//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 - Setting the Stage // Story: Absence of Friendship // by MangaKamen //------------------------------// Chapter 7 Setting the Stage TTT – TTT It was surprising what one could get used to over their life time. If some pony lived next to the train tracks for a majority of their life, they would get used to the sound of it as they slept. But if they moved away, they wouldn’t get used to the quiet sounds. Mao had a similar oddity to him. Well, similar was stretching it. If there was one thing Mao loved doing to waste time – besides playing video games, practicing his evil laugh, or even just tor… I mean ‘experimenting’ on a certain Super Hero – He was always hoping to invent something new to fit his needs or wants (mostly his wants). He could barely sleep if he didn’t invent some odd thing or experiment in a new way on his lab Prinnies. As such, he was trying to find a way to replicate his Henshin formula in Equestria. He was able to find a bunch of chemicals that were locked up in a safe (something about a Talent Enhancer or something along those lines), and after a little bit of experimentation, Mao was surprised to find that a good portion of said chemicals were actually the same that he needed for his Henshin formula. Unfortunately, in order for the Henshin Formula to be effective, the chemicals need to set for at least one night (the poor Heavy Knight who was Mao’s lab rat at the time found out the hard way and became a lab sheep for about a year). Of course, Mao’s lab wasn’t in a tree! While Mao’s usual lab wasn’t the cleanest room in the Netherworld (something that he prided on), he was at least aware of what was in the room and if it would mess with any of the chemicals. Whether it was the mana in the air, something in the room, or if one of the chemicals was different than what Mao was used to using – Mao didn’t really care. For you see, the moment that he woke up this morning, Mao’s first thought was to test the formula in an attempt to return him back into his normal form – Unfortunately, when he downed the stuff, he didn’t get the result that he wanted. For one, he didn’t transform into his full demonic self. Secondly – His entire body spontaneously combusted with a loud explosion. And when Twilight and Luna had found the demonic stallion, he was propelled into a wall upside down with most of his usual attire singed and burned (his red jacket which was hanging off of one of the large machines was left untouched). “That was fun, mwahahahahahahaa!” “Do we even want to know?” Luna questioned with a flat look in her eyes. “Even I’m in the dark about what happened,” Mao chuckled before he coughed up some smoke from his muzzle. Twilight looked over the ground where the chemicals were splashed about and shook her head, “I… How… Okay, we’re going to have to find you someplace else to stay: Away from the dangerous chemicals.” “I refuse!” Mao spat back as he struggled to get free from the wall he was implanted into. “I’ll get my formula right! Besides, trial and error! It’s the foundation for SCIENCE!” “Well, that is true, but you’re not going to get any more of these chemicals,” Twilight replied with a stern look in her eyes. “What were you trying to make?” “If you must know,” Mao cackled with a prideful smile. “I was working on my Henshin Formula – I already made it back at Evil Academy, and it’d allow anyone who drank it to transform.” “Transform into what though?” Twilight questioned, a little interested in the research. “Hmm, curious are we?” Mao chuckled with a lick of his chops. “Get me more chemicals and I’ll…” “Ahem,” Luna cleared her throat as her horn glowed brightly. “I hate to interrupt such a pleasant conversation, but we have some important tasks this morning and time is off the essence.” The same aura appeared over Mao’s body and he was pulled out from the wall rather forcibly. “GARGH!” When the black stallion was back on his hooves, his black shirt and white shorts were ripped, badly. “Yeesh! Don’t you know the word ‘gentle’?” “And here I thought that a demon lord would be made of tougher stuff,” Luna snickered with a hoof to her mouth. Mao growled as he trotted over to where his jacket was and yanked it off of the machine it was on, “Fine, the quicker we get these stupid tasks done, the faster I can get back to my experiments.” “Does thou expect to go out like that?” Luna questioned with a roll of her eyes. “What?” Mao snarled back with a roll of his eyes. “What the hell are you going on about?” “Mao, your clothes are ruined,” Twilight replied as she lifted a hoof towards the transformed demon’s body. A wild smirk appeared on the stallion’s face, “Oh? And just what do you expect me to do? Go out in the buff?” “Well, it’s not like a lot of ponies wear clothes,” Twilight pointed out. “Well, with the exception of special occasions and the Ponies in Canterlot… My point is, maybe you should at least not wear them this morning, one of my friends can fix them up for you.” Before Mao could say another word, a familiar blue aura surged over his body and his eyes widened when he realized what was about to happen, “Wait a second! Don’t you dare…” Mao just disappeared before Twilight, leaving only his ripped clothes on the ground before the purple mare. Twilight turned to Princess Luna who had a large smile on her face, “Did I not mention that we are in a hurry this morning?” “DAMN IT!” Mao’s voice echoed from the floor above. “I shall see to it that your lab and home is repaired, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna stated with a slight bow towards the studious mare. “May I entrust you with the task of delivering the remaining Elements to your friends?” “I will not fail you, Princess Luna,” Twilight answered back. “But is it wise to give them the Elements with Mao near?” “He knows not of what the Elements can do,” Luna replied with a confident smile. “Do not worry.” “Well, okay,” Twilight said back nervously. TTT – TTT Despite not being as big as Canterlot or Manehatten, Ponyville was pretty lively at times. Whether it was the farmer’s market, the off chance that a demonic creature that was bent on taking over all over Equestria, or that there was some horrible monster that just wanted to wreck stuff, Ponyville was a rather excitable place to live. Even now, there were several, multi-colored tents and stands that lined the streets of Ponyville. Many ponies were rather confused as to where these things sprung up over the night, but even more so that there seemed to be a rather delicious aroma from some of them. Of course, a certain black stallion didn’t really care at all about those. “This is ridiculous! A genius like me shouldn’t be waltzing around like this!” Twilight rolled her eyes at the stallion behind her, “What’s wrong with how you look? You’ve got your red jacket on, and it’s not like anything shows…” Mao growled as lowered his tail down, “Humph! That’s not the point! I… I just don’t like giving anyone a free show – Now, if I was getting paid, then I’d have no problem with that! Monetary or physical pleasures please!” Twilight had to stop for a second and look at the demonic stallion next to her with a quizzical look, “W-Why would you say something like that!?” “Why not?” Mao chuckled with a devilish smirk on his face. “It’s only necessary to ask for compensation for pleasure…” This was starting to get out of hoof, so Twilight looked at the odd stands, “A-Anyway, I wonder what these are for…” “Who knows and who cares,” Mao grumbled with a roll of his eyes. “After what I saw the Pink mare do yesterday, it wouldn’t surprise me that you ponies could set something like this up within a night – How you’re able to hold things with your hooves is still puzzling to me. You’d think every pony in this world was related to Spiderman or something…” While it was true that Pinkie Pie could easily set up something like this in a short amount of time (practically by herself and give the laws of probability a black eye), but for what reason would she have? Twilight sighed under her breath with a smile, ‘Then again, since Mao did kind of save Ponyville, that would be more than enough of a cause for her to throw a party – but something’s off…’ Twilight shook the thought from her head as she turned back to the saddlebags she had – While one did have the remnants of Mao’s clothes, the other held the remaining Elements of Harmony and she needed to deliver them as soon as possible. “Well, in any case, we should hurry – After all, you’d like your clothes repaired, right?” “Humph, fine!” Mao growled as he trotted alongside Twilight. “But don’t expect me to be able to pay – After all, in this world, I’m broke!” Twilight opened her mouth to speak back to Mao, but took a deep breath instead, “You know, nopony knows how long you’re going to be here – And while I did agree to the Princess’s request, do you think that maybe you could act a little nicer while you’re here?” Mao gasped, “You want me to be a delinquent?! The nerve! I was Evil Academy’s number one student! If any demon ever found out that I was… ‘nice’…” He practically gagged at that thought. “Then my reputation would plummet! And that would spell doom for Evil Academy as its dean!” “Then how about a trade?” Twilight offered. From behind his glasses, Mao’s eyes gleamed, “A trade? Ah, a demon’s trade – Although, we prefer the term ‘deal’. So you want me to be nicer for my stay here? Then what will you give me in return?” “Well, I can get you some of those chemicals,” Twilight replied with a smile on her face. “Of course, I want to be there to see your experiments, but I can get you the materials.” “Hmm, very tempting, very, VERY tempting,” Mao snickered devilishly. “But, I think there’s need of a little icing on this cake – So, how about you let me analyze that unicorn magic you’ve got as well?” “That shouldn’t be difficult,” Twilight answered back as she lifted up a hoof. “So long as there’s no dissection,” the studious mare couldn’t help but notice the disappointed look on Mao’s face. “I’ll be more than glad to show you unicorn magic and even teach you other things about this world.” That purple hoof hung in the air for a few seconds before Mao lifted his up, “Very well, I shall agree to those terms.” “Excellent!” Twilight said as she shook Mao’s hoof. “I hope that we’ll both learn something from each other! Truth be told, I’m really curious about your world!” Mao only smirked back in return. A few minutes after the deal was struck, Twilight had led Mao to their first stop of the morning – A large, luxurious building that looked to be styled of that of an old carnival ride: a carousel. The building had an ornate purple color with several decorations that hung from the building. “So… Much… POSH!” Mao cried out as he staggered back from the building. “It’s…. It’s too much! BLEH!” “What’s wrong with it?” Twilight questioned as her eyes flattened slightly at Mao’s remarks. “It’s… It’s too GIRLY!” Mao screamed out as he fell backwards and wriggled on the ground. “IT BURNS!” “You know, it’s kind of hard to see how you’re an Overlord,” Twilight pointed out. “In fact, it’s kind of hard to see how you could be an honor student with the way you act sometimes.” “Hehe! Don’t underestimate me!” Mao chuckled as he leapt back to his hooves. “I just can’t stand cute things, and this building right here is just as tooth numbingly nauseous as that pink mare’s place!” “Just give it a chance,” Twilight requested as she tapped her hoof against the door a few times. “Besides, Rarity is one of the nicest ponies in town, and she’s very generous.” “Generous you say?” Mao cackled under his breath. ‘I might as well take full advantage of such Generosity, hehehehee…’ “COMING!” A familiar voice sang out, which made Mao scrunch his nose up slightly. “Wait a minute…” The door opened up and a small, unicorn filly greeted the two guests, and Mao’s eyes widened as she looked at them. “Miss Sparkle! Mister Mao! Good morning!” “Good morning, Sweetie Belle,” Twilight greeted back with a slight bow to the young filly. “Is your sister home today?” “She sure is,” the young filly replied, a toothy grin on her face. “She’s just upstairs with her work, I can go get her if you want.” “That would be wonderful,” Twilight stated as Sweetie Belle stepped to the side to let the two ponies enter. However, only Twilight did. When the two unicorns noticed that Mao stood away from the door, his hooves planted firmly in the ground. “I’m not going in there.” Twilight sighed as she turned to Sweetie Belle, “Actually, for now, would it be alright if I go up to see your sister? I need to talk to her about something private anyway.” “Sure Miss Sparkle,” Sweetie Belle replied as she turned towards Mao. “What about Mister Mao though?” “Well, how about you keep him company?” Twilight answered as she smiled at Mao. “I’m sure if you take a good look at Mister Mao, you’ll find that you have more in common with him.” “Huh?” Mao questioned with a raised brow. “What the hell’s that supposed to mean?” Twilight only smiled at the transformed demon before she playfully trotted away. Mao snarled loudly as Sweetie Belle stepped from the boutique and inspected Mao, “Hey! Get back here! We’re not done talking here! I… Huh?” “Wow!” Sweetie Belle gasped as she looked at Mao. “T-That’s amazing!” “Yes, yes, I know I have an amazing body, even as a horse,” Mao sighed with a roll of his eyes. “But I need to get that mare back here and…” “Your flank!” Sweetie Belle announced. “It’s blank!” “Excuse me?” Mao questioned. TTT – TTT It didn’t take long for Twilight to find Rarity’s workshop – She had been there several times and this time was no different. The studious mare reached the door and tapped her hoof against it. “Come in!” Sang a voice as soothe as silk. With her magic, Twilight opened the door and stepped into the workshop – Where countless mannequins in the shape of ponies stood, each garbed in fancy clothing that would make any pony envious, various fabrics were strewn across the floor, and amongst the rather colorful mess stood a beautiful, white furred mare with a blue mane and tail that curled into a rather luxurious style. The mare turned her head around and smiled, “Twilight! Dear! What a pleasant surprise! What brings you to my humble boutique?” Twilight smiled as she trotted up to her fashion-inclined friend with a smile on her face, “Good morning Rarity, I have a couple of things actually, but if you’re busy then…” “Oh perish the thought!” Rarity replied as she turned from her work. “I’m ahead of schedule, so, it shouldn’t be a problem at all! I always have time for my friends.” It was a warm comfort that Twilight felt, something she always felt when she was with her friends, “Well, you see Rarity…” “GAAAH! GET OFF ME!” Both mares jumped when they heard that yelling that emanated from downstairs, and without hesitation, the two mares galloped as quick as they could downstairs… “Aw come on! You’d look good with the symbol on your jacket! You’re just like us!” “NO!” Both Twilight and Rarity watched as Mao dashed about the lobby of the boutique, Sweetie Belle right on his tail (not literally) with a red cape tied around her neck and a blue piece of fabric that her tail was wrapped around. “GET AWAY FROM ME!” “Please Mister Mao!” Sweetie Belle pleaded as she followed Mao atop of the table in the lobby, both of which knocked off various items from it – including a glass vase that had flowers in it. “You’d fit right in with the Crusaders! And we can help you find your Cutie Mark!” “I don’t even know what that means!” Both of the mares couldn’t help but notice that there was quite a big mess about the boutique – aside from the broken vase, furniture was turned over, one of the curtains was ripped, and a number of the dress forms were knocked over. Twilight looked over to Rarity who’s mouth was wide open and her eyes were narrowed down at the two ponies who were wrecking her shop. “Uh, Rarity…” “ENOUGH!” The booming voice of the white furred mare was enough to make Sweetie Belle stop in her tracks and look towards her older sister. Mao on the other hoof however wasn’t as lucky, he didn’t expect somepony to suddenly yell, and with him still technically not used to his hooves, tripped over them and rolled right into a few of the dress forms that remained untipped before the transformed demon slammed into them. The dress forms, as well as the clothes that were on them, fell atop of Mao. A few moments later, the transformed Overlord popped his head out of the clothes with his eyes narrowed down. “Damn it…” TTT – TTT While chaos was ensuing in Carousel Boutique, Ponyville itself was another matter – All the stands and tents opened up: food stands, shops that sold T-Shirts, little toys, and various sweets. This wasn’t different from any festival that Ponyville would have, but the stands being run by blue penguins with peg legs and bat-wings on their backs was definitely new. Then again, just the other night the town was under attack by a giant monster made out of tree parts, so penguins running convenience stands wasn’t all that weird in the grand scheme of things. However, there were rules to these sorts of things – and the mayor of Ponyville: Mayor Mare, was called to investigate the scene, having been informed of the situation, she had left straight from home this morning to arrive. The silver mane mare was at one of the stands and tapped her hoof against the counter, “Excuse me…” “How can I help ya, dood?” The Prinny asked as he turned away from his set up. “I need to see your permit for your stand,” Mayor Mare requested, giving a stern look at the penguin-like demon. “After all, every business like this needs to get the go-ahead from Town Hall, and I’d remember if a bunch of penguins filled out the paperwork necessary to open a business.” “We’re just the workforce, dood,” The prinny replied with a roll of his eyes. “You gotta talk to the boss for that sort of stuff, dood.” “And where exactly can I find this ‘Boss’ of yours?” Mayor Mare asked. “Well, he should be at the stage, putting on the final touches for his show, dood,” The prinny answered as he pointed towards the center of town. “The stage’s in front of that big circular building – He’s probably getting ready, dood.” “Big, circular building?” Mayor Mare stated as her eyes widened behind her glasses. “Wait, he’s at town hall?!” “I think he is, I dunno, dood,” The Prinny replied. Before the Prinny could say another word, Mayor Mare already galloped away towards Town Hall. The Prinny shrugged and went back to work. It didn’t take long for the Mayor to reach the center of town, and it was even more shocking for her to see that indeed in front of the town hall was a large stage that had a number of the Prinnies around setting up a number of various forms of equipment. But what really caught her eye was the stallion who was atop of the stage with his back to her, with his large white overcoat that covered most of his form, but the purple pants hugged his hind legs tightly and his neatly combed blond tail. “Alright Prinnies! Make sure everything’s ready for this afternoon! With how many ponies we got here, we’ll be able to…” “Excuse me!” Mayor Mare called out to the stallion as she jumped onto the stage. The white coated stallion’s ears perked up, a pair of tan colored ears. Mayor Mare didn’t wait for the stallion to turn around, “I assume you’re the one who these penguins call boss?” “Well, to be accurate, they’re called Prinnies,” The stallion replied, the tan wings that stuck out of his white coat unfolded and stretched out. Mayor Mare narrowed her eyes at the pegasus in front of her, “Be it as it may, they are your employees, and I’d like to see your permit for not only having a business, but having a stage built in a public place and in front of town hall is another matter all together! I need to see…” It was then that the stallion turned around and looked Mayor Mare right in the eyes. The purple eyes that looked at her made Mayor Mare stop speaking and look at the stallion. He had a bright blonde, sharp mane that had a pair of lightning bolt shaped eyebrows that peaked out from under the bangs. His face was youthful with an innocent smile at his muzzle and around his neck was a gold pendant that had an ‘A’ carved into it. The stallion smiled rightly as he carefully trotted forward, the chain at the front hooves jingled slightly, “A permit? I’m sorry, I’m not from around here and I wasn’t aware of such a thing.” Mayor Mare coughed slightly to get back to her demeanor and lifted a hoof up towards the blond stallion, “R-Regardless, you can’t just set up your…” That’s when the blond stallion placed a hoof onto Mayor Mare’s and she pulled back slightly, a little twinge of pink on her face, “And once again, I must apologize! Is there no way we can fix this? The Prinnies worked so hard on this so we could put on a show for your lovely town.” “W-Well… T-There isn’t an event going on today,” Mayor Mare coughed with her hoof pulled back. “But you still need to pay permit expenses and…” “Then how about we give you a certain amount of our profits?” the stallion offered as he trotted around Mayor Mare. “From food sales alone we should be able to cover our expenses, and when the show starts, we’ll have more than enough to cover these permit costs.” “This is… This is highly against how we do things,” Mayor Mare stated, trying her best to not look at the oddly handsome stallion. “What am I going to do?” The stallion asked with a bright smile. “Skip town after all this work? Nah, it’d cost me too much to do so! So, what do you say?” Mayor Mare looked at the stallion and almost got lost in the dark purple eyes that looked back at her, “Oh, what the hay? Very well, so, can I get your name, Sir?” The stallion smiled greatly, “Heh, sure thing, Miss. The name’s Axel, Axel the Dark Hero…” TBC