---

"Diary entry: seven hundred thirty-six thousand, nine hundred, and thirty-five. Aka, two thousand and nineteen years since I've been on this flipping star!" The sound of something clicking like a thumb on a pen emerged. The voice vented out their frustration through muttered curses, then added, “I’ve had an itch near my rump for centuries now. I never knew I could develop a major phobia of peanut butter.”

She was a strange and colorful oddity within the mass of dull liquorish. Thick strings of a gooey substance wrapped around her torso and legs while also making a suctioning noise whenever she squirmed. A quilt made of hardened peanut butter was slathered all across her body, she was immobilized, all except for a free arm holding a recorder.

The object she held whirred before she spoke again, "For two thousand years, I mourn what could have been. I was betrayed, leaving ruins of what used to be warmth now frozen over. I doubt my friend is as defeated as they claim, like Winter, the earth will appear barren and dead until Spring. She will remain dormant, paused, mimicking the silence of the bitter seasons until making her move. Spring is coming, her Spring is coming... and oh-ho-ho, how her Spring will be glorious-"

Static resonated throughout the vast emptiness, but otherwise, nothing else was heard. The outer layer of the star boiled from the bubbling and ignited gas upon the surface, and the peanut butter shifted from the heat being pumped into it.

She seemed to be used to its routine and only responded with a grimace.

"Wow, that was some Whinney Shakespeare level poetry right there, folks. Write that down, write it down!" She was mighty pleased with herself as the static once more buzzed from her recorder. She refreshed her lips and scrunched her brow to once more dive into her story, “Discord is an envious hunk of junk! He used to be my everything, he always told me how I was such a knockout! Oh, I'll be a knockout alright when I use my boxing glove and slap him upside the head!"

Her pinkie claw curled and her hand was mysteriously donned with a thick glove.

"I have done so many pinkie curl-ups that I'm pretty sure a flick from it would cause a supernova, or something scientifically disastrous. You just wait Discord, after I'm done-" Her tongue curled around a softening lump of peanut butter before coaxing it into her mouth, she swallowed and continued, "-Mmgh. After I'm done—whooo, I'm getting light-headed. After I'm done chewing myself out of this sticky situation, no pun intended, Discord's reign will be abolished by the pinkie smackdown of his life! He doesn't know his banishment won't contain all this raw rage and soon, soon my precious, I will escape with a master plan of annihilation!"

The portable recorder's silver nob flickered with a faint red light, causing the draconequus to notch her lip.

"Oh, good gravy! Low battery? How could I have a low battery after two thousand years? Discord promised these would last at least three! He probably lied about them being biodegradable as well, along with many other things." She knocked the side of the Tascam against a bare section of the star's surface. "Well, I happened to flap my gums non-stop for two millennia. How could I not, the only creature who could give me expert advice is myself. I used to have friends I could talk to, well, one specifically. After Everglade was... mmm, unexpectedly foreclosed, we all walked our own paths. I'm a Spirit of Chaos that prefers one friend, the others can fend for themselves they disappoint me."

Within her mouth, she had shelved a lump of peanut butter to gnaw on. Her nausea for chewing the wad was unfathomable, and she kept delaying the inevitable task of eventually swallowing. For years the mass accumulated like a cow's cud, and now, it was the size of a baseball in the pocket of her cheek.

"I may be alone in this dimension, but Discord made a fatal flaw in my banishment. He left my arm open, and exposed. My chaotic nature is substantial and my power is threaded within my essence. Whether I am tied upside down by my legs, or imprisoned in a cage of peanut butter, he has forgotten the fundamental law of our kind. If even the smallest core of my prowess isn't contained, even a little itty-bitty pinkie claw on my hand, I can use that claw to create a vast dimension." Her sneer was splenetic, and she chucked, "Checkmate, Discord. You may have tried to stop my influence, but now, the dimension I have created will contain my League of Villians... ahem, name pending."

She swallowed the horribly large gulp of peanut butter. The mass was dumped down her esophagus and her throat tensed as it passed down to her stomach. Her hair bristled, and her eyes thinned, but she was able to push it down so that gravity couldn't launch it back onto her face a few hundred years from now. Don't spit out your food or the universe would shake its finger and throw it back at you for littering.

It's happened once or twice, believe it.

"-Once my team is assembled, the battle between Everglade and Equestria will be legendary! Within my dimension, I shall have a stone table. Upon that stone table will be a map, a glorious map of redemption, that shall lead us to victory! Unfortunately, even though I can make a dimension I will be a bit slow adding in all the bells and whistles. Once I have finished it, however, all peanut butter shall be banned... banned I say! No exceptions! It shall be called Cosmos' dimension of utter evil- no, no that's an awful name, God's I'm losing my mind up here!"

A crown of sweat pooled around her forehead where lines of stress were etched. The star was getting quite... uncomfortably hot... to where it was having a greenhouse effect under the barrier keeping her pinned. She wasn't concerned about the threat of becoming an extra crispy Cosmos-drizzled peanut butter snack, though. No, no, she was a Spirit of Chaos and that was not the worst that could or will happen within her immortal life.

Swallowing thickly, she spoke. “I am equal to power with many, but not to Coeus. My guess is as soon as she starts walking her main objective will be to shave that pussycat, mmm, I've got to escape. That kitty has a lot of fur, and she's going to need at least five clean razors to do it. She's also going to need a lot of bandaids, like all cats, this one definitely has some mean claws."

The dimension Cosmos was in had an intricate crossroad that sometimes allowed a stranger to pass through. She wasn't always alone, in fact, she had a penpal. This little crack was not accessible by normal means and the ones who came sniffing around her neck of the woods were peculiar.

A wing beat, drifting a shadow over Cosmos. If it weren't for the familiar shade of fern within the visitor's eyes her pelt of raven wouldn't have been detected among the galaxy's darkness.

"Aaaand you're still here. How long has it been, centuries at least, since you've been abandoned here?"

A black feline strolled in front of Cosmos as if she were standing on a glass walkway. Her voice was raspy and about as scratchy as a briar patch, well, her personality was about as sharp as a thorn bush too.

The draconequus made a hiss when sucking sharply through her teeth, "Ooo, so close. Actually, the answer was two millennia. Did you happen to swing by because you got my last letter? You know the anniversary of my banishment is in a couple of weeks, I'm not expecting any gifts... not at all, but I mean, a good friend wouldn't mind knabbing me some cucumber sandwiches. Hint, hint."

The visitor's cheeks swelled with air and she ran a paw through her cardinal-tipped mane. "I'm surprised Discord didn't muzzle you too. That recorder must have heard a lot of complaining over the years. I told you once already that I'm up to my neck in my own issues, ya know? I don't really have the power left to help much, or dive into the mortal plane to fetch you a plate of cucumber sandwiches... or the care, really."

Cosmos huffed, "My disappointment in you is immeasurable, and now my day is ruined."

The sphinx's eyes were suddenly dour. "I don't think you understand what we're going through. Eighty percent of the multiverse.... has forgotten us. I'm... I'm becoming mortal."

"Well duh, Nike," Cosmos quipped. She overlooked her friend's pacing and gave her a piece of her mind, "Your divine leader of justice is kind of a fraud. You guys flaunt around and act as if the mortals are expendable. I don't blame them for waving the Gods aside and pretending your acts are just a stain on the wall. If one of them isn't testing out bestiality and creating the abomination that is Tirek, you're either pillaging or turning ponies into gorgons! Perhaps if you invested in temper management, they might throw you a bone like they used to."

"Oh, like you mortals are any better," The Goddess volleyed begrudgingly. "The kingdom you drone on and on about is merely an example of this. The nation of peace, give me a break! Everglade was at each other's throats the moment a demon waltzed in their front door."

"Well, if it bothers you so much, where were the Gods? I'd bet as soon as they heard about Coeus they tucked in their shirt and ran with it between their legs, hun. The war wasn't the fault of the demon, in fact, the crime lies comfortably on the shoulders of your kind. Deflecting blame is what you Gods do best, is it not?"

Nike replied, "I'm not deflecting, I'm simply a narrator. You know I can't do pretty much anything around here without the consent of the higher Gods. I'm the Goddess of Victory, not the God of War or the Goddess of Warfare. If you are earnest in seeking victory your best bet is to avoid what lies ahead."

Cosmos thickened her gaze with the Goddess, "Sure the odds may be against me, and I may very well lose. I understand you lost the worship of mortals and things are looking pretty glum, but in no way is that an excuse to be querulous all the time."

"I have a conglomeration of reasons to complain!" Nike berated in a shrilled attempt to overshadow the way her problem was downplayed, and then continued, "Our bed is made, and we will sleep that way. In no way can Coeus be brought down, even with the allegiance of the Gods. Our essence has been chipped away longer than you have been trapped here, Cosmos."

An uncomfortable quietude blanketed over the two creatures. The brisk environment was the only thing brave enough to break the silence, and Nike was the one who made the first sound. She blew a heated breath into her gathered paws to keep warm, but the icy depths of the universe would claim her frostbitten if she didn't thaw near the star. The Goddess of Victory was not one to admit defeat. Nike turned her back on Cosmos for a mere moment, before branching off a few feet away and resting her back on the pulsating exterior of the star.

Neither wanted to say anything, but the Goddess was more bullheaded if anything.

"So what is your plan? Eating your way out some more while clinging onto false ideals?"

"More or less," Cosmos admitted. "-You may be stubborn but you aren't stupid. You do realize you have to change your own ideals, or you will be forever forgotten."

The Goddess had a twinge of uncertainty, but replied, "I realize that. The more daunting task is how to do it."

"Scratch my back, and a demons-" The Spirit of Chaos paused and turned to look at her friend. "We'll scratch yours. My planet hasn't completely forgotten about your kind, and actually, it is about to be reintroduced real soon."

"You have a lot of hope in that hellspawn." She mused, with her paw digging a claw under one of the strands keeping Cosmos bound. "My hope is that it isn't misplaced, you can't trust them."

"This one is different." She replied confidently, watching silver hooks that were the Goddess's claws pick at the peanut butter. "-I must ask Nike, did my letter finally dust off that old heart of yours?"

A gush of air puffed from Nike's nose as if she were suppressing a laugh, but the corners of her mouth wrinkled.

"I wouldn't go as far as to say I agree, but-" She hesitated, bringing her claw toward her muzzle tentatively. The strain in the peanut butter was visible, but it had the strength of a steel cable. The sphinx narrowed her eyes as holes ate through the tension, snapping the goo apart from each other. "You're not wrong when you say you give expert advice."

It crackled, the strings thinning and whitening near the weaker splits. Cosmos eventually had her left side exposed along with a bit of her tail hanging limply by Nike's leg.

"This entire time you really could have freed me?"

Her voice was elevated like subdued thunder, but it was as sharp as a whip. The Goddess of Victory was greatly amused as another strained rope of peanut butter was plucked off to be swallowed by the void.

"You aren't wrong when calling the Gods selfish, but I had a good reason for not helping." Nike's cheeks had a devilish expression tying her cheeks into a sneer, as she explained, "I'd be so bored without my penpal. Look on the bright side though, if I hadn't kept you captive here you wouldn't have a dimension for your League of Villians."

"You are just terrible."

The Goddess stuck out a lip to playfully mock the draconequus, before cutting out another section of the webbed substance. Eventually, the captive was able to wiggle, move, and then finally was loose enough to cheer. Nike maneuvered backward without even a flap of her wings before admiring her work. Cosmos gulped the air in a huge sigh of relief while detaching herself from her eon-long sentence. She put a hand behind her spine and puffed out her chest to bend it inward, making a loud and satisfying crack.

Nike tied gazes with the freed spirit, and Cosmos resumed, "You're still terrible. Could have given me some sandwiches as a celebration, you know."

"Don't make me regret this," Nike forewarned. "You've made me believe your friend is quite the back scratcher."

"She's alive and in no way has kicked the bucket just yet. All I have to do now is find her." She replied, with a hand on her hip and her right resting on the star. Her gaze lingered on the smashed cacoon of peanut butter before she lightly gave a pat to her old back warmer. "Well old friend, I guess this is where we split ways. I would take a bite to eat for the road, but in all seriousness, I'd rather starve."

Cosmos curled her head around the casing of stale goop, staring into the abyss with a glint in her eyes.

"-And now my work begins."

---

It was soothing to feel Celestia's heartbeat, but it was uneven. The rhythm sped up while the nest of feathers continued to cradle Pinkie within their warmth. The Princess was fearful, that much was obvious. Her younger moon-born sibling was better at concealing her fear, but not her anxiety.

"-But, dear sister, his essence would have been destroyed by the Elements as well. So if he had survived their exile perhaps a piece of her still remains active."

Nodding her head, Celestia addressed her theory. "That was why I let him slip my grasp, I can assure you he is hunting. If my calculations are correct, I assume he'll be tunneling his way back to the original source of power. If it still remains somewhat alive we need to allow him to track it."

Luna was obviously extremely distraught. Her mane was in crimps, her pacing increased, and her voice was ginger.

"I applaud your somewhat cunning deception, but what if he leads us straight into her clutches? We went through a great deal of trouble to keep that creature in that cavern. After the scars she left upon Equestria you should be wary of challenging her so blindly."

"What in the center of a tootsie pop was that thing?" Pinkie Pie asked as an eggshell-shaded feather brushed her nose. "I've never seen such a creature before!"

Luna hummed, "It has taken the form of a wyrm. It's a serpentine-like creature with a hide that can resist many magical essences. If you are talking about what it truly is, that is another conversation entirely."

There was a combined cloud of chatter as gentle flaps from feathered wings approached. Airborne ponies blocked the moon from above as they landed. Pinkie could sense their perturbation and anxious expressions while Twilight scrambled to gain information.

"I'm so sorry princess, we have no idea why we were attacked so suddenly! The entire Canterlot castle is a mess, ponies by the dozens are wounded, and it's all my fault! I should have had a plan in motion just in case this happened!"

Celestia's face remained clear of any spite or anger. Her noble aura continued to ease the little pink pony under her wing.

The retired deity's voice was blame-free as she denied Twilight's self-inflicted fault. "I cannot lie and say that I am pleased with how the Gala had gone, but know none of us saw this coming, and none of us could have stopped it when it did."

Rainbow Dash waltzed into view with a crackling ice pack on the side of her head. "Gotta say, even with the entire dragon army at our disposal we got our flanks handed to us."

"As expected," Luna concurred while fiddling with the torn fang on the grass. "What drew him to the Gala still bemuses me, but I can say this tooth might give us some answers from a certain friend of ours."

"Star Swirl the Bearded?" Twilight asked as Celestia corrected her.

"No, I am afraid this magic has yet to be encountered by him. It is a perilous kind of practice, a forbidden one at that."

Luna was entranced by the detail of the wyrm's detached tooth. Her magic carefully cradled it within its grasp, before twisting it upward for a closer inspection. "We must get to work quickly. I suggest sending a party of elites to follow the wyrm immediately while we do our part by getting in contact with our adversary."

"Yes. I propose we ask for Tempest's assistance, her skills in battle will up our chances of having the party return rather unscathed." The Alicorn of the Sun mused as she gently removed her wing and warmth from Pinkie. "If she truly is alive, I know of her resentment, and the souls she will consume to end us no matter what innocent blood gets shed. We must make haste."

"E-Excuse me if ah may Princess, but we're pretty far in the dark here." Applejack muttered gaining the attention of both Alicorn elders. "Ah know ah'd appreciate knowin' about whatever thuh hay is goin' on."

Luna fixated on the earth pony and her expression shaded over as if there was an eclipse. "-And you'd be wise to thrive within your unknowing."

Celestia cleared her throat and scolded her sister's comment. "You'll have to excuse my younger sister, her memories of that terrible war are starting to surface. I will agree that it is best you stay as far away from this issue as possible. This isn't your battle and I will not put my past failures and burdens upon you."

"With all due respect Princesses we are the rulers of Equestria and I feel we could help!" Fluttershy added as Celestia's lips pressed together tightly.

"That I understand. I am well aware of your victories, your Elements, and your unbreakable bond." Her voice faltered as a sagged flash of despair tainted her eyes. "-But, be as it may, this foe will kill you. If I sent you into this battle I would be responsible for your death, and I could not live with that guilt."

"Sister, we must go, we have limited time in this race against The Devourer."

Luna was shaken and it was shown by the way her voice was unleveled and quivered. The older Alicorn had a sympathetic look that was undeciphered by the group, and it was one only the two of them understood.

"My little ponies, if you truly wish to help I request calming the fires of what happened at the Gala without exposing what you know." The princess instructed, as her wings unfolded alongside Luna's. They both ascended into the air and Celestia gave them a parting farewell, "Until we met again and hopefully under happier circumstances."

They officially departed and faded their outlines into the night sky. A heavy and brooding silence hung over the group, with only Dash's muffled sigh cutting through the tension. She rested herself against a stone serving as a backrest while moving the icepack over her eyes.

The wind hummed, and branches groaned, but the group refused to speak. They wondered what to say or if there was anything to say, even. Pinkie's silence was the most unsettling, however, because she had a weighted pile of guilt crushing her soul unlike the others. She saw the wyrm and she didn't follow her gut. This was her fault, all her fault, and even though she felt like everypony's eyes bore into her... Pinkie was the only one that truly knew she was clamming up.

She should have told.

The Wonderbolt had enough of the quietness and snapped the silence. "I can't believe they are blowin' us off like that! We have saved Equestria dozens of times while they sat on their thrones and did nothing! I say we have a better chance of dealing with this then they do!"

"Dash!" Rarity rebuked, before suppressing her own emotions and speaking gentler. "-Darling, obviously, this problem is a lot bigger than we could possibly understand."

"Ah can honestly say I've never seen Luna so panicky." Applejack said in a joined comment, as she continued, "Better yet ah've never seen any pony that scared."

"The Devourer-" Twilight rambled, focusing her stare in front of her with another mutter, "I find it strange she's such a big issue yet I've never heard of her."

"Well, if what Celestia said was true, and she ya know… consumed souls I'd want to keep in under wraps too." Rainbow Dash grunted, hissing through her teeth when the ice touched the tender lump on her head. "Jeeze, he really clocked me."

"Can you be a little less insensitive to the situation at hoof?" Rarity suggested distastefully as the pegasus lifted her bag with a pout.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to come off as insensitive. I just find the whole problem odd ya know? Why would a giant beast like that thing come bursting into the Gala like he owns the place? I get he has a power trip goin' on, but what was the point of attacking those hoity-toity Canterlot ponies?"

"I don't know, but I feel like he was trying to find somepony." Twilight added, her words causing a dark chill to tingle throughout Pinkie's spine.

As always the stones of her dishonesty piled until it outweighed her desire to remain quiet.

"Okay, I may have made a whoopsie-daisy. H-He, erm... I believe he was trying to find... well, me. I saw this really, really, big and black scaly thing in the forest and then later on a pillar. I... well, my cuckoo clock has been a little wonky for a while so I thought I was imagining it. Who would have known the saying 'a broken clock is right twice a day' would actually apply to me... hehe.. ha... urk."

Ten beady eyes fell on Pinkie. While their thought bubbles were surfacing she nervously giggled to try and deflect the mixture of emotions being added to the pot.

"Wait, wait, wait." Dash paused and shook her hooves to clear the air. "You're telling me you saw a gigantic pony-eating machine pop out of the ground... and you're gonna tell me, seriously, that you thought it wasn't real?"

The violet Alicorn was a bit appalled as well. "Pinkie I'm sorry, but how in Equestria would you just dismiss something like that? Then you allowed it to follow you?"

Pinkie swallowed thickly. "I-I may have a condition that's been raining on my parade a teensy bit-"

"No, I-I just can't accept that as an answer. I know you have your Pinkie ways-" Dash stopped to make a quick air quote before continuing, "-But this is too far. Not only did you threaten everyone at the Gala, but you didn't think at all to warn us even a little?"

"Oh my." Fluttershy whimpered whilst tucking herself into an invisible shell. "Oh, this is bad... I had a feeling something like this would happen. We should have told them."

There was a small 'eep' as the pegasus continued to ball up upon the ground. Even though Fluttershy was timider than the rest of the group the others were not ready to let go of the rope just yet. Pinkie was finding a strong urge to curl up next to her friend, but she knew they hadn't chewed her out enough.

"Now hold on just a flippin' minute, let's not gang up on Pinkie." Applejack interjected, but the staticky aura of blame did not heed. "She's been havin' a mighty hard time adjusting to everythin' and I feel like the stress was getting' to ‘er. Ya know how Pinkie is, why are we just now actin' like this is a new thing?"

Rarity stepped in. "I agree Pinkie is… Pinkie. Unfortunately, there is a difference between her normal randomness and flat out endangering everyone."

"I-Wha? No, no... I'd never purposefully-" She was unsuccessful in conquering their uncertainty, and Dash decided to challenge her claim.

"Regardless if you meant to or not, you did." Running a hoof throughout her singed mane, her cheeks swelled with air before she gave a heavy sigh. "Pinkie... I can't just brush this one off, kay? Several and I mean several ponies could have been hurt or worse, even killed! You need to understand how concerning it is when you believe something like that is just one of your fantasies."

"I agree with Rainbow. Pinkie, are you having trouble separating reality from imagination?" Twilight examined with a weighty stare in her direction. "Pinkie this is a serious problem and I need to know what's going on!"

There were cracks in Fluttershy's armor, and she would break quite soon. Pinkie was tongue-tied, unable to explain this bizarre condition to a point they'd understand. It would take weeks if not months to thoroughly get into the place where she could express her difficulty freely. It's not that she didn't trust her friends, she just feared their reaction and judgment.

The exact kind of judgment that was happening now.

"Stop fighting, everypony stop it!" The Element of Kindness squealed, dulling the arguing just enough for her next words to slip through. "-You don't understand, it's not Pinkie's fault she has-"

"No!" A voice boomed, corralling the group's eyes to Pinkie who had made Fluttershy stop in her tracks. "-I can't talk about her. Everypony thinks I'm crazy, and I can't have my friends thinking the same thing! I don't want to go back there... being told what to eat... when to sleep... being told I'm crazy over and over-"

Pinkie was lost in thought but far from reminiscing. The memories bubbling to the surface were not of good ones, not at all. She had believed ponies long ago, the ones that told her she was insane that is. With no other options, she went to where all the 'loose wired' ponies go. They studied her intimately and not one cell in her body went unidentified. Medicine was crammed down her throat by the bottle, and when not tested, she was in a cold room suffering from loneliness. At this point it was blatantly obvious she needed help, but not that kind of help. Not that kind of help again she couldn't bear it.

Twilight was sympathetic, but stern. "I don't know where there is Pinkie. You need to understand that you are showing signs of mental distress and it's costing your own sanity."

"If you won't tell us-" Rainbow Dash forewarned while approaching Pinkie, "-Then you have to leave for now."

"Now Dash there isn't need for-" Rarity was stopped.

"Rares, I love Pinkie, all of us do. I would never do anything to cause harm to my best friend, but you have to agree she isn't well. Our loyalty lies with Equestria and we are tasked with protecting it. She won't be safe if she's waltzing around unable to determine what's real and what's not. We also can't juggle knowing what's reality and what's not, okay?" The speedster explained, looking down upon her friend. Her expression was pained almost as if she were writing her words out on paper with a poisoned pen. "Pinkie, I'm sorry, but you need to go home. We'll do whatever we have to do so we can solve this later. For now, get some rest, and once this is all over we're going help you alright?"

The group was in disagreement about the situation, but they found common ground in Rainbow's words. They were unsettled by the decision and Pinkie's crestfallen face was enough to avert their gazes.

"Y-You... don't need me, really? I-I.. promise I'll do better, truly! Please don't send me home, I'm trying to figure this out! I Pinkie Promise I'm trying!"

Thick tears gushed like engorged dams down her cheeks, as her sniffles increased. She tried to wipe them away, but once they fell stopping them was unachievable.

"Pinkie this isn't a punishment-"

Twilight never got to finish her sentence because the pony she was addressing had fled. Dash called out to her, immediately regretting how she had handled things when her body dissolved into the forest line.

"Pinkie? Pinkie! Come back!"

Pinkie had fled. Like a coward. She was afraid, heartbroken, and confused. This is, in turn, activated a flight response to get away from what she viewed as a danger. The trouble was not her friends, but what would be waiting for her once things got resolved. Their opinions were sealed and they knew something was wrong with her. Mud and wind punched her face and shoulders as she barreled through leafy barricades. She didn't know where she was going, but she hoped to recollect in solitude. She wouldn't dare try to explain her condition since mental illnesses were a fragile topic. They wouldn't understand... not all of them and not now. If the many psychiatrists she saw were baffled by her unknown disorder how could she expect her friends to understand more than somepony who studies the mind?

She was undiagnosed and unlabeled because no one, not one doctor, could understand what was wrong and diagnose her.

At the psychiatric facility, they popped labels from schizophrenia all the way to borderline. There was nothing wrong with the ponies that had these disorders, they were very nice when she met them... but, they acted as if their patients were lab rats. Eventually, those illnesses were ruled out because of something new and abnormal Pinkamena would do.

That's where ponies like her go. That's why she wanted it to stay a secret because she didn't want to go back there.

Her stamina dried up and eventually she was just huffing and puffing in a slow trot. She veered off toward the side where an algae infested pond burbled from frogs swimming within it. It seemed like a good spot to sit down and ball her eyes out at. It was secluded... and lonely... exactly where somepony was supposed to look pathetic and defeated.

She was crying a river, but she hoped she could build the bridge to get over it already! The tears hurt pretty bad. There was a large stinging lump in her throat that hurt about as bad as when soda slips down your windpipe. It was a terrible feeling, and all she wanted was for it to go away.

There was no shooing away this kind of darkness, and she wouldn't get over it soon. Her heart was infected with both fear and anxiety. It was too crippling to chase away with a small dose of laughter. Not even she could agree that any kind of giggle would be the best medicine for this heartache.

Fluttershy would crack like an egg under the pressure, and poof, there goes her secret.

Her hoof trembled when mopping up the tears on her cheeks. She could slowly see the color draining from her pelt, fading into a softer tone of pink instead of a vibrant one. Her mane was losing its bounce, weakly hanging like a tattered rope draped across her neck. These signs only occurred when her spirit was broken and when she lost her laugh.

Even though there was no sound, the presence of another sitting beside her didn't need words to announce her arrival.

She turned to see Pinkamena shrouded in the thick fog beginning to form. There was no expression or even a snicker upon her face. She was as still as the pond before her, deeply engrossed on the glassy surface. Pinkie didn't know why her silence was nerving, but it didn't seem right for her hallucination to be this quiet.

Don't get the wrong idea, Pinkamena's attitude was far from enjoyable. Unfortunately, her muted appearance didn't fare any better.

Tearing the remaining residue off her cheek with the back of her hoof she spoke, "What's got you being such a Debbie Downer? You've never been this mopey and quiet."

She looked a little astonished as she replied, "You just had a major blowout with your friends yet you are asking about my wellbeing?"

Pinkie chewed at her bottom lip while fiddling with knotted reeds. "It's my job you know. I'm supposed to cheer others up when they aren't feeling their best. Whether it be my friends, or even you. I don't want us both to be in a bad mood, you're kinda all I've got right now."

The look in the mare's face showed she was addled, but for the first time ever, her aggravating nature morphed into one of softness.

"I'm only reflecting the emotions you feel. The situation isn't one of light and so I share your feelings of hopelessness."

Pinkie's eyebrows pinched together and her lips pursed. That wasn't true, not at all. Pinkamena's muzzle was tightened and her jaw was clenched tight. She was livid, fuming, and her anger was not concealed very well. As Pinkie Pie inspected her mirrored personality the mare hunched forward, crossing her hooves as if she were being evasive.

"Nu-uh... keep lying like that and your nose will be longer than a telephone wire. I'm serious, that would be awful. It's so bad they sing about it. You know... that... that song about flaming pants and long noses."

She was still guarded but her anger unraveled a little. "Pinkie, that's just a childhood playground tease. It's not real."

"No it's not! It's a warning. It's just like how going to Jupiter will make you stupider!"

She tried to hide her smile, but she failed. "Stop talking to me."

"Why?" Pinkie asked, leaning forward to catch her shoulders quivering. "Wait, wait a minute. Y-You're... laughing... aren't you?"

"I'm not that much of a stick in the mud, Pinkie. I do actually enjoy some humor from time to time." She rubbed her nose with her hoof before swatting at a few blades of grass. She then changed the subject, "Could we not stay here? The mosquitoes here are eyeballing us."

"Sure," Pinkie agreed, finding some confidence in putting a crack in Pinkamena's armor. "If you tell me what's wrong."

"Don't worry about it." Came her response, but Pinkie knew better.

"Why are you always so angry after I encounter Celestia, it's really noticeable."

She tensed and took a second to gather her thoughts before her answer came in a sigh."Let's just say I don't have a fondness for her and leave it at that."

Sitting once more in joined silence Pinkie left it alone as she had asked, but it still picked at her. Not knowing why she was always so angry when she laid eyes upon that Alicorn was bothersome. Pinkamena had bitterness towards all her friends, but usually, her tone didn't reveal hatred until they spoke of the Alicorn princesses.

"Pinkamena?" she asked, changing the topic for her sake but not to a better one.

"Hmm?"

"Are they going to send me back… there?"

She was unresponsive. Pinkie couldn't tell if Pinkamena wanted to answer or not. Her red and black eyes had thinned, and her attitude had shrunken. That question bothered her and she could see it.

"I.... don't think they would," She muttered, bringing her doleful gaze to meet Pinkie's. "If they are the good friends you say they are, they wouldn't even suggest it once they know of your hatred for that place. Their opinions on the matter may not be avoidable and their judgment inevitably negative for the time being, but they should be fair. As of now, I'm certain their intentions are to only help even if that 'help' may seem misleading or hurtful to you."

She didn't want to burst into a fit of tears especially to Pinkamena. She wasn't the best at providing comfort, but the urge to spill her guts to this mare was overpowering. She just needed to talk, she needed to talk to someone even if that somepony happened to be her.

"They are aren't they?" She sniveled, as her tears helped extinguish the fiery pain she had held onto for so long. "-Even now I still can't see a difference between you and a real pony. You look so real, you think and talk like somepony would... you can't just be a voice in my head. I can't be that broken... you're too real... you're... too real."

She bowed her head to hiccup a wave of vomiting sobs. Pinkamena looked lost and unable to handle the situation. Her reaction was peculiar and while Pinkie was trying to get a grip on her emotions, she observed the illusion. Pinkamena's expression ping-ponged throughout the tundra almost as if she were distressed. It was not behavior that was normal for this mare, not at all. Normally she would eat this stuff up and poke fun at whatever she could pounce on. This time, however, she was not happy about Pinkie's despair.

There was an emotion present on Pinkamena's face that was near blinding, which she didn't understand.

Guilt.

There was a yip in the distance. It was short and high pitched before the forest grew still again. Pinkie abruptly halted herself and calmed down enough to carefully listen to the tune emerging. A throaty grunt was heard and then evolved into an eerily clamorous howl. Several of the creatures called into the night, and Pinkie Pie could feel her heart drop into the bottom of her stomach. Her partner could sense the urgent surge of anxiety, and decided to comment on it.

"I suggest we leave. You're an unprotected lump of flesh in Timberwolf territory. You'd make an easy meal."

"I… I don't know where to go," Pinkie admitted. "I can't go back to Canterlot and Ponyville is too far of a walk in the middle of the night."

"Then the next best option is to camp out. My advice is that you should cozy up in a cave, it's safety from the elements." She leaned her head to the right and flicked it to the east. "Shall we?"

A forlorn pony fumbling around in the dark would be no match for a Timberwolf. Pinkamena wasn't wrong about making a camp before being too tuckered out for the night. She was exhausted and her hooves were rubbed raw to the bone. Pinkie wanted to dry out her pelt and hooves which were both misted and damp, but she didn't have enough energy to rub two sticks together for an hour. It would be a restless night without a roaring fire to keep warm, but the temperature was warm enough to go without it.

She took the lead, passing up the mare beside her. Pinkamena mended herself with Pinkie's shadow and trailed behind with what appeared to be a disgruntled expression. Her face was painted with many critical emotions, and she couldn't read her illusion's signals. What was bothering her so much? It was a code that couldn't be cracked for the time being.

A heavy snort broke her concentration. She removed her gaze from Pinkamena only to be hit first with a musky scent. The pungent odor matched that of a murky swamp, and her back bristled when inhaling it unexpectedly. There was a violent shift in the brush while paws forced their way from the thicket. Crunching on dry sticks, a behemoth of a body untangled itself from the shrubs with a salivated maw.

His lime-shaded eyes emitted a soft glow like burning coals, and his limbs were cloaked in what appeared to be burly vines curled around his torso. It wasn't just a coincidence that he had happened upon her, oh no, she'd be a fool to assume he was a loner. She had taken too long to escape when she could have and now she'd pay the price.

Her throat tightened and her heart pounded as if it were trying to break from her chest! His gnarled fangs were already poised and she couldn't help but shudder. She had locked up, unable to move away from where her hooves were planted. Mist seeped from his nose, and she resisted the urge to shove her hoof in her mouth to stifle a scream.

Not even Pinkamena's words could break her line of gaze.

"Pinkie you need to run, right now."

Her voice was toneless and flat. It was calm, but sharp, trying to nudge Pinkie Pie from her rooted stance. When the living reflection noticed her words weren't processed, she upped her tone.

"Pinkie, run! Now!"

Even though Pinkamena's voice was rattled with worry, Pinkie couldn't shake herself out of it. As if she were a deer in the presence of lights, she just stood there choking on a gasped scream. No sound came from her even when the Timberwolf lunged with his jaws flung agape. Claws dulled and chipped from his days of hunting were outstretched, and his charge inched closer with a starved glare at her throat. The dice rolled, and her fight or flight response gambled her fate. The adrenaline gushed forward and she found the energy to flip around.

It was out of instinct to buck when threatened, and she knocked enough sense into herself to do so. Her back hooves flailed and with a grinding clamp of her teeth, she pushed all her strength into it. Her attack was nothing spectacular and wouldn't outfeat say a kick from Applejack, but it didn't feel good she'd bet. She made contact, and he staggered once her hooves beat into his chest and bottom jaw.

Pinkie wasn't very acquainted with combat, therefore, her attempt at stalling him wasn't as successful as she had prayed. His hesitation was nothing more than mere seconds, and his recovery even faster. His claws were once more revealed in the corner of her eyes before he lashed his forelimb across her unguarded ribcage. The Timberwolf easily overpowered her and raked what felt like thorns under her hooves, knocking her off balance. She was swept up and tossed around like she had been sucked in a riptide before his force flung her several dozen feet from her original position.

She spun around in the motion of a corkscrew before being stopped by a barricade of dead leaves. They jumped, flaring up from the random mare plowing into them as she cried out in anguish! The blow had knocked the wind out of her to where she couldn't do anything but wheeze. She dry heaved, her face ashen, and her fatigue draining her will to fight.

"Pinkie get up, you have to get up! No help is coming, you have to fight!" Pinkamena commanded, branching off from the shadows she lurked in. "You have enough strength to stand. I know you do!"

She was right. Pinkie could indeed stand, but not from having the strength. She stood because if she didn't it was all over, and her fear was enough motivation to get moving. The predatory creature was not in the mood to give her the option or time so she could conserve her energy from him, however. The moonlight cast a shadow over her crippled form as she weakly brought herself halfway until a needled bite latched on her spine. She was scooped up into the air with cries of protest and desperation before he flung his head.

Pinkie was thrown with ease and slapped up against a trunk of a tree. Pinecones were shaken from branches from her impact as she lay still, groaning from the whiplash.

She couldn't fight him. There was no way. She needed a miracle, and she needed it now.

Her goose was cooked, and to the victor goes the spoils. He prowled forward to claim his prize only to arch his neck upward when sensing a rival. Looking over his left shoulder something else decided to join the fray. The second Timberwolf rubbed up against his brethren, muzzle wrinkled, and his upper lip pulled back. The first tussled with the omega, as they sparred for dominance over the meal with quick and threatening nips at each other's neck.

They fumbled and tore up patches of grass while huffing at each other like nettled siblings.

"Stand!" Pinkamena pressed, her words and silhouette dancing around in both Pinkie's vision and brain. While she was trying to be rid of her crossed vision her helper once more encouraged in a shout, "Timberwolves will fight over a kill. The alpha is being challenged, you can slip away during their dispute! Get going!"

She just needed a breather, just one minute. Pinkie pressed her eyelids tight and forced her body to obey her commands. It was an unstable attempt to slap together every last sliver of energy, but it was well invested. She hobbled with as much effort as possible to keep her noise down to a minimum. She pushed past a gate of leaves before swallowing the pain and picking up her pace.

Confused mutters came from the beasts, and then came a howl. The chase was once more on.

Their calls for the pack were ardent, they had a thrill for the hunt like all hunters do. It didn't take long before others chimed in accepting their invitation to join. Pinkie coughed through clouds of clustered bugs and barreled through dew-encrusted webs making a net in between trees, any other day she'd stop in disgust, but not today. Sticks clawed at her mane and legs, vines grappled at her knees and neck, but she kept running.

Through the good and the bad, it didn't stop Pinkamena from still forming like a ghostly spectator. She floated as if she were a balloon being dragged behind Pinkie's tailwind. They didn't converse as she fled, both were too focused on staying alive.

The open sky was revealed from a parting in the forest and immediately she locked her knees and hooves. She put on the brakes just in time, for when she skidded to a hault, the edge of a cliff was a mere five inches away. Tiny pieces of rock bounced down the edge while Pinkie panted and tried to formulate another route of escape. There was no way to climb down, that's for sure. Perhaps she could climb... up?

She crouched and mimicked the movements of a leaping feline, before locking her eyes on a shelf of rocks. She could knab one and pull herself up, but it would be a struggle. Even though she lived on a rock farm, the gold ribbon for rock climbing was well guarded by Maud. Her territory was more saved for the participation ribbon in this kind of sport. She leapt and fell short from the first slab of stone, bumping her tail bone when she was pulled back down.

A roar announced its owner's arrival, and not long after, a ring of Timberwolves now circled her from afar. Their mouths were freely drooling a sticky pool of saliva by their paws, and their hunger irresistible. She refused to turn her back and so she flipped once more to where her sight had each beast in view. She was backed into a corner, her tail squishing up against the stone wall keeping her pinned. She was exhausted of options, petrified, and her eyes the size of saucers. She crumbled under their glare, tucking a tail around her tense frame and cowering. She surrendered, there was nothing she could do.

She was finished.

"Climb. It's your only chance! You've got one shot." Pinkamena directed, her voice at war with the noise of the wolves before her. "You can do it!"

Could she make it? Pinkamena believed she could, and she never believed she could do anything. Perhaps she was speaking out of fear for her own neck, but for now, she'd classify it as well welcomed encouragement. One more time... it's all she had to do, she just had to jump one more time. So she sprung up, and aimed for the jagged lump of rock poking out from above her. She was shocked when her hoof was able to cling just barely onto the ledge giving her enough of a hold to climb. It was a game of Hide and Seek to find these little rocks, but she was making progress by an inch.

One of them scrambled after her and balanced himself on his back legs. He hugged the rocky slope while hopping upward in an attempt to snap at her heel. Her grip had the strength of a steel trap, and she wouldn't dare allow herself to fall into the open maws of those below her. Keep moving... keep moving no matter what!

Her escape was near, she could taste it and oh, how it tasted sweet. Lady Luck had another path for Pinkie, however, and gave her blessing to the wolves. The odds were no longer in her favor, and as nature goes, the prey will succumb to the predator. One had managed to copy her movements and mimicked how she climbed. He was flexible and lead on by hunger to where his paw found a sturdy spot. He scaled after her, using his weight and claws to leap up in a last-ditch effort to foil her plans. Since he had climbed and his height made up for the space she had put between them, he seized her back hoof enough to clamp on. Her spirit fell, and so did her body. All the way to the ground.

They tumbled before sprawling out on the grass. Pebbles flicked off her mane as the residue from their fall cleared, and the dust parted to reveal them both dazed and unmoving. Her eyesight was distorted, but the Timberwolves could see their defeated prey just fine. She laid on a bed of grass and stone with her head ringing and her injured hoof throbbing from the wolf's bite. She couldn't get up this time... there was no more energy.

They closed in, there was no way out. They had filled all gaps and their bodies had snuffed the moonlight from her vision. Pinkie instinctually wrapped her hooves around her head, cradling it, as if she were cuddling a blanket when waking up from a nightmare as a filly. In great times of fear she'd have the urge to laugh or to sing it away, it gave her a means of comfort. These beasts were not like her nightmares. They were real, they were flesh, and no blanket or song would ward these fears away.

She was ashamed, but the tune came out regardless. "P...Pinkie you gotta stand up tall. L-Learn to face your fears. You'll see that they can't hurt you-"

They hissed, and her voice died under the noise. She could feel the heat of their breath, and their reflection mirrored in the whites of her eyes.

If she closed her eyes, she wouldn't see them anymore. That's all she could do.

With a tuck inward and a forceful shut of her eyes, she kept herself hidden in the best way she could.

She heard their paws crunch on the gravel, but she wouldn't watch anymore.

Crack!

The noise was so unexpected it hushed even the Timberwolves. She popped open her eyes, but her sight was taken over by an overly large cloud of darkness. A rumble emerged, a sound that was as if a thousand or more hooves were galloping together in unison. It was such a large cluster of sounds and sensations even the earth bent to it. The ground quivered and shook as if were a filly in the snow, while a rolling avalanche of rocks crashed down the mountain. They sped forward with the force and speed of a freed cannonball, and a few Timberwolves didn't intend on meeting them. Some fled, others were frozen in place before they pummeled and buried the pack.

The rockslide swallowed them, grinding their wooden features to splinters. Pinkie plastered herself to the mountainside, keeping away from the sea of boulders as much as she could. The ones getting mashed called out for assistance but were long abandoned by the time their sounds ceased. Unlike the others, she was ignored. It was as if they had a mind of their own, or held a grudge against only the wolves.

Once the last one piled up upon the others all was quiet. Straggled paws with its body lodged between the rocks stuck out, but there was no movement. A thick fog of dust and dirt hovered over what was left which wasn't much.

The pack had abandoned its comrades, and thankfully, Pinkie as well.

There was movement above her. Pinkie Pie found the courage to look up only to see Pinkamena perched dozens of feet above while overlooking the graveyard of Timberwolves. With finesse, she bounced from stone to stone as if she were a mountain goat. She balanced on larger rocks in order to get down, as Pinkie's head fell back toward the stones.

There was nothing in front of her, yet something made a sound. She scrunched her brow and looked back up to where the moon traced Pinkamena's form. Her hooves. They were tinkering when she hit the rocks.

She reeled for a moment and had to recollect. Did she just observe her hallucination's hooves make noise?

She landed next to Pinkie who was still curled up against the slope. Pinkamena's nostrils flared when she tried to stop her labored breathing. She put a hoof on her chest as if calming her heartbeat, before glancing at both her companion and what was left of the Timberwolves.

"How did none of those rocks hit me? I was right in their path, I-I coulda sworn I would've been a pancake!"

"You can wonder about your luck later, get going!" Pinkamena replied, once more prodding her onward with her words.

She silently agreed and departed. They both didn't want any more ill-willed fate being directed their way and so Pinkie scurried the best she could with a battered body. She was still scared and alarmed, but couldn't help and wonder about the elephant in the room.

Since when did Pinkamena's hooves make noise on objects?

Next Chapter: Chapter Four Estimated time remaining: 4 Hours, 14 Minutes