Certifiably Insane- Non-canon/Failed Arcs

*Sniff. SNIFF. Sniff-sniff.*

Gilda's eyes shot open. Directly above her was a swirled a massive maelstrom tinged with dark shades of red, green, and blue. The middle of the maelstrom caught her awestruck gaze, a shattered, floating tangle of steam trains, haphazard strings of multicolored light, massive chunks of stone vaguely outlining a spherical shell, and a luminous ball of deep red magic hidden in its center, pulsing like a heart. The massive slow-spinning structure entranced her eyes even as her other senses steadily trickled in.

She lay on what felt like flat, rough stone, and a howling wind was passing mercifully high above her. What breeze reached her carried the scent of sulfur and blood, and her tongue tasted of nothing, the memory of her last meal erased form her mouth, like a blank slate.

*Sniff.*

Gilda scrambled to her paws at the unfamiliar noise, and took in her bizarre and nightmarish surroundings as she scanned for danger.

A vast landscape stretched around her in all directions, with bizarre and ominous worlds whichever way she looked.

A bloody field scattered with broken and rusting weapons, and a burned and half-collapsed castle looming over it.

A vast labyrinth of bookshelves that was seemed to shift and change before her very eyes.

A massive hole in the ground, but even from where she stood, over a mile away, Gilda could see the glittering of gold and jewels around its edge.

A... giant statue of Gilda. Huh.

And finally, a sprawling city of steel and glass, but muted and grey. Unnaturally devoid of life and covered with a thick fog.

Each of the five sections were divided by cracks wide enough to easily consume a pony filled with pure darkness- or madness, as Gilda now knew- and a mile or two past where each section ended, there was only a horizon of black. The circular landscape was lit by the maelstrom and the broken structure above her like a surrogate sun.

Gilda felt like she was forgetting something important, but couldn't quite put her talon on it.

A pebble clattered behind her.

"Oh yeah..."

In her awestruck observations, the mysterious sniffing sound had completely slipped her mind. With her every muscle tensed and ready to retaliate, Gilda whirled about with a snarl and bared her talons before freezing in shock.

"Jack!?"

Jack jumped back a bit in surprise before he too gasped loudly and a smile jumped to his face.

"IT'S YOU!"

Gilda nearly embraced him, but stopped herself before she could make a move in his direction.

Something was off.

Gilda took a few steps back instinctively.

"Uh, is that really you, Jack? I mean- it's cool if you're not... you?"

Gilda silenced her babbling as she looked him over, and he looked just as he should have... Maybe a bit short? Still, she felt an uneasy feeling creep through her wings, like when the murderous creature from before had spoken. What had set her off? Her eyes traveled back to his eager, smiling face.

...Maybe it was the neon pink eyes.

"HECK no, Honey-buns! The Jack-a-babe-sexy-guy is rattling around up in our heads somewhere, but the Five of us don't wanna let him out! ANYWAY! ForgetJackdon'tyouknow I reallyreallreallyreallyreallyreallreallyreallyreallyreallreallyreallyreallyreallreallyreallyreallyreallreallyreallyreallyreallreallyreallyreallyreallreallyreallyreallyreallreallyreallyreallyreallreallyreallyreallyreallreallyreallyLOVEYOU!?!? Why would you want any-BUCKING-body else??? I'll love you foreverandeverandeverandeverandever! NOTHING could keep me from loving every inch of you."

Gilda shrunk back uncomfortably as he bounced closer with a growing blush and visibly drooled.

Oh buck, he's a creepy Pinkie Pie.

"U-Uh, w-who are you, then? I can hardly love somebody without a name."

He froze in place, utter surprise on his face. After a moment, he sat down and propped up his chin with one hoof while the other twirled an invisible mustache.

"Ya know... I don't know! Um... Oooooo! I KNOW! I KNOW! WE CAN ASK ARCHITECT! He knows EV-ER-Y-THING!"

"Everything?" Gilda's eyes lit up. "Would he know how to piece Jack- MY Jack- back together?"

He scowled with a childish, but somehow ominous expression and rolled to his feet. His voice cracked and shook like he was about to cry, but he only seemed to radiate anger.

"Do you... want to get rid of me? And destroy my love for you? Do you not like this Jack? This Jack who loves you more than the others ever could?"

Gilda broke into a cold sweat and backed away, rapidly explaining herself as he stared intensely.

“Wait! I didn’t mean to- AH!” Gilda snapped her talons and pointed fingerguns at him. “If you’re all back together, I can love you even more. Because! Uh- There would be more of you to... love?”

The ominous aura dispelled faster than a bipolar mood swing, -which it probably was, to be honest- as he rocked back, a hoof on his chin in deep thought, and began pacing in a tight circle.

“Your logic is illogical, yet sound. And you dooo seem to enjoy the parts of us that don’t love you, per say...”

He suddenly rounded on Gilda with an accusing hoof.

“What do I have to gain? I’m not cheap-“

“One Kiss.”

”Done! Wait-SHIT! I'M SO CHEEEAAAP!”

==========================================================================================

Once he stopped wailing about his weak will, the doppelganger Jack led Gilda towards the labyrinth of bookshelves, occasionally creeping close to nuzzle her affectionately like a puppy.

A lovesick, murderously possessive puppy. Hyperactive, bouncy, and cheerful one moment, and quite ready to kill just to gain my attention the next.

Gilda's spirits sank as she approached the maze, dreading the precious time they would lose to navigate it, until her companion zoomed ahead suddenly and began maniacally ringing a bell next to the entrance. As she caught up to him, he spun around with a big grin and dancing eyebrows, to say nothing of his spasming legs. It took Gilda a moment to realize what he wanted.

"Good job?"

His eyes quite literally turned into giant hearts as he let out a loud "SQUEEEEEEE" and bounced about like a rubber ball.

"*Sigh* He won't stop for quite a while now. It's best to ignore him until he becomes coherent again."

Gilda flinched, but found herself overwhelmingly calmed by the even tones of the new voice. She turned to see another spitting image of Jack, but much... fancier.

His eyes were the brightest part of him, a piercing, luminescent blue that spoke of wisdom and utter serenity peeking out from behind his half-rim spectacles. The usual ruffled mane was replaced by a short professional ponytail and a nondescript navy blue officer's hat. He also wore a matching military jacket that fit his stiff biped military stance perfectly.

Upon catching her eye, Architect snapped a salute and rattled off his speech like a machine.

"Architect. Embodiment of the Analytical, Logical, and Calculating portions of The Greater Consciousness, and Overseer of the Memory Vault. Rank: Second among the Mind. At your service, Madam Gilda."

Somewhat swept up in his professional energy, Gilda instinctively saluted back to him, feeling an urge to be as professional and concise as possible.

"I am at yours, noble Architect. I need the real Jack back together, ASAP."

Architect gave a stern nod.

"Understood, I shall rally the troops. LOVE! Front and Center!"

In a heartbeat, Love, as was his name, instantly appeared next to Gilda, rapidly saluting over and over. Architect merely nodded once more and turned his back. The moment his piercing eyes left her, the militaristic hold of professionalism vanished like smoke.

"Follow in haste, Gentleman and Madam, our time is short. I have prepared a briefing room."

Architect rushed off at a quick pace, leaving Gilda and Love to scramble after him before they lost sight of him in the maze of shelves. A few minutes later, they came across a cozy little study with two armchairs placed in front of a projector screen.

"Sit. We haven't much time."

Gilda and Love sat down in the plush armchairs as Architect ducked behind the screen, only to walk out the other side a moment later in a white button-up shirt and an electric blue tie.

He's like a college professor.

Cheerful "learning music" (you know the one) cranked up from no discernable music source as a laser pointer appeared in Architect's hoof and pointed to the screen as the first slide flipped.

Everything you need to know to fix Jack Marley
(Shortened Version)

"I will take exactly Five minutes, twenty-three seconds to explain the current crisis and what actions are needed on your part, starting now."

Gilda tentatively raised a talon, but was shot down by an annoyed glare as Architect launched into the presentation.

Your current environment is what is known as "The Human Mind."

The Human Mind (Synonyms: The Soul, The Being, Identity, Spirit, etc.) is composed of many components, the most notable being the Conscious Mind, the Subconscious Mind, The Forgotten Space, and the newest, unexpected components, The "Personality-Scapes."

The Conscious Mind is, of course, the waking awareness all beings have of reality and themselves. The Conscious mind is effectively what pilots sapient creatures to function and think by drawing information and commands from the Subconscious. It has manifested in what amounts to the "Sun" overhead. Though as you can likely suspect from a mere glance, it is no longer functioning as it should.

The Subconscious Mind is the entirety of everything not included in the Conscious Mind.

The Forgotten Space is any and all blackened spaces in the mind. Things that are truly forgotten and have left the mind, such as the womb or the first years of your life other than a few vague images, or space that is never filled, such as the dark horizon that frames the whole of the mind. Be warned, if you lose yourself in one of the cracks, your own mind will be lost, and you will not be remembered. Being saturated in it causes delirium and madness, while a minor dose just causes mild confusion.

Finally, the areas most relevant of your quest here: The "Personality-Scapes." To save time, we will simply call them "zones."

Five in total, each zone has been shaped and molded by the fragment of mind that rules over it. Love's is rather straightforward, as is The Greater Consciousness's adoration of Madam Gilda. My own is the Labyrinth of Memories, which stretches so far pieces have been lost to the Forgotten Space. You need not venture to our homes more than you have as we have already agreed to repair Jack Marley's mind, but the remaining three fragments will not submit without you convincing them otherwise.

First, there is Madder, the Fragment containing Jack's rage and hate, so named for his own belief that one can always get madder. He is the malevolent king of corpses, with nothing but an scarred battlefield to rule over. You will likely have to prove yourself in combat to gain his favor.

Second, you must deal with Gold, the fragment of gluttony and greed. He is quite literally "holed up" in his pit of riches and liquor. Be warned, he will eat anything in reach, including you. I am uncertain of how to convince him to join you, but it may be as simple as giving him something valuable.

Finally, Mania. You’ve met. He is the fragment of Jack Marley’s madness and something I can’t identify. His domain, already the largest of us all, took root by sprouting an entire human city. He likely knows every alley, street, and building in his domain, and as he is the creator of the game, you will more than likely simply have to beat him into submission. He is the fragment I know least about, being constantly secluded in his fog and decay.

As he put away the slide show, Gilda frowned at a particular detail that caught her attention.

“Why do I have to do everything? You seem way more suited to this than I am.”

Architect sighed and twisted his hoof, somehow producing a snap. In a flicker of blue light, two silver hatchets appeared in his hooves, which he then handed off to Gilda.

“Unfortunately, if a fragment doesn’t want visitors, any other fragment is stopped by an immovable barrier. You are one of the exceptions. They don’t even know you are here. My weapons are the best I can do for you.”

Gilda brandished the hatchets experimentally, and found them perfectly balanced. She gave a tired smile and glared at her two allies.

“Can I please stop having to save Jack after this?”

Love shrugged, and Architect saluted her.

“We thank you for your assistance, Madam Gilda.”