//------------------------------// // Countdown to Chaos // Story: Unscrewing Herself // by Mr. SexSymbol //------------------------------// Hours unTIL diSoRDS reeLEASE: 1243562425635243324 Merry didn't move a muscle as the sticky thick juice spread across her white mane; the one thing about herself that reminded Merry of her deceased mother. Tesa released her magical grip on the barrel and gasped at her mistake. "I'm sorry! Sorry, sorry, sorry! Oh my Celestia! Merry I didn't meant to bump into you. I'm sorry, really I am!" She cried out, quickly rushing over to mop up the sticky purple gunk out of Merry's not-so white cloudy mane with a small towel she summoned with magic. It wasn't enough as the juice seeped deeper into the hair, staining it light violet. The Earl tugged on the collar of his vest. "Oh dear me... that won't be easy to be rid of." Merry herself wasn't sure how to react. The shock of the event made her freeze up with a wide eyed, dumbfounded expression plastered on her face. "M-my hair..." Was all that she could croak out. The Earl turned at the sounds of the commotion and simply grinned, bemused at the current predicament. Almost as if he had planned it. Almost. "Oh dear, my lovely guest has taken quite the blow. I'm sure it would have happened sooner or later, considering that you run a plum farm-" "Orchard." Tesa corrected in a stern voice, working earnestly to get whatever she could out of Merry's mane. "Orchard. Apologies." The Earl snickered and raises two hooves up before him, clopping them together. The sound reverberated down the hall and no sooner was the call made a butler appeared with a tripod camera. The Earl pointed at the distraught Merry, a wicked smile growing on his pudgy white face. "Say cheese, my darling!" "Wha-what are you doing?" Tesa asked, getting in front of her master and friend. "Stop that! Leave her alone!" She cried out at the camera butler. The colt was under a black tarp and awaited for a perfect shot. The Earl stepped forward, shaking his head ever so slowly as a chuckle rumbled in his throat. Tesa sensed that something was off and immediately crouched, a snarl fixated on her light blue face. She stamped her front legs to prepare for a charge. "Hulio. Explain yourself this instant!" She growled. Merry was still frozen in place, too lost in the shock of the plum forever staining her perfect white mane. The Earl closed his eyes and sighed. "Ah. I am grateful to have that little mishap you had there, otherwise I would had my butler here make sure she'd get dirty or messy or anything that gets you mares in a tantrum." Tesa glanced at the butler as he carefully moved the camera for a better angle. She changed her position so she blocked Merry from the shutter's view. "Merry is no ordinary mare. She's not your typical prissy pony like the ones she hangs around with." "And yet here she stands, dazed from the shock of having one of her own plums splattered all over her oh so special mane. Not your typical prissy pony? Don't make me laugh!" The Earl paced around them and Tesa followed his movements to protect her friend. "So why then?" The azure maid asked, staring him down with a deadly gaze. "Why did you want to do this to Merry?" When the Earl didn't immediately answer Tesa, she felt herself ready to run forward and tackle him. She felt ready to beat the info right out of him. "Why..." The Earl finally answered. "Blackmail of course." He looked past Tesa's back and gave a slight nod. "Take the shot." Tesa blinked and suddenly the horrible realization came to her. The Earl had been pacing around Merry knowing that Tesa, so loyal and so protecting, would follow. She whirled to quickly block the snapshot but as she did came the blinding flash and Tesa then realized that it was simply too late and she had been deceived. Hulio laughed delightfully. "Excellent! Take it away to the dark room for development. I'll deal with these two." The butler bowed and removed the camera from the tripod and took off with it in his mouth. Tesa blinked back angry tears, furious that she had been tricked and Merry was about to be embarrassed over a photo of the incident. "Hulio..." "Yes?" The Earl leaned in, smug in his expression and voice. "Before I came here I was sure that you were just a fat rich stallion with nothing else to do but to make money." "Well that's somewhat true. Though I do prefer to be called stocky. Or big boned." He said as he tugged on his vest's collar. Tesa stomped up to him and jabbed his chest with her hoof. "But I found out you were much worse." The Earl grinned. "How so?" "I could tell how exactly how I feel about you but I'll leave you with this..." She leaned in, horn aglow. The room became progressively darker and Hulio began to lose his confident smile. The air was heavy with magic as Tesa's anger flowed through her horn. "I can be just as bad as you are. Even worse." She hissed. A loud explosion came from below and a wild fear ran across the Earl's features. "No. No. N-no you didn't!" He panted and his attention shifted from Merry to Tesa and down the hall towards the stairs. "You didn't! No, no, no, no!" He shouted, running off. Tesa gave him ten seconds before she used magic once more to trip the large stallion, making him fall over the stairway and bounce downwards. Soon he would find the shattered and smoldering remains of his prized peal statue of his fantasized self. Soon he could call in Canterlot's City Guard have her and Merry arrested. She didn't have much time but if she could just find the dark room and destroy that photograph... "Ooh... Tesa..." A soft mumble came from behind and the maid looked over her should to see Merry finally coming out of shock. The light violet mare suddenly gasped, remembering what had recently happened. "No..." She whispered, horrified. "No. No! I promised her! I... I must fix this! Tesa!" Merry cried out, anguish making her voice high pitched. The azure maid quickly went up to her lady's side. "I know Merry but there's something more important we have deal with right now." "Forget the business deal!" "Not the deal, they took a photo of you. They plan to blackmail you!" Tesa said loudly over Merry's panicking murmurs. It was clear the wealthy orchard owner was too confused and panicked to listen and she grabbed onto Merry, shaking her. "Listen! Your mane can always be cleaned up. Snap out of it!" Merry blinked and made a shuddering sigh. "I promised..." When it was clear that Merry wasn't going to calm down, Tesa ran off in the direction the Earl's butler had gone off to. "I'll be right back and don't move from that spot!" She shouted as she charged down the hallway, passing small busts of the Earl and other members of his family. Tesa's horn glowed a lighter blue, different from the usual color that matched her coat's, as she used her seeking magic. A trail of hoofprints materialized on the red carpet. It's color was the exact same as the butler's coat. Following the trail Tesa put a burst of speed, determined to destroy the photo and save her friend's image. * * * Merry panted as she made her way out of the estate, passing a sobbing Earl as he embraced the remains of his prized sculpture. Despite being told by Tesa to stay put, Merry simply couldn't wait for the plum juice stains to settle in and become permanent. She had very little time, thirty minutes to be exact, to wash it off and bleach out the stain. Luckily, with the plum chariot still outside waiting, Merry had a plan. It was simple and quick, Tesa wouldn't even notice her gone and she probably would take longer finding a photo than Merry find the solution to her problem. All Merry had to do was find Mare Spray at the Merriment Fair Way. Fond memories came back to Merry of when she was only a little filly and her parents would take her along the long and seemingly never ending dirt road that lead straight into Princess Celestia's castle. They had paper lanterns hanging on strings with the little flags blowing in the mountain wind... Oh and the little booths alongside the wide path! Ponies there would sell small cakes and pastries and others had necklaces and other trinkets that would make anypony get all giddy and happy over. The fireworks that filled the night sky at midnight and the colorful lights all around made it a popular spot for couples. It was practically impossible not to enjoy the scenery on this road. There was a reason why they called it the Merriment Fair Way after all. Merry could almost smile if it weren't for the current situation. Hustling down the little steps of the front entrance, Merry quickly ran across the green grass of the estate towards the chariot puller. "To the Fair Way!" She shouted, opening the plum colored door and hopped inside. Her head popped out from the small window on the side of the chariot and she pointed straight ahead with her hoof. "And step on it!" "Yes milady... eh... What about Tesa?" The stallion asked, looking off towards the estate. Merry pulled head away from the building and towards her eyes. "Listen! We can pick up Tesa later right now we have to fix what's important!" She snapped. The chariot puller nodded quickly and got to work, intimidated by her. Galloping off towards the dirt road that would lead him to the palace in the mountain, the stallion couldn't help but thick back to his lady's eyes. They swirled. * * * Under the red lighting of the development room, the butler dipped the darkened image in a special liquid, watching it come to shape. He chuckled as he saw the McScrew mare standing with the most peculiar expression on her face and purple fluids running down her mane. How embarrassing! If this were to released among the wealthy, popularity dependent, masses they would make a mockery of her! Then the Earl would have the plum orchard all to himself and use them to coat his pearls and make ten times what he already makes with the lustrous orbs on their own. Then he would repeat the process with the Apple Family in Ponyville, a small drab speck of a town, and then the Carrots and all the other crop owners! The butler was quite pleased with his masters plan and graciously lent a hoof whenever he could. Once the colors flooded into view, the butler was just about to lace the image with an embalming cover to prevent it from damage when suddenly the door flew open! The light poured into the dark room and the butler raised a foreleg to shield his now sensitive eyes from the blinding light. A figure stepped in front of the opening and declared a victorious "Aha!" before rushing in and tackled the butler. The poor devious assistant of the cunning Earl was knocked out when his head bashed against the table that held the development liquid. His attacker got up and a light glowed from the extension on her head. Tesa beamed proudly at her ambush and began searching the room for the photo. With the faint otherworldly light glowing from the tip of her horn, she tossed aside photos of pearls and fruits. She stopped every now and then to look a head-shots of several ponies. Some of them she knew and others, like an orange mare with a country hat or a light yellow one with bouncy orange curls, before flinging them over her should to continue her investigation. It then occurred to her to check the strange smelling liquid in the sink of the table beside her, where she found the now unconscious butler working over before she had taken him out. It was there! Floating, the color of the photograph slowly but surely coming into focus. Tesa sighed. Now to be rid of you. Her horn glowed brighter with that thought and with a poof she broke it down until it was a nothing more than a blobby wet specks in the fluid. Pleased, Tesa started to leave but then her curiosity began to eat at her. Those ponies I saw before. What if... what if he plans to go after them? What other reason would he have these photos? Ah! She suddenly remembered Merry's concern of a possible spell being placed on her which resulted in her unusual lively behavior. If he plotted to blackmail her then it's also possible for him to have a unicorn placing a spell on her as well! I have to alert the guards! A conspiracy is unfolding right now! Tesa bolted out of the dark room and ran as fast as she could to where she left Merry behind. Counting on the Earl to be as attached to his dream addled idea of his self image, he'd still be mourning over the destruction of his statute. It would also mean that Merry would be safe and out of trouble... as long as she stayed put. The azure colored unicorn sped around the corner and without warning crashed into somepony. She fell back and shook her head, irritated. "Ugh! Watch where you're going!" She said bitterly and hopped back up to dash off once more when a large white hoof blocked her path. "Hey!" "Are you the maid under Lady McScrew's employment?" A gruff voice asked. Tesa looked up and recognized the golden helmet of Celestia's Royal Guard. The same group who policed Canterlot. "Just my luck! I've been meaning to seek you boys out. There's a criminal in this estate and I'll kindly point him out for you." Tesa explained. "Look I'll even show you these photos I found of ponies that're on his list or something! Come with me!" "I believe you're coming with them." A familiar voice called out. Tesa peeked over a guard's back and saw none other than Hulio. He looked teary eyed but quite furious over the loss of his pride and joy. "Earl! You crummy good for nothing schemer! I'll have you locked up for what you tried to do and plan to do!" Tesa shouted, desperately trying to reach over the pegasi guards that blocked her. "Let me at him! Let me at this deceiving scumbag!" Tesa screamed. The Earl chuckled. "Alright boys," He said, his sinister glare never leaving Tesa's light yellow ones. "Take her away." Shock ran through Tesa's body and her eyes widened in disbelief. "What!? B-but why?" One of the pegasi guards answered her question. "For breaking and entering." Hoofcuffs were put on her forelegs and locked. "You're going to spend quite some time for an offense. Especially for trespassing Earl Hulio's estate." "Yes especially." The Earl repeated, grinning creepily. "Now get her out of my sight. I have business to attend to." She growled at him as he leaned in closely. "I'm sure you'll understand how important it is to me." He whispered, snickering as he turned and trotted off in the direction of the dark room. Tesa screamed and struggled as Celestia's Royal Guard dragged her away to the castle dungeon. The West Earl of Canterlot was free to set his greedy plan into motion.