Over the past two days I've tried everything I can think of to get this stupid freaking thing off of my horn. They never leave me alone with sharp implements, I presume because it's cuttable. I can't cut it or scrape it off with my hooves. I can feel the mana crystal underneath the band on the upper side, but squeezing it against the horn only makes it dig into my horn.

Basically, anything that will get it off my horn will probably end up taking my horn off with it, except something razor-sharp that could cut through the band itself and scrape it off of my horn (or just extract the mana crystal). The knives they leave with my meals aren't sharp enough, and the only time I was with a "real" knife was at the big dinner when everypony was watching me.

If I could convince just one vampony to help me I'd be free, but they're all gung-ho about the Order so there isn't a lot of hope there. I think Applejack is my last hope, Journal.

Deep down, though, my heart hasn't been in it. I'm so tired of fighting, and now... now it's even harder, because things are finally starting to make sense. I only have one reservation about the Order remaining, and I fear it will leave me later tonight.

I've got a lot to cover here, so I'd best get to it, Journal.

When Moon Black walked me into the throne room, Princess Luna was seated in her throne and Shadowbane stood beside her. Prince Shining Armor occupied Princess Celestia's seat (horseshoes he could never dream of filling, by the way), and Princess Cadance sat on the floor beside him like a lost puppy. All of them wore a full complement of baubles, except that Cadance's fake horn did not sport an ounckse (and neither did Rarity's).

Shining Armor wore his old Captain's outfit, and Flash Sentry wore something similar only with Crystal Kingdom colors. Luna and Cadance wore smart-looking masculine dresses which matched the same style as the stallions. Rarity wore a secretary's outfit with a skirt cut just short enough to expose her vulva. Shadowbane and Moon Black were naked, like myself. Moon walked me up toward the side of the room, where Flash Sentry stood. Rarity paced about nervously.

"We're about to begin," my brother said to me. "Just watch, Twily. This is something that has been a long time coming."

"Pity Applejack isn't here to see it, but she won't be back until late this evening," said Rarity. She walked three-legged with a clipboard in one hoof.

"Lady Rarity, shut it," ordered Moon Black, and Rarity blushed and smiled.

"I'll never understand that," I said to Flash.

"No, you will," he countered. "But for now, just watch."

I noticed that the other side of the room had a metal tray with something on it, and the red carpet was suspiciously off-colored near the front of the thrones. I pondered trying to throw a wrench into whatever nefarious act they had planned, but I was too curious to seriously consider it. Nothing I could do would save whomever they saw fit to fuck with, anyway.

The doors finally opened, and in walked Prince Blueblood. He looked irate, which is to say he looked fairly normal. Princess Celestia frequently complained about his royal status, because he was... how did Rarity put it? A 'total douche', if I remember correctly. I'd only met him in passing at formal events, but he did always seem stuck-up.

At the moment, he was marching down the red carpet as guards shut the doors behind him, leaving those of us I described as a private audience.

"Just because you are a Prince in a foreign kingdom does not give you the right to summon me whenever you please," complained Blueblood, sauntering slowly up the carpet. "And you soil that throne by letting a cunt sit upon it."

"Princess Luna is a princess and a Lady and will be addressed by you as such," said Shining Armor.

"She isn't a Master. Her place is kneeling or being disciplined," said Blueblood. "Not that you would understand anything about disc—"

As Prince Asshole stepped over the discolored area, Shining Armor's aura lifted sections of carpet and secured the hidden shackles in place around Blueblood's pasterns (below the knuckle, where almost no movement is possible).

"What?! Unhoof me at once!" shouted Blueblood. "Guards!"

"They can't hear you," said Rarity, wearing a smirk as pulled an ounckse from beneath the clipboard and shoved it onto his horn before he had a chance to react. "And they wouldn't bother to come to your aid if they could."

"You are persona non grata," said Shining Armor.

"Y-you invited me here!"

"Summoned," corrected Cadance.

"Since you've been turned, we've seen two cunts require urgent physical care, and now those two and a third require significant mental care," said Shining Armor.

"They are MY cunts! My property, to do with as I please!"

"That is not how it works," said Shadowbane, eyes narrowed.

Shining Armor sighed. "They were your responsibility. We trusted you to take care of them, and you failed us miserably."

"I am an Equestrian prince. You shall release me this moment or feel my wrath!"

"You won't have any wrath left when we get done with you," said my brother. "Rarity, he's all yours."

Rarity grinned evilly. "Thank you, Master. I've been looking forward to this for a long time."

"It's time to end this charade," said Blueblood, rearing his head away from Rarity. "Very well, I've learned my lesson, and we can move on from this... misunderstanding." Beads of sweat began to form on his brow.

Rarity dropped the clipboard and walked over to pull the rolling tray table into view. On it were various medical instruments: a syringe, a scalpel, clamps, gauze, and medical sewing equipment. A chill swept through my gut—were they going to torture him?

"What are they going to do?" I whispered to Flash. "I don't care how much of a jerk he is, you're not about to bring back torture!"

"It isn't torture," Flash reassured me. "He'll thank us for what we're about to do, I promise. Just watch."

I'd heard that line before. Inside, I felt certain I was about to see the depth of depravity the vamponies had sunk to, and this would give me back my impetus to escape. That written, I still had no desire to watch.

I'm not sure why I didn't shut my eyes. It was like a disaster—you know you shouldn't look, but you can't help yourself. And as it began to unfold... well, I'll get to that soon.

"I am a STALLION. You will not allow a cunt to torture me!" said Blueblood, his words belying the tears forming in his eyes.

"We're not going to hurt you," said Rarity. "We're going to help you. Lady Cadance, would you mind?"

Princess Cadance's fake horn glowed with her aura, as did Blueblood's head.

"What?! How can you cast with a fake horn—" I said, then my eyes widened. "Ah, I get it. Very clever. Somepony else has Cadance's aura, and you're simply gripping the horn with telekinesis at the same time to make it look like the horn is glowing." I put on the smuggest grin I'd had on my face in a week.

"Not bad, Twily. But who has Cadance's aura?" asked my brother.

"I... there must be another unicorn pony hiding somewhere in here," I said, feeling unsure of myself.

Princess Cadance looked to Shining Armor, who nodded back to his wife. "We'll show you in a moment," said Princess Cadance. "But first we need to deal with Blueblood. As predicted, he's a lost one."

"I am not a cunt! I am a stallion!"

"Not mutually ex-clu-sive..." sang Rarity.

"You've made a terrible mistake," said Blueblood, brow wrinkled in a mixture of desperation and fear. "Let me go, Shining Armor."

"You're right... we did make a terrible mistake," said Shining Armor. "We never reaped you. We let you abuse cunts because we didn't follow up with you. We never even witnessed you hold the wolf..."

Cadance grinned. "That's because he isn't even broken."

Several ponies gasped.

"I am a stallion! I do not need to be b-broken!" stammered Prince Blueblood.

"I don't understand. Why would a stallion need to be broken?" I asked.

Flash turned and looked at me with confusion on his muzzle. "Twilight, all vamponies are broken. Didn't Lady Cadance explain this?"

"Yes, but... you break Masters too?"

"Yes, Twily," said my brother. "I'm broken, and proud of it. As is Flash Sentry."

"No, that's... that's impossible," I said, backing away from Flash. "You're not like the rest of them! You're so normal," I said, as though pleading against the truth.

"I'm broken, Twilight. And it's okay. You didn't actually think we'd be doing something to mares we wouldn't do to ourselves, did you? We all have the same procedure done."

I sat down on the floor, staring across the room at the wall. "I can't believe it. I... I was so sure you hadn't been damaged..."

Flash sat down next to me. "I haven't been damaged. I've been healed, and you will be too once you finally accept things." He pulled my chin up to force me to stare into his eyes. I tried not to look, but... those beautiful blue eyes...

"Let me go," said Blueblood, holding back tears. "I don't want to b-be broken..."

"Alright then," said Shining Armor. "We'll get the seeds of truth and see if that's really true." Shining Armor clopped his forehooves together, and Thorax (still wearing his Crystal Hoof guise) entered through a side door with a small pot of dirt. He set it down in front of the accused.

"What is this?" asked Blueblood.

"It's a flower which only blooms when you speak the truth. Tell us again: do you want to be broken?"

"N-no," Blueblood said softly. "I don't want to be broken. And I'm not a cunt..."

The entire room was quiet. The jar of earth didn't stir.

"I mean it! I am not a cunt!" shouted Blueblood, even as he started to cry. The jar of earth just sat there. "This plant is defective!"

"Then say, 'I am a cunt who needs to be broken', and see what happens," said Brother.

"Never. I shall not make those words pass my lips."

"Well, I guess Rarity can begin with the procedure—"

"I am a cunt who needs to be b-broken," said Blueblood.

The plant began to sprout.

"This... this is a lie! Please... just let me go..."

"Now say 'I'm afraid to be a cunt because I hate myself'."

Blueblood began to openly cry. "I'm... I'm afraid to be a cunt because I hate who I am..." he said, the after a pause, "and I don't deserve to be happy."

The plant bloomed into a beautiful white flower.

Rarity gave Blueblood a tight hug about the neck. "There, there. It isn't about what you deserve, it's about what's right. And what's right is to give you what you need, even after all those ponies you've hurt," she said. "The Order demands it. Your restitution is your salvation."

"Th-thank you," he said, tears streaming down his muzzle. "Thank you so much."

Rarity walked the tray of equipment around behind Blueblood, and then my brother spoke. "Before the show continues, it's time you learned the Secret of the Unicorn, Twilight. Cadance?"

Princess Cadance smiled. Her fake horn glowed with her aura color, then levitated off of her head, revealing an uncapped stump beneath it.

"Somepony here must have her aura color," I argued.

"Nopony else does," said Shining Armor.

"Then how?"

"Turn around, bitch. Show off that gorgeous ass of yours."

Cadance turned around and lifted her tail. The horn stayed levitated. A glimmer of the aura color shimmered around her ponut.

"Okay, so whoever is levitating the fake horn is also groping my sister's asshole, and she's perverted, so she probably enjoys it," I said.

"You're warm," said my brother. "Show her," he said to his wife.

The fake horn dropped to the floor. Cadance's anus winked slightly open, revealing a flash of magenta within it—the same color as her coat. Then her ponut glowed, the fake horn glowed, and it levitated back up in the air.

It took me a moment to put the pieces together, but everypony waited patiently. My brother knew I'd be smart enough to figure it out, given a little time.

"Wait. No... no way. There's..." I said, then my jaw dropped. "There isn't a lot of data on severed horns because of the taboo... You can cast spells with a severed horn! You aren't disabled at all!"

"She is, in part. I control when she has access to her horn. I control her magic absolutely, because she belongs to me," said Brother. "But there's more." He walked over, taking a rag from his saddlebags, and 'removed' (eww) the horn from his wife. He wiped it clean, then (this is so gross) sucked on it, making sounds of pleasure like he actually enjoyed the taste.

Cadance moaned and climaxed, spraying urine and ejaculate across the floor of the throne room. She can even feel it remotely! I was so distracted I almost forgot what he was trying to show me.

But then, I saw Shining Armor holding the horn in one hoof, concentrating. The horn glowed, but with his aura color. This should have been impossible, because he can't grasp another pony's horn directly with his aura, even a severed one... but his horn wasn't glowing. Then the fake horn on the floor glowed with Shining Armor's aura and lifted back into the air.

After a few moments, it dawned on me. "Ohmygosh. A unicorn can cast spells with another unicorn's horn?!"

"There's more," he said.

He hoofed the horn to Moon Black, who took it in hoof and narrowed his eyes in concentration. A greyish aura sputtered around the horn in his hoof and the fake horn, and it clumsily lifted into the air.

"My apologies, Princess Twilight Sparkle. I am not very good at this yet," he said, handing the horn back to Shining Armor.

"Oh sweet Celestia. Anypony can use unicorn magic?" I said. "Why is this a secret? This is amazing!"

"Think, Twilight," said Princess Luna. "What would happen were this to become common knowledge?"

"Well, there would be a demand for horns... That's why somepony tried to assassinate Princess Celestia!" I realized. "But why attack her? They could have attacked any unicorn."

"Last night, I cast an alicorn-level spell with my wife's horn," said Shining Armor. "The horns themselves have innate power levels."

"Stars above," I whispered.

"Think of the implications, Twilight," said Princess Luna. "Unicorn burial grounds would be overturned. Sepulchres ransacked. Entire families attacked. Canterlot under siege."

"But it doesn't need to be that way," said Shining Armor. "We can grow enough horns for everypony who wants one, and sell them on the white market."

"That's why you're cutting off your horns—you're using unicorn ponies as horn factories," I realized.

"Well, to be honest, it's mostly because magic is who we are, and chopping it off to give it to your partner is sexier than a hot assfucking," said Cadance. "For a unicorn, it's the ultimate sacrifice—giving your Master total control over everything you are. But growing useable horns will also help us when the time comes to reveal the secret to all of Equestria."

"You acted like you could feel your horn from a distance..." I pointed out.

Luna responded. "That is true only within a short range of perhaps a score of hooves; and, as I recall, one only maintains a psychic link with the most recent castable appendage," she said. "Once Cadance's new horn grows in, she will no longer feel the old one. It may still be used for casting, however. We were initially uncertain whether or not it would be a good idea to make copies of alicorn horns, but keeping several locked away in different locations would encourage theft rather than murder."

"I understand that much, but I still don't see why Celestia had to create the Stain and turn society prudish," I said. "Assuming I even believe Luna's story about that."

"That's straightforward," said Shining Armor. "After removing the secret from ponykind's collective consciousness, the only way Celestia could keep the secret was to have taboos against horn touching so strong they could only be based on sexual repression. There's no 'middle ground' to the social order. Either it's prudish and repressed, which has led to horrible societal issues, or we find a way to make ponies love each other more than they love being powerful. By forcing society to take on a sexual power structure where ponies don't need to be empowered to be happy, we can sidestep the same disaster Celestia sought to prevent by other means."

"That's how Big Macintosh was able to stop you from casting spells, by the way. I taught him how to actively raise interference with a horn in order to block its magic," said Rarity.

"I... I need time to process this," I said, feeling overwhelmed. Things were starting to make sense, and of all the possibilities I had planned for, I wasn't at all prepared for this.

"Well, in the meantime, could you go over and talk to Prince Blueblood? He could use some comforting, and you're one of the kindest-hearted ponies I've ever known," Flash said to me.

I nodded without thinking and walked over to Blueblood. "I'm so sorry," I said to him.

He smiled weakly, without the usual smug look on his face. "It's... it's okay."

"No, it isn't. You don't deserve whatever they're about to do to you," I said.

"I know I don't," he said, his ears drooping back against his neck. "But they're nice enough to do it anyway. I don't have to hide what I am anymore."

Rarity gently stroked Blueblood's scrotum, causing his penis to drop from his sheath. "You should be honored, Blueblood. You'll be the first one in centuries."

"The first w-what?"

"Gel-ding," said Rarity, pronouncing each syllable crisply.

Blueblood immediately grew an erection which slapped his belly, and he shivered. "P-please don't make it hurt too much," he whispered.

"It won't hurt at all, darling. We're not savages," she said, lifting the syringe. I sat near Blueblood's face and petted him gently. I could only see the front side of his scrotum, so I wasn't privileged to see the operation—fortunately. I don't think I have the nerves for that, but Rarity does, apparently.

"Don't worry, cunt," said my brother. "You'll still have plenty of orgasms from getting your ass pounded like a mare in heat. You'll produce quite a bit of impotent semen, too, but most of the time it will simply dribble out of your limp gelding prick."

I noticed Blueblood's tail kink upwards, without Rarity's aura around it (assuming she has her horn up her ass, now I know she could still use it if she wanted to). Blueblood was helping her. For some insane reason, this was something he wanted to happen to him. He wanted his balls—the very symbol of his masculinity—chopped off, permanently. The vamponies were right about him, and about what he needed.

Dear Celestia.... are they right about what I need, too?

"W-who owns me?" said Blueblood, ears drooped down.

"Fancy Pants has won the bidding and been found suitable by the Council. He'll be a loving Master and Daddy to you, Blueblood. We won't be taking your horn, because he wants the pleasure himself... but he wanted you pre-cut," said Shining Armor. "However, we'll be saving the testicles. He wants to cook them and have them with you as your first meal together, to remind you of your new life with him."

"You can eat flesh?" I said, gasping. "That's barbaric!"

"It's actually quite tasty," said Flash Sentry. "We'll show you sometime."

I caught a glimpse of the white of the testicle as Rarity carefully pulled the first one free from its home. "There we go," she said. "You hardly felt a thing, did you? It's uncanny how emptiness can feel like nothing abnormal at all. This is the state you deserve to be in. It should feel right to you."

"It does," said Blueblood, crying a few more tears.

A few more snips, and the second landed in the pan. Blueblood's cock swelled and spurted cum all over the floor and my hooves. I didn't mind, because I just wanted the poor stallion... gelding, I mean... to be comfortable, and I guess it doesn't get more comfortable than an orgasm.

Rarity carefully cut off most of the skin of the scrotum, then with medical needle and thread expertly sewed the flesh into place as a smooth, flat surface beneath Blueblood's penis—right where a vulva would be on a mare. She injected the area again, and placed what smelled like a hot glue substance over the area. "This will bond the skin, so don't fiddle with it. It will burn for a short while, but we have pills for that."

Shining Armor levitated two bottles of pills over to me, and I took one out from each and fed them to Blueblood: an antibiotic and a narcotic.

"It will take about thirteen minutes for the narcotic to have any effect," I said.

"The pain's not bad. I've been living with a pain in my heart for so long..." he said, and smiled through the tears.

How can a pony change so rapidly? I don't understand it. But I think about what I might do in that situation, and... I think I'd be happy too, to finally have it all over with, the charade of pretending to be important and in control. Looking in his reddened eyes was like looking into a mirror. I was seeing my future, and I loved it.

Rarity walked over to us both and hugged Blueblood about the neck. "You've done a beautiful job, darling. I'm so proud of you!" she said, praising him like a little foal. "You really should do something about the mess you made on Twilight's hooves, though."

Then Prince Blueblood began to eagerly suck his cum off of my hooves.

I won't lie, Journal. I was wet, despite the horror of all of this. I know I've already become a degenerate. I can feel it, and I don't want to fight it anymore.

Shining Armor walked down to us and nodded his approval. "Excellent. From now on, it is to be referred to as 'it', unless this becomes inconvenient or roles need to be broken," he said. "Blueblood also rescinds its princely status except for formal events during which the pretense will need to exist."

"Yes, Master," said Blueblood, kissing my hooves now that all of the cum had been sucked up and swallowed. "Thank you, Master."

"Now then, I know something that could pass the time while it waits for the medication to kick in," said Shining Armor. "Moon Black?"

Moon Black walked forward and produced a breakstone box from his saddlebags, and set it down behind me, opening it up. "Are you ready to become a proper vampony, Blueblood?" he asked.

Blueblood closed his... no, its eyes tightly and nodded, then opened them and began to stare into the space behind me. I held its neck gently and petted its mane as the stone began to eat away at its brain. "It's wonderful," it murmured. "Twilight, it's so wonderful. I never knew..."

"You're welcome to turn around and join it, Twily," said Princess Cadance. "You'll be so happy once you learn to accept what you are."

"I... maybe tomorrow," I said, taking a big gulp of empty air. It hurt to say, because I meant it.

I watched the sanity slowly seeping out of Blueblood's tired eyes, envious of the experience I wanted so desperately to accept. They glazed over, and after a short time, it was all over. It closed its eyes, leaving its brain to cook to perfection. I'm not sure when I began kissing it, but I kissed its lips and its cheeks very gently. Nothing gross or anything.

I just felt so... bad? No. It's hard to describe how I felt, and I don't want to think about it.

"Shadowbane, I believe Fancy Pants is waiting in the lobby with a pair of pants for his new toy. Could you bring him the former stallion and its testicles?" asked Shining.

"With pleasure," grinned Shadowbane.

"You see, Twilight?" said Luna. "We are forgiving and kind. This is true friendship, which is what the Order has to offer. I wish you would stop fighting us altogether, even though I know that will not happen."

"I'm at the brink," I admitted, my voice soft. "My only resistance at this point is what you do with foals, but... I don't know. Maybe you aren't hurting them after all. I don't know anything anymore," I said.

"Come with me, then. It is time for Pip's first hint."

I've arrived in Luna's room and have been given time to write this down.

I'm scared, journal. I don't know what will happen to me if I no longer feel nauseous at the thought of foals being made love t—no, I mean being raped.

Dammit.

All I want to do now is watch and absorb data, in as unbiased a manner as I can. I just don't know if 'unbiased' is even a possibility anymore.