Admissions

Synth woke with a start. He was having a good dream, something he had Luna to thank. He would have stayed dreaming, but he heard a bird chirping and decided that for once since he entered the town, he’d get up early.

Pulling himself off the bed, he trudged over and started putting on his cloak and necklace. He recoiled when he caught the smell of his cloak. He really needed to wash it, but he just never got time. Deciding that one more day with the cloak wouldn’t hurt.

‘Good morning sweetheart.’ He heard Shade say to him. He was expecting to hear his voice, but the word choice caught him off guard.

‘Um, good morning…’ Synth said as he finished slipping the necklace on his neck. He walked over to his complimentary fridge, this time deciding that he should eat something before heading out for another day. He only just opened it when he remembered one crucial detail. He hadn’t bought any food yet.

‘Yeah, because food’s going to magically appear…’ Shade said sarcastically as Synth looked inside to confirm his thoughts.

‘Well, looks like we’re going shopping…’ Synth said as he closed the fridge. He turned away and went over to his money bag and felt giddy looking at it again. Counting carefully, and almost greedily, he took out ten bits. If the bits were for expenses, he didn’t want to spend too much of it on things he didn’t need.

He also knew that he didn’t have a source of income yet, and eventually the money would run out. Synth was never good at saving money, and he was having a hard time deciding how. Shade must have caught on to this, because he actually offered a solution.

‘Why don’t you, I don’t know… put some aside every time you spend some?’ Shade didn’t say this sarcastically, and Synth had to wonder if he was being serious. The plan did seem like a good one though, so he decided to trust him.

‘Thanks, but…and I don’t want to sound rude…why are you helping me?’ Synth still let his manners slip through, even though he knew full well what Shade’s real personality was like.

‘Eh, you take forever to work things through. It’s more interesting when you’re actually doing things fun. You do realize that I’m stuck seeing what you’re seeing right?’ Shade wasn’t complaining, he was just telling the truth, something he was born to do.

‘You got a point there, and I did realize that, a few days ago. When I…traded places…’ Synth felt saddened at the memory and a little angry that Shade wasn’t punished. Even though, it would mean confessing it was his fault.

‘Good times, good times… Well for me anyway…’ Shade sounded like he understood what he made Synth went through and then went quiet.

‘Well anyways, time to go see who’s selling any breakfast right now.’ He counted ten bits and then put five to the edge of the shelf to make sure he knew those were off limits. Then he discovered his problem.

“Damn, how am I gonna carry the money with me? I guess I need to get some saddlebags to carry things in.” Synth grumbled as he looked around for anything he could use. His eyes landed on the suitcase, and he sighed, it’ll have to do. Blowing on the inside, he noticed how it was still dirty from a few days ago.

He put the bits inside and then noticed how the suitcase also looked on the verge of collapsing. ‘That’s not gonna last long.’ Shade said apparently also noticing this.

‘Well it’s the best I’ve got.’ Synth said looking around and finding nothing he could do.

‘You aren’t very bright are you? You do realize that you can control nature right?’ Shade said and Synth could tell some annoyance in his voice. But Synth didn’t see where he was going with this.

‘Actually, I haven’t tried to control it, just change its appearance…’ Synth needed to clarify; it was just what he did when he was confused. Either that, or be a smartass but Shade could do that better than him.

‘Anyways, I can show you what I mean. Just let me take control aga-‘ Synth cut off his thought before he could finish.

‘What makes you think I’ll give you another chance? You did enough already, I don’t want to everyone in Ponyville on my apology list.’ Synth tried to scream in his thoughts, but that was harder to do than he thought. It came out more as a whine.

‘Look, hear me out. I’m not trying to trick you, I just want to redeem myself from what I did before. I don’t think it’ll be enough for you to forgive me, but if I’m going to be here a while, might as well help out every now and then.’ Synth would have been touched by this side of Shade, if he didn’t sound like he was about burst out laughing.

‘Forget it, I don’t even know how long you’d be in my body if I give you control.’ Synth was determined to not let Shade get a chance to be free.

‘That’s just it, you could lower your magic strength and let me do my thing. Then if you think I’ll try anything, you can force your magic power again to take back control.’ Shade’s idea sounded simple, but Synth found something odd.

‘Why would I go through all this trouble just for a demonstration of power?’ Synth remembered how they got to this point over a way to take his money with him without using the suitcase.

‘Hey, I can show you some things that you can’t do with your magic. Remember how I beat you with those skills of mine? It was magic, you just didn’t realize that I bet.’ Synth was now curious as to how he did do those things. Especially to know how we was so fast.

‘Okay, I see your point. But just to be clear, as soon as I think you’re going to try anything, I’m bailing.’ Synth knew he was going to regret this, but he wanted to know why Shade was so desperate to show him his tricks.

‘Fine, I’ll try not to do anything that looks dangerous. I’m not the monster I was before, although, you could say I’m a beast…’ Shade said this and his egotistic side started to show through.

‘Whatever, just go get your rabies shot. Now let me figure this out..’ Synth said as he sat down and concentrated. It would be difficult to remove his magic for a second, and even then he didn’t know if he’d be able to get it back if Shade went berserk.

He felt his magic in his body after a few seconds of concentrating. He mentally lifted the magic to the back of his head and away from the horn. Soon, he found that his body was now devoid of the free flowing magic. Shade slowly made his way into his thoughts and Synth’s feelings over his body went numb.

“Oh, it feels great to stretch. Being in there wasn’t very comfortable, even if you don’t really feel anything.” Synth heard Shade’s voice, and knew that it worked. He could also feel the magic power he had was contained. Synth found that Shade wasn’t lying when he said Synth could take back control whenever he chooses.

‘Yeah, yeah. Just show me whatever it was you wanted to show me…’ Synth wasn’t used to the way whenever he felt like he was talking; nothing came out of his mouth. Instead it was an echoing voice in his head.

‘Fine, buzz kill. I’ll show you, but I’ll need to go outside for this.’ Shade walked to the door and using his magic, pulled it open. Synth saw as the magic glow around the door was a darker shade of green than his own.

‘You have your own magic…’ Synth tried to think but instead it echoed on the walls. Synth expected that he’d have to give Shade some to use for his demonstration. But he guess it made sense if He’d once battled him, the magic wouldn’t just disappear.

‘Yeah, but I don’t have much. I’ll need to make this fast, you don’t recover very much while you’re in someone’s mind.’ Now he walked over to the tree that was directly in front of his house.

He looked up at it and pulled a few leaves and a twig from it. Synth was really curious now to what he had planned. Shade looked like that alone had left an impact on him physically. He now curled the leaves together and made them mold together into an almost closed ball with the ends of the leaves sticking out at the unclosed end.

Using the twig, he made it curl around the leaves and then tightened it with his mouth. The twig closed the end and it looked like a leaf money pouch. Synth was actually impressed, he had talent. Still, he didn’t fully understand what Shade did to connect it all.

‘Hey Shade, that’s awesome and thanks for it. I only have one thing to say, how did you do that?’ Synth let his manners through again, even enough to thank him like a normal being.

‘See, you don’t know how to use your powers properly. Instead of growing them, I reformed them and made them all become one thing. Almost like I melted them together, but it was a natural forming.’ Synth saw that it was true. The leaves didn’t have a seam or bump on the outside where the leaves would normally overlap. Plus, his Rarity side caught the fact he used the leaf veins to create a design.

It spiraled from the bottom up to the top and then ended at the twig. He also noticed, more by watching Shade close it, that the twig was changed too. ‘Um, what about the twig, and why do I get the feeling you were about to explain?’

‘Well, we do share the same brain…But yeah, I made the twig flexible and more rubbery. It’s so you can close it without it breaking. Again, something you don’t do.’ Shade seemed like pointing this fact out every five seconds, but Synth was too amazed by the bag to care.

‘Well, now that that’s done, how about you show me some of those tricks of yours?’ Synth said wanting to know more about how Shade used his powers. Shade shook his head though, and yawned.

‘Nah, I’m too tired. Do me a favor and take over? I think if I just rest a little in your head I’ll be able to recover my magic faster…’ Synth realized that this was all he was gonna learn about Shade, for now anyway.

‘Fine, and thanks again for the bag. I guess you’re not so bad…’ Shade smiled when Synth finished.

‘Don’t get me wrong, I’ll still kill your friends if I get the chance, but it doesn’t look like I’ll get that anytime soon…’ Shade blinked, and then Synth felt his magic spread over his body.

Synth felt the feelings in his legs return, and his horn began to change glows. The bag that was levitating in front of him now dropped a few inches before floating back up a with a light green aura around it now. Shade must have mentally passed out and Synth found himself once again in control.

‘Well, I know that I won’t let that happen. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I did…’ Synth thought, and as he thought, there was no reply from Shade.

‘Sleep dreams, Shade.’ Synth said as he now trotted towards town, tying the leaf bag around his front leg with a long leaf while he walked. He knew that even after all the time he spent with Shade, it was still early morning.

The chirps of the birds around him reminded him of how he would walk like this through town every day before going to the greenhouse. He usually avoided walking near it when he did, because then he’d have to work early if they saw him nearby.

Now, he chose a random direction leading to town, and listened to the sounds around him. There were birds and squirrels every way he looked, with rabbits also appearing every now and then. He made it to the shopping district without getting lost, and was surprised to see some stands already open ready to sell.

Synth looked around and noticed that aside from the vendors, there were only a handful of ponies walking about. He was surprised to see this many though, as in Canterlot it was very rare for him to see any ponies on his strolls.

He approached the first stall he saw and was greeted by a friendly face. “Howdy there, Synth! Great ta see ya today. But, don’t ya think it’s too early to be up and about? Ya need yer rest after all.” Synth was surprised to see Applejack standing there telling him he needed sleep when the day before, she literally fell asleep on him.

“I see you got yours last night. You look pretty good after what happened yesterday…” Right after he said that, he wished he made a better choice of words.

“Well thanks, never had my looks complimented before. I reckon this must be how Rarity feels when she’s at the spa.” Applejack smiled. Synth was too busy trying to think of an excuse that he didn’t notice her playful tone.

“I-I didn’t mean i-it like t-“Synth started to fumble over his words, and his face was starting to shade redder.

“Ah know what ya meant, Sugarcube. Ah was just messin’ with ya; ya really ought ta lighten up.” She said now playfully hitting him on the shoulder. He didn’t know why, but it actually cleared his mind.

“Oh, well I’ve just been having a confusing morning. I guess I need to loosen up.” Synth’s stomach now rumbled and he turned towards the basket of apples near Applejack.

Applejack caught on and she put a saddlebag filled with apples on the counter. Synth’s mouth started to water, but he caught himself. It wasn’t like she would just give it to him, would she? He didn’t know how much it would cost, and he only brought the ten bits. He calculated that if one apple cost one bit, then two saddlebags full would be about thirty.

Synth undid the pouch around his hoof and then opened it. “I’ll only need a few, I’m not that hungry.” He was betrayed by his stomach as it rumbled louder than before. When he got home he’d have to give a stern talking to it…

“Sure ya do… But we got tons of apples at the farm, plus yer our first customer today. So they’re on the house. But for the saddlebags, it’ll be five bits.“ She put on a ‘don’t try to argue or I’ll make you take them’ face and somehow managed to keep a smile on too.

Synth found he didn’t want to argue and instead placed five bits on the counter. “Well, then thanks. I don’t think you’ll get much profit if you keep this up though…” Synth was being honest but he knew that Applejack was most likely just being a nice salespony.

“That’s alright we got plenty a apples and saddlebags are a bit a dozen. If my stock runs out though, Ah’ll need to get more though… maybe ah can get one ah the others to help me…” Applejack seemed to be thinking ahead, so Synth decided to just leave it at that and walk away.

“Well thanks again, but I gotta get going. The day is still young, and I want to enjoy it until the streets start getting crowded.” Synth put the saddlebags on and fastened them quickly. Applejack waved goodbye as he started walking, but she had a weird look on her face. Almost immediately he noticed the difference. He felt like he was under ten times gravity and he slowed to a crawl after a few steps. The saddlebags were filled to the top with apples, and he wanted to get them to his house before he collapsed.

He stopped to rest on a park bench and put the bags on the seat next to him. He had two problems, he didn’t know how far he could go with these on his sides, and he didn’t even know which way was home. He could take the long way and walk to the edge of town and then look for Fluttershy’s cottage to signal he was home, or he could randomly choose a direction and hope he chose right.

He decided to go with the second option and after munching on an apple for a few minutes, continued his slow walk down the only path in the park. He reached some more buildings and kept walking until he was at a crossroads. He decided to go left, and was surprised to see a few seconds later that his house was right there.

He was at the home stretch and he now put his own magic into it. Lifting the bags just enough that he wasn’t taking on the full weight of the bag. Lifting them up was causing his head to start throbbing. He was at the doorway now, and he stopped levitating the saddlebags. The saddlebags sunk deeper into his back and he almost collapsed from the sudden weight.

He opened his door with his magic and stepped in. He let the saddlebags slump to the floor as he started to rest. He picked up the apples in the bag and started to put them in the fridge. He counted 39 apples and an apple core. He really needed to get in shape if that was all it took to overexert himself.

He opened the saddlebags to see if he missed anything and noticed that there was a metal horseshoe with a note attached to it. He picked it up and read what it said.

To: Unfortunate Soul
You just got pranked.

From: Queen of Pranksters

Synth turned it over but that was all it said. He looked in the other saddlebag and found another horseshoe with a different colored note attached to it.

To: Unfortunate Soul
She made me do it.

From: Applejack

Synth sighed; of course she wouldn’t prank anyone. But he didn’t think that she’d apologize for a prank that she didn’t do. Now that’s Honesty at its best. He put the weighted horseshoes aside and put the letters on the shelf. He’ll have to go prank Rainbow Dash eventually, but he didn’t feel like it at the moment.

Eating another apple to fill his belly, he then walked back outside to enjoy the day. He took a step outside and chose a direction he thought he hadn’t chosen yet. He’d been walking a good few minutes before he came across a construction site.

The foundation was built and the skeleton was being put up. He walked up to the nearest construction worker and was instantly pulled in. “Synth! It’s about time you got here. We have some changes we want to make.”

Synth looked to the worker and saw that it was Lyra in a hardhat. He also noticed Bon-Bon and Berry Punch walking over upon seeing him. He saw the blueprints in her hands and made out a kind of dome building.

“What does this have to do with me? I just came by for a walk…” Synth looked at Lyra’s confused face, and gave her one of his own.

“Synth, I was told you’re supervising this place, and you can make any changes you want to it. It’s too late to change the outside, but inside still hasn’t been touched.” Synth’s face went into understanding and his mouth opened slowly.

“Is this…the greenhouse? I was told it’d be built in a few days, not today…” Synth recalled how the letter said nothing about it being so soon.

“Actually, it’s called a Biodome; it’s a little different than a greenhouse. They told us to start this morning; it should be finished in a few days.” Lyra turned and showed him the blueprints as well as how much they’ve done so far.

“…and now we’re about to start putting up these walls…” Synth’s jaw almost dropped.

“How did you do this so fast? It’s like noon…” Synth looked into the sky and confirmed that it was directly above them.

“We all pitched in to get this started before you left today. If we hurry, we could get all of the walls up before nighttime.” Lyra turned and spoke to Bon-Bon. “How’re the rest of the walls coming along?”

“Not good, they didn’t get the measurements right and they need to be make new ones. It’ll take a few hours before they’re ready.” Bon-Bon noticed Synth was itching to say something and she nodded towards him.

Synth took the hint and said what was on his mind. “Um, couldn’t you just cut off a little of the sides? You don’t have to make new walls…” Bon-Bon was looking at him like she thought he was crazy and then turned to Lyra.

“Didn’t you show him the blueprints yet?” Lyra nodded and Bon-Bon turned back to him. “Maybe you should have another look at them…”

Synth looked back over the blueprints but he couldn’t find anything wrong with it. It was a good sized dome with a triangle pattern over all of the walls. He noticed the extra notes on the walls now, and realized that they were going to be made of glass and metal shutters.

“Why do we need a metal covering? The glass would work just fine…” He looked up to see that Lyra had walked away while he was inspecting the blueprints. He went to follow her, but was stopped by some mumbling to his left.

Synth turned and followed the sound to a quick walking purple mare. Twilight looked like she was thinking hard about something and Spike was having trouble staying on her back. He quickly walked over and she didn’t notice him approaching.

“… How could I say no to Rainbow’s dream? But Applejack could sure use it…” He could hear her as she mumbled softly, and he would have kept eavesdropping if it weren’t for Spike.

“Hey, Synth! Today’s the big day huh? You nervous about going to the castle, I would be, those guards give me the creeps.” Spike said upon seeing Synth walking close by to the pair. Synth cursed Spike’s interruption before he could finish eavesdropping.

“Um, yeah. It’s not the best feeling, but I’m just glad to get the chance to go and meet them personally.” Synth slowed his walking as he noticed Twilight did the same and was now listening to what he was saying. So much for finding out what she was talking about… Maybe he could ask about?

“So, Twilight… I couldn’t help but overhear you saying something about-“ Synth was cut short as Twilight glared at him.

“I’m not giving you the ticket, I haven’t decided yet...but, I only just got it a few minutes ago, and you already know about it?” Twilight raised an eyebrow and Synth did the same, feeling just as confused as she did.

“Ticket? I only heard you mumbling something about Rainbow and Applejack.”

“Oh, you heard that? Well, I couldn’t decide if I should give the ticket to Rainbow or Applejack, they both had good reasons to go…”

“Again I ask, Ticket?” Twilight seemed to question whether to tell him or not.

“It’s a ticket to…the Grand Galloping Gala.” She took a step back, then frowned. “Why aren’t you freaking out?”

Synth blinked. Did she really expect him to freak out at that? “Okay, so is that it?” He replied making Twilight raise an eyebrow.

“Well yeah, I have a ticket and I don’t know who to give it to.” Twilight was still giving him a confused look, but now she seemed to have her mind back on her earlier problem.

“Why those two, what about Spike?” Synth saw his gagging motion and nodded his understanding before Twilight started to speak.

“Spike says it’s not his style, so he doesn’t want to go. Applejack told me how it could help her family a lot if she went to the gala. Then rainbow showed up and told me it was her dream to go. I couldn’t decide who needed it more so I left.”

Synth held back his laughter to say his opinion on the matter. “So…Helping the Apple Family, or helping an egotistic Pegasus… tough choice.”

“I’ll say, they both deserved to go. I didn’t want to hurt either one of them though.” Twilight was now looking up into space to find a solution and Synth couldn’t hold it back. He let his laughter out and noticed Spike did the same, falling off her back and landing next Synth.

“What? What are you two laughing about? This is a serious matter. I can’t decide,” Twilight’s stomach growled “and I still need to get some breakfast.” She trotted off quickly before Synth could compose himself.

“Wow, even I didn’t know how badly that sounded until you said it Synth. Twilight must be really hungry to not know Applejack needed it more.” Spike was getting up as Twilight walked out of view. He still had a smile on his face as he slowly started walking in her direction.

“Wait Spike, I meant that Rainbow deserved the Ticket more. She only has one chance to follow her dream and become a Wonderbolt!” Spike turned around and was about to argue, until he noticed Synth was back on the edge of laughter. They both quickly fell onto the floor again laughing uncontrollably.

After they both composed themselves completely, they started walking together towards Twilight’s direction. “We should find Twilight, before she makes a bad decision on the whole ticket thing… wait.” Spike stopped as he turned towards Synth, who halted a second after.

“Why didn’t you care about her extra ticket to the Gala?” Spike asked curiously.

“Well it’s because I went before, last year. It was a bad experience and I don’t want to go back. Imagine the most stuck up ponies in Canterlot all gathered to talk and dance.” Synth didn’t like to think of what happened the year before, but it was long ago enough that he didn’t flinch at the thought.

“Really? Sound terrible, but then why do they all want to go?” They continued walking and Synth took a while to realize who he was referring to.

“I think they just heard good things about it, and they don’t know what actually happens. “ Synth saw Twilight walking into a restaurant and stopped. “Well Spike, she just went into that place over there,” He pointed at the restaurant, and then pointed towards a road to the left. “So I’ll be going this way, Catch ya later.”

Synth was already walking in the direction of the path he chose until Spike grabbed his leg. “Why don’t you come with us? This is your last day and all…” Synth was already shaking his head and then stopped himself after he realized Spike stopped talking.

“Sorry, I don’t do restaurants. I don’t have a very good…history, with them. Maybe next time…” Synth walked faster down the path he chose. He made sure Spike wasn’t following him, and then returned to a normal pace.

‘That was a close call…’

“I know, that was almost-“ Synth realized who he was talking to and made sure he closed his mouth. ‘Ya know, you come out at the most random times…’

‘Well, actually that’s what Pinkie does, I just try to be as inconvenient as possible.’

‘Well, actually I was a little lonely walking down these streets. I could use the company, even though you’re kind of always here…’

‘Was that a joke? That was the most pitiful joke I’ve ever heard. I think I just died a little inside.’

‘Well look who’s back to their usual self? Did you enjoy your nap?’

‘Yeah, magic’s back and I feel like killing now. Mind letting me out?’

‘Fuck you.’

‘Aw, you’re no fun. But seriously, I was asleep too long. I need to let out the excess energy.’

Synth thought this over. If he took him somewhere he couldn’t hurt anypony, he could let him use up the energy.

‘Ugh, fine. But first some ground rules…’

‘About that…’

The ground under Synth suddenly disappeared as he stepped into empty void. He looked down to find he’d walked over the edge of a cliff. Now he was falling towards the hard ground.

‘Now’s a good a time as any…’ Synth heard Shade say, almost pleadingly.

‘Go for it.’ Synth moved his energy towards the back of his head and Shade took hold quickly, almost too quickly.

“This feels great!” Shade was now skydiving and heading quickly towards the ground.

‘I’d hurry if I were you…’

“Buzz kill, I was having fun here.” Synth could only watch in awe as Shade’s magic enveloped him and his body. Shade maneuvered towards the cliff face, and dug his hooves in the earth. Instead of slowing down though, they sped up their descent.

Synth was literally speechless as Shade hit the ground with his hooves. The shockwave was sent around the ground and the trees around them suddenly imploded on themselves. They crashed to the ground and landed in splinters. Shade just stretched as the ground directly below him was now just a crater.

“I’ll call that the atomic drop. Sound good to you?” Shade said finishing his stretching and walking over to the remains of the trees.

Synth would have replied if not for the fact that he felt his jaw dropped considerably. He just sat in silence as Shade continued.

“That did the trick, we’re alive and I got to let out that magic. So about those ground rules… I didn’t break too many did I?”

Synth mentally coughed and the words came out. ‘You broke the ground all right.’

Shade turned towards their initial impact and smiled. “Now that’s better. See, jokes aren’t too hard.” He then started trotting towards the road that led to the city.

‘Um, where do you think you’re going?’ Synth had a bad feeling.

“The restaurant, that’s where. I hope I’m not too late for lunch.” Synth mentally banged his head against the wall.

‘Son of a Bitch… Give me back my body.’

“Come get it.” Shade chuckled as he now reached the road leading to the town.

Synth unlatched his energy from the back of his mind and he could feel it struggling with Shade’s willpower. But this time, it wasn’t enough.

‘What? Why…can’t…I…’ Synth was feeling the effort from trying to force the change.

“It’s…not enough…I’m gonna… make it…” Shade was physically feeling the effects of Synth’s energy. He could only manage putting one hoof in front of the other, let alone use magic.

This continued for a few minutes in which neither side gave out. The restaurant was now in view and Shade smiled. “Almost there…” He took a step forward and was caught off guard by a stampede of ponies almost running on top of him.

Synth felt his energy take control and immediately felt the pain as his hooves were crushed under a pack of ponies. He lay there after it happened and checked himself.

“That’s one point for me Shade.” He stood up and limped the opposite way from the restaurant.

‘That isn’t fair, I didn’t know we were keeping score…’

“Fine, let’s start over shall we?” Synth knew what was coming before he even heard it.

‘Name’s Shade and you are?’

‘Shut up, that wasn’t funny.’ Synth looked around after he realized he was talking out loud. He would have to get used to talking in his head, but thankfully no ponies were around.

‘And you could do better?’

‘Yeah, knock knock.’

‘Who’s there?’

‘Shut up.’ Synth stopped as he looked around.

‘That wasn’t funny… Idiot.’

‘That wasn’t the joke, I thought I heard something.’ Synth looked around but could only see the buildings around him and the sun was now slowly setting. He had the feeling he was being watched and his senses went on alert.

‘Nine o’clock.’

Synth sighed. ‘Why would I want to know what time it is?’

‘I meant-‘Synth was tacked from his left and was put into a sack before he could recover. He was carried quickly in the direction the attack came. He would’ve screamed if not for the voice in his head distracting him.

‘How much dumber can you get? I was saying something was coming from your left. Honestly, I feel like I’m talking to a foal.’

‘Just shut up and help me get out of here.’ Synth was trying to wiggle out of the grasp of the pony that grabbed him. It must have been a burly stallion because he couldn’t move without his air being constricted.

‘It’s not a threat, trust me. You’re also very easy to sneak up on…’

‘Well if it’s not an enemy, then why am I being foalnapped?’

‘Hm, foalnapped? I rest my case.’

Synth was rudely thrown a few feet before the sack around him came off. The light that shone in his eyes temporarily blinded him as he looked up. When the vision cleared, he saw five frowning ponies. The cyan Pegasus prodded his legs to which Synth winced at the pain.

“Pinkie, you must go easier on him next time. He doesn’t look very well…” Rarity spoke as Synth started to stand himself up.

“I didn’t do that, he was already like that when I found him.” Pinkie was sitting and crossing her arms as she was wrongly accused of hurting Synth.

“Well then, what happened to ya Synth?” Applejack said getting a little closer as she gestured to the bruises on his legs.

“Um, long story short, I got trampled by a bunch of ponies.” Synth said as he limped around trying to make sure the blood was still circulating in them.

“Are… are you hurt?” He barely heard the meek Pegasus ask from a few feet away.

“I’m alright, just a little trouble walking…” He took a step and screamed out in pain as his leg convulsed on itself.

Synth was carried over to a chair and placed in it slowly. He made himself comfortable as he tried to put weight away from his legs. He looked up to see the five of them uncomfortably looking at him.

“What? Do I have something in my teeth?” Synth lifted his hoof up to his mouth and felt the pain instantly. He dropped his hoof and gave a half-hearted smile.

“Um, Synth. A-Are you sure you’re o-okay?” asked Fluttershy who appeared very concerned.

“Yeah, I’ll be okay I just need a little rest.” Synth tried to keep the look of pain away from his eyes as his legs throbbed every few seconds. They had to be broken.

“Of course he’s okay. He was walking when I found him.” Pinkie said from her spot in the center of the room.

“Wait Pinkie, you were the one that foalnapped me? Why would you do that?” Synth looked up at the pink ball of energy who just smiled.

“Because I can.” Synth couldn’t respond to that as he had no way to argue with her.

“She did it to all ah us. Ah still don’t think it was the best way to get us all here.” Applejack looked accusingly at Pinkie who either didn’t notice or didn’t care.

“Because we need to settle the whole ticket thing before Twilight makes a bad decision.” For once Pinkie actually sounded like she was making sense, except Synth was still confused.

“Wait, all of you want the ticket? If that’s what this is all about, why am I even here?” Synth looked into their bewildered faces.”

“Why, don’t you also want to attend the Gala?” Rarity asked him.

“I’d rather stay here actually.” Synth was prodded in the head by a cyan hoof.

“Maybe you hurt your head too.” She continued to poke him in random parts of his body and Synth would have lost his composure, if she didn’t stop and whisper something in Pinkie’s ear. Immediately Pinkie giggled and they jumped on the defenseless unicorn.

“Hey! What are you- stop it…” Synth was being fully assaulted by the Cyan and Pink hooves that now prodded him everywhere. He couldn’t raise a hoof to stop them and their laughing was making it worse. He was on his back as the chair was toppled over and placed him in an uncomfortable position, they didn’t stop though, and the others just watched with smiles tugging their faces.

‘A little help here…’ Synth was wishing that Shade would be on his side and not the other way around.

‘What do you mean? This is a colt’s dream. You should be enjoying-‘

‘Help!’ Synth was trying his hardest not to blush at Shade’s comment so as not to give the mares the wrong impression.

‘Well I could kill them for you, I think that would-‘

‘Never mind just shut up.’

‘Okay, I won’t kill them. Mind if I use my magic for a second? You won’t regret it. I promise.’ Synth had to think this over, but now the pair were poking harder and it was actually starting to hurt causing his face to change into a grimace.

‘Go for it.’ He had enough. They might have just been having fun, but did it really need to come at his expense?

Synth felt his magic deplete instantaneously as he was filled with a new feeling. Power, and a lot of it.

Synth grinned as his body changed into the same thick skin that Shade had used when they fell off the cliff. The next poke the pair sent was met with a thunk.

“Hey, what’s the big deal?” Rainbow turned toward Pinkie to see that she too stopped her prodding and was now feeling the toughness of his coat.

“Wow, I didn’t know you could do that!” Pinkie was knocking on the now thick abdomen and Synth sighed.

“Could you get off me now? My legs are killing me.” Synth was picked up off his back and placed back into the chair by Applejack who was the only one that looked like they cared.

‘Those are some good friends of yours...’ Shade responded sarcastically.

‘Thanks, I knew you’d agree.’ Shade didn’t respond and Synth glared up at the Pegasus and pink mare now wiping tears of laughter from their eyes.

“All in good fun Synth, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.” Rainbow said now backing away from glaring pony. Synth stopped his glaring and he felt the power drain out of him Shade was giving him back full control.

‘Thanks for that, it could have turned out worse if you didn’t intervene.’ Synth was genuinely glad Shade actually helped him and not because it was a life or death situation.

‘You know, you’re making me wish I didn’t help you. I would have loved to see what they would do next…’

“Well, anyways… I don’t want to go to the Gala. So, if you don’t mind I’ll be leaving.” Synth tried to stand himself up, but the pain in his legs caused him to fall forward on his face. He let out a blush as he coughed. “Little help?”

‘Smooth’ Shade chuckled from inside.

‘Shut up’ He retorted being put back into the chair. It was made of wood, but it was a lot more comfortable than the floor.

“Y-you should probably stay h-here until you get better.” Fluttershy said from the corner of the group in front of him.

“I can’t, I’m leaving in about… actually I don’t know what time they’ll get here.” Synth looked up through the window to see that the sun was barely setting. It could be now or in a few hours, he concluded. Until then he’d have to wait it out.

“So, you don’t want the ticket… Then why are you here?” Rainbow asked him.

“I don’t know, I was kind of brought against my will.” Synth looked towards Pinkie to see her tapping her chin. After a few seconds her face lit up.

“I know! Why don’t you tell us who you think should get the ticket? Then you can talk with Twilight to see if she agrees?” Pinkie was now hopping up and down as she said her idea.

“Yeah, good thinking Pinkie. I reckon Synth would know who to pick.” Applejack said now getting a little closer.

“I am sure he’ll make a wise and thoughtful decision.” Rarity said as she slowly took a few steps towards him.

“Only the coolest pony would make the right choice.” Rainbow was now hovered directly above him.

“Pick me!” Pinkie jumped right in front of him as he just shook his head and turned towards Fluttershy.

“Do you want to add anything?” Synth was surprised to see her head nod.

“Please?” Synth would have facehoofed if not for the pain in his hooves. He could feel as they throbbed, but not as sporadically as before.

‘I can’t decide, the Yellow and orange ones would stick out the most, but the pink one would be the most hilarious one to watch.’

‘I know what you mean, but If I have to choose, I’ll pick Pinkie. She was more honest than the element of honesty…But for now I’ll try to stall.’

“Can I hear your reasons for going?” He asked innocently and they all sighed and sat down for the montage of dreams.

They started with Fluttershy’s and then Applejack and Rainbow, and then Pinkie and finished with Rarity. After she finished her prediction of the Gala, Shade was breaking down in laughter. Synth just tried to tune him out.

‘She thinks he’s…a gentleman?! Ahahaha! That’s priceless! Don’t tell her what he’s really like, I want to see the look on her face when she finds out. Give her the ticket please!’

‘Would you shut up? I know what you mean, but all of their dreams are pretty iffy. Except Fluttershy does have the best chance. I’ll just tell her she should have it.’

‘You’re no fun.’

“And you’re a piece of-“ Synth looked up to realize he said this out loud.

‘Shit…’ He just whistled and was surprised to see the outline of a chariot being pulled across sky. His way out.

“Well what do you know? There’s my ride. I’ll just be going now…” Synth got off his chair and painstakingly walked to the door. His legs were on fire, but it was better than staying and trying to come up with an excuse.

He reached the chariot and painfully jumped inside. He waved goodbye to the others as they confusingly watched him exit. They didn’t even remember that he was hurt until he reached the chariot and threw himself in it.

“GO GO GO!” He yelled at the colts pulling the chariot.

They just huffed and pretended to not hear him.

‘Real mature.’ Shade said from his mind.

“Please?” Now they nodded and started to walk as they pulled the chariot behind them. He could hear the girls coming outside as they protested about his walking condition. He waved goodbye again as they lifted off. This time though, they actually waved back and he felt he could relax.

When they were out of view, he turned towards the pony sitting next to him. She had a confused look on her face, but Synth was more surprised to see her than to notice that.

“Luna! It’s great to see you.” Synth almost forgot about her social position, but a hoof to his lips reminded him.

“I mean your highness, this is a wonderful night you have made.”

‘Nice save.’

‘Shut it.’

Luna leaned in and whispered into his ear. “Our sister does not yet fully trust our trips away from home. These guards are going to keep track of what is said here. Please be careful with thy word choice for now.” She leaned away and was almost caught as one of the ‘chauffeurs’ turned back to them.

“Is everything alright your highness?” He asked keeping his eyes on Synth.

Luna returned to her normal voice as she replied. “Yes, we are most alright at the moment. Please continue thy duties.” The guard nodded than turned back forward.

“So, your highness… how are you faring? Are you comfortable returning to the throne?” He tried to ask like a noble would, and heard Shade snickering faintly.

“Quite. Our return has brought many good memories back. Although I feel that our sister does not entrust us completely.” She glanced towards the guards and then continued. “But, until our power is restored we will have to oblige.”

Synth wasn’t sure if she wanted the guards to hear that, but they didn’t seem to care.

“Well, that can’t be helped, but I am glad to know she entrusts me to come visit for the week.” Synth was getting really tired of not talking about the situation he wanted to talk about. He was getting uncomfortable and tried to shift positions.

He almost let out a cry of pain, but he closed his mouth before it could come out. Instead it was a soft whimper. Luna saw him though, and she reached towards him.

“Is something the matter? We may be of some assistance.” She still found a way to talk like royalty until she inspected the injuries.

“They’re broken and this one is sprained, we should be able to do something about them.” Luna used her magic and it covered his hooves. They were numbed and Synth didn’t know why until her next words.

“This may feel weird.”

Synth felt his hooves rotating and sliding around. He looked at them and felt the bones begin to meld back together.

“There, they should be fully healed by tomorrow. Until then, you won’t be running very much.”

“Thank you Princess.” Synth looked up to see the castle looming up ahead of them.

“Now we believe we have much to discuss when we enter, so make thyself at home.” Luna said also noticing the approaching castle.
---------------------------
A while ago. Two figures watched in the shadows as they looked for their target.

“There, I see him.”

“Where?”

“Right there, the one with the cloak. He’s limping.”

“I don’t see him. It’s all dark.”

“You’re looking behind us, here let me show you.”

After a few adjustments, the binoculars were lined up for 500 feet and they looked back up towards the street.

“See, he’s limping somewhere, we have to keep track of where he goes.”

“Okay, then what?”

“I don’t know, we need to make sure he doesn’t leave. If he does, then we have to tell boss.”

“Okay, then what?”

“Then boss will tell us to find him. So make sure he doesn’t get away.”

“Okay then what?”

“Just shut up and watch.”

They watched the green cloaked figure limp down the street for a few for steps before pausing and looking in their direction.

“He sees us! Hide!” There was a rustle of leaves and then a sigh.

“We’re too far. There’s no way he can see us. Just watch and- Wait what’s that?”

Behind the green figure came a pink blur that knocked him down. Then quickly put him in a sack and nimbly bounded away.

“Shit, somepony just took him out of view. But he’s still in Ponyville, so we have to keep an eye on the town.”

“Okay, but I need both my eyes for the binoculars. Can I borrow one of yours?”

“Why do I have to deal with this?”
-------------------------------
Now back to the present around the time Synth reached the castle.

“What do you mean something was wrong?” Twilight asked over her dandelion sandwich.

“Well, he was limping when I found him. And he talked to himself before he left.” Pinkie said from the other side of the table with a cupcake about to enter her mouth.

“Did he say something was wrong?” Twilight asked taking another bite from her sandwich. It was the best thing she’d ever tasted considering how hungry she was.

“Synth tried to play it off, but he was hurting bad.” Rainbow said drinking her soft drink to the right of Pinkie.

“And yet, yah found it okay to mess with him?” Applejack said from Twilight’s right. With a mischievous smile creeping on her face.

“Well yeah, his reaction was priceless! I just didn’t know he was hurt at the time. I’m glad he stopped us before we started phase two.” Rainbow said now finishing her soft drink and placing it on the table.

“Stopped you? I thought he was too hurt to fight back?” Twilight asked now almost finishing her sandwich as she took another huge bite.

“Actually, he used his magic. It was a smart idea.” Fluttershy said from Twilight’s left.

“Yes, it was a simply stunning sight to see his coat shine like a Shadow Guard’s armor. It gave me an idea for a future ensemble.” Rarity stated from Pinkie’s left.

“Shadow Guard, wouldn’t it be more of a green color? I mean he uses green magic.” Twilight said now taking a sip of the apple beverage.

“It was different though! His horn went black and green and then his body turned black. His eyes were the only thing that stayed the same. Then when he was sitting down again, he changed back.” Pinkie said really fast that Twilight had to make sure she heard everything correctly.

“That’s interesting. I may have to look up on that. I knew he could do things that I couldn’t, but that sounds like some useful magic.” Twilight said now taking out a notepad and scribbling out a reminder.

“Well enough about that magic stuff, when do you want to give Synth his ticket?” Rainbow said petting her own ticket as it floated near her.

“About that…” Twilight gave a nervous smile as she looked to her friends.

“He told me he didn’t want to go, so I didn’t ask the Princess about giving him a ticket.” She frowned as they gave her a weird look. “What?”

“This here is a once in a lifetime opportunity. How could you not get him a ticket?” Applejack asked.

“He said he didn’t want to go and I thought it was just a boy thing to not want to go.” Twilight said defensively.

“Look at Spike, he didn’t want tah go, and look at him now.” They looked over to Spike who had his own seat at a different table sharing a milkshake with the ticket he was given.

“Okay, so maybe I should have gave him a ticket after all… But it’s too late now. The princess said she could only give out a few for free because they still needed to make a profit.”

“We’ll just have to celebrate the night for him.” Rarity said now smiling. “I’m sure he wouldn’t feel left out.”

“Course not. He’s tougher than that.” Now they continued their chatter as far away, two figures reached their HQ hideout and one stopped to make sure they weren’t followed.

“Go on ahead, I’ll keep watch. Hopefully we weren’t followed.” When his accomplice walked into the building, he walked the perimeter of the building and stopped in front of the window. He noticed the holes in it and was curious.

He walked a little away from them and found trees punctured with sharp tipped darts. Boss must be drunk. There’s no way he could throw a dart this far off target. He turned around and walked back into the direction of the window to see if he could eavesdrop while he waited for his accomplice to finish.
--------------------------------

“Boss!”

Ugh, not him. He was having a perfectly good day. That is until the pounding came on the door.

“What is it? I’m busy here.” He was actually bored the whole day and played darts by himself for most of the morning until he missed and threw his last dart out of his window. He could throw the darts perfectly fine. But the scar on his left eye gave him a significant difficulty at hand eye coordination. Now he was trying to open a very tough box of darts.

“He’s leaving the city in the royal chariot!”

Shit, they finally found him and then he gets escorted out before they can stop him.

“Well find out if he had a home in Ponyville and plant some bugs. He’ll have to come back eventually.” Now the sound of footsteps receding came from the other side of the door.

“Now where was I?” He tried his second attempt to open the new dart box. It was difficult without one eye, but he was trying to rest his horn after the intense dart workout he had earlier. It was harder than he thought to throw darts without throwing them crazily.

The box exploded as the hooves slipped and the darts landed on his lower torso. He pulled them out and frowned at the blood slowly pouring out. He’ll pay for this, with his own blood. Then he bandaged it up and lined up the darts in position to continue his darts game.

He threw his first one and it actually hit the dart board. He smiled at the black spot where he hit the board; it was only a matter of time before he could get the whole one eye thing down. He threw the next one and it went out the window creating another whole in his once perfect glass window.

“Son of a-“ He was stopped as he heard a scream of pain from the outside of the window.

“…Bitch” He groaned as there was a pounding on the door a few seconds later. “Fuck off!”

Author's Notes:

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