As the mare made her way up the road Ponyville, wearing the brown shirt and cap she had taken off the corpse of the stallion she had strangled, the two smiley face stickers on her rump. She cackled hoarsely as her limp green mane swung back and forth. As the mare walked into the town square, she stopped to massage her cheeks and wipe sweat from her forehead. The mare walked around Ponyville looking at the buildings and ponies, they seemed somehow... familiar.
Stopping in the market square at a cart where a massive red earth pony stallion was selling apples and apple-based baked goods. As she walked past the cart, the stallion started talking to her.

"Care for an apple ma'am?", Big Mac asked the passing mare.

The mare turned to face Big Mac cackling hoarsely. She massaged her cheeks before answering, "I don't have any bits, sorry."

Big Mac felt a little at unease looking at the mare. He didn't know if it was her gaunt cheeks, her usually wide smile, the way she occasionally massaged her cheeks or the way she cackled to herself. He hoofed her a shiny red apple. "S'ok ma'am, this one's on th' house.", he said.

Grunting her thanks, the mare took the apple, cackling to herself as she walked away. A gentle breeze blew taking one of the stickers off her rump.

As Big Mac saw the sticker blow away, he noticed her flank was blank. He had heard the odd story about adult ponies being blank. Shrugging, he figured that was why she had acted so strange.

The mare walked down the street and turned into an alleyway. She stopped to take a bite of the apple when she heard a voice from behind taunting her.

"I've never seen a grown up with a blank flank.", Diamond Tiara taunted the mare, "Were you too stupid to get a cutie mark or is it that there's nothing special about you?"

The mare turned to face the dusty pink mare with light purple and white striped mane, an expensive tiara propped on her head. A grey filly with silvery-white mane stood behind her. Hate began to burn in the mare's eyes as an unnaturally wide smile stretched across her face as she began to laugh hoarsely. "Heeheehee-hahaha-hoohoohoo! It's not a very funny joke."

Silver Spoon flattened her ears in fear and began slowly backing away. "C-come DT, I d-don't think you should make f-fun of her.", Silvy said. Looking into the mare's face with her gaunt, hollow cheeks and unnatural smile reminded her of that horror movie that Diamond had made her watch about a stallion who had a smile carved in his face.

"Silvy, stop being such a pussy. I don't need a second one.", Diamond huffed.

Silvy trembled not taking her eyes off the cackling mare, her prey senses screaming in her head. "I-I think w-we should get out of here.", Silvy stammered, her teeth chattering.

"Fine!"Diamond said, sticking her nose in the air, "This mare's got a rotten brain anyways. She probably doesn't recognize when a joke is funny." She turned with a harrumph and kicked dirt at the mare before trotting off.

The mare's mane went poofy as she threw her apple at Diamond Tiara, hitting her squarely in the back of the head, knocking her to the ground.

Standing from the ground, Diamond Tiara adjusting the now bent tiara on her head. "Hey!", she shouted, stomping towards the mare.

"HAHAHAHAHAhahahahahaHAHAHAHAHA!", the mare laughed maniacally, "Now that's a funny joke!"

Diamond Tiara took a couple of steps backwards before running off. "I'm telling my dad and you'll be sorry!", she shouted.

The mare still laughing massaged her cheeks. Taking the sticker sheet from under her shirt, ripped off the sticker on her flank and replaced the two missing stickers with snowflake ones. The mare then skipped off towards the center of town. Reaching Carousel Boutique she stopped, a striking purple suit with black pinstripes caught her eye. Her mane changed to a slicked-back pompadour and her laugh became a lilting giggle, "Ah-heeheehee-oo-heeheehee-oh-heeheehee." The mare knew she would teach the world to smile, this would be the suit she would wear when she did and that rotten little filly would be the first.

That night the mare snuck around Ponyville after its residents had gone to sleep. She jimmied the lock on the hardware store, stealing the cans of spray paint; red, purple and green. She kicked in the door to Barnyard Bargains, stealing several knives. She piled up some oily rags, lit a candle and set it up near them. Slipping the window open at the cosmetics store stealing several tubes of bright red lipstick. Carousel Boutique held the last piece she needed before beginning her mission to bring smiles to the faces of each and every pony. Picking up a large rock, she hurled it through the window shattering it and snatching the purple suit off the ponyquinn.

Rarity shot up at the sound of the shattering window. Making her way into the hallway, she gestured for a bleary-eyed Sweetie Belle to go back to her room. Stopping at the top of the stairs, she saw the broken glass on the floor, the ponyquin fall over and heard maniacal laughter fade into the night. She rushed to the hallway phone and called the police.

The mare ducked into an alleyway and put the purple suit on. Admiring herself in the reflection of a nearby window, she applied the lipstick. Her smile spread wide across her face fully revealing her discolored and crooked teeth. Creeping to Sugarcube Corner, she saw blinking red and blue lights down at the boutique. She began spray painting the statue of Pinkie Pie. When she finished her work the mare admired her work, the body of the statue was painted purple, the mouth had a big red smile painted on it, the mane and tail painted green. Taking in her work, she approved the likeness. Laughing she darted off into the night.

At the Rich manor the mare shimmied up a pipe and made her way over to Diamond Tiara's window. Looking in she saw the pink filly asleep. Taking a knife from inside her suit, the mare pried the window open and slipped inside silently. Returning the knife inside her suit, the mare propped the chair at the desk against the door. Reaching down with her hoof, the mare snatched up the sleeping filly by her mane and threw her across the room into the wall. Giggling, she trotted over to the filly.

Groaning, Diamond Tiara sat up and gasped seeing what looked like a giggling demonic skull-faced clown. She went to scream, but a hoof pressed against her mouth silenced her.

The mare shushed the filly, as she pulled her hoof away, indicating that any sound loud enough to otherwise heard would end in pain.

"Wh-who are you? What do you want?", Diamond Tiara whispered terrified.

"Aww! Wasa matter? Don't you recognize me? You're old blank flank pal? As for what I want?", the mare said, beginning to giggle, "I want to teach you how to smile!" She pulls a knife out of her suit and begins running the tip gently across the filly's cheek. "Now can you show me a real pretty smile?"

Diamond Tiara trembled like a leaf seeing the knife glint in the night, she did her best to give a school picture smile. A yellow stream trickled down her leg and pooled at her hoof.
"Now now, that's not a very good smile.", the mare giggled placing the blade at the corner of the fillies mouth, "Here let me show you how it's done!" The mare quickly flicked the blade in an upward curve.

Diamond Tiara shrieked as blood poured from the up curving half-smile on her.

Hoofbeats came up the hallway, the door handle jiggled as a pony tried to open the barricaded door. "Diamond Tiara?!", a stallion shouted pounding on the door.

"DADDY!", Diamond screamed.

The mare jammed the blade into the other side of Diamond's mouth and flicked the blade upwards again in a curve.

Diamond screamed as she was thrown to the floor. The bedroom door was kicked to splinters and Filthy Rich charged through. The mare hurled the knife at his head causing him to duck. She dove through the window and bounded down to the street, laughing maniacally as she ran into night.

Filthy ran to his daughter and cradled her head. He nearly vomited when he saw her face. "Diamond, who did this?", he asked terrified.

"It was her daddy!", Diamond said between shrieking sobs, "The mare who laughed at..." Her words were cut off when she fainted.

The mare made her way to the train station and stole a hoof pumped cart, slipping down the rails into the night. As the dawn began to break, the mare ditched the hoof cart and walked on hoof to the outskirts of Manehattan. She began to laugh hoarsely as her mane went limp, "Heeheehee-hahaha-hoohoohoo! Ah Manehattan, if I can make this city smile, I can make all of Equestria smile."
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*Monochrome's journal, Ponyville day 1*

Dear Journal,

It's been three days since I've written to you. I arrived in Ponyville late this morning. An old war buddy who had taken up the family business of smelting silver contacted me late last night, the daughter of a business associate of his was attacked last night after ten o'clock. On the train ride down I nodded off for an hour and had the same nightmare again. The sights, the sounds, the smells of ponies and diamond dogs hacked up or burning alive, all still just as vivid as if I was still fighting in those warrens. When I made it to Ponyville, the fireponies were sifting through the burnt down remains of a local store. It belonged to the business partner of my old war buddy, a too well fed wealthy pony named Filthy Rich. He shared with me how some crazed psychopath pony had carved up his daughter's face in her own bedroom. He said he didn't get a good look at who did it, just that the attacker wore a purple suit and had a green mane. I managed to convince him to let me talk with his daughter to confirm my suspicions. When I met with her in her hospital room it unsettled me on what I saw, though her face was not as cut up as I initially thought, it was her eyes that truly disturbed me. She was completely terrified and mentally broken. It's a wonder she was even able to talk at all. She described to me in detail, well in writing as the doctor had advised her against much talking for a few days so she wouldn't accidentally rip her stitches, the mare to a T. The stark white fur, the lack of a cutie mark, the bright green mane and tail. She went on to describe her encounter with mare that afternoon and the attack that night. She described her as having a "rotten brain" because she had an unusually wide smile and disturbing laugh. The mare had told her that she wanted to teach her how to smile. When I made my way around town I found that the statue made the element bearer of laughter, a mare named Pinkie Pie, had been vandalized. The body had been painted purple, the mouth had a big red smile painted on it, the mane and tail were painted green. This was not a random attack, this was a well thought-out series of crimes and this was a calling card. The local librarian, bearer of the element of magic and personal student of Celestia(may her name be cursed), a young, bookish and surprisingly insightful unicorn named Twilight Sparkle. I wonder if Twilight knows of her teacher's previous brilliant student that went missing? Probably not. That's what our divine princess of the sun does, takes on ponies she can manipulate, use and twist to her purposes, then discards us when we are no longer useful to her or are too broken. Twilight is very intuitive and managed to piece together on her own that the attack last night and the attack at the Canterlot hospital was carried out by the same pony. She also figured out something that I wasn't able to figure out; both attacks are themed around smiling. Oh dear auntie, you know how to pick the bright ones for your purposes don't you? Maybe that's why father didn't want me to join her military. The local newspaper already published a sensationalized headline calling the mare the Mare Who Laughed. It even included a poorly drawn composite sketch of the mare.
Sincerely yours, Monochrome

P.S. The local fashion pony and owner of the local boutique, a lovely unicorn named Rarity offered to make a new coat for me. If I were a few years younger, I might pursue her romantically.
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*Four months later Manehattan*

Flim and Flam were sitting in their office on the Manehattan docks. Since their takeover of the Foundry Family last year with the help of their mysterious patron who couldn't afford to get his hooves dirty, profits had been up and up. That was until their bombing of the industrial alchemical lab that had resulted in the death of the element bearer of laughter. The backlash had been almost instant and if it wasn't for the fall back plan of their patron, most of the gang would have been arrested.

Flam lit a cigar as the two brothers began looking over the list of the take from their new protection rackets. Shaking down the Manehattan docks for protection money was more lucrative than anything they could have hoped to make in Canterlot. They didn't have the constant threat of the Royal Guard hanging over them, and it was easier to bribe or intimidate the police here.

The door to the office flew open, the guard staggered in. His eyes were bulging as a wide smile stretched unnaturally across his face, he was laughing hysterically. After several moments he collapsed to the floor gurgling as his heart stopped.

The mare walked in dragging a steamer trunk behind her. She was wearing a purple suit, orange shirt, green bow tie, purple top hat, and black spats on all four hooves.

"Who the Tartarus are you?!", Flam snapped.

With a theatrical flip of her hat, she began laughing hoarsely, "Heeheehee-hahaha-hoohoohoo! My calling card, gentlestallions!" She opened the steamer trunk, pulling out pictures of several ponies who had smiles carved into or had rictus grins just like their bodyguard and an old headline that read "Filly in Ponyville attacked by Mare Who Laughs". She walked over and tossed them on their desks.

The brothers levitated the photos and headline between them.

"Impressive work.", Flim said, "So wanting to join up?"

"No, not exactly.", the mare said as her mane became a slick pompadour, "Ah-heeheehee-oo-heeheehee-oh-heeheehee! I have two questions to ask you both. First, I know you two couldn't take over an automated factory without somepony to hold your hoof. So who's the pony holding your hoof?"

The two brothers rose to their hooves. "That's none of your business.", growled Flam, "I think it's time you get the fuck outta here before you suffer a sudden accident."

"Fair enough, fair enough!", the mare giggled, "Just let me ask my second question and I'll be on my way." She grabbed a nearby crowbar and hit Flim across the head with it, snapping his horn off and laying him out cold.

Flam gripped her in his magic and pinned her against the wall, slowly choking her. He walked up to her and said, "Do you realize how fucked you are?" Her mane became poofy as she began to laugh hysterically. Flam was slightly taken aback, his magic loosening slightly. This was all the opening the mare needed. She hit her left front hoof against the wall, causing a blade to spring out of the spat. She slashed it across his throat.

Flam staggered away, bright red blood poured from his neck and mouth. He gurgled and sputtered as he collapsed to the floor.

She stood up and dusted her suit off. She clicked her hoof against the floor, cause the blade to spring back into her spat. Walking over to Flim who was now waking up, the mare sat on him pinning to the floor. Pulling out a cylinder with snoutpiece from her suit she said, "Seeing as how your brother is indisposed and currently unavailable for comment, I guess you'll have to answer. Can you show me a pretty smile?" She placed the snoutpiece over his muzzle and sprayed some green gas from it.

Flim thrashed about on the floor, an unnatural smile spread across his face as he hysterically laughed until his heart gave out.

The mare walked out to the warehouse floor that served as the gang's hideout. A few dozen of the gang laid dead, either their throats slashed or their faces twisted into rictus grins. "Alright boys, we've got a parade and some fireworks to prepare.", the mare said, "Manehattan will learn to smile, courtesy of the Mare Who Laughs! HAHAHAHAhahahahAHAHAHAHahaha!"

Three weeks later, in Manehattan, a big parade went down Bridleway. Brightly colored floats rolled down the street, massive balloons were guided by teams of ponies, marching bands played lively tunes, clowns tumbled and danced, passing balloons out to the foals or tossing candy from the floats. The parade stopped at a big square, the bands stopped playing, balloon teams strained to keep the massive balloons under control, the clowns stood perfectly still.

All over the city television feeds cut to the Mare Who Laughs standing on a soundstage. Her purple sequined suit glittered on the camera as her bright red lips spread in an unnaturally wide smile. "Greetings Manehattan! I bet you're wondering what this parade is commemorating? Don't you worry, as I'm about to tell you. This parade is to commemorate the day I brought smiles to aaaaallll your faces!" She lifted up a remote with several switches. "Laugh with me!", she shouted as she flipped the switches, "HAHAHAHAhahahahaHAHAHAHAhahahaha!"

Green gas began to spray from the instruments of the marching bands and from under the floats. First the large balloons, then the small balloons popped releasing waves of green gas that flowed through the streets for several blocks. Ponies galloped through the streets trying to escape the gas. After several minutes the gas dissipated leaving thousands of dead or dying mares, stallions and foals in the streets, all with rictus grins on their faces.

"And now for the grand finale!", the Mare Who Laughs said on the TV sets. She pressed a red button.
Dozens of explosions rocked the tallest skyscrapers across the city as bombs and fireworks detonated creating burning smiley faces in the buildings. All the televisions switched to test patterns and emergency broadcasts.

The next morning, Luna sat weeping bitterly on her throne, as she held her head in her hooves. The nightmares she had to fight combined with the death toll, especially the foals, were too much for her.

Celestia walked in from her room. Her eyes were swollen from crying all night, as she was not faring much better than Luna. She went to hug her sister, but Luna pushed her away.

Luna rose from her throne and spoke with air of authority, "Sister, we need to call upon his services now! I have it on good authority he's in Ponyville right now as we speak, but he won't stay there for long. With or without you I'm going to talk to him."

"You're right Luna. We should have called him up sooner.", Celestia said, "I've ordered all trains in or out of Manehattan halted unless they're carrying relief workers. Let's go to him now." Both sisters disappeared in a flash of golden and deep blue light.

Monochrome was sitting at a table outside Sugarcube Corner picking at an apple turnover when a flash of golden and deep blue light caught his attention off to his side. Looking up he watched Celestia and Luna walk up. "Hello, dearest aunts. I figured you two would have come looking for me sooner.", he said coldly. His light grey coat bristled, his black mane blew in the slight breeze, his dark grey eyes narrowed.

"And good morning to you too Calligraphy!", Celestia said in her best attempt to sound cheery.

Monochrome spat at Celestia's hooves. "If I've told you once, I've told you a hundred times, Calligraphy is dead. He died in your damned war aunt. My name is Monochrome."

"Calligraphy, Monochrome, it matters not what your name is.", Luna said, "My sister and I are in need of the talents the son of our older brother possesses."

"More like you've been hounding your sister for weeks to call on me and only now that hundreds lay dead has she budged.", Monochrome said, smirking bitterly.

"Calli...Monochrome, come with us to Golden Oaks library so we can talk in private.", Celestia said.

As they entered the library, Twilight ran up to see her teacher.

"I'm sorry Twilight, I don't have time for pleasantries right now.", Celestia said, "I need you and Spike to go elsewhere for the time being. My sister and I have official business with...err...Monochrome."

Monochrome watched Twilight bow and leave. After she left the library Monochrome asked, "Have you told her who her great grandfather is yet?"

"No I have not. You know as well as I that he is highly skilled at concealing himself.", Celestia said slightly agitated, "But we're getting off topic. Luna and I came here to offer you this." Both sisters ignited their magic and an elaborate scroll appeared in a flash of golden and deep blue light.

Monochrome ignited the magic in his horn with a sepia aura. He levitated the scroll over to his face, opened it and began reading it. "If I'm reading this right, this is a Royal writ of hunting.", Monochrome said, running his eyes over the document, "This essentially gives me full immunity and jurisprudence to bring in the enemies of the crown. But I see one error, there is no expiration date."

"Nay nephew, our sister and we made erred not.", Luna chimed in, "Thou shalt be our brigand hunter general and thou shalt be able to acquire any services or of any pony, just don't abuse that privilege or we shall personally hunt thee. We know thou have personal issues with our sister, so thou shalt report to we. Go and assemble the ponies thou shalt need to assist thee. And I personally implore you to please write to your father. He misses you so."

Author's Note

To all the lovely people who have read my writings, I thank you.

Happy reading and I hope you enjoy.

I will try and take all criticisms as constructive.

A special thanks to The_Darker_Fonts for editing the story for me. Go to page and show him some mmfmlpl.