Market Capitalism Contemplation
Her face flush with humiliation, Krystal threw a few dead leaves over the spot in which she'd done her business for good measure.
The pegasus didn't know how the other two did it, both Scootaloo and Islander acted as if using the restroom out before the moon and stars was no big deal. To Krystal, it was one of the most humiliating things she had ever done, and what was worse was the building preassure in her abdomine, warning her that the inevitable number two would need to pass.
She couldn't do it, she couldn't allow herself to do it. It was... far too much of an affront to her delicate sensibilities.
Shamed beyond report, she threw on another few leaves and made the quarter mile trip back to her companions. Krystal was worried about Scootaloo, the filly hadn't woken up for a good four hours now. Granted, she had terrible nightmares almost every night that usually left her awake before Krystal was, but still...
And what was up with Islander? Or, Sinbad, since that was his first name. He seemed off ever since the cat attacked, and Krystal couldn't figure out why or how. She was worried that he was mad at her, but that didn't make any sense. He said she did good, that her actions were well done, so why was he acting even more cold and distant than he usually did?
Shaking the negativity away, the mare lifted her head and smiled. He was just being a grump, that was all. It was like momma Gem said: Islander was a lot like papa was, a good pony who was disappointed and hurt. Stallions often acted cold and distant, but it was their actions that belied their true character.
Papa took in Sandy when she needed him, he fed her and cared for her until she was better, just like Sin did Scootaloo. He was willing to sacrifice himself for the pegasus mare before, which meant he did care. Maybe that's all he knows how to do? Just protect and provide for those he cares about. Gem said that Papa had done the same for her and that it was she that needed to show the first real signs of affection before...
Krystal's trotting slowed to a walk and then she stopped as the implications of the thoughts hit her.
Why was she thinking like that? Affections? Providing and protecting? No no no, she didn't see him that way... did she? No, no of course not.
Shaking the thoughts from her head, Krystal chastised herself for being silly and continued her trot. Of course she didn't like him, not like that anyways. She barely knew the pony, not for lack of trying of course, but still: Papa always told her not to fall in love at first si....
Stopping again, the off white pegasus mare groaned as the internal debate came to a screeching halt in her mind.
L- Love? Wh- what on earth had come over her to make her even thing such a thing?! Of course she didn't love him! After all, like she thought before, she didn't even know him! So why was she blushing crimson right now? And why was her heart beating so fast and her breathing so shallow and heavy at the same time? Why did she feel so nervous and...
"No!" Krystal scolded herself. "No, bad, bad heart. You can't just do that to me!"
But it can, and it was. Part of her mind told her that it was okay, that Sin was a good stallion, and despite his few slip ups, had treated Scootaloo very well. Yea, he may have done a few mean things to her from time to time, but he made sure she was safe, he had reading now to advance her education and that she always drank and ate first before he did, as well as Krystal herself.
Just like Papa did...
Though, another part of her mind was her papa, telling the young pony to tread carefully, that other ponies were dangerous creatures that would use and abuse if given the chance.
Thing was, that he'd had the chance, and didn't take it. Sin had many chances, and didn't take them. He teased her a little with his constant vulgar language, but never pushed it to the point it really irritated her. Truth be told, Krystal kind of liked it. Oh sweet Celestia, she'd never say it out loud, but she did grow to enjoy and admire his bluntness and calm. The calm of a pony who could handle anything, a pony who bore the weight of the world on his shoulders and never once complained about it.
The fact both impressed and saddened her. Sin was a good pony, and she didn't like to see good ponies in pain. She wished he'd talk to her a little more, share his burdens and pain, but he didn't. All he did was tell her that things were fine or that it wasn't something she needed to be concerned over. Somehow, his cryptic nature only made her want to know him even more.
"Why are you being like that?" Krystal sighed in relief, happy to hear Scootaloo was finally awake.
"Because I'm fucking petty and immature."
Petty and immature?
Krystal broke her head through the treeline, finding both of her companions looking at each other, neither taking note of her presence.
His words were blunt as usual, but held an underlying depressive, reluctant honesty to them. Krystal stayed her place, waiting to see where this conversation would go.
"Are you okay?" Scootaloo asked, keeping her voice neutral yet assertive.
Islander shook his head. "Fine, like I said, just being petty and immature."
"Yea, why though?"
"I'd rather not talk about it, just need to get my head out of my ass is all." Islander admitted.
Humphing, the filly crossed her forelegs in a pout, mumbling how it wouldn't kill her associate to be a little more sensitive and non-vulgar.
"What can I say? I don't like lying." Sin teased with a smirk.
Scootaloo uncrossed her legs and gave him a look. "Seriously? You're really going to say that after everything you've done?"
Krystal felt herself tense as Sin also sat up. "Just because I've done it doesn't mean I like to do it. Lying is never just a one time thing, kiddo. If you lie once, you have to remember both the lie as well as the truth, the lie requires more lies to keep going, becoming a giant web of lies where the smallest truth could unravel the whole thing and make you look either manipulative or like an idiot."
Krystal gave the matter a bit of thought and realized that it was a verbal acknowledgement of something she'd figured out a long time ago. Lies did need more lies to continue, and those lies needed even more lies. As painful as the truth may be, it was far simpler and less stressful to stick to. It was a good lesson for him to teach her, even if it wasn't in the "lying is just wrong" sense.
The two continued to talk and Krystal decided to stay back and just listen to the lessons Sin was espousing. Obviously he didn't care much about hurting feelings, but there were times he bent the truth, or sugar coated it to soften the blow. To which Scootaloo called him to account for hypocracy. Islander countered this assertion by admitting to it, but elaborating that good relations and confidence being maintained. That lying, while a moral negative, was necessary.
"What? How can lying be necessary?" Scootaloo squealed.
Sin chuckled. "Well kiddo, what if I told you that one of the ways I often think about crumbling any civilization revolves around removing ponies ability to lie?"
Krystal furrowed her brow in confusion. Taking away ponies ability to lie would destroy socioty? How was that possible? The truth was a good thing, wasn't it? Scootaloo shared her beliefs and demanded the stallion explain himself.
"Politics," the stallion started wit ha wry smirk. "In my country, the lies the political class tells everybody else is the only thing that keeps my country going. If they were ever to come forward and admit to the lies they tell, my entire state would go into a panic. You see, a single pony is smart, but get a group of ponies together, herd mentality kicks in, which is driven more by emotion rather than logic. Fear feeds fear, not just in the sense of the consequences of the failings of the governments policies, but in the reaction of the irrational unto the rational to said failings."
Krystal wasn't entirely sure what that meant, her vocabulary was well to do, or so she liked to believe, but the concepts put forth were a little confusing, but she placed that on the back burner and listen on.
It wasn't just politics, but the subtle nuances of the day to day grind. Companies that were hurting in profits had to lie to maintain investor and consumer confidence, mothers of foals and younglings who might not belong to the named father, needed to lie to maintain relations with said father -A notion Krystal took heavy exception with- and then smaller fibs like: Good deeds are always rewarded, to keep everyone on a path of virtue, even though society has more of a tendency to reward those who may manipulate the system better than those of higher moral fiber.
"Wait, so you're saying that it's better to be a manipulator rather than be a good pony?" Scootaloo questioned.
"Better?" Sin asked, placing a hoof to his chin. "I suppose you'll have to elaborate on what you mean by 'better'. Are you talking about being an overall decent and moral individual? Or are you talking about acquiring money and getting rich?"
Scootaloo rubbed her head, sharing in Krystal's confusion at the stallion's ideas. "Umm, being a decent pony, I guess."
Sin raised his hoof to elaborate but paused, he furrowed his brow in thought and lowered his hoof, taking a moment to think about what he'd say. "Well, umm, I can't really use Equestria as a standard of measurement. Unlike where I come from, moral fiber is taken much more seriously here than back in the Federation. Here: you guys actually punish the immoral, regardless of the sacrifices necessary, which is one of the reasons I like your country. Back in the Federation, most of the citizens run much more on greed than anything else, morals and ethics are cast aside in order for ponies to stretch their bills as far as they will go. Blame is never on the citizenry, but on the entities larger than themselves like the banks and government. Hell, the citizens will do everything in their power to remove responsibility from the citizens and give them a free pass to do whatever suites them. But the problem there is it's ignoring reality, and while we may be able to ignore reality, we cannot ignore the consequences of ignoring reality."
Scootaloo's only form of reply was a tilted head and a look that screamed "dumbfound". Good thing too, because Krystal probably had the same look about her.
The stallion scratched the back of his head before elaborating that Scootaloo would first need to put her sense of "good and evil" aside for a moment, since that was the primary bar in holding others from seeing what he was saying.
"The world runs mainly off of individuals pursuing their own self interest. Now, this fact goes against the notion of altruism being the universal 'good'. After all, selfishness is usually seen as a bad thing, right? But that's not usually, and hardly ever the case, really. Since most selfish actions must be met with acceptance from others, especially those whom you wish to gain money from. After all, who's going to pay someone to do something that hurts them, right? So, in order to accumulate capital, ponies need to do things that help others. Selling food, for instance: Everyone likes food, it's kind of a basic necessity of life, right?"
The filly nodded, gaining some kind of grasp on the situation.
"Now, most don't like to think that the farmer has money and self interest as his or her primary motivator to grow food. They just like to think: They're doing what they enjoy doing, or that they're doing a good thing by providing for others, while his or her gaining of money is merely a consequence of their labor. Now, the farmer thinks to him or herself, yea, I like helping others, but it's incentive that drives them to produce so much. After all, what reason has a farmer to produce so much when they can just do for themselves? Right?"
Krystal was a little confused by that, since there were so many types of farms. Rocks couldn't be eaten, but they did bring in money. Money was needed to buy food that the family's garden couldn't provide, so that made some sense.
"So, it's not purely a sense of altruism and helping others that the farmer produces so much, but a selfish incentive to get money." Sin finished.
Scootaloo nodded her head, getting some sense of understanding of the essence of market based capitalism, but pointed out that it didn't answer her question on why it was better to be a decent pony rather than a pony who manipulates the system to their advantage. The point digressed, Sin bit his lip, attempting to relink the two.
"How can I put this: the lie is that ponies do good things because they're good things to do. Well, that's not really a lie, but more of a half truth. Yes, individuals are usually 'good' at heart, and in order for a society to run, having a morally just or 'good' population is paramount. But the problem arises when that 'goodness' is taken for granted, that it should just 'be there' regardless of incentive or discouragement. The world is an imperfect place, and no matter how immoral it may be, there will always be those willing to take advantage of the 'good' ponies without reciprocating the gestures. If we full on acknowledge the selfishness of others, without taking into consideration the concept of good, and the lie that most everyone is 'good', than socioty develops paranoia and toxic selfishness. The selfishness in Equestria isn't nearly as toxic as in the Federation. That and you... you have no idea what I'm saying, do you?"
Grimacing, Scootaloo reluctantly shook her head, apologizing for her ignorance and inability, to which Islander stood from his place and patted the filly on the back.
"Don't worry, these are deep and heavy concepts, ideas most adults wouldn't understand." He said, paraising the filly for listening to what he did say. Scootaloo felt a little bad that she couldn't fully appreciate the lecture she was getting but Sin told her to just think on the concepts for a little bit and if she had any questions she should feel free to ask.
It warmed Krystal's heart to see, the stallion was genuinely smiling now. Not his usual empty smirk that intended smug confidence, but a genuine smile of joy. She could tell that he liked teaching others, it always brought out the best in him when he did. She thought about him being a school teacher, and chuckled at the thought.
"Well, actually there is something I've been wondering." Scootaloo admitted curiously. "Why do you keep saying some 'body' instead of somepony?" She asked him.
She heard the stallion sigh. "Because, back home, only pony supremacists used that phrase."
Scootaloo sat up and tilted her head. "What a 'supremacist'?"
Sin chuckled and shook his head. "Sorry, I keep forgetting how young you are. A supremacist believes that their own race is better than every other race. Pony supremacists believe that all other races, dogs, minatour, buffalo, that they are all inferior to ponies."
All of her annoyance melted away like butter on a hot skillet, replaced by horrifying confusion. "What? W- why would anypony think that?"
Islander shrugged. "Ponies can fly, control the weather, grow food, use magic, legends even say that it was the unicorns whom raised the moon and sun before Celestia's time."
Scootaloo conceded the point, but argued that didn't mean that other races were lesser to ponies just because ponies did and could do great things. Griffons could fly, did that make pegasi grater than griffons? Besides, didn't his home country kind of add all of the different races together?
"Yes, the Federation does have many of the different races present within it." Sin explained, giving Krystal some in sight into his nation: The North New Equine Pegasi/Unicorn Consortium, the South New Equine Earth Ponies, the Vain Minotaur, the Columbus Griffons, the Diamond Dogs of Cania, Rovin Republic Buffalo, the Orval Donkeys and of course, the Northwood Centaur.
Scootaloo recalled when he'd first told her about the different states, it boggled her mind a little just how closely linked all of them were. Where in Equestria, most of the different species would congrigate together, in the Federation, the different states meant little in terms of segrigation. Ponies, dogs, bison, minataur, they all lived together and interacted, so how could prejudice arise if they were all together like that?
"Because: many are stupid and like to install ideas of hate and prejudice into their foals." Sin spat, his face contorting in disgust. "Teaching them that difference meant inferiority."
Scootaloo nodded her head. It sounded an aweful lot like the way that Ponyville treated Zecora before. "Is that why you left? Because you didn't like the pony supremicists?"
The stallion looked down in thought and gave the so-so shake of his head. "Ehh, that was one of the reasons, yea."
"What were the others?" Krystal asked, her sudden and unannounced return having startled both of them.
A slight shift from her presence was made apparent by Islander's sudden lack of interest in talking. Scootaloo also pushed the question, making the pony shift with discomfort before Krystal reminded him of what her parents said before they'd left the rock farm. That traveling together would only work if they were all honest and willing to share things about each other, a notion Scootaloo agreed with.
"Ehh... I was also kinda run outta the senate." Admitted the pony, a sly, reminiscent smirk taking his face.
Okay, now she had to know about that.
To both of their surprise, the pony had been kicked out of office for lobbing a chair at a fellow senator. What made it even more surprising, and a little disturbing, was how much pride Sin took in the fact. He chuckled as he told the story, mentioning how he'd always remember the face some griffon named "Sycon" made as the wooden plot holder made contact.
"Hehe, awww, good times." Sin finished, watching both for a reaction. "What? It was funny!"
"Sinbad Von Islander!" Krystal scolded, glaring at him. "That is not how we deal with ponies who disagree with us! Bad pony!"
"Bah!" Dismissed Sin, waving his hoof. "Sycon had it out for me ever since I was elected to the congress. He had it coming for months."
"Speaking of the political, don't most ponies- er- beings in your case, need to be older? I mean, you're so young. How did you get involved with making such big decisions?" Krystal asked. Scootaloo also wondered the same, Celestia and Luna were very old ponies, they didn't look it, but they were, and Papa always insulted the young for their ignorance. Sin was very young.
Sin bit his lip, looking around uncomfortably. "Well... umm, I-" He paused, his face contorting into something else, something new that Scootaloo had not seen on the pony ever since she'd met him.
Shame.
"Islander?" Krystal asked in concern.
Sin looked between the two and the ground, struggling to make a decision, or how to word his next statement. "I... had some help." He answered lightly, forcing a small smile, one that fought a loosing battle to the shame he tried so desperately to hide.
"Well of course you got help, but from whom?" Krystal asked lightly.
She must have said something wrong, because the smile he forced fell faster than a piece of marble in the river. Her sense of curiosity slowly died as the stallion became conflicted in her words, she was about to apologize and drop the issue, but Sin beat her to it.
"I got in because I was backed by one of the richest ponies in the nation." Sin whispered shamefully.
"What?" Krystal asked, tilting her head.
"I... I wanted to change things in the only way I saw that I could." Said the stallion, his guilt ridden words spoken barely above a whisper. "I... did what I hated the rest of them for doing... I used money to influence politics to fight the Gods and..." he trailed off again, his head and body lowering with each passing pause.
"Sin?" Krystal said gingerly, lifting a hoof and placing it on his shoulder. Upon contact, Sin jumped back and she retracted her hoof in fright.
Realizing what he'd done, the brown clad pony chuckled nervously. "Sorry, guess I'm just a little tired." He stood up and stretched out, his back. "You girls get some sleep, I'll keep first watch for the night."
Krystal asked if he was alright, to which he did as he usually did and brushed her off with reassuring comments. It was unsettling and disheartening for her, to see the stallion look so small and fragile like he was. What did he do? Why did he take money? And why was he so ashamed of it?
It disturbed her even more to think about when she realized that he'd shown no such shame in killing. What could he have done that was so terrible that killing others was nothing in comparison?
Deciding she'd pushed him far enough for the night, Krystal took her place by the slowly dimming fire and curled up to protect herself from the cold night air, it wasn't long before Scootaloo also laid down beside her and snuggled against the mare's ribs with Angel held firmly in her forelegs. She had a lot on her mind, but the blessed gift of sleep soon found the mare and took her in it's loving embrace.