//------------------------------// // Chapter 6: First Strike Gone Wrong // Story: Celestial Disposition // by Kitsulestia //------------------------------// Chapter 6: First Strike Gone Wrong “Okay, here’s an idea. I basically read it from another story, but let’s see if we can’t blow it up and make it better. Basically, make a bunch of cupcakes out of the spiciest thing in the world, and give ‘em to someone. Being new to this world, I don’t know what the spiciest thing out there is.” I said. “Spicy cupcakes? Pretty sure we already did that.” Rainbow said thoughtfully. “The spiciest thing around though, would be liquid rainbow. About ten times hotter than a Ghost Chilli Pepper.” “Yikes… I’ve tried just a regular pepper, and I lasted only a minute on that… though I wonder if it’ll be different, since I’m Celestia?” I wonder. “Ah, whatever. Moving on. Any other ideas?” “Ooh, we’ve never done a freezing cupcake!” Pinkie exclaimed. I blinked. How exactly is a cupcake supposed to freeze something? “With a Frost Pepper, silly. Those are like the opposite of the Ghost Chilli.” Pinkie, stop it. You’re breaking the fourth wall and freaking me out. “Oops, sorry.” “So, a Frost Pepper, huh? Never heard of it. Sounds like fun too.” I said. “But how do we improve upon just handing out cupcakes?” I asked. “‘Cause just doing that and sitting back to watch the reactions can only go so far.” “I dunno. Honestly, most pranks I do don’t really go beyond that.” Rainbow shrugged. Well, most pranks you pull in the show usually consist of bucking a thundercloud. “Well, the Frost Pepper usually starts out with just chills, and chills usually come with an eerie feeling… how about a big scare?” Pinkie suggested. “Ooh… I like it. And I know just the scare too! Does the story of Slenderman exist here? Or is it Slendermane…?” I asked.Judging from my prank partners’ excited faces, I’d say it does. “Then let’s prep.” Firstly, Rainbow’s job was to find a Frost Pepper. Since Pinkie didn’t have any and the Royal Kitchens had only just used their last one in Celestia’s last meal (a version of spicy taco’s that were actually spicy to her, which gets me craving it… I really like spicy things.) we needed a new one. As luck would have it, there happened to be some growing at the snowy peak of a nearby mountain. My job was to find out how to make illusions, and then make the right effects. Since Twilight didn’t want to help prank, even after the offer to not be a victim, I went to check out the Archives. The local librarian essentially toured me through the place before we got to Illusion spells. I’m guessing she knew what was coming and decided to stall it.Learning how to magic up an awesome illusion was fun. Even the part where I tricked the librarian into thinking I blew my face up. Pinkie of course was in charge of making the cupcakes.Once Dash got back from grabbing the Pepper, she and Pinkie got to work. Due to Pinkie’s popularity as an Element Bearer, she got into the kitchen free, so she didn’t have to chase them all out with her crazy. What’s nice is that some of the chefs tried to jump in when they saw the Frost Pepper. “Hey wait, you guys try to prank her?” I asked, surprised. “If you do it often, well, I bet she’ll suspect something if you guys pitch in. We want to actually get her.” Hearing that, the chefs backed off and went back to work on their other meals. Pinkie fixed up the cupcakes with blinding speed, and before you could say “Stop it, Slender” we had our Prankcakes. “Now, let’s get pranking.” “Target approaching at 12 o’clock. He’s not alone.” Rainbow reported over the coms. “Spotted. I’ll try and make a diversion.” Pinkie replied. Shining Armor was walking through the halls with Cadence, talking about how their future was going to go. Mostly the wedding they had planned. Guess Pinkie and Dashie get spoilers. Oh well, it doesn’t matter right now. “No, we can get them both. Just leave two of those cupcakes.” I cut them off. “Sir, yes sir! Dropping PrankPackage, now.” Pinkie answered. The couple were in the middle of kissing, giving Pinkie a perfect opportunity to drop the cupcakes without anypony being the wiser. When the two finished kissing though… “Hey, where’d these cupcakes come from?” Cadence asked. Shining inspected them closely. “I… I dunno…” He picked one up, deeming it not a trap. “I guess they’re for us?” Cadence picked up hers, shrugged and nommed it. Shining followed his wife’s example and ate his. Inside, I started singing the Troll song. The group and I jumped ahead a few halls, and waited for them to arrive. “Targets now feeling Chills visibly. Time to initiate step 2!” I intensely whispered into my com. I quickly created my Slenderman Illusion at the end of the hall before SA and Cadence could turn into it. They froze up and blinked when they saw him. I made the room darker when they blinked. Then, they made the job of making Slender vanish easy by ducking back around the corner. I released the Slender illusion, and dropped a piece of paper where he was. “I knew there was something here with us!” SA whispered. “But what the hay was that thing?” Cadence. “It had no face!” “I don’t know what it is, but I’m taking it out!” SA Quickly spun around the corner… only to find nothing there. “What the… It’s gone!” “What? How? I didn’t feel any magic… or hear a teleport.” Cadence said, coming out of cover. “No idea. Wait… what’s that?” SA trotted over to the note, picked it up and read it. “Let’s play a little game. Within these halls, I’ve hidden 12 cupcakes. Find them all, and get to the Throne Room in time, and you win. Don’t try leaving before you’re done, because you’ll find you can’t. If I catch you though…” “I don’t like the sound of that…” Cadence said nervously. And almost as if on cue, music started up. I recognised it and was very surprised, since I wasn’t the one doing that. Even the little child’s laughter scared me. “Wow, you’re pretty good at that illusion stuff.” Rainbow complimented silently. “I’m getting chills!” “Uh… that wasn’t me… Pinkie?” I nervously asked. “Nope. I didn’t do anything. I thought that was you?” She answered. I gulped. I really didn’t like where this was going. Either someone else was pulling strings, or our prank was about to go horribly, horribly wrong. “M-maybe we should stick with smaller pranks…” I muttered. Suddenly I heard static right behind me, and I wasted no time in panicking. “EVERYPONY FOR HIMSELF!” I shouted as I ran around my corner past Shining and Cadence. I ducked and swerved through a whole bunch of halls and corridors until I couldn’t run anymore. “Next time, I’m sticking with an illusionary spider…” I swore as I sat against a wall, recovering my breath. A wall that happened to have a page on it. I took it, not bothering to read it as I took off to look for more. something gnawed at me though. Would Slender leave me a special message on the page for having used him in a prank? I slowed down and took a look at the page. On it was part of a drawing.Having no idea what it was, I just stashed it in my mane and flew on. The damned noise kept following me! I kept catching glimpses of him in the corner of my eye. When I finally thought I lost him, I stopped, gasping for air, only to hear something crinkle under my hoof. Another note. Oh god, oh god, oh god. I stashed the second note in my mane, looking about for him. Next thing I know, I’m staring him in the face after turning a quick corner. “Oh SHIT!” I yelped, letting off a blast of magic to at least stun him before turning around and shooting off the other way. However, that only seemed to piss him off, because the noise only got louder and more frequent. The noise spurred me to fly faster and harder. I needed to get those pages and get out. As I flew through the halls and rooms, I tried my best to watch out for the other pages. I spotted another one in the royal kitchens, but He was waiting for me there. I cursed and turned around to look for the others, and I found Rainbow dashing past a hall. I wondered if she’d found any, so I pursued her to find out. I only caught up to her when she stopped to pick up a page. “Oh, thank god. Rainbow, how many do you have?” I asked urgently. She held up three. “Just got my third. You?” She asked after recovering from the unintentional jumpscare I gave her. Pinkie popped up and held out just one note. “I only got this one.” She said. Her mane was flat, but that didn’t scare me much. “I almost got another in the Guard Barracks, but then that thing showed up there.” “Alright, let’s go get the last two notes. I spotted one in the kitchen, but same situation.” “I can get there and back, no problem.” Rainbow offered. I nodded. As soon as they took off for their notes, I started looking everywhere for Him. Thankfully, they got back before He showed up again. However, as soon as they rejoined me, the damn music started chiming, and I felt His presence. “Shit! Everypony stick together!” I shouted, leading the way as I ran. I ran as fast as my hooves could carry me, Pinkie and Rainbow close by my side, but then we turned a corner and reached a dead end. By the time I had turned around, he was there, and the noise started again, growing stronger and stronger, with nowhere to run, I curled up into a ball and waited for the inevitable, the noise growing louder as I felt a pressure on my mind. It grew and grew until I felt like I couldn't take it anymore, before suddenly stopping. Opening my eyes, he was gone, and all eight notes where on the ground in front of me. standing, I looked at them, and felt ungodly rage shoot through me. They formed a trollface. I had been trolled by slenderman. “FFFFFFFF-” *Meanwhile, Ponyville.* “UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUuuuuuu….” The sudden noise scared Derpy whooves out of bed, where she spazzed out on the floor, leaping up with her forehooves held in front of her defensively. “I’m warning you, I know kung-fu!” She looked around, and seeing no intruder, calmed down. “Oh… Then what made that awful noise?” *back at canterlot* “UUUUUCK!” My ears where ringing from the sheer volume of my scream. I guess I just found a new limit to the Royal Caps Lock.