After Bon Bon had left, it only took a few seconds for Sarah to barge her way into Lyra's house. She was nearly frothing at the mouth. Her eyes also scared me somewhat; they were wild and desperate, searching every inch of the room for my body. I could almost feel my lower body shriveling up at the intense vibe she was giving off. I was used to her being pushy and aggressive when it came to her feeling of ownership over me...but as a human. Seeing her pony self stuck between killing my kidnapper and dragging me to bed was quite alarming.
"Shit..." was all I managed to say before her eyes locked onto me. Unfortunately, I was still being cuddled by Rainbow Dash. As soon as she realized that some other mare was getting all touchy with me, she soared over to us like a bullet. I was pretty sure she had been even faster than Dash had been when she initially charged me. I managed to roll over just in time to protect the little blue pegasus with my body. The movement drew a startled squeak from Dash.
Sarah might have been upset in more ways than one, but I knew that she wouldn't harm me, even if it meant getting to a female that dared to challenge her.
I was correct in my assumption.
Before Sarah could impale me with her large horn, she noticed that I had swapped places with Dash. She promptly halted her flight path, her eyes widening in panic. All four of her hooves dug into the floor of Lyra's home and created deep skids as her momentum faded away. The sound that filled the air was the stuff of fucking nightmares; it was like two forks scratching a plate while another fork molested a chalk board.
I didn't even know floors could make that sound.
After a few moments of complete silence, I looked around to see Sarah giving me a confused yet angry glare. Below me, Dash was shivering slightly. I know she had had been all bold and confrontational before, but as tired as she looked now...she seemed so meek. Like, she was channeling some serious Fluttershy.
"Sarah, what the hell?" I demanded, looking my marefriend straight in the eye. She was doing her best to stand her ground against my glare, but she quickly lost her will and simmered down. She knew when I was fed up with whatever shit she was pulling. I let her hold her air of dominance most of the time, but I did let her know when she was being a royal bitch.
Royal bitch...huh. That made so much more sense, with the context filled in. Sarah huffed and pointed a hoof at Dash.
"I was looking for you all night! Where the hell have you been?! And why, when I found you, were you cuddled up with that...that..." she stuttered, but I cut her off before she could say anything rude about Rainbow.
"Sarah," I warned her, my gaze hardening for a moment. She lost the fight in her once more and calmed slightly. The blue alicorn took a breath before continuing with her toned-down rant.
"It's just...Ryan, what happened? Why are you here, and why are you hugging her?" she asked, a tone of weary defeat reaching her voice. My glare immediately softened when I noticed the reserved mood she had switched to. I could argue all day, but with Sarah, I would never get anywhere unless I made her calm down and explain everything clearly. If she was allowed to throw out everything on her mind when upset, I would be sitting there with her for hours. Conceding a point was very difficult for her, and damn near impossible when she was mad. Well, anyway, she was definitely calm enough now. Time to explain myself.
"I...I had to get away from the fighting...and it turns out I can teleport. I know, cool, right? Anyway...the link being gone made me a lot more stable so the teleporting thing didn't blow me up. Popped out in Ponyville and ran my ass over here. I'm surprised you guys didn't look here first. Don't Lyra and Bon Bon both live here?" I asked cheekily. Sarah stared at me for a few seconds, her face void of any emotion. Then she smacked her face with her hoof and groaned. Heh.
"Okay...okay, so that explains why you're here. But what about her?" she almost spat. Ugh, Sarah, I thought I already talked to you about being jealous and shit. It was getting us both nowhere pretty damn fast.
"Bon Bon showed up with Prime and Dash on some cloud thing. Dash saw me and needed a hug. You said you were out looking for me all night, too. I can imagine you need one," I offered, opening my arms wide for her.
At first, she tried to act defiant. I guess she didn't want to give in to the power of hugs so easily. Silly Bear, you can't fight the hug! And just like that, she was in my arms once more, her body shivering in happy relief. "Sorry for disappearing and not looking for you. You know how I feel about getting lost."
"Yeah..." she choked, trying to hold back some happy tears. "You never go looking if you know someone's looking for you. Stay in one place until you're found..." I rubbed her back gently as she recalled my rescue preferences. Too many times before, we had lost each other in different stores. We had always spent hours trying to find one another, since we would always end up swapping places without seeing each other. Eventually, we came to the agreement that I would stay in one place, and she would come looking. That way, we wouldn't keep moving around while trying to seek one another. Easy peasy.
"Still, ya guys shoulda looked here, first," I teased, running my fingers through her mane and messing up the constellations. It was only then that I noticed that the dicks that she had worn in her mane were now scrambled. Oh shit, she saw them. The way she swatted me away once she felt where my fingers were was all the proof I needed. "Aww...you neutered your hair."
"Neutered...my...RYAN. THAT WAS GROSS. NEVER AGAIN," she scolded, her muzzle nearly pressed against my face. She was still so cute when she tried to intimidate me. Her left leg shot up, her hoof beating up my shoulder in an adorable display of indignation.
As a response, I laughed my ass off. I know that it probably didn't ease the embarrassment she still felt for having walked around with schlongs around her head, but such is life. It was too funny not to laugh at. I just wished I could have seen her face when she figured it out.
After a minute or so, my laughter had run itself out and my shoulder had started to bruise. I grabbed Sarah's leg as a sign for her to stop, but the look on her face made me pause. It was...this strange emotion somewhere between relief and stewing anger. Well, no shit. She had been looking for me all night with me friends, just to find me sipping on tea after a good night's sleep. The things they go through for me...I really owe these guys. As much as I still didn't find her alicorn body much more than beautiful and cute, she earned this.
Mwah
Sarah blinked once. Then twice. Then a third time just to make sure that she hadn't imagined what I had just done. Yet, the slightly damp section at the end of her muzzle remained. Her watering eyes brought me some worry until I figured out that they were happy tears.
"R-Ryan...I'm so...I'm...You're okay," she finally choked out, her legs sliding around me and bringing me in for another tight hug.
...Poor Bear...
I returned her embrace and even rubbed her back again. This time, I chose to try rubbing her wings. As soon as my hands started running up her left wing, they both shot out with the force of a 12-gauge slug. I think. Whatever, they opened fast enough to send Sarah sprawling away, her legs scrambling to gain traction.
Once the commotion had halted, I tried to speak. Instead of words, I found myself spitting out some small blue feathers. It took a few coughs to get my mouth Sarah-free.
...She tasted like blue.
"What the hell was that?" I asked, leaning back on my hands and examining the room around me. Oh, yeah, we weren't alone in here. Almost forgot about that. Lyra was watching us with a mixture of concern and mirth on her face. What was she so smug about? Oh, hardy-har, Sarah launched us apart for some reason and I nearly bump my head. That could have been a serious boo-boo! Behind her, I spotted the stallion that I damn near forgot. Prime was still in his cloud, but...
...For some reason, the only things sticking out from the cloud were his legs. I guess that in Sarah's rush to get inside the house, she must have charged through Prime somehow and gotten his front half stuck in the cloud. His legs were kicking, albeit without any urgency. He appeared to be kicking them out of boredom, very similar to how a child would kick their legs while on a swing. Well, at least I knew he could breathe in there.
How was he even on that thing, anyway? I thought cloud lounging was a pegasus thing. Ho ho, magic! Just go with it...
When I looked back at Sarah, I noticed how flustered and red-faced she had become. What, did I do something embarrassing? Oh, no, that wasn't the embarrassed look...
She was biting her lip. And giving me a sultry look. That shit was unnerving on a pony. The only thing I could figure was that the thing I did to her wing was super-arousing to her, somehow.
Note to self, never do that again. Unless I suddenly decided that I was okay with fucking ponies. Noooope~
The next sound to break the silence was Lyra trying her damned hardest to stifle her giggling. Apparently, winged ponies popping a back boner was funny. Poor Lyra chose the wrong alicorn to laugh at about it, however. In an instant, Sarah was in her face, blowing steam through her nostrils like an angry bull. Actually, that was the best description of her at that moment. Her eyes were very nearly red and I could almost picture the second horn and nose-ring. Uh-oh, time to try defusing a situation. I still wasn't that good at calming angry friends, but I had to do some or else Mom might get hurt.
Without any good one-liners to fit the situation, I reached for the first thing I could think of: the cup of super-awesome tea that had long since stopped steaming. I pushed the drink between my two girls, causing them both a good amount of confusion. Sarah was confused about why I had suddenly shoved a cup under her face. Lyra was confused about why she wasn't currently being digested inside Sarah's gut.
"Bwuh-huh...?" sputtered Sarah intelligently. Her eyes lit up when she smelled the tea.
"I'm going to Canterlot!" I exclaimed. In hindsight, that probably wasn't the smartest time tell her about it.
"BWUH-HUH-AAHHH!" she shrieked. The scene unfolding before me actually brought me to tears. Sarah, in her shocked state, had exhaled roughly through her nose...and right into the tea. The lukewarm beverage flew up out of the cup and splashed both her and Lyra. Sarah received the worst of it, however, and found herself with a face soaked with tea.
"HA!" I exclaimed, unable to contain my laughter. The sound I made quite reminded me of my current situation; I tried holding the laughter in, failed, so it was released in one big outburst. Sarah lit her horn and created a blue mask for herself, which pushed away the moisture in one swoop. The glare she gave me reduced my laughter to a mirthful smirk.
"Not. Funny. How would you like it if your face got all wet?" she demanded. Oh, poor choice of words, old gal.
"I like it very much. You know that," I responded, grinning like a smug bastard. It didn't take the flustered mare in front of me any time to realize the error of her words and the perversion of mine. She began blushing like a ripe tomato and scrunched her face up. Man, those face-scrunches are so fucking cute on these ponies! I don't even know why; it's like whatever it is they do to their mouths, it makes them so much more adorable. Adorabler!
"Ryan..." Sarah warned. I could tell that she wanted to scold me, but the memories she was reliving of some of our more adventurous late-night sessions looked to be disabling her. Just to make it even worse, I licked my lips deliberately in front of her. She watched my tongue intently, probably planning on where she was going to make it go. Uh-uh, not in that pony body. Human only!
I slurped my tongue back inside my mouth teasingly. I was going to say something else, but a sudden weight on my arm drew my attention away from my moistening marefriend. Looking down to my left side, I came face-to-face with two giant magenta orbs. A yelp came from my throat unintentionally and I felt my ass leave the ground for a brief moment. Holy shit, that was one hell of a jump scare. What the hell was on me?
Oh, it was Rainbow Dash.
She was on her back legs, her front ones being planted against my arm. Well, that explained the weight I had been feeling. What did she even want? She was just...staring at me. Her eyes were the biggest I'd ever seen them, and a thin line of drool was leaking from her m-
...
Did I say that whole wet-face thing out loud in front of them?
I did, didn't I...?
Lyra was looking quite a bit red as well, now that I started paying attention to my surroundings. Luckily, she wasn't giving me that longingly lustful stare that Dash was wearing. Hers was more of an uncomfortable look than anything close to wanting. I didn't even want to think of my Pony-Mom getting Ryan-cravings.
Shiver
Prime...was still in his cloud, so I couldn't see his face. What I could see, however, were his legs. And boy, those suckers were crossed tightly. He might have been sporting one astounding rager, but I could be wrong. Maybe he just suffocated and his legs curled in like a dead spider's would do.
Yeah, it was probably time to get him outta there. I stood up, ignoring Dash's silent protest of leg-waving and moving towards the cloud-based unicorn. My hand went right through the cloud when I tried to grab it.
"...Yeah, I'm useless. Sarah, some help?" I asked. A scuffling could be heard behind me. Strange, it didn't sound like Sarah getting up. It sounded more like...two different bodies fighting to get to me. Oh, for the love of fuck.
Just as I thought, both Sarah and Dash collided onto the floor under me, pushing and shoving to help me. As humorous a sight as it was, I was getting pretty damn tired of being viewed like some trophy husband of something. I was just a guy, for crying out loud!
"Fuckin' stop!" I shouted, causing both mares to halt their efforts and look up at me. Dash looked a bit frightened at my harsh language, but Sarah was used to it. We swore at each other all the time, sometimes just for fun. Again, swearing was one of those things she was seemingly unaware of before she met me. But boy, did she had the time of her adorable little life when I taught her how to effectively curse someone out. The weeks following my 'lesson' consisted of her running around screaming 'CUNT!' at me with a lovably idiotic look on her face.
I was one lucky guy. No, seriously. Not even being sarcastic, I loved the shit out of her.
And being the guy who loved her, I knew how territorial and competitive she got. This was just another one of the things that made her who she was. I couldn't be mad at her for it, at least for very long. The same could be said about Dash, too. I didn't really know her all that well, but she did strike me as the super-competitive type. It only made sense that the two would compete like that. I just wish it wasn't over me. I wasn't a prize that Dash could win. Sarah already won that fight, two years ago.
"Cloud. Prime. Stuck. Help with," I spoke slowly so that they both knew I meant business. They both got up to help me again, but this time without the fighting. To my surprise, they both got to work getting the stallion unstuck from the consuming cumulus. Dash seemed adamant about not destroying the cloud, which had been Sarah's first idea. Sarah relented without further argument and used her magic to slowly and carefully push the unicorn the rest of the way out from the cloud.
Prime fell to the ground, his legs refusing to catch him. Without the support his limbs would have provided, his body hit the ground with a wet thump. The sound made the rest of us in the room cringe, even Lyra. She had been curiously sipping her tea, despite the conflict going on inside her home. I was just glad to see that the very presence of Sarah or me didn't scare the hell out of her anymore. She only got scared when Sarah did something scary, like hop into her face and blow tea everywhere or something stupid like that.
"Ugh..." I heard Prime Warner groan. He sat himself onto shaky legs, his eyes spinning in comical circles. Next to him, Dash was pulling her cloud away into a corner so that Sarah didn't get tempted to destroy it again. Very carefully, the small pegasus smoothed the cloud with her hooves, filling in the hole that Prime's body had made. Seeing her working on the cloud like it was her baby was pretty darn cute.
...That sounded too...censored.
Seeing her work on the cloud like it was her baby was totally fucking adorable.
That's better. Can't let this world of cute ponies affect my inner explicit nature!
"So," Sarah started as she helped Prime to his hooves. "What's this about going to Canterlot?" Oh, yeah. Forgot about that. Sarah's tea adventure shook that whole conversation out of me. I cleared my throat, preparing my words.
"I think I should go to Canterlot," I started off.
"Okay, I got that. But...why?" Sarah responded, her gaze still fixed on the faded blue stallions currently gathering his notebook from the floor. His pen had also been sent flying by the wind created when Sarah flew by him.
"Well...you know how I hate making others upset?" I asked her. She looked at me for a moment before nodding her head. Her mane whipped around behind her, drawing my attention only for a moment. "From what Lyra told me, a lot of ponies were heartbroken when I...you know. The only ponies I've seen so far have been in Ponyville. Are all the others still sad?" I asked, my eyes looking into hers for an honest answer.
"...Yes."
I smiled at her when she said that, but not in a teasing way. She already knew where I was coming from without anything else needing to be said. She knew that I knew that she knew. I wasn't about to sit back and let others cry over me if I could do anything about it. That wasn't who I was. I was Ryan Burbank, the master of happy times and hiding from stress.
"But Ryan..." she piped up. I gave her a soft look and motioned for her to go on. "I...I still don't think it's a good idea. At least, not yet. I know the ponies in Canterlot. The nobles...they love you. They really love you. Yesterday, before my sister and I came down to see you, I offered to show Tia OtherWorld. The ponies in earshot rushed off and were back within a couple minutes with sleepwear and snacks. Ryan...I'm very afraid of how they'll react if they see you for real."
"I can attest to that," I heard Prime say from behind me. I turned to look at the stallion as he spoke. "I've been to some of the conventions in Canterlot, and boy...I doubt I've ever seen ponies more obsessed with any other GemShow figure. At the time, I was overjoyed at the fan reaction. Now that you're here and real, I don't have a clue what could happen if you just suddenly appeared after they saw you die."
It took a few moments for me to digest this new information. I assumed I was more of a Michael Jackson rank to the ponies of Equestria. I wasn't so sure about that anymore. It sounded more like a good portion of the population was downright obsessed with me. Even if I was just a Michael Jackson, I was scared to think about what would happen back home if he were to suddenly pop up in public and be all "Hey boys, I'm alive!" He'd probably be...kidnapped by elated fans.
A shiver ran up my spine at that thought. Kidnapped by overjoyed ponies, wanting to do who knows what to me...and judging from the reactions of half of my new friends, some kind of weird sexual stuff wasn't off the table. And apparently Sarah was a pony princess waaay before she came into my life. So I had managed to seduce a princess from a completely different species...I was either a god of seduction or these ponies were just really open with their sexuality.
I need more guy friends. Maybe Spike, he seemed like a male. I think.
"Oh, I forgot you have partial ownership of the show," Sarah said to Prime, a bit of curiosity in her voice. "So now that Ryan's here and your brother is..."
The harsh glare I gave her silenced that point quite effectively.
"Eh-hem. Well, what are you going to do, now? I don't believe you have a residence in Ponyville," she inquired. Prime looked up at the ceiling, his tired eyes windows into his injured soul. He considered the question for a few moments before shrugging.
"I got the situation written down. I need to go back headquarters and explain that Time is going to be away...for awhile..." he said sadly. Of all the ponies in the room, Lyra was giving him the least-considerate look regarding the situation with his brother. Had she seen Time do something that I was unaware of? Probably, considering the mental state of the crazy pony.
"Are you well-equipped to handle the situation without your brother?" Sarah asked, starting to tread back into uncomfortable territory again. That previous glare sure didn't last that long. Prime didn't flinch this time, however. It looked like he had been asking himself the very same question for awhile now.
"I...I don't know. I'm not too good with the actual business aspect of OW. I'm more of just a talent scout with a good amount of power," he said quietly. I felt really bad for the poor guy...I hated stress. This whole situation was just a big ol' heap of stressful shit that I would have a terrible time dealing with. Kudos to Prime for not running off. Even Sarah gave him a sympathetic look.
"Well, I'm sure there's something my sister or I could-"
"Bon Bon and I can help," Lyra declared from her position at the table. The room went silent after her sudden statement. The only sound that could be heard was the steady sipping of Lyra and her teacup. The most surprised out of all of us was Prime. He took a few wobbly steps towards the mint-mare, his eyes locked on her.
"Lyra, do you...what?" he stuttered. Lyra just gave him a warm smile and explained.
"Bon Bon owns her own business, Prime. She knows a good amount about the financial stuff, and I help her out, too. We could help you if you needed it. Plus, I'm sure the Princesses are going to have their hooves full helping Ryan out," she said kindly.
Whoa.
My Pony-Mom is a fucking saint. Prime shared my sentiments.
"Ly...that's...oh, buck, stupid tears..." Prime squeaked, his hoof shooting up to wipe at his moistening face. I didn't even hear him. All I could think of now was making those sad ponies happy again! My knees went weak as I started trembling in anticipation.
"So I guess that solves it, then. We're all going to Canterlot!" I declared happily. My statement made every pony in the room stare at me.
"Uhm, Ryan, headquarters isn't in-"
"How are we getting there? Are there cars here?" I interrupted, looking around excitedly. Prime just sighed and went quiet after sniffling a bit.
"Ryan," I heard my mom's voice say with an air of authority that made my butt clench. I turned to look Lyra in the eyes. She didn't look at all amused. What had I done to upset her?
"Hm?" I asked, trying to act innocent.
"OW Headquarters is in Manehattan, not Canterlot. Bon Bon and I have to go there with him," she stated. I wasn't used to seeing Lyra act so...dominant. The voice coming from her mouth brought me right back to when I was a kid and I just had three more cookies than I was allowed.
"Ugh, friggin 'Manehattan.' Of course there would be a 'Manehattan,'" I lamented to myself. Too many weird knockoff names...but...maybe they weren't? If my world came from the mind of a pony here in this world, then were the knockoff names the originals? I didn't even want to start thinking about that...
A nervous shiver went down my spine. I realized that I would have to go to Canterlot, in a city full of obsessed fans, without my mom. She was so much more used to the idea of me being famous, and undoubtedly had more experience dealing with fame. As confident as I had been feeling, I knew that I would buckle once I got surrounded. Having lived in the woods for the last couple years, I had grown accustomed to being alone with Sarah. The mall I worked at had a good amount of people...but they weren't clamoring for my attention.
"So...who is going with me...?" I asked weakly, looking around at the room. Almost immediately after I had spoken, I felt a bump again my shoulder. Turning my head towards the contact, I once again came face-to-face with Rainbow Dash. This time, she was looking at me with an encouraging smirk, instead of a lustful gaze. She was perched on top of her cloud innocently as she telegraphed her answer. I got the feeling that even if I felt like arguing with her, she wouldn't listen. She was dead-set on helping me.
"I will be, of course," I heard Sarah say in front of me. "I still don't think that it's a good idea...but my sister did say that she wanted you to visit when you were settled so that we could begin working on finding a solution to your 'bomb' problem. Now that the link is broken, you appear to be much more stable than before. It's probably for the best that we go now and begin searching for an answer." Sarah finished her speech by giving Dash a suspicious look. It wasn't directed at me, but I could tell it meant 'I'll be watching, so don't do anything stupid.' Rainbow responded by sticking the very tip of her tongue out at the princess and blowing an almost silent raspberry.
I wondered if the other girls would want to go, too. Most likely. So that's Sarah, Dash, and maybe the other girls to keep me safe from my possibly insane fans. Those were pretty good numbers, right? Eh, it'll be fine.
Somewhere in the background, I swear I could hear an ominous slide of a bow across the strings of a violin. Okay, the random sound effects in this world have to have some kind of fucking purpose. That must mean I was doomed to have something bad happen to me.
There was no way I was going to Canterlot without the others, now.
This world was giving me a warning and I was going to fucking listen.
I started running my hand through my hair, but stopped when I felt a layer of grease rub off onto my fingers. In disgust, I yanked my hand away and looked at it. My hand was now slightly more shiny than it normally was. Now that I thought about it, my hair felt gross. I guess even magical construct body hair gets greasy. And my clothes...they were still the undersized copies that I had borrowed from Twilight's collection. Time Warner had interrupted my mission of acquiring a new set. Was Rarity even awake now?
"But first...I think I need a shower. And some clothes," I said out loud, still looking down at my hand. Sarah leaned in closer and took a whiff. She didn't back off, but she did nod her head in agreement. Was I just hearing things, or did she make a 'nummy' sound?
"As much as I enjoy your aroma, I do agree that a shower is probably a good idea," she responded. Everyone in the room stared at her. She noticed this after an uncomfortable period of silence. Great, thanks Sarah. Now Dash was looking at me with a curious stare. Stop giving her ideas!
"What?" she asked us defensively.
"For fuck's sake, Bear. That was creepy."
****
Twack
Twack
Twack
"Stupid...stupid...stupid..." the bright blue unicorn chanted to himself, punctuating each word with a thump of his head against the cell wall. He had been at it for at least an hour at that point, proven by the trickle of dark maroon that flowed down his head. The hard, gray rock was heavily stained with the red substance. It would take some serious scrubbing to remove all the marks that the stallion had been leaving everywhere.
How could he have done something so stupid? Attacking a princess over some produced replica of Ryan Burbank...he was supposed to be smarter than that! He was the owner of the largest GemShow production company in Equestria, for Celestia's sake! Yet, there he sat, secluded within those four stone walls. The only pony he had seen in the last day had been a guard during his scheduled feeding time.
For his dinner last night, he received some bread and water. He had at first refused such a poor offering, but the growling in his stomach had grown until he had been unable to resist. The only wish he had at that point was to go back in time and eat the bread before it had went stale. The water was okay, but nothing compared to his beloved Wiji brand mineral water.
He wanted to be outside of the walls. The walls said 'no'.
Please? he asked the walls again. Once more, they refused his request.
Walls are peasants. How dare they defy him?!
Time Warner beat his head harder against the stone, this time trying to harm it instead of himself. The blood that had been trickling down his muzzle smeared against the wall, painting a picture of his face for nopony but himself to see. It would be his masterpiece.
'This Wall is a Peasant and I Made it Bleed' by Time Warner.
He could see it already. His peers in Manehattan, trotting up to congratulate him on such a unique piece of art. The awards he would receive...the recognition he would get...it would be second only to the sudden popularity of that show his younger brother recruited. That silly human world was so easy to sell. Barely anything exciting happened in it, yet the ponies of Equestria ate it up like the finest of pastries.
He would be proud of something that was his. Not something his little brother had been responsible for. As the big brother, it was his duty to show Prime what it meant to work for something amazing. Prime had been the one doing a good portion of the work when it came to recruiting shows, and Time Warner hated it. He wanted to be the one that had the friends. He wanted to be the one ponies thanked when they saw their imaginary worlds up in the gem projection for the first time. His little brother was just a kid. Why did he get all of the love from everypony? All he did was travel around and make friends. All of the hard, business work was left back for Time to work on.
It wasn't that he hated working with money; he actually loved it. The numbers running through his head kept everything else from talking to him. When he was number-crunching, the world around him went silent. He loved the peace. The times when he was younger and trying to keep those bit collectors from taking the roof over his head...they made him know. He had learned the truth about money; it only went as far as the collector's comfort. If you wanted something of value, sometimes you would have to bleed for it.
Just like his new piece of art before him. He finally had something he could be proud of, since he had worked on it alone. Nopony else contributed in the slightest. It would be his way of showing the world that he could, in fact, make something of value without his brother's help. He was going to finally be loved!
But when he looked at it again, all he saw was a bloody wall. It wasn't even the wall's blood.
Stone doesn't bleed.
That was his blood. The wall had been taking his blood and was going to do who knows what with it.
With a singular grunt, the bright blue, disheveled pony slammed his head against the minced boulder that the wall consisted of. He didn't care if the wall had his blood. His blood wasn't worth the time it took to let it leak out. He had nothing to call his own anymore; his company was his everything. Now that he was being held prisoner by that villainous series of stones, he no longer had his company. Who did the company belong to, now?
Probably my brother.
His piercing stare softened at the thought. He didn't dislike his younger brother. Hell, he loved him more than anything else in the world. Just because he hated how much ponies loved Prime didn't mean he hated him. He couldn't. Prime was the only one to know what it was like to grow up with a dying mother and a series of ponies trying to take their possessions.
But Prime was weak. He didn't know how to deal with the collectors. The only things he knew were making friends and telling stories. Stories can't pay the rent.
...
The more Time thought about it, he realized he was wrong. Stories could pay the rent, these days. But back then, the technology hadn't existed. And Prime was only a little colt. Who would pay to hear stories being told by a foal? Nopony, that's who. In their youth, it was Time's job to take care of his brother. When Prime needed something, Time was there for him. Be it harassment from collectors or the simple school bully, Time had taken care of it in his own special way.
The crunches felt nice.
They never bothered us again.
Time Warner immediately shook is head when the thoughts started popping back up. He didn't like when they started suggesting things. Ever since that one confrontation with an overly aggressive collector, he had been getting...urges. Urges to hurt. Urges to scare. Urges to keep those that would dare harm his brother away.
He shouldn't have threatened Prime.
The blue unicorn shook his head as he pressed himself harder against the wall, his horn scratching painfully against the stone. His blood was smeared even more, but he still didn't care. If his blood couldn't get him out of the walls and back to his company, he didn't want it. It could all leak out and leave him, for all he cared.
His mind drifted back to his beloved Olivia Warner Productions. He wanted nothing more than to be back at his desk, confined by walls that he trusted. The best place he could imagine would be one where he could be all alone without a single pony to interact with.
But...
Prime was older and stronger, now. At least a little. If OW was to be with a different owner...
Time wouldn't trust anypony else. His company would be in good hooves. At least for as long as these walls continued to reject his proposals for an early release. He would get out for good behavior, obviously. Maybe a bribe would also work. Did walls like blood? He had given plenty of that already. Would his blood be a suitable offering for bail?
"You have a visitor," Time heard a voice say behind him. What? That voice didn't make any sense. It didn't even sound like the normal voice he heard. It sounded like somepony else...oh, it was. There was a guard standing patiently on the other side of the cell door.
The prone stallion twisted his neck around, unintentionally giving the guard a good look at the blood-stained nightmare that his face had become. The armored pony outside the cell door had to resist the urge to gag at the sight. The blood was caked on, leaking in some spots and dried in others. Time looked like a pony had painted his face red, tried scraping it off, and then put another coat over the first.
Time huffed at the guard. Those that stood around in armor and tried to act strong didn't deserve his respect. They were no doubt all responsible for some form of abuse. All guards abused their positions at some point. What had this one done? Probably shoved a starving family into the streets for not being able to afford their home.
He shouldn't have threatened Prime.
Time agreed with the thought in his head. Guard or not, that stallion got what he deserved.
After a few moments of silence, it became clear that Time was not going to respond verbally. The guard nodded and turned, letting in another set of hooves. The clopping of shoes along the cold, hard floor became the only sound to fill the air for a few moments.
"Geez, Time, what did you do to your face?" a familiar voice spoke out to him. Time's ears flicked up, taking in every sound in the room. He knew that voice all too well. But what was he doing here? One of the only other ponies he considered worthy of respect, and he just happened to appear at the cell...just in time to see Time at his lowest.
The bloody prisoner stood up to his full height, his mind switching back into his professional state. He took a few seconds to brush the tattered remains of his suit off with a hoof before turning the rest of the way around to meet the stallion addressing him.
"Common Caster. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Time said articulately. The stallion outside the bars was a mostly white unicorn with a striped red and white mane that was combed over to the left side of his head. He looked exceptionally clean; something that Time admired greatly. The air he walked by was always left smelling of roses and success.
How did Time know what success smelled of? He just did.
To complement his aura of business, Caster adorned a very fancy, recently pressed black suit. It was the kind that Time had been lusting over for the better part of three months, ever since the original designer quit making suits. The works he had completed before then had shot up in value at an alarming rate, and every business-pony was suddenly clamoring to own one. Time was among those. The hardest part was finding his size in a suit that had been tailored for somepony else.
"Seriously, Time? To what do you owe- YOU'RE IN PRISON!" Caster exclaimed in exasperation, throwing one of of his white hooves in the air to make his point. Time looked around at the walls surrounding him, humming to himself in thought.
"Oh, so I am," he responded casually. Caster just sighed and facehoofed, the guard behind him trying not to smirk. He wasn't going to get anywhere with the bloody stallion if he just pointed out the obvious.
"Ugh. To answer your question, I'm here on business. It's the only reason they actually let me in to see you," Caster explained, his eyes probing over Time Warner and looking at the rough state he was in. Caster wanted to know what had happened, but he had been told that the details surrounding Time's case were still confidential. What could have happened to set Time off and end up so badly worn?
"Oh?" inquired Time Warner, his ears perking up again. Business was one thing he was definitely comfortable with discussing. Especially if it meant keeping his company somehow. Oh, how he hoped that's what was happening.
"Yes. It seems that all the GemShow programs were...postponed, as of this morning. I was personally notified by the FlimFlam's about the reasoning. They said something about some idiot unicorn using a 'SuperShow' to pull out another unicorn's memories and doing...something with them. Now they have to recall every GemShow product and update them with new safety enchantments. It just struck me as odd that this happened the same morning that I heard you were imprisoned. I just came by wondering if you would have any idea what the bloody hay has been going on," Caster explained.
Time Warner's eye twitched. His ear followed suit. He wanted to pretend that that entire conversation had been nothing but more voices, but the ringing in his ears confirmed that the voice had been real.
All the GemShow programs were canceled.
The gems were being recalled for who knows how long.
Time was in prison while this was going on, with nopony to take care of the company during his absence...besides Prime.
Another nerve in Time's ear twinged, causing it to flick. Prime might have been able to handle the company during a normal time...but this was not a normal time. They were putting every single show on hiatus! Every gem was going to be brought back to be worked on! Time knew that his little brother couldn't handle that kind of stress.
"N-no..." Time muttered under his breath, his pupils dilating somewhat. Who was going to run the company now? He trusted no other pony with handling something so precious to himself. Not only that, but who else would even know how to run a company like OW? The only other pony that he knew that was in the same business...was standing right in front of him. Time's eyes slid up to look at Caster, who had just got done sighing to himself. He had taken Time's expression of dismay as an answer to the question he had asked.
"Ugh...well, it was worth a shot. I just hope I find out what's going on before I have to put good ponies out of work," Caster lamented. The stallion behind the bars didn't even hear him. Time was still caught up in his own mutterings.
He has to, only choice.
Mom must stay alive.
As much as Time didn't want to, he knew what he had to do. And he had gotten out of asking for help for so long...even through the near-merge, OW had survived without outside help. Ryan Burbank had changed all of that. A vein began in Time's left temple started pulsing a bit harder at the thought of the unexplained human.
"Common Caster...I might be required to ask of you a great service," Time mumbled, trying to remain as professional as he could. The urge to punch Caster in his smug face was tickling at the poor unicorn's inhibitions. The black-suited stallion on the outside of the cell turned with a surprised, yet curious, look.
"Yeah?" Caster perked up. Time flinched a bit at his informally manner of speaking. That was possibly the one major flaw with Caster's character, in the eyes of the imprisoned unicorn; for an executive in charge of a metric load of gem shows, Common Caster talked much too openly. Time was making such an effort to remain respectable and polite, so why couldn't Caster just show a little more professionalism? The older Warner brother took a deep breath, steeling his nerves in preparation for the words that were about to leave his lips.
"I...must ask you to watch over Olivia Warner Productions in my absence. At least until I can get this mess sorted out," Time spoke as evenly as he could. It was becoming much harder for him to remain standing. The bloody wall looked like it needed another smack. On the other side of the solid steel bars, Caster was giving Time an oddly amused stare.
"...What, really? Me? What about your little brother? Isn't he, like, second in command?" Caster inquired. Time couldn't tell for sure, but he got the strange feeling that Common had planned the entire interaction between them. He knew that Prime would not be able to run the company in such a dire situation. He knew that Time would lose faith in his younger sibling and reach out for help from a more experienced source. As much as Time Warner hated knowing that he was doing exactly as Common Caster wanted, he had no other choice.
"Prime is young and weak. If the situation was not as bad as it was, I could trust him to run things for awhile. The situation is not at all small enough for him to handle. Please, Common Caster, I need your assistance. I can make it worth your while. What was that idea you brought up last year? With the OtherWorld-Bojack Human crossover? Consider it done. The rights are yours," Time pleaded. After every word, he could feel his head tingling, begging to be slammed against the cell wall again. Caster very subtley bit his lip, entranced at the idea of having his human-spinoff show merging with the original for an episode. The publicity would be amazing, especially after that last episode of OtherWorld.
Common Caster wouldn't admit it to his pseudo-rival, but he really envied OW Productions. The small gem show company showed up out of nowhere, starting out with some smaller dramas. While not big, it was successful enough that Caster had offered to let them merge into his own, much larger company when they hit some financial trouble. Just as they were about to complete the merger, Prime Warner appeared with some random mint green unicorn. If Caster knew then what he knew now, he would have spent most of his company's budget to buy that mare over. She was the one; the creator of OtherWorld. He had tried buying her over after the fact, but she had become friends with Prime and said that she 'couldn't do that to him.' What rubbish.
The way that mare manipulated the emotions of her audience...Caster was in love. He wanted her under his payroll so badly that he actually worked himself into a fever at one point. The desire to have that special gem that the younger Warner brother had somehow found...it ate him up inside. Where had she been the whole time?
Bucking Ponyville. The one village he had neglected looking into, and of course she had been there. He had made it way too easy for Prime to one-up his company. But now, he was once again at an advantage. This time, he was not going to let it slip.
"Of course, my friend. I wouldn't let another company like mine sink during a time like this. I'll do what I can," Caster responded, a friendly smile spread across his lips. Time, despite having his wishes fulfilled, flinched and looked to the floor. He had pretty much just given his pride and joy away to his competitor.
"Thank you, Common Caster," Time said lamely. He wanted the wall. The wall needed more blood.
"And you think Prime will be okay with it? I know how much he cares about the company," Caster brought up as he started to turn his body towards the exit. A brief flash of red surged across Time's vision at the mention of his brother.
He shouldn't have threatened Prime.
Time blinked. Why was he hearing that again? He already knew that the guard got what he deserved for threatening his little brother. The recent context gave that thought no meaning. What was it-?
He shouldn't have threatened Prime.
Another image danced in front of the blue unicorn's face. It wasn't just a red flash this time, it was...a figure.
He shouldn't have threatened Prime.
The image gained more clarity, until Time could finally tell what it was. It was Prime's terrified face.
I shouldn't have threatened Prime.
It all came crashing down onto the bloody stallion. The fight. He had almost gotten into a fight with Prime. He had...he had almost struck him down. The magic in his horn had felt so itchy. It wanted to be let out; to fly into the younger stallion's heart and stop it forever...just as it had done many times before. His own brother...he had almost killed his own brother!
Time heaved violently, letting out the mushy remains of what used to be bread. The acids spilled out onto the floor, mixing with the droplets of red that had been steadily falling. The cell that contained Time Warner became 2000% more disgusting since his arrival. The guard, previously in a daze off to the side of the cell, became alert as soon as he heard the bile hit the ground.
The guard transformed into a flurry of hooves and keys and he tried finding the correct piece of metal to unlock the cell door. With the open wound that Time already have, the guard realized that he was already in a heap of trouble. He should have taken him out sooner to get medical attention, and now he was sick! Oh, he was in for it.
Meanwhile, while the guard imagined what life on the streets would be like, Time Warner wailed loudly. It was a shout of regret, disbelief and emotional agony. He couldn't believe he had almost used his magic on Prime! The only pony in all of Equestria that he had sworn to watch over and protect...and Time had almost been the one to steal away his breath forever. The repressed memory of Prime's face as he trembled before his older brother...it was tearing Time apart. How could he have done such a thing?
Worse, how could he have forgotten that he had done so until then?
None of it would have happened if Ryan hadn't-
Ryan.
Of course! It was Ryan's fault! He had been the reason they had been forced to travel to Ponyville in the first place! Not to mention, the bucker burped right in his face and sent him flying through a dozen walls! Everything that happened...was going to happen...it was Ryan's bucking fault!
The stallion squirmed in the guard's grasp, pushing himself back towards a very confused Common Caster. The white stallion actually had to take a fearful step back as Time approached him, a mixture of spittle, blood and vomit coating his face. He looked very much like a rabid animal, with the way he was growling and clicking his jaws together.
"I...have...information..." panted Time as he clung himself to Caster desperately. The poor stallion just stared down at the bloody thing latched to his body, unable to do more than nod.
"It was Ryan. I was...arrested for attacking Princess Twilight...and...and Ryan! Ryan Burbank! RYAN BUCKING BURBANK! They brought him to life somehow! Common Caster, Ryan is here!" Time Warner screamed maniacally, an insane grin spreading across his repulsive face. For a moment, Caster thought that the lunatic was going to kill him.
Bong
Before anything else could have happened, the guard chose to simply subdue the raging prisoner. He did so by means of conveniently-placed frying pan. The face that had been manic and blood-thirsty only seconds before had now become serene and doofy. Time Warner slumped down, right onto the back of the guard. Grumbling to himself, the guard balanced the unconscious prisoner on his back and made for the door. He didn't get paid enough for what he had to go through.
As the guard carried his charge away and towards the medical room, Caster stood in stunned silence. Time's words ran through his head on repeat, his mind trying to find any meaning or use behind them.
Ryan was alive?
Ryan from OtherWorld? That was just silly. Humans weren't real and everypony knows that. Could Time's words have just been those from a manic pony driven insane by the containment? Caster knew that his semi-rival had issues, but he had never seen him like that. It was almost like he had been trying to break through the wall...with his head. All that blood...
Then, another thought ran through the white unicorn's head. The whole situation involving the gems and somepony getting their memories pulled out...could the events have something to do with Ryan? Was it actually possible to bring a fictional character to life? They would need some kind of...
Construct...
A glow began to emit from Caster's horn, bathing the dark room with a golden light. To anypony involved heavily with money, they would have recognized the tint as being the exact same as that of a bit coin. Caster didn't leak magic in the same way the Warner brothers did when they got inspired. The visualization of actual shapes was a talent reserved to only those two. Instead, Caster simply lit the surrounding area with the same color as that lovable metal referred simply to as 'gold.'
As he started following the guard out of the room, Common Caster let a sly grin spread across his face. Whatever was going on with the gems and Ryan Burbank, he got the feeling that it was suddenly going to become very...very...profitable. He was just going to have to figure out how they did it.
One way or another.