I was adjusting to life in Canterlot a lot easier than I expected. It certainly wasn’t anything like being in Skyvale, but it was better than being in the ruins down below. The entire Canterlot region was perched on a mountain side with the second half of the city built into a large pony-made cave. The rest of the city was built upon steps that were scaling the mountain side. The lower steps seemed to be reserved almost entirely for agricultural use.

The city had a feudalistic structure to it. Most ponies lived near the upper levels of the city right under the castle; I presumed it was the safest of regions within the city, judging from the abundance of ghettos.

One thing I had discovered within the brief time I had been there was that it certainly was the city of pleasures. Most of the local “businesses” in Canterlot were on the “shady” side. Gambling, drinking and promiscuity seemed to rule much of the ghetto regions, and even a good chunk of the upper class areas.

I had done some snooping around the city trying to find any other interesting information of before war time, mostly about Rainbow Dash, Vinyl Scratch, and perhaps a question or two about Pinkie Pie. Most were very open to talk about Dash, but the only thing anypony really knew about Vinyl was that she was a DJ for the radio before the war and they wanted nothing to do with her. Nopony seemed to want to talk about Pinkie Pie, but that much was expected.

We had been held up in Canterlot for two whole days at this point with Dash still speaking to Twilight. She never left the castle to tell us how things were going, so we could only assume that Twilight was persistent in trying to recruit her back to the military. The two had a lot to catch up on anyways, so I didn’t think much of it; we’d know when it was over.

My free time was mostly spent talking to either Vinyl Scratch or Jewel, mostly the latter though, as Vinyl didn’t ever really have anything to say besides how she couldn’t wait to “get back into the action.” Her name was appropriate, as she was a broken record at times.

Jewel had told me about Trixie’s fortress. It’s bigger than Canterlot that was for sure, and it was protected by more soldiers than the Equestrian military could provide, probably more lives than the civilians and soldiers combined. It was pure luck and chance that Jewel was able to escape according to her story. I felt sorry for her, created simply for the purpose of war; she was probably very lost in the world right now, more so than myself.

After over two days of waiting, Twilight finally requested an audience with both Vinyl Scratch and I.

“Lieutenant Vinyl Scratch and Flare of SkyVale.” Twilight began.

The two of us held still awaiting her next words.

“Princess Luna would like to speak with the two of you. I request that you remain respectful and listen carefully. That means you Lieutenant.” Twilight glared at Vinyl.

Princess Luna? I was curious as to why the second princess of Equestria had any interest in me. I could probably fathom why she would want to speak with Vinyl Scratch, being in the Knights and all, but I was just a visitor from SkyVale.

From the shadows of the hallway in front of us, an elegant dark colored mare stepped out from the bend and approached us. She was decorated from head to hoof in moon shaped emblems.

“Lieutenant Vinyl Scratch, it’s a pleasure to see you again.” Luna began.

Vinyl scoffed and gave a gesture with her head that made me believe she was rolling her eyes. There was no way to be certain of course.

“And you… Flare is it?” Luna ignored Vinyl’s rudeness.

I nodded.

“It’s a pleasure; I’ve heard great things about you from Twilight. She said Commander Dash has taken you under her wing so to speak.” Luna smiled.

“She actually doesn’t go by commander anymore, and not really. I was more or less just living with her and Pinkie Pie until I figured out what to do next really…” I admitted.

Luna seemed to grow a pleased look upon her face as she turned around and gazed out the nearby window. She seemed burdened by something.

“I understand you came to help the war effort?” Luna questioned without turning to face me.

“Yes, although when I left SkyVale I had thought the war was long over,” I said.

“Twilight, would you please brief our guests on the situation at hand?” Luna turned to Twilight.

“Yes One Eye, please brief us.” Vinyl teased.

Twilight ignored Vinyl’s attempt to get under her skin and flicked her head in an upward gesture. Her horn glowed as a projection appeared before the four of us. Five golden necklaces and a crown with odd shaped gemstones appeared in a holographic form before us.

“These are the elements of harmony, though I’m sure you’re familiar with them Lieutenant,” Twilight explained.

“I’ve heard stories about them; they were used to defeat Discord and Nightmare Moon right?” I asked.

Twilight nodded.

“It’s good to see you’ve brushed up on your history, it saves us some time. As you know these six magical artifacts possess power beyond imagination; however they were scattered across Equestria years ago, and due to our limited resources, we’ve only been able to get our hooves on two of them,” Twilight spoke.

“Do you think that these elements can defeat Trixie?” I asked.

Twilight shook her head.

“It’ll take more than the elements to truly destroy the darkness that Trixie has helped spread, however Trixie commands an army that is more than three times our size, and we will need every advantage we can get to defeat her…” Twilight smiled.

It was a little disheartening to see doubt from Twilight. I had thought she would be certain of the Knight’s victory, but then again she had proven far too practical for fantastical thinking at this point. She clearly wasn’t going to let pride do her in.

Twilight seemed to be the type of pony that didn’t bet on determination, but rather statistics. This was something that I’m certain Rainbow Dash and her clashed about on a frequent basis.

“So what do we have to do with all this?” I finally asked.

“I’m eager to know as well,” Vinyl spoke up.

“Well, Flare as much as I trust Rainbow Dash’s word, you are an outsider. We are uncertain if we can trust you just yet…” Twilight admitted.

Her concern was fairly well placed, after all I was not only a stranger to Canterlot, but to Equestria in general. I doubted that Canterlot got visitors from SkyVale on a regular basis.

“So you want to test me?” I finished her thought.

I was dead on.

“You catch on quick. Yes, we need you to do something for us. If you are successful then we will know that you serve the crown, and not Trixie,” Twilight said.

“We want you to go and retrieve an element of harmony and bring it back here. We’ve found some old documents that suggest the location of one of them,” Luna explained.

“I’m not sure I follow…” I replied.

Twilight turned to face me.

“What do you mean?” She responded.

“If I am untrustworthy, and these elements are crucial to your success, then why trust me to obtain one? If I am with Trixie then won’t I steal the element and return it to her?” I questioned.

“That’s where Vinyl comes in,” Twilight smirked.

“Huh?” I raised a brow.

“If you should do anything deemed threatening to Equestria, she’ll kill you,” Twilight said.

I wasn’t exactly very comfortable with how plainly she said that sentence. She was either completely confident that I wouldn’t betray them, or she had little care if I was successful or not.

“Fine, where is this element then?” I replied accepting the challenge.

Luna and Twilight grew silent.

“Well?” I asked.

“Cloudsdale…” Twilight nearly whispered.

“Are you sure this is a retrieval mission, and you’re not just trying to get rid of me?” Vinyl said.

“What’s so bad about Cloudsdale?” I asked.

Vinyl became tense and serious; it was an odd sight to behold.

“Cloudsdale has been abandoned for nearly six years. Ever since the darkness overtook Equestria, no pony has come there. There’s all kind of stories about the place being a haunted ghost town now. The point is no pony goes to Cloudsdale… Ever…” Vinyl explained.

“How do you expect me to be able to retrieve something from one of the most dangerous places in Equestria then!?” I protested.

Vinyl smirked.

“That’s why they are sending me with you…” Her face grew into a big grin.

“I’m not sure I follow…” I said.

Twilight came to my side and placed a hoof upon my shoulder.

“With the Lieutenant with you, it’s going to take Trixie herself to get near you,” Twilight assured.

I had heard war stories about Vinyl Scratch, but had never seen her actually fight. Some stories told tales of her slaying dragons with nothing but a blade. I suppose there had to be at least some truth to them.

“Fine, I’ll do it.” I replied.

“Excellent! We will give you plenty of time to prepare for your departure. We encourage you to relax a bit and get some rest before you go,” Twilight smiled.

She seemed eager to get things moving very quickly.

Vinyl seemed uninterested in Twilight’s words, and was already making for the exit. I suppose to her all this seemed like was a babysitting job.

“One more thing,” Twilight called out to us.

I turned.

“Jewel has been appointed as a weapon smith, and we had her do some fine tuning on your weapons. She said you should go pick them up before you leave,” Twilight said.

Vinyl spit and continued walking.

“Thank you, we’ll be sure to see her,” I thanked.

Jewel was plenty excited to see the two of us, though Vinyl didn’t appear to show the same excitement. I tried my best to ignore her and carry on.

“It’s nice to see you again Jewel, how’s life in Canterlot treating you?” I asked.

She smiled brightly.

“Just fine, though some of the locals give me a nasty look now and then, it’s far better than being out in the ruins. Being that I have darkness inside of my body I wasn’t permitted to join the military, but my crafting abilities lent themselves well to making weaponry, years scavenging in the ruins are paying off I suppose,” she replied.

Vinyl just wandered about lazily and leaned herself against a nearby support beam for the store. Not a word left her mouth.

“Twilight said you had something for us?” I changed the subject.

The grin on her face grew at the question.

“I most certainly do. Remember when you came into town and they had you leave your weapons with the royal guards?” She asked.

“Don’t remind me…” I rolled my eyes.

During our arrival they had to disarm myself and Pinkie Pie. They allowed Rainbow Dash to keep her blade however as they recognized her as the former commander of the Rainbow Raiders. That and she told them that they’d have to pry it off of her dead body first.

We were told we’d get our weapons back, but I never actually guessed they would return them.

“Well, they ended up here and I did a little bit of work on yours. It took me a bit longer than usual, as I’ve never seen a weapon like this before, where in Equestria did you pick this up?” She asked.

I recalled the factory for a brief moment.

“It’s better you don’t ask…” I grinned sheepishly.

“Well, either way I saw your weapon was very effective against flesh, but when it comes to blocking other swords, the chainsaw attachment was only going to get in the way. After some thinking I realized what it needed,” she tossed the weapon back to me as she spoke.

Fastening it to my front right hoof I inspected it closer. Letting the blade come out, I noticed the chain around it had a white glass like substance around the edges of it. It sparkled like precious gemstones.

“I lined the edges with diamonds. I did a few tests with it, and well… Let’s just say you’re going to be a cut above the competition out there. I can promise you that particular blade can literally cut any steel sword in half.” She smiled.

I stared at the blade in awe. I wasn’t exactly used to receiving gifts, nor was I expecting one out here. Thanks to Jewel however Pinkie Pie’s weapon would prove even more useful to me now.

“Thank you Jewel, you have no idea how much this means to me,” I bowed thankfully.

“The bows are unnecessary darling. If you want to thank me, how’s about you follow me to the back room?” She winked flirtatiously.

“Er… What?” I blinked.

She burst out laughing.

“You’re too cute. I was only kidding, unless of course you were interested…” She winked yet again.

I gave her another sheepish smile and declined.

“Are you quite done?” Vinyl yawned.

Jewel directed her attention over to the snow colored unicorn. Jewel’s strange glowing eyes focused on her viciously before replying.

“I did a bit of research on your fighting style. I heard a lot of stories, and I think I have just the thing for you…” Jewel smiled as she approached Vinyl.

Vinyl didn’t seem to even fake interest in the offer. It would appear as though her prejudice would hold out even when offered gifts. Then again, there was always the chance that this was how she always acted, from the stories I had heard, that idea wasn’t too farfetched.

Jewel levitated a long sharp blade with a hook jutting off of the backside. She then presented the blade before Vinyl Scratch. The piece of metal was enough to catch even her attention.

“I made this with you in mind. It’s perfect for grappling enemies from up close,” Jewel explained.

Vinyl turned away from her.

Jewel’s expression turned stern and serious.

“I’ve heard stories about you…” She began.

Vinyl didn’t even turn to face her.

“They say the reason you always wear those glasses is because you have the eyes of a demon…” Jewel added.

Still not turning to face her, Vinyl spoke out of the corner of her mouth.

“Double cross us, and why don’t you find out?” Vinyl spat.

Twilight had advised us to stop by Fluttershy’s medical center to pick up what she deemed “necessary medical supplies.” The fact that she deemed them “necessary,” only worried me more.

The building was close to the castle in the upper distract. Twilight made sure to keep Fluttershy and her operations out of the ghetto areas, then again I imagined the ghettos would need her services more than any pony else in Canterlot.

“Hold still for me, this may hurt just a little…” A voice I recognized resonated from the room ahead of us.

“Pinkie Pie?” I popped in the door.

My hunch was correct. Pinkie Pie was standing over an operating table with a screwdriver levitating over her “patient.” The one on the table however had some kind of contraption sticking out of where its wing should be. The long mechanical device fed into its body through some torn skin. It was as if some pony has just ripped her wing clean off and placed this mechanical device in its place.

“What the hell is that!?” I gasped.

“Just hold on a minute and we’ll attend to you,” Pinkie assured.

Turning away from us she moved back to focusing on her work.

“Alright, I’m going to pull this piece back into place then fasten it, let me know if it works,” Pinkie spoke to the cream colored pony on the table.

One of the many steel rods connected to the device was pulled down into a socket followed by Pinkie screwing in a bolt to keep it in place.

“How’s it working?” She asked.

The whole contraption bent like an appendage and curled inward to take the shape of the pegasus’ missing wing.

“Excellent, thank you Pinkie; you’re as resourceful as ever,” the pegasus complimented.

“Yes, well we have guests.” Pinkie pointed in our direction.

The other looked up in our direction and a smile appeared on her face. She lifted herself off of the table and stepped upon the floor.

“So we do,” she said.

I was still in awe at the mysterious device attached to this creature. I couldn’t help but stare.

“You must be the two that Twilight sent, I’m Fluttershy,” she added.

This pony spoke with such a soft tone, it was doubtful she could even stand the sight of blood, let alone be one of the best doctors in Canterlot.

“You must be Flare?” She smiled at me.

“Uh- Yeah, that’s me.” I stuttered.

She laughed.

“Pinkie told me a little about you, you’re quite the adventurer. You have my gratitude for escorting her here. She’s been a huge help to my work,” Fluttershy replied.

I nodded, uncertain of what else to say.

Up close Fluttershy’s entire body appeared to have all kinds of scars all over it. She looked like a mare that had seen more combat than Rainbow Dash even.

“You two can catch up, I’m going to get Vinyl Scratch all set up with the supplies then you can be on your way,” she gave another sugary smile.

Fluttershy gestured for Vinyl to follow her, and without a word from either of them, they both retreated to the back room, which I assumed was for storage.

Pinkie turned to me gently with a bright smile on her face. Her long rosy mane wrapped around her head interestingly as the grin came across her face. It was easy to tell by now when I was addressing Pinkie Pie, or Pinkamena; this was Pinkamena.

“Amazing isn’t she?” Pinkie finally said.

I turned to her with a confused expression.

“Fluttershy?” I asked.

She nodded.

“What is she…?” I dared question.

“A prototype, a major advancement in both medical science, and technology,” Pinkie stated proudly.

Her fascination with this sort of thing was a bit frightening at times. I never suspected any pony was wrong in questioning Pinkie’s mental stability, and the more time that passed, the more I suspected she might be completely mad.

“Is she… A robot?” I questioned.

“Not quite. She’s a cybernetic enhanced pony, the first of her kind,” Pinkie explained.

“So you’re saying she is still a pony underneath all that?”

“More or less.” Pinkie smiled.

I never was a fan of her cryptic answers.

“How did she get like that…?” I asked.

“War does a lot of damage to the body. Fluttershy has been in her fair share of scrapes since she was in the Rainbow Raiders. After that she continued work as a field medic, and during that time she took quite a few hits. Twilight used some schematics from some pre-war designs that were locked up and had over 70% of her body replaced, pretty cool huh?” Pinkie spoke.

“Cool” wasn’t the word I would have used.

“This isn’t right… She’s not even alive anymore…” I said.

Pinkie sighed and rolled her eyes.

“She’s perfectly alive Flare. This design made sure to not take out the two things that make her a pony. So long as they stay, she controls the machine, and the machine doesn’t control her,” Pinkie assured.

“How can you be so sure of that?” I protested.

“Because I designed it,” Pinkie said plainly.

There was silence between the two of us.

“I designed it before the war. When I made it I realized that consciousness and heart are what keep us who we are. So I made sure never to remove the brain or the heart. Underneath that entire machine is Fluttershy’s brain controlling it all. There’s no processor, no super computer, nothing; just a bunch of parts controlled by her brain…” Pinkie was speaking in such a low volume I needed to lean in to hear her.

She brought her face close to mine, touching her forehead to my forehead.

“Do you think I’m that much of a monster? To turn a pony into nothing more than an abomination of nature, Flare?” She whispered.

“I don’t know what to think anymore,” I replied.

Pinkie nodded and pulled away, seeming satisfied with that answer.

“There’s something I don’t understand though…” I spoke up.

Pinkie looked over at me curiously.

“Hm?”

“I thought you said that you worked as baker before the war…” I said.

Pinkie grew yet another smile upon her face.

“I did, worked for the Cake family at Sugar Cube Corner for probably close to six years. I even saw them right here in Canterlot, they’ve opened up a new shop and everything,” Pinkie answered.

“Then why didn’t you go back to working with them?” I questioned.

Pinkie let out a little laugh at my question.

“Well, I went to see them and the moment they saw me they pulled out their guns and commanded me off their property, told me I wasn’t welcome there and if I returned they’d kill me.” Pinkie said plainly.

The way that she always approached these kinds of situations so nonchalantly was very disturbing to me at times.

“Why would they do that…?” I dared ask.

Pinkie sighed and gestured for me to take a seat with her. Obeying I planted my rear right next to hers and listened.

“Let me tell you a little story Flare…” She smiled.

“This happened about eight years ago…” She added.

Mr. Cake yawned as he wandered down the stairs to see what all the ruckus was about. He had been awoken by the sounds of shuffling, things being moved, and hoof steps all about on the store level. It had been going on for nearly an hour before he finally came downstairs to see what was going on.

Just coming out of the back room was an overworked Pinkie Pie carrying several bags of flour from storage to the front room. She stopped only to look in Mr. Cake’s direction.

“Oh, sorry Mr. Cake, I didn’t mean to wake you,” she apologized.

Pinkie’s wild mane was soaked partially in sweat; flopping over her left eye she looked exhausted. Mr. Cake wasn’t used to seeing her so overworked and tired. The mare was normally so full of energy that a lot of the time he couldn’t keep up with her, but for the past year she had been worn out and overworking herself.

“Pinkie, it’s midnight, what are you doing down here?” He questioned.

“Well, when I do my shifts in the shop I need everything prepared as soon as possible so that I’ll have time to close up and give myself enough time to mind my studies. So every night before my shift I come down here and get all the supplies ready to go so that I can shave off some thirty minutes from my workload when I get up. I don’t want to fall behind on my studies, but I can’t be slacking off at work either…” Pinkie explained.

It had been like this ever since Pinkie had started attending school about a year prior. During the day she’d work the shop, and in the evening she’d go to class. After that she’d stay up some nights until day break studying. It wasn’t uncommon for them to find her passed out in front of a text book.

“Pinkie, maybe it’d be best if you took some time off… You need to get some rest…” Mr. Cake frowned.

“No! Out of the question! I’m not living here and contributing nothing! I earn my keep just like every pony else!” Pinkie protested.

Mr. Cake smiled and placed a hoof on her shoulder. She looked up at him curiously, but he just continued to smile.

Finally the silence was broken.

“Pinkie, you’re just like a daughter to us. We’re very proud of you for going to school; you have nothing to prove to us. If you need some time away from the shop then we’re more than happy to help. You’re family to us Pinkie.” He smiled.

Pinkie nodded and placed the bags on the ground.

“Thank you Mr. Cake,” was all she could manage to say.

He nodded and gestured for her to head upstairs.

“Thank you, we hope to see you again!” Pinkie grinned at the set of customers.

She truly was the main attraction at the Sugar Cube Corner. Seeing her was enough of a reason for any pony to come by.

“Pinkie, would you mind looking after the store front for a few minutes by yourself? The twins need our attention right now, we’ll only be a few minutes,” Mrs. Cake asked as she juggled one of the children and a set of clean diapers.

Pinkie nodded.

“It’s no trouble, I’ve got it under control,” Pinkie assured.

Mrs. Cake replied with a weak smile and took the child to the back room. Pinkie giggled to herself thinking about the children.

Moving to clean the counter top the little bell above the door announced the arrival of some new customers. Pinkie looked up to greet them with her usual attitude; however she paused upon seeing them.

She recognized the lot of them. All students from her class, all well bred from rich families. And there she was, a lowly small town girl struggling to balance a job and going to school. The tension between them had always been very high to say the least.

“What can I get you?” Pinkie faked politeness.

“Pinkie Pie, so you really do work in a bakery then? How sad…” The oldest of the group teased.

“I’m not looking for a hard time guys…” Pinkie spoke quietly.

He seemed to enjoy her frustration.

“It’s a good thing we didn’t ask what you wanted then isn’t it?” He replied slyly.

Let me at him.

“Please guys; I don’t want any trouble…” Pinkie smiled sheepishly.

He placed his front hoof on the counter and leaned in.

“And what are you going to do about it?” He spoke.

Leave him to me… I can get rid of him.

“Hey!” The voice of Mr. Cake came from behind Pinkie.

“Stop giving my employees a hard time. If you’re not going to buy anything then get out,” he scolded.

The oldest took his hoof off the counter and gestured for the others to follow him out the door. He muttered some curse under his breath on his way out, no doubt directed at Pinkie and possibly Mr. Cake.

“Are you alright Pinkie?” Mr. Cake placed a hoof on her shoulder.

“Yeah, I just… Need to use the bathroom that’s all…” She lied.

“Alright,” he replied lowering his hoof from her.

Hastily Pinkie ran to the bathroom upstairs near her room. She didn’t need just any bathroom, she needed that particular one.

Gazing at herself in the mirror, she noticed sweat was drenching her face at this point.

Reaching into the cabinet behind the mirror she searched around for a bottle of pills.

You should have let me handle them…

“Stop talking,” Pinkie retorted.

Slipping a set of pills into her mouth she swallowed them without any water. She returned to looking at herself in the mirror.

“The answer is 4,852,” Pinkie spoke.

“That is correct Pinkie… You’re well on your way to becoming valedictorian material for this class,” the instructor responded.

“Thank you sir,” Pinkie nodded.

Not twenty seconds later the end class bell rang throughout the building. Every student started packing their things and preparing to go home.

Pinkie was putting her things away and preparing to go back to the shop and study, she’d hoped she’d be able to catch up on her sleep this weekend.

“Hey freak show!” Some familiar voices called out to her.

She attempted to ignore them and focus on putting her belongings away. Unfortunately they were a persistent bunch and approached her.

“So, how’s life at the bakery?” He joked.

Pinkie knew all too well he wasn’t truly interested.

“Fine, now please leave me alone…” She spoke quietly.

“No friend to help you now, huh? Not so tough anymore are you?” He tapped her shoulder with his hoof.

Give him to me.

“Please, you’re going to make something happen that you won’t like…” Pinkie pleaded.

The group laughed.

“Please, I’m warning you…” Pinkie repeated.

Just let me have him…

“Or you’ll do what? Throw a cake at us?” The leader of the group teased.

Give me control; I can handle him, Pinkie Pie…

“Just walk away…” Pinkie warned.

He responded by pushing her.

“Or else what…?” He asked.

GIVE HIM TO ME PINKIE! THAT’S AN ORDER!

“Fine, you can have him!” Pinkie yelled out loud.

The group turned to each other confused at her outburst, uncertain who she was talking to.

With a flick of her head her mane fell from its usual fluffy form and gracefully draped her face. Her expression turned to one of malice and seriousness. She seemed much of intimidating than she had only moments ago.

“I am only giving you one more warning… Step away… Or else.” She smirked.

“Or else what?” He dared ask.

Pinkie charged forward and slammed him against the wall, pinning him there with her front hoof. Getting close to him she stared into his eyes with fireballs in the place of her own.

“I bet you think it’s funny picking on those less fortunate than you? I bet you feel so much more superior to them… Knowing that they’ll never fight back, am I right?” Pinkie’s voice became filled with venom.

He only responded by struggling to escape.

“I’m letting you off easy this time… Just remember sometimes you may push a pony too far… And the results could be very… Unfavorable…” She whispered into his ear.

She let him drop to the floor at that moment.

“Mess with me again, see what happens,” she added before her exit.

“SHUT UP! JUST STOP TALKING! I’M SICK OF YOU! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!” Pinkie screamed.

Pinkie knocked over her nearby vanity in frustration. All of the contents fell to the floor, and the mirror shattered into thousands of shards.

“I’m not giving control back to you! I don’t need you anymore, I can handle myself now!” Pinkie protested out loud.

“I’m sick of you Pinkie Pie, everything about you. I’m sick of your annoying, insufferable laughter!” She yelled.

Pinkie clutched her head in between her front hooves. Her headache was only growing the more she resisted.

“No, I’m Pinkamena Diane Pie. That’s who I am now, and that’s how it’s going to stay! I’m in control, I don’t need you anymore! I don’t want you anymore! Get out of my head!” She screeched.

Pinkie banged her head on the wall repeatedly, trying to silence the inner voice. She bludgeoned her own skull until blood trickled from her forehead. Her argument was interrupted however by a knock at the door, followed by the voice of Mr. Cake.

“Pinkie? Are you alright in there?”

Pinkie took a deep inhale and exhale, and then brushed her straight mane with her hooves as she composed herself.

She opened the door casually.

“Yeah, I’m fine Mr. Cake; I just was practicing this play we have to learn for English class, that’s all…” She lied.

Mr. Cake had an expression of confusion on his face.

“How’d you break the vanity?” He raised an eyebrow.

“I fell,” she lied yet again.

Mr. Cake nodded and trotted into the room. Pinkie brought herself down to the bed and sat down as he wandered around the room inspecting it for other damages.

“I’ve just been worried about you that’s all…” He finally came out with.

Pinkie gestured for him to join her on the bed. He nodded and sat down beside her.

“You’ve been working so hard, and I just don’t like seeing you so stressed out. You’ve been acting different the past few days, and I was just wondering if anything was bothering you,” he said.

It was just like him, always looking out for her. She laughed a little inside at his devotion to her well being. He was far more noble and fatherly than he looked.

“I’m perfectly fine, in fact I think I’m about to be better than I’ve ever been. I was struggling to figure out who I am for a while there, but I think I finally know…” She grinned slyly.

“Well, as long as nothing is bothering you…” He smiled weakly.

“It’s you that I’m worried about Mr. Cake…” She spoke at a nearly inaudible level.

Mr. Cake looked dumbfounded at her comment, before asking “why’s that?”

Not even a split second after he had asked she pulled him onto the bed and pinned him down, leaning over him carefully. Her hair fell onto his neck gingerly as she stared into his eyes. She looked far more powerful than the Pinkie Pie he had known, and far more intimidating. She had a stare that could paralyze a colt within a split second; he was proving it right there and then.

“I’m afraid that you’ll fall to temptation Mr. Cake… It’s always right there in front of you… Waiting for you to take just a nibble of the pleasures it offers…” She whispered.

“I wouldn’t-“ He was cut off.

“Don’t lie, Mr. Cake. I can see it in your eyes, you’re just a colt, and how can you deny your own instincts? It would be so easy for you to slip up and take it… After all, we’re all creatures who live for pleasure aren’t we?” She smiled cunningly.

Mr. Cake could feel sweat drip down his neck.

“Cup-“ He was silenced again.

“Doesn’t need to know about this,” Pinkie said.

“There’s no reason to worry her… I’ll protect you Mr. Cake… I’ll make sure that you don’t fall to the pleasures of temptation…” She smiled.

Mr. Cake was silent, his heart beating furiously, almost ready to rip out of his chest.

Pinkie crawled off of him. Carefully he slid out from under her and approached the door quietly. His expression remained unchanged the entire time. He knew that it would be best to not let Mrs. Cake in on this meeting of theirs’.

“Say Mrs. Cake, do you ever worry about Mr. Cake?” Pinkie questioned.

Mrs. Cake looked down from the ladder she was on with a confused look upon her face. She threw down the supplies she was getting for Pinkie to catch. Retreating down the ladder she responded.

“What do you mean dear?” She asked.

“Aren’t you worried? I mean there’s a lot of young mares that come in here every day, it’d be pretty easy for him to give into them don’t you think?” Pinkie replied.

“Well-“ Mrs. Cake didn’t get a chance to even finish.

“Plus with your coming of age it’s hard to compete with these young mares…” Pinkie smirked.

Mrs. Cake bit her lower lip.

“A-am I really that old looking…?” She stuttered.

“Nah, not too old, though a little make up can’t hurt…” Pinkie winked.

“Right… A little make up…” Mrs. Cake replied.

“I told you before Pinkie Pie, I’m just experimenting with them. I’ve always been fascinated with social experiments.” Pinkie spoke out loud.

Pinkie sighed and shook her head in disappointment.

“You would think that Pinkie Pie, you’re so content with being stuck in the same place and never moving forward. Me however, I want to change all of pony kind. I want to find the solutions to our problems; I want to be the one behind evolution.” Pinkie spoke.

A small tap was heard at the door.

She answered it to be greeted by Mr. Cake standing at the doorway.

“Ah, Mr. Cake, please come in.” She gestured.

“That won’t be necessary,” he replied.

Pinkie could detect something was wrong with him.

“Pinkie, I don’t know what’s happened to you over the past few months, but I don’t like it. Mrs. Cake doesn’t either. What’s happened to you? Where’s the Pinkie Pie that we love?” He was nearly in tears.

Pinkie sighed and turned her head away from him.

“She’s gone… And she’s not coming back…” Pinkie said.

“Well, whoever you are now, you’re gone too.” His voice became tense.

Pinkie turned to face him.

“We want you out of here by the end of the week. Whatever has happened to you, we don’t like it and we’ve had enough. You’re not welcome here anymore.” He turned away in disgust.

Pinkie didn’t cry, she didn’t scream, she didn’t even over react. Mr. Cake was prepared for hysterics from her, but instead she calmly approached him and smiled.

“It’s been fun then,” was all she said.

“What happened then?” I asked.

“I never saw them again until I came here,” Pinkie replied.

I was a little confused by her story.

“I don’t get it…” I said.

Pinkie turned to face me.

“What don’t you get?” She asked quietly.

“Why did you want to be Pinkamena so badly? It sounds like being Pinkamena ruined everything you had. No offense but it sounds like you ruined Pinkie Pie’s life…” I lowered my head.

Pinkie laughed at my comment.

“Oh Flare… You have it all backwards…” She giggled.

I tilted my head.

“You’re assuming that Pinkie Pie came first,” she said.

I blinked.

“Are you saying…?” I didn’t know how to finish that question.

“Yes. Pinkamena isn’t some persona I created for myself, Pinkie Pie is. I created her so many years ago, and I couldn’t let go of her… Until recently,” she explained.

If what she was saying was true, that meant that she was Pinkamena before Pinkie Pie.

“Why did you create her?” I asked.

“Fear.”

“Fear of what?” I questioned.

“Myself… I was always afraid of what I’d be willing to do, and how far I’d be willing to go… I created Pinkie Pie to keep me from going over the edge, from stepping too far over the line. I could give the illusion that I was happy, and maybe if I kept smiling then I’d actually feel happy… It wasn’t until recently that some pony taught me it’s better to be who you are than to live a lie…” She rambled.

She was speaking very quietly.

“Who was that?” I asked.

She smiled.

“You.”

I remained silent. I had nothing prepared to respond to that with. She took advantage of the silence and moved closer to me, pressing her body close to mine.

“I heard about you two going to Cloudsdale… It’s very dangerous there, do me a favor and come back alive, alright?” She whispered into my ear.

“I’ll try,” was all I thought to say in response.

Pinkie giggled lightly and whispered again.

“Perhaps you need a good luck charm?”

“And what would that be?” I questioned.

Not saying another word she grabbed my head and turned me towards her. Planting a deep kiss upon my lips I was momentarily stunned. It was the same as before, I couldn’t react, instead I let my muscles relax and enjoy it.

I could smell her breath, she must have had some kind of gum recently because she smelled minty, and tasted very sweet.

It must have been rather awkward for her, the way she kissed it was clear she was a grown mare, and I clearly kissed like I was still a little colt.

“Don’t kiss that Flare you don’t know where it’s been.” Vinyl’s voice spoke from across the room.

Parting lips the two of us looked in her direction.

“I was just-“ I was cut off.

“Yeah, yeah, come on lover boy we’ve got a transport waiting for us. You get to play soldier with me, it’s your lucky day.” She smirked.

Before she made her exit she made sure to throw another few demeaning comments in Pinkie’s direction. Pinkie only responded with smiles.

Turning to Pinkie I attempted to make sense of her actions once again.

“The last time you kissed me, you told me you didn’t feel anything, so why’d you do it again?” I questioned.

“Flare, you’re talking to a girl who doesn’t even understand what love is. It was for good luck, nothing more.” She assured.

It was a typical answer of her.

“What about you?” She asked.

Oddly, I didn’t feel any kind of romance towards her either. The first girl who had ever kissed me, not once but twice, yet the only thing I felt towards her was that she was a trusted friend. Nothing sparked between the two of us.

“You’re just a friend,” I replied.

She laughed.

“You sure are a surprise Flare; I hope you stay that way,” She said.