//------------------------------// // 6. Figuring out a course of action // Story: Fear The Hypnotist // by JeSuisLaPorte //------------------------------// Monday :  The bell rang and the students left their classes for recess. The students that wandered around the halls looked terribly nervous and afraid. The most recent murders were teenage girls that attended Canterlot High. For all they knew, they could be next if they weren’t careful. This only served to create a dreadful atmosphere in the school, getting everyone inside to constantly look over their shoulder and distrust those they didn’t know personally. Male and female students became distrustful of each other. All the girls would stay away from the boys and the latter would constantly side eyed each other suspiciously. It was truly an awful time to go to school, especially for Sunset who knew she was on SKX’s hit list.   The Rainbooms had a lot of things to say about the weekend for it was an eventful one. During recess, they gathered in the same room as always to figure out a course of action. Their goal for the moment was to discover the killer’s identity. Then, they can form a plan to stop him once and for all. They already had a list of suspects that they would investigate, one at a time. The list was quite small, as not many people fit the description of their serial killer.  They closed the door and made sure no one was around to eavesdrop on them.   “Okay, so... where do we even start?” said Applejack to break the ice.  “How about we start by talking about the two most recent murder? You know, the one about the decapitated head and the dead girl on the street?” responded Rainbow Dash as she kept an eye out on the corridor.  “Our SKX is quite strange, he’s killing not to satisfy his warp ideals or anything but to simply leave out cryptic messages. All we know for certain is that he wants Sunset dead.” relayed Twi to her friends.  “It’s like he wants to play a game with us. A not so fun game of playing detective...” pointed out Pinkie in a voice that started out loud and happy, then turned quieter and nervous.  Fluttershy thought about the last message, it was the most telling after all. It could be an insight on the killer’s mind. “The last message he wrote is really ominous. It indicates that something happened to him, something bad and I think he blames Sunset for it.”  “Now that you mention, it does make a lot of sense Fluttershy. Good thinking!” complimented Twi.  “Thanks Twilight.”  “Only problem is that it doesn’t narrow down our list of suspects. Sunset has horribly bullied everyone in Canterlot High for a long time!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash in a slightly frustrated tone. “No offense.”  “Sum’s taken.” jokingly replied Sunset.  “Actually, Sunset has seen SKX in person.” pointed out Rarity. “You said he looked quite bulky, didn’t you?”  “Yes, he’s a big guy.” confirmed Sunset Shimmer.  “I see, so that’ll mean that our most likely suspect is...” Applejack looked uncertain now. “Bulk... Biceps? Nah, can’t be him. The guy’s practically a human teddy bear.”  “But he’s the only person that fits her criteria's.” defended Twi. Though she didn’t know Bulk much, she could see just by the way he acted with other people that he was truly a kind person. Nevertheless, they can’t let their feelings turn down potential suspects. “We can’t know for sure unless we search his personal belongings, as awful as that sounds...”  “I’m with Twilight.” affirmed Fluttershy in a soft voice. “I just want to make sure that he’s innocent.”  “I personally don’t mind looking into his stuff if we’re going to do this.” exclaimed Rainbow Dash without any shame.  “Careful when you’ll be searching through his personal belongings Dash; you might see something undesirable.” casually said Applejack in a mocking voice.  “Pff, I can handle it.”  Sunset walked over to Dash. “I’ll accompany you, Rainbow Dash. It’ll be much faster to look around together.”  Pinkie Pie’s face lighted up. “And we’ll keep Bulk occupied long enough for you two to sneak in!”  “Exactly!”    Unbeknownst to them, someone was indeed observing them. It was none other than... Trixie.   “So now you’ll all be playing detective, aren’t you Rainbooms. Heh, doesn’t matter to me, for I, the Great and Powerful Trixie will get you this time!”  She walked away with a malicious grin on her face. She was very thrilled at the idea of proving Sunset wrong for believing she was just a phony. Trixie was the real deal when it came to magic, and no one can doubt her claims. No one.  She then hit something hard and fell onto her back. As she looked up at what hit her, she saw Bulk Biceps who looked apologetic. Remembering what the Rainbooms were talking about, Trixie felt extremely nervous now that she was right in front of what was possible the serial killer.  “O-Oh hey there, uh, Bulk.” She stayed in place, not really knowing what to say.  The big guy had a sorry expression and was about to say something which prompted Trixie to bail immediately, not wanting to stick around him any longer.  “Bye!” She ran past Bulk Biceps and fled down the stairs, much to his confusion. He simply shrugged off the strange interaction and went on with his day.      “Lucky sock, no. Firecracker, especially not; I’ll be in big trouble if they find out about the firecrackers! Magical laxative, sure why not.”  Trixie was rummaging through her things in search of a magical item that she could use to prank Sunset Shimmer and the Rainbooms. That was going to be her revenge for all the times they got in her way. A way to even the scores as she never seemed to win despite her best efforts.  “With this, you’ll be sorry to have ever wronged me. A great magician never kneels before adversity!”  A coin fell from her bag. She looked at it in consideration.  “But first, I’ll get more peanut butter cracker.”  Something hit her in the back and her face slammed into her locker’s door. “Gwak!” The force at which it happened could have only been accomplished by someone with a great deal of strength, like SKX. Frightened, Trixie spun around in a cowardly posture ready to beg for mercy to the killer only to see Snips and Snails wondering around on a scooter.  “Sn-Snips and Snails?” the terror in her eyes quickly turned into anger. “Watch where you’re going morons! And why are you on a scooter?!”  The phone Snips was holding kind of gave it away. “It’s for a YouTube video. Sorry.”  Trixie’s face twitched. “For a YouTube video. How about you stop doing reckless things for once?!”  “Uh, Trixie. Your nose is bleeding.” pointed out Snails.  Trixie quickly touched her nose and then looked at her hand. Yep, there was blood. She hit the locker hard enough to get a nosebleed. Fantastic. “Urgh! I’m not going to let you get away with this scot-free! You’ll have to make up for it.”  Snips though about it for a moment, and then. “Nah, we’re done being lackeys.”  Trixie took out a coin from her pockets. “But what if I pay you? Will you do anything for me? In exchange, you’ll get money!”   “Okay!” they accepted in unison.  She successfully swayed the two dumb, dumbs with money. A task that is perhaps, too easy since they never see through it. Good news for her, she gets two henchmen for a low price. With it, she could sabotage the Rainbooms, especially Rainbow Dash for several things related to music and guitars alike.  Although, she’d have to be careful not to get the killer’s attention. He had mostly murdered teenage girls, better stay far away from any potential suspect. She’ll simply wait for all of this to blow over while her new lackeys would do the dirty work for her.      Sunset Shimmer was walking home that afternoon, her mind so concentrated on future events that she was practically on autopilot. Tomorrow was going to be the day she and Rainbow Dash would sneak in Bulk’s room to look for anything that can prove he’s not SKX. It was going to be very stressful; Sunset couldn’t stop thinking about how this daring mission was going to go down.  They could get in serious trouble if they fail, something that was heavily bothering her as she was absent-mindedly crossing the streets, only looking around to spot incoming cars. Something truly out of the ordinary caught her attention, and it wasn’t just because it stood out, but because she recognised who this was. Lo and behold, a familiar man in a pickle suit stood there in front of her, staring her down. Once more, he had this disappointed and angry look on his face.  “Someone else just died, again. Another murder perpetrated at the hands of the serial killer. That’s now three deaths, three.” he lifted three fingers up as he repeated himself just to stick the point in. “This is extremely awful, and someone needs to atone.”  Sunset felt her blood boiling at the mere sight of this man. She ran up to him and grabbed him by the collar. “Where’s the book you stole from me?!”  The man’s expression didn’t change at all, still feeling confident about the situation since he was still speaking in a slow and methodical pace. “Why does it matter? The book means nothing in the grand scheme of things.”  “Yes, it does!” screamed Sunset. “It was the only way I could ca- find important information about the murders!” she continued.  “Calling Princess Twilight isn’t the way to go, Sunset Shimmer.”   Her heart nearly skipped a beat and she quickly let go of him in shock. She was starting to sweat, clearly this man wasn’t just the average joe roaming the streets. Not after the theft of her book, not after he uttered these words. He was much more than she initially believed.  “Wha- but how?”  “Face your own problems, Sunset. It isn’t up to Twilight to fix your mistakes. The blame’s on you, and you will have to make up for it.” He said while pointing an accusing finger at her. As soon as he was done speaking, he slowly turned around and left the scene.  Sunset was left in shock, feeling stressed out at the additional of weirdness added on top of this case. There had to be some way to explain the man in the pickle suit and figure out if there is a correlation between him and SKX.  Nonetheless, he seems adamant that SKX’s murders are her fault. I have done many terribly things in the past, but I can’t be responsible for what this serial killer is doing, right? She thought, but no matter what she did, she couldn’t calm herself down. That only led to more frustration as trying to figure out anything in this mystery basically felt like she was just hitting her head against a brick wall.  Frustrated and unable to take it anymore, Sunset crashed down on a bench in the city’s park, pondering about the entire situation. Her mind had turned into an endless spiral of conflicting thoughts and angry rambling. She couldn’t clear her head in the slightest which only made her frustration grow stronger.  “Enjoying the tranquility here? I must admit this is my favorite place to hang around in the afternoon.” a familiar voice pulled her out of the incoherent mess that had become her mind. The voice of an old man she recognised, Beelz. He was standing a few feet away from her, hunched over and relying on his cane to stay on his feet. His hands as always were trembling ever so slightly.   His smile was so sweet that it took away Sunset’s frustration almost instantly. “Beelz? I didn’t know you came here often.” she said, surprised to see this nice elder again.  “I thought everyone knew that old people like parks.” he jokingly responded, letting out a quiet giggle afterward. He looked at the bench for a moment before asking Sunset. “Do you mind if I take a seat? My legs are tired.”  “Sure!” exclaimed Sunset, quickly moving to the right to leave a seat for the elderly man. His face lit up as he took a few trembling steps towards the bench, then slowly but surely, turned around to take a seat.  He let out a sigh of relief as his posterior finally sat comfortably on the bench. “Gee, it must really be hard for you to stand up.” said Sunset with concern.  Beelz didn’t really look all that troubled. “It is, but I don’t really mind, nor do I envy the youth. My glory days are long gone, but I know I've led a good life. Nothing really bothers me anymore. You just got to stay optimistic no matter what, you know? Otherwise, you’d just live your final days feeling like you could have accomplished so much more.”  Sunset nodded. “That’s something I can agree with. You certainly look happy, Mr. Beelz.”  Beelz shook his head in amusement. “You can just call me Beelz if you want to, Sunset. I’m honestly tired of honorifics. Sometimes, it feels better to not be held in such high regards. It makes you feel free, less restrained by your entourage’s perception of yourself.”  “Yeah, I can relate. Sometimes, it feels as if the whole school relies on me, and that’s anxiety inducing...”  The old man’s smile slowly faded into a look of concern. “Are you feeling alright? You seem very tense. Did something bad happen?”  Sunset chuckled nervously. “You have no idea. So many strange things happened recently, and it feels like I'm being blamed for it all.”  “Really? I don’t see how a nice and responsible girl such as yourself could be responsible for any of this. You’re pretty good! A top student in Canterlot High and someone who prides herself on service.” He put a trembling hand on her shoulder, a reassuring gesture indeed. “Don’t be too hard on yourself.” he said with the most comforting smile he could muster.  It worked, as Sunset Shimmer’s anxiety died down. “You’re right. Maybe I'm being too hard on myself.” she turned to look at Beelz, smiling in return. “Thanks, I really needed to hear that.”  “It’s my pleasure.” he replied in a soothing voice.  Sunset looked at the ground for a while. Since Beelz was here, why not ask him a few questions about SKX? Surely with his knowledge he could provide more insight into the mind of a serial killer.  “Have you... kept up with the news?” she asked hesitantly.  “Yes, I'm still thinking about this killer’s messages. It’s, quite intriguing to say the least.”  “What do you think is going on inside his head? Like, what does he mean by “I could have accomplished so much”?” she added.  Beelz looked away for a moment, thinking about a response. Then suddenly, his whole mood darkened as he began his speech. “You know, not all killers are born evil. Some starts as just average people, with stable jobs and whatnot. But sometime, all it takes is just one bad day to ruin it all. Once it happens, they begin to feel angry, desperate and want nothing more than to take out their frustration on something. It’s a slippery slope, easy to fall into darkness when you reach this point.” his voice became deeper as he went on. Now, it was turning into a menacing growl. “Oh the darkness...” he turned to face Sunset. “A man can do terrible things when he’s lost his way... Terrible things.”  His expression quickly shifted into an apologetic one when he noticed that Sunset was shaken up by this sudden departure from his usual self. “Oh! I’m sorry, d-did I scare you?”  “Admittedly, yes.” she responded nervously as she stopped swaying around in her seat. “You sounded really intimidating at the end. I suppose it’s a leftover from your line of work?”  Beelz chuckled. “Guess I’m still stuck in the job’s mentality. I should really stop thinking like that, it’s not doing me much good from what I can tell.”  “Have you... accidentally scared off people that way?” she asked after a brief silence.  The old man frowned disappointedly. “Sadly yes. I guess you don’t have to be built like a brick wall to scare the soul out of people. I look like I could fall apart any moment and yet, they run off when I do that. It’s almost amusing, if I wasn’t so lonely...”  Sunset was curious to ask if he had a spouse but chose not to out of fear it might be a touchy subject for him. Judging from his age, he could have had one, and she could very well be dead. Instead, she took out her phone to look at the time and gasped when she noticed that it was getting late.  “Sorry Beelz; I’ve got to go now. I have a lot of things to do for tomorrow!” she said in a hurry, jumping off from her seating position.  The old man in purple had a sad look on his face, but smiled, nonetheless. “No problem. I’m not keeping you hostage.” He slowly lifted a hand, a simple movement that looked like it took a herculean amount of effort for him to do. “I hope to see you again, Sunset. I really enjoy our discussions!”  Sunset Shimmer ran off while waving goodbye to the old man. It was true when they say that the elderly are often the nicest people you’ll come across. During her walk back home, she thought a lot about his speech. The way SKX framed his messages really led her to believe that Beelz was right about his assumption regarding the killer.   From what she could remember, SKX was after her for something she most likely did to him. A man whose future was compromised by her very action. Tough to say who it could be; Sunset did a lot of bad things when she first came to this world, mostly to Canterlot High and its students.  Anyway, they’ll surely find out the killer’s identity by process of elimination if it should come to that. Something tells her he’ll make his presence known sooner or later.