Chapter 7
The Shattered Mask
Echo left at 7:00 PM to meet up with Roseluck at her shop. As he got there he was greeted by the cream colored mare.
“Hey you made it. I was getting worried that you ditched me.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” he said with a grin. “So should we get started then?”
“Actually I was hoping that we could grab a bite to eat first. Can’t work on an empty stomach I always say.” she said with a smile.
“Alright where?”
“I was thinking Sugar Cube Corner.”
“That’s fine, lets go.” the two trotted to the small bakery along the way the two talked about work and plant’s. Rose broke the cycle of conversational dribble.
“Look you’ve probably heard by now that I’m considered a loose mare.”
“I’ve heard rumors.”
“Well I just want to make one thing clear, that was a long time ago and I have no intention of doing anything like that again.” she said as she looked at the ground. “Now that you know you probably don’t want to be seen with me.”
“Not true. So you made some mistakes Celestia knows I’ve done plenty of things I’m not proud of.”
“Really like what?”
“I don’t really want to talk about it.” he said as he adverted her gaze.
“That’s fine, I understand one’s need for privacy.” she said with a smile.
“Thanks.” the two continued the walk in silence.
Twilight walked into Sugar Cube Corner to see that her friends had already gathered in a booth. She trotted over to her five friends and sat down next to Rainbow Dash.
“So why did you two want to meet us here again?” Rainbow asked impatiently.
“Okay, today Rarity and I found out that Echo has a friend in Detrot that he goes back to visit once a year.”
“And I thought that we should tag along and see if we can figure somethings out from this mare.” Rarity said.
“But he strongly advised against it.” Twilight added.
“However, this is a good opportunity to find out more about him. We’ve managed to get some info out of him but nothing concrete.” Rarity interjected.
“So we decided to put it to a vote, whether we should do it or not.”
“Um Twi, we might want to take a rain check on this.” Rainbow said as she pointed towards the door. The six ponies all turned their heads to See Echo and Rose walking into the bakery.
“What’s Rose doing with Echo?” Applejack asked in surprise.
“He said that they were going to work on cross breeding plants.” Twilight said in surprise. Rose then noticed the six ponies staring at them.
“Oh great, the others have noticed us.” Rose said as she covered her face with her hoof. Echo then looked over at Twilight and the others with a harsh glare. The six ponies then adverted their gaze.
“Don’t worry about them, they’re more concerned with me than you.” he said with a small grin. Soon a blue unicorn stallion wearing a pair of glasses trotted up to the two with a smug look on his face.
“Well hello Rose, fancy meeting you here.”
“What do you want Gambler?.” she said with spite in her voice.
“So cruel. I was just wondering who’s the poor sap you managed to sucker in this time.”
“Ugh! Just leave us alone and bugger off!” she said as her cheeks turned red. The stallion then slapped the mare across the face. Before he had time to land another hit Echo had caught his hoof in mid air.
“Instead of this place turning into a blood bath how about we settle this like mature adults?”
“And why would I do that?”
“You are a gambler yes?” he asked as he let go of the stallions hoof.
“That’s right best in Equestria, I’ve never lost.”
“So then lets play a game.” Echo said with a smirk on his face.
“What’s the game?” Echo sat down at the table in the middle of the room and was joined by Gambler sitting across from him. Echo then summoned two glasses of water and a small vial containing some powder.
“Here take a sniff.” the blue stallion did as he was asked and smelled the powder.
“Doesn’t smell like anything.”
“Exactly, this is a powerful knock out drug. It’s odorless, tasteless and dissolves instantly in liquid.” Echo made a wall appear in front of the two ponies for only thirty seconds. When the wall disappeared Gambler noticed that the vial was empty. “The game is simple, chose the right cup and you won’t fall unconscious chose wrong and you will. I know the answer and I will be able to tell if you made the right choice or not. I’ll tell you after we both drink.”
“Hm clever. I know you underestimate me so you obviously put the drug in the cup in front of you.”
“Perhaps.” Echo said with a blank look on his face.
“But unless you counted on that so you put the drug in my glass.”
“Your tricks won’t work I’m not telling you.”
“You don’t have to tell me I know where the drug is!”
“Make your choice then.”
“Fine I choose...hey what’s that over there?” he said as he pointed a hoof behind Echo. Echo then looked away, just as Gambler switched the glasses in between them.
“I don’t see anything.”
“Sorry it was just a bird. But let’s drink.” he said as he picked up the glass. The two toasted one another and drank the liquid with haste. Gambler then began to laugh. Echo put the cup down on the table.
“You chose wrong.” as he said that the blue unicorn fell over unconscious. Rose and the other ponies rushed to Echo’s side cheering.
“Brilliant. How did you know he would switch the cups?” Rose said.
“I didn’t.”
“I don’t get it.” Rainbow said as she scratched her mane.
“I drugged both cups.”
“Then why ain’t ya on the ground like him.” AJ said.
“I invented that drug, I spent years developing an immunity to it.” he said as he got to his hooves. Twilight’s jaw dropped in the sheer genius of the plan.
“So you cheated?” Applejack said in disapproval.
“Sometimes you gotta bend the rules, to make things turn out the way you want them to.” he said with a grin. “Who was that guy?”
“My ex. he’s been pestering me for months.” Rose said letting out a huff. She then turned her attention to the blue unicorn. “Is he going to be alright?”
“Yeah he’ll wake up in a few minutes.” Echo said with a smirk. “So what are you six doing here anyway?” he said as he turned back to Twilight and her friends.
“We were just out for a girls night out.” Twilight said weakly.
“Twilight you’re really bad at lying, why are you really here?”
“We were just talking.”
“About?”
“You.” she said with a guilty look on her face.
“Knew it. What was it this time?”
“About you going-” Twilight was cut off by a blue magic beam hitting Echo in the back sending him flying out the door and into the streets of Ponyville. Echo got to his hooves and looked back at the angry blue unicorn he was using Rose for a shield.
“Let me go!”
“Not yet, you little slut. I’m going to enjoy beating you and your colt friend.”
“I suggest you let Roseluck go. Before I get angry.” he said as he began to frown.
“Oh I’m scared now. You want her you're gonna hve to make me let her go” he said mockingly as he tightened his grip on the mare’s neck.
“Fine”. Echo let out a small beam from his horn that collided with the stallions horn which then started to crack. He released his hold on Roseluck, who managed to dive for cover before Gambler let off a magical discharge that collided with Echo’s face sending him flying back into the street. Gambler then fell to the ground. The seven ponies then raced to Echo’s side.
“Echo are you okay?” Twilight said as she helped him to his hooves.
“Yeah, I’m fine I just-” He stopped as he felt his ‘mask’ crumbling away.
Oh no
Twilight and the others stood horrified as Echo’s flawless black coat started to be replaced by scars and burn marks. His chest had many blisters and lacerations, his legs had many stitch marks and puncture wounds. What the ponies noticed the most was his right eye, instead of the electric green color it was blood red. Every-pony except Twilight took a step back from the dark stallion.
“Echo...I...What-” before she could say another word Echo took off towards the library with tears running down his face. Rainbow was in pursuit.
“Echo Wait!” she said as she was gaining on him. Echo’s horn began to glow and shot a beam at the cyan mare. The beam had hit her in the wings and she dropped to the ground ahead of Echo. “What did you do!?”Rainbow bellowed as he made his way into the library and barricaded the door to his room. He tried to teleport out of the town but he was still weak from the fight earlier. Instead he tried to remain as quite as possible hoping the ponies wouldn’t find him there, the door was starting to give, he quickly packed his equipment and slipped out the window into the cold streets of Ponyville as he galloped away from the library he looked back to see Twilight raising a hoof to him with tears running down her face. Twilight called out to the stallion but he was already to far away, he disappeared into the dark cold night.
Echo was running faster than he had ever ran in his life he made it into the Everfree Forest. Eventually he made his way to his old cave and began to unpack his supplies back in their proper place
Why did you run?
What do you mean why? You saw their reactions to ‘this!’
They would have understood.
Yeah right, no-pony has, no-pony will.
Twilight understood.
No she didn’t she reacted just like all the rest did!
True. but she tried something the others hadn’t.
And what’s that?
She tried. She tried to understand, she tried to help you and you pushed her away.
Shut up!
NO! This is your fault no one els’s!
SHUT UP!
You could have been happy, you could have had friends, but no you just had to go and screw everything up didn’t you, just like you did with-
I SAID SHUT UP! Echo then slammed his head into a rock knocking him unconscious. He laid there for who knows how long, as the darkness started to creep around him he heard voices at the entrance of the cave and all faded to black.