"So...This thing is some kinda ghost with magic powers...That obeys everything I tell it to do?" Rainbow said, cutting Twilight off when she'd run out of interesting things to say and had started on the chemical composition of Pinkie's mane. She didn't know why the Alicorn knew that, and nor did she particularly care. Her friend scowled childishly at the interruption before sighing with a nod. Rainbow perked up. "Awesome! Hey, Ghost-thingy! Make me lunch!" she said, waiting for a second or two with an eager grin. Both Twilight and the ethereal mare seemed to gaze at her in disappointment.
"T-that's not how it works, Rainbow Dash."
Rainbow blew a raspberry, waving off her 'Stand' with a forehoof. "Why not?"
And again, Rainbow realised the mistake she'd made when Twilight launched yet again into lecture-mode. "Well, for one, every Stand that I've met so far has had a certain range in which it can stray from its user. 「Weird Science」here can only go about ten or so meters from me, and Pinkie Pie's has never gone more than five meters away to my knowledge. And not only that, but a pony's Stand seems to have something to do with their personality, or who they are. Take mine; it researches any object it touches down to the DNA level. Could you imagine Pinkie with a power like that? And speaking of whom, while I didn't spend much time with Pinkie Pie's Stand, I can tell it exists to balance out her manic nature and acts as a guardian. Has your Stand done anything strange yet, or has it just been following you?"
Rainbow rubbed the back of her mane. "Yeah, you lost me at 'Weird Science'. Really, Twilight? That's the name you gave it? Can you get any more uncool? Why not something like, I dunno... 'Heavy Metal' or something?"
To her surprise, the Alicorn actually considered that question seriously. "When it was made, while it couldn't talk like Pinkie Pie's, I just had this...Feeling in my mind, that the name fit. Do you have something like that with yours?"
Rainbow shrugged, the glowing spirit absently performing front and backflips in the air slowly. "Well yeah, but it's not cool enough for a pony like me to give her, uh, ghost."
"Really? What is it?" Twilight hummed curiously, examining the apparition from a short distance.
"------" Rainbow whispered, scuffing a hoof on the dirt as she refused to meet Twilight's inquisitive gaze. Knowing that the mare was staring at her, and would continue to do so until she got what she wanted, Rainbow Dash sighed. "It's called...「Colours of the Wind」. B-But don't tell anyone that! I'm thinkin' up a better one as we speak!"
Twilight nodded. It seemed about right. "It's really not too bad, Rainbow. I like it."
The prismatic pony scoffed. "Well no duh, of course you like it."
"What's that supposed to mean, exactly?" Twilight said, affronted.
"It means that your idea of cool is only rivalled by Rarity on the lameness scale!"
Twilight took a deep breath through her nose, and exhaled explosively through her mouth. Dealing with Rainbow Dash was always an exercise in trying to remain calm; and the mare knew what she was doing when she dug at ponies. Better to just change the subject and get on track again. "Look, Rainbow Dash. Pinkie was carrying an important magical artefact with her when you crashed into her, which cut you and gave you that Stand! I need to find her before she gets into any more trouble. When did you see her?"
The rainbow mare tapped her chin with a hoof, looking up to the sky. "Hmm...Dunno. I went off to go practice this super cool sextuple aileron roll. Last I saw when I looked down, she was headin' to Rarity's house. Or, somewhere in that direction."
Twilight nodded. "Ok, and if her current track record is anything to go by, we need to go find her before something goes wrong with the Stand that Pinkie gives Rarity. She's on the other side of town, so we'll have to move quickly."
"Ok, you have fun with th- wait, 'we'? C'mooooon, Twilight, I gotta practice!" Rainbow groaned, pleading with the mare, a sinking feeling in her gut. When Twilight got like this about something, there really wasn't any arguing.
"Rainbow, this is serious! You're good enough to miss one practice session!"
"Well you're right about that, I am pretty good...Fine, let's go save Pinkie's flank, I guess!" Rainbow announced, rising into the air just above the ground and turning, starting to fly off as the Alicorn similarly took to the skies.
Twilight smiled. Hidden under all that bluster was genuine concern for her friend. Not that this was surprising, but it was always nice to reaffirm. Even with her busy schedule of training, eating, then subsequently sleeping, Rainbow could still take the time to help "Stop smilin' at me before I change my mind!" Well. It was the thought that counted.
Things were looking grim.
The part pony under the possession of an insane vampire, Rarity still reeling from being thrown against a wall, and 「Dancing Queen」effectively unable to act without damaging both herself and her mistress. The light barely entered the window, the two o'clock sun not at the correct angle just yet, which In turn bathed everything in front of Pinkie with darkness that only grew longer and more sinister as she approached slowly, knowing that she had them in a serious bind and thus not needing to hurry. It wasn't as if the doll could flee to contact Twilight herself, given that she was bound to remain near Pinkie Pie's physical body. Rarity could only thank Celestia that Sweetie Belle was sleeping over with the other Crusaders at Applejack's tonight; it was one less avenue for the monster to exploit.
Meanwhile, the vampire himself was growing increasingly irritated as his host continued to struggle, flashes of emotions not his own running through his mind. The pink one must had a strong will, to not be completely covered by his own personality. It was not enough to fight back, but the presence alone was enough to irk him. Externally, the monster merely adjusted his scarf. "Hm? No more words? No more struggling? A shame. I had hoped to play with you both for a while, but it appears there's no more fun to be had here." and then, seeming to revert to Pinkie's usual upbeat voice, "Because that's what i'm aaaall about, right Rarity?"
The blatant mockery brought forth an anger that the alabaster fashionista liked to keep buried deep, locked away never to be seen by anypony. The vampire even took an unconscious step back as Rarity fixed him with a glare fiercer than he'd seen in a long while. The anger, unrestrained fury hidden in that gaze...Memories of a foolish nobleman's child flashed through his mind, and a slightly different smirk flitted across his expression, to which Rarity bit back a growl through clenched teeth. "My, my, Rarity. Such a temper. In your line of work, that's highly dangerous. Imagine your reputation if the nobles ever caught wind of your emotional outbursts!" the monster tutted, waggling another condescending hoof in her direction, only to widen his eyes in surprise as a sewing needle shot forward wrapped in a blue aura, stopping just short of his crimson eye. Instead of being cowed, instead he laughed uproariously once more. "You see! This is the difference between you pathetic whelps and I. You think that I will be scared off by the threat of violence, whereas I am more than willing to put it into practice!" he finished with a shout, batting the needle aside with the back of a forehoof and sprinting forward at high speed, the same hoof outstretched towards Rarity's jaw. A glimmering wall of turquoise impeded his progress. Blinking once, taken aback, Pinkie rolled her eyes, winding up another hit.
Rarity held fast, pumping more magic into her shield as Pinkie prepared to strike again. It didn't matter if she couldn't directly influence the clothes themselves due to their nature as 'Stands' or whatever they were if the vampire still had to rely on a physical form, which could be blocked by a magic barrier like so. 'Yes,' she thought, quite proud of herself, 'All I need to do is keep her away until help arrives. The noises have got to have caught somepony's attention outside. Just a little bit l-' she was cut off with a pained shout as her shield cracked and shattered, the remnants falling to pieces in thin air as Pinkie brushed her hoof on her chest.
"Come now, you're no combat mage. In fact, as the pink one's memories are telling me, you're possibly worse in a battle than Fluttershy! Now, that is pathetic! How fitting; the worthless Stand and the worst of the Elements working together to extend their lives for just a second or two more."
It was hard listening to the creature speak so casually as he broke Rarity's last line of defence with as much effort as swatting a fly, as if he truly wasn't paying any real attention to the 'battle', if one could even call it that at this point. As Pinkie stepped forward once more, smirk widening further to reveal her fangs once more, she suddenly froze on the spot, sniffing deeply in mid-step. "Oh! It seems your friends are here to rescue you. How precious; they must think that their presence will actually change the hopelessness of trying to face me in battle. Hear that? They knock on your door right now. If you make even a single noise, I shall kill you immediately." the vampire warned, turning to face the door that lead downstairs. "We're up here, Twily! Come upstairs quick, something's happened to Rarity!" he called out, using Pinkie Pie's voice once more.
Rarity gasped and「Dancing Queen」flinched, understanding his plan immediately. She went to call out, but stopped herself with a wince. His taunts did not seem empty. At least this way the other two would have a chance to help before she was attacked again.
"Something's happened to Rarity?! Rainbow, c'mon!" Twilight yelled, grabbing her less-than-invested friend by the hoof and swinging the front door open. The lights were off, and something felt different about the shop's atmosphere. Cold, menacing. Like entering meant never returning to the outside world. Then again, the Everfree Forest brought precisely the same feeling, and they'd survived that plenty of times. "Pinkie said they were upstairs!" she said, sprinting over to the door that led to the stairway.
Both mares crashed out of the upstairs doorway, busting through, ready for any danger that would present itself. They came upon the sight of Rarity and the porcelain lady, the latter covering the former with her arms, glaring at a patch of darkness to the right side of the room. "Miss Twilight, move! Pinkie is not herself, get away from the door!" fruitlessly called「Dancing Queen」as the monster stepped out of the shadows, an unstable smirk on her lips.
Twilight immediately saw what was wrong. The old-fashioned clothes, the fang that stuck out of the grin plastered on her face, the chuckle that came from her mouth sounding nothing like Pinkie Pie; but most of all, it was the eyes. Cruel and scarlet, her eyes seemed to stare deep into her soul even as they widened slightly in surprise. "I didn't believe her memories when they showed a new Alicorn, but it seems dear Celestia has actually gone through with it! Well, after what happened to Luna, it makes sense that she'd need a replacement. Tell me; how is the harlot doing?" the monster in Pinkie's body laughed deeply.
Rainbow wasn't a smart pony, but she knew when something was off about her friends, and this couldn't have been a more obvious problem If it was wearing one of those flashing signs from Manehatten that advertised the latest musical. When the cyan mare boasted about her lack of fear, she wasn't entirely joking. It was much easier for her to get angry instead of scared, and this was one of those times. "You! What the hay did'ja do to Pinkie Pie?!" she growled, scuffing her hoof on the ground as a sign of aggression.
At this, the creature could only laugh, tilting his head back slightly at the weak attempt at intimidation. "Why, absolutely nothing! If you want her back, you'll have to defeat me. But as the other two over there found out; you are completely unable to attack! Well, unless you wish to kill dear old Pinkie Pie alongside me, that is..." he taunted, grin widening as the Princess and the Pegasus grew visibly more enraged.
Rainbow Dash snorted, and decided that she'd spent enough time listening. The time had come for her to do what she did best, second to flying: beat the tar out of whatever problem was in her way. It would hurt to attack Pinkie, sure, but knocking her out was preferable to having that insufferable, smug creature inside her body. Time seemed to slow as Rainbow launched herself from a standing position into the air, diving downwards at the monster, who stood stock still, not having time to react to her speed. The blue mare smirked as her outstretched hooves were an inch away from making contact. She did not notice from her position the widening of his grin, or the movement of his pupils to lock onto her. As the other two would have told them; he was much faster than they could anticipate.
In the span of a millisecond, Pinkie seemed to stand on her hind hooves, holding out her forehooves as Rainbow made contact, capturing each of her outstretched limbs with one of her own. The Pegasus grunted as she was held in the air, not even having pushed the monster back. She went to pull away just as the vampire revealed a new talent.
Ice flash-formed over Pinkie's hooves, spreading rapidly up Rainbow's as well, except it kept going. Within a moment, the mare's entire body minus the head was covered in a thick coating of ice. The Pegasus called out in pain, completely unable to move. The sheer coldness stung her fur, pulling at her skin as it was fused to it. "Futile! Futile! You came here to save your friend, only to be taken down like a rampaging animal!" Pinkie mocked, lifting the pony above her head like an acrobat.
Time felt like it stopped for Twilight, as she realised the monster's intentions. She saw the tensing of her muscles as the started to apply pressure to the ice. With how strong the fiend seemed to be, and how much of Dash's body was frozen... She took flight immediately, shooting towards Pinkie much slower than the other mare had done. The other two occupants of the room also seemed to realise, a chorus of "NO!" echoing throughout the darkened room.
"And now, let me prove to you why you can never defeat me! The power I wield is much too great! See how your pathetic 'friendship' has fared against my majesty! See how it's failed you, totally and utterly! Now! Taste the oblivion of DEATH! Gooodbyyyyye RAINBOW!" he yelled, the last sentence done in a deeper version of Pinkie's voice as he slammed his hooves together.