2:59 A.M.

That's what the clock, in that stupid white font, presented to me on the security cam.

I'd woken three hours ago in the same place, the same hell... The security guard station and after taking the time to think and of course, tried to escape the fucking doors again, all I could do was stay put. The facts were, the ponies' programming had gone haywire (and they may or may not have been attacking the humans), Spencer has it out for me some reason (probably mastermind related), and I'm missing some serious time (supposing the tape recorder was telling the truth about the date).

I probably didn't help things by eating the burger or actually putting up a fight when I had the chance but for the record, I do not regret that meal. It was my favorite but that was going to be my last time falling for such a obvious trap. Maybe... I could go for a snack right about now. Damn it. It was the room making me hungry. It still smelled faintly of coffee, donuts and a sour, rotting stench drifting from down the hallways that I was trying to ignore.

But really, the smell of coffee and donuts was really starting to mess with me. Make all of this seem normal. I had to stay on my toes and make my escape when I finally have a opportunity to whenever it will come. And that meant making sure the ponies and the mastermind wouldn't get the drop on me again.

I pushed my chair from the desk and checked the door-less entrances, expecting a scare from any of the ponies prowling around the halls. Of course, there wasn't anyone around. I wasted my time bothering to check but I just kept on expecting a attack. They were hell-bent on getting me yesterday but today... It seems like the ponies didn't even give a damn about me anymore. Fucking crazy but it was true.

For the last two hours, I've been watching them play and frolic like normal ponies in the private banquet room. Maybe the burger was meant for me to see things. I'm hallucinating that the ponies are just yakking it up and having fun but they're really perched outside my door, waiting to get me. I took another look around, I'm alone as always. Fucking ponies! Why don't they just bring it already? I don't want them to come but... I can't explain it.

They're messing with me!

Moving back to the cam, I zoomed back in to the 'party' taking off in the banquet room. Rainbow Dash, both her lower half and feathered wings burned down to the metal exoskeleton, shook her mechanical rear in Rarity's face as she danced on the long hall table. From the angle of the camera, I could see directly into her suit and all of the gears turning and ripping apart the few feathers trapped inside... I moved a little to the left and tested the desk's sturdiness.  After my brain rebooted after I finished smashing my head into the wood to erase that image from my head, I tried to watch my 'enemies' seriously.

I failed.  

Rarity kept on trying to push Rainbow Dash off the table and forcefully make her have a seat like a “pooper luady” and chided her, “Stoop peeing oorish, d-AInbow.” I can't take her seriously now. She could show up and rip me apart at any moment but that was cute.

Don't get me wrong. She looks creepy as hell. The reason why she's having such a hard time enunciating her words, I guess, is because of the missing jaw... And that large gaping hole exposing her vocal box and other wiring around her neck probably didn't help either. She tried though. Boy, does she try to speak proper and I just feel so sorry for her.

Fluttershy sat on the lower end of the table, talking to a bloody sack she had dragged from the kitchen. Right next to her, there was a bottle of olive oil and she kept on trying to convince the sack that the 'red stuff' was bad for circuits. I'm not sure how I feel about the other night spurring her to practice her crazy. Or that she thought a sack of whatever was wriggling and bleeding out was good subject to talk to.

Occasionally, the creature in the sack would roll onto it's feet and try to make a break for it. Fluttershy would let it get off the table and follow it until it got tired. Then she would gently pick it up, sit the sack back on the table and resume the conversation like nothing happened.

That's how I know they couldn't have really forgotten about me. The way she hunted that poor creature, so quietly and full of purpose, just waiting for it to get exhausted. They could be doing the same thing right now. Trying to get me to lower my guard. It won't work. I'm not that stupid.

Even if their programming went crazy, they're robots... Unless someone altered their internal A.I. or whatever system they had their heads, they would be compelled to finish the action. They couldn't stop. They couldn't change their minds. This must be a set-up and they'd had to know that he already caught on! Even if they were trying to trick him, he'd already seen their true selves. They were monsters!

Pinkie Pie, covered in mold and 'food', (parts of 'skin' that I couldn't identify, bone fragments with a little 'meat' still on them and icing), danced on the table right with Rainbow Dash. The two of them twirled around, trying to do the Pony Pokey and calling out for Applejack who I haven't seen all night. At this point, I don't even think that there is a Applejack unit in this restaurant. I've checked all the rooms and unless she's in the kitchen where the camera broken, she's not here. I can hear things from the kitchen just fine and I haven't heard a peep. Pretty sure she's not here but I'm ready even if she is.

Twilight, the mare of the hour, sat at the head of the table and was reading a book upside down. That wasn't the right description of what she's doing, though. Twilight was actually reading and re-reading the section the book opened to when she dropped on the table almost thirty minutes ago. I don't think she was staring at the same pages on purpose.

I kept seeing her horn turn off and on, glowing with that blinding light as she stared intensely at the book. I think she was trying to desperately to turn the page with her 'magic' and she was reaching her breaking point. Her sighs kept on getting deeper and deeper. Her body slumped on the table, nearly lying on top of her precious and disobedient book, and she pouted.

It really would have been a cute sight, not uncommon from any Twilight I knew from a Pretty Parlor, but I got a nice view of the other side of her face. Under the bright pastel lights of the banquet room, that damaged part of her face shined a dull, waxy hue with the metal and suit merged and melded into something fuzzy and hellish.  

I don't know why I kept on focusing on their actions and coming up with excuses for their behavior because they just didn't look right. It was obvious they got those injuries from other humans or committing horrible things to humans or who knows, each other. But I did. I can't think of a good reason for the ponies to even be crazy or attack anyone. There had to be a greater purpose to all this or better yet, a way to fix them.

The one thing all of the ponies gathered in banquet room had in common was the black vines sticking and writhing out of their suits. But how could plants be the problem? They could have gotten those plants stuck in the gaps of their suits if they were outside at some point and ran in some bushes or something... It must be something else...

“It just hasn't been the same since Tirek stole all the magic.” That was the first thing I heard Twilight say all night. “How can I undo the evil spell if I can't...” If Spencer's words were true, these models were new but I was surprised to hear this particular Twilight talk about Tirek. She looked like a season one model seeing that her figure was still small and lacking wings.

And that's when it clicked. I finally saw what I kept missing. All of the ponies were from different sets. They sat and played around each other, not with each other. It was obvious now that I think of it. Rarity only acknowledged the presence of Rainbow Dash but she ignored Pinkie Pie. Rainbow Dash similarly ignored her and continued horsing around with Pinkie Pie who I think was just playing along but not actually acknowledging the pegasus. And all three of them ignored both Twilight and Fluttershy, leaving them to their own devices which isn't normal for a set.

I might be wrong here but all of the Mane Six sets I've been around have a tendency to group-think and herd together. It's weird to explain but even when they were split into pairs, they'd bounce off each other on every mundane subject until something else caught their attention and it would start all over again. I'm not exactly sure how that worked but I knew before I signed up for this place, that the ponies were known for their systems scoring high on the Turning Test despite them having a need to comment on everything.

I sat back in my chair and considering how I could use this new information. If they were from different sets, I wouldn't have to worry about them joining forces and ganging up on me. But again, that could still happened if they all got the idea to bum-rush the security station and I couldn't just wait until that happened. I had to figure something out. Fluttershy and Twilight were the only ponies to show any hostile intent but maybe the others might not honestly care about me. There's something in that I can use but I just can't form a decent plan.

Suddenly, the camera screen turned to static and I did the thing most kids learn to do while growing up. I shook the screen as hard I could and checked the wires connecting it to the wall. When I placed the tablet-thing back down, red petals clung to my hands and I could smell that distinctive floral scent stronger than before. I've seen these petals before... But I just can't remember what type of flowers these are. I held my hands close to my face and took a strong whiff of them. Why couldn't I remember-

“You would like the smell, wouldn't you?”

My heart skipped a beat. I tried to look behind me but a pair of strong hands held me place. I stared at the hand on my left. The nails were torn off, revealing raw angry skin, and maggots squirming in and out of the exposed flesh. The hands trembled on my shoulders and somewhere in the distance, I could hear someone wailing curses.

“Spencer?” I asked, directing my voice to the speakers, but there was no reply. Instead, I felt water sloshing around my feet as the room began to flood with red waters and more of those damned petals floated in, riding on the ripples of the surge. “Spencer!” I shouted again and tried yank myself away from whatever had me in its grip. It was no use. It was if I was fighting against iron chains no matter how alive and weak it felt against me.

The water quickly rose above my waist and I struggled to keep my head up. The water had to stop. This was just some new attempt to scare me. Pretending to flood the restaurant... And there's no way that I was going to be put down like this... By some deranged minion that's actually willing to hold me down until we both drowned. That's crazy. That's utterly insane. I'm dreaming. I must be dreaming.

I held my breath as the water rushed over my head, the entire room submerged with upside chairs and streamers floating in and out. Bubbles ran out of my nose as my lungs began to beg for air. I felt a finger slide up my neck before pressing against my mouth. That was the only warning I got before a hand forced my mouth opened. My lungs ballooned in agony but I kept on trying to breathe, my face switching left and right as the pain increased.

My eyes burned as my body quivered in agony, everything was turning black and I-.

The security camera cleared, showing a single image of a body wrapped in see-through plastic. It was splayed out on a conveyor belt, soundlessly moving toward a long, seemingly endless pit where only copper gears and saws could be seen faintly.

On a wall in the video, there was a poster of the moon, turning black before shifting into a slitted blue eye, looking directly at me. I coughed out my last few bits of air as that eye looked passed me and seemed to being notice of where I was before ripping apart into six even pieces.

Right before the body fell in, another pair of hands covered my eyes and I heard a voice chuckle where there should've been screams. That couldn't be right. This voice sounded almost like my own.

“Don't act so scared. I'm going to make you feel better.”

I felt a long and cylinder-like slide across my neck. Gasping my last breath and unable to move, I kept trying to fight back.

“Spencer took this from you.”

With my mouth firmly held opened by cold fingers, I felt the tip of a something pointy tap against my teeth.

“But you should have it back and I think I'm the first one to say it properly: Happy Birthday.”

The object was jammed into my mouth, piercing through my tongue. Hands forced my jaw closed and another pair strangled my neck, squeezing the object down into my throat. It hurt so much, bringing burning pulsating pain searing through my skull. My lower neck ached as I felt a second wave of a phantom pain joining with it. A old memory came to my head. For a brief second, I remembered...

“She's coming for you, you know. You oughta stop her before she does ______. Don't forget.”

I swallowed and it was over. I fell forward and spat out blood across the desk. A single blink and all of it was gone. The madness, the hands, the water and the fucking pain. I continued to spit out of red, sticky mucus and touched my throat, feeling it for any ridges or holes.

The room was normal, dry and empty. What the hell did I swallow?

“Howdy, partner.” No, it couldn't be. “Are you okay? Need me to go and get Fluttershy to fix you right up? I'll hurry back with her as fast as I can.”

“I'm fi-fine, Applejack.” I glanced to my right and there was Applejack standing right next to me. She looked a little rough for wear but she was in practically perfect condition. She even had her light brown Stetson, a little cowboy hat, and a pair of saddlebags, completing the image of her coming back from some long journey.

I wasn't exactly sure what to do. I don't think I'm strong enough to push a animatronic pony out of the room and I'm sitting on the only weapon I have at my disposal.

“That's good to hear, Riff.” She nodded her head as I flinched in my seat. She knew me? “Did something happen to you? It took me longer than usual to find you again. We got to keep on the move, that Spencer guy of yours is after you and there's been a Nightmare Moon spotting. Let's mosey, I got to get you somewhere safe.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, trying to keep a level tone. I think I mostly succeeded. “Ho-how did you get in here?”

“Why are you talking like that?” She ignored the question, staring at the blood of the ground and positioning her back to me. Almost as if she was trying to make a shield with her body. Did she not think I was a threat or was she trying to protect me? “All skittish like...” Applejack frowned before looking away. “You don't talk like that. Not to me. Maybe when we got to do something serious... Did he do something to you?”

“Look, don't mind me. I, uh, just had a really nasty dream.” I gestured to the desk and the mess I made, hoping she'll take my word for it. “I'm still getting over it but, uh, you know me. Just give me a quick history of how we know each other and I'll, uh, go with you.” I stood up from my chair and walked as close I could get to left door-less entrance without setting off the security doors. “See.”

“Okay,” She said slowly, trying to my eye-contact with me. I couldn't commit that much, seeing that I'm unsure if she's was going to kill or not, and I settled for looking a hole passed her shoulder. “I'm Applejack of the 'eighth' Pretty Parlor. Holy, I'm never going to get used to saying it.” She wildly gestured with her hoof, making the symbol of the Pretty Parlor door sign. “Here I was in my Pretty Parlor thinking that I was the only Applejack in the world when there's loads of lookalikes running around. It freaked me out at first but I've gotten over it and you helped me with that... If you remember...”

What? She's aware of other models? That's can't be right. There's something in their programming that prevents and what does she mean, 'I helped'? “And you came looking for me because...?”

“285- I mean, Riff, you took care of me, all of us. There's something... I can't explain it. I don't got the words. I'm not Rarity or Twilight. They'll explained better than I ever could, being unicorns and all.” She paused, looking directly at me, before- “The sun is hot. The moon is cold. Grass is the color of whatever Discord feels like it today. Riff is Riff and he needs to be kept away from any Nightmare Moons. Do you believe me now?”

“Sure.” I replied. “But I'm scared, can you walk ahead of me and make sure the coast is clear? There are some ponies here that want to hurt me.”  

“Of course!” Applejack smiled and walked into the hallway, before pressing herself against a wall and did a obvious imitation of a ninja sneaking by. It just looked so bad because even in the darkness, I could make out her orange coat against the shadows. It was like watching Naruto from season one, fooling around and playing ninja. I laughed, feeling something warm release in my stomach. Don't tell me that's how she's been sneaking around this whole time? I don't even- Where did she learn that from?

“Applejack,” I called out, careful to not trigger the door. “Do you know about the anime called Naruto?” She might. Hanging around kids, picking up their vocabulary, she could've. But why does it feel like I'm about to do something stupid.

“Yeah.” She replied, sprinting to another wall before attempting poorly to walk silently. She kept on trying to twist her hooves to the side and made her look like a camel trying to take a long dump. I put my hand over my mouth, trying to hold back any more stupid laughter. She could still being trying to trick me! I need to get it together. “I saw it on your magic mirror.”

“Magic mirror?”

“You called Phena or something. Cil Pheno.” Applejack abruptly stopped, mid-trot in the most silliest I've seen on a pony yet, and turned around. “I have Cil Pheno in my bags. She rings a lot. I think she misses you.” Really? Why is she pronouncing 'cell phone' like that?

“Applejack, I'm going to be honest.” I yelled from my spot. “I don't trust you but I don't trust anything in here so don't take it personally. I hardly remember anything at all but I do remember vaguely trying to talk you out of walking like Naruto. I, uh, got this feeling that we do know each other. However, even if I did believe you, I can't leave this room. There are doors meant to keep me in.”

A couple of minutes went by and I heard no answer from Applejack. She scuttled out of sight and turned the corner. I guess she was trying to trick me. Oh well, I don't care. She can go off and play with her broken friends. I don't need her. I have bigger things on my plate.

After taking another look down both halls, I went back to my seat and checked the security camera. I flicked back to the banquet room and surprise, surprise, Applejack was just entering the room. As I suspected, being from a different set, none of the ponies acknowledged Applejack's presence. I watched her eye them up, take off her saddlebags and placed them near the door before climbing up on the table.

“So, I hear you fakes have been trying to hurt Riff.” She announced, throwing her hat to the side, and getting ready to pounce. “You've gone and made him all confused again. He's seeing invisible doors! And frankly, who knows how many ponies or humans you've guys managed to hurt. It ends today. ”

“What.” I said out loud, rolling my chair back and pinching myself. “What!”