The symbols of Anarchy

It was the early morning in the crystal empire, Celestia didn't even raise the sun yet across Equestria. Some ponies woke up, to get ready for work. Other ponies could have the pleasure of sleeping more. Shining Armor woke up from an excellent dream. With his eyes still closed, he turned to his wife's side of the bed to wake her up.

"Good morning honey," Shining Armor greeted his wife, but he didn't hear a reply, "Sweetie? Sweetheart?" Shining Armor opened his eyes and he was shocked. Shining eye's expanded in terror to the sight in front of him. Next to Shining Armor was a severed head of a pink unicorn mare, wearing his wife crown.

"What the hell!!" Shining shouted in terror as he jumped from his bed and ran towards his daughter room. As the worrying father arrived he was relieved to see his daughter unharmed. Shining took his daughter from her bad and he noticed a letter on the pillow. Shining took the letter read it loud.

Play the game and your love will not be harmed. Cheat and use others and the one you love will be gone. The queen will be where only chance will help you win. Until the moon you will have to find or else Cadence will die.

At the end of the letter Shining saw a green question mark.

"Have you find anything?" Shining Armor asked his generals and the best detectives he had at the crystal empire. The royal guard was searching the palace for any clues for who kidnapped princess Cadence and where she could be. The detectives found nothing, but two guards who were shot by a tranq dart and were tied by a rope.

"Your highness," an orange unicorn with a deep orange mane and called for Shining Armor. Shining smiled to the unicorn. It was Sunburst, the royal crystaller, and magic adviser.

"Did you solve it?" Shining asked. Sunburst nodded and he took the letter from his bag.

"Yes, the answer is ..." a ringing noise stopped Sunburst from revealing the answer. Shining Armor, Sunburst and four soldiers follow the sound through the blue crystal halls until they found the source. It was the severed head Shining found in his room, vibrating and made ringed and around him were terrified guards. As Shining Armor entered the room, the head stopped vibrating and looked at Shining Armor.

"I told you, no cheating," the head said. No one could believe it. The severed head that until now did nothing but vibrating as flies flew around it talked. Its voice didn't belong to a mare, but to a stallion, "Your highness, I thought you will be more cooperative, according to the situation. But you don't take me seriously."

"Who are you?!" Shining Armor demanded to know. Sunburst didn't know which was scarier. The talking severed head, or Shining Armor angry. The head didn't share the same fear as Sunburst, it laughed at the angry king, mocking him by staying calm.

"You can call me Riddler," the head said, calm, "I give you a second chance. Just as I thought, you are not so smart. You couldn't tell when your wife is replaced by a head. Answer the riddle and you will find a princess." The head stopped talking and a beeping sound came out. Sunburst's horn glow in orange and the head was been seen from the inside. Sunburst saw the source of the beeping.

"It's a bomb!!!" Sunburst ran to Shining Armor, "Think, you can do it, think about the riddle." Shining Armor was in stress, he wasn't very good in riddles, it was more Twilight's knowledge. The white stallion took deep breaths and thought.

"Okay Shining, you can do this. Think. A place where chance help you win"

"You have 50 seconds," Sunburst said to Shining Armor.

"not a talent, no knowledge, no physical strength. Only chance."

"Thirty seconds!" Everypony's heart was in their pants. All prayed for Celestia for help.

"Without talent, knowledge or physical streangh, you will need luck-" Then it hit him like a lightning bolt "-Luck!" Shining Armor ran towards the head.

"5 seconds."

"A casino!" Shining shouted at the head. The beeping stopped and everypony sighed in relief. "That was close," Shining told Sunburst.

"It took you long enough," the head laughed "It was a riddle from a child's book. Come to Las Pegasus, there a princess will be waiting for you." The head stopped talking and a guard took it away. As the head left the room the room, everypony was calm and happier, it was like a dark cloud finally left the blue sky. But Shining wasn't happy, he couldn't be happy until he finds Cadence.

"I must go alone," Shining told his guards, "Until I return, Sunburst is in charge." Shining Armor took Sunburst aside as the other guards went back to their positions. "I trust you to keep the empire in charge until I return, I trust you." Sunburst nodded and bowed before Shining Armor. Shining went out of the castle and took an air balloon to Las Pegasus. "Okay you psycho, I am coming for you."

Shining Armor arrived at the palace of luck that has been called 'Las Pegasus.' Thanks to a spell Twilight taught him, Shining could walk on the clouds without falling. The white stallion stormed into the casino and he found the casino all empty, no one but his wife. Cadence was tied to an electric chair, her mouth was taped and her eyes were red from crying. As Shining came to free his wife, the entire casino was blacked out and a familiar laugh was heard through the halls.

"You didn't think it will be so easy," a voice spoke in the microphone. It was the same voice that the head used. It was the Riddler. "Did you ever heard the story of King Solomon. He was the smartest pony who lived in Equestria, I'm seeing myself as his successor. Anyway, one day, Celestia came to his kingdom to test his mind. She gave three flowers, two were fake and one was real, but the three flowers were identical. I have decided to recreate the tale with another kind of flowers." The light was turned off, leaving Shining and Cadence in the dark and the light turned on again. Shining could not believe his eyes. He saw three Cadences. "Will you find the real flower?" The Riddler asked.

It was hard to tell the three apart, the three Cadences were identical from the beautiful pink and purple mane to the pink coat and the golden crown. Shining looks at each Cadence, trying to find something, something to tell them apart. but nothing. They were all identical.

"Having a problem?" The Riddler asked, mocking Shining and laughing at him, "Maybe a little shock will help." The electric chairs were activated and the three alicorns cried in pain and tears came out of their eyes. It was impossible for Shining to watch, it was impossible to watch his wife being tortuerd. Finally, the maniac stopped this. Leaving the three alicorns crying as their eyes become red.

Finally, Shining Armor finds a clue to tell his real wife. The eyes. The eyes of the Cadence in the left and the Cadence in the middle were slightly red, but the Cadence in the right, her eyes were really red like she cried for hours. Shining knew what to do, he ran to the right Cadence, freeing her from the chair. Cadence fell to her husband's arms, unconscious.

"Well done," The Riddler's voice said, "I didn't think you will get the hint, Soon enough my friends and I will meet you and the next part of the game will continue."

Shining Armor was at the hospital, next to Cadence, crying and hoping for his wife to come back to him. From the room next to Cadence, Shining heard screaming of a mare. The mare was terrified of something, her screams gave the stallion chills. In the room next to Cadence, Starlight Glimmer was tied to the bed, tears in her face and her heart beat in terror.

"Scarecrow," Starlight screamed, "Scarecrow, SCARECROW!!!"