With Starlight's cutie mark exposed for all to see, it didn't take long for the villagers to turn against her. But Starlight tried her best to deflect attention and regain control of the situation. "Wha... What are you all looking at?!" She hissed, frantically pointing to Shining Armor and his friends. "They're the problem, not me! Everything was going great until they came along!"
"Enough with the lies, Starlight!" Big Macintosh snarled. "You're only diggin' yourself into a deeper ditch, one that'll be impossible to climb out of!"
In desperation, Starlight began to lash out at random ponies, starting with Double Diamond. "How could you betray me like this, Double Diamond?! How could you let these strangers brainwash you into siding with them against me?! After everything I've done for you, this is how you repay me?!"
"Apparently, you didn't trust me enough to tell me the truth! Your entire society was built on a lie, a lie I want no part of anymore!" Double Diamond replied, glaring at Starlight. "I only regret that I didn't do this sooner. We're through, Starlight! I won't be your puppet any longer!"
"How could you lie to us, Starlight?!" Party Favor demanded. "You told us all that cutie marks were evil and no good! You said special talents just led to pain and heartache! But it was a lie, wasn't it?!"
"No, you've got it all wrong!" Starlight insisted, her anger building by the second. "You don't understand what I've been through, if you all knew what I knew about cutie marks, you'd understand why you're better off without them! Besides, are you really just going to believe these random strangers over me, the pony who freed you all from the burdens of your cutie marks and gave you true equality?!"
"But then, why?" Sugar Belle asked with concern. "Why did you take our cutie marks away, but keep yours? Why did you have to lie to us and make it seem like we were all equal when in fact we weren't?"
"I... I had to, you fools!" Starlight frantically replied. "I mean, how else could I collect your cutie marks without my magic?!"
"But the Staff of Sameness has all the magic we need, you said it yourself!" Night Glider protested.
"There is no 'Staff of Sameness'!" Starlight confessed. "It's just a stupid piece of wood I found in the desert and combined with a special rock that could store the magic of cutie marks! It's my magic that makes all this possible! Don't you think for a second I would've given up my cutie mark if I could've done so?! Do you think that if I despised cutie marks so much, I wouldn't try to be rid of my own?!"
"You've already lied so many times, why should we believe a word you say now?!" Double Diamond hissed.
Frantically, Starlight tried to change the subject. "Why are you all blaiming me?! Don't act like you're all innocent, the fact of the matter is you chose to follow me! Sure, maybe I influenced your decision a little with my words, but I never took away your free will! All of you willingly chose to give up your cutie marks and pledge yourself to my cause, to take up the banner of equality! Why, if it weren't for me, you'd all still be living your miserable lives thinking you're better than everypony else, or that your cutie marks bring you nothing but ridicule and shame!" Desperately, she added loudly. "I brought you friendship! I brought you equality! I created harmony!"
"But you lied to us!" Double Diamond protested with a shake of his head. "What don't you get about that?!"
"So what? E-Everything else I said is true! The only way to be happy is if we're all equal!" Starlight insisted.
"Except for you. How can we be equal if you won't give up your own cutie mark?" Party Favor demanded. "You've given us no reason to trust you anymore. Maybe we did choose to follow you, but it's a mistake we all regret. You never actually cared about us, we were just stepping stones for you to rise to power at our expense!"
"It's like I told you in the vault, Starlight Glimmer," Shining smirked. "There's a perfectly good four letter word that describes your 'philosophy', and you're full of it!"
"QUIET!" Starlight bellowed, turning towards Shining and make him recoil in surprise. It was clear to all that Starlight was on the verge of snapping, and what she'd do if she lost her temper was anyone's guess.
"You can't have a cutie mark, Starlight! That's not fair!" Sugar Belle complained. "Either we're all equal, or none of us are! Give up your cutie mark, or let us have ours back!"
"You'd better decide quickly, before we make up your mind for you!" Night Glider threatened. "Normally I detest violence, but in your case I'd be willing to make an exception!"
"Violence won't solve your problems, you'll just be stooping to Starlight's level," Soarin cautioned. "Though I must admit, I wouldn't blame you if you had to knock a little sense into that thick head of hers."
With much teeth gritting and horn sparking, Starlight raced off towards her cottage. "You'll pay for this, all of you!" She shouted at the top of her lungs. "You ruined everything!" And she quickly darted inside said cottage and locked the door tight.
"Come on, everypony!" Double Diamond shouted, quickly taking charge of the villagers. "To the vault! Let's go and get our cutie marks back! If Starlight's not gonna give up her cutie mark, what reason have we to let ourselves be inferior to her?! If she doesn't believe in equality, then there's no reason for us to believe in it either!"
"Yeah!" The villagers all shouted in unison, and then rushed off to the cave that housed the vault.
"Well then, I guess there's only one thing left to do," Shining concluded, and turned to Thunderlane. "Our cutie marks are still with Starlight, right?"
Thunderlane gulped as he nodded. "Yes."
"I was afraid of that." Fancy Pants remarked.
"But we've got no choice!" Shining said firmly. "Starlight's got our cutie marks, and we're not leaving until we've gotten them back! Besides, I think it's time Starlight and I had a little heart to heart about imposing your will on others through lies and half truths! If there's one thing I can't stand, it's those who build themselves up by putting others down!"