Louis’ note: Hmm…
“Comedy” and “Random”. Yeah, I should really change the tags. This is not a comedy anymore.

…Well, there is nothing here.

Uhm, maybe it’s not the exact place… We should look inside the boutique…

Nothing inside, Shy. Look, Pinkie, I think you should tell us everything. Why are we here? Who told you that Carousel Boutique was an important place? Maybe you didn’t understand…

Yes! I’m sure! Canon-Pinkie and Canon-Twilight said they will be here, and we will meet in Ponyville! Right, Aragón?

For Celestia’s sake, at least you could try to explain something! Who the hell are those Canon-two you’re talking about?!

The human was still looking at the notebook, panting like a dog. He didn’t listen to Pinkie. His mind was completely centered on the hour.
From 5:23 p.m. to 8: 34 p.m. Around three hours completely lost. The walk between Froggy Bottom Bog and Ponyville had longed no more than thirty minutes.
Aragón looked at the sky. The sun was hiding, and everything seemed red or orange. There were a few clouds, but no birds.
The human sighed and looked at the three ponies. He was slowly recovering, and now he seemed to breathe more easily. Fluttershy, Pinkie and Pinkie-who-talks-in-red were looking at him with a worried face.

…Aragón?

A-are you okay? Your face… you seem… worried…

Terrified. He seems terrified, Shy. I’ve seen that face a thousand times before. What’s happening?

Aragón put the notebook on the ground, right next to the two books he was also carrying. Gulping, he looked at Pinkie.
“I think something is happening, girls. Come here.”

…

What do you mean, “something”?

“Look at the sky, Pinkie”, said the author. “Pinkie-who-talks-in-pink, I mean. Can’t you see it? We’re at dusk. When we talked to Canon-Pinkie and Canon-Twilight, the sun was up there. It was half past five or so. Now it’s half past eight”.

Ah?

Gasp! You’re right! It’s very late! But…!

When Fluttershy and I were talking with Chrysalis, the sun was not so down, I think. But it was a hour ago, so it’s natural…

“I’m not talking about that.” The human frowned and looked at the notebook again. “Look, do you know what this is?”

Some kind of computer?

“Yes. It’s from the readers.” The author shook his head. “For some reason, we have Internet here, but that’s not the point. Computers like this had a clock, and it never fails. As I said, we jumped from half past five to half past eight”.

…

...

…
I… I don’t know what to think…

Me neither. It’s a bad thing?

We can’t be sure.

“Yeah, but I don’t like it.” Aragón frowned. “ Greentalk seems to know everything about this world, and we don’t know anything. And now we’re time travelling? If we don’t find why, that’s just another disadvantage to us.”
The human looked at Pinkie. “Listen, I know you want to make everything a surprise, but they need to know what has happened. We desperately need Pinkie-who-talks-in-red, she’s probably our best ally now… No offense, Fluttershy.”

O-oh, don’t worry. I know I can be useless…

You’re not useless, Fluttershy! We need you, I’m sure!

“That’s not what I meant”. The author smiled. “Sorry if I didn’t explain myself. Fluttershy, I know you have some abilities we need, and we’ll need them a lot. The thing is: Pinkamena is also very useful, and it’s exactly what we need now.”

…

Oh, no, no, I’m not mad at you. And I’m sure Pinkie –well, Pinkie-who-talks-in-red –can help us a lot.

“She and Twilight are the smartest, everypony knows it,” said Aragón. “And, in fact, I think Pinkie-who-talks-in-red is even better than Twily. After all, she’s the serious version of Pinkie-who-talks-in-pink.”

What do you mean?

“I mean that your brain is something out of this world” Aragón sighed. “You seem to understand things that we don’t… but, well, you’re Pinkie Pie. I don’t see if you can explain anything to us.”

Hey!

Uh… that doesn’t seem very…

…

“Pinkie, you had a chat with Invisible Underlined Alicorn that nopony understood.” The human took the Let’s write a fanfic book and opened it searching for the fourth chapter. “Surely, now that’s useless, because Invisible Underlined Alicorn is… not here anymore, but the thing is: this world is easier to understand for you…. Oh, here it is! At this level, rainbow and you are exactly equal. Since you have no control and her personality has become aware of itself, she’s the epitome of independence, and like the bird which abandon its parent’s nest, the multiple dimensions of what you know as ‘reality’ are at the same time inside and outside her. that’s the reason why she can cross the infinite line, the one that must not be named, and then overthrow the wall of time, space and imagination, thus making her soul and mind become atoms and escape from the infinite white of the ‘collective mind’.”

…

Eh… What?

Oh, that’s easy! It’s what Invisible Underlined Alicorn said when Dashie kicked you!

“Yeah. It was the first time one of you went outside the computer and hit me.” Aragón rolled his eyes. “Back at then, it seemed something weird. Ha! And now I’m in Equestria. Crazy world we live in… But I’m getting sidetracked.” The author shook his head. “Pinkie-who-talks-in-pink, you can understand this. So, I guess you can understand it too, Pinkie-who-talks-in-red. Right?”

…
Yes. Invisible Underlined Alicorn said it in a weird way, but it’s something easy if you understand the metaphor.

“I knew it.” Aragón smiled. “You seem… sharper than Pinkie-who-talks-in-pink.”

…
…

Uh… Pinkie-who-doesn’t-talk-in-red… Are you all right?

..
What happened to you, Aragón?

“Ah?”

You… you seem cleverer than before. Or at least, you seem less stupid, which is even more unusual. What the hell happened?

Well… he was hit by a hammer, and then he talked in purple, and…

What?!

You talked in purple?!

“Hmmm.” Aragón bit his lip. “Well, yes. It’s a very long story, so…”

And what’s that book?! Who are Canon-Pinkie and Canon-Twilight? Where are Dash, Applejack, Twilight and Rarity? What do you know about Invisible Underlined Alicorn and what do you mean with “he’s not here anymore”? Why are we here? Explain! EXPLAIN, GODDAMNIT!

Ih!

Oh!

“Ok, ok, no need for you to scream. You’re scaring Fluttershy and Pinkie-who…”

Stop! Right there!
Sigh… look, I need to calm down, I need to calm down. I get it. But right now, there’s a lot of stuff happening, and I need to know what the hell are we facing. So, shut the hell up. All of you.

But…

I said ALL OF YOU! And I mean it! I’ve killed before, you know?! I can do it again if I hear another word! Shut the HELL UP!

…

…

Aragón gulped.

Ugh. Fine. My god, you can be annoying.
No, no. Sorry. I mean… agh. This situation is just… I need to get everything. And the last thing we need now is getting sidetracked. And that’s what you’re always doing.

…

Well, maybe not you, Shy, but that’s not the point.

The human blinked twice before giggling. He tried to cover his mouth with his hand, but he failed miserably.

I’m not asking you why you are laughing because I don’t want to get sidetracked, mind you. But this is serious. Stop it.

The author nodded.

Good.
Now, let’s see. You seem to know a lot of things, and Fluttershy and I know a lot of things, and we need to put things in order. So, I’ll ask you one question a time, Aragón, and you’ll answer me. And you’ll say nothing but the answer. Pinkie, you can help him if he’s not explaining himself very well, but I don’t want you to interrupt him. Shy, don’t talk and listen carefully.
Get it?! And answer with “yes” or “no”, or I’ll be angry!

Y-yes.

Yes!

Aragón smiled. “You sound just like my mother. I mean, yes.”

Good. Finally. We’re not leaving this place until we have something clear.

***

My, my, my. You can’t do anything without me, huh?

Hnng… My head hurts.

Well, luckily for you, I have good news. Rainbow Dash and Applejack are off. They won’t be a problem anymore.

And… Twilight Sparkle and the white unicorn?

Rarity? Oh, don’t worry. Sadly, I haven’t played with them, but that’s because they were too dangerous.
They’re dead.

Are you sure?

Oh, believe me. I burned their bodies. They’re just ashes right now.
By the way, I love the new outfit.

What are you talking ab…
…
I’m going to kill every damn reader of this thing. They wore me with leather?!

It suits you very well. Very… how’s the word? Dominating.

I hate you.

You’re welcome.

***

I’ll start with the most important one. Who the hell are Canon-Twilight and Canon-Pinkie?

Aragón scratched his head. “I’m not really sure, but… They’re two ponies Pinkie and I met at Fluttershy’s home. That’s where we appeared after Greentalk teletransported us, by the way…”

…

“All right, all right, I’m not getting sidetracked, I swear!” The sight of Pinkie-who-talks-in-red’s face was enough for Aragón to know he was not saying what she wanted. “Well, we where there, trying to plan something to save Peewee and Spike, who were…”

I’ll ask about them later. Now, go to the Canon-two.

“Yes, yes. Sorry.” Aragón cleared her throat. “We were at Fluttershy’s when suddenly, we saw another Twilight and another Pinkie there. I saw they weren’t you and our Twilight because they talked in a weird way. Like…”

With pictures! They had a picture of their faces right next to the thing they were saying!

They talked in pictures? That’s… new. Very, very new.

“I thought the same thing. I don’t know if that means they’re on a higher level. What do you think?”

It’s impossible for us to know that. But it’s radically different from what I’ve ever s-Wait! Pinkie!

Yes?

You can talk with pictures, right?! You did it back in the eighth chapter!

She’s right!

“Oh, yeah. You totally did it.” Aragón looked at Pinkie. “But it wasn’t like Canon-Pinkie. It was…”

[img] http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/8671/loveface.png [/img]

Hnng.

Ick!

“That was scaring as shit. Also, that face is disturbingly sexy. Please don’t do that anymore.” Aragón shivered. “But the thing is: that’s not the way Canon-Pinkie talked. She was completely different.”

I can’t talk like them. I tried but that’s the closest I can get!

…

What do you think, Pinkie? Pinkie who-talks-in-red, I mean?

I think a lot of things. For example, Aragón just said “shit” and there was no censorship.
But as I said before, we should stop getting sidetracked. I’ll talk about this later. Now, continue with your story, Aragón.

“Oh, of course. Let’s see…” The human scratched his head again. “They introduced themselves as ‘Spike’s friends’. They also said that Spike is the real author of this story…”

That only makes sense if we have another author.

Aragón nodded. “Yeah, I know. If that’s true, somebody created Spike, who created me, and I created you.”

I was created by Pinkie-who-talks-in-pink, so that makes… four creators for me. And we don’t even know if there are more.

“What?! You were created by…?!”

Later. Continue with your story.

“Ah. Sorry. It’s kinda difficult, you see, with something distracting me every second.” The author sighed again. He was sighing a lot recently. “Let’s see… Canon-Twilight explained that she commanded Spike to write a book, in which I was the protagonist. And in that book, I wrote a book, and then you came.”

They confirmed our theory?

“Yes.”

I see. Continue.

“They said that they come from Spike’s world, and so does Greentalk.” Aragón frowned. “In other words, Canon-Pinkie, Canon-Twilight, Greentalk, Spike and Peewee –that is, Invisible Underlined Alicorn –are higher than us.”

Oh, no… Then, they’re more real than us…

But we can go higher, right? We can just jump, and then we’ll defeat Greentalk!

We already defeated her. It was Chrysalis all along.

“What?!” Aragón opened his eyes wide. “You defeated Greentalk?! It’s not a menace anymore?!”

That’s what I thought, yes. But we’re trapped here, and we’ve traveled in time, so… Maybe she’s still a menace. I’ll explain it later.

The author sighed. Again. “Well, I’m happy to know that… But I don’t think we can go higher than them, Pinkie.”

What?! Why?!

“Think about it.” Aragón looked at her. “When we go higher, we break the fourth wall, right? That’s why the higher ones can talk in color, and that’s why some of you can read the comments and things like that.”

…

Well… yes?

“Greentalk –I mean, Chrysalis –is from the world of our author. So, he’s like Spike, right? Higher. Real. We’re just characters in a novel. It doesn’t matter how much we break the fourth wall, we’ll never be at her level.”

…
Oh, no…

W-what? Then, you’re saying that we can’t…?

I’m amazed by your intelligence, Aragón, but you’re wrong.

Huh?

“What?”

Yes!

You’re forgetting that Spike is also fake. He may be our creator, but he was created by someone too, right? Then, we’re on the same level. At last, we’re all part of the same story –the one the real author is writing. So, they may be higher, but we can ascend until we’re exactly like them.

Aragón frowned. “That makes sense…” A smile appeared in her face. “Then, we can win?”

Well, you’re our author and we’re already higher than you, so yes. If somepony is fake, he can be in every level of the cake.

Phew…

Yes!

“Well, that’s great.” Aragón sighed, in relief. “But at the end, with the real author…”

I don’t know if we can be completely real, but at least we’ll be higher than anything else. I’m the proof that a character can escape from a fanfic, so don’t lose your hope.

The three ponies and the human quiet down. The sky was now almost completely red. The temperature started to go down.

It’s getting late. Continue with the story, please.

“Yes. After this, Canon-Pinkie felt a combo. She said her Pinkie Sense was talking to her…”

It was! I recognized the combo! It said that somepony was here, in Carousel Boutique! And that something big was going to happen in Froggy Bottom Bog!

That’s me defeating Chrysalis, I guess.

And then they said that we should separate and meet again in Ponyville and they disappeared and we used the starly things and we went with you!

“Exactly.” Aragón nodded and looked to the Pinkie who talked in red. “That’s all. They were gone as fast as they came. I didn’t have time to talk with them, or to ask them something more. I didn’t even showed them this book!” said, raising the Superfantasticalstory book.

Yeah!

Huh. Weird. Did they say who are they looking for?

“I think they’re looking for us”, answered the human. “They want to rescue Spike and Peewee and help us.”

Why?

Canon-Twilight said there is no need for a reason to help somepony!

An altruistic one. How refreshing.

Uhm… Aragón?

“Yes?”

That book… What’s written in it?

“You mean this one?” asked the author, pointing at the Superfantasticalstory. “It’s from the readers… it’s basically our story. Everything the readers had read, I think. Pinkie and I haven’t read the entire thing, because…”

WHAT?!

Aragón winced when Pinkie-who-talked-in-red screamed at his ear. “Eh… what’s the matt…?”

You have a BOOK that tells EVERYTHING and you haven’t read it? Are you nuts?!

“Well, we didn’t have the opportunity, if you want me to be honest. Also, there are some parts that are… difficult to read…”

…
Peewee… was being tortured by Chrysalis. We couldn’t read that.

WHAT?! T-tortured?! A-as in…?! In…?!

“It’s not so bad!” said Aragón. Fluttershy seemed traumatized. “Pinkie’s exaggerating! Greentalk was just being rude to Peewee! There was no hurting, I swear!”

I-I don’t feel very well… How can she do something like that?! Peewee’s just a baby!

Oh, no! Fluttershy, I didn’t want you to be worried! Sorry! I just…

…
Tch. You’re just too fragile. But I guess it’s normal. You’re so innocent…

Aragón approached Pinkie-who-talked-in-red while the other Pinkie was talking to Fluttershy. “They had never seen anything grimdark. It was a strong hit for Pinkie… That’s the reason why I talked in purple, I think.”

I know, I know. I guess you couldn’t do anything if that’s the case. But we should read the book right now. It would be easier for me to understand everything. Really, you don’t need to tell me what has happened to you. I mean, I can read it.

“I guess you’re right.” Aragón nodded. “But… Peewee was being tortured, and I don’t want those two to read something like that again…”

Don’t worry. I’ve seen enough traumatized ponies in my fics, so I don’t want that either.

…
What are you two talking about?

Oh, it’s nothing. We’re going to read this book, Shy. There is no need for us to explain anything. Reading will be faster.

…
But…

I read really fast. If I see something bad in the pages, I want you two to just look away. Understood?

But…! If something bad is happening, I want to know it!

Yeah! They are our friends!

That was an order, girls, not a question.

You’re not our leader!

“But I am.” Aragón looked at the two cream-colored ponies. “I think the same, girls. Just… if she says something, obey her. She’s our leader now. It’s the best one we can get.”

…

…

Understood?

“We just want to protect you. Just… do what she says.”

…
Okie-dokie.

I’ll do it… but you’ll tell us everything!

Understood. Let’s read, then… No, wait. What’s that second book, Aragón?

“A guide to write well”, answered the author. “The readers gave it to us too. It’s a manual. I’ve read a few pages. It’s quite frustrating, but I guess it makes some sense.” The human smiled. “Maybe the readers wanted me to be a better author. Something unnecessary, because I’m already very good, right?”

I changed my mind.

“What?”

Fluttershy, Pinkie and I read this book. You read that one.

“What?” Aragón frowned. “But…”

I’m the leader, right? Then obey me. Read the fucking book. If you become a better author, you can be very useful. You’re our creator after all.

…

…

She’s got a point.

Eyup.

“But I don’t like it!” whined the human. “It’s boring, and it says I’m not a good writer! But I am!”

Oh, god, I’ve forgotten that side of yours.

“What are you implying?”

Look, I’m the smart one, right? Then, read the book. I don’t want complaints.

“But…”

Read the book! NOW!

“Ok, ok!” The author sighed again. “Now I regret saying that we should follow your orders.”

What a shame.

…It’s getting dark. I don’t see the letters very well…

The computer has light! We can use it as a lamp!

Hmm. You’re right. Let’s start with this now. Maybe we’ll find why there is nothing here.

Aragón approached the notebook too and opened his own book. “Are you going to read everything?” asked. “The entire book?”

No. I’ll start with Chrysalis’ first apparition. Maybe she said or did something useful.

***

Then we have only four protagonists?

No. Three protagonists and one villain. Pinkamena is in our side. Even she knows that one day she’ll betray her friends.

Hmm. Can you walk?

Yes. Where are they?

In Carousel Boutique, of course. Every single one of them will die in that place.

Let’s go then.

Oh, come on. You want to fly?

What else can we…? Oh. Of course.

Of course.

*Bzeeeep*

***

The place was unusually silent. The three ponies were reading the Superfantasticalstory book, while Aragón had the How-to-write manual. It was not a funny book. A chapter completely devoted to plot and genres, and after that, one that talked about characters.
“The protagonist: what can you expect from your hero?” read the human. “Oh, come on.”

Hmm… It seems like in the beginning Chrysalis fooled Invisible Underlined Alicorn. She acts like Spike, advertising Spike’s blog…

What’s a blog?

Something like a comic. Saying that in the story was enough for her to fool Invisible Underlined Alicorn. It seems like in the sixth chapter there’s nothing useful…

She stopped Peewee because he thought you were going to…kill Aragón? What a funny idea!

…

Yeah. Funny. Ha, ha, ha.

“Wait, what?” Aragón raised his head and looked at the three ponies. “What did you say about killing me?”

Nothing. Go back to your book.

The human growled and continued with the guide. Fortunately, that chapter was more interesting than the first one.

Let’s see… you realize you were fake, and I appeared for the first time. Hmm. Chrysalis, Aragón realizing he’s fake, you realizing you’re fake, my first apparition… Chapter six was very serious, right?

…

Everything was funny until that chapter! Then, it all started to go down, and… now we’re…

“The story started”, muttered Aragón.

What?

“The first chapters were just an introduction… something for the readers to know the characters, the world, the narration… everything. Then, it changed genre, from comedy to drama. Dramatic comedy, in fact.” The human looked at the ponies. “It’s something common. Comedy authors write serious plots when they want to be taken seriously. The effect is… interesting. It can be pretty good, if you ask me.” He looked at the book again. “It’s called ‘Cerebrus Syndrome’ on the Internet, because a comic called ‘Cerebrus’, which is a cult classic, at least in my opinion, did it masterfully.”

…

…

…

Aragón blinked. Suddenly, the silence was heavier than usual. “What?”

By Celestia’s mane, I can hear you becoming smarter. Continue with the book.

“But…”

Continue with the book!

“Ok, ok!”

Hmpf.
Let’s see… Seventh chapter. Oh? Well, that’s weird.

What? It’s just Chrysalis talking with the invisible underlined alicorn. I don’t see the problem…

She calls him stupid. And she calls Pinkie-who-talks-in-red a psycho. That’s very mean.

I’m not talking about that. Invisible Underlined Alicorn was expecting Aragón to react in a different manner… he talks about the suspense of the previous chapter. He talks like if this was a story written by a bad author, nor real life…

It’s strange to read what happened… It feels like everything was just a lie.

…

…

…

Well, this is a sto…

Yes, I just realized that was a stupid comment. Please don’t talk about it.

Oh.

It just feels weird, like Shy said. You lose your vision. Everything is so… clear. So simple.

“You know, reading this stuff would be easier if you stopped talking” said Aragón, raising an eyebrow. “It’s hard to concentrate in the book without noise, if you get what I mean.”

Shut up and read. We need to talk. How else could I explain what happens to these two?

“But…”

Stop arguing, Aragón! We want to read!

“Oh, come on.” The author continued reading. The book was still talking about protagonists. “For the god of…”

Fluttershy and Pinkie, don’t read this sentence.

Why?

It’s… a lie from Chrysalis. Believe me, you don’t want to read it again. You’ll get angry.

“What does she say?” asked Aragón. “No, no, I’m reading, I swear. It’s just…”

The line talks about you and Sweetie Belle. You get it?

“Oh”. Color abandoned Aragón’s face as he understood what the line saying was. Pinkie-who-talked-in-pink already knew he tried to ‘kill’ Sweetie Belle, but it was better for her not to remember it. “Oh. Yeah, don’t read it.”

…

Sweetie Belle? You mean…?

Stop there, Pinkie. Aragón, the book.

“Yes, mommy.”

And stop with the sarcasm!

“Yeah, yeah”

My conversation with Aragón… this doesn’t need to be read.

Chandler’s law? What’s that?

Chrysalis herself explains it a few lines later. Something about breaking a door.

Oh.

Do you know it, Aragón?

“Uh-huh.” The author didn’t raise the head. The book was interesting for once, talking about self-sacrifice and the real heroes. “Yeah. When in doubt, have a man come through a door with a gun. My favorite version is the one with ninjas.”

That book is magic, right?

Who knows. It works, which is perfect for us.

“I don’t know if I should feel insulted or flattered.”

You should continue reading.

“Got it.” It was funny this time, so the human was pleased for once. “I think this can be enjoyable after all.”

…

…

Hmm… Reading this, I realize that Rainbow is the slower one understanding things. Like Aragón.

That’s funny!

I don’t see where the funny part is, Pinkie. We shouldn’t be talking like this of our friends…

I’m just saying the truth, Shy.

Dashie and Aragón don’t like each other, but they are very similar! I’m sure that, on the inside, they really like each other.

He’s a brony. Of course he likes Rainbow Dash. She, on the other hoof…

Oh, Dash is a very kind pony. She’s just a little difficult to understand, but her heart is so big I’m sure she likes Aragón!

Yeah, well, she beat him with a baseball bat. Maybe you should reconsider Dash’s heart’s size. Just saying.
What?! Invisible Underlined Alicorn didn’t know he was fake?!

[color=yes]We didn’t know it either.

Yes, but him seemed to know almost everything about this world. I guess the story about Spike writing a book is true, then: The alicorn helped him and entered the book, knowing we were fake and the general plot, or something like that. I guess he was a co-writer or something like that. That would explain everything.

I didn’t think of that!

I’m not really sure if I’m understanding you…

Hmm. Think about the levels of the cake, please. Peewee thought he was on the higher one, the top of the cake. And he seemed to know everything about this world. That would make sense, right?

Yes?

But he was in the middle. Then, how’s that he knew so many things? Because he helped creating this world… that is, the lower levels of the cake. The levels written by Spike. Her knowledge didn’t come from his level, but from his work.

Ooooh.

“We’re talking about everything in sweet metaphors, right?” Aragón sighed. “There is no chance we can change, am I wrong? Because that would be awesome. I’m tired of all this cakes and cupcakes and things.”

How can you be tired of cakes?! You’re made of sugar!

…

…

What?

“She’s just being Pinkie”. The human shrugged. “Continue with the book and stop talking, please.”

…
[coor=red]Eighth chapter starting. Let’s go to the Chrysalis part, shall we? We already had this conversation, and it’s too long.

Oki-doki-loki!

Hmm. “For the sake of my green fire”, says Chrysalis. Wait, that was a joke?

Was she talking about Spike’s fire or her own fire?

“Foreshadowing”, said Aragón. “Is she talking with Peewee?”

Yes.

“Then she was foreshadowing her own identity. A joke, yes. Peewee thought she was talking about Spike’s fire, but in reality that was just a trick. I guess the readers thought the same.” The author laughed. “Very clever.”

Why would she…?

“She’s a villain. She doesn’t need any reason.” Aragón was almost finishing the protagonist-centered chapter. “I guess Chrysalis thought it was funny. If there’s an author out there, he just wanted to show her intelligence. It’s said that foreshadowing is the key to good literature.”

…

Hey, read this part with me. It’s just my imagination, or Dashie and Applejack seem a little… nervous?

Oh. There is tension between them.

“What are my ears hearing?” The author raised his head with a huge smile. “Appledash? There is sexual tension between those two? I knew it!”

Read that book and stop talking.

They’re just friends! Stop saying weird things!

“You’re boring.” Aragón obeyed Pinkie-who-talked-in-red with a frown on his face. “Very boring.”

Oh. Invisible Underlined Alicorn was Peewee after all.

We told you so.

Oh, I love that cute little phoenix. She’s just so lovely…

She’s also the editor of this story. See? I was right before. She helped Spike writing this.

What?

”I’m the one and only, the past, the future and the present. I’m you and I’m everything that is not you. I’m the soul of the world…” He’s the editor of this story. I mean, the one who tells Spike what’s right and what’s wrong. See? “I’m your dream, I’m your worst nightmare. I am the one, you are the other.” Seeing that this is a flashback, I guess she was talking to you when he said this, right Aragón?

“Yes.” The human frowned. “Are you saying that he was just explaining he was the editor? Really?”

How can you understand that?

Well… “The one and only, the past, the future and the present”. I guess he’s just saying he’s the only editor of this story. He edited the first chapter, he’s editing the present chapter and he’ll edit the future chapters.

But…

“That makes sense if he’s our writer too”, pointed Aragón. “I mean… if that’s the meaning, he can be saying ‘I wrote the past, the future and the present’. I remember asking him if he was a god or something. If he’s our writer, he’s our god.” The author bit his lip, trying to remember. “And he said something about being a lot of gods, or something…”

No, he’s not an author. Can’t you see it? He’s talking to you, so he “is your dream and your worst nightmare”. That describes an editor perfectly.

Can we go to chapter three? It’s where the original conversation was, or at least that’s what Peewee says…

Yeah! Give me the book… here! He’s talking to Aragón! Back at then, I talked like this. Do you remember it?

“How nostalgic.” Aragón smiled. “Things have changed a lot. Can you translate what he told me, Pinkie-who-talks-in-red?”

It’s easy, if you take his words as an editor’s advice. Don’t talk about this or you’ll die; he can control Pinkie for a second and sent her to the kitchen because, well, he’s the editor and back at then she was in a lower level…

I was in a lower level of the cake?

You just said you talked in italics. And, well, Peewee controlled you. So, I guess you were a bit lower than now, yes.

Oh, my.

Let’s see… “We are the same and extremely different”. Well, yes, both writers and editors work with words, but their jobs are very different. Indeed. You can’t see him, the sight is the most important sense and the least, only his mind is with you…

That doesn’t make much sense. Is he talking about descriptions?

Descriptions?

Maybe… but I don’t understand this part either. It’s like if he was talking about something different…

“Maybe he is.” Aragón rolled his eyes. “Who cares, anyway. He was a pain in the ass.”

Oh, look. He’s warning you about the… how did you call it? Cerberus Syndrome?

“Cerebrus”, corrected the author. “He talks about it?”

”If Pinkie reads the comments, it’s your doom”. She saw my picture and I became alive… and with me, the drama began. Well, with me and Chrysalis and all this “we are fake” stuff. Hey, he even says that Pinkie shouldn’t read fanfics.

Oooooh. I brought doom?

“No, I did.” The author sighed. “I was the one who didn’t pay attention to you and the comments. I’m sorr…”

Yeah, yeah, we know. Go to your book we don’t have time for apologies. Now all that crap is useless. And we should stop reading about Peewee, girls.

Yes… we should continue with Chrysalis.

Oki-doki-loki! Eighth chapter again!

Aragón nodded and continued reading. New chapter: ‘You have a story and a character: learn to narrate them’. “Ugh. Boring again, I guess.”

…

…

…

Uh? What’s this?

What?

Here… you say a lot of times that you can’t see any difference between Spike and Chrysalis. How is that? In Froggy Bottom Bog, you said you saw through her disguise!

Oh, that. Well, I lied.

Huh?

What?!

I thought it was obvious. She appeared like somepony named “Professor Marbles”, and she was talking in green. I just deduced she was Greentalk… and, well, talking in green and being able to look exactly like someone were two obvious clues.

B-but then… you weren’t able to see through her disguise?

No. I said so because I wanted to play with her mind a little. And, well, she was nervous all the time, so I guess it worked.

You lied? That’s very clever!

Well, I repeat it was obvious.

Oh, look. At the end of this chapter, Greentalk does that thing and split us into groups.

Yeah… Huh? What’s this? Chrysalis gave Peewee a clue about her identity?

Oh. What does that mean?

I think is some kind of… hyperlink. Aragón, you said we have Internet?

“Yes,” answered the author. “I guess we are in the Internet after all… the story is being posted in a webpage.”

Good point. Then, let me search the video…

“Nah, I’ll do it.” Aragón closed his book and took the notebook. “Typing with hooves must be difficult.”
The human opened the Internet and wrote the hyperlink at the searching bar. The result was a Youtube video.
Suddenly, the silent town was filled with music.

What? A song?

Catchy!

Uh, it’s… pretty good, I guess…

“Hey, I know this one!” Aragón smiled and moved his head following the rhythm of the song. “It’s ‘Discord’! It’s something like a brony anthem!”

…
‘Discord’?

“Yeah, it’s the name of the…” The author blinked. “Wait a moment. Greentalk’s saying he’s…?”

No way!

It has to be a lie!

…This makes no sense. I’m sure the Greentalk we defeated at Froggy Bottom Bog was Chrysalis!

“Maybe she was just lying”. Aragón frowned and turned off the music. “You know… like you did. She doesn’t need to say always the truth. Villains can lie if they want, right?”

Heroes can lie too! Because Pinkie-who-talks-in-red…!

I wouldn’t call myself a hero, Pinkie. But that’s not the point…
Aragón, what can you say about this song? You seem to know it…

“Well… it’s pretty popular.” The author shrugged. “It’s a remix by a musician known as ThelivingTombstone. And… that’s all, I think.”

Hmm.

Pinkie… You seem angry…

I’m not angry!

No, I’m talking about Pinkie-who-talks-in-red.

…I’m not angry, it’s just… I think I’m missing something here. And I don’t like it.

You mean she’s not lying? Greentalk is… He’s not Chrysalis?

No. I’m sure we defeated Chrysalis.

“Then, that clue is a lie.” Aragón sighed and took the manual one more time. “Don’t think about it too much or you’ll end up with a headache.”

…
Sigh. I guess you’re right. Let’s continue with the book, girls.

…

The human lied on the ground and continued reading. The chapter was slightly more boring than the last one, but at least it was more entertaining than the first one.
Right next to him, the three ponies did the same.

…

…

…

Intermedio… This is the chapter in which Peewee…

This is the chapter you aren’t going to read. But, what’s with the title? Why is in Spanish?

Spanish?

A language from the human world. “Intermedio” means something like “Interlude”.

“Oh, you talk Spanish?” Aragón raised his head and smiled. “¡Es mi lengua nativa! ¿Cómo es que sabes hablarla?”

What?

Uh?

He said Spanish is his native tongue. And also, he asked me why do I know how to talk in his beloved language.
I just understand it, I don’t know why. But I can’t talk in Spanish.

“That’s weird.”

I think it’s awesome! You two know two languages!

Yes! That’s very impressive!

Hmm.

…

…

“Something interesting in the Intermedio?” asked Aragón after a few minutes of silence. “Or it’s just…?”

The beginning is just Chrysalis being, eh… mean to Peewee. Oh, and the bird is censored by her, so we can assume she’s in a higher level. Nothing really new.

“I see.”

And… Ow. Oh, no. This…. I don’t like this.

What? What happens?!

The Elements of Harmony. I think… Chrysalis destroyed them.

…!

…!

The human’s eye twitched. “W-what?! You mean, the Elements of Harmony?!”

Well, I think they’re pretty unique, so yes. The Elements.

Oh, no! T-that’s terrible!

But…! The Elements can’t be just destroyed, right?!

“You’re right!” The author pointed at Pinkie. “Nightmare Moon broke them, and you restored them right?”

Yes!

You’re right! The Elements are inside us! They can’t be destroyed!

Oh. Maybe you’re right.

“Even if we were wrong, we don’t need the Elements”, pointed Aragón. “You already defeated Chrysalis, right? And you didn’t use magic…”

I used a rock tied to a hammer, which is faster than the Elements’ rainbow.

“Well, then there is no reason to worry.” The human looked at the book again. “By the way, I think we’re breaking the fourth wall so hard right now that we broke something.”

We’re just commenting the previous chapters…

And we’re explaining them!

Oh, goodness… It’s a bad thing to break the fourth wall?

“I don’t think so”, answered Aragón. “And, hey, we’re commenting the previous chapters in story. I mean… we have the book right here, and we’re reading it. The characters know they’re characters and read their own book even when they are still in it, and then explain things like foreshadowing or obscure metaphors.”

If you see it that way…

Are you sure it’s not bad?

To me, it sounds very funny! Pinkie-who-talks-in-red, can we read the book now?

Yeah, I’ve finished the Intermedio. And, surprise surprise, Chrysalis lied once. So it’s very easy for her to lie with the clue too.

“Where did she lie?”

You should continue reading, Aragón. Really.

“And I’m reading! I just ask questions when they need to be asked!”

Uh… Well, his question is interesting. Where did Chrysalis lie?

Do you remember when she said that Aragón was not able to react correctly to… eh… to me holding a knife against him?

Yes! Peewee called him stupid!

And Chrysalis said that, as the story is a comedy, there was no place for drama here…

“I still think I reacted the right way.” Aragón smiled. “I’m still alive after all.”

You had dumb luck, I got to admit it.
Well, it seems like everything Chrysalis said about this being a comedy is bullshit. Bad stuff can happen to us in any moment.

Oh.

…

“I kinda knew that already”, muttered the author. “But… Well, now its official, I guess.”

Let’s continue with the next chapter, girls. And Aragón…

“Manual.” The human sighed. “Yes, mommy.”

What did I say about sarcasm?

“Sorry, mommy.”

…

Pffft…

Teeh-heh-heh…

Hey! Did you two just giggled?!

Nope.

No, of course not.

…

Aragón covered his smile with the book. Red-talking Pinkie seemed pretty angry, but that only made the situation funnier.

…Idiots.
Ok, ninth chapter start –What?! There is a character we haven’t meet yet?

What do you mean?

Look at this! “Guy-who-hasn’t-appeared-yet’s note”! There is a character out there I don’t recognize!

Let me see it!

Where?

Here! He talks directly to the readers, as if he was the real author! Aragón, this is important!

“Hmmm.” Aragón was reading a new chapter, named ‘Overpowered characters, Deux ex Machinas, stories on the fly: Things you must not do’, and it was pretty interesting. “Yeah, well… Hmmm.”

By Princess Luna’s toaster, the one time I think I need your comments and you want to read?! Come here right now!

“Ok, ok! Geeeeez.” The author closed his manual and approached the flat maned pony. “Sorry, mommy. What were you saying?”

Aragón has changed, right?

Well, he looks smarter.

No, no… I mean, yes, he seems smarter, but… Look at his eyes. He seems more...

Dependable? He looks like someone you can trust in.

Yes! Exactly!

You two, come here right now! You should listen this too!

Oki-doki!

“Let’s see… Well, yes. It seems like there is a character we haven’t meet yet… And it’s a ‘he’, because he named himself ‘guy’”. The human nodded. “And… he’s the author?”

I guess so. He complains about the tags, he complains about… wait. The tags are still “Comedy” and “Random”?

“I can understand the last one.”

Why?

“Pinkie, mind you refresh my memory?” Aragón turned to the pink-talking Pinkie. “What are we made of?”

Sugar! And sweets!

Point taken.

Then… we have another author?

“Who knows.” The human frowned and read the note from the guy who hadn’t appeared yet. “He says that he’s not making an author’s note, that his words are a part of the story. That seems pretty author-y for me.”

That’s not a word.

He’s explaining the readers how to interact with the story.

“Right.” Aragón’s eyes landed on the tags part. “Oh, and here’s where he talks about the tags…” Then, he blinked. “Wait a minute. There is something off here.”

What?

“The tags. This story is lacking something.” Aragón’s eyebrow formed a ‘V’ as the author approached his face to the book. “It’s random, it’s a comedy –at least at the beginning -, but… what’s lacking?”

Dark? Adventure?

“No… Maybe?” The author bit his lip. “No. I think I know what’s lacking… but if I’m right…” A smile appeared in his face and the ‘V’ disappeared. “If I’m right… that’s a very good new, girls.”

Yes! I like good news!

What’s it?

“Eh…” He laughed, suddenly embarrassed. “Sorry, but… I can’t tell you.”

…

…

…

What.

“Think about it a moment. I know you’re defeated Chrysalis, but…” The human sighed. “What if we need to face another danger? What if another evil guy appears? We need to be prepared.” He coughed. “And… well, when the readers know about a plan before the plan itself starts, it never works. It’s pretty basic stuff when you’re writing a suspense novel. If a plan works, it needs to be a surprise for the bad ones and the readers. It’s more interesting this way.”

…
What.

“Look, I know what I’m saying, ok?” Aragón smiled. “We need to know everything this book says, but, just once, I need to save this information only for me.”

You know I’m a serial killer? You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry. And you’re making me very angry with this nosense.

Serial killer? Hah! That’s a good one!
But, really, Aragón, you should tell us.

“I’m the author, girls,” said the human. “At least I’m your author. Believe me: I’m doing this for the better.”

…

I trust you.

What?!

“Thanks, Fluttershy.”

But Shy, he’s hiding us…!

Look at his eyes, Pinkie. Both of you. We can trust him.

Well…
I… guess you’re right?

…
Argh. I can’t say no to you, Fluttershy. Congratulations, stupid author. You win this time,

“Oooh?” Aragón giggled. “You can’t say no to Fluttershy? Don’t tell me you two…”

We are very close friends, and if you even imagine something more, I’ll send you back to the hospital.

…

Aragón gulped. “Got it.”

Damn you shippers…

…
We should… continue reading?

Oki-doki-loki!

Hmm. He talks about the clue, that song… Oh, Chrysalis is cheating, he says. Then I was right?

“Well, that’s awesome, but we already told you not to think about it,” said the human. “Should I go back to my book now?”

I guess so. Next part shouldn’t be very interesting for you after all.

“Hmm?” Aragón raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

Well, duh, it’s your part in chapter nine!

“Did I have one?”

So it seems, yes. It’s basically you thinking.

“Let me see it.” The human took the Superfantasticalstory book and read the part the ponies were talking about. “Ok, I don’t remember anything.”

What?

You mean…? You mean this didn’t happen?

“I mean I don’t remember anything of this,” said the human. "But I do remember waking up with blood on my head. And Pinkie-who-talks-in-pink said I‘ll know one day what had happened.”

Oh.

Ooooh… I think I know what happened.

Me too!

“Yeah, well, I want to know the exact details.” Seeing as the ponies wanted to read too, he lowered the book and put it on the ground. “Let’s see… Hmm.”

Huh. You did a pretty interesting reasoning back then. If almost everybody broke the fourth wall at least once, why noticing we were fictional was such a big deal? Did we know that first and then we forgot it?

I already knew I was fictional since the beginning!

“Yes, but I assure you: I did not.” Aragón shook his head. “Fluttershy, did you break the fourth wall before noticing you were fictional?”

Eh… I don’t think so…

And I was created with the knowledge that I was fake.

“So… I’m the only one here who first knew he was just a character and then exactly the opposite?”

Yes.

Yes!

It… seems so.

“Interesting.” Aragón continued reading the thoughts he didn’t remember. “Oh, now I’m trying to deduce who Greentalk was. Now we know it’s Chrysalis, so…”

You say the readers think it’s Discord?

“I guess they were fooled by the clue. I mean, even the guy who hasn’t appeared yet said Greentalk cheated,” answered Aragón. “The song was pretty clear, so it’s difficult to deduce anything but ‘Greentalk is Discord’.”

…
That clue… I’m still annoyed by it. You’re sure there’s nothing else about that song, Aragón?

“No.” Aragón bit his lip. “At least that’s what I think. It’s just a remix…”

What?

A… what’s a remix?

…You didn’t say that before.

“Oh. Well, it was written in the title.” The author shrugged. “I just thought you already knew.”

But what’s a remix?

“It’s…” The author frowned. “It’s… eh… well, it’s something eerily hard to describe, it seems.”
He laughed. “Ok, sorry. It’s an alternative take of a song. Imagine you have a song that you like and… then you change it because you want to make your own version.”

Oh.

“And sometimes you can make something awesome!” Aragón smiled. “You can change the instrumental, the rhythm… even the genre! For example, the original ‘Discord’ was good, but the one you listened was a remix that’s, at least in my opinion, even better.”

Oh.

That’s pretty nice!

I get it! Then, a remix of the song ‘Discord’ is just ‘Discord’ with something that makes it better!

…!

“Oh Celestia.” Aragón’s face was suddenly white. Every shade of color abandoned it. His chest filled with fear.

No…!

What? Did I say something?

The… song. It’s…

“It’s Discord, with something more that makes him better.” Aragón frowned. “And… you two defeated Chrysalis.”

Nothing makes a villain better than another villain.

…! Don’t tell me that Greentalk is…!

*Bzeeeeeep*

We are two characters instead of one. Spooky, right?

Gah!

You!

Oh, no!

“You!” Aragón raised from the ground in less than a second and approached the three ponies in a protective way. “Who are you?!”

My, my, you seem very terrified, my friends! After all, I guess I am scary?

Discord.

Oh, I don’t like your voice. You seem angry! Are you sure you want to be like that? It’s a little dangerous for your friends, don’t you think?

…

You! You meanie-puny-spoofy-pants! Go away! Right now!

Iiiiih!

“So, you’re Discord then.” The human looked at the draconequus, who was showing himself as a red unicorn with a long, black mane. “And Chrysalis is your companion?”

Pffft… HAHAHAHAHAHAH! Ow, you’re adorable!
I mean, look at you! We have an assassin who’s afraid of her own hooves, a Pegasus who can’t do nothing but hide from me, a stupid human who suddenly talks like a hero and a pink pony who has doomed all her friends! And you’re like…! Like, protecting each other with your own bodies? Hah!

…!
D-doomed?!

“Discord… Stop insulting us. Right now.

Oh, you talk in purple? You’re angry because I insulted your friends? Or because I said the truth?

Don’t listen to him. Chrysalis used the words to fight with us. I bet he’s doing the same.

And what else can I do, Pinkamena? Oh, I could kill you now, like I’ve done with your friends. But that wouldn’t be funny, right?

…!!

OUR FRIENDS?!

Don’t listen to him! He’s trying to fool us!

Oh, I’m fooling you? Then, answer this: where are your friends?

They are…!

Dead. Every one of them. And do you know how I know that?

Stop. Right now.

No… The girls can’t be…

I saw their deaths, Pinkie Pie. Applejack and Rainbow Dash sacrificed each other because they were too stupid to realize how life works. Rarity and Twilight Sparkle burned to ashes…

Stop.

Only you remain. And, best of all, it’s your fault! You could have saved them. You, Pinkie Pie. You, the one who has the power to do anything you want, the one who never takes things seriously. You knew you were fictional, but why should you tell anything? Life’s a party, right? Life’s a joke.
Except it’s not.

…

Pinkie, don’t listen to him!

Why? You don’t like what I’m saying? Because I’m sure your friends thought the same as me. Life can be very funny, but what happens when you only think about yourself, Pinkie?

I… I don’t…

I said STOP! Pinkie Pie, come here! Pinkie-who-talk-in-red, stop approaching him, you can’t hurt Discord physically! Fluttershy, go with Pinkie and stop listening him!

…! Aragón…

Tch.

Snif… O-our friends…

Of course. You’re a hero now, right, Aragón?

Don’t you dare to try it with me.

Eh?

I know your kind, Discord. You always know everything, right? You always are a step ahead everybody else. You’re always controlling people, just because you like it.

…
Are you… trying to lecture me?

I’m not trying to. I’m doing it.
You think you’re some kind of master mind? You think you can come here and scare the shit out of Fluttershy and Pinkie, or insult Pinkie-who-talks-in-red? Short answer: you can’t.

…
I see. You sure have changed, little author.

And you don’t know anything. Anything.

Sorry, but I have to disagree. I know everything about this world, stupid human. I created it.

No. You think you know everything, and that’s the reason why you’re a fool. Pinkie-que-habla-en-rojo, cuando cuente hasta tres, sal corriendo. Llévate a las otras dos a algún lugar seguro… la casa de la cebra servirá. Yo puedo retenerle.

…!

What…? What did you say?! What was that?! What language was?!

…Ah?

He… He talked in…

See? You don’t know anything, Discord.
You, the one I talked to. Understood?

…
Yes. But, are you sure…?

I am.

Oh, then that’s the way you’re acting now?! You want to lecture me, you act like a hero and you suddenly can talk in another language. Ok. I’m done with you. I wanted to play, but we’ll do this the hard way.

Ha! You know nothing! I can…!

Shut up.

*Bzeeeeeep*

*Thump*

Hello, boys.

Ah! Chrysalis!

No! Aragón, she’s right behind you! Look…!

What…? Both of them?

Gotcha.

*ZZAAAAAAP*

NOOOOOOOOOO!”

Aragón!”

AAAAAAAAH! NO! NOOOOOO!”

The three ponies couldn’t believe their eyes. They just couldn’t. Only Pinkamena was able to do something apart from screaming.

Chrysalis’ horn was still shining. The air had the smell of burned flesh. Discord, right beside her, was giggling.

Aragón was dead. His chest had a hole right in the middle.

Well, well… it seems like we’re done with this, Discord.

I’m afraid you’re right. I wanted to play with them, really… but the human was just too dangerous right now.

Don’t worry. We still have them. But mind you…
I want Pinkamena for myself.

Deal.

Pinkie didn’t hear anything. She just screamed.

Blood. Burned flesh. Aragón’s corpse.

That was all. She couldn’t see or feel anything else.