.

Author's Note

So here we are, second trial in bound. As usual, theories are all welcome and correct guesses will be rewarded with a shout out in the next part's Author Notes.

C2: Balance Of Probabilities

Day 6, 14:10

Pinkie entered the entrance hall in time to see Rainbow Dash and Derpy walking down the main staircase.

“Sorry Pinkie,” Dash said upon seeing her. “But we couldn’t find anything.”

“That’s okay,” Pinkie said, trying to hide her disappointment. “We’ll just discuss the information we do have and maybe we’ll come up with something.”

“And if we can’t?” Derpy asked, sounding terrified of the prospect.

“Let’s not think about that right now,” Pinkie said, unable to stop herself from picturing them losing today.

Hearing more hoofsteps from behind them, the trio turned to see Octavia, Rarity and Fluttershy walking down to meet them.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t find anything more substantial with that spell Pinkie,” Rarity said apologetically, arriving on level ground with them.

“It’s alright, at least it confirms what I already think happened,” Pinkie replied, hoping to put a more positive spin on it.

“Shall we go?” Octavia asked the group. “We don’t want this trial running so late that we’re stuck out of our rooms after ten.”

“You must be feeling confident if you think it’ll last that long,” Rainbow commented as the group began walking towards the castle gates.

“I just prefer to prepare for any and all eventualities,” Octavia replied simply as they made their way into the courtyard where the others were already taking up position.

“Ah hope you’re ready to make a hat trick out of this,” Applejack said to Pinkie as she passed by.

“A hat trick is three successes AJ,” Rainbow Dash pointed out.

“Well then ah hope she’s working up to one,” Applejack retorted.

“The case is pretty bare bones right now,” Pinkie admitted stepping onto her own circle. “But as long as we think logically about it and work together, we should be able to figure it out.”

“Confident as ever Pinkie Pie,” the Mastermind stated as the runes at their hooves flashed into life, the banisters rising up in front of them, and the portraits of Filthy Rich, Spitfire and Cheese Sandwich all taking the place of their fallen friends.

“I’ve been wondering,” Shining began. “Why is there an empty space?”

Pinkie followed his gaze to the vacant circle opposite her; of course she never had told the others about the circumstances of the missing pony in the last game, as that might have led to some awkward questions regarding the Mastermind’s identity.

“If memory serves me right…” the Mastermind answered slowly, “I’m a stickler for even numbers.”

Pinkie’s eye twitched, remembering Twilight saying those exact words when the empty space was brought up in the last game.

You’re just mocking us; I promise you’ll regret that.

“It doesn’t matter,” Pinkie cut in, hoping to change the subject before the Mastermind could say anything more on the subject. “I already checked the sixteenth room and it was empty. It’s obviously not important.”

Of course Pinkie didn’t believe that for a second, but whatever she needed to say to keep the others focused on this trial.

“If you that’s what you believe Pinkie,” the Mastermind said casually. “Now, if there are no further questions to be addressed, I call this trial to order.”

Trial 2: Cheese Sandwich

“You know,” Derpy started, sounding a little sad, “I kind of feel sorry Cheese never got that party he wanted.”

“Oh please,” Fleetfoot snapped. “We had better things to than entertain his childish fantasies.”

“I’m still unsure how there is any more to this than ‘he was pushed off the edge’,” Rarity pointed out.

“Well for starters, we know he was lured up there using this party invitation,” Pinkie responded with. “Which we found, in his room, on his desk.”

“Well how did he come to get the invite?” Applejack asked. “Ah mean, did the killer hand it straight to him?”

“Probably not,” Pinkie argued. “For starters they tried to pretend it was from me, if they did in person they ran the risk of being asked questions and having their lie brought into suspicion.”

“Plus, they most likely delivered it this morning before he woke up,” Maud added. “It does say the party was ‘right now’. They probably banked on him going straight there, in which case they would needed to have gone there ahead of him to prepare.”

“Prepare for what?” Soarin asked bewildered. “How much preparation does it take to ask somebody to stand at the edge and push them off?”

“Actually, we found something that suggests Cheese was forced to the edge,” Pinkie pointed out, nodding to Fluttershy who produced the cracked syringe and half empty bottle of curare.

“Drugs?” Fleetfoot said in surprise.

“Earlier, Fleur, Applejack and I found that syringe discarded beneath the oven in the kitchen,” Pinkie explained. “After taking it to Fluttershy, we managed to determine that it had contained a substance called ‘curare’.”

“Um, that’s right,” Fluttershy confirmed quietly. “I compared the residue on the inside of the syringe to the contents of the bottle and, um, they matched up perfectly.”

“I’m confused,” Derpy said scratching her head. “What does curage do?”

“Curare,” Pinkie corrected her. “It’s a poison that causes paralysis and death in large enough quantities.”

“So the killer used this drug to paralyse Cheese,” Rainbow summarised, “then pushed him off the battlements?”

“But why go to that length at all?” Shining asked. “If Cheese was already on the battlements, it would have been just as easy to give him a strong push, but if the killer drugged him in the observatory they would have had to carry him to the battlements. I know Cheese was a skinny guy, but that still would have been tough for anypony to pull off.”

“Well we do have a number of strong ponies here,” Soarin pointed out. “I mean you and Applejack especially; it was you two who raised that gate after all.”

“Actually, I don’t believe strength factors into it,” Pinkie argued. “For starters, I’m certain the killer drugged Cheese in the observatory as Rarity’s spell managed to detect what looked like a struggle there. Even if the killer injected Cheese from behind, he still would have reacted before the paralysis kicked in.”

“As for how the killer got him to the battlements,” Octavia said, taking over. “Pinkie and I managed to find a wheelchair jammed in the mechanism of the orrery. It is probable that the killer intended the drug to kill Cheese, but when it became apparent they hadn’t used a large enough dose, they retrieved a wheelchair from the Infirmary. As there is both ramps leading to the observatory and the battlements, it would have been easy for anypony to transport the paralysed Cheese to the battlements and tip him over the edge.”

“But then why dispose of the wheelchair in the orrery?” Fleur asked. “It would have been far easier and less detectable to return it to the infirmary.”

“It must have been an accident,” Pinkie suggested. “They may have been panicking after what they did, weren’t paying attention and dropped it into the gears.”

“Now are we sure the wheelchair was used?” Fleetfoot asked. “And it wasn’t dropped in there by Armour during his drunken raid?”

Shining Armour scowled but didn’t bite back.

“It was definitely done this morning,” Octavia confirmed. “It caused the orrery to stop functioning, and it was definitely moving last night before I retired to my room.”

“What I want to know is how a syringe full of curare went missing from the infirmary?” Fleur asked, looking to Pinkie. “Didn’t you assign someone to manage inventory there?”

Fluttershy shrunk slightly where she stood.

“Yes, but we believe the materials were taken before I assigned Fluttershy to the infirmary,” Pinkie stated.

“So in conclusion,” Maud said. “The killer stole a syringe full of curare sometime between the discovery of the infirmary and Fluttershy being assigned there. They then planted a party invitation this morning, most likely sliding it under his door. They waited for him in the observatory, and injected him with the drug when he arrived. Once he did not die, they obtained a wheelchair and used it to transport him to the battlements where they tipped him off. Finally, upon their escape, they accidentally dropped the wheelchair into the orrery, causing it to break.”

“That’s all correct so far,” Pinkie said nodding.

“What ah want to know is where me gettin’ locked in that cellar comes into this!” Applejack exclaimed.

“Uh, what now?” Rainbow asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Not long before the trial, ah was searching the cellar for clues,” Applejack explained, “when some varmint locked me in.”

“How awful!” Rarity exclaimed, shuddering.

“Hang on, what’s the cellar got to do with any of this?” Shining asked, bewildered.

“I’m not sure, but clearly somepony didn’t want us snooping around down there,” Pinkie pointed out.

“Well did you find anything down there?” Rarity asked.

“Nothing since me and Pinkie first looked down there,” Applejack began before seeming to remember something. “Hey Pinkie, what about those colours on the table?”

“Uh, colours?” Derpy repeated, raising an eyebrow at Pinkie.

“Huh,” Pinkie said, tapping her chin. “I hadn’t thought about those.”

She then looked down at the part invitation.

“Wait a second!” she exclaimed, holding it up. “Maybe that’s where the killer made this.”

“So the crayons are down in the cellar,” Soarin finished.

Maybe, but why would there be crayons in a cellar? All there was down there was…

“It’s so obvious,” Pinkie said, mentally kicking herself for not having seen it sooner. “The wine bottles?”

“Uh, what about them?” Shining asked, still sounding embarrassed.

“The wax seals around the corks,” Pinkie pointed out. “Crayons are made of coloured wax.”

“Oh,” everypony said in unison.

“Well that solves one mystery,” Fleetfoot said, “but it doesn’t explain who did it.”

“Maybe Shining Armour,” Fleur proposed.

“Hey!” Shining Armour exclaimed.

“We already know he was in that cellar playing around with wine bottles,” Fleur continued, paying him no heed. “And with his wife encased in stone over there, he has more reason that most of us to want to win this game.”

“I don’t think that’s possible,” Fluttershy chipped in. “Shining was in no state this morning to carry out the murder.”

“Thank you Fluttershy,” Shining said gratefully.

“Plus I don’t believe a unicorn was responsible for this,” Octavia added.

“Why?” Rarity asked. “Not that I’m complaining, but still.”

“It’s like Fleur said,” Octavia continued. “They would never intentionally put the wheelchair in the orrery, it would be too easy to find. So we can assume dropping it down there was an accident, but as Rarity proved, a unicorn could remove it safely using magic without getting too close to the gears.”

“There’s still the panic aspect,” Pinkie reminded her. “But I do agree, it is unlikely that a unicorn was responsible, particularly since we can rule out Shining Armour for his health, and Fleur was present at breakfast this morning when the murder must have taken place.”

“But that doesn’t leave an alibi for Rarity,” Applejack pointed out. “Or any of the ponies who were late to breakfast.”

“Well I was with Rainbow all morning,” Soarin chipped in. “So I can vouch for her.”

“Right so that just leaves Rarity, Octavia, Fleetfoot, Derpy, and Fluttershy,” Applejack summed up. “Shining as well, but you’ve already excused him. Although ah haven’t for that mess he helped create this morning.”

Applejack shot Shining Armour and few others glares and they shifted uncomfortably.

“Oh lighten up,” Fleetfoot said, not reacting to Applejack’s look. “It was an accident; I mostly blame Derpy for it.”

“Alright then, where were you all this morning?” Pinkie asked. “Why were you all late to breakfast?”

“Exercises,” Fleetfoot answered simply. “Pegasi need to fly around, bad for their wings otherwise.”

Pinkie looked over to Rainbow who nodded in agreement.

“Where were you flying?” Pinkie asked.

“Outside, over the town,” Fleetfoot answered.

“And you never saw anything on the battlements?” Pinkie asked.

“Course not,” Fleetfoot replied. “On the off chance I happened to be looking at the right place at the exact time, I was still too far away to have seen anything. Plus I would have told you if I had.”

“Really?” Rarity asked. “Because you didn’t mention those cleaning supplies last time.”

“Are you still going on about that?” Fleetfoot asked exasperated. “I told you, I didn’t think they were relevant.”

“However that was possible,” Rarity muttered sarcastically.

“In conclusion,” Fleetfoot said, gritting her teeth. “No, I didn’t see anything.”

“Alright, what about the rest of you?” Pinkie asked, looking to the remaining four.

“Well, I was sleeping,” Rarity said. “I was still having trouble getting any sleep at night, and I figured you wouldn’t object to me lying in for a few extra hours after what you said yesterday.”

“Me too,” Derpy chipped in. “I stayed up most of the night reading the books Fleur picked out for me.”

Pinkie looked over to Fleur.

“She was having trouble finding relevant research topics,” Fleur said shrugging. “Before I came over she was ready about botany.”

“I was in the library this morning,” Octavia stated when Pinkie looked in her direction. “I needed to compare the notes I had made last night.”

“What exactly are you researching again?” Soarin asked, quirking an eyebrow.

“Time and space,” Octavia answered as casually as if she were saying what cereal she had this morning.

“Oh, and nice light topic then,” Soarin said sarcastically.

“That isn’t really important right now,” Pinkie interrupted. “What about you Fluttershy? Why were you late?”

“Me?” Fluttershy said, surprised at being put on the spot so suddenly. “I was just getting washed up, you know, showering.”

“Washed up?” Maud repeated. “But I saw you showering last night.”

“Oh, well my room was particularly stuffy last night,” Fluttershy said, not meeting Maud’s eye. “Very sweaty.”

Pinkie frowned, Fluttershy didn’t sound like she was being honest, but then she could just be nervous what with everypony looking at her and asking her questions.

“Alright, so Rarity and Derpy were sleeping in,” Pinkie wrapped up. “Fleetfoot was doing morning exercises, Octavia was researching, and Fluttershy was washing. And you were all late to breakfast and caused this mess Applejack mentioned?”

“Not me,” Octavia specified. “I never went to breakfast; I have no idea what happened.”

“Well we were all there,” Fleetfoot confirmed.

“Ah told ‘em they would have to make up their own food,” Applejack chipped in. “As ah wasn’t stickin’ about. Then not five minutes later, they managed to turn the whole place upside down.”

“Well Fluttershy and I were outside talking when this happened,” Rarity pointed out. “We only came in when we heard all the noise.”

“It was my fault,” Derpy admitted sadly. “I stumbled and fell into the stack pots that were sitting by the sink for washing.”

“There was a lot more than just a few pots knocked over,” Pinkie commented, remembering the mess her and Fleur had walked in on.

“I may have got startled by the noise and freaked out a bit,” Derpy continued, looking down at her hooves.

“Okay, so now we know who messed up the kitchen,” Rainbow said. “Maybe we should get back to the murder case now.”

“Actually we never left it,” Pinkie informed her, to the surprise of most of the ponies gathered. “Like I said, I found the syringe under the oven. It is my belief that it was hidden under there during this incident.”

“Oh, so it was one of them,” Fleur said, indicating the ponies who had just been talking. “Now we’re getting somewhere.”

“Well it wasn’t me,” Fleetfoot insisted.

“Or me,” Derpy chipped in.

“Well I certainly di…” Rarity began, only to be cut off by Pinkie.

“Alright, we get it, you’re all going to deny it,” she said deciding to skip to the end.

“So how will we figure it out then?” Maud asked.

“You know what I don’t understand,” Derpy said suddenly. “Why didn’t Cheese just use his magic to avoid being killed?”

“His magic?” Octavia asked, quirking an eyebrow at Derpy.

“Yeah his magic,” Derpy insisted, oblivious to what was wrong with this question.

“Derpy, Cheese didn’t have magic,” Shining explained. “He was an earth pony.”

“Then why was he called a witch?” Derpy asked, confused.

Pinkie’s ear twitched.

“Who calls him a witch?” Fluttershy asked.

“He did,” Derpy insisted. “He said he was Cheese the sand witch.”

“Wait, you thought his name was sand witch?” Rainbow asked, bursting into laughter. “It’s sandwich, you know, like what you eat.”

“Oh,” Derpy said in sudden realisation, before her eyes became wide in horror.

“Slipped up a little there,” Pinkie said quietly.

Everypony turned to her, to see her looking at Derpy with narrowed eyes.

“What do you…” Derpy began, her voice slightly higher than usual.

“Fleur,” Pinkie interrupted. “You said Derpy was reading about Botany. Was the book called ‘Natural Remedies and Medicinal Plants’ by any chance?”

“That… does ring a bell,” Fleur admitted.

“Then I think I know who the killer is,” Pinkie said, standing up straight.

“Derpy!”

There were a few gasps, some exclamations of surprise and confusion, and amidst it all, Derpy’s eye twitched.

“You see, Fluttershy told me something interesting about the poison Curare,” Pinkie began. “It’s found in certain animals, but also in certain plant extracts. Therefore it’s the kind of thing one would find listed in a book about natural medicines, the same book Fluttershy had already found lying out in the library before I assigned her to take inventory in the infirmary.”

“Now hang on,” Derpy said quickly. “Yeah I read that book, but so could anypony, like you said, it was just lying out.”

“And then as Derpy herself admitted,” Pinkie continued. “She was the one who caused the chaos in the kitchen, the perfect cover for discarding a vital piece of evidence. And if I’m right in thinking, Rainbow, who did you assign to search for crayons on the ground floor after I asked you?”

“Derpy,” Rainbow said quietly, sounding as if she didn’t quite believe it herself.

“And as Applejack confirmed, she was locked in the cellar shortly after I instructed the pegasi to search for crayons,” Pinkie pointed out. “Obviously the killer would want to lock up the cellar to stop us from figuring out where they made the crayons.”

“But that would mean Derpy has the key to the cellar,” Maud pointed out.

“Care to turn out your pockets?” Fleur asked coolly.

Derpy quickly glanced back at her saddlebags and mail satchel.

“Please do,” Pinkie requested. “And finally of course, the biggest clue came in the form of the party invitation. Besides giving away that Derpy mistakenly believed Cheese’s name to be sand witch, as it read on the card, she also signed my name, being one of the few ponies who was aware Cheese had approached me about throwing a party. And of course the writing…”

Pinkie held up the invitation so everypony could see the crooked letters of different sizes.

“Matches the notes Derpy was making in the textbook she was carrying when I ran into her in the entrance hall,” Pinkie concluded.

Derpy made a hoarse noise, her mouth hanging open, her eyes wide.

“I guess that also explains the wheelchair,” Fleetfoot added. “Only Derpy would be clumsy enough to steer that thing down there.”

“Well Derpy, do you have anything to say for yourself?” Octavia asked.

Derpy’s mouth closed, twisting into a grimace as if she were trying to swallow some particularly unpleasant medicine as her eyes went ballistic in their twitching. Then it exploded…

“Oh come on!” Derpy bellowed. “This is so unfair. After all the bloody effort I put into this stupid plan, I’m going to get caught out because I miss heard some guys name?!”

“So you did kill him,” Rarity said, still sounding half doubtful.

“Of course I did!” Derpy snapped. “Did you think I was really going to sit in this damn castle for months waiting while you read books?! I’m only here because I delivered that damn letter to Pinkie at the Gala, and you know why? Because I needed the overtime!”

Derpy was seething with rage, everypony was leaning back, terrified by this sudden transformation.

“And now…” Derpy’s voice faltered slightly, catching in her throat. “Now it won’t matter, all that overtime, all those extra jobs, murdering another pony, none of it’s going to matter; I’ll never see her again.”

That seemed to be the final straw for Derpy who collapsed where she stood, sobbing.

“I just wanted to go home,” she wailed. “I just wanted to see my baby girl.”

Pinkie cringed, looking away from the broken mare to her left. Nopony else spoke; all were too shocked by Derpy’s shifting emotions to be able to formulate a coherent sentence, all but Fleur it seemed.

“So that’s it?” she asked without emotion. “You wanted to see your daughter again, so much so that you were willing to kill another pony and have eleven others executed?”

“You think I didn’t know what I was doing?!” Derpy exclaimed, tears still streaming down her face. “You think I didn’t spend hours crying over it already?! If any of you had children, you’d understand. You’d do whatever it took to be with them again, no matter the cost.”

“We could have escaped,” Pinkie said, keeping her voice in check, still not looking at Derpy. “Nopony else had to die.”

“You keep saying that, but do you actually believe it?” Derpy asked, turning her angry gaze to Pinkie. “Because I didn’t, I didn’t want to wait and become another casualty while you took your sweet time trying to escape.”

“So when you said you felt focused, determined,” Pinkie continued, her voice weakening slightly. “This is what you were determined to do?”

“Yes,” Derpy answered simply.

Pinkie nodded, turning her attention to the castle, readying herself for what was to come.

“Well that was fun,” the Mastermind’s voice echoed across the courtyard, “for me at least. Now you all know what comes next.”

The dials in front of each pony lit up, indicating it was time to cast their vote. Pinkie sighed once, reaching out and turning her dial to Derpy. The ghostly image of the wall eyed Pegasus swam into view in the pool just in front of Pinkie. Fleetfoot and Fleur turned their dials without any hesitation after Pinkie had paved the way, over the next minute or two the other all gave in. Even Fluttershy relented and turned her dial, looking thoroughly miserable as she did.

Eventually all vote were cast except Derpy’s own, which the Mastermind must have presumed she wasn’t bothering with, as the images of Derpy’s face disappeared from the pools surface to be replaced with the clock hands. Pinkie watched with an almost bored expression as they began rotating, barely paying attention as they sped up and slowed down, the minute hand stopping in front of her for the briefest of moments before snapping in front of Derpy alongside the hour hand.

“Well done everypony, you correctly deduced the killer’s identity,” the Mastermind praised. “And now Derpy, for the murder of Cheese Sandwich, I sentence you to death.”

Derpy cast one final venomous glance around the other ponies, her eyes settling on Pinkie Pie just as the runes flashed and she fell into the darkness below. It was only a few seconds before the pool rippled once more, showing the image of a large cylindrical container made of glass. Derpy was currently inside it, flying desperately around, bouncing into the walls and lid like a trapped fly. Pinkie only just noticed the plastic tubes feeding into the top of the glass prison, realising what Derpy’s method of execution would be just before they began ejecting streams of water.

Derpy instinctively landed, shielding her head with her forehooves from the water pouring in over her head, steadily filling up the base of the container. Looking around herself in a wild panic, she began striking out against the glass wall. It made several dull thuds, but Pinkie knew it would never give. Derpy apparently realised it as well as the water reached up to her chest, churning around her body.

She started kicking her legs and flapping her wings in a desperate attempt to stay afloat as the water began filling out to where her head had just been. A number of times her head would dip just below the ever rising surface, each time she would give a single mighty kick, bringing her to the surface where she would take large gulps of air. The water had almost reached the top of the container, but Derpy was still valiantly kicking to remain above it.

Once she couldn’t go any higher she began hammering against the lid, scraping around the edges in desperate hope of finding a latch or something that would allow her to open it. She quickly realised she was out of hope as the water rose the final few inches, covering over her face which was pressed up against the lid, sucking in whatever last scraps of air were available before she was completely submerged.

Derpy sunk slightly, her limbs still waving wildly as she floated in the now full container. Her eyes blinked rapidly, her cheeks were blown up to hold in all her remaining air. She managed to last a good minute or two, but then her movements became more erratic, her chest swelling like it was about to burst. Eventually she couldn’t hold on anymore, and breathed out. Pinkie’s view was temporarily obscured by the jet of bubbles streaming from Derpy’s head, but they very quickly burst showing a very panicked Derpy.

Then, suddenly she gave what looked like a hiccup. Pinkie could only assume she accidently allowed a little water to enter, and once Derpy had started, she couldn’t stop. Derpy’s body began writhing once more as water flooded into her lungs through her mouth and nostrils, her legs thrashed around, but all too soon her movements began to slow, her eyelids sinking shut. After a few more seconds, the only movements Derpy displayed were a few random twitches as her limp body floated to the top of the container.

The pool rippled, and the image of Derpy’s dead body floating in her watery grave was removed. The runes around Pinkie’s hooves ceased their glowing and the banisters retreated into the ground. Pinkie stepped away from the engravings, making her way around towards the castle gate where Octavia, Fluttershy and Fleur were already walking towards, the rest not quite finding the strength in their legs yet.

Fluttershy walked swiftly ahead, not waiting for Pinkie to catch up with her, leaving Pinkie to walk alongside Octavia.

“So,” Pinkie said as they walked up the main staircase. “Time and space?”

Octavia looked over at Pinkie, a sly smile on her face.

“Find me tomorrow,” she instructed. “I’ll tell you all about it.”

Author's Note

Chapter 2, complete.
So, who was right? That is the question.
Firstly we have ClickClackTheBrony, to nobody's surprise by this point, but we also have shout outs for BrutaVinci and WachownMan who both correctly identified the killer. Well done to the three of you and better luck next time to the rest.
I hope you're all enjoying it, the first part of Chapter 3 will be uploaded on Tuesday or Wednesday.

C3: Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind

Day 7, 07:14

Adjusting the straps on her saddlebags seemed to have become a nervous habit for Pinkie upon first putting them on in the morning. Maud was oddly silent as the pair walked down to the study, although upon further thought Pinkie remembered Maud was generally silent before they arrived here.

“How did you sleep?” Pinkie asked.

“Fine,” Maud replied, not looking at Pinkie.

Pinkie frowned, had she created some gulf between herself and Maud without realising it?

“Is something wrong?” Pinkie asked.

Maud sighed, coming to a stop.

“Pinkie…” Maud began slowly, choosing her words carefully. “Do you want to leave here?”

“What kind of question is that?” Pinkie asked bewildered. “Of course I want to get out of this hellhole.”

Maud opened her mouth, but then closed it, sighing once more before walking on. Pinkie groaned, following after her sister. If she brought it up again, Pinkie would make her explain what was wrong, until then, she would let it lie. Arriving in the study they found it occupied solely by Fleur who was reading a book which she put down upon seeing them enter.

“Good morning,” she greeted. “Any news on the central chamber after yesterday’s trial?”

“Oh, I hadn’t thought about that,” Pinkie said, remembering their earlier hypothesis that the Mastermind moved the stairs after the trials.

“I’ll go take a look,” Maud offered, leaving the study as quickly as she came.

Pinkie stared after her sister, something in her look must have revealed how she felt however because Fleur spoke up just then.

“Did you have a fight?” she asked.

“Sort of,” Pinkie said, walking over and taking her usual seat. “She asked me if I really wanted to leave this place.”

“That… is a very odd question,” Fleur agreed.

“It’s not the first time she’s acted weird around me since we got here,” Pinkie continued. “When I was examining Filthy Rich’s body, she started talking about how she thought… I’m sorry, this doesn’t matter to you.”

“It’s alright Pinkie, I’m here if you need to talk to somepony,” Fleur assured her.

Pinkie gazed around the room, looking for something to change the conversation topic to, when her eyes fell on the broken quill on the coffee table.

“Oh yeah,” Pinkie exclaimed, getting Fleur’s attention once more. “Yesterday, before the trial, I discovered something interesting about my hoof computer.”

Fleur raised an eyebrow as Pinkie held her leg out straight, giving the metal case a sharp thump, causing the two prongs to swing out into position.

“That’s… peculiar,” Fleur said, leaning in to examine the alteration. “What do they do?”

“I have no idea,” Pinkie admitted. “I can move one of them back and forth.”

“Huh, that is most intriguing,” Fleur stated as Pinkie demonstrated the movement. “How did you get them to come out?”

“Here,” Pinkie offered, reaching and taking hold of Fleur’s hoof.

Taking the quill from the table she located the indent and lodged it in, twisting it around until she heard a click followed by the snap of the prongs.

“See, like I said, no idea what they do, but they must have some…” Pinkie drifted off, realising that Fleur wasn’t listening.

She was staring at her hoof computer; a faraway look in her eyes, like she’d just remembered something very important.

“Fleur? Are you okay?” Pinkie asked, slightly concerned.

“Huh?” Fleur said, snapping out of her daze. “Oh, I’m fine. Thank you for showing me that Pinkie, I’m sure it will come in useful.”

Pinkie opened her mouth to reply, but at that moment the study door opened and Maud returned, followed by Rarity, Shining Armour and Fleetfoot.

“Anything?” Pinkie asked.

“No,” Maud replied. “Still the same as yesterday.”

Rarity passed out capsules to everypony who was present and they all downed them using the jug of water on the coffee table. Pinkie stood up and made for the door.

“Once everypony else is up,” Pinkie said, turning back to Fleur, “see that everypony is fed. Other than that, just take it easy until I get back. I need to think about what we’re going to do next.”

Fleur nodded and Pinkie left the study. She intended to walk back to the entrance hall, but quickly darted down to the cellar door in a brief moment of curiosity. Testing the door she found it unlocked. Scowling she left it be and returned the direction she came. The Mastermind could have at least returned the key Derpy took before killing her, or even after.

Derpy lost faith in escaping, she lost faith in me. How long before the rest follow suit? Not that it matters, it only takes one becoming a killer to disrupt our work and put all our lives at risk. We still have yet to translate that damn book in the chapel, on top of that there’s still so much of this castle to see. I had hoped the stairs would change, that we’d get something positive out of yesterday. Octavia said she would explain what she’s figured out so far today, but I haven’t seen her up and about yet.

Pinkie stopped pondering their circumstances when she arrived in the entrance hall and spotted a flash of yellow in her peripheral vision. Turning to the castle gate, she looked out into the courtyard. There, by the gate leading to the town, was Fluttershy.

What’s she doing over there?

Pinkie started walking towards her friend, but as soon as she started walking, Fluttershy slipped out through the gate into the town. Pinkie quickened her pace, curious as to where Fluttershy was sneaking away to this early in the morning. Reaching the gate, she peered through the bars down the main street. Fluttershy was walking casually alongside the houses on the right, Pinkie watched her carefully, pleased that if Fluttershy glanced her way, she wouldn’t see Pinkie through the shade.

Fluttershy seemed to be getting more nervous the further she walked, moving slower, stooping closer to the ground, glancing around her. Pinkie watched, her heart racing as Fluttershy got closer to the entrance of the courtyard where Pinkie had woken up. Then, just as Pinkie was sure her chest was going to explode, Fluttershy stopped… and stepped straight into the courtyard between the two houses.

Pinkie’s eyes narrowed.

What are you up to Fluttershy?

Squeezing through the still open gate, Pinkie moved quietly down the street. She began drawing closer to the stone archway leading into the alley, taking very slow steps so as not to make any noise. Then, just as she reached the edge, ready to poke her head around the corner, Fluttershy stepped out.

“Good morning Fluttershy,” Pinkie said, trying not to show she had been startled by her friend’s sudden appearance.

Fluttershy on the other hoof screamed and leapt into the air where she flapped her wings furiously to keep her away from the perceived threat.

“It’s just me Fluttershy,” Pinkie said calmly.

“Oh,” Fluttershy said, peeking through her eyelids at Pinkie. “I’m sorry Pinkie, you startled me.”

“Well I guess we’re even now,” Pinkie said slowly as Fluttershy dropped down in front of her. “After all you gave me quite the surprise when I saw wondering out here on your own.”

Fluttershy shuffled slightly, looking down at her hooves.

“Are you going to tell me why you were out here?” Pinkie asked.

“I…” Fluttershy began, shaking a little. “I was thinking about those pictures Shining brought back.”

Pinkie blinked, taken aback by Fluttershy’s response.

“I just wanted to look for myself,” Fluttershy continued. “To know… what happened to this place.”

“Is that all,” Pinkie said relieved. “I was worried there Fluttershy, but if that’s all you should have told me earlier.”

“So you’re not angry?” Fluttershy asked.

“No, I’ve been wondering myself,” Pinkie stated, “but haven’t really had the time to search the town. Hey, why don’t we take a quick peek around now? It’ll be safer if we stick together.”

“Oh, yes, that would be much better,” Fluttershy said, sounding a lot happier now.

Together the pair walked down the street, testing doors at random as they passed by. Almost all the ones they tried were locked. After walking for a few minutes, they arrived at a narrow alley way which led down into a much darker street. Pinkie looked over to Fluttershy who gave a small shrug, and together they began walking down the steps. This new street was far dingier than the rest of the town Pinkie had seen, the walls covered in damp moss, puddles of muddy water lying on the ground, the metal drain already overflowing.

Looking back the way they came, Pinkie felt as if the buildings were squeezing in behind them, warping before her very eyes. They arrived at the end of the dark street, rounding a corner into a very bizarre area. They stepped out into a spacious plaza, buildings surrounding it, the whole area bathed in the eerie yellow lights of street lamps dotted around. But the strangest feature of the plaza was a single house dotted in the centre. Walking up, the pair saw that it was supposed to be a terrace house, but appeared to have the houses adjacent to it smashed away, leaving it standing on its own.

“What is this place?” Fluttershy asked, as they walked up the front steps of the house to the front door.

Pinkie didn’t answer, she felt inexorably drawn to the door. Reaching out, she turned the handle and the door swung open. The house was dark; the narrow hall was filled with cardboard boxes, the wallpaper striped down and the carpet pulled up. Weaving in between the boxes littering the floor, Pinkie began walking down the entrance hall, peering through a door frame with no door as she did, only to see a square room resembling the state of the hallway. It was like she had entered the house of somepony who was moving away.

“Pinkie,” Fluttershy said in a panicked whisper from the door where she hadn’t moved from. “I don’t think we should be in here.”

Pinkie didn’t hear Fluttershy, all she could hear was the rhythmic creaking of the house, like she was walking into the mouth of some living, breathing creature. She wasn’t even aware when her hooves began carrying her up the stairs at the end of the hallway. Fluttershy was saying something behind her, but she didn’t hear any of it, just the breathing of the house.

Arriving on the upstairs landing Pinkie turned to see a room straight ahead of her, a room she really wanted to look in for some reason. Putting one hoof in from another, her legs carried her across the upstairs hallway, bringing her ever closer to the door. Fluttershy was shouting now, but still all Pinkie could hear was the long deep breaths of the house.

She stood at the door, blood pumping in her head, she took one final step forward… and the creaking stopped. Pinkie blinked, her senses returning to her in time for her to glance around in confusion at the room her hooves had brought her to.

“Pinkie, please!” Fluttershy screamed, sounding like she was about to start crying.

“It’s okay Fluttershy,” Pinkie called down. “I’m coming down now.”

Pinkie turned back to the empty door frame, fully intent on leaving, but then she saw something, something glinting. It was the light of one of the street lamps, entering through one of the windows and reflecting off something that sat atop a stack of boxes. Curious, Pinkie walked over to the object, picking it up in her hooves. Only when she moved it and the light was no longer bouncing off it, could she tell it was a picture frame.

Pinkie brought up a hoof and wiped the dust from the glass cover.

Day 7, 10:49

Pinkie and Fluttershy walked up the main street in silence, however Pinkie noticed Fluttershy repeatedly glancing at her saddlebags.

“Go ahead,” Pinkie said with a sigh. “Say it.”

“Oh, um, well,” Fluttershy began, panicking at being caught out. “Do you really think it’s best to keep… what you found a secret?”

“Until we know how it got here, yes,” Pinkie answered.

“But what if it means something? What if…”

“Listen Fluttershy,” Pinkie said, stopping outside the gates to the castle courtyard and turning to Fluttershy, grasping her shoulders. “This is what the Mastermind does; he throws curveballs at us to throw us off track. Now maybe this is something important, or maybe it’s just another red herring, but until we know one way or another, this has to stay between us.”

“Alright,” Fluttershy relented. “I trust your judgement Pinkie.”

“Alright,” Pinkie continued, relieved. “Now let’s hurry, the others are no doubt wondering where we are.”

Slipping back through the gate the way they had both left, they started walking across the courtyard.

“So what do we do now?” Fluttershy asked.

“Well, I need to see Octavia,” Pinkie answered. “She said yesterday she would explain what she’s been researching, besides that I need you to…”

Pinkie was cut off by a rainbow blur zoom through the entrance hall just beyond the castle gate, only to come speeding back a split second later, this time speeding towards them.

“Pinkie, where have you been?!” Dash demanded, coming to a sudden halt an inch from Pinkie’s face.

Fluttershy squeaked and hid behind Pinkie, Pinkie meanwhile held her ground, more confused than startled.

“Fluttershy and I were investigating something in the town,” she replied, already having planned out a story with Fluttershy on their way back. “Has something happened?”

“Yes! Well, maybe…” Dash said, sounding panicked. “We don’t know, look just follow me.”

Rainbow took off once more, Pinkie right behind her, Fluttershy sprinting to keep up with the two speedsters. Once through the castle gate they climbed the main staircase, taking it three steps at a time, took a right on the balcony and ran straight to the residence tower. Trotting up the inclined corridor Pinkie found the other ponies gathered outside one of the doors.

“What’s happened?” Pinkie demanded, the ponies parting for her to walk through.

“Octavia isn’t opening her door,” Fleetfoot answered. “Where have you been all morning?”

“I’ll explain later,” Pinkie said impatiently. “Now what do you mean she won’t open up?”

“Well, we were in the study,” Rarity explained, “waiting for you to return. However as time passed, you did not come back, but nor did Fluttershy or Octavia. Well obviously Fluttershy was with you, so there’s no need to worry there, but when we came here searching for Octavia we found her door still locked.”

“I can hear somepony in there,” Applejack reported, her ear pressed to the wooden door. “But try as we might, she ain’t answerin’, and we can’t get in unless she opens the door for us.”

“What about magic?” Pinkie asked, looking over to Rarity, Shining and Fleur. “Can you open it using telekinesis?”

“We can’t I’m afraid,” Rarity admitted. “We need to see the object we’re moving, or know an actual lock opening spell.”

“Ah tried shoutin’ at the Mastermind like you did,” Applejack continued, “but he just started spoutin’ a load about not bein’ able to unlock our room doors.”

“So what do we do?” Fluttershy asked. “If Octavia won’t open the door or… can’t. The Mastermind won’t open it for us and we aren’t allowed to force it, what options do we have?”

Pinkie rested her hoof on her chin, pondering the dilemma. They needed to open a door that was locked, bolted from the other side with no key. They couldn’t force it open.

But what does ‘force’ entail exactly?

“I know what to do,” Pinkie said after minute of silence. “During the last game we discovered we could take locked doors off their hinges by taking the screws out, and that didn’t count as forcing it.”

“Of course!” Soarin exclaimed, suddenly remembering.

“Great, but where do we get a screwdriver?” Shining asked.

“The only place I can think of is…” Pinkie began, before internally groaning. “The forge maybe.”

“But we sealed that place off,” Fleetfoot reminded them.

“And the stairs have moved,” Maud added.

“We’ll think of something,” Pinkie assured them. “Fluttershy, Fleur and Rarity, stay here and keep trying talking to Octavia. The rest of us will head to the central chamber.”

Day 7, 11:09

“Well this is a pain,” Soarin declared, leaning on the banister that had been drawn across where the staircase leading to the forge had originally been.

“At least you can fly,” Applejack reminded him.

“Yeah, but it was Shining Armour who blocked it all up to begin with,” Soarin pointed out. “Even if we fly over there, we won’t be able to move what he put in the way.”

“Can’t Shining just teleport up there?” Rainbow asked.

“I can’t,” Shining informed her. “Anytime I try, something drains my magic.”

“There’s nothing for it,” Pinkie said. “You’ll just have to carry us over.”

“Whoa, hold on,” Fleetfoot said, putting out her forehooves. “You and your sister, sure. Applejack, maybe. But him? We’d pull every muscle in our bodies, and that’s assuming we don’t drop him.”

“I don’t think we have time to argue about this,” Maud stated, looking back at the entrance to the chamber.

“Dammit I am not getting paid enough for this,” Fleetfoot muttered.

“Consider it a service to the crown,” Shining said. “When we get out of here I’ll get you a thank you present from the Crystal Empire treasury.”

“That’s probably the best offer you’re gonna get Fleetfoot,” Rainbow stated.

“Alright,” Fleetfoot said, still sounding disgruntled. “But don’t blame me if we all fall to our deaths.”

Day 7, 11:37

Pinkie and Maud quickly trotted up through the residential tower, the quickly thrown together tool box bouncing on Pinkie’s back. As they turned the last corner the others turned to see them.

“Did you get it?” Rarity asked, sounding half surprised. “Where are the others?”

“Resting,” Pinkie replied, setting the box down and fishing out a screwdriver. “They needed it.”

“Did you get anything out of her while we were away?” Pinkie asked as she started into the first screw.

“Not really,” Fluttershy answered. “We can hear her, she sounds in terrible pain.”

Pinkie quickened her pace upon hearing that. Very quickly with only a couple panicked slips, the door was free of the hinges, and very swiftly fell straight to the floor as nopony had reached out to take hold of it in time. Ignoring the fallen door, Pinkie and Fluttershy rushed in, the others keeping back, presumably giving them space. Reaching the bed, Pinkie was horrified to find Octavia shuddering violently where she lay, making agonising moaning noises.

“Oh goodness, she’s burning up,” Fluttershy said, resting a hoof on her forehead.

Ignoring the dark sweat stain all over Octavia’s sheets, Pinkie took hold of her foreleg with the hoof computer, finding it swollen and puffy, with dribbles of puss running from where the bolts were screwed in.

“Infection,” Pinkie stated, looking over to Rarity. “Was she getting her antibiotics?

“Yes, everypony got them,” Rarity insisted, looking slightly afraid.

“Octavia, can you hear me?” Pinkie said, leaning in close to the other mare.

Octavia’s eyes opened very slightly, a dry heaving noise coming from her throat before her head rolled back.

“We need to get her up to the infirmary,” Pinkie said.

Maud strolled in and crouched down while Pinkie and Fluttershy lifted Octavia onto her back.

“Take it slowly,” Fluttershy instructed.

Maud nodded and began making her way out of the room, Rarity at her side, fanning the semi-conscious mare.

“I don’t understand,” Pinkie said, collapsing onto the floor. “Why didn’t the antibiotics take? Nopony else got infected.”

“Pinkie, there’s lots of different types of antibiotics,” Fluttershy explained, leaning down beside her. “Just because one works for somepony, doesn’t mean it’ll have the same effects for everypony.”

“So what do we give her now?” Pinkie asked.

“We’ll need to switch her to a different antibiotic immediately,” Fluttershy stated. “Other than that she just needs lots of fluids and maybe painkillers.”

“Can you take care of it?” Pinkie asked.

“Of course,” Fluttershy assured her, swiftly departing from the room.

Pinkie sat up, rubbing her temples with her hooves.

“Do you suspect foul play?” Fleur asked, offering a hoof to Pinkie which she accepted.

“Maybe,” Pinkie began, before shaking her head. “No, Fluttershy’s right, she probably just reacted differently to the medicine.”

“If you’re sure,” Fleur said as the pair left the room, stepping over the fallen door. “So what do we do now?”

“I’m not sure,” Pinkie admitted. “Octavia was going to explain what she was working on today; I was hoping it might answer a lot of questions.”

“Well, until she recovers we should inform the others of her condition,” Fleur proposed. “Where did they go?”

“Back down to the study I think,” Pinkie replied.

Day 7, 12:15

Entering the study Pinkie found the others sprawled out on various sofas, armchairs, and in Applejack’s case, the floor in front of the fire. As the pair entered, Rainbow poked her head up from where it had been resting on Soarin’s chest.

“You’re back, what happened?” she asked, sounding concerned.

The others all glanced up as well upon hearing Rainbow’s question.

“She has an infection in her leg from her computer,” Pinkie explained. “Fluttershy thinks she’ll be okay though, she must have just not taken to the antibiotics well.”

“So she’ll be okay?” Applejack repeated. “That’s good; ah think we’ve had more than enough loss in this group.”

“So what are we going to do until she’s better?” Fleetfoot asked. “Also don’t think we’ve forgotten about you and Fluttershy disappearing this morning.”

“I know,” Pinkie replied taking a seat. “As for what we should do… not a lot. Octavia’s been working on something, and until she can tell me about it, I’m at a loss.”

“You’re not giving up are you?!” Rainbow asked, sounding almost angry.

“Of course not, I just… feel out of my depth,” Pinkie specified. “We’ve been here for a week now and we don’t have a single suspect as to who the Mastermind really is.”

“So wait, the Mastermind does have an actual identity?” Applejack asked, sitting up. “It’s not just some idea?”

“I’d like to think we’re up against something more substantial than a concept,” Fleetfoot chipped in, “I can’t beat a concept to death.”

“Yes, the Mastermind is a pony… or a being of some kind,” Pinkie stated.

“Well who was the Mastermind in the last game?” Rainbow asked. “Maybe it’s the same dude.”

Pinkie exchanged the briefest of nervous glances with Soarin.

“It can’t be the same individual,” Pinkie assured her. “They’re dead.”

“Oh,” Rainbow said awkwardly. “Well good! Serves them right for what they put you guys through.”

Rainbow lay back down; tucking her head under Soarin’s neck, unaware of the conflicted look he was giving Pinkie.

“There is one thing that’s been a thorn in my side,” Pinkie said, quickly changing the subject. “That book we found in the chapel, we still haven’t translated it.”

“Well yeah, but don’t forget sugar,” Applejack replied. “Even if you do translate it, that’s things still locked up tight.”

“I know, but it’s one of the few unknown variables I feel we have a good chance of figuring out,” Pinkie explained.

“Well why don’t you bring it down here and we can look at it together,” Shining offered.

Pinkie thought about that idea, it certainly couldn’t hurt. Giving a quick nod she stood up and retreated from the study and made her way to the chapel. One she arrived inside she scooped up the heavy tome along with some of the reading materials they had left there on their last visit. As she made her way back to the study she saw Rarity and Maud approaching her from the other end of the corner.

“Oh Pinkie, we were just coming to look for you,” Maud said as they met in front of the study door.

“I hope you have good news for me,” Pinkie said as Maud took some of her load from her back.

“Octavia’s fine,” Rarity informed her. “She’s looking much better, sleeping peacefully now. Fluttershy said she could watch over her until she came around.”

“That’s good to hear,” Pinkie said leading the way into the study. “We were just about to take another look at this book.”

Once they entered, Pinkie approached the coffee table ready to set the book down, but stopped when she saw what was sitting on it.

“Who was playing chess?” she asked curiously.

“We found that earlier before the incident with Octavia,” Fleur informed her, before looking to the newcomers. “How is she by the way?”

“Looking a lot better,” Rarity repeated. “Gave us all a startle, but she’ll pull through, Fluttershy is sure of it.”

“So this is the book?” Shining said, shifting closer. “And you haven’t been able to translate it?”

“No, we’ve been through a couple dozen different runic languages,” Maud explained. “None of them match up.”

“Not even the one that was used outside?” Fleur asked. “Didn’t you say you made notes on them?”

Maud looked into her saddlebags and pulled out a few sheets of paper folded together, passing them across to Fleur who opened them up and started reading to herself. Meanwhile Soarin glanced at the engraving on the latch of the tome.

“Is this supposed to be a lock?” he asked.

“A glyph I think,” Rarity corrected. “I don’t know enough about magic to be sure though.”

“Well ah don’t see what help ah could be,” Applejack said, pouring herself a glass of water and setting the jug down next to the book. “Rarity says she doesn’t know much about magic, well ah don’t know a thing.”

“Not all runes are magic,” Pinkie pointed out. “Most are just alphabets for dead languages. Although we’ve researched magical and non-magical runes, and we haven’t found anything that could…”

Pinkie’s voice died as her eyes fell on the cover of the book, or rather the reflection of the book in the water jug next to it, her eyes growing wide as obvious realisation hit her in the face.

“Um, Pinkie?” Shining said, sounding concerned by how she had suddenly fallen silent. “Is everything alright?”

“It’s mirrored!” Pinkie shouted, making everypony jump slightly. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of that.”

Standing up, she stormed over to the fireplace, reaching up and taking the framed mirror off the wall. She carried it back and almost broke it as she slammed it down next to the tome.

“Hold that,” she ordered, not talking to anybody specific.

Soarin quickly grabbed it, holding it vertical beside the book as Pinkie crouched down, taking the notes Fleur had set back on the table. Nopony dared speak while Pinkie set to work, occasionally muttering to herself, scratching down notes as she worked. After several tense minutes of everyone watching Pinkie like hawks, she finally set her pen down, sighing with relief.

“There,” she said, rubbing her eyes. “It is… translated.”

She then circled the translation on the paper and stepped back allowing the others to read it.

Five: Behind the face of a Friend.

Day 7, 17:18

Pinkie gazed down at Octavia’s sleeping form, feeling almost serene. The moment was broke when she heard Fluttershy approaching.

“You aren’t going to wake her are you?” she asked in hushed tone. “She needs her rest.”

Pinkie stood up quietly from the seat by the by the infirmary bed and walked a few metres away with Fluttershy.

“No, whatever she wanted to tell me can wait until tomorrow,” Pinkie assured her. “Same with our news.”

“It still seems strange that it was as simple as reflecting the words,” Fluttershy muttered. “So, now that you know what it says, what will you do?”

“No idea,” Pinkie admitted. “The contents of the book are still sealed, so now we have to find some way of unlocking the glyph. Maybe the books cover is a clue…”

“Behind the face of a friend,” Fluttershy recited. “Sounds pretty random to be honest.”

“It does a bit,” Pinkie agreed.

“And ‘five’,” Fluttershy continued. “What could that be referring to?”

“Again, not a clue,” Pinkie said with a sigh, turning to leave the room.

“Still, it’s amazing progress,” Fluttershy insisted following Pinkie out into the waiting room.

“It is good that we might finally be getting somewhere,” Pinkie agreed. “Anyway, I’m going to go see how Octavia’s new room is coming along, I’ll be back later.”

“Of course,” Fluttershy said, starting to walk away, but as she took a few steps, she came to a stop and spoke up one again. “Pinkie…”

“Yeah?” Pinkie asked, looking over her shoulder.

“Who was that friend of yours?” Fluttershy asked in an odd tone. “The one you said was the last to be murdered at the manor.”

“Oh, Vinyl Scratch,” Pinkie answered, surprised at the random question. “Why?”

“Just wondering,” Fluttershy replied quietly before walking away, leaving Pinkie alone.

Day 7, 17:29

“Well, that looks like everything,” Rarity said, surveying the once empty bedroom. “And her little bow tie is in the wash now; I’ll have it brought here before she moves in.”

“Thanks Rarity,” Pinkie said, picking up the portrait of Octavia from the bedside cabinet. “It certainly wouldn’t have done to leave her in a room with no door.”

“It’s not like she had a lot to move,” Fleetfoot reminded them from where she was leaning against the wall.”

“Well, still,” Rarity said curtly. “I think I’ll go get that bow tie now.”

Once Rarity ran off, Pinkie was left alone with Fleetfoot who just glared at her.

“What is it now?” Pinkie asked, exasperated.

“You still haven’t told us where you were this morning,” Fleetfoot said impatiently.

“Oh yeah,” Pinkie replied, having genuinely forgotten. “Fluttershy wanted to investigate those pictures Shining brought back from your initial trip into town.”

While it wasn’t technically a lie, it avoided what really ended up happening while they were out, as well as bringing Fluttershy’s reason for going out at all into question… more so than it was already.

“That’s it?” Fleetfoot asked, surprised. “Fair enough then, did you find anything?”

“Not really, we didn’t want to go too far from the main street but most of the houses on it were locked,” Pinkie stated.

“Tell me about it,” Fleetfoot said moving off the wall. “We had to venture down the weirdest areas to find anything.”

Pinkie and Fleetfoot left the room, shutting the door behind them before continuing down towards the entrance hall. As they entered the room they saw Soarin jogging up the stairs to meet them.

“There you are,” Soarin greeted. “Applejack’s putting some food together. Could I speak to you a moment Pinkie?”

“Sure,” Pinkie said, eying Fleetfoot.

Taking the hint Fleetfoot walked on. Once she was out of sight, Soarin turned to Pinkie, a concerned look on his face.

“I get why you don’t want to talk about… you know, the last Mastermind,” Soarin began. “But the others are starting to ask questions after our talk earlier.”

“I know, I just need a little more time,” Pinkie insisted.

“I know it’s hard for you, and I know why you’d rather keep it a secret from them,” Soarin continued, “but it’s going to come out eventually, I would bet the current Mastermind plans to reveal it at some point. And you know that when it does, things are going to fall apart, more so if we lied about it.”

Pinkie nodded, swallowing a lump in her throat.

“Alright, give me a day or two,” she replied. “I’ll tell them.”

“Who all knows already?” Soarin asked.

“Besides you, me and Fleur,” Pinkie said, “Maud also knows.”

“So that leaves seven who don’t,” Soarin concluded. “Alright, I’ll leave it to you. Come on, we should go get food now.”

Pinkie nodded, following Soarin from the entrance hall down towards the banquet hall. As they approached, Applejack stepped out from the room and waved them over.

“Hey Applejack,” Soarin greeted, sniffing the air. “That smells good.”

“Hopefully it tastes even better,” Applejack said. “Head on in.”

Soarin obeyed, following his nose, Pinkie remained put, knowing full well from the way Applejack had interacted with Soarin, that she was looking to speak to Pinkie privately.

“Is something wrong?” Pinkie asked as the smile disappeared from Applejack’s face, replaced with a scowl.

“You bet there is,” Applejack said in a hushed tone. “Ah was just checking our stocks, we’re missin’ food.”

“Missing food?” Pinkie repeated. “And you’re definitely taking into account the food you’ve cooked.”

“Course ah have,” Applejack replied indignantly. “Ah’m tellin’ you Pinkie, someone has been in through our supplies.”

“Probably someone snacking,” Pinkie suggested. “Whatever it is, it won’t do. That food needs to be rationed for all of us. Keep your eyes open, if you see anypony handling food who shouldn’t be, let me know.”

“You can bet ah will,” Applejack assured her, fixing another false grin to her face as she re-entered the banquet hall.”

Now we have a food thief, just great.

Day 7, 19:43

“Octavia’s walking about just fine,” Fluttershy said as she scrubbed shampoo into her mane. “She says thank you and sorry for all the trouble.”

“I’ll go up and see her once we’re done here,” Pinkie said rinsing herself under the shower head.

“I switched her to Cephalosporins,” Fluttershy explained. “That medical book said they were used for more serious infections, so it seemed appropriate.”

Pinkie nodded, continuing to scrub herself down. Once the pair of them were finished washing, Pinkie turned the shower dial, shutting off the water above them.

“She could probably be allowed to go to her new room now,” Fluttershy said as they began towelling off. “If she feels like it that is…”

Fluttershy silenced as Pinkie held up a hoof, her ears pricked up to the muffled sound of shouting coming from outside. Edging over to the slightly open door, Pinkie peered out, seeing Soarin and Fleetfoot standing several metres down the corridor.

“And she’s dead, and it’s all your fault!” Soarin yelled.

“Hey, don’t blame me for the crap Spitfire did!” Fleetfoot retorted. “I never wanted her to die, I never wanted anypony else to die. Heck, I would have been happy never knowing about how she felt for you, so just lay off.”

“Yeah well you did know,” Soarin retorted. “So this is all on you, and you can be sure I’ll make you pay for it.”

With that, Soarin turned and stormed off, leaving Fleetfoot shaking with rage before she too sped off.

“Oh dear,” Fluttershy whispered behind Pinkie. “I never thought Soarin could be so angry.”

“No,” Pinkie agreed. “Doesn’t seem like him at all.”

Pinkie frowned, and returned to where her stuff lay. Wrapping a towel around her dripping mane, she gathered up her clothes.

“I’m going to head on over to the infirmary now,” Pinkie said. “See how Octavia is holding up.”

Day 8, 06:20

“Sorry to wake you up so early,” Pinkie apologised as Octavia let her into her bedroom. “But I just wanted to make sure you hadn’t taken a turn for the worse overnight.”

“It’s quite alright,” Octavia said, lying back down in bed with a small yawn. “Besides feeling weak and drowsy, I’m perfectly healthy. I appreciate your concern though.”

“Well we have to look out for each other,” Pinkie reminded her, taking a seat on the end of the bed.

“Quite,” Octavia replied in a sleepy tone. “So, you managed to translate the book then?”

“Just the cover,” Pinkie specified. “It read ‘Five: behind the face of a friend’. It’s still locked though.”

“Have you considered the title may be hinting at how to unlock it?” Octavia asked. “It would seem very odd otherwise.”

“It had occurred to me,” Pinkie admitted. “But I haven’t come up with anything. What about you? After the last trial you said you would explain what you’d discovered.”

“Of course, and I still plan to,” Octavia assured her. “However I must request that it wait until later, I don’t feel I have the energy for it now and I must gather up my notes.”

“Of course, take as long as you need,” Pinkie offered, silently hoping it wouldn’t be far too long. “Do you want to lock this door behind me?”

“No, leave it,” Octavia said waving a hoof. “Fluttershy said she’d pop by to stick more needles in me.”

Pinkie nodded and got up to leave. Once in the hallway, she left the tower and began making her way downstairs to the study. It was still so early, so when she entered the study to find Fleur sitting there, she was relatively surprised.

“You’re up early,” Fleur commented, not looking up from the chess board she was staring intently at.

“I was checking with Octavia,” Pinkie replied, “Also I could say the same to you.”

“I couldn’t sleep last night,” Fleur answered, rubbing her eyes with her hooves.

“That’s a first for you,” Pinkie commented.

“I suppose,” Fleur agreed. “I just had a lot to think about.”

“Would a game take your mind off it?” Pinkie asked, nodding at the board.

“Sure, please take a seat,” Fleur said gesturing to the sofa on the other side of the coffee table.

As Pinkie sat down, Fleur quickly assembled the pieces.

“You can take white,” Pinkie offered, Fleur simply nodded.

Fleur contemplated the board for brief minute before moving the pawn in front of her knight forward two squares. Pinkie quirked an eyebrow, she remembered a game that started with that exact move, as such she knew how to win, although against Fleur it was probably doomed to fail. Reaching out she moved the pawn in front of her king forward two spaces. Fleur didn’t react, just observed the board quietly, her hoof hovering over several pieces before final coming to rest on the pawn in front of her bishop, moving it forward one space.

“Fleur,” Pinkie said, surprised that she’d made such a mistake. “Checkmate.”

Pinkie moved her queen diagonally, instantly winning the game. Fleur’s eyes went wide, scanning the board for possible moves before she realised she was beat and fell back huffing slightly.

“It’s just a game,” Pinkie said, hoping to cheer her up. Although inside she was cheering at having won, never having been an avid chess player herself.

Pinkie opened her mouth to console Fleur further, but at that moment the door to the study burst open and Maud, Soarin and Rainbow all charged in, looking around wildly for them.

“What’s going…” Pinkie started to say, only to be cut off by her sister.

“It’s the stairs,” she began in a voice with a surprising amount of emotion in it. “They’ve moved again.”

Pinkie and Fleur exchanged the briefest of glances before they both shot up and ran from the room, following the others as they headed for the central chamber.

Day 8, 08:31

Pinkie leaned against the railing, looking around the central chamber. The route to the armoury and forge remained locked off, however the staircase that had split through the middle of the room leading to the infirmary was also gone, replaced instead by one that curved around the right wall of the room. It had most likely been moved to make room for a new staircase that shot through the middle of the room, leading from its foot at the infirmary to its top at a brand new floor.

Hearing hoofsteps, Pinkie looked over to see Rarity trotting up, the last to arrive besides Octavia.

“Well this is odd,” Shining commented. “Why did they change now?”

“There must be some pattern to it,” Rarity suggested.

“Or it works according to the Mastermind’s whims,” Fleetfoot argued, standing intentionally far away from Soarin.

“We can figure that out later,” Applejack stated. “Right now we gotta figure out where this leads.”

Pinkie nodded, taking the first steps up the curved staircase to the infirmary level. Once there she turned to Fluttershy for a brief second.

“Did you medicate Octavia?” Pinkie asked.

“I did, she’s all set for today,” Fluttershy assured her before quietly adding, “Hopefully.”

Nodding, Pinkie continued up the new staircase, the rest of the group close behind. Once at the top they arrived into a small foyer with a single pair of double doors standing directly opposite them.

“What do you think is through there?” Soarin asked warily.

“Only one way to find out,” Fleur answered, glancing to Pinkie who nodded.

Stepping forward, Pinkie rested her hooves against the door, taking a second to breathe before pushing the open. The door only needed a little help to get started, opening the rest of the way on their own, revealing a long room with a high ceiling, a throne atop a raised platform at the end. Walking forward, Pinkie led the way into the new room, an eerie feeling itching at the back of her mind. The room was lined with marble pillars, and a long, narrow red carpet stretching out from the door to the throne.

As they walked, Pinkie caught glimpses of something colourful in between the pillars; however she was fully prepared to ignore them, until Fluttershy screamed.

“Twilight!”

Pinkie head snapped around, along with everypony else to see what Fluttershy was seeing. On the wall, between two pillars, was a stained glass window reaching from floor to ceiling. It depicted a familiar image of Twilight Sparkle with her new wings, a bright star over her head.

“It can’t be…” Pinkie whispered, turning from the window to look at the other splashes of colour she’d seen.

Each and every one of them was a stained glass window, and Pinkie knew them all. The one that showed them using the Elements of Harmony on Nightmare Moon, and on Discord, and the one where they were all depicted around the elements in their original form. Moving further down the room Pinkie saw more, the window showing Celestia and Luna’s initial defeat of Discord, the one of Spike and the Crystal Heart, even the one Discord had corrupted to show himself pulling the three different pony tribes on puppet strings.

They were all there, every window Celestia had made to show their accomplishments. Pinkie turned to the throne, the eerie itch returning as she stared at it, recognition dawning on her.

“I don’t understand,” Rarity exclaimed. “How can these be here?”

“It’s some sort of trick!” Dash insisted. “It has to be.”

“Maud,” Pinkie called out, interrupting the others desperate questioning. “Are you sure you don’t find this castle familiar?”

“Huh? No, I never did,” Maud answered, confused. “Why?”

Pinkie gulped as she stepped up to the throne, slowly peering around the back of it.

“Because I think I know why that is,” she said. “And where we are.”

“You do?” Fluttershy asked nervously.

Pinkie crept further around the throne.

We all found it familiar, not Maud though.

“We thought we had been taken from the gala,” Pinkie announced. “But we were wrong…”

The things we’ve seen… ballista models used by the Equestrian military… an hourglass I once saw in another library… the kitchen that could pass for a royal kitchen after a little cleaning up…

“We never left…” Pinkie finished as she looked at the tall imposing door that once led to the vault where the elements had been kept. “This place… is Canterlot.”

Day 8, 12:05

“So how are the others taking it?” Octavia asked as her and Pinkie walked towards the library.

“They’re all pretty shaken up,” Pinkie informed her. “Disturbed mostly.”

“I can imagine,” Octavia replied with a small shudder. “To think this awful place was once my own home.”

“That’s right, you lived in Canterlot,” Pinkie said as they passed through the library doors.

“Indeed, I’ve been there… here, my whole life,” Octavia answered. “I’m a member of the Canterlot Symphony Orchestra.”

“So that’s why you play at the gala,” Pinkie said nodding.

“Actually, I’ve only played at the last few galas on special request of Princess Luna,” Octavia admitted. “After her return, courtesy of yourself, she spent a few months sampling the cultural changes in Canterlot. It was a few weeks before the gala, she had seen one of our shows and approached me afterwards, requested that I perform. I was ecstatic, it was the opportunity of a lifetime, although that first gala didn’t turn out quite like I’d imagined, once again, courtesy of yourself.”

“Oh, you remember that,” Pinkie said, slightly embarrassed, but when she looked over to Octavia she saw she was smiling.

“I didn’t mind, it was a change from the normal routine of life in Canterlot,” Octavia continued. “Princess Luna particularly seemed to enjoy it and invited me back the next year and so on until the most recent gala, which I hardly need to go into detail about.”

“No, I suppose you don’t,” Pinkie agreed dully.

“I suppose it makes sense that this place is Canterlot,” Octavia said as they stopped in front of the hourglass. “It certainly ties what I’m about to tell together.”

“Of course, so what did you figure out?” Pinkie asked.

“Well you remember what we discussed the other day here?” Octavia began

“How the Mastermind modernised the infirmary intentionally,” Pinkie recalled, “So he may have also made these intentionally advanced.”

“Correct, now what if I told you it was the exact opposite?” Octavia asked. “That the hourglass and the orrery stayed as they were, while everything else was changed.”

“If I didn’t already know what I figured out earlier,” Pinkie replied, “that would have sounded quite far-fetched.”

“I know, which is what I meant when I said this latest revelation completes my theory,” Octavia continued. “As Shining Armour mentioned, Canterlot had an observatory with an orrery remarkably similar to the one here. And you yourself said the hourglass reminded you of one you saw in Canterlot.”

“Yes, in the Starswirl the Bearded Wing,” Pinkie confirmed.

“Well what I found out was that Starswirl had designed and built those very models,” Octavia explained. “They were designed as prototypes for what you see now.”

“What are they supposed to do?” Pinkie asked.

“Time and space,” Octavia stated. “The hourglass controls time, the orrery controls space. To an extremely limited degree of course. Using both together, it would be possible for the Mastermind to alter an entire city to his image, and as we know now, that’s exactly what he did do.”

“At the gala, when everything got crazy…” Pinkie began.

“No doubt that was the machines being activated,” Octavia answered. “If I’m correct, it would also explain the pitch black sky. For this all to be carried out, the Mastermind would need to have transported the subject matter into a pocket universe. That black sky is simply empty space, where this universe ends.”

“Alright, so let me get this straight,” Pinkie said sitting down. “The Mastermind activated these machines at the gala, to turn Canterlot into this place. In doing so, transported the whole place and us into a separate plane of existence. So if we’re not in Equestria anymore, what are they seeing when they look at Canterlot Mountain?”

“Most likely more empty space,” Octavia replied.

Pinkie quirked an eyebrow, imagining the inhabitants of Ponyville staring up at Canterlot and seeing only a pitch black silhouette where the castle used to be.

“Well this is all fantastic,” Pinkie said sarcastically, “and slightly depressing.”

“But Pinkie, don’t you see what this means?” Octavia asked. “They were only prototypes when you and Shining Armour saw them, that means someone had to have rebuilt them to their full potential. More so if the Mastermind really is controlling them, they would needed to have been at the gala to activate them.”

“So the Mastermind was at the gala?” Pinkie repeated thoughtfully, before groaning. “Well that’s no help. There were hundreds of guests there, not to mention all the castle staff and the general inhabitants of Canterlot.”

“I know it’s a pretty broad lead, but it’s the only one we’ve got,” Octavia reminded her.

“You’re right,” Pinkie said standing up. “We’re closer now to figuring all this out and escaping, I can’t lose hope now. This might be stupid to even suggest, but what if we destroy the machines?”

Octavia shuddered.

“I don’t want to imagine what kind of damage that could cause,” Octavia said in a worried tone. “Not only for us and Canterlot, but for all the ponies that disappeared when this began. No, we need to hit the Mastermind directly if we want to get out of here.”

“Alright, you should get back to your room,” Pinkie suggested. “I’ll round up the others and we’ll start work on figuring this out.”

Octavia nodded and the pair left the library as soon as Pinkie scooped up all her notes.

Day 8, 12:46

Pinkie walked towards the central chamber, the day’s events swimming through her mind. It would help if she could find some of the others; she needed to be able to voice some of her thoughts out loud. She hoped Fluttershy would be in the infirmary. As she started up the curved staircase, she heard hoofsteps from behind her. Turning around she saw Rainbow walking up.

“Hey Pinkie,” Rainbow said in a dull voice. “It’s been a long day and it’s not even one yet.”

“Tell me about it,” Pinkie agreed. “Octavia and I have worked out how this place is… familiar.”

“Now what do we do?” Rainbow asked nodding her head.

“We need to hunt down the Mastermind,” Pinkie said with determination. “And all we know is it had to have been somepony at the gala.”

“Do you want me to go gather the others?” Rainbow asked.

“Not yet,” Pinkie replied, continuing up the stairs. “Everypony’s still reeling after this morning.”

Walking together the pair entered the waiting room and started walking over to the infirmary doors which were lying ajar. Striding up, completely unaware of anything wrong, Pinkie pushed open the door, and froze under the threshold.

The room was looked like it had been hit with a wrecking ball. Beds were knocked over, plastic curtains torn down. Cabinets were smashed and their contents were spilled all over the floor alongside folders and stacks of paper.

“What in Equestria happened here?!” Rainbow asked, her eyes wide and horrified.

“Fluttershy?” Pinkie called, striding into the room, watching to step over fragments of broken glass and other questionable objects.

Reaching Fluttershy’s desk, Pinkie looked around for her friend, seeing her huddled next to one of the fallen beds, her face bloody and bruised.

“Fluttershy!” Pinkie exclaimed, rushing over and dropping down beside her friend who was trembling from head to tail. “What happened? Are you alright?”

“Oh Pinkie, it was horrible, I…” Fluttershy began, but then she stopped dead when she saw Rainbow behind Pinkie. “No! Please, no more!”

Fluttershy was shielding her head with her hooves, tears streaming down her face.

“What…” Rainbow uttered, staring in disbelief at her friend.

“I’m so sorry for whatever I did, just please don’t hurt me anymore,” Fluttershy begged between her wails.

“I don’t…” Rainbow stammered, before she was cut off by Pinkie.

“Rainbow, get out of here!” Pinkie shouted. She didn’t know what was going on, but if Rainbow’s presence was causing Fluttershy distress, then she had to leave. “Now!”

Rainbow stumbled slightly, backing out of the room.

“It’s okay Fluttershy,” Pinkie said in a soothing voice, holding her close. “Nopony’s going to hurt you.”

“I… I don’t understand,” Fluttershy stuttered. “I thought we were friends, why would Rainbow do this to me?”

Pinkie looked around the trashed room and back to Fluttershy in disbelief.

“Rainbow did this?!” she asked, horrified.

“I don’t know why,” Fluttershy wailed. “I was just sitting there, when she stormed in. I thought she was upset about something, but before I could ask her what was wrong, she… she…”

Fluttershy couldn’t continue, breaking into a fresh wave of tears.

“It’s okay Fluttershy,” Pinkie tried to say, her voice hoarse. “It’s over; nopony’s going to hurt you.”

Rainbow attacking Fluttershy! That can’t be right…

Day 8, 14:29

“Can... can I see her?” Rainbow asked weakly, her head still hanging low.

“No,” Pinkie replied sternly.

“But…” Rainbow began, her head snapping up. “I didn’t do this! You know I wouldn’t never do that to Shy.”

“I know that,” Pinkie said calmly. “But right now that’s what Fluttershy believes, and she’s just starting to calm down.”

“I don’t understand how this happened,” Rainbow said weakly. “I was here with Soarin since this morning.”

“She was,” Soarin agreed, holding her tight. “Whatever happened to Fluttershy, Rainbow had nothing to do with it.”

Pinkie sighed and rubbed her temple, accepting a glass of water Maud offered her.

“I don’t know what to think,” Pinkie said finally. “But my decision is final. Until Fluttershy wants to see you, you’re off limits to her. I’m sorry Rainbow, but I have to think about her recovery.”

“I know,” Rainbow said sadly, her head hanging once more.

Pinkie looked around the study at the others. Fleur was frowning, Shining was biting his lip, and Fleetfoot had a pensive look on her face.

“And nopony knows anything else about this?” Pinkie asked again, desperate for anything that might shine some light on this situation.

“No, I was in my room after everything that happened this morning,” Shining stated. “As far as I know, everypony was.”

Pinkie stood up from her armchair, stretching her tired limbs.

“We need to find the Mastermind,” she announced to the room. “But I think it will have to wait until tomorrow while we try to figure this out.”

Day 8, 19:30

Pinkie walked alone down the throne room, occasionally glancing at the stain glass windows preaching the highlights of their friendship. It had been a long trailing day for all of them. Fluttershy was feeling better under Rarity and Applejack’s care, but she was still sticking firmly to her story about Rainbow Dash attacking her. Pinkie just couldn’t accept it though, it was so out of character for Dash, and she had an alibi anyway, she literally couldn’t have done it.

Now the infirmary was wrecked, anypony could go in and lift something and they would never know. Reaching the throne, Pinkie circled around it, making for the tall door, split into six triangular sections, with the star shaped lock in the centre. They had tried briefly to open it upon first discovering it, but quickly gave up; it had after all only ever opened to Celestia herself.

Celestia is right outside, and she’s only a statue now. A statue wouldn’t miss its horn…

Pinkie grabbed her head and shook it furiously, trying to rid herself of the stray thought.

No, I am not mutilating Celestia, despite what she’s done.

Turning on her heel Pinkie made to leave, but then stopped when she noticed something. The back of the faded gold throne was completely flat, and bare apart for a single small etching. Stepping closer, Pinkie peered at the etching. It appeared to be a wave, resembling a cresent moon, with a wand lying across it, topped with a star.

I know that cutie mark…

“Trixie…” Pinkie whispered, absolutely bewildered.

Just as the word was uttered, Pinkie saw a blinding light reflected off the back of the throne. Turning around, Pinkie was forced to shield her eyes against the light that was now pouring from the seam in the vault door. Very slowly, the door began sliding apart, the light washing over Pinkie until she was forced to clench her eyes shut.

Even through her clenched eyelids, Pinkie saw the light fade. Blinking, she opened her eyes, looking at the now open vault. Edging forward she saw a small, circular room inside, absolutely bare beyond a single blank pedestal in the centre. Something was resting a top the pedestal.

Passing through the door, Pinkie approached the object, an uneasy sense of familiarity growing as her eyes washed over the dark metal, the curved handle, the long slender barrel, the trigger.

Pinkie reached out warily, picking up the revolver.

Day 8, 23:10

Pinkie sat at her desk chair, her head in her hooves, the gun before her.

“Shut up!” she bellowed at the door in a desperate attempt to silence the obnoxiously loud whispering.

Leaning back she dragged her hooves down her face, trying to wake herself up. Ignoring the gun, she turned her attention to the row of framed photos Shining had given her. Looking from one happy family to the next. As she looked she started to feel a sense of familiarity.

I’ve been feeling a lot of that lately.

She was tempted just to ignore this one, sick of the discoveries she was making. However, reminding herself what was at stake she picked one up at random and stared intently at it.

What about this is familiar?

There were three ponies, a stallion, a mare, and what was presumably their foal.

Well I don’t know the mare, and I don’t know when I’d ever have seen that baby. Do I know the stallion somehow?

Looking closer at the smiling male, Pinkie frowned. He defiantly looked like someone she’d met before, but who? Pinkie’s stomach growled, reminding her she had hardly eaten all day. Then she remembered, food!

He was one of the waiters at the gala, I’m sure of it.

Looking to the others Pinkie was certain of it; every picture had at least one waiter or waitress she’d seen at the gala.

It can’t be a coincidence…

Pinkie thought back to the gala, to how the waiters wondered around like zombies, almost like they were being directed by remote control. Until the end of course, when they suddenly sprang to life. But what did waiters have to do with anything? Pinkie set the picture she was holding down, alongside the others, her gaze sweeping over the gun and landing on her saddlebags next to her chair.

There’s still one picture…

Reaching down, Pinkie opened the flap of her bag, pulling out the framed picture she’d hidden there. Bringing it up, she set it flat on the table alongside the revolver.

I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised, we know this is Canterlot after all.

Still, Pinkie couldn’t shake the same disturbed feeling she’d first had upon finding the picture, upon first looking down and seeing a filly Twilight Sparkle, Shining Armour and their parents, standing around, happy just to be a family.

Day 9, 07:50

“Are you sure you’ll be alright?” Pinkie asked, still sounding worried.

“I’ll be fine,” Fluttershy insisted form where she lay. “But could you make sure Octavia gets her medicine? She knows what type it is, but she might need help finding it after…”

“I will,” Pinkie assured her.

Leaving the room and closing the door gently, Pinkie walked down the hall just in time to see Shining Armour leaving his own room.

“Shining, I need to speak to you,” Pinkie said.

“Sure, what is it?” Shining asked as they started walking.

“I was looking at those pictures you found last night,” Pinkie began, “and I noticed something interesting. Each one has at least one waiter from the gala.”

“That… is interesting, for lack of a better word,” Shining admitted unsure.

“Don’t you remember?” Pinkie pushed. “All the waiters were acting really off that night, like they were all zombies.”

“I… don’t remember much,” Shining said slowly. “I’d had… kind of a lot to drink. But that does sound suspicious, and you’re sure all the pictures showed waiters?”

“Positive, I’m pretty good a remembering ponies faces,” Pinkie informed him as they trotted down the steps in the entrance hall. “I’m a little out of practice, but I know what I saw.”

“Well explain to me, what exactly made the waiters seem like zombies?” Shining asked.

“They just kind of flopped around, their jaws were slack, their eyes stretched wide, but their pupils were tiny.”

“Well I don’t know what that could mean,” Shining admitted, biting his lower lip thoughtfully. “Maybe…”

He didn’t get much further as he stopped the moment he saw Applejack storming down the corridor towards them.

“Hey Applejack, is something…” he began.

“Rarity!” Applejack shouted, interrupting him. “She’s the one who’s been stealing the food!”

“Wait, seriously?” Pinkie said in disbelief. “Why would Rarity steal food?”

“Ah don’t know, hell, ah don’t care!” Applejack snapped. “All ah know is ah walked in there not ten minutes ago and caught her gorging herself. She ran off before ah could get my hooves ‘round her neck though.”

“Food’s been going missing?” Shining asked, surprised at this sudden revelation.

“Yeah, Applejack noticed yesterday,” Pinkie filled in. “But Rarity wouldn’t steal food Applejack, that doesn’t make any sense.”

“Ah know what ah saw,” Applejack insisted. “It don’t make a lick of sense, but that’s what happened.”

“What’s going on?” a voice asked behind Pinkie.

Pinkie turned to see Maud standing behind them, a length of roped draped over her torso.

“Applejack thinks Rarity stole food,” Pinkie explained.

“Ah don’t think, ah know!” Applejack corrected angrily.

“That’s bad,” Maud replied in a monotonous voice.

“What’s the rope for?” Pinkie asked.

“This?” Maud said glancing back at it. “Found it in the storeroom, never know when something like this will come in useful, thought I’d keep it close.”

“Ah think we have bigger issues right now than rope!” Applejack interrupted. “Like that prissy food thief.”

“Alright, we’d better figure out what’s going on,” Pinkie said. “Shining, can you go back the way we came, if you find Rarity bring her to the study. We’ll look this way.”

What the hell is happening in this castle?!

Day 9, 11:34

“I’m telling you, I never touched the food,” Rarity insisted. “I don’t think I’ve even been in the kitchen on my own since I cleaned it up.”

“Didn’t Derpy help you with that?” Soarin asked, but nobody acknowledged him.

“Are you callin’ me a liar?!” Applejack demanded.

“No, I’m saying you are mistaken,” Rarity clarified bitterly.

And now we have another pony who’s claiming they didn’t do what they were caught doing.

“Alright enough of this,” Pinkie cut in. “We’re getting nowhere.”

“I agree, we need to be focusing on getting out of here,” Fleur added.

“We’re not gonna get out of here if we starve to death first!” Applejack argued.

“How much food was taken?” Rainbow asked.

“Well, ah’d say we have enough to do us another couple days,” Applejack stated.

Pinkie almost choked on the water she was drinking. When Applejack had said food was going missing, she never thought for a second it would be that much.

“Applejack, I don’t think a single pony could have taken that much food in just two days,” Pinkie reasoned.

“Well ah don’t how long it’s been goin’ on for,” Applejack backtracked. “Ah just noticed it yesterday is all.”

“Everyone needs to calm down,” Soarin said loudly, this time the others did take heed of him.

“Alright, let’s just… get today’s dose,” Pinkie said, sounding exhausted.

Rarity nodded, pulling out the lock box. Pinkie reached into her own bag, but didn’t find the key. Panicking she searched the other pockets, breathing in relief when she found it in the other side. Unlocking the box, Pinkie re-deposited the key and Rarity began handing out tablets. Pinkie accepted her own and raised the jug, ready to down it, but stopped just as the capsule was inches from her face.

“Don’t swallow those!” Pinkie ordered, quickly slapping Fleetfoot’s capsule from her hoof just as she was about to pop it into her mouth.

“What the hell?!” Fleetfoot exclaimed.

“Pinkie what’s wrong?” Rarity asked concerned.

“These aren’t the antibiotics,” Pinkie stated, holding up her own blue and yellow capsule. “They’re supposed to be red and yellow.”

“Well… of course they aren’t those ones,” Rarity said, everypony turning to face her. “These are the new ones you gave me yesterday.”

Everypony turned to Pinkie.

“I didn’t give you anything yesterday,” Pinkie stated. “Why would I suggest changing our antibiotics?”

“You told me Fluttershy recommended it so we didn’t have any one else falling sick like Octavia,” Rarity insisted.

“Fluttershy never said anything of the sort,” Pinkie said flatly. “And I definitely did not talk to you yesterday about switching these drugs.”

“So now she’s tryin’ to poison us to!” Applejack declared.

“I am not!” Rarity insisted, sounding hysterical now. “I swear, Pinkie came to me with new pills, said Fluttershy had told her to switch them up. You even had the key to the lockbox; I couldn’t have switched them on my own.”

The room fell deathly silent, broken by Fleur after several long, uncomfortable minutes.

“I think it’s safe to say something is going on here.”

Day 9, 21:11

Pinkie was lying face down on her bed when the knock came to the door. Scrambling to her hooves, Pinkie rushed over to the desk, throwing the gun into the drawer and slamming it shut. Breathing quickly she approached the door, unlatched it and opened it up to reveal Shining Armour.

“Hey Pinkie, everything alright?” Shining asked sounding concerned. “I heard a lot of banging.”

“It’s fine, you just startled me,” Pinkie said brushing it off. “What did you need?”

“Well I was thinking about that dagger you said you found in the chapel,” Shining began. “You said there were runes on it, have you translated those?”

“Oh no, I’d totally forgot about it,” Pinkie admitted, looking over her shoulder at her bed. “I haven’t really had the time.”

“If you want I could take a look at it for you,” Shining offered. “I want to do something helpful, and I know you’ve got a lot on your plate what with… everything that’s happened.”

“Well you’re not wrong,” Pinkie agreed, walking over to her bed and pulling the box out from underneath it. “Maud has the notes if you need them.”

“I should be fine,” Shining said accepting it. “Your books are still in the study.”

Pinkie’s heart began picking up pace as she noticed the picture of Twilight’s family still sitting on her desk.

“Well if you could translate that I’d really appreciate it,” Pinkie said, subtly edging around the room so she positioned herself between Shining Armour and the desk. “Personally I’d rather just forget about that knife, but we can’t rule out that it may be important.”

“That’s what I thought,” Shining agreed. “Well, I won’t keep you up anymore. If I figure anything out I’ll tell you tomorrow.”

“That’s great,” Pinkie replied as Shining left her room. “Goodnight.”

Shining began to reply, but was cut off when Pinkie slammed the door shut, sighing in relief that he hadn’t noticed the picture. Walking over to the desk, she picked up the picture. As she looked down at the innocent Twilight Sparkle, she remembered her promise to Soarin.

Tomorrow… tomorrow I tell them.

Day 10, 11:00

“Whatever’s going on,” Fleur was saying as her, Pinkie and Maud climbed the staircase to the throne room. “I think it’s safe to say it’s all part of some mindless distraction to throw us off our search for the Mastermind.”

“That sounds pretty likely,” Pinkie agreed, “but I don’t see the Mastermind being personally responsible for it. Directly attacking Fluttershy like that…”

“Well whoever is behind it, we can’t fall into their trap,” Fleur continued. “We have to stop thinking about these trivial matters and focus on our primary objective.”

“She’s right Pinkie,” Maud agreed. “Food shortages and personal feuds won’t matter as long as we beat this game.”

“I know,” Pinkie acknowledged. “It’s just…”

Pinkie stopped when they neared the still open doors to the throne room. She felt a light breeze against her face.

Odd, it’s like someone cracked open a window.

Continuing forward, slower this time, Pinkie edged her way into the throne room, the others creeping behind, realising from Pinkie’s sudden shift that something was wrong. As they neared the end of the corridor Pinkie saw something on the ground, something that made her stomach turn.

A trail of blood splashed across the floor, it was spilled recently judging by the light reflecting off it. Halting where she stood, Pinkie panned over the room, looking for the source of the blood or the wind. She spotted one of the pillars, indistinguishable apart from the length of rope looped around it, pulled taught on something Pinkie couldn’t see.

Moving forward, Pinkie neared the pillar, seeing the stained glass window near it had been smashed out, the rope leading out the new hole in the wall. Approaching the rope, Pinkie tugged gently on it. It didn’t give an inch; whatever was on the other end was heavy.

Pinkie had seen enough, she knew what was on the other end, what she didn’t know… was who.

Her heart hammered in her chest as she walked over to the broken window, taking a final breath as she leaned out over the sill. Pinkie pulled back, her eyes closing gently.

“Pinkie, what is it?” Maud asked in a concerned voice.

“Attention everypony,” the Mastermind cut in. “Another body has just been discovered in the throne room. The trial to determine the killer will be called in due course, until then, your time for investigating begins now.”

I’m so sorry…

Applejack.

Author's Note

NOOOOOOOOO... Aw well.
So, who killed everyone's favourtie background pony? That is the question.

C3: Hidden In Plain Sight

Day 10, 11:47

Of all the thoughts that were running through Pinkie’s mind right now, as she lay with her back against the pillar, the body of her friend laid out before her, why was the most prominent one…

Fluttershy smells nice.

Maybe she was finally beginning to snap, if in this situation she was sniffing her friend’s mane while she clung to her and sobbed into her chest. Pinkie absent mindedly stroked Fluttershy’s hair, occasionally glancing around the others. Maud was comforting a quietly sobbing Rarity by the wall, Soarin was watching over Rainbow who had her back to everypony else, then Fleetfoot, Shining, Fleur and Octavia just stood around displaying varying degrees of shock at seeing Applejack’s dead body.

Pinkie had just collapsed upon seeing her friend; her legs simply giving out beneath her, her sister cradled her as tears trickled down her cheeks. Shining was the first to arrive on scene, and did the best he could in raising Applejack up and laying her out on the floor, removing the noose from around her neck.

I know I said I’d mourn when everypony was safe, but you won’t hold it against me if I give in just a little bit, will you Applejack?

“Who did this?” a hoarse voice said.

Pinkie looked up, seeing Rainbow’s shoulders shaking.

“Who did this?” she repeated, turning her head slightly so Pinkie could see one of her bloodshot eyes.

“I don’t know,” Pinkie whispered in a dry voice, unable to express any emotion.

“You don’t know?!” Rainbow snapped, spinning around to face Pinkie, her wings flaring out. “You always know! You’re the one who figures this stuff out, so figure it out. Who did it?!”

“I can’t just guess,” Pinkie replied. “I need to investigate.”

“Well what’s stopping you?!” Rainbow demanded.

“Rainbow Dash, that’s enough!” Maud snapped, her eyes suddenly sharp.

“It’s alright Maud,” Pinkie whispered.

She eased Fluttershy off her, who only let go reluctantly. Then once she was free she got shakily to her hooves.

“Pinkie, you don’t have to do this,” Maud said, slightly desperately. “We can take care of it.”

Octavia nodded in agreement.

“No, I have to,” Pinkie muttered, walking over to Applejack’s body. “I promised I’d get everyone home safely, this is the least I can do for breaking that promise.”

Pinkie crouched down beside Applejack, her hair bobbles had come off at some point, so her mane and tail hung freely. Pinkie’s mouth twitched into something resembling a smile, appreciating Applejack’s natural beauty. Her neck was twisted, broken most likely from when she was pushed out the window. Her entire throat was sliced up from the rope cutting into her, but it wasn’t where all the blood was coming from, no that was in her stomach.

Unbuttoning Applejack’s formal suit, she opened it to reveal a large gash sweeping across her midriff. Pinkie didn’t need to be a doctor to see how deep it was, and to know she would easily have died from the injury alone, clearly the killer just wanted to be sure.

“She died when she was pushed out the window,” Pinkie reported. “The fall broke her neck, but before that she was cut with something, it probably happened in the middle of the room, which would explain this trail of blood.”

“How about something we don’t know,” Fleetfoot muttered darkly, Pinkie just sighed, no energy for fighting.

“Maud, what did you do with that rope you had yesterday?” Pinkie asked, looking over at her sister.

“Rope?” Maud repeated, confused. “What rope?”

“When Applejack was telling us that she saw Rarity stealing food,” Pinkie began, ignoring Rarity breaking into another fit of tears, “you came by carrying a length of rope you found.”

“Pinkie, I wasn’t even awake until I heard Shining running around looking for Rarity,” Maud replied, shaking her head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Pinkie groaned, standing up and walking away from the body, her eyes scanning the floor. The pool of blood was just next to the red carpet, the trail leading from it to the pillar and space next to the window. However Pinkie noticed a few stray drops of blood leading towards the throne. Walking over, she began looking around, quickly finding the jewel encrusted hilt of a knife. Pinkie picked up the blood soaked sacrificial blade and walked back over to the group.

“Shining,” Pinkie began, her voice dry, already knowing where this was going. “Do you remember coming to see me last night?”

Shining just raised an eyebrow in confusion.

“That’s what I thought,” Pinkie muttered. “Last night Shining Armour came to my room offering to translate the runes on this blade… and like an idiot I gave it to him.”

“But… that never happened,” Shining insisted.

“There seems to be a theme of that going around,” Pinkie murmured, walking back over to the body.

“But… why was Applejack even here?” Rarity asked, her voice croaky. “If this happened this morning, why was she here at all?”

“Didn’t Pinkie ask her to be here?” Fleur asked, confused.

Pinkie looked up, raising an eyebrow, although really it was more of a formality at this point to look surprised or confused.

“I was in the study this morning with Applejack when Pinkie came in and asked her to come up here,” Fleur explained. “Am I to take it you never did this either?”

“I did not,” Pinkie answered.

“This is just getting ridiculous!” Fleetfoot shouted in frustration.

“I agree,” Soarin chipped in, nodding.

“Oh screw you Soarin!” Fleetfoot retorted.

“Hey! What did I do?!” Soarin demanded.

“Yeah, watch it or I’ll knock your teeth in!” Rainbow snapped at Fleetfoot.

“Everyone is against me!” Fleetfoot declared, practically steaming. “Well forget you all!”

Fleetfoot spread her wings and swooped out of the room.

“Rainbow…” Fleur began.

“Ah who needs her?!” Rainbow spat.

Fluttershy squeaked upon observing this, and cowered closer to the pillar.

“That’s enough Rainbow!” Rarity scolded. “You’re terrifying Fluttershy. You’ve caused her quite enough harm.”

“Excuse me?!” Rainbow bellowed, moving up into Rarity’s face. “Like you’re one to talk about doing harm to others. You stole that food from Applejack, she was your friend and you betrayed her!”

“I did no such thing!” Rarity screamed.

“And then you tried to poison us!” Rainbow declared.

“I didn’t,” Rarity shot back. “If anypony is to blame for that it’s Pinkie! She’s the one who gave me those damn pills.”

Pinkie just sighed and bowed her head.

“Would you all calm down?!” Maud interrupted.

“Hey, don’t think you’re out of the clear,” Shining cut in, glaring at Maud. “We all saw you with that rope; you pretty much had the murder weapon.”

“Coming from the stallion who took that knife off Pinkie,” Maud bit back in a rare show of anger.

“If you’re just going to stand around arguing then I’m going to find the killer myself,” Fleur stated, marching out of the room.

“Like we needed you anyway,” Rainbow muttered. “Or any of you! I’ll find which one of you killed Applejack, then I’ll kill you myself!”

Rainbow sped out the broken window.

“Rainbow, come back!” Soarin called, trying to follow after her.

“I won’t stand around and be accused of things I didn’t commit!” Rarity declared, stomping off.

Shining Armour quickly followed without uttering another word. Leaving only Pinkie, Maud, Fluttershy and Octavia in a painful silence.

“So this is how it ends,” Pinkie whispered. “Harmony fails, and a murderer will be the only one left standing.”

“Pinkie…” Maud began, but didn’t get any further.

Octavia stormed over to Pinkie, forced her head up so she was looking directly at her, then slapped her with all her might.

Pinkie stumbled, her head buzzing, her cheek stinging. She heard Fluttershy scream, heard Maud shout, but they were just noise, the only thing she made out was Octavia.

“Don’t you dare give up!” she scolded, her voice low but filled with raw power. “After everything you’ve done, everything you’ve been through, don’t you dare give up here!”

Pinkie looked up at Octavia, still stunned. Octavia’s eyes, normally so cold and empty, were now alive with a fire Pinkie had never seen before… only felt.

“Because it’s not just you playing,” Octavia continued. “We’re still here, your friends, your own sister! The princess are trapped outside, the inhabitants of Canterlot are on the line, the dead…”

Octavia stopped, taking a breath.

“Don’t you dare give up Pinkie Pie,” she ordered. “Because we never gave up on you!”

The throne room was held in absolute silence, Pinkie staring at Octavia, Octavia glaring at Pinkie, Fluttershy and Maud glancing between the two of them. Then, Pinkie stood up straight, her eyes moving from Octavia to the body of Applejack, feeling something spark to life in her chest, growing warmer and warmer.

“Thank you Octavia,” Pinkie murmured, before looking back to the others and raising her voice. “Now let’s rally the others and find that killer.”

Maud smirked, Fluttershy breathed a sigh of relief, standing up and whipping her eyes. Octavia just let out a deep breath.

“Whoa, lost my cool there for a second,” she said, coughing slightly, attempting to regain her composure.

Pinkie smiled.

Day 10, 13:04

“Rarity,” Pinkie announced, stepping into the chapel, seeing her friend standing by the altar, gazing up at the rose window.

“Are you here to get me back for throwing you under the bus?” Rarity asked, sniffling slightly, not turning to face Pinkie.

“No, I don’t blame you for accusing me,” Pinkie said, walking up the aisle towards the altar. “I just wanted to talk to you.”

“Well I have nothing to say,” Rarity snapped slightly before recoiling. “Rainbow made it clear how you all see me.”

“Rainbow is upset, we all are,” Pinkie reminded her. “But Fluttershy is talking to her now, then she’ll apologise for what she said.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Rarity replied bitterly. “It won’t change anything, Applejack is gone, and the last thing she ever thought of me was that I had betrayed her.”

“She didn’t really believe that,” Pinkie stated flatly, causing Rarity to glance around at her. “Applejack was angry when she accused you, but she knew deep down that you would never have down that.”

“I…” Rarity began, turning away once more. “I just wish I could have heard her say that, to know before it was too late that we were still, and always would be, best friends.”

“I know, but Applejack’s gone,” Pinkie continued sadly, stepping up beside her friend. “We can’t change that… but we can avenge her, together. Do her one final justice.”

Rarity sniffed, wiping her eyes with her foreleg.

“And she’d want us to do it together,” Pinkie finished. “As friends.”

“You’re right Pinkie,” Rarity mumbled, “She wouldn’t want us fighting like this.”

“So you’ll help?” Pinkie asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

“Of course,” Rarity said, giving a weak smile. “What sort of friend would I be if I didn’t?”

Pinkie offered Rarity a light hug which she accepted gratefully.

“Come on,” Pinkie said after pulling away. “Let’s find the others and figure this out.”

Rarity nodded and together the pair walked out of the chapel, entering the corridor just as Octavia and Maud came walking towards them.

“Is everything alright?” Maud asked upon seeing Rarity.

“Yes, I’m sorry for walking out on you earlier,” Rarity answered.

“It’s quite alright,” Octavia replied coolly before turning to Pinkie. “We found Rainbow and Soarin in the courtyard, everything seemed to work out.”

“Alright,” Pinkie acknowledged, “let’s head there now.”

Day 10, 13:28

Soarin was leaning against the castle gates as the group descended the entrance hall stairs. Upon seeing them, he smiled at Pinkie and nodded out to the courtyard where Rainbow and Fluttershy appeared to be having an emotional reunion.

“So it’s alright?” Pinkie said, relieved.

“Yeah, I knew she was having regrets the moment she flew out,” Soarin informed her. “Fluttershy was exactly the pony she needed to talk to.”

“Well now that we’re all together again we can start investigating properly,” Pinkie explained.

“How will we do that?” Maud asked.

“We should go back to the crime scene,” Pinkie stated. “Look at it with a fresh perspective.”

“Good idea,” Soarin said nodding. “Although we did find something interesting here before you girls showed up.”

“Really?” Octavia replied. “What like?”

Soarin gestured with his head before leading the way out to the courtyard. Pinkie and the others followed him to the statue of Celestia. Standing before it, Soarin pointed up towards the statue. Pinkie’s eyes followed his hoof to where some black mark had sprouted over Celestia’s torso.

“What is that?” Rarity asked curiously, eyeing the stain.

“We’re not sure,” Soarin answered. “It looks sort of like a scorch mark.”

“You mean like somepony blasted it?” Maud queried.

“It does look a bit like it was hit by something,” Pinkie noted. “Possibly a spell.”

“Who would shoot a spell at the princess?” Rarity asked bewildered. “They’re who we’re trying to save.”

“It could have been a misfire,” Octavia proposed, “or perhaps whoever did it thought they could break Princess Celestia out by force.”

“Whatever it is, it’s done no damage to the statue itself,” Soarin pointed out. “If you ignore the burn mark, the stone itself is completely undamaged.”

“Interesting, then it would seem whatever the reason behind hitting it,” Octavia continued, “the perpetrator discovered it had no effect.”

Pinkie hummed thoughtfully to herself, pondering this, but was interrupted when she heard approaching hoofsteps. Turning around she saw Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash walking over, both their faces streaked with tears, and the latter looking thoroughly ashamed of herself.

“Hey guys,” Rainbow began. “I’m really sorry for flying off like that… and all the stuff I said, especially to you Rarity.”

“It’s alright dear,” Rarity replied, sounding touched. “Pinkie reminded me that this is difficult on all of us, I don’t hold it against you.”

“Alright,” Rainbow said, her voice picking up slightly. “So now that we’re working together, how are we gonna get this guy?”

“We’re going to go back to the crime scene,” Pinkie informed her. “See if there was anything we missed. Is that alright?”

“Yeah, I’ll be alright,” Rainbow answered, having turned noticeably pale at the mention of returning.

Nodding, Pinkie turned from the statue of Celestia and led the group back into the castle, glancing briefly at the large clock face over the gate as she did.

Day 10, 13:51

The throne room was empty when they arrived, Pinkie briefly wondered where the others had disappeared to, having seen none of them since they all left. As they entered the room, they began spreading out, Rarity and Maud approaching the throne, Rainbow and Octavia examining the broken window, Soarin and Fluttershy inspecting Applejack’s body, and Pinkie stood over the trail of blood.

“So what do we know so far?” Pinkie asked loudly for all to hear.

“Applejack was lured here this morning by somepony pretending to be you,” Soarin answered.

“Probably the same one who’s been pretending to be all of us these past couple of days,” Rainbow added angrily.

“Alright,” Pinkie continued, pacing around. “Once here, what do we suspect happened?”

“Well, surely the killer stabbed Applejack with the dagger they took from you,” Fluttershy pointed out. “Before dragging her over here and…”

Fluttershy’s voice trailed off.

“Are you sure about that?” Pinkie asked. “Why would the killer bother with the hanging when they could have simply finished Applejack off with the knife?”

“Simple,” Rarity chipped in. “The knife was found hidden over here, with spots of blood leading to it. Obviously after the initial attack, Applejack fought back, disarming the killer and throwing the knife aside.”

“I bet Applejack fought tooth nail against that freak,” Rainbow added. “The only way they could ever have got her in the first place was if they took her by surprise, the coward!”

“Alright, good,” Pinkie said, impressed so far. “So after luring Applejack here, the killer got a surprise attack in before Applejack reacted and fought back, disarming them.”

“So then they dragged her over to be hung?” Maud queried.

“Maybe so…” Pinkie began, just as Fluttershy spoke up.

“Actually,” she said quickly, “There’s an awful lot of blood on Applejack’s forehooves.”

“And if you look closely at the trail,” Pinkie continued, “you can see faint hoof prints dragged through it.”

“So after Applejack fought back,” Octavia summed up, “she then tried to drag herself to safety?”

“It would seem that was the case,” Pinkie agreed.

“I don’t know,” Soarin cut in, causing them all to turn to him as he crouched by the body. “This wound would have been fatal on its own; Applejack would have known that, she would have known there was no ‘safety’ to drag herself to.”

“A natural reaction no doubt,” Fluttershy suggested. “Even if it seems hopeless, you’d still try to preserve your own life.”

“I guess so,” Soarin relented standing up and walking over to them.

“That sucked,” Rainbow said in dismay. “I thought we’d figure something useful out.”

“Are you kidding?” Pinkie asked, shocked. “That was incredibly impressive how you all managed to work together to deduce what we just learnt.”

“But it still doesn’t tell us who is responsible,” Rarity pointed out.

“Not yet,” Pinkie admitted, “but every little bit of information is important, even if it doesn’t seem like it at the time.”

“So what do we do now?” Fluttershy asked.

“Now we source the murder weapon,” Pinkie explained.

“You mean the dagger?” Maud asked. “I thought you said Shining Armour took it off you.”

“But the knife isn’t what killed Applejack,” Pinkie reminded her. “The rope did.”

Day 10, 14:17

“Where did you say you found the rope again?” Soarin asked Maud, turning to face her as they walked down the corridor.

“I didn’t,” Maud replied, giving him a withering look.

“Oh yeah, sorry,” Soarin muttered, looking sheepish.

“When we saw Maud,” Pinkie cut in, “she said she found the rope in the storeroom.”

That was where they were heading now, the group trailing down past the kitchen, arriving at the wooden door that was tight shut. Reaching forward, Pinkie turned the handle and swung it open. Everypony twisted their heads back and gagged as they were hit with a rotten stench.

“Did something die in there?!” Rainbow muttered, clutching her nose.

“It’s not nearly that bad,” Pinkie replied, her own nose wrinkled in disgust.

Stepping forward, she reluctantly entered the room. The dark, confined space felt heavy and warm, the incessant sound of flies somewhere further in. Stepping to the side, Pinkie allowed Rarity to walk ahead, her horn aglow. Pinkie and Rarity marched further into the room, scanning for the source of the smell, the others waiting anxiously out in the hall. Reaching the end of the room, Rarity shone her light over a stack of coal bags, illuminating the source of the smell.

“We found the food that went missing,” Pinkie announced, grimacing at the rotting pile, flies swarming over them.

“Seriously?!” Rainbow called out, charging in, apparently forgetting the smell.

“Whoever stole it must have disposed of it here,” Pinkie pointed out.

“But…” Rainbow began, staring in disgust at the pile. “There’s so much here, they mustn’t have eaten any of it!”

“Maybe they only stole it to sow discontent among us,” Rarity proposed, Pinkie nodding in agreement.

“Still, not to eat any of it,” Rainbow insisted. “Who does that?”

After quickly concluding there was nothing more of interest in the storeroom, they all departed and gratefully slammed the door shut once more.

“At least this clarifies one thing,” Pinkie said, spitting on the stone floor. “Whoever took that rope was probably the same one who stole the food, and I’d bet they’re also responsible for the crazy stuff that’s been happening these past couple days.”

“So where to now?” Octavia asked.

“Who has the knife?” Pinkie asked.

“I do,” Maud answered, pulling the dagger from her saddlebags, the blood covering the blade now dry.

“We should probably translate this,” Pinkie suggested. “It will probably use the same system the book had.”

“The notes are still in the study,” Maud informed her.

“Alright,” Pinkie said nodding. “I’m going to go deal with this then, I need the rest of you to fan out and find the others. Find out where they are, where they’ve been and what they know.”

They all nodded, setting off down either direction, until only Pinkie and Fluttershy remained.

“Are you sure you don’t want some company?” Fluttershy asked tentatively.

“I’ll be fine,” Pinkie assured her. “You should help the others.”

“Oh… of course,” Fluttershy said, sounding a little disappointed.

Once she too had left, Pinkie made her own way to the study, entering to find it empty. Approaching the coffee table she found their notes scattered about haphazardly. Presumably someone else had been looking through them after Pinkie was here last, as she was sure they had been stacked neatly this morning.

Sitting down, Pinkie pulled Maud’s sheet of notes towards herself along with another book for reference. Setting the knife down, Pinkie began comparing the runes on the blade to the ones listed in front of her.

They’re definitely enchantments of some sort…

As Pinkie began working, something began nagging at the back of her mind, a weight in her bags. Turning her attention from the knife, she glanced at the door, listening for anypony approaching. Sure that she would be left alone, she reached around, opening her saddlebags and reaching in. It didn’t take her long to wrap her hoof around the familiar cold, heavy metal. Pulling back out, she held the revolver out before herself.

She had never really thought on the gun after the last game, willingly handing it over to the guards as evidence once the investigation begun. She supposed it had to have been locked away somewhere in Canterlot, although she imagined some dreary evidence locker in a labelled plastic bag, not on a pedestal in the highest security vault in the castle.

But then, the highest security vault in the castle isn’t supposed to open when you say the name of unicorn you once knew.

Thinking back to the first time she had ever seen the gun, Pinkie reached out and pushed the pin jutting out the front just below the barrel. The loading chamber swung out to the side, pointing the barrel to the floor, Pinkie peered down into the holes of the cylinder, seeing the golden glint of five bullets loaded into it.

Snapping it shut, Pinkie pointed the gun forward, cocking back the trigger at the top. It was pointless she knew, unless she could pull the trigger, the gun could do no harm. They were griffon weapons after all, usable only by unicorns due to their magic, although it was possible for an earth pony to fire one with the help of a…

Pinkie froze, sudden realisation hitting her. Holding the revolver in her right hoof, she brought the butt down hard on the casing of her hoof computer, the impact causing the two prongs to spring out once again. Pinkie didn’t dare breathe as she slid the gun into position, one prong holding it in place, the other fitting snugly around the trigger.

That was it, she had a gun gauntlet, she now held the power of the firearm in her own hooves. All it would take was one twitch of her muscles to pull back the prong, pulling the trigger, and firing the bullet…

“Attention everypony,” the Mastermind announced, causing Pinkie to jump out of surprise, completely forgetting the deadly weapon in her grip. “The third trial is about to commence, please make your way to the courtyard so that we may begin.”

Pinkie sighed; relieved the gun hadn’t gone off. Reaching out, she gently removed it from the prongs, which she snapped back into the metal casing of her computer before making the revolver safe once more and returning it to her bags. Looking back down at the knife lying on the table in front of her, she remembered what she was supposed to be doing. Silently cursing to herself, she scooped up the knife along with Maud’s notes, packing them away in the other compartment, before exiting the room.

As soon as she stepped from the study, she looked up, surprised to be standing face to face with Fleetfoot. Pinkie opened her mouth to speak, but she never got any words out. The only thing she saw was the pale blue hoof speeding towards her face, followed by bright lights and blinding pain, then only darkness as she slipped out consciousness.

Author's Note

Oh snap!
Well you know the drill, comment or PM your theories, anyone who guesses correctly gets the amazing prize of feeling slightly chuffed about themselves for a brief period of time.

C3: Nothing To Hide

Day 10, 15:00

Amidst the pounding in her head, Pinkie could hear a voice calling her name. It sounded distant, but was increasing in volume, as if the source was drawing nearer to her. As her senses began returning to her, the voice became clearer and she began to feel her head flailing about as her shoulders were shook aggressively.

“Damn it Pinkie, wake up!”

Pinkie tried to open her eyes, only one obeyed her, the other cracking open lazily. Her vision was swimming before her, but as she watched, a familiar figure began forming before her.

“Fleet… foot?” Pinkie mumbled, her voice sounding thick and choked.

It was only then she began to notice the numbness in her muzzle, and the faint taste of iron in her mouth, and her memories of what happened after she left the study came back to her.

Pinkie lashed out wildly with a forehoof, catching Fleetfoot in the midriff, forcing her back. She then shuffled back across the stone floor before stumbling onto all fours. Lifting herself up, she stood precariously on her hooves, teetering as her head began spinning once more. She felt like she was going to pass out again, but she had enough adrenaline in her body to keep her standing after remembering what Fleetfoot had done to her.

“You hit me!” Pinkie exclaimed, her voice still muffled as a result of her broken nose.

“I didn’t!” Fleetfoot insisted, glaring at her. “I saved your life!”

“How the hay is breaking my nose saving my life?!” Pinkie demanded, stumbling back from the other mare.

“That wasn’t me,” Fleetfoot repeated, her voice calming slightly. “I came down the corridor just in time to see somepony who was pretending to be me hit you.”

“What a load of…” Pinkie began, but Fleetfoot interrupted her.

“Look behind you!” she snapped.

Pinkie hesitated, before briefly glancing at the floor a few feet behind her. There, lying discarded on the tiles was a pair of cracked purple sunglasses. Turning back to Fleetfoot, Pinkie saw she was still wearing her own pair.

“I only own one pair of these,” she explained.

Pinkie opened her mouth, her head spinning as she tried to comprehend what was going on. Before she knew it, her whole body was falling to the floor, but before she collided with it, she felt a pair of hooves wrap around her torso, placing her down gently.

“I’m telling you,” Fleetfoot said as she positioned Pinkie with her back resting against the wall. “I came down here just as some poser knocked you out. They dropped those glasses when I chased them but got away before I could catch them.”

“How did they get away?” Pinkie asked suspiciously.

“No idea,” Fleetfoot admitted. “They flew around the corner, I was only a second behind them, but when I went around they had just vanished. I just came back here to see if you were alright.”

Pinkie thought about what Fleetfoot was telling her, it sounded fanciful but she sounded so genuine in what she was saying.

It wouldn’t be too hard to believe a doppelganger is running around, they pretended to be me a couple times after all.

“Thanks,” Pinkie said at last, hoping her sincerity came across with her altered voice.

“It’s alright,” Fleetfoot said dismissively. “But we’re probably late for the trial, and you don’t look like you’re in any fit state for it anyway.”

“No, we have to go,” Pinkie insisted, trying to stand up.

“I figured you’d say something like that,” Fleetfoot said with a sigh. “At least let me help you, you’ll probably collapse if you try to walk there on your own.”

Pinkie nodded, not having nearly enough strength to argue with her. Fleetfoot put her head under Pinkie’s barrel, and using a surprising amount of strength, rolled Pinkie onto her back. The pair travelled slowly back down the corridor in silence, mostly because neither had the energy to speak. As they arrived into the entrance hall, Pinkie could begin to hear the loud talking of the others out in the courtyard. They sounded panicked, no doubt worried as to why the pair of them were so late.

Fleetfoot shuffled out through the castle gate, and they both looked up to see the others already locked into their circles, staring at them in shock.

“Pinkie!” Fluttershy exclaimed upon seeing Pinkie laying across Fleetfoot’s back, her face caked in blood.

Fluttershy tried to run from her circle but was immediately repelled by the runes locking her in.

“It’s alright,” Pinkie mumbled weakly as Fleetfoot set her down near her own end of the courtroom, making sure she wasn’t about to keel over.

“What happened?!” Rainbow demanded, looking between Pinkie with concern and Fleetfoot with suspicion.

“Pinkie was attacked,” Fleetfoot informed them before hesitating, unsure of how to explain who exactly had been responsible.

“Well we need to adjourn this trial,” Rarity insisted. “Pinkie needs medical attention.”

“I cannot allow that,” the Mastermind cut in. “Pinkie will have to take part as she is, or forfeit all your lives.”

“But that’s insane!” Soarin shouted. “She’s in no fit state to be debating anything.”

“I will make sure Pinkie remains standing throughout the trial,” the Mastermind assured them. “Afterwards you may give her medical attention.”

Some of the gathered ponies looked like they were about to argue more, but Pinkie interrupted them.

“That’s fine,” she said simply, hobbling over to her circle while Fleetfoot did the same.

Once she stepped onto the runes etched into the ground, they came alive, but this time rather than merely glowing, the ethereal light seeped from the ground and began wrapping around Pinkie’s body. Pinkie could feel her body drinking up the magic, the pain in her head and muzzle fading away. Pinkie figured it was only a temporary fix, and after the trial was over her symptoms would return in full, but it was ideal for the time being.

“Pinkie, are you sure about this?” Maud asked warily.

“I am,” Pinkie said, determined.

From the corner of her eye she noticed Octavia nod approvingly.

“Always so professional Pinkie,” the Mastermind said, sounding pleased. “Now, we’ve delayed this trial quite long enough. Let us begin.”

Trial 3: Applejack

Pinkie reached into her saddlebags and brought out the knife along with Maud’s notes, setting them on the bench in front of her. Then as an afterthought, she quietly slipped the revolver from her bags and set it alongside them, confident that nopony could see it even if they peered over.

“So what exactly happened to you Pinkie?” Shining Armour asked curiously, eyeing the blood that was still coating her face with worry.

“I had just left the study when the trial was announced,” Pinkie began, her voice now clear. “When I was punched in the face by someone disguised as Fleetfoot.”

“Wait, what?!” Rainbow exclaimed, staring daggers at Fleetfoot.

“I would like to emphasise that she said ‘disguised’,” Fleetfoot said quickly.

“At which point the real Fleetfoot came by and saw the doppelganger,” Pinkie continued. “The imposter fled and Fleetfoot stayed to help me, that’s about it.”

“Hold on a moment Pinkie,” Fleur began, eyeing Fleetfoot curiously. “Did you actually see Fleetfoot at the same time as this lookalike?”

“No,” Pinkie admitted reluctantly. “When I regained consciousness I was convinced it had been the real Fleetfoot.”

“So you’re basing the assumption that it wasn’t really her, on her own word alone,” Fleur concluded.

“It sounds ridiculous I know,” Pinkie agreed. “But the fake Fleetfoot was also wearing a pair of sunglasses, just like the real one, which she dropped when fleeing.”

Fleetfoot reached into her own bag and produced the cracked pair, showing it to everypony.

“What’s to say she doesn’t have a spare?” Shining questioned.

“She doesn’t,” Soarin jumped in. “Those glasses are… sentimental, she only has the one pair. If those glasses really were there, then I’d believe the possibility of there being a fake.”

“Oh now you’re on my side,” Fleetfoot muttered angrily.

“But this doesn’t make any sense,” Rarity chipped in. “How does anypony make themselves look like somepony else? As well as producing unique accessories?”

“I don’t know, but this does answer a lot of questions that have been raised these past couple of days,” Pinkie pointed out. “First, Fluttershy thought Rainbow Dash had attacked her, then Applejack saw Rarity stealing food. Rarity thought I had given her new medicine, we thought Maud had been carrying that rope, I gave the knife to Shining Armour, and Fleur says I asked Applejack to go to the throne room. If somepony could pretend to be us, it would explain all of these situations.”

“A few of those seem random though,” Fleur mentioned.

“They were probably all carried out with the intention of creating rifts between us,” Maud suggested. “Which worked out well at the start.”

“But…” Fluttershy began tentatively, “if somepony could pretend to be us, why did they only start doing it these past couple days? Couldn’t they have used that ability to kill off anyone of us from the start?”

“I’m not actually sure,” Pinkie admitted. “A lot of this does seem fairly random.”

“Alright, so we know the killer has been pretending to be all of us at some point or another,” Octavia began. “Why don’t we begin discussing the case and see where we get?”

“Alright then,” Rainbow agreed, coughing the clear her throat. “Applejack was lured to the throne room this morning by the killer pretending to be Pinkie. Once there, the killer surprised Applejack by stabbing her with the knife they got from Pinkie last night. However, Applejack fought back, disarmed them and tried to drag herself to safety. The killer however caught up and finished her off by hanging her out the window.”

“I think I might have missed a step,” Fleetfoot cut in. “What makes you think Applejack fought back?”

“That was after you left,” Soarin explained. “The prints in the blood trail and the blood on Applejack’s hooves indicated she dragged herself away.”

“On top of that, the way the knife was lost near the throne suggests the killer had it knocked from their grasp,” Rarity added.

“Applejack would never go down without a fight,” Rainbow insisted.

“No offence, but dragging yourself away doesn’t sound like fighting,” Fleetfoot replied nonchalantly.

Rainbow’s wings flared at that and she opened her mouth to retort, but Pinkie cut in before an argument could kick off.

“Where did you three get off to anyway?” Pinkie asked, looking between Fleetfoot, Shining Armour and Fleur. “Did any of you find anything?”

“I was at the library,” Fleur answered coolly. “I wanted to see if I could find anything more on that book from the chapel.”

“How does that relate to the murder?” Maud asked.

“It doesn’t,” Fleur answered simply. “But after running around and finding nothing of relevance, I decided I could use my time a little more productively.”

“More productively than identifying Applejack’s killer?!” Rainbow exclaimed.

“But hang on,” Shining cut in. “I was in the library as well, how come I didn’t see you?”

“It’s a big library,” Fleur reminded him. “I certainly didn’t see you.”

“Why were you there?” Rarity asked.

“Well at the first trial Pinkie brought up the newspaper clippings Filthy Rich found there,” Shining explained. “Then at the second one she talked about that plant book. I thought maybe there was a theme developing and I should look for clues there.”

“That actually sounds quite logical,” Maud pointed out. “Did you find anything?”

“Well I found something, but it’s nothing to do with this case,” Shining answered. “Pinkie had told me a while back about the odd behaviour of the waiters at the gala, and I found something that might explain it.”

“Really?” Pinkie asked surprised. “What was it?”

“It was a book about magical ailments,” Shining explained. “It was pure luck I happened to come across it really; it was a passage about ‘Love Sickness’.”

“Love sickness?” Rarity repeated, sounding bewildered.

“Yeah, has dozens of possible causes,” Shining continued, “but it makes the sufferer appear like a zombie according to the book.”

“Can we please stick to Applejack and stop getting side-tracked?” Rainbow requested, sounding irritated.

“Oh, sorry,” Shining said quickly. “Well that’s where I was.”

“What about you Fleetfoot?” Soarin asked

“Medical room,” Fleetfoot answered simply, only elaborating when everyone gave her curious looks. “I wanted to figure out what those drugs we had been about to take were.”

“Did you find anything?” Fluttershy asked quietly.

“Nah, the place was in too much of a state,” Fleetfoot replied.

“What about the food?” Rainbow chipped in.

“What food?” Shining asked, raising an eyebrow.

“We found all the food that had been stolen,” Rarity answered. “It had been stashed in the store room, the same place the Maud imposter claimed to have found he rope.”

“So the thief was just throwing it away?” Shining repeated. “They didn’t eat any of it? Who does that?”

“That’s what I said,” Rainbow agreed.

“Someone that doesn’t need to eat presumably,” Octavia proposed.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed,” Fleur began in a dreary tone. “But all ponies need to eat.”

“You’re right,” Octavia agreed, sounding a little too upbeat. “All ponies need to eat.”

Pinkie blinked, something clicking in her head.

“If I was in Applejack’s place,” Shining picked up. “And I knew it was hopeless, I’d at least try to identify my killer.”

“I think we can forgive her for being more focused on preserving her own life,” Rarity retorted.

“I don’t know, it’s like I said,” Soarin continued. “Applejack wouldn’t have deluded herself into thinking she had a chance.”

“Well what message could she possibly have left?” Fleetfoot asked. “All she could do was pull herself away.”

Unless that was the message…

Pinkie thought back to the throne room, picturing the crime scene in her mind’s eye. She followed the trail of blood from the centre of the room over to what the pillar stood and Applejack lay. She glanced up at the shattered window, it wasn’t all broken, she could still make out some of it.

Pinkie tilted her head up, her eyes panning across the assembled ponies, their arguing voices fading into the background.

One of these ponies is not like the others…

Memories rushed through Pinkie’s mind, fragmented pieces that had never meant a great deal at the time, but now, as her eyes fell on those of the figure almost directly opposite her, it all made sense.

One of these ponies just doesn’t belong…

“Fleur…” Pinkie began, her voice even.

“Yes?” Fleur answered curiously.

“Do you know what a ‘Fool’s Mate’ is?” Pinkie asked.

“Um, no, I’ve never heard of it,” Fleur admitted, sounding confused.

“It’s a move in chess,” Pinkie explained. “It’s the fastest way to get a checkmate.”

Fleur thought about that for a moment before coming to a realisation.

“Oh, that’s the move you used against me the other morning,” Fleur said remembering.

“That’s right,” Pinkie said smiling. “Do you know who taught me that move?”

“No,” Fleur answered simply.

“You did,” Pinkie said.

Pinkie’s smile faded and Fleur’s face became stony. The others began staring at Fleur in confusion, while Pinkie subtly smacked her computer below the bench, causing the prongs to snap out.

“Or should I say…” Pinkie continued, fitting the revolver into the prongs. “The real Fleur did.”

Nopony had time to react as Pinkie’s hoof swung out from behind the railing, the gun halting with the barrel aimed directly at Fleur’s head. One twitch was all it took, and the gun exploded, the bullet speeding out ready to embed itself in Fleur’s forehead.

Everypony either screamed or shouted in shock, some ducking behind their own railings, Pinkie merely stared, recovering quickly from the surprisingly strong recoil on the gun, and Fleur… simply stood there, the bullet hovering in front of her, held in her telekinetic grasp.

“Are you trying to kill me Pinkie?!” Fleur screamed.

“No,” Pinkie replied, her smirk returning. “Just trying to make you show your true colours.”

Fleur’s eyes widened in realisation, the others all noticing her slip up. The bullet fell to the ground, Fleur releasing her grip on it, but the damage was done, they had all seen it, seen the venomous green of her aura.

“Now why don’t you show us what you really are…” Pinkie said in an icy voice, “Changeling!”

The courtyard fell deathly silent as everypony stared at Fleur who appeared frozen solid. Then, after several agonisingly long minutes, the corners of Fleur’s mouth twitched into an unmistakable smile. Fleur burst into laughter, it started out low and infrequent, but then it became loud and hysterical, making her sound completely insane.

Suddenly Fleur’s body burst into vibrant green flames, her flesh stripping away to reveal to black chitin beneath, the crooked horn, and the webbed, translucent insect wings.

Queen Chrysalis only stopped laughing when the flames had died away and she could now be seen standing tall in all her terrible glory.

“Hello Chrysalis,” Pinkie greeted, glaring at the changeling queen before her.

“That’s Queen Chrysalis to the likes of you,” Chrysalis spat, her laughing cut short.

“I’ll pass on that,” Pinkie replied.

“You…” Shining breathed, his eyes burning with rage.

“Oh yes,” Chrysalis said, as if noticing him for the first time. “If it isn’t my would-be husband.”

Shining Armour was too shocked at seeing her to formulate a response, instead Rainbow Dash jumped in.

“So you killed Applejack!” she exclaimed.

“Yes, I did,” Chrysalis replied, offering Rainbow a sickly sweet smile. “You should been there, watched as she feebly tried to escape me.”

“Shut up!” Rainbow screamed, trying desperately to smash free of the invisible barrier holding her in.

Chrysalis began laughing once more at Rainbow’s display.

“A Changeling,” Octavia muttered, staring curiously at Chrysalis. “I’ve never seen one personally; I was away during the Canterlot invasion. Tell me, were you always pretending to be Fleur, or did you take her place since the game began?”

“I had replaced Fleur in preparation for the gala,” Chrysalis answered. “It had served me well as a disguise; I was beginning to think nopony would see through it. Tell me Pinkie, how did you figure it out?”

“Besides your little slip up with the chess game,” Pinkie began. “You never used your magic since we got here, opting to use your hooves for things like when you reached under the stove for that syringe. Then there was what Octavia mentioned about ponies eating food, if a Changeling had stolen the food they would have had no need to eat any of it since you feed on love, which you’ve probably been getting off Rainbow and Soarin.”

“It’s much more substantial to take love directly, rather than syphoning it from its intended course,” Chrysalis explained. “But to do that I would needed to have taken the place of one of them, which until recently I was unable to do.”

“Indeed, why did you only start changing lately?” Maud asked.

“You can thank your sister for that,” Chrysalis said grinning. “This accursed gauntlet was blocking my powers, leaving me trapped in that prissy unicorn’s skin permanently, but then Pinkie showed me something interesting.”

Chrysalis tapped her computer, causing the prongs to emerge.

“For whatever reason, releasing these broke the bonds restricting my powers,” Chrysalis continued. “So really if it weren’t for you, Pinkie, I could never have killed anyone at all.”

“Don’t pin this on Pinkie!” Soarin exclaimed. “You’d have found a way to get your powers one way or another.”

“That’s true,” Chrysalis agreed. “Although it was certainly difficult finding the time between keeping up the act.”

“I suppose you tried a little too hard with that act,” Pinkie commented. “Acting like your nightmares didn’t bother you. I should have realised then something was wrong, the Fleur I knew still got emotional over her past, but you obviously would have felt no remorse for the things you’ve done.”

“Ignoring the obvious fact that your stuck up little friend never seems bothered by whatever haunts her at night,” Chrysalis reminded her, looking over at Octavia.

“I’ve had a lot of practice hiding my emotions,” Octavia replied. “Just like yourself I imagine.”

“And lastly I realised that Applejack did leave us a message,” Pinkie continued. “The window she dragged herself towards, the one you threw her out of, it showed Shining Armour and Cadance banishing you and your army using the power of love.”

“Not one of my finer moments,” Chrysalis said sneering at Shining Armour who was still seething at her.

“So you were the one who attacked Fluttershy,” Maud stated. “Stole the food from the kitchens, gave Rarity the medicine, took the knife from Pinkie and the rope from the store, and lured Applejack to the throne room.”

“It was you who had said a Pinkie lookalike had lured her there,” Rarity added. “Making you appear innocent, but then no one could have backed you up on that.”

“You also attacked Pinkie outside the study earlier,” Fleetfoot pointed out. “And no wonder I lost you, you escaped with magic once you were around the corner.”

“Indeed, although I couldn’t teleport, I still had other options available to me,” Chrysalis replied.

“Another one of your slip ups. I remember at the wedding when Changelings turned into Applejack they had a copy of her hat, and when you were impersonating us you wore our clothes as well as Fleetfoot's unique sunglasses,” Pinkie explained before adding, “Also, am I to take it you were pretending to be Soarin when he blamed Fleetfoot for Spitfire’s death.”

“Wait, what?” Soarin interrupted, bewildered.

“Wait, that wasn’t really him?” Fleetfoot asked, sounding slightly hopeful.

“No, I knew it was totally out of character for him,” Pinkie replied.

“Well yes, that was me also,” Chrysalis acknowledged.

“Why though?” Fluttershy asked. “Why did you hurt Pinkie… and me?”

“You were just collateral damage,” Chrysalis answered casually. “All part of turning you against one another, which I’m disappointed did not stick in the end. As for Pinkie, I wanted to retrieve the knife from her; however I was intruded upon before I got the chance.”

“I suppose you did translate it then?” Pinkie asked. “Those notes had been moved about when I arrived at the study.”

“Yes, I did manage to keep my word, even if those words were spoken in Shining Armour’s voice,” Chrysalis answered. “It’s nothing you’ll find particularly interesting, just some archaic enchantment to do with deception. Hardly any use for a being such as myself who is a natural expert of deception.”

“Well I think there’s little left to be said,” Rarity commented. “So why don’t you put an end to this game, we beat you after all.”

“Oh, do you think I’m the Mastermind?” Chrysalis asked, sounding amused. “Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m as much of a prisoner as the rest of you. Wrong place at the wrong time.”

“What were you doing at the gala?” Shining demanded.

“I was there for a little diplomatic meeting with your dear Princess Celestia,” Chrysalis answered. “The kind of diplomacy that ends with me assassinating her.”

“You what?!” Soarin exclaimed, furious.

“Oh yes, it took months of planning,” Chrysalis continued. “First I had to infiltrate the homes of all the waiters for the gala, replace their spouse or some other close family member, then steadily infect them with what you call ‘love sickness’. Then secondly, and perhaps most importantly, I had to obtain my disguise. So I asked myself, who could get close to Celestia without anypony being suspicious in the slightest? Well, with her little protégé dead and her beloved sister under such high guard, the answer was obvious. Her adopted daughter, living right there in Canterlot.

“Now I take impersonating others very seriously,” Chrysalis stated, her voice taking on a sinister tone. “I like to know everything about my new identity, and I find the best way to do that… is through extensive torture.”

Pinkie’s mind froze upon hearing those words; Chrysalis was looking straight at her, a sadistic smile on her face.

“Oh yes,” she purred. “You should have heard her screams, watched her sob as I killed her darling husband right before her eyes. She sang like a bird for me, told me her most intimate secrets, and I ended up learning some very interesting things, things that Celestia had covered up. In the end, it was really down to my merciful nature that I allowed her the release of death.”

Pinkie was shaking with a mixture of horror and rage, only Soarin could voice her thoughts aloud.

“Fleur… is dead…” he whispered, as if he didn’t dare believe what he was hearing.

It can’t be… after everything she survived, only to be murdered in her own home alongside the love of her life…

“How…” Pinkie murmured before raising her voice. “How can you be so heartless?!”

“How can I be heartless?” Chrysalis repeated, no longer sounding amused, only hatred in her voice now. “Do you know how many of my Changelings died from being expelled from Canterlot? How many of my own children were burnt up in the magical output, and how many more died upon impact with the ground? Did you ever think about them? Did you ever care? You ponies call us heartless, call us evil, but look at your own history and you’ll see you’re not paragons yourselves!”

Chrysalis stopped shouting, taking several deep breaths before continuing.

“I’ve maimed and I’ve murdered,” she continued. “I’ve done terrible things, and I’d do them all again without a moment’s hesitation for those I care about.”

The courtyard was silent for a long time, only broken by Octavia.

“So you murdered Fleur and took her place,” she summed up coldly. “And then you attended the gala with the mind controlled waiters as your backup.”

“Correct,” Chrysalis replied. “Everything was going perfectly right up until this kicked off. In the confusion my minions became hectic; the individual Changelings I’d assigned to take control of them had misinterpreted the chaos as the signal to begin the assault.”

“That black mark on Celestia’s statue,” Maud pointed out. “That was you?”

“Yes, once my powers had been restored, I decided to finish what I’d started,” Chrysalis explained. “Although it would appear the Mastermind had prepared for that.”

“Enough of this!” Rainbow exclaimed. “Is there anything else you want to confess to you disgusting bug before we kill you?”

“I’m so glad you asked you disgusting equine,” Chrysalis replied, her evil smirk reappearing on her face. “For I have indeed committed another crime, one so terrible that even I am ashamed of myself for it.”

“And that is?” Shining asked impatiently.

“I have lied,” Chrysalis answered, in a mock horrified voice. Everypony just stared blankly at her. “Or should I say, I’ve lied for one of you.”

Pinkie blinked, suddenly worried.

“What are you talking about?” Rainbow demanded.

“Haven’t you been curious as to who the original Mastermind was?” Chrysalis asked. “Pinkie has certainly been eager to stop you from finding out, she practically ordered Soarin and I not to tell you all.”

Pinkie’s eyes widened slightly, her heart began hammering in her chest as the others began glancing at her, confusion written all over their faces. Soarin looked worried, Maud looked concerned.

“That’s enough!” Pinkie exclaimed, knowing that now she was only delaying the inevitable. “You already admitted to killing Applejack, so let’s just cut straight to the chase.”

“Oh,” Chrysalis said, her grin stretching even wider. “I’m sorry to disappoint you Pinkie Pie, but I have no intentions of being executed today.”

“Well it’s a shame it’s not your decision,” Pinkie retorted.

“Oh but it is,” Chrysalis replied. “You remember those notes you showed me, the ones your sister wrote?”

Pinkie froze again, worried as to where she was going with this.

“Unfortunately for you, I happen to know a thing or two about magical runes,” she continued. “Enough that when I read what you had discovered, I learnt how to do something interesting…”

Pinkie opened her mouth, unsure what exactly she was going to say, but it was too late regardless. Chrysalis’s horn glowed a bright, sickly green, flashing outwards, spreading over the entire courtyard in mere seconds. As it washed over the ground, the stone slabs cracked and shattered, the runes beneath them flickering and dying. Pinkie knew she was free to move about, but as soon as the runes were extinguished, the pain in her muzzle returned in full force, causing her to collapse in agony.

Chrysalis moved fast, she was nearly a blur to Pinkie as she sliced through the water between them, her wings buzzing furiously. Pinkie could see the wide smile, the mouth packed full of razor sharp teeth, all before Chrysalis’s head dipped, her gnarled, twisted horn pointing directly at Pinkie. Pinkie took in the sharp point, and realised what was about to happen. Everything had happened so quickly, she hadn’t a hope of reacting, she was going to die, and there wasn’t a thing she could do about it.

But she didn’t die.

She was still staring as a flash of blue sped in front of her, coming between her and the oncoming Chrysalis. The figure seized, and Pinkie saw spots of red dropping onto the ground in front of her, heard a heart wrenching scream.

Chrysalis pulled her horn out, Soarin falling to his knees in front of Pinkie Pie, blood gushing from where he had been impaled.

Chrysalis didn’t hesitate in striking again, pointing her head down once more she made to dash forward into Pinkie Pie.

“NO!” The Mastermind bellowed before Chrysalis could move more than an inch.

In a split second, the pool beneath Chrysalis turned jet black, chains bursting from the surface and wrapping themselves around her.

“No…” the Mastermind growled as the dark chains lifted Chrysalis into the air.

Chrysalis began fighting against her bonds, but the chains began wrapping themselves tighter around her, constricting her limbs until she was paralysed.

Pinkie watched as the chains began cutting into Chrysalis, listened as she began screeching in agony while her whole body began to glow. The chains tightened even further, all the while Chrysalis’s body began shattering like glass, shredding up within the Mastermind’s clutches. After a short time, very little of her remained, Pinkie looked up into her face, into the terrified eyes just before they too were wiped away.

Nothing remained of Chrysalis, her body utterly destroyed. The black chains fell limply into the pool where they were absorbed, the water turning clear once more.

Pinkie stumbled back, falling on her rump, her head spinning.

“Soarin!” Rainbow screamed, speeding forward and scooping up Soarin. “Speak to me!”

Soarin didn’t move, he didn’t make a noise. Pinkie was afraid to ask, but she didn’t have to in the end, Rainbow’s sobs told her enough.

Her head fell back, but she felt herself caught by a pair of hooves. Looking up she saw Maud crouched down beside her, giving her a pained look. Pinkie felt herself slip out of consciousness once again, all the while, the sound of Rainbow’s anguished wails ringing in her head.

Author's Note

Huzzah! We are now half way through the story! What's that? Didn't I mention there was going to be six chapters in this one as opposed to five like last time? Well, now you know, and knowing is half the battle.
I'm very pleased with the amount of interaction this chapter gained, hopefully I can maintain the level of intrigue.
Plenty of people realised the involvement of a changeling, although there was quite a lot of debate as to who exactly it was, with the general consensus being Fluttershy. However, to absolutely no ones surprise, ClickClackTheBrony correctly guessed who was the changeling and the murderer. However Wolfe and Windsilver also guessed the culprit to be Fleur, and I would be remiss to say they were wrong. Finally a very special shout out to Basic13 who deduced Chrysalis's involvement as a result of the waiters behaviour at the gala, although they incorrectly assumed that she was disguised as Fluttershy, I found their reasoning behind such an assumption to be incredibly clever, particularly the bit about the smell of Fluttershy's hair (Congratulations, you have my permission to feel chuffed).
I hope you're all hyped for chapter 4, because things are about to flip upside down...

C4: Truth And Consequences

Day 11, 07:35

“How does it feel?” Maud asked tentatively, sitting on the end of Pinkie’s bed.

Pinkie reached up and lightly touched her muzzle, wincing slightly.

“Sensitive, but I’ll be okay,” she assured her.

Maud simply nodded and the pair continued the silence that had they had been sitting in up until that point. Pinkie sighed, snuggling deeper under her quilt.

“Just say it,” she muttered, earning a look from Maud. “You’ve been acting weird since we got here.”

“Well I think under the circumstances that’s to be expected,” Maud pointed out.

“You know what I mean,” Pinkie reprimanded. “You’ve been acting weird to me.”

Maud didn’t answer, causing Pinkie to sigh again.

“I haven’t forgotten you asking me if I really wanted to leave this place,” Pinkie pointed out, “or when you said you didn’t feel like you had really helped me.”

Maud hesitated before answering.

“I never regretted it...” she said at last, although she still sounded hesitant when she continued. “Dropping out of my degree, that is. Even when you begged me to go back, I never felt bad leaving it all behind, because… you were all that really mattered to me. The things you had suffered through… nothing would come between me and helping you move past them.”

Pinkie listened quietly.

“I’ll admit, I sometimes felt like we weren’t making any progress,” Maud continued. “I’d feel hopeless at times. When you actually agreed to go to the gala, I was convinced I was hearing things. I was truly hopeful for the first time in a long time that you were going to get better, that I wouldn’t have to be afraid for you anymore.

“But then this happened,” Maud said, her voice lowering. “And suddenly, you weren’t the mare I’d been looking after for seven months, but you weren’t the filly I remembered either. You weren’t scared and traumatised, you weren’t happy and exuberant, you became… methodical, logical, even cold at times. You became a leader, a detective just as it reads on your computer.”

Pinkie stared in confusion at her sister.

“After all we tried to do,” Maud muttered. “After how much I tried to help you, you got thrown back into the game that hurt you, and wore it like a glove. You might think I’m being crazy Pinkie, but I’ve seen the way you act when you order the others around, when you search for clues and when you piece cases together, you love it, you thrive on it.”

“Are you saying I wanted my friends to die?!” Pinkie demanded, suddenly furious at what her sister was suggesting.

“No, of course not,” Maud defended. “You would never want another pony to die, but you do want to play this game. You’re dependant on it, and I’m terrified that if we do escape from here alive, you’ll just regress all over again, or worse, you’ll seek this life out.”

“So what are you saying? That if I want to heal I have to stop playing the Mastermind’s game?” Pinkie asked, pulling herself out of bed and storming over to the window, not looking at her sister. “I promised everypony that I would get them out of here. I’ve already let down seven of them; I am not going to fail the rest!”

Maud let out a sigh, stood up and walked over to the door; she opened it and stopping briefly.

“You say you want to save the rest,” she said looking over her shoulder, “but don’t forget that includes you, so you do have to save yourself.”

With that Maud left, leaving Pinkie alone in her room, gripping tightly onto the window sill in front of her. With a cry of frustration she pushed away from the window, storming over to her desk where she slammed down into the armchair. Her saddlebags were sitting on the desk in front of her and she reached for them now, removing the knife and the gun from within.

The dagger was still coated in dry blood which was starting to flake off. Setting it to the side, Pinkie picked up the revolver. Opening up the bullet cylinder she checking the four shells still inside before closing it up and setting it down next to the knife. Nopony had thought to ask her about the gun after the trial yesterday, but then they had all been a bit distracted with the sudden twist things had taken.

Fluttershy had tended to Pinkie, never uttering a word as she did so. Rarity was distressed, running back and forth, checking on Pinkie and joining the search for Rainbow who had flown off towards the town. She had eventually returned shortly before ten the night before, immediately locking herself in her room without a single word. Maud had stayed with Pinkie all evening, too concerned with her wellbeing to ask any questions about the firearm.

In Pinkie’s absence Octavia had taken over attempting to manage everypony, tasking Fleetfoot with searching for Rainbow Dash, while regularly having to stop Shining Armour from breaking into the wine in the cellar herself.

Pinkie looked down at her crumpled dress lying strewn across the floor. She noticed several patches of blood on it despite the colour of the material. Perhaps she would ask Rarity to clean it up for her later; she might like that, an escape from everything else.

Reaching back into her saddlebags, Pinkie removed one final object, the picture frame showing Twilight and her family. As well as not questioning the presence of the gun, they had also been too distracted to stop and question what Chrysalis had meant when she talked about Pinkie wanting to hide the identity of the first Mastermind, but Pinkie knew she would have to come clean today, she had promised Soarin after all.

Day 11, 08:21

Octavia stood perfectly straight, as if standing to attention for Pinkie as she walked down the entrance hall staircase. Any signs of her infection had cleared up entirely, leaving her looking just like her proud, noble self once more. Shining Armour by comparison stood with his shoulders slumped, his whole body sagging, any semblance of royalty long gone. Rarity looked like a mare who hadn’t slept in weeks, her mane unkempt, her eyes bloodshot with dark rings around them. Fluttershy looked perfectly fine physically, but Pinkie could see the misery in her eyes.

Maud looked exactly as Pinkie had always remembered her, her face trained to betray no emotion. Lastly Fleetfoot stood looking dull, leaning heavily on one side, her signature sunglasses perched on her forehead revealing her tired eyes.

Pinkie panned across them as she stepped off the staircase, immediately registering their absent member.

“Has anyone been to see her?” Pinkie asked solemnly.

Fluttershy and Fleetfoot glanced at one another.

“Still locked in her room,” Fleetfoot reported in a neutral voice.

“We… can hear her breathing,” Fluttershy added. “So, um, she hasn’t done anything drastic… yet.”

“Should we… force her out?” Shining Armour asked in an unsure voice.

“We can’t do that,” Rarity exclaimed, horrified at the suggestion.

“I don’t know,” Pinkie stated. “I know this is hard for her, but it might be dangerous to leave her on her own.”

“Where are those tools you used to open my door?” Octavia asked. “Should we decide to go in ourselves.”

Pinkie thought about it, she couldn’t quite remember what became of them. Looking around she saw the others were equally as unaware of their location.

“I could always break the window,” Fleetfoot proposed. “The Mastermind didn’t say anything about forcing through windows, only doors.”

“I guess,” Pinkie replied, unsure. “We’ll give her a few hours; see if we can at least get her to talk to us before we go barging in.”

The others seemed to accept this, so Pinkie began to walk away towards the side door that would lead to the study, stopping when Fleetfoot called out.

“Where do you think you’re going?” she asked rhetorically. “We need to talk about yesterday.”

“What specifically?” Pinkie asked turning around, a pathetic delaying tactic.

“Well for starters where did you get that gun you fired at the bug yesterday?” Fleetfoot demanded.

“I found it in the vault, up in the throne room,” Pinkie explained.

“But that place is sealed up tight,” Maud reminded her. “How did you open it?”

“I’m… not sure,” Pinkie lied. “I was just thinking allowed and it opened up randomly.”

“Well why did you keep it a secret?” Fleetfoot asked. “I think we’d all feel safer knowing where that kind of weapon is.”

“It’s… personal,” Pinkie answered lamely. “It was the same gun that was used to kill my friend in the last game.”

“Where is it now?” Octavia asked calmly.

Pinkie patted her saddlebags.

“Well we aren’t going to confiscate it,” Octavia continued. “I think we can all agree it’s safest in your hooves, and without a changeling running around, I doubt anyone will steal it from you.”

“Is that all or can we get to work?” Pinkie asked, ready to turn away again.

“No,” a voice stated firmly.

All heads turned to the staircase Pinkie had just descended. There, standing at the top was Rainbow Dash, her eyes staring straight at Pinkie.

“That’s not all,” she repeated. “What did she mean? When she said you didn’t want us to find out who the first Mastermind was.”

Pinkie sighed internally, attempting to maintain composure on the outside. She resisted for a long time, ran from Ponyville and her friends all to avoid revealing the truth, but now she was backed up into a corner, nowhere left to run.

“It was Celestia’s idea,” she began after a long period of silence. “She made all the survivors swear to it. I don’t know if I would have been honest otherwise. It was difficult, like a cross I was forced to bear on my own. You all kept asking me to open up, wanting to help me, but I didn’t want you to know… I wanted you all to remember her as she was, not what she became.”

“Remember who as they were?” Rarity asked, edging forward slightly.

“I lied,” Pinkie said, turning to face her remaining friends directly. “We all did. Twilight Sparkle was never murdered by Doughnut Joe.”

“Wait, what?” Rarity asked, looking confused, not seeming to make the connection.

Fluttershy and Rainbow both watched her warily; almost afraid of what was coming. Shining was staring at her curiously. Fleetfoot stared bewildered at her, while Maud and Octavia showed no signs of emotion.

“She faked her own death, fooled us all,” Pinkie continued.

“But… you don’t mean…” Rarity began, her eyes widening.

“Twilight was the Mastermind,” Pinkie concluded with a heavy heart.

A stunned silence followed Pinkie’s revelation, everypony staring at her blankly.

“No…” Rarity whispered, sinking to the ground.

Fluttershy stood paralysed, Rainbow clenched her eyes shut, taking a deep breath. Fleetfoot stood and blinked, as if unsure she had really heard Pinkie or not. Shining Armour…

“NO!” he bellowed, charging forward.

Everyone swiftly forgot their shock momentarily as they cried out objections. Pinkie had no time to react, knocked off her hooves and slammed down to the floor where she was held by the pair of strong forehooves.

“You’re lying!” Shining Armour bellowed. “My sister did not kill those ponies!”

“I’m sorry Shining…” Pinkie gasped, hardly able to draw breath.

“Shut up!” he screamed, slamming her body down once more and knocking the wind from her. “It wasn’t her! It Wasn’t!”

Pinkie opened her mouth, but only a croak escaped. Shining Armour looked livid, his eyes wide and fierce, his lips peeled back revealing clenched teeth, saliva dripping down his chin. For a second, Pinkie was sure he was going to kill her, but then two blue blurs sped into the stallion’s side, knocking him several metres across the room.

Pinkie sucked in air, her vision spinning as she saw Rainbow Dash and Fleetfoot standing protectively over her, facing Shining Armour as he clambered to his hooves.

“That’s enough!” Fleetfoot shouted. “Now I never knew the princess like the rest of you did, I can’t begin to understand how you must be feeling. But don’t start turning on each other now, we’ve come too far!”

“I will not let her say those things about my little sister!” Shining snapped back, before his voice began to crack. “My… little… Twily…”

The transformation was as shocking as it was instantaneous. One second he was snarling and looking as if he were about to shred them all apart, the next he was curled up on the ground, wailing and bawling to himself.

Pinkie gratefully accepted Fluttershy's helping hoof getting back onto all fours. Once she was straightened up she eyed Shining Armour with concern.

“Leave him with us,” Octavia whispered to Pinkie, gesturing to herself, Fleetfoot and Maud. “We’ll look after him; you should probably talk to your friends.”

Pinkie nodded, looking over to the other three, who all seemed to understand what she wanted and obediently followed her from the entrance hall. They walked until the wails faded away, arriving at the study which in comparison was eerily quiet.

“Are you okay Pinkie?” Fluttershy asked, sounding concerned.

“I’ll be fine,” Pinkie replied weakly, taking a seat in her usual armchair while the others all sat down facing her. “I’m so sorry I never told you the truth.”

“It’s alright Pinkie,” Rarity assured her, although her voice sounded hollow. “I just can’t believe this… how could Twilight have done… all those terrible things?”

“It wasn’t Twilight…” Rainbow muttered.

“Rainbow…” Pinkie began sadly.

“It wasn’t,” Rainbow insisted. “It couldn’t have been. It must have been a changeling… or Discord. Twilight wouldn’t have done this.”

Pinkie sighed, looking down at her forehooves crossed over her lap.

“Celestia told me something,” Pinkie began after a short moment of silence. “After we won the game, and the search parties found us. She told me that several months before the first game; they managed to recover the fragment of Sombra’s horn that had been cut off during our first trip to the Empire.”

The other three eyed her curiously upon mention of this; Pinkie remembered her own interest being piqued when Celestia had brought it up.

“Celestia had it moved to Canterlot to be examined,” Pinkie continued, her voice becoming bitter. “But she discovered that doing so would be too dangerous for whoever underwent the task. So she allowed Twilight to examine it, never telling her about the dangers it posed to her. In the end, Twilight’s mind became corrupted, altered by whatever dark force was still in the horn, and Celestia just stood back and watched, never doing anything to save Twilight.”

“How could the Princess do that?” Rarity asked horrified.

“But that means it wasn’t really Twilight, she wasn’t in control,” Rainbow cut in, still sounding insistent.

“That’s what I had thought,” Pinkie replied forlornly. “But Celestia said it was still the Twilight we knew, she had just been given a new perspective on things.”

“So Twilight was… changed by the horn,” Fluttershy repeated, her voice odd. “But that still makes no sense. Why did that make her do this?”

Pinkie frowned, this was the uncomfortable part.

“She said… it was because of me,” Pinkie answered softly, her voice barely audible.

The others all stared at her in confusion, she could hardly blame them.

“During the last trial, after I figured out Twilight must have been the Mastermind,” Pinkie continued, “she told me how I had fascinated her, how she believed I was capable of great thing, of becoming her student and eventually her equal. She said that she needed to test me, to see if I was really the kind of pony she thought I was, and to do that she created the game. She enabled and encouraged ponies to kill one another all to see what I would do, how I would handle it.

“She said she’d always felt that way,” Pinkie finished, “but it was only recently she’d begun to consider it more seriously. I believe her exposure to the horn extenuated her interest in me, causing her to do what she did without any moral repercussions.”

The room was silent for a very long time as the others attempted to absorb the information Pinkie had just presented them with.

“This…” Rainbow began, her voice strained. “This is insane.”

“I know,” Pinkie agreed dully, before looking up at her friends. “Do you hate me? For lying? For it all being my fault?”

“No!” Fluttershy said quickly.

“Of course not dear,” Rarity concurred, her voice still weak. “I thought that everything you had gone through was hard on you before, but knowing this… We could never hate you for trying to hide this from us.”

“And don’t ever say that it was your fault,” Rainbow reprimanded sternly. “You didn’t kill those ponies. Twilight didn’t kill those ponies. Someone is to blame for this, the Princesses, Sombra, anyone but you Pinkie!”

“You were just a victim,” Fluttershy assured her, walking over and draping her forelegs and wings around Pinkie. “You and Twilight both.”

Pinkie sat frozen, hardly daring to believe what she was hearing.

They… don’t hate me. They don’t hate Twilight…

The stinging in Pinkie’s eyes was the only warning she received of the tears that began flooding her vision. As she began to cry, she felt another pair of ponies wrap themselves around her.

Day 11, 11:16

Pinkie brushed a hoof over the picture of Soarin, occasionally glancing between the healthy, smiling face in her hooves, to the pale, strained face of the body lying across the bed. Pinkie set the framed picture back down on the bedside cabinet and turned to the bed. Soarin didn’t look peaceful in death, his mutilated rib cage and shredded flight suit were bad enough, but despite their attempts to make him look at peace, Pinkie could still see the agony he experienced in his final moments etched into his face.

Rainbow Dash knelt beside the bed, clutching one of Soarin’s hooves in her own, her head bowed. Pinkie didn’t speak, opting to give Rainbow her moment of silence. As she waited she thought back to the morgue in the Arcane Manor. Obviously they had been unable to recover the bodies of those who had been executed this time round, the Mastermind apparently deciding against raising them up to the courtroom to truly hammer home what had happened. As well as this the bodies of the victims had disappeared, regardless of where they were when the trial started, when it was over there was no trace of them.

They had been lucky with Soarin in a way. After Rainbow had fled from the scene, distraught, the others saw to him while Pinkie was being treated. He had been taken to his own room where someone regularly checked in, to make sure the Mastermind didn’t spirit him away like the others, they knew Rainbow would want to see him when she recovered from the initial trauma.

“He saved you,” Rainbow whispered. “She would have killed you… but Soarin saved you, and now he’s dead.”

“It was the kind of pony he was,” Pinkie replied sadly. “He once said he would sooner die than take the life of an innocent pony. I didn’t want him to do it Rainbow, if it had been my choice I would have gladly died if it meant everypony else would live. Unfortunately he felt the same way.”

Rainbow didn’t answer; she just reached up and ran a hoof along the contours of his face. Pinkie took that as her cue to leave, she could talk to Rainbow later, for now she would give her solitude. As she stepped out of Soarin’s room and closed the door, she noticed Fleetfoot leaning casually against the wall.

“How’s she holding up?” she asked, gesturing towards the door Pinkie had just closed.

“It’s difficult to say,” Pinkie answered, heading down the corridor, Fleetfoot following. “She seems conflicted in how to feel, like one half of her wants to stay strong while the other half wants to curl up and cry. I kind of understand how she feels; this game has a way of complicating how you feel. A part of you always refuses to believe it’s real, at least until it’s over.”

Fleetfoot nodded as the pair left the residence tower and began walking towards the central chamber.

“I never did get to ask,” Pinkie said after a moment of awkward silence. “Did you have any trouble with Shining?”

“Nah, he cried like a baby all the way to his room,” she answered. “Just kind of passed out as soon as we got him onto his bed. I think he’s lost it.”

“Perhaps so,” Pinkie said as they began ascending the staircase to the waiting room. “We need to find a way of sealing off that cellar, he’s in a bad enough state right now without adding alcohol to the mix.”

“I can go see to that now if you want,” Fleetfoot offered.

“That would be good,” Pinkie replied as they came to a stop in the waiting room. “I need to help Fluttershy myself, the infirmary’s still in a state and we need to find the correct antibiotics again.”

“Alright, I’ll get right on it,” Fleetfoot said, turning to leave.

She only made it a few feet however before she came to a halt.

“Pinkie,” she called over her shoulder.

“Yeah?” Pinkie replied, stopping at the infirmary door and turning to see Fleetfoot standing looking uncomfortable.

“I just wanted to say I’m sorry,” she said, not making eye contact. “I know I haven’t been the easiest to work with since this whole thing started.”

“We’ve all been under a lot of stress,” Pinkie pointed out, surprised at Fleetfoot’s sudden apology.

“I won’t make excuses for how I acted,” Fleetfoot stated flatly. “I can be a total ass, I know that full well. Even to Soarin and Spitfire, they were my best friends. Heck, they were my only friends. I never understood why they ever put up with somepony like me, I always wanted to tell them how much I appreciated it, but that would have required me to open up and be all vu…”

Fleetfoot cringed, breathing heavily.

“But they’re gone,” she finished lamely. “My only friends are gone, and I’ll never get to tell them just how much they meant to me…”

Pinkie’s eyes widened in surprise as she noticed the flickering torch light reflecting off something that wasn’t Fleetfoot’s sunglasses. Acting on impulse, Pinkie strode forward and gripped Fleetfoot in a tight hug, which effectively stopped her crying before it began through sheer shock.

“I forgive you,” Pinkie whispered. “And thank you, for sticking by us this whole time… for being our friend.”

Day 11, 11:49

Pinkie glanced between the box in her hooves and the scrap of paper with the name Rarity had scribbled down for her, matching the pair together.

“Found it,” she announced to Fluttershy who was digging through her own cabinet on the other side of the room.

Crossing over, Fluttershy inspected the box, giving a little nod before depositing it in her saddlebags.

“Well hopefully we won’t need any more than that,” she commented, looking around the rest of the room. “So what will we do about the rest of this?”

Pinkie frowned, scanning over the mess Chrysalis had created.

“Pack away as much of it as possible and take inventory I guess,” Pinkie said at last. “Make sure nothing else went missing. I’m sorry if that’s asking a lot.”

“Oh, no it’s fine,” Fluttershy insisted before adding in a concerned voice. “Are you sure you don’t want anything else for your muzzle?”

“I’ll manage,” Pinkie replied. “It doesn’t hurt much anyway.”

“Still…” Fluttershy muttered before drifting off into silence. “I can do this myself if you have somewhere else to be. Somewhere more important.”

“It’s fine, really Fluttershy,” Pinkie insisted, leaning down to scoop up a bottle that had rolled under a bed. “I don’t really know what else I’m supposed to do at this point.”

“You haven’t had any thoughts about who the Mastermind is?” Fluttershy asked curiously.

“All we know is they had to be at the gala,” Pinkie informed her, “but that could one of hundreds. Without a way to narrow it down or a place to begin searching, there really isn’t much I can do at this point.”

“Well have you considered that maybe…” Fluttershy began while stepping over various litter strewn across the ground, but coming to a sudden stop.

“Considered what?” Pinkie asked, tidying the bottle away into the nearest cabinet.

When Fluttershy didn’t answer, Pinkie glanced up and saw her standing perfectly still, staring at a single cupboard whose door had been smashed in.

“What’s wrong?” Pinkie asked, walking over to her.

“This cupboard,” Fluttershy said, pointing to it. “It was locked.”

Pinkie looked back at it; with the door caved in it would easily swing open despite the state of its lock.

“Are you sure?” Pinkie asked, receiving a nod. “Maybe Chrysalis kicked it when she was smashing this place up.”

Fluttershy gave a noncommittal shrug before walking over to it, crouching down and gingerly pulling the door open. It immediately fell clean off its hinges causing Fluttershy to utter a little squeal. While Fluttershy was calming down, Pinkie angled her head, looking into the dark cupboard. It appeared completely empty bar a single object, a large brown folder.

Recovered, Fluttershy reached in and pulled it out, blowing the thin layer of dust from it. Pinkie couldn’t see the front of it from where she stood, but whatever it said caused Fluttershy to give a tiny gasp.

“What is it?” Pinkie asked quickly, trying to manoeuvre around the debris to get a look.

“Trixie,” Fluttershy stated.

“What?” Pinkie exclaimed.

Fluttershy turned the folder around so Pinkie could read the label.

Subject Name: Trixie

Psychological Assessment

“Why is that here?” Fluttershy asked warily.

“It shouldn’t be surprising, if this is indeed Canterlot,” Pinkie said, not nearly as surprised as Fluttershy, but still curious. “After the first game, during the investigation, we all had to undergo assessments to make sure we were… mentally stable. I only barely qualified for release, but Trixie…”

“I never did ask what happened to her,” Fluttershy said after Pinkie fell into silence. “Nurse Redheart I saw about Ponyville. You, Soarin and… well, not quite Fleur, were all here, but whatever happened to Trixie?”

“She… took the revelation of Twilight being the Mastermind really hard,” Pinkie informed her. “I barely saw her again after we were picked up and taken back to Canterlot, but from what I heard she didn’t cope well. She attempted to kill herself, failed but did a lot of damage. Shortly before Celestia told me about Twilight’s research, Trixie escaped from Canterlot, ran away. Guards were sent out to retrieve her, but I don’t think they ever did find her.”

“Where do you think she went?” Fluttershy asked, sounding slightly scared.

“I assume she succeeded at taking her own life,” Pinkie replied nonchalantly. “Probably in a way that would have made her body tough to find, like drowning in lake or something.”

“You really don’t think she’s still alive?” Fluttershy questioned.

“I don’t realistically believe that,” Pinkie stated flatly.

“Poor Trixie,” Fluttershy said, staring at the folder. “It’s weird, I barely knew her but I feel sad none the less.”

“Of course you do,” Pinkie said, taking the folder away from Fluttershy. “You’re a good pony.”

“If you want to read that I can work away here on my own,” Fluttershy offered again.

Pinkie was tempted to agree this time, curiosity gnawing at her as to the contents of the assessment. However her better nature overcame.

“It can wait,” she said firmly, setting the folder down on Fluttershy’s desk. “I’ll help you first.”

Day 11, 14:02

Pinkie was feeling impatient, eager to read the folder stored away in her saddlebags, but she needed to see to some things first. Turning the corner she quickly saw Fleetfoot’s makeshift barricade in front of the cellar door at the end of the hallway. It seemed she had dragged a large reading desk from the study, propping it up on its end and wedging it through the doorframe.

Satisfied it would send Shining Armour the right message, Pinkie nodded and continued towards the kitchen. The stress of the last couple days had effectively distracted her from her hunger, but now it was catching up to her, and she didn’t doubt the rest were feeling the same. Entering the still immaculate kitchen, she was surprised at finding Rarity and Maud already working away, apparently having had the same thought as her.

“Oh, hello darling,” Rarity said tersely, hearing Pinkie enter. “I hope you don’t mind, but we thought we’d get some lunch made for everypony.”

“Not at all, it’s actually why I’m here,” Pinkie informed her. “I also wanted to find you, Fluttershy and I found the right antibiotics.”

“Oh?” Rarity stated, stepping back from the cooker and walking over to a table where her saddlebags lay. “So the infirmary is all fixed up?”

“Pretty much,” Pinkie replied as Rarity set the lock box on the table between them. “When we ran inventory we found those pills you’d been given were just high dosage painkillers. Probably just have made us feel sick, but then Chrysalis was probably banking on somepony noticing the difference in order to cause more fighting.”

Inserting the key, Pinkie opened the lockbox where the incorrect medicine boxes lay. They quickly exchanged them for the single box Pinkie had brought with her.

“Only one box?” Rarity commented. “Could you not find any others or do you believe we won’t need any more?”

“Well, there aren’t many of us left,” Pinkie muttered. “We won’t need many.”

Rarity nodded solemnly.

“I’ll give out the first dose during lunch,” she assured Pinkie.

“Alright, I guess I’ll go find the others and tell them to come down,” Pinkie said, storing the painkillers in her bags before leaving the kitchen.

Day 11, 14:28

Pinkie eyed Shining as the pair walked together towards the banquet hall. He appeared completely zoned out, seeming to barely recognise her when she came to his room to collect him. He looked like a stallion who had given up on everything.

Better this than trying to kill me.

Pinkie briefly considered striking up a conversation, maybe even trying to get Shining to open up about his problems, but any attempt to was quickly thrown out the window. Entering the banquet hall, Pinkie found they were the last to arrive. Octavia sat surrounded by books and notes, eating away at her food almost subconsciously like she wasn’t aware she was doing it.

Maud was already finished her own food, patiently sitting in silence. Fluttershy was nervously glancing at everyone around her in between her own bites, as if she expected someone to object. Rarity was fiddling about with her hoof computer, her food forgotten. Fleetfoot had also finished her own food and now sat with her head hung, looking like she was about to doze off. Lastly Rainbow sat picking unenthusiastically through her meal, looking too lost in her own thoughts to actually eat anything.

Pinkie walked Shining over to one of the empty spaces where he collapsed heavily into his chair and proceeded to stare blankly at his food. Leaving him be, Pinkie crossed to the opposite side and took a seat beside Rarity. Glancing at what Rarity was doing, she saw she had the map brought up on her screen.

“I was just contemplating how much we’d seen,” Rarity explained, realising she was being observed. “There doesn’t seem to be many places left to go that aren’t locked.”

Pinkie nodded, the map of the castle had certainly grown rapidly since the first day, but then Pinkie hardly needed it anymore, finding her way around the castle quite easily at this point. A rapid movement in the corner of her eye caused her to look back up at Shining Armour. It appeared he had snapped out of his daze and quickly guzzled down his drink, now looking disappointed at finding it was only water in his glass.

Looking back at Rarity, Pinkie’s eyes were drawn to her dress. It still looked immaculate despite everything it must have endured since arriving here; no doubt Rarity had been taking rigorous care of it.

“Oh yeah, Rarity,” Pinkie began, suddenly remembering the crumpled heap on her bedroom floor. “I was meaning to ask you, would you be able to give my dress a bit of a clean-up?”

Rarity gave Pinkie a genuine smile, possibly her first in a while.

“Why I’d love to darling,” she replied beaming. “I’ll get right on it.”

Pinkie opened her mouth, but Rarity was already skipping from the room. Pinkie glanced down at Rarity’s unfinished lunch.

“I’ll store it away,” Maud said suddenly, following Pinkie’s gaze. “In case she wants it later.”

“I didn’t mean for her to do it right now,” Pinkie stated, frowning.

“She probably needs something to distract her from everything,” Maud suggested.

Pinkie nodded, starting into her own food, noticing Shining Armour had finally done the same.

Day 11, 15:13

Pinkie reclined in her usual armchair in the study, taking a moment to relax before addressing the contents of the folder on her lap. After lunch Fleetfoot and Rainbow Dash had escorted Shining Armour away, he seemed docile enough, but the pair agreed to keep an eye on him. Maud had left to check on Rarity while Fluttershy had offered to help Octavia transport her materials back to the library. This left Pinkie on her own, with only one thing on her mind.

Pinkie opened her eyes and looked down at the cover of the folder. Without hesitating she opened it up and scanned the first page. The beginning of the report was a printed page with Trixie’s personal details filled in, Pinkie skimmed through it, picking out random bits of information.

Self-employed…

No permanent residence…

No immediate relatives…

Even before, Pinkie had never stopped to consider the kind of life Trixie led, where she had come from, if she had a family or friends. Pinkie could feel a twinge of regret growing inside her, she had had plenty of time and opportunities to ask Trixie those questions, to learn more about who she really was, but the thought had never crossed her mind.

Turning the page reluctantly, Pinkie was now faced with another printed page detailing Trixie’s medical history. The information here was even scarcer, Trixie had apparently led a relatively healthy existence, however the doctor had occasionally jotted down a question mark next to some of the details, almost like he doubted their sincerity. Turning the page Pinkie finally found something more substantial.

The subject remains unresponsive, clearly still too traumatised by what has occurred to give a full report of her experiences to either myself or the investigating officers. Most of her personal information was provided by public records, and she has been unable to confirm any of it. Until we begin to see the barest improvements in the form of communication I must recommend keeping the subject under permanent watch.

Pinkie thought about this, while it had been difficult recounting her experiences, she hadn’t resisted. Glancing over the next few pages Pinkie found that Trixie had maintained her silence over a number of sessions. It was only by the fifth session that the doctor reported any change in her behaviour.

The subject finally spoke today, when asked if she needed anything to make her more comfortable she replied ‘no thank you’. While this is not overly significant, I believe it is an encouraging sign that she will be showing more improvement in the coming sessions.

Pinkie turned to the next page without stopping. The next report appeared to skip a number of sessions. Double checking, Pinkie was sure she hadn’t skipped any, either some reports were missing or they had never been filed.

Trixie has grown considerably more responsive over the last three days, however I still recommend holding off on her investigation interviews. As of the moment she is only casually discussing minor details about her life here in the castle, she says she appreciates the time she’s allowed to walk around the gardens. Until she begins to appear more stable, I believe any attempt at forcing her to acknowledge her experience will only have a negative effect on her.

Pinkie didn’t doubt her and Trixie had had very different experiences in those weeks. Pinkie had cooperated with the investigators and the princesses, so that in the rare times she wasn’t being hounded for information she was free to traverse the castle without supervision. She had seen Trixie briefly on one of her walks around the sculpture gardens, remembering how she was escorted by a nurse and flanked by two guards. Turning her attention back to the report, Pinkie continued to the next page.

The subject has taken a turn for the worse. I’m not sure what brought on this change; perhaps a careless mention of what happened by one of the guards. Whatever it was, Trixie is now displaying clear signs of imbalance. While lucid she appears terrified and distraught, crying and screaming all the time. Any attempts to calm or restrain her at these times are met with aggression. From what she’s said during these times she appears fully aware of what occurred at the manor. However, perhaps more concerning, are the other times when she appears to take on a state of delusion, an entirely different personality.

At these times she is friendly and talkative, helpful even. However she has no recollection of the incident at the manor, appearing genuinely oblivious when asked directly about it. This behaviour became particularly disturbing when she began asking ‘When can I see Twilight’. She would repeatedly ask variations on this, regardless of what answers she received before. When I asked her to elaborate on why she was here, she recounted a fanciful tale of how Twilight Sparkle agreed to take her under her wing, and Trixie was now living in the castle to receive tutelage from her.

Occasionally she would make enigmatic statements along the lines of ‘I live to carry out her will’ or ‘if it’s what Twilight wants, then I want it for her’. I would like to take a few more sessions with her, but at this point I think it’s safe to say I will be recommending her for more extensive psychological treatment.

Pinkie stared at the sheet in front of her, the quotes repeating in her mind.

Trixie became deluded over Twilight? To what extent I wonder?

Flicking to the next page Pinkie found that it had skipped another couple of sessions, this one occurring after an incident she was familiar with.

Subject has attempted to commit suicide. Medical staff inform me that she is lucky to still be alive after so much blood loss, she may have done herself permanent damage, but we won’t know for sure until the doctors are finished examining her. From what her nurse has reported, she appeared to be in her lucid state at the time leading up to it. The nurse had left briefly to find someone who could help calm Trixie down, she returned just in time. I doubt I will get another opportunity to speak with her even if she comes out of this physically well.

Pinkie had known this much before, at the time she had almost been thankful for it, receiving her first entire day of peace while everyone was busying themselves with Trixie. The next page did not skip sessions, but this one seemed to occur a few days after the suicide attempt.

Trixie claims to have no recollection of her attempt at taking her own life, whether it be in her lucid or delusional state. On that note her personality shifts have become far more rapid, switching numerous times in this one session, on one occasion while she was talking. Both personalities appear to have been altered by her near death. While delusional she now seems to recall bits and pieces regarding Twilight’s ‘game’, but doesn’t regard herself as a victim in it, or even that what Twilight did was wrong.

Pinkie raised an eyebrow before continuing.

The change to her lucid state is considerably more intriguing however. She appears calm and collected, still fully aware of what happened at the manor, but acts as if she is coping with it. She was able to give her first full account of what happened today, and for the most part it matches up perfectly with the other survivors. I still believe she will need to undergo further treatment after this, but she might be able to take her interview yet.

It appeared Trixie had been having quite the emotional rollercoaster. Pinkie would never say she had had it easy, but her own experience was starting to look like a picnic in comparison to Trixie’s. The next page continued to the very next day and session, and Pinkie made a note of the date across the top. It was the day before Trixie escaped.

Trixie’s behaviour was even more peculiar today. Very occasionally she would switch to her deluded persona, but the spells were quick, almost like she was consciously suppressing them. She said today was her last session with me, I’m unsure what she meant, I asked around afterwards and I am still scheduled to work with her for another week at least. However she stated on multiple occasions that there was nothing more for me to do, that I couldn’t help her, that it was something she had to confront on her own.

Her bandages were removed today, and despite everyone’s insistence her wounds are random, I can’t help but look at them and feel that they were deliberate, like there is some kind of pattern to them. Almost all of what she said today was coherent, but so much of it made little to no sense. I will be quite eager to see what behaviour she displays tomorrow at this rate.

Pinkie sat back in her armchair, there were a couple more pages but she knew this doctor would never speak to Trixie again. The next morning the alarms were raised and the guards were sent out, and that would be the last anypony ever saw of Trixie.

Still…

Pinkie looked back down at the report, and flicked the page, curious to see what more the doctor would have to say.

Trixie has escaped, nopony has any clue as to how she pulled it off, it’s almost as if she teleported. Were that not impossible inside the section of the castle she has been secluded to, I wouldn’t doubt that was the method used. I hope the guards catch up with her before she does anything too serious, in this time I’ve certainly become sympathetic towards her, and I’d hate to see anything bad happen to her after all she’s been through.

Pinkie flicked past the brief section, onto the final page, curious as to what more could be said.

They found her…

Pinkie snapped upright in her seat, staring in disbelief at the writing before her.

They found her, she’s alive. She would be in custody now, but somehow she managed to evade the guards yet again. She was located, hiding out in an abandoned farmhouse in the West side of Whitetail Woods. A search of the premise found an alarming number of dark magic materials in the basement. I am greatly worried, both for what Trixie has been doing, and what she will do. I can only hope the guards catch up with her again, and this time manage to bring her in. It’s for her own good.

Pinkie eyes flickered up to the date, it was written over a month after the last report, she would have been trying to re-establish her life in Ponyville at the time. She flipped the page over, desperate for some closure, some final words explaining how it ended. Instead, all she found were four words daubed on the back of the final page, not in ink, but some dark ichor like substance.

Back to the beginning.

Pinkie stared at the cryptic message, deflating when she realised this report would never tell her what happened to Trixie. Closing the folder over, she let it slid off her lap as she flopped back in her seat.

Delusions… Broken personalities… Dark Magic…

Pinkie felt a chill run up her spine as a dark thought began worming its way into her mind.

How much did you worship Twilight? To what extend would you go to be like her?

Day 11, 16:06

“You look stunning,” Rarity said, as Pinkie did a lit spin in her squeaky clean dress.

“Thanks Rarity,” Pinkie said. It sounded hollow, her thoughts elsewhere. “Honestly I don’t know why we’re still wearing these.”

“For a splash of style of course,” Rarity replied.

“Well now that my style no longer smells of death I won’t argue,” Pinkie joked morbidly.

The pair left the wash room and began walking down the corridor together, Pinkie barely registered where they were going, her thoughts still focused on what she had read.

“Is something the matter dear?” Rarity asked, noticing Pinkie’s expression.

“Huh? Oh, I was just thinking,” Pinkie replied, when she realised Rarity was waiting for her to continue she quickly told a half truth. “About who the Mastermind is supposed to be.”

“Fluttershy and I were discussing that earlier,” Rarity said nodding, “And then again with your sister while preparing lunch. We all agreed, that based on what you’ve told us, there might be something more to this horn.”

“Horn? You mean Sombra’s?” Pinkie asked, she had barely ever thought about that, despite its apparent relevance.

“Well yes, if what Celestia says is true,” Rarity continued. “Then Twilight… did what she did because she was exposed to it, maybe somepony else was.”

Pinkie rubbed her chin with a hoof; it was certainly a good idea.

“I don’t even know where the horn was being kept,” Pinkie said at last. “And even if I knew that, this castle is laid out nothing like the original Canterlot castle.”

“Well at least it will give us a place to start,” Rarity said encouragingly. “And if we cross reference possible ponies exposed with those attended the gala, we might actually get somewhere.”

“That’s actually a really good idea Rarity,” Pinkie replied, slightly embarrassed at not having thought of it herself.

“Well that latter part was your sister’s idea,” Rarity admitted, her cheeks reddening slightly.

Pinkie walked with a slight skip in her step after that, they had direction and an objective, that she could work with. However her sister's words from that morning resurfaced in her mind, she cringed and tried to look as unhappy as possible as they continued walking.

Day 11, 20:17

Pinkie entered the residence tower just in time to catch the tail end of a conversation Fleetfoot and Rainbow Dash were having.

“You sure you’re gonna be alright?” Fleetfoot asked, sounding concerned. “It’s alright to want some company after what you’ve been through, we won’t judge you.”

“No really, it’s alright,” Rainbow replied, her voice unsteady and her back turned to both Fleetfoot and Pinkie. “But thanks anyway Fleetfoot, really. You’re a lot nicer than I gave you credit for.”

With that she walked away, leaving Fleetfoot standing on her own. Pinkie began walking forward, the other Pegasus’s ear twitching slightly as she did.

“Oh, hey Pinkie,” Fleetfoot greeted, turning to face her.

“Hey Fleetfoot, is Rainbow alright?” Pinkie replied, stopping next to her.

“She says she is,” Fleetfoot stated, looking off in the direction Rainbow had left in. “I know she doesn’t mean it, I just hope she doesn’t do anything stupid.”

“You and me both,” Pinkie agreed, nodding sagely. “But going from what she said there, you two seem to be getting along well.”

“Yeah, it seems,” Fleetfoot replied, smiling awkwardly. “I guess everypony’s friendly nature is rubbing off on me, though I must say it’s nice to feel like I’m actually liked.”

“Why would you ever think otherwise?” Pinkie asked, curious.

“I don’t know, it’s just what I always knew I guess,” Fleetfoot muttered. “Everypony I knew growing up was an ass to me, so I was ass right back; it’s all I really knew.”

“What about your family?” Pinkie asked, regretting it immediately when Fleetfoot flinched, a look of pain on her face.

“I’d… rather not talk about them,” Fleetfoot said, her eyes clenched slightly.

“I’m sorry,” Pinkie replied awkwardly.

“No, it’s not your fault,” Fleetfoot insisted, starting to walk away. “I’ll see you tomorrow Pinkie.”

“Alright, I was just speaking with Octavia there, and there’s some stuff we’ve gotta do tomorrow,” Pinkie informed her as she continued walking.

“Sounds good,” Fleetfoot called over her shoulder. “Night Pinks.”

Pinkie raised an eyebrow.

Did she just call me Pinks?

Pinkie smirked as she walked over to her own bedroom door. As she turned the handle she noticed yellow out the corner of her eye.

“Oh, hi Fluttershy,” Pinkie greeted, looking over at the Pegasus who was watching her awkwardly from the end of the hall. “Is something the matter?”

“Oh, no. Everything’s fine,” Fluttershy said, lying badly. “I was just wondering, if maybe… you…”

Her voice trailed off into little more than a whisper.

“Do you want to repeat that?” Pinkie asked curiously.

“No, it doesn’t matter,” Fluttershy insisted, walking quickly past Pinkie, her head hanging so her mane covered her face.

“Fluttershy!” Pinkie called, making the Pegasus freeze. “What’s wrong?”

“I just wondered,” Fluttershy began again. “If maybe, you would like… do you have nightmares?”

Pinkie blinked, Fluttershy’s whole demeanour changed as she uttered that last question, her voice becoming loud and fast. Pinkie could tell Fluttershy had quickly changed what she was about to say.

“What do you mean nightmares?” Pinkie asked. “You mean the voices at night? The sounds?”

Fluttershy nodded.

“Yeah I get them,” Pinkie admitted.

“Well, if they bothered you,” Fluttershy continued, shifting awkwardly. “Maybe we should sleep in the same room, in case one of us gets scared.”

“Oh, I see what’s going on,” Pinkie said, the truth dawning on her.

“You do?!” Fluttershy exclaimed, her eyes wide.

“Fluttershy, if you’re scared at night you don’t have to hide it,” Pinkie assured her. “Of course you can sleep in my room, whatever I can do to help you with your nightmares.”

“Oh, yes,” Fluttershy said, her body sagging ever so slightly. “That’s exactly it. Thank you Pinkie.”

“Hey, what are friends for?” Pinkie stated, pulling Fluttershy into a comforting hug, receiving only a sigh in response.

Day 12, 00:00

Pinkie awoke, at first unsure why. It took a few seconds for her mind to focus and her sense to sharpen; when they did she registered the distinct absence of her companion in bed. Pinkie sat bolt upright, looking all around the room for Fluttershy.

“Fluttershy,” she called out in a low voice.

The dark room was completely empty besides herself. Confused, Pinkie slipped out from under the covers which had already been drawn back on the other side. Standing up she walked around the bed to the door, her heart stopping when her eyes fell on the latch.

The door was unlocked.

“Fluttershy,” Pinkie whispered to herself, confusion steadily being replaced by worry.

Pinkie hurried over to her desk, ignoring her dress completely she opened her saddlebags. Everything was still there, the knife, the gun, Trixie’s report…

No, not everything was there. The picture of Twilight was missing. Pinkie checked and double checked her saddlebags, opened all the drawers in her desk and bedside cabinet. She was faced with on undeniable fact, the picture was gone.

Priorities Pinkie!

Pinkie slapped herself in the face, it was just some picture, who cared about some picture, Fluttershy was gone. Pinkie looked back at the unlocked door, the faint sound of whispering coming from beyond.

If Fluttershy went out there… I have to go find her.

Pinkie threw on her saddlebags, leaving most of its contents on the desk surface. Only the knife and revolver were still inside. Walking over to the door, Pinkie checked the latch one last time, confirming it was indeed unlocked, then moved her hoof across to the door handle. She braced herself for what lay ahead, and as the whispering grew louder, she turned the handle.

Author's Note

This is where things get crazy!
Oh, and food for thought. Even though the murder hasn't occurred yet, there will still only be three parts in this chapter.

C4: Asylum

Day 12, 00:05

Pinkie instinctively raised her hooves to shield her face as a gust of air smashed into the room as soon as she turned the door handle, the door was flung open, the warmth of the bedroom evaporating instantly, leaving only an icy chill around her. Pinkie lowered her forehooves and opened her eyes, somehow without realising it she had been spun around so she was now facing the inside of her room.

Pinkie recalled how the rooms had always felt warm and cosy; the same could not be said anymore. The wooden panelling was stripped away from the walls, revealing bare concrete beneath. The wooden fixtures were rotten and crawling with woodlice. The curtains were tattered, the bed nothing more than a dirty sheet stretched over a sagging mattress which was… writhing. Pinkie fought the urge to throw up as she began to notice maggots crawling off it and landing on the floor, she quickly backed out of the room and fell straight down.

The fall didn’t last long, Pinkie landing hard on her rump after only a few seconds. She groaned as she craned her neck. High above her was a rectangular light amidst the darkness. Looking around, Pinkie recognised her surroundings as being the hallway just outside her room, however the walls were completely bare, the doors to the bedrooms completely absent. Looking up once more, Pinkie realised that the ceiling had simply disappeared, instead the walls just travelled higher and higher until they faded into the darkness. The ethereal lights that had once danced throughout the corridor were also gone.

Dragging herself to her hooves, Pinkie glanced back once at her bedroom door impossibly high above her. There was no way she could reach it now, even if she wanted to. Turning her attention back to the corridor, she reminded herself why she had strayed from the safety of her room in the first place. She had to find Fluttershy, and that meant leaving this place. Taking a deep breath, Pinkie set off down the corridor, her hooves shuffling on the decline. Pinkie’s room should have been one of the lowest in towers, but for some reason when she traversed the corner, she found herself in another blank stretch of hallway, ending in another corner.

Pinkie picked up the pace, almost running to the end. Flinging herself around the corner her jaw dropped when she found herself standing at the start of yet another corridor segment. Pinkie stood up straight, closed her eyes and began to take deep, even breaths.

This place is trying to mess with my head; it’s all just a nightmare. If I keep my cool I should be able to make my way out of this.

Feeling slightly more confident, Pinkie opened her eyes once more, and immediately regretted doing so when she found herself standing on a much steeper slope, staring down into the darkness beneath her. Pinkie scrabbled desperately at the carpeted floor as the corridor tilted even further. Her breathing became more rapid as she clung to the surprisingly sticky floor.

“It’s just a nightmare,” Pinkie reminded herself, her voice shaky.

She repeated her mantra several more times, trying feverishly to calm down. Then her stomach lurched as the corridor stretched out like an elastic band before snapping back, causing her to lose her grip on the carpet and fall down into the shadows.

Pinkie got spat out of the corridor at the other, end being flung unceremoniously into the opposite wall of hallway outside the residence tower. She rubbed her aching head, moaning as she looked up. The doorway to the tower began melting before her very eyes, taking the form of a gaping mouth snapping its jagged teeth fruitlessly at her. Even though it was confined to the opposite wall, Pinkie still tucked her limbs in, desperate to be as far away from the door monster as she could.

Looking around her she found this corridor was more or less the same as it was during the day, the only difference being the flaming torches shone with a pale blue light. Pinkie slowly got to her hooves, trying to ignore the savage monster in the wall in front of her. She glanced down both directions, trying to decide where to go. On the one hand she could go towards the entrance hall; from there she could reach the whole first floor, the grounds and the library wing.

The other direction would lead her to the central chamber, and by extension the infirmary. Pinkie had no idea where Fluttershy had gone, or why, but if she was lucky she’d find her in the infirmary. Making up her mind, Pinkie set off towards the central chamber, the sound of snapping jaws fading into the background until Pinkie could hear it no more.

Day 12, 00:53

Pinkie reached the end of the corridor, arriving at a door. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been walking; it felt like time had slowed down. Glancing down at her hoof computer she found the screen fuzzy, a familiar image of grey pixels. She tapped fruitlessly a few times, but nothing would change the image, or silence the humming that she hadn’t even noticed until now. Sighing, she opened the door and stepped through automatically.

The door slammed shut behind her, but she barely noticed as she stood blinking on the balcony of the entrance hall.

But the entrance hall was the other way. I did go the right way… didn’t I?

Pinkie gritted her teeth; she was beginning to regret ever opening her bedroom door.

When I find you Fluttershy, I don’t know if I’m going to hug you or kill you!

Glancing back, Pinkie wasn’t overly surprised to see the door behind her inaccessible, dark vines spreading over it, pulsating grotesquely. Turning back to the entrance hall Pinkie began walking, stopping only at the top of the staircase. This room, like the last was almost the same as she remembered it, the only major difference being the blue lights. As she began walking down the stairs however, the open gate ahead of her began rippling, the image warping and distorting. When Pinkie reached the foot of the stairs, the rippling stopped and the gate was now blocked by the portcullis.

“Well that seemed unnecessary,” a voice said from behind Pinkie. “Couldn’t they have just lowered it instead of doing that weird wobbly stuff?”

Pinkie turned around and looked to the top of the staircase, her blood freezing as she saw who spoke.

“I mean, sure it’s spookier that way,” Twilight admitted, “but it’s not like that matters with somepony as brave as you Pinkie.”

Pinkie gaped like a fish out of water, staring up at the lavender alicorn sitting casually upon the staircase.

“What’s wrong Pinkie?” Twilight asked, sounding concerned. “You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.”

Pinkie blinked hard, her nostrils flaring.

“Go away!” Pinkie snapped, turning away from her. “You aren’t real.”

“Well that’s hardly a nice thing to say to your friend,” Twilight said, sounding hurt.

Pinkie ignored her and began walking away in the direction of the adjoining corridor.

“Wait, wait, wait,” Twilight called, rushing down the steps after Pinkie. “I’m sorry; clearly you’re upset about something. Is there anything I can do to help?”

“You could not pretend to be my friend!” Pinkie shot back, her eyes piercing into those of the lookalike.

“Pinkie, I am your friend,” Twilight said reaching out and taking hold of Pinkie’s hoof. “See?”

Pinkie froze, she had expected to be able to just phase right through her, but there it was, Twilight’s hoof in her own. Pinkie jerked back but Twilight held on, pulling Pinkie in closer so her hoof was pressed against Twilight’s chest.

“It’s me Pinkie,” Twilight insisted.

Pinkie tried to pull away, tried to ignore to warmth of her hoof, of the beating of her heart. Twilight sighed and let her go.

“You aren’t Twilight,” Pinkie stated, although her voice was shaking this time. “Twilight is dead.”

Twilight laughed, causing Pinkie to back up even further. It wasn’t a cold laugh, it wasn’t dark or maniacal, it was rich hearty laugh, and it sounded all too familiar.

“Thank goodness, I was afraid you’d changed Pinkie,” Twilight said, whipping a tear from her eye. “But you still know how to make me laugh.”

Pinkie stared at the other mare in a mixture of horror and disbelief.

“I was afraid you see,” Twilight continued, suddenly sounding more serious. “That you weren’t the Pinkie I once knew. Do you remember, when I asked you never to change?”

Pinkie opened her mouth, but then a voice shouted out in her head.

Twilight is dead! This is a trick, just like everything else you’ve seen!

Pinkie braced her resolve.

“What do you want?” Pinkie asked flatly.

“What do I want?” Twilight repeated, sounding confused. “I want to help you.”

“Find Fluttershy?” Pinkie queried.

Twilight smirked, her eyes narrowing.

“Is that really what you want?” she asked, her voice cool, her horn flashing.

Pinkie blinked, before her hung a rectangular object held aloft by a pink aura.

“How did you get this?” Pinkie asked in disbelief, taking hold of the picture frame.

Twilight laughed again.

“So I was right, that’s all you really care about.”

Pinkie’s eye twitched in anger.

“I want to find Fluttershy,” Pinkie stated firmly. “This picture means nothing to me.”

“Fluttershy will be fine,” Twilight assured her. “What you hold is of far more value, and I’m offering it to you.”

“A picture of you and your family?” Pinkie questioned.

“A way to get ahead in this game,” Twilight corrected, that caught Pinkie’s interest and Twilight knew it. “Things are happening tonight, and if you choose to ignore me you’ll be caught off guard.”

Pinkie hesitated; she looked down at the picture frame, noticing the glass was cracked.

“What happened to this?” Pinkie demanded. “And how did you get it?”

“These are the answers I’m offering you,” Twilight explained, circling around Pinkie. “But you’ll have to forget about your friend, trust me when I tell you she will be fine.”

“How would you know?!” Pinkie snapped.

“That…” Twilight began, smirking, “is not one of the answers I’m offering you.”

Pinkie inhaled deeply, she just knew she was going to regret this, but then there wasn’t a thing about this situation she did like.

“Fine, say I agree,” Pinkie began. “What is it you want me to do?”

“For starters…” Twilight began.

Pinkie stepped back, horrified as Twilight’s entire body began melting away, becoming nothing more than a pitch black bubble writhing and shaping itself in the air in front of Pinkie.

“I’d like a drink,” Twilight finished, the black gloop solidifying in the shape of a large goblet.

Pinkie blinked in bewilderment, reaching out reluctantly to take hold of the chalice floating before her. The textures of the cup rippled beneath Pinkie’s touch, sending shivers up her spine. She wanted nothing more than the throw the cursed object as far away from her as possible.

She wants a drink?

Pinkie continued to stare in utter confusion, what did that even mean? Pinkie thought about it, it had to be some sort of clue as to where she was expected to go, but the only place where she could possible find a drink was in the…

Pinkie groaned.

The cellar.

Day 12, 01:38

Pinkie felt sick, she’d never be able to walk down a perfectly straight corridor again without expecting it to try and kill her in some way. Finally reaching the cellar door, she wasn’t half surprised to find the table conveniently absent. Peering through the threshold, she could make out an orange pinprick of light, flickering amidst the darkness. Taking one last look at the luminous blue light of the hallway, she set off down the cellar steps, the chalice held in her teeth.

She edged her way down the steps very slowly, not wishing to be taken by surprise again. Reaching the foot of the stairs, she made out a wooden column directly ahead of her, a lantern hanging from a hook. Walking up, she reached out with her hoof, hitting her computer first to bring the prongs out. Then, angling one of the prongs through the ring atop the lantern, she lifted it down and held it out before her, allowing its light to spill out around her.

The cellar ceiling was still as low as she remembered it, but she couldn’t see any of the walls from where she stood. The light radius the lantern offered wasn’t brilliant, but she should still have been able to make out something. Glancing back she could still see the blue glow from the top of the staircase. With the lantern held aloft, she began edging forward on three legs, hers eyes scanning the room for anything at all.

She must have walked for a minute straight, and still hadn’t found the walls, no barrels either. Occasionally she’d find an empty bottle lying on the ground. Frowning, she tried back tracking a little, almost tripping herself up on one of the bottles. She swore in a muffled voice as the bottle rolled away into the darkness, but then she heard a faint clink of glass against glass. Curious she began walking in the direction the bottle had gone, finding it lying next to another one.

Pinkie sighed internally, about to walk away when she caught sight of another bottle just at the edge of her field of vision. Walking over to it her suspicions were confirmed when the flickering light reflected off another bottle just ahead.

It’s a trail of breadcrumbs… or empty wine bottles.

Pinkie followed the bottle, which quickly became closer together and in some cases lying in piles of two of three. Finally, by following the trail she made it to the end of the room. The shelves were filled with more bottles, every one of them bone dry upon examination, but Pinkie’s attention was drawn to a gap in the shelves, a space where they had been smashed away to reveal a natural rock tunnel behind.

Walking up to the tunnel entrance, Pinkie shone her light in, noticing the cavern floor glittered as she did so. Figuring this was the way she was expected to go, Pinkie put her hoof forward, immediately pulling it right back, crying out in pain and dropping the chalice. Pinkie held her hoof up to the light, seeing a jagged shard of glass jutting into it, a small trickle of blood running from the wound.

Pinkie mentally chastised herself for rushing in so quickly. That was broken glass all over the tunnel floor, that’s why it was glittering when she shone her light over it. Lifting her injured hoof up to her mouth, she pulled the shard of glass out with her teeth, spitting it away to the side. She then scanned the floor for the chalice, quickly fining it and picking it back up. She would need to take it slower this time.

Stepping back towards the tunnel entrance she began shuffling along on her hooves, pushing the broken glass away from her as she moved as opposed to putting her weight down on it. Thankfully the tunnel wasn’t too long, a dark red glow indicating the end not too far from her. Pinkie felt the chalice wiggle about against her teeth, almost like it was getting excited. Arriving at the end, the tunnel opened out into a circular cavern, the red glow coming from the centre.

Pinkie set the lantern down at the cavern exit and stepped over the pile of glass she’d pushed forward onto the thankfully clear floor. The glow was emanating from a pedestal carved roughly in the centre of the chamber, a basin scooped out from the top making it look like a baptismal font. Reaching the edge of the font, Pinkie looked down into the basin where a deep crimson liquid lapped gently.

“There we are…” a voice hissed from the chalice in Pinkie’s mouth. “Now, dip me in, fill me up.”

Pinkie briefly questioned what this act could possibly accomplish before taking the chalice in her hooves and carrying out its wish. The liquid was thin, the goblet penetrating the surface easily. Pinkie tried to ignore the sensual moans the object began making as she filled it up, she was only too happy to pull it back out and silence it.

“Good, now…” the chalice began in a slow, lustful tone. “Drink!”

“Excuse me?!” Pinkie demanded. “There is no way I am drinking that stuff.”

“You must!” the chalice insisted. “Lest its answers be denied to you forever.”

Pinkie screwed up her face; she had to be completely insane to actually contemplate obeying this stupid cup.

“What exactly will it do?” Pinkie asked warily.

“Wonderful things…” the chalice replied. “The things you’ll see… the things you’ll feel…”

“And this will somehow help me win the game?” Pinkie questioned suspiciously.

“It will help you get ahead, yes,” the chalice confirmed.

Pinkie clenched her eyes shut, she was definitely insane. Bracing herself, she raised the goblet to her mouth and began chugging the red liquid down as quickly as she could. It tasted metallic, it was truly disgusting, Pinkie wanted nothing more than to throw the damn cup away and spew the vile stuff up, but for some reason she couldn’t. It was as if her body was no longer obeying her, guzzling down the liquid as fast as it could before dipping the chalice into the basin once more and refilling it.

“Isn’t it just intoxicating?” the voice said, echoing all around her as she began drinking down the second load. “Better than mother’s milk, wouldn’t you agree?”

Pinkie could barely focus on the voice, her mind was becoming hazy. The whole world was spinning out of control and yet somehow standing perfectly still. Her vision spun around as she tried to refill the chalice once more, but her hoof missed the basin and she collapsed to the ground, the whole world turning red.

Day 12, 02:54

Pinkie blinked awake, her brain ached, her body felt lifeless. She was forced to shut her eyes almost immediately as she was greeted with the sting of an intense white glow. Groaning, her head hurting even more now from the blinding light, she rolled over and swiftly fell off whatever she was lying on down to the hard ground below.

Pinkie’s eyes snapped open as the wind was knocked from her. The world was still spinning, but it was slowing down so that she was finally able to make out her surroundings. She was in the infirmary, only it didn’t feel like the infirmary. The only light came from the single neon bulb hanging over the bed she had been lying on. Now that she thought about it, there were never any beds in the centre of the infirmary. Standing up onto shaking hooves, Pinkie turned to the bed she had just fallen off.

It wasn’t a bed. It closer resembled a dentist chair, with the addition of mechanical arms jutting out around it, each tipped with various bloody tools. It was some kind of surgery chair. Pinkie quickly looked herself up and down but found no scars to indicate she had been the source of the blood on those tools. She shuddered at the thought and quickly stumbled around the contraption and started towards the doors.

Opening them both wide she stepped out into a much brighter lit waiting room. There were no torches lit, all the light came from a roaring wall of fire stretching across the archway leading to the central chamber. Pinkie gulped and edged forward, away from the infirmary doors. There would definitely be no getting through that flaming barrier, which left her with only one direction to go in. Turning right, Pinkie wasted no time in trotting down the corridor to the observatory, lined with flickering blue torches.

As she traversed the hallway she was constantly on the lookout for any bizarre activity that she’d come to expect of this nightmarish world. Surprisingly however, nothing did occur, that on its own worried Pinkie even more. Glancing back she quickly confirmed that nothing was following her. She was about to turn her attention forward once more when something did end up catching her eye.

Bloody hoof prints. Pinkie blinked in confusion for a moment before lifting up one of her legs and looking at the underside of her hoof. It was covered in cuts resembling the one she’d got when she stepped on the broken glass; some were long while others were deep, strangely enough none of them hurt. Checking her other hooves, Pinkie confirmed the trend. Peculiar, but if they didn’t affect her walking it hardly mattered. Shaking off the thought she continued on her way, traveling up the spiral corridor and reaching the heavy bulk door which was still lying open.

Pinkie could hear the hum of machinery as she stepped through the threshold of the observatory, heard the click-clacking of the orrery limbs carrying out their orbit of the centre orb. Pinkie was greeted with the sight of the orrery the moment she stepped into the room, it was not however as she remembered it. The structure itself was the same, but it was now surrounded by a mass of ghostlike gears.

Pinkie stared up at the machine in confusion as she edged around it. Almost the entire room was filled with the phantom clockwork. As she watched the rotating of the orbs and the turning of the gears, she couldn’t help but feel the two were connected somehow, working in tandem with one another. Then something specific caught her eye.

One of the planets was missing, ripped straight off its limb which was still turning none the less. Pinkie barely had time to contemplate this however before something heavy struck her in the side of the head and sent her flying across the observatory.

Pinkie’s head hammered as she tried to right herself. Craning her neck back, she looked to see what had attacked her. At first she couldn’t see anything amidst the phantom gears, but then it swooped into view. Pinkie rolled as it sped at her, clearing the way just as it smashed into the ground where she had just been laying.

Now that she a clear view of it she could see that it was some kind of ethereal blue ghost, comprised entirely of what could be magical energy. Surrounding it however were fragments of purple armour with gold trimming, floating about it to create the impression of some spectral stallion. Pinkie got back onto her hooves, wobbling as she did so. She had taken way too many hits lately, it was starting to become miraculous that she could even stand at all.

The monster turned to face her, almost furious in its stance, no doubt at her evading it. It charged again but Pinkie dodged, allowing it to speed into the wall behind her. Wasting no time, Pinkie galloped away from the creature, climbing the mesh ramp, eager to put as much distance between herself and the spectral knight as she could. It however, was having none it, swooping through the air and blocking Pinkie’s path. It swiped at Pinkie with a hoof gauntlet, but Pinkie side stepped and ducked through the open door to the battlements.

It was the first time she had been outside since she set foot outside her room this night; it was not a pretty sight. The sky was a mass of swirling colours, reminding her all too vividly of the shield over the Arcane Manor. The castle however was alive with activity, every wall, window and tower moving and changing shape. Judging from the view of the town so far below, the entire castle was inexorably spinning. Whilst inside Pinkie hadn’t even felt it, but now that she was out she could feel herself moving along with it.

Without stopping to speculate on these bizarre happenings, Pinkie kept running across the battlements, while the monster struggled to push its armour through the small doorway she had escaped through. The sound of smashing stone behind her told her the creature had gotten through the door and would now be pursuing her. There was nowhere left to run up here. Pinkie looked over at the monster as it rushed towards her, as she did, she caught sight of something.

A small object floated inside the centre of the creature, shielded by the breastplate it was wearing. Even from this distance Pinkie could make out the model planet that had been removed from the orrery. At that moment, a very foolish idea came to mind. Instead of turning tail and running away from the monster, Pinkie began sprinting towards it, leaping straight for its chest as they got close. The pair collided in mid-air, but Pinkie’s force managed to push both her and the phantom back off the edge of the battlements.

They were now free falling, Pinkie was beginning to seriously question the logic of her plan, however as they swiftly approached the ground below she decided to bite the bullet and go for broke.

She reached over the crest of the breast plate and drove her hoof into the magical aura that made of the monsters body. Her hoof computer only offered a little protection against the severe burning sensation in her leg as she grasped at the orb, wrenching it free from the creature. The second her hoof was free of the blue aura and the orb was no longer attached to the monster, it simply vanished into thin air, the pieces of armour spreading out and falling to the ground.

Pinkie however, felt a strange sensation overcome her, her descent began to slow rapidly, and just as she was about to connect with the ground her whole body flashed and she felt herself being dragged back through space itself.

Day 12, 04:22

When the light faded from around Pinkie, she found herself standing alone in a wide tiled room painted in an unearthly blue glow from the ethereal orbs set in brackets along the wall. She backed up and leaned against the wall to catch her breath, looking down at her prize, only then realising the orb was broken. Pinkie groaned.

Wonderful, I went through all this shit for a broken planet replica.

Pinkie slid down the wall and cradled her head, wishing she had just ignored Twilight and gone after Fluttershy. Now she was trapped alone in all this madness and Fluttershy could be anywhere.

Still, I wanted to know how Twilight got that picture. She seemed pretty insistent that Fluttershy was okay, did she give it to her?

There were so many questions Pinkie wanted answered, not least being what she was to do now. Reluctantly standing back up, taking a closer look at her surroundings. It didn’t take her long to register the wooden benches and shower cubicles, this was the wash room. At least this put her back close to where she started; she could leave and get back to her search.

With that decision made, Pinkie began walking across the wash room, her eyes set on the exit, trying not to slip on the slightly wet floor. She was about to reach out and turn the door handle when a loud creaking echoed behind her.

Pinkie took a deep breath, drawing her outstretched hoof back and turning around. At first she didn’t see anything out of the ordinary, but then she noticed it. A single cubicle door was now lying ajar where before they had all been tight shut. Pinkie didn’t doubt for a second this was going to be something designed to mess with her head, but also knew full well it was something she was expected to investigate.

“Sometimes,” Pinkie whispered, “I really hate my curious nature.”

Pinkie strode across the room once more, her eyes flickering back and forth to make sure nothing was going to jump out at her. Once she arrived beside the cubicle door she cast one last glance behind her before reaching out and pushing the door open the remainder of the way. Finding the walls of the cubicle smeared of copious amounts of blood actually didn’t surprise Pinkie as much as she was expected to.

“Huh,” Pinkie muttered. “I was actually expecting… something else.”

Feeling the tiniest bit disappointed, Pinkie turned away from the stall and began walking away, stopping when she heard a loud slurping noise.

That’s more like it…

Pinkie turned around slowly, her eyes drawn to the drain of the shower as something dark began rising up from it. The bizarre gloop continued to rise from the drain, inflating itself up, stretching out of the cubicle. It was only when the light shone over than Pinkie realised it was a living mass of wet, clogged hair.

“Okay…” Pinkie began slowly, backing up slightly. “I’m gonna go.”

Turning, she swiftly walked away from the tangled abomination towards the door she had previously ignored. Arriving next to it she reached out and turned the handle, only to find the door locked.

Pinkie turned the handle a few more times, internally swearing. When she finally accepted the door wasn’t going to magically open itself, she reluctantly turned around in time to see the sopping, blue mass now towering over Pinkie and hulking itself under the ceiling which was low for the monster.

Pinkie barely had time to utter a single swear before she was forced to roll out of the way of a large dripping limb swiping down. The limb made a loud slapping noise as it splattered all over the floor, leaving mounds of stray blue hairs sticking to the ground as it pulled its limb back. Pinkie continued to back up, never taking her eyes off the massive hairball as it began slowly lumbering over to her. The monster had no discernable features; it was quite simply a mound until it reached out with a single lazy appendage.

Circling around the edge of the room so as to avoid having to get close to the creature, Pinkie crossed to the door that led to the other areas of the wash room, only to find it locked also.

“Oh come on!” Pinkie yelled at the door.

She turned and found the monster inches from her ready to swing its tangled, clogged limb down once more. Pinkie only barely missed it that time, skidding across the wet floor in her escape attempt.

How did it move so fast? It was barely moving at all a second ago.

Backing up once more, Pinkie’s eyes flickered all around for something she could use to defend herself with. As she passed by the blood splattered shower cubicle she stared in it for a moment, looking back in time to see the creature once again mere inches away from her. The only way to escape was backwards into the cubicle, slamming the door shut and locking it.

So if I don’t look at it, it moves faster.

Luckily she could still see the sopping mass spreading out through the gap under the door. Jumping in here had successfully protected her from another blow, but now she was trapped without anything to protect herself with. She backed up and felt something jut into her back; glancing back she noticed the shower head hooked onto the wall. The cubical door shuddered as the monster threw its weight against it.

Once again Pinkie made a snap decision that probably would have seemed insane to any normal pony. Grabbing the shower head, she pulled it free of the wall, dragging it out as far as the cord would allow, then she turned the dial causing hot water to jet out and steam to begin filling the confined space.

The monster hammered against the door a second time. Pinkie obliged by reaching out and pulling the latch, allowing the door to be flung open by the force of the creature. Pinkie was glad she hadn’t planned on being able to squeeze past it as the monster filled every visible inch of the doorway. Without hesitating Pinkie turned the water on the creature, making sure it was at maximum pressure. The hairy mass seemed to stumble slightly as the water began punching a hole through its body, separating and untangling the hairs that made it up.

It was slow, but effective. The hair that made up the creature steadily began to peel away, the entire body collapsing lower and lower until it was nothing more than clumps of soaked hair floating about in the slightly flooded floor. Once every inch of the creature had stopped moving, Pinkie shut the water off and let the shower head drop to the floor, wasting no time in hoping out of the cubicle trying to avoid the largest piles of hair.

Her eyes were immediately drawn to the now wide open door which she sprinted for as soon as she was clear of the hair monsters remains. As she passed the door she felt a rushing sensation as light enveloped her and the world slipped out of focus.

Day 12, 05:38

She blinked rapidly as she found herself in the old, generic corridor. While the flaming torches here shone blue, it wasn’t nearly as vibrant as it was in the wash room and Pinkie was glad to be rid of the tint.

“Bad hair day?” a voice asked beside her.

Pinkie turned to see Twilight leaning casually against the door Pinkie had just come through which had managed to close itself without a single noise.

“What are you playing at?!” Pinkie demanded, shoving the ghost back. “All that crap with that chalice and the cellar, the phantom in the observatory, that thing in there! How does any of this help me win the game?!”

“It will help you get ahead,” Twilight repeated, brushing Pinkie off. “As soon as you stop acting and start thinking, you’ll see how. But that’s what I’m here to help with.”

“No!” Pinkie snapped. “I’m done listening to you. Twilight is dead; you and everything else in this insane place are nothing more than nightmares.”

Pinkie turned away from the alicorn and began storming away, freezing when she heard a scream of rage behind her.

“Don’t you dare walk away from me!” Twilight screeched, her voice no longer anything like Pinkie remembered, instead it was thundering and demonic.

Pinkie’s head whipped around in time to see Twilight’s skin shred away in black fire, something else emerging from her shell. First came its arms, long and skinny with spider like hands, its skin pitch black. They crept out, fingers twitching, grasping for her. Pinkie didn’t wait to see the rest, she turn and bolted down the corridor, the light of the torches rushing past her in blue blurs.

The demon screamed in anger, charging after Pinkie. A brief glance cast over her shoulder told Pinkie the demon was considerably faster than her, and despite her head start it was already rapidly gaining on her. Facing forward once more Pinkie noticed what appeared to be an alcove slightly further ahead. As she got closer she realised it was the spiral staircase to the second floor. Running with all her might she dived into the stairwell and scrambled up just as the demons claw swiped at her.

Once at the top she looked back to see the arm stretching up through the staircase, trying desperately to grasp hold of her, but she was just out of its reach. Wasting no time, she scrambled to her hooves and began sprinting down the corridor in the direction that would take her back to the entrance hall. A colossal smashing noise caused her to glance back for only a split second to see the demon punching through the floor behind her, now climbing up into the corridor with her.

Pinkie looked forward again, trying to wring whatever energy she could from whatever adrenaline she had left. Once again she heard the creature growing louder, knew it was swiftly catching up to her, and this time there was nowhere for her to escape to. Then she saw it, the tiniest sliver of light shining through a door ahead of her that was only slightly ajar.

Pinkie was so focused on the light that she never saw the object lying discarded on the floor in front of her. She placed a hoof down on it, felt it roll away beneath her and take her legs with it. Pinkie fell into a crumpled heap, rolling over just in time to see the ferocious demon leaping upon her. Pinkie clenched her eyes shut, knowing there was no way out of this one. Even if there was an escape route, she didn’t have the strength left.

This entire night she had been thrown about like a rag doll and it was finally catching up to her. No, there would be no escaping this, this time she was going to die.

But death never came. The demon ceased making noise. Confused, Pinkie opened her eyes. If the sheer lack of the demons presence was the first clue things were back to normal, then the flaming torches once again being orange was the second. Pinkie rolled her head slightly, peering down at her limp hoof where the screen on her hoof computer had returned to life.

06:00

She had made it. Pinkie let her head fall back upon the stone floor and allowed herself to wheezily laugh in triumph. Dragging herself into a sitting position, she mentally promised herself she would never break the curfew again. Now that she was up however, she spotted something odd lying down the corridor. She stared at it for a few seconds before realising it must have been the object she had slipped on.

Curious as to what almost cost her her life, Pinkie stood up and walked over to it on weak legs. Any ill feelings she had towards the object dissipated as soon as she saw what it was. Holding it in her hooves she quickly searched through her saddlebags for the other half of the planet. Fishing it out she put the pieces together, they fit perfectly and looked almost identical; the only major difference being this new piece was caked in blood.

As Pinkie’s head began to clear, a sense of dread began to fill her up. She turned around, directing her attention to the ajar doors, the doors to the chapel. Walking over slowly, Pinkie reached out to open them, briefly taking note of a chip of glass lying on the floor. Entering the chapel, Pinkie’s eyes navigated to the form lying spread-eagle in the middle of the aisle, under the light of the rose glass.

Pinkie felt empty as she walked down the red carpeted aisle, reaching the body and crouching down next to her. Fleetfoot wasn’t wearing her flight suit, and her sunglasses were nowhere to be seen, but it was her alright, even if her face was a mangled mess, her skull brutally smashed in.

“Good morning everypony!” the Mastermind announced, Pinkie hardly acknowledging it. “It’s been a busy night, so much so that a body has just been discovered in the chapel.”

“I’m sorry,” Pinkie whispered to be brutalised corpse. “My friend.”

Author's Note

This part was easily one of the hardest to write. I have nightmares all the time, but putting the kind of twisted imagery associated with them into words has always been one of my greatest trials.
The observatory monster is based on Xerath from League Of Legends, while the wash room monster is basically what I imagined would happen if the hair that clogs up the shower drain grew so large that it developed sentience.

C4: Occam's Razor

Day 12, 06:24

The others wasted no time in rushing to the scene of the crime. Maud was the first, finding Pinkie slumped in one of the stone pews next to the body. She took one look at the bruised, beaten and exhausted Pinkie Pie and joined the dots.

“What did you do?” she asked, kneeling down beside her sister.

“Not this!” Pinkie replied, slightly agitated. “I just left my room last night… really wish I hadn’t.”

Next came Octavia and Fluttershy, the latter staring in shock at Pinkie. Rainbow trudged in, her face neutral upon seeing Fleetfoot’s body, and finally Rarity arrived aiding a thoroughly zoned out Shining Armour.

“So now that we’re all here,” Octavia began as Rarity dropped Shining’s limp body into another pew. “Care to fill us in?”

“I left my room last night,” Pinkie explained, her voice weary. “A lot of… crazy stuff happened. Just before six I was chased here by a monster, I found this…”

Pinkie held up the broken piece of the orrery, particularly the half covered in blood.

“When I searched in here…” Pinkie gestured to the body, letting the rest speak for itself.

“But that would mean Fleetfoot was also outside her room last night,” Octavia stated thoughtfully. “As would the killer.”

“Should we get started investigating then?” Rainbow asked in a hollow voice.

“I suppose we should,” Pinkie agreed, standing up. “First of all we should take a look…”

“Actually that won’t be necessary,” the Mastermind interrupted. “As the trial is beginning shortly.”

“Wait, what?!” Pinkie demanded, suddenly much more aware. “You haven’t given us time to investigate; you only announced the body being discovered like twenty minutes ago.”

“You have already spent adequate time investigating,” the Mastermind shot back. “Now this decision is not open for debate, report to the courtyard for the trial or forfeit the game.”

Pinkie was seething with rage.

I investigated?! All I did was run around fighting crazy monsters.

“What do we do?” Rarity asked, panicked. “If we don’t investigate how are we supposed to figure this out?”

“The Mastermind wouldn’t be this unfair,” Octavia pointed out, grinding her teeth. “Pinkie must have seen something, anything that would tell her who did this.”

Pinkie thought desperately for a moment, they couldn’t delay, but they had to check stuff.

“Alright everypony,” Pinkie announced, her voice loud and brimming with authority. “I need you all to follow my instructions and not question me.”

The others all nodded obediently.

“Rainbow, I need you to fly as fast as you can to the observatory,” Pinkie ordered. “Look for anything out of the ordinary and fly straight to the courtyard.”

Rainbow didn’t need any more persuasion, speeding from the chapel leaving a multihued streak in her wake.

“Rarity and Fluttershy,” Pinkie continued. “Get Shining down to the courtyard, we’ll meet you there shortly.”

Both her friends nodded and rushed over to Shining, hauling him up and hurrying him from the room.

“Maud, Octavia, follow me,” Pinkie instructed, striding from the room.

Both obeyed without a single complaint, flanking Pinkie on either side as she left the chapel and headed towards the spiral staircase. The first thing Pinkie noticed was how the floor the demon had smashed through was now completely repaired. Running down the spiral staircase, taking it three steps at a time, Pinkie arrived on the first floor corridor and ran towards the cellar door. The desk Fleetfoot had lodged in the door frame was gone, reduced to smoking embers trailing down into the cellar.

“The cellar?” Maud muttered confused.

Pinkie didn’t stop, moving on down the corridor to the wash room. Arriving at the door she shouldered it open and charged in. Again she wasn’t surprised to see the remains of the hair monster completely absent from the floor, but the single cubicle remained open. Running over she peered in, finding it still covered in blood.

“What happened here?” Octavia asked, looking over Pinkie’s shoulder.

Pinkie didn’t reply, instead leaning down and grasping at the drain, pulling a thick clump of matted blue hair from the drain.

“How did you know that was there?” Octavia asked, bewildered.

“Like I said, a lot of crazy stuff happened last night,” Pinkie muttered, dropping the soaking hair clump in disgust.

“Anything else you need to see?” Maud asked as Pinkie backed out of the cubicle.

“Not if Rainbow finds what I expect is still in the observatory,” Pinkie stated. “Now let’s go, we can’t risk taking any more time.”

The three sprinted from the washroom, down the corridor into the entrance hall just as Fluttershy ran in through the gate.

“Rainbow just got back,” she explained hurriedly. “Shining and Rarity are both in position.”

“Good,” Pinkie said quickly. “Octavia, Maud, you both head on through. Fluttershy, could I speak to you?”

Maud and Octavia ran through the gate and Fluttershy followed Pinkie over to one of the walls.

“What do you need Pin…” Fluttershy began, but didn’t get any further as Pinkie grabbed hold of her and pushed her up against the wall.

“Where did you go?!” Pinkie demanded, absolutely furious.

“What?” Fluttershy squealed, sounding terrified. “I don’t…”

“Last night, you left the room, why?!” Pinkie shouted.

“I didn’t,” Fluttershy cried hastily. “I woke up and you were gone, I didn’t know what to do. I waited for you to come back but when the Mastermind said a body was found, I thought…”

Pinkie loosened her grip, her eyes and voice softening as tears began to roll down Fluttershy’s face.

“You never left the room?” Pinkie asked, confused.

“No!” Fluttershy wailed.

Pinkie released Fluttershy.

“I’m sorry for snapping, but when I woke up you were gone,” Pinkie explained. “That’s why I left.”

“I don’t know what to say,” Fluttershy muttered.

Pinkie sagged, she felt guilty for scaring her friend, but they still had a job to do, she could make up for it later.

“I’m sorry Fluttershy,” Pinkie replied weakly. “We should go on out.”

Fluttershy nodded miserably, Pinkie turned towards the entrance hall gate, hearing her friend walking behind her.

Day 12, 06:53

The courtyard remained cracked and broken following Chrysalis’s attack; however the runes were once more alive and shining bright around the five ponies who were already standing in position. As Pinkie circled around, she panned over the portraits of the fallen ponies, the colour drained from each, a bloody red X drawn over them.

“When I said you were to report straight to the courtyard,” the Mastermind began, sounding irritated. “I did not mean for you to dilly dally around the castle first.”

“Deal with it,” Pinkie retorted. “If you’re going to try and mess with us, we’ll just screw you right back.”

“You should watch your tongue Pinkie Pie, there’s a fine line between wit and cheek,” the Mastermind warned in a cold voice. “Also I did not mess with you, I warned you not to leave your rooms at night. The rules change, as I’m sure you know all too well at this point.”

“But from the sounds of it,” Octavia cut in, “both the murderer and the victim were also outside their rooms at night. So if Pinkie had stayed inside her own room, would you still have called the trial immediately? Because if so, you would have been dependant on Pinkie leaving her room for this to be fair in any way, in which case you really have no reason to belittle her for it.”

Pinkie smirked at Octavia’s reasoning.

“If you are both quite done,” the Mastermind snapped. “Then perhaps we can move past this animosity and continue our previous relationship.”

“Where you torment and torture us?” Rarity asked coldly.

“The only torment you have suffered has been at the hooves of those around you,” the Mastermind argued. “Whether they be alive or dead. All I have done is enable you.”

“All you’ve done?” Maud repeated in disbelief. “You turned the princesses to stone. You turned Canterlot into this. You’ve turned friends against each other. You can talk big and reason all you want, but this is still all on you.”

There was a long moment of silence, Pinkie wondered if maybe they had finally pushed the wrong buttons and were about to pay for it.

“You know what?” the Mastermind said in cool voice. “I don’t care how you choose to see things. This will all be over soon enough, in a matter of days judging from your dwindling numbers. You can despise me all you want, but I’ll still get my final victory.”

The courtyard fell deathly silent. Pinkie briefly met her sister’s eyes; neither liked the sound of that.

“And now, if we are done rambling,” the Mastermind continued in a brighter tone. “I call this trial to order.”

Trial 4: Fleetfoot

“Well, um, where do we start?” Fluttershy asked tentatively.

“Well I guess we could begin with how the victim died,” Octavia proposed. “I didn’t get to take a very close look, but it looks as if her skull was smashed in with a blunt object.”

“It was,” Pinkie confirmed, once again holding up the broken planet.

“What is that?” Maud asked. “Some kind of rock?”

“It’s a planet replica broken from the orrery,” Pinkie explained, noticing Octavia’s horrified expression as she said so. “I found half in the observatory, and the other half covered in blood outside the crime scene.”

Pinkie decided it would be best to skip the part about the armoured monster, better to keep everything as believable as possible.

“Did you find anything in the observatory?” Rarity asked Rainbow.

“Well I didn’t notice that thing missing,” Rainbow admitted. “I was in and out so quick I didn’t even realise one of the planets was missing, but I did find this.”

Rainbow held up a silver medal emblazoned with a pink, six pointed star.

“Anything else?” Pinkie asked. “Anything like… armour?”

“Armour?” Rainbow repeated, unsure. “I didn’t see anything like that. But there is something you might be interested in.”

“What’s that?” Pinkie asked, quirking an eyebrow.

“The stairs have moved,” Rainbow replied.

“Wait, seriously?” Pinkie asked, suddenly forgetting what they were in the middle of.

“Yeah, must have happened last night,” Rainbow suggested. “You can still reach the infirmary and throne room, but now we can also get to the armoury and somewhere even higher up.”

“Interesting,” Pinkie murmured, rubbing her chin. “We can look into that later, right now we should focus on this.”

“So the killer broke the planet off the orrery,” Fluttershy summed up. “And used it to… kill Fleetfoot.”

“Looks like it,” Pinkie replied nodding. “They probably then went to the wash room to clean the blood off themselves, forgetting to clean the shower after using it.”

“That seems like a pretty foolish move,” Rarity pointed out. “Surely any killer with the slightest sense about them would not leave such a glaringly obvious clue.”

“A real killer wouldn’t,” Pinkie agreed. “But a drunk exposed to their own living nightmares, probably wasn’t thinking too clearly.”

“You think they were drunk?” Rainbow queried.

“The blockade at the cellar door had been blasted apart,” Pinkie explained. “I didn’t have time to confirm it this morning, but last night I found an awful lot of empty bottles in there.”

“So now what? Should we try and figure out who else was outside their room last night?” Maud asked.

“No, that won’t be necessary,” Pinkie said dismissively. “I already know who the killer is.”

The others all stared at her in surprise.

“Like I said, I saw a lot of crazy stuff last night,” Pinkie continued, “but everything I’ve seen this morning has just confirmed it. This case is pretty clear cut.”

Pinkie turned to her left, to the one member of their group who had been completely silent throughout the entire trial.

“How are you feeling Shining Armour?” she asked in a neutral tone.

Shining glanced up at the mention of his name. He looked awful, it was impossible to believe that he was once a decorated captain and prince, born to a well off family in the highest of high classes.

“I…” he began , his voice drifting off for briefly as if he had fallen asleep standing up. “I don’t know.”

“No, I can imagine everything that’s happened has really damaged you,” Pinkie said, reaching into her saddlebags. “So much so that when you found this…”

Pinkie showed him the framed picture of his family. The effect was instantaneous, Shining went ballistic, screaming obscenities and smashing desperation against his invisible prison.

“It set you off,” Pinkie finished, setting the picture frame face down on the bench in front of her. “I know you had it, the chip missing from the front of it was outside the chapel.”

“You noticed a chip of glass?” Maud repeated in disbelief.

“I guess I’ve gotten good at noticing little details like that,” Pinkie said wistfully, ignoring the screaming stallion several feet to her left.

“So the picture triggered this reaction in him,” Octavia covered. “Then what?”

“In his insanity he used his magic to force entry into the cellar,” Pinkie explained. “Alcohol has been his escape for a long time, as he showed us all several days ago when the cellar was first opened.”

“So then he went to the observatory,” Rarity continued. “Broke the orrery and lost his medal.”

Pinkie could indeed see the ripped sash barely hanging around Shining’s torso; in his dishevelled state she hadn’t picked up on it at first.

“I also saw some armour last night in the observatory,” Pinkie explained, once again skipping the part about it being worn by a spectral monster. “It was purple with gold trimming, the same armour Shining wore as a captain in the royal guard.”

“And the wash room?” Maud asked. “That was his hair in the drain?”

“Yeah, at first I thought it just looked blue because of the blue lights,” Pinkie explained before remembering that nopony knew what she was talking about. “But yes, he had enough lucidity to think to clean the blood off, but wasn’t aware enough to clean the shower afterwards of his hair from the drain.”

“So… that’s it?” Fluttershy asked. “Nothing else needs answered?”

“Not quite,” Octavia cut in. “There are still a few questions I’d like answered. For starters, why were you out of your room Pinkie?”

“I think…” Pinkie began hesitantly, remembering her encounter with Fluttershy moments before. “I think the Mastermind tricked me into believing Fluttershy left the room, I went out to find her.”

“I see,” Octavia murmured, looking over at Fluttershy. “Secondly, where did Shining get that picture?”

Pinkie’s words stuck in her throat, she had never told the others about what her and Fluttershy had found in the town.

“A while back, Fluttershy and I journeyed into the town,” Pinkie began.

“That was the morning Octavia fell sick,” Rarity recalled, “when we couldn’t find either of you.”

“That’s right,” Pinkie confirmed. “While out there, we found a house. Knowing what we know now, I assume it was originally Twilight’s parent’s house. In it I found that picture. I kept it hidden because at the time I was still trying to hide what Twilight had done, after you all found out the picture hardly seemed relevant anymore.”

“Was there anything else in the house?” Octavia asked curiously.

“No, not a thing,” Pinkie assured her.

“I see,” Octavia stated, sounding like she wanted to pursue the topic but instead deciding to move on. “Finally, I want to know why Fleetfoot was outside her room last night.”

Pinkie opened her mouth, then closed it again.

Why was Fleetfoot outside her room?

Pinkie never did figure that out. Looking around the others she saw that none of them seemed to have the answers, so she turned to the still raging Shining Armour.

“Shining,” she announced, catching his attention. He seemed almost primitive in his behaviour. “Do you remember what happened last night?”

“Twily,” he muttered. “Twily, Twiliy, Twily, Twily…”

“Jeez, he really is a broken record,” Rainbow whispered, staring in awe at the stallion.

“Shining I need you to focus,” Pinkie said louder, but he wouldn’t listen, still repeating his sister’s nickname over and over again.

“Allow me darling,” Rarity interrupted, her horn glowing blue.

Pinkie saw the medal hover up from Rainbow’s bench and float across the courtroom to hang in the air before Shining Armour.

“Shining, do you know what this is?” Rarity asked calmly.

Shining stared at it, blinking.

“My… my medal,” he muttered.

Shining reached out and tried to take hold of it, but his hoof brushed uselessly against the barrier.

“My uncle’s medal,” he said again, louder.

“It’s a lovely medal,” Rarity complimented, passing it through the barrier to Shining. “I remember you looked so dashing on your wedding day with it.”

“My wedding…” Shining murmured, staring down at the medal, a faraway look in his eyes.

“I still remember how you regaled us all with the tale of how your uncle earned that medal through his acts of bravery under the Princess's service,” Rarity continued. “How he gave it to you when you joined the guard. I still remember the pride in your voice when you told us how you promised him you would grow to become as brave and honourable as him.”

Shining blinked rapidly as he looked at his medal.

“Then I don’t deserve this medal,” he whispered, letting it fall from his grasp as he collapsed to his knees. “I’m not honourable; I’ve failed everypony I ever loved.”

Pinkie stared in surprise at Shining, amazed at his second transformation in such short time.

“I failed my country,” he continued. “I failed my Princess. I failed my family. I failed my wife.”

Shining looked over at the statue of Cadance, a look of utter hopelessness in his eyes.

“I’m so sorry Cadance,” Shining declared, suddenly no longer talking to them. “You tried to shield me from the truth, to let me continue cherishing my baby sister as I did, and all I did in return was hurt you.”

Pinkie looked over at Rarity, seeing her in silent tears.

“I don’t deserve that medal,” Shining repeated. “And I don't deserve you as my wife.”

“Shining…” Pinkie began quietly.

“Please, just end it,” Shining interrupted, his head hanging.

Pinkie looked around at the others once more.

“I don’t think there’s anything more we can do for him,” Maud whispered to her.

Pinkie nodded, the dial in front of her glowing. With nothing more to say, Pinkie turned her dial, watched as the image of Shining’s face swam to the pool’s surface and waited for the others to follow suit.

It didn’t take long before all votes were cast and the pool rippled to show the clock face, the hands spinning rapidly. Pinkie didn’t even look to see them slow down and finally settle directed at Shining Armour.

“Well done, you have correctly identified Shining Armour as the killer,” the Mastermind announced. “Now, for the murder of Fleetfoot, I sentence you to…”

Pinkie frowned when the Mastermind failed to finish the sentence.

“Actually,” the Mastermind began slowly, sounding devious. “I’m going to offer you a chance at redemption.”

“What?!” Pinkie exclaimed, along with the others. Shining just looked up weakly.

“A chance to save your own life,” the Mastermind continued. “A trial by combat!”

Pinkie barely had time to register what the Mastermind meant by that before the ground before Shining disappeared and he fell in to the abyss.

“What are you playing at?” Maud demanded.

“Just watch,” the Mastermind instructed.

Pinkie looked down at the pool as it rippled, the clock face vanishing to be replaced with an image of Shining Armour standing in what looked like a large cavern, massive crystals jutting from the walls.

“Sometimes, it’s no fun to kill a pony who’s lost the will to live,” the Mastermind explained sadistically. “Sometimes, giving them a false glimmer of hope makes everything vastly more amusing!”

Shining Armour stumbled around for a second, apparently not hearing what the Mastermind was saying until they spoke once more.

“Shining Armour.” He straightened up, looking all around him for the source of the voice. “If you survive, both you and Cadance will be set free, the others will remain and continue the game.”

Suddenly there was a bright flash followed by a series of loud clattering, as several random weapons and armour pieces, presumably summoned from the armoury were dropped haphazardly around the cavern floor. Shining didn’t seem to need much persuasion, telekinetically lifting a helmet which he dropped on his head before also grabbing hold of a round shield and short sword.

“For Cadance,” Shining announced, “I will survive.”

Just as the words were spoken, one of the jagged crystals on the wall flashed a bright white light, a large wolf appearing in front of it, made entirely from crystal. The wolf snarled at Shining before charging forward and pouncing. He was a little taken aback by the creature’s sudden appearance, but he managed to raise his shield in time to take the brunt of the force and push the wolf back. As it landed hard on the ground, sprawling, Shining leapt forward and drove his sword into the creature’s neck.

His sword apparently had become jammed as he began tugging fruitlessly to heave it out. From the corner of his eye, Shining saw two more crystals flash, another two wolves joining the fray. With a mighty tug, he wrenched his sword out, cleaving the creatures head off in the process. Pinkie glanced up at Fluttershy and wasn’t surprised to find her shielding her eyes with her wings.

Shining swung his sword at the first wolf, taking a leg clean off, but didn’t notice the other circling around. He turned in time to see it jump for him, raised his shield only to have the other return and tackle it from his magical grip. The jumping wolf opened its jaws and latched onto Shining’s head, his helmet crushing under the force of its crystal teeth. Shining ripped his helmet off, firing a magical blast into the chest of the wolf, shattering it into smouldering fragments. Then in one fluid motion, he swung around driving his sword into the returning wolf, taking it down instantly.

Before he could cherish his victory however, another crystal flashed, a crystalline Manticore appearing before him. No time to free his sword from the wolf’s body, Shining dodge rolled away from the beast’s swipe. Looking around wildly, he caught sight of a halberd. Taking hold of it, he swung it across the room, embedding it in the Manticore’s shoulder. Unlike the wolves, it didn’t fall, if anything it only made it angrier.

Letting out a furious roar, the Manticore charged. Shining tried to leap out of the way, but he wasn’t fast enough as the scorpion tail sprung out and caught him sharply in the side. Shining tried to get to his hooves but collapsed, blood gushing from the stab below his ribs. With his face straining and his horn bursting with light, the wound began stitching itself back together. It was a messy job, looking like a real battle scar by the time he was done. The Manticore had left him be as it tugged the halberd free from its shoulder, now that it had done so it turned its attention back to him.

Shining looked around, lighting his horn and lifting up the severed wolf leg. Then launching it like a projectile, he fired at high speed straight for the beast’s eye. It defiantly helped that the leg was also made of crystal, so that when it connected, the Manticore’s face shattered, its body crumpling. Shining Armour got to his hooves, shaking as he did so. His spell had stopped any further blood loss, but the poison was already in his system. Pinkie didn’t know the first thing about animal poisons, she didn’t even know if Manticore poison could be lethal.

Shining didn’t have time to recover any more than that, as suddenly multiple crystals flashed and he was surrounded by dozens of crystal bats swooping over his head. Shining began desperately batting them away as they swooped down, fangs bared and claws at the ready. As fast as he could possible move with his injury, Shining ran across the cavern to a small pile of weapons. He quickly conjured up a domed shield to protect him while he raised a crossbow. Taking careful aim he began firing bolt after bolt off.

The bats too quick however, coupled with the strain of maintaining his shield spell he only managed to hit down three of them, the rest of his bolts bouncing uselessly off the cave wall. With his shield flickering, Shining cast down the crossbow and instead took up a spear. He just had time to slap another helmet on before his shield died and the bats came in for another attack. He fended them off well with the pole arm, jutting out and swiping several of them out of the air from a safe distance.

He was finally starting to make good progress in taking down the bats when a particularly large crystal flashed, and something enormous appeared filling half the available cavern space. Shining Armour charged forward, apparently hoping to get the element of surprise, but his spear glanced uselessly off the crystal dragon’s body. A quick swipe of its claw later and the spear was snapped in two, and Shining was sent flying across the cavern into the wall.

His quick decision to put on the helmet had probably saved his life there as it ended up taking most of the damage. Shining stood up just as the dragon opened its mouth and screeched, a plume of white fire jetting out. Shining reacted just in time, grabbing a square shield from across the room and sending it his way before slamming it into the ground before him and taking cover behind it. Once the dragon stopped spewing fire, Shining chucked the shield aside, taking hold of a claymore and charging forward, letting loose a war cry.

However one of the remaining bats swooped down and struck him in the side of the head, it didn’t hurt him, but it effectively distracted him from the dragons tail whipping around, the arrow head tip slicing through Shining’s foreleg and sending it across the room.

Shining collapsed, unable to scream from the shock of having his leg cut clean off. Before he could even register what had really happened in his mind, the dragon returned, its claws coming down hard, beating the stallion mercilessly and repeatedly into the ground. At some point during the brutal beating, Shining’s body stopped moving, but even then the dragon didn’t stop, pulverising its enemy into nothing but paste before finally lighting him up for good measure.

Pinkie just watched on in disbelief, after such a valiant effort she never expected it to end so suddenly. After a few more minutes the dragon seemed to lose interest, leaving the remains for the bats to pick through.

“Now wasn’t that considerably more fun to watch?” the Mastermind asked, sounding greatly amused.

“Did…” Rarity began, looking horrified as the pool rippled and the image of the cavern disappeared. “Did he even have a chance?”

“Of course not,” the Mastermind answered, as if talking to a foal. “What kind of execution would it have been if he could survive?”

Rarity, breathing heavily, stormed off from the courtroom, heading for the castle gates. Pinkie just sighed and stepped away from her own circle, starting her own slow journey back to the castle gates. As she began to approach them, she felt something tug at her leg. Turning around she saw Octavia standing behind her, giving her a hard stare.

“We need to talk,” she said flatly.

Pinkie nodded wearily.

“Sure.”

Author's Note

Well this was a fun excursion from the norm, however I promise the next chapter will return to usual format.
As for who was correct in guessing the killers identity... No-one! No-one was the winner, in fact nobody even guessed, which is weird considering the chapter's called 'Occam's Razor' because the culprit was so obvious. Hopefully the next chapter will get more interaction.

C5: Carpe Diem

Day 12, 09:13

Pinkie rested against the railing in the central chamber, her head tilted, admiring the change in view. There were now a single spiral staircase, curving around the wall to the very highest point of the chamber, passing by the armoury, the waiting room, the throne room and even more.

“Do you want to go investigating first?” Octavia asked from behind her.

“No,” Pinkie replied simply, “it can wait. You wanted to go to the observatory, right?”

Octavia nodded, walking left across the platform and leading the way up the spiral staircase. As they climbed, Pinkie looked out over the edge into the dark abyss below.

“Did you ever find out what caused the stairs to move?” Octavia asked curiously.

“No,” Pinkie responded. “Does it even matter?”

“Maybe,” Octavia stated, “maybe not.”

Arriving at their destination, they marched into the waiting room and quickly switched down the corridor to the observatory.

“There aren’t many of us left,” Octavia announced. “Us, your sister, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Rarity. The Mastermind was right, this won’t last much longer.”

“Which is why it’s more crucial than ever that we end this game before the Mastermind succeeds at whatever they’re planning,” Pinkie replied.

Entering the observatory, Pinkie was hardly surprised to find it in pristine condition, not even the exit to the battlements remained destroyed from her fight with the spectral armour. Octavia walked over to the orrery before turning to face Pinkie, her hoof outstretched.

“The planet,” she stated, making it sound more like an order than a request.

Pinkie obliged, reaching into her saddlebags and fishing out the two halves, passing them across to Octavia. She stood for a moment, scowling at the blood covered half.

“Do you think removing that could have damaged it?” Pinkie asked, gesturing between the planet in Octavia’s hooves and the orrery behind her.

“I don’t know,” Octavia muttered, setting the broken orb on to the ground before searching through her own bags. “This machine is very complex, and very delicate. The slightest change could have dramatic, even catastrophic effects. And unfortunately I still don’t know nearly enough about it to be sure.”

Octavia sounded thoroughly annoyed with herself as she began pulling out stacks out notes and books, slamming them down onto the floor around her. Pinkie just watched on with mild disinterest as she began fussing over the broken planet.

“Pinkie,” Octavia said with a sigh. “I’m going to need to do a lot of work here, do you know if the armoury is still sealed off?”

“It shouldn’t be,” Pinkie replied. “I don’t think we ever re-barricaded after going in there for the tools to take your door down.”

“Alright, I’ll probably have to head down there to get this fixed,” Octavia stated, nodding to the two halves.

“Can you manage that?” Pinkie asked. “As in, do you know what you’re doing?”

The faintest smirk appeared on Octavia’s face.

“If you haven’t noticed, I know a thing or two about technology,” she informed her. “While music is my passion, I had a good teacher… once.”

Pinkie nodded, slightly unclear but delving no further. She began to retreat from the room when Octavia called out for her again.

“I presume you’ll be investigating the higher floors?” she asked.

“Yes, as well as checking in on the others,” Pinkie replied over her shoulder.

“Well, obviously I’m not here to tell you what to do,” Octavia began, her tone implying the exact opposite. “But could I request something of you?”

“I guess so,” Pinkie replied hesitantly.

“You said at the trial this morning that you found that picture in Twilight’s old house,” Octavia reminded her.

“It would make sense that it was the house she grew up in,” Pinkie replied. “Why?”

“Home is where the heart is,” Octavia muttered to herself before raising her voice once more. “If you get a chance, could you go back there?”

Pinkie turned around to face Octavia directly.

“Why would I do that?” she asked suspiciously.

“Because I think the answers we seek are hidden there,” Octavia replied, staring up at the orrery.

“What makes you think that?” Pinkie queried, confused.

Octavia didn’t answer at first, instead she stared into space, her eyes fixed on the orrery.

“I heard it,” she said at last, “in my nightmares.”

Day 12, 09:35

Pinkie cast a last glance over her shoulder as she stepped out of the waiting room. Her eyes scanned over the central chamber, up past the landing outside the throne room to the final two higher up. She was about to begin ascending the staircase when a scream cut through the silence.

Pinkie froze, her head spinning to the lowest landing where the scream had come from. She wasted no time in galloping down the staircase to the central chamber entrance, arriving at the end of the corridor in time to see a rainbow blur zoom out of the residential tower and speed out towards the entrance hall.

Pinkie broke into another gallop, easily covering the distance between herself and Rainbow Dash, coming to a halt at the foot of the entrance hall staircase, her target visible just beyond the gates. Pinkie slowed her pace, approaching Rainbow slowly, watching as she repeatedly pounded the circular pool with her hooves, shouting at the top of her lungs.

“Give him back!” she screamed, repeating over and over again as she punched the water.

The rush of hoofsteps alerted Pinkie to the arrival of Maud and Rarity behind her.

“Rainbow,” Pinkie called out, trying to no avail to get her attention. “Rainbow, calm down. What’s happened?”

“He took him!” Rainbow screamed, still too busy bloodying her own hooves to look at Pinkie. “He took Soarin!”

Pinkie froze mid-step, gritting her teeth. She hadn’t even considered the possibility of Soarin’s body being taken while they were busy with the trial.

“Rainbow, I know this is hard, but you have to calm down,” Pinkie insisted.

Rainbow refused to pay her any heed, still shouting demands and profanities at the Mastermind while pummelling her hooves into the centre of the courtroom. Pinkie was about to open her mouth once more, intent on raising her voice at Rainbow, when a grey blur pushed past her. Maud stormed over to Rainbow who barely had a moment to react before she found her limbs being held painfully behind her back.

“Don’t hurt her!” Rarity cried out, hurrying forward alongside Pinkie.

Rainbow struggled desperately against Maud’s hold, but Pinkie knew she hadn’t a hope of escaping.

“Rainbow you have got to calm down!” Maud ordered, her voice unusually authoritative. “You are doing nopony any favours by acting up and hurting yourself.”

Rainbow gave one last mighty struggle before her body fell limp in Maud’s grip, and she became racked with sobs. Maud seemed to cool down, her grip loosening ever so slightly as she helped Rainbow to her hooves and began leading her away from the pool which was now stained with her blood.

“I’ll take her to her room,” Maud whispered to Pinkie as they passed by.

Pinkie nodded in agreement, allowing the pair to leave so that only her and Rarity remained outside. Once they were gone, Pinkie looked over to her friend who looked very shaken.

“I hadn’t even thought of Soarin,” Pinkie muttered.

“No, me neither,” Rarity agreed. “Poor Rainbow, she was barely keeping it together before this.”

Pinkie nodded, glancing around the courtyard awkwardly while Rarity breathed deep.

"We... we should go inside," Rarity suggested. "Pinkie?"

"Huh?" Pinkie said, looking away from the statue of Cadance. "Yeah, sure."

Did her statue always look so sad?

As the pair walked towards the castle gates, Pinkie looked at Rarity to see if she had noticed anything unusual, but she seemed lost in her own thoughts.

“Something on your mind?” Pinkie asked.

“Oh, I was just imagining how I would feel in her position,” Rarity replied, her voice sounding distant. “I don’t know what I’d do if I lost Spike.”

“I, uh, never congratulated you,” Pinkie said awkwardly as they walked through the entrance hall, earning a confused look from Rarity. “When you told me in your letters about the pair of you, I never congratulated you.”

“Oh, that’s quite alright,” Rarity insisted. “You had plenty to be dealing with.”

“Still, how did it happen?” Pinkie asked suddenly curious.

“It wasn’t long after you left Ponyville,” Rarity began, “I’d been begging Spike for a while to come stay with me. The thought of him all alone in the library after what had happened… Shortly after you left, he finally agreed. After that it just seemed to happen without me even realising it. We were both in pain, but we found comfort in each other, and before we knew it we were suddenly happy again.”

Pinkie nodded, smiling slightly at the thought.

“I’m not saying we never had problems,” Rarity corrected, “but being together just made the following months so much easier. I only wish Fluttershy had had someone like that…”

Pinkie froze, her head spinning to face Rarity.

“Excuse me?”

“Well,” Rarity hesitated, suddenly uncomfortable. “Everyone was in pain following Twilight’s… passing, even more so when you left. Rainbow had the Wonderbolts and Applejack had the farm, they each had something they could throw themselves into, to help block out the pain, but Fluttershy… she became a lot more reclusive once you left. She wasn’t even going to attend the Gala until I told her you might be there.”

Pinkie just stared at her friend, her insides turning to ice. She had received so many letters from her friends while at the farm, Rarity telling her about her blossoming relationship with Spike, Rainbow telling her about being accepted into the Wonderbolts, Applejack just asking how she was doing, but nopony had sent her as many letters as Fluttershy. But Pinkie had been too… broken, too wrapped up in her own problems to really look into what they were saying, to even read some of them.

Rarity was staring at Pinkie, knowing full well how she felt. Pinkie wouldn’t be surprised if Rarity hated her for it, but instead there was only pity, always pity.

“When this is over,” Rarity picked up before flinching slightly. “If this is ever over, what will you do?”

Pinkie’s head spun, Rarity’s revelation about Fluttershy coupled with what Maud had admitted to her in her room churned together in her mind.

“I don’t know,” Pinkie said at last. “I really don’t know.”

Day 12, 10:20

“How’s she holding up?” Pinkie asked as her sister stepped out of Rainbow’s room, closing the door behind her.

“Badly,” Maud replied simply. “When she’ not crying she’s shouting and being aggressive with us. Better just to leave her at peace, maybe Fluttershy should talk to her.”

“I’ll suggest it to her if I see her,” Pinkie replied as the pair started walking towards the central chamber.

“So the new rooms?” Maud queried.

“I haven’t seen them yet,” Pinkie informed her. “I was about to investigate when I heard Rainbow screaming.”

“What do you think they’ll be?” Maud asked as they entered the chamber, craning her neck so she could see up to the top.

“Well what rooms are more important than the throne room?” Pinkie countered, as she led the way up the spiral staircase.

“Just because they’re higher up doesn’t necessarily mean they’re more important,” Maud pointed out.

“They must be important to the Mastermind if we’re only being allowed to see them now,” Pinkie retorted.

“That reminds me,” Maud said suddenly. “How come you never had the pegasi just fly up and see what was up there?”

Pinkie hesitated.

“I guess I hadn’t thought of that,” she lied, hoping Maud would drop it.

Thankfully she did and they continued their journey in silence. Passing by the throne room, they climbed the last stretch to the second last landing, where a simple door was placed against the wall. Glancing at Maud, Pinkie turned the handle and opened it, revealing a wide, scarcely lit room. Poking their heads through the door, they saw that the room was filled with counters spaced equal distance apart with paths between them in a grid format. On some of the counters were stacks of notes and books, others had various scientific equipment like test tubes, alembics and burners, but most counters were covered in plant pots.

Stepping into the room and approaching the nearest counter, Pinkie found it smothered by a huge variety of plants she had never seen before, all sporting a wide range of exotic colours. Hanging over each counter was a flat, electric light, filling the room with a soft humming.

“What is this place?” Maud thought aloud as she walked up beside Pinkie.

“It looks like a laboratory,” Pinkie answered. “I told you the manor had one, but that one didn’t have any plants.”

“No, I wonder how they’re still alive,” Maud muttered. “Surely they’d need more sunlight than this.”

“They’re UV bulbs,” a voice explained quietly from the door.

Pinkie and Maud both looked up to see Fluttershy peeking through the door.

“They use the same radiation as the sun that plants need for photosynthesis,” she continued timidly. “Also, I think there might be sprinklers attached.”

“Well that explains that,” Pinkie said to Maud before turning her attention to Fluttershy. “There’s a problem with Rainbow Dash, we were hoping you might be able to have a word with her.”

Fluttershy squirmed awkwardly.

“I know, I just came from there,” she replied. “She didn’t want to see me. Rarity told me what happened with Soarin.”

“Hopefully we can find him,” Pinkie assured her. “Last time the Mastermind kept all the bodies in cold storage in the manor, they’re might be something similar this time.”

“I also heard a lot of noise from the armoury on my way up,” Fluttershy pointed out.

Maud looked to Pinkie, her eyebrow raised.

“That’s just Octavia,” Pinkie explained. “She’s trying to repair that piece of the orrery.”

“Well if that’s all that’s in here,” Maud interrupted, gesturing to the rest of the lab. “We should head on upstairs.”

Pinkie nodded, exiting the room to the landing where Fluttershy stood.

“Are you coming?” Pinkie asked Fluttershy as they began climbing the stairs.

Fluttershy nodded rapidly and quickly rushed up the few steps to reach them. The final stretch was longer than any other, taking a complete circuit around the chamber. Remembering what Soarin had reported on the first day about how the staircases alternated between floors, Pinkie realised they must have been incredibly high at that point. Arriving on the final landing they found themselves outside an archway, leading to a foyer with three separate doors.

“Well,” Maud said, her eyes wide as she looked between the doors. “I guess you were right about the higher rooms being more important.”

The door in the middle was fairly plain apart from the gold plaque in the centre, but it was the other two that drew their attentions. The door on the left was a huge set of double doors, a mixture of deep midnight blue and black, ornate moons set into the frame. The door to right was similar except it was white and yellow in colour, the moons replaced by suns. All three seemed to reach the same conclusion just from looking at the doors.

The princesses’ private chambers.

They all stood in silence for a moment; eventually Pinkie broke it by walking over to Luna’s door, reaching out and testing it. She wasn’t surprised in the least bit to find it locked; she was fully prepared to assume that Celestia’s would yield no results when Maud walked over and opened it successfully.

“I wasn’t expecting that either,” Maud said in response to Pinkie’s wide eyed expression.

Walking over to her sister’s side, they both looked into the Princess’s quarters. It was predictably well furnished, ornate and majestic. The three entered in single file, Fluttershy hesitating behind Maud for a few seconds as if contemplating whether this counted as trespassing. The room they entered was only a lounge area, with archways leading off to a bedroom and bathroom respectively. Taking the lead, Pinkie began searching the various surfaces and interiors for anything of interest.

Pinkie reflected on how she would once have considered this a grave disrespect to the Princess’s privacy, whereas now she felt a sense of righteous pleasure in that very disrespect. To her dismay though, all drawers and cabinets were striped clean. A quick glance into the bathroom relieved Pinkie of the slight fear she had of discovering the bathtub full of purple hair dye. Entering the bedroom, she continued her search aided by Fluttershy.

The first thing she noticed in Celestia’s bedroom was the latticed window that had the perfect view of the main courtyard, serving to show Pinkie just how high they truly were. It was a little daunting to say the least, seeing the princesses’ statues as little more than specks on the ground below. After closing a jewellery case sitting atop the vanity, she was just about ready to give up, when Fluttershy called her name. Walking over she found Fluttershy holding a rolled up scroll, the seal of which was broken.

“It was under her pillow,” Fluttershy explained.

Pinkie nodded approvingly, taking the scroll and choosing not to question the instinct that had driven Fluttershy to look under Celestia’s pillow.

Dear Princess,

As per your request, the object has been transported to your private chambers within the specially enchanted case you provided us with. Once again I can only apologise profusely for such negligence on my part and the part of my men that almost resulted in the accursed horn being stolen right beneath our noses. I can assure you that once you have seen it sealed away in the new vault, we will take every precaution to avoid such a breach in security again.

Signed Iron Sight, Captain of the Royal Guard.

Pinkie stared at the letter for a few more stunned minutes before finally passing it over to Fluttershy and Maud who quickly scanned its contents.

“The accursed horn?” Maud quoted. “Does he mean…”

“Sombra’s horn,” Pinkie confirmed, her voice distant. “Someone tried to steal it… and it was moved to a vault. The one in the throne room, perhaps.”

“But didn’t you say that’s where you found that gun?” Fluttershy asked in a worried voice.

“I did,” Pinkie replied. “Which means either they moved it again, or someone succeeded in stealing it.”

“The date on this letter suggests the attempted theft happened while you were in Canterlot following the first game,” Maud pointed out.

Not for the first time Pinkie found herself wondering about the mare who had worshipped Twilight, the one who was found dabbling in the dark arts, the one whose cutie mark had been etched into the back of the throne.

“Trixie…” Pinkie murmured.

Maud rolled up the scroll and handed it over to Pinkie, who stuffed it away in her saddlebags.

“If there’s nothing else here we should check out that other room,” Pinkie stated, leading the way out of Celestia’s chambers back to the foyer.

The middle door, while not nearly as extravagant as the other two, was still incredibly fancy looking. Stepping up, Pinkie examined the gold plaque.

The office of Royal Advisor Kibitz.

The name meant nothing to Pinkie, but she quickly guessed that it must be that of the aged stallion who always assisted Celestia in her schedule. Testing the handle, she found this too was open. Stepping through she found herself in a much more confined space lit by a single candle upon the desk, one she imagined would not be extinguished like the torches all around the castle.

The room was filled with filing cabinets, lining each of the walls. These along with the desk gave the room the perfect image of organised, the desk being laid out with nothing but a single large ledger. Alongside this were several quills and ink pots which were set out in a very ordered manor in a way that reminded Pinkie strongly of the way Twilight placed out her stationary.

Maud followed Pinkie inside the cramped office, but Fluttershy remained outside as there wasn’t much more room available. Squeezing behind the desk, Pinkie plopped herself down on the surprisingly uncomfortable desk chair, its stiff back forcing her to sit poker straight. Looking down at the book, Pinkie flicked through various different pages, finding that it seemed to be written documentation of all the transactions made through the royal bank.

Pinkie turned to a paged indicated by a ribbon bookmark near the end of the filled in pages. The title simply indicated it to be a record of all the tickets sold or given for that year’s Grand Galloping Gala. At the very top of the list were the names: Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie. In the following columns beside each of their names they were all marked as ‘Honorary Guests’, which Pinkie assumed to mean they didn’t have to pay for their tickets. They were also all ticked as being VIP, and in the final column there was a ‘plus one’ written in line with Pinkie’s name.

“Records of who got tickets to the gala,” Pinkie explained. “This is a good place to start; we have pretty much agreed the Mastermind had to have been at the gala.”

“So you’re going to read through…” Maud reached over and began flicking through pages until she reached the end of the section. “Over a dozen pages and hope one name jumps out at you?”

“Well I’m open to suggestions,” Pinkie snapped back impatiently.

“I suggest you let me do this,” Maud replied simply. “We both know I’m better at tedious stuff like this, that would leave you free for more… dynamic stuff.”

Pinkie considered it, she already had a feeling what name she was looking for, she just needed to find it, but Maud seemed resolute.

“Are you sure?” Pinkie asked, a bit curious as to why Maud was being so insistent.

“I am,” Maud answered in a sure voice.

“Alright,” Pinkie said, standing up from the chair which she was grateful for. “I’ll come back later and check in.”

After a little shuffling and squeezing about, Pinkie and Maud had managed to swap places with the latter sat behind the desk, quill in hoof while Pinkie exited the office to where Fluttershy was waiting patiently for her.

“So now what?” Fluttershy asked tentatively.

“Well for starters, where did you see Rarity?” Pinkie asked.

“In the kitchen,” Fluttershy replied. “She was making some lunch.”

“That’s fine then,” Pinkie continued. “Maud and Octavia are both busy, can you make sure they eat something and keep checking on Dash?”

“Of course, but where will you be?” Fluttershy asked, sounding worried as Pinkie started walking towards the stairs.

“We’re still short on food after Chrysalis stealing most of it; I’m going into town to search for more.” Pinkie was sure Fluttershy would have no trouble eating that lie.

“Well okay, but be careful!” Fluttershy called after Pinkie even as she was already trotting down the staircase.

Pinkie waved behind her to indicate she had heard, frowning all the while.

Please stop worrying about me Fluttershy, I don’t deserve that.

Day 12, 11:43

Pinkie glanced back at the iron gates leading back to the castle as she walked down the main street of the town. It was more out of habit than any actual fear of being followed, but then as she walked towards the familiar courtyard, she was reminded of a similar scenario only a few days before where she had followed Fluttershy here. As she walked, she enjoyed the familiar feeling of her now clean dress once more hugging her frame; she had almost felt naked without it. Reaching the archway set into the wall, Pinkie peered around into the usual crate filled space.

Just like it had been on her second visit here and ever since, the door she had come through was nowhere to be seen. This time however, Pinkie walked through the courtyard to the blank wall where she knew it was supposed to be, reaching up with her forehooves and feeling all over the bricks. Try as she might however, there was nothing to been seen or felt. Could it be she had simply imagined the area with the well? Perhaps she had woken up here and she was simply misremembering everything that came before.

No, I still have the key!

Reaching into her saddlebags, Pinkie fished out the slender metal key she had been carrying since she first came here. That place had definitely existed, so why couldn’t she reach it now? Curious, she glanced down at her hoof computer, hoping the map would hold the answers for her. It didn’t matter that the map didn’t even cover the town, as she had discovered coming back to the castle with Fluttershy, because her computer had somehow turned itself off.

Tapping the screen yielded no results; Pinkie was left frowning, wondering if her computer had broken itself. Idly she began backing out of the courtyard, still staring at her computer so that once she was back onto the main street she was able to see the screen blink to life once more as if nothing had happened. Intrigued, Pinkie stepped back into the courtyard, watching as her computer died once more.

Pinkie deposited the key back into her bag and returned to the street, pondering on her most recent discovery as she continued her journey. It was entirely possible the computer was losing signal, but as she continued down the main street and further away from the castle she noticed her computer remained resolutely on. Even when she reached the dark alley her and Fluttershy had traversed, it stayed switched on. Shrugging it of so she could remain focused on the task at hand, Pinkie stopped looking down at her computer so she concentrate on where she was going.

The alley was just as wet and dingy as she had remembered, every cold puddle she stepped in sending chills up her spine. She was thankful when she turned the corner and arrived in the plaza still bathed in its yellow glow. Something however, was off.

Pinkie stared at the single house standing in solitude, the house she now knew to have once belonged to Twilight Sparkle’s parents. It hadn’t been in the best condition when she had last been here, looking as if it were about to collapse. Now however, it appeared to have passed that point, looking as if a localised hurricane had hit it, ripping the upper floor off and reducing the rest to a hollowed out shell.

Walking up to the house, Pinkie tried to ignore the cardboard boxes that had been strewn over the plaza. Ascending the front steps she found the front door buckled, falling off its hinges when Pinkie set a hoof against it. The interior wasn’t much better, the hallway not littered with dust and debris from the ceiling when it had caved in. At the end of the hallway was the staircase, only ascending a few steps before the rest had been smashed away.

Walking towards them however, Pinkie saw something she hadn’t noticed the last time she was here. A small door had been ripped off the side of the staircase; together with the rest of the destruction revealed a staircase leading downwards to what Pinkie could only presume was the basement. Creeping down the cold, stone steps to the basement, Pinkie found all light extinguished as her head passed under the remains of the shattered staircase.

Pinkie wasn't deterred however, a memory of crawling through a passage connecting fireplaces springing to mind. Tapping through screens on her hoof computer, Pinkie was glad she still had the option of a light. Turning it on, her screen lit up with a bright light, and while it was awkward to walk on three legs down the stairs with her other hoof bent to allow the light to shine in front of her, she quickly made it to the bottom and was greeted with a rather interesting sight.

The basement was striped clean like the rest of the house had been on her last visit, all apart from a single shoddy desk placed against the far wall, covered in documents, and a noticeboard above it plastered in dozens of drawings. Pinkie walked over, shining her light on the notice board. The pictures appeared to be designs and blueprints. Pinkie recognised television screens powered by crystals and leg mounted computers.

These were Twilight’s designs for the technological aspects of the game; there were even some models Pinkie didn’t recognise as well as different versions of the ones she did know including the hoof computer she was fitted with now. Ripping that particular design from the wall Pinkie looked it over, noticing the alternate sketches displaying the prongs extended, one particular section of writing by this caught Pinkie’s eye.

Measurements important! Uncle Excalibur’s gun won’t fit otherwise.

Pinkie quirked an eyebrow at this.

Twilight’s uncle had owned the gun? The same one who had given the medal to Shining?

It made sense, it was a weapon after all and being a unicorn he was perfectly capable of using it. The designs also detailed the internal workings of the computer, but Pinkie couldn’t make heads or tails of it. She knew a little bit about technology, she had needed to when throwing together her party canon and flying machine, but she hadn’t an inkling when it came to all this jazz.

Turning her attention away from the notice board, she instead directed it to the stack of documents on the desk. Taking one at random, Pinkie opened it up and began scanning the text, her brow creasing as she progressed.

… I honestly believe the Sapper will allow for greater flexibility in control over which spells a unicorn can or can’t use, but the glyphs need to be tailored to the unicorns in question to account for the lack of physical contact between the Sapper and the subjects. Until I can improve upon this I will need to use the Overloader, I’m not keen on it, I know for appearance sake I will have to attempt to teleport out and the Overloader makes that a very painful experience…

Pinkie looked between the document and the referenced designs on the wall, seeing to very peculiar devices. Pinkie presumed they were somehow used to prevent a unicorn teleporting, it would also explain the difference in reactions between Twilight in the first game and her brother in this one. Switching her attention to a different document, Pinkie continued her reading.

… I really hope Coco doesn’t kill anypony; I’m really starting to run out of space in the manor underground. Somepony has to be ruled out, frankly I’d prefer if it was Pinkie but I can’t take any chances with her, she has a habit of surprising me. As for Coco, she seems the least likely out of all the candidates so far to actually commit a murder, and even by some bizarre turn of events she does, I’ll just use the execution I was going to use for whoever her victim is. If anyone questions the semantics of it I’ll make something up…

… I lost power in the morgue today; if that happens during the game I may not be able to salvage the bodies. Pinkie has to go down here at some point, it won’t do for her to come down and find a bunch of decaying corpses…

… I had to make some major adjustments to my rune formations in the courtroom today. My initial designs posed a serious risk at the time of the verdict being delivered, under no circumstances can the guilty escape their punishment, it defeats the entire purpose of the game (besides the actual purpose of course). No, I will not allow this to be flawed in any way; everything will be absolutely perfect…

… I hadn’t exactly anticipated how difficult it would be to balance the designing of this game with my everyday life. This needs my full attention if it is to become the perfect test for her. Must Celestia keep calling me back to Canterlot for some inane task, can’t she see that what I am trying to achieve is vastly more important?! Then there is my life in Ponyville, I can only say I’m carrying out my duties as princess in Canterlot so often, besides I need to see my friends, to see her. This test will change everything, I want to cherish these final days of simple normality before I help her realise her destiny…

Pinkie stared, transfixed at the sheets spread out in front of her. She knew these games couldn’t have been thrown together at the last minute, but she was still amazed at the incredible levels of detail that Twilight had poured into making it ‘perfect’. Of course Twilight’s alterations to her runes probably didn’t take into account Changeling magic, and even if the current Mastermind had known about Fleur’s true identity, Twilight was no longer around to ensure the runes were kept up to date for the second game.

Pinkie read over some of the sections again, the memory of Twilight’s death resurfacing. Apart of her had always wondered why Twilight had allowed herself to be executed, why she hadn’t just cancelled the game and allowed herself to live. But Twilight had either felt certain Pinkie and the others would not have her executed, or she was so desperate to create a rigid rule structure that she was willing to let herself be killed if it came down to it.

The rest of the documents followed a similar trend, explaining the extreme lengths Twilight had traversed to prepare the game, including countless alternatives both in setting and in players. Perhaps the current Mastermind had simply picked up the spare pieces from Twilight’s game rather than making their own entirely out of the blue.

Not sure how any of this would aid Octavia or herself, Pinkie began shuffling the documents together; piling them up along with the rest of the drawings from the wall so she could take them back to the castle. It was only when she reached the end of the pile, that she discovered a brown folder, similar to the one Trixie’s assessment had been in, but instead labelled ‘Starswirl: Time and Space’.

Pinkie whipped open the folder in the blink of an eye, immediately greeted by a drawing of a very similar hourglass, one she had seen a long time ago with Twilight herself. More drawings showed how Twilight steadily improved the original into the final version that Pinkie recognised from the library tower. It was the same pattern for the orrery in the observatory.

So, it was Twilight who turned the prototypes into the final versions. Not really that surprising when I think about it.

Flicking past the sketches, bypassing the written notes for now, Pinkie found a single sheet of paper at the back of the folder, with a short paragraph written by Twilight.

I know I should be focused on designing the test, but ever since I finished with that horn and returned it to Celestia, I feel driven to complete Starswirl’s devices. Celestia seemed surprised when I brought it up with her, but encouraged me none the less. Nopony has attempted to finish Starswirl’s work into time and space manipulation, but we both agreed that after the task leading to my ascension, it seemed appropriate for me to try. So far it doesn’t seem too difficult, I wouldn’t be surprised if the reason nopony else has completed these before is out of respect for the original creator as opposed to any real difficulty. Still, just as I delved into the secrets of the Five, I will restore these three machines… who knows, they may even play a role in Pinkie’s test.

Pinkie couldn’t pack the documents in her saddlebags fast enough as she rushed from the basement, out of the house and back to the castle, desperate to share her discovery with Octavia.

Day 12, 13:15

“Pinkie!” Rarity exclaimed. “Are you alright?”

“Quite fine,” Pinkie muffled back, her face firmly planted in the stone floor of the entrance hall.

“Pinkie, you need to eat something,” Rarity insisted, kneeling down and cradling Pinkie.

“Yeah, I gathered as much when I collapsed,” Pinkie replied in a weak attempt at humour.

“Come on,” Rarity said, dragging Pinkie to her hooves. “The others are already in the banquet hall; you also need to take your tablet today.”

Pinkie allowed herself to be led like a dog down the hallway to the open doors to the banquet hall where Fluttershy, Maud and Octavia were all sitting in silence, their plates already cleared.

“Where's Rainbow Dash?” Pinkie asked, concerned but not exactly surprised by her lack of presence.

“She… wasn’t hungry,” Fluttershy murmured. “We left some food outside her room for her.”

Pinkie sighed as she was lowered into a chair, a very small portion of salad in front of her. Pinkie felt a pang of guilt as she dug in, she had told Fluttershy she would search for food, naturally she had never seriously thought to do so.

“Fluttershy says you were in town,” Octavia mentioned as Pinkie ate away.

“Yeah, I’ll talk to you in the study about it,” Pinkie replied, preferring not to admit to her lie in front of Fluttershy.

Octavia nodded, standing up from where she sat and leaving the room, presumably to wait for Pinkie in the study. Pinkie then looked to Maud who was watching her with her usual look of indifference, a look only Pinkie could see beyond to see the concern beneath.

“How’s it going upstairs?” Pinkie asked, hoping to break the uncomfortable silence.

“Okay,” Maud replied. “Come by before the end of the day and I should be finished.”

Pinkie nodded as Maud too stood up and left. This left only Rarity and Fluttershy present, both watching her closely as she ate.

“So Rainbow hasn’t left her room since I left?” Pinkie asked, Rarity and Fluttershy giving each other a worried look.

“No, she’s locked up tight I’m afraid,” Rarity answered.

“I’ll go see her in a bit,” Pinkie offered. “Remind her that we need her.”

Pinkie and Rarity exchanged a little dialogue, and before long Fluttershy was drafted into helping Rarity moving the dirty plates back into the kitchen, leaving Pinkie all alone in the banquet hall.

She sighed to herself as she finished sucking on the final piece of lemon, still as hungry as she was when she first sat down. Looking beyond her empty plate she stared at the red and yellow capsule Rarity had left for her alongside a glass of water. She stared at it a long time before reaching out and picking it up, holding it up to her face.

The metal gauntlet riveted into her leg hadn’t caused her any pain since she first woke up with it, almost like it had become an extension of herself, just another part of her life in the game. Pinkie stared for a long time at the capsule, a dull look on her face as she thought back to what Maud had said to her just yesterday morning.

…you got thrown back into the game that hurt you, and wore it like a glove…

…you love it, you thrive on it…

…but you do want to play this game. You’re dependant on it…

…you’ll seek this life out.

Pinkie’s head hurt as she rose to her hooves, the capsule still balanced on her outstretched limb. She reached out and grabbed the glass of water, her whole body wobbling unsteadily. Pinkie raised the glass, downing the water in one gulp before placing the capsule onto the table and slamming the glass down upon it, crushing it.

She moved the glass and swept the remains from the table cloth, leaving only a faint yellow streak of powder before she stormed out of the room. She barely registered her movements as she wandered down the hallway into the study, running on autopilot. It was only when Octavia greeted her that her mind snapped back into focus.

“Are you alright?” she asked from beside the fireplace, watching Pinkie suspiciously as she took her usual seat.

“I’m fine, just tired,” Pinkie lied wearily, removing her saddlebags.

“I take it you found something,” Octavia noted, taking a seat opposite Pinkie.

“I did,” Pinkie confirmed, pulling the pile of documents free from her bag and sprawling them across the coffee table. “You could say I hit a gold mine.”

Octavia picked up a sheet at random, one of the designs for the hoof computers. Pinkie could see a mixture of confusion and fascination in her eyes as they scanned over it.

“What is all this?” she asked, picking up more sheets.

“They’re Twilight’s plans and designs for the game,” Pinkie explained. “She put… a surprising amount of thought into making it watertight.”

Octavia held up one of the documents and read a section aloud.

“In practice the game will only end when one player is left standing,” she recited. “However, for everything to work smoothly, the Mastermind can call an end to the game when there are six or less players left. This should ensure the presence of a few other pieces at least for Pinkie’s final test.”

“Like I said,” Pinkie continued. “A lot of thought went into planning every little detail. However there’s something in particular you should see…”

Pinkie pulled the final folder from her bag, which she had kept separate so as not to get it mixed up. Octavia accepted the folder as Pinkie passed it over, her eyes widening in awe as she read the label.

“This…” she uttered, apparently unable to say any more as she opened the cover and saw the first of many drawings.

“I guess this answers your question as to who completed the originals,” Pinkie informed her. “Although there is something at the back that may come as a shock.”

Octavia turned to the final page curiously, and began reading Twilight’s missive on her side project.

“Three machines!” Octavia exclaimed when she reached the end. “There’s a third one?! Nothing I’ve read has mentioned anything about a third!”

“What I don’t get is,” Pinkie began, leaning back in her seat. “If Twilight made designs on the two we’ve seen, why didn’t she do the same for this mystery machine?”

“Perhaps she did,” Octavia suggested, still staring at the different drawings. “Are you sure nopony else found these documents before you did?”

“I… I have no idea,” Pinkie admitted.

The thought of someone else making that discovery before she did hadn’t occurred to her.

“Well this is a huge help,” Octavia said, sounding incredibly appreciative. “You don’t mind if I keep a hold of this stuff on the machines do you?”

“Of course not,” Pinkie assured her. “You’ll make more use of them than I will. I’ll keep this other stuff though, but if you need to see any of it just ask.”

“Oh I will,” Octavia said, closing the folder and standing up. “Thank you again for retrieving this Pinkie.”

Pinkie gave a curt nod as Octavia left the study, almost skipping with excitement.

At least someone is happy.

Pinkie began piling the documents back up, packing the one more into her saddlebags, which were admittedly getting quite full. They were now crammed with all Twilight’s documents, the gun she now knew once belonged to Twilight’s uncle, the knife from the chapel, the picture of Twilight’s family, Trixie’s assessment and the mystery key she found when this whole mess began.

She didn’t mind the load however, it was all too precious or dangerous to risk leaving anywhere other than on her person at all times. With her bag once again packed, closed and strapped to her back, she left the study and headed off to try and comfort a friend.

Day 12, 14:21

“Rainbow Dash, you can’t stay in there for ever!” Pinkie shouted at the stubbornly locked door. “Soarin wouldn’t want you to…”

She regretted it almost immediately as she heard the loud slamming of the bolt and saw the door fly open to reveal a fuming Rainbow Dash, her teeth clenched and her eyes heavily bloodshot.

“Wouldn’t what?!” Rainbow demanded, storming up to Pinkie. “No go ahead, what were you about to say?”

Pinkie didn’t reply, merely stood her ground in the hopes Rainbow Dash would calm down in her own time.

“No, let me tell you what he would say,” Rainbow continued. “He wouldn’t say anything because he’s dead! He’s dead and he’s gone, and I’m never going to see him again!”

Rainbow turned away from Pinkie and began marching off down the decline.

“Rainbow, wait!” Pinkie called after her.

“No!” Rainbow screamed, spinning to face Pinkie once more, her face alive with a hatred she had never seen there before. “I thought I was okay with it, but I’m not. I thought I could respect his choice, but I can’t. He died to save you! It’s your fault he’s gone!”

With that Rainbow pivoted on the spot and continued her walk until she was out of sight. Pinkie stood feeling incredibly shaken. It was one thing to blame herself for everything that had happened, but to hear her best friend blame her in such a way left her feeling incredibly hollow inside. Pinkie suddenly felt very alone as she stood outside Dash’s still open room. Dragging her hooves she slowly made her way out of the tower.

Once out, she wasn’t surprised to see Rainbow Dash was nowhere to be seen, Pinkie wasn’t even sure if seeing her was the best thing right now. Flipping a mental coin, she turned towards the central chamber and began walking with her head hung low. The last thing she wanted was to throw herself on her sister, she had already done far too much of that. Perhaps she could visit Octavia, see if she had gotten anywhere now that she had Twilight’s notes to add to her own.

Her mind made up, if ever so reluctantly, Pinkie began to climb the staircase. Once at the waiting room, she took the usual door on the left and meandered towards the observatory. She was hardly enthused to see Octavia there, surrounded by reading material, scribbling notes as she fiddle with the tiniest of components on the orrery.

“How’s it going?” Pinkie asked, trying her best to sound upbeat.

“Good, excellent even,” Octavia declared, not even looking up from her work. “These notes have been invaluable, I was able to reattach the planet thanks to the instructions they provided. I never would have anticipated such a delicate process being involved before.”

“That’s good,” Pinkie said, her voice distant. “Anything else of interest?”

“Yes actually,” Octavia answered, looking up to Pinkie for the first time. “I now know a lot better how the machines actually achieve control over space and time; the existence of a third machine answers so many questions I’ve been having. But also, I am pleased to report that what the machines have done, is a continuous process. They have to be constantly fuelled by a magical source, so if that source is removed, the process is stopped and will begin to reverse itself naturally.”

“So you’re saying Canterlot will be returned to normal if we cut off the magic powering the machines?” Pinkie repeated, sounding quite surprised. “It’s really that simple?”

“Apparently so,” Octavia replied, sounding just as surprised. “Cut off the head and the body will die, so to speak. I would assume the Mastermind is in possession of this source, indeed, if they’re a particularly powerful unicorn they could fulfil that role themselves.”

“So the sooner we identify and defeat the Mastermind,” Pinkie began. “The sooner we can end this and begin rectifying matters.”

“Quite,” Octavia said nodding. “I still need to clarify some things, like the whereabouts of Canterlot’s citizens and their fate if the machines are stopped, but that shouldn’t take long.”

“Indeed, you’ve already figured out so much in only…” Pinkie looked down at her hoof computer. “Not even one hour.”

“I work quickly when the conditions are good like this,” Octavia explained, turning back to her work.

“Well then I won’t bother you anymore,” Pinkie assured her. “I’ll just get back to hunting down the Mastermind.”

Day 12, 20:03

Pinkie couldn’t help but smirk internally at how much Maud pulled off the whole secretary look, sitting behind Kibitz desk, the tips of her forehooves resting gently against one another, looking up at Pinkie with a look of complacency.

“I honestly don’t know how much help this is going to be to you,” Maud said yet again as Pinkie continued to give the once over to the list she had compiled.

“I’m just checking to see if anything jumps out at me,” Pinkie replied distracted. “If nothing does we’ll look into each pony in more detail.”

“That will take days, even with that condensed list,” Maud pointed out.

“Well Octavia thinks we can end this nightmare by tracking down the Mastermind,” Pinkie reminded her. “How else do you propose we do that?”

“Well they aren’t invisible,” Maud stated. “Surely if we keep searching we’ll find where they’ve been hiding out at.”

“Even at the very end of that last game we never got into Twilight’s secret room,” Pinkie replied exasperatedly. “And we spent days looking for that place.”

Maud threw up her hooves in defeat, leaning back in her chair as best she could despite the stiff back.

“Octavia says the machines are being fuelled by something magical,” Pinkie continued, still reading over the list. “If we had a unicorn who specialised in magic we might have been able to trace it.”

“But we don’t, we have Rarity,” Maud said flatly.

“I know, that’s why I said if,” Pinkie clarified as she reached a peculiar section of the list. “These aren’t pony names.”

“Those are businesses,” Maud explained, leaning over to see where Pinkie was at. “Sponsors and the likes, that’s how the Wonderbolts’ tickets are classified as well.”

Pinkie nodded, reading through the list of businesses who had been allowed to send representatives. There were some rather odd ones, Pinkie wasn’t surprised that Maud had picked them out and added them to the list.

Flim & Flam Bros.

Iron Will Fitness Scheme

Great & Powerful

Canterlot Drama Society

Pinkie’s eyes darted up the list, rereading what she had been sure was her imagination.

Great & Powerful?

“What is this?!” Pinkie demanded, putting the list in Maud’s face and gesturing wildly to the name.

“I don’t know,” Maud said, almost toppling off her chair in surprise. “I just thought it sounded weird because I was sure I’d heard you mention it before.”

“Show me it in the book,” Pinkie ordered, her heart hammering in her chest.

Maud obliged, opening the book to the correct section and turning it towards Pinkie. Scanning down the much longer list, Pinkie found the name she was looking for, along which was a little number one in the number of tickets sold. The next column bore a simple ‘not specified’ under the heading ‘Name of ticket holder(s)’.

“Pinkie, what is it?” Maud asked, before raising her voice. “Pinkie?!”

But Pinkie was already gone, running down the central chamber staircase.

Day 13, 11:19

Pinkie walked alongside Octavia up the central chamber staircase, one looking considerably livelier than the other.

“I ran into Rainbow Dash this morning,” Octavia stated, breaking the silence. “It’s good to see her out of her room, although she doesn’t look great.”

Pinkie didn’t reply, Octavia however took the hint and didn’t say anything more on the subject.

“So after all your running around last night, did you find anything?” she asked.

“That’s the worst part,” Pinkie muttered as they arrived on the landing just outside the lab.

Pinkie stopped talking when she noticed the door was open and she could hear voices inside. Curious she walked on in, with Octavia shortly behind. Rarity was chatting amiably to Fluttershy who appeared to be pruning a potted plant.

“Um, what’s going on?” Pinkie asked as she approached the pair.

“Oh, um, hello Pinkie,” Fluttershy greeted cautiously. “I was just doing a little gardening, it’s really quite therapeutic, you should have a go.”

“I think I’ll pass,” Pinkie replied, really not in the mood.

“Oh, that’s okay, you’re very busy,” Fluttershy said quickly. “Perhaps when this is all over you can give it a go.”

Pinkie picked up on the hopefulness in Fluttershy’s voice immediately, feeling a groan wishing to be heard. She noticed the stern look Rarity flashed her so she amended her following statement.

“Yeah, maybe I will,” she said, trying to inject the slightest bit of honesty into it.

Fluttershy beamed at Pinkie before returning to her own activities.

“Well, I’m going to head upstairs,” Octavia stated, drawing Pinkie’s attention back to her. “I want to see if that office you found has any records commissioning the improvement of the machines.”

Pinkie nodded as Octavia retreated from the lab, leaving her with her other friends. Fluttershy seemed too drawn into what she was doing to pay any heed to either of them, so Pinkie set off down a random aisle with Rarity at her side, admiring some of the more exotic plants.

“Have you seen Rainbow this morning?” Pinkie asked, causing Rarity to grimace.

“Yes, I tried convincing her to have some breakfast,” she explained. “I’m sure you can imagine how that ended. At this rate I’ll be surprised if she doesn’t…”

Rarity cut off, but Pinkie had an idea what Rarity was about to say.

“Rainbow wouldn’t hurt any of us,” Pinkie insisted as she examined a rather prickly plant. “She’s incredibly upset, and she’s trying to cope with aggression, but she won’t go that far.”

“I hope you’re right,” Rarity said forlornly. “At this point I can safely say there won’t be any more killings. Only six of us left and I don’t see any of us… Pinkie, No!”

Rarity grabbed Pinkie just as she leaned down to sniff some purple flowers which reminded her a little of bluebells, tugging her back with so much force that Pinkie was sent tumbling to the floor.

“What the…” Pinkie exclaimed, rubbing the back of her head which had knocked off another counter on her way down.

“I’m sorry Pinkie,” Rarity began seriously, “but that was Deadly Nightshade you were about to stick your nose in. Didn’t your parents ever teach you to identify them?”

“Maud did once when we were kids,” Pinkie replied, standing up and examining the flower a little closer, recognising it for what it was this time. “It was so long ago it just slipped my mind.”

“Well thankfully you don’t get effected just from smelling it,” Rarity continued as Fluttershy came running up behind her.

“Oh Pinkie are you alright?” she exclaimed. “Did you fall?”

“Sort of,” Pinkie replied, shooting Rarity a slightly irritated look.

“I said I was sorry,” Rarity reminded her. “Although I suppose my reaction was a little over the top.”

“Well did you hit your head?” Fluttershy asked, still sounding panicked. “You could have gotten a concussion.”

“I did but it’s not a big deal,” Pinkie tried to say, but Fluttershy seemed to stop listening after she confirmed hitting her head.

“Oh no! Quickly, just sit yourself right here and don’t move!” Fluttershy instructed. “Rarity can you help me find the painkillers in the infirmary? I’m still not sure where everything is after we tidied up.”

“Of course I can,” Rarity assured her. “But you should calm down; it’s not as bad as you think.”

Pinkie was left standing awkwardly as the pair left the lab. Her head had only hurt for a moment; she knew there was nothing to worry about. Walking back down the aisle her and Rarity had come down, Pinkie continued looking at the different counters trying to occupy herself while waiting for them to return. As she walked, a flickering light caught her eye. She was so used to the constant light of the electrical bulbs that the tiny flame of the Bunsen burner stood out to her.

Crossing over she found a pot of murky liquid set over the burner upon a tripod. Next to it lay a grimy pestle and mortar and a large textbook emblazoned with the title ‘Advanced Scientific Methodology’. Pinkie steered clear of both the book and the bubbling mixture, assuming it was something Fluttershy was fiddling about with before she arrived, she’d rather not get wrapped up in it or disrupt it any way.

Returning back to the door to the lab, Pinkie continued to wait for a few minutes for her friends to return. Eventually remembering there wasn’t actually anything wrong with her and she wasn’t obligated to stay put. With that in mind, Pinkie set off downstairs to assure Fluttershy face to face that she didn’t need treating for a bump on the head.

Day 13, 14:08

Pinkie marched down the hallway to the entrance hall, a scowl etched into her face. She wouldn’t have minded sitting through a subsidiary medical examination to assure Fluttershy that she really was fine in the head, but Fluttershy kept popping out for the most inane reasons, leaving Pinkie alone for lengths of time that could have been spent following up on her suspicions that Maud had fed the night before.

Pinkie didn’t want to believe that Trixie was the Mastermind, but it seemed everything she was presented with only served to illustrate that very possibility. Could Trixie really have fallen so far, let her sanity slip to the point where she was willing to follow her idol into committing the same atrocities? Pinkie refused to believe it was that simple, Trixie may have been a braggart the first time she visited Ponyville, and downright nasty the second time, but Pinkie saw a whole other side to her at the Manor.

There has to be more to this, even if Trixie is the Mastermind, there has to be a greater reason to do all this than just following in Twilight’s hoofsteps.

Pinkie was broken out of her train of thought as she entered the entrance hall in time to see Maud and Octavia entering form the other side of the balcony.

“Hello girls,” Pinkie greeted wearily. “Did you find those commissions you were looking for?”

“Afraid not,” Octavia replied. “Either they too were stolen or the whole thing was done off the books, which wouldn’t be surprising if you consider the sensitive nature of messing with time and space.”

“Well, at least you can rule it out,” Pinkie offered as they met at the top of the staircase.

“I suppose,” Octavia admitted. “And you? Did you get anywhere with the Mastermind’s identity?”

“Well,” Pinkie said hesitating, turning to walk down the stairs. “I do actually have a suspect.”

“Really? Who?” Octavia asked eagerly, but Pinkie never replied.

Octavia followed Pinkie’s glassy gaze down the staircase, out the gates to where a body lay sprawled out at the end of the courtroom.

“Pinkie, wait!” Maud called as Pinkie burst into a gallop.

Pinkie paid no heed to her sister as she ran across the courtyard, falling to her knees next to the body.

“No no no…” Pinkie repeated desperately as she checked for the slightest signs of life.

“Attention everypony!” the Mastermind announced, even as Pinkie continued denying the reality to herself. “Another body has just been discovered in the main courtyard. Your time for investigating begins now, and the trial will begin in due course.”

“Not you too Rainbow!” Pinkie wailed, burying her face in the multihued mane.

Author's Note

Second last chapter, hope you all aren't bored yet.
Now just to clarify, you can guess the culprit at any point from now until the final part is published. You'll probably want to wait until the second part is published in 2 days, but nothings stopping you from changing your guess, but the third part will be published roughly 3 days after the second part, and you need to guess before that.
With that said, I hope you enjoy this one, last chapter was a fun excursion but this one returns to the norm.

C5: Feeling Good

Day 13, 14:21

“How could this happen?”

Just one of the many things Pinkie was asking herself as she watched Fluttershy sobbing into the body of her oldest friend.

How could this happen? Rarity said it herself this morning, of the six… five left, Pinkie couldn’t see any of them killing Rainbow Dash.

Then there was the other thing niggling at the back of her mind, the question of how Pinkie felt. True, upon first seeing her friend she had been distraught, but that didn’t last long at all. Her misery gave way to a new feeling, one that rubbed Pinkie in all the wrong directions… Elation?

“I… I don’t know,” Rarity replied weakly, trying to awkwardly comfort Fluttershy even as her own tears slid down her cheeks.

Maud was standing next to Pinkie, no contact or communication beyond their bodies leaning lightly against one another, but Pinkie appreciated it none the less.

Octavia stood off to one side, looking almost… lonely. Pinkie found herself wondering about the mare, recalling how she had known all the others personally in some way, all but her. On the outside Octavia seemed cold and uncaring, but Pinkie knew it was a façade, she still remembered her words to Chrysalis.

I’ve had a lot of practice hiding my emotions… Just like yourself I imagine.

Pinkie shrugged Maud off and walked over to where her three friends lay, Rainbow’s body lying in the exact spot Soarin had died.

Hardly a coincidence.

“We need to get started,” Pinkie informed the weeping pair. “You… should probably sit this one out, go wait in the study or your rooms.”

“No!” Rarity exclaimed, looking up a Pinkie with an indignant look in her puffy eyes. “I want to help… I have to help!”

Fluttershy on the other hand just slid out of Rarity’s embrace, allowing Rainbow to sink back to the floor. She stood up weakly and began walking back towards the castle without a single word to any of them.

“She might need some company,” Pinkie pointed out to Rarity who bit her lip, looking torn.

“I… I can’t just sit back and do nothing,” she insisted, her voice trembling.

“I’ll go to her,” Maud announced. “Rarity can stay and help, I’ll see to Fluttershy.”

Pinkie nodded approvingly as Maud strode away, leaving Pinkie and Rarity standing over their fallen friend, and Octavia who began approaching them.

“How should we begin?” she asked upon joining the pair.

“Examine the body,” Pinkie replied wearily, crouching down by Rainbow.

Pinkie rolled her out on to her back, stretching the limbs out flat. She still remembered the position she had found Rainbow in, curled up tight with her forehooves clenched around her body, so she didn’t consider this act disrupting the scene of the crime.

“Shouldn’t… she be… stiff?” Rarity asked, a hint of revulsion in her voice as she reluctantly leaned down beside the body.

“Rigor Mortis only sets in after a few hours,” Octavia explained. “Which means she hasn’t been dead long.”

Pinkie nodded, opting not to reply as she began her investigation. She was no Redheart, but she had picked up enough from all the investigation up to this point that she felt relatively competent in her examination. The first, most obvious thing she picked up on was the murky stain dribbling down Rainbow’s chin. The substance was dark, mostly dried out but still rather sticky to the touch. Judging by how it was flowing from Rainbow’s mouth, Pinkie guessed it was vomit.

“Rarity,” Pinkie said suddenly. “Maybe you could use that spell of yours, look for signs of a struggle or something.”

“I could do that,” Rarity agreed, perking up slightly as she stepped back from the body, her horn alight.

“This looks like vomit,” Pinkie informed Octavia, pointing to the substance running down her jaw.

“Hmm, her eyes seem very dilated,” Octavia pointed out, holding one of Dash’s clenched eyes open.

Looking over the rest of the body Pinkie failed to find any obvious causes of death, no wounds of any sort. Her fur all over felt rather hard and prickly, as if she had been sweating profusely which then dried out in her coat rather than getting washed out.

“I think we’re dealing with something internal,” Octavia stated, voicing Pinkie’s own thoughts aloud.

“It would seem that way,” Pinkie concurred, standing up and surveying the whole body.

Octavia reached over and opened Rainbow’s mouth wide, peering in.

“Other than the sick it looks fairly dry,” she reported, closing it again.

Pinkie left the body momentarily, walking over to where Rarity was standing, scanning the ground with her horn like a metal detector. As Pinkie got close she noticed that wherever Rarity’s horn hovered over, would light up in a miasma of colours, fading away as she moved onto another area.

“What’s all that about?” Pinkie asked, confused.

“Well,” Rarity began, stopping for a moment to dab sweat off her forehead with a handkerchief. “I’m getting quite a lot of… interference due to the frequency at which ponies walk around this area. The rune circles in particular seem to be throwing off my spells.”

“So you can’t figure anything out?” Pinkie asked, slightly miffed.

“Not exactly,” Rarity admitted. “But if I rule out the most recent activity as being our own walking about, then there appears to be a straight trail from where Rainbow was found all the way to here.”

Pinkie followed Rarity over to a seemingly random point somewhere between the statues of Celestia and Luna.

“But the trail goes cold there,” Rarity finished. “If I could examine the area where she was lying…”

“Of course,” Pinkie agreed absent minded, walking back over to Octavia who was still checking over every inch of Rainbow Dash. “Could you help me move her?”

Octavia nodded and hoisted one end of Rainbow’s body while Pinkie hauled the other. Rainbow was fairly light as far as ponies went, but that still didn’t make it a simple task, Pinkie was just glad both her and Octavia were earth ponies. Once Rainbow was moved a few metres from the courtroom setting, Rarity walked over and began scanning the area. Pinkie immediately saw what she meant about the runes disrupting her spell, the various colours fizzing and going haywire whenever she hovered her horn anywhere near the runes.

After a few minutes of watching the peculiar process, Rarity finally stopped and turned to face the pair of them.

“Okay, there’s a little more disruption in this spot as if she moved around a lot,” Rarity explained, “but just like the trail leading up here, I think it was all done by Rainbow alone.”

“Whatever killed her must have taken some time to have an effect,” Octavia proposed. “So the act must have taken place elsewhere.”

Pinkie rested her chin on her hoof as she pondered that idea; she knew Rainbow Dash had been locked away inside her own room until their argument yesterday. That gave them a window of around a day to work with, not counting the night hours.

“You both said you saw Rainbow this morning,” Pinkie began addressing the pair of them. “Where was she at the time?”

“I saw her coming out of her room this morning when I too was getting up,” Rarity replied. “Like I told you, I tried to get her to eat something, but…”

Pinkie nodded sympathetically before turning to Octavia.

“I saw her in the library,” Octavia replied, making both Rarity and Pinkie stare at her in bewilderment. “Is that out of character for her or something?”

“Very,” Rarity answered. “The only books she would ever pick up are those Daring Do novels, and I seriously don’t think she was in the mood for those.”

“Daring Do?” Octavia repeated. “Aren’t those books for a younger audience?”

“I agree with Rarity,” Pinkie said, ignoring Octavia’s question. “She wouldn’t have been reading those in her state of mind. Which raises the question, what was she doing there?”

They both looked at Octavia who stared blankly at them for a second before realising they expected her to know.

“Well I don’t know,” Octavia insisted, slightly exasperated. “I only saw her come in; I was too busy working on the hourglass to pay her much heed. If I’d known that reading was unusual for her I might have taken a closer look, but as it is I just let her be.”

Pinkie shrugged, it seemed like a fair enough reaction.

“Do you know when she left?” Pinkie asked.

“No,” Octavia replied. “When I left to meet up with you this morning, she was still there I think.”

“Okay, well that gives us one obvious area to search,” Pinkie continued. “But did either of you see her any other time, even yesterday?”

Both shook their heads.

“Alright,” Pinkie said at last, quickly thinking what to do. “If you both go search the library, look for anything out of place. I know it’s a long shot, but could you use your spell again Rarity?”

“I can try,” Rarity replied unsure. “But the interference out here will no doubt be nothing compared to the library.”

“I’m just asking you to try,” Pinkie clarified. “I’ll go find the others, see if they know where Rainbow’s been.”

Day 13, 14:59

Pinkie was glad that she didn’t have to traipse all over the castle to find her sister and friend, instead locating them exactly where she suggested they wait, in the study. Maud was sitting awkwardly next to Fluttershy, a strained expression on her face, a foreleg hung stiffly over her shoulder. She wasn’t used to comforting anypony other than her sisters and it showed, Fluttershy didn’t seem to mind though, looking far too out of it to even be aware of her presence.

Sitting down on the other side of Fluttershy, Pinkie waited in silence for a brief moment until Fluttershy finally looked up at her.

“When will it end?” she mumbled despairingly. “Will everyone we love die until there’s only one of us left?”

“I know you were friends for a long time…” Pinkie began, but stopped when Fluttershy gave an uncharacteristic bark of harsh laughter.

“Yes, I guess you could say that,” she continued, her voice humourless. “We lived next to each other when we were fillies. She’s been my friend as long as I can remember, she was my only friend in school, sticking up for me when nopony else would. And when I chose to leave for Ponyville, she dropped everything to come with me. She would have been in the Wonderbolts years ago if she’d stuck through flight school, but she threw it all away without a second thought so she could come with me. Working a menial job and training harder than anyone to get to where she would have been if I hadn’t dragged her down…”

Pinkie and Maud glanced at each other, both had their mouths clamped shut, daring not to speak during Fluttershy’s heartfelt recollection.

“She was my oldest and dearest friend,” Fluttershy finished. “But… at least her and Soarin will be together again. She would never have admitted it, but she loved him more than anything.”

“Yeah, silver lining and all that,” Pinkie muttered weakly, unsure how she was expected to respond to that story. “So, I need to know if either of you saw Rainbow Dash since yesterday.”

“I passed her in the central chamber yesterday,” Maud informed her. “I was walking past the infirmary level and she was heading up. I tried to talk to her but she just ignored me.”

“Any other times?” Pinkie asked

“Yeah, again early this morning,” Maud continued. “Same place sort of, except I was heading to the observatory to pick up something for Octavia when I saw her further up the stairs.”

“I saw her outside late yesterday,” Fluttershy chipped in. “She was looking at the statues, she seemed… angry.”

No surprise there…

“Did she say anything?” Pinkie pushed.

“No!” Fluttershy replied, far too quickly, and they all knew it.

Fluttershy shifted uncomfortably even as Pinkie and Maud stared at her.

“She…” Fluttershy continued in a shifty voice. “She brought up some… personal things. It really doesn’t matter.”

“Did you see her any time after that?” Pinkie asked, choosing to avoid the obvious question for now.

“No,” Fluttershy replied miserably. “That was the last time I saw her…”

Her voice caught in her throat and her eyes welled up once more.

“Alright,” Pinkie said standing up, feeling a little bit drained. “I’m going to take a look in Rainbow’s room, the usual search about. You girls can stay here until the trial, it might be best as I’ll know where to find you if I need you.”

“Of course,” Maud replied, standing up and walking with Pinkie over to the door.

Once they reached the door and Pinkie was sure Fluttershy was paying them no attention, she leaned into Maud and began to whisper.

“See if you can’t get her to open up about that personal stuff,” she suggested. “Don’t be too pushy, just try to figure out if there’s more to it that’s relevant.”

“I was already planning on it,” Maud assured her. “You should go on; I’ll take care of her.”

Exchanging a curt nod to one another, Pinkie opened the door and stepped out into the corridor just in time to see Rarity walking her way.

“You were quick in the library,” Pinkie noted as Rarity walked up beside her.

“Well, there wasn’t a great deal to look through,” Rarity replied bitterly. “All those books and research materials we had strewn about the place since we got here have been tidied away; there isn’t a loose book in sight.”

“They were put away? When?” Pinkie asked, surprised as she hadn’t heard any mention of this.

“I have no idea,” Rarity insisted. “And neither did Octavia, she seemed insistent they were all still out last time she saw, and she’s running back and forth between the library and observatory most of the time as you know.”

“Then either somepony did a little spring cleaning or they’re covering their tracks,” Pinkie muttered as she began walking towards the entrance hall. “It’s possible that Rainbow was lured to the library by somepony, which would explain her presence there, and whatever occurred resulting in her death happened there. Did your spell pick up anything?”

“Nothing useful,” Rarity replied dully. “Like I said, far too many ponies have been through the library since we first got here. If I was going to split everything up into time frames I would be there for days.”

“And we don’t have days,” Pinkie finished as they arrived in the entrance hall. “Where’s Octavia?”

“She left before I did,” Rarity explained. “I think she was going to check Rainbow’s room or something.”

“That’s where I was about to go,” Pinkie noted. “Maud noticed Rainbow heading up in the central chamber a couple of times, so if you head on over there and start searching the throne room up, I’ll catch up as soon as I’m finished with the bedroom.”

“Of course,” Rarity said, walking quickly ahead, up the staircase and out of sight.

Pinkie stopped briefly in the entrance hall, glancing out the door at the body that was still lying where they had left it. Fluttershy’s words swam to the forefront of her mind as she forced herself to look away. How many more would die before this came to an end?

Enough?

Day 13, 15:33

Pinkie ascended the corridor of the residence tower, not stopping until she reached the very top where she knew Rainbow’s room was. She arrived just in time to see Octavia stepping out, closing the door behind her.

“Anything?” Pinkie asked, causing Octavia to jump in surprise.

“Oh, nothing,” she replied quickly, in a voice very unlike her own.

Pinkie narrowed her eyes at her, something was up.

“Really?” Pinkie asked sceptically.

“Yes, really,” Octavia insisted, her voice quickly regaining its usual composure. “You just startled me was all.”

“Alright,” Pinkie continued slowly. “I think I’ll take a look myself though.”

“By all means,” Octavia replied, stepping aside and presenting Pinkie with an open path. “Although you’ll only be wasting your time.”

“We’ll see…” Pinkie muttered, not even trying to hide the suspicion in her voice as she strode past Octavia and entered the room.

Rainbow’s room was fairly inconspicuous, the bed was messy, her flight suit and goggles were discarded in a heap outside the wardrobe, the portrait of herself had been set face down while Soarin’s sat upright in its place. Walking over to the bed, Pinkie ran her hooves through it. While there was nothing eye catching about the covers, she noticed several dark patches over her pillow case. Pinkie didn’t need the title of detective to know they were tears.

Moving away from the bed, Pinkie approached the window, opening and checking all the drawers as she went. Finding nothing, she stood facing the window, the blinds drawn. Reaching out she threw the curtains open, and immediately hopped back. The glass pane was nearly opaque, cracks covering almost every centimetre of its surface, which coupled with the lattice gave it a rather eerie appearance. Leaning in, Pinkie noticed a few spots of blood gathered at the centre, it looked like the worst had been wiped off.

“She probably just punched the window in frustration,” Octavia pointed out from the doorway. “I was about to go see if she had any injuries on her hooves that would match up.”

Pinkie nodded slightly, stepping away from the window and leaving the room.

“Alright, go ahead and do that,” Pinkie agreed. “I’m going to head up to the higher floors; Maud says she saw Rainbow heading up there a couple of times.”

“I’ll head on up when I’m done then,” Octavia assured her before striding off, a little faster than was necessary.

Once again Pinkie was left standing alone before making her own way down the tower at a much more relaxed pace.

Yes, no need to rush it. Take your time, savour it…

Pinkie stopped dead in her tracks, shaking her head to rid herself of the alien thought. She quickened her pace a little as she continued walking, trying not to let her thoughts stray again. Reaching the bottom of the tower she hurried towards the central chamber, walking out onto the landing she craned her neck, staring up at the highest points. Wasting no time, she began ascending the stairs, taking it two steps at a time, only slowing when she had put the armoury and the infirmary behind her and was steadily approaching the throne room.

Glancing in through the wide open doors she detected no evidence of Rarity’s presence, she was presumably already further up. Ducking back, she trotted up the next flight, arriving at the open door to the alchemy lab where she immediately picked out Rarity’s stark white coat in the dark room as if she were emitting a beacon. As Pinkie began walking down the aisle towards Rarity, her friends ears perked up and she glanced her way.

“Ah Pinkie, excellent timing,” Rarity greeted.

Her horn had ceased glowing when she looked up, but now it was alight once more as her saddlebags opened themselves up and something levitated out.

“I discovered this in the throne room,” Rarity explained, hovering it over to Pinkie. “And I think you’ll agree it’s quite interesting.”

Pinkie blinked as Rarity’s sapphire aura faded and a cyan feather landed in her outstretched hooves.

“One of Rainbow’s?” Pinkie queried, looking from the feather to Rarity.

“It must be,” Rarity answered. “I found it caught on the broken stained glass window.”

“The one Applejack was pushed out of,” Pinkie whispered before raising her voice. “It could have been there from when Rainbow flew off after discovering Applejack’s body.”

“Possible, but surely you would have noticed it then,” Rarity argued.

“I’d like to think I would, but we shouldn’t rule out the possibility,” Pinkie countered, offering the feather back to Rarity.

Rarity returned the feather to her bags before reigniting her horn and lowering it to the floor.

“Now, if it weren’t for Fluttershy walking up and down all these aisles this room would be easy,” Rarity reported.

Indeed each aisle just appeared to be very solid lines of red running up and down each of them, but then there was very limited space for anypony to walk around here.

“So you can’t tell if Rainbow came here?” Pinkie asked, slightly disappointed.

“No, this spell has a lot of potential it’s not meeting purely because I haven’t developed it enough,” Rarity admitted, letting the light in her horn die down.

“Well there’s still the last floor,” Pinkie reminded her. “I don’t suppose you’ve been up there yet?”

“No, shall we head up now?” Rarity asked, indicating towards the exit with her head.

“You go on ahead,” Pinkie suggested. “I’m going to give this place the once over, just to be sure.”

Rarity nodded, and after edging past Pinkie, departed from the lab. Once alone, Pinkie began creeping down each aisle, scanning the counter tops as closely as she could. Nothing jumped out at her however, at least nothing more than usual with such curious plant specimens filling so much of the room. Pinkie didn’t even realise she was on a familiar track until she saw the book cover, ‘Advanced Scientific Methodology’.

Looking about, she realised she was back in the same spot she had been in just a few hours ago, except much had changed. The pot had been taken off the heat, the burner now out, and had apparently been drained, not counting the dregs clinging to the bottom. A sieve was balanced on top of it, some dark mush gathered in it. The book too seemed to have been shifted from its original position, revealing a slip of paper with the characters 'PH2' scribbled on it sitting just underneath the book. Pinkie wasn’t sure why this little set up bothered her so much, but without thinking she found herself scraping the mush into an empty jar, screwing on the lid before popping it into her bag.

Next she turned to the book, however her bags were now packed to bursting point, and try as she might she couldn’t squeeze it in. Something would have to go, but Pinkie wasn’t willing to let any of it out of her sight. Making a snap decision, she stuck the slip of paper inside the front cover of the book and balanced it on her back, although still in the dark as to what purpose these would serve her, she departed from the lab in time to see Octavia climbing the stairs towards her.

“Were you correct?” Pinkie asked, receiving a nod in reply.

“Some slight scuffs and shallow cuts on her right hoof,” Octavia explained. “Nothing serious, like I said, probably just done out of frustration.”

“Alright then,” Pinkie replied, nodding in acknowledgement. “Rarity’s already upstairs, if you could go help her out I’ll catch up in a minute.”

Octavia didn’t question Pinkie’s request, she did briefly glance at the book she was carrying but immediately set off up the stairs while Pinkie trotted downwards. One quick trip to her bedroom and the shaking out of her saddlebags found all its contents spread out across her bed. Surveying it all, Pinkie tried to decide what was essential. She packed the key as it was small enough that it didn’t take up any significant space, as well as the jar and the book she had taken from the lab.

She wasn’t willing to part with the knife or the gun, but she reasoned that it wouldn’t be too risky hiding Twilight’s documents and Trixie’s assessment under her bed. Satisfied that they were sufficiently hidden, she turned her attention to her final item which was the portrait of Twilight’s family. Without any real use for it she set it up on her bedside cabinet next to her own portrait, when this was all over she could return it to Twilight parents.

Assuming I even make it out of this in one piece…

Her bags once again packed and strapped to her back, Pinkie exited her room, wishing not for the first time that she could lock it from the outside. With no other options however, she left her bedroom door behind and trotted off to catch up with the others upstairs.

Day 13, 16:16

“So this floor was a bust,” Rarity concluded, closing the door to Celestia’s quarters behind them as they re-entered the foyer. “I can’t imagine why Rainbow Dash would ever come up here at all. Indeed, the only evidence we’ve found that she was ever in any of these rooms was a feather that might have been left from a different day altogether.”

Pinkie gave Luna’s door an experimental tug, confirming it was still locked before turning around and leaning against it.

“It’s always possible she was just walking up the stairs to clear her head,” Pinkie pointed out, faintly aware of how cold the door was as she pressed her back against it. “Maybe looking for a high point to fly around.”

“She would have done that outside I’d think,” Rarity countered.

Pinkie just shrugged.

“Whatever reason she was up here when Maud saw her doesn’t tell us who killed her or how,” Pinkie continued.

Rarity bit her lip, glancing down at her hooves. Pinkie waited a moment for her to say what she was thinking.

“Is it possible…” Rarity began tentatively. “That Maud lied about seeing Rainbow? Just to distract us.”

Pinkie breathed in deeply as she stared down her friend.

“You’re accusing my sister of killing one of my best friends,” Pinkie said at last, her voice utterly humourless.

“I didn’t say that!” Rarity stated quickly, already regretting her choice of words.

“But it’s what you were implying!” Pinkie bit back, standing up from the freezing door.

“Relax Pinkie,” Octavia interrupted.

Pinkie had almost forgotten she was there as she had been oddly silent for a while.

“To each of us there are only four suspects,” Octavia reminded her. “We can’t ignore one possibility simply because of our relationships, otherwise we’d have no suspects.”

“Coming from you,” Rarity muttered.

If she had intended for Octavia not to hear that, she was disappointed. Octavia rounded on Rarity, her eyes cold.

“And what does that mean?!” she demanded. “Just because I’m not part of your close knit group of friends, I’m the outcast?”

“I didn’t mean that, I’m sorry,” Rarity replied in a tired voice. “I wouldn’t dream of discriminating, especially after how invaluable you’ve been when it comes to looking at an orrery for a week.”

The sarcasm was plain as day, and Pinkie found her own anger towards Rarity draining away as she mentally prepared herself for the explosion to come. To her surprise, it never came. Octavia, who looked for a split second like a volcano about to erupt, quickly regained her calm exterior and strutted away. When she reached the archway leading to the landing, she turned back to them.

“This game won’t last much longer,” she stated in a neutral voice. “I just hope that when it does end, you’ll appreciate the things I’ve done… the things that were given.”

While Octavia appeared to be looking at the pair of them, Pinkie couldn’t help but feel her eyes were piercing into her own, penetrating to her very soul, the same look she thought she had been given when she saw Octavia at the Gala. Pinkie was still trying to comprehend the sudden feeling of nostalgia that she didn’t even notice Octavia turn and leave. Once her mind cleared, Pinkie turned and stared at Rarity.

“Don’t give me that look,” Rarity exclaimed, although her voice wavered slightly. “Let’s thing about this logically, she’s the only one of us who would ever kill Rainbow Dash.”

Pinkie kept staring.

“And think about what she just said,” Rarity insisted, sounding almost desperate now. “That statement sounded an awful lot like the Mastermind, you must admit.”

Pinkie kept staring, Rarity sighed.

“I didn’t mean it,” she muttered in a dull tone. “I just needed someone… anyone to blame. If it isn’t her, I’ll apologise. Celestia knows I already regret saying such a thing… What was I thinking?!”

Pinkie pulled Rarity into a weak hug.

“You should go sit down for a bit,” Pinkie told her. “Try to clear your head before the trial.”

Rather than argue, Rarity just gave a meagre nod, slipping out of Pinkie’s embrace and shuffling away. Pinkie was once again left on her own, a scenario she found herself in rather a lot lately, one she would never have tolerated during her old life in Ponyville. Pinkie shook her head, dragging herself back to the present. She needed to figure out who had killed Rainbow Dash, but she was out of ideas as to where to investigate, she wasn’t even sure how she died.

Pacing up and down the foyer, Pinkie scanned her computer map, searching for somewhere she hadn’t looked yet, somewhere obvious. The answer hit her like a brick, literally making her groan in frustration for having forgotten to check there to begin with.

Soarin’s room.

Day 13, 16:31

Soarin’s bedroom was dark, the curtains drawn here too, although the lack of a portrait on the bedside cabinet didn’t help either, it made the room feel much emptier somehow. Approaching the bed Pinkie found them still crumpled, stained in dry blood. Clearly the Mastermind didn’t have the courtesy to clean up after abducting him. Pinkie scowled, if Soarin’s body hadn’t been taken Rainbow might have been able to keep it together, and if Rainbow had kept it together rather than disrupting what little peace they had, she wouldn’t have been killed.

Not sure what secrets this room could possibly hold, Pinkie just set about searching it as she would search any other room. Opening drawers before taking them straight out to check the undersides, checking under the mattress, bed covers and pillow, but nothing yielded any results. Pinkie flopped down onto the bed, paying no heed to the effect the blood stains may have on her dress. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt certain that something should be in this room.

If I was to hide something, where would I put it?

It didn’t take long for the irony to set in as the answer became obvious. Pinkie resisted another groan as she slid off the bed, sinking to her stomach and sticking her outstretched leg under the bed. Her hoof connected with something, something that shifted slightly as she knocked against it. After a little scrabbling she managed to get the lightest of holds on it, sliding it awkwardly out from under the bed.

She was a little surprised when a modern textbook emerged before her. Pinkie’s eyes widened with recognition as she read the title, just as the Mastermind’s voice began booming around her.

“Your time for investigation is up,” they announced. “Please report to the courtyard so the trial can begin.”

Natural Remedies and Medicinal Plants.

Author's Note

Alright, here we are, a little later than usual but since we're so close to the end I might as well take a little more time between updates. As such the next update will either be on Wednesday or Thursday.
By now you all know the drill, comment or PM your theories, if you're correct you'll get a shout out in the author notes of the next part. Good luck and have fun, I hope you're all still enjoying the story.

C5: Burden Of Proof

Day 13, 16:50

Pinkie wasn’t the least bit surprised to find Octavia and Rarity standing as far away from one another as possible when she entered the entrance hall, the latter still looking deeply regretful while Octavia just stood looking sullenly in the opposite direction. As Pinkie trotted down the staircase, Maud and Fluttershy entered from the side door. Seeing that they had all arrived, Octavia led the way out to the courtyard without a word.

“Are you all ready?” Pinkie asked the remaining three.

Fluttershy nodded weakly, Rarity muttered something in response that Pinkie couldn’t make out, and Maud just remained silent.

“Alright then,” Pinkie continued, a little agitated.

Following Octavia through the gates, with the others a few feet behind, Pinkie entered the courtyard. As she took her position in the far circle, she couldn’t help but notice how there were significantly more portraits of ponies present than actual living ones. Each face drained of colour, with a single crimson X scored through them, as if they needed even more reminder that they were no longer alive.

“So, do you know who did it?” Maud asked in a whisper when she took her place to the right of Pinkie.

“Not who,” Pinkie admitted, “but I’m starting to get a good idea as to how.”

Maud gave a small nod in response, turning her attention to the centre pool. As the runes beneath Pinkie flashed and the railing ascended around her, she opened her saddlebags and placed the two books and jar onto the bench before her, making sure to separate the scrap of paper from the cover of the first book. Glancing up she noticed Rarity remove the blue feather as well as Octavia glancing into her own saddlebags without actually removing anything.

“Well aren’t you all a barrel of laughs today?” the Mastermind began, receiving only silence in response. “Really? No smart ass remarks? You disappoint me, I’m almost glad this whole ordeal will be coming to an end soon.”

“Any reason you’re so confident of that?” Octavia asked casually. “Besides the fact that by the end of this there will only be four of us left.”

“Let’s just say I have a good feeling about the whole thing,” the Mastermind replied in typical enigmatic fashion. “Yes, I think these next couple of days will be our last together… for most of us that is.”

“Can we skip this part?” Pinkie requested. “I’d like to get a move on.”

“Of course, I wouldn’t want to deny you the thing that makes you so happy Pinkie Pie,” the Mastermind agreed in a slightly amused tone. “Now, I call this trial to order.”

Trial 5: Rainbow Dash

“It’s hard to believe that after everything we’ve been through together,” Rarity began forlornly, looking between the portraits of Rainbow Dash and Applejack. “That half of us are gone.”

Pinkie nodded, she knew Rarity was referring to the Elements of Harmony.

“I never thought we’d fall apart like this,” Rarity finished, staring down.

“We should get started,” Maud suggested after a moment of silence. “So Pinkie, Octavia and I discovered the body around… three hours ago.”

“We noticed rigor mortis hadn’t set in yet,” Octavia picked up, “so she must have died shortly before that.”

“We also know that she had locked herself in her room until about two yesterday,” Pinkie added.

“What has that got to do with this?” Fluttershy asked nervously. “Rainbow died today.”

“Yes, but the actual cause of death was…” Pinkie replied, searching for the right word, “unclear.”

Pinkie cast a quick glance over her shoulder at Rainbow’s body which was still where they had left it. When would the Mastermind try to spirit her away?

“We noticed that Rainbow had no external damage,” Octavia reported. “With the small exception of some shallow cuts on one of her hooves which we linked to her punching her bedroom window, presumably in an act of rage.”

“While there was no wounding,” Pinkie continued, “she did display a number of symptoms indicating some kind of internal disturbance. Excessive sweating, vomiting, dry mouth, dilated pupils, when we first found her she appeared to be clutching her stomach in pain.”

“So, what?” Fluttershy replied, sounding a little confused. “The killer poisoned her here?”

“Actually we don’t believe the killer was even present at the time of the death,” Pinkie explained before looking over to Rarity.

“I used my spell to check the area for disturbances,” Rarity picked up. “It looked like Rainbow was alone when she was here. She walked over to where Pinkie is currently standing from between those two statues…”

Rarity gestured to the statues of Luna and Celestia.

“Then she seemed to move around a lot in the one spot before she…” Rarity finished, trailing off awkwardly.

“That’s why it matters where she was yesterday and this morning,” Pinkie concluded, looking specifically at Fluttershy. “Whatever method the killer used, could potentially have been carried out during that time.”

“Okay, so how was she killed then?” Fluttershy asked. “Some kind of poison?”

“Quite possibly,” Octavia responded. “I would assume from the way she was clutching her stomach that it was ingested.”

“Well I can assure you she hadn’t eaten any of the food I offered her,” Rarity cut in quickly. “She was adamant in her refusal, although she might have accepted food from someone else…”

There was a quick succession of denials from around the courtroom.

“So where would this poison have come from anyway?” Maud asked. “The infirmary?”

“Oh I hope not,” Fluttershy whined. “It’s been so difficult to keep stock since we tidied it up, but I was sure nothing had gone missing.”

While the others began discussing this avenue of thought, Pinkie turned her attention to the books before her.

“Would anyone know what you call it when you heat a mixture up and sieve it?” Pinkie asked, glancing down the contents page of the first textbook she found.

“Um, filtration isn’t it?” Maud replied unsure.

“Alright carry on,” Pinkie instructed, finding the relevant page number and skipping to it.

The others carried on talking, although occasionally they would glance at Pinkie who had her nose in the textbook.

Filtration is a technique used to separate solids and liquids in a solution, commonly used to extract specific components from a particular subject.

What followed was several pages of different methods depending on what component exactly you were trying to separate. Pinkie scrolled through each of them, eliminating any that didn’t line up with the setup she had seen in the lab. One method finally caught her eye, a method of extracting alkaloids from plants.

Dry out plant sample and mash up…

That would explain the use of the pestle and mortar.

Place the plant material in acidified water…

Pinkie glanced at the scrap of paper with the letters ‘PH2’ scribbled on them.

Heat to 50 degrees Celsius for 24 hours…

The pot over the Bunsen burner, it would also explain why it had just been left to stew.

Upon filtering the solution, the alkaloids will be in the filtrate.

Keeping her hoof in the page she was reading, Pinkie flicked back a few pages, searching for the definition she was sure she had seen.

Filtrate: the fluid resulting from the process of filtration.

Pinkie flipped back to the other page and leaned back.

So somepony was trying to separate the ‘alkaloids’ from a plant in the lab, and this mush I found was the solids leftover. The dark colour would correlate with Rainbow’s vomit, perhaps this was the poison she was made to ingest.

“Does anyone know what alkaloids are?” Pinkie asked aloud, interrupting the others from their ongoing debate about the infirmary.

“Alkaloids?” Fluttershy repeated. “They’re a toxic component found in plants… and some other stuff. Why?”

“Because I don’t think the poison came from the infirmary at all,” Pinkie explained, receiving a few raised eyebrows in response. “You see I came across an experiment setup in the lab earlier, and when I came back to check on it during the investigation, I found that it had been… altered. The book I found next to it explains it was a process of separating alkaloids from plant material. If what Fluttershy says is true, then the poison must have come from the lab, not the infirmary.”

“Interesting,” Octavia replied. “I hadn’t considered that, I wouldn’t know a thing about plants.”

“Fluttershy, weren’t you working in the lab?” Maud asked curiously. “Did you see this experiment that Pinkie is talking about?”

“What?” Fluttershy said, suddenly panicking. “No, I… wait, did it have a burner?”

Pinkie nodded.

“Oh goodness!” Fluttershy exclaimed. “I did see that, but I didn’t know what it was for so I just ignored it.”

“So what plant was used?” Rarity asked. “There’s probably thousands in that lab, and I’d bet most of them are dangerous in some shape or form.”

“Well I did find another book,” Pinkie explained. “It’s the same book Derpy learnt about curare from, and I found it hidden under Soarin’s bed.”

“What on earth was it doing there?” Maud asked, bewildered.

“The killer must have tried to stash it away,” Pinkie proposed. “Although it was a rather odd choice of hiding place.”

“I thought that book was still in the library,” Fluttershy pointed out.

“That’s right,” Rarity agreed, “but all the books were put away, so it would be easy for one to go missing. Still, what plant was it?”

Pinkie opened the book, her eyes scrolling down the contents, but this time she was looking for something in particular.

“Actually Rarity,” Pinkie said when her eyes fell on it. “I think it might have been the very plant you warned me about this morning.”

“I warned you about?” Rarity repeated, sounding confused. “You mean… Deadly Nightshade?”

“Exactly,” Pinkie confirmed, turning to the right page and holding it up for the others to see. "We already know that plant is in the lab, but what’s more, this book says the lethal effects are caused by an alkaloid called Tropane.”

“Well that seems inarguable,” Octavia stated.

“So the killer found that book in the library,” Maud summarised, “learnt about the effects of nightshade. Tidied the other books away to cover up the fact that they took that book with them. Then using the other book as a guide, prepared the poison in the lab, which they somehow managed to slip Rainbow Dash, causing her to die not long after.”

“Pretty much,” Pinkie agreed.

“What if the killer learnt about the effect of nightshade from what Rarity told you this morning?” Maud suggested.

“No, the solution takes a full day to prepare,” Pinkie explained. “The killer would needed to have started sometime yesterday.”

“So we now know where the killer got the poison,” Rarity interrupted, “but that still doesn’t explain how they managed to get Rainbow to ingest it, assuming that really is how it was delivered.”

“Well if the poison wasn’t finished until sometime after I left the lab this morning,” Pinkie began. “Then we have to wonder where Rainbow was after that time.”

“We already know she was seen around the upper floors of the central chamber by Maud on a couple occasions,” Octavia pointed out.

“And I did find her feather in the throne room,” Rarity added, holding said feather up.

“Maybe we should look into where everypony else was at the time,” Maud proposed. “Octavia and I were busy in the office until shortly before we discovered the body, we never saw Rainbow Dash on that floor and we didn’t see her when we went to the library together.”

“That’s where we were coming from when we ran into you,” Octavia added, nodding to Pinkie.

“Well I was in the infirmary because Fluttershy wanted to make sure I hadn’t hurt myself after Rarity knocked me over,” Pinkie explained. “Although… Fluttershy, where did you disappear to? I was waiting for ages for you to come back.”

Fluttershy froze for a split second; Pinkie could almost see her mind working at a hundred miles a minute behind her eyes.

“I needed to go to my room,” she replied quickly. “I’ve been keeping some of the painkillers there in case there was another incident in the infirmary.”

“I take it you didn’t find any?” Pinkie asked suspiciously. “Because you didn’t come back with any.”

“Um, no, I must have misplaced them,” Fluttershy stated meekly.

“Alright,” Pinkie said slowly before looking to Rarity. “What about you Rarity? Where did you go after I came down to the infirmary?”

“Well, when it seemed Fluttershy no longer needed my help…” Rarity began awkwardly, “I went to go find Rainbow Dash.”

Pinkie was taken aback.

“Did you find her?” she asked almost sternly.

“Of course not,” Rarity replied exasperatedly. “If I had I would have reported it earlier. No, I searched the whole ground floor and library wing before I heard the announcement and came running.”

Pinkie took a breath; she didn’t like how this was unfolding. Maud and Octavia were both out of the question as they had each other as alibis. Pinkie knew that she herself wasn’t responsible, that only left Rarity and Fluttershy. Pinkie didn’t want to believe that either of them had done this, but their explanations for where they had been were so flimsy, especially Fluttershy who had been acting odd for a while now.

Perhaps there was something Pinkie was missing, something she was overlooking. Her eyes scanned over her evidence, quickly picking out one piece. The scrap of paper with the PH number for the filtration experiment jotted down.

“Does anyone know…” Pinkie began, “what has a PH number of 2?”

The others all fell silent, contemplating the question. Pinkie was sure none of them would have an answer when at last Maud spoke up.

“Lemon juice,” she stated.

Pinkie nodded, as another piece suddenly fell into place.

“I know where the killer got the acid for preparing the poison,” Pinkie declared.

The others all stared at her in anticipation.

“Yesterday,” Pinkie began, “we ate salad for lunch. In that salad we had lemons…”

There was a brief moment of silence as the others mentally pieced it together.

“So the killer got the acid from the lemons,” Maud finished.

Pinkie nodded.

“Which means the killer had to be…

“Fluttershy!”

Fluttershy squealed and ducked down beneath her railing.

“It wasn’t!” Fluttershy exclaimed. “I wouldn’t! I couldn’t! She was my best friend!”

“But you did say yourself that at least she was with Soarin again,” Pinkie reminded her. “You’d also read this book on plants yourself, so even if you didn’t already know about nightshade, you knew where to find out about it. You were also working in the lab today, so it would have been easy to just ignore your experiment. You were also the one to take a plate of food to Rainbow’s room yesterday when she wouldn’t come out, you could have taken the lemons then without anyone noticing. And finally, if anyone could have convinced Rainbow to eat something it would be you, her childhood friend.”

“No!” Fluttershy wailed, tears streaming down her face. “Please Pinkie, you have to believe me!”

“Your intention might have been good,” Pinkie admitted. “Wishing to reunite Rainbow with her lost love, but the simple fact is, you killed…”

“No she didn’t.”

Pinkie froze midsentence, turning to face Octavia who stood in a thoughtful pose.

“Excuse me?” Pinkie asked, astounded.

“Fluttershy didn’t kill Rainbow Dash,” Octavia repeated.

“And how do you know that?!” Pinkie demanded.

“Because I know who did kill her,” Octavia replied. “And you do too; you just haven’t considered the possibility.”

“Haven’t considered the possibility of what?!” Pinkie demanded. “You know it wasn’t easy for me to just accuse my best friend of murder, and now you’re telling me someone else is responsible, and that I secretly know who it is!”

Octavia simply nodded.

“Well I know it wasn’t any of the rest of you,” Pinkie continued, “so unless you’re suggesting Rainbow Dash killed herself…”

Pinkie stopped, realisation hitting her in the face like a sledgehammer.

“She killed herself,” Pinkie whispered.

Octavia nodded.

“You’ve solved so many murders,” Octavia began, “naturally it was all you could think of when it came to Rainbow’s death. If you’d stopped for just one moment and considered that, just maybe, this one was different from what you were used to, you would have seen it for yourself.”

Pinkie just stared at her. It all made so much sense, why Rainbow was seen in the library and in the upper floors of the central chamber. Why she was alone in the courtyard at the time of her death, why she went to the place Soarin had died, why the book she had taken was in Soarin’s room. And of course the only one who could have made her ingest that poison… was herself.

“How did you know?” Pinkie asked, her voice weak.

Octavia reached into her saddlebags and pulled out a sheet of paper.

“I had no right to keep this from you all,” Octavia began holding the sheet out towards Rarity who levitated it over towards Pinkie. “She was your friend after all. But… I guess I was still testing you Pinkie. Always eager to see what you would do.”

Pinkie reached out and took hold of the paper when it reached her. Looking down she saw it was a letter…

Dear Fluttershy, Rarity and Pinkie Pie.

By the time you’re reading this, you’ll probably have already found my body. I wasn’t murdered, which I guess makes me a first in this damn game. Instead I took the easy way out. You might hate me for it, you might think I’m a coward… and yeah, you’d be right. I thought I could push through, I thought I could go on without him, but I just can’t. I never really understood the whole romance thing, I never got what you always saw in it Rarity. The only thing I cared about was being the best… until I met him. Soarin changed my life. Suddenly I didn’t care about winning or being a Wonderbolt, if it meant being with him, I would have given it all up in an instant. And that’s what I’m doing; I’m giving it all up so I can be with him again. But I don’t want you girls feeling sad about it.

Rarity, I know we never saw eye to eye on a lot of things, but then we were practically opposites. But know that I mean it when I say I wish you all the happiness and success in the world. You’re gonna make it big in Equestria, I just know it. Spike’s one lucky guy, I know you’ll be happy together. Tell Scootaloo I love her, tell her she was the best sister I could have had, tell her that if anypony is to fill my title as most awesome pony in Equestria, it’s her.

Pinkie Pie, I didn’t mean what I said, I don’t blame you. Soarin was one of the bravest ponies I knew, and I couldn’t have expected any less of him. What happened wasn’t your fault. Everything you went through was hard on you, not a day goes by I don’t wish I could have been there for you, could have protected you. We were once like two peas in a pod, but that feels like a long time ago. I know you’ve been through so much, I know that you’re still hurting, but never let go of that part of yourself, never stop smiling.

Fluttershy, I’m sorry for what I said. You are my closest friend; you’ve been by my side as far back as I remember. You’ve been with me through all the best times and all the worst times. I never regretted leaving it all behind to go to Ponyville with you, not for one second. You’ve given me and everyone so much; you deserve to be happy…

You girls mean everything to me; I know that together you’ll get through this. I’m going now; I’ll pay a visit to the throne room, say a few words to Applejack. Hopefully I’ll see her and Twilight on the other side.

Taking off for the last time, Rainbow Dash.

Pinkie set the letter down, faintly aware that at some point she had started crying.

“Pinkie,” Fluttershy began with a sniff. “What does it say?”

Pinkie held the letter up and Rarity hovered it over to Fluttershy. There was a long period of silence as Fluttershy read over the letter, breaking down into more quiet sobs before eventually relinquishing it to Rarity who reacted similarly to the two before her. Pinkie wondered how damp the letter would be by the end of it.

“I’m sorry,” Octavia repeated.

Pinkie didn’t have it in her to reply. She didn’t even know what she would say, or even how she felt. It certainly annoyed her that Octavia had knowingly lied and allowed Pinkie to accuse her dearest friend of murder. A part of her felt ashamed that she would ever jump to that conclusion without even considering the truth of the matter.

Rarity finally set the letter down, which appeared to be the signal for the Mastermind to kill the mood.

“How sad,” they announced, in a mocking tone. “Are you all ready to place your votes?”

“How do you expect us to vote for someone who’s…” Maud began.

“Exactly the same as you would vote for someone who was alive,” the Mastermind cut in, sounding impatient.

The dials lit up, Pinkie weakly turned it towards the spot which was now occupied by Rainbow’s portrait. The others followed suit, even Fluttershy so that soon the pool was filled with ghostly images of Rainbow’s face. Pinkie didn’t pay any attention as the clock hands appeared and did their little dance around the courtroom, only looking up when they settled pointing at Rainbow’s empty slot.

“Yes, the element of Loyalty had abandoned her friends of her own fruition,” the Mastermind said gleefully, earning a number of glares. “However, this leaves us with a bit of a pickle. Normally somepony goes to the block right about now, but with no murderer we’re kind of at a loss. I guess I could always…”

Pinkie couldn’t have been prepared for it. The explosion knocked her clean off her hooves, smashing into the invisible barrier around her. She slid down and shielded her head desperately from the raining debris. As the cloud of dust finally began to dissipate, she glanced up, seeing the others had taken similar actions in protecting themselves.

What the hay did the Mastermind do?!

Pinkie stumbled up, dusting down her dress before turning around to see what had exploded. She only had to turn slightly to the right before she understood, her jaw falling open.

The pedestal was all that remained of Cadance’s statue; the rest of her body reduced to dust and lumps of broken stone spread out across the courtyard.

“Equestria doesn’t really need a princess of love anyway, she won’t be missed,” the Mastermind said nonchalantly.

With that, the runes beneath them faded and the railings descended into the floor, leaving them all standing, staring at the crumbled remains of their Princess.

For a long time, nobody did anything. Nobody moved, nobody spoke. It was only when Pinkie was able to tear her eyes away from where Cadance used to be to the body of Rainbow Dash still lying a few yards behind her, that she moved.

Approaching the body, Pinkie leaned down and began trying to hoist her up. She didn’t have the strength to do it on her own however, and quickly collapsed. The she felt someone else take some of the weight. Looking up she saw Rarity and Fluttershy standing over her. Silently they all worked together to raise their friend up and carry her back towards the Castle.

Author's Note

An alternate title for this chapter was 'When Life Gives You Lemons'.
So who was right? Who figured out that it wasn't murder at all? Well our first winner is a six sided die... I mean, ClickClackTheBrony, however we also have Wolfe and WindSilver, Ultimate Eden Knight and Basic13, all four of which guessed it was a suicide, but made the slight mistake of assuming it was assisted by Fluttershy, only Davaba19 guessed suicide on its own. So we have quite a lot of winners today, maybe I'm getting predicatble.
Oh well, with only one chapter left I hope you're all enjoying it, you can expect to see the beginning of the end posted within a couple days.

C6: Out Of Time

Day 14, 06:00

Pinkie glanced down at her hoof computer, confirming that it was indeed six and the voices hadn’t just stopped briefly to lull her into a false sense of security. Satisfied the latest nightmares were gone; Pinkie gave a loud yawn as she stood up from her desk chair and stretched out her legs and back. It had been a very uncomfortable night trying to sleep on the chair as opposed to her once comfortable bed. When she first lay down on it however, she was struck with a very vivid memory of maggots and quickly leapt off it again.

She hadn’t even thought about sleeping the night before, still too caught up in her revelations regarding Trixie. Her distinct lack of sleep however was finally catching up to her, and she found her whole body wavering dangerously as she stumbled towards the door. Turning the handle, she slouched out into the hallway, encountering no one as she navigated her way out of the tower and into the entrance hall.

The other four were most likely still asleep, or trying to get some sleep, Pinkie only hoped they would have better luck than she did. Walking out of the entrance hall, Pinkie made her way towards the kitchen, perhaps a snack would help keep her on her hooves. She was however, sorely disappointed to find that the cupboards were almost stripped bare, even the chest freezer was cleared out.

Pinkie didn’t have the heart to take anything for herself, what little food was left needed to be shared between them. Leaving the kitchen with great reluctance, Pinkie instead headed for the study where she immediately collapsed in her favoured armchair. She simply sat there for a moment, her head lulling, her eyelids drooping. Rousing herself she removed her saddlebags and set them on the table before her, opening them up and searching through the contents.

She had certainly been pleased to return to her room last night and find the documents she had hidden beneath her bed undisturbed, and with no further need of the books she had found, she was glad to return the documents to her pack. Bringing out Twilight’s documents now, Pinkie laid them across the table. She needed to have a proper read through them and now seemed like the perfect time while waiting for the others, particularly as she was eager to hear if Octavia had made any deductions regarding the missing machine.

Pinkie was not positive at this stage that Trixie was the Mastermind, her apparent presence at the gala aside, there was still her cutie mark etched into the throne and the vault door opening when her name was spoken. And that was saying nothing regarding the contents of her psychological analysis, if she was delving into dark magic then it was probable she’d had some interaction with the horn.

Still, even if Trixie was the Mastermind, what was Pinkie supposed to do with that knowledge. Presumably she would need to confront her, but they had covered almost every inch of the castle and found no signs of where she or anyone could be hiding out.

No, that’s not true at all…

Pinkie grimaced; there were indeed many locations they hadn’t yet searched. The labyrinth, the dungeon, Luna’s room, who knew how many others. There had to be more answers somewhere, if not in Twilight’s writings then where? The answer was obvious, but as of yet it was just another dead end.

The book we found in the chapel…

Pinkie had almost forgotten about it since they had all sat together in this very room, figuring out the mystery behind its untranslatable writings. Looking over to the fireplace, Pinkie saw the book perched on the mantle, her eyes drawn to the latch bearing the glyph that remained the only thing between Pinkie and the tome’s secrets. Pinkie looked back to the documents in front of her, if the key to unlocking it wasn’t hidden somewhere in Twilight’s writings, Pinkie didn’t know what she’d do.

Day 14, 07:46

Pinkie peered up groggily as she felt herself being shaken awake, looking up at the concerned eyes of her sister.

“What time is it?” Pinkie asked croakily.

“Almost eight,” Maud replied. “Did you not sleep last night?”

“Not much, no,” Pinkie admitted, sitting up and looking about herself.

A small pile of documents sat to one side, while many more still lay scattered about waiting for Pinkie to read through them.

“Are any of the others up yet?” Pinkie asked returning her gaze to her sister.

“Not that I’ve seen,” Maud began.

As if in response to the very statement, the door to the study swung open and Rarity entered. Despite showering regularly and wearing a clean dress, the stress coupled with lack of sleep managed to make Pinkie look like a homeless pony. The others weren’t faring much better, all baring the same gaunt visage, and Rarity despite her best attempts to resist, somehow ended up looking the worst of all.

“I, um…” Rarity began uncomfortably. “I checked on Rainbow, she’s still there.”

Pinkie had to think for a second as to what Rarity was talking about before mentally slapping herself. After the trial they had carried Rainbow back to her room, in a vain attempt to defy the Mastermind. Pinkie hadn’t even thought to go check in on her this morning.

“It’s okay,” Rarity said suddenly, as if reading Pinkie’s mind. “You have other things to do, she would understand.”

“What are these anyway?” Maud asked, picking up one of the documents.

Pinkie wouldn’t have been able to snatch it away in time even if she’d wanted to, but that would have just appeared more suspicious than anything else, so instead she decided to tell the truth.

“I found them when I was in town yesterday,” Pinkie explained. “In the same place I found the picture of Twilight’s family. They are the… plans for the first game.”

“I see that,” Maud whispered, squinting her eyes. “Do you think it’ll help?”

“Maybe,” Pinkie replied uncertainly. “There were other documents regarding the orrery and the hourglass, Octavia has them. Right now I’m just hoping these ones will shine some light on how to open that book.”

Maud followed Pinkie’s hoof to the book upon the mantle.

“Didn’t you say it was locked with a glyph?” Maud asked Rarity.

“I said that’s what I thought it was,” Rarity corrected. “And I also said I don’t know enough about magic to be sure.”

“Well what is a glyph?” Maud asked. “It looks like just another rune to me.”

“They are very similar,” Rarity admitted. “While runes are basically letters, Glyphs are symbols comprised of runes… or bits of runes, it’s all very complex.”

“Chrysalis managed to break the runes outside,” Maud recalled. “Could that be done here?”

“I doubt it,” Pinkie said, indicating the documents before her. “Twilight went to great lengths to make sure no aspect of the game could be sabotaged. I bet the only reason Chrysalis was able to do what she did is because Twilight didn’t account for changeling magic.”

“And am I to take it we can’t just solve this problem the earth pony way?” Maud asked with a faint smirk.

“The earth pony way?” Rarity repeated warily.

“Buck it until the problem is solved,” Pinkie elaborated. “And yeah, while that’s good for farm work, I have a funny feeling it won’t do us much good here.”

“Maybe Octavia will know what to do,” Maud suggested. “She always seems to know what she’s doing.”

Rarity shuffled awkwardly upon hearing Octavia’s name, Pinkie figured she was still feeling guilty over their fight yesterday.

“I’ll bring it up with her,” Pinkie stated, “but she’s probably busy trying to find the…”

Pinkie stopped as the study door opened once again and Fluttershy peeked in.

“Good morning,” she murmured as she stepped in. “I’m not interrupting am I?”

“No, we were just discussing how to open that book,” Pinkie filled in, turning back to the documents before her.

“Leave that for now,” Maud instructed, taking the sheet Pinkie had just picked up and placing it back down on the table. “We should get some food.”

“There’s not much left,” Pinkie said with a frown.

“Then I’ll go look for more,” Maud assured her. “But you won’t do yourself any good if you keel over.”

Pinkie nodded wearily, standing up.

“Also we need to take our pills today,” Rarity added.

Pinkie’s face contorted, thankfully Rarity and Maud weren’t looking, Fluttershy on the other hand…

Day 14, 09:47

Pinkie picked up a shard of stone from the courtyard floor. She looked it over, trying to figuring out which piece of Cadance this was. Pinkie had liked Cadance, true she hadn’t known her well, but despite that Cadance always treated her like they had been friends since birth.

You deserved better than this.

Pinkie set the lump of stone onto the now empty pedestal. She Ran her hoof along the grainy surface, thinking back to the few times they had spent together as well as recalling the stories Twilight had told her of her old foalsitter. A fond smile crept onto Pinkie’s face, faltering slightly when her hoof ran over something slightly different from the rest of the stone block.

Curious, she leaned down and peered at the spot she had touched. Lifting her hoof away she saw a small marking crudely carved into the pedestal. It appeared to be a simple circle with a single horizontal line running through it. Instinctively Pinkie began looking around the rest of the pedestal, but found nothing else resembling the carving. Stepping back she looked it up and down, wondering what the marking signified.

She was just about to walk over to the other statues, see if they had anything similar on them, when she noticed a glint of light lying in the dust at the base of the pedestal. Walking over, Pinkie reached down and picked up the reflective object. It was a very small shard of metal, with what appeared to be a curved blade on one of its edges, although it was very worn down, chipped in some places. It seemed to be some kind of blade, bent and broken off something else by the looks of it.

Shrugging slightly, Pinkie deposited it in her saddlebags in the same compartment as the key so it wouldn’t get lost, before standing up and going to inspect the other statues.

Day 14, 11:02

Where does the light come from?

“Pinkie Pie?”

“Yeah?” Pinkie called over her shoulder from where she stood, gazing up at the rose window in the chapel.

“I found something of interest,” Octavia continued, walking up the aisle and standing beside Pinkie.

“The third machine?” Pinkie asked hopefully.

“Unfortunately not,” Octavia grumbled. “Besides, don’t you think I’d be a little more excited if that had happened?”

“I suppose,” Pinkie admitted turning to face her. “What is it then?”

“This missive Twilight wrote,” Octavia said handing the sheet over to Pinkie.

Pinkie took it from her and skimmed over it, it was the one where she had revealed the existence of a third machine.

“What about it?” Pinkie asked, having read it all before.

“Look closer,” Octavia insisted. “There’s something I think you overlooked.”

Pinkie looked back down, taking it slower this time as she reread it. Now that she was focusing more, she quickly noticed what Octavia had meant, her eyes widening as she read the second last sentence.

Still, just as I delved into the secrets of the Five, I will restore these three machines…

“Secrets of the Five?!” Pinkie read aloud, furious at herself for having overlooked it.

“Perhaps she’s referring to the book,” Octavia suggested.

Pinkie nodded absently, trying to piece together what this revelation meant.

“I’ll leave that copy with you,” Octavia said turning to walk away again. “I’ve already memorised it.”

Pinkie was barely listening to Octavia, completely unaware that she was once again alone in the chapel. Her head was spinning with questions and answers, desperately trying to add two and two together.

The book was titled ‘Five’; Twilight was researching into the Five. Behind the face of a friend… the friend must have been Twilight, and her face…

Pinkie galloped from the room, barely stuffing the paper into her saddlebags as she went. She sped past Fluttershy as she crossed over the entrance hall balcony, she called after her but Pinkie didn’t slow down. She knew now, the way to open the book had been in her hooves for days. Turning into the residence tower she charged into her bedroom, galloping to the bedside table and sweeping the framed photo of Twilight’s family up.

Pinkie gazed at the picture for a few seconds, looking past the cracked pane of glass at the four happy unicorns. Flipping the picture over, Pinkie unlatched the back of the frame and allowed it to swing open. Almost instantly the photograph fell free, gliding to the floor while something shiny dropped like a stone with it. Pinkie crouched down, picking up the photo and the object that had been stashed behind it.

It was a thin, silver medallion, much like a coin, but while one side was blank, the other was engraved with a familiar symbol. Taking a few seconds to place Twilight’s photo back on the cabinet so as not to damage it, Pinkie then turned and ran from the room once more. As she raced back to the study, she thought briefly that she should maybe find Octavia and the others first, it might be better to have them all present when the book was opened.

However Pinkie’s curiosity overcame her wisdom on the matter and she quickly pushed the thought to the back of her mind. She couldn’t waste any more time, she was going to open that book right now. The others would understand why she didn’t wait for them; they knew this was a pressing matter. Pinkie arrived at the study without encountering any of her friends or sister along the way, finding the room deserted as well. She wasn’t bothered however, walking quickly up to the fireplace and lifting the heavy tome from the mantel before setting it on the coffee table.

Pinkie’s eyes flickered between the symbols on the medallion and book strap, they seemed to be almost perfect matches and Pinkie didn’t doubt they were intended for one another. Taking a deep breath, Pinkie reached out with the medallion, bringing it closer to its counterpart. Once they were a few inches apart they began repelling one another, Pinkie struggled to keep pushing the medallion closer, it was like trying to touch two positive magnets. As the book and medallion continued to repel one another however, the glyphs began lighting up, glowing brighter and brighter until…

The strap around the book snapped, both it and the medallion in Pinkie’s hooves crumbling to ash. Pinkie reached out with both hooves, they were trembling slightly with anticipation. Finally she would learn the secrets, finally she would have the answers, and then just maybe… she could win the game. Pinkie a took a few shuddering breaths before she opened the front cover…

She looked down at a blank page.

No worries, some books do that.

Not deterred she flipped to next page, finding it too to be blank. Pinkie stared in disbelief before turning to the next one, and the next one, and so on rapidly picking up speed.

“No, no, no, no…” she muttered frantically as she was greeted with blank page after blank page. “No!”

Pinkie let out a scream of frustration, slamming her hooves down and staring in fury at the completely blank book that now lay opened at roughly half way.

After everything… it was a dead end?

Pinkie sagged, she couldn’t believe it, it had been for nothing. She had no answers and no other avenues to explore, she was completely lost. Backing up slightly, Pinkie collapsed into her favoured armchair, her legs weakening… only to land hard on her rear end.

Confused she turned around to see why her armchair wasn’t directly behind her, only to find that her armchair wasn’t in the room anymore… and that she wasn’t in the study anymore. Pinkie had been so enthralled by the book that she hadn’t paid the slightest attention to her surroundings, so that now she wasn’t entirely sure when she had left the study and arrived…

Where am I?

Pinkie paced around the new room, it was spacious but well furnished with a number of plush armchairs around an opulent coffee table. There were bookshelves lining some of the walls, filled with just as many trinkets and magical artefacts as books. A giant desk dominated most of the room with a chair behind it which closer resembled a throne. She knew this room well; it was Celestia’s private study, the very room she had revealed to Pinkie the truth about Twilight.

Pinkie wasn’t so much confused as to how she came to be in this room now, as why the entire room was an ethereal blue colour, like she had lenses in her eyes, tinting her vision.

“This is…” a voice spoke, causing Pinkie to spin around. “Very interesting.”

Pinkie stared in bewilderment at Princess Celestia who sat in one of the armchairs, reading through a collection of documents. But Pinkie was even more shocked to see the other pony sitting opposite her.

“I want to thank you again for choosing me to study the horn Princess,” Twilight gushed excitedly. “It was such an honour that you would choose me and I think the discoveries I’ve made will really revolutionise our views of the whole world.”

Celestia grimaced from behind the documents so Twilight couldn’t see, but Pinkie saw, Pinkie knew it wasn’t an honour that Celestia had bestowed upon her student but a curse. Still, Pinkie had to wonder what was going on, both Twilight and Celestia had appeared out of nowhere and both of them had the same blue tint as the rest of the room. Was this a dream? Or a memory?

“Well I look forward to reading these in more detail,” Celestia said, putting the documents down and picking up her tea cup instead. “However, could you give me a brief rundown now of your findings?”

“Gladly,” Twilight replied, excited. “In a nutshell, I believe my research has provided definitive proof for the existence of divine beings. Five to be precise, each one embodying some natural aspect of the world and its inhabitants. By default they exist in a… metaphysical form, more as concepts than actual conscious beings. In this form they are most constant, simply existing and exercising a base level of their powers. However, I found out that the spirits can assume direct control of hosts, giving them a more direct influence over what exactly their powers achieve.

“In most cases these are temporary,” Twilight continued, “and only offer limited power for the spirit. But, they can take on a true vessel, where they bind completely with a living form allowing them unlimited control and direction of their abilities. That’s how this fits into Sombra’s horn; it would appear he became the true vessel for one of the five spirits.”

“Well that would certainly explain his powers,” Celestia agreed. “I had never witnessed anything like them until Luna and I fought him. So what happens to the spirit when the host is destroyed as was the case with Sombra?”

“Well, if it was a temporary host,” Twilight began, “then the spirit is just exorcized and returns to its conceptual form, but if it was the true vessel as in the case of Sombra… The spirit must bind completely with the host to achieve this stage, as such, when the host is destroyed; the spirit is destroyed with it.”

“But that can’t be right!” Celestia exclaimed, causing Twilight to flinch. “That doesn’t explain how the horn is still…”

Celestia quickly caught herself on, remembering Twilight was still present and the lie she had told.

“Maybe your writings will explain things in greater detail,” Celestia said hurriedly swiping up the documents only to have them whipped from her grasp by a disembodied eagle claw.

“Really now,” Discord began, materialising fully as he continued to wave the documents out of Celestia’s reach. “Must you ponies always stick your muzzles into things that really aren’t any of your business?”

“Discord?” Twilight said confused. “What do you know about this?”

“Far more than you,” Discord retorted, “and that is how it should stay.”

“Wait…” Twilight began, realisation dawning on her. “You’re one of the spirits! One of the Five, aren’t you?”

“If I say yes will you drop this subject?” Discord asked grumpily.

“No,” Twilight replied simply.

“Alright I’ll tell you everything,” Discord said, taking a seat and helping himself to tea.

“You didn’t need a lot of persuasion,” Twilight muttered.

“It’s Discord Twilight,” Celestia reminded her. “He can never resist telling a story.”

“Hush now Celestia,” Discord said, zipping the white alicorn’s mouth shut. “The only reason I’m telling you anything is because you’ve already figured most of it out yourselves.”

“So everything I said is true?” Twilight asked surprised. “They were only hypothesises so far, I still needed to confirm them.”

“Well now you don’t need to,” Discord assured her. “Which means you can now spend your time doing something useful like searching for the antidote.”

“I’m sure I will want to do that as soon as I know why,” Twilight agreed. “But right now, what can you tell us about the Five?”

“The Five, how quaint,” Discord tittered. “Well pretty much everything you said is true, five spirits embodying natural aspects of the world, the degree to which we exercise our power determined by our physical state.”

“Is that your true vessel?” Twilight asked, looking Discord up and down.

“It is indeed, you like?” Discord asked, a spotlight appearing above him as he assumed a body builder pose. “Many years ago, some of my worshippers had it specially made for me.”

“Couldn’t you have just taken any body as your host?” Twilight asked.

“As a regular, restrained host yes,” Discord agreed. “But for a true vessel, it needs to embody what the spirit represents.”

“So if you represent chaos, what are the others,” Twilight asked, completely forgetting about Celestia who sat patiently fuming with her mouth still zipped shut.

“Well perhaps most importantly there is Gaia and Grim,” Discord listed. “The spirits of life and death respectively. Quite boring individuals, Grim especially hates me.”

“Whatever for?” Twilight asked half sarcastically.

“During my rule over Equestria I made the ever so wise decision that nobody should ever have to die,” Discord explained, apparently not picking up on Twilight’s attitude. “Grim wouldn’t have any of it, but it was one of the rare occasions where he took a host and I decided to take advantage of that.”

“You killed Death?!” Twilight uttered in disbelief.

“No!” Discord exclaimed. “Aren’t you listening? I don’t like killing, I simply imprisoned him. Once sun butt and her sister zapped me with the elements however, he escaped and set about killing everyone again. I admit there was a little bit of an overpopulation crisis…”

“A little bit?!” Celestia bellowed, finally wrenching her mouth open. “Ponies literally couldn’t move there were so many of them!”

“Long story short, it was around that time contraception was invented,” Discord added nonchalantly. “All the spirits have their purpose in this world, mine was to create obstacles for you to grow and overcome.”

“So what about the other two spirits?” Twilight asked. “What do they control?”

“Ah, well first you have Bliss,” Discord continued. “Now I like her, anytime you feel joy, happy, contented, relaxed, lucky or love, that’s Bliss. All positive feelings come courtesy of her."

“And the last one?” Twilight asked, causing Discord to grow slightly darker.

“Well, just as Death is the opposite of Life,” Discord began, his voice slightly cooler. “Bliss has an opposite in the form of negativity. Hate, anger, sadness, loneliness, simply having a bad day, that’s the work of Despair. The other spirits, even myself to a degree, we do what we do because it’s our purpose. It’s all part of keeping the world spinning, but Despair… let’s just say I wasn’t disappointed to hear you blasted him into oblivion.”

“Blasted him into…” Twilight began confused before realising. “Despair is the spirit that was in Sombra.”

Discord nodded solemnly.

“Hang on,” Celestia interrupted. “If Despair was destroyed along with Sombra, how is that we still feel negative emotions?”

“Well it wouldn’t do for one of us to get destroyed and throw the whole world into imbalance,” Discord reasoned. “If a temporary host is destroyed we revert to our default state, but if a true host is destroyed we become even less. We still exist to the very smallest degree, but it takes years, centuries even for us to become what we once were.”

“This is incredible,” Twilight said, scribbling down notes. “There’s so much that I hadn’t learnt yet, and to find out that it’s all true…”

“Hang on!” Discord explained. “I only told you all this so you wouldn’t keep sticking your nose into it. How would you like it if I started picking apart your existence?”

“I think we’ve learned quite enough for one day,” Celestia interrupted, snatching the documents back out of Discord’s grip with her magic. “Thank you again for taking care of that Twilight, and… thank you Discord for your input.”

Discord opened his mouth to retort, but froze when he realised he didn’t have anything, before quickly disappearing a puff of smoke. Twilight then stood up and started walking to the door of the study, stopping briefly to look back at a large clock on the wall that Pinkie hadn’t noticed before. In fact, now that she thought about it, she didn’t remember seeing a clock like that when she had been here herself.

“Is something wrong Twilight?” Celestia asked, glancing up from the documents.

“I was just thinking Princess,” Twilight began. “You know Starswirl’s inventions?”

Celestia looked up to the clock in surprise.

“Yes, the ones supposedly able to manipulate time and space,” Celestia replied. “What about them?”

“Well, I’ve just been thinking…” Twilight continued hesitantly. “That in the last thousand years or so, nopony has attempted to finish them. So… what if I did?”

“Hmm?” Celestia said thoughtfully, standing up and approaching the clock. “An interesting proposal, I must admit I’m surprised that you’re suddenly bringing this up. Do you not have anything else to be working on?”

“Oh, I have plenty to keep me occupied,” Twilight assured her with a small smile. “But I feel like this is important.”

“Well if you’re sure,” Celestia said with a small shrug. “As you say, nopony has attempted to complete his works in roughly a millennia. However, considering how you already completed one of his spells, I can’t think of anypony more suited to carry out this task than you.”

“Thank you Celestia,” Twilight replied appreciatively.

“I’ll send word to the library and observatory that you are to be granted access to the hourglass and orrery,” Celestia explained. “And you can come by here any time you wish to examine the clock.”

“Again, thank you,” Twilight repeated, offering a little bow to hide her grin.

Pinkie watched the entire scene unfold, never moving an inch, sometimes forgetting to breath. It was only when Celestia’s study began to dissolve around her, taking the two princesses with it that Pinkie finally snapped back to reality. She spun around and looked at the book just in time to see the fain blue hue creep back into its blank pages, and for the entire tome to close itself over.

Pinkie stared at the book in a stunned silence, her head spinning with the sheer amount of information she had just absorbed.

Five spirits…

Despair…

Vessels…

The third machine…

“The clock,” Pinkie whispered, her thoughts drifting to the giant clock face overlooking the courtyard.

Day 14, 11:35

Pinkie had been surprised at how little time had passed, it was if time had stood still while she watched the memory play out, but then considering everything that had happened up to this point, she really shouldn’t have been surprised. The giant clock looming over the courtyard was the third and final machine, it was so obvious considering its relevance to time, but Pinkie had also seen the phantom clockwork connected to the orrery in her nightmare.

At the time she hadn’t thought of it as being any more than another bizarre happening, but now she was sure what she had witnessed was proof that the orrery and the clock were linked in a way they could never have seen ordinarily. Pinkie didn’t doubt if she had gone to the library at night she would have found the same ghostly gears surrounding the hourglass.

Now however she needed to find her way up to the clock, or more precisely behind it where the internal mechanisms lay, which left her at a bit of a dead end. Her first instinct, and probably her wiser one too, was to find the others and tell them what she had discovered and together they would search for a way to the clock. That had been her first instinct, but as with the book she quickly discarded that thought in favour of rushing ahead and finding it on her own.

Besides, she hadn’t seen any of the others since she ran by Fluttershy on her way to the residence tower, and any time spent looking for them was time wasted that could otherwise be spent bringing this game to an end. Yes, it all made perfect sense to Pinkie, it was all justifiable.

Pinkie entered the chapel once more, her eyes immediately pointing up to the rose window. Noticing how the light shone through it, casting a multi-coloured glow across the room.

Where does the light come from?

The thought hadn’t even occurred to Pinkie in all her visits to this room, but once she had noticed it she couldn’t get it out of her mind. The pitch black sky outside bore no light sources, and while that didn’t put a dampener on their vision, it certainly didn’t create a light like the one found in this room and only this room. It was like the light of the sun was trapped in this one window. Pinkie drew the sacrificial dagger from her bag, passing her gaze across the rune engraved blade; she prayed she was right about this.

Taking one final look at the image of the Pegasus with her outstretched wings and her smeared face, before hurling the knife with all her might.

Pinkie was thrown off her hooves and sent flying back, slamming into the double doors of the chapel as the window exploded upon the knife’s impact. Coloured glass flew out in every direction, one catching Pinkie in the shoulder and leaving a deep gash. All light was extinguished from the circular hole in the wall with its jagged, broken glass creeping inwards.

“Well, at least the sound will have drawn the others,” Pinkie muttered weakly, trying to put a silver lining on it as she wobbled to her hooves, clutching at her bleeding shoulder.

Pinkie stared up at the now broken window, relieved that her rash action hadn’t been in vain. Despite how much darker the room was now without the eerie light source, Pinkie could still see the dark passage behind the window. Walking slowly over, Pinkie craned her neck, peering up through the newly formed hole. It appeared to be some narrow shaft heading straight up, with a metal ladder placed directly behind where the window once was.

Scooping up the fallen knife, Pinkie deposited it in her bag before trying to figure out how exactly she would get from the floor the passage almost three metres above. She could always wait on the others arriving, but again that urge to push ahead drowned out any such thought, instead drawing her gaze to the altar behind her. Pinkie glanced down at her injured shoulder as she unstrapped her saddlebags.

This might hurt…

Day 14, 11:48

Pinkie hauled herself up over the edge, collapsing in exhaustion. It hadn’t been a high climb up the ladder, but with her shoulder injury as well as the numerous slices she sustained while jumping into the broken window, the climb became considerably more challenging. In hindsight she should have tried to clear more of the jagged glass lining the circular hole in the wall, but at least she’s had the forethought to take her dress off and leave it down in the chapel along with her saddlebags.

Good to know I’ve got my priorities straight.

Now that she had reached her destination, she raised her head and scanned the area around her. She appeared to be in a long corridor, the walls lined with countless whirring mechanisms. The cogs and gears were so packed in some areas she struggled to see the brick wall behind them, if not for the stone floor beneath her hooves she could have been convinced she was standing in the intestines of some great clockwork monster.

At the furthest end of the corridor she saw a golden light spilling into the corridor, illuminating her surroundings. Climbing to all fours, she began her journey down the corridor, gazing all around her as she walked. The various mechanisms around her all seemed to be stretching out from the source of the light like robotic limbs, splitting off at different points to feed into the walls, presumably travelling elsewhere in the castle.

As Pinkie neared the end of the hall, she raised a foreleg to shield her eyes against the intense glow, but as she passed through the final archway, she noticed the light dim considerably from behind her eyelids. Lowering her hoof, Pinkie opened her eyes and gazed around the room in absolute awe. If the tunnel she had just traversed was the intestines, then this was the stomach. All the devices and mechanisms that flooded into the hallway, split off from here, spreading out all around Pinkie like a massive web of copper.

And there, at the end of the chamber, where all those limbs converged, a huge, translucent white disc set into the wall. The other side of the clock, which seemed to be pulsating with the golden glow she had seen while walking up the corridor. Taking her time, Pinkie edged towards the clock face, her eyes scanning the room, mesmerised by how every piece fitted together and worked in tandem to create this metal behemoth. Pinkie imagined that if even a single bolt was loosened the whole thing would collapse.

Turning her attention back to the clock she could see the faint shadow of the hands of the other side, showing her that it was almost twelve. But then her eyes were drawn to the very centre of the clock, a single point where the light refused to touch. Pinkie froze as she saw what was being clutched in the very centre of the machine, held in place by several metal prongs, slowly siphoning off a dark pulsating energy from it. She had never seen it for very long, but she would never forget that curved, grey shard, fading to crimson red at the tip.

There was Sombra’s horn, at the very centre of Starswirl’s machines, giving them the constant power they needed to function. Pinkie had found it at last…

Then her head exploded in agony as something very solid, struck her very hard in the back of the skull. Pinkie's legs gave out beneath her, her body falling like a sack of potatoes to the floor. Her mouth hung open and she emitted a faint croaking noise. As she rolled onto her side and her vision began to fade, what little she could make out being nothing more than blotches of light, she saw something move over her, heading towards the clock.

Then there was only darkness as she faded out of consciousness.

Noise, lots of noise.

Her eyes cracked open weakly, her vision swam before her. All she could make out was flashes of light, coupled with the sounds of crashing and creaking and distant explosions.

A figure leaned over her.

“What have you done Pinkie?!”

Pinkie’s eyes shut again, her mind going blank as she passed out once more.

Day 14, 13:50

“Pinkie…”

“She’s going to be alright. She’s going to be alright dammit!”

“Pinkie…”

“I think she’s coming around!”

“Pinkie!”

Pinkie’s eyes opened slowly. Wherever she was, it was dim. She saw a few blurry figures standing over her.

“Pinkie, say something! Please!” One of the figures demanded, her voice sounding strained.

“M… Maud…” Pinkie murmured.

Pinkie’s brain felt like out was going to explode as she felt her whole body pulled into a suffocating hug.

“Easy Maud!” another voice said, panicking slightly but sounding relieved. “She looks like she’s in pain.”

Pinkie felt Maud’s grip loosen, but didn’t feel her body placed back down. As her surroundings began to come into focus, she was able to make out her sister’s tear streaked face mere inches from her own while Rarity, Fluttershy and Octavia all stood around, looking down at her with both concern and joy at seeing her awake.

“What happened Pinkie?” Octavia asked, her eyes flicking from Pinkie to something she couldn’t see.

Pinkie opened her mouth, her brain trying to formulate a response. Instead she turned her head to the side and threw up.

“We need to get her to the infirmary!” Fluttershy exclaimed.

“We can’t move her down that ladder in that state,” Rarity pointed out. “We have everything we need, don’t we?”

“Alright,” Fluttershy said reluctantly, stepping forward and gently nudging Maud. “Everyone give me some space. Pinkie, just relax and let me take care of you.”

Pinkie nodded weakly as Maud lowered her to the floor and Fluttershy approached with a needle.

Day 14, 15:10

Pinkie set the now empty glass of water down, her hoof still shaking slightly.

“Are you feeling alright?” Fluttershy asked, glancing at Pinkie’s thoroughly bandaged head.

“Much better,” Pinkie informed her, she would have nodded but she didn’t want to prove herself wrong by inducing another headache.

“You’re lucky to be alive Pinkie,” Fluttershy said in a low voice. “What happened?”

“Exactly what I’d like to know,” Octavia added, stepping into view from where she had been examining the clock face.

Now that they were sure Pinkie was going to be fine, they now appeared a little more suspicious as to what they missed. Pinkie couldn’t blame them, as she looked around the clockwork chamber now almost in ruins she knew she had been utterly foolish in setting off on her own.

“You found the third machine,” Octavia continued. “Impressive, but how? And more importantly, what happened?”

“It was the book,” Pinkie whispered as Rarity and Maud stepped closer. “I managed to open it.”

“You did?” Maud asked surprised. “How?”

“That line you showed me in Twilight’s letter,” Pinkie explained, addressing Octavia. “I put two and two together and realised the key was hidden in the picture of Twilight’s family.”

“Behind the face of a friend,” Octavia whispered. “Of course. So what did the book say?”

Pinkie laughed slightly.

“It didn’t say a thing, it was completely blank.” The others all stared in horror at her, she quickly continued. “When I opened it up, I was teleported into a… memory, where Twilight… asked Celestia if she could finish Starswirl’s machines.”

Pinkie decided to leave out the part about the spirits, still not knowing how that fitted into any of this. Besides, it would take too much time to try and explain, better to just let them see the memory for themselves.

“They pretty much stated that the third machine was the clock,” Pinkie continued. “So I realised I just had to find a way of getting up behind it. It was pretty much pure luck that I figured out the entrance was behind the stained glass window in the chapel. After that I climbed up and came in here, where I found Sombra’s horn connected to the machine.”

“Sombra’s horn?” Octavia repeated, bewildered.

“Yeah, it’s right…” Pinkie began, looking over to the clock face, only to see an empty space where the horn used to be. “It’s gone! They must have taken it!”

“Pinkie slow down,” Maud instructed. “Who took it?”

“The one who knocked me out,” Pinkie replied. “They came up behind me and hit me on the back of the head. After that they must have stolen the horn.”

“That explains everything that’s been happening,” Octavia said in a low voice.

“What do you mean?” Pinkie asked. “Why is this room breaking down?”

“Not just this room,” Octavia corrected. “The entire castle is acting up, it’s how we knew something was wrong and came to find you.”

“The entire castle…” Pinkie repeated, sounding confused.

“You remember what I told you?” Octavia continued. “How the machines needed a constant magical source or else they would cease to function. Well if what you’re saying is true, then that source was Sombra’s horn, and now that it’s been separated from the machine, the changes the Mastermind made to Canterlot are reversing themselves.”

“So everything’s going back to normal?” Pinkie asked hopefully. “That’s what you said right?”

Octavia bit her lip.

“It’s what I thought,” she stated, the others all looking at her in confusion. “With the machines no longer functioning, Canterlot will return to its normal state… but it won’t be a smooth transition, and I can’t guarantee what will happen to us.”

There was a long period of silence, finally broken by Pinkie.

“So we’re on a time limit?” she asked. “Find the Mastermind and end the game.”

“Right now, that seems like our only option,” Octavia agreed.

“Then let’s get started,” Pinkie said with as much determination as she could muster, climbing unsteadily to her hooves.

“Hang on Pinkie,” Rarity cut in, sounding stern. “Why didn’t you come to us when you figured any of this stuff out? We could have helped you.”

Pinkie sighed and hung her head.

“I know,” she whispered. “I just… I don’t know what came over me. I just wanted to do it on my own.”

“Well you’re not in this on your own,” Fluttershy reminded her. “We’re here as well.”

“I know,” Pinkie replied dully.

Another long period of silence followed, broken by Maud.

“Let’s get going,” she suggested. “We can’t waste any more time.”

Rarity walked away before returning, carrying Pinkie’s dress and saddlebags.

“We found these in the chapel,” she explained. “I assume you want them back?”

Pinkie nodded gratefully, accepting them.

Day 14, 15:43

“It sounds… fascinating,” Rarity agreed as the group walked into the study.

“There’s way more to it,” Pinkie continued as she approached the table where she had left the book. “Including some stuff that’s just… well you can see for yourself.”

“So where did you leave the book?” Octavia asked.

“Right…” Pinkie began, her hoof hanging in the air as she pointed at the coffee table, completely devoid of books upon it.

Pinkie’s eyes darted up to the mantle, trying to remember if she had set the book back before leaving, she hadn’t thought so. As her eyes panned over the fire place however, she noticed a trickle of smoke rising from the hearth. Pinkie rushed forward, but it was too late, all that remained was the charred remains of the book and one of the wall mounted torches from the hallway.

“I take it you didn’t do this?” Rarity asked slowly, her eyes wide in shock.

Pinkie just stared at glowing embers and ash that had once been a book containing so many answers.

Day 14, 18:22

“Having fun?”

Pinkie breathed heavily from where she stood pressed against the wall, not daring to look around the corner lest the creature from her nightmares had chased her this far.

“What… what is that thing?” Pinkie gasped. “How is it here now? I thought they only came around after ten.”

“With the castle in this s… s... state, the nightmares are no longer confined to any set time,” the Mastermind explained, its voice sounding oddly funny, even jumping slightly. “They were never my doing, merely a by-product of the p… p… process by which the machines carry out their function. A process you d… disrupted.”

“I didn’t do anything and you know it!” Pinkie snapped back. “And why is your voice acting up like that?”

“It’s difficult to project my thoughts like this now that I’m no longer connect… t… ted throughout the castle,” the Mastermind replied.

“So it’s true,” Pinkie muttered. “Everything really is coming to an end. Tell me, what will happen if we don’t figure out who you are by the time this is over?”

“Oh let’s not go there,” the Mastermind said slyly. “My victory must come before that time.”

“Your victory?!” Pinkie exclaimed. “Forgive me, but I don’t see you or anyone salvaging anything from this mess.”

“You’ll see,” the Mastermind replied enigmatically. “In time. There is still t… t… time for that.”

Pinkie grunted and pushed herself off the wall, checked the coast was clear before running back towards the residence tower. She needed to find the others, they needed to figure out who the Mastermind was once and for all, but with everything that was happening to the castle Pinkie didn’t know how they’d find the time to think.

As she ran down the hallway from the central chamber she watched as her surroundings flickered, changing briefly from the dark grey she knew to the white marble of Canterlot, occasionally changing to something far more horrific. Shaking her head, Pinkie tried to focus. Darting into the residence tower, Pinkie rushed into her bedroom slamming the door behind her.

At least this room was a safe haven… for now anyway. Marching over to her desk, Pinkie upturned her saddlebags, dumping the contents on the surface, collapsing into her chair and staring at them.

Everything’s pointing to Trixie being the Mastermind. The assessment talking about her experimenting in dark magic, the letter to Celestia talking about the horn being moved to the vault, Trixie’s cutie mark carved behind the throne and the horn replaced by the…

Pinkie froze, instantly forgetting her train of thought a she stared at what was on her desk… or what wasn’t on her desk.

Pinkie threw open her saddlebags, searching desperately for some nook or cranny that it might have gotten stuck in. When she accepted it definitely wasn’t there, she began checking around the floor in case it fell off the desk. She turned her room upside down in case she had hidden somewhere and forgot. She screamed and swore, but it was all to no avail.

The gun was gone.

Day 14, 20:31

Maud tested the door of the banquet hall; the chair wedged under the handles did a perfect job of keeping it shut.

“So is this it?” Rarity asked, sounding and looking distraught, her face covered in dried tears. “We barricade ourselves in here and hope for the best?”

Pinkie didn’t know what Rarity saw, they all seemed to see different things, often at different times complicating things even further.

“I don’t expect a door to hold off nightmares,” Pinkie muttered. “We just need a moment to catch our breath…”

She turned to face them; Maud, Rarity, Fluttershy and Octavia all staring back at her.

“And talk.”

Day 16, 00:00

Night… Day… what did it really matter anymore? If it weren’t for the small digital readout on her hoof computer, Pinkie wouldn’t know whether it was supposed to be day or night. No sun, no moon, no stars. It had only been two weeks, yet it felt like a lifetime. What she wouldn’t give to be able to see them one last time, to know that the world is right, that no one else will suffer the same way she has.

Pinkie stared up at the clock face high above her, now permanently stuck reading a few minutes to midday. Every other night she would have been hiding in her room, counting the seconds until the nightmares disappeared for the day and she could be free for a few hours. But there was no safety, nightmares roamed free as the castle collapsed little bit by little bit.

Pinkie turned around slowly, staring at the tall iron gates leading to the town, now bent and warped out of shape, but most interestingly, wide open.

“Is something wrong Pinkie?” Fluttershy asked, approaching Pinkie from the side.

Rarity walked up and stood by her other side, following her gaze to the open gate.

“Do you think there’s something out there?” she asked warily.

Casting one last look back at the twisting, flickering castle, Pinkie set off towards the town, her friends in tow. As they drifted into the town, the other two repeatedly glanced around them, on the lookout for anything trying to take them by surprise. Pinkie’s eyes were focused however, on a single archway between two houses. As they drew closer to the passage, Pinkie noticed something dark smeared across the ground, as if something was dragged down the pavement through the archway.

Stopping just short of the entryway, Pinkie crouched down and ran her hoof over the smear. It was dry, turning to dust as she scraped at the brownish substance.

“Is that…” Fluttershy began, looking slightly sick.

Pinkie nodded warily, looking back up at the archway. Standing up, she slowly made her way over to it, taking a deep breath before peering in.

The small courtyard, squeezed between the houses was a mess, shattered crates and barrels lying everywhere. But it wasn’t the broken wood that drew Pinkie’s gaze, but the form lying spread eagle in the centre of it all.

Pinkie stumbled forward, her eyes wide, her mouth trying desperately to form words. Her legs gave out beneath her and she crawled the rest of the way. She heard a gasp behind her as the other two stepped through the archway.

“Maud…” Pinkie uttered, her voice trembling as she shook her sister’s lifeless body. “No… Maud! Please, don’t leave me… not you too...”

Pinkie stared at her sister as tears began welling up in her eyes. Maud’s face looked peaceful, wearing a small frown with her eyes gently shut. She looked as if she was sleeping, but the jewel encrusted hilt of the sacrificial dagger jutting out of her rib cage dismissed any notions of that.

Pinkie collapsed, burying her face into her sister’s breast as she let out an agonised cry, her entire body racked with sobs.

Author's Note

Here we are... this is it... after months of writing, the final chapter.
Get your thinking caps out, dust them off and don them one last time. I have nothing to give the winners except permission to feel incredibly self satisfied, but don't let that stop you. Who knows, you could put this on your CV when you're applying to become a real detective.

C6: Necropolis

It was an unusual day for the Pie sisters. They had all risen at the crack of dawn as was always expected of them, so that they could begin their chores for the day, when suddenly their father came by and told them they would be having a day off. The four girls were sure they had misheard their father. A day off? In the middle of the week no less? It was unthinkable, but then again, after yesterday’s incident with Pinkamena, it sort of made sense to them.

Normally they only have a day off on Sunday; Saturday as well if they had worked hard the rest of the week, as such they spent most of the morning struggling to decide what to do with their newfound freedom. Inkie and Blinkie, practically inseparable as twins left with their mother to travel into the nearby town of Ponyville for some groceries, that left Pinkamena and Maud at the farmhouse.

They had been asked to stay out of their father’s way while he spoke to the nice stallions from Canterlot who had come to enquire about yesterday’s incident, so they sat together in the kitchen, Pinkamena at the table while Maud cooked up a batch of her famous rock candy. Pinkamena had been unusually quiet all morning, she had never been a talkative filly, but Maud knew yesterday’s incident had really shaken her. Maud never liked to see Pinkamena upset, it always struck her deep in a way that nothing else ever did.

It was times like this she was thankful for her sister’s sweet tooth. Making candy she could do, but empathising was difficult for her. Leaving the candy in the pot to heat, she stepped away from the stove and sat opposite her sister who was staring glumly at her hooves.

“Do you want to do something later?” Maud asked after a long stretch of silence. “We could go play outside.”

“I don’t feel like playing today,” Pinkamena replied glumly, not looking up.

Maud just stared at her, expressionless. What was she to do? How would she make her sister feel better? Why did she have to be so bad at this?! She loved her sisters; by Celestia’s name did she love them! And yet even with them she struggled to express herself. As Maud watched her sister, she found her mind drifting back to a brief moment so many years before.

Her father had stepped out of the room to go check on mother, leaving Maud alone, staring down into the crib at her new-born sister. As Maud’s blank gaze met the bright inquisitive eyes of the tiny foal, she was struck with a sudden thought.

She’s all alone…

At the time Maud could still remember how Inkie and Blinkie had clung to each other constantly during those first few weeks. They had each other, they would always have each other, but this filly came into the world alone. True she would have her family, maybe even some friends as time went on, but ultimately she was alone… and Maud realised that only five years earlier, she had been alone too. It resulted in a feeling that Maud had never experienced before, one she would never forget.

Maud climbed into the crib and wrapped her forelegs around the foal who snuggled up against her, she brushed her tuft of mane as she whispered into her ear.

“You’re not alone…” she soothed. “And neither am I, not anymore…”

“Maud?” Pinkamena said, snapping Maud back to reality.

She was still sitting at the kitchen table; her sister was staring up at her, a look of deep concern in her young face.

“Why are you sad?” she asked.

Maud was confused. While she couldn’t see her own face, she was sure it was as neutral as ever, and she certainly wasn’t crying. So how did Pinkamena know… when even Maud hadn’t realised?

After a minute of staring at one another, Maud stood up from her seat and walked slowly around the table to her sister. Pinkamena didn’t say anything as Maud pulled her into a hug. It was a stiff, awkward hug, but Pinkamena felt the emotion behind it, the feelings Maud had struggled to let out. Pinkamena wrapped her own forelegs around Maud, returning the hug as she tucked her head into the nape of her sister’s neck.

You’re not alone… and neither am I, not anymore… We’ll always be together, Pinkie.

Day 14, 00:41

Silence reigned in the enclosed space as Pinkie lay in a crumpled heap beside her sister’s body, the other three looking on solemnly. Pinkie hadn’t heard Octavia arrive on the scene, she wasn’t even aware of Rarity or Fluttershy leaving to get her. Perhaps the Mastermind had announced their location, if he had Pinkie hadn’t been aware.

Silence reigned for a long time, broken only by the soft hoof steps as one of the others approached Pinkie and leaned down beside her.

“She’s gone Pinkie,” Octavia said in an odd voice. “You have to let go.”

Pinkie felt her hooves slip away from her Maud’s cold body, almost automatically. She shuffled back slightly, looking down once more at her sister’s form, at the blood soaked navy dress with the sacrificial knife protruding from her ribs, and the broken purple jewels scattered around her amidst the shattered pieces of wood. Her attention was only drawn away from Maud when a set of orange hooves marched into view.

“Ah’m real sorry Pinkie,” Applejack said, taking off her hat and holding it against her breast in respect. “She really loved you… and ah know the feeling was mutual.”

Pinkie nodded absently as the illusion faded away as quickly as it arrived. Pinkie turned to look at the other three, still very much physically there. Octavia was still standing next to her, watching her with concern while Rarity and Fluttershy stood near the archway, both looking at her with a mixture of sadness and apprehension.

“How long… do you reckon we have?” Pinkie asked quietly, not meeting any of their eyes.

“A few hours I imagine,” Octavia replied uncertainly.

Pinkie nodded again, her eyes unfocused as she struggled to form a coherent thought.

“We should get started,” she said at last, her voice still devoid of emotion.

“Maybe you should sit this one out Pinkie,” Rarity proposed. “You shouldn’t be expected to do this yourself.”

“No, I… I have to,” Pinkie said, trying and failing to inject some determination into her voice.

“Well, maybe one of us should stay here with you while the other two start investigating elsewhere,” Fluttershy suggested quietly.

“Sure,” Pinkie replied, not really sure what she had agreed to.

Pinkie waited as the other three stepped off to the side and began discussing in a hushed tone. Pinkie didn’t try to hear what they were saying, still intent on staring blankly at a random point in space that was gently flickering back and forth between two realities. Eventually Rarity returned to Pinkie’s side while Fluttershy and Octavia departed through the archway, each casting a last worried glance back at Pinkie Pie.

“Are you absolutely sure you want to do this?” Rarity asked again, sounding slightly desperate.

“It should be me,” Pinkie replied. “I promised to get everypony out of here safely; I let her down just like the rest.”

“Pinkie…” Rarity began forlornly, but Pinkie just turned and shuffled back over to her sister’s body.

Rarity crouched down beside her, following her gazed to the jewel encrusted hilt of the knife.

“Weren’t you keeping that knife?” she asked curiously.

“I was…” Pinkie began, a slight edge to her voice. “But my room got raided yesterday.”

“It was?!” Rarity exclaimed.

“Yeah, but Maud and I didn’t want to say anything,” Pinkie continued. “Especially after someone took the gu… We were just worried one of you was responsible.”

“I suppose with so few of us left, it’s difficult to trust anyone,” Rarity agreed miserably. “But… I just don’t believe Fluttershy or Octavia would do… this.”

“Or you,” Pinkie whispered low enough that Rarity wouldn’t hear before raising her voice. “You were pretty eager to accuse Octavia of killing Rainbow Dash just a couple days ago, what changed?”

“Well… I had some time to think about what I said,” Rarity answered awkwardly, not meeting Pinkie’s gaze. “As well I spent some time with her yesterday, ironed things out between us…”

Pinkie didn’t press Rarity’s explanation, instead returning her attention to the knife.

“It looks like it’s stabbed straight into the heart,” Pinkie commented, feeling her own chest as a reference.

Without warning, Pinkie reached out and pulled the knife free from Maud’s chest. No more blood poured out of the wound as Pinkie set the now scarlet blade to the side.

“Can you help me?” Pinkie asked.

Rarity hesitated for a second before nodding slightly reluctantly. Together they managed to remove Maud’s dress, which Rarity too to the side and held out with her magic, which she examined while Pinkie’s turned her attention to the body.

“There doesn’t seem to be any other injuries,” Pinkie commented so Rarity could hear her. “Besides the knife wound I mean, and it looks pretty clean, as if she didn’t struggle.”

“Well we do all trust each other,” Rarity replied. “Could this have been another… well, suicide?”

“I don’t think so…” Pinkie muttered. “Ingesting poison is painless, that’s why Rainbow was able to do it, but I don’t think anypony could push them to perform this kind of act upon themselves.”

“Ponies are capable of many things,” Rarity reminded her. “Isn’t that what you yourself told us?”

“Something along those lines,” Pinkie acknowledged. “Still, if it was self-inflicted, that doesn’t explain all this destruction.”

“But then you also said the wound was clean,” Rarity argued. “As if there was no struggle, which still raises the question as to how all this happened.”

“I suppose these crates could have been broken earlier in some unconnected circumstances,” Pinkie reasoned, standing up and looking around at the state of the small courtyard. “Could you maybe use your spell?”

“Oh, uh, sure,” Rarity replied, her voice suddenly sounding off.

With her horn lit up, she lowered her head to the ground and began walking around scanning it. Pinkie watched as various blotches of colours came into focus before fading away as she continued to walk. After a few minutes she finally stood up straight and turned to Pinkie.

“I’m sorry darling,” she said, sounding sincere. “It’s no good; it’s as if somepony has run circuits around this area, obscuring anything and everything that could have been of use.”

“Do you think it was intentional?” Pinkie asked, narrowing her eyes.

“I have no idea,” Rarity replied before quickly seeming to notice something else. “What about that trail of blood from outside?”

Pinkie glanced back at the blood smear that had led her here in the first place, stretching through the archway over to where Maud lay.

“If the murder took place elsewhere and Maud was dragged here from somewhere else, why would any of this place be like this?” Rarity questioned.

“I… I don’t know,” Pinkie admitted, slumping slightly.

Rarity placed a comforting hoof on her shoulder.

“It’s okay, we’ll figure this out.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, a crack of thunder sounded, a rift splitting open in the sky giving a second long view of a stark white sky filled with ominous black stars. The lightning was gone as quickly as it came, leaving the sky as pitch black as always.

“The real question is, can we figure it out before it’s too late?” Pinkie corrected warily as she scooped up the knife and walked out of the courtyard.

Day 16, 01:12

As Pinkie walked over the shallow pool in the centre of the courtyard, no longer caring to avoid it, she stared up at the clock face staring back down at her. The clock no longer seemed to radiate the stark white light it once had, the gold details dulled down, a brand new spider web of cracks covering it. As Pinkie looked at it, she noticed movement from the corner of her eye, she looked over at one of the castle towers in time to see it break away from the rest of the building, only to begin flickering and glitching in mid-air and reassemble itself.

“Most depressing,” a voice uttered behind Pinkie, a familiar accent behind it. “To see this place, so dear to me, reduced to this vile corruption.”

Pinkie turned to see Fleur standing a few metres behind her, her back turned to Pinkie so that she was looking out over the town spread out below.

“It’s fixing itself though,” Pinkie replied, causing Fleur to face her. “The Canterlot you knew will come back.”

“True,” Fleur agreed solemnly. “But then what will happen to this place? To us?”

Pinkie didn’t answer; Fleur stepped around her and approached the statue of Celestia.

“When she told me the truth…” Fleur began sadly, “it destroyed me, knowing that the one I idolised and revered as a mother had been responsible for my suffering and the suffering of those I had come to consider as friends… I was lost for a long time, disillusioned. I wanted nothing more than to forget about it, to live as if nothing had ever happened… but then she came. She forced me to relive it, to spill every detail of my suffering while I was forced to watch the love of my life suffer.”

Pinkie was absolutely still as she listened to Fleur talk, slightly horrified at hearing her perspective on what happened.

“I told her everything, everything she needed to pretend to be me,” Fleur continued. “All in the hopes that she would spare Fancy, that he would live… but when she had everything she needed, she killed him anyway. My heart and soul died then and there, but my body had yet to see the worst she could offer. In the end, when I was finally granted the mercy of death, I thought about you…”

Pinkie’s eyes widened at that, Fleur turned to face her once more.

“I…” Pinkie began, her voice slightly croaky.

“Pinkie?” a voice cut in.

Pinkie turned and looked towards the castle gates where Octavia was walking from.

“Who are you talking to?” Octavia asked, sounding concerned.

Pinkie glanced back to where Fleur had been standing, only to find the statue of Celestia and nothing else.

“Nobody,” Pinkie lied, walking over to meet Octavia.

Octavia just watched Pinkie, she knew full well that Pinkie had seen something she wasn’t letting on about, but she chose not to speak about it.

“What did you make of the crime scene?” Octavia asked instead as the pair began walking towards the castle gate.

“It’s confusing,” Pinkie replied. “The state of the scene along with her broken belt suggests a struggle took place, but she only had one injury which seemed fairly clean cut. She even looked rather peaceful when we found her. This wouldn’t be so complicated if it wasn’t for the fact that the blood trail suggests her body was dragged to that area from another location.”

“That does indeed sound confusing,” Octavia agreed as they stopped at the base of the entrance hall staircase. “Although you should be mindful that the killer may have intentionally disrupted the crime scene in order to throw us off.”

“I had considered that,” Pinkie agreed, “but then we’re left wondering which factors are true and which are fabricated to distract us.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Octavia assured her. “What else did you discover? What was the cause of death?”

“As far as I can tell, it was a simple stab straight to the heart,” Pinkie explained. “Using the knife we found in the chapel.”

“Did you lose it or something?” Octavia asked, raising a curious eyebrow.

“My room was raided yesterday,” Pinkie answered, leading the way up the staircase towards the residence tower.

Octavia followed in silence as they navigated towards Pinkie’s bedroom. As Pinkie turned the handle and allowed the door to swing open, Octavia’s eyes went wide at what she saw.

“We didn’t bother to tidy up after,” Pinkie explained, gesturing to the room that had been torn apart.

“When exactly did this happen?” Octavia asked as she edged into the room.

“I think it was around… midday,” Pinkie replied uncertainly. “I had been here earlier, but an incident regarding a nightmare chased me half way across the castle, leaving my saddlebags and all its contents here. When Maud and I got back and found the room looking like this, we searched for my bags' contents, but…”

“Was anything else taken besides the knife?” Octavia asked, propping up the desk chair that had been lying toppled over.

“Pretty much everything,” Pinkie replied bitterly. “All of Twilight’s documents are gone… so is the gun.”

The last part had been an afterthought, but it would adequately explain the guns disappearance should it come up without Pinkie having to admit to her slip up the other day.

“This… this is bad,” Octavia said hesitantly, pointing out the obvious. “We need to find those documents.”

“Don’t you think Maud and I already searched for them?” Pinkie asked rhetorically. “We searched this place top to bottom and found nothing.”

“You should have told me,” Octavia said sternly. “I could have helped.”

“I know,” Pinkie replied coolly, turning back to the door. “Well now you know, so if you come across them… Now what have you and Fluttershy found?”

“We were searching Maud’s room,” Octavia explained, walking past Pinkie and starting up the inclined corridor to said room.

Pinkie followed Octavia around a few corners until they arrived at an open door. Upon looking inside, Pinkie saw Fluttershy searching through the drawers, looking uncomfortable.

“Well, I’ll go and start looking for… that thing,” Octavia whispered, her eyes flicking briefly to Fluttershy before marching out of sight.

“Anything?” Pinkie asked dully as she stepped into the room.

“Well…” Fluttershy began awkwardly, glancing over to the bedside cabinet which was sitting with its drawer wide open.

Pinkie walked across the small room, tried to ignore the portrait of Maud and looked inside the drawer, seeing a pair of flight goggles lying inside them.

“Are these…” Pinkie began, lifting them out.

“I… I think so,” Fluttershy clarified tentatively.

“I can’t remember, was Rainbow still wearing these before she disappeared?” Pinkie asked, Fluttershy flinched at the mention of it.

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “When that… thing took her, I didn’t really pick up on it.”

Pinkie gave a curt nod, depositing the flight goggles in her saddlebags before giving a quick walk around the rest of the room. Nothing else seemed to be out of the ordinary, she looked up to ask Fluttershy if she had discovered anything else, but she found that Fluttershy had disappeared at some point.

“And there I thought friends were supposed to be there for one another,” a bored voice said.

Pinkie spun to see a familiar white unicorn stallion, standing next to the window, sneering at her.

“Maybe she’s not your friend after all,” Blueblood continued.

Pinkie turned away from him and marched out of the room, only to find herself face to face with the exact same apparition.

“What’s the matter Pinkie? Are you not happy to see me?” Blueblood asked in the most condescending voice he could muster. “And there I thought you felt something for me.”

Pinkie gritted her teeth, turned and stormed away up the corridor, trying desperately to ignore the shouts from behind her. Reaching the top of the tower she entered Rainbow’s old room, finding it completely bare for all but a giant hole dominating the floor. Pinkie peered down the hole, seeing not the bedroom below, but instead an endless dark void. A faint memory of a pitch black claw smashing up through the floor, long crooked fingers like spider legs wrapping around Rainbow Dash’s body, dragging her into the darkness leaving only a dark hole sucking all the furnishings into oblivion.

“How does it feel?” Blueblood asked, sounding mere inches behind Pinkie. “To know that you failed them all? To know that everyone you ever loved is either gone or will be soon?”

Pinkie had enough, Spinning around she slapped Blueblood as hard as she could in the face. He barely reacted, like he hadn’t felt it at all, but then he wasn’t real to begin with, something Pinkie had to keep reminding herself. Blueblood grinned sadistically at her.

“You can tell me I’m a monster for trying to have you all killed in exchange for my freedom,” he continued. “But I had the right idea and you know it. You tried to play the hero and save everyone, look where that got you. Who did you even save in the end? No, in the end we only have ourselves. If you’d accepted that sooner you could have saved yourself so much pain. Still, better late than never…”

Pinkie shut her eyes and stormed forwards, feeling the illusion of Blueblood dissipate around her. Without waiting to see if he would come back she began sprinting down the corridor.

Day 16, 01:50

Pinkie found Octavia picking through the wreckage of the orrery, scattered acorss the observatory floor.

“You were here when it got destroyed, weren’t you?” Octavia asked when she saw Pinkie walk up behind her.

“Yeah… There wasn’t anything I could do,” Pinkie replied.

“It’s for the best,” Octavia said as Pinkie stood next to her, sounding more like she was trying to convince herself than Pinkie. “This whole experience is proof that Equestria isn’t ready for this kind of power.”

“What if someone rebuilds them?” Pinkie asked in a neutral tone. “What if they find Twilight’s notes on them?”

Octavia pulled the designs from her saddlebags and stared at them, chewing on her bottom lip.

"I don't suppose you found the rest of the documents yet?" Octavia asked, Pinkie shook her head. "Well you can keep these ones, whatever you choose to do with them... I'm sure you'll make the right choice."

As Octavia passed by Pinkie, she gave her the stack of papers before stepping out of the observatory. As she did, the heavy metal door swung shut of its own accord, the valve handle spinning, locking it. Pinkie heard the faint banging of Octavia on the other side, as well as the distant sound of her calling Pinkie’s name. After a futile attempt at turning the now stiff valve, Pinkie turned and examined the room for another way out. It could have been her imagination… it was probably her imagination, but Pinkie could hear voices coming from above her.

Ascending the metal mesh ramp, stashing the documents in her saddlebags as she did, she passed the closed door to the battlements and continued towards the telescope platform. When she reached the top, she found herself not on the top floor of the observatory, but outside on a grey, pixelated hill topped with a grey pixelated tree. Curious, Pinkie walked up the hill to where a picnic was laid out, untouched. There were also four ponies standing there, all wearing grey flight suits, all chatting amiably.

“I’m really sorry Soarin,” Fleetfoot began awkwardly. “For the things I said at the Gala, if I’d known then what you’d been through… I’m just sorry.”

“It’s okay Fleetfoot,” Soarin replied sheepishly. “I never wanted you to understand what I went through, not like this.”

“Well it’s over now,” Spitfire said jumping in. “No harm was done, and as soon as Surprise is back on her hooves we can try the routine again.”

“One of us is going to have to lend her our goggles though,” Soarin explained. “She lost hers when I collided with her.”

“I’m sure we can manage that,” Fleetfoot assured him. “Now if we’re gonna be doing the routine again, shouldn’t we do a practice run?”

Spitfire nodded and began running through the warm up drills.

“Here, you guys go on ahead,” Rainbow Dash said. “I’ll catch up in a minute.”

Spitfire nodded and along with Soarin and Fleetfoot she took off, leaving Rainbow Dash alone on the hill with Pinkie.

“Sorry Pinkie,” Rainbow said suddenly, turning to look at Pinkie. “I know it was pretty uncool of me, taking the easy way out and leaving you girls all high and dry.”

“No, I understand why you did it,” Pinkie replied, slightly taken aback. “And I don’t blame you.”

“No, you wouldn’t,” Rainbow said, suddenly giving Pinkie a piercing stare. “I trust you Pinkie, but are you sure you know what you’re getting yourself into?”

Pinkie just stared back at Rainbow, her mouth open slightly, unable to form a sentence. Rainbow just sighed as she strapped her own goggled up, obscuring her rose coloured eyes from Pinkie.

“Can you at least do one thing for me?” Rainbow asked.

“Of course,” Pinkie replied.

Rainbow turned to Pinkie and opened her mouth. Suddenly Pinkie’s ears were filled with a loud humming, and despite seeing Rainbow’s mouth move, she couldn’t hear a word she was saying.

“… She deserves to be happy,” Rainbow finished as the humming ceased, turning away.

“Rainbow wait!” Pinkie called, but it was too late.

Rainbow shot off the ground; flying up to meet the others where together they flew off into the grey expanse, becoming nothing more than specks before disappearing entirely. Pinkie turned and began shuffling back down the hill, once she reached a certain point the grey hill dissolved around her, reforming into the main floor of the observatory. Where Pinkie stood, she could once again see the wide open bulkhead door.

Day 16, 02:35

“Do the maths, do the maths, do the maths…” Filthy Rich said from where he sat behind Kibitz desk, over and over again.

“Um…” Rarity began, starring in confusion at him.

“He’s been doing that for ages,” Pinkie explained. “I saw him yesterday and he was just saying the exact same thing repeatedly.”

Rarity reached out and closed the door to Kibitz office, cutting out the sound of Filthy Rich’s mantra.

“So what did you want to show me?” Pinkie asked, snapping Rarity out of her daze.

“Oh yes, I found something rather interesting which I think you should see,” Rarity explained as she led Pinkie into Celestia room.

Following Rarity into Celestia’s bedroom, Pinkie looked around for whatever Rarity may have found to be out of the ordinary. To her surprise Rarity led her over to a large vanity where a jewellery box sat open. Peering in, Pinkie found it bare but for a single object, a circular pendant bearing a purple jewel hanging from a delicate chain.

“Is this…” Pinkie began, picking up the necklace.

“Maud’s necklace,” Rarity confirmed. “I never forget accessories.”

“I didn’t even notice she wasn’t wearing it,” Pinkie admitted.

“No, it hadn’t occurred to me either until after you’d left,” Rarity agreed. “It was pure luck that I came across it here.”

“How did it even get here?” Pinkie muttered suspiciously.

“Actually…” Rarity continued awkwardly, “there is one other thing.”

Rarity approached the latticed window and Pinkie followed. Using her magic, Rarity opened the window.

“I didn’t know the windows could be opened,” Pinkie said, sounding faintly surprised.

“Strangely enough, this appears to be the only one that can,” Rarity pointed out. “It overlooks the main castle courtyard as well as the gate into the town.”

“That’s what you wanted to show me?” Pinkie asked, a little confused as to what this had to do with anything.

“No, I wanted to show you this…” Rarity said, stepping back from the window and pointing at it with her hoof.

Pinkie stepped forward and peered at the open window, quickly seeing what Rarity had meant. Hanging limply from the iron handle, were several long, black hairs.

“Needless to say there is only one of us with hair that colour,” Rarity stated, a slight edge in her voice.

“I thought you said you didn’t suspect Octavia anymore,” Pinkie reminded her, straightening back up.

“I’m not saying I think she’s responsible just because her hair is caught in this window,” Rarity said quickly. “I’m just stating a fact that it could only be hers.”

Pinkie bit her lower lip as she stared down at her sister’s necklace.

“Let’s just keep looking,” she said at last, turning to leave the room.

The moment Pinkie stepped into the foyer outside Celestia’s room she knew something was different, the fact that the floor, walls and ceiling were covered in ice were a dead giveaway. Instantly her breath began frosting in front of her and teeth began chattering.

“It’s so cold…” a quiet voice mumbled.

Pinkie turned and saw a figure sitting curled up, shivering in the corner near Luna’s door. She was a powder white Pegasus with pink and green stripped mane.

“So cold…” Blossomforth muttered again.

Pinkie opened her mouth to speak to the Pegasus when Rarity suddenly reappeared behind her.

“Is something wrong darling? You’re shaking.”

Rarity sounded perfectly fine, as if she couldn’t feel the chill at all. Pinkie reminded herself that she might not; she might not even see the ice or Blossomforth lying there.

“It’s nothing,” Pinkie tried to say without letting her teeth chatter too much.

Before Rarity could question it any further, Pinkie started walking towards the central chamber, shivering all the way.

Day 16: 02:59

Pinkie froze just outside the archway leading back to the crime scene as she heard a faint shuffling from inside. Peering around the edge she saw Fluttershy stepping back from the bare wall at the opposite end of the courtyard, apparently staring intently at it.

“Looking for something?” Pinkie asked, announcing her presence.

Fluttershy muttered something Pinkie couldn’t hear before turning to face her. “I was wondering if there’s was something we couldn’t see, something that might give us a clue as to what happened.”

“Rarity and I already searched this area,” Pinkie reminded her, walking up and placing herself between Fluttershy and the exact section of wall she had been examining. “Did you find anything else?”

“Yes actually,” Fluttershy said, suddenly sounding quite bright. “I noticed something about Maud’s dress.”

Pinkie followed Fluttershy over to said dress where it lay folded on the ground beside Maud’s body.

“What about it?” Pinkie asked.

“Well, ignoring the blood stains, it’s very clean,” Fluttershy pointed out. “It even smells of some kind of detergent.”

“So… what?” Pinkie said, not picking up on what Fluttershy was getting at. “Maud got her dress washed, is that so strange?”

“Not in of itself,” Fluttershy replied. “But it gives us an idea where Maud’s been at some point, including who she’s been hanging around with.”

“You mean Rarity?” Pinkie questioned. “Maud could wash her own clothes.”

Fluttershy gave a small shrug. Pinkie watched her closely, before finally returning the shrug.

“Fine, let’s go search the wash room.”

Day 16, 03:13

Pinkie opened one of the many cupboards in the wash room, giving it a quick scan before slamming it shut again. Turning around she saw Fluttershy examining a wash basin left out in the centre of the floor.

“Someone was definitely using this recently,” she reported. “It’s still damp, and you can smell the same detergent used on the dress.”

“Keen observation,” Pinkie complimented, walking out the door into the shower portion of the wash room.

Walking down the line of cubicles, Pinkie opened each one and scanned them carefully, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Once she was a few down Fluttershy approached her.

“Can I help?” she asked.

“Sure, start from that end,” Pinkie instructed, gesturing to the far side of the room. “The killer might have come here to get cleaned up.”

Fluttershy nodded and stepped away, starting her own search. After a few minutes both ponies met in the middle and were crammed awkwardly looking into the same shower cubicle.

“Does that drain look slightly stained to you?” Fluttershy asked, edging to the side to give Pinkie more breathing space.

Leaning in closer Pinkie saw it did indeed have a faint pink tint to it, not nearly as prominent as the shower Shining Armour has used which was still heavily stained, but still noticeable. Pinkie checked the drain and rest of the shower thoroughly for any more ‘hair monsters’, but didn’t find a single stray strand. Either they were barking up the wrong tree or someone had been meticulous in their cleaning.

“Not a thing,” Pinkie stated, standing back up. “Are you sure you didn’t find anything in the other cubicles?”

“Nothing,” Fluttershy confirmed. “Could they have used the same one Shining used? We wouldn’t know the difference if that were the case.”

“No, that shower hasn’t worked since that night,” Pinkie explained, recalling her heroic feat of vanquishing the hair monster. “I noticed early yesterday during a flooding incident.”

“Oh yeah, I walked by here once that was all over,” Fluttershy commented. “At least Rarity is okay.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie agreed before turning and heading towards the exit.

Once outside, Fluttershy departed without a word towards the entrance hall, leaving Pinkie walking the opposite direction on her own. Her brain was filled to the brim with thoughts, each one screaming to be heard over the others. It was only when she heard voices coming from the banquet hall that she snapped back to the present. The door was ajar, and she could definitely hear a number of voices inside.

Edging closer she slipped just in time to avoid Braeburn hurrying forward and wedging a chair against the door, successfully preventing it from being opened.

“So is this it?” Trenderhoof asked, sounding hysterical. “We barricade ourselves in here and hope for the best?”

“I don’t expect a door to hold off nightmares,” Cheese Sandwich muttered. “We just need a moment to catch our breath…”

He then turned to face the others in the room: Braeburn, Trenderhoof, Coco Pommel and Fleur Dis Lee.

“And talk,” he finished.

Pinkie frowned as she observed this all take place, as all the actors took their seats just as they had the other day.

“Talk about what?” Coco asked, raising an eyebrow.

“About who the Mastermind is of course,” Cheese replied, taking a seat opposite the others.

“If we knew that we wouldn’t still be here,” Trenderhoof muttered.

“True, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have ideas,” Cheese pointed out. “So, what do we know so far?”

“The Mastermind had to have been someone at the Gala,” Fleur began. “They needed to be there to start up the machines.”

“They also stole that horn,” Braeburn added. “Which the letter in Celestia’s room said had been moved to the vault.”

“The same one the Elements of Harmony used to be kept in,” Trenderhoof finished.

“So who do we know who could fit that criteria?” Cheese asked.

There was a long pause, finally broken by Coco.

“Discord?” she suggested.

“But Discord is trapped outside just like the princesses,” Braeburn reminded her.

“Yes, but Discord was a statue twice before,” Trenderhoof began. “If anyone would know about it, it would be him.”

“It’s not Discord,” Cheese and Fleur said at the same time.

Cheese glanced at Fleur, slightly surprised at her speaking up in Discord’s defence.

“Discord doesn’t kill ponies,” Fleur pointed out. “It’s not his style.”

“But he’s a master of trickery,” Coco insisted. “And this is well within his powers.”

“Exactly,” Fleur continued. “Discord could have pulled all this off with a snap of his claws, he wouldn’t need the machines.”

“I’m surprised to hear you speaking out against Discord,” Trenderhoof said suddenly, looking at Coco with a raised eyebrow. “Weren’t you two friends?”

“Well yes, but that doesn’t put him above suspicion,” Coco replied. “Well if not him, who else? The captain who moved the horn?”

“Iron Sight?” Braeburn recalled. “The letter only said he was delivering it to Celestia, it would be her who actually locked it away.”

“Still, if he was in charge of protecting it, he would have known how to breach its defences,” Coco argued.

“That sounds like a fair point,” Trenderhoof acknowledged. “But why would the captain of the Royal Guard want to do all this? What does he stand to gain?”

“What does anyone stand to gain from all this?” Coco retorted.

“That’s an interesting point,” Fleur said, looking over at Cheese. “Regardless of who the Mastermind is, why exactly are they doing this? What are they trying to achieve?”

“Well they do have the Princesses as hostages,” Braeburn reminded them. “They could be trying to take over Equestria.”

“If that were the case they would have just killed them,” Cheese stated. “They’d have no reason to lord them over us and go through all this if that’s all they wanted.”

“They may be trying to choke the life out of Equestria by stopping the sun and moon from cycling,” Fleur suggested. “But again they could have achieved the same thing just by killing the princesses.”

“I’m pretty sure there’s some failsafe for raising the sun and moon should anything happen to the princesses,” Trenderhoof mentioned. “Unicorns of old used to be responsible for it; perhaps they could do it again.”

“So again, what purpose does any of this serve?” Fleur repeated.

“It’s to do with us specifically,” Cheese stated. “What exactly, I’m not sure yet. Although I’m curious as to what role the princesses actually play in it all.”

“What do you mean?” Coco demanded. “The Mastermind is blackmailing us with their safety.”

“Seems risky and unnecessary,” Cheese pointed out. “If just one of them escaped or was set free, the Mastermind’s plans could fall through the roof. It would have been far safer for him to kill them at the beginning.”

“But he needed something to push us into killing each other,” Trenderhoof pointed out.

“Did he?” Cheese asked rhetorically. “Think about it. Spitfire killed Filthy Rich accidentally over his threat of blackmail, Derpy murdered so she could see her daughter again, Chrysalis killed without remorse for her own freedom, Shining killed in a fit of madness, and Rainbow killed herself. No one actually killed in order to save the princesses; we turned on each other without that incentive.”

“So what are you saying?” Braeburn asked. “That the princesses serve a different purpose?”

“Perhaps…” Cheese began, but before he could continue a loud crash was heard as the doors to the banquet hall shuddered.

“Now what?” Trenderhoof asked, looking panicked.

The door shook again as whatever it was smashed against it a second time.

“That chair won’t hold,” Braeburn pointed out. “Not against that.”

A third smash.

“Then I’ll be quick,” Cheese said, turning back to them. “In all our searches of this castle, we have yet to come across the Mastermind, and yet the fact that they stole the horn right out from under us means they’ve been able to travel freely around the castle. Who has been able to traverse this castle freely, and was present at the Gala?”

There was a brief moment of silence as the others stared at Cheese, trying to deduce the meaning of his words, when the doors smashed open. A huge gust a wind blew in, turning the ponies gathered around the table to dust, leaving Pinkie standing alone in the now deserted banquet hall.

“All of us,” Pinkie muttered, finishing the sentence she had left hanging.

Day 16, 04:17

“Maybe if we knew what happened better we could figure it out,” Rarity insisted as the group walked down the entrance hall staircase.

“Understanding what all happened yesterday would be wonderful,” Octavia agreed “Shame it was nothing but insanity from dawn until dusk.”

“Well I know Maud was there when we got trapped in the wash room,” Rarity continued. “And Pinkie said she was with her when they found her room had been ransacked.”

“She was also there when Rainbow was taken,” Fluttershy added quietly.

“She was in the library with me when the hourglass gave out,” Octavia informed them. “We tried to stop it, but after the clock and the orrery both broke there wasn’t anything we could do to prevent it.”

“Well which of those things happened last?” Rarity asked. “If I knew, I could go there and use my spell.”

“If there was too much interference at the crime scene, surely all those locations will be much worse,” Pinkie pointed out. “But if you really want to, it wasn’t the two you mentioned as they both happened relatively early.”

“It was in the library,” Octavia answered. “She told me what happened to Rainbow Dash when I found her there.”

“Alright, I’ll start looking from there,” Rarity said, hurrying off.

“Uh, I’ll come with you,” Fluttershy called after her, running to catch up.

Pinkie glanced at Octavia before starting towards the castle gates.

“Perhaps if we both look at the crime scene,” Octavia began. “We’ll figure out whether there was a struggle there or if the body was moved from another…”

Octavia was cut off as Pinkie kicked her hard in the chest with both her back legs will simultaneously propelling herself forward. As a result Pinkie landed several metres ahead of the gate and Octavia landed back inside the entrance hall, neither getting crushed by the heavy portcullis that had come hurtling down on top of them.

Pinkie heard Octavia mutter something; despite being heavily winded Pinkie could swear she said ‘damn Earth Pony way’. Glancing back she confirmed that Octavia had been thrown clear of the portcullis and was now stumbling over to it.

“Thanks,” Octavia wheezed. “That hurt but thanks none the less.”

“It would have hurt a lot more if I hadn’t kicked you,” Pinkie pointed out.

“Still, how did you see it but I didn’t?” Octavia muttered in an odd voice, Pinkie noticed she continued to mumble something to herself that she couldn’t hear before at last she looked up. “How do we get this thing open?”

“The mechanisms on either side,” Pinkie explained. “But it takes two of us on this side, and they’d need to be pretty strong.”

“I don’t think there’s a way of opening it from the inside,” Octavia said glancing around. “We could wait and hope they’ll disappear on their own during the shift back to Canterlot, although there's no guarantee that will be done before the trial starts. I could always…”

Octavia fell silent, a faraway look in her eyes.

“Um, Octavia?” Pinkie said, waving her hoof through one of the square gaps.

“Huh? Oh, don’t worry about this,” she said, a slight grin forming on her face. “I think I know what to do.”

With that she galloped off up the main staircase and turned right on the balcony, heading towards the residence tower and the central chamber. Pinkie was left silently wondering what Octavia was about to do. Turning back towards the Courtyard, Pinkie frowned as she noticed somepony very familiar standing just beyond the twisted gate.

With a flick of her spikey, sapphire tail, she began walking away, heading into the town.

“Wait!” Pinkie called after her, sprinting towards the direction she disappeared in.

When she screeched to a halt at the exact spot the mare had been standing, she looked around wildly for any signs of her. A flash of purple drew her eyes much further down the street where the pure white unicorn was stepping into a side street.

Not wanting to lose her, Pinkie raced off after her. As she turned around the corner she had disappeared through and began galloping down the puddle heavy alleyway, she became faintly aware she was travelling along the route to Twilight’s parent’s house. Pinkie slowed to a trot as she entered the familiar plaza, looking up at the house which had once again transformed. No longer was an industrial terrace house with its neighbours cut off, or the same house after a hurricane had hit it.

Now it looked true to its original form, a quaint, cosy, upper class home in typical Canterlot style of being constructed from white masonry with gold framed windows and blue embroideries. It wasn’t the new design of the house that caught Pinkie’s eye however, but the filly and colt outside, giggling as they played together.

As Pinkie drew closer she saw Shining Armour pull Twilight Sparkle into a head lock before delivering the dreaded noogie. Twilight squealed half in pain, half in delight. As Pinkie got close, a muffled voice called out from inside the house, catching both siblings attention. Releasing his sister, Shining began running for the front door, Twilight quickly giving chase. Quite quickly both had rushed through the front door and out of sight, leaving Pinkie to stare at the outside of the house.

Curious, Pinkie made her way up the front steps to the still open front door. Upon entering the house, she found herself in a familiar hallway with a familiar staircase at the end, only this time the interior of the house was much more richly decorated, with dozens of family photos lining the walls giving it a much warmer feeling. As Pinkie walked forward, she passed by a number of open doorways, peering into each showed her a different scene.

Through one she saw Twilight and Shining ripping open their Hearth Warming presents in the parlour while their father watched on from his armchair, cradling a steaming cup and smiling warmly at them. Through the next she saw Twilight and Shining standing next to the kitchen counter, the former standing on an upturned basement so she could see over the edge. In front of them was a bowl of cake mix, although most of it was plastered over the walls, floor, counter and even themselves. However that didn’t stop them licking more of the mixing spoon even as their mother entered and stared in horror at what they had done to her kitchen before breaking into a fit of laughter.

Leaving the kitchen behind, Pinkie reached the foot of the stairs. A quick glance confirmed that the basement door found it to be sealed with a padlock. Ignoring it for now, Pinkie began making her way up the stairs, following the sound of voices coming from above.

“Come on Twily!” Shining whined. “What’s the password?”

“I’m not saying,” Twilight answered in a sing song voice as Pinkie reached the upstairs landing.

The voices were coming from the room at the end of the hallway, the same room Pinkie had found the picture on her first visit here. As she started walking forwards the voices continued to speak.

“Well give me a clue at least,” Shining insisted.

“It’s the name of my best friend,” Twilight answered, Pinkie could hear the smirk in her voice.

“Smartypants!” Shining declared.

“Nope!” Twilight replied happily.

“Mister Smartypants?” Shining tried, sounding less sure this time.

“No,” Twilight said again, laughing.

“Well who then?” Shining demanded, sounding frustrated.

“If you can’t guess then I’m not saying,” Twilight answered, a hint of annoyance in her voice. “I keep only the most important things in this box; I’m not just going to give away the password.”

As Pinkie reached the door, the filly Twilight rushed out, passing right through her. Shining Armour followed quickly behind, Pinkie heard the pair laughing together as they disappeared down the stairs. Entering the room, Pinkie quickly realised it must have been Twilight’s bedroom when she was living here, the books, toys and tiny bed with pink covers gave it away. But it was the large blue chest with gold trimmings that sat in the corner of the room that caught Pinkie’s eye.

As she approached it and noticed the elaborate locking mechanism on it she figured this must have been what Twilight and Shining were talking about. As Pinkie looked at it, she vaguely remembered seeing this in Twilight’s bedroom back in the Ponyville library. Crouching down Pinkie saw that the latch appeared to have five wheels on it, each baring the alphabet. After a little fiddling Pinkie realised she was supposed to input a word, but what?

Twilight had said it was the name of her best friend, who was Twilight’s best friend as a child? She had always said she had no time for friends growing up, well, except her brother, but Shining Armour was too long. Maybe Shiny…

Then it clicked with Pinkie, BBBFF!

Entering in the letters and praying she was correct; Pinkie tried to open the latch and was met with success. The chest opened to reveal an abundance of contents, at the top of which was Twilight’s liberated Smartypants doll. The rest however seemed to be things from her time in Ponyville, there was her coronation crown missing the gemstone that returned to the Tree of Harmony, the tickets for the Grand Galloping Gala, her Winter Wrap Up vest, her medal from the Running of the Leaves, her Gala dress, the umbrella hat Pinkie had given her, her letter of acceptance into Celestia School for Gifted Unicorns, an eye patch, her Mare Do Well costume, Zecora’s doorstopper, the list went on.

With each item Pinkie removed, she was flooded with memories of how it came to be there. By the time she reached the bottom of the chest and pulled out the Journal of the Two Sisters, she became vaguely aware of the tears running down her face. Setting the book to the side, she reached out, preparing to close the now empty chest, when she noticed something that had been covered by the journal.

Peering in she noticed a number a sheets held together with a paper clip, reaching in she took them out and stared at them. The writing was unmistakable as being Twilight’s own, and Pinkie knew exactly what the content was referring to. The pages she held had detailed accounts of numerous ponies, noting their relationship to Pinkie Pie herself, the likelihood of them committing a murder and what their execution would be if so. These were more of Twilight’s documents, but whether they were new ones she hadn’t had to begin with, or if they were some of the old ones she hadn’t got around to reading she didn’t know.

As Pinkie skimmed through the pages, she picked out each and every pony that had been a player, both in the last game and this one, including many who hadn’t been involved in either such as Big McIntosh, Cheerilee, Zecora. The list was expansive, taking into every factor the pony might have on Twilight’s overarching plan of testing Pinkie. Occasionally some names were crossed off altogether with a brief note in the margin explaining her decision for ruling them out. Their friends Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were all on the same page, with the scribbled heading reading ‘only as a last resort’.

No, something was wrong. As Pinkie flicked back and forth, reading through the names and picturing faces, something niggled at the back of her mind. It felt as if something was missing, but it was only when she scanned through it roughly a dozen times that she picked up on it. There was one pony missing, the one pony she had never had any prior connection to before the game…

Octavia wasn’t listed here.

“It’s t… t… time,” the Mastermind announced, sounding just as damaged as the last time Pinkie heard it speak. “Report to the courtyard in front of the castle for the f… final tri… i… ial.”

Pinkie stood up slowly, still staring at the documents before her. It was the creaking of floorboards that made her spin around, to come face to face with the pony that had led her here.

“Hey Pinks,” Vinyl Scratch said in a cool voice, a winning smile on her face. “Did ya miss me?”

Author's Note

Well, here we are, the ending is just around the corner. It's always a great feeling to finish something, and Bullet Point was one of the few stories I ever did finish, so the fact that I'm now close to seeing its sequel through is truly bliss.
I wasn't going to publish this part until tomorrow, but I'm almost finished writing the third part (much sooner than I had expected) so I thought 'why wait', hopefully everyone who's interested is keeping up to date.
The third part will be released on Friday at the earliest. While I'll definitely be finished it in time, I want to give people as much time to read this part and put in any theories. As this is the last one I encourage everyone to have a go, even if you're not sure just throw anything out there, even if you're not completely correct I may give shout outs to theories that I personally find good (and probably wish I had thought up myself).

C6: Transcendence

Maud’s face betrayed no emotion as she stared down at the newspaper before her, she refused to let it. The headlines had been more or less the same for the past two weeks, after all a Princess of Equestria didn’t just drop off the face of the Earth without someone taking notice. The articles paid little attention to the others reported missing along with her, offering little more than a footnote mention of them.

It was infuriating, sitting here letting the torment she could not vent build up inside of her, to do nothing while her beloved sister was missing. Here she stayed, earning a degree she cared little for, while Pinkie suffered a miasma of unknown horrors. Maud tried desperately not to think what fate had befallen her, but every night the possibilities were painted in her dreams. She wanted to scream her heart out, to break everything in her tiny apartment, to turn Equestria upside down until her sister was returned to her.

Not for the first time, she jumped to her hooves and stormed over to the door, and not for the first time was she met with the royal decree of house arrest pinned to her door alongside the letter from her parents begging her to stay put and leave the search to the Royal Guard. Maud leaned against the door and slid weakly to the floor, there she stared off into space, her mind a raging sea of thoughts.

Pinkie had always led an adventurous life, particularly in these last few years what with her responsibilities as an Element of Harmony, but those crises came and went before Maud even caught wind of them. Nightmare moon was around for a single night, Discord a day. That Changeling Queen had been around longer, but once things kicked off it only took a couple hours to sort it out. This however, nothing like this had ever happened. Pinkie was gone, spirited away for almost two weeks, and she couldn’t even rely on the power of friendship to save her when half her friends were still in Ponyville.

Not for the first time, she wanted to let it all out, to cry until there was nothing left, and not for the first time was she met with her greatest flaw, her inability to express herself. Pinkie always had the uncanny ability to tell exactly what Maud was feeling, proof that they possessed a connection beyond that of ordinary sisters, but now Pinkie was gone, Maud was alone.

As she buried her head in her forehooves she remembered the last time she saw her sister, from a train window, sprinting alongside the locomotive even as it picked up speed and she was left behind, becoming nothing more than a pink speck. If Maud had known that would be the last time she would see her dear sister, she would have thrown everything to the wayside, her career, her education, her future. She would have leapt from that train, ran back to Pinkie and never let go. She would caress her mane and whisper in her ear that she was not alone, that she would never be alone.

“You’re not alone…” Maud whispered a loud to herself as she slowly lifted her head up. “I am not alone.”

Maud turned back towards the door, looking one final time at the letters pinned there before ripping them off. She was going to find her sister and damn the consequences, she would tear apart every inch of this world if she had to, she would not rest until Pinkie was returned to her. Maud threw open the door and marched out, determination burning in her heart, drowning out all the fear and doubt that had plagued her since she had been confined to her home.

The front door was just ahead of her, the portal to Equestria, the start of a search that would not end until Pinkie was home and safe… but as Maud reached out to open it, a tired voice behind her made her stop.

“Where are you going Maud?”

Maud froze, she knew that voice. Turning around slowly she came face to face with the midnight blue Alicorn who stood mere inches in front of her, looking down upon Maud with an expression that could rival her own in being unreadable.

“Princess Luna?” Maud uttered, confused at her presence.

Something was wrong, everything about this scene was wrong; it was… familiar, but Luna’s presence… that didn’t feel right.

“Every day it’s the same,” Luna began, still staring down at Maud with those deep, mysterious eyes. “Every day you try to leave and I am forced to reset this.”

Maud opened her mouth to respond, but stopped as everything became clear, as she remembered exactly what happened. She remembered charging off to Canterlot the day she heard Pinkie was missing, she remembered forcing her way past the guards to the princesses, demanding to know what they were doing to find her sister. She remembered… screaming, behaving in a way that she had never known was possible. She remembered feeling very sleepy and then…

“This is a dream,” Maud uttered as everything became crystal clear. “You trapped me in a dream!”

“You gave us little choice,” Luna replied, her voice still neutral. “We tried letting you go a number of times, but you would always act up the same way. Your actions were getting in the way of our investigation, so I made the decision to keep you pacified until your sister and her friends were found.”

Maud gritted her teeth, as Luna spoke she began to remember the past few weeks much more vividly. She would writhe in torment before finally finding the strength to leave and search for Pinkie herself, and every time she opened the door the dream would reset and she would repeat her actions again and again, the only change being the occasional addition of another newspaper on the desk.

“If this is a dream,” Maud began coldly, “then why did it have to be this?! Couldn’t you have shown me something good?”

“I tried, but you wouldn’t let me,” Luna explained. “Your mind refused to focus on anything other than your missing sister.”

“Then why are you here?” Maud demanded, turning away from Luna to face the closed door. “I suppose it’s too much to hope you actually found her.”

“We’ve been doing everything we can,” Luna tried to say, ignoring the snort Maud gave her. “But we’re getting nowhere. For two weeks we’ve tried everything, but our usual methods are coming up short and…”

Luna drifted off, her voice sounding odd causing Maud to glance back at her. Something about Luna had shifted, she looked doubtful.

“It feels like I’m being kept in the dark,” Luna continued, sounding more like she was talking to herself than Maud now. “Things Discord said… The way Celestia is behaving…”

“Princess Luna?” Maud said, slightly concerned now at the sudden switch in tone.

“You are right Maud,” Luna said with a small sigh. “We have not made any progress in finding your sister, but not because we aren’t doing everything in our power…”

Luna turned her eyes back on Maud, showing the life that had suddenly ignited in them.

“Maud Pie, I fear that if we continue down this path then we will not find your sister or the others in time,” Luna explained, her voice low and ominous. “But we have other options available to us…”

“What options?” Maud asked slightly warily.

“Every day you open that door to set out and find Pinkie yourself,” Luna continued. “Well now you can. Open that door now and you will wake up, or you can choose not too and allow this cycle to continue.”

“That’s not even a choice…” Maud said, quickly turning and grabbing hold of the door handle.

“But if you do wake up,” Luna interjected, making Maud halt. “If you do wish to help… there will be a price to pay.”

There was a moment of silence as Maud and Luna stared at each other, finally broken by the click of the door as Maud turned the handle.

“Then I’ll pay it.”

Day 16, 06:00

Every step was slow, every step was deliberate. Perhaps she was trying to hold off the inevitable, perhaps she was trying to bide time so she could quickly piece together the solution she didn’t yet have. But try as she might, the twisted iron gates drew ever closer to Pinkie Pie, and much sooner than she would have liked, she reached the top of the main street and marched into the castle courtyard where the other three already stood waiting patiently. Looking beyond the courtroom set up, she noticed the smoking remains of the castle portcullis, numerous chunks of metal lying scattered about.

“You are l… late,” the Mastermind informed her, sounding bitter.

Pinkie’s eyes briefly flickered to something, confirming what she already knew.

“My apologies,” she replied insincerely. “I got a little distracted, but I’m here now, here to end this.”

“You sound confident for someone who just lost their sister,” the Mastermind mocked causing Pinkie to grit her teeth, determined not to let her pain show.

“Shut up,” Rarity spat. “We’ve heard quite enough from you; let’s just get this over with.”

“Very well, however I feel we need to c… c… clarify a few things,” the Mastermind agreed. “As per usual you must have a majority vote in order to sentence the culprit. Being that there are only four of you, you must have at least three correct votes in order t… to win.”

“That condition hardly required mentioning,” Octavia pointed out, narrowing her eyes in suspicion.

“I’m simply making things clear,” the Mastermind assured her. “Other than that, this trial is the same as all others. Argue, debate, p… p…present evidence, do whatever you feel necessary to reach a final conclusion.”

“Hang on,” Octavia cut in again. “This trial is the final one, so what happens if we win or lose?”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” the Mastermind replied dismissively. “Now if you are all ready, I call this f… final trial to order.”

Trial 6: Maud

“Are you alright Pinkie?” the Mastermind asked in false concern. “You don’t look like your head is in the game.”

“Ignore him Pinkie,” Rarity cut in. “Just focus on winning this trial and we can end this nightmare.”

Pinkie nodded half-heartedly before lifting her head up to look at the others.

“Alright,” Pinkie agreed slowly, the gears in her mind running slightly slower than usual. “So, where do we begin?”

The others glanced awkwardly at one another.

“Well usually we start by discussing the scene of the crime,” Fluttershy answered with a concerned look.

Pinkie nodded once more, not looking like she really registered what Fluttershy had said to her.

“Well for starters,” Octavia jumped in, “the victim was Maud, found by you three in the town around midnight.”

“Speaking of which,” Rarity cut in. “How did you know where to find us?”

“What do you mean?” Octavia asked, sounding genuinely confused. “The Mastermind announced the discovery of the body like always.”

“No he didn’t,” Rarity argued. “We would have heard it if they made that announcement.”

“Actually Rarity,” Fluttershy interrupted. “I heard the announcement too.”

Rarity opened her mouth but didn’t say anything, looking over to Pinkie for some confirmation one way or another.

“I didn’t hear anything,” Pinkie informed them honestly.

“We’ll ignore that for now,” Octavia stated, waving it aside with a hoof. “It’s possible all these nightmares and illusions interfered with it.”

“Alright then,” Rarity agreed rather reluctantly. “Other than that, the only thing we know for sure regarding the crime scene is that Maud was killed using the dagger found in the chapel and stolen from Pinkie’s room.”

“Is that really how it happened?” Fluttershy asked, earning her a few curious glances. “Well I mean, like Pinkie once said, in the last game Twilight was stabbed, but it was actually a poison coating the blade that killed her. Are we sure this isn’t something like that?”

“I don’t think so,” Rarity replied unsure. “We would have noticed some symptoms of poisoning if that were the case.”

“But the blade did have runes engraved upon it,” Octavia reasoned. “Perhaps there was some magical element to the murder.”

“Chrysalis said it had something to do with deception,” Pinkie recalled, her voice distant. “But that’s vague enough to mean anything, I never did research it properly myself.”

“Besides, can we really trust the word of a Changeling?” Fluttershy asked.

“Chrysalis had no reason to lie once she was revealed,” Octavia pointed out. “She seemed fairly honest regarding everything else, why would she lie about a detail like that.”

“As of right now we can’t be entirely sure it was as simple as a stabbing,” Rarity relented. “So let’s discuss the rest of the scene then.”

“Well…” Pinkie began, still trying to figure out the contradictions. “We all know the crime scene looks like a struggle took place, but Maud was in a very peaceful state, one I don’t think could have been achieved simply by altering the body. Besides, the trail of blood suggests the murder didn’t even happen there at all.”

“Well if we play by the assumption there was a struggle,” Rarity continued, “then who among us could have killed Maud? I doubt even Pinkie was a strong as her sister.”

“No,” Pinkie agreed. “Maud stayed on the farm while my sisters and I moved on; she was easily the strongest of us.”

“Well Rarity and I could hardly have done it if it’s a measure of strength,” Fluttershy chipped in.

“Well Rarity does have the advantage of magic,” Octavia reminded them, before quickly adding, “And no I’m not accusing you, and yes I know you’re not an expert in magic but I’m sure telekinesis would suffice.”

“Well what about you Octavia?” Rarity asked, barely concealing the annoyance. “You’re an Earth Pony.”

“Yes, I am an Earth Pony,” Octavia agreed, with a little roll of her eyes. “An upper class Earth Pony musician. My cello is about the heaviest thing I could lift, and that’s only on my back.”

“Point taken,” Rarity muttered. “Still, this pretty much proves my point that if there was a struggle, none of us could overcome Maud.”

“Could have been a surprise attack,” Fluttershy suggested.

“From the front?” Pinkie cut in, raising an eyebrow. “The killer would need to have been very stealthy to pull that off, but that doesn’t support the struggle theory either.”

“Well we have no guarantee those boxes and barrels were still whole before Maud came to be there,” Rarity reminded her. “What was that area even used for? I don’t think I’ve even seen it in the few times I’ve been in the town.”

“Just storage I think,” Pinkie replied with a small shrug. “I was there once much earlier on…”

Pinkie waited, when nopony spoke she carried on, her voice a little steelier.

“If the murder took place elsewhere,” she continued. “Then it was just a convenient place to hide the body.”

“But that blood trail didn’t even lead very far into the street either,” Octavia pointed out. “If Maud was moved, she would have to have been carried to that point before being dragged the rest of the way.”

“If anyone would go to the trouble of carrying her that far, why drag her the last stretch and give away the hiding place?” Fluttershy asked.

“They needed the body to be found at some point for the trial to be called,” Pinkie stated. “Moving the body was simply to hide where the murder actually took place, damaging our investigation.”

“So now we’re assuming the body was moved from somewhere else?” Rarity questioned. “Well if it were the case, the obvious question is where did the murder occur?”

“We certainly didn’t find anywhere that jumped out during our search,” Octavia stated, resting her chin on her hoof thoughtfully. “Did you two find anything from the library?”

“Alas, we did not,” Rarity replied. “As Pinkie predicted, there was far too much interference. I did however, return to the clockwork room and use the spell.”

“You did?” Fluttershy asked, her voice odd. “When was this?”

“After you left to report back to Pinkie and Octavia,” Rarity explained before carrying on. “Now this lead was a little more fruitful considering we’ve spent hardly any time up there.”

“What did you find?” Pinkie asked curiously.

“Well, I picked up on your trail when you first arrived there,” Rarity explained, “as well as that of our elusive thief.”

Pinkie’s eyes widened and she leaned forward, eager to learn more about the incident that almost had her skull cracked open like an egg. She subconsciously raised a hoof and felt the back of her head where she had sustained the blow; she had discarded the bandages the day before, much to Maud’s disapproval. She could feel the wound roughly sealed with several metal staples.

“The trails were faint, but I managed to confirm that the thief did follow you,” Rarity continued, “and then after knocking you out there approached where the horn was before leaving. After some careful snooping I managed to follow to the same store room where the food had been discarded, there I found this…”

Rarity reached into her saddlebags and produced a simple wooden cane.

“A stick?” Octavia uttered, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s been broken off something,” Rarity explained, gesturing to one end. “As well as that, there’s blood on it.”

“Can I see that for a moment?” Pinkie requested.

Rarity nodded, hovering the stick over to Pinkie who took it in her hooves and began looking it up and down. There was indeed a dark brown smear of dried blood on one end, but as well as that there was some hardened grey splotches over the other side. The stick was heavy, and indeed very hard, and Pinkie noticed the splintering at the end Rarity had indicated, proving it had been broken from something else.

“This was in the storeroom?” Pinkie asked.

“That’s where it had been left, yes,” Rarity confirmed. “After that I lost the track of the trail when it re-entered the hallway.”

“Well that is interesting,” Pinkie murmured, before raising her voice. “However let’s not get side-tracked, are we all sure there wasn’t somewhere else in the castle the murder could have taken place?”

“It’s like you said,” Fluttershy began. “The murderer needed us to find the body; they could have made the trail so we would know where to look.”

“Which implies the murder did in fact take place at the scene,” Octavia finished. “And that leaves only one other possibility, that there was no struggle and the damage was done before or after the murder, either in some unrelated circumstance or in order to throw us off.”

“Well this is more difficult in a way,” Pinkie pointed out. “For that kind of murder, Maud would needed to have trusted the killer to let them get close, but there’s so few of us, Maud would have trusted us all.”

“True, so why don’t we take this opportunity to tell everyone where we were since yesterday?” Rarity proposed, before taking a little cough. “After the disaster in the library, I came by just as Maud left and stayed to help Octavia sort through the wreckage for a bit. I had gone there after cleaning my dress in the wash room following the flooding earlier that day. After the library I went to the kitchen to prepare some food, I used the last bits and pieces we had but then I couldn’t find any of you once it was ready.”

“So you had been cleaning in the wash room?” Fluttershy interrupted.

“Yes, why?” Rarity asked, confused.

“Nothing,” Fluttershy said quickly.

Pinkie knew she was thinking of her earlier point about Maud’s dress being cleaned.

“Yes well,” Rarity continued. “After that I went looking for everyone; however it wasn’t until much later that I found Fluttershy in the infirmary and Pinkie outside. That was just before the discovery though.”

“Why did it take you so long to find them?” Octavia asked.

“Well I had a little incident…” Rarity replied awkwardly, before adding simply, “A nightmare. What about you? I never did find you.”

“After you left I had to run damage control on the machines,” Octavia explained. “They shouldn’t have just fallen apart, so I needed to make sure something wasn’t going terribly wrong. I spent the rest of yesterday running between the three machines, that’s why you didn’t find me.”

“Well…” Fluttershy began quietly. “With everything that was going on I didn’t want to get in the way, so I stayed in the infirmary and laboratory, running inventory and generally tidying up.”

They all looked over at Pinkie.

“After Maud and I returned to my room and found the documents missing,” Pinkie began, “we split up to go searching for them. It was during this time that we came across the machines while they were breaking down. After that Maud and I met up back at her room, she told me what happened and we split up again, continued searching for the documents… That was the last I saw of her.”

There a was a long moment of silence.

“Well that wasn’t very useful,” Rarity muttered. “We could all be lying and none of us would ever know.”

“Well… maybe there’s something else we can discuss,” Fluttershy said. “Do we have any evidence?”

“Well there was those flight goggles you found in Maud’s room,” Pinkie reminded her, pulling them out of her saddlebags and holding them up for the others to see.

“Are those Rainbow Dash’s?” Rarity asked, cocking her head.

“We don’t know,” Pinkie admitted. “We can’t remember if she was still wearing them when she got taken.”

“It could have been one of the other Wonderbolts,” Octavia suggested. “Soarin was around for quite a while before he was eventually taken.”

“Maybe,” Pinkie agreed. “But again, that depends on us remembering if he still had them before he disappeared, or if he didn’t then we need to know where they ended up.”

They all stopped speaking for a moment, each pondering the possible whereabouts. As Pinkie struggled to remember, her eyes panned over the courtyard, coming to rest over the still smoking remains of the portcullis.

“Oh yeah,” she said suddenly. “That reminds me, how did you get through the portcullis?”

“A bomb,” Octavia explained.

“A bomb?!” Pinkie exclaimed.

“Yes, I went to the armoury because I knew they had some old ones lying about,” Octavia continued. “They needed a little fixing up, but luckily there was the ghost of a tinkerer who lent me a hoof. Although it wasn’t easy to understand him with his lisp and he kept going on about magnets.”

“Lisp? Gizmo?” Pinkie whispered to herself, only looking up again when Rarity tried to get her attention.

“Uh Pinkie, what about that other thing we found?” Rarity asked, looking at Pinkie. “In Celestia’s room.”

“What thing?” Octavia asked curiously, earning a slight look from Rarity.

“We found Maud’s necklace in a jewellery box there,” Pinkie explained, pulling it too from her saddlebags. “We also found some hair caught on the window.”

“Whose hair?” Octavia asked.

“Yours,” Rarity replied simply, causing Octavia to spin around facing her. “Several long stands of black hair caught on the window overlooking the courtyard and gate to the town. Now, if the Mastermind hadn’t really made his announcement as you claim, and you were indeed up there as the presence of your hair would suggest, then you would have been in the perfect position to see us heading towards the crime scene.”

“I can’t believe you’re really accusing me again,” Octavia muttered in disbelief. “Is this still because I’m not one of your best friends?”

“No, it’s because I can place you at the same place where we discovered a crucial piece of evidence!” Rarity retorted.

“I never touched that necklace!” Octavia snapped.

“Enough!” Pinkie shouted, silencing the pair of them. “We’re getting nowhere. Now Fluttershy and I searched the wash room, we think one of the showers was used by the killer to clean up after, although we can’t be sure as it’s not very clear.”

“Well that seems like a fairly basic step in covering your tracks,” Rarity pointed out. “But it doesn’t really mean anything for us as our alibis can’t be falsified.”

“Then lets step back from the case,” Pinkie proposed. “Let’s take a different direction.”

“What direction?” Fluttershy asked uncertain.

“I’m not stupid,” Pinkie muttered. “I know how this game works, I’ve been here before. This is the last trial and there’s only one individual capable of pulling this off, and that’s the Mastermind himself.”

“You called?” the Mastermind announced.

“So here we are again,” Octavia stated. “The ultimate question, do you have any ideas?”

“At first I was convinced the Mastermind was Trixie,” Pinkie explained. “Everything seemed to be pointing towards her, her cutie mark etched in the back of the throne, her name being the password to the vault, the mental assessment Fluttershy found in the infirmary, her apparent presence at the Gala under the name ‘Great and Powerful’. Yeah, it all seemed to be pointing towards her… but then I opened the book and learned some interesting things. Ever since, I’ve had another idea of who the Mastermind could be.”

“Who?” Octavia asked, her eyes narrowing.

“Yes, t… tell us who,” the Mastermind begged in a mocking tone.

“We thought Sombra’s horn was simply a tool used by the Mastermind,” Pinkie continued, ignoring the Mastermind’s interruption. “But what if I said it was the other way around.”

“Um, Pinkie,” Rarity cut in. “I think you missed a step. What did you learn from the book?”

“The Sombra we knew was nothing more than a vessel for something much worse,” Pinkie explained. “Something much more powerful. When Sombra was destroyed, Twilight, Celestia, Discord, they all assumed he was destroyed too, that it was only his power that still resided in the horn. But that wasn’t the case at all…”

Pinkie voice became low as she began addressing the Mastermind directly.

“Losing your horn saved you from the destruction that you should have met,” Pinkie declared. “Your vessel was broken but it was still a vessel, thus it kept you very much alive. I’m right, aren’t I…

“Despair.”

The other three all stared at Pinkie with varying degrees of confusion, but Pinkie paid them no heed, carrying on before she lost her momentum.

“You are the Mastermind,” Pinkie continued. “Or more precisely, the Mastermind is your puppet; your temporary host like Twilight was before. Like Discord said, even with all your power, you need a host to be able to exercise it. A pony you could manipulate into doing the things you were unable to, from activating the machines at the Gala to retrieving your horn before I could reach it.”

“Pinkie, what are you talking about?” Fluttershy asked, looking just as bewildered as Octavia and Rarity.

Pinkie turned her head so she met Fluttershy’s eyes.

“How long are you going to deny it?” Pinkie asked in a cold voice, still staring at Fluttershy. “You said yourself, it’s becoming difficult to project your voice, so why don’t you do yourself a favour and show us who you really are.”

There was a long period of silence following Pinkie’s speech. Rarity and Octavia looked back and forth between Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy, while they both locked eyes. Eventually the latter broke into a wide grin.

“At last…” she said, in a voice that bared no resemblance to the real Fluttershy’s tranquil tone.

Pinkie, Rarity and Octavia all opened their mouths, but didn’t get a chance to say anything as an explosion of force knocked them all off their hooves. Crumpling to the floor, Pinkie lay smothered against the invisible barrier as Fluttershy spread her wings and rose into the air, her body pulsating a vile dark energy. Pinkie clenched her eyes shut as all around her the light intensified until it threatened to burn through her retinas.

When the light began to fade, and the force began to alleviate from Pinkie she risked cracking her eyelids open. Craning her neck, she looked over at the place directly opposite her in the courtroom where Despair now occupied. Standing up, Pinkie surveyed the body that once belonged to Fluttershy. The yellow was now drastically faded, her wings were spread wide, showing off their new increased span. However the feathers were ruffled and broken giving them an undead quality. Her eyes were deep pools of inky blackness, emanating a dark hue that seemed to creep around the entire courtyard in the form of a black mist. Finally, jutting up through her skull, ripping right out of her forehead, was the familiar stone grey and blood red horn.

Fluttershy was practically an Alicorn now, a gruesome, augmented one admittedly. She stared straight at Pinkie, her black eyes seeming to pierce into her soul while her mouth was split into an impossibly wide grin. Rarity looked in horror at what her friend had become, while Octavia bared her teeth and glared her, all the while edging back against her own barrier to put as much distance between herself and the monster directly to her left.

“Ah,” Despair uttered, breathing deep. “Eight months, a mere second for a being who lives for an eternity, but to be trapped in a broken prison that entire time… It’s good to be free again.”

“F… Fluttershy?” Rarity stammered, her eyes wide, her face pale.

“That’s not Fluttershy anymore,” Pinkie stated coldly. “The Fluttershy we knew is long gone, just like Twilight. That… is Despair.”

“Ah Pinkie,” Despair said, addressing her directly for the first time. “I’m glad that you’ve finally come to know me personally. It was the contents of that book I presume? I would love to have seen what Discord tried to hide in there, but it was sealed off to me, leaving me option-less but to burn the thing. But do indulge me, however did you figure out Fluttershy was the puppet?”

“Besides her obvious personality change after the horn went missing?” Pinkie asked rhetorically. “I’ve noticed for a while that Fluttershy has been acting increasingly odd, snooping around in certain areas and trying to pass it off as being nothing as well as plainly lying about leaving the room that night Fleetfoot was murdered. The real hint came when I was examining the statues after Cadance got destroyed; I noticed a symbol etched in the stone as well as this blade discarded by it.”

Pinkie took the broken blade from her saddlebags and held it out for the others to see.

“It’s a scalpel blade,” Pinkie explained. “Easily found in the infirmary, and the ground down edge suggests it was used to etch that symbol into the stone pedestal.”

“But what does that have to do with Fluttershy?” Octavia asked curiously.

“Fluttershy had left me in the infirmary for a while,” Pinkie explained. “She told us she went to her room to look for painkillers but then didn’t return with any. I never told her, but I searched her room after that and found the painkillers she had meant, they weren’t exactly well hidden.”

“So she lied about the painkillers and instead took the scalpel and carved some symbol into Cadance’s statue,” Octavia summarised. “But what has the symbol got to do with anything?”

“The symbol was a circle with a horizontal line running through it,” Pinkie explained. “I didn’t recognise it as any specific rune, but then I thought, ‘do the maths’. If you ignore the circle, you can easily picture the one line as being a subtraction symbol, and what does a minus symbol mean on a magnet?”

“Negative,” Octavia replied, realisation dawning on her.

“Exactly, I noticed a few changes in the statues of Cadance and Discord over time,” Pinkie continued. “Early on something caused Discord to change position, he looked sad about something, but later he changed again as if he were struggling not to be. Cadance changed similarly after Shining Armour died, you could say she gave into despair.”

“And all it took was a little ritual to break to protective seals around her,” Despair finished. “No doubt you’ve realised it then.”

“You didn’t turn the princesses to stone,” Pinkie stated. “Someone else did in order to protect them from you. Like I said, you would have had no need for them so you wouldn’t have risked keeping them about unless you physically could not destroy them. But when Cadance’s protection began to weaken, you took advantage of it and destroyed her during the trial to make it seem like you really were in control of them. And don’t forget that only a Pegasus could have followed me into the clockwork chamber, I injured myself trying to jump up; Fluttershy was able to fly through safely and silently.

“The final nail came when Rarity showed me the stick that Fluttershy used to knock me out with,” Pinkie continued, lifting up said stick. “It’s one of the perches from the aviary, given away by all this dried bird poo coating it. Naturally the aviary was locked so just like with Filthy Rich’s death, only a Pegasus could have gone in there to get this.”

“Very good,” Despair complemented, wearing a genuine and genuinely creepy smile. “There is no end to your brilliance Pinkie Pie.”

“I… don’t understand,” Rarity murmured weakly. “What is that thing? What happened to Fluttershy?”

“He’s a spirit,” Pinkie tried to explain. “Like Discord, but where Discord is the embodiment of Chaos, he is the embodiment of negative emotion, he is Despair. Like I said, Sombra was his host, but when Sombra was destroyed, he didn’t go with him, instead staying trapped in the horn that was cut off.”

“And from there I was greatly weakened,” Despair picked up, sounding bitter. “Without a physical form to extend my reach through, but not a soul to manipulate either. Lost and alone in the frozen wastes.”

“My heart goes out to you,” Pinkie muttered sarcastically. “Until the horn was found and sent to Canterlot. Celestia knew being around for too long would be dangerous, so she tasked Twilight with it instead. Before I thought she had just been corrupted by the dark energy coming off it, but it was more than that, you turned her into a temporary vessel; you were pulling her strings all along.”

“If you’re trying to save Twilight in your memories, don’t bother,” Despair cut in. “As your dear Princess told you, I simply extenuated what was already lurking in the darkest corners of her mind.”

“But everything Twilight did…” Octavia said quietly. “All the ponies that died, it was because of you.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie confirmed. “And it didn’t even end there, Twilight was only a temporary host, her death simply pushed you back to the horn, and the next pony you would come into contact with was Fluttershy.”

“But how?” Rarity asked, still stunned. “When did Fluttershy ever find that accursed horn?”

“The letter in Celestia’s room,” Pinkie reminded her. “It said somepony had tried to steal it, but what if that wasn’t the case at all, what if coming across it was an accident.”

“An accident she would never fully regret,” Despair finished. “Canterlot is a big place, it wasn't sweet little Fluttershy’s fault when she got lost breaking in with Rainbow Dash to visit you in your time of need. It certainly wasn’t her fault when she stumbled upon me. Oh, I had lost all hope of ever achieving freedom. Twilight Sparkle's schemes failed before I could bind with her completely, and I was sure I would never get another opportunity like it again… Until she came.

“A fragile little thing,” Despair continued in a deep, sickening voice. “Just having learned one of her dearest friends had died alongside many others, and that a friend she cared… very dearly about was in trouble. She was the perfect candidate, so much turmoil, so much despair, all I had to do was reach out, to plant a single tiny seed. I didn’t have long, the guards quickly came to investigate the break in, but I had been successful. I was inside her mind, all I needed was to grow there and I would have my second chance.”

“What did you offer her?” Pinkie asked in a low voice. “With Twilight you simply tapped into her id, but Fluttershy… what did you offer her?”

Despair grinned wickedly at Pinkie Pie, her whole form somehow growing darker.

“You.”

Pinkie was as still as a statue as she stared at the grinning façade of Despair.

“Me?” Pinkie replied confused.

“Are you really so surprised?” Despair asked in a slow, mocking voice. “Did you really have no idea? You always claimed to understand ponies, to know everything about them, and yet when it came to one of your dearest friends you were utterly oblivious to how she truly felt.”

“That can’t be!” Pinkie snapped, sounding a little desperate. She looked over at Rarity who was squirming uncomfortably. “Rarity?”

“She never said,” Rarity replied, not meeting Pinkie’s eye. “But I always had an inkling.”

“Don’t feel too bad,” Despair continued, chuckling slightly at Pinkie’s shock. “She only ever confided in Rainbow Dash, sure that if there was anypony she could trust it was her childhood friend… She never would have predicted Rainbow Dash could be so cruel in her final moments.”

Pinkie’s eyes went slightly wider as she remembered what Fluttershy had said as well as the line in Rainbow’s suicide note.

She brought up some… personal things.

Fluttershy, I’m sorry for what I said.

“All she wanted was for things to go back to the way they were,” Despair said, still smiling sadistically at the others horror. “When I told her I could grant her wish, that I could turn back the clock and make it so the terrible things you suffered never happened, Fluttershy leapt at the opportunity. I had her in my grasp, she carried everything I commanded of her all the while clinging to her naïve hope that I would stay true to my word and make everything right.

“Such a fool,” Despair added. “Such a delusional, love sick fool. But in the end if it wasn’t for her, none of this would have happened, I would not be here, and for that I am deeply appreciative.”

“You…” Rarity began, her whole body shaking with rage. “You monster! How could you do that to her?! To us?! What could any of this possibly achieve?”

“Pinkie already told you,” Despair answered. “I need a host to assume direct control of my powers. But it can’t be any host; it needs to be a true host, a vessel that embodies my spirit completely. As adequately as Fluttershy has served me, she is not worthy of being the host I take when I reveal myself to the world. No, that was supposed to be Twilight, the Princess of Magic.”

“But Twilight’s gone,” Octavia pointed out warily, still watching Despair with narrowed eyes.

“Yes, most disappointing that her plan failed and she was killed before I could achieve my own goals,” Despair admitted. “But, I’m not disappointed, because during her little game I found someone else. Somepony who would make a far greater host.”

“Me,” Pinkie stated coldly.

“Precisely,” Despair replied. “Once again Pinkie it was all about you, all those ponies died because of you. My host needs to be overcome by negative emotion, so I had to throw you into the one thing that could achieve complete and utter despair, the very game you had fought so hard to escape. Luckily for me, Twilight had left quite a lot of spare pieces behind from the last one, it was easy to set this up. I just needed the perfect moment where all the players could be reliably gathered and then our game could begin thanks to the machines Twilight had so kindly left for me.”

“So this is it,” Pinkie murmured. “Everything that you’ve done, everyone who’s died, all because of me… again.”

Pinkie’s head snapped up, her nostrils flaring and her eyes wide with anger.

“This is why you killed my sister!” she bellowed.

Despair raised an eyebrow slightly.

“You said you didn’t control the nightmares,” Pinkie recalled, “but you were talking out your ass. You used those creatures to trail us around the castle as was necessary so you could raid my room and steal the knife before pushing us all to our designated areas so you could murder Maud. She never would have suspected Fluttershy of being your thrall; you could have gotten right up in her face before you stuck the knife in her.”

Despair was still smirking at Pinkie, not saying a word.

“Only the Mastermind, having complete control over the environment could have made the crime scene as confusing as it was,” Pinkie continued, still furious. “Not to mention all the red herrings like Octavia’s hair and the clean dress and… Everything!”

Pinkie seethed with rage, gripping the bench in front of her, staring daggers at Despair even as she continued to smile back at her.

“You killed my sister,” Pinkie stated, her breath laboured. “You’re the final murderer, admit it.”

“No,” Despair replied after a split second of silence.

Pinkie took a double take.

“Oh I’m sorry,” Despair said laughing. “Were you expecting a confession? Well I hate to disappoint you, but I did not kill your sister. I guess your winning streak had to end sometime.”

“What?!” Pinkie exclaimed. “But… it had to have been you. You’re the Mastermind!”

“Yes, indeed I am,” Despair acknowledged. “But there’s no rule stating that I have to be the final killer. Besides, I never lied, at least, not about the nightmares. I have no more control over them than you do, and now that I’ve been separated from the machines I can’t even confine them.”

“But… but…” Pinkie stammered, making Despair’s grin grow even wider so that it was now a gruesome gash splitting Fluttershy’s head in two. “Then who? Who else could it have been?”

Pinkie looked between Rarity and Octavia, the former still trembling with fear and revulsion and the latter shaken but trying to remain calm.

“That’s for you to figure out,” Despair replied. “Which of your friends will you sentence? Oh, and don’t forget that you need at least three votes in order to pass the verdict. Needless to say, I will not be voting.”

Pinkie felt the blood drain from her face; she knew exactly what that meant. Rarity, Octavia and herself all had to agree on the same suspect if they were to have any hopes of winning, but if the killer was one of them and they weren’t prepared to confess…

“We’ll lose,” Pinkie finished out loud, her voice hollow.

“What?!” Rarity exclaimed. “No, we can’t lose now. Surely we can still figure this out.”

Pinkie glanced at Octavia; she could see the gears turning behind her eyes while she clutched her head, trying desperately to piece it together herself.

“I…” Pinkie uttered, her eyes swivelling in desperate panic.

Rarity watched her, her own eyes wide and full of fear. Octavia glanced between her and Despair, her jaw grinding as if she was struggling to understand something. Despair simply smiled, its breathing becoming more fervent and animalistic as it watched Pinkie struggle.

“I…” Pinkie said again, searching through her saddlebags for something, anything that could be of use.

“Pinkie!” Octavia shouted, suddenly sounding terrified.

Pinkie was too focused on trying to deduce the crime to notice what Octavia had seen, that the darkness around Despair was growing more intense, creeping out over the courtyard, feeling through the air like shadowy tentacles.

“I don’t know,” Pinkie admitted, her whole body shaking as she stared down at her hooves.

“It’s over Pinkie,” Despair began, a new purr in its voice. “You put all your chips into me being the killer and you came out broke. The trial is at an end, and you have no more suspects. You… Have… Lost”

“What…” Pinkie began, her voice weak. “What will happen now?”

“The machines are deactivated,” Despair replied. “Destroyed even, there’s no stopping the shift back. Soon Canterlot will return, and while I had preferred to take a more ideal host, Fluttershy will serve me well enough. When I take her as my true vessel, my powers will be limitless, no longer will the Princesses’ pitiful stone armour be enough to save them from me. Once they have been removed I will reveal myself to the rest of Equestria and the true suffering can begin, to which you will have a front row seat.”

“Pinkie, don’t listen to him!” Octavia shouted, trying desperately to get through to Pinkie who still stood paralysed. “If he could do that he would have by now. He’s just lying to make you…”

Octavia didn’t get any further as a jet black chain burst from the pool before her and wrapped around Octavia’s neck, silencing her instantly as she began to choke.

“Don’t think,” Despair hissed, briefly turning his attention to her, no longer smiling. “That I’ve forgotten about you. I look forward to torturing you later and finding out exactly why you’re here at all.”

Pinkie barely took notice of this interaction, still frozen. Rarity took this opportunity to turn to Pinkie and attempt to get through to her.

“Pinkie, please!” Rarity begged. “You have to think of something, you always do.”

“I can’t,” Pinkie whispered, unable to look up.

“If he wins then everypony dies for nothing!” Rarity exclaimed, tears welling up in her eyes. “Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash… all of them.”

“And Fluttershy…” Pinkie added, craning her neck so that she was once more face to face with Despair.

She deserves to be happy.

“I’ll try Rainbow,” Pinkie muttered to herself before raising her voice. “You want me as your vessel, don’t you?”

Despair didn’t say anything, just flashed her a sickly grin as usual.

“If I do…” Pinkie continued hesitantly, “what will happen to Fluttershy?”

“What do you want to happen to her?” Despair asked smoothly.

“I want her to be happy,” Pinkie replied. “Even if she’s the only one I can save…”

“Then you have my word,” Despair assured her. “Fluttershy will be… happy.”

“Pinkie, you can’t be serious!” Rarity exclaimed, horrified at what Pinkie was saying.

“It’s over Rarity,” Pinkie muttered in response, not meeting her friend’s eye. “We lost; I might as well get something out of it.”

“But you never lose!” Rarity insisted. “There has to be another way!”

Pinkie glanced at Octavia who was clearly struggling to breath with the chain cutting off her windpipe. The look in Octavia’s eyes was a haunting one, a look of betrayal. Pinkie turned back to Despair, her mind set.

“I’ll be your host,” she said, her voice echoing the despair she felt in her heart.

Time held still for a second after the words left Pinkie’s mouth. Rarity stared in horror at her, while Octavia struggled to remain conscious as the chain tightened around her throat. Pinkie stood up straight, but there was no energy in her stance, just grim acceptance. Despair was its most inequine, Fluttershy’s face utterly torn apart by Despair’s disturbing visage, his dark influence fully enveloping the courtyard around them, reaching down around Pinkie like nightmarish claws.

The explosion was both instantaneous as it was devastating.

All at once, the darkness ripped free from Fluttershy’s body which snapped taught in response, at which point it began rushing through the air to its new and willing host. Pinkie briefly recalled the end of the first game, when all Twilight’s magic was forced back into her body. She wondered if this would a similar experience, she wondered if it would hurt…

It didn’t just hurt, it was the single most excruciating feeling she had ever experienced. The ice cold feeling washing over her body as something unnatural forced its way into every single cell of her body, taking root in the very deepest corners of her mind making her feel like her whole head was about to explode and rain blood down on the courtyard.

It only lasted a few seconds for Rarity and Octavia, who were both forced to their knees by the sudden surge of dark energy all around them, the latter free from the chain that had been whisked away along with the rest of Despair’s power. For Pinkie it felt like it was never going to end, a few seconds stretched out into an eternity.

Eventually, after what could have been eons, Pinkie’s body collapsed to the ground, limp and unaware.

At last…

At last, after a thousand years of isolation swiftly followed by years of imprisonment in a horn fragment, Despair was free, truly and utterly free to spread its will and influence to the farthest corners of Equestria and beyond. This body was his, completely his. He could feel the long, straight curtains hanging over his face; this body could still do with a little remodelling.

But no rush, we have plenty of time for that. Right now I’m going to savour this moment, how best to do that?

There was really no question in Despair’s mind, while he had plans for Octavia, Rarity was of no use. As of right now she was his play thing, a pony sized doll to test his new powers on.

Smirking slightly, Despair made to stand up, to reveal himself in all his terrible glory to the two ponies who were most likely quaking with fear…

But nothing happened.

Hmm?

Despair tried again, but again yielded no results. Perhaps he was out of practice controlling a body directly like this, but it should have been as simple as willing it, and yet the signals didn’t seem to be reaching his new legs.

Forgetting something?

Despair froze as the voice echoed inside his own skull, the voice that should have been eclipsed.

Impossible!

Despair felt himself stand up, but this time he wasn’t the one commanding it. He could feel his limbs acting in rebellion, obeying a power that was not his own. He felt his new mouth open, felt the lips form words, and heard Pinkie Pie’s voice emit.

“We’re still on trial,” she announced, her voice was unsteady but determined.

Now that they were standing up straight, Despair could see through Pinkie’s eyes at the others. Rarity and Octavia both stood, staring with a mixture of apprehension and confusion. Fluttershy lay crumpled just as Despair had left her.

What is this?!

A second ago Despair had felt liberated, but now the very body that had been responsible felt like a brand new prison as he began to feel something re-emerge all around him. It was…

It can’t be! You were broken, beaten, you lost everything! How can you still have this much strength? How did you hide it from me?!

“It’s alright,” Pinkie Pie said, ignoring Despair’s voice raging inside her head, instead addressing her friends. “It’s me; I’m keeping him at bay.”

“But how?” Rarity asked, the tiniest amount of hope now shining through in her voice.

“It’s all part of the plan,” Pinkie replied calmly.

Plan? What plan?! You lost, your sister is dead!

Yes, she is… but like I said, we’re still on trial, which leaves the question, who really killed Maud?

Despair didn’t respond, if he had eyes he could control they’d be twitching right about now. The truth was, while he hadn’t carried out the murder or made Fluttershy do it, he in turn had no idea who the killer was. As Mastermind he saw everything that happened, but somehow, impossibly, this one murder evaded his eyes.

Pinkie Pie took a breath using the body that was very much still under her control, all the while Despair screamed internally at what was happening.

“My name is Pinkamena Diane Pie,” Pinkie began suddenly, silencing Despair. “And I murdered my sister Maud Pie.”

“What?!” Rarity uttered, looking shocked.

“What?” Octavia muttered, looking amazed.

What?! No! It can’t be, you loved your sister, why would you ever do that?!

“There was one thing I may have failed to tell you girls about Despair,” Pinkie continued, Despair shut up and listened intently, feeling something he had never felt before growing inside his spirit. “The spirits are eternal, but when they take a true host they can be destroyed… when the host dies.”

NO!

“No!” Rarity screamed. “Pinkie, please tell me this isn’t what I think it is!”

Pinkie looked at Rarity apologetically.

“We had no choice,” Pinkie explained. “Maud and I have accepted our sacrifice. I’m only sorry we didn’t realise sooner, we might have been able to save more…”

I won’t allow this! You think you can trick me, I am the Mastermind! This is my game; I can end it whenever I say!

Despair reached out with his power, feeling for the intricate magical webbing constructed throughout the courtroom. He tried to sever it, to call the game off, but try as he might nothing worked. Every attempt he made was met with blockades and failure.

I wonder if there was ever a small part of Twilight that knew you were manipulating her. That tried to fight back? Perhaps it was the part that made sure the game was so perfect, predicting this moment, making sure that you would not be able to dig your way out.

Despair wanted to scream as the memory off all those documents Twilight had wrote came flooding back, all the hours of testing and retesting, the constant improving until the game was a metaphorical fortress of rules and regulations, just as Twilight adored. Could it really be though, that she had done it all to defy him?

While Despair struggled to find a loophole in Twilight’s plans that would allow him to call this off, Pinkie turned her attention to Octavia.

“Octavia…” she began.

Octavia met her eyes, and there seemed to be a moment of understanding pass between them.

“Thank you,” Pinkie finished, smiling.

“No Pinkie,” Octavia replied, her own smile quivering as her eyes began shining with tears she refused to let spill. “Thank you… for not letting it be in vain.”

As if on cue, the dials before them lit up.

“I guess you passed that test after all,” Octavia said with a smirk as she turned her own dial.

Despair’s screams became incoherent as Pinkie’s face swam to the surface of the pool in front of Octavia; Pinkie just ignored him as she turned to Rarity who was quite openly crying.

“Rarity…” Pinkie began, but Rarity quickly cut her off.

“No! I won’t do it!” she screamed. “I won’t sentence one of my friends to die.”

“Rarity, if you don’t,” Pinkie began again, “then everyone who’s died, Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow, it was all for nothing. But more than that, how many ponies do you think will die if we don’t end Despair once and for all. Think about Spike, think about Sweetie Belle.”

“But what about you?” Rarity retorted. “After everything you’ve done, is this the ending you deserve? It’s not fair!”

“No, it’s not fair,” Pinkie agreed with a slight sniff. “But how many ponies didn’t get the endings they deserved because of Despair? How many more will lose theirs if he is allowed to escape?”

Rarity’s body began to give out as her whole body was wracked with sobs, but she caught herself on the bench in front of her. Pinkie didn’t say anything, she simply waited, allowing the sound of her friend’s anguish drown out the raging Despair inside her. After a few minutes Rarity’s horn glowed with a faint blue aura, and Pinkie heard the clicking of the dial and saw her face appear moments later.

“Thank you Rarity,” Pinkie whispered, but Rarity didn’t answer, unable to look up.

You can’t do this… You can’t, I won’t let you!

Despair reached out one last time, using every ounce of power he had to try and take control of Pinkie’s body. But try as he might, he felt his power sapped, as the images of all the ponies who had died flashed before his vision.

I can… for them.

Pinkie reached out and turned her own dial right around until it was once again pointing at herself. Despair let out a wail that threatened to shatter Pinkie's skull as the pool rippled and the three faces of Pinkie Pie vanished to be replaced by the clock hands which began their rotation of the pool.

Suddenly as Despair watched the hands speed up, he was overcome by the feeling he had never known, the feeling that would haunt him for all of eternity…

Fear.

This!

The hands were a blur as they sped around the pool.

Isn’t!

The hand began to slow down, the seconds to their demise literally ticking away before their eyes.

Happening!

The hands came to their final resting place, overlapping one another, pointing directly at Pinkie Pie. Pinkie opened her mouth one last time, even as the runes flashed beneath her.

“Game Over!”

Day 15, 19:40

Maud peered into the dark well, turning her nose up at the smell.

“So this is where you woke up when this all began?” she asked Pinkie who was standing against the wall, sorting through her saddlebags. “How did you end up here?”

“I’m not sure but…” Pinkie began, smirking slightly. “I think an old friend was looking out for me. Our computers don’t work in this area, so the Mastermind is blind to us while we’re here.”

Maud didn’t reply, she just stepped back from the well and watched as Pinkie withdrew Twilight’s documents along with Trixie’s mental assessment.

“Did you have any trouble destroying the hourglass?” Pinkie asked as she approached the well.

“Not really,” Maud replied. “Octavia showed up while it was falling apart, but I was able to pretend it had done it itself. Although I did manage to get a bit of her hair.”

Maud passed the hair over to Pinkie in a small plastic sample bag from the infirmary.

“Hopefully she won’t be any the wiser,” Pinkie stated as she accepted the bag. “Nopony came by while I destroyed the orrery so there are no complications there.”

“And the clock?” Maud asked.

“It fell apart after the horn was removed,” Pinkie reminded her. “While it’s not exactly destroyed, it’s not functioning either, and once I get the designs from Octavia and have them destroyed, nopony will be able to fix them.”

“We can’t allow Despair to fall back on them,” Maud pointed out. “And after all the trouble they’ve caused, I doubt anyone will miss them.”

“No,” Pinkie agreed as she stared down at Twilight’s documents. “Good riddance.”

With that she cast the documents into the well, debating over Trixie’s assessment for only a moment before throwing it in as well. She then pulled the picture of Twilight’s family out of her bag, which she had pieced back together after taking it apart to get the key to the book.

“I’ll sneak this into Rarity’s bag,” Pinkie explained, looking at it one last time before putting it back in her own bags. “She already has Rainbow’s letter, I’m sure she’ll know what to do with this.”

“And the gun?” Maud asked.

Pinkie grimaced, it was the only factor she couldn’t account for, the wild card that could royally screw up their plan.

“I never found it,” Pinkie admitted. “But I don’t think Fluttershy has it, so it should be okay.”

“About Fluttershy…” Maud began, noticing Pinkie flinch at the mention. “Do you think she’ll come out of this alive?”

“No,” Pinkie whispered. “I’ll have to act like I think there’s a possibility but… Fluttershy was dead the moment she took that horn. There’s nothing we can do for her besides granting her peace.”

Maud walked over to Pinkie and pulled her into a gentle hug.

“I’m sorry,” Pinkie muttered. “I just feel bad… I had so many opportunities to be honest with her, to let her down, but I could never do it. I just didn’t have it in me to tell her I didn’t feel the same way.”

“Rejection is hard on everyone,” Maud stated. “Especially between close friends.”

Pinkie sighed as she pulled out of her sister’s embrace and paced around the courtyard. Maud watched her sister, biting her own lip as she thought.

“Pinkie…” she began, her voice a little desperate. “Are you sure there isn’t another way?”

Pinkie looked up in surprise.

“Not for me I mean,” Maud rectified. “I don’t mind dying if it means stopping Despair. But does it have to be you? Couldn’t we try to trick Despair into doing it himself?”

“No Maud, it has to be me,” Pinkie replied solemnly.

“But…” Maud began, only to be cut off.

“You were right Maud,” Pinkie said as she looked down at her hooves. “I’m not the pony I once was. This game… it’s changed me. There’s no place for me out there, not this Pinkie Pie. No, it has to be me. It began with me and it will end with me.”

Maud sighed and approached her sister.

“I’m not going to lie,” she began, “I wish you didn’t have to do this. But I’m not going to stand in your way, if you really feel like you have to do this… then I’ll stand by you. We’ll be together just like we always have.”

“Thank you Maud,” Pinkie replied hoarsely.

There was a moment of silence as Maud internally debated over coming clean or not, eventually she spoke up.

“Pinkie…” she began hesitantly. “There’s something you need to know, something I haven’t been honest about.”

“I know,” Pinkie replied simply.

“You know?” Maud repeated, her eyes wide with shock.

“I always knew,” Pinkie stated with a sad smile. “I knew you never ate those rock candy necklaces, I knew why you really made them with me and I loved you all the more for it.”

“Oh,” Maud said, slightly unsure. “Yeah… that’s it.”

Pinkie pulled her into a tight hug, burying her face in the nape of Maud’s neck so that she didn’t see the pained expression on her sister’s face. When Pinkie pulled back, Maud saw that her eyes were welling up with tears. She reached out and brushed away a few strays that had begun sliding down Pinkie’s cheeks.

“We should do this now,” Maud stated, Pinkie nodded with forced determination.

Reaching over, Maud dipped into Pinkie’s saddlebags, pulling out the knife.

“Deception,” Maud muttered as she placed the knife in Pinkie’s hooves. “Fitting.”

Pinkie shook from head to tail as her grip on the knife tightened. Planning had been one thing, but now that she was here, the true magnitude of what she was about to do caught up with her.

“It’s going to be alright Pinkie,” Maud assured her, although her own voice betrayed her fear at dying.

The pair stepped closer together so they were almost embracing, their foreheads resting against one another, their breathing heavy.

“It’s okay,” Maud whispered. “You are not alone.”

Pinkie gave a small smile, as she remembered the most distant of memories.

“Neither are you,” she replied.

Both sisters held each other closely, their faces buried in one another’s shoulders. Maud felt one of Pinkie’s hooves slip away from her own, that was the only warning she received before she felt the blade pierce her body. Once the blade was well hurried in Maud’s chest, Pinkie relaxed her grip on her sister, lowering her to the ground.

Maud’s body convulsed, her breathing became erratic as she went into shock. She reached up with a shaking hoof and pulled Pinkie head down so her ear was just over Maud’s mouth. From there Maud fervently whispered something with her last breaths, but Pinkie only made out two words.

Love… You…

The pain Pinkie felt now was nothing, she liked to think no amount of pain could equate to that of having Despair force into her body. She felt herself hanging in an upright position, her limbs spread out, the source of the pain at the end of each hoof. Craning her neck weakly she could see a large meat hook driven straight through her leg, attached to a chain which trailed off into the darkness. All her limbs were the same, a gruesome hook butchered through them, stretching them out so she was hung spread eagle.

Despair continued to thrash and screech inside her body, but she had long since stopped caring about when he had to say. As she hung there in the pitch black waiting for her executioner to come along, she briefly noticed how her own blood washed down her legs, absolutely ruining her dress. She could imagine Rarity having a fit over the state of it, the thought made her smile.

Never let go of that part of yourself, never stop smiling.

There was a loud clanging noise as all around her the darkness was banished, the entire room she was hanging becoming filled with light, revealing her executioner.

Mounted several metres ahead of her on a metal frame, was a very big gun. It had about a dozen long barrels in a circular formation, all pointing towards her. From the back of the gun she noticed dozens of long belts trailing down, comprised of hundreds of shiny golden bullets clipped together. Pinkie knew those belts would be fed into the machine and it would fire every one of those bullets into her, she would be ripped apart in a storm of bullets until only four hooves dangling from chains were left.

Pinkie’s smile widened, a funny feeling rising in her gut. Before she knew what was happened she was sniggering.

What is so funny?!

Pinkie tried to answer, but her laughter quickly turned into guffaws making it hard to breathe.

How can you laugh when you’re about to die?!

A loud whirring noise began as the gun barrels began rotating slowly, much like the clock hands steadily picking up speed, clicking as they did. But the noise of the gun warming up couldn’t drown out the sound of Pinkie’s laughter.

“A storm of bullets!” Pinkie exclaimed breathlessly through her mirth. “Get it?!”

Pinkie burst into another fit of giggles as tears of joy spilled from her eyes, a soft springing noise as her poker straight mane burst into a mess of curls. Her laughter only faltered as the first bullet shot out of the gun and tore through her, flying straight out the other side. She refused to let it stop her though, using every ounce of her dying strength to keep the laughter alive even as the bullets rained into her.

The laughter died away eventually, but its echo seemed to last forever in the chamber, and the bullets firing out in their thousands couldn’t drown it out, even when Pinkie Pie and Despair were long gone, ripped apart in a bullet storm.

Author's Note

...
I'm not really sure what to say here, I think I'll let the story speak for itself.
In relation to theories, nobody was completely right, however some people picked up on tid bits of information here and there. So shout outs to Lunaria, Basic13 and ClickClackTheBrony, all had excellent theories in their own rights and managed to identify many correct details. I'd love to give additional shout outs to everyone who commented regularly, but I'd be loathe to accidentally leave someone out, so instead I'll just give a big thank you to everyone who commented, whether you were offering a theory or just leaving a random statement, I appreciate it all.
This leaves only the Epilogue... and some other stuff.

Epilogue: Broken Promise

“It’s over,” Octavia said, taking a seat on the grass. “It’s finally over.”

She didn’t get any response, but then she didn’t expect to get one. She sat just outside the city of Canterlot, in a secluded place very close to her heart. She met the stony gaze of her sole companion and continued her story.

“I’m happy to say that all the inhabitants of Canterlot as well as the guests of the Gala are safe,” she explained. “All over Canterlot they’re stirring, to them it will be as if they are waking up from a long sleep. I wish I could say the same for the rest of Equestria though, but over two weeks of endless night will have done some serious damage, they probably thought Nightmare Moon had returned or something. Really it couldn’t be less true, before I left to come here, Luna was raising the sun. I don’t know if Celestia will ever be able to show her face again.

“They didn’t stick around for very long after Canterlot was restored,” Octavia continued. “I get the feeling they were fully aware of what was going on while they were petrified. Discord especially was disturbed, he took one look at Fluttershy’s body and vanished. I doubt he’ll be making another appearance for a while.”

Octavia thoughts drifted back as she spoke, it had only been a few minutes after the image of Pinkie’s remains had faded from the pool that the entire castle had begun to shake and the final shift to the true Canterlot had begun. Octavia held on for dear life as all of time and space were pulled and pushed repeatedly, rectifying the damage that had been done. When it was all over and Octavia was able to open her eyes, she found herself sprawled in the luscious gardens of Canterlot, just before the gates to the Castle, which she only noticed now to be eerily reminiscent of the other castle’s gates.

The first thing she saw when she began to move was Fluttershy, quite clearly dead. She still had the horn protruding from her skull, although now it was bleached white, the colour of any other bone in her body. Her wings were matted and mangled, but her face was mercifully restored, no longer nightmarishly disfigured but… peaceful. She wondered if Despair had lied… or if death was what would have made Fluttershy happy, to be with Pinkie again.

“Only Rarity and I were left,” Octavia said after a moment of thoughtful silence. “She was a terrible state, I can’t blame her though. She had just crawled out of a harrowing ordeal, losing all her closest friends. Maybe I should have stayed and comforted her but… I wouldn’t know what to say, you were always far better at empathising with ponies than I was.”

Again she was met with only silence in response, and again she wasn’t surprised at that at all.

“Besides, she has her family to return to,” Octavia reasoned. “She has Spike, the love of her life. I know it’ll be hard, but given enough time, she will heal.”

Octavia rubbed her weary eyes; they still felt raw from the tears she would never admit to shedding.

“I guess that only leaves Pinkie,” Octavia said, beaming at her companion. “You were absolutely right, if there was anypony strong enough to defeat Despair, it was her. Over time, especially in the end, I really came to understand what it was you saw in her. She was one of a kind, much like yourself… Vinyl.”

Octavia smiled sadly at the headstone. It was a simple feature, a slab of stone with the name ‘Vinyl Scratch’ engraved on it, followed shortly by the legend ‘Party On’ and her cutie mark emblazoned above it all. Vinyl would have loved it; she always loved this place, the one place she would go to get away from her the stresses of everyday life, the one place they shared with no one but each other. Before Octavia realised it, she was crying again as she ran a hoof over the soil that separated her and Vinyl.

“I’m sorry,” she muttered, whipping her eyes. “I just can’t believe it’s finally over. I felt so lost when you disappeared, but when you called me up, when you told me everything that had happened… I didn’t know if I could see it through, so many times I felt like giving up… giving in. But it’s actually over…”

Octavia unstrapped her saddlebags and set them on the ground next to her. Opening them up, she found them empty apart from one object, glinting at the back.

“I admit,” she continued. “My faith in Pinkie began to waver slightly towards the end, I suppose that was why the connection I created broke, I suppose that’s why I took this…”

Octavia pulled the revolver from the bag, holding it out between her and the headstone, her eyes captivated by the weapon.

“I know I made a promise to you,” Octavia began, the prongs in her hoof computer snapping out as she struck it. “I promised that when this was all over I’d move on, I’d live my life, that I’d try and find happiness elsewhere… but I can’t.”

Octavia slipped the revolver into the prongs of her gauntlet where it sat snugly.

“I’m sorry Vinyl,” she continued in a perfectly calm voice. “I’m not strong enough to keep that promise.”

Reaching up she tugged on her pink bowtie. As it unfurled she pulled it off her and draped it over the headstone. With the revolver secured, she raised her leg so that the barrel of the gun was pressed to the side of her head. Octavia sniffed as a final tear ran down her cheek.

“See you soon Vinyl.”

One twitch was all it took.

Author's Note

There we have it, two stories and roughly 240,000 words later, The End.
Of course you may be left with many questions, but fear not, for I will be releasing two bonus chapters in the near future that shall shine light on many of the mysteries left unsolved, including Trixie's true involvement in the plot, an insight into Fluttershy's experience and more.
I guess that leaves one final thing to be said which is simply thank you for taking the time to read this story and presumably its predecessor, they've been tonnes of fun to conceive and write, I especially enjoyed the reader interaction it got, you've all been wonderful and your continuing interest insured that I saw these stories through to the end.
With everything said and done, I'll leave you with a word from our sponsors:
Sarovian Sanguine (my editor... who hasn't done any actual editing for me for some time): "All glory to the hypno-toad" (I have a funny feeling he never read this story at all)
Chloewhatwatt (cried at the end): When asked for a quote she shrugged and said "ah, I don't know" (she's still sore I didn't kill Redheart)
MGOtaku (still absentee proofreader): seriously man, where are you?! Your family is really worried, if you see this call me!
My friends suck.

See As I See...

Author's Note

A short, two part bonus chapter, detailing Fluttershy's experiences during the second game.

See As I See...

“What the heck do you mean we can’t see her?!”

Fluttershy recoiled as Rainbow Dash screamed into the face of the two armoured guards standing between them and the castle doors.

“Rainbow…” Fluttershy whispered, but was quickly silenced.

“Our orders are clear Miss Dash,” one of the guards replied in a stalwart voice. “Your friend is not to be disturbed while our investigation is underway. When we know all the facts and are satisfied, you will be permitted to visit her if she wishes.”

“Screw your investigation!” Rainbow bellowed. “We just found out that one of our best friends is… is gone, and another is in there right now, in Celestia only knows what kind of state. You don’t get to stand there and tell us we can’t see her!”

The guards pre-emptively assumed a defensive position as Rainbow Dash talked, her whole body slowly becoming more aggressive with each word she spoke. Before they could respond however, the doors behind them burst open and Princess Celestia stormed out, bearing down over Rainbow and Fluttershy in all her terrible glory.

“Rainbow Dash, what is the meaning of this behaviour?” Celestia demanded, her voice stripped of its usual compassion, causing Fluttershy to cower even further back.

“Princess Celestia, we heard about Twilight and Pinkie,” Rainbow began, her tone changing from angry to desperate in the presence of the Princess. “Please let us go see her. She needs…”

“Rainbow Dash that’s enough!” Celestia snapped, causing Rainbow to flinch as if she had just been struck. “Pinkie Pie is in a terrible state, she has just been through an awful ordeal. If you truly cared for your friend then you would allow her the peace she needs to recover instead of barging in here forcing your presence on her.”

“But…” Rainbow began weakly.

“Do you not think,” Celestia cut across, “that if seeing you all would have helped her, I would have arranged it myself? I have ordered that you remain away until we deem that it is safe, and you will obey. Do I make myself clear?”

Rainbow nodded stiffly, apparently unable to speak. Celestia didn’t offer any more words before she turned and exited the way she came, the door slamming shut behind her.

With Rainbow Dash more complacent, Fluttershy was able to usher her away from the two guards who were now staring daggers at them. Once they were far out of sight and earshot however, Rainbow snapped back into focus, the fire reigniting in her eyes.

“That… that witch!” she exclaimed, causing Fluttershy to gasp in horror. “She doesn’t know what she’s talking about, she doesn’t know anything! Well forget her, and forget what she says, we don’t need her permission to see Pinkie, we’ll find our own way in.”

“Rainbow, no!” Fluttershy squealed, horrified by her best friends sudden rage. “Maybe the Princess is right, what if Pinkie really shouldn’t see us right now?”

As the words left her mouth, her mind was suddenly assaulted with the horrific images that she had been trying desperately to keep at bay since they had heard about their friends’ accident. Images of Pinkie’s body, bloody and broken on a hospital bed, kept barely alive by the system of tubes and machines piercing into her body. Images of Pinkie sitting still and alone in the corner of a dark room, her mane hanging limp around her, her eyes devoid of the life Fluttershy knew and loved. Somehow the second scenario was just as scary to Fluttershy as the first.

She felt herself being pulled into a tight embrace.

“It’s going to be okay Fluttershy, Pinkie’s going to be okay,” Rainbow assured her, or maybe she was assuring herself. “But whatever’s happened, whatever experiment of Twilight’s messed up, she needs us now more than ever. You know I’m right, and I know you want to be by her side even more than I do.”

Fluttershy nodded dumbly, as she allowed Rainbow to lead her into a private courtyard, barely aware as her friend began searching for a way to sneak in.

Fluttershy felt like her lungs were going to burst as she pressed herself up against the pillar. She knew this was a mistake, and yet she let Rainbow lead her on anyway. Now they were separated, and she was hiding for dear life from a pair of patrolling guards, not even daring to breathe lest they realise she were there. Only when their hoofsteps faded far off into the distance and she was sure she was alone, did she begin taking large panicky gulps of air.

She had to get out of here, before she was caught and thrown in a dungeon for disobeying the Princess’s orders. But she couldn’t leave Rainbow on her own, wherever she had gotten herself to, and she still hadn’t found Pinkie Pie. She needed to see her, if only for a second to assure herself that she would be okay.

Peeling herself from the safety of the pillar she darted down the castle corridor, her ears pricked for the slightest sound that would indicate more guards. As she tried desperately and failed tremendously to navigate the castle, her mind drifted to thoughts of Twilight, of the friend that was apparently amongst the living no more.

It had begun as rumours, ending in full blown media coverage. Papers that had for weeks been keeping everypony updated on the desperate search for Princess Twilight Sparkle, were now sharing the terrible story of her demise resulting from a tragic accident surrounding a magical experiment. The news had come to her and Rainbow Dash from Scootaloo, who had seen the headline during her delivery route and dropped everything she was doing to come find them.

Not ten minutes later, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were in the air, speeding off to Canterlot, leaving Scootaloo with the instructions to relay the news to Rarity and Applejack.

They could have waited for the two ground bound ponies to arrive, they could have tried appealing to Celestia’s better nature again, they could have done many more rational things than break into the royal palace of Canterlot. But Fluttershy had made her choice, or allowed her choice to made for her, and now she was hopelessly lost with only the thought of Twilight’s apparent demise and Pinkie’s unknown fate to keep her going.

Fluttershy…

She came to a shuddering stop, a shiver running up her spine as she heard the voice. Someone had found her, it was all over. However, as she slowly looked back over her shoulder she was surprised to find the chamber she was in to be completely empty but for herself. She stood statue still for what felt like the longest time, the silence almost deafening.

Fluttershy…

There it was again, she didn’t imagine it, but neither had it come from any obvious source. She began pacing the room she was in, only vaguely aware of the stained glass windows lining the walls or the ornate vault door ahead of her.

Fluttershy…

That voice, it was eerily familiar. Without realising it, her hooves had begun leading her towards those tall, imposing doors. Her mind seemed to have slipped, the more the voice called her name, the less aware she felt. Arriving at the doors she found them very slightly ajar, somewhere in the back of her mind this set off alarm bells, but they were swiftly silenced by the voice, repeating its mantra louder and louder.

Reaching out she slid the door open, finding it to be surprisingly light, weightless even, or perhaps she was just losing feeling in her hooves, she couldn’t quite tell. Beyond the door lay a dimly lit, circular room, hardly bigger than a broom closet. At the centre was a plain pedestal, upon which sat a single object of such dull, insignificance. A dark, curved bone, broken at one end, tapered into a sharp point at the other.

It was a horn, a horn that seemed deeply familiar to Fluttershy. She could almost feel it, calling out to her from the depths of her memory. Yet try as she might to grab hold of the memory, it slipped from her grasp, leaving her before the pedestal, utterly clueless to the object placed there, yet inexorably drawn to it.

The voice continued to natter away in her head, the repeated calling of her name now mixed with subtle whispers, speaking directly to a deeper part of her soul. Her right foreleg began to lift off the ground, reaching slowly out to the horn.

I see you there, I can feel you…

Her hoof inched ever closer to the horn.

I know your fears and your sorrows… but I also know your deepest desire… the one thing your heart craves more than anything…

Her hoof was now only a hair width from making contact with the horn, but her mind was beginning to sharpen as the sound of distant voices began drawing closer.

I can help you…

Fluttershy snapped her hoof away, realisation of what she was doing returning to her in an instant. Her head snapped around, her ears swivelling in the direction of the approaching voices. She didn’t have much time, she rushed from the vault, not stopping to close the door behind her, and as quietly as she could slipped out of the chamber, praying that she would find Rainbow Dash soon and the pair could leave.

She didn’t dwell on what occurred in the vault, or wonder about the horn. She didn’t even realise that as she pulled her hoof away from it, she had brushed ever so gently across its cold surface. And she certainly didn’t know that that simple act had been her doom.

Day 0, 22:50

Fluttershy watched as Pinkie charged through the other party guests, and felt a deep ache in her chest.

“Oh Pinkie…” she whispered to herself, sniffing back the tears that were threatening to overcome her.

With a small sigh she spread her wings and took off from the ground, all the gathered ponies far too occupied with their own chatter to notice one Pegasus flying away. Even if anyone did it was easy for Fluttershy to fade into the darkness of the night sky as she flapped her way towards the higher towers of Canterlot castle.

Don’t worry Pinkie; soon everything will be back to the way it was. I’ll make you smile again, I promise you that.

It pained Fluttershy to lie to Pinkie Pie, to any of her friends, but she knew they wouldn’t approve of what she doing, the lengths she was going to make it so that Twilight’s failed experiment was a thing of the distant past. When Fluttershy was done, everything would go back to the way it used to be, Twilight would be alive and well, Ponyville would be its old vibrant self, and Pinkie would come home… Pinkie would come back to her.

Fluttershy found an open window which she quickly landed through, relieved at finding the room she was now in to be devoid of any guards. Slipping out through the door she began walking quickly down the corridors, a much better idea of where she was going than the last time she walked these halls on her own. The voice had assured her she would encounter no other ponies on her way to the vault, and it had stayed true to its word, no matter where Fluttershy walked; she found the area surprisingly bare of protection.

Perhaps her invisible ally was using what little power they possessed to deter any guards from her path, it would explain why their voice was utterly absent from Fluttershy’s head. Arriving in the vault chamber with zero encounters, Fluttershy trotted up to the tall purple doors, wishing to get this nefarious business out of the way as quickly as possible so she could begin reaping the rewards of her endeavours.

As she reached the vault, she wasn’t surprised to find the doors ajar for her, just as they had been the last time she had been here. Her heart was beating fast now, this was the moment everything had been leading up to, she would swipe the horn and deliver it to the machines as instructed before anypony would know it was gone. Everything would be the way it was supposed to be before the clock struck midnight.

Fluttershy opened the vault door, and her rapidly beating heart stopped dead in her chest as she saw the pedestal sitting completely vacant.

“Looking for something?” an oh so familiar voice echoed behind her.

Fluttershy slowly pivoted to see Discord standing about midway up the chamber, looking uncharacteristically serious at her.

“Usually vaults are intended to keep ponies from getting their hooves on what lies inside,” Discord continued.

“This one was just lying open,” Fluttershy murmured back in a rare moment of confidence.

Discord’s eyes narrowed.

“Indeed, I will have to have a word with Celestia about her protection spells,” he muttered. “As for you, do you have any idea what kind of forces you’re playing around with?”

“I know exactly what I’m doing,” Fluttershy replied, her voice quavering slightly. “I’m doing what you refused to help me with, I’m going to set things right.”

“Fluttershy, don’t go down that road,” Discord said ominously. “If it was within my power to help you I would have, but it’s like I told you, you can’t change the past, no matter how much you might want to. And even if you could, this is most certainly not the way to do so.”

“It has to be,” Fluttershy insisted. “And if it isn’t I’ll keep looking until I find a way that does work. I won’t stop until things are back to the way they were, I won’t let her suffer anymore.”

“Enough Fluttershy!” Discord shouted, startling her slightly. “You’re the only friend I’ve ever had, I am not about to let you throw your life away by getting into bed with Des…”

He never finished his sentence, for at that moment there was an explosion of light behind him. It began at his back and began enveloping its way around him. Fluttershy simply stared in shock and confusion, and when the light that had completely shrouded Discord faded, he was encased entirely in stone.

Fluttershy blinked once or twice, but otherwise stood perfectly still as she looked at the new Discord statue that had randomly appeared. As she stared however, a figure stepped out from behind it and began limping slowly towards her. Fluttershy tore her gaze from Discord to this newcomer, they were roughly the same size as herself, and most of their body was obscured by a heavy and battered looking cloak. The only part of the pony Fluttershy could make out was the ends of their two forelegs; they seemed blue although it was hard to tell with the amount of scars they bore.

“Fluttershy, isn’t it?” the figure asked, a raspy but distinctly female voice.

“Do… do I know you?” Fluttershy asked, feeling slightly stupid.

“Not very well,” the figure replied. “But I know you, and I know why you’re here, and that’s what’s important.”

She lifted one of the hooves and reached into the folds of her cloak, re-emerging with a familiar curved object resting in her grasp.

The horn!

“After your last little breach of security, they had this moved to a safer location,” the figure explained. “Luckily I was able to obtain it for you, just in time it would seem.”

“You’re helping me?” Fluttershy asked warily, not daring to believe her good fortune.

“In a way,” the figure replied enigmatically. “You’re going down a dark path, but rest assured, it is ultimately the right one.”

Fluttershy was unsure how to reply, even as the stranger placed the horn in her own hooves and turned to walk away.

“Wait!” Fluttershy exclaimed. “What did you do to Discord?”

“He’s fine,” the figure replied, not bothering to turn around again. “As I said, this path you’re on is undoubtedly dark, sacrifices will be made, but I can grant protection to Discord and the Princesses in the form of a prison.”

With that, the figure continued marching, her cloak sweeping as she rounded Discord’s statue and disappeared from view. Fluttershy stared after her for a several minutes before remembering her mission and the horn in her possession. With barely a moment to lose she sprinted from the room, her wings offering her additional speed as she traversed the castle once more in search of the secret room where Twilight rebuilt Starswirl’s machines. There she would place the horn in the clock as she had been directed, and the deal would be fulfilled.

Day 1, 11:32

Fluttershy edged her way into the chamber, finding herself within what appeared to be a church. She began walking up the aisle, her eyes exploring her surroundings but picking out nothing of value beyond the altar and the items upon it.

You’re doing well…

Fluttershy froze in the middle of the chamber, of cold feeling sweeping over her body. She hadn’t heard the voice since this whole ordeal began, and it hadn’t been that clear since that day she first discovered the horn.

“W…What’s going on?” Fluttershy whimpered. “I thought we had a deal.”

Had? My dear, we still do. This is all part of the arrangement. I will of course live up to my end of the bargain when the deal is fulfilled, and for the deal to be completed, the game must be ended.

“This whole thing,” Fluttershy continued, “it’s exactly what Pinkie went through before. I never wanted to put her through that again, that wasn’t part of the deal.”

All good things come at a price, and I am offering you the greatest of things, so it stands to reason that it carries a heavy price. But don’t worry, this game will end before you know it, in fact you can even assist in hurrying it along.

“H…How?” Fluttershy stammered.

Suddenly all around her, the stone pillars began warping as statues began growing from within them. Fluttershy watched in bewilderment as all around her, images of herself lined the room. Even the rose window overlooking the altar which was bare moments before, swirled to reveal an image of herself.

Your actions will be pivotal in seeing this game through to the end, so long as you do exactly as I command. Follow my every instruction and you will have what your heart desires before you know it. Of course, you can choose not to; however I cannot guarantee this will end well for you if that is what you decide to do…

Without warning, the air was filled with the sound of explosions as one by one the faces of the statues began exploding into duct. Fluttershy screamed and took cover from the raining debris, sheltering her head with her forelegs to protect herself from falling lumps of rock and clouds of dust. When it was over she shakily removed her hooves and glanced up in time to see a sickly substance begin to bleed over the face of the Fluttershy in the rose window, just to really hammer the point home.

Of course I hope it won’t come to that, I would much rather see us both get what we want out of this deal.

“What exactly do I have to do?” Fluttershy asked tentatively.

There is a chamber in this castle, you will come to it in due time today, when you do I will instruct you further.

With that the voice was silent, replaced by the sound of muffled chatter from outside the chapel doors. Fluttershy turned in time to see Applejack walk in, followed closely by the others.

“There you are Sugarcube,” she greeted. “Was wanderin’ where you got off to.”

Fluttershy offered a reassuring smile, but it felt strained. Her eyes quickly scanned the ground for the dust and debris that had fallen, but finding none of it. The others hadn’t even reacted to the explosions or her scream, was it possible that had all happened in her head? She looked up and saw that the now faceless statues and the marred rose window remained. So it wasn’t entirely in her head.

Day 1, 12:50

Fluttershy watched the others busying themselves around the armoury, only when she was content none of them were paying her any attention did she slip out from the room and begin making her way back to the central chamber. It had been about twenty minutes earlier that they had first arrived in this section of the castle, and as soon as Fluttershy stepped into the behemoth tower the voice called out to her.

This is it…

She stood once more in the chamber, looking all around her, oblivious as to what the voice wanted her to do here, and how it could possibly help bring an end to this game.

“Um… hello,” she whispered, unsure whether she would get a response.

You called?

“Yes,” Fluttershy replied, not sure whether she was happy or not to get a reply. Over the last several months that voice had seemed so comforting, but now that she had heard it echo across the courtyard, calling itself the Mastermind, she was beginning to feel distinctly doubtful over the whole thing. “This is the room, the one you mentioned. I was just wandering what it was I was supposed to be doing here.”

As of right now, nothing beyond taking it in, soaking in the sights as it were. In the coming days I will call on you to return to this room, only then will you be able to carry out your task.

With that the voice faded and Fluttershy was left alone once more. She was definitely disappointed this time; so many questions had built up in her mind since this whole game had begun. She desperately wanted answers, but was afraid of testing the being’s patience, terrified that the slightest wrong move would render their deal void.

Still, while she was here she might as well do as the voice had suggested, and familiarise herself with the room. She scanned the chamber, looking to all the different balconies and staircases, wondering where they all led. Pinkie had made it clear they should all stick together, but Fluttershy had already come this far, perhaps now was the best opportunity she was going to get to search some of those other floors before the others realised she was missing.

Her mind set, she bent her knees ever so slightly, and began spreading her wings, preparing to take off.

“Fluttershy!”

She froze, her wings snapping back to her sides as she heard Pinkie’s cry. She looked around in surprise at her friend who galloped down the stairs towards her, the others nowhere to be seen.

“What are you doing?!” Pinkie demanded, “Don’t run off like that!”

Fluttershy shrunk under Pinkie’s gaze, guilt washing over her

“I’m sorry Pinkie,” Fluttershy stammered, trying desperately to think of an excuse that wouldn’t make Pinkie suspicious of her. “I tried to get your attention, but you all looked so busy and I didn’t want to disturb you so…”

She didn’t get any further that that before she was cut off by Pinkie grasping her in a tight hug.

“Don’t scare me like that again,” Pinkie muttered into Fluttershy’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry Pinkie, I won’t worry you like that again,” Fluttershy said, stronger this time despite the rapid increase in her heart rate.

“What were you doing?” Pinkie asked, pulling out of the embrace.

“I thought I heard someone calling my name,” Fluttershy explained, “I followed the voice out here, they sounded like they were in trouble, like they needed my help.”

There it was, the lie rolled off her tongue so naturally, she barely had to think about it, and it tasted bitter in her mouth. It cut her deep to look Pinkie in the eye and tell her such a blatant lie, but she had no choice.

Pinkie kept quiet, listening intently. After a moment or two of silence she turned back to Fluttershy.

“Can you hear anything now?” she asked curiously, Fluttershy shook her head, a little too quickly. “Well if you do again, let me know, don’t go chasing it on your own, alright?”

“Alright,” Fluttershy replied, relief washing over her that Pinkie seemed to buy the excuse, until…

Maybe Fluttershy had imagined it, but the look Pinkie was giving her, could it be she knew Fluttershy wasn’t being honest with her?

She was saved from knowing when Applejack arrived on scene. She would have to examine this room another time, and she would have to be far more careful about when she chose to do it, or any of the voice’s tasks for that matter. It had never explicitly told Fluttershy she couldn’t tell her friends about what they were working to achieve, but anytime the thought had crossed her mind it was quickly discarded. What if they blamed her for the situation they were currently in, what if they refused to see that it was necessary to set things right.

It was necessary… wasn’t it?

Day 4, 02:19

The first thing Fluttershy felt was the cold, which struck her as odd considering how warm she had felt in her bed when she had finally cried herself to sleep at around midnight. Cracking her eyelids open, she was greeted with a spectral blue light. Curious she opened her eyes wider, realising that she was most certainly not in her bedroom anymore.

Springing to her hooves from the cold stone floor, her head spun around wildly as she took in her new surroundings. It was the entrance hall, or at least it looked awfully similar to the entrance hall. The whole room wavered and ripped, bathed in a haunting blue light, giving Fluttershy the freaky feeling of being submerged in water.

Good morning Fluttershy.

Fluttershy froze as she felt the familiar chill run down her spin when the voice spoke.

“What… What’s going on?” she asked nervously.

I told you I would call on you in the coming days, well now I am.

Fluttershy slapped herself with her left foreleg, hoping she wouldn’t feel it and she could rest easy in the comfort that this was all just some horrible dream. She felt the slap very much, but more than that, she found her hoof completely naked, coated in dry blood and puncture wounds. The hoof computer was gone.

I took the courtesy of removing that for you, you won’t need it tonight…

“What is this?” Fluttershy asked, although she was getting the distinct feeling she now knew why they weren’t to leave their rooms at night. “What do you want from me?”

I need you to return to that room, I have a task that needs fulfilling in order to see this game through. You do still want that, don’t you?

Fluttershy didn’t reply, didn’t move.

Is there something wrong? Have you changed your mind?

“You… You killed Spitfire,” Fluttershy whimpered. “How could you do that?! I never agreed to that!”

You knew this wasn’t going to be easy, sacrifices had to be made. But I assure you it’s all part of our deal, and once the game is over I will keep my word and it will be like none of this ever happened. Of course, if you’re getting cold hooves, we can end our arrangement here and Spitfire will have died for nothing… and she will most definitely stay dead.

“No!” Fluttershy cried quickly. “I’ll do whatever it is you need me to do. Just… tell me this is all necessary, that this will all be undone when the game ends.”

There was a moment of silence, just long enough for Fluttershy to feel afraid that the voice wouldn’t honour their agreement.

Of course it’s necessary.

Fluttershy let out a shaky sigh of relief.

Nothing has changed since I first spoke to you, help me bring this game to an end and I will repair the damage done to you and your friends.

“Thank you,” Fluttershy said gratefully. “I’m sorry for doubting you.”

That’s alright, now we can get back to business. As I said, I need you to go to the central chamber, there I need you to activate a hidden device for me.

“A device?” Fluttershy repeated. “What kind of device?”

That will become clear in due time. However, as you’re no doubt becoming aware, the castle takes on unpredictable qualities during the night. As such, you won’t be able to reach the central chamber as you normally would.

“So how do I get there?” Fluttershy asked, a little worried as to where this was going.

There is another way… through the dungeons.

Fluttershy’s eyes widened in horror, images of the metal barred doors that they were forbidden from entering swimming to the forefront of her mind.

Do not be afraid, just like the Gala, I shall use my power to divert any threats away from you, but you must hurry.

Fluttershy nodded shakily, and began walking towards one of the doors on trembling legs. It was weird having her leg free of that metal contraption, she hadn’t even realised how much it hurt until the pressure was removed. Now that she was seeing the wounds clearly for the first time, she saw just how critical it was that they find some medicine.

When she entered the corridor it began to twist and warp, extending and shrinking, but Fluttershy just took a deep breath and braved it. She walked without daring to stop lest she lose what little courage she had. She passed by the various doors she knew led to the kitchen and the study, her mind set on the one entrance to the dungeon she knew lay just beyond.

Walking down that corridor felt painfully long, but she finally reached the wrought iron door, beyond which only darkness lay. She was a little confused as to how she was expected to get though, the door had been securely locked since they arrived, and they had been threatened with punishment if they tried to force it open.

Reaching out she gave it a gentle nudge, wandering if the Mastermind had pre-emptively unlocked it for her. Just as her hoof made contact with it, it began to open very slowly and very deliberately, as if it were on some kind of mechanism. It creaked loudly, the noise echoing down the corridor, and Fluttershy was suddenly afraid of the sound attracting monsters, she hadn’t even stopped to dwell on what the voice meant by ‘threats’ until now.

Still, she had been safe coming this far, the voice had kept its word. Mustering her courage once more, she put one hoof in front of the other and began descending the dark stone steps into the dungeon. She didn’t make it very far before the little light from the corridor disappeared around her and she was cast into pitch black. Bewildered as to how the voice expected her to navigate this, she strained her eyes, hoping to make something out in the darkness.

Then, impossibly, a pinprick of light appeared. Her body tense, she began inching her way towards it, faintly aware of the crunching beneath her hooves and the occasional scuttle of some unseen vermin. The closer she got to the light, the more she began to make out. It appeared to be a lantern carved from bone, at the centre of which a ball of green flame floated. When she finally reached it, she saw a metal chain trailing from the top of it, which she reached down and took hold of in her mouth.

The lantern swung gently beneath her chin, and while the light it cast made the dungeon look even more nightmarish that if it had remained in darkness, she was thankful for the light it provided. At least now she would be able to find her way through here.

No sooner had she thought that, than all around her more specks of light began appearing in the darkness, just out of reach of the lanterns light. The lights all appeared and moved in pairs, they were eyes. What they belonged to Fluttershy didn’t know, nor did she want to. Soon the air all around her was filled with the sound of heavy, rasping breathing.

Fluttershy gulped and mentally cursed the voice for leading her into this.

Day 4, 03:48

Fluttershy dived through the open gate, the lantern flinging from her grasp and clattering to the floor in front of her. She didn’t stop to retrieve it however, instead turning and slamming the heavy iron door behind her, bolting it shut. There was a series of loud bangs as the creatures chasing her slammed against it, and for a moment Fluttershy feared it wouldn’t be strong enough to hold them back, but after a few minutes the banging ceased and it became clear the bolt was doing its job.

Fluttershy collapsed to the ground, her breathing fast and furious, her heart threatening to break free of her chest.

What took you so long?

“What took me so long?” Fluttershy repeated in disbelief, a rare bout of anger rising inside her. “What happened to keeping threats away?!”

I told you to hurry, I have already made it clear in the past my powers are limited, especially when thinly spread. I gave you all the protection I could offer, it was you who squandered it.

“You could have made it clearer what I was up against,” Fluttershy muttered angrily, picking herself up and dusting herself down.

Well now you know for future endeavours. However, despite the difficulties you encountered, you made it.

Fluttershy frowned at that. She looked about, finding herself in a circular room, dimly lit by the light of the lantern she dropped. It was bare but for a peculiar pillar standing in the centre, Fluttershy couldn’t understand how this was the central chamber… then it dawned on her.

Craning her neck she peered up, finding no ceiling, but instead saw that the chamber continued high beyond what she could see, multiple balconies and staircases crisscrossing at various levels overhead. She was standing at the very base of the central chamber, the part that was cast in shadow when they first discovered it.

Now that she understood how she had come to arrive at her destination, she turned her attention to the pillar once more, the only thing in this room that could possibly be the device the voice had told her to seek out. Walking over she began to examine it more closely, it seemed so plain, narrow, only coming as high as her chest. At the top it was tapered into a spherical end, with a small hole in the very centre.

“This is the device?” Fluttershy said allowed, hoping for some confirmation. “What do I do with it?”

No reply came, so she raised her left foreleg and began caressing the structure, wandering if maybe there was a hidden switch on it or something. She slid her hoof up the shaft of the pillar, coming to rest on the hemisphere at the top, covering the hole.

Then she was filled with anguish as a single spike shot up through the hole in the pillar, stabbing right through her hoof and protruding through the other end.

Fluttershy’s screams filled the chamber. She tried to wrench her leg free but it only made things worse. Her hind legs buckled and she collapsed to the ground, unable to get the height necessary to pull her hoof free of the trap. After several agonising seconds during which she lay on the ground crying and screaming, the spike finally retracted back into the pillar, allowing her foreleg to slump down next to her, a new wound to add to the others.

She stared at her mutilated legs as the fresh blood poured freely from the new hole. Her screams had ceased, replaced entirely by sobs. She wanted to say something, to ask the voice what any of that was supposed to accomplish, but she couldn’t find the energy, she couldn’t even find the energy to keep her eyes open. She felt herself becoming weak, becoming faint, and as she slipped out of consciousness she heard the voice echoing in the back of her mind.

An offering of blood to get things moving.

When she finally regained consciousness hours later, she was back in her bed, her hoof computer bolted once more to her leg, hiding the injury she had obtained that night.

Day 5, 01:30

Fluttershy couldn’t sleep, mostly because of the whispering outside her bedroom door, but also because of the thoughts she couldn’t silence. The feelings of doubt she kept trying to shake off, but kept returning in full force. That last night had been an awful experience, but it had been worth it. Fluttershy knew that what she had done had caused the stairs to move, and that led them to finding all those new rooms.

Pinkie seemed sure that they were making positive progress towards ending the game, and that was good, it meant the pain Fluttershy had been enduring in her leg all day had been worth it. Still, the voice had purposely inflicted pain on her, it hadn’t even warned her. How could she trust something like that?

Fluttershy shook her head, she was being silly. She had already clarified in her own mind that the pain was necessary for them to access those new rooms, especially the infirmary, and of course the voice hadn’t told her, she wouldn’t have been able to do it if she had known what to expect. No, the voice only wanted what was best for her; Fluttershy believed that, she had to believe that, because if she didn’t then everything she was doing…

“You really are doing some mental gymnastics to convince yourself you’re doing the right thing.”

Fluttershy’s head snapped up from where she was curled up in her bed. That voice, it was…

“Discord?!” Fluttershy exclaimed, springing to her hooves.

“I actually feel sorry for you Fluttershy,” Discord’s voice continued, moving from feeling like it was all around Fluttershy to coming from…

Fluttershy rushed to the window, peering out into the darkness of the night down at the courtyard where the statue of Discord was now illuminated, casting an ethereal glow across the courtyard.

“But there’s still time to set things right,” he stated. “If you can get me out of here, I can’t bring back the friends you’ve lost, but I can help the ones you still have.”

Fluttershy turned and bolted for the door. When she reached it she was suddenly filled with doubt, afraid of what she might encounter if she dared leave the safety of her room. But if that really was Discord, and there was a chance to set him free…

Fluttershy wasted no more time; she flung her bedroom door open and braved the horrors of the night once more.

Day 5, 02:24

Fluttershy galloped across the courtyard, her eyes set on the statue of Discord, standing tall and brilliant amidst the terrible darkness of the castle grounds.

“Discord!” Fluttershy exclaimed as she came to a skidding stop in front of him. “Is it really you?”

“Of course it’s me,” he replied, sounding a little irritated. “After the second time this happened I realised I was making a habit of it and learned a few tricks to help me should I ever find myself in this predicament again. Unfortunately it only seems to work at night, can’t imagine why, perhaps my powers are strongest when chaos rules supreme.”

“Discord,” Fluttershy interrupted, “how do I get you out of there?”

“That is simple,” he began, “and also very complicated depending on how you look at it, so listen very carefully.”

Fluttershy!

Fluttershy froze when she heard the voice, even Discord stopped rambling.

I’m surprised to see you out of your room, and assorting with this clown of all creatures. Have you forgotten how he tried to stop you at the Gala? He doesn’t understand what we’re trying to do, just like all the rest.

“Oh shut it!” Discord snapped. “Fluttershy, you can’t listen to this twisted freak. I know him better than anyone and I can promise you he will stab you in the back. He is manipulating you like he manipulates everyone. You think he will honour your deal and bring your friends back, well I’m here to tell you that he will do no such thing.”

Listen to the great spirit of chaos and master of tricks, lecturing you on issues of trust and manipulation. Almost as if he’s forgotten his own sordid past.

“Emphasis on the word ‘past’!” Discord bit back. “I’ve changed, but you’re the same as you’ve always been.”

Changed have you? Now why does that not sound quite true to me? Tell you what, why don’t I show Fluttershy the real you? After that, she can choose which of us she truly trusts…

“What are you playing at?” Discord hissed.

Fluttershy…

Fluttershy snapped to attention, up until this point she had felt very small as the two divine beings argued over her.

I have prepared a short presentation in the history and future of your dear friend Discord, if you wish to see the real him, go to the maze.

Then the voice fell silent. Discord tried to speak more, but now it was coming out as indistinguishable jabbering. Fluttershy was left feeling very unsure of what to do; she knew Discord had done bad things in his past, what could the voice expect to show her that she didn’t already know? And what did it mean by ‘future’?

Making up her mind, she began walking away from the statue, towards the gardens. She had found time to explore the gardens during the last few days, while not the most scenic of places; they offered some tranquillity which she was grateful for. When she passed through the open gates she was only half surprised to find the gardens looking much more vibrant than they did during the day.

The plants which had been rather tame and a little bit dull for the gardens of a castle, were now replaced by masses of exotic plants, bursting their banks and spilling out over the path. As Fluttershy began walking towards where she knew the hedge maze to be, she noticed many of the plants were quite literally alive. Huge Venus fly traps that snapped at her, trees with ancient faces in their bark and vines that crept up behind her and tried to entangle her.

All obstacles she managed to bypass with a little flight and a lot of manoeuvring. She was lucky the plants didn’t seem as enthusiastic about catching her as the monsters had the night before. Once she was clear of the worst of the plants, she found herself in a much more open area, the entrance to the maze looming over her. By day the maze had seemed tame and unassuming, barely standing two metres above her head. Now the walls towered over her, the leaves of the hedges much darker than before, with ivy and vines slithering through it all.

Fluttershy briefly questioned the wisdom of this, but she couldn’t bring herself to turn back no matter how much it seemed like the smarter option. She wanted to know what the voice had meant about Discord’s past, and especially about his future. Discord was her friend; she trusted that he had put his evil deeds behind him, but still…

She was only vaguely aware of her legs carrying her into the maze, her mind too focused on what she might find further in.

The journey was long and uneventful, a turn or two, but mostly a lot of walking straight. Fluttershy was surprised she hadn’t encountered anything nightmarish, she had come to expect as much of the castle at night but the maze proved to be very dull. She couldn’t even see anything that could be the ‘presentation’ the voice had talked about. It wasn’t until she was finally getting sick of all the walking about that something happened.

She turned a corner, expecting to find herself in another samey section of maze, but instead emerged into a forest clearing. Fluttershy blinked in disbelief, her head spinning from side to side, trying to figure out what was going on. There were trees all around her, the kind native to Whitetail Woods, the grass beneath her hooves was soft and lush, and there was a stream running through the clearing, the water crystal clear.

She was definitely still in the maze; she could see the hedge walls just beyond the border of trees, and the path behind her. Curious, she stepped further into the forest clearing, wandering if this was what the voice had wanted her to see. Her steps ceased and her ears pricked up as she heard a rustling sound. Her eyes darted over to the trees in time to see a dark shape emerging from beneath the canopy.

She relaxed, visibly deflating as she let out a breath. It was only as bear, much like the one she often housed back in Ponyville, only this one was much bigger. The bear lumbered forwards, paying her no head, its sights set on the stream, clearly just wanting a drink. Fluttershy edged forwards, getting a better seat on the grass so she could watch the bear more comfortably. She had forgotten how much joy there was to be had from observing animals.

The bear dipped its muzzle into the trickling water, taking a long drink before pulling back. As Fluttershy watched, the bear turned to face her, water dripping from it chin. She offered it a smile, hoping it would know she was friendly. The message seemed to register with the bear who went back to drinking, clearly deciding she was no threat. Fluttershy watched the bear for a few more minutes, feeling properly content for the first time since this game began.

The atmosphere changed very suddenly, the bears head snapped up, clearly detecting the presence of something else nearby. Fluttershy hadn’t a second to react before something came whistling through the trees, embedding itself in the bears shoulder. There was an all mighty roar that shook the trees all around them, Fluttershy screamed in horror as she saw the bolt jutting out of the bear. She snapped to her legs and the bear reared just as three figures rushed from the cover of the trees.

They were all ponies, all wearing multi-coloured robes. The one at the head of the group was a unicorn wielding a crossbow in his telekinetic hold. Fast as lighting he was readying another bolt, dipping it into a jar of unknown substance before loading it into his weapon. Fluttershy tried to cry out for him to stop, but he had already leased the second bolt, which buried itself in the bears exposed chest.

The bear was enraged, but its whole body was swaying, whatever the unicorn had dipped those bolts into was quickly causing the bear to lose energy. While it was weakened the other two ponies rushed forwards and threw ropes out, lassoing them around the bears head and one of its forelegs. The bear struggled, but its strength was steadily slipping away, even as it was dragged to the ground and more ropes were tied around it.

Fluttershy watched the entire scene unfold in horror, unable to move from where she stood rooted. When the bear was subdued and restrained, the three ponies each took hold of the ropes and began dragging the body away. The bear was huge, but they tugged with surprising fervour. As they neared the line of trees the entire clearing began to melt away, the trees, grass and stream dissolving until they were all standing back in the maze.

Fluttershy’s eyes were filled with tears; she didn’t understand what was going on. This had to be what the voice meant for her to see, but what did any of it mean? She quickly realised that in order to find out she would have to follow these three ponies, and so she reluctantly did. Again they walked, Fluttershy staying several metres behind the ponies and their prisoner. She wasn’t sure they could even see her, but she wasn’t taking any chances.

After a few more turns they arrived at a final stretch of path, at the end stood the gaping mouth of a cave, through which the ponies dragged the bear. As she stepped up to the cave entrance, Fluttershy was shocked to find herself looking into a huge, spacious and brightly lit cavern. Dozens of robed ponies milled about, but it was the animals that really drew Fluttershy’s attention. The bear was just one of many animals bound and imprisoned by these ponies.

As she looked around the cave she saw a deer, a goat, a lion, a snake, an eagle, a lizard, a bat and finally the bear. They were all alive, although they all looked thoroughly miserable, all malnourished. Once the bear was brought forth, any and all chatter died within the cavern as all ponies turned their attention to a pair of figures who had ascended a stone daises and were now preparing to address them.

“Brothers and sisters,” one of the ponies began, lowering his hood to reveal a grey earth pony stallion. “The final sacrifice has arrived. Today, after months of preparation and years of planning, the ceremony can finally begin. Before the sun has risen, our lord Discord will walk Equestria in a vessel fitting of his might and glory.”

A cheer erupted from the gathered ponies; Fluttershy just repeated the grey pony’s words in her own head, particularly the part about ‘sacrifices’.

“Bring forth the first animal,” the grey pony commanded.

There was a little jostling about as two robed ponies dragged the goat, kicking and screaming into the centre of the chamber where a stone table sat. No, it wasn’t a table, it was an altar!

The goat was placed on the altar and tied down, Fluttershy watched, unable to tear her gaze away even as another pony stepped up to the altar, carrying a tray of surgical tools.

What followed harrowed Fluttershy to her very bones, even when she found the strength to turn and leave she couldn’t, as if some force was holding her in place, making her watch as one by one the animals were tied to the altar and dismembered. Most parts were thrown into a pyre, but some parts were saved so that when all the animals had been brutally murdered, they could be placed in formation on the altar to create an unmistakable visage.

A goat’s horn and leg, a lion’s paw, an eagle’s claw, a lizard’s foot, a deer’s antler, the body of the bear, the wing of a bat, the snake’s tongue, even one of the robed ponies offered their own wing, that left only one part…

“It is the end,” the grey pony spoke once more. “The final moment is upon us, I am saddened that I will not be able to see our lord’s return with my own eyes, but I go with the knowledge that my death with be the ultimate sacrifice in his name, the final piece in his new body.”

With that he knelt down while the second pony on the dais stepped forward, bringing forth an executioners axe from nowhere. Fluttershy snapped her eyes closed and clenched them shut as the axe swung down.

Day 5, 05:14

The first thing Fluttershy noticed as she re-entered the courtyard was Discord’s statue, it no longer looking as smug and victorious as it had been a few hours ago, but instead wilted and miserable.

“I didn’t want you to know about that…” he murmured before his voice faded away.

And now you know the truth about Discord’s past and future.

“I just can’t believe anything could be born from an act so evil,” Fluttershy whispered, unable to look at Discord any longer.

She didn’t want to think about it any longer, didn’t want to remember what had happened to those poor animals under Discord’s order. Instead she turned her attention to what occurred after she left the cave.

“That stuff I saw,” Fluttershy began, “about Tirek, would that really have happened?”

That was supposed to be your future, had Twilight Sparkle lived. Everything you saw was true… in another timeline.

“And Discord really betrayed us…” Fluttershy finished weakly.

She had defended him, she had believed in him. But in the end, he hadn’t really changed; he was still the same evil Discord who was simply pretending to be her friend while he bided his time until he could turn on them all.

I’m sorry you had to see all that; it must be terrible to see a friend’s true nature.

Fluttershy didn’t reply, she simply turned away and began walking towards the castle, dragging her hooves and hanging her head all the way.

...Save As I Save

Day 7, 07:31

Fluttershy stopped walking as she left the residence tower. The others would probably be gathering in the study as they usually did, Fluttershy might be expected to join them; Pinkie might have a job for her to do. But Fluttershy didn’t feel like joining them this morning, she couldn’t stop thinking about Derpy. Pinkie had assured Fluttershy it wasn’t her fault, but she still felt partially to blame.

Pinkie had trusted her to watch over the infirmary, if she had done her job properly then Derpy wouldn’t have been able to steal the curare or the wheelchair, and both her and Cheese would still be with them. Then there was the other point she had to consider, that everything that occurred yesterday was all necessary in bringing an end to the game. If so, Cheese and Derpy’s deaths were only temporary, simply stepping stones in the journey to achieving true happiness for everyone.

Fluttershy hoped so, when all this was over she might come clean about the hand she had in it, when the others saw what her actions had earned them they would probably be appreciative, perhaps even grateful. Fluttershy didn’t like that idea; no she would stay silent and simply enjoy her time alongside them.

Fluttershy…

Fluttershy jumped, not expecting to hear the voice. She quickly looked around to make sure she was alone before replying.

“Yes?”

Things are running smoothly, but I have a new task for you.

“Of course,” Fluttershy said, trying to sound as eager to help as possible. “What do you need me to do?”

Do you recall when this game began, Pinkie claimed to have woken up in a different area to the rest of you?

“Yes?” Fluttershy replied, unsure where this was going.

The truth is, I don’t know where exactly she woke up, or how she came to be there. I do not like unknown variables; their very existence puts everything we have worked for in jeopardy.

“Oh dear,” Fluttershy replied, genuinely worried. “What do we do about it?”

All I know is she woke up somewhere in the town, not far from the castle gates. I need you to be my eyes and go search there, see if you can find any evidence that would explain how Pinkie came to be there.

“Of course, I’ll get right on it,” Fluttershy stated, hurrying from where she had been standing.

It helped to be doing something proactive, to know that what she was doing would actively help her cause. As such she quickly made it out of the castle and found herself before the large iron gates leading to the town in record time. The gates were open ever so slightly, so Fluttershy just had to squeeze through them and she could officially begin her search.

She began waking casually alongside the houses on the right side of the street, keeping her eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary. True she didn’t know what exactly she was looking for, she hoped whatever the voice was expecting her to find would be obvious. As she walked however she began to feel a pricking sensation running through her body. Confused, she began walking much slower, stooping closer to the ground, glancing around a lot more fervently.

The more she walked the stronger the feeling inside her became, until it finally reached an apex where it felt as if her whole body had pins and needles. She came to a halt, realising that she had stopped right next to a courtyard squeezed between two houses. Something about this area really grabbed her attention. Stepping inside the courtyard she began looking about, the space was confined and tightly packed with wooden crates and barrels. It seemed pretty insignificant and yet something about it drew Fluttershy’s attention, something about a single patch a bare brick wall at the opposite end of the courtyard that made her head spin just looking at it.

Fluttershy shook her head, she needed to get out of here, it felt like she was suffocating in here. She turned and swiftly walked back out onto the street… and walked right in front of Pinkie Pie.

Day 7, 16:31

Fluttershy watched Octavia’s sleeping form with little interest. She had already clarified that she would recover, right now all she needed was rest, and Fluttershy had too much on her mind to pay her any real heed.

That morning had been curious alright; somehow the picture Pinkie had discovered in that house was the least of it. Fluttershy still couldn’t shake that weird feeling she had got while exploring that alley, she was sure it had something to do with what the voice tasked her with finding out, but she wasn’t sure how or why going there had that effect on her. Perhaps if she’d had more time to look about, but then Pinkie had come…

Fluttershy cringed; she had lied again to Pinkie. It was becoming a horrible habit and it disturbed Fluttershy how easy she found it. She hated herself for doing it; this was the pony she claimed to…

Fluttershy…

“Hmm?” Fluttershy hummed, glancing up as she heard the voice.

How did your search fare this morning?

“Okay I guess,” Fluttershy muttered, she had decided earlier that when she reported back to the voice she would leave out everything that had occurred after Pinkie had found her. “I found an area just outside the gates, the closer I got to it the more I felt… I can’t really explain it, it was weird.”

Interesting, as you left the castle grounds my connection to you began to weaken, perhaps it was something in that area that caused it.

“I don’t think I found out enough to explain why Pinkie woke up somewhere different though,” Fluttershy responded. “I’m sorry.”

No, this information is good, you have done well. We will leave that question for a while now as I have another task for you.

“So soon?” Fluttershy said surprised, but not entirely disappointed. “What?”

You recall the last time I had you move the staircases?

“Yes…” Fluttershy said slowly.

It is time for another shift.

Fluttershy gulped noticeably.

Do not be afraid, I’m sure you will fare much better this night. And besides, the device only requires blood; perhaps you will be creative and save yourself some pain.

With that the voice faded once more, leaving Fluttershy to mull over what it could have meant by being ‘creative’. She was distracted from her thoughts by murmuring come from Octavia who she had forgotten was still sleeping in front of her. Fluttershy leaned down, trying to make out what she was saying.

“Don’t go… Vinyl…”

It was so quiet, but there was no mishearing what Octavia had said. Fluttershy pulled back, wearing a thoughtful expression on her face. She didn’t know much about Octavia, who she was or where she came from. But that name, Vinyl, now that sounded familiar…

Octavia turned slightly in her sleep, no longer muttering. As she did, she exposed her leg to Fluttershy. Fluttershy looked closely at it, her eyes drawn to the dried blood matting the fur just above the gauntlet, and she suddenly realised how she could be creative.

Standing up she walked over to her desk and retrieved one of the needles from where they had been left following the investigation into Cheese’s murder. She then hesitated for a few seconds, considering the ethical implications of what she was considering before walking back over to Octavia. All she needed was a little blood, and Octavia was well sedated, she wouldn’t feel a thing…

Day 11, 11:50

Fluttershy stared at the sleeping form of her best friend, soaking it all in, the gentle rise and fall of her chest, the way a single stray lock of her mane fluttered every time she exhaled. Lying here beside her, it was everything Fluttershy dreamed of, and it was beautiful. She was tempted to reach out and brush those fluttering strands back over Pinkie’s ear, but didn’t dare for fear of waking her and ruining the perfect moment.

Fluttershy wasn’t sure what had driven her to act so boldly in asking Pinkie Pie to share a room with her, maybe it was this game, forcing her to think about life and death to the point where she wanted to grab hold of the one she loved and never let go. For the first night since this game had begun, there were no voices outside the door, no sounds except Pinkie’s breathing. Fluttershy wasn’t surprised; after all, the source of her nightmares was right here in front of here, sleeping peacefully. She wasn’t crying and screaming and running away from Ponyville never to see her again, no, for one night all those things were where they belonged, in the past.

Fluttershy…

No… No, please Celestia no! Not tonight, I beg you don’t take this night from me!

It had been days since she last heard from the voice, days since she was tasked with moving the stairs. Why did it have to be now? Was it because of what Pinkie had revealed that morning? What she had said about the horn? All day, dark thoughts had been creeping into her mind about the nature of the voice in her head, and how exactly it tied into what had originally happened to Pinkie.

I’m terribly sorry Fluttershy, but events will unfold this night and you need to play your part.

“What events?” Fluttershy whispered, so quietly nothing could have heard her had the voice not been in her head.

That will become clear in the morning, but right now I want you to grab that picture you and Pinkie found and deliver it somewhere for me.

Fluttershy felt her insides go cold upon hearing that.

Then you need to go to the armoury, an old friend is waiting for you there…

The voice faded, leaving Fluttershy feeling hollow, her perfect moment shattered before her. She looked down once more, no, it wasn’t shattered, these were the moments she was working to protect. Everything she was doing, everything she had done, it was all for her.

She leant down and nuzzled Pinkie as gently as she could and spoke in a low whisper.

“Thank you for tonight.”

Then, on a sudden act of impulse, she reached in and kissed her cheek. Not the sauciest act, but it felt special to her.

Then, feeling utterly drained at the prospect, she slid out from under the covers and stood up. Casting one final glance at Pinkie Pie she crept over to Pinkie’s desk where she fished through her saddlebags for the picture. She stared at it for a moment, wondering not for the first time what it had to do with any of this. Focusing her thoughts she turned back to the door, unlocking and opened it the tiniest crack, before slipping out to face the nightmares once more.

Day 12, 02:04

Leaving that picture in the chapel had been completely ludicrous. More than once Fluttershy considered second guessing the voice and going back to retrieve it, but each time the though rose she would swiftly strike it back down with the counter argument that the voice surely knew what it was doing. No, the picture would serve its purpose, Fluttershy was sure… was hopeful of that. Right now she had to get to the armoury and meet this… friend, whoever it was.

She arrived in the central chamber via the archway that would take her to the residential tower and the entrance hall. Once there she was pleased to find the room relatively untainted by the rampant nightmares, it gave her a moment to stop and catch her breath, to gather her thoughts.

The voice hadn’t mentioned anything about the revelation they had received earlier, particularly the part about how Twilight had been exposed to a horn. Not just any horn either, but the horn of King Sombra. Fluttershy knew she recognised it the first time she laid eyes on it, she couldn’t even fool herself into believing they were two different horns. But then what did that tell her? That the voice that had brought her this far, had offered her so much, was the one responsible for the hurt she was trying so hard to heal in the first place?

She had to know…

“Pinkie said Twilight was the Mastermind,” Fluttershy began, keeping her voice as neutral as possible. “That she did all those horrible things because she was exposed to something, something that changed her. She said it was the horn of King Sombra, the same horn you were connected to. She was telling the truth, wasn’t she?”

Yes.

Fluttershy felt her head spin, she hadn’t wanted to believe it, but hearing it confirmed aloud made everything feel considerably more confusing.

“Why?” She managed weakly. “Is it you? Are you responsible for all this?”

In a way… I was not in control of how my presence affected those around me. If it was my choice I would have spared Twilight, but she exposed herself too much to my power and… well you’ve seen the results. I never wished for any of this to happen, I never chose to let my power hurt so many. I suppose that’s why I reached out to you; I guess you could say I’m seeking my penance through you.

“So… you really didn’t mean for this to happen?” Fluttershy asked, hope reigniting inside her. “You really mean it when you say you want to help me?”

Of course Fluttershy, I’ve only ever wanted to do the right thing. And I know that that is exactly what you and I shall achieve if we stick together and see this through.

“Alright, thank you,” Fluttershy said, sniffing slightly but smiling. “And sorry for doubting you.”

That’s alright, but now you must hurry. I sent you here for a purpose; one of Celestia’s closest companions is nearby. If left to their own devices they could seriously put a wrench in everything we’ve worked for.

“I’ll deal with it,” Fluttershy assured the voice, not exactly sure what she herself meant when she said ‘deal with’, but not wanting to appear incompetent to the one who had done so much for her.

With their conversation ended, the voice faded and Fluttershy continued towards the armoury. The staircase may be gone, but that didn’t pose a problem for Fluttershy who simply spread her wings and swooped up to the next level before touching down and walking towards the armoury itself. As she drew closer she began to slow down, unsure what she would be faced with when she entered, or who for that matter.

Standing outside the entrance, she mustered her courage before leaping inside. The first thing to hit her was the heat, the room was stifling hot. She had to shut her eyes against the sudden onslaught, only daring to crack them open again after a minute in which she quickly broke into a sweat. She looked around the armoury, which seemed just as it always had been apart from the orange glow that everything seemed to be bathed in. Then her eyes found the admittedly obvious source of heat, the furnace, huge and menacing, an intense white glow radiating from behind the grate on the metal door indicating it was well lit up.

Beyond the furnace nothing seemed out of the ordinary, and there was certainly nobody around that she could see. Curiously she began making her way closer to the massive over, having to brace herself against the intense heat that was hitting her like a physical wave. She needed to stop the furnace, there was no way she could focus with that kind of heat, she might even drop dead if she stayed in it for too long.

Fluttershy didn’t have the first clue as to how to turn off something like this, but the best bet seemed to be to open the door and work her way from there. Edging closer and trying to ignore the unbearable heat washing over her, Fluttershy began thinking of ways in which she could open the door without burning her legs off. She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she almost missed the twin flashes of red from within the furnace. She did however see them, and with forethought she didn’t know she possessed dived to the floor just as the furnace door exploded from its hinges and the entire thing ejected a bout of fire into the room.

Fluttershy had been incredibly lucky, a second later and she would have been caught by the blast. There was no doubt in her mind that would have been the end of her. The trail of fire quickly went out and Fluttershy was able to look up at what had burst free of the furnace, and she ended up staring into the ferocious eyes of a giant phoenix.

“Philomena?!” Fluttershy exclaimed.

The only response she received was for Philomena to dive down upon her. Quickly she scrambled to her hooves and launched herself across the room out of harm’s way. Something was wrong, Fluttershy knew in her heart that phoenix was Philomena, but she had changed drastically. Her huge increase in size was only the beginning, her entire body seemed to be shrouded in tongues of writhing flame, and her eyes were a deep crimson, filled with hatred, the eyes of something that sought only destruction.

Fluttershy barely had a moment to wonder what had happened to the once docile and playful phoenix before it was turning on her once more. Obeying her instincts she made a sprint for the exit, slowing down to scoop up a short spear with a barbed blade. While she had absolutely no desire to hurt Philomena, it made her more comfortable to know she could defend herself. Rushing from the room she barely made it ten metres before the phoenix burst into the hall behind her.

Spreading her wings she sped into the central chamber in a sudden burst of speed that would have impressed Rainbow Dash, turning up at the last second to narrowly avoid Philomena who went crashing into the opposite wall. Turning in mid-air, Fluttershy began flying towards the first exit she could see. There was no way she could stop this bird now on her own, she needed to get far away and think of a strategy in peace.

Just as she was about to reach the archway that would have led to the infirmary however, the entire wall burst into flame. Fluttershy barely managed to steer herself away in time before she got herself cooked. Even as she looked for another exit she saw the wall of fire spread up across the entire chamber until she was inside the centre of a flaming pillar, she was utterly trapped.

She began flying circles; getting Philomena in her sights so she wouldn’t be taken by surprise. The phoenix had recovered from its crash and was now flying up to meet her, more furious than ever. As it got closer Fluttershy made a sharp turn and dodged around it, but it didn’t fall for the trick a second time and quickly followed suit, returning to Fluttershy’s tail before she had time to catch her breath.

Fluttershy didn’t know how long she could keep this up, she was doing well, but her energy was draining fast. She glanced over her shoulder in time to see Philomena clap its wings together hard, sending out a burst of flame in her direction. Fluttershy rocketed upwards out of harm’s way, but her grip on the spear loosened and it very quickly went careening to the floor. With no other means of survival at hand, Fluttershy plummeted to the earth, Philomena in hot pursuit.

With the fire illuminating the entire chamber, the ground floor was no longer cast in shadow and Fluttershy could clearly see the spear lying just off to the side of the pillar device. With all the energy she could muster she beat her wings until she was no more than a yellow bullet. She reached the ground, much too fast to make a proper landing so she ended up bouncing off it a few times before coming to a painful stop, but she had achieved her goal, she had grabbed the spear as she hit the ground and it was now clutched in her hooves.

Philomena gave out a loud screech as she descended upon the weakened Fluttershy, the heat she was giving off acting as an indicator of just how close she was. With the last of her strength, Fluttershy rolled over on to her back so she could see the hellfire bird bearing down upon her, and raised the spear straight up, clutching it tight in both hooves.

Fluttershy wasn’t sure how long she lay there with her legs jutting up in front other. She hadn’t honestly expected her hastily thrown together plan to be a success; she had expected a horrible fiery death. But since the latter hadn’t come, did she dare believe that the former was true. Finally after much deliberating, she cracked open her eyelids. The central chamber was much darker, the flames coating the walls now extinguished.

What Fluttershy saw first was the great form of Philomena lying slumped over her, her fires snuffed out, her body black and ashen, resembling a lump of wood pulled from a dying fire. Fluttershy’s spear had driven straight into the sweet spot between her ribs, piercing her heart and killing her almost instantly. It was a precision strike of impossible probabilities, Fluttershy should by all pretence and purposes be dead, yet impossibly she came out of this battle the victor.

However as time went by and she continued to look up at Philomena’s eyes, now devoid of light, the knowledge of what she had really done quickly began to settle in. She had taken a life. Her, Fluttershy, had ended the life of an animal. Not an animal that was suffering due to sickness or injury, this wasn’t something she could justify with mercy. No, she had killed another animal to save herself, acted instinctively and one fell swoop destroyed everything she ever stood for.

Fluttershy didn’t cry, which was a little surprising, she merely felt empty, physically ill for what she had done. As time went by she slowly found the strength to push Philomena’s precariously balanced body away from her. She continued to lie there for some time after, but eventually she would pick herself up and take to the air. Landing softly on the lowest platform and beginning her slow march back to the residential tower.

Day 12, 20:10

Fluttershy watched Rainbow Dash miserably as she stormed back and forth across the courtyard, screaming into the high heavens. She wanted nothing more than to take hold of her oldest friend and tell her it would all be okay, that Soarin would return to her when this was all over. But Rainbow was in a bad place right now; she might take what Fluttershy was saying the wrong way, blame her for Soarin’s death and refuse to understand the necessity behind it.

But she had to do something; it killed her to see her closest friend so distraught. Mentally preparing herself for something far more terrifying than dungeon lurking monsters and wrathful phoenixes, she stepped out from the safety of the entrance hall and began walking towards Rainbow Dash who was staring up at the statue of Celestia, her eyes cold and spiteful.

“Rainbow,” Fluttershy began in an unsteady voice. “Rainbow, talk to me. I hate seeing you like this.”

“Please just leave me alone,” Rainbow Dash said through gritted teeth, not looking at Fluttershy.

“Please don’t shut me out Rainbow,” Fluttershy begged, stepping closer. “I understand how you feel, and I know how having all that was left of him taken from you has made everything many times worse. But I’m here for you Rainbow Dash.”

Rainbow was now looking Fluttershy squarely in the eye, but something was wrong, there was no good will about the look she was giving her.

“Did you just say ‘you understand how I feel’?” Rainbow asked, her voice low.

Fluttershy stayed silent, knowing just from her friend's tone that nothing she could say was going to save her.

“How dare you compare your silly school girl crush to what I’ve just been though!” Rainbow snapped.

Fluttershy gasped, she had expected to be reprimanded, but that was just… she didn’t even know how to describe it.

“Oh don’t act so surprised,” Rainbow continued, rolling her eyes at Fluttershy’s reaction. “You act like a filly the way you fawn over her, nattering on to me about it but never actually bucking up the courage to do something about it. It’s a joke that you can call that real love, but whatever, if you want to waste your life chasing after a pony who clearly isn’t interested in you that way, then be my guest, but don’t complain to me because you’re too much of a coward to tell her yourself, and never compare it to what I had and lost with Soarin!”

Fluttershy stood there, her eyes welling up as her oldest and dearest friend tore into her. As soon as Rainbow finished, Fluttershy could see the regret in her eyes, but the damage was done. Fluttershy turned tail and ran, ran from the one pony she thought would never judge her. She didn’t stop running until she was safely barricaded in her bedroom, where she sobbed her heart out, unaware that her and Rainbow Dash had just shared their final… and worst moments together.

Day 13, 12:19

Fluttershy closed the infirmary door behind her, letting out small panicky breaths. The voice had never called out to her before while she was with other ponies, a part of her was afraid Pinkie would look up from the bed she lay on and demand to know what was going on.

“What is it?” she whispered nervously, afraid Pinkie come out to see why she left in such a hurry.

I have another task for you.

“Can it wait?” Fluttershy begged. “Pinkie really needs my attention right now, she hit her head and she might be…”

Pinkie Pie is fine, and this cannot wait.

Fluttershy sighed, her shoulders slumping.

“Alright, what do you need?” she asked.

I need you to go to the courtyard; an urgent matter requires our attention. I will explain more when you get there, but first you need to find a sharp object.

Fluttershy pondered the strange request as the voice faded away. A sharp object, whatever for? Still, she wasn’t about to question this, so she turned and walked back into the infirmary where Pinkie was sitting upright, looking slightly annoyed.

“Sorry about that,” Fluttershy said quickly before Pinkie could ask any questions. “I went to go get some painkillers I left in my room, but I must have left the note with the details somewhere in here.”

As she lied through her teeth, she made a show of searching about her desk, picking up random bits of paper and, when she was sure Pinkie wouldn’t see, slipped a scalpel in between the stack.

“Just hold tight for a bit,” she insisted. “I’ll only be a few minutes.”

Pinkie looked ready to object, but Fluttershy was already out the door. Gliding down the central chamber, her mind set on the courtyard. She didn’t want to go back, the memories of last night were still too fresh, but she knew it must be important, and like all the other tasks the voice had set her, it must be necessary.

When she arrived at the courtyard, thankfully passing no one else along the way, she threw down her stacks of paper, leaving only the scalpel in her possession.

“Alright, what’s this urgent matter?” Fluttershy asked.

You see the statue of Princess Cadance?

Fluttershy looked over to the one he meant, seeing the very depressed looking princess encased in her stone prison.

Something terrible is going to happen to her, and we need to try and stop it.

“What terrible thing?” Fluttershy asked, walking over to it. “How do we stop it?”

You can see she is suffering from a deep sadness, if it continues I don’t know what will happen to her. However you can carve a very special sigil on her pedestal, which may be able to prevent her fate.

“Okay, what’s the sigil?” Fluttershy asked, holding out the scalpel, preparing to carve into the stone pedestal Cadance stood atop.

I’ll tell you, just do exactly as I say…

Day 14, 01:45

Fluttershy sat on the edge of her bed, feeling utterly hollow. She almost wished for the nightmares to begin, to hear the screams and cries, they would have been horrible, but nothing could be worse than this silence in which only her darkest of thoughts could be heard.

Cadance is dead… she’s dead because of what I did…

The voice had told her to carve that sigil and she obeyed, the voice said it would protect her and she didn’t question it. True the voice had said the sigil may prevent her fate, so it was possible that the voice had been telling the truth and it just hadn’t worked. But Fluttershy couldn’t find the energy to trick herself anymore, the voice had lied to her about what the sigil would do, that was the simple truth. And if it had indeed lied about that, what else had it lied about.

Everything Fluttershy had done over the past weeks, the past months even; she was beginning to see those actions in a whole new light, as the actions of a deluded fool who willingly helped an evil entity do unspeakable things. So many ponies were dead, so many of her friends were gone, until now Fluttershy had found comfort in the belief that it was only temporary, it was all necessary, and that when it was all over everything would go back to the way it was.

She didn’t even know if that was possible anymore, didn’t know whether to believe that the voice really would stay true to its word and honour their deal. If it did, if by some miracle everything that she had done wasn’t done in vain, did that really exemplify her? Did the ends truly justify the means? The terrible means she had been responsible for, could her friends ever forgive her for putting them through all this? And if the voice didn’t honour their deal…

Fluttershy stood up. She didn’t know where she was going, but she needed to go somewhere, she would search all night until she found answers… found a direction. That mysterious figure who gave her the horn at the Gala said she was on the right path, at the time Fluttershy had thought of her as an ally, been thankful for another to dissuade any doubts she was having… but now she couldn’t have been more lost, and that pony's words brought her no comfort.

Perhaps she had become complacent to the nightmares during her night-time wanderings, perhaps the castle felt as sorry for her as she felt for herself. Whatever it was, she encountered no threats, foes or obstacles as she travelled to the central chamber and began ascending the staircase. There was only one staircase now, a single spiral one that could take her to all floors; she knew it was the blood of Philomena that she had spilt that caused them to move into this formation.

She continued to walk until she arrived at the very top floor, until she came face to face with the three doors, one unspectacular, the other two quite the opposite. She tested Celestia’s door first, finding it locked. It made sense, the sun princess’s door opened during the day but locked during the night, meaning that Luna’s door…

It was cold to the touch, and a part of Fluttershy already knew why that was the case, the other part of her pushed the door open in order to find out. It was predictably well furnished, ornate and majestic, almost a complete replica of its daytime counterpart. There were two major differences however, the first was the ice. The entire room looked as if it had been exposed to a localised blizzard, with every surface and object coated in a layer of solid ice. It resulted in the entire room acting like a giant walk in freezer, probably to serve the second major difference.

The second difference… was the bodies. They were scattered all over the room, dumped into random positions by something too lazy to give them any proper respect. The charred corpse of Spitfire stood propped against the door to the ensuit bathroom, Filthy Rich clumsily tossed behind the vanity. Derpy’s body lay on one side of the bed, relatively undamaged compared to the others, while Applejack's brutalised body lay beside her. A body she could only assume to be Fleetfoot’s was lying half under the four poster bed, the mutilated head mercifully out of view. There was even a cardboard box with the words ‘Cheese Sandwich’ daubed on the side; Fluttershy didn’t dare look inside that.

Chrysalis’s remains were nowhere to be seen, but what really drew Fluttershy’s attention was the body at the centre of the room. Soarin, frozen in a strangely purposeful position on an equally icy love seat, with one of his forelegs draped over a large empty space beside him, obviously meant for the one pony the Mastermind hadn’t been able to steal from them, to be slotted in like they were dolls.

Fluttershy turned away from the twisted sight, walking slowly towards the bed and her other dear friend, her shaky breaths misting before her. As she drew near to Applejack she raised a trembling hoof, only to leap back as the voice sounded right in front of her.

It’s sad, isn’t it? To lose those closest and dearest to you.

Fluttershy stood trembling, out of a mixture of fear, disgust and anger. For once the voice didn’t seem to be coming from all around her or within her own head; it was like it was speaking directly from the desecrated body of her departed friend.

It would make even the strongest willed ponies lose sight of what they sought to achieve.

“No…” Fluttershy murmured in a quavering voice. “I didn’t lose sight, you blinded me! Everything I’ve done… all the pain I’ve caused… You never wanted to help; you never did anything but lie! Discord was right…”

Have you forgotten everything I’ve told you? Have you lost faith in me? In my word?

“Your word has no value!” Fluttershy raged, angry tears spilling down her cheeks. “Cadance is dead because of what I did, admit it!”

Cadance’s sacrifice was necessary! Just like all those around you…

“Necessary! Necessary! No more!” Fluttershy screamed, tearing her gaze from the bodies of her friends. “I let you talk me into believing… No, I let myself believe that I could do anything and it wouldn’t matter so long as the eventual outcome was a good one. I fooled myself into believing the ends justified the means, but they don’t. Even if you could take all this back, even if you could fix the hurt we caused, my friends would never forgive me… I could never let them, not after the pain they endured because of me.”

There was a long moment of silence in which Fluttershy began to worry how the voice would react to her defiance.

So… that’s it then? Our deal is at an end?

“Was there ever really a deal?” Fluttershy muttered. “Or just your schemes?

Well then, I guess you have one final choice ahead of you. Look around you Fluttershy.

“No…” Fluttershy attempted to say.

I said LOOK!

Fluttershy, startled by the sudden forcefulness of the voice, obeyed. She turned and looked around the room at the bodies of all her friends, all the lives ended by her actions.

Tomorrow… no, today marks the beginning of the end of our little game. What you see now is all you will receive if you walk away from our deal, they will never come back, and the few that manage to survive will never find happiness in their lives… and she will never be yours.

Fluttershy fell to her knees, her anger draining from her as she was overcome by sorrow and guilt.

But… if you put your faith in me and my words one final time, if you help me do what is necessary, I can change all that. Everything I promised you will be yours; your sins will be washed away along with their despair.

“How can I trust you?” Fluttershy asked weakly. “How do I know you’ll really do any of that?”

You don’t… but isn’t it worth the risk? If there is even the slightest possibility that you can undo all your mistakes, wouldn’t you take it?

Fluttershy didn’t answer; she no longer trusted her own judgement.

The choice is yours, take the leap of faith… or accept you’ve already lost everything.

With that, the voice faded leaving Fluttershy alone with the dead. That suited her just fine, she was going to need a lot of time to think… as well as make some late apologies.

Day 14, 11:08

Fluttershy was feeling utterly miserable, not due to the complete lack of sleep, no she barely noticed that. She was faced with an ultimatum, continue down the path that caused so much pain in the slim hope that the voice would honour their deal, or stop now, come clean to the others about everything she had done before she could hurt them anymore. The thought terrified her more than anything she had been made to face under the instructions of the voice, she had lost so much through her own deluded actions, Pinkie Pie and Rarity were all she had left. If they found out what she had done, if they left her…

Fluttershy was torn from her reverie by the sound of galloping, looking up she saw Pinkie charging in her direction. Could Pinkie maybe offer her some advice on her dilemma, Fluttershy could be subtle about it, find out where Pinkie stood on the whole matter without making it obvious why she was probing.

No, she already knew how Pinkie would answer. Ever since they arrived here Pinkie had been their leader, their stone of hope against the waves of despair. She worked tirelessly day after day to try and save everypony, she would never have considered sacrificing a life for anything, even if that life could be salvaged after, Pinkie would always look for another way. Fluttershy envied that about her, but more than that, she admired it.

I wish I could have been as strong as you… I should have been there for you, putting my faith in you and not some voice in my head.

Pinkie was getting closer; she had a distant look about her, as if she had just had some great revelation. Fluttershy was glad, she knew how hard Pinkie worked, it was nice that it was paying off for her. Fluttershy found it best to usually stand to the side and let Pinkie do her thing, but still… she did have a habit of working herself to the bone. She was getting thinner by the day, paler, and Fluttershy had noticed her reluctance to take her medication. She needed to address this, even if she couldn’t tell her the terrible truth of what she had done, she could still help in her own little ways.

“Pinkie Pie, can we talk for a mo…” she began to say, but before she could finish Pinkie had sprinted past her, like she hadn’t even registered her presence.

Fluttershy felt a twinge at that, but it was quickly drowned out by her concern. Whatever Pinkie had discovered must have been really big, but she was hurting herself. Fluttershy had dealt with more death in the last couple weeks than she had in her lifetime, she had lost some of her closest and oldest friends, but at no point had she ever seriously considered the possibility of Pinkie Pie dying during this game. That was one sacrifice she would never make no matter how necessary it appeared to be.

Fluttershy!

Fluttershy jumped slightly at the urgency of the voice.

The time is now! You must choose. Accept that your friends are gone and never coming back… or do as I say and save everypony?

Fluttershy shook from head to hoof, she knew the decision had to be made, but she wasn’t expecting it to be sprung on her so suddenly. She needed more time, she needed…

FLUTTERSHY!

The voice was screeching now, no longer resembling the calm, comforting tone she had heard all those months back, but instead something… evil, demonic, unnatural.

Fluttershy took a deep breath, she had been backed into a corner and she knew it. All she could do now was pray that it would all be worth it in the end.

“What do you need me to do?”

Day 14, 11:50

Fluttershy watched Pinkie Pie from the shadows, holding the wooden perch she had taken from the aviary so tightly it made her hooves go numb. She knew instinctively what she was expected to do, the voice didn’t even need to instruct her, and the thought of it made her insides go deathly cold. Once she had the perch the voice had directed her to go to the chapel and wait for Pinkie to return, she knew something terrible was a foot when she was instructed to hide from her.

She watched as Pinkie entered the room, watched her throw the knife at the rose window and get thrown back. Fluttershy had been shielded from the shockwave by the pillar she hid behind, and she wanted nothing more than to rush out of it and go see if Pinkie was alright. She watched as Pinkie undressed herself before clumsily trying to jump through the broken window, doing even more damage to herself. Fluttershy had to shut her eyes, knowing she wouldn’t be able to hold her ground if she watched Pinkie hurt herself anymore.

Once Pinkie was up the ladder and safely out of sight, Fluttershy flew up behind her, staying as silent as possible. She didn’t even need to be subtle as Pinkie was so distracted by the wondrous invention all around her to pay any heed to Fluttershy stalking her. Fluttershy would have loved to take time to examine it as well, but she was too focused on her final mission, too focused on the awful thing she was about to do.

Now as she stood several feet behind Pinkie, the perch in her grip, a battle was raging inside of her, paralysing her to the spot. She couldn’t hurt Pinkie, of all ponies Pinkie was the one she could never bring herself to harm.

But I’ve already brought harm to her… I’m responsible for her being here, for her having to endure this nightmare a second time. And now the only hope I have of saving her from it… is to hurt her again.

Fluttershy knew what she had to do, and she knew she had to do it soon; Pinkie was looking right at the horn. She stood up on her hind legs, raising the wooden baton high, every muscle in her body trying to rebel against her, her eyes threatening to burst with the strain of holding back her tears.

“I’m so sorry…” Fluttershy whispered, so quietly she wasn’t entirely sure she had spoken it aloud.

Then, before she could stop herself, she brought the perch crashing down.

Pinkie’s body crumpled almost instantly, a faint croaking noise emerged from her slack mouth as she toppled over and rolled onto her side slightly. Fluttershy felt her own muscles weaken, dropped to all fours, her legs barely keeping her up. She stumbled forwards a few paces right past Pinkie’s body, her mind having come to a halt, unable to process what she had just done.

Then it hit her. The perch fell from her grip, clattering to the floor, and her legs gave way, allowing her to fall to the ground where she could wail and cry and not give a damn.

Fluttershy was a monster… she had brought death and suffering to so many ponies, to ponies she had the audacity to call her friends. And now she had committed her final sin, she had struck down the one pony she claimed to love with all her heart. Fluttershy was a monster, even if this could all be undone, she didn’t deserve any of it. She didn’t deserve to have such wonderful ponies in her life, she didn’t deserve happiness and she didn’t deserve love.

Fluttershy…

Fluttershy didn’t respond, but she did start dragging her limp body across the rest of the clockwork room to where the horn was being held by those metal prongs, siphoning it off its power. When she finally reached it she began to pick herself up, prepared to bring an end to the nightmare she had started.

“You’ll keep your word…” she said miserably as she reached out. “You’ll bring them all back, you’ll make them happy.”

That is what I promised you…

Then Fluttershy’s hoof wrapped around the horn, and the power the machine was drawing from it ceased flowing… and instead directed itself into her. When the voice spoke again, its tone was malicious and victorious.

I lied!

Day 16, 07:00

Fluttershy’s eyelids cracked open, much to her dismay, she was tired, she wanted nothing more than to rest. As she opened her eyes however, they were immediately drawn to the figure directly opposite her. Pinkie Pie stood, strong and defiant, even as the darkness threatened to overcome her. She was talking, it was definitely Pinkie Pie talking, Fluttershy knew that in her heart. She sounded… victorious? Had she done it? Had she won?

But then why were they here? Who had died? Who was the killer? Somewhere deep within Fluttershy, she knew the answers to those questions. She heard Rarity’s cries of objection, confirming the fears in her own heart, but she also heard Pinkie’s response, assuring them that it was going to be alright… and Fluttershy believed her.

I’ll put my faith in you Pinkie… like I should have from the beginning…

She watched Pinkie turn her own dial, she knew what was coming. Fluttershy wanted to stand up so much, to speak to Pinkie one last time, to tell her… what? That she loved her? That she was sorry? Or just thank you… thank you for everything?

She couldn’t do it however, no matter how much she wanted to stand up and speak those words, the call of sleep was too overpowering. She needed to rest, just for a moment. She wasn’t sure why, but the idea of this particular rest… it made her feel happy, it felt right.

She heard those final two words, and watched as Pinkie fell through the floor, into the waiting hands of death. She managed a small smile, knowing Pinkie was doing the right thing. And that just left her, and this incredible feeling of fatigue…

Fluttershy allowed her eyes to close once more, accepting her sleep. She didn’t mind, it felt… no, it didn’t feel necessary… but it was what she wanted to do, and that made her happy.

Author's Note

Here we have it, months after I said it would be released, the first bonus chapter. It's been a long time since I did any writing, and it really makes me happy to get back into it. I plan to release the next bonus chapter soon before my university work really kicks in again after the holidays.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this little insight into Fluttershy's struggles and trials.
Random tid-bit, the chapter title is a reference to Saw 4. Also anyone with a good memory (unlike me clearly) will remember that the letter found in Celestia's bedroom stated that the horn was going to be moved TO the vault after the presumed attempted theft, not FROM it which is the case here because I got it mixed up while writing.

The Plan

I’m so sorry…

It was the only the way to begin the letter Twilight reasoned, as her hoof shakily scribbled the letters out before her, her magic far too occupied giving her these last moments of lucidity to be of any use in writing.

I’m sorry for all the things that I’ve done, and that I’m going to do. For all the pain and suffering I’ve caused… and all that will be caused by my foolishness.

She took a moment to steady herself, to focus her mind, one little slip and she would lose herself, and this final warning would never go out. She turned to look at a half-eaten dandelion sandwich sitting next to her on a fancy china plate. Her mother had brought it down for her on hour ago, saying something about how Twilight always forgot to eat when she threw herself into her work. She focused on the sandwich, that tiny spark of light in the dark of her old study in the basement of her parents’ house.

When she was sure she had enough resolve to continue she began again.

Whoever finds this will no doubt know of the things I have done, although you might not realise that I was the one responsible for it. I’d like to say this began when I was tasked with examining that accursed horn, I’d like to say I was never really in control of my actions… but I know it truly began when I met her, I know that it was my dark thoughts and ambitions that allowed this vile fiend to take me over.

Twilight’s mind drifted from the sandwich to her friend, the one who lay at the centre of everything that was about to unfold. She felt a stab in her heart as she imagined how Pinkie would look at her if she knew the things she was about to bring about.

She intrigued me, all my friends did, but there was something about Pinkie Pie that would always draw my thoughts. I wandered if Celestia had looked down at me the way I looked over at her…

I should explain myself; explain how the things you’ve no doubt heard about occurred. It was when Princess Celestia tasked me with examining the broken horn of King Sombra, at the time I had been honoured by such a request. I learned so much from my research into it, I learned of the existence of five divine spirits whose power was central to maintaining the balance of the world. Discord is one, he helped me understand how the spirits worked, he told me of the others, of Gaia, Grim, Bliss… and of Despair.

Twilight froze, her teeth gritting at the thought, before quickly turning back to sandwich.

It was Despair, the spirit of negativity who had made King Sombra into his host, and it was Despair who I had so naively exposed myself to. I hadn’t even bothered to put up protection spells!

The longer I worked around the horn, the more those old thoughts of Pinkie began to creep up. I began to formulate plans and scenarios, things that I never would have considered in my right mind, and at no point did I realise it was the lingering power of Despair that was corrupting me, changing me.

I want to say that I’m possessed, it might make everything I’m doing more justifiable, but Despair never needed to possess me, not yet anyway. No, all he had to do was whisper in my ear and watch as I did the rest.

Twilight reached up and brushed a stray tear from her cheek.

I’m not the same pony I once was, I’ve been changed, my moments of clarity in which I am truly myself are getting fewer and far between, and I fear this may be the last, my last opportunity to make amends.

I have begun plans for a game, a sadistic game designed to test Pinkie to her absolute limits. This game is going to bring about the deaths of many innocent ponies, and the suffering of many more. If the pony reading this is one of the victims of this game, then I’m incredibly sorry, although I know no amount of apologies can fix what I’ve done to you.

What I can do however, with the last of my willpower, is see to it that neither Despair nor this game can harm anypony ever again.

Twilight braced herself; this was the important bit, the pivotal bit that could be the difference between victory and defeat.

Despair cannot be destroyed unless he takes a host. A temporary vessel will not suffice, as it will only set him back temporarily, but a true vessel… Sombra was Despair’s true vessel, and if the horn had not been severed, he would not have survived the destruction of Sombra at the Crystal Empire. I have already tried to destroy the horn in my more lucid states, but it cannot be done, it no longer qualifies as a true vessel, merely a receptacle. In order for Despair to be destroyed once and for all, and his dark influence removed from this world, he needs to take another true vessel… and that pony must die.

In order to see this end met, I am creating the game with certain ‘conditions’, detailed fully in my notes. I pray that whoever reads this letter can use the pieces I’ve left behind, turn Despair’s game against him… and make up for the mistakes I’ve made.

Twilight’s vision began to go blurry.

I feel myself slipping, in a moment the Twilight Sparkle who saved Equestria alongside her friends will be gone. I will infuse this letter with some protective magic; neither I nor any of Despair’s acolytes will be able to read it. I hope that whoever does read it will be able to do what I could not, or deliver to somepony who can, if the pony reading this is someone I once knew, someone I once called friend, then know that I cherished everything you gave me in my life, and that I go out fighting a losing battle. If the pony reading this is Pinkie Pie…

Twilight stopped, staring at the paper for a few seconds before scribbling that last part out. She was running out of time, and she didn’t know where to begin in apologising to Pinkie Pie. With a shuddering sigh, she simply finished the letter and began casting her charms. As soon as she redirected her magic to the paper, her mind began to slip, her seconds counting down.

Signed, the former Princess of Friendship,

Twilight Sparkle.

P.S. Never forget, friendship IS magic.

Vinyl Scratch stared at the letter in… surprise? Shock? Truth be told she didn’t really know how she felt. Confusion seemed most apt… No, what was there to be confused about? It was all here in writing, signed and everything. Twilight Sparkle was the Mastermind, Princess Twilight Sparkle had orchestrated this entire ordeal, and for what? To test Pinkie Pie? The notion would have made Vinyl laugh before any of this, but this game had brought out a whole new side to Pinkie, one that Vinyl had never seen before.

No, not Twilight, not exactly. There was all this information about spirits and ‘Despair’, the whole thing made Vinyl’s head spin worse than any party could, it made her feel… scared! This whole time they had been massively out of their depth, they were dealing with something beyond any of their abilities to comprehend, pawns in a game they had no control over, flies in a web… But it was clear as day who the true villain was in this game, and it wasn’t Twilight Sparkle… not entirely at least.

This ‘Despair’ had been using Twilight’s obsession with Pinkie to manipulate her, bending her into starting this game in which they were encouraged to off one another. They had all been selected for the sole purpose of being picked off in order to test Pinkie, to find Despair’s new ‘true vessel’… and now Vinyl was the next fly to be devoured. Her insides went cold as she thought back to the message she had received from Trixie, it had seemed too good to be true, and when she arrived and found the stairs open for her she hadn’t even thought to question where Trixie actually was.

No, Twilight or Despair or whoever had laid a trap for her, and like an idiot she walked right into it. She dropped the letter to the ground from her telekinetic grasp, spinning around, half expecting Twilight to be standing there now… but she was alone. Vinyl took a few shaky breaths, she could try running, she could find Pinkie and tell her what she had learnt, or…

Whether it was out of bravery, spite or pride, Vinyl didn’t know, but a plan began to form in her mind. Twilight’s letter had made it clear that she, as in the real her, had specified certain conditions to the game within her writings, which could be used to turn the game on Despair. Vinyl presumed the notes Twilight had written of were the ones scattered before her now, on the table in the centre of the secret room she had discovered. Beyond the desk and the stacks of paper scattered across the top of it, the room was bare but for a large computer console, no doubt where Twilight was controlling the game from.

Making up her mind, she turned away from the hidden door, and perhaps her only hope of coming out of this alive, and began sorting through the various documents. While it may have come as a surprise to most ponies, Vinyl included, she was far from dim-witted. Her parents had her well educated and she excelled in many subjects, particularly in fields of advanced technology and above all, in music. She was capable of reading through and processing huge amounts of information in a relatively short time, true she had to be well motivated to do so, but Twilight’s letter had given her enough of that to get her working quickly.

As she read, understanding began to develop as to the intricacies of the game and the circumstances that lead to it. More than that, plans began to unfold. Twilight had requested in her letter that the reader either bring an end to Despair’s schemes or pass on the knowledge to someone who could, well Vinyl was going to do both… even if it was the last thing she managed to do.

When she set the final sheet of paper down, she knew what needed to be done. It pained her greatly, it felt like she was turning her friend into a lamb for the slaughter, but after everything they had been through in the manor, she knew if there was anypony who could see this through to the end… it was Pinkie Pie.

That left only one final thing to do, she needed to pass on everything she had learnt to somepony who could take her place when she was gone, watch over and guide Pinkie to the bitter end. It needed to be somepony she trusted implicitly, but who?

The question was entirely unnecessary, there was only one pony Vinyl trusted like that, and yet throwing her into the line of fire hurt her more than the thought of what she doing to Pinkie. Vinyl sighed, she knew any argument with herself would only end one way, it had to end one way, and she was just wasting more time by drawing It out. She didn’t know where Twilight was, or what divine mercy had granted her as much time as she had already had, but that time was running out, and she needed to act.

Walking around the desk, she approached the computer console, slipping off her hoof computer as she did. She would have been bollocks’d in trying to get a message out without this, but as it was she was easily able to connect the two devices together and access Twilight’s private system, allowing her to send a message beyond the magical barriers around the manor. Vinyl knew this was the kind of message that could only be delivered face to face, so once she locked onto the correct frequency, she sent out a video chat request…

The seconds ticked by, Vinyl’s rapid heartbeat sounding like a drum in the deathly silence of the room. She was beginning to fear it wouldn’t work, that she wasn’t in the flat, that…

And the screen which was previously white with the icon of a wobbling telephone flickered to display a grey mare peering back at her, a look of confusion on her face, a cluttered apartment in the background.

“Tavi!” Vinyl exclaimed, half surprised and half relieved she was able to pick up; she had after all sent the call to their television.

“Vinyl!” Octavia replied, her eyes widening in shock, her voice disbelieving. “Vinyl, is that really you? Please tell me it’s you!”

“It is, it really is me,” Vinyl replied, laughing a little with the joy at seeing Octavia again after all this time. “Who else could hack our T.V.?”

“Oh my goodness, Vinyl…” Octavia’s eyes began to well up. “Where have you been? You’ve been missing for weeks, tell me you’re alright.”

“I… I can’t tell you that,” Vinyl said sadly, her joy at seeing her roommate evaporating when she remembered why she had called. “I’m not alright, far from it actually. That’s why I’ve called you.”

“What… What do you mean?” Octavia asked sounding confused, her voice shaking.

“I’ve been abducted,” Vinyl began; she had a lot to get through. “Along with like a dozen other ponies. We’re being kept prisoner inside this mansion by this freak who calls themselves the Mastermind. Tavi… a lot of us have already died.”

“Died…” Octravia repeated, the colour draining from her face.

“It’s all part of the game we’ve been forced to play,” Vinyl explained. “We were promised freedom if we killed another pony, and while most of us refused to… some weren’t quite as patient.”

Octavia just stared back at Vinyl in silence, as if she couldn’t comprehend what she was hearing.

“I’ve made it this far, but now my time’s up,” Vinyl stated, trying desperately not let Octavia see the fear she was feeling.

“What?! No!” Octavia screamed, her eyes welling up again even after she had managed to force her tears down the last time.

“Tavi, listen!” Vinyl interrupted with such surprising authority that Octavia did just that. “My time is up, I’m not getting out of here, I’m… I’m not coming home.”

“No…” Octavia whispered.

“But I still need your help Tavi,” Vinyl continued forcefully. “I know who’s really behind all this, I know how to stop them once and for all, and I know the only pony who can do it. I won’t be there to help them, so I need you to do it in my place.”

“Who?” Octavia asked weakly.

“Her name is Pinkie Pie,” Vinyl informed her.

A few minutes later Vinyl relayed everything she knew to Octavia, all the knowledge and instructions that would see her through the coming months. Octavia cried and begged, but Vinyl held her ground, only when all was said and done did she finally relax.

“There has to be another way,” Octavia muttered in a hopeless tone.

“There isn’t,” Vinyl replied. “It has to be this way, we have to end this once and for all, or the ponies who died here will just be the first of many more.”

Octavia nodded, sniffing loudly. Vinyl had never seen her so uncivilised in all her years of knowing the mare.

“Tavi, I need you to promise me one more thing…” Vinyl began, causing Octavia to look up once more. “Promise me that when this is all over, when you win... and you will win! I have faith in that. Promise me that you’ll live your life, that you’ll… try to find happiness somewhere else.”

“Vinyl I…” Octavia started to say.

“Promise me!” Vinyl exclaimed suddenly before wilting. “Please.”

There was a drawn out moment of silence before Octavia finally replied.

“I promise.”

Vinyl nodded gratefully. That was it, there was nothing left to be said, nothing, except…

“Tavi,” Vinyl began, her voice hesitant. “I…”

And then she was gone. The screen flickered to black, and Octavia was gone. Vinyl simply stared at the blank screen, blinking a few times before she heard it. The sound of hoofsteps, slow and purposeful, marching down the staircase to meet her.

Vinyl stood up from the console, turning to face the herald of her doom. She had been given time, more time than she expected, and she was pleased with how she used it. Proud that in her final moments she fought back, content in the knowledge that her death wouldn’t be for nothing.

Twilight Sparkle stepped around the corner, a calm, collected look on her face, the revolver she had stolen from Pinkie Pie gently hovering in front of her.

“Hello Vinyl,” she greeted, resembling the true Twilight Sparkle so much, but being something much worse. “I’m sorry I’m so late, I honestly don’t know why I delayed as long as I did. Maybe some part of me wanted to let you live.”

Vinyl didn’t react, but in her mind she gasped. Perhaps there was a little bit of the old Twilight left after all, and perhaps that bit had bought her the time she needed.

“Still, I’m here now,” Twilight continued. “And no doubt you’re bored of snooping through my things, so why don’t we step outside and do what we both know is going to happen.”

Vinyl gave a stiff nod, and began walking towards the alicorn who was smiling back at her. She hoped Twilight wouldn’t notice the tremble in her legs; she didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of knowing that Vinyl was afraid to die. When she reached the door, Twilight gave the gun a small tilt towards the stars, Vinyl took the hint and began walking, Twilight keeping a few paces behind.

Once they were out in the open of the entrance hall, Vinyl walked a few steps before turning to face Twilight again who was raising the stairs into their usual position.

“This spot good?” Vinyl asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible.

“It’s perfect,” Twilight replied, sounding like a teacher marking a particularly well done homework. “I must say Vinyl, I’m quite glad none of the others offed you. When I started all this, I hadn’t even considered what a pivotal role you could end up playing…”

I bet you didn’t.

Vinyl resisted the urge to smirk.

“You and Pinkie have grown quite close over these past weeks,” Twilight continued. “So much so that it makes you the perfect sacrifice for bringing on, what I like to think of as the end game.”

Vinyl still didn’t respond, which was becoming increasingly difficult. She wanted to laugh in her face, to scream, to shout, or to say nothing and simply give her a smile that said ‘I totally beat you’. But she remained silent and still, it was critical that she gave nothing of her plan away; otherwise it could all come crumbling down.

“You’re surprisingly quiet,” Twilight said with a frown. “Is there really no final words you want to say?”

“I have final words,” Vinyl replied stiffly. “But they’re not for you.”

“Then by all means, think them to yourself,” Twilight suggested, pointing the revolver directly at her. “You have until I pull this trigger.”

Good luck Pinkie Pie…

Twilight pulled the trigger with her magic and the bullet exploded from the barrel and began hurtling through the air towards Vinyl Scratch’s obscured eye.

Goodbye Octavia.

Maud Pie looked down at her sister, pleased that she was finally asleep, even if it was because the doctors had drugged her. Things had been unstable since her and the other survivors had been found, as one would expect after what they had been forced to endure, Maud didn’t know if Pinkie would ever truly recover from what had happened to her. She was glad she had been allowed to see her sister, from what she heard, even her friends weren’t being allowed in.

Princess Luna had apparently put in a good word with Celestia, convincing her that Maud should be allowed to see Pinkie. Maud wondered if Luna was only doing it out of fear that Maud would reveal her secret to Celestia if she was refused access to Pinkie Pie. Pinkie hadn’t asked Maud how she got to Canterlot so soon after their recovery, so Maud didn’t have to reveal that she was actually staying in her own ward nearby, and that might have led to some awkward questions from her sister.

“I’m sorry Maud,” a voice spoke behind her.

Maud recognised it; they had conversed enough since her arrival at Canterlot.

“If we had acted sooner,” Luna continued, striding up to stand beside her, “perhaps we could have avoided this, or at the very least, saved some more lives.”

Maud didn’t reply, she wanted to be furious at Luna. She had imprisoned her inside a nightmare for weeks when she could have been out searching for Pinkie, and then when she offered Maud the chance to save her sister… it failed spectacularly.

“Is this a dream?” Maud asked suddenly, she never could be sure around the Princess of the night.

“It is,” Luna confirmed. “I levitated you up beside your sister before I came in here, I thought you’d be more comfortable.”

Maud nodded appreciatively before standing up.

“So why are you here?” she asked, turning away from the peaceful sight of her sister sleeping.

“We haven’t had a chance to discuss what happened the other day,” Luna began sternly. “Sister Dearest is of course asking questions…”

“I haven’t told her the truth,” Maud interrupted. “I just said you had to use force on me when I refused to co-operate.”

“Thank you for that,” Luna said, slightly relieved. “Still, I think we should talk about it, and this seemed like the safest place where Tia would not be able to overhear us.”

“I don’t see what there is to discuss,” Maud began, walking past Luna as the room began to dissolve and be replaced by the familiar landscape of the rock farm. “We tried something and it didn’t work. Not that it would have mattered, we acted too late to prevent any of the damage and Pinkie saved herself that very day.”

“Yes, we were very lucky in that regard,” Luna agreed walking alongside Maud who began busying herself with chores. “But still, the ritual should have worked, in fact it did work to some degree, but the effect was not what we predicted. I need to know what it was.”

“The effect was me confined to a hospital bed while a platoon of armed guards went to recover my sister,” Maud stated bitterly, pushing a stone into a pile with her muzzle.

“But the ritual was supposed to bring Pinkie to us,” Luna argued. “But all we got was two words, both undeniably crucial, it meant we were able to be there when the barriers went down and bring the survivors straight back here.”

“Well why are you talking to me about it?” Maud asked as she broke a boulder beneath her hoof. “I’m an expert in rocks, and you’re an expert in dark magic, you tell me why it didn’t work.”

Luna frowned, perhaps at being accused of being an expert in dark magic, not that she had any right to argue after what she had revealed to Maud.

“I’m bringing this up with you,” Luna continued. “Because I’d like you to watch through your memory of the ritual, see if you can’t pick up any anomalies that you missed at the time.”

Maud let out a sigh and ceased her work.

“I suppose if I have nothing better to do during this dream,” she relented, causing the rock farm to dissolve away just like the infirmary room had.

This time their surroundings were replaced with that of Luna’s own bedroom, the opulent furniture pushed back against the walls to allow the dream Luna to start marking out runes on the floor. Maud looked over to the memory of herself, standing alongside her little purple box. When Luna finished her preparations she turned to Maud, a look of urgency in her eyes.

“Remember, what we do here nopony must know of,” she instructed. “Celestia has forbidden the practice of dark magic, and must never know I still study it. Do you have your item?”

The memory Maud opened the purple box revealing a stash of colourful rock candy necklaces.

“Any one of these will do the job,” she explained. “They were all made and sent to me by Pinkie over the years.”

“And you don’t mind if one of them is destroyed during this ritual?” Luna asked.

“You can destroy them all if this bring Pinkie back to me,” Maud replied in a determined voice.

Maud watched as her past self selected a random one and stepped into the circle Luna had drawn out. She watched as Luna’s horn lit up and she began her chanting, she kept on watching even as the lights around the room began to dim and a great shadow began rising from Luna’s body. Maud remembered it all so clearly, it was hard to forget when the shadow descended upon her like a thousand needles, each one impaling her body, mind and soul.

Her past screams shook the very walls of the dream world, and Luna placed a hoof on her shoulder as if it would keep the real Maud from waking up so she didn’t have to relive that horrific experience. She saw the rock candy necklace shatter, something she hadn’t been able to see at the time, being too blinded with pain. As it did, wisps of some ethereal energy seeped out and began flowing into Maud’s body. Something about that raised a red flag in Maud’s head, but she raisied no objections, allowing the memory to continue unfolding.

“What do you see Maud?!” the memory Luna shouted over Maud’s screams. “Pinkie isn’t appearing, I’m not getting a hold of anything! Speak to me Maud, what do you see!”

Maud heard her past self try desperately to spit the words out, instead only blood started to trickle from her facial orifices. Eventually after much agonised screaming, which Maud was surprised didn’t attract the entire castle guard, the memory finally managed to utter those two words.

“Arcane… Manor!”

The memory ended, fading away to leave the pair of them standing in endless pitch black. Maud only knew what happened after from what Luna told her, she passed out, nearly died too, but Luna delivered her to the infirmary before rounding up as many guards as she could and sending them to the manor. When they arrived they found the final survivors just leaving the manor grounds, and they escorted them back to Canterlot.

“So, did you see anything unusual?” Luna asked Maud.

“Maybe,” Maud admitted. “Could you go back to when the necklace broke?”

Luna nodded and instantly the blackness was replaced once more with the memory of Luna’s bedroom, only this time it was a freeze frame of when the necklace was destroyed, the wisps flying from it on their way to Maud’s body which hung in the air.

Maud walked over to the strange wisps, as she drew nearer she began to make out shapes and colours within them. Curious, she kept walking until her eyes were almost touching the nearest one. It was like looking into a tiny photograph, showing herself standing in a vaguely familiar library talking to…

“Twilight Sparkle?” Maud announced in surprise.

She moved onto the next, seeing an image of her being introduced to Twilight. The next showed Twilight talking to her on the rock farm about their shared love for Pinkie Pie; the next showed Maud confiding in Twilight about never eating any of the necklaces Pinkie gave her.

“These are all of me and Twilight,” Maud pointed out, looking over to Luna who looked equally confused.

“That shouldn’t be the case,” Luna pointed out. “The necklace came from your sister; those memories should be of the two of you.”

“Unless…” Maud began, her eyes widening as her mistake dawned on her. “Unless I put the necklace from Twilight in with the ones from Pinkie, and that was the one I pulled out.”

Luna was completely silent for a moment as this new information sunk in.

“That could explain why nopony was summoned,” she began, more to herself than to Maud. “Twilight Sparkle was supposedly the first to die, but a body would still have been brought in that case, unless… Unless my sister really is hiding something from me.”

“Princess Luna?” Maud said, drawing the alicorn’s attention back to her.

“I’m sorry for forcing you to remember that,” Luna stated, looking directly at Maud. “One time was more than enough, but now we know what went wrong, and more…”

“So now what?” Maud asked walking over to her.

“Now I will leave you,” Luna answered. “You and your sister have been through enough. I’ll make sure you’re allowed to stay by her side until she is permitted to leave.”

“Thank you Princess,” Maud replied gratefully.

As Luna made to walk away, Maud called out one last time.

“You once told me there would be a price to pay if I agreed to go through with the ritual,” she reminded the Princess. “What was that price… since the necklace came from Twilight and not Pinkie?”

“Have you felt different at all since the ritual?” Luna asked.

“No…” Maud began to say before hesitating. “Well maybe something… have you seen a change?”

“You do seem to talk more,” Luna pointed out. “Maybe that’s Twilight’s influence.”

“You’re not suggesting I’m channelling Twilight are you?” Maud asked sarcastically before hesitating. "Are you?”

Luna looked her straight in the eye, her own widening as if she had seen something in them. She opened her mouth to respond…

Maud snapped awake, feeling something wriggling next to her. Glancing across she saw Pinkie tossing and turning in her sleep, mumbling in a distressed tone, tears fighting to break free from her closed eyes. Maud snuggled up closer to her sister, wrapping her sleeping form in a tight hug and began stroking her hair.

“It’s okay Pinkie,” Maud cooed softly. “I’m here now, and I’m not leaving you again.”

Pinkie managed to sleep peacefully with Maud watching over her, and in the morning she would ponder on how at a certain angle, Maud’s green eyes looked a little… purple.

The Grand Galloping Gala, eight months of preparation had led to this moment. Eight months of blood, sweat and tears but the long awaited night was finally upon her, and Octavia was ready to give her most spectacular performance yet. She hardly had to focus on the notes she played as she stood on the stage, it gave her time to allow her mind to wander… at least until her target showed up.

Octavia was a changed mare, she knew that, a part of her was lost the day she received that call from Vinyl, and she didn’t know if it would ever return. While things had seemed so clear at the time, she still refused to act for a few days while she waited for confirmation of Vinyl’s fate. When it finally did, under the guise of collateral damage from a failed magical experiment, Octavia fell apart. She should have begun preparations then and there, but the hurt was too raw, and instead she spent a week hidden away from the world. She didn’t eat, she didn’t socialise, she didn’t even open the curtains let alone step outside the front door.

She was content to lie down and die, saving the world be damned, it was a period of weakness she deeply ashamed of. When the mourning period finally passed and she remembered what Vinyl had died for, she threw open the door of her apartment, a blazing fire in her soul. Vinyl had used her final moments to entrust Octavia with the details of her plan, Octavia owed to her dearest friend to see that plan through, and make sure that Vinyl and all the others did not die in vain.

It began with uncovering the truth, while Vinyl had explained most of the details, there were still some parts Octavia was sketchy on. But so long as the rest of Equestria was fooled by the princesses' lie, she would have to take more radical approaches in digging up information. It was during this time Octavia truly learned to hide her emotions, to wear mask after mask until it was hard to remember the pony she had been before it began.

She engaged in many activities to get a hold of information, not all them legal. She seduced, she blackmailed, she even broke into the castle on a number of occasions. Eventually her efforts paid off, and Octavia knew every sordid little detail about the events at the Arcane Manor as well as those preceding it. Finding out what exactly had happened to Twilight Sparkle and how this ‘Despair’ tied into everything was the hardest part, the letter Vinyl had found had disappeared without a trace, and it seemed Celestia was determined to bury any evidence of what happened with her prized pupil.

Once she had all the information she needed on the past, she had to move onto the next stage of the plan, which was the difficult part… predicting the future. Vinyl had believed a second game would unfold sometime after the first, and that would be the place where Octavia had to act, where Pinkie Pie would carry out her destined role. This was especially difficult, because even once she narrowed it down to the upcoming Gala; she still had no way of infiltrating the game. Twilight Sparkle’s documents contained an in-depth list of all the ponies Pinkie had ever known half well, it was this list that the first game’s players had been drawn from, and it would almost certainly be used for the second.

But Octavia wasn’t on the list, her and Pinkie had interacted once, and it wasn’t enough to classify her for consideration it seemed. No, if left to chance Octavia would never be selected for the game, and if she wasn’t there in person she couldn’t ensure the plan went smoothly. This left one, and only one course of action…

Octavia had always had a passion for music, which anypony at the Gala could see, or hear rather. Vinyl had a great variety of talents, some of which she’d tried to pass on to her, like her affinity for technology, but Octavia lived and breathed music. Ever since she was a little filly, watching her first live performance by the Canterlot Symphony Orchestra, she felt a great sense of tranquillity, there had never been any doubt in her mind what her destiny was.

But then she learned to play herself, and she discovered something nopony could have predicted or understood. It had worried her parents, frightened her peers and distressed her teachers, so they swiftly stopped her from practicing. She cried and begged, still being young and lacking any civility, and eventually her parents relented. Terrified of having music taken away from her again, Octavia learned to suppress that part of her that wished to make itself known whenever she played, the very thing that had earned her cutie mark.

She squashed it down for so long, that eventually a part of her forgot all about it; it never truly re-emerged until she met Vinyl Scratch.

Vinyl Scratch, the one pony she was ever able to open up to and truly be herself, the one pony who knew about her secret and didn’t judge her for it, but seemed to actually like it. In Vinyl’s own words, Octavia’s ‘gift’ was ‘fuckin awesome’. Even now it brought a smile to Octavia’s face like nothing else could. Vinyl helped her accept that part of herself, but still she had never awoken it in front of anypony else… until tonight.

Octavia saw her, not quite matching the photographs she had seen, but still undoubtedly Pinkie Pie. Octavia watched her from the corner of her eye, never letting up in her playing. She saw Pinkie stop to talk to her sister, Maud Pie. Octavia had already looked into her, she was certain Maud would end up being one of the players in the upcoming game. She watched as Pinkie and her sister separated and Pinkie began making her way through the ballroom.

She was briefly bothered by a rather excitable stallion, but she quickly shook him off and continued on her way. She was walking in Octavia’s direction, presumably to get closer to the band she was playing alongside. This was her one chance, as soon as Pinkie stepped into range Octavia began…

The change was subtle, in fact to the untrained ear it was as if Octavia was still paying the same sombre piece she had been for the last several minutes. But something had changed, something that was causing ponies to stop talking and stare up at her. Pinkie didn’t seem fazed like the rest of the ponies crowded around her, they were all staring straight at her with a glazed look in their eyes, even her fellow musicians seemed a little off put by Octavia’s new style. Pinkie was looking up at her, but with more focus than the rest, she probably didn’t even hear the music over her own inner turmoil.

Octavia wasn’t bothered, sensory information was registered unconsciously, she didn’t need Pinkie to pay attention to her music, just have her stand there long enough. Octavia glanced down at her from the corner of her eye, so subtly that Pinkie wouldn’t even know for certain that she was even if she looked directly back at her. As Octavia watched, the physical world slowly began to melt away, one by one ponies in their dresses and tuxedos evaporated to be replaced with formless clouds of vibrant colour, wavering and shimmering in a sea before her.

Octavia was looking beyond the ponies corporeal bodies; she was looking directly into their souls. And there, the single soul she cared about, the one that would be her ticket into Despair’s game, and her tool to ensure they won. Pinkie Pie’s soul was smaller than the rest, shrunken and dulled down, Octavia could tell Pinkie was still suffering a lot; she was sure all the survivors' souls were in a similar state, she wondered if hers was…

Now that she could see her target stripped bare, she began to reach out with her music, watched as the strands of sound flowed out of her instrument like silk. She watched as the strands reached Pinkie’s soul and began wrapping around her, entwining and entangling her. Then when Octavia was satisfied with her work, she began weaving the other ends, allowing them to caress her own soul. The process was intricate and beautiful; Vinyl had shown her that, she didn’t know how she could ever have thought it was something to be ashamed of.

To all the ponies around her, the whole experience lasted only a few seconds. Even as the world reassembled itself around those mesmerised souls, Pinkie was already walking away from the stage, completely unaware that her and Octavia’s souls were now bound together. The second stage of the plan was complete, when Pinkie got pulled into the next game, Octavia would go with her, even Despair would not see or be able to break the connections Octavia had forged between them.

And when the game began, Octavia would use her newly formed link to aid Pinkie, she would plant notions and impulses, send her hunches and suggestions. She would be Pinkie’s guardian angel, watching her from on high and guiding her every step of the way. Together they would bring an end to Despair and his games, Equestria would be safe and all those who had lost their lives in this quest would be avenged.

Octavia stopped playing, aware that even after Pinkie had left the rest of the ponies gathered were still watching her with barely disguised apprehension.

“Noteworthy,” Octavia said looking over to the pianist. “Could you have someone take over for me? I need to take a break.”

Noteworthy nodded dumbly, still stunned by what had just happened, what he and nopony else there could comprehend. Octavia walked off the side of the stage, scanning around for a waiter. Stage two may have been ‘the hard part’, but stage three was going to be killer, Octavia was going to need a stiff drink.

With a little grunt, the unicorn lowered Pinkie’s unconscious body to the ground, making sure she wasn’t lying in any damp. Pinkie wasn’t exactly heavy, months of starving herself had seen to that, but the unicorn still struggled due to her own injuries. Once she was satisfied Pinkie would sleep comfortably, she turned her attention to the area she had brought her to.

It was a secluded little courtyard, just off the main street; it could have been cosy if not for the lack of warmth. Craning her neck to look beyond the high brick walls, she could see the dark silhouette of what used to be Canterlot Castle. It was there, lying before the great gates and the luminous clock face that she had found Pinkie, unconscious beside her sister until the unicorn spirited her away.

Looking back to her immediate surroundings, she noted the narrow iron gate that led back to the rest of the town. She hadn’t bothered to close it fully after carrying Pinkie through, nor had she taken the key. Pinkie was going to need that key for when she returned to this place, which the unicorn knew she would. She had the key specially enchanted so that only it could reveal the entrance to this place, useful for if Despair sent any of his lackeys or acolytes snooping about.

Beyond the Pegasus known as Fluttershy, the unicorn wasn’t sure which of the other players were working alongside Despair. Safer to suspect them all and leave determining their innocence to Pinkie Pie. Turning away from the gate, she looked to the final feature in the confined space, the one that would serve as her final resting place, the well.

Stepping over she leaned on the side, peering down into the overpowering darkness. Months of preparation had brought her here, and she wasn’t about to back out now. Stepping back once more, she took hold of the heavy, battered cloak that shrouded her, and pulled it off before casting it into the well.

Trixie took a long breath; she had forgotten how stuffy that thing could become. She began looking herself up and down, going over a mental checklist; she couldn’t afford to have left anything out at this late stage. She barely resembled the pony she used to be, Trixie knew that, what little of her original midnight blue fur remained was unkempt and grubby. But for the most part her body had become a miasma of scars, like she had tried to carve a very detailed map into her own flesh.

The guards and nurses at Canterlot had thought she had attempted to take her own life, that she was lucky to be alive, they were wrong on both accounts. When Trixie had done this to herself, her mind was as clear as day, every slice with the blade had been intricately thought out, planned to the letter to ensure she would live to fight another day. Since her initial carving, she had engaged in the act several more times, giving her just enough time between each so as not to bleed to death, until what began with just her legs spread to the whole of her body.

She had been set back slightly when the Canterlot guards raided her hideout and stole her materials, but despite the delay she was still ready to act when the Gala came around. Trixie stood for a moment, remembering back to those days after they had been brought back to Canterlot. She remembered how she longed for death, how she spent every waking moment either screaming and crying or deluding herself into believing she was Twilight Sparkle’s faithful student, that had been before she found the letter…

It had been a stroke of luck so brilliant she often wondered if Discord hadn’t a hand in it. If Celestia had stayed and watched, made sure that Twilight’s letter never saw the light of day, Trixie never would have been able to get hold of it. As it was, she surmised that Celestia didn’t have the strength to watch it burn, didn’t have the strength to face what she was doing, so she walked away from the fire as quickly as possible giving Trixie the perfect opportunity to rescue the letter before it was lost forever.

It was as if angels had descended from on high and bestowed Trixie with the very key to her salvation, Twilight had been innocent… well mostly, Trixie held the evidence in her hooves. More than that, she had a chance to see Twilight’s final wishes fulfilled, see to it that the one responsible for Twilight, Pinkie, herself and everypony else’s sufferings was stopped. With a clear mission and goal in her mind, Trixie was able to work quickly, sneaking away from her guards and into the Canterlot archives.

Despair was to be her opponent, and he was a spirit like Discord, so she searched for ways that had been used in the past to fight Discord, stumbling into some very dark magics she was sure Celestia would have had destroyed, had she known it was there. The prospect of what Trixie had to do was daunting, mutilating her own body with forbidden glyphs and seals that would allow her to act under Despair’s radar. At the time she had been afraid, but had soon quashed it by re-reading Twilight’s letter to remind herself what she was doing it all for.

That first time had been… unpleasant to say the least. As a result she was put under tighter security, everypony under the false impression she was trying to kill herself. It became clear she would never be able to find the peace to work on her plan while in the castle, escaping was her only option. Doing such a thing would have been difficult, but Trixie now had access to dark magic, and any qualms about using them had been cast off when she set out to avenge Twilight Sparkle.

Once she was free of Canterlot, she had all the peace she needed to begin preparations for her plan. Preparations that were set back on two occasions, the first being the raid on the abandoned farm house she was using, the second being the cellist in Canterlot. Trixie had been genuinely surprised to uncover a second of Twilight’s apostles working to defeat Despair, while it hadn’t been clear to her how this seemingly random mare had come to read Twilight’s letter she wasn’t about to complain.

True, her sudden involvement had meant a lot of rethinking for Trixie, she needed to know what this ‘Octavia’ was planning and work her own schemes around it. It wouldn’t do either of them any good to screw each other’s plan up. When she learned what Octavia was planning she had been extremely hesitant to support it. Pinkie Pie and her had grown quite close during their time in the manor she felt, leading her to her death definitely did not sit well with Trixie, even if it meant carrying out Twilight’s final wishes.

Eventually Trixie came to accept the plan, realising that Pinkie, much like herself would probably be willing to give her own life if it meant stopping Despair. With her doubts smothered, and Octavia’s own plans uncovered and learnt, Trixie got back to her own work. The dark magic she had experimented with would allow her to defy Despair, ensuring that she could infiltrate the game secretly, allowing her to place certain… items around the castle that would aid Pinkie during the game.

The first was her own medical assessment, stolen from the nice stallion who had examined her. While she was reluctant to part with it, preferring to destroy it, she relented, hiding inside the infirmary after jotting down a quick message. She needed to be vague so Despair wouldn’t uncover her meaning before Pinkie did, but she hoped writing ‘Back to the beginning’ would help Pinkie realise where Trixie was hiding out during the second game.

The next items were the book and the dagger, both left on the altar in what appeared to be a chapel. The dagger had been the very one Trixie had stolen from Celestia’s private collection in order to carve the symbols into her body, specially imbued with a deception enchantment that Trixie was sure Pinkie would make use of come the end of the game. The book was more complicated, crafted from the memories of Discord after Trixie had imprisoned him in stone. She knew Despair’s first course of action once the game began would be to try and eliminate him and the Princesses, so Trixie got in there first and saw to it that he wouldn’t be able to touch them.

The book itself would help Pinkie uncover the truth about Despair, since the letter Twilight had wrote was lost when the guards raided her hideout. Trixie made sure to lock it with a glyph, hiding the key within a picture of Twilight and her family which she would hide inside Twilight’s own house alongside the documents and plans for the games and Starswirl’s machines. Finally Trixie hid the gun inside the tower vault after Fluttershy departed with the horn. It pained Trixie to rely on the tool that killed Vinyl Scratch, whom she remembered fondly, but like the dagger, she was sure Pinkie would make good use of it.

She thought briefly of Fluttershy, the one who had been tricked into becoming Despair’s puppet. She felt sorry for her, but knew that she would just have to be one of the many sacrifices needed to bring an end to Despair. Trixie hadn’t lied when she told Fluttershy she was on the right path, many ponies were going to be hurt, herself included, but Trixie knew and accepted that a small sacrifice was better than allowing Despair to win. So many more lives were at stake than the few in this game, it was a sad fact that most of them wouldn’t live, but that was the way it had to be, their fates had been sealed when Celestia tasked Twilight with examining that horn.

Trixie let out another deep breath, everything was in order. Octavia’s plan was already in motion by the simple fact that she was here, and now Trixie could enact the final stage of her own plan. The unfortunate part about dark magic, was that so much of it required sacrifices, and while Trixie had already sacrificed flesh and blood, she still had to give life in order to unlock all the magical effects. She looked down into the well once more, knowing that when she went in she would never come back up; it was unlikely even when Canterlot was restored that anyone would discover her body.

Trixie didn’t mind though, long gone were the days when she fantasised of a state funeral in which everypony in Equestria cried for weeks on end at the loss of such a great and powerful individual. Now Trixie was content just to fade away, happy in the knowledge that her death served a role, and that in her life she had some truly wonderful friends, even if it was only towards the end. When Trixie was gone, her body would act like a magical beacon, creating an aura around this whole area that the Mastermind would not be able to pierce. It would create the perfect blind spot for Pinkie to do what she had to.

Trixie looked back once more at the unconscious form of Pinkie Pie, a rare smile appearing on her face.

“Thank you Pinkie Pie,” she whispered. “You were a good friend.”

Then, without wasting any more time, Trixie climbed up onto the edge of the well. Standing tall for just a moment on her hind legs with her forelegs spread wide, before allowing herself to fall into the abyss.

“Hey Pinks,” Vinyl Scratch said in a cool voice, a winning smile on her face. “Did ya miss me?”

Pinkie didn’t answer, just stared back. It didn’t take long before Vinyl’s smile slipped and was replaced by a frown.

“I wanted to say I was sorry,” she said in a low voice. “Before the end, you know?”

“There’s nothing be sorry about,” Pinkie tried to say, but Vinyl was quick to snap back.

“Nothing to be sorry about?!” she repeated in disbelief. “I came up with the very plan you’re enacting right now, I signed away your life like it was mine to give!”

“You did what you had to,” Pinkie replied calmly. “Maud accepted her sacrifice, and so do I.”

“What about all the rest?” Vinyl asked coolly. “Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and all the others who didn’t ask to be a part of this.”

“I know it wasn’t our right to decide who should live or die for our cause, but some lives had to be lost or it would never have worked,” Pinkie stated. “You know I’m right, you know you were right, it’s just hard to accept that something bad could actually be for the greater good.”

“I tried to tell myself that,” Vinyl responded, “when I set things in motion, that was the very excuse I used.”

Pinkie walked up and reached out with a hoof, surprised that she was able to rest it on Vinyl’s shoulder without falling through.

“Come on,” she said in a weak attempt at her old cheery voice. “I don’t have long left, I’d like to spend time with my friend before it’s all over.”

Vinyl gave a small smile before joining Pinkie in walking out of Twilight’s old house.

“So everything worked out,” Vinyl said after several minutes of silence in which the pair left the house and started navigating the side streets. “I can hardly believe it, after everything we’ve all done, in just a few short moves we’ll be able to close the book on this whole thing.”

“And we owe that to you,” Pinkie replied, hoping to cheer her up. “It was a clever plan, you can’t deny.”

Vinyl’s smile widened.

“Clever?” She repeated. “Admit it Pinkie, it was beautiful. We were completely out of our depths, fighting an enemy we stood no chance against, but we all came together, lent each other our strength and our knowledge. This plan wasn’t made by one of us alone; it took all of us, adding to it bit by bit over time.

“It all started with Twilight,” Vinyl explained. “I discovered a letter she wrote before my own death, she wrote it in the hopes that somepony would find it and be able to right the wrongs she made. Twilight may have started these games, but she was also the first to start trying to end them.”

“I know,” Pinkie said with a little smile and a nod. “Just before she died, I saw the real Twilight for a moment, the one I remembered. And I knew that if that Twilight still existed, she would help us.”

“With the information Twilight left us,” Vinyl continued. “I devised a plan that would end Despair once and for all, a plan which you now know very well. But I needed to entrust it to somepony who would be able to see it through after I was gone.”

“Octavia,” Pinkie stated, earning a nod from Vinyl. “It was the video call you sent out, I saw it on your hoof computer during the investigation into your murder, but I couldn’t tell who it was you contacted. I only realised she was your agent when I found this…”

Pinkie waved the sheets had found.

“Octavia’s name wasn’t on it,” Pinkie explained before putting them away in her saddlebags. “I already figured out how you and Trixie fitted into all this, so it was just a matter of putting the final pieces together.”

“Oh yeah, I was a bit surprised that Trixie ended up helping,” Vinyl admitted. “I never knew what to make of her, but I think it’s safe to say we wouldn’t have made it this far without her help, even if none of us knew about it. Heck, even Tavi didn’t know that Trixie was spying on her, building her own plans around the ones I passed on to Tavi.”

“I hope I get an opportunity to thank Octavia,” Pinkie said forlornly. “She risked a lot coming here.”

“I know,” Vinyl replied, now sounding miserable. “It killed me to toss her into the lion’s den like that, but she was the only one I would have trusted to look out for you. Which leads us onto our final players, a plan’s only good if it can be executed well, and I think it’s safe to say that you and Maud have done perfectly.”

They stepped out of the last alleyway onto the main street, looking up at the twisted, warped gates to the castle courtyard.

“Looks like this is my stop,” Pinkie said turning to Vinyl.

“It’s frightening, isn’t it?” Vinyl said, causing Pinkie to look at her in surprise. “You know you’re going to die, you’ve accepted it, but still you’re terrified. It was the same with me, it doesn’t matter how much you’ve planned or whether your death is for the greater good, you’ll always cling to life, but that’s just instinct I guess.”

Pinkie nodded slowly as something occurred to her.

“I never asked any of the others,” she said, her eyes fixed on the gate ahead of her as if it were the hangman’s gallows. “Is there… something after? Like an afterlife?”

“You want to know whether you’ll see us all again,” Vinyl stated, Pinkie nodded as a lump formed in her throat. “I’m afraid I can’t answer that Pinkie, I’m not exactly the real Vinyl Scratch you know.”

“I suppose,” Pinkie agreed looking over to her, only to find that she had disappeared.

Realising that she was all alone again and had no more reason to delay the inevitable; Pinkie began the slow march up the main street. Every step carried her closer to the final trial, closer to the end of the plan that had begun with Twilight and was built upon by Vinyl, Octavia and Trixie before finally ending with Maud and herself. Every step brought Pinkie closer to the end of her life, and as scared as she felt deep down, she didn’t run away, didn’t hesitate and didn’t falter. No, this was the end, and Pinkie was ready to close the book.

Author's Note

Second bonus chapter, intended to show how Pinkie, Twilight, Vinyl, Maud, Octavia and Trixie all worked together across the timeline of the stories to bring an end to Despair.
This is pretty much the end, so if anything still remains unclear then it was either meant to be vague or I'm not doing my job right.
Hope this sheds some light on many of the mysteries hanging over the stories... that everyone forgot about after the story was initially finished six months ago. I imagine this would have had more impact had it not been so late.

Prologue: New Game

Darkness lay behind, the sun long having set. But ahead a light shone fierce, a beacon shining out over all of Equestria, drawing ponies from far and wide into the warm, welcoming glow of Canterlot Castle. They came in their hundreds, by hoof or by carriage, any and all who were wealthy or important or lucky enough to receive a ticket to the most anticipated event of the year.

The Grand Galloping Gala.

Some marched in, the symbol of class and sophistication, their heads held high, their pride practically radiating from their stature and outfits, only the very best money could buy of course. Others ran, skipped and bounced in, their joy and excitement at being able to attend a party such as this matched only by their extravagance in what they wore, every other figure making their own stamp on fashion with their jovial and eccentric attire.

She could see it all from her own carriage, her own insignificant carriage blending into the winding cue of taxis stretching down the mountainside. She saw the emotions etched in their face, represented in their every movement. Even those that tried so hard to maintain the façade of refinement, she saw, she knew how they really felt. Happiness. Excitement. Elation. Feelings she remembered having the first time she attended this celebration, feelings she longed to possess again, feelings she knew deep inside were a thing of her past.

Pinkie Pie sighed, turning her head away from the window of her carriage so she wouldn’t have to see all the happy attendees. She was going to have to suffer through them for an entire night, might as well make the most of her solitude while it lasted.

“How are you feeling?” the pony beside her asked, in her usual dreary, monotone voice. Perhaps solitude was the wrong word, but Pinkie Pie had never been bothered by her sister Maud’s company.

“Fine,” Pinkie mumbled back, trying not to think about whether that was true or not.

“I know it’s hard,” Maud continued, her voice unchanging, “but you know this is for the best.”

“I know,” Pinkie agreed reluctantly, “I just… don’t think I can face them.”

“If things get to be too much,” Maud stated, “we can leave early. But you have to make an attempt first, promise?”

“I promise,” Pinkie assured her, to an outsider it would have sounded like Maud’s voice had remained the same, but Pinkie knew she was using her big sister voice. “You didn’t have to come you know, I know how boring you find these fancy parties.”

“Pinkie, I’m your sister,” Maud replied, “I would never let you face your fears alone.”

Then after a tense moment, Maud slid over the seat and held Pinkie in a rigid hug. Pinkie placed her head into the nape of Maud’s neck, appreciating the sense of comfort her older sister gave her.

“Besides,” Maud continued still holding onto Pinkie, “I’m sure once you all get talking, you’ll feel better.”

Pinkie slid out of her sister’s embrace, not meeting her gaze.

I wish I could believe that.

The carriage gave a sudden jerk as they moved forward a few paces with the shifting line.

“We’re almost there!” Their driver shouted back into the compartment, Glancing a second time out the window, Pinkie saw they were creeping ever closer to the castle gates where the flood of ponies were still shuffling in. It wouldn’t be long before they too were part of that crowd. Pinkie nervously checked herself in the full length mirror opposite them.

She briefly remembered her first Gala, and how she had tried to straighten her hair only to have it bounce back into its usual curls. Somehow she wasn’t half surprised when she straightened it earlier that day, and it stayed perfectly straight. A part of her had almost hoped it would bounce back, but no, like Pinkie herself, her hair seemed to lack the enthusiasm it once had. Looking beyond her still poker straight mane and tale she looked to her dress.

She inwardly cringed at this, not because the dress was ugly, on the contrary, the red silk hugged her figure perfectly and flowed elegantly around her hind legs. And once she added the delicate sapphire linked belt and pendant in the shape of her cutie mark, even Pinkie had to admit she looked damn good. No, the reason she cringed was out of fear as to what the others would think of her showing up without the dress Rarity had made for her specifically for their first Grand Galloping Gala all that time ago.

The dress still fitted her well enough, it probably could use a bit of touching up, she had lost a bit of weight these past months. But when that morning came and the time to get ready was at hand, she just couldn’t bring herself to wear it, instead opting to wear the dress that she and Maud had bought on one of her few trips off the farm. Maud herself was wearing a matching dress, hers being navy with purple jewels comprising her belt and pendant, which was in the shape of a basic circle.

The carriage gave another jolt of movement, stopping again almost as quickly, but looking once more out the window Pinkie saw they were only one stop away from dismounting. As this realisation set in, her previous complacency began to slip away, replaced by a familiar feeling of dread. She was here, at the Gala, beyond those doors were her friends, the friends she hadn’t seen in months, and tonight would be the first time in a long time all six… no, five of them would be together again.

Pinkie’s hooves were shaking violently now, her breathing coming out in short, sharp gasps.

“Pinkie!” Maud exclaimed upon noticing her sister’s condition.

What am I doing here?! Why did I agree to do this?!

“Pinkie, you have to calm down!” Maud ordered, her normally bland voice slipping to reveal her panic. Pinkie didn’t hear her however, the only sound in her head being that of her own heart thumping furiously as if it were about to explode in her chest.

I can’t face them, I can’t! I can’t look them in the face and lie, but I can’t tell them that…

Pinkie's thoughts were quickly silenced as she felt herself slapped by a wave of water colliding with her face. Coughing and spluttering, Pinkie looked around wildly with no little amount of confusion. Her explanation came from an apologetic looking Maud holding a now empty bottle of drinking water.

“Alright ladies,” the driver announced opening the carriage doors. “Welcome to the Grand Galloping Gala.”

“Um, could we have a minute to get cleaned up?” Maud asked when the stallion noticed Pinkie’s drenched face.

“Sorry about that,” Pinkie said awkwardly as the pair shuffled along with the crowd towards the wide archway leading into the castle entrance hall.

“It’s alright Pinkie,” Maud insisted, “if I had a pebble for every time I’ve had to snap you out of a panic attack…”

Pinkie grimaced; the last several months had been trialling on her family, Maud most of all who had dropped out of her rock science course the moment news of Pinkie’s ordeal reached her parents at the rock farm. Pinkie lost count of the number of times she begged Maud to return to her degree, she felt rotten enough without the knowledge that her sister was throwing her career away to help her.

“Pinkie,” Maud said suddenly, coming to a stop. “Look…”

Pinkie followed Maud’s gaze to the sky hanging over the towers and spires of Canterlot Castle, seeing immediately what had caught her sister’s attention. The Wonderbolts streaked overhead, all five leaving their own distinctive trail in their wake. The two on the outside leaving a stream of wispy white clouds, the next two in leaving a trail of black clouds crackling with lightning and a trail of fire respectively. But it was the centre Wonderbolt that drew Pinkie’s gaze, her prismatic arch matching her rainbow mane and tail.

Pinkie couldn’t help but smile slightly seeing her old friend speed by alongside her idols, living her dream. As they flew, they each broke off into their own flight patterns, while the other four performed impressive stunts and manoeuvres of their own, it was Rainbow Dash Pinkie watched as she ascended into the sky, becoming nothing more than a twinkling speck hovering high above the castle.

The entire crowd outside had stopped pushing to get inside the castle, now encapsulated as Pinkie was with the Wonderbolt’s abrupt performance. As Rainbow Dash plummeted back down to the earth, Pinkie could almost visualise the cone forming around her, and began to brace herself in anticipation for the Sonic Rainboom. Perhaps it was nostalgia, but as the spectrum ring expanded across the night sky, illuminating the dark, Pinkie felt a warmth rise in her chest.

“So that’s the Sonic Rainboom,” Maud whispered in awe as the crowd around them burst into thunderous applause.

Pinkie nodded, when she had first told Maud of the first Sonic Rainboom that resulted in her getting her cutie mark, Maud was sure Pinkie had just imagined it. With their impromptu performance finished, the five Wonderbolts returned side by side, flying downwards. Most of the audience was already moving on, but Pinkie remained rooted to the spot, not because she expected to see more, but because something odd had caught her eye.

As the five flew into formation, the one ejecting the stream of dark clouds wavered slightly. The twitch in Pinkie’s tail was the only warning she got before the Wonderbolt lost control and began spiralling down, taking one of the outer pegasi with them. The other three rushed to their rescue, but they were out of site before Pinkie could see if they had managed to make it in time or not. Looking around Pinkie saw that very few ponies had witnesses this.

“I guess… that performance takes a lot out of them,” Maud suggested, looking concerned.

Pinkie didn’t answer, instead shuffling after Maud in silence.

Of course it’s fine, Rainbow’s saved Wonderbolts before from flying accidents.

Feeling confident that the situation would work itself out, Pinkie looked up to see that they had finally arrived at the tall double doors, currently wide open allowing the flood of guests to enter the entrance hall. Once the pair of them were beyond the door, the crowd quickly dispersed, leaving them with some breathing room. Pinkie looked around, wondering where she might find her friends, all the while silently hoping they didn’t run into each other at all during the night.

“I’ll get out of your hair,” Maud said, stepping away slightly. Then in response to Pinkie’s worried look, she added, “don’t worry, I’m just going to give you a little space. I’ll be close at hand all night if you need me for anything, otherwise just find your friends and try to enjoy yourself.”

Pinkie nodded, trying to swallow the apple sized lump that had formed in her throat. Turning away from her sister, Pinkie began navigating the sparse crowd, peering around for any familiar faces. When she reached the end of the entrance hall and found nopony of significance, she moved into the next room.

She now stood in another lavish hall, this one dominated by a wide staircase where a line of eager ponies was assembled. Pinkie only had to look to the top of the stairs to see what they were waiting for. Princess Celestia stood, regal as ever, greeting guest after guest. Without any hesitation Pinkie carried on through the hall to the opposite door she knew to lead outside to the VIP area. As she did however, she had a creeping feeling that Celestia was watching her. Despite this suspicion, Pinkie carried on walking, refusing to look back.

Once free of the hall and Celestia’s penetrating gaze, Pinkie gave a sigh of relief before looking around her new surroundings. The courtyard was packed to breaking point, ponies desperately pushing forward in the hopes of catching a glimpse of their favourite celebrities from across the velvet rope marking out the VIP area. Pinkie walked forward confidently, at least if there was one place she knew she would find Rainbow Dash, it would be here with the rest of the Wonderbolts.

She neared the entrance where two professional looking stallions stood keeping anybody less than very important out. She briefly wondered if they’d let her past, no doubt dozens of ponies claimed to know the Wonderbolts in the hopes of being allowed through. She was just about to bite the bullet and try as a voice behind her grabbed her attention.

“Ah Pinkie Pie,” a very familiar voice announced, “tis a pleasure to see you here this fine evening.”

Pinkie turned around, unsure how she felt at being addressed by the younger princess.

“Hello Luna,” Pinkie replied neutrally, half intentionally leaving out the title, but Luna didn’t seem bothered by this.

“We were concerned you might not attend,” Luna said walking closer to Pinkie, “sister dearest especially had her doubts.”

“Well, I suppose I didn’t exactly leave on the best of terms last time I was here,” Pinkie muttered, but to her surprise Luna sighed and nodded solemnly.

“You blame Celestia for what happened,” Luna stated, “I won’t argue with you, no doubt it helps having something to direct your anger towards.”

Luna began leading the way towards the VIP area, Pinkie following obediently.

“When I discovered what Celestia had done,” Luna continued, “I too was furious. But my anger didn’t last long as I was quick to remember that I once made terrible mistakes as a result of my pride and selfishness, mistakes which Celestia could have hated me for, but instead chose to forgive me.”

They arrived next to the stallions, who just stood resolutely.

“I’m not telling you to forgive her,” Luna explained, “if it helps you to hate her, then by all means continue. Just don’t forget that we’re all capable of making grievous mistakes, even princesses… especially princesses.”

With that final enigmatic statement, Luna gave a curt nod to the stallions who stepped aside to allow Pinkie to enter, before leaving the way she had come. Pinkie just stood there for a minute, staring at the spot Luna had previously occupied. The princess of the night had always been a bit of a mystery to Pinkie, but until now she hadn’t even considered Luna’s role in the events Celestia had told her about. Shaking her head of these new thoughts, Pinkie turned and entered the VIP area, trying to ignore the envious stares of the ponies leaning in over the barrier.

“Now, where is…” Pinkie began, looking around before a multi-coloured blur sped straight into her, and she felt the wind knocked from her.

“Oh my gosh, Pinkie, I didn’t think you’d come,” Rainbow gushed, squeezing Pinkie in a hug that even she would find hard to compete with.

“Yeah… I came…” Pinkie gasped, feeling herself go faint. Rainbow Dash seemed to click on at this point as she quickly released Pinkie.

“Oh, sorry Pinks,” she said laughing nervously.

As Pinkie got her breath back she looked up at her old friend. She pulled off the blue flight suit well, its yellow lightning patterns complimenting her tomboyish nature nicely. Beyond that she was just as Pinkie remembered, same namesake hair, same rose eyes, same winning smile.

“Wow, it’s been… seven months,” Rainbow said in awe, still smiling at Pinkie.

“More or less,” Pinkie mumbles back. The pair then stood there awkwardly, neither knowing what to say to one another.

Well I knew it wasn’t going to be easy.

“Oh, I just remembered,” Rainbow exclaimed, sounding excited again. “There’s somepony I want to you to meet.”

Without waiting for an answer, Rainbow grabbed Pinkie’s hoof and dragged her through the several small groups gathered around the area. They quickly reached a lonely table where a solitary figure sat nursing a glass of punch, looking downtrodden.

“Soarin!” Pinkie exclaimed, recognising the stallion immediately.

Soarin looked around curiously, his eyes widening when he saw Pinkie.

“Pinkie! Holy Celestia, I never thought I’d see you again,” Soarin said, sounding shocked.

“You two know each other?” Rainbow asked, looking rapidly between the pair of them.

“Yeah… we do,” Pinkie said as an uncomfortable silence descended upon the trio.

“Well, um,” Rainbow began, a mixture of confusion and suspicion on her face. “Well Pinkie, allow me to reintroduce you to Soarin, who is my…”

Pinkie didn’t get to find out what Soarin was, as at that moment a pair of voices began approaching them, arguing loudly. Pinkie swivelled around to see another two Wonderbolts marching over to the table, Pinkie recognised the orange manned mare to be Spitfire, she wasn’t so much marching as trying to keep up with the other white manned mare who was storming over to them.

“Soarin!” the other mare shouted, reaching their table and pushing through Pinkie and Rainbow. “What the hay was that about up there?! You nearly got Surprise killed.”

“Fleetfoot,” Spitfire interrupted, “it was an accident. Everyone messes up from time to time, including you.”

“Yeah, but when I mess up it’s during training,” Fleetfoot spat back, “not when we’re performing at the Grand Galloping Gala!”

“Hey, lay off him,” Rainbow said, pushing Fleetfoot away from Soarin and stepping between them. “You do nothing but give him grief.”

“And I’m the bad guy for that?!” Fleetfoot retorted, her anger now directed at Rainbow Dash. “He’s a mess! He takes weeks off at a time claiming it’s for health reasons, then shows up randomly and screws up all the most basic manoeuvres.”

Fleetfoot pushed past Rainbow, facing Soarin once more, who was shaking like a leaf.

“I don’t know what your problem is Soarin,” Fleetfoot finished, “but it’s time to get over it or get a different job!”

The effect was instantaneous, Soarin shot into the air, rocketing as far and fast away from the castle as he could. Rainbow shot Fleetfoot one last glare before speeding off after Soarin.

“Fleetfoot!” Spitfire exclaimed, “That was way out of line!”

“I just did what you should have done months ago,” Fleetfoot replied coldly. “Admit it Spitfire, you only keep him around because he’s your friend. You and I both know he’s not good enough to be a Wonderbolt, so why don’t you quit leading him on and cut him off before he damages us any further.”

“That is not for you to decide!” Spitfire shouted back, “and unless you want suspended, I suggest you keep your trap shut, starting now!”

“Whatever,” Fleetfoot said dismissively, putting on a pair of purple sunglasses and strutting past Spitfire.

Spitfire was seething as she turned around and noticed Pinkie for the first time.

“Oh, sorry you had to see that,” she said awkwardly before walking off, leaving Pinkie alone.

Well, I’m off to a swimming start.

Pinkie entered the ball room, opting not to burst into song this time. There had been nopony else she knew in the VIP section, not that it took long to discern that considering there were so few there at all. A waiter approached her, offering her a platter of miniscule food portions that wouldn’t fill a gerbil. Pinkie declined, allowing the waiter to continue his rounds.

“They’re okay,” Maud said, approaching Pinkie from the side, munching on a cracker thing of her own. “Although the waiters look out of it.”

Pinkie looked over at the waiter she had just acknowledged, indeed he and the few others she could see did look particularly dreary and tired looking.

“So did you find anyone in the VIP section?” Maud asked, no doubt in the dark having not been able to tail Pinkie in there.

“I saw Rainbow Dash,” Pinkie began, “but there was some problem with the other Wonderbolts and she left before we spoke much.”

“Well, you might see her again,” Maud suggested, “Also I think I saw your apple friend around here.”

“Applejack?” Pinkie asked, receiving a nod from Maud. “Well I guess I’d better get back to looking then.”

No sooner had she said it than Maud had left her side, melting into the crowd, leaving Pinkie alone once more. Pinkie looked around, once again not catching sight of any familiar faces. Deciding to get closer to the stage, Pinkie put one hoof forward, before she was hit in the face with an explosion of confetti.

“Pinkie Pie!” Cheese Sandwich declared, coming up uncomfortably close and dancing around her. “Boy am I super-duper happy to see you here. I almost didn’t recognise you with your hair like that, plus I’ve never seen you in a dress, you look kind of funny in, but a good kind of funny, like the kind of funny you get when Boneless steals your money and goes to Las Pegasus and gets hitched to a…”

“Not now Cheese,” Pinkie said, pushing past the over excitable stallion and carrying on her way towards the stage.

Dear lord, is that what I used to be like?! That guy is unbearable!

Crossing the ballroom floor which was completely absent of dancers as was usually the case, Pinkie approached the stage, looking up at the band playing their quartet of classical instruments. Pinkie was sure it was the same four ponies she had hijacked on her first time here, she cringed at the memory of how jumped up behind the cellist and forced her hoof back and forth across her instrument. Looking over at the grey mare wearing the same pink bowtie she looked the epitome of composure, the kind of mare who would never let such a trivial thing so long ago bother her to this…

Pinkie froze. For the second time that night, she had been sure the pony on her mind had been looking directly at her. But unlike Celestia, Pinkie could look freely at this mare, and she certainly wasn’t looking at Pinkie now. Shaking her head, trying to rid herself of the paranoid thought, Pinkie scanned the ballroom once more, this time picking out two very familiar faces.

Princess Cadance and Shining Armour were the image of the perfect couple, standing side by side and laughing merrily at something one of the many faceless nobles said to them. Pinkie approached them slowly, they had never been exactly close, but at the very least they might know where her friends were. As she got nearer, Cadance spotted her and waved her over. As Pinkie picked up the pace when she saw the couple excuse themselves from the ponies vying for their attention and come to meet her.

“Pinkie Pie,” Cadance said, “it’s wonderful to see you here. We were worried you wouldn’t be able to make it.”

“You and everypony else apparently,” Pinkie muttered before adding louder and clearer, “You too, how are you both?”

“Oh we’re very good,” Cadance assured her, “life in the Crystal Empire is still as wonderfully dull as ever. Honestly, not a day goes by I don’t wish for one of your parties to liven things up a bit.”

“I… don’t really do parties anymore,” Pinkie answered awkwardly.

“Oh,” Cadance replied equally as uncomfortable, “well you should still visit sometime, I’m sure a break would do you good. Don’t you agree honey?”

“Huh? Oh yeah, sure,” Shining Armour said, clearly not listening.

A waiter past by and Shining quickly scooped up the wine glass he was carrying in his telekinesis and began downing it.

“Oh Shining,” Cadance began, her voice sounding strained; “don’t you think you’ve had enough to drink?”

“I can drink however much I want Cadance!” Shining snapped out of nowhere. “And I don’t need you telling me what to do all the time!”

With that outburst, Shining Armour stormed off, leaving a bewildered Pinkie alone with the statue still Cadance.

“Um…” Pinkie began, unsure what to say at this point.

“Oh, stallions, you know how they get,” Cadance said in a nervous voice, giving a very forced laugh. “I, uh, think I should go see Auntie Celestia for a bit, but it was nice speaking to you Pinkie Pie.”

Pinkie only opened her mouth before Cadance hurried off, her head bent down, avoiding any and all attempts to lure her into conversation by the surrounding ponies.

I guess they only look like a perfect couple on the outside. I wonder what’s wrong with them…

Pinkie didn’t have time to ponder this however, as at that moment a group of ponies parted allowing her to see across the room to a buffet table where another recognisable figure stood. Weaving in and out of the gathered ponies, Pinkie made her way across the room to the table where the pony stood with their back to her. As she got closer she noticed how odd it was to see Applejack wearing a formal suit of all things, while this seemed bizarre, it did mean that Pinkie wasn’t the only one not wearing her original gala dress.

Once she was close enough behind Applejack, Pinkie braced herself and spoke up.

“Applejack.”

“For the last time Filthy,” Applejack said angrily without even turning around. “I ain’t sellin’ you an inch of Sweet Apple Acres, so you can take your money bags, and shove ‘em up your…”

Applejack cut off immediately as she turned around and saw who she was actually talking to.

“Actually, after that time I had your cutie mark,” Pinkie said casually, “I don’t really fancy buying your farm.”

“Pinkie…” Applejack breathed in disbelief. “You… you actually came.”

“Yeah, my family thought it would be good for me,” Pinkie explained, looking down at her hooves.

“Well ah’m glad,” Applejack said, her voice sounding more cheery now. “Ponyville just ain’t the same without you Pinkie.”

“So, uh…” Pinkie began, trying to change the topic to something smaller and more manageable. “What was that you were saying about Filthy?”

“Oh that,” Applejack said with a snort turning back to the buffet table where Pinkie joined her. “Well ever since Granny passed on, Filthy Rich has been pushin’ at me to sell the farm to him, sayin’ it’s for our own benefit, that we’d be able to expand under his company name. But the varmint’s just lookin’ out for his own interests, and he even had the nerve to come here to bug me about it just ‘cause he knew I couldn’t retaliate without gettin’ kicked out.”

Pinkie nodded along politely, but truthfully she wasn’t paying much attention beyond what Applejack had said about Granny Smith passing away. Pinkie had been aware of this, she’d been informed in one of the many letters she’d been sent after she moved back to the rock farm, one of the many she couldn’t bring herself to reply to.

“But enough about him,” Applejack continued, glancing over her shoulder at Filthy Rich who was indeed hovering nearby, none too subtly looking for an opening in their conversation. “How are you holding up Sugarcube? Last I saw of you I was afraid to leave you alone with a length of rope.”

“I’m… better,” Pinkie answered slowly, not entirely sure if she was lying or not. “Some days are worse than others.”

“I can imagine,” Applejack said gravely, “it must’ve been hard on you. But ah did tell Twilight not to be experimenting, ah told her no good could come of it, ah guess she was just as stubborn as me in the end, just awful that so many other ponies got dragged into it.”

Pinkie didn’t answer, there it was, the lie, right in front of her. Should she carry it on? Or should she be honest? Pinkie’s breathing began to increase rapidly, which Applejack picked up on quite quickly.

“Oh piss!” she exclaimed, drawing Pinkie into a one hoofed hug. “Ah'm sorry Pinkie, ah shouldn’t ‘ave brought that up, that was stupid of me!”

“It’s okay,” Pinkie tried to assure her, but her trembling said otherwise. “I just need some fresh air.”

“Of course Sugarcube,” Applejack said, abandoning her plate and leading Pinkie towards the open door to the Canterlot Gardens.

“Feelin’ any better?” Applejack asked, rubbing Pinkie’s back as they sat on an ornate stone bench.

“Yes,” Pinkie said honestly.

“Will you be able to stick it through for the rest of the night?” Maud asked from Pinkie’s other side.

“I think so,” Pinkie assured her.

“Alright then, Applejack could I speak with you for a moment?” Maud asked sternly. Applejack nodded, accepting her fate, and the pair walked a short distance away from the bench so that they were out of earshot of Pinkie.

She didn’t blame Applejack for her remark, as far as she knew that whole thing was an accident, the kind of thing that shouldn’t still bother ponies months afterwards. Leaning back against the tree that was directly behind the bench, Pinkie sighed and closed her eyes. This night was already turning out to be more stressful than her family had promised, she’d managed to speak to two of her friends and she barely got anywhere with them before things went south.

The stress must have been really affecting Pinkie, because for a moment she was convinced the trunk of the tree was moving against her back, the rough bark turning to soft fur.

Pinkie squealed and leapt off the bench as realisation of what was really happening dawned on her. Landing on her hooves she spun around to come face to face with a tall, serpentine figure comprised of various mismatched animal appendages.

“Discord!” Pinkie exclaimed, “Don’t do that!”

“Oh Pinkie, and here I thought you appreciated a good prank,” Discord said innocently, slinking around her.

“Well I don’t anymore,” Pinkie spat back, “now can you go away? I’m not in the mood.”

“And I thought we were friends…” Discord began, sounding hurt.

“We’re not,” Pinkie cut in.

“Some element of laughter you are,” Discord continued, now sounding annoyed at Pinkie’s attitude. “So Fluttershy wasn’t lying, you have changed.”

Pinkie began walking away, but the draconequus proved more determined, flying after her.

“And why is that?” he asked rhetorically, “from what I hear Twilight Sparkle had a little accident. All those poor ponies, victims of Twilight’s… experiment. But not you, you’re still alive, how did you manage that feat?”

Pinkie could tell Discord knew exactly what had really happened, and he was just baiting her for a reaction. Gritting her teeth, she picked up her pace, trying desperately to shake the spirit of chaos from her tail, receiving multiple confused looks from other guests. It wasn’t until she was well away from the bench where she had left Maud and Applejack, she was beginning to wonder if that wasn’t Discord’s intention, when she managed to catch sight of another familiar face, or two faces to be specific.

Rarity and Fluttershy were wearing their old gala dresses, and together the pair was surrounded by celebrities. Pinkie recognised Hoity Toity, but the rest were unknown to her, Rarity had them all raptured by whatever she was saying, every one of them visibly hanging on every word she said. Fluttershy on the other hand was looking more uncomfortable by every second that passed, looking like she was looking for any opening to slip away unnoticed.

Pinkie was just standing stalk still, watching the pair from afar when Rarity caught sight of her and ceased talking immediately. Pinkie saw her quickly apologise to her enamoured audience who began to reluctantly disperse before whispering something to Fluttershy, who immediately looked over in Pinkie’s direction, her eyes wide with surprise and no small amount of hope. Inhaling deeply, Pinkie walked forward to where the pair stood watching her with anticipation.

“Hello girls,” Pinkie said, her voice slightly shaky.

“Oh Pinkie,” Rarity said giving her a light hug and a kiss on both cheeks. “It’s so good to see you, and in that dress… it looks gorgeous on you.”

Pinkie flinched; she knew what Rarity had wanted to say when she hesitated.

“How have you been keeping darling?” Rarity asked, her voice thick with concern.

“I’ve been okay,” Pinkie answered simply.

“Well you look stunning,” Rarity added, sounding more believable this time, “you simply must tell me where you got that dress.”

“It was from a friend of Maud,” Pinkie explained, “we… got a good deal on it.”

The conversation immediately died as all three of them ran out of things to talk about. Pinkie scoured her mind for possible topics, finally settling on Ponyville.

“So, how’s everything back in Ponyville?” she asked.

“It’s…” Rarity began, grimacing as she realised she couldn’t honestly say ‘good’.

“Different,” Fluttershy finished.

“Indeed,” Rarity agreed, “everything just seems less lively without you.”

“I’m sorry,” Pinkie said feeling guilty.

“Don’t be, your health and happiness comes first,” Rarity insisted, “we all know you went through a lot, that you’re still going through a lot. But you know, if you ever need us you need only ask.”

“I know,” Pinkie replied, glancing around. “Is Spike here?”

Rarity immediately tensed up at this. “Uh, no, he’s not,” she began awkwardly. “He was… feeling a bit under the weather.”

Pinkie nodded slowly, unsure how to interpret Rarity’s terse answer.

“Why don’t I grab us some drinks and you can tell us about being back on the farm,” Rarity offered, trying to brighten the conversation. When neither of them objected, she waltzed off, looking for a waiter.

Pinkie looked over to Fluttershy, only seeing now that the Pegasus was eying her closely.

“You’re looking… nice,” Fluttershy began, “but maybe, just a little thin.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie replied awkwardly, “I haven’t been very hungry lately.”

Fluttershy just stared at her, understanding instantly what she really meant.

“You know,” Fluttershy continued, “the Cakes were asking after you, they said you hadn’t been replying to their letters… or mine for that matter.”

“Oh…” Pinkie began, looking down at her hooves. “It’s been really busy.”

“They still have your old room just as you left it,” Fluttershy informed her.

“Fluttershy…” Pinkie started before she was quickly cut off.

“And Gummy really misses you,” Fluttershy said, sounding desperate.

“Fluttershy, I just can’t…” Pinkie tried to say.

“Why not?!” Fluttershy asked, in an uncharacteristically hysterical voice, her eyes welling with tears. “We miss you! I miss you!”

“I miss you too…” Pinkie whispered, trembling now.

“Then come home,” Fluttershy begged. “Whatever’s wrong, we can help you. Whatever happened, we can make it better. We all miss Twilight, but…”

Pinkie jumped back from Fluttershy, giving a sharp intake of breath. Fluttershy starred pityingly at her.

“Pinkie, what happened at that manor?” Fluttershy asked softly.

“I…” Pinkie began, her head suddenly filled with the thundering sound of her heart pumping blood through her body at increasing speed. “I gotta go!”

And before Fluttershy could object, Pinkie bolted, pushing straight through several ponies chatting idly behind her in her desperate attempt to get as far away from her friend as she could. As she ran past the stone bench she heard somepony calling her name, but refused to look back, opting to carry on running into the castle.

Pinkie didn’t stop running until she found herself in a familiar hallway, the ground floor still occupied by dozens of guests, but the staircase now free of the cue of ponies that had been assembled on it during her last visit to this room. Looking up to the top of the stairs she saw Celestia was still standing there, but this time she wasn’t looking at Pinkie, instead she was deep in conversation with a tall, slender unicorn that Pinkie recognised all too well.

While she couldn’t hear what Fleur and Celestia were saying, judging from Fleur’s aggressive stance she guessed their discussion was rather heated. Even less reason to interact with Celestia tonight, but she might see about chatting with Fleur later if she saw her alone at some point. With this in mind Pinkie carried on through the hall, no real destination in mind but deciding the entrance hall was better than heading back the way she came.

“Pinkie Pie!” a voice called out as Pinkie reached the centre of the room. Pinkie turned expecting to see Maud having caught up with her; instead she caught sight of a grey Pegasus mare trying to angle through the crowd towards her.

The mare tripped and knocked into a couple ponies, apologising profusely before continuing towards Pinkie. What was most odd about this mare, was her distinct lack of formal attire, beyond her satchel she wore no clothes at all. This was earning her a lot of condescending looks from multiple guests, which she seemed blissfully unaware of as she continued to make her way over to Pinkie.

“Oh, uh, hi…” Pinkie began, scratching the surface of her memory for a name. The blonde mane, the bubbles on her flank, the intense yellow eyes starring off in different directions, Pinkie definitely remembered this Pegasus from Ponyville, if only ever so vaguely. “Derpy?”

“Hey Pinkie,” Derpy said coming to a halt in front of her, searching through her satchel for something. “I was asked to deliver a letter to you.”

“A letter?” Pinkie repeated, “who from?”

“Don’t know,” Derpy admitted, pulling an out of shape envelope from her bag. “But the post office is paying me overtime to deliver this to you here tonight.”

Pinkie accepted the envelope cautiously, as soon as she did Derpy carried on her way, squeezing back through the crowd. Looking at the envelop Pinkie found it bore her name in typed letters and nothing else. Curiously she tore it open and pulled a single folded sheet of paper free, opening she found it almost entirely blank, bar from two words printed in very small font in the centre of the page.

New Game?

Pinkie’s mind went blank as the two words began echoing through her head. It was only when she felt the ground trembling beneath her hooves and all sound die away from the ponies around her, that she knew all hell was about to break loose.

Author's Note

I'm back baby!
At long last, my exams are behind me and I can get back to writing for my relatively exclusive audience.
Just like last time, I'll aim to update this regularly over the next month or two, leaving plenty of time between updates for you to formulate your theories. That's right, we're playing the game again, and just as a warm up mini game, anyone who can correctly identify all the players from the prologue will receive a shout out in the author notes of the first chapter.
As always, criticism is welcome, and I hope you all enjoy.
Next part will be released on Sunday.

C2: Live And Learn

Day 4, 05:59

“Pinkie please! Open up before it’s too…”

It stopped. It finally stopped as the time on Pinkie’s computer changed to read six o’clock. Pinkie let out a sigh, standing up and donning her gala dress as usual.

Another sleepless night, although I’m sure I’m not the only one haunted by Spitfire.

Pinkie brushed her hooves through her flat mane, she had no time for dwelling on the events of yesterday, if they were to escape they had to move forward, and Pinkie would carry them if need be.

Walking to the bedroom door, Pinkie unlatched it and entered the stooped hallway outside. She heard no noise of anypony else getting up; no doubt they didn’t have it in them. That was fine; Pinkie would give them a few hours. As she left the tower she thought briefly if she should have at least gone and found Maud. She decided against it however, despite how her sister appeared on the outside, Pinkie knew she handled tragedy just the same as every other pony.

Arriving at the deserted study, Pinkie took her usual seat in the armchair near the fireplace. She had some time before she was joined, she may as well spend it productively. Reclining back, Pinkie shut her eyes, and let her mind open.

We are lost. We are trapped. We are down two group members. To date we have no ideas regarding our whereabouts, however a number of us have professed to feeling a strong familiarity about this place. Our food situation is… actually I have no idea; I’ll have to discuss that with Applejack today, see if we need to do another search of the town. We need to make finding medicine a priority, it might be my imagination, but I seem to be getting less feedback from my leg while idle.

Pinkie scratched absent mindedly at her hoof, receiving a small twinge as she disturbed the areas where the bolts were screwed into.

If we had somepony who had some medical skills, I would suggests removing these devices altogether. As it stands however, I don’t feel confident that doing so would result in more good than harm. Besides, these things might need to be attached to us to function, I wouldn’t have a clue how these things worked, but there are obviously differences between these ones and the last ones we had.

Opening her eyes, Pinkie examined the casing of the computer. It was a lot more solid than the old ones, which were essentially just a screen strapped to the leg.

Why do these one’s need to be so much bigger?

Pinkie turned her leg over, frowning at a small indent on the underside of the computer. She prodded it with her hoof, but it had no effect.

Maybe if I lodge a narrow object in there…

Pinkie was interrupted from her hypothesising as the door to the study opened. She looked up to see Fleur glide in, looking fresh as a daisy.

“Sleep well?” Pinkie asked curiously.

“As well as one could in this castle,” Fleur replied, taking a seat opposite Pinkie.

“Funny you should say that,” Pinkie replied slowly. “Because it looks to me like you’re one of the few who is finding it easy to do so.”

“I hear them too if that’s what you’re wondering,” Fleur said, her voice switching tone slightly. “I’ve chosen not to let it get to me.”

“It’s that easy?” Pinkie asked sarcastically. “Just choose not to let your nightmares bother you.”

Fleur shrugged nonchalantly.

“Is that what you believe they are then?” Fleur asked. “Nightmares?”

“Sure,” Pinkie said, now sounding unsure. “What do you think they are?”

“Why, I have no idea,” Fleur replied honestly. “Ghosts? Memories? Fears given form? I don’t know what they are, but nor do I want to know. Better to leave those things where they belong… in the past.”

Pinkie glanced away, searching her mind for a different topic of conversation. In the end she settled for an equally morbid one.

“I imagine everypony else is taking this quite hard,” Pinkie said at last. “What happened yesterday with Spitfire I mean.”

“I suppose,” Fleur agreed, nodding gravely. “I suppose they could never have truly understood what was happening to them until they witnessed that execution. Now they know, and it terrifies them.”

“Even Soarin will be taking it hard I imagine,” Pinkie suggested.

“Yes, I am,” a voice said from the door.

Pinkie looked over, surprised to see Soarin standing there.

“But I’m not going to let it affect me,” Soarin said, walking over to the pair. “She ordered me to help get everypony to safety, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”

“I’m glad we can rely on you,” Pinkie said, placing a comforting hoof on his shoulder as he sat down. “I know it’s hard, but the others are going to be looking to us. We got out of this before; we need to be strong for them.”

“Yeah,” Soarin said with determination, before turning grim all of a sudden. “Rainbow’s not taking it well. I don’t know if she’s feeling betrayed or what, but last night she just wasn’t herself, not that I can blame her.”

“And this morning?” Pinkie asked.

“I don’t know,” Soarin admitted. “She stayed in her own room last night, and when I went to check on her this morning she said was fine and she just needed a few more hours.”

“We can give her that,” Pinkie said.

The trio sat in silence and let time tick by. Pinkie was beginning to feel agitated that in all their time spent waiting, only Octavia joined them. Pinkie finally stood up just as the study door opened once more, letting Applejack walk in.

“Howdy y’all,” she greeted wearily. “Ah thought there’d be more up than this.”

“We’ll give them a little longer,” Pinkie said, “but then we’re going to have to go drag them out.”

“Ah suppose, we’ve got a lot to do today no doubt,” Applejack said walking over to Pinkie.

“Ideally,” Pinkie replied. “We need to get some medicine in us, and you and I need to go check the food situation.”

“It seemed alright yesterday,” Applejack said, “but sure, we can go now if you want.”

“I do,” Pinkie said, leading the way from the room, Applejack close behind.

“How are yah holdin’ up?” Applejack asked as the pair walked.

“I’m fine,” Pinkie said simply.

“That’s it?” Applejack asked surprised, stopping dead in her tracks. “Two ponies are dead and you’re fine?!”

“How do you want me to feel?” Pinkie asked, turning to her friend. “Or rather, how do you expect me to feel?”

“Maybe show a little more emotion,” Applejack suggested. “This is kind of a mourning period.”

“I have a job to do,” Pinkie stated, “I can mourn when everypony else is safe.”

“That’s how you’re dealin’ with this? The Pinkie ah knew wouldn’t brush something like this off like it was nothing,” Applejack insisted.

“Well that Pinkie’s gone!”

Applejack stood frozen solid, Pinkie slapped a hoof to her mouth, shocked at how angry she had sounded as those words slipped out.

“I’m sorry Applejack,” Pinkie said quickly. “I don’t know why I said that…”

“No,” Applejack cut across, walking over to Pinkie. “Ah’m sorry. Ah knew something wasn’t right about what we were told, ah felt it in mah gut. But ah chose to trust the princesses, to trust you, to the point where ah was willin’ to let you suffer in silence. After yesterday… ah guess ah know what you’ve had to deal with these past months, and ah’m just sorry ah wasn’t there to help.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” Pinkie said quietly, falling against the wall. “Leaving Ponyville was my choice; I didn’t want you girls to have to share this burden.”

“Ah always wondered,” Applejack continued. “Ah’d be out workin’ the farm and ah’d wonder, is she coming back? Well? Were you ever gonna come home?”

“I don’t know,” Pinkie replied honestly, sliding down the wall and sitting on the floor. “There were days, better days, when I thought I could run back to Ponyville, run back to you girls and never leave again. But then I’d remember why I left… and then I’d stay.”

“You came to the gala though,” Applejack commented. “That must have been hard, but yah did it.”

“Yeah, I did,” Pinkie said giving a weak laugh. “And look where it got me. No, my family really pushed for me to go, I didn’t want to let them down.”

“Your sister,” Applejack began, smirking slightly. “She gave me such a hidin’ after I got you all panicky. I’d never known she could be such a talker, but I saw it then, just like we did when she rescued you from that falling rock, she really loves you.”

“The feelings mutual,” Pinkie said, accepting Applejack’s helping hoof pulling her back onto all fours. “We should really get moving.”

“Yeah,” Applejack replied, sounding slightly embarrassed. “Sorry I dragged all this up.”

“Don’t be,” Pinkie insisted. “You’re my best friend, you deserve the truth.”

As the pair continued towards the kitchen, Pinkie couldn’t help but feel guilt growing inside her.

The truth…

Day 4, 09:11

Pinkie was glad to see everypony gathered in the study when she and Applejack returned, doubly so when she saw Rainbow and Soarin snuggled closely on one of the sofas.

“Pinkie,” Maud said approaching. “There’s been a development.”

“What kind of development?” Pinkie asked curiously.

“The central chamber,” Maud answered. “The stairs have moved.”

Pinkie’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“When was this?” she asked excitedly.

“When I got up, it must have been at about eight,” Maud explained. “I heard some loud noises and went to investigate. I arrived just as they’d finished their shift.”

“That’s great Maud,” Pinkie praised, sounding much more upbeat than she’d felt entering the study.

“I had waited to tell you first,” Maud explained, glancing over to the others, some of which were watching them curiously.

“Alright, that isn’t a problem,” Pinkie replied, moving into the centre of the room. “Alright everypony, I know yesterday was difficult on you all, but we need to work together if we’re going to escape. We had a slip up but that won’t happen again. Now I’ve just been informed that the central room has been changed, so we’re going to investigate that after breakfast. On that note, Shining, can I speak with you?”

Shining Armour followed Pinkie to the edge of the study while the others either began filing out of talking with one another about these apparent changes Pinkie had mentioned.

“Is something wrong?” Shining asked.

“No, I just thought that since you’d played such a big role in getting the food together, that you should be kept up to date,” Pinkie explained. “Now we’re four days in, this is where we’d be running low, but thanks to the food your group brought in, we should stay strong for another nine days according to AJ.”

“That’s good,” Shining said, sounding pleased. “And you think we’ll be out before that?”

“I don’t know, I’ll need to see what’s going on in the central chamber first.”

“Alright, oh yeah,” Shining said suddenly, remembering something. “I was talking with Fluttershy there, and she has something she wants to discuss with you. She’d probably come to you on her own, but I thought I’d let you know.”

“Alright, I’ll go talk to her,” Pinkie assured him. “You should go get some food now.”

Shining nodded and departed from the room, leaving Pinkie alone. Walking over to her armchair she collapsed into it. Her conversation with Applejack had left her feeling totally drained. She was hungry, but she could take a few minutes to get her thoughts back together. And rest her eyes for a second…

Day 4, 09:53

Pinkie felt herself being shaken awake. Dreary and confused she looked around wildly as her vision returned to her, seeing Derpy leaning down in front of her.

“Oh Derpy, what time is it?” Pinkie asked, her voice weary.

“Almost ten,” Derpy answered. “The others decided to head on to the central chamber, they thought you were already there.”

“I only sat down for a second, I don’t even remember falling asleep,” Pinkie, said rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

“Have you not been able to sleep?” Derpy asked carefully.

“Not really,” Pinkie answered automatically.

“Me neither,” Derpy replied miserably. “Well I have a little, but not very much. But then nopony cares if I can’t function, but you’re our leader, you need your energy.”

“Derpy, I care whether you can function or not,” Pinkie told her. “You’re a part of this group. Now come on, we should go find the others.”

“Oh I brought you this,” Derpy said, producing an apple from her saddlebags. “I guess you haven’t eaten yet, you must be hungry.”

“I really am Derpy, thanks a bunch,” Pinkie said gratefully, accepting the apple and taking a big bite from it as the pair walked form the study.

“How are you doing?” Pinkie asked as they walked.

“After yesterday?” Derpy asked, Pinkie nodded. “I was sad, I still am but… I don’t know, I feel more focused now, more determined.”

“That’s good,” Pinkie said encouragingly. “You’re gonna need that determination to get out of here.”

“Yeah, I know,” Derpy replied forlornly.

The rest of the trip past quickly and in silence. Pinkie trotted the last length, Derpy running to keep up. As Pinkie arrived in the central chamber, she immediately saw what was different. While she couldn’t have told which staircases and bridges above them were different, the one on her level that had led to the armour was now pointed straight through the centre of the room, to one of the higher archways.

“So this is new,” Fleetfoot said, pointing out the obvious as she saw Pinkie and Derpy arrive.

“I don’t get it,” Rainbow said, “we didn’t do anything, did it decide to move on its own?”

“Perhaps it’s on a timer,” Octavia proposed. “After every three days it changes.”

“That seems impractical if you ask me, leaving that kind of thing up to the castle itself,” Rarity argued. “I think it far more likely it obeys the Mastermind.”

“You think the Mastermind did this,” Shining repeated. “I suppose that’s likely, but why now?”

“Maybe because we completed the first trial,” Pinkie proposed walking up to the staircase. “What ever the reason, we should see where it leads, could be helpful.”

“Maybe some of us should wait here,” Cheese said in an uncharacteristically nervous voice. “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket after all… especially when that basket is being held by a maniac.”

“The Mastermind wouldn’t kill us,” Pinkie assured him. “Even if we break rules I doubt he’d do more than gave us a slap on the wrist. Still, if you want to wait here I won’t stop you.”

Leading the way, Pinkie began walking up the steps. It was interesting that this could be the same staircase that originally led to the armoury, it was now much longer, and before it matched the curvature of the room, now it was straight. Glancing back, Pinkie saw Cheese trotting up the steps behind the rest of them, presumably not wanting to be left alone. Once at the top of the staircase, Pinkie stood at the precipice of an archway leading into a new corridor. This hall was very wide, with wooden benches lined up along either wall at regular intervals.

“Feels like a waiting room,” Rarity suggested, curiously.

Pinkie quickened her pace as she carried on towards the double doors at the end of the hall. There were two other corridors splitting off to either side, but she chose to ignore those for now. Pinkie’s heart rate quickened as she arrived in front of the doors, reaching out with her hoof to push them open. A rare smile broke out on her face as the doors opened and her suspicions were confirmed.

Pinkie stepped into a spacious room, floors, walls and ceilings were all clinically white and scrubbed to a point where bacteria would have been eradicated entering the room. There were half a dozen hospital beds on either side of the room, marked off with plastic curtains. There were several medical stations around the room covered in various equipment, and cabinets full of boxes and bottles.

“I take it; this is what you had in mind?” Maud asked, approaching Pinkie from behind.

Pinkie nodded, approaching a nearby cabinet and scanning its contents.

“An infirmary,” Soarin commented, entering the room and looking around. “Looks to be in way better condition than the rest of the castle.”

“Indeed,” Rarity said joining Pinkie at the cabinet, “almost like it was lifted from a different building entirely.”

“Well it’s like Pinkie said,” Fleur offered. “The Mastermind isn’t trying to kill us themselves, so if they’re going to provide us with medicine they would need to be kept in the right environment.”

“So what are we looking for?” Applejack asked, examining one of the folded up wheelchairs set against the wall.

“We need something to stop our legs getting infected,” Pinkie informed them. “Probably be best if we didn’t all crowd around in here. Some of you head out and search the other corridors, see where they lead.”

Pinkie turned a bottle around, reading the label.

Ketamine.

Day 4, 10:26

“Pinkie dear,” Rarity said, causing Pinkie to turn around. “I believe this should do the trick.”

Rarity held out a box to Pinkie which she accepted, reading the label out loud.

“Fluoroquinolones,” Pinkie read, confused. “What are they?”

“A very broad antibiotic,” Rarity answered. “Sweetie Belle was once prescribed them.”

“So, what? Capsules?” Pinkie asked opening the box up and pulling out a foil sheet.

“Yes, we should all take one a day,” Rarity clarified.

“Alright,” Pinkie said turning to the others. “We got what we need.”

Fluttershy and Octavia stopped their search and approached Pinkie and Rarity.

“How many boxes are there?” Pinkie asked Rarity.

“Oh a dozen or so,” Rarity answered, “I don’t think we’re at any shortage.”

“Well gather them all up,” Pinkie instructed. “We’re going to need to keep these somewhere safe, it won’t do for someone to switch them and poison us all.”

“Is that likely?” Fluttershy asked, her eyes wide.

“I hope not,” Pinkie said quickly, mentally kicking herself for suggesting that within earshot of Fluttershy.

Rarity returned, carrying all the boxes in her magical aura. Octavia produced a small safe box from one of the medical stations, offering it to Pinkie. Once all the medication was stored and locked inside, Pinkie led the way out of the infirmary.

“We should catch up with the others,” Pinkie stated. “We’ll take our first doses when we’re all together to be sure everypony gets it.”

The group started down the left corridor, hearing voices off in the distance.

“Fluttershy,” Pinkie began suddenly as they walked. “Shining mentioned you wanted to discuss something with me.”

“Huh? Oh yes,” Fluttershy said, remembering. “I was just thinking, if I could find some traces of what birds were kept in the aviary, I might be able to figure out where we are based on where they’re native to.”

“That’s a good idea,” Pinkie agreed, fishing out the aviary key and offering it to her. “Why don’t you go on over there and look into it?”

“Now?” Fluttershy asked, halting. “Go over there… on my own?”

“I’ll come with you dear,” Rarity assured her quickly, calming Fluttershy down immediately.

Fluttershy accepted the key off Pinkie, and her and Rarity departed, leaving Pinkie with Octavia, walking in silence down the corridor. When the hall came to an end, the floor began tilting up, traveling in a smooth spiral. Pinkie and Octavia began ascending the circular ramp, arriving at a heavy metal door that was sitting open.

Walking on in, the pair found themselves in a large, circular room. Around the edge of the room was mesh ramp, curving along the wall, spiralling up the tower until it reached a metal platform hanging over their heads, from which the voices could be heard. Pinkie approached the centre of the room along with Octavia, who was transfixed by the elegant structure there.

Pinkie had once seen a model of the solar system, Twilight had shown it to her once when she was trying to explain something about how the planet rotated around the sun. At the time Pinkie hadn’t been able to focus on what Twilight was saying, being too easily distracted by some trivial thing to pay attention. What she saw now was a massive reconstruction of the very same orrery Twilight had shown her in the library that day. Its delicate golden limbs and steadily rotating orbs all bleeding light throughout the room as they orbited the shining sun in the middle.

“So, this is the observatory,” Octavia stated, looking skywards to the platform. “No doubt the telescope is up there.”

Octavia made to walk away from the orrery, her sights set on the mesh ramp.

“Hold on a second Octavia,” Pinkie said suddenly, making Octavia freeze. “We need to talk.”

Octavia turned around and gave Pinkie a cool, level stare, not saying a word.

“You knew it was Spitfire,” Pinkie stated. “You found the feather, and you were there when Filthy Rich overheard them talking, weren’t you?”

“I was,” Octavia admitted. “I saw him leave the wash room several seconds after they left, muttering to himself.”

“Then why didn’t you tell me?!” Pinkie demanded. “What possible reason could you have had for keeping that a secret during the investigation, let alone the trial?”

“I guess…” Octavia began slowly, “I wanted to see you in action, to see if what I’ve heard is true.”

Pinkie frowned, taken aback by Octavia’s reply.

“You were testing me?” Pinkie stated flatly. “So did I pass?”

Octavia just smirked and turned away from Pinkie, continuing on her way towards the ramp.

Enigmatic… Annoying… She might be a problem…

Pinkie sighed, following after Octavia. Traversing up the ramp, passing by a single open door in the wall which she bypassed, Pinkie arrived shortly after Octavia on the circular platform upon which a giant telescope was constructed. It wasn’t the simple device Pinkie had seen before, but a heavy, complicated looking machine. It was pointed at a rough forty five degree angle, directed towards the domed ceiling. At first glance Pinkie had thought the roof was made of glass, but after watching it for a few seconds, she noticed it rippling.

“So, what is there to report?” Pinkie asked the group that was gathered next to the telescope.

“Well this is the observatory, don’t expect to do much stargazing,” Fleetfoot said sarcastically, gesturing to the pitch black sky through the transparent ceiling.

“I gathered as much,” Pinkie stated impatiently.

“Well besides what you see here,” Soarin chipped in before Fleetfoot could retort, “there’s a door leading to the battlements about half way up that ramp.”

“Yeah I saw it,” Pinkie acknowledged.

“The others are all out there,” Maud pointed out. “Also that other corridor from the infirmary just led to more empty or locked rooms.”

“Right,” Pinkie said, noticing Octavia was examining the telescope itself. “I’m going to take a look on the battlements. Also we found some antibiotics which we’ll all need to start taking daily.”

Leaving the top floor of the observatory behind, Pinkie retraced her steps, arriving back at the open door. Stepping out she felt a light breeze hit her, looking around she saw Fleur and Shining examining one of the ballista’s, Applejack and Cheese surveying the area while Rainbow and Derpy flew around.

“Any luck Pinkie?” Fleur asked as Pinkie approached her and Shining.

“Yeah, Rarity found something,” Pinkie answered. “Find anything?”

“These are the same models used by the Equestrian military,” Shining explained, patting the ballista. “But they appear ancient; I doubt they’d fire anymore, not without a tune up first.”

“Well I don’t think we need to add that to our to-do list,” Pinkie said. “What about the battlements in general?”

“Well this is only one level,” Shining continued. “You can only get to this one from the observatory and another empty tower further down. The other levels can be reached from different towers and floors.”

Pinkie nodded, approaching the wall and peering down between the merlons. The suffocating darkness made it difficult to make out the ground from this height, but Pinkie could vaguely identify the gardens below her and the main courtyard if she strained her neck left. Pulling back from the edge Pinkie turned to the others, who had all gathered around the ballista.

“We should all head downstairs,” Pinkie suggested. “We’ll get some food and first dosage.”

Day 4, 14:20

Pinkie held the book up in front of her, comparing the image on the paper to that of the statue. Shaking her head she placed the book down on the chapel altar. She hadn’t been looking for information on the Pegasus iconography, but as she flicked through the textbook on magical rune, the picture had come up and she thought she might as well compare the two.

Maud walked up to the altar from the stone bench she sat at, comparing the lettering on the front cover to the book she was reading.

“I never realised there were so many different languages in magic,” Pinkie said, slamming yet another book shut.

“I suppose it is a complex field of study,” Maud admitted. “Lots of different disciplines, changes over time, cultural influences…”

“True, shame Trixie isn’t here with us,” Pinkie remarked, before catching herself on, “not that I’d want anypony to be here with us.”

“Somepony with magical knowledge would come in handy,” Maud agreed. “What are you expecting to be in this book?”

“No idea,” Pinkie admitted, “but it has to be something important, and it’s not like we’ve found much else.”

“We’ve had plenty of leads,” Maud argued.

“But they all went cold,” Pinkie pointed out. “Geography and mapping, nothing. Rocks and construction, nothing. Religious symbolism and current affairs, not a thing.”

“Maybe Fluttershy is having better luck with her new lead,” Maud proposed. “Why don’t I take over for a bit here while you go and check on her?”

“I suppose,” Pinkie agreed, closing another book over. “If this turns out to be a bust too, we’ll take these books outside and examine the courtroom runes.”

Maud nodded in acknowledgement as Pinkie left the chapel. Walking briskly down the corridor and up the staircase, Pinkie made her way to the open doors of the library. She noticed Octavia jotting down notes while repeatedly glancing up at the gyrating hour glass.

“You seem pretty interested in these big gizmos,” Pinkie noted, approaching Octavia.

“Of course, they’re fascinating,” Octavia stated. “More so, they’re quite advanced considering everything else in this castle.”

“Well the infirmary was pretty up to date,” Pinkie reminded her.

“Ah, but why was that?” Octavia asked mysteriously. “Fleur did say the Mastermind probably did it intentionally.”

“So you’re suggesting this and the observatory are also intentional?” Pinkie queried, unsure what Octavia was getting at.

“Something like that,” Octavia said, smirking slightly. “If I find out anything for definite, I’ll be sure to pass it along to you.”

“I’d appreciate it,” Pinkie said, leaving Octavia to whatever it was she was doing.

Navigating over to the area they had been studying in the other day, Pinkie saw Fluttershy with her nose buried in a more modern textbook.

“How’s it going?” Pinkie asked, taking the seat opposite Fluttershy.

“Well I couldn’t find any traces of animals,” Fluttershy admitted, setting the book down. “No feathers or droppings or anything like that, so instead I started looking into what type of birds would be kept in that sort of environment.”

“I would have thought that was something you’d already know,” Pinkie commented, glancing at the title of book Fluttershy had just been reading.

Natural Remedies and Medicinal Plants.

“I know about natural habitats and rural environments,” Fluttershy specified, “but keeping birds in castle towers… Also that book wasn’t anything to do with it, it was already sitting here when I got in and I decided to flick through it.”

“How come everything keeps turning up dry?” Pinkie questioned. “I mean, you never did find out anything about the Pegasus statues in the chapel did you?”

“No,” Fluttershy said quickly, a little too quickly.

“Right,” Pinkie said slowly, deciding to change the topic and address that later. “Well maybe you should take a break here if you’re not getting anywhere.”

“Well what else should I do?” Fluttershy asked, sounding slightly hopeless.

Pinkie thought about it for a minute, while the remaining Wonderbolts had been tasked with being the groups’ eyes and ears throughout the castle, she had kept Fluttershy and Derpy on research duty, aware they weren’t quite as physically able as the others. Still, as she had said to Maud, without any solid leads on what to research, she was basically wasting horse power. Then a light bulb blinked into life above Pinkie’s head.

“Of course, I have the perfect task for you,” Pinkie said suddenly.

“Really?” Fluttershy answered, sounding hopeful.

“At the manor, we had a couple mishaps involving drugs taken from the labs,” Pinkie explained. “So we ended up assigning Nurse Redheart to take inventory of all our medical supplies to make sure none of it was going missing.”

“So you want me to keep stock of the infirmary?” Fluttershy asked, pondering the idea.

“It’s an important job, but I think you’d be perfect at it,” Pinkie gushed. “And while I know you’re not trained in medicine, you know a lot more about it than most of us.”

Fluttershy smiled, clearly liking the idea. Pinkie didn’t doubt for a second that it was due to the infirmary feeling like a different place altogether, a much safer place.

“Of course Pinkie,” Fluttershy assured her. “You can count on me.”

“That’a girl,” Pinkie praised as the pair left the library together. “If you need a hand with anything just find me or Rarity.”

“I will,” Fluttershy said, hurrying on ahead.

Feeling quite pleased with that decision, Pinkie returned to the library in time to see Maud leaving, her saddlebags packed to bursting point with the various books they had taken in with them.

“Shall we head outside now?” she asked as Pinkie approached her.

“Yeah,” Pinkie agreed, taking a few of the books from Maud to lighten her load.

Day 4, 18:03

“Maybe familiar is the wrong word,” Rainbow said, backtracking slightly. “What I’m saying is that, it feels like… ah forget I said anything.”

“I’ve been hearing a lot of that lately,” Pinkie commented as the pair walked towards the banquet hall.

“Really, have you…” Rainbow began, but stopped as the pair arrived outside the banquet hall doors and heard the shouting within.

“Wow, that’s an academy record,” Rainbow said, chuckling to herself, before adding upon seeing Pinkie’s confused expression, “uh, inside joke.”

Pinkie braced herself and marched through the doors in the room. Fleetfoot was standing up, her hooves planted firmly on the table in front of her; opposite her was Rarity who was clutching the lock box that was housing the antibiotics.

“Dare I ask,” Pinkie began loudly, “what’s going on?”

“Just the usual,” Rarity began coldly, “Fleetfoot is being a mule.”

“Dammit I hate this group!” Fleetfoot bellowed. “I just said I didn’t think a single pony should be in charge of the medicine we’re all taking, and suddenly everypony’s at my throat!”

“That decision isn’t for you to make,” Rarity retorted.

“Yeah, now lay off Rarity,” Applejack shot at Fleetfoot.

“Actually,” Pinkie cut across, “I agree with Fleetfoot.”

Everypony looked at Pinkie in surprise, including Fleetfoot.

“You do?” Rarity asked, her cheeks turning pink.

“It makes sense to feel nervous accepting medicine in these circumstances,” Pinkie continued, “particularly when that medicine is being kept by a single pony who could quite easily sabotage it.”

“But I would never…” Rarity began, sounding horrified.

“I’m not saying you would Rarity,” Pinkie said quickly. “I’m just saying that Fleetfoot isn’t wrong to be bringing up this concern.”

“Uh, yeah, that’s what I’ve been trying to say,” Fleetfoot said awkwardly.

“What we need is to keep the key and the box separate,” Pinkie said. “Rarity can watch over the box, while I keep a hold of the key. One’s useless without the other. Anyone object to that?”

Nopony did, a few spoke words of agreement. So after a little passing about, Pinkie stored the lock box key into her saddlebag along with the only other key remaining now that that Fluttershy had the aviary key. With yet another drama averted, Pinkie settled down in her own seat where Applejack offered her a bowl of soup.

“Hey Pinkie,” Cheese greeted, sliding up next to Pinkie.

“Hi Cheese,” Pinkie replied neutrally as she ate.

“I was just thinking Pinkie, after that little outburst there,” Cheese began, “everypony is a little on edge. So what if we threw together a small party to lift everypony’s spirits?”

“I really don’t think that’s a good idea,” Pinkie said, hoping he’d drop it at that.

“Oh come on Pinkie,” Cheese insisted to Pinkie’s annoyance. “I thought you loved parties. Heck, you’re the one who inspired me to become a party pony. Your cutie mark is dedicated to throwing parties.”

“Well Cheese,” Pinkie replied with a sigh. “There is a time and a place for parties, a different time, a different place.”

“Oh, well if you change your mind, let me know,” Cheese said, sounding disappointed.

Pinkie nodded, just wanting to get back to her dinner. Cheese shifted from the seat next to Pinkie, which was swiftly filled by Fleur.

“I noticed you outside,” Fleur began, “what were you doing?”

“We were trying to decipher the runes in the courtyard,” Pinkie explained.

“Any luck?” Fleur asked curiously.

“Yes actually,” Pinkie said happily. “They’re a lot less complicated than the ones in the chapel. A ton of different spells for raising the banisters and keeping ponies in the circle, as well as some stunting the use of magic and flight during an execution. Maud made some more detailed notes on them if you’re interested.”

“I suppose I could look into them,” Fleur said thoughtfully. “And these finding weren’t applicable to that book then?”

“No, I compared them before coming here,” Pinkie admitted. “They use a different alphabet entirely.”

“Well, I’m sure you’ll figure it out soon enough,” Fleur assured her before taking her leave.

Day 4, 20:44

Pinkie sat on a bench in the wash room, towelling her wet mane. Today had been productive, Pinkie felt confident that by tomorrow she could make great headway in translating the book. It seemed stupid that she was putting all her money on the contents of that one book, but she didn’t have much else to go by. An offhand comment earlier at dinner by Shining had reminded her of the pictures currently sitting in her bedroom, perhaps the answers lay in the town somewhere, she had after all woken up there.

Pinkie rubbed more furiously with the towel as she thought that, while in the courtyard with Maud she had slipped away, claiming she needed a break. She returned to that place with the crates and barrels, to where the door no longer was.

Pinkie was dragged back to the present by the sound of somepony entering the washroom. Looking up, she saw Fleetfoot standing in the doorway.

“Oh, hey Pinkie,” Fleetfoot said casually, walking over to one of the shower booths.

Pinkie nodded to her, throwing the towel down and gathering her things. She slung them over her back and began heading for the door, but stopped when Fleetfoot called out.

“Pinkie,” she said.

Pinkie turned, expecting another tantrum.

“Why did you agree with me earlier?” Fleetfoot asked in an odd tone, taking off her purple sunglasses.

“Why? Because you were right,” Pinkie stated simply. “I’m not here to be your enemy Fleetfoot; we’re on the same side.”

“Oh…” Fleetfoot muttered, sounding distant. “Well, thanks anyway.”

With that, she quickly entered the shower and turned on the water, effectively putting an end to any possible conversation. Pinkie smirked as she left the washroom, heading towards the entrance hall. Once there she passed Derpy on the main staircase who was scribbling notes into a textbook she had taken from the library.

“Hey Pinkie,” Derpy greeted. “I heard you and Cheese were planning a party.”

“What?” Pinkie asked, confused. “You must have misheard Derpy; I told him we wouldn’t have a party.”

“Oh,” Derpy said, sounding slightly disappointed before immediately brightening up again. “Well, goodnight Pinkie.”

Derpy left, humming cheerfully to herself while still jotting down her crooked scribbles. Pinkie just shook her head slightly and kept walking.

Day 5, 07:48

Pinkie opened her bedroom door, adjusting the straps on her saddlebags as she walked out. As she did she walked straight into Fluttershy who was past with her head hung.

“Oh, sorry Fluttershy,” Pinkie said, helping her up and brushing herself off. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

“That’s okay,” Fluttershy said quickly, not meeting Pinkie’s eye. “Excuse me; I’m going to go take inventory in the infirmary.”

“It’s a bit early,” Pinkie called after her. “Shouldn’t you get something to eat first?”

Fluttershy had already swept out of sight before Pinkie had finished speaking, leaving her alone and confused. She thought on Fluttershy’s behaviour as she continued towards the study, her own night had been more peaceful than the previous night. Mostly murmuring and at one point she saw stark white lightning strike outside, cutting the black sky in two. She had persevered through it however, although that didn’t necessarily mean Fluttershy had managed quite so well.

She probably just had a rough night, I’ll check up on her in a bit and see how’s she’s doing.

Reaching the study Pinkie found Fleur and Octavia sitting and reading respectively, Rainbow and Soarin talking quietly in a corner, and Rarity sitting on her own looking feeble.

“Are you alright Rarity?” Pinkie asked, taking the seat next to her.

“Oh, good morning Pinkie,” Rarity said wearily. “Assuming of course it really is morning.”

“Rough night?” Pinkie asked.

“I just can’t make them stop,” Rarity moaned into her forehooves. “I’ve barely had a minutes sleep since we got here.”

“Well go back to bed,” Pinkie suggested. “You aren’t obligated to get up this early every morning.”

“But we have to be available if you need us for something,” Rarity insisted.

“Rarity, you look like you’re going to collapse at a moment’s notice,” Pinkie pointed out. “I know you mean well, but you’ll be more use to everypony after you’ve had some rest.”

“Alright, If that’s what you think is best Pinkie,” Rarity said, reaching into her bag and taking out the lock box. “Here, I’ll give you todays doses and you can hand them out.”

Pinkie agreed, taking one of the foil sheets from Rarity, giving her one of the red and yellow ended capsules before she left. As Rarity exited the study, Derpy and Maud entered together. Pinkie sat back as Maud walked over and plopped down next to her.

“How did you sleep?” she asked casually.

“Better,” Pinkie replied simply. “You?”

“Fine.”

“Alright.”

The two at in silence for a second before smirking at one another.

“We haven’t had a conversation that boring since we were fillies,” Maud commented. “So, what are we doing today?”

“Well I need to go check on Fluttershy at some point,” Pinkie said, “other than that, just more of what we were doing yesterday.”

Maud nodded as Applejack entered the room carrying a tray of sandwiches.

“Where’s the rest?” she asked, setting the tray down on the coffee table in front of Pinkie.

“Fluttershy wasn’t hungry,” Pinkie said, unsure whether that was the truth or not. “I haven’t seen Fleetfoot, Cheese or Shining yet, and Rarity went back to bed for a few hours.”

“Ah did tell her she needed more sleep,” Applejack stated, rolling her eyes. “Ah assume it was you who talked some sense into her.”

Pinkie nodded, taking a sandwich off the tray as the others converged in.

“Do you need us to do anything specific today?” Rainbow asked, sitting opposite Pinkie.

“Not at the moment, just keep an eye on everything,” Pinkie instructed. “Be on the lookout for anything suspicious… or anypony.”

Day 5, 11:26

Pinkie trotted up the staircase in the central chamber, her eyes fixed on the infirmary door ahead of her. Once Rarity had returned, looking considerably more refreshed, Pinkie had asked her to sit in for her for a while she went to check in on Fluttershy. So she left Rarity, Maud, Fleur, Cheese and Derpy to their research while she set off. As she ascended the last few steps and entered the waiting room, as they had taken to calling it, she saw Applejack heading in her direction.

“There yah are sugar,” Applejack said, clearly relieved at finding Pinkie. “Ah was just about to come find yah.”

“Is something wrong?” Pinkie asked, stopping in front of Applejack.

“Maybe, it’s Shining Armour,” Applejack explained. “He’s up at that telescope bein’… really weird.”

“I’ll go see him and figure out what’s up,” Pinkie assured her, frowning slightly.

Applejack nodded and continued past Pinkie down the staircase she had just come from. Leaving the infirmary and Fluttershy for a moment, Pinkie turned left down the corridor to the observatory, ascending the spiral ramp and passing through the still open door. Once inside she found Octavia sitting beside the orrery, her notes now spread out over several sheets of paper.

“Applejack said Shining Armour was here,” Pinkie said, announcing herself. “Said there was something wrong.”

“He’s up there,” Octavia said, pointing up to the metal platform overhead. “And no, I don’t know what’s wrong with him, but I think you should get up there quick.”

That was all the encouragement Pinkie needed as she sped off up the mesh ramp to the telescope platform. Once she arrived at the summit, she found Shining Armour sitting lazily in the telescope seat, peering through the lens but looking as if he wasn’t really seeing anything.

“Shining,” Pinkie said slowly, edging closer to the stallion.

“Canterlot had an observatory,” Shining said randomly, his voice distant. “It looked a lot like this. Twilight loved it.”

Pinkie froze, a sudden idea of what was wrong developing.

“Any time I was on night guard duty,” Shining continued, “and we were alerted to an unauthorised entry in the castle, we knew it was Twilight sneaking into the library or the observatory. The princess ended up giving her her own private tower so she wouldn’t keep sneaking out at night.”

“She was always a bit of a night owl,” Pinkie said warily.

“Tell me about it,” Shining said, chuckling slightly, before his voice turned dark. “But then I got the news…”

Pinkie continued edging towards the telescope.

“I travelled straight to Canterlot, demanded to know what happened,” Shining continued. “And they fed that horseshit about her experiment going wrong and killing ten other ponies along with herself. My own wife looked me in the eye and told me that lie.”

Pinkie tensed up.

“I knew they were lying, I knew she was lying,” Shining said bitterly. “I begged them, I threatened them, and still they wouldn’t tell me the truth. As time passed, I drank, I shouted at Cadance, and still she wouldn’t tell me how my sister had really died.”

“They didn’t mean any malice by it,” Pinkie said slowly.

“How did you say she died again?” Shining asked suddenly, his voice cold. “Poison wasn’t it?”

“Yes,” Pinkie said firmly. “Doughnut Joe stabbed and poisoned her.”

“It’s funny,” Shining began, his voice sounding slightly delirious, “when you say that, you sound exactly like she did when she lied to me.”

Pinkie’s eyes flickered to the ramp, suddenly regretting how close she had moved towards Shining Armour.

“Even now, after everything, that still doesn’t sound quite true to me…” Pinkie tensed, ready to run if Shining made any sudden moves, but then his body slumped, his voice weakening. “I just want Cadance back.”

Then Shining slid off the seat into an unconscious heap on the floor. Pinkie rushed over, bewildered at what had just happened. He was clearly alive, breathing fine and Pinkie could feel his pulse.

“Octavia!” Pinkie shouted down the ramp.

“Yes?” Octavia shouted back.

“Shining passed out, we need to get him to the infirmary,” Pinkie explained, poking her head over the edge of the platform so she could see Octavia below.

“I’ll go get some extra muscle,” Octavia assured her before abandoning her notes and walking swiftly from the room.

Returning to Shining Armour, Pinkie examined him closer. His breath smelt awful. Turning him onto his side, Pinkie noticed a familiar stain on his formal jacket.

Oh lord…

Day 5, 12:18

Fleetfoot and Soarin lay shining down on the infirmary bed, stepping back exhausted.

“I don’t understand, what happened to him?” Fluttershy asked worriedly, leaning over Shining and checking his vitals.

“He’s drunk,” Pinkie explained, unamused. “He has a red wine stain on his jacket; it would also explain his inane ramblings.”

“I didn’t even know we had alcohol,” Fleetfoot said, looking to the others who all looked just as surprised as her.

“Maybe Applejack has cooking alcohol or something,” Pinkie proposed. “If so we’ll need to get rid of it.”

“You won’t hear any arguments from me,” Soarin said, probably remembering the red wine incident with Braeburn and Blueblood.

“Or me, I don’t drink,” Fleetfoot added.

“It’s probably for the best,” Fluttershy agreed.

They all turned to Rainbow Dash.

“Well I suppose now isn’t the time for drinking anyway,” she grumbled.

“Alright, well I’ll go find Applejack,” Pinkie said. “Fluttershy, can you watch over him?”

“Of course,” Fluttershy replied.

“And can at least one of you stick around?” Pinkie asked the three Wonderbolts. “In case he’s still aggressive when he wakes up.”

“Sure thing,” Rainbow assured her as Pinkie left the infirmary.

“Is he going to be all right?” Octavia asked, still in the waiting room as Pinkie exited.

“Yeah, he’ll be fine,” Pinkie stated. “Thanks for helping; you can get back to whatever you were doing.”

Octavia nodded, returning in the direction of the observatory.

Day 5, 12:39

“Well ah don’t know what to tell you Pinkie,” Applejack insisted, “but there isn’t a drop of alcohol in this kitchen.”

“Have you seen any anywhere else?” Pinkie asked.

“Can’t say that ah have,” Applejack informed her. “But didn’t the others say we had cellar?”

“Yeah, but it’s locked,” Pinkie reminded her.

“Maybe we ought to check that out,” Applejack said sternly. “Make sure it is indeed locked.”

Pinkie nodded and the pair left the kitchen, venturing down the hallway past the store room to the next door along. The door to the cellar was wooden, but had a square barred window in the centre, allowing Pinkie to see the steps leading down into the dark. Looking over to Applejack once, Pinkie reached out and pushed against the door, which swung open obediently.

After sharing another surprised glance, the pair looked into the now open stairwell.

“We’ll need a light,” Pinkie said.

Applejack nodded, removing a torch from a nearby bracket and holding it in her mouth.

“Have you wondered how those things never go out?” Pinkie asked as they walked down the steps.

“Magic?” Applejack said through the torch in her mouth, giving a little shrug.

As they arrived at the bottom of the steps, they entered a low ceilinged, fairly spacious chamber. Walking around they found the room filled with barrels of various sizes, and the walls lined with shelves, filled with dusty bottles.

“Over here Pinkie,” Applejack called over to Pinkie in a muffled voice.

Pinkie left the shelf she was examining and crossed to a rickety wooden table, upon which two open wine bottles sat alongside an extinguished candle.

“We’re going to have interrogated Shining Armour when he wakes up,” Pinkie said. “We need to know how he got down here.”

Applejack nodded and made to walk away, but stopped suddenly, bending down and looking at the table surface. Pinkie leaned in, trying to see what Applejack had noticed. Her friends leaned back, allowing the light of her torch to shine over the table. While the table appeared old and moulded, Pinkie could easily discern various multi-coloured scribbles over it.

Day 5, 16:55

Pinkie stood between Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, glaring at Shining Armour as he threw up into a bucket next to the bed.

“Alright Shining, what the hell?!” Pinkie demanded when he looked back up at them. “I was really counting on you to keep a steady head throughout this, then you go and get pissed!”

“I’m sorry,” Shining muttered. “I don’t even remember it happening.”

“How did you get into the cellar in the first place?” Pinkie asked.

“I found a key,” Shining explained. “The other corridor outside here, there was a deserted bedroom; I found the key in the desk.”

“Why didn’t you tell us about this?” Rainbow asked, sounding annoyed.

“I wanted to try and find where it went on my own,” Shining said, “so I’d have something more to show than a random key.”

“And where is it now?” Pinkie asked.

“In my saddlebags I think.”

“Um, I checked in there, I didn’t see any key,” Fluttershy explained.

“Well we need to find it,” Pinkie said impatiently. “We have to get that cellar locked up so nopony else makes a mule of themselves.”

“Was I really that bad?” Shining asked, looking deeply ashamed.

Pinkie didn’t respond, instead turning to Rainbow.

“Can you search the observatory?” She requested. “In case he dropped it.”

“Will do,” Rainbow said, hurrying off.

“Fluttershy, can you take care of him?” Pinkie asked, turning to the other Pegasus. “Just make sure he’s fit to get back to his room before ten, I can’t be sure he’ll be safe here over night.”

“I will,” Fluttershy assured her.

Finally Pinkie turned back to Shining Armour.

“Do you remember anything before you passed out?” she asked, keeping her voice even so as not to give away her concern.

“No, not a thing,” Shining insisted.

“Good,” Pinkie stated, turning to leave the room.

Day 6, 11:42

Pinkie walked through the entrance hall, beneath the portcullis, and out into the courtyard. She stopped just short of the courtroom engravings, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She hadn’t seen Fluttershy all morning. It wasn’t until she had retired the night before that she remembered she neglected to check up on how she was doing after their awkward encounter yesterday morning. Again, Fluttershy hadn’t been at breakfast this morning, but then hardly anypony had been, only Maud, Applejack, Fleur and herself.

Hearing voices approaching, Pinkie turned to see Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Soarin leaving the entrance hall and walking in her direction.

“I never got to ask you last night,” Pinkie said as Rainbow got close. “Was there any luck with that key?”

“No, we had to call it quits after a few hours,” Rainbow admitted, looking apologetic.

“Don’t feel bad, you’re not the one who lost it,” Pinkie reminded her.

“We checked in on Shining this morning,” Soarin informed her. “He’s fine, just looking miserable.”

“He’ll get over it,” Pinkie commented. “Where was everypony else this morning?”

“Lying in, looks like,” Applejack said. “Most of them arrived to breakfast just there now as we were leavin’, though they were nice enough to cause a bit of a mess in the kitchen which ah hope they tidied up.”

“Alright, if that key doesn’t turn up by the end of the day, we’ll have to barricade the cellar like we did with the armoury,” Pinkie explained.

“Sure thing,” Soarin replied. “You don’t mind if we take a break for a bit though?”

“Of course not, work away,” Pinkie insisted, surprised they even had to ask.

They said farewell and the three of them left towards the gardens, talking amiably. Once they were out of sight Pinkie walked over to the statue of Cadance. She thought back to what Shining had said yesterday in the observatory, and what she had witnessed at the Gala.

He’s probably feeling a lot of regret for how he’s behaved towards her…

Leaving the statue of Cadance, Pinkie walked around the others, looking up the almost serene forms of Celestia and Luna. Then she approached the statue of Discord, looking up to see that smug look of his… only it wasn’t there. Instead of the self-satisfied expression she had seen on his face only a few days before, she now saw a look of turmoil and deep sadness.

Pinkie blinked, sure she was imagining it. The body remained in the same extrovert pose, but the face had definitely changed to one of sorrow.

How…

But Pinkie didn’t have any more time to ponder this change, as her thoughts were interrupted by an echoing voice.

“Attention everypony!” the Mastermind announced. “Another body has just been discovered. Directions have been sent to your computers. Your time for investigating begins now, and a trial will be called in due course.”

Pinkie stared wide eyed at the castle before hurriedly flicking to the map on her hoof computer. Her map had now become rather expansive after the addition of the infirmary, observatory and battlements, but Pinkie could clearly see the blinking trail from where she stood leading to…

The gardens? That’s where the others just went…

Not wasting a second, Pinkie galloped away from the statues, passing through the ivy covered gate into the scenic gardens. After running at top speed for a less than a minute, she saw Applejack, Soarin and Rainbow Dash gathered not far ahead. They looked up at her as she closed the distance, their faces pale. As she got close she could make out the bloody, pulverised mess of a body splattered all over the patio. However even amidst all the blood and gore, she could make out the multi-coloured tuxedo.

Author's Note

Here's another fun idea for a game to play while reading this story, take a drink every time a characters eyes widen. I promise you won't live to see the ending.