Nightmare Boutiqueby TerraPoniesChaptersHappy Birthday!Ghosts of the PastSudden PanicSurprise!RestlessFigures in the DarkLiving HellNo Rest for the WickedRound TwoComfortHealing FriendhipHappy Birthday!Nightmare Boutique By John Keith Bone “Good morning, Sebastian. Happy birthday.” Alice mumbled into my ear. I rolled over, half yawning and attempting to wipe the sleep from my still closed eyes. She was right. It was my birthday… December first… In truth, I had only gotten three hours of sleep. In fact, I was surprised I was able to even lie still at all for any length of time given all that’s occurred over the last month or so. My existence in Ponyville since September of 2335 started out as a pleasant change of scenery brought on by my retirement as the Ravensdale’s prize butler, and I came very optimistic; ready to begin again and finally make some real friends. Friends that wouldn’t have to witness the things I was capable of. Friends that didn’t have to see the stigma beneath my bandage. Friends that wouldn’t have to see me for what I was: a monster. This foolish optimism was short-lived however on account of what the equines about the town had come to call the “Sugar Cube Corner Incident”. Still, in light of the gruesome events that resulted in my burning down of the delightful little bakery, they hail me as a hero for bringing an end to one of Equestria’s most feared killers. Hero or not, I couldn’t sleep. What if she comes back again? What if something else happens? What if I have to become the man I was back in Terra…? Is everypony alright? Where are they? Thoughts like these plagued me in the night, driving me from home to prowl about the city, occasionally “stopping in” on my friends. I simply had to see that they were okay. That the ones I loved were still safe. I guess some things never change… Never change… It was strange… My friends, even Apple Jack and Rarity, who lost family in the chaotic crossfire of that night didn’t seem too affected… Apple Jack recovered remarkably quickly, in fact. The guards let it slip that Apple Bloom had been killed again, I supposed, but the farm mare simply had a small chat with me about it. She only asked how she looked before I pulled the trigger. I really only told her that she wasn’t the little filly I had come to love… Rarity, however shut herself in her boutique for about a week… I was worried at the time, but she emerged with a striking smile afterwards. It was almost as though she didn’t care about the death of her only sibling. “I always knew there was something off about her,” she had said… Still, Alice was right above me, no doubt smiling the smile that brought elation to my heart and a smile to my normally stoic face. I slid my eye open and made a grab for my glasses off the nightstand to my right. “Good morning, Mistre- Alice.” I hazily corrected myself. The dark-furred dormouse gave a bemused chuckle at this. “Guess you haven’t gotten used to not being a butler yet, huh?” I sat up, allowing the sheet to slide off my bare upper body as I adjusted my glasses to accommodate the bandage that hid my left eye. Even though I had just awoken, my senses were already razor-sharp and I managed to catch the glimmer of satisfaction that danced in Alice’s eyes. “Guess not.” My mistress’ forefinger found her lower lip in a pensive expression that soon lit up. “It’s your birthday. We should go out to breakfast!” she declared. After throwing my legs over the side of my bed and baring my almost-nude form, I began to comb my fingers through my mussed up hair, attempting to unknot the mess. Alice seemed practically to drool at this, but I decided her staring at me was uncomfortable. Quickly making my way to my wardrobe and throwing the doors open, I began rifling through my casual ware. “Got somewhere in mind?” I asked, selecting a plain black t-shirt and a pair of my old rave pants. Red trim on midnight black denim. “How about the new Sugar Cube Corner?” I paused at this, actually considering. Did I really want to attend the grand opening of an exact replica of a place I burned down only a month ago? A place where nightmares came to life, murder was business, and cannibalism was the trade… The place that cast a dark, bloody shadow over an otherwise perfect town… The place that had deprived me of sleep and caused horrific nightmares to haunt what little sleep I got… “Sure. It may look like the old place, but it’s not.” I reasoned aloud. A small squeal of joy and a clapping of hands sounded from Alice’s general direction. It was settled. Twenty minutes later, we were making our way down the cobblestone streets of the town I’d come to call home. Many a joyful pony were making their ways about to get to their respective jobs and, even with the clock not yet striking ten, the streets were bustling. I loved that about this town. It may have been small, but it felt like living back in Terra. It had that big-city feel… “Good morning, Sebastian.” A duo of mares I’d never met before called to me. My gaze locked upon them, an adjustment to my bandage accompanying it. Lyra and Bon-Bon. Two of Ponyville’s most respected and well-known business ponies. Lovers as well, it appeared. “Good morning, Ms. Lyra. Ms. Bon-Bon.” I greeted and waved to them. Miss Bon-Bon’s face glittered with a soft blush in the early December morning light. I smiled at this and continued up the way, my arm hooked with Alice’s. “So cute, that bunny.” Lyra commented. A quick turn to them prompted a quick hush to sweep over the pair. “The new Sugar Cube Corner opens this morning, does it not?” I asked with a slight smile. Bon-Bon’s mind began reeling at my voice for some reason… I wasn’t really interested in her personal thoughts, so I readjusted my bandage and withdrew from her mind. “Yes. Yes it is. Why do you ask? You aren’t attending, are you? Not after what happened last time…” Lyra responded with a worried expression. “It only looks like the old place. This one is new. I’ll be fine.” Bon-Bon nodded and smiled at me. “That’s good. I hear the Cakes are giving a speech to commemorate the new beginning.” She said. “Is that so?” Alice asked, a certain gossip-esque edge in her voice. She enjoyed being in on things of this nature. I never wanted to know why, though… “Yes,” the purple-maned mare continued. “Mister Carrot Cake is supposed to deliver it at the ribbon-cutting ceremony in about ten minutes!” She turned to her turquoise companion, tugging on her arm. “We should get going if we’re going to make it!” Alice tugged my arm as well. “Yeah, let’s go!” she prompted. Ghosts of the PastA sizable crowd had already gathered by the time we all arrived at the newly constructed, One-to-One scale replica of Sugar Cube Corner. A light yellow stallion tapped his hoof nervously as he looked out over the excess of seven hundred ponies that had turned out. Nervousness showed on him as plain as the muzzle on his face, but I couldn’t help but smile at his nervousness. They wouldn’t be paying attention to his deliverance, they were all too hungry. With a wavering hoof, he adjusted the microphone attached to the podium before him, and began a small schpeal that I largely disregarded… That is until I heard my name. “Is Sebastian Cooper present?” Shit… I tried to shrink into the crowd, but to no avail. “Here he is!” A white unicorn with electric blue hair and a musical note cutie mark volunteered, pointing down at me. I threw her a dirty look. “Could you come to the stage, Mister Cooper?” Mister Cake requested. Shit! With a small sigh, I made my way to the stage, reluctantly climbing the steps to the podium, silently pleading to God not to make me speak publicly. “We hear it’s your birthday, son. Is that true?” he asked. I guess Rainbow Dash told a few people about it… “Um… Y-Yes sir.” I responded. “How old are you today?” “I’m… I’m um… Eighteen years old…” A collective tumult of awes arose from the crowd. “So young…” I heard one mare comment. “Barely legal… Sweet…” another said. Oh God… With a gesture of his hoof, Mister Cake summoned up Officer Grey Shield, the stallion that I approached with the note about Rarity a month back. He carried in his hoof a small slip of paper… Once said slip was in my hand, I unfolded it and inspected it. It was a check for… Dear God, fifty THOUSAND Bits!? “Oh wow… Um… I don’t know what to say…” I began. “Just take it as a thank you from Ponyville.” He said. “I see… Um… Th-Thank you, everypony…” After the applause died down, the ribbon was cut and the new Sugar Cube Corner was declared open to the public. Alice and I were seated toward the back of the restaurant. Alice was well in to her Danish by the time she noticed I hadn’t taken my eye off the mare behind the greeting podium. My dear friend Rainbow Dash… The one I had saved from a brutal death at the hands of our own Party Pony… She smiled to the ponies she greeted, but I could tell that she was far from easy. Her pupils were the size of pinpoints and she seemed to startle a bit at the clatter of the kitchen a solid twelve meters behind her. She saw what I saw. The victims that were splayed about this place… I watched the line her eye followed as the cute little mail mare, Ditzy Doo trotted to her seat. The ghost of the pink psychopath that knew the workings of this place dragging another by her mane behind the counter into the trap door that was disguised there… Poor Cheerile… “You okay, Sebastian?” Alice asked, visibly startling me out of my stupor. “What?” I asked. She sighed, setting her pastry down. “She’s-” she began, but I cut her off. “I know she is…” “But not to you. You still see her.” “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I lied. With another sigh, Alice edged forward in her chair, setting her gaze upon me with intense focus. She was deadly serious… “I know you, Seb. You never slept well, not even when you lived at the manor. You see ghosts… The people whose lives you ended in the defense of that which you care about. You’re haunted by them. You speak to them… I’ve heard you… You see the Professor in hospitals, and you see that pink girl here…” “Her name was Pinkie Pie… And I do not…” “Then why is your eye dilated to a pin-prick?” Damn… She knows me too well… “I’m sorry… It’s just…” “You’re afraid. Afraid of losing the friends you’ve gained while you’ve been here.” I sighed, taking a large gulp of my coffee, then set the mug back down. “You know me too well, Mistress.” I said, avoiding her gaze. A young mare approached us then. Her lavender coat and dark mane welcomed the gazes of others with confidence, beauty and a slight hint of magic. The spark on her flank caused my gaze to shoot upward to her face. Twilight Sparkle. My most intellectual equine friend. The gentle smile on her face caused my heart to flutter ever so slightly, and a similar smile to plaster itself upon my features. “Hello there, Sebastian.” She greeted. “Twilight! Come, sit!” I blurted, immediately getting up and pulling a chair out for her. The unicorn slowly took the seat and greeted Alice. “Good morning. You must be Alice. Sebastian has told me so much about you! You’re one of his closest friends!” she said. Alice smiled widely to her and nodded. “And you’re Twilight Sparkle. Sebastian went on and on about you in our letters. Wow,” she said, eyeing the unicorn with a mischievous look in her eyes. “He was right. You are beautiful.” the young dormouse commented. Twilight’s face lit up immediately and her gaze set on me, the question burning in her eyes. Instead of saying anything, I simply looked between the two, my face as blank the tablecloth we were eating from. I knew I looked like an idiot, so I opted for the first idea that entered my head that would get me away from this whole awkward mess. Standing quickly, I all but sprinted toward Dash. “Rainbow!” I called to the pegasus pony, who looked up at me with a bit of a startle. “Um. Hi there, Bunny Boy.” She greeted, using my pet name. Since I knew Alice and Twilight were clear out of earshot, I felt inclined to speak freely to the blue mare. “I just bolted over so I wouldn’t have to tell Twilight straight to her face how pretty I think she is.” Dash smirked and tilted her head at me. “You like the egg-head?” she teased. “Well, it’s not just her. If I told her, then eventually all six of you would hear about it, and it’s not like I think only she is attractive. I find you attractive too. And Apple Jack… And Flutter Shy… And Rarity… Speaking of whom, have you seen her?” “Who, Rarity?” I nodded. It took Rainbow a moment, but she soon gestured with a dismissive wave of her hoof. “I think she shut herself in again… Not sure why… She’s been whining about Opal a lot, though.” A small snicker arose from me. “Whining? She is not whining, she is complaining. Do you want to hear whining?” I imitated. Dash burst into laughter at this. Looked to me like the stress was dying down a little bit being in the presence of someone else who had experienced the same nightmares as she had… “Maybe you should go visit her. She could use some support from a man.” Dash prompted. “Is that your way of saying she needs to get lai-” A blue hoof slapped itself over my muzzle before I could finish, Rainbow half snickering, half shushing me. “Oh, right, right.” I said, nodding her hoof away from my mouth. “Yeah, I’ll drop in after Alice heads home tomorrow morning.” “Well, Ah’ll be! If it ain’t yew two!” Apple Jack declared with a hearty clasp of my shoulder. “Ne’er thought ‘n a thousn’d years yew two’d show up. It’s great tah see ‘yer movin’ passed the whole ordeal.” I craned my head about to look at the cowpony with a warm smile to be greeted with a similar smile and wonderful, hay-colored hair. “Pah! C’mon, Apple Jack, this is me you’re talking about,” Rainbow boasted, puffing her chest out triumphantly. “I am the Iron Pony!” “Now, now,” I interrupted, seeing where this was going. “That was a long time ago…” Apple Jack merely laughed at this, adjusting her hat. “Still, Ah’m glad you two are here.” “I am too, Apple Jack. Trust me, I am.” I said. Sudden PanicThe hours swept by, conversation flying this way and that, food was devoured, stories were exchanged, laughs were had and even a few pictures were taken. Apparently I had become something of a celebrity due to this little incident. One particular mare, a maroon-coated lady with curly hair and a cutie mark of assorted berries that went by the name Berry Punch even felt me up. Naturally, I stiffened up at this, a heavy blush breaking over my features and I politely asked her to “GET YOUR HOOF OFF MY ASS!!!” All in all, it was a fun little get-together with my friends. Even Flutter Shy took to Alice with a glee I hadn’t seen in her before. Apparently the only other instance of such a quick connection was when she met Twilight’s assistant and roommate, Spike. Joy was palpable in the air. This new Corner was laden with new beginnings. New possibilities… A fresh start… A beautiful thing… Unfortunately, like all good things, it had to end. Upon the setting of the sun, I found myself standing beside dear Flutter Shy. Her face was set outward, but in the corners of her eyes, she was examining me rather closely. Her subtly was quite amiable. Almost anyone would have missed it… “She’s really nice,” the timid pegasus stated matter-of-factly. “Harmless even.” I smiled despite myself and adjusted my glasses. “You’d think so, wouldn’t you?” Those beautiful teal eyes set on me in a way that rivaled a pointed look from Alice. “It still bothers you… Doesn’t it, Sebastian?” Only Flutter Shy could ask such a question… She knew the answer, it was obvious, but she still wanted to make sure… “Yeah… It does… I still see her sometimes… Hear her voice…” I couldn’t look at her now… Not when my eye was beginning to mist up. I didn’t cry in front of people… Even Rainbow Dash had her back turned to me when I… Did what I did… “It’s okay. It’s over now, Sebastian… You did what you had to. You’re still a good man. You don’t have to let it bother you anymore…” This set me just a bit on edge. “I don’t let it bother me, Shy. It just does,” I said, turning my head away from her eyes. “Flutter Shy, when you kill someone you love, it sticks with you… No matter what… I don’t care if she was insane, she was still Pinkie Pie. Our Pinkie Pie. Our party pony… Our friend…” That did it. The tears began to roll down my face, but I did my best to keep my voice level. “Do you know what I saw down there?” I awaited a response, but none came. I took this as a prompt to go on. “I saw my dear friend in a state I had only seen a mad man. She had killed… Dozens… Hundreds, maybe… She kept them as decorations… As trophies… Even foals… She was indiscriminant and completely oblivious to the pain she was causing… She thought of it as a game! The longer she could keep her victims alive while harvesting their insides, the more fun it was. She liked hearing the cries they let out. She found joy in watching them squirm…” Something within me shifted. Realization resounded through my mind and sent a hard shudder down my spine. I had to squeeze my fists shut hard enough to draw blood just to keep from letting on that I was coming apart at the seams. “The mare I saw with the hacksaw wasn’t our Pinkie… No… It was someone else… That was… It was… ‘Pinkamena’…” Yeah… Yeah, what other explanation was there? Pinkie Pie was happy, beautiful, youthful, and over-zealous. That pony had her face, but it couldn’t have been her… The real Pinkie was one of the best friends anypony could ask for. Her generosity was only rivaled by that of Rarity’s. Wait a minute… “Rarity’s missing.” I said, stating the obvious. I threw a quick glance over my shoulder, taking in those around me. There was Apple Jack and Rainbow Dash arguing over who had stronger leg power… Twilight Sparkle was entertaining Alice with a few spells… Flutter Shy was standing to my right… Where was Rarity? That high-society unicorn would simply die for an opportunity to mingle with the daughter of the world’s wealthiest firearms manufacturer… And yet… She’s not here… “I have to go.” Without waiting for a response, I turned quickly, crossed the courtyard behind Sugar Cube Corner, all but bulldozing my way out the front doors and broke into a full-on sprint down the sidewalk. I had to see her. I had to make sure she was okay. That nothing horrible had befallen the lovely dress maker. Nothing was gonna stop me… Nothing at all… I pushed the pace as hard as I could, ducking, dodging and weaving my way amid the semi-crowded streets of Ponyville. The sun was setting, and for some reason I felt like I was running out of time. Upon reaching the Carousel Boutique, I braked hard, almost tearing up the cobblestone beneath my feet, but I managed to stop myself before blowing the door down. Without hesitation, I began pounding on the door, on the verge of tears once again. These tears, however, were not of pain, but of fear. Open the door! Open the door, damn it!! “RARITY! RARITY!!!! LET ME IN!!!!” I pleaded at the top of my lungs. An answer didn’t come soon enough, so I took a step back and readied myself to ram into the door. Just as I was about to hit the frame, the barrier opened… I came tumbling in to the shop like an idiot and tumbled into a set of mannequins. Upon righting myself, I looked about, spying the mare I was looking for with an incredulous look on her face. “Rarity!” I cried, all but pouncing the snow-coated diva. “Sebastian! What on earth are you doing here!? Get off! This is so unseemly!!” she demanded. In my elation, I hadn’t realized two things: One: That I was laying on top of her, clutching her by the flanks, and grinding my cheek against hers. Two: She was bleeding. Once I had collected myself and obliged her orders, I took noted of the rather odd scratches that marred her perfect features. “Sweet Celestia, what happened to you?” I asked, using my shirt to wipe the blood trailing down her face from her left eye. She didn’t even wince at it… That was odd. Normally, Rarity would be on the verge of a mental breakdown if she stained her coat with anything at all… Hm… “Oh, just a little tussle with Opal. She’s outside now.” Rarity replied ruefully. “A tussle? Over what?” I asked, looking over her disheveled visage. Perhaps she was in the middle of working…? “Oh, it was nothing, but you must get out! You cannot see what I’m working on! Not yet!” With this, Rarity quite literally shoved me out the door and locked it behind her. She was stronger than I expected, that was for sure… I had seen that same hurried demeanor only a few weeks after I moved into town. She had a big order to fill, and had been up all night furiously stitching and cutting fabric for somepony by the name of Hoity-Toity, whoever that was… Maybe she was just doing the same thing? Maybe I was just paranoid… Yeah, that had to be it. I turned my attention to the sun as it finally disappeared over the horizon. For some reason, Equestrian sunsets put me at ease. Aw crap. I totally left everypony hanging at the opening earlier!! That was so selfish… I have to make it up to them… Dinner! Dinner at… At um… What was that restaurant called…? Hay Stack? No, Oat Garden? Whatever, I just need to get back. Alice probably went home… Better start there and make some calls… Surprise!It took me a long while to gather my thoughts and nerve to face my friends, but after a while, I was standing at the doorstep to my small home at the edge of the Ever Free Forest. All was still and quiet, and the lights were off. That’s weird. Alice doesn’t ever keep the lights off if she can help it… My key clicked in the deadbolt and slid the tumblers into place. I pushed the door open to be greeted by what appeared to be a baby blue cannon. The lights flicked on all at once, revealing a huge throng of ponies, headed by Alice at the cannon’s fuse. “Surprise!!” everyone cried at once, then Alice pulled the cannon’s string, firing confetti and streamers directly into my face. The tiny strips of paper met my head with such force that it actually merited a snapping of my face to one side and a defensive raising of my left hand. Alice laughed, but quickly rushed to my side. “You okay, Bunny Boy?” she asked between snickers. “Yeah. I’m fine.” I said, holding my throbbing cheek against my palm. “Happy Birthday!” Everyone shouted at once amid a few fits of giggles at me getting blasted in the face. A few more hours passed of cake, ice cream, pictures, conversation, and the general brouhaha that came with a surprise party. Berry Punch tried once again to lay hooves on me, but I was able to place Big Macintosh in my place before she was able to. The farm stallion practically leapt over the moon with the violence of his startle. Laughs were had and many gifts were left. Clothes mostly. Once the throng of strange ponies left at about ten o’clock, I was left in the presence of five of my closest friends. Wait… Five? “Where’s Rarity?” Rainbow Dash asked confused. “Wasn’t she here earlier?” “She was here, but she said something about a huge order to fill.” Twilight explained. That’s Rarity. Always in over her head… I smiled at the thought. Twilight was the first to speak, as per usual in situations like this one. “So, Sebastian, Alice has told us a ton of stories about your employment. We never knew you were so versatile! What was the phrase you used, Alice? An ‘all-in-one problem solver’?” Alice nodded to the mare. Oh dear… “I’m sure she was over-stating my capabilities.” I said, a trace of a smile crossing my face. “Why didn’t you tell us you took fifth place in the world Virtua Blade tournament two years ago? That would have been so awesome!!” Dash demanded. “Well,” I said, taking my glasses off and placing them on the dining room table. “It was two years ago, I was sixteen, didn’t even place, technically and who wants to hear about some guy who didn’t even win?” “But it was your first tournament and you took fifth in the world!! So awesome!!” Dash put extra emphasis on “awesome” for some reason… “And that time you saved her life from that Lord Harmon character.” Flutter Shy noted. “I remember that day. It was the first day you and I wrote each other, right?” I pondered at this for a moment. “I think so.” Alice slipped back into my room to get something. She returned after a minute with two cases. One was large, black and had the Ravensdale crest emblazoned upon it. It appeared to be an extremely long rifle case. The other was no bigger than an average pistol case. Like it’s bigger twin, it proudly displayed the Ravensdale crest, but instead of being the standard charcoal black, this one was scarlet. “Um… Sebastian? I brought these for you. I hope you like them…” She said and set the two cases on the table near my glasses. “Presents? You really shouldn’t have, Alice. Just flying all the way out here was more than enough.” I said, sort of embarrassed. “Open them?” she asked. Nodding in obligation to her request, I made my way over to the two cases. Alice pushed the first case in front of me. I aligned myself with its chrome locks and popped them open, flipping the lid up to see what was inside. I was greeted by a beautiful sight. Before me sat a full tang, five and a half foot long claymore sword. My breath caught in my throat and I recoiled a bit. “Oh my God! Alice!” I exclaimed, gripping the hilt of the weapon. As I lifted my gift, it struck me how light it was. Only about three pounds… The blade was stainless, straight as an arrow, and appeared to be made of some kind of custom alloy. Strong as steel, light as aluminum. The hilt was made of stitched dragon scale and the decorative aspect at the end mimicked that of an eastern dragon, jaws wide in an eternal, steely roar. There was a strange piece of metal, fashioned to look like a throttle on a motorcycle jutting down the grip from the hand guard. “What’s this?” I asked, tapping the throttle with my index. Alice placed her hand over mine and began to explain. “You hold this down and twist your wrist, then a small but powerful motor placed just below the blade within the hilt will spin and cause the blade to vibrate. These vibrations are so intense, it can cut through solid steel. I managed to slice through a small car with it!” I followed her instructions carefully. The motor was loud! I startled and dipped the blade down, without meaning to and accidentally sliced my table in half. Everyone jumped back, crying out in unison. “Whoa.” I managed in awe of the weapon. “Impressive, right? Father worked really hard on this design, but this one doesn’t hold a candle to the other one.” That was all the prompting I needed. Carefully extracting the cases from beneath the cleaved table, and replaced the sword into its custom fit case, sliding it off to one side. The smaller of the two didn’t seem to have a lock. This confused me for a moment, but after turning the case over, I noticed the voice recognition lock. “The password is ‘Friend’.” Alice informed me. I spoke the word and the tumblers clicked into the unlocked position. Within the crimson box lay a small knife. Upon a closer examination of the design, I had to cup my hand over my mouth to keep from squealing like a school girl. It was a custom designed khanjar dagger! “Oh my God! I’ve always wanted one of these!” I exclaimed, having to consciously fight back the tears in my eye. “That blade is alive. When your hand touches the hilt, like the sword, it vibrates. The motor in this design, however uses a sort of micro-vibration. The blade is diamond edged… You will be able to slice through literally anything…” her words were solemn and her voice low. She knew I was having a moment. I sprung up from my crouch and threw my arms about her. Unfortunately, I had overlooked the sheer mass difference between the two of us and we tumbled to the floor. “Thank you so much!” RestlessDarkness. I was completely blind. Running. Running where? Where was I? What was going on? Pain…! Burning pain! “Come to Momma.” A feminine voice called out. “No! Get away!” I cried back. A warm, thick liquid was pouring down my chest. “You’ll like it. Trust me. I’m your friend after all.” The voice coaxed. Restrained. I was strung up by my wrists, dangling like a piece of meat. I looked down quickly to see the source of the warm liquid. In my chest, a valentine shape had been sliced and removed. My innards were hanging out of me… “Am I fabulous yet?” I finally recognized the voice. Rarity… I looked up, only to let out a scream so loud, I’m surprised my lungs hadn’t burst. Her eyes… Her eyes had been gouged from their sockets. The blood streaming down her face was as black as midnight and thick as molasses. The smile on her face was soft, and kind. Loving, even… Had I not been so horror-stricken, I might have smiled back. A shock of pink caught my eye then. A hoof… My gaze locked on it. It was tugging at the sides of Rarity’s mouth… I looked up the arm of whom it belonged to until… Pinkamena… It was Pinkamena forcing Rarity to smile… “I’m so sorry…” she said I bolted upright in my bed, fists clenched, chest heaving, eyes darting and sweat slickening my entire body. “It was just a dream.” I vainly tried to assure myself. “Just a dream?” Alice asked from somewhere within the room. I sat up and looked about me. Sure enough, Alice was standing in the doorway, wide-eyed and seemingly panic stricken. “Are you okay?” She asked. It suddenly struck me how hot I was, and just how much sweat was pouring down my body… I was going to need to wash my sheets later… “Yeah… Sorry…” I apologized, then finally unclenched my fists and looked down. I had drawn blood. “Could you throw me the bandage gauze there on the dresser?” Still overcome by panic, Alice merely stared at me for a while, the news paper in her hand quivering this way and that. Giving in, I simply stood and wrapped my hands myself. My attention turned to the paper in Alice’s hand. “What’s the headline?” I inquired passively, adjusting my glasses with one hand, holding the other out expectantly. The terrified lass surrendered the paper quickly, and I just as quickly understood her fright. Another strange series of disappearances and the discovery of a particular high-class mare skinned and dumped in Froggy Bottom Bottom Bog had the Ponyville Police Department baffled, staggered, and frightened all at once. Figures…. Just another psycho out there. From what I could tell, suspicions pointed to one of the Canterlot elite, but nothing could be brought up on the suspected stallion due to sheer lack of evidence. “That’s depressing.” I commented aloud, tossing the paper aside. “Seb, you don’t think-” I cut her off quickly by using a technique I learned when I was her butler; I placed a hand on her cheek and drew in close, expelling a gentle breeze into her ear. This caused her to shudder in what I always assumed was simply a cold shiver, and her jaw to slacken in the slightest. All words were lost in the moment… An assuring mumble slithered forth from my throat to calm her nerves. “No. Nothing is happening in Ponyville. I took care of it… Just like I always did, and always will.” The words were almost cooed in my attempt to stop her quivering. It worked much better than I expected. She dropped her bag -no doubt her carry-on for the flight home- and wrapped her arms about my neck. She whispered. “Do that one more time…” she ordered. This was something she had never done before… A new wave of some kind of weird…. Desire…? Something like that shot up my spine. I obliged her and blew into her ear once more. Her body rocked once more and she cooed. Alright, something’s up, I thought. She’s never been this close to me before… And that sound… What did it mean..? “I really miss you doing that, Sebastian… I… I miss you,” she managed with shaky words. I could not help but smile at this. To be honest, I really didn’t want the moment to end… But we both had places to be. The cart was waiting outside and I needed to get to the boutique… As I stood at the end of my walkway, watching the carriage shrink into the distance, a strange sensation hit me. There was a tugging in my chest… My eye began to well up for some reason… Once more, I clenched my fist to fight this strange feeling… Why was I so close to crying…? I had no reason to feel this way… And yet… Watching her disappear, I got the feeling I’d never see her again for some reason… Whatever… “I don’t have time for tears…” I mumbled to myself. Figures in the DarkThe sun hadn’t even begun to peek over the horizon, but I was wide awake. Rarity was probably awake too in all likelihood. Orders that required enough attention to shove her friends out of he shop typically merited all-nighters… All was still on the way to the cake-layered structure. No sound to distract me. No glances. No faces. Only the early morning darkness. Shadows danced across the cobblestone in perfect serenity. The dark was a place I was too familiar with… The featureless shadows that walked with me were my only company, shoving out all thought of the pleasant things in life… Suddenly, I found myself facing a young filly. Her back was turned to me… Her yellow coat seemed dulled from dirt. Red hair up in a tattered pink bow… Oh my God… Apple Bloom turned to face me. A childish smile played over her split lips. “Hah there, Sebas-chun.” she drawled out, a black fluid pouring out from her parted jaws. Her eyeless sockets blinked once, causing a hard strain in my chest to seize me. Acting quickly, I covered my eyes with one hand and gasped. “Go away.” I commanded the shade. When I opened my eye again, she was gone… After advancing another block or so, a sound off to my left caused me to startle. Slurping sounds…. What the-…!? Within the sea of darkness emerged a figure. A mare, lying on her belly, slurping down at the pool of water beneath her and giggling madly. A great deal of her mane was missing, it seemed… Torn out in chunks or worn away… The tiny stream that remained hung down and curled in the pool beneath her. Just like the shadow before her, she looked at me, but this one seemed to know I was there beforehand… Her eyeless, beaming face snapped toward me with a loud cracking noise. Around her neck was an enormous iron… Gear…? No… No, it wasn’t around her neck… It was part of her neck… “Come here!” she ordered happily. I knew that voice…! Pinkamena! “I want you!” she cooed, slumping in my direction. It appeared she couldn’t walk… Still, she was lapping at her chops in much the same manner as a hungry dog, allowing the pink muscle to dangle and sway with her sloppy movement. The closer she came, the more excited her giggles became. My body wouldn’t comply. I couldn’t move…! Why couldn’t I move!? “I grow tired… Of my own flesh!” the beast lamented as it reached out a hoof and took hold of my ankle. “Sebastian, let me taste you!!” That was it. It a flurry of curses, choked sobs, and general panic, I threw my free foot back and launched it forward and Pinkamena’s face. It passed right through her, but I didn’t care. With an earsplitting cry of pure, unadulterated terror, I sprinted off into the darkness, attempting to flee from the nightmare that confronted me. Another block or so later, the voice called out to me again. “Bonjour!” she greeted, jumping out from behind a wall. From her mouth flowed the same black fluid that oozed from Apple Bloom, but tiny tendrils of swiveling matter accompanied them. It looked like earth worms… “Just leave me alone!!” I ordered and took off once again. What little vision I had was blurry as I sprinted toward my destination. So blurry in fact, I hadn’t realized I had arrived until a slammed my face directly into the front door. I fell back, gripping my muzzle and cursing beneath my breath. After collecting myself, I got back to my feet. The faint light seeping through the drawn curtains was probably the only thing saving what little was left of my sanity. I threw a quick glance over my shoulder to see if the shadows had disappeared. They had… Good. With a self-assuring roll of my shoulders, I decided to proceed inside. The door slipped open easily, and I closed it behind me. This air… I know this air… This smell… This cold… Something awful was about to happen. I had no idea what, but the hair on the back on my neck stood on end and that all-too-familiar tension rack down my back, causing my muscles to stricken themselves. My eye darted this way and that, rifling over the disheveled rolls of fabric and sewing materials. A shuffle sounded somewhere behind me as I reached the center of the mess. I couldn’t turn quick enough. A flash of red steel was the last thing I saw… Living Hell“Wake up, Sebastian. Wake up, damn you!” A hard hoof met my face, startling me out of my disoriented haze. I was alert, at least… Still, I couldn’t see… I tried to move, but found it impossible. My arms were bound at the wrists to… Something… The rattling of wrought iron chains registered to me then. Why on earth could I not see!? “Oh, you’re awake, Bunny Boy? Well then, we can start the show.” Rarity said. Rarity…? “Rarity? Rarity, is that you?” I drawled out. The blindfold came off at that point, but the mare I saw standing before me was far from the Rarity I’d come to know… Her coat was still a magnificent white and her mane perfectly quaffed, but that’s where my Rarity ended… She wore a dress of crimson silk encrusted with diamonds, the most striking of which appeared to be stitched into her skin between her cleavage. Not unlike myself, she wore an eye patch. It seemed to be made of steel with a diamond inlay where her pupil and iris should be. From beneath it flowed a steady stream of fresh blood… A twisted smile plastered itself over her features when she turned her side to me and flipped her mane as though modeling for a judge. “Do you like it? Vinyl put up a real fight to keep it. Never knew that pony had such fire in her…” the mare asked, then mumbled to herself. It didn’t take long to realize what she was talking about. Interwoven with her own lavender locks were shocks of electric blue hair. The sharp points at the tips were unmistakable. That was Vinyl’s mane… Vinyl Scratch… Known to many as DJ PON-3... Her tracks were hot, her beats unmatched… She was a beloved and well-known member of Ponyville’s community… “What have you done…?” I muttered, my eye fixed on the floor. “WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU DONE!!!?” I was furious, terrified, and sorrowful all at once. It was happening again… A beloved friend had lost herself to the dark, groping hands of madness, and I, apparently, was to be her next victim. She had already claimed others as well… I was too blind… Too naive… Too… Too stupid to see what was happening!! Damn it! Damn it all!!! “Stop thrashing.” “Rarity” ordered. I wouldn’t listen. I kept thrashing… I had to get out… I had to stop her! SHE HAD TO DIE!!!! My train of thought was interrupted by the sudden rush of pain that shot through my right cheek. She had a knife. I hadn’t noticed it before for some reason… It was a delicately designed twelve-inch long Stiletto. A fine piece of cutlery in the right hands… The hilt was made of bronze encrusted velvet of a hue matching my assailant’s dress. “Now let’s see what little boys are made of…” she cooed as a chain chord was pulled. Said chord was attached to a studded collar about my neck. The spikes digging into my neck starched upward, bringing me up with them. Already, I felt the blood sliding down my bare upper body… It hurt… And it showed… Just keep yourself together, Cooper… Don’t you dare cry… My chest was bare to her. The angle the collar had yanked me had made it puff out a bit. Rarity smiled at me and looked over my physique for a moment. “You’re so handsome…” she said, giving a nod of sadistic approval. “But looks aren’t everything… I wonder what’s inside of you…” With that, the mare sank a few inches of her knife into my chest, just near my sternum, beginning to carve away at an arc. She repeated this same motion on the other side. The pain was too much… Far too much… The burning sensation that shot through me brought forth a gritted shriek that I couldn’t control. Worse yet, my tears got the best of me… They were flowing down my face, stinging when they seeped into the cut in my cheek. Once satisfied, Rarity removed the knife and licked it’s tip, slicing into her own tongue with it. A stupid look crossed her face… She… She liked it…? A masochist… Sick… “Mm… Tasty…” she cooed, slathering the residual blood over her lips. Rarity turned from me, sheathing her knife and began rifling through a drawer for something… She was whistling a tune I didn’t recognize, stopping once in a while to giggle. She drew forth a measuring tape, a pair of fabric scissors, and a few sewing needles which she proceeded to insert into her arm. I guessed she didn’t want to hold them… “I’ve always found you outrageously attractive… You know that, don’t you, Sebastian?” “Let me go…” “And now… I’m going to mark you as what you are. Mine. I’m going to make you mine, Sebby… Mine forever…” She drew the measuring tape over the new scar in my chest and gave a few nods as she measured, then scurried off to what appeared to be a furnace over in the corner, producing a red-hot branding iron from within its flames. Oh God, please help me… The young mare trotted back to me with delight gleaming in her eye. She waved the iron this way and that as she skipped… Once reaching me, she smiled. “Are you ready?” she asked, the iron already close to my scar. I didn’t want to speak… Only escape… Defy her… My only response was to gather as much blood and saliva as I could from my bleeding mouth and spit in her face. She took this with a smile. “Snips and snails and puppy dogs’ tails… That is what little boys are made of…” she finished the rhyme from earlier and forced the iron into the wound. The sizzling of flesh, blood, and sweat cauterizing filled the air… My jaw gaped, but my breath caught in my throat… I wanted to scream. To sob. To speak. To curse… But nothing came out… The tears streaming down my face intensified at this… My whole body was a taut as a drawn bowstring. I couldn’t move… My vision had gone white too… Had I died already? A heart attack, perhaps? Or maybe I was just in shock… The sudden rush of oxygen and orchestra of pain that rushed back to me very rudely informed me that I was alive… And now… To finish you off… You’ll make such a nice coat…” Rarity declared. Huffing like a whipped dog, I did my best to stand, being as my legs had helplessly folded beneath me, but another quick slash to my cheek wound startled me into dangling again. I had already given up… What else could I do…? My mind began to fill with despair as I began sobbing like a baby… Damn it all.. Only a month ago, I had been in a situation direly similar to this one… Being carved up and worse yet, branded like cattle by a mare that -given time- I might have been able to fall in love with… True love… I was going to miss it… My life had only begun, but here I was, about to have it all stolen away… I lifted my head slowly and watched helplessly as Rarity took her Stiletto between both hooves and raised it high above her head to deal her death stroke… A pair of golden eyes shimmered momentarily behind my killer. Wait a minute… I know those eyes…. I think… I could feel the blood loss getting to me… As the sewing machine met Rarity’s temple, rendering her incapacitated, a sight I hadn’t seen in a long time appeared. Into the light stepped a black cat… An American Bombay to be exact. She stood about four feet, eleven inches tall, weighed about ninety-five pounds and had the brightest eyes of anyone I’d ever met… Mesajinx Wilcox… My best friend…. She threw the machine down on the unconscious mare’s face just for good measure and crossed her arms over her chest, giving me a once over. “Well… This is easily the strangest birthday sex I’ve ever seen. I gotta hand it to you, Cotton Tail, I didn’t know you actually enjoyed this kind of treatment.” she said. Whether she was joking or not, I couldn’t tell. Nor did I much care… I was slipping from consciousness fast. “Shut up and get me down…” I ordered. Just as my wrists were freed, I let the abyss take me. No Rest for the Wicked“What’s his status?” A feminine voice asked. Nurse Red Heart… “He’s… Stable… I’m surprised he’s still alive with all the blood he’s lost. And that burn…” a male replied. I couldn’t place his voice… Out-of-towner, maybe? After several moments of taking inventory, I found I still had all my limbs and other appendages. Now the hard part: to open my eyes. My right cracked open slightly to see the distinctive red cross cutie mark of the nurse, but my sight was swimming a little bit. Probably the massive amount of morphine that they had pumping into my system. I was perfectly numb… That told me that the dosage they had me on could probably kill a pony, or most anything else for that matter… “Nngh…” I tried to speak, but it only came out as a slur. The pretty nurse startled a bit and looked down at me. “He’s awake.” she said, the brown-coated surgeon suddenly turning his attention to me. “How are you feeling, son?” I forced myself to sit up. Quite a feat apparently, judging by the expressions on the faces of the medical professionals beholding me. “Like I got hit by a train. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a killer to stop.” I replied gruffly, grunting as I stepped out of the bed. My knees quaked visibly, and I had to take a hold of the bed frame to stop from totally flopping over. Nurse Red Heart took a hold of my shoulder and tried to push me back. “You need rest.” she pleaded. “She’s gonna kill somepony else if I don’t move… Get off of me, Red Heart…” “Sebastian, please…” My one-eyed gaze set very intently on her. I silently thanked God for not allowing my bandage to be removed in all of the trouble. Her eyes widened a bit at the fury in my own. She knew how serious I was, and I think it put her in fear of her safety, for she released me and backed away, almost cowering. “The woman that brought me here… The Bombay sitting out in the Waiting Room… Keep her busy. Don’t let her know I’ve gone back. Understand?” I asked the pair. They nodded. With that, I slipped out the window and darted off into the early-morning light. Round TwoMy home was just as I had left it only hours ago, and it didn’t take me long before I was adjusting my frock coat and shedding my bandage. You again… I thought at my reflection. The Biohazard Bunny…. My choices as far as weapons were also simple. My birthday gifts… A twinge of guilt shook through me at already having to use these… No matter. It’s kill or be killed. Rarity had to be stopped… I knew the police couldn’t do anything on account of the events of a month ago… It was truly up to me and me alone. The sheathe of my new sword was a large leather strap that clasped over my chest and mounted the sword on my back. It was a comfortable fit… After readjusting it to allow for a quick draw if needed, I slid the blade into it and gave it a good, loud rev. I liked that sound… With a last, self-indulgent rev, then I tucked my dagger into it’s sheath at the small of my back in the belt-mounted cut of leather. The boutique was absolutely pristine on the outside… A pleasant sight for Equestria to be fooled by… For within the bowls of the beautiful structure lie a demon. A seamstress of sorts… A seamstress of souls… The Seamstress… That’s it…. That was her name… “Okay… Come on!” The door all but snapped upon the impact of my boot and I stepped inside, drawing my sword. There she was. She’d chained herself up in the center of the room, back to the door. What a fool… A slash of my blade cleaved the… Doll? Wait a second! That’s not- A furious cry sounded behind me, meriting a spinning swipe that caused her to duck. She launched a counter-attack, jamming her bladed gauntlet toward my abdomen. My reflexes allowed me to sidestep the strike, and bring my own blade down. She managed a roll and launched another swipe at my head. I caught her wrist with my free hand and locked gazes with her. Big mistake. Her mind was filled with hate… The memories of all of her victims, the feelings of elation she got from making them into wigs, dresses, coats, scarves, corsets, and so on… The dress she wore was made of Vinyl… Poor mare… She put up a real fight, though… The Seamstress let out a furious battle cry, accompanied by a renewed stream of blood spurting from her eye. The pain within her mind had caused tears to begin flowing down my face, but I only returned the scream and lifted her from the wrist, propelling her into a row of bloodied mannequins. The exertion had caused my wounds to re-open… Great… Not only was I fighting a psychotic mare with bladed arms, I was fighting time as well… Once The Seamstress regained her feet, she charged forward again. A sudden lowering of my visual input told me that the blood-loss from earlier hadn’t helped… I felt my sword be knocked from my grasp, then a loud “Shunk” had me pinned like a poster to the wall. My breath left me in that instant. I was on the verge of passing out… This was it! My hand shot to my dagger, and drew it backhanded. The swipe went clean through her jugular and larynx. It was over… That fast….. “Exuro in Inferno…” I muttered a hazy curse in Latin. ComfortA shuffle at the door was the last thing I remembered…. White… Nothing but white… Nothing hurt… I couldn’t move… Couldn’t feel my wounds… I had to be dead… At least I could be happy here, wherever I was… I had died protecting the ones I cared about… the ones I loved… And best of all: I got to see Jinx one last ti- As sudden bolt of electricity shot through me, causing my arms to flail outward and my back to arch. A sudden rush of oxygen filled my lungs with a loud gasp. “He’s alive!” Nurse Red Heart declared, tossing the de-fib unit off to the side and shoved a tongue suppressor in my mouth to keep my from swallowing it. After the initial spasms died down, I gripped the sidebars of the hospital bed and sat up. The kindly nurse removed the oversized pop-cicle stick from my mouth and tossed it in the bin. “Where is everypony!?” I demanded. “We’re all right here.” Jinx’s voice sounded on the other side of me. I turned quickly and went to dive for her, but instead merely flopped onto the floor face first…. Ow… “You shouldn’t try to move around too much. Your body is incredibly low on blood…” Nurse Red Heart explained as she scooped me from the floor and back into bed. “Yes ma’am.” I replied, my gaze not wavering from the five women that stood near my window. “You were convulsing when I found you,” Jinx explained. “You really should have brought me with you. You almost died, Sebastian!” She was obviously miffed at having me leave her behind to go fight… If there was one thing that kitten hated more than being bored, it was being left behind… “What? You honestly think I’d let you get here a day late and let you in on all the post-birthday fun? No way!” I teased. Her golden eyes set in that serious manner that only she had. She was genuinely upset… It became obvious that she was upset for reasons beyond just being uninformed… “Sebastian,” she began, stepping toward me and planting a hand on my cheek. “We’ve known each other for a long time. In that time, I’ve seen you do things that no other living being has ever done. I’ve seen you at your best, I’ve seen you at your worst… You go through everything alone, Sebastian. You aren’t fireproof… And yet you charge through Hell whenever something happens… You’re going to get burned if you keep doing it on your own… You have people that are capable and willing to help you… Just let us.” Her words sliced right through me… She was right… But… “Jinx… You’re right… I have people that care about me… That’s exactly why I go it alone… To keep them safe. To keep you safe.” Jinx sighed, probably recalling the countless arguments just like this one. Instead of perusing the subject further, she instead smiled and patted my shoulder. “You’ll be let out by tomorrow morning.” she assured me. My gaze moved to the worried-eyed mares that stood behind the Bombay. Only four of the best people to ever happen to me remained… Rainbow Dash stood to the far right, an uncharacteristic frown dragging on her features… To her left stood Twilight Sparkle… The youthful, lavender sheen of her coat seemed dulled somehow… Apple Jack also wore a frown… Worst of all, Flutter Shy was silently shedding tears over the sight she was beholding… This made me look myself over. A large length of bandage gauze was stretched over my abdomen where The Seamstress had run me through. Several stitches were trailing out from beneath it. Sterile thread always seemed really thick and particularly inky... Not a pleasant effect… A pad had been taped to my cheek where it’d been sliced all the way through. This too had thick stitches trailing up, stopping just beneath my eye. The brand was the most obvious of all, however… An enormous, valentine-shaped burn that took up a great deal of my chest… It began right between my pectorals and arced outward and down, coming together just above my naval… I was seared… Badly… I’d need skin grafts to repair it… I made a mental note to request some after recovering. My gaze drifted back to them, studying each face, each feature very intently. I never wanted to see them like that again. Ever… I smiled at them. “C’mon, guys! This is nothing! C’mere!” I waved them over and opened my arms. One by one, they all gathered about, Jinx included, in a mass group hug. I gave particular attention to Flutter Shy, wiping her tears away with a swipe of my finger. “Just smile… I’ll be okay, really…” I cooed into her ear. It worked, it seemed, for when they all drew back, the yellow-coated mare was beet red in the face. Visiting hours ended… It was time for sleep… Healing FriendhipI opened my eyes to find myself in my room back home. Warmth was all around me… A quick glance about revealed nothing, so I rolled over… There was a mare beneath the covers with me… I pulled back the comforter for a peak… Purple… She had a straight, purple mane… Her head was curled downward, her chin resting against her chest… I lifted the mare’s chin to look at her, only to recoil. It was a doll. A life sized doll of Rarity… It was made of stitched hide, but something had torn the thing’s chest open… A popped seam, it appeared. The eyes were a pair of obsidian buttons… I had to get the thing away from me, so I threw it across the room. Text suddenly flashed across my vision, accompanied by a horrible shriek of static. Hey… It hurt…! I gripped my head to keep it from pounding. What’s the matter, Sebastian…? The doll began to stand… I thought we were friends… I tried to speak, but no words came. The static was getting louder… Why did you throw me…? Louder still… You look scared… Within the split seam sat a heart… It was… Beating… It’s alright… Rarity was upon me once again, pinning me to my sheets. Her face was mere millimeters from my own… “Giggle at the Ghostey, right?” The morning came and went… The afternoon, too… It wasn’t until early evening before Jinx showed up to take me home. “How was your slumber?” she asked casually. Just like old times… “I was attacked by a Rarity doll with a beating heart.” I replied. Jinx chuckled. “Ya scared, brah?” I returned the good natured chuckle and nodded. “So, you knew that pony?” she asked after a while, referring to Rarity. “No,” I said abruptly. “That wasn’t Rarity… It was something else… Something with her face…” A thick silence fell over the cart then and remained for a solid ten minutes. Just as we pulled up to my house at the edge of Everfree, Jinx spoke again. “I’m sorry, Seb…” A party of four greeted me in my kitchen. They were all glad to see me again. And I was glad to see them… Beyond glad, actually… And I wanted a favor… “Um, guys?” I called everypony’s attention. “I have a favor to ask. It’s gonna sound really, really, really outrageously juvenile and weird, though…” Twilight was the first to reply. “What is it?” My gaze lingered upon each face for a long while before I was able to get up the nerve to actually ask. “Would you all stay with me tonight? Just for tonight…?” A long silence filled the room… Each of the five looked at each other for a few moments before nodding. Twilight spoke up once again. “Sure.” “Promise me something…?” I continued. They all nodded again. “Be here when I wake up…” Another group hug ensued, my tiny frame small frame smothered in the warmth of friendship. “We will be…” They all said in unison. I was lucky… I had them… With them, nothing could hurt me… And I wouldn’t let anything hurt them… They were mine… I was theirs… Our bonds would carry me, I could feel it… Through the night and the rest of my life… This was love… It had to be…
Happy Birthday!Nightmare Boutique By John Keith Bone “Good morning, Sebastian. Happy birthday.” Alice mumbled into my ear. I rolled over, half yawning and attempting to wipe the sleep from my still closed eyes. She was right. It was my birthday… December first… In truth, I had only gotten three hours of sleep. In fact, I was surprised I was able to even lie still at all for any length of time given all that’s occurred over the last month or so. My existence in Ponyville since September of 2335 started out as a pleasant change of scenery brought on by my retirement as the Ravensdale’s prize butler, and I came very optimistic; ready to begin again and finally make some real friends. Friends that wouldn’t have to witness the things I was capable of. Friends that didn’t have to see the stigma beneath my bandage. Friends that wouldn’t have to see me for what I was: a monster. This foolish optimism was short-lived however on account of what the equines about the town had come to call the “Sugar Cube Corner Incident”. Still, in light of the gruesome events that resulted in my burning down of the delightful little bakery, they hail me as a hero for bringing an end to one of Equestria’s most feared killers. Hero or not, I couldn’t sleep. What if she comes back again? What if something else happens? What if I have to become the man I was back in Terra…? Is everypony alright? Where are they? Thoughts like these plagued me in the night, driving me from home to prowl about the city, occasionally “stopping in” on my friends. I simply had to see that they were okay. That the ones I loved were still safe. I guess some things never change… Never change… It was strange… My friends, even Apple Jack and Rarity, who lost family in the chaotic crossfire of that night didn’t seem too affected… Apple Jack recovered remarkably quickly, in fact. The guards let it slip that Apple Bloom had been killed again, I supposed, but the farm mare simply had a small chat with me about it. She only asked how she looked before I pulled the trigger. I really only told her that she wasn’t the little filly I had come to love… Rarity, however shut herself in her boutique for about a week… I was worried at the time, but she emerged with a striking smile afterwards. It was almost as though she didn’t care about the death of her only sibling. “I always knew there was something off about her,” she had said… Still, Alice was right above me, no doubt smiling the smile that brought elation to my heart and a smile to my normally stoic face. I slid my eye open and made a grab for my glasses off the nightstand to my right. “Good morning, Mistre- Alice.” I hazily corrected myself. The dark-furred dormouse gave a bemused chuckle at this. “Guess you haven’t gotten used to not being a butler yet, huh?” I sat up, allowing the sheet to slide off my bare upper body as I adjusted my glasses to accommodate the bandage that hid my left eye. Even though I had just awoken, my senses were already razor-sharp and I managed to catch the glimmer of satisfaction that danced in Alice’s eyes. “Guess not.” My mistress’ forefinger found her lower lip in a pensive expression that soon lit up. “It’s your birthday. We should go out to breakfast!” she declared. After throwing my legs over the side of my bed and baring my almost-nude form, I began to comb my fingers through my mussed up hair, attempting to unknot the mess. Alice seemed practically to drool at this, but I decided her staring at me was uncomfortable. Quickly making my way to my wardrobe and throwing the doors open, I began rifling through my casual ware. “Got somewhere in mind?” I asked, selecting a plain black t-shirt and a pair of my old rave pants. Red trim on midnight black denim. “How about the new Sugar Cube Corner?” I paused at this, actually considering. Did I really want to attend the grand opening of an exact replica of a place I burned down only a month ago? A place where nightmares came to life, murder was business, and cannibalism was the trade… The place that cast a dark, bloody shadow over an otherwise perfect town… The place that had deprived me of sleep and caused horrific nightmares to haunt what little sleep I got… “Sure. It may look like the old place, but it’s not.” I reasoned aloud. A small squeal of joy and a clapping of hands sounded from Alice’s general direction. It was settled. Twenty minutes later, we were making our way down the cobblestone streets of the town I’d come to call home. Many a joyful pony were making their ways about to get to their respective jobs and, even with the clock not yet striking ten, the streets were bustling. I loved that about this town. It may have been small, but it felt like living back in Terra. It had that big-city feel… “Good morning, Sebastian.” A duo of mares I’d never met before called to me. My gaze locked upon them, an adjustment to my bandage accompanying it. Lyra and Bon-Bon. Two of Ponyville’s most respected and well-known business ponies. Lovers as well, it appeared. “Good morning, Ms. Lyra. Ms. Bon-Bon.” I greeted and waved to them. Miss Bon-Bon’s face glittered with a soft blush in the early December morning light. I smiled at this and continued up the way, my arm hooked with Alice’s. “So cute, that bunny.” Lyra commented. A quick turn to them prompted a quick hush to sweep over the pair. “The new Sugar Cube Corner opens this morning, does it not?” I asked with a slight smile. Bon-Bon’s mind began reeling at my voice for some reason… I wasn’t really interested in her personal thoughts, so I readjusted my bandage and withdrew from her mind. “Yes. Yes it is. Why do you ask? You aren’t attending, are you? Not after what happened last time…” Lyra responded with a worried expression. “It only looks like the old place. This one is new. I’ll be fine.” Bon-Bon nodded and smiled at me. “That’s good. I hear the Cakes are giving a speech to commemorate the new beginning.” She said. “Is that so?” Alice asked, a certain gossip-esque edge in her voice. She enjoyed being in on things of this nature. I never wanted to know why, though… “Yes,” the purple-maned mare continued. “Mister Carrot Cake is supposed to deliver it at the ribbon-cutting ceremony in about ten minutes!” She turned to her turquoise companion, tugging on her arm. “We should get going if we’re going to make it!” Alice tugged my arm as well. “Yeah, let’s go!” she prompted.
Ghosts of the PastA sizable crowd had already gathered by the time we all arrived at the newly constructed, One-to-One scale replica of Sugar Cube Corner. A light yellow stallion tapped his hoof nervously as he looked out over the excess of seven hundred ponies that had turned out. Nervousness showed on him as plain as the muzzle on his face, but I couldn’t help but smile at his nervousness. They wouldn’t be paying attention to his deliverance, they were all too hungry. With a wavering hoof, he adjusted the microphone attached to the podium before him, and began a small schpeal that I largely disregarded… That is until I heard my name. “Is Sebastian Cooper present?” Shit… I tried to shrink into the crowd, but to no avail. “Here he is!” A white unicorn with electric blue hair and a musical note cutie mark volunteered, pointing down at me. I threw her a dirty look. “Could you come to the stage, Mister Cooper?” Mister Cake requested. Shit! With a small sigh, I made my way to the stage, reluctantly climbing the steps to the podium, silently pleading to God not to make me speak publicly. “We hear it’s your birthday, son. Is that true?” he asked. I guess Rainbow Dash told a few people about it… “Um… Y-Yes sir.” I responded. “How old are you today?” “I’m… I’m um… Eighteen years old…” A collective tumult of awes arose from the crowd. “So young…” I heard one mare comment. “Barely legal… Sweet…” another said. Oh God… With a gesture of his hoof, Mister Cake summoned up Officer Grey Shield, the stallion that I approached with the note about Rarity a month back. He carried in his hoof a small slip of paper… Once said slip was in my hand, I unfolded it and inspected it. It was a check for… Dear God, fifty THOUSAND Bits!? “Oh wow… Um… I don’t know what to say…” I began. “Just take it as a thank you from Ponyville.” He said. “I see… Um… Th-Thank you, everypony…” After the applause died down, the ribbon was cut and the new Sugar Cube Corner was declared open to the public. Alice and I were seated toward the back of the restaurant. Alice was well in to her Danish by the time she noticed I hadn’t taken my eye off the mare behind the greeting podium. My dear friend Rainbow Dash… The one I had saved from a brutal death at the hands of our own Party Pony… She smiled to the ponies she greeted, but I could tell that she was far from easy. Her pupils were the size of pinpoints and she seemed to startle a bit at the clatter of the kitchen a solid twelve meters behind her. She saw what I saw. The victims that were splayed about this place… I watched the line her eye followed as the cute little mail mare, Ditzy Doo trotted to her seat. The ghost of the pink psychopath that knew the workings of this place dragging another by her mane behind the counter into the trap door that was disguised there… Poor Cheerile… “You okay, Sebastian?” Alice asked, visibly startling me out of my stupor. “What?” I asked. She sighed, setting her pastry down. “She’s-” she began, but I cut her off. “I know she is…” “But not to you. You still see her.” “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I lied. With another sigh, Alice edged forward in her chair, setting her gaze upon me with intense focus. She was deadly serious… “I know you, Seb. You never slept well, not even when you lived at the manor. You see ghosts… The people whose lives you ended in the defense of that which you care about. You’re haunted by them. You speak to them… I’ve heard you… You see the Professor in hospitals, and you see that pink girl here…” “Her name was Pinkie Pie… And I do not…” “Then why is your eye dilated to a pin-prick?” Damn… She knows me too well… “I’m sorry… It’s just…” “You’re afraid. Afraid of losing the friends you’ve gained while you’ve been here.” I sighed, taking a large gulp of my coffee, then set the mug back down. “You know me too well, Mistress.” I said, avoiding her gaze. A young mare approached us then. Her lavender coat and dark mane welcomed the gazes of others with confidence, beauty and a slight hint of magic. The spark on her flank caused my gaze to shoot upward to her face. Twilight Sparkle. My most intellectual equine friend. The gentle smile on her face caused my heart to flutter ever so slightly, and a similar smile to plaster itself upon my features. “Hello there, Sebastian.” She greeted. “Twilight! Come, sit!” I blurted, immediately getting up and pulling a chair out for her. The unicorn slowly took the seat and greeted Alice. “Good morning. You must be Alice. Sebastian has told me so much about you! You’re one of his closest friends!” she said. Alice smiled widely to her and nodded. “And you’re Twilight Sparkle. Sebastian went on and on about you in our letters. Wow,” she said, eyeing the unicorn with a mischievous look in her eyes. “He was right. You are beautiful.” the young dormouse commented. Twilight’s face lit up immediately and her gaze set on me, the question burning in her eyes. Instead of saying anything, I simply looked between the two, my face as blank the tablecloth we were eating from. I knew I looked like an idiot, so I opted for the first idea that entered my head that would get me away from this whole awkward mess. Standing quickly, I all but sprinted toward Dash. “Rainbow!” I called to the pegasus pony, who looked up at me with a bit of a startle. “Um. Hi there, Bunny Boy.” She greeted, using my pet name. Since I knew Alice and Twilight were clear out of earshot, I felt inclined to speak freely to the blue mare. “I just bolted over so I wouldn’t have to tell Twilight straight to her face how pretty I think she is.” Dash smirked and tilted her head at me. “You like the egg-head?” she teased. “Well, it’s not just her. If I told her, then eventually all six of you would hear about it, and it’s not like I think only she is attractive. I find you attractive too. And Apple Jack… And Flutter Shy… And Rarity… Speaking of whom, have you seen her?” “Who, Rarity?” I nodded. It took Rainbow a moment, but she soon gestured with a dismissive wave of her hoof. “I think she shut herself in again… Not sure why… She’s been whining about Opal a lot, though.” A small snicker arose from me. “Whining? She is not whining, she is complaining. Do you want to hear whining?” I imitated. Dash burst into laughter at this. Looked to me like the stress was dying down a little bit being in the presence of someone else who had experienced the same nightmares as she had… “Maybe you should go visit her. She could use some support from a man.” Dash prompted. “Is that your way of saying she needs to get lai-” A blue hoof slapped itself over my muzzle before I could finish, Rainbow half snickering, half shushing me. “Oh, right, right.” I said, nodding her hoof away from my mouth. “Yeah, I’ll drop in after Alice heads home tomorrow morning.” “Well, Ah’ll be! If it ain’t yew two!” Apple Jack declared with a hearty clasp of my shoulder. “Ne’er thought ‘n a thousn’d years yew two’d show up. It’s great tah see ‘yer movin’ passed the whole ordeal.” I craned my head about to look at the cowpony with a warm smile to be greeted with a similar smile and wonderful, hay-colored hair. “Pah! C’mon, Apple Jack, this is me you’re talking about,” Rainbow boasted, puffing her chest out triumphantly. “I am the Iron Pony!” “Now, now,” I interrupted, seeing where this was going. “That was a long time ago…” Apple Jack merely laughed at this, adjusting her hat. “Still, Ah’m glad you two are here.” “I am too, Apple Jack. Trust me, I am.” I said.
Sudden PanicThe hours swept by, conversation flying this way and that, food was devoured, stories were exchanged, laughs were had and even a few pictures were taken. Apparently I had become something of a celebrity due to this little incident. One particular mare, a maroon-coated lady with curly hair and a cutie mark of assorted berries that went by the name Berry Punch even felt me up. Naturally, I stiffened up at this, a heavy blush breaking over my features and I politely asked her to “GET YOUR HOOF OFF MY ASS!!!” All in all, it was a fun little get-together with my friends. Even Flutter Shy took to Alice with a glee I hadn’t seen in her before. Apparently the only other instance of such a quick connection was when she met Twilight’s assistant and roommate, Spike. Joy was palpable in the air. This new Corner was laden with new beginnings. New possibilities… A fresh start… A beautiful thing… Unfortunately, like all good things, it had to end. Upon the setting of the sun, I found myself standing beside dear Flutter Shy. Her face was set outward, but in the corners of her eyes, she was examining me rather closely. Her subtly was quite amiable. Almost anyone would have missed it… “She’s really nice,” the timid pegasus stated matter-of-factly. “Harmless even.” I smiled despite myself and adjusted my glasses. “You’d think so, wouldn’t you?” Those beautiful teal eyes set on me in a way that rivaled a pointed look from Alice. “It still bothers you… Doesn’t it, Sebastian?” Only Flutter Shy could ask such a question… She knew the answer, it was obvious, but she still wanted to make sure… “Yeah… It does… I still see her sometimes… Hear her voice…” I couldn’t look at her now… Not when my eye was beginning to mist up. I didn’t cry in front of people… Even Rainbow Dash had her back turned to me when I… Did what I did… “It’s okay. It’s over now, Sebastian… You did what you had to. You’re still a good man. You don’t have to let it bother you anymore…” This set me just a bit on edge. “I don’t let it bother me, Shy. It just does,” I said, turning my head away from her eyes. “Flutter Shy, when you kill someone you love, it sticks with you… No matter what… I don’t care if she was insane, she was still Pinkie Pie. Our Pinkie Pie. Our party pony… Our friend…” That did it. The tears began to roll down my face, but I did my best to keep my voice level. “Do you know what I saw down there?” I awaited a response, but none came. I took this as a prompt to go on. “I saw my dear friend in a state I had only seen a mad man. She had killed… Dozens… Hundreds, maybe… She kept them as decorations… As trophies… Even foals… She was indiscriminant and completely oblivious to the pain she was causing… She thought of it as a game! The longer she could keep her victims alive while harvesting their insides, the more fun it was. She liked hearing the cries they let out. She found joy in watching them squirm…” Something within me shifted. Realization resounded through my mind and sent a hard shudder down my spine. I had to squeeze my fists shut hard enough to draw blood just to keep from letting on that I was coming apart at the seams. “The mare I saw with the hacksaw wasn’t our Pinkie… No… It was someone else… That was… It was… ‘Pinkamena’…” Yeah… Yeah, what other explanation was there? Pinkie Pie was happy, beautiful, youthful, and over-zealous. That pony had her face, but it couldn’t have been her… The real Pinkie was one of the best friends anypony could ask for. Her generosity was only rivaled by that of Rarity’s. Wait a minute… “Rarity’s missing.” I said, stating the obvious. I threw a quick glance over my shoulder, taking in those around me. There was Apple Jack and Rainbow Dash arguing over who had stronger leg power… Twilight Sparkle was entertaining Alice with a few spells… Flutter Shy was standing to my right… Where was Rarity? That high-society unicorn would simply die for an opportunity to mingle with the daughter of the world’s wealthiest firearms manufacturer… And yet… She’s not here… “I have to go.” Without waiting for a response, I turned quickly, crossed the courtyard behind Sugar Cube Corner, all but bulldozing my way out the front doors and broke into a full-on sprint down the sidewalk. I had to see her. I had to make sure she was okay. That nothing horrible had befallen the lovely dress maker. Nothing was gonna stop me… Nothing at all… I pushed the pace as hard as I could, ducking, dodging and weaving my way amid the semi-crowded streets of Ponyville. The sun was setting, and for some reason I felt like I was running out of time. Upon reaching the Carousel Boutique, I braked hard, almost tearing up the cobblestone beneath my feet, but I managed to stop myself before blowing the door down. Without hesitation, I began pounding on the door, on the verge of tears once again. These tears, however, were not of pain, but of fear. Open the door! Open the door, damn it!! “RARITY! RARITY!!!! LET ME IN!!!!” I pleaded at the top of my lungs. An answer didn’t come soon enough, so I took a step back and readied myself to ram into the door. Just as I was about to hit the frame, the barrier opened… I came tumbling in to the shop like an idiot and tumbled into a set of mannequins. Upon righting myself, I looked about, spying the mare I was looking for with an incredulous look on her face. “Rarity!” I cried, all but pouncing the snow-coated diva. “Sebastian! What on earth are you doing here!? Get off! This is so unseemly!!” she demanded. In my elation, I hadn’t realized two things: One: That I was laying on top of her, clutching her by the flanks, and grinding my cheek against hers. Two: She was bleeding. Once I had collected myself and obliged her orders, I took noted of the rather odd scratches that marred her perfect features. “Sweet Celestia, what happened to you?” I asked, using my shirt to wipe the blood trailing down her face from her left eye. She didn’t even wince at it… That was odd. Normally, Rarity would be on the verge of a mental breakdown if she stained her coat with anything at all… Hm… “Oh, just a little tussle with Opal. She’s outside now.” Rarity replied ruefully. “A tussle? Over what?” I asked, looking over her disheveled visage. Perhaps she was in the middle of working…? “Oh, it was nothing, but you must get out! You cannot see what I’m working on! Not yet!” With this, Rarity quite literally shoved me out the door and locked it behind her. She was stronger than I expected, that was for sure… I had seen that same hurried demeanor only a few weeks after I moved into town. She had a big order to fill, and had been up all night furiously stitching and cutting fabric for somepony by the name of Hoity-Toity, whoever that was… Maybe she was just doing the same thing? Maybe I was just paranoid… Yeah, that had to be it. I turned my attention to the sun as it finally disappeared over the horizon. For some reason, Equestrian sunsets put me at ease. Aw crap. I totally left everypony hanging at the opening earlier!! That was so selfish… I have to make it up to them… Dinner! Dinner at… At um… What was that restaurant called…? Hay Stack? No, Oat Garden? Whatever, I just need to get back. Alice probably went home… Better start there and make some calls…
Surprise!It took me a long while to gather my thoughts and nerve to face my friends, but after a while, I was standing at the doorstep to my small home at the edge of the Ever Free Forest. All was still and quiet, and the lights were off. That’s weird. Alice doesn’t ever keep the lights off if she can help it… My key clicked in the deadbolt and slid the tumblers into place. I pushed the door open to be greeted by what appeared to be a baby blue cannon. The lights flicked on all at once, revealing a huge throng of ponies, headed by Alice at the cannon’s fuse. “Surprise!!” everyone cried at once, then Alice pulled the cannon’s string, firing confetti and streamers directly into my face. The tiny strips of paper met my head with such force that it actually merited a snapping of my face to one side and a defensive raising of my left hand. Alice laughed, but quickly rushed to my side. “You okay, Bunny Boy?” she asked between snickers. “Yeah. I’m fine.” I said, holding my throbbing cheek against my palm. “Happy Birthday!” Everyone shouted at once amid a few fits of giggles at me getting blasted in the face. A few more hours passed of cake, ice cream, pictures, conversation, and the general brouhaha that came with a surprise party. Berry Punch tried once again to lay hooves on me, but I was able to place Big Macintosh in my place before she was able to. The farm stallion practically leapt over the moon with the violence of his startle. Laughs were had and many gifts were left. Clothes mostly. Once the throng of strange ponies left at about ten o’clock, I was left in the presence of five of my closest friends. Wait… Five? “Where’s Rarity?” Rainbow Dash asked confused. “Wasn’t she here earlier?” “She was here, but she said something about a huge order to fill.” Twilight explained. That’s Rarity. Always in over her head… I smiled at the thought. Twilight was the first to speak, as per usual in situations like this one. “So, Sebastian, Alice has told us a ton of stories about your employment. We never knew you were so versatile! What was the phrase you used, Alice? An ‘all-in-one problem solver’?” Alice nodded to the mare. Oh dear… “I’m sure she was over-stating my capabilities.” I said, a trace of a smile crossing my face. “Why didn’t you tell us you took fifth place in the world Virtua Blade tournament two years ago? That would have been so awesome!!” Dash demanded. “Well,” I said, taking my glasses off and placing them on the dining room table. “It was two years ago, I was sixteen, didn’t even place, technically and who wants to hear about some guy who didn’t even win?” “But it was your first tournament and you took fifth in the world!! So awesome!!” Dash put extra emphasis on “awesome” for some reason… “And that time you saved her life from that Lord Harmon character.” Flutter Shy noted. “I remember that day. It was the first day you and I wrote each other, right?” I pondered at this for a moment. “I think so.” Alice slipped back into my room to get something. She returned after a minute with two cases. One was large, black and had the Ravensdale crest emblazoned upon it. It appeared to be an extremely long rifle case. The other was no bigger than an average pistol case. Like it’s bigger twin, it proudly displayed the Ravensdale crest, but instead of being the standard charcoal black, this one was scarlet. “Um… Sebastian? I brought these for you. I hope you like them…” She said and set the two cases on the table near my glasses. “Presents? You really shouldn’t have, Alice. Just flying all the way out here was more than enough.” I said, sort of embarrassed. “Open them?” she asked. Nodding in obligation to her request, I made my way over to the two cases. Alice pushed the first case in front of me. I aligned myself with its chrome locks and popped them open, flipping the lid up to see what was inside. I was greeted by a beautiful sight. Before me sat a full tang, five and a half foot long claymore sword. My breath caught in my throat and I recoiled a bit. “Oh my God! Alice!” I exclaimed, gripping the hilt of the weapon. As I lifted my gift, it struck me how light it was. Only about three pounds… The blade was stainless, straight as an arrow, and appeared to be made of some kind of custom alloy. Strong as steel, light as aluminum. The hilt was made of stitched dragon scale and the decorative aspect at the end mimicked that of an eastern dragon, jaws wide in an eternal, steely roar. There was a strange piece of metal, fashioned to look like a throttle on a motorcycle jutting down the grip from the hand guard. “What’s this?” I asked, tapping the throttle with my index. Alice placed her hand over mine and began to explain. “You hold this down and twist your wrist, then a small but powerful motor placed just below the blade within the hilt will spin and cause the blade to vibrate. These vibrations are so intense, it can cut through solid steel. I managed to slice through a small car with it!” I followed her instructions carefully. The motor was loud! I startled and dipped the blade down, without meaning to and accidentally sliced my table in half. Everyone jumped back, crying out in unison. “Whoa.” I managed in awe of the weapon. “Impressive, right? Father worked really hard on this design, but this one doesn’t hold a candle to the other one.” That was all the prompting I needed. Carefully extracting the cases from beneath the cleaved table, and replaced the sword into its custom fit case, sliding it off to one side. The smaller of the two didn’t seem to have a lock. This confused me for a moment, but after turning the case over, I noticed the voice recognition lock. “The password is ‘Friend’.” Alice informed me. I spoke the word and the tumblers clicked into the unlocked position. Within the crimson box lay a small knife. Upon a closer examination of the design, I had to cup my hand over my mouth to keep from squealing like a school girl. It was a custom designed khanjar dagger! “Oh my God! I’ve always wanted one of these!” I exclaimed, having to consciously fight back the tears in my eye. “That blade is alive. When your hand touches the hilt, like the sword, it vibrates. The motor in this design, however uses a sort of micro-vibration. The blade is diamond edged… You will be able to slice through literally anything…” her words were solemn and her voice low. She knew I was having a moment. I sprung up from my crouch and threw my arms about her. Unfortunately, I had overlooked the sheer mass difference between the two of us and we tumbled to the floor. “Thank you so much!”
RestlessDarkness. I was completely blind. Running. Running where? Where was I? What was going on? Pain…! Burning pain! “Come to Momma.” A feminine voice called out. “No! Get away!” I cried back. A warm, thick liquid was pouring down my chest. “You’ll like it. Trust me. I’m your friend after all.” The voice coaxed. Restrained. I was strung up by my wrists, dangling like a piece of meat. I looked down quickly to see the source of the warm liquid. In my chest, a valentine shape had been sliced and removed. My innards were hanging out of me… “Am I fabulous yet?” I finally recognized the voice. Rarity… I looked up, only to let out a scream so loud, I’m surprised my lungs hadn’t burst. Her eyes… Her eyes had been gouged from their sockets. The blood streaming down her face was as black as midnight and thick as molasses. The smile on her face was soft, and kind. Loving, even… Had I not been so horror-stricken, I might have smiled back. A shock of pink caught my eye then. A hoof… My gaze locked on it. It was tugging at the sides of Rarity’s mouth… I looked up the arm of whom it belonged to until… Pinkamena… It was Pinkamena forcing Rarity to smile… “I’m so sorry…” she said I bolted upright in my bed, fists clenched, chest heaving, eyes darting and sweat slickening my entire body. “It was just a dream.” I vainly tried to assure myself. “Just a dream?” Alice asked from somewhere within the room. I sat up and looked about me. Sure enough, Alice was standing in the doorway, wide-eyed and seemingly panic stricken. “Are you okay?” She asked. It suddenly struck me how hot I was, and just how much sweat was pouring down my body… I was going to need to wash my sheets later… “Yeah… Sorry…” I apologized, then finally unclenched my fists and looked down. I had drawn blood. “Could you throw me the bandage gauze there on the dresser?” Still overcome by panic, Alice merely stared at me for a while, the news paper in her hand quivering this way and that. Giving in, I simply stood and wrapped my hands myself. My attention turned to the paper in Alice’s hand. “What’s the headline?” I inquired passively, adjusting my glasses with one hand, holding the other out expectantly. The terrified lass surrendered the paper quickly, and I just as quickly understood her fright. Another strange series of disappearances and the discovery of a particular high-class mare skinned and dumped in Froggy Bottom Bottom Bog had the Ponyville Police Department baffled, staggered, and frightened all at once. Figures…. Just another psycho out there. From what I could tell, suspicions pointed to one of the Canterlot elite, but nothing could be brought up on the suspected stallion due to sheer lack of evidence. “That’s depressing.” I commented aloud, tossing the paper aside. “Seb, you don’t think-” I cut her off quickly by using a technique I learned when I was her butler; I placed a hand on her cheek and drew in close, expelling a gentle breeze into her ear. This caused her to shudder in what I always assumed was simply a cold shiver, and her jaw to slacken in the slightest. All words were lost in the moment… An assuring mumble slithered forth from my throat to calm her nerves. “No. Nothing is happening in Ponyville. I took care of it… Just like I always did, and always will.” The words were almost cooed in my attempt to stop her quivering. It worked much better than I expected. She dropped her bag -no doubt her carry-on for the flight home- and wrapped her arms about my neck. She whispered. “Do that one more time…” she ordered. This was something she had never done before… A new wave of some kind of weird…. Desire…? Something like that shot up my spine. I obliged her and blew into her ear once more. Her body rocked once more and she cooed. Alright, something’s up, I thought. She’s never been this close to me before… And that sound… What did it mean..? “I really miss you doing that, Sebastian… I… I miss you,” she managed with shaky words. I could not help but smile at this. To be honest, I really didn’t want the moment to end… But we both had places to be. The cart was waiting outside and I needed to get to the boutique… As I stood at the end of my walkway, watching the carriage shrink into the distance, a strange sensation hit me. There was a tugging in my chest… My eye began to well up for some reason… Once more, I clenched my fist to fight this strange feeling… Why was I so close to crying…? I had no reason to feel this way… And yet… Watching her disappear, I got the feeling I’d never see her again for some reason… Whatever… “I don’t have time for tears…” I mumbled to myself.
Figures in the DarkThe sun hadn’t even begun to peek over the horizon, but I was wide awake. Rarity was probably awake too in all likelihood. Orders that required enough attention to shove her friends out of he shop typically merited all-nighters… All was still on the way to the cake-layered structure. No sound to distract me. No glances. No faces. Only the early morning darkness. Shadows danced across the cobblestone in perfect serenity. The dark was a place I was too familiar with… The featureless shadows that walked with me were my only company, shoving out all thought of the pleasant things in life… Suddenly, I found myself facing a young filly. Her back was turned to me… Her yellow coat seemed dulled from dirt. Red hair up in a tattered pink bow… Oh my God… Apple Bloom turned to face me. A childish smile played over her split lips. “Hah there, Sebas-chun.” she drawled out, a black fluid pouring out from her parted jaws. Her eyeless sockets blinked once, causing a hard strain in my chest to seize me. Acting quickly, I covered my eyes with one hand and gasped. “Go away.” I commanded the shade. When I opened my eye again, she was gone… After advancing another block or so, a sound off to my left caused me to startle. Slurping sounds…. What the-…!? Within the sea of darkness emerged a figure. A mare, lying on her belly, slurping down at the pool of water beneath her and giggling madly. A great deal of her mane was missing, it seemed… Torn out in chunks or worn away… The tiny stream that remained hung down and curled in the pool beneath her. Just like the shadow before her, she looked at me, but this one seemed to know I was there beforehand… Her eyeless, beaming face snapped toward me with a loud cracking noise. Around her neck was an enormous iron… Gear…? No… No, it wasn’t around her neck… It was part of her neck… “Come here!” she ordered happily. I knew that voice…! Pinkamena! “I want you!” she cooed, slumping in my direction. It appeared she couldn’t walk… Still, she was lapping at her chops in much the same manner as a hungry dog, allowing the pink muscle to dangle and sway with her sloppy movement. The closer she came, the more excited her giggles became. My body wouldn’t comply. I couldn’t move…! Why couldn’t I move!? “I grow tired… Of my own flesh!” the beast lamented as it reached out a hoof and took hold of my ankle. “Sebastian, let me taste you!!” That was it. It a flurry of curses, choked sobs, and general panic, I threw my free foot back and launched it forward and Pinkamena’s face. It passed right through her, but I didn’t care. With an earsplitting cry of pure, unadulterated terror, I sprinted off into the darkness, attempting to flee from the nightmare that confronted me. Another block or so later, the voice called out to me again. “Bonjour!” she greeted, jumping out from behind a wall. From her mouth flowed the same black fluid that oozed from Apple Bloom, but tiny tendrils of swiveling matter accompanied them. It looked like earth worms… “Just leave me alone!!” I ordered and took off once again. What little vision I had was blurry as I sprinted toward my destination. So blurry in fact, I hadn’t realized I had arrived until a slammed my face directly into the front door. I fell back, gripping my muzzle and cursing beneath my breath. After collecting myself, I got back to my feet. The faint light seeping through the drawn curtains was probably the only thing saving what little was left of my sanity. I threw a quick glance over my shoulder to see if the shadows had disappeared. They had… Good. With a self-assuring roll of my shoulders, I decided to proceed inside. The door slipped open easily, and I closed it behind me. This air… I know this air… This smell… This cold… Something awful was about to happen. I had no idea what, but the hair on the back on my neck stood on end and that all-too-familiar tension rack down my back, causing my muscles to stricken themselves. My eye darted this way and that, rifling over the disheveled rolls of fabric and sewing materials. A shuffle sounded somewhere behind me as I reached the center of the mess. I couldn’t turn quick enough. A flash of red steel was the last thing I saw…
Living Hell“Wake up, Sebastian. Wake up, damn you!” A hard hoof met my face, startling me out of my disoriented haze. I was alert, at least… Still, I couldn’t see… I tried to move, but found it impossible. My arms were bound at the wrists to… Something… The rattling of wrought iron chains registered to me then. Why on earth could I not see!? “Oh, you’re awake, Bunny Boy? Well then, we can start the show.” Rarity said. Rarity…? “Rarity? Rarity, is that you?” I drawled out. The blindfold came off at that point, but the mare I saw standing before me was far from the Rarity I’d come to know… Her coat was still a magnificent white and her mane perfectly quaffed, but that’s where my Rarity ended… She wore a dress of crimson silk encrusted with diamonds, the most striking of which appeared to be stitched into her skin between her cleavage. Not unlike myself, she wore an eye patch. It seemed to be made of steel with a diamond inlay where her pupil and iris should be. From beneath it flowed a steady stream of fresh blood… A twisted smile plastered itself over her features when she turned her side to me and flipped her mane as though modeling for a judge. “Do you like it? Vinyl put up a real fight to keep it. Never knew that pony had such fire in her…” the mare asked, then mumbled to herself. It didn’t take long to realize what she was talking about. Interwoven with her own lavender locks were shocks of electric blue hair. The sharp points at the tips were unmistakable. That was Vinyl’s mane… Vinyl Scratch… Known to many as DJ PON-3... Her tracks were hot, her beats unmatched… She was a beloved and well-known member of Ponyville’s community… “What have you done…?” I muttered, my eye fixed on the floor. “WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU DONE!!!?” I was furious, terrified, and sorrowful all at once. It was happening again… A beloved friend had lost herself to the dark, groping hands of madness, and I, apparently, was to be her next victim. She had already claimed others as well… I was too blind… Too naive… Too… Too stupid to see what was happening!! Damn it! Damn it all!!! “Stop thrashing.” “Rarity” ordered. I wouldn’t listen. I kept thrashing… I had to get out… I had to stop her! SHE HAD TO DIE!!!! My train of thought was interrupted by the sudden rush of pain that shot through my right cheek. She had a knife. I hadn’t noticed it before for some reason… It was a delicately designed twelve-inch long Stiletto. A fine piece of cutlery in the right hands… The hilt was made of bronze encrusted velvet of a hue matching my assailant’s dress. “Now let’s see what little boys are made of…” she cooed as a chain chord was pulled. Said chord was attached to a studded collar about my neck. The spikes digging into my neck starched upward, bringing me up with them. Already, I felt the blood sliding down my bare upper body… It hurt… And it showed… Just keep yourself together, Cooper… Don’t you dare cry… My chest was bare to her. The angle the collar had yanked me had made it puff out a bit. Rarity smiled at me and looked over my physique for a moment. “You’re so handsome…” she said, giving a nod of sadistic approval. “But looks aren’t everything… I wonder what’s inside of you…” With that, the mare sank a few inches of her knife into my chest, just near my sternum, beginning to carve away at an arc. She repeated this same motion on the other side. The pain was too much… Far too much… The burning sensation that shot through me brought forth a gritted shriek that I couldn’t control. Worse yet, my tears got the best of me… They were flowing down my face, stinging when they seeped into the cut in my cheek. Once satisfied, Rarity removed the knife and licked it’s tip, slicing into her own tongue with it. A stupid look crossed her face… She… She liked it…? A masochist… Sick… “Mm… Tasty…” she cooed, slathering the residual blood over her lips. Rarity turned from me, sheathing her knife and began rifling through a drawer for something… She was whistling a tune I didn’t recognize, stopping once in a while to giggle. She drew forth a measuring tape, a pair of fabric scissors, and a few sewing needles which she proceeded to insert into her arm. I guessed she didn’t want to hold them… “I’ve always found you outrageously attractive… You know that, don’t you, Sebastian?” “Let me go…” “And now… I’m going to mark you as what you are. Mine. I’m going to make you mine, Sebby… Mine forever…” She drew the measuring tape over the new scar in my chest and gave a few nods as she measured, then scurried off to what appeared to be a furnace over in the corner, producing a red-hot branding iron from within its flames. Oh God, please help me… The young mare trotted back to me with delight gleaming in her eye. She waved the iron this way and that as she skipped… Once reaching me, she smiled. “Are you ready?” she asked, the iron already close to my scar. I didn’t want to speak… Only escape… Defy her… My only response was to gather as much blood and saliva as I could from my bleeding mouth and spit in her face. She took this with a smile. “Snips and snails and puppy dogs’ tails… That is what little boys are made of…” she finished the rhyme from earlier and forced the iron into the wound. The sizzling of flesh, blood, and sweat cauterizing filled the air… My jaw gaped, but my breath caught in my throat… I wanted to scream. To sob. To speak. To curse… But nothing came out… The tears streaming down my face intensified at this… My whole body was a taut as a drawn bowstring. I couldn’t move… My vision had gone white too… Had I died already? A heart attack, perhaps? Or maybe I was just in shock… The sudden rush of oxygen and orchestra of pain that rushed back to me very rudely informed me that I was alive… And now… To finish you off… You’ll make such a nice coat…” Rarity declared. Huffing like a whipped dog, I did my best to stand, being as my legs had helplessly folded beneath me, but another quick slash to my cheek wound startled me into dangling again. I had already given up… What else could I do…? My mind began to fill with despair as I began sobbing like a baby… Damn it all.. Only a month ago, I had been in a situation direly similar to this one… Being carved up and worse yet, branded like cattle by a mare that -given time- I might have been able to fall in love with… True love… I was going to miss it… My life had only begun, but here I was, about to have it all stolen away… I lifted my head slowly and watched helplessly as Rarity took her Stiletto between both hooves and raised it high above her head to deal her death stroke… A pair of golden eyes shimmered momentarily behind my killer. Wait a minute… I know those eyes…. I think… I could feel the blood loss getting to me… As the sewing machine met Rarity’s temple, rendering her incapacitated, a sight I hadn’t seen in a long time appeared. Into the light stepped a black cat… An American Bombay to be exact. She stood about four feet, eleven inches tall, weighed about ninety-five pounds and had the brightest eyes of anyone I’d ever met… Mesajinx Wilcox… My best friend…. She threw the machine down on the unconscious mare’s face just for good measure and crossed her arms over her chest, giving me a once over. “Well… This is easily the strangest birthday sex I’ve ever seen. I gotta hand it to you, Cotton Tail, I didn’t know you actually enjoyed this kind of treatment.” she said. Whether she was joking or not, I couldn’t tell. Nor did I much care… I was slipping from consciousness fast. “Shut up and get me down…” I ordered. Just as my wrists were freed, I let the abyss take me.
No Rest for the Wicked“What’s his status?” A feminine voice asked. Nurse Red Heart… “He’s… Stable… I’m surprised he’s still alive with all the blood he’s lost. And that burn…” a male replied. I couldn’t place his voice… Out-of-towner, maybe? After several moments of taking inventory, I found I still had all my limbs and other appendages. Now the hard part: to open my eyes. My right cracked open slightly to see the distinctive red cross cutie mark of the nurse, but my sight was swimming a little bit. Probably the massive amount of morphine that they had pumping into my system. I was perfectly numb… That told me that the dosage they had me on could probably kill a pony, or most anything else for that matter… “Nngh…” I tried to speak, but it only came out as a slur. The pretty nurse startled a bit and looked down at me. “He’s awake.” she said, the brown-coated surgeon suddenly turning his attention to me. “How are you feeling, son?” I forced myself to sit up. Quite a feat apparently, judging by the expressions on the faces of the medical professionals beholding me. “Like I got hit by a train. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a killer to stop.” I replied gruffly, grunting as I stepped out of the bed. My knees quaked visibly, and I had to take a hold of the bed frame to stop from totally flopping over. Nurse Red Heart took a hold of my shoulder and tried to push me back. “You need rest.” she pleaded. “She’s gonna kill somepony else if I don’t move… Get off of me, Red Heart…” “Sebastian, please…” My one-eyed gaze set very intently on her. I silently thanked God for not allowing my bandage to be removed in all of the trouble. Her eyes widened a bit at the fury in my own. She knew how serious I was, and I think it put her in fear of her safety, for she released me and backed away, almost cowering. “The woman that brought me here… The Bombay sitting out in the Waiting Room… Keep her busy. Don’t let her know I’ve gone back. Understand?” I asked the pair. They nodded. With that, I slipped out the window and darted off into the early-morning light.
Round TwoMy home was just as I had left it only hours ago, and it didn’t take me long before I was adjusting my frock coat and shedding my bandage. You again… I thought at my reflection. The Biohazard Bunny…. My choices as far as weapons were also simple. My birthday gifts… A twinge of guilt shook through me at already having to use these… No matter. It’s kill or be killed. Rarity had to be stopped… I knew the police couldn’t do anything on account of the events of a month ago… It was truly up to me and me alone. The sheathe of my new sword was a large leather strap that clasped over my chest and mounted the sword on my back. It was a comfortable fit… After readjusting it to allow for a quick draw if needed, I slid the blade into it and gave it a good, loud rev. I liked that sound… With a last, self-indulgent rev, then I tucked my dagger into it’s sheath at the small of my back in the belt-mounted cut of leather. The boutique was absolutely pristine on the outside… A pleasant sight for Equestria to be fooled by… For within the bowls of the beautiful structure lie a demon. A seamstress of sorts… A seamstress of souls… The Seamstress… That’s it…. That was her name… “Okay… Come on!” The door all but snapped upon the impact of my boot and I stepped inside, drawing my sword. There she was. She’d chained herself up in the center of the room, back to the door. What a fool… A slash of my blade cleaved the… Doll? Wait a second! That’s not- A furious cry sounded behind me, meriting a spinning swipe that caused her to duck. She launched a counter-attack, jamming her bladed gauntlet toward my abdomen. My reflexes allowed me to sidestep the strike, and bring my own blade down. She managed a roll and launched another swipe at my head. I caught her wrist with my free hand and locked gazes with her. Big mistake. Her mind was filled with hate… The memories of all of her victims, the feelings of elation she got from making them into wigs, dresses, coats, scarves, corsets, and so on… The dress she wore was made of Vinyl… Poor mare… She put up a real fight, though… The Seamstress let out a furious battle cry, accompanied by a renewed stream of blood spurting from her eye. The pain within her mind had caused tears to begin flowing down my face, but I only returned the scream and lifted her from the wrist, propelling her into a row of bloodied mannequins. The exertion had caused my wounds to re-open… Great… Not only was I fighting a psychotic mare with bladed arms, I was fighting time as well… Once The Seamstress regained her feet, she charged forward again. A sudden lowering of my visual input told me that the blood-loss from earlier hadn’t helped… I felt my sword be knocked from my grasp, then a loud “Shunk” had me pinned like a poster to the wall. My breath left me in that instant. I was on the verge of passing out… This was it! My hand shot to my dagger, and drew it backhanded. The swipe went clean through her jugular and larynx. It was over… That fast….. “Exuro in Inferno…” I muttered a hazy curse in Latin.
ComfortA shuffle at the door was the last thing I remembered…. White… Nothing but white… Nothing hurt… I couldn’t move… Couldn’t feel my wounds… I had to be dead… At least I could be happy here, wherever I was… I had died protecting the ones I cared about… the ones I loved… And best of all: I got to see Jinx one last ti- As sudden bolt of electricity shot through me, causing my arms to flail outward and my back to arch. A sudden rush of oxygen filled my lungs with a loud gasp. “He’s alive!” Nurse Red Heart declared, tossing the de-fib unit off to the side and shoved a tongue suppressor in my mouth to keep my from swallowing it. After the initial spasms died down, I gripped the sidebars of the hospital bed and sat up. The kindly nurse removed the oversized pop-cicle stick from my mouth and tossed it in the bin. “Where is everypony!?” I demanded. “We’re all right here.” Jinx’s voice sounded on the other side of me. I turned quickly and went to dive for her, but instead merely flopped onto the floor face first…. Ow… “You shouldn’t try to move around too much. Your body is incredibly low on blood…” Nurse Red Heart explained as she scooped me from the floor and back into bed. “Yes ma’am.” I replied, my gaze not wavering from the five women that stood near my window. “You were convulsing when I found you,” Jinx explained. “You really should have brought me with you. You almost died, Sebastian!” She was obviously miffed at having me leave her behind to go fight… If there was one thing that kitten hated more than being bored, it was being left behind… “What? You honestly think I’d let you get here a day late and let you in on all the post-birthday fun? No way!” I teased. Her golden eyes set in that serious manner that only she had. She was genuinely upset… It became obvious that she was upset for reasons beyond just being uninformed… “Sebastian,” she began, stepping toward me and planting a hand on my cheek. “We’ve known each other for a long time. In that time, I’ve seen you do things that no other living being has ever done. I’ve seen you at your best, I’ve seen you at your worst… You go through everything alone, Sebastian. You aren’t fireproof… And yet you charge through Hell whenever something happens… You’re going to get burned if you keep doing it on your own… You have people that are capable and willing to help you… Just let us.” Her words sliced right through me… She was right… But… “Jinx… You’re right… I have people that care about me… That’s exactly why I go it alone… To keep them safe. To keep you safe.” Jinx sighed, probably recalling the countless arguments just like this one. Instead of perusing the subject further, she instead smiled and patted my shoulder. “You’ll be let out by tomorrow morning.” she assured me. My gaze moved to the worried-eyed mares that stood behind the Bombay. Only four of the best people to ever happen to me remained… Rainbow Dash stood to the far right, an uncharacteristic frown dragging on her features… To her left stood Twilight Sparkle… The youthful, lavender sheen of her coat seemed dulled somehow… Apple Jack also wore a frown… Worst of all, Flutter Shy was silently shedding tears over the sight she was beholding… This made me look myself over. A large length of bandage gauze was stretched over my abdomen where The Seamstress had run me through. Several stitches were trailing out from beneath it. Sterile thread always seemed really thick and particularly inky... Not a pleasant effect… A pad had been taped to my cheek where it’d been sliced all the way through. This too had thick stitches trailing up, stopping just beneath my eye. The brand was the most obvious of all, however… An enormous, valentine-shaped burn that took up a great deal of my chest… It began right between my pectorals and arced outward and down, coming together just above my naval… I was seared… Badly… I’d need skin grafts to repair it… I made a mental note to request some after recovering. My gaze drifted back to them, studying each face, each feature very intently. I never wanted to see them like that again. Ever… I smiled at them. “C’mon, guys! This is nothing! C’mere!” I waved them over and opened my arms. One by one, they all gathered about, Jinx included, in a mass group hug. I gave particular attention to Flutter Shy, wiping her tears away with a swipe of my finger. “Just smile… I’ll be okay, really…” I cooed into her ear. It worked, it seemed, for when they all drew back, the yellow-coated mare was beet red in the face. Visiting hours ended… It was time for sleep…
Healing FriendhipI opened my eyes to find myself in my room back home. Warmth was all around me… A quick glance about revealed nothing, so I rolled over… There was a mare beneath the covers with me… I pulled back the comforter for a peak… Purple… She had a straight, purple mane… Her head was curled downward, her chin resting against her chest… I lifted the mare’s chin to look at her, only to recoil. It was a doll. A life sized doll of Rarity… It was made of stitched hide, but something had torn the thing’s chest open… A popped seam, it appeared. The eyes were a pair of obsidian buttons… I had to get the thing away from me, so I threw it across the room. Text suddenly flashed across my vision, accompanied by a horrible shriek of static. Hey… It hurt…! I gripped my head to keep it from pounding. What’s the matter, Sebastian…? The doll began to stand… I thought we were friends… I tried to speak, but no words came. The static was getting louder… Why did you throw me…? Louder still… You look scared… Within the split seam sat a heart… It was… Beating… It’s alright… Rarity was upon me once again, pinning me to my sheets. Her face was mere millimeters from my own… “Giggle at the Ghostey, right?” The morning came and went… The afternoon, too… It wasn’t until early evening before Jinx showed up to take me home. “How was your slumber?” she asked casually. Just like old times… “I was attacked by a Rarity doll with a beating heart.” I replied. Jinx chuckled. “Ya scared, brah?” I returned the good natured chuckle and nodded. “So, you knew that pony?” she asked after a while, referring to Rarity. “No,” I said abruptly. “That wasn’t Rarity… It was something else… Something with her face…” A thick silence fell over the cart then and remained for a solid ten minutes. Just as we pulled up to my house at the edge of Everfree, Jinx spoke again. “I’m sorry, Seb…” A party of four greeted me in my kitchen. They were all glad to see me again. And I was glad to see them… Beyond glad, actually… And I wanted a favor… “Um, guys?” I called everypony’s attention. “I have a favor to ask. It’s gonna sound really, really, really outrageously juvenile and weird, though…” Twilight was the first to reply. “What is it?” My gaze lingered upon each face for a long while before I was able to get up the nerve to actually ask. “Would you all stay with me tonight? Just for tonight…?” A long silence filled the room… Each of the five looked at each other for a few moments before nodding. Twilight spoke up once again. “Sure.” “Promise me something…?” I continued. They all nodded again. “Be here when I wake up…” Another group hug ensued, my tiny frame small frame smothered in the warmth of friendship. “We will be…” They all said in unison. I was lucky… I had them… With them, nothing could hurt me… And I wouldn’t let anything hurt them… They were mine… I was theirs… Our bonds would carry me, I could feel it… Through the night and the rest of my life… This was love… It had to be…
