//------------------------------//
// Chapter 7 - Hello, insanity defence! 
// Story: A Cozy Tale 
// by Leondude 
//------------------------------//

Facade woke up to another sunny morning in his king-sized bed. While a little groggy, he did not have a hangover or anything due to not partying last night. Being the businesspony that he is, he knew it was best not to spend every bit he had on drugs and mares. Not only would it sully his reputation but it would result in Brocade leaving him and taking the little brat with her. While Facade wouldn't mind that, he couldn't deny that, if his friends perceived a potential divorce as his fault because he enjoyed a bit of infidelity every now and again, he would certainly lose their respect. He got up out of bed and looked out the window. The sight was unusual, with buildings floating every which way, pink clouds that rained chocolate, checkered floors and green skies.

"Honey, did you put something funny in my food yesterday?" Facade shouted down. But he had no response.

Must have taken the brat to school Facade thought to himself.





Facade made his way to the marketplace, trying not to lose his balance on the soapy roads. While the marketplace was usually bustling with ponies trying to make a quick buck, it had the weird misfortune of being occupied by long-legged bunny rabbits and ballet-dancing buffalos. The pie-selling pony, who's name Facade cannot for the life of him remember, jumped onto and grabbing as many floating pies as possible. In the corner was another pony just sitting there, babbling in some sort of eldritch tongue. There were two discoloured ponies arguing and throwing whatever produce they have on their stalls at each other, with one managing to fire a tomato directly in the other's face. Floating past Facade was an ATM machine that said "feed me". Facade had seen his fair share of odd things, most of which while high out of his mind, but never had he seen the entire world lose its collective mind like this. And that was when he had an idea. A way to get rid of the brat and his nag of a wife.





Brocade ran to her home as quickly as possible, with Cozy Glow carefully wrapped up in a blanket on her back. She used the floating mini islands to dodge the oncoming stampede of horseshoes. There were also pies flying opposite her direction, like they were trying to aim for her face. Seeing her house in the distance, she teleported inside. She hyperventilated as she carefully placed Cozy Glow on the floor and unwrapped her.

"Aw, can't we play outside some more?" Cozy Glow asked.

"No, we can't," Brocade replied sternly.

"Why not?" Cozy asked, "We were having so much fun!"

Cozy giggled at the amount of fun she had while Brocade looked out of the window with concern. While Cozy Glow was too young to understand what potential danger she could have gotten herself into, Brocade knew full well that a world of chaos is no place for a foal. In fact, it was no place for anypony period. Unfortunately for both Cozy Glow and Brocade, they were about to realize not even their home is a safe haven. Brocade turned around and noticed Facade in the kitchen, levitating a massive knife. There was something off about him. His mane and tail were slightly dishevelled and he was not wearing his sunglasses. Along with having a grey tint to his coat, his eyes weren't the scarlet red they usually were, instead a pattern of multicoloured swirls. Facade slowly trotted towards Cozy Glow and Brocade, wearing the most demented smile on his face. While Cozy Glow was confused and a little unnerved, Brocade knew that Facade had been driven insane like a good portion of everypony else in Equestria. Without warning, Facade swung the knife downward towards Cozy Glow, only for Brocade to quickly move her out of the way and trot up the stairs. Facade swung the knife again, this time at one of Brocade's legs. Brocade screamed in agony as the blade cut through her leg. While Facade didn't cut into any major arteries, the pain from the wound did make running away from Brocade's crazed husband more difficult. Brocade limped away into Cozy Glow's bedroom, holding Cozy in hoof as she did so. Brocade locked the door and moved Cozy Glow's crib in the way in order to ensure Facade doesn't get in. Brocade huddled Cozy Glow towards her, one part to protect her, the other for her own comfort. Before Brocade had the chance to catch her breath, the knife Facade was using went through the door before being slowly pulled out, taking small bits of the door with it. As Facade continued to hack the door to pieces with the knife, Brocade hid Cozy Glow under a pile of stuffed toys and limped near one side of the crib barricading the door. The more of the door Facade hacked away, the more fearful Brocade became. There was nothing that she could use to defend herself. A blast of magic shot through what remained of the door, smashing the crib to pieces in the process. Brocade slowly used her magic to move one of the bars on the crib towards her as Facade trotted slowly into the bedroom.

"Sweetie," Facade said in a borderline serene tone "Come out, come out wherever you are."

Half- ventilating, Brocade picked up the bar and, once she had Facade in her line of sight, hit him across the head with it before tackling him to the ground. Driven by fear and repressed resentment against her husband, Brocade grabbed Facade by the head and slammed it down repeatedly to make sure he was unconscious. Cozy Glow was still hiding under the pile of toys as she watched her mother hit her dad before dropping his head to the floor and hyperventilating. Given how sweet and gentle her mother was, Cozy Glow was surprised to see her mother act so violently.

Maybe the world did go mad.