Strange Voice on the Phone

Twilight woke up. She groaned and tried to stand up but her legs were too weak. She wobbled for a few seconds before she collapsed on the ground again, breathing heavily from the effort of standing up. She looked around and saw that she wasn't in her room anymore. To her surprise she was in the castle where her and her friends had found the Elements of Harmony. Once she felt that enough strength had returned, she groggily got up and looked around. To her surprise, she saw that the castle was surrounded by a large purple bubble, a spell that Twilight recognized as a shield spell, a powerful spell that was frequently used to transport prisoners to Equestrian prisons. She was completely trapped in the castle. She desperately tried using her magic to teleport out of the bubble in the hopes that the caster wasn't strong enough to create a stronger shield but predictably, it didn't work. She just had to wait around for someone to find her, or for The Killer to get back. She looked around for a chance of a way to get out by getting through the ground.

Using her magic, she began testing the stones that made up the floor of the castle in hopes that she could dig herself out if she could move one. In a few seconds she found a weak floor stone. She lifted it up and threw it to the side and looked at the spot where the stone used to be. she felt a jolt of excitement go through her as she saw that there was dirt under the stone. She looked around to see if there was anything she could use to begin digging her way out and to her delight, she saw that there was a tree branch on the floor next to her that was perfect for her needs. She used her magic to bring it close to her and frantically began trying to dig her way out. "I don't think that is quite going to work Miss Sparkle," said a voice behind her. She yelped and turned around. Standing just outside the bubble was The Killer who was wearing a similar outfit to what Twilight wore when she tried to break into the castle to get the time spell as well as a blank white mask. "Sorry about the accommodations but I'm afraid that I needed you out of the way for now. I have to say, I could not have planned this better if I tried. All of Equestria is in total chaos and everyone thinks you are a cop killer! It's such fun," said The Killer giddily.

"Cop killer?" said a horrified Twilight.

"Oh yes, it seems some of the royal guards met an unfortunate end when you broke out of the library. I hear that the others are really mad. You see, the members of the royal guards don't tend to like it when you kill their comrades," said The Killer in a mocking tone.

"Why are you doing this?" said Twilight, anger and fear bubbling up inside of her. The Killer just shook his head and chuckled.

"Oh we haven't quite gotten to that point yet. Far be it from me to reveal the end of the game before the right time. Rest assured, all will be made clear one way or the other."

"My brother will get you. He's the best of the best and he will find you," said Twilight angrily. The Killer just laughed again.

"Oh I've managed to fool him thus far, I mean, I've been under all of your noses this entire time and no one has ever suspected me. I don't think he will figure this all out until I'm ready," said The Killer smugly.

"So, what now? Are you just going to keep me in here and cause more chaos?"

"We're at the endgame here Twilight," he said excitedly. "You'll know everything before the end, don't worry," said The Killer. "Well, I must be going now. I still have a lot more to do before this all comes to fruition," The Killer laughed and teleported away. Twilight immediately rushed back over to the hole and started digging again.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Shining Armor looked around for good men who weren't searching around for his sister and after a few minutes, he had a group of about half a dozen good soldiers. "Are we ready to go?" said Armor to Battle Charge.

"I think so," said Battle Charge. "We have everyone who isn't doing anything right now."

"What about Private Sticks sir, do you remember where you put him?" said one of the guards jokingly to Battle Charge. Shining Armor looked confusedly at the guard.

"Uh...who are you talking about?" said Shining Armor.

"Oh, it's a funny story actually," said the guard with a chuckle. "When we went to the farm after your sister went missing, Battle Charge here had Sticks go tell you that she had gone missing but at first he had no idea who Sticks was despite the fact that he has been on the force for two years!" Shining Armor just stared at him blankly and the guard stopped chuckling and cleared his throat nervously. "You know, the guy who told you Twilight got out, he's the one we are talking about."

"Private Joker told me that Twilight got out, I have no idea who this 'Sticks' guy is. It is my job to know everypony under my command and I..." the realization hit Shining Armor like a brick wall "Oh my gosh, I think he's who we are looking for! I think we have had an imposter in our ranks this entire time! We have to go to the Everfree Forest. I'm sure they're in there somewhere!" said Armor with excited urgency. The men geared up and immediately ran towards the forest.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The five pony friends of Twilight Sparkle bolted towards the ruins where they had found the Elements of Harmony. They didn't stop for anything. They only cared about finding Twilight. They knew the ruins were close.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Twilight had made a lot of progress in digging herself out. There was a large mound of dirt beside her and she had managed to uproot a few more stones. In the past few hours of digging, she had a good tunnel going and she had hope that she could escape before the killer came back. Suddenly, to her horror, the dirt and stones were surrounded with a magic aura. To Twilight could only watch helplessly as they all went back to their original spot. Her head snapped to the entrance of the ruins where The Killer stood. "I told you not to do that," said The Killer in an irate tone." We aren't done here yet." Twilight ran towards the edge of the shield.

"You won't get away with this," she said in a frustrated tone.

"Oh stop acting like a broken record Miss Sparkle. I have planned this out perfectly. Nothing is going to happen without my say so!" said The Killer. Twilight started to talk to him again when she glanced behind his left shoulder and saw a sight that made all of her fears melt away.

"I think my friends are going to find you very very soon," said Twilight. The Killer snorted.

"Yeah, that's not very likely. They're still under guard at Sweet Apple Acres. They'll be there for a while," said The Killer smugly. Twilight managed a smile.

"Oh, are you so sure about that?"

"Yes I'm sure!" snapped The Killer.

"I wouldn't be too sure if I was you. In fact, I think my brother and his men will find you very soon too," her grin widened. "Very soon."

"No Miss Sparkle, I assure you that that is quite impossible!" he said angrily. He inhaled to tell her off some more when he suddenly noticed her giant grin. He gave a small grunt of shock. "They're all right behind me aren't they?" he asked nervously.Twilight's grin widened even more. The Killer slowly turned around and jumped back with a yelp when he saw Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Shining Armor, Battle Charge, and a dozen royal guards, all of whom looked extremely angry. The Killer whimpered a bit. He backed up slowly, trying his best to figure out if he could escape. "Oh, hello there everypony...I...I..."

"How about you let my sister go?" said Shining Armor, rage dripping from very syllable.

"Oh yes, right! Of course," said The Killer laughing nervously. The shield evaporated and Twilight ran past The Killer to her brother and friends, who hugged Twilight happily.

"How about you take that mask off as well? Now," said Battle Charge.

"Oh right, right! Yes of course," The Killer reached up and pulled his mask off. His black jumpsuit came off too." The group looked at The Killer and gasped. They saw a pony with a completely while body with blood red eyes. His cutie mark was his own head with an open mouth.

"You're an albino," said Twilight quietly.

"NO! NO! I am NOT an albino!" yelled The Killer angrily. he calmed down a bit and cleared his throat. "Well, yes I'm technically an albino, but seriously ponies, I am tired of that being my defining feature. I'm not even joking, everyone just calls me 'The Albino' even my parents did. In fact, my parents were so ashamed of producing an albino pony that they abandoned me not long after I was born. I don't even have a real name. My being an albino pony led me to be shunned from society! The other children never wanted to play with me when I was a small colt at the orphanage. Even when I was on my own after I grew up no one really wanted anything to do with me. It was just me for most of my life. I had to learn how to survive by myself. I have yet to run into a pony who has treated me with kindness and I still don't know why! I mean come on, I just have a different hair and eye color!" he grimaced before a small smile crept on his face. "I just wanted to live my life in peace, but no matter where I went, the reaction to me was the same. in my rage and frustration of the way you 'civilized ponies' treated me, I turned to killing as a release. You have no idea what it was like to finally have power over my tormentors Twilight Sparkle. Since I did turn out to be a killer, it does beg the question of nature vs nurture. Was I born a vindictive little jerk or did society make me one? I go back and forth on that," Rarity squealed in delight.

"Ooh! Nice job with the Hard Candy reference!" she said happily. Before The Albino could respond everyone turned to her with a glare.

"RARITY!" yelled everyone.

"Oh, yes, right, sorry," she said with a weak chuckle. The Albino grinned.

"You Ponyvilleians are such fascinating ponies. I think in any other circumstances it would be a joy to get to know all of you."

"Well then why didn't you just come to live here if you though you would like us so much?" said Twilight.

"Haven't you been listening to me?" snapped The Albino. "Sure the adults of the town would come to tolerate me eventually, but how would you feel if every time you left the house you got judgmental looks from everypony you met? The adults gossip, the children whimper and you never truly fit in. I would be tolerated after a long time, but never accepted. I have gotten this from every town Twilight Sparkle, yours would be no different," said The Albino bitterly. He suddenly smiled. "But enough of my tragic sob story!" he said in the most over-the-top manner possible.

"Why would you do this!?" asked Twilight. "You killed two members of the royal guards, you murdered our town mayor, you made me the main suspect, and caused chaos throughout Equestria!" The Albino cocked his head.

"Why?" he shrugged. "Who cares?" The rest of the ponies looked around at each other in shock.

"You had to have had a motive!" said Applejack.

"Oh I suppose I do. In fact, if you remember back, I already told you my motive Twilight Sparkle," Twilight closed her eyes and thought for a minute.

"You mentioned how fun this all was for you," she looked up at him, a horrified look on her face. "You did this just for fun!?"

"Ding ding ding ding ding!" said The Albino happily. "For fun! See, I have heard about you six quite often. You are probably the most famous ponies in all Equestria after all. I decided that I wanted to pit my wits against you, to really challenge my deadly abilities. I have certain skills and I wanted to see how I could do against you all. The fact that the royal guards showed up was just an added bonus. I wanted to see if you would still be strong if I weakened you. Hence, I went after the pink pony and the Pegasus." The Albino grimaced. "As you can guess, that failed miserably. But I didn't lose heart! It just strengthened my resolve. So to strike true fear into the hearts of the people, I cut off the head of your government and tried to cause real fear among the children by killing their teacher."

"How did you mimic my voice?" asked Twilight. The Albino chuckled.

"I told you that I have special talents. My cutie mark represents my talent for flawless mimicry of anypony that I hear. I also have a talent for costumes and makeup that I developed as a result of hiding my true look. He smiled. "I think I've gotten pretty good at it don't you?" he said in Applejack's voice. Applejack glared at him.

"So you took the role of Private Sticks," said Shining Armor coldly.

"Yes, I'm surprised you didn't catch that sooner. I mean seriously, every guard I ran into bought the exact same story of 'oh you just don't remember me'. But he wasn't the only one. I took on the form of a few others."

"Others?" said Rainbow Dash.

"The roles of a lifetime," said The Albino happily in Rainbow's voice. "Remember the pony who told you that the schoolteacher had pegged you as the killer?" he asked Twilight. "That was me. The three psychiatrists who analyzed you? All three of them were me as well, and of course, Private Sticks."

"Enough of this," said Shining Armor angrily. "You will go to trial in Canterlot. Princess Celestia has asked to personally be the presiding judge for your trial. I've sent a letter to Canterlot already. once you arrive, your trial will begin immediately. I don't see you ever getting out of prison."

"Oh one never does really know now do they?" said The Albino happily. "At any rate, it will be a great challenge to escape," he said in Fluttershy's voice. The Albino was then surrounded by guards, one of whom put the shield spell on him that he had used on Twilight. The Albino was led away to await his trial in Canterlot. Once he was gone, Twilight's friends hugged her again.

"Are you okay Twilight?" asked Fluttershy. "Did he hurt you at all?"

"No, he didn't hurt me, I'm okay. I'm just glad this is all over. Thank you all for finding me," she said. She felt relief for the first time in a long time.

"We all were trying to find you. I'm glad we found you when we did. Who knows what he would have done if we hadn't found him now?" said Applejack.

"I don't want to know, but he talked as if he had grander plans for the end than what he was previously doing."

After a few more minutes of talking, they went back to Ponyville. Once it was revealed to the population that Twilight wasn't the killer, and that she had been set up by the real killer, they all apologized profusely for doubting her, Cheerilee especially. As the weeks went by, the atmosphere of the town went back to what it used to be. The shops opened again, the children went back to school and the ponies began interacting with each other as they had done before The Albino had come to their town.

A memorial was set up for The Mayor in Town Hall. It was a humble little plaque with a portrait of The Mayor on the wall. The memorial service was quiet but everypony was there. No one said much but everypony got the feeling that if The Mayor was watching them, she appreciated what they were doing for her.

A few weeks later, an election was held to find a new Mayor. A Pegasus pony named Sonic Flier was elected and with her help, the town began to rebuild their lives.

Since there was no Equestrian death penalty, The Albino was sentenced to life in prison in the highest security wing in the Canterlot prison. Princess Celestia herself used as much power as she could to ensure that he would never escape as long as he was alive. Still, everypony was worried about how secure the prison was in regard to him. Whenever he was questioned, he always seemed to act like he was the one holding all of the cards...

Epilogue

Battle Charge walked down the hallway towards the cell that held one of Equestria's most notorious killers, The Albino. He passed dozens of empty cells in the deepest, darkest part of the prison on his way to see the prisoner. He had always felt nervous coming down here, even though there were no prisoners in it (this part of the prison was reserved for the ponies who had been sentenced to life in prison) he had always gotten the feeling that there was some evil force in this area. He shook his head and cleared his mind as he reached the cell that held The Albino. The cell was a small little room, it had a bed, toilet, tiny shower and a sink with a mirror. Thick iron bars in front of the room prevented any chance of escape. Battle Charge looked on the bed and saw The Albino staring unblinkingly at him. "Hello Battle Charge." he said in Battle Charge's own voice.

"I told you I don't like it when you do that," said Battle Charge irritatedly.

"Oh very well then, but I must say that it is one of the only fun things to do down here. I really enjoy it when ponies come to pay me a visit," he said in Shining Armor's voice.

"Enough of this!" said Battle Charge sternly. "do you know why you are in here?"

"Yes, yes," said The Albino rolling his eyes. "You keep telling me so I don't know why you are asking me again." he switched back to Battle Charge's voice. "You are in here because you got careless! You are in here because you took Twilight Sparkle to the most obvious place! You shouldn't have interacted with so many guards, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah!" said The Albino, finishing his sentence in his normal voice.

"I told you not to do that!" said Battle Charge who was one step away from losing his temper.

"Oh what are you really going to do to me in here? I think it'll be suspicious if I'm hurt when you come to see me don't you?" said The Albino mockingly.

"I won't hurt you, but I won't let you out. You failed to do what you were supposed to do! When I contacted you about killing Twilight Sparkle and her friends and causing panic in Ponyville, I didn't think you would fail so easily! I gave you every chance!" said Battle Charge. The Albino rolled his eyes.

"Well, you never know when second chances may arise do you?"