The Colt in Sugarcube Corner

“You want me to what?"

“Kill somepony.  In fact, I believe her name is…” he looked back into his book.  “…Scootaloo.”

“Woah woah woah, back up there.  You’re telling me that the only way to become a Wonderbolt is to kill Scoots?”

“Yes.  And it sounds like you already know this pony.”  His spoke with such nonchalance, it sent shivers down Rainbow’s back.

“Yeah, I do.”

“Then this should make things easier, right?"

“Is this a joke?”

“There is no joking.  You kill Scootaloo, you will become a Wonderbolt.”

Rainbow laughed.  “Okay Pinkie, this was a funny joke, but you went a little too far this time.  The joke’s over.”  She looked around for her pink friend to poke out and yell out “April Fools!” even though it was nowhere near April.  Her eyes darted desperately this way and that, her hope sinking every second.  Whatever this colt was pulling, she now knew he was serious.

“Will you do it?”

“Buck no.”  Rainbow heard enough of the colt’s garbage.  She grabbed his water and splashed it in his face before flying out.  The colt calmly wiped the water from his face, and began to write in his notebook.

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It was a while before Rainbow calmed down and sat down with the colt again.

“Ah, hello again Rainbow Dash.”

She didn't answer.  She didn't want to give him that pleasure.

“You left before we made a deal.”

“Yeah, because your 'deal' is totally uncool.  I'm not going to kill anypony.”

“Then you won't become a Wonderbolt.”  The colt seemed to read Rainbow's gaping mouth because he added, “At least, you won't find the answer at this establishment.”

The hotheaded pegasus tempered her emotions before blood could be drawn.  He wasn't laughing, giggling, or even smiling; only staring at her with his grey, emotionless eyes.  He was serious.  Whatever he was—devil or angel—he was absolutely serious about this.

“Just tell me this; how do you know this?”

With a wicked grin, he replied, “Let's just say, I have my source, and my source has never been wrong.”

If Soarin hadn't swore on her uniform that this guy was 100 percent legit, Rainbow would have left a long time ago.  However, she stayed.  This colt had to be telling her the truth.  But Rainbow really hoped he was wrong.

“So, will you do it?”

“No, I won’t do it!”

“Then don’t.”

Rainbow was not a killer, but she didn’t come this far to be stopped by this old geezer.  “Give me something else.”

“No.”

“Give me something else!”

“No, the deal is you kill Scootaloo.”

“I didn't agree on that, let me do something else.”

“If you don’t, then you don’t get to be a Wonderbolt.”

“This is the only way I will ever become a Wonderbolt?”

“This is the only way to guarantee that you will become a Wonderbolt, yes.”

Rainbow remained quiet for minutes.  Was this really her only option?  Kill her friend and sister, or give up her lifelong dream?  What kind of cruel pony would put her up to this task?  Why couldn’t she have some easy task?  Picking flowers, or shaving her head, she would have done in a heartbeat.  Heck, she would have done just about anything, except murder.  But to finally become a Wonderbolt…

It had been her life, her every hope and aspiration, to fly for crowd of thousands; to be remembered for being the greatest pegasus of her lifetime.  She wanted to be remembered at the only pegasus to perform a Sonic Rainboom since Sonic Sabre.  She trained long and hard everyday, even when her friends believed her to be sleeping or goofing off, improving er endurance, her turning, her spirals; repeating drills after tedious drills until her wings screamed in pain louder than the air whipping in her face.

But the WOnderbolts would never accept her.  No matter how fast she could fly, no matter what she could do, skill was not enough: she never graduated from flight school.  She could've, really, but partying was just too much fun, and at the time, school was not as important for her.  She cursed herself everyday for doing this to herself, but what was done could not be taken back.

Now, this colt offered her a chance—her only chance.

“So, what do you think Rainbow?”

It took her a while to recognize that she was being summoned out from the corridors of her mind and back into the booth in Sugarcube Corner.  “I’ll… think about it.”

“Take your time.  Just make sure to come back next week and give me the details.”

Rainbow Dashed stared him head on.  “Details of what?”

“What you’re thinking, feeling, anything that comes to mind.”  What was his motive?  Whatever it was, Rainbow couldn’t tell what it was by looking at him.  A brick wall would have more emotions than this colt.

“You’re a sicko, you know that?”

“Ponies tell me that on many occasions.”

“Why Scoots, though?  Is this all part of some joke?”

“No joke.  You kill her, you become a Wonderbolt.  Guaranteed.”

“But why her?  Why do you want her dead?”

The colt stared at her, a grin contorting his face.  Even though it was barely noticeable, Rainbow Dash swore that it make him look even more twisted.

“I’m not the one who wants her dead, though.  You are.”

His answer flew straight through her heart, ripping it into a million pieces.  She wanted to punch this colt, but he was absolutely right; even at that exact moment, she had begun planning how to end Scootaloo’s life.

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“Princess, a pleasure as always.”

The princess did not reply, hoping that giving this colt the silent treatment would somehow make her feel better about her situation.  The colt, once again ignoring Celestia, turned his attention to his pie.  His fork picked the already crumbling berry pie into a mush of filling and crust.

Celestia took her usual spot.  “The runes are translated.”

“Really?  What is this spell like?”

“It will get the job done, if that’s what you mean.  It’s evil.  A spell only a dragon could have use for.”

“And yourself?”  Celestia glared at the colt when he brought this up again; once again, he remained an impossible statue of emptiness.  “How does it feel, having this power at your disposal?”

“How does it feel?  It feel sickening!  Nopony should have this power, ever!  It’s evil, simple as that.  Pure tainted power.  The power to destroy your enemies… devastate any armies… anypony that ever angered you… with this power, you could make anything happen.”  Celestia’s beautiful purple eyes widened as she imagined the power and destruction that could come through this spell.  The fear it could create would cause such chaos.  At the same time, however, this spell could ensure peace.  Equestria remained peaceful because Celestia ruled with kindness and benevolence, but even she knew that one day that would not be enough.  This spell could bring her power—the power to quell any who stood to oppose her.  And this spell would ensure her power.  Not for her, but for Equestria.  Yes, that was the answer.  Not for me, for my subjects.

Waking from some unholy trance, the alicorn shook her head violently, trying to rid her memory of what she had just thought.  “No!  It’s evil!  It’s evil.”  Every time she repeated herself, her answer sounded weaker and weaker “It’s evil.”  Now her answer sounded more like a question; a rhetorical question that she feared she may already know the answer to.

The colt wrote a note in his brown book.  “Have you decided a place?”

“Yes.”  Celestia took weeks of debating with herself and researching alternatives and found her only option.  “The Canterlot Hospice.”

“I see… how did you come to this decision?”

“They’re terminally ill ponies, they’re going to die anyway, so…”

The colt nodded, still writing in his book.  “A very logical choice.”

“And it’s small, so not too many ponies will get hurt.”

“Remember Celestia, there has to be at least twenty—“

“Yes, yes, twenty six, I know!”  Her voice was testy.  She hated how this colt made her feel powerless, a feeling she had not felt for a thousand years.  She promised herself that once she was done, she would find him and do the same to him.

Where did that thought come from?  Celestia realized her violent outburst of thoughts, how could she even feel this way towards a pony?  No matter how dangerous a pony, she never killed—not even Nightmare Moon.  Was this pony more powerful than she realized?

“Well,” the colt sighed as the book returned to it usual spot beside its owner, “you still have a way to go.”

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“Give me something else.”

“That’s not how this works.”

“Then I want a redo.  Let’s go, you can give me two tasks if you want.”  The colt remained silent.  “Do you want money?”  No answer.  Octavia tried to continue talking, but no sound came.  She eventually fell back into her hooves with rivers flowing from her eyes.

“The task is the same.  Destroy the turntables.  I assume you did not do this yet?”

Octavia tried to answer as clearly as she could, but her hooves distorted the sound of her voice as she answered from behind them.  “She’s my friend, I just can’t walk up and smash her instrument.”

“So this Vinyl Scratch, your friend, tell me more about her.”  The colt pulled out his book and pen.  Octavia had no idea what dark secrets were in this book, and something in the back of her mind told her she never wanted to know.

“Well, we’ve been roommates since college.  She is into very loud music like techno and trot-step.  She’s not the most cordial of ponies at times, and her table manners aren’t merit-worthy, but she is learning.”

“That’s nice.  Now, tell me about Vinyl Scratch.”

Octavia was quiet.  Somehow, when he repeated his question it rung completely different in her mind.  “She’s the best friend a pony could ask for.  She is always there to offer advice and a hug.  Sometimes we stay up all night with hot cocoa talking about all the cute colts we've seen… she’s the only pony I can trust with my secrets.”

“And I assume she feels the same about you?”

“I would hope so.  I know when her last boyfriend left her, she refused to leave her room for almost a week.  Nearly lost her job at the Canterlot wedding.  She refused to talk to anyone about it.  Everyone except me, that is.  She would always say…why am I telling you this?”  Octavia caught herself before she revealed any more.

“Sorry?”

“Why do you need to know about Vinyl?  What do you want?”

“I just want to know what you’re feeling.”

“I’m not telling you any more.”

The colt looked at his book.  He didn’t speak.  He didn’t move.  Octavia fidgeted uncomfortably in her seat.

“Do you love her?”

“Of course I love her!  She’s practically my sister, I’m certain we would be related in another universe!”

The colt wrote this down, or rather, he wrote something down.  What was he taking notes on?

“Are you absolutely sure that you cannot change the deal?”  Octavia asked desperately, knowing exactly what he would answer.

“Even if I wanted to, I cannot change this.”  His features were still empty, but Octavia could tell that he was annoyed by her badgering relentlessly.  She stared back into his eyes, feeling utterly lost.

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“Hello again, Mr. Colt!”

Silence.

“What would you like, you didn’t seem to care too much for my amazingly yummy banana nut cake, is there anything else you think you’d like more?”

The colt stared out the window, Paying no attention to Pinkie Pie.

“How about your water, I can fill that up right now!”  She grabbed his cup and began to walk away.  “Are you sure you don’t want a party?  How about I at least sing you a song!  Please tell me you enjoy singing!”

No answer.

For once in her life, Pinkie believed that leaving in silence was her best option.

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Rainbow Dash sat in the booth for at least an hour now.  She had spent the entire week thinking over what she heard, what the colt told her to do.  Through this entire hour, he drank water.  And stared at her.  Her mind was already torn in two by the choice the colt was making her take, and his soulless stare was not helping to calm her nerves.

“Tell me what you’re thinking.”

The conflicted pegasus sighed.  “I want to be a Wonderbolt.  For my entire life, that’s all I’ve wanted.  I still have all the merchandise my parents bought me from when I went to their shows from my filly years.  I’ve followed their every tour, learned all their moves, took all the training classes.  But I dropped out of flight school.  I thought my skills would get me there, but now I can see that there’s no way the Wonderbolts would give me a second thought.”

Was she really going to say what she thought she was going to say?  Scootaloo had treated her like a hero; wouldn’t the young filly be glad to make her happy?

“Scootaloo doesn’t have any parents.  She’s an orphan.  Nopony would miss her… right?”

The colt didn’t respond.  He was too busy writing in his book to answer her inquiry.  Rainbow doubted he would have said anything helpful anyway.

“And her wings… she can’t fly.  She’s told me how she can never go higher than 3 feet off the ground without help.  I know it’s killing her to have to live like that, I know it would kill me.  So, it’s right… right?”

Every fiber of her being told her otherwise.  Killing was killing, and she was willing to kill someone that looked up to her like a sister?  But every time she was ready to back out, the words of the colt rung in her ears; ‘If you don’t, then you don’t get to be a Wonderbolt.’  One for one, that was fair, right?  End one pony’s sufferings, and allow the other one to live their dream.

“You sound very sure about this.”

Rainbow hung her head in shame.

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“I talked to mah sister, and she told me that we just started doing business in Canterlot.”

“Really?”  His eyes widened slightly from his normally intimidating scare.  She couldn’t tell if he was genuine with his surprise or if he knew this the whole time.

Applebloom nodded excitedly anyway.  “Applejack just opened up a mail service last week.  In fact, it was right after I came and talked to you.  Did you do this?”

The colt stole a quick glance at the book at his side.  “No, I don’t think so.”

“Well, it’s too good to just be a coincidence; you had to have done SOMETHIN’!”

The colt chuckled.  “You did that.  When you started to do the task, things happen.”

“And you are the one helping me, thanks!”

“I don’t get involved, I did nothing.”

“Anyway, she tells me that I’m old enough to start handling shipments to Canterlot now, and the hours she wants me to work give me plenty of time to find this pony you told me about!”

“That’s good.”

He sipped his water.

“Soo…”

The colt continued to drink.

“SSSSOOOOOO…”

“What?”

“Aren’t you going to give me the next hint?”

“Next hint?”

“I’m getting close to finding the pony you want me to help, so I’m ready for some more details.”

“Details… this pony needs your help.  You give them the help they want.”

“But what does she look like?  What’s her name?”

“I don’t know.”

“How can you not know?”

“Simple; I just don’t.”

“Then how do you know that she needs my help?”

The colt stole another look towards his book.  “Because when you help this pony, you get your cutie mark.”

Applebloom was confused.  How could this colt know that a pony needed help and not know who it was that needed help?  Could he see the future?  Maybe it had something to do with his book.  She never saw him without it, and every time she saw him he would constantly glance at it, like a nervous twitch.  The book seemed to be of the utmost importance to him, was it the source of his power?

Or maybe she was overthinking it…If he didn’t know the pony, it really could be anypony, right?  She smiled at her logic.

“So, if I help a pony, I’ll get my cutie mark?”

“If you help the pony, you will get your cutie mark, yes.”

“Okay, I can do that!”  She had never felt so close to her cutie mark than at this moment.  She bounced out of the stores, daydreaming about all the wonderful things she could do once she got her cutie mark.

The colt opened his book and began writing.

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“How can this possibly work?”

“Celestia, I have told you many times, it simply does.”

“But how?  Who benefits from me doing this, from… setting off this spell?  Who is making you tell me to do this?”

“The only pony that I know will benefit from this, is you.”

“Who will kill Discord, then?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then why should I trust you?”

The colt moved the book and slice of cake out of his way, and leaned across the table towards the princess, making her feel inexplicably vulnerable.  “Because everypony that completed their task got what they wanted.  Everypony.”

That was what Celestia had heard.  He had powers, powers even she did not possess.  By the life of her, she would figure him out.  But until them, as much as she hated saying it, she needed him.

“So if I do it…?”

“Yes, you get what you want.”

“Discord dead.”  She had sworn never to take a life, but ever since Discord tried again to usurp her power and take over Equestria, she realized that she could not be the only pacifist in a world of cutthroat creatures.  And this way, she wasn’t directly killing him, right?  The twenty six ponies were merely… collateral damage.  Their sacrifice would ensure that the draconequus would never threaten Equestria again.

“If that is what you want, then yes.  Discord will die.  But you must do what I assigned you to do.”

“But how are these even connected?  How will this ensure that Discord will never see the light of day.”

The colt stared at her.  He spoke so plainly, yet with so much power.  His empty soul was either an angel sent to offer aid, or a demon coming to tempt.  Either way, Celestia felt like her hooves were tied.

“It is not my job to know.  My job is to tell you that if you sent off a spell bomb that kills twenty six ponies, Discord will die.”