Author's Note

yeah mmore side shit. its actually fucking terrible for terrible people like you

Prologue: All Too Real

”So what are we going to do with them?” a voice asks in little more than a whisper.

”SCB says to get them to a temp home until they can figure out some sort of treatment and placement,” another says, just as quiet.

Twilight perks an ear from her spot, laying on her side, and cracks open an eye.

The darkened, padded floor and black bars of the pet cage greet her sight, reminding her just where she is. The alicorn lifts her head, careful not to let the tag on her collar jingle and alert the voices.

A princess in a collar—Arrogant as it may sound, this world is truly mad.

Glancing around, the princess confirms that her huddle of friends are still in fitful sleep. Outside the cage is the cluttered backroom of an animal shelter. An animal shelter. Like she and her friends are just animals. Where had this all gone so wrong?

”Any idea where?” the first voice asks as footsteps sound nearby.

”A guy with a ranch and a few ponies offered to take them in. He knows Miranda from highschool or something.” The second voice sighs and Twilight gets the impression he’s shaking his head. “Why anyone would go through all the trouble of breeding and conditioning those six just to toss them out I have no idea. They’re show-perfect reproductions and all have functioning wings and horns. They gotta be worth a hundred grand a pop, though the alicorn is easily two hundred thousand by herself.”

”Over half a million in ponies sitting in the back, eh?” First muses. “The feistiness probably drives down their value a bit though. Can’t have ponies be that violent around people. Did you see the bite marks on Nate?”

Twilight silently curses Rainbow for yet again jumping the gun in a crisis and landing them in this mess. The talks of her and the Elements in numerical values CANNOT bode well. They spoke as if ponies are…

Twilight gulps, her thoughts starting to run wild.

...Slaves.

A whimper pulls her attention away from the conversation to Fluttershy, who is now awake and pawing ineffectively at her collar with tears in her eyes.

Twilight gives her pegasus friend a look, pleading her to be strong.

Fluttershy shudders but nods weakly.

”That’s what he gets when he’s too stupid to listen to obvious threats,” Second says with a snort as the footsteps grow closer. “He learned the hard way.”

The footsteps pass right by the closed door, casting long shadows through the crack in the bottom that the two awake ponies watch fearfully. The two voices continue on, oblivious to their eavesdroppers.

”Let’s get them something to eat and cleaned up. They were all pretty stressed out yesterday, and I doubt Miranda’s friend wants grumpy ponies.”

”Mmmhmm.”

The two continue on, voices fading as they walk, leaving the ponies with only the hum of the building’s ventilation.

”Well, at least they won’t leave us to wallow in filth.”

Rarity rises out of the pile of sleeping forms, her usual impeccable appearance ruined with dirt and her mane totally devoid of its style. She tries to light her horn, but her collar blinks with a green light and the magic aura fizzles out.

The unicorn sighs and lets her shoulders slump. “I suppose that was a little much to hope for…”

”G-girls…” Fluttershy has to stop and take a deep breath. “W-what are we going t-to do?”

What indeed?

Never before had the Six encountered captors as thorough as these current ones. One moment they’re all laughing and enjoying a Pinkie party, the next they’re dumped into a world where everything is too big with pursuers on them in an instant. And no matter how much they cried for help, the other ponies they saw didn’t even lift a hoof. Some even ran BEHIND the tall creatures.

One struggle and some darts to the flank later, and they’re all in a cage with what seems to be a human in a labcoat trying to interrogate them. No matter how they answered him he just kept asking the same questions over and over. Then he suddenly shifted to sympathy and told them to rest.

Leading to now.

Twilight lets out a breath. “We can't use force, that much I know. I firmly believe there has been some sort of misunderstanding that we can talk out,” she says, hesitating on ‘firmly believe’. “We have to solve this peacefully.”

Neither Rarity or Fluttershy respond.

They sit in silence for several minutes, then tense as more footsteps are heard outside the small room.

But… one set of the steps are wrong. They’re too frequent to be the long strides of the tall looking creatures and make a sharper “tap tap” along the tile floor.

”Jamie, can you wake our guests? I think they might be more willing to talk to you for obvious reasons,” a male voice asks.

”Sure thing!” a higher male voice responds. “Did Miranda find someplace for them already?”

”The Ymous ranch about an hour north.”

”Ah, okay.”

The long footsteps keep walking past, but the shorter ones stop at the door, which swings open on a squeaky hinge.

The three awake mares stiffen, then slacken in confusion at what they see.

”Dammit, where is it… Aha!”

The familiar shape rises to two legs and fumbles with a switch on the wall. The lights flick on, revealing a normal Earth stallion? What..?

The stallion seems totally normal. With a burnt bronze coat, short mane, and tail of darker brown, he is wholly average. Forgettable even.

But Twilight’s eyes lock onto the earthy green collar around his neck instantly.

With a smile, the stallion falls back to all fours and turns towards the cage. “Much better. Good morning to you all! My name is Jamie and I’m one of the shelter assistants.”

’Jamie? What an odd name for a pony…’ Fluttershy thinks to herself. ‘Where are we?’

Rarity blinks and recovers the quickest. “Erm, good morning sir. My name is Rarity, and my companions are…”

”Fluttershy and Princess Twilight,” Jamie finishes for her with a nod. “We’ve got everyone’s names from the, er… Less than peaceful introduction yesterday.”

All three mares wince.

”N-not that yesterday was a huge issue!” Jamie hastily exclaims with a frantic wave of a forehoof. “We understand your situation and want to do everything we can to help.”

Twilight brightens immediately. “So you can get us out of here and back to Equestria?” She stands and walks closer to the cage bars with a wide smile. “We would really appreciate it!”

Jamie’s smile falters. “Oh wow… They really were conditioned harshly…” he mutters to himself, but Twilight’s alicorn hearing picks it up.

’Conditioned harshly..?’

The stallion clears his throat and speaks back up. “Ah, well, I myself can’t get you home...” He sits and rubs the back of his head with a hoof, ”but we’ll be getting you out of that cage at least, and later to a place you can relax while the shelter finds your human.”

”Our human?” Fluttershy asks, speaking up for the first time. “I don’t understand…”

”You know? Your human?” Jamie asks with a tilt of his head. “I know you can't be strays. Not with how well made you are.”

The three mares share a look, all of them suddenly feeling uneasy.

”Your keeper? Owner? Not ringing any bells?”

Twilight’s blood runs cold, all her prior thoughts racing back to her in horrifying detail.

Collars. Cages. Subservience.

Jamie shrugs unsurely. ”Your master?”

The alicorn can’t help it. She screams.

Jamie recoils.

Applejack, Pinkie, and Rainbow are all jolted awake by the shrill sound. Pinkie jumps so high she almost smacks her head into the top of the cage.

”No no no no no!” Twilight chants in a near panic. “This can’t be right! You…They…We...You’re a slave!”

The word is like a rock to a hornet's nest.

”What? A slave? What’s goi-”

”-I knew it! I knew this was going to go this way! I-”

”Hold on, who is a-”

The room fills with a din of confused and frantic voices. Not a moment later it’s followed by the rattle of metal as Applejack kicks at the cage bars without effect.

Jamie stiffens. “Stop stop! All of you stop so we can talk this out!” he cries. “There’s no need for the freakout!”

Rainbow’s face contorts into a scowl as she matches up to the front. “Easy for you to say, pal. You’re not the one who woke up in a cage. What’s going on? Are you working with them?”

”You’re in here because you were all found incoherent in a public park, frightening parents and children,” Jamie replies. “When no humans stepped forward to claim you, the shelter got called, and well… here you are.”

Rainbow seems befuddled by the answer, letting Twilight take the forefront again.

”You mean ‘claim’ as in property,” the princess says, staring a hole in the uncomfortable stallion. “Like a slave. Like yourself.”

The gathered mares gasp.

Jamie hisses through his teeth and leans away from the cage, but it doesn't hide his scandalized expression. “That is… Not true. Not true and extremely offensive. Shelter guests or not, I will not be spoken to in such a way!”

”If a cage is what you treat guests to, then Ah’d hate to see what you do to folks ya don't like…” Applejack says.

Pinkie giggles. “Do they get the evil lair lava pits and chambers of doom?”

Jamie just sighs.

The door suddenly swings open, revealing a tall, labcoat clad woman with a narrow-eyed expression and dark brown hair in a low ponytail.

Jamie’s eyes widen. “M-Miranda!”

’This is Miranda?’ Rarity wonders, taking in the form of the angular woman.

”Jamie,” the woman starts as she folds her hands behind her back. “I heard a scream.”

”Erm, our guests were just a bit startled as they came to.”

Miranda nods, accepting the answer easily. “Go help Eric get breakfast ready for these six. We’ll be sending them to the Ymous ranch before noon.”

The stallion blinks. “So soon?”

”Yes,” she answers curtly.

Jamie waits for a moment, but when it becomes apparent that he’s not getting more information, he trots past her and out to his new assignment.

Miranda’s eyes remain on the pony until he is out of sight, then she turns to the cage.

The six, including Rainbow, quickly have the fight taken out of them under the intense gaze of the intimidating human. They all break the eye contact and share looks between themselves.

’I don’t like this’ says Applejack’s

’Agreed’ says Fluttershy’s watery eyes.

’We’ll get through this. We always do’ says Pinkie’s cheerful face.

’We’ll see’ says Rarity’s frown.

Rainbow and Twilight just scowl.

”As you’ve probably guessed, My name is Miranda, and I’m the director of this train wreck of a shelter,” Miranda says after a long minute. “I’m going to let you out. You will be fed, given a medical examination, and then sent to a proper and comfortable living area while we sort everything out. There will no fighting or foolishness.” Her eyes sharpen even further. “If you try to attack anyone, run away, or otherwise become belligerent, then your collars will shock you into a not-so-blissful slumber.”

Every eye in the cage widens.

”Do I make myself clear?”

She gets low and reluctant murmurs of agreement.

Miranda fishes a key out of her pocket and unlocks the padlock on the cage, letting it swing open.

Applejack is the first one to cautiously step out, followed by a still scowling Rainbow. As the ponies leave the little cage, Miranda turns and walks out into the hallway, the unspoken command to follow obvious.

The lost ponies follow the woman, having to trot briskly to keep up with her long strides and leaving little time to inspect the plain and sterile hallway. They pass several doors, all shut, but when they pass one with muffled sounds behind it, Fluttershy’s ears perk up. The sign on the door has a simple dog face, but the words are gibberish.

“M-Miss Miranda?” she asks hesitantly. “Is this place an animal shelter?”

”Not strictly,” the woman replies without looking back. “It’s also a pony shelter. At one point it was just for animals before ponies become common. Naturally, it’s lead to some issues, since ponies are rapidly displacing pets.”

Fluttershy looks away, her expression disturbed. “Oh…”

”What do you mean by that?” Twilight cuts in, wiping her own uneasy look off her face. “By ‘before ponies become common’ I mean.”

”I mean that ponies are being added to families more and more these days. With reputable ranches setting up, there’s a steady supply of well-bred foals being sold.”

A chill settles over the group for what seems like the hundredth time in the last day.

”Selling...foals?” Rarity forces out. “You mean, taking infants away from their parents to be sold for money..?” The unicorn stumbles like she’s going to faint, only for Pinkie to rush in and act as a support at the last second.

”That… That ain’t right…” Applejack growls past clenched teeth. “That's…”

”Slavery,” Rainbow finishes, uncharacteristically quiet. “Twi wasn’t just freaking out over nothing. This is the real deal.”

Twilight just stares at the floor, but her ruffled wings give away her fury. “Is that stallion, Jamie, a slave?”

”He’s owned by Nate, the one your rainbow friend bit,” Miranda says simply.

The group makes a sharp turn into a cramped break room before silence can set in. Inside is a dirty kitchenette, an equally dirty table, some chairs, and a lower set table with six plates of assorted greens and glasses of water on it. The six each take spots around the table and slowly eat. The food is neither old or fresh, and neither appetizing or disgusting, but it was filling to the mares who hadn't eaten in over a day.

Pinkie finishes her food in her typical rushed fashion with a smile, uncaring of the lack of taste. While her friends were busy eating, she turns to the human leaning against the door frame. “Say, Miss Miranda? You said we’d be going to a ranch, and you mentioned that ranches make, well, babies…” The pink mare seems to struggle with formulating her next thoughts. “That’s not so we.. erm. So we…”

”No, it’s not. You’ll simply be living there for the time being.”

A collective sigh of relief runs through each mare.

”But…”

Tense.

”The ranch owner will probably want you to earn your keep somehow,” the woman says, pulling her phone from her pocket to glance at it. “I had to call in a favor to get you this chance. If you waste it and he ships you back here, then you’ll regret it.”

Twilight isn’t sure what worries her more. The boldfaced threat or how casual it was.

Rainbow sneers. “So you hold us against our will and then you're going to send us off to work? Sounds like a raw deal.”

”I could just throw you outside and wash my hands of you. How long will a bunch of mares without documents or advocates last, I wonder? Two days? Three?”

”A ranch is fine,” Applejack pipes up before somepony digs their hole deeper. “We’re no strangers to honest work and we’ll do it if you keep your end of the bargain and help us get home.”

Miranda just nods. “Finish up. We’ve got an MD sitting idle waiting for your ex-”

”Ma’am!”

A scraggly, younger man, probably just out of his teens, pokes his head into the break room with a clipboard in hand. “I’ve got a few things you’ll probably want to see. Do you have a moment?”

The woman sighs and looks at the ponies under her watch with a pointed glare. “You six stay here. I mean it.”

She walks off just far enough down the hall that the conversation can't be made out, giving the girls precious few moments alone.

”W-what are we going to do!?” Fluttershy loses her last semblance of cool. “T-theres too much too fast! What is going on?!”

Rainbow is quick to answer. ”We bust outta where while they’re gone! C’mon!”

The escape stops before it can even begin, as Rainbow’s collar blinks it’s green LED, reducing her frantic wing flapping to wasted effort. ”ARRRH! I HATE THIS THING!” She cries, pawing at the collar and finding no purchase. “I can feel it sapping my magic!”

”As much as I abhor to say it, I think we’re going to have to play along with this one,” Rarity says with a grimace. “We’ve no idea where we are, we’ve no magic, and we’ve no alibi. This is the worst possible situation.”

Applejack frowns and flicks her tail. “This ain’t the worst, but it’s almost there. We just gotta play our cards right… We got some nightmare world nonsense going on.”

”Aww, c’mon gals, it’s not all bad,” Pinkie interjects with a wide grin. “It’s just… Mostly bad… I guess,” her grin falters some. “We’ve just got to look on the bright side. Why would the crabby tall lady use a favor on us if she isn’t trying to help?”

”A good point, but we’re getting sent to a ranch where enslaved ponies are used as breeding stock, Pinkie,” Twilight says with a sigh, killing the mood. “It’s a little hard to look on the bright side.”

”She already said we’re not going to be used for… For that!” Pinkie still can’t vocalize the heinous implication.

”Miranda seems halfway trustworthy, but we’ll still be around it…” Twilight looks away, pushing down the bile rising in her throat. “Just the thought makes me ill…”

”Well, I don’t think we have much of a choice unless we can get these here collars off, and they can't be made to come off easy,” Applejack says. She rubs at the black band around her neck with a hoof, making the bronze tag jingle.

”You’re right on that.”

All six of them snap their heads to the doorway, where Miranda now stands again, an unamused expression on her face. “C’mon, ladies. The doctor is on the clock now and I have enough trouble with the shelter’s budget as is.”

”Anything?”

A man in hair-covered scrubs tosses his latex gloves in the trash and moves to the examination room sink, where he quickly washes his hands. ”Well, all six seem to be in good health,” he starts slowly, leaning back against the sink as he tosses his paper towel after the gloves. “No visible injuries or malformations, and all the instant tests for common diseases came back negative. The hair and blood samples will take more time to show any results. Now onto the weirdest thing. They have no electronic ID.”

Miranda’s eyebrow rises. “None?”

”No ID chips. No neural implants, no bionic parts. Notta.”

The other eyebrow joins the first. “So we’re looking at a private breeding job?”

”Most likely.”

”Any evidence of gene therapy or forced mutation?”

The doctor shrugs. “I can’t say for certain until the blood work gets back, and the local LabCorp office didn’t give me an ETA. If they did do gene therapy, those ponies would have had to have at least twenty rounds each even with parents providing the bulk of the traits, if not more to get to the level that they’re at. Just the naked eye can tell they’re near perfect. No way forced mutation was used, though.”

Miranda sighs. “That would explain the fabricated memories at least. Who or what could live through so much therapy I have no idea. But the cost of so much...”

”Definitely beyond what those mares would fetch for resale. So the master is probably some demented fuck. Not that that narrows down the search much.”

”Probably,” Miranda half-heartedly agrees. She looks over to the far side of the examination room, where one of the strictly animal veterinarians goes over the exam results with the group of mares. “I’m going out for a smoke. Get them packed and ready to head to Anon’s.”

The doctor offers a lazy salute. ”Aye, ma’am.”

As the woman walks to the front of the building, she can’t help but feel something is off with those little oddballs.

Well, more off than they already are.