The Heart of Pleasure
By Haunter Rayne
Ch 44 – An Ambition Achieved

Twilight sat sulking in the map room while looking over the most recent issue of the Crystal Empire's local newspaper which she had specially ordered before returning to Ponyville. The princess whined and mumbled to herself sadly as her eyes pored over article after article but could not find any reports of disturbances to have happen recently.

Meanwhile, a small dragon sat in the seat beside her looking over the pages she had already passed through and sighing happily. The two were a silent chorus of pouts and smiles, seeing that page after page were just different news ponies trying to put their own spin on the relationship between Spike and Rarity.

“You don’t have to sound so happy over there Spike.” Twilight whimpered glumly.

“Oh come on Twilight. It’s not like I’m TRYING to act cocky about it or anything. But what other couple can say that a whole city printed a newspaper about how cute they look with their special somepony? This is... you can admit... at least a little bit cool. Right?”

Now the purple alicorn decided to lighten up and she smiled down at him saying, “Yes Spike, you’re right. That is in fact very cool. Anyone would be excited to have that happen to them. I’m just discouraged that I still can’t figure out what the friendship problem was that I apparently failed at. The castle guards hadn’t received as much as a noise complaint recently and there is nothing in the paper about problems between ponies either. Uhhhh! At least Applejack didn’t seem to have any trouble with hers. I’ll have to ask her about what happened once I get the chance.”

Spike nodded but before he could respond they both heard the front doors of the castle burst open and a wallowing voice called out from the entryway. After first turning to each other in surprise, Twilight and Spike then rushed out of their seats to see if somepony needed help.

“Starlight?! Is that you? Are you okay?” Twilight asked seeing a collapsed mare now laying face down on the floor.

“What happened?” Spike asked noticing several rainbow paper streamers tied around one of her hooves, glitter stuck across the back left side of her torso, and an oversized lollipop with a shark bite taken out of it stuck in the side of her mane.

An exhausted Starlight Glimmer then looked up to them from the floor. “Uuuhhhh... I am sooo tired....” She whined and she sounded even worse than she looked. “Pinkie... Pinkie Pie is crazy...! She wanted... wanted to give me... an exciting evening out...! Wouldn’t... wouldn’t take no for an answer!"

While Twilight tried to pry the candied stick from her mane without hurting her Spike asked, “What happened? Did she hurt you? You look like you got ran over by a heard of pastry baked buffalo.”

Starlight chuckled at Spike’s joke but then she shook her head. “Oh no, I had a fantastic time. I couldn’t believe the lengths that she went to just to show me a good night. Did you know that Pinkie has an inflatable rollarcoaster that actually works?!”

“Seriously?” Now Spike and Twilight shook their heads in surprise, both looking like they were almost frightened by what their mutual friend was capable of.

Then as Twilight began magically power blasting the glitter away and out the door Starlight went on to explain, “But she just wouldn’t stop! It was one thing after another! I was smiling the whole time for sure. But she totally wore me out!” Starlight looked apologetic as she realized she had shouted. But then she blushed a little before asking, “Hey Spike, I don’t suppose that Rarity would get jelous if I asked you to carry me to my room, would she? You wouldn’t believe how sore my hooves are right now.”

At this Twilight rolled her eyes but smiled as she spoke up. “Yeah, let’s not cross that bridge. Don’t worry Spike, I’ve got this. It’s getting late so you go off to bed. I’ll help Starlight with whatever she needs tonight and then make sure she makes it to bed okay.” With a nod Spike leaned in to get a hug before making his way to his room without another word. But that was when Twilight turned back to the other mare asking, “So, are we going to need a trip to the medicine cabinent again?”

At this Starlight lifted her hooves innocently and said, “Oh, no. I learned my lession, trust me. I only had a few gummies with Pinkie to humor her but otherwise I ate fine. I’m just super worn out and that’s all that’s wrong at the moment. I promise Twilight.” The princess nodded and even giggled a bit as Starlight cooed happily when she levitated her off the ground. As she was being carried throug the air toward her bedroom Starlight looked down and exasperately groaned out, "You are the BEST kind of friend."

- - -

Hours had passed and now those living in the Castle of Friendship were all sleeping soundly. Twilight lay on her back kicking softly as she mumbled about books and student’s test scores. Meanwhile Spike rested on his side in his larger bed. Up on his mantle sat the small plush Rarity doll which he kept only more as a trophy now, no longer feeling the need to sleep with it now that his heart held the love of the real Rarity.

On the far end of the castle another mare slept in utter exhaustion, hardly even twitching from where she had been dropped onto her mattress. Starlight Glimmer lay dead asleep except for her snoring which tonight had been so bad that Twilight had to put a sound dampening field around her room. Her limbs lay like lead weights in her and the tiny end to her mane flicked back and forth from her breathing.

However that was when a shadow which did not belong to any of them made it’s way up along the side of the castle walls. After seeping in through Starlight’s open window it disappeared into the darkness of her room. Two imaterialized eyes looked about making absolutely sure no one else was around aside from the snoring mare. Then four large paws padded soundlessly onto the floor from a darkened corner of her room. Deep blue eyes stared down upon the princess of friendship’s star pupil as a wave of affection, sympathy and desire all rolled through the panther at once.

Right in between the roaring breathes of her snoring, Starlight Glimmer suddenly froze solid into a solid mass of obsidian. Moving quickly now the large feline used a paw to shut the curtains tight before a fiery orange glow spread out from the petrified pony. As soon as the light was gone the cutie mark on her stone hip had vanished. Meanwhile, the intruder to her room almost toppled backwards while holding his head and squinting his eyes tightly.

“Eyaaaah...” The overgrown cat whispered while struggling to remain as silent as possible. “So much... Starlight... it’s like Sombra all over again... There’s so much...” The panther groaned as the synapses of his brain exploded to new heights. After a moment of heavy breathing the beast was able to catch his breath and cease his struggled panting. “Together...” he whispered, focusing on his magical abilities. “Copy... Duplicate... Separate...” He chanted softly before looking down to the stone frozen pony in her bed. “Now return...”

After a moment the hellish glow poured out from his fangs and back into the mare below. Starlight’s cutie returned as if it had never left and Rayne snarled confidently as he chuckled to himself. “I remember, heh heh... I remember everything! Heh, heh, heh!” Without wasting another second he shot a spell to reverse the obsidian petrification from Starlight, reopened her curtains as if he had never been there, and then teleported away.

No sooner had he left as just a second later there was another teleportation with a panicked looking princess now scoured the room with her eyes. “Starlight! Are you okay?! I thought I felt something weird and magical come from your room?!” Twilight had shouted but when she looked down she was only met by a snore from Starlight as if she didn’t have a care in the world. Looking closer she didn’t seem to be hurt in any way. The room wasn’t any different and nothing seemed to be missing or out of place. “Huh, I guess it was just my imagination? Maybe it was part of a nightmare that I forgot as soon as I woke up.” She sighed feeling unsure but then teleported back to her own room to return to bed.

- Back in Maud’s Cave -

Together Zecora and Maud sat nervously, holding hoof in hoof with one another as all they could do was wait. They had considered it a miracle that Rayne succeeded in stripping the Mirror Pool of its magic. Each of them even tested it but no duplicates of themselves would emerge any longer. However even knowing that the hard part was over and that the next step should be easy, they could not help but feel like the most dangerous aspect of Rayne’s plan was now upon them. When they both heard the flash of a pony teleporting into the entryway their hearts almost leapt out of their throats.

When Rayne suddenly appeared back in Maud’s cavern he just stared at the floor in quiet disbelief. All the nerves of his body felt shot and his legs seemed wobbly as he slowly stepped forward. He was only vaguely aware as two different colored sets of hooves ran towards him and stopped just in front. Rayne looked back at the dark cave tunnel behind him expectantly but nothing happened. No Canterlot guards chasing after him. No Twilight Sparkle magically persueing him. No Discord, sarcastically interrogating him about what he has done.

“R-...ne!” As if having forgotten that sound was a thing, Rayne suddenly looked up when he became aware that somepony was yelling at him.

Maud and Zecora looked to each other in concern wondering why the stallion would not answer them. The earth pony’s voice cracked, no longer sounding monotone at all as she whispered, “Please, you’re scaring us. Are you alright? Tell us what happened!”

That was when the stallion’s eyes finally narrowed into focus. “Heh...” The girls looked to each other again, confused at that slight chuckle being his only response. But then their stallion went on. “Heh, heh... Ha! HA HA!” Suddenly Rayne grabbed Maud and Zecora joyiously around their necks and pulled them with him as he began dancing them all around in a circle. “HA HA HA HA! I DID IT! IT WENT PERFECTLY! IT WORKS! MY IDEA WORKS!”

Rayne was yelling so loudly it had scared them at first. But after hearing him out the other girls also began to smile. “Can this be true? Did all as you said really happen for you?” Zecora asked, sounding both excited and nervous at the same time.

Realizing that he was acting like a lunatic Rayne let them go and bent down trying to catch his breath. His body did not seem able to quell the crazed look in his eye or the speed in which he was ranting. “It went perfectly! Starlight was SO exhausted looking. The poor thing, I had to stop myself from climbing into bed to try and comfort her, HA HA! But anyways, she did not wake up at all. Not before I froze her and not even after! And it worked! I have her magic, I know every spell that she does... or with the best of my ability to remember them... and I was able to give her magic back to her!”

Rayne rushed down to Maud’s stream and dunked his head into the water still trying to get a hold on himself. The cool stream was refreshing and definitely seemed to make a difference as he then walked back up to the two mares waiting for him. “Congratulations.” Zecora said to him. “You are now the most powerful being in Equestra. Perhaps it is time for celebrations?” She asked, sounding none too short of flirtatious with him as she realized this also meant she was the girlfriend of the most powerful being in Equestria.

Instantly they were both interrupted as Maud stepped up and boldly stated, “Do it to me.”

“W’-wha?” Rayne gasped out in surprise.

However Maud was quick to respond. “Does it hurt? I mean, I’m sure that it isn’t pleasant. But would it hurt to have your powers taken away?” She asked.

“I... I don’t think so.” Rayne admitted, staring at her in genuine bewilderment.

“Then do it to me. I know you plan on going after the Diamond Dogs. Think of how much more you could do with what you get from them if you also had all my understanding for soils and rock formations.” She sounded so sure of herself, almost as if she was eager for Rayne to do this to her.

“But Maud, I-” Rayne started but she instantly shook her head.

“You said it wouldn’t hurt, right? And you can give me my... my essence back while still keeping a copy of yourself, right? I understand that you needed Starlight in order to be able to do the ‘give back’ part. But please... I want to be the first one that you use this power on. Don’t make me second to any other pony, please.” She whimpered now in a surprisingly desperate tone for her.

“Maud...” Rayne whispered as he walked up and kissed her lips tenderly. He had no idea what was going through that head of hers. As much as he wished to, he couldn’t crack that stoic expression to know what words she was telling herself that were clearly tearing at her emotionally. But he knew it wouldn’t harm her. And if she needed to be the first for him then he cared enough to not deny her that.

All of a sudden as he kept their lips pressed together their mouths now began to glow. She instantly choked a bit and started to fall limp in his arms but he held her tightly and never broke their embrace. Rayne blinked a few times as knowledge and a bit of power coursed through him. Then Maud’s lips glowed again as she slowly regained her strength to stand. “I’m alright.” She said before Rayne could even look to her with concern. “You’re right, it doesn’t hurt. I just felt weak. But I am not harmed.”

Rayne looked at her curiously for a moment. “Rubies and sapphires are actually the same mineral, corundum. The basic chemical formula of corundum is Al2-"

"O3, but traces of iron stain the mineral red for rubies while traces of chromium or titanium stain the mineral blue for sapphires." Maud replied finishing the geological fact for him.

Now Rayne just gave a contented sigh. “Well, that settles it I guess. Maud hasn’t lost anything from herself... and I still gained her essence.” He sighed and then collapsed back onto his flank. “To be honest I didn’t know if this would even work, let alone if I could pull it off.”

“And what do you plan to do with all of this power now that you have it?” Maud asked.

That was when Rayne smiled and stroked her cheek gently. He had been looking forward to this moment when somepony would finally ask him that. “Nothing.” He said simply.

“Nothing?” Maud questioned in surprise.

“Nothing, really? Could that be?” Zecora also asked, stepping up to Rayne and motioning toward him with her snout clearly feeling impatient to have her turn. Rayne chuckled and repeated his magic stealing kiss to the zebra who kicked a bit but then settled as her magic was given back.

“That’s right, there is no-... whoa, geeze Zecora. How the heck long have you been studying for? You’re gonna knock me out over here with the number of potions and ingrediants you know.” Rayne said with a wince as it was always difficult when there was too much to be gained all at once. The zebra didn’t respond but did sit down smiling and feeling proud of herself. After Rayne had recovered he continued with what he had been saying. “I plan to do nothing with this. I will continue to gain power, without ponies knowledge, and then I will just sit on it.” He told them rather anticlimactically.

“We trust you Rayne but your claim is still hard to believe. It is not just anypony who could gain power like this and be satisfied to leave.” Zecora pointed out hoping to get more of an answer from the stallion.

Chuckling now Rayne walked over to the large floor cushions and motioned for them to join him. “It’s true. I mean sure I will use the power eventually. But only when I need to. Let me say it again girls... I don’t want world domination. I don’t want to conquer and I don’t want to rule. I’m not Sombra, I don’t smile at the thought of enslavement. I’m not Tirek, I don’t want power for the purposes of gluttony.”

“Then what do you want?” Maud asked as both she and Zecora cuddled into his two sides.

“I want you two.” He said simply and now Maud had to look at the floor while Zecora looked at the ceiling as both their cheeks burned red. “I want all of our friends safe. I want the two mares that my pleasure pony destiny is leading me towards to know how I feel about them. And I want the power to keep you all safe and to always be there for you no matter what you need. What do I want? I want to care for those who matter to me.”

There was a brief silence as their three hearts just sat warmly together. It was Maud who then surprised them both as she reached out to grab Zecora’s hoof and pull it tightly around Rayne. Then matching the intimate hold with one of her own hooves she closed her eyes and rested her head upon his shoulder. “That is enough for me then.” She said sleepily and then made no other attempts to move.

Rayne and Zecora both looked to each other wide eyed in surprise. “Did she just pull my hoof in to go to sleep?” Zecora asked, not even bothering to make a rhyme and Maud made no response as she continued to breathe peacefully.

Rayne laughed and gently shrugged. He knew that Zecora was wanting to spend some time celebrating in a more physical sense but after what Maud had just done the zebra began to realize just how heavy the bags under her own eyes had also become. Lowering her head down on Rayne’s other shoulder she didn’t say a word as she joined Maud in resting against their boyfriend for the night.

“Heh, well how bout that?” Rayne said, realizing there was nothing he could have asked them for that would have made him happier than how this felt. Using his magic to set the timer on his clock, he then closed his eyes to sleep in bliss between the warmth of his two affectionate mares.

- The Next Morning -

It was quiet in the cave as both Zecora and Maud awoke at relatively the same time as one another. They reached out with a hoof feeling the empty space between them where their stallion was no longer laying. But they looked up in surprise finding a blanket neatly tucked in around each of them. Their gaze met which each other’s as they felt a mutual comfort that they both shared in their partnership with Rayne. More than friends now but less than lovers themselves, they shared a new found bond together. However that was when two shimmering lights caught their eyes from just nearby.

Looking down there were two gemstones that somepony had taken the time to carve into the shape of flowers. Resting upon the ground was a twisting spiral of carved amethyst and a twisting spiral of carved jet which had been pieced together making a beautiful gem flower. Maud looked st it in awe noticing how it nearly matched her coat and mane. Likewise, below where Zecora’s hooves rested a similar flower of carved quartz and a twist of jet lay to match the zebra’s stripes. The two mares picked up their respective presents both blushing scarlet at the beautiful gifts that Rayne had left for them.

Up above on the surface though, their missing stallion now smiled as he approached the Ponyville Day Spa just as the morning sun was being raised in the sky. “Oh good morning Rayne. So are you feeling well enough to begin today?” Aloe Vera asked while unlocking the front door as she saw the stallion approaching.

“Yes, I feel much better today. Thank you for allowing me the extra time to recover. I certainly made good use of it. I hope though that the marking on my face will not be a deterrent to any of our customers.” He said, being aware that the bruising from his fall in Canterlot had reduced but not fully healed.

The pale rose colored mare just smiled at him. “Yes well your ‘negotiation tactics’ with Lotus Blossom didn’t really leave her with a lot of room to disagree with you. And don’t worry, it doesn’t look too bad. You can't really even seem notice it anymore unless somepony is looking extra closely." After making their way in she followed with, "I assume that your behavior with Lotus yesterday will 'not' be a service you’ll offer to our clients though?”

The dark stallion chuckled and nodded. “I will behave myself, don’t worry. I’m not the kind who has trouble separating business from pleasure.”

“Pleasure indeed.” Suddenly a different voice came from behind them as Lotus stood there giving a wry expression to Rayne. “Speaking of what happened yesterday, I would like to talk to you! A moment of your time please?” And with that the light cerulean mare turned her back to them and walked down the hallway inside without even waiting. Rayne glanced over to Aloe curiously but she just made her way behind the front counter and raised an eyebrow as if to say that she wasn’t the one in trouble.

Proceeding into the back he found Lotus waiting while leaning against a supply cart with her hooves crossed. “Quickly, before we have any customers I want to speak to you.” Her heavy accent made her sound almost Norwegian or Swedish to Rayne causing him to not be sure if she was upset or just being serious while she reprimanded him. “Aloe and I don’t mind a little levity in the workplace between coworkers. You are an attractive stallion. And I am an attractive mare. I get it! But we take our business ethic very seriously around here.”

“I understand.” He said seriously. But in response to his up-tight tone she shook her head and walked up to him.

“No, I don’t think you do. What I want, is maybe if you could stay after work with Aloe and I for a… coworker meeting tonight?” She asked before stroking his chest with a hoof.

“Oh-OH!” He stated in surprise as she leaned herself against him.

“All I am saying is do not allow it to affect our place of business. And do not ever allow our customers to find out. Otherwise, neither Aloe or I care if you have interests outside the job. Furthermore, you needn’t worry about foals from us. We are… protected. But that is our business, not yours. And we probably aren’t interested in dates from you either. We don’t really have room for anything serious in either of our lives right now.” Quickly she looked back down the hallway making sure no customers had entered yet. “But if you have no problems with this then all is good.” With that she leaned upwards to give him a quick peck on the lips before turning to make her way back to the front.

But to her surprise that was when Rayne suddenly grabbed her and swung her around back into him. “Now wait a minute and you listen here!" He told her in his best ‘serious but flirty Sean Connery: James Bond’ kind of voice. “You either kiss me or don’t kiss me, you understand?! But if you’re going to kiss me, then kiss me!” Then, hard, he thrust his lips against hers and held her arms like a 1920’s movie scene. He leaned her back against that supply cart trying to pop her stockings for her, had she been wearing any.

Lotus’ eyes popped open in shock but then her whole body melted in his grip as she fell into his touch. Rayne waited, taking measure of her breath as he held their lips locked together. He was careful with his timing, parting their lips into an open mouth kiss right in time when she would have breathed out. As soon as she had there was a glow between their kiss as her cutie mark disappeared and then reappeared.

“Wh-what-whoa...” She stammered, falling away from him and then stumbling on buckled knees. “What did… mmmm, rawr. That was some kiss!” She winked at him, not realizing the difference between him knocking her socks off from what had actually happened to her.

“I’ll see you out there.” He winked back to her and she smirked as she returned to the front counter while shaking her hips suggestively for him. It wasn’t more than a few seconds later before he heard whispering and then giggling from the two mares out front. For his part though, he headed back to the room that would be his work area and giggled a bit himself. “Sooo… that’s how they give massages with these things...” He said, looking down at his hooves as new ideas that had never occurred to him before now awakened in his mind.

- As the Day Went On -

As soon as word got out that the recently advertised service at the day spa was now being provided, the rumors spread like wild fire throughout the town. The spa ponies watched as their door was held open by townsfolk lining up around the building to try out the new sensation. And as if that were not enough, Aloe and Lotus were shocked to hear the glowing reviews from the readjusted stallions and mares after they had been seen.

“I can’t believe you didn’t provide such a service for us earlier!” Called out one stallion on his way out. “I have a cousin who lives in Fillydelphia who would just LOVE to find out about this. I will be sending him a letter telling him all about the magic that your new stallion is working!"

After that a middle aged mare followed out not too long after who seemed equally as pleased. “Oh my, oh my. These hips of mine are always so stiff but I haven’t felt this relaxed since I was just a young thing! You can be sure that I am going to tell all my friends at the Ponyville Book Club about that handsome Mr Magic Hooves that you’ve got hidden away back there. Oh, hehe!” This of course only seemed to encourage the ponies waiting in the lobby even more.

Back inside Rayne took his time with each client, explaining the process and that chiropractory is not a cure but more of a wellness treatement. “It’s like exercising, Mrs. Cake.” He told the light cerulean mare. “Can you go without it? Yes. Does it help you when you make it a part of you life? Of course. Will you see greater benefits if you keep up on a schedule with it? Definitely. But chiropractory can still have short term benefits even if only done every once in awhile.”

“I see, I see.” She nodded, feeling a little nervous but finding it hard not to trust all the amazing rumors that she had heard.

“Alright now let’s just relax and have you lay down upon the massage table here. I already have all your measurements and physical data noted down for the chart we will be keeping on you. That way I can show you later the progress that you’ve made after each and every treatment.”

“Oh my, how thorough.” She exclaimed, placing her face through the gap at the end of the table.

“Well we take your wellness very seriously here. Something as simple as poor posture can have permanent negative affects when a pony gets older. But of course, a young thing like you still has quite a long way to go before having to worry about that.” She was now glad to be hiding her face down through the table as she silently scolded herself for blushing at the stallion’s comment.

“Alright, let’s see...” Rayne began as he gently maneuvered her hips in different directions while feeling upon her spine. “Okay, let me move you up on the table just a little bit. You can go ahead and close your eyes and breath for me while I guide you through.” She now could no longer see through the gap in the table but was still comfortable as she breathed through the opening. “Ah, I see you give yourself a sore spot on your back right across your shoulders. Probably from carrying all those trays around in the bakery.”

“It’s true. Oh I mean, those tins aren’t very heavy. But you know, after they have been carried out a few hundred times or so that really does get put a strain on you.”

“Of course, of course it does.” He said soothingly, massaging his hoof into the joint of her spine that felt to be holding all that pressure. “So now why don’t you take a big breath in, that’s it, now think about how nice it will be to let all that soreness go as you breathe out for me, slow, slow, good-” Suddenly there was a tremendous crack as her bones popped loud enough to almost echo through the room. Right then as the rest of her breath dropped from her lungs and her eyes rolled back at the euphoria of her blood flow increasing, a thin orange trickle of light threaded itself out from the mare and into the stallion before quickly slipping right back into her again.

“Ohhhh, whoa… I was told that this would be an experience that could knock the breath out of you but I feel like I almost passed out there for a moment.” She called out.

“Yes, as I stated, patients can sometimes feel a temporarily numbness or a fleeting drop in energy. But that is totally normal, especially for first time patients. Are you hurt? Do you feel any better?”

“I feel amazing. I feel so tranquil as if I simply don’t want to move.” After a moment though she slowly sat up and smiled at him. “Thank you very much. You can be sure that I will be back again soon.”

Rayne just nodded as he picked up her file. “It was my pleasure to help. In fact maybe I’ll be by to trade pastry recipes with you sometime. I feel that trying my hoof at baking could be fun one day. You know, a little surprise for Starlight in the future.”

“Oh that would be lovely dear.” And with that she stepped out down the hall with a rosy glow on her cheeks.

Stepping over to a filing cabinet he placed her information away before smirking. “That makes thirty two… hehe.” Moving over to a cardboard box on the floor he then picked up a new folder with a blank set of medical forms and leaned his head out the hallway. “Send in the next client please!”

Author's Notes:

Well ladies and gentleponies... we have reached success. Equestria will never be the same again now that Rayne has reached his goal. Ironically enough, that goal being that Equestria will remain the same as it is now. Safe and happy and prosperous. He succeeded in the magically thievery he sought for, but how long can his goal to be Equestria's dark protector hold out?

Also now that Rayne has started his new job just in time with his new abilities, he has ponies lining themselves up to give him their powers. Pegasi, unicorns, and earth ponies alike they all are one chiropractic gasp away from sharing their abilities with our protagonist. And at the rate ponies are filing in, it won't be more than a few days until he has fed upon every pony in town.

**P.S. Who just watched the Rainbow Roadtrip?! I thought it was awesome!**