The Cynic

Slipshod Barcilleo was born some twenty years ago in the town of Aiken, about fifteen miles east of Ponyville. It’s not a grandiose town by any means. Aiken is more of a middle class town with no fantastic historical landmarks or any such thing, but it does posses running water. And that is a nicety.

However, running water and a roof over your head seem to be of little importance when growing up in a bad home. Slipshod’s father, Apollyon Barcilleo, is a former member of the Equestrian Royal Guard. Although that carries with it some level of prestige, it also carries with it a great deal of emotional scarring. Not all members of the guard stand in front of large shiny doors looking sharp. And in the case of Apollyon, a large fancy door wasn’t the object he was protecting, but rather Equestria itself. Fast forward a few years, and you find an old stallion with bad memories and an even worse parenting skills. As unfortunate as this may be, the cynical little colt named Slipshod always managed to smile at everyone he met, all the while internalizing what went on at home.

One might ask where his mother is in all of this. As luck would have it, she’s a pacifist. It’s the perfect storm. And it begs the question, how? Young love is indeed blind. And in this case, it’s deaf too. And it’s no surprise that our young colt is a conflicted soul. As a young adult with his whole future before him, he has many decisions to make. Should he allow himself to become that which he hates? Should he become a pacifist? Does a happy medium even exist? Living in a world of two extremes is like living in the San Palomino Desert: blistering hot at day and ice cold at night, with only fleeting moments of comfort in between. Slipshod did his best to hold on to those fleeting moments growing up. He wouldn’t have had any if it were not for his loving sister. She moved away when he was eighteen. But he thinks of her every day.

Sovannaro Barcilleo was born four years before Slipshod, so she ended up acting as his mother in many ways. Sovannaro learned early on that the only way to truly survive is to take care of your own. “Sovie”, as he called her, was Slipshod’s only true friend growing up. It was Sovie who gave Slipshod those fleeting moments of comfort. And that played a major role in keeping him from unleashing the shadow residing within as he grew older.

Cynical as he is, Slipshod cares about everyone as best he can. He’s only a tough guy within the confines of his conflicted albeit guarded mind. He doesn’t really let his emotions out, unless they’re sun-shiny and well orchestrated. He doesn’t want anyone to see that ugly shadow harbored behind his happy eyes. Since his emotions are corrupted, keeping them bottled up should save anypony from dealing with a colt in a blind rage. Or so he thinks. And since nopony has ever seen him angry, it’s obviously the correct way to go about things. But of course, that truly isn’t the case. Years of unaddressed rage take on a different form in some cases. Slipshod was living in a world of quiet self-contradiction. He loved everypony around him; but he hated himself. And this skewed way of thinking led him to be outwardly arrogant, but inwardly humble, outwardly self-righteous, but inwardly modest, honest to all, but always lying to himself; and all the while he is thinking that he has that dark and unassuming shadow living within him under control. But fortunately for him, he would soon discover that the love of a friend can tame that wild beast known as bitterness.