//-------------------------------------------------------// The Superiffic Spider-Mare -by aczom- //-------------------------------------------------------// //-------------------------------------------------------// Spider-Mare origins //-------------------------------------------------------// Spider-Mare origins The Superiffic Spider-mare By Aczom (AKA, Cerulean Spark) It was warm, sunny day in Canterlot. The birds were chirping and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. But it wasn't just any day. That day was the first day of the Twilight Magic Exhibition, named after the unicorn herself. "So, what are we doing here again?" asked Rainbow Dash, doing the backstroke through the air beside Twilight. "Well," she replied "Princess Celestia invited me to present at the exhibition. I wish I could have invited the others, but I'm lucky I even get to bring you two!" "Don't feel bad, Twilight." said the pink mare hopping up and down beside her "I'm sure they won't mind! We'll bring them back some souvenirs and two of them can come tomorrow!" "You'd think if it was named after you, you'd be allowed more guests." said Rainbow. The three were walking down a purple cobble path which lead to the Canterlot University for Unicorns. It was a large white building, resembling one of the castle towers. Ponies of all kinds were walking along the path too. From earth ponies to pegasi to unicorns. The three entered into a large, shiny room and let out a long "Woooow!" in unison. It resembled the stained glass room of the castle, with bright and colourful windows showcasing some of the university's finest moments. From the roof dangled 3 golden chandeliers. Next to the mares stood a white unicorn stallion. He had a pastel blue mane and a cutie mark of a scroll. "Good morning, miss Sparkle." he said. Like most of the staff there, he had a thick Canterlotian accent. "Hi!" responded a very excited Twilight "I haven't seen you in so long!" she turned to her two guests with a huge grin spread across her face. "Girls, this is professor Paper Back. He was my tutor when I started school." she turned back to the stallion "Professor, these are my friends-" "Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, the elements of loyalty and laughter, respectively" Paper Back interrupted "Miss Sparkle, I'm afraid you need to come and get ready for the presentation. We can't leave the audience waiting." As Paper Back escorted Twilight up a set of marble stairs, another white stallion, almost identical to Paper Back, trotted over to the two mares remaining. "Shall I escort you two to the tour group?" he said "It will be some time before miss Sparkle will be presenting." "Sure." said Rainbow "Sounds like fun, I guess!" "Remeber when I said this sounded fun?" whispered Rainbow. "Yeah?" replied Pinkie. "I was wrong." The two were in a group of ponies gathered around a trophy case. At the front of the group stood a thin, yellow unicorn colt with a red mane and a freckled face. He was a only few years younger than Rainbow and Pinkie from the looks of him, but somehow he lacked a cutie mark. "Here are the trophies and awards won by students at this school." he said flatly, gesturing with a hoof. The crowd let out some "ooh"s and "ah"s, some taking photos. "Now, if you follow me, we'll see the hall of books." "What kind of books?" yelled Rainbow from the back. "Educational!" replied the colt in annoyance. "Hey Pinkie, wanna ditch these guys and look around?" whispered Dash as she leaned towards the pink pony. "But we are looking around." she replied. "Y'know what I mean. C'mon, let's go in here!" Rainbow slowly trotted into a large doorway as the crowd walked away. Above it was a sign that read "Genetics Lab". Pinkie followed on and the two found themselves in a room full of cages and odd tools. From the roof hung a metal device similar to ones used by dentists. The two mares looked through the cages at the colourful creatures they held inside. "Look, it's a Parasprite!" said Rainbow, gazing into a cage in awe "I didn't know they could have three eyes..." "Look, Dashie! I think this one escaped!" yelled Pinkie. Beside her was an empty cage, door wide open. "How do you know the cage wasn't empty to start with?" asked Rainbow. "Because I accidentally opened it and let the spider out!" replied Pinkie, beginning to panic "Quick, we've gotta find it!" The two started looking around, under desks and atop of cages, but there was no spider to be found. After a few minutes of searching, Pinkie looked at the documents next to the empty cage. "It says it's a vampire spider." said Pinkie. "Warning. If bitten, consult a medical professional. The venom produced by these genetically enhanced spiders may be fatal in ponies. Unicorns confirmed. More testing required." she read. "That's great Pinkie." said Rainbow, who was floating near the ceiling and inspecting it for spiders. "Could you look underneath that bookshelf?" Pinkie trotted quickly over to a large shelf which held many documents and photos. Pinkie shoved a hoof underneath and began to rummage around. Suddenly she felt something soft and hairy. "I think I got it!" she yelled. "Oh did you?" said a familiar voice. Pinkie turned around to see a tall white stalion with a blue mane standing there, looking down at her. "Um... Hi Paper Back! Is there a problem?" said Pinkie. Suddenly her hoof began to sting and she leapt upwards, knocking most of the documents to the ground. "AH!!" she squealed "It bit me!" At this point, Paper Back stared at Pinkie, his face burning with rage. "You two are banned from ever coming here again!" he yelled, lifting them with his magic and 'escorting' them out the doorway. "Hey!" yelled Dash "You can't just levitate us out! What are you- Ouch!" For a second the glow intensified, before returning to normal. Paper Back dropped the two onto the dirt outside. "Fine! Keep your magic!" yelled Rainbow Dash, feeling not only annoyed but slightly violated. "Boring in there anyway." she muttered. Pinkie sat on the floor and stared at her hoof. It look normal, and it felt normal, but something just seemed off. Pinkie shook her head and looked at Dash. "What about Twilight?" she asked. "She'll be fine." replied Rainbow "Let's just get back to the castle. It's getting dark." As they walked away in the orange light of the sunset, they heard the crowd inside cheer for their friend. "Maybe we should've stayed with the group." said Dash. As Pinkie Pie and Rainbow walked through the streets of Canterlot, they realized how different it was at night. The only time they had been there at night was during the wedding from earlier that year. "How about we get a drink?" suggested Dash "Do you drink, Pinkie?" "Of course I do, silly!" she replied "If I didn't drink, I'd always be thirsty!" "No, Pinkie, I mean alchohol." said Dash, rolling her eyes "I don't really. Just every now and then with some friends from Ponyville." "Oh." said Pinkie "Nope. Never have before." Rainbow Dash stopped in place for a second before continuing forward. "Really?" she asked "Never? I thought partying was your special talent!" The two entered a large grey building with neon lights above the door, reading "Club Vinyl" The place stunk of alchohol and vomit. "Y'know what, Dashie?" said Pinkie, cautiously backing out the door "I think I'll just wait outside for you." "Suit yourself." said Dash "Hey Berry! Give me a Jersey Lightning!" Pinkie began to walk again, her hooves clopping on the hard stone ground. The moon was getting higher in the sky. Pinkie guessed it was about 11 or so. "Hey, look what we got here." said a gruff, male voice "It's a little pink filly. What'sa matter? You lost?" Pinkie turned around to face the owner of the voice, but it was too dark for her to see. "Who's there?" she said nervously. "Ooh, it's that element of harmony girl!" said another voice, also male "This'll be fun." The two strangers stepped forward into the light. One was a dark grey unicorn with a short red mane. The other was a murky yellow-brown earth pony with a black and blue mane. Both where about the same size and age as Big Mac. "Don't come closer!" yelled Pinkie, remembering all the stories she and Dashie had made to scare the others. The yellow stallion took another step toward Pinkie while the unicorn used his magic to levitate a sharp knife from behind him. "GET BACK!!" Pinkie screamed, thrusting her front hoof towards the earth pony. CLANG She opened her eyes to see the two ponies staring at her, mouths agape. Her eyes drifted down to the end of her hoof, which was laid on a lamppost. The post had been completely bent out of shape. She'd bent it over without even trying. "Run!" yelled the unicorn, dropping the knife from his magical grip. The two turned and ran from the pink mare, back into the darkness. Pinkie continued staring at her hoof. Maybe it was already bent? She lifted her hoof away and the lamppost fell to the ground with a loud clang. The glass holding the flame had shattered. Not only had she bent it, she snapped a metal lamppost in half! "This is incredible!" said Pinkie, staring down at her hooves. She was in a large bedroom with tall pink and gold walls and a pearly white floor covered by a large red rug. This was her bedroom in the 'Harmony Suite' of Canterlot Castle, built specifically for her and the other bearers of the elements. She touched one of her front hooves with the other, rubbing up and down slowly. On the end were small spines. So small that they were unnoticeable from even just inches away. Pinkie could retract them at will. Everything around her seemed more clear too. She could feel each individual fibre of the rug below her hooves. She could see much further than before. She could hear Rarity arguing with a drunken Rainbow Dash in the other room, despite the magical sound dampening walls. At the back of her head was a small tingling sensation. Without even being near it, she could feel that there was a fly crawling on the red drapes covering her window. She could sense it. Suddenly the tingling got stronger, and something told Pinkie that she had to run. Before Pinkie had time to launch herself out of her window and into the fountain, the room flashed pink and a very angry purple unicorn stood before her. "Oh, uh, Hiya Twilight." stammered Pinkie. She'd forgotten that she and Dash had been thrown out of the university. "RAINBOW DASH!!" yelled the unicorn, using her magic to increase her volume ten fold. "GET YOUR PLOT IN HERE!!" Pinkie heard the door in one of the other rooms open as Dash started walking. She dragged her hooves across the carpet as she did so. The door open and Rainbow entered, supporting herself on the doorframe. "Hiya Twilight." she slurred "How'sit goin'?" "What do you mean 'How's it going'?!" yelled Twilight, snapping the cyan mare to attention. "You deserted me! You released a dangerous animal into a pony-packed university! You got thrown out!" "Oh yeah." said Rainbow, standing up straight "I forgot abou' that. Sorry Twi." Pinkie gestured to the mare to stop, before the tingling in her head got stronger. She ducked, just in time for a magically lifted flower pot to fly past and smash against the wall beside Rainbow. "Hey!" yelled Pinkie "That was mine!" Twilight shot her a glare, and Pinkie retreated a few steps behind her. "Geez, it's just'a spider." said Dash, resting her front left hoof on the door knob "Pinkie got bit 'n she's jus' fine." With that, Twilight's mood changed entirely. She look back at Pinkie, her eyes as wide as dinner plates. "Pinkie!" she yelled "Are you alright?! You aren't hurt, are you?!" She had a concerned tone. Pinkie stared at Twilight for a few seconds, processing her thoughts. Maybe it would be best to tell Twilight about the things she'd noticed. They could be the first signs of death. But what if nothing bad happened? The spider venom had only been tested on unicorns. Was there a difference? She decided it would be better (or at least more fun) to see what the other effects were first and tell Twilight if things went downhill. "Uh, I'm fine!" replied Pinkie in as cheerful a tone as possible "Just a little tired. Could you two please leave so I can get some sleep?" She jumped onto her queen-sized bed and scurried under the pink silk covers. "Um, sure Pinkie." said Twilight, clearly still worried "I'll just be outside then." She turned her head to Rainbow, who once again straightened up "As for you," she said, once again in an angry tone "we need to chat!" And so begins the journey of the spider-mare. What other effects will the spider bite have on Pinkie? Will Rainbow Dash escape certain death at the hooves of her angry friend? Who will Twilight bring to day two of the exhibition? Find out next time! //-------------------------------------------------------// Spider-Mare origins part 2 //-------------------------------------------------------// Spider-Mare origins part 2 Pinkie Pie walked down the streets of Canterlot, gazing around at the colourful buildings and ponies. Everything was so clear and so bright! It was as though her whole life Pinkie had been wearing a glass dome on her head, distorting the sights and sounds, but now the dome was gone. It was amazing! The smell of freshly baked muffins wafted past her nose. It was the most amazing thing she'd ever smelt. She followed the smell to a small cafe. Above the door was a sign that read "Carrot Cake's Cafe" Pinkie made her way to one of the tables and took a seat, sniffing at the air. "Hello miss. I'm Ditzy and I will be your wai- Oh, hiya Pinkie Pie!" At the table stood a grey pegasus with blonde hair and crossed topaz eyes wearing a white apron and holding a tray of fresh pastries on her back. "Hi Derpy!" said Pinkie "It's good to see ya! Can I have a muffin please?" "Okey Dokey!" replied the pegasus "Do you want chocolate, blueberry or oatmeal?" "Oatmeal?!" blurted Pinkie, before thinking better of it. Last time she got into that argument, she Derpy fought for hours. "Um...chocolate please." she said. "Okay Pinkie Pie! Be right back!" As the pegasus pony began to trot away, the tingling in Pinkie's head grew stronger and time seemed to slow down. Pinkie turned around, just in time for Derpy to slip over on a puddle of icing. Her wings instinctively unfurled, causing the muffins and pastries to fly into the air. Without a second, Pinkie put her forelegs out to catch the mare. In her left hoof she caught the tray and maneuvered it around to catch the baked goods, all completely unscathed. Derpy blinked, still processing the last few seconds. "W-woah!" she sputtered eventually "Thank's Pinkie Pie!" "Your welcome." Pinkie replied, probably more bewildered than Derpy was.  She placed the tray back onto Derpy's back and turned to the table, leaning on her left hoof. She pulled away as something cold and metallic met her cheek. A fork had attached itself to her hoof. She grasped the fork with her mouth and tried to pull it away, only to find a sticky white substance keeping it attached. "What's this?" She wondered, sticking the end of her nose into it. She pulled the fork, separating it from her hoof. As she did, a long thread of the white gunk shot from her wrist, latching onto an empty plate on the other side of the room. Pinkie's eyes went wide and she looked around to make sure nopony had seen. She bolted for the exit, dragging the plate behind her. "Pinkie Pie!" exclaimed Derpy, galloping from the kitchen with a paper bag in her mouth "You forgot your muffin!" Pinkie stood outside in the alley between the cafe and the building beside it. She looked down to her hoof and saw a small slit below it. From the slit came a white thread of sticky goo, which was attached to a plate. She stared at her hooves in awe. The tiny black spines resurfaced on her pink coat. She looked up at the red brick wall of the building beside the cafe. She walked over slowly and cautiously, as though something bad was going to happen at any second. She placed her hoof on the wall and pulled. Her hoof had stuck fast. She reached up with her other fore-hoof and pierced the wall with the spines. She pulled her other legs upwards and began to climb upwards. "This is amazing!!" She yelled. Soon Pinkie reached the top of the building and looked down at the ponies of Canterlot. They looked so tiny from up there. In the distance, Pinkie caught sight of a crane and an idea popped into her head. Pinkie took a deep breathe and moved to the ledge. She looked down at the long drop, wincing before averting her gaze back to the crane. She shoved her hoof forward and shouted "Web!" She closed her eyes and braced herself, but nothing happen. She opened one eye and looked at her hoof. "Go web!" she pulled her hoof back and stuck it out again. Nothing happened. "Web engage!" she yelled, starting to get annoyed. Still, nothing happened. "Fly!" "Go!" "Fire!" Nothing happened. "Hmm." She pressed her free fore-hoof onto her chin "What if I-" Pinkie was cut off as a web shot from the slit on her wrist. "Oh! It worked?" She pushed her hoof outwards again, the same way as she had the last time. A white web shot out into the distance, sticking to the building across the street with an audible 'SPLAT' "It worked!" Pinkie Pie shot another web, this time aiming for the crane. It hit right on target and stuck fast. Pinkie stepped forward on her hind-legs and looked down at the drop again. It was 40 feet at least. "Here goes." She said, closing her eyes and gulping in a large breath. After a few seconds of hesitation, she jumped. Pinkie slowly opened her eyes and looked down, expecting to see the ground rushing upwards towards her. Instead she was flying across the sky, the wing blowing her puffy mane and tail behind her. "I CHANGE MY MIND!!" she screamed, closing her eyes again. She felt that she had begun to slow down. The tingling in her head started up again. She opened her eyes and looked back. "Uh-oh." she said, her eyes wide. She shot across the sky again, this time going backwards. She screamed and let the web go, flinging into the air. She plummeted to the ground with a thud. "Woah." she said to herself as she got up "That was amazing!!" she squealed, jumping into the air for emphasis. She was back on top of the building she started from. "I think I need a little more practice though." "So, what should I do with these powers?" asked Pinkie. She was lying on the floor of her bedroom. Before her was a large rock with a face drawn on it. Twilight, Rarity and AJ had gone to the exhibition, Fluttershy was too scared that Pinkie had a contagious spider giga-virus to come near Pinkie and Rainbow had been in bed all day, refusing to let anypony see her, so Pinkie had to make due. "What?" Pinkie said to the rock "That's too dangerous! I wanna do something fun!" She stared intently at the rock, waiting for a response. "Don't be silly!" she said after a short silence "That's just silly, you silly!" Suddenly, the rock fell over onto it's face and cracked in two. "What? Don't go!" Pinkie exclaimed. She stared at the rock before letting out a sigh. Pinkie looked across the room at the newspaper that Rarity had given her to read while Twilight had her under house-arrest. She wasn't supposed to have gone out after the events of day one of the exhibition, but all that was stopping her from escaping were a hungover pegasus and a pony afraid of her own shadow. Pinkie shot a web over and pulled the paper closer. Most of the news was about the magic exhibition. She turned to the comics page and started reading the latest issue of "The Power Puff Fillies", where the evil villain Shadow Soul had brain washed the mayor and only the three fillies could stop her because of their super powers. As she read, she thought about what to do. "Hmm. Tim, I think I have the perfect idea!" The rock cracked slightly. "No, I don't think anyone would eat web flavoured cupcakes. That's not my idea." Pinkie turned to the desk at the back of the room. She pushed her prankster note-book and her copy of "Mysterious Mysteries for foals" aside and got a fresh sheet of parchment. "First thing's first." she said to nopony in particular "I'm going to need a costume." //-------------------------------------------------------// Float like a Fluttershy, bite like a spider //-------------------------------------------------------// Float like a Fluttershy, bite like a spider Pinkie Pie trotted down the dark streets of Canterlot. Unlike the majority of the city, this place was lit up by neon lights. the sounds of cheering ponies filled the air. The sound got louder as Pinkie approached Club Vinyl, the nightclub she had been dragging an unconscious pegasus from the previous night. Next to the entrance stood an earth pony with a long, dark mane, light brown coat and a look of angst on her face. In one hoof she held a clipboard and in her mouth was a quill. Her cutie mark was of a purple treble clef. As Pinkie approached, she locked eyes with the mare. She seemed familiar, although Pinkie couldn't figure out why. The mare sighed. "I assume you are here for the contest?" she asked. "Yes!" replied Pinkie "How could you tell?" "Well, the regular viewers wouldn't be dressed in such..." the mare paused, looking Pinkie Pie over "...strange attire just to watch the event." Pinkie looked down at herself. She wore a dark pink top and vest with light blue socks covering her back legs. She also had the mask from her mare do well costume, which she had dyed the same pink as her top. She also had the purple cape of the same costume, which covered the rest of her body. On the back of the cape was a pink spray paint spider. "Oh, I suppose not." Pinkie said. "Name?" asked the mare. "What? Oh right! Spider Pony!" "Really?" The mare looked up from the board "That's your name?" "I know, clever right?" The mare stared at Pinkie, before looking back at the clipboard. "So, why exactly are you entering?" she asked. "Well," replied Pinkie "I was sitting in the castle earlier today- Oh wait, I think I was lying down- and I didn't have very much to do and Tim suggested that I make cupcakes with web icing which was just silly, so I told him 'That's silly, you silly!' and then he left so I grabbed the newspaper with my secret powers and was reading comics and in it the bad guy was using a giant robot to collect unicorn spit so he could take over Equestria by melting all the sugar and Canterlot with it and the only ponies who could stop him were these three fillies with super powers and-" Pinkie stopped, gulped in a large gasp of air, and continued "-they were shooting lasers and stuff and lasers are kinda like web except hotter and more beam-like so I was thinking of using my powers for good but then I thought about using them for evil instead but that didn't seem very nice so then I decided to use them for neutral and then I remembered Rainbow Dash told me about this contest and I showed up and now I'm here!" The pony looked at Pinkie, her eyes wide in confusion. "Well, that's...interesting." she said, gazing down at the three lines she had to write on. "Follow me." she said finally. Pinkie followed her in, the stench of alcohol hitting her like a brick wall. The two walked to the back of the room. There was a stage at the back, which currently had rubber wires fencing it off. Inside was a huge red stallion fighting a dark purple pegasus mare. Around the stage was a crowd of ponies cheering and shouting. Pinkie and the other mare pushed through the crowd to a door leading backstage. Inside the met up with a white unicorn with spikey blue hair and dark tinted glasses. "Here's another one Vinyl. She says she's called-" the mare looked down at the clipboard "-spider pony." "That's Spider Pony!" exclaimed Pinkie "You didn't use capital letters when you said it!" The unicorn turned to Pinkie and grinned. "Is that Pinkie Pie I hear?" she asked, levitating the mask from Pinkie's head. "Hi Vinyl!" Pinkie, waving a hoof. "Thanks Octy." said Vinyl, turning to the mare again "Go out and see if anyone else wants to enter." "Only for you, Vinyl Scratch." mumbled the earth pony as she trotted off. "Okay Pinkie." said Vinyl, once again turning to Pinkie "All you have to do is fight Coping Saw for 3 minutes. If you win then you get 500 bits! Plus 50 extra for each leg you don't break." "What?! I can break my limbs?!" "Yeah, and you should probably protect your head too." Vinyl replied. DING DING DING "Oh, you're up! That didn't take long!" Vinyl began to shove Pinkie Pie closer the the curtain which separated them from the stage. "Wait, I-" "Oh right, your mask, here ya go!" Vinyl levitated the mask onto Pinkie's head before trotting onto the stage, leaving her behind. "Ladies and gentlecolts!" Vinyl yelled, magnifying her voice with her magic "Our next contestant is a very good friend of mine! Give it up for..." Pinkie poked her head out through the curtain and looked at the pony she had to fight. He was so huge that he put Big Mac to shame. "The amazing, the spectacular..." He had a blood red coat with a black dumbbell cutie mark. His mane was black and had a streak of yellow going down his tail. Suddenly, the curtain began to open, and a spotlight was pointed at Pinkie. "The Superiffic Spider-Mare!!" Vinyl announced. The crowd began to hiss and boo at Pinkie as she stepped into the ring. Vinyl turned and began to walk back to the room behind the stage. As she passed, she wished Pinkie good luck. Pinkie looked at her opponent. He glared back at her and gritted his surprisingly sharp teeth. Suddenly, a large metal grid began to lower over the ring, surrounded in the glow of unicorn magic. "Wait!" yelled Pinkie, lunging at the back of the cage and looking out at Vinyl scratch "I didn't sign up for a cage match!" Suddenly, the tingling started again. Pinkie had gotten used to it being a sign of something bad happening and chalked it up to her Pinkie Sense. She could sense Coping Saw behind her, flying through the air towards her in a kicking motion. Pinkie quickly cartwheeled aside, causing her opponent to collide with the metal bars with a loud 'clang'. He quickly recovered and charged towards Pinkie, lifting his hoof and swinging for her face. She ducked, avoiding it. Coping Saw retaliated by swinging his other hoof in a similar fashion. Pinkie leaned left and avoided again. Coping turned onto his front hooves and attempted to buck Pinkie's face, which she dodged by leaping up and latching on to the top of the cage, sticking there. "Get down here and fight like a mare!" yelled Coping Saw. His voice was gruff and deep. "You come up here and fight like a spider!" yelled Pinkie. She crawled quickly along from the corner of the cage ceiling to the center before dropping down and landing on Coping Saw, grabbing onto his head and covering his eyes. "Guess who?" she said cheerfully. The crowd began to hiss and boo again. "Get off'a me!" yelled Coping saw, swinging at Pinkie with his forelegs. He lost frontward support fell forwards onto the hard concrete floor. Pinkie leapt into the air, firing a web to the cage ceiling, and began to swing around. As soon as her opponent stood up, he was met with a hoof to the face and lost consciousness. Pinkie dropped to the ground and began to pant, a smile spreading across her masked face. The cage was magically removed and Vinyl trotted onstage next to the victor. "Congrats Pinks!" she said, lifting one of the pink mare's hooves into the air. "The new champion, everypony! Give it up for Spider-Mare!" Pinkie looked into the audience at the cheering ponies. There were only about 30 by Pinkie's count, but a victory is a victory. She took a bow and removed her mask, revealing the huge smile underneath. //-------------------------------------------------------// Saving the day, the Pinkie Pie way //-------------------------------------------------------// Saving the day, the Pinkie Pie way Pinkie Pie awoke in her bed, the warm sun trickling through her window. She sat up and the heaviness from her eyelids. In the other room she could hear Twilight saying something, followed by Rarity replying. It was hard to understand, since most ponies wouldn't be able to hear anything at all, but Pinkie was curious. She leapt from her bed and trotted to the door. She opened it to see Rarity, Rainbow Dash and Applejack standing there, all three looking as though they had just woken up. Applejack lacked her hat and had her mane down, Rarity was missing her false eyelashes and was wearing a red robe and Rainbow's hair was even more unruly than ussual. "Oh, you're up!" Rarity exclaimed "Twilight and Fluttershy just left." "Oh, that's a shame." Pinkie replied "I'll go catch up to them and say goodbye!" Before anypony could respond, Pinkie galloped out the door and down the path leading to the castle entrance. "Hi Luna!" she yelled as she bolted past the princess before leaping from the castle wall to the town below, doing a flip as she flew. Luna stared down at her as the pink mare ran off. "Um... Hello." she said in confusion "I'll never understand modern greetings." she mumbled. Pinkie walked down the streets of Canterlot. The street was mostly empty, since everypony was attending the final day of the magic exhibition. It was the overbooking that limited Twilight's amount of guests. Pinkie sighed and looked around for something fun to do. "I think I'm suffering from party withdrawal." she muttered to herself. "Wait a second!" she suddenly exclaimed "I know something I can do!" She looked around and spotted a shop with the words 'Fabric's Fabrics' above the entrance in large letters. "Perfect!" Pinkie said to herself. She ducked into the store which was, like the streets outside, empty. At the counter was a light brown mare with a blonde mane and a red patch-work cutie mark. She had fallen asleep and on her forehead was a note that read 'Do not disturb'. Pinkie grabbed some fabrics from the racks and began working. After several minutes she trotted over to the counter, placed a few bits next to the sleeping pony's head and left the building. "Perfect!" she said, admiring her work. Laid out before her was a dark pink, full-body suit with a black web patern. On the back of its kind legs were bright blue patches which matched her eyes. On either side of it where the cutie mark would be was a small spider symbol. The mask had eyes similar to the ones on her Mare Do Well mask and where light blue on the outside but clear on the inside. It also had holes in it so that Pinkie's mane and tail could escape. "And I thought Rarity was the textiles expert!" Suddenly, Pinkie's tail began to twitch. She looked up, just in time to see a teacup fall from a balcony above, smashing into pieces on the stone ground. A pastel green unicorn fell over the side of the balcony, grabbing the edge with her fore-hooves. "Help!" she yelled, kicking at the air. "Don't worry!" Pinkie yelled, pulling the mask over her head "I'm coming!" She shot a web up to the side of the hotel building, pulling herself up the wall. As she approached the unicorn, who Pinkie now recognized as Lyra Heartstrings from Ponyville, she put her foreleg around her. "I've got you!" Pinkie said, her voice muffled slightly by the mask "Everything is okay!" Lyra grabbed onto Pinkie for her life, squeezing her tight. "Thank you!" she yelled "Get me back up!" Pinkie obliged, pulling herself up with the web and placing the green pony on the ground. "Thanks!" she exclaimed "I owe ya one...uh..." "Spider-Mare." Pinkie replied. She jumped from the balcony and swung away, shooting web from building to building. "Thanks a lot, Spider-Mare!" Lyra yelled, waving a hoof. She galloped back into the hotel room the balcony extended from. "Bon Bon!" she shouted "You'll never guess what just happened!" "Well, that was fun!" Pinkie said to herself, disconnecting her web from one building and swinging to another "But as my first save, that was kind of boring and easy. Where's an Ursa when you need one?" She was traveling in the direction of Canterlot Castle, ready to return to the suite. Before reaching it, she stopped and landed in the empty street, stripping her costume and hiding it in her mane. "I should probably keep this close." she said cheerfully as she began to trot towards the castle's main entrance. The guards parted, opening the doors and letting Pinkie enter. As she walked up the long, twisting path to the room, her Pinkie sense began to tingle slightly. She stopped, looking around for danger. After seeing nothing she continued. She opened the door to the Harmony Suite. As she did, the scent of blood hit her nose. Inside she saw her three friends looking into the door of Fluttershy's room. "Hi girls." Pinkie said, looking around for the source of the smell. "Pinkie Pie!" Rainbow Dash yelled "Quickly! We've got some bad news!" As Pinkie approached, she saw tears streaming down Rainbow's face. "What's wrong, Dashie?" Pinkie asked. Rainbow stepped out of the way and directed Pinkie into the room. Rarity was holding back tears and biting her lower lip, while Applejack was looking down at the floor. In the center of the rug was Fluttershy, huddling in the fetus position. Her forehead was cut and blood was flowing out. "Fluttershy?!" Pinkie exclaimed, galloping over and kneeling down "What happened?!" Fluttershy looked at Pinkie and squeaked slightly. She was shivering as she rocked on the floor. "Pinkie Pie." Applejack said. Her voice was cold and flat. "There's somethin' we gotta tell you." "What?" Pinkie said, her eyes locked on the traumatized pony before her. Applejack slowly trotted over, looking Pinkie in the eye. Her eyes glistened with tears. "Twilight has gone missing." //-------------------------------------------------------// Venomous acts //-------------------------------------------------------// Venomous acts "Come on Fluttershy!" Twilight called "If we don't hurry we'll be late!" Fluttershy stood a few feet behind the unicorn, struggling her way past the crowd of ponies. Every time she collided with one she would murmur an apology and take a step back. Twilight rolled her eyes, teleporting Fluttershy to the space beside her.  It was the final day of the magic exhibition and the university was completely packed. At the doors, two unicorn stallions in red vests would order ponies into groups and send them to different presentations. "Good morning, Miss Sparkle." the left one said as the mares entered. "Just Twilight is fine." Twilight chirped, grinning. "Whatever you say. This way please." He directed the two into a small group watching a young unicorn colt and his pegasus mare assistant demonstrate how potions work. After the demonstration concluded, the group moved into a room with a small wooden stage and three rows of chairs. "This is so exciting!" whispered Fluttershy. Twilight smiled. It was good to see her coming out of her shell. Suddenly, a puff of purple smoke covered the stage and a familiar voice filled the air. "Ladies and Gentlecolts!" it said "If you have come for magic, then buckle up!" The smoke began to clear, revealing a blue unicorn mare standing on stage. She had a long, purple cape and a tall, pointed hat to match. Her cutie mark was of a wand and a blue crescent. "Prepare yourselves for The Great and Powerful Trixie!" The small crowd began to stamp there hooves in applause. Fluttershy and Twilight just stared, mouths agape. After soaking in the applause for a few second, Trixie continued. "Today The Great and Powerful Trixie will be showing you magic in technology." she announced. The red curtain behind her fell, revealing a large glass tank. "For this first demonstration, The Great and Powerful Trixie requires a volunteer!" She scanned the audience for a candidate. When she spotted Twilight, a grin spread over her face. "You!" she exclaimed, pointing a hoof at the purple pony "Come up on stage and help demonstrate!" Twilight sighed and climbed onto the stage. "Hi Trixie." she said, trying not to sound too annoyed by Trixie's presence "How've you been?" "Cut it out, Twi." Trixie replied, pushing Twilight into the tank and slamming the door behind her abruptly. Trixie turned back to the group, smirking slyly. "This machine uses magic to create a special gas." she announced "When Trixie powers it up, this tank will fill up with it. The gas causes the pony it's used on to become stronger for a few minutes after it is used." "Is that safe?" Fluttershy asked, raising her hoof. Everypony turned to face her and she shrunk back. "Never mind." she murmured. "Get ready, Twilight!" Trixie yelled to the trapped pony. She sat in the machine, waiting for her captor to get it over with. Trixie trotted to a small device on the side of the tank, shoving her horn into a small hole in the center. The device began to power up and a red light illuminated the inside of the machine. From the side that Trixie stood, the air inside the tank began to turn green. Twilight was shortly engulfed by the gas. Everypony stared in awe, waiting for something to happen. After a few seconds, the tank was completely filled and Twilight was no longer visible. The only sound was of the energy coming from Trixie's horn. Several more seconds passed, and Fluttershy was getting anxious. Suddenly, Twilight began to bang on the side of the glass with her hooves. "Trixie!" Fluttershy yelled "I think you're hurting her!" Trixie ignored her, grinning malevolently. Twilight continued to batter her glass prison, getting weaker with each blow. Fluttershy leapt onstage, tackling Trixie from the panel and onto the ground. She proceeded to buck the glass, smashing it to shards. "Stop!" Trixie shouted "Get away from there!" Fluttershy ignored her, galloping into the tank. After a few moments of silence, she emerged with an unconscious unicorn on her back. Several members of the crowd climbed onstage to tend to Twilight, while some just stayed in there seats. Trixie bolted for the exit. "Is she okay?" Fluttershy asked. On top of twilight was a yellow earth pony who was checking her for a pulse. "I don't think she's breathing, but there's a pulse." she said "Does anypony know mouth to mouth?!" "The rest of my memory is all fuzzy." Fluttershy wept, tears running down her face "Twilight suddenly woke up, but she attacked me and I blacked out. I woke up here." Before her stood Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Pinkie Pie, looks of shock on their faces. Rarity was on the bed crying. "That's terrible!" Pinkie exclaimed "How could Trixie do that?!" "I don't know," Applejack replied "but we've gotta tell the princesses!" //-------------------------------------------------------// Spider Eyes //-------------------------------------------------------// Spider Eyes Pinkie Pie galloped across the pearly floors of the palace. To her right was Applejack and to her left flew Rainbow Dash. The three passed the stairs leading up to the hallway of stained glass. At the end of the hallway was the Canterlot Tower vault, which housed the Elements of Harmony. Pinkie stopped, skidding forward slightly on the polished floor. "Girls! Come back!" she called, before trotting up the stairs and to the royal vault. She sat on the ground and stared at the magically sealed door. Something didn't seem right. "What is it?" asked Rainbow, landing on the ground beside Pinkie "Do ya think we'll need the elements?" "No, it's not that." Pinkie replied, keeping her gaze locked on the door "Doesn't something seem off to you?" The three stared at the vault. After a few seconds, Applejack shook her head. "We haven't got time for this!" she exclaimed "We need t-" Pinkie put a hoof over the ponies mouth. "Can't you see that?" she asked, still keeping eye contact "It's like a shadowy aura. Something's wrong." Rainbow and Applejack looked back at the vault, scanning over it with their eyes "Pinkie, I think it's fine." Rainbow said "Come on! We need to get to Celestia!" She gestured to the hallway, anxiously hovering in the air. "We were going to the princess?" Pinkie asked, tilting her head "I thought we were finding Twilight." Dash facehoofed and sighed. "We need to tell the princesses first!" Applejack shouted "Now come on!" Pinkie turned and bolted for the front entrance of the palace. "You do that while I go find Twilight!" she yelled as she dashed off. Once she was sure she was out of sight, she reached into her puffy mane for her costume. "Don't worry, Twilight!" she said to herself, firing a web to the top of a nearby tower "I'm coming!" After a few minutes of flying across the skyline, Pinkie's search hadn't made any progress. Ponies filled the streets below, pushing and shoving eachother to get past. None of them seemed to notice the costumed mare swinging above them. "Nothing over there." Pinkie muttered "Nothing over here." The sun was beginning to set, turning the sky orange. Suddenly from below, Pinkie heard a shrill scream. Looking down, she saw the source of the scream. It came from a young mare, roughly Pinkie's age, who was cowering at the back of an alley. Before the mare stood a stallion, carrying a large crowbar in his magical grip. He was advancing on the mare, talking as he did so. Pinkie leapt down, watching from the top of the building beside the alley. The stallion was thin but muscular. He had a dark blue coat and a short, white mane. His cutie mark was of a burlap sack, overflowing with gold coins. The mare had a creamy yellow coat with a purple and red streaked mane, which was long and straight. Her cutie mark was a pink berry. Both ponies were unicorns. "I told you it would come to this." said the stallion, stepping closer to the mare "Now, what's it gonna be? My money, or your knees?" The mare stepped back, her rump colliding with the brick wall. "I told you that I paid what I could! I haven't got another bit to my name!" The stallion grinned, taking a step closer. "Option two it is." Pinkie had seen enough. She jumped down, landing between the two ponies. "Who-" "The names Spider-Mare!" Pinkie said, interrupting the shocked stallion "And you are in a lot of trouble!" The stallion charged turning to buck Pinkie's face. She dodged left, avoiding the attack. She dodged right, avoiding another blow. Her Pinkie sense began to tingle, alerting her to duck. The crowbar, still encased in a red aura, whizzed past and hit the attacker's horn. The aura dissipated and the crowbar fell to the ground, followed by the stallion. Pinkie fired a web onto a nearby crane, pulling herself up and swinging away. "Thankyou!" called the mare, waving. "Okay," Pinkie murmured "I got a little side tracked, but now I have to find Twilight." Looking below, she noticed that some ponies where looking up at her and pointing. "Oh boy..." she muttered.