“There is only so far you can run, before the past catches up to you. Nothing that I say or do can change the past, and from this point onward, the future is unpredictable... I hear her... That is, myself; In my dreams, my mind, my world is tainted by her presence... Of course, now I'm terrified... Because she's quiet now... She hasn't talked to me... Not like she used to... But if she's no longer talking...Is she there still? Or... Did she escape my own mind?...”
“Don't worry, Pinkie, we all have our darkness. You just defeated yours, I'm sure that's all.”
“It was dark in the stone chamber. Carved exquisitely by Alicorm magic, the chamber which once housed the Pool of Reflection laid abandoned, untouched by pony or beast alike. But then, one faithful day, the Element of Laughter had managed to find the ruins, and used the pool in order to clone herself. Only, these clones were not all removed. One clone did not act like Pinkie Pie, and she did not seek out parties or friendship. And you see... She... is me.”
Pinkamena stared forth at her reflection in the mirror. Her face, while a mimicked image of Pinkie Pie, seemed oddly different due to the scowl that was transfixed on it. Her eyes moved to the side, looking at the reflection of Princess Celestia, who simply was looking at her, silently. Pinkamena turned to face her, still seemingly in perpetual anger.
“That's why I exist, Celestia... Your majesty...” Pinkamena dryly stated. “And the fact that you ask me why I exist as if there is some purpose I serve, you are more blind than your own subjects...”
Princess Celestia remained silent, her face stoic. She could have been a statue had her mane remained still. The princess had found Pinkamena during her revisit of the ruins within the Everfree Forest. From a distance, she thought it was Pinkie Pie, lost in the forest, but upon landing near her, she instantly felt the absence of the element that was bestowed to her counterpart. She had then brought her into one of the stone chambers of the ruins that was still intact to speak with her, without the dangers of the forest interrupting. The regal chamber had a few remnants of the past ponies that occupied it, and Pinkamena seemed to take up an affinity with her own image as they spoke.
Finally, Celestia broke her silence as she lowered her head, “So you have no desire to go own? No personal goals to achieve?” She moved closer to Pinkamena, who had turned back to stare at herself, and for a brief moment, seemed sad at the condition she was in.
“While my existence is without divine purpose, it does not mean I do not have my own goals... If you must know what I desire... It is to watch the world burn...” She turned, facing Celestia once more, her expression turning into a demonic grin. “I want to make it suffer, and bleed... I want to bathe in its sorrow and laugh at its pain...”
Celestia's form was silhouetted now, her mane and eyes only seen for their glowing aura. The faint dark light that seemed to fill the forest was entering the room through a window, giving her an even eerier look. She was silent for but a moment, as a chuckle came from Celestia. Pinkamena gave her a quizzical look. Never had she heard Celestia's tone in such a way. The sound seemed almost to mimic the very darkness that was around the heart of Pinkamena. The darkness that had once stained Pinkie's heart, now given its own form.
“You want to make ponykind suffer?” Celestia said with a demented tone within her own voice. “Oh no, I sense something more than simple suffering, my little pony. I sense what the Pool of Reflection brought forth. The opposite of the Element of Laughter... The Element of Despair...”
Pinkamena's eyes went from confusion to interest. What secrets was the princess hiding? Why did she suddenly seem so dark? The way she acted now was a complete photo-negative of the image that she upheld. But then, something crossed Pinkamena's mind. In her past, she had banished her own sister to the moon for one thousand years. She encased a being in stone for even longer, and only recently had she allowed him freedom in trade for servitude and loyalty. Celestia's appearance was not pure, and yet the nation saw only the light, not the darkness.
“Why are you so interested in me, Celestia,” Pinkamena asked.
Celestia grinned, turning and moving to the window that stood open. Her appearance, despite being in the light, seemed to keep the air of darkness and evil.
“The Elements of Harmony are not the only things that exist, Pinkie Pie.”
“Pinkamena. Pinkie Pie is who I once was, and since she refuses to use the name, I shall use it.”
Celestia looked at her, nodding then looked back out the window.
“All things must have balance. Night must accompany day. Good must have evil.”
“And Harmony must have Chaos...”
Celestia turned looking to Pinkamena, a grin spreading across her face nodding. “Exactly... Why do you think Discord is free?”
Pinkamena gave a demented giggle moving beside Celestia. “Because you're as crazy as me?” She looked up to Celestia who gave a little chuckle to the joke. Pinkamena smiled, but it was curved and demented. She definitely wasn't Pinkie Pie, and even more so, she seemed to take pleasure in sorrow. The psychological scars upon Pinkie's past were now isolated and exposed, and the instability of the party pony's alter ego could not be ensured.
Celestia returned to looking out the window, up towards the sky now. “Perhaps I am... But its because soon, the Elements of Chaos will surface, and a new era will dawn in Equestria... An era that unless the proper preparations are made, it will rend this world in two. And everypony will perish along with it...”
