Way of the World
Rainbow Burger
by Kel Grym
Chrysalis sat with her elbow propped up on the table supporting her head as she pretended to listen to Rover. While he prattled on about something that had to do with Diego...again, she absentmindedly brought the hole in her hoof down over a salt shaker.
“...And he doesn’t even take out the grease trap!” Rover complained.
Chrysalis barely registered anything he said. At the moment she was busy thrusting her hoof up and down over the salt shaker, lost in her own fantasy.
“Are you even listening to me?”
Chrysalis stopped and perked her head up. “Huh? Oh, yeah, yeah, annoying and all that.”
“So, aren't you going to do something about it?”
“Ugh.” Chrysalis rolled her eyes. Couldn’t Rover go a single day without being a baby? Diego could be annoying, that’s for sure, but in Chrysalis’s opinion he was a better worker than Rover. At least he didn’t shed fur on the patties.
“Has anyone ever told you, Rover, that for a Diamond Dog, you’re a bit of a pu--”
Chrysalis stopped her insult short when she noticed, through the window, Lyra pull into the parking lot. What in the world happened to her car!? As she watched her park, something even more interesting happened. Lyra stepped out of her vehicle with a passenger. Pinkamena.
“I’m a bit of a what?” Rover asked. Try as he might, no one ever payed attention to him.
“Shh! Not important, look out there!”
Flustered, Rover started to complain again, but his voice caught in his throat when he saw what Chrysalis was talking about. The gaping hole in the side of Lyra’s car was hard to miss.
“Ugh! I can’t believe he gave me a field sobriety test!” Lyra exclaimed as they stepped out of her car.
“I can’t believe you failed it!” Pinkamena shouted, shutting the car door behind her.
“It’s your fault I tripped!”
Pinkamena did a double take. “My fault?”
Lyra gave Pinkamena a deadpan stare. “Ponynapped. Applejack. Gummy. No sleep.”
Pinkamena scratched the back of her head sheepishly. She supposed in an indirect way it was her fault. Of course, none of it would have happened if Lyra knew how to mind her own business.
Lyra sighed, and rubbed her head. She was starting to develop a headache. “How do you sleep like that at night?”
The other mare shrugged. “Applejack’s snoring helps drown out the cars that pass by.”
Well that made perfect sense, for Pinkamena. Not that it helped Lyra. She shoved her ticket into Pinkamena’s face. “That’s wonderful, now what the hay, am I going to do about this!”
Pinkamena pushed Lyra’s hoof down dismissively. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll take care of that.”
Lyra arched an eyebrow. She’ll take care of that? How? Pinkamena saw the doubt in her eyes and reassured her, saying, “Look, just trust me, ok? I have my ways.”
“You...have your ways?”
Pinkamena rolled her eyes and turned around. “Yes, I do. Now come on, before we’re late.”
Lyra groaned in frustration, but let the issue go. For now. They had the whole day ahead of them and she felt too exhausted to argue any more. Today was going to be harsh enough. Hopefully there wasn’t going to be any rushes.
Pinkamena stopped as soon as she turned around, her eyes becoming angry slits. She could see Chrysalis and Rover, through the window, duck away at the last second. Lily Valley had just came up to look through the window as well, but Chrysalis’s hoof yanked her down, out of sight.
Not realizing she stopped, Lyra bumped into her. “Hey, what gives?”
Pinkamena faced Lyra with a ponderous look. The unicorn fidgeted under the gaze, worried that she did something else to anger the moody mare.
“Lyra?”
“Yeah?”
Lyra would never know it, and Pinkamena would never admit it, but the fact that Lyra didn’t cave in and tell officer Iron Law everything, changed Pinkamena’s opinion of her dramatically...well dramatically was stretching it. Perhaps, just a dramatic inch.
“Thanks.”
“Uh...for what?”
“For not ratting me out back there.”
Thanks? As Lyra thought about, she realized it was probably the first time she had ever heard Pinkamena thank her for anything. It felt weird. Alien.
“Oh...it was nothing. I made a promise, after all.”
Pinkamena’s eyes lingered on Lyra for a few more seconds, before turning around. As she walked towards the side entrance, she said over her shoulder, “Be ready.”
Lyra cocked her head. Be ready for what?
The duo walked into the building, and clocked in at the front counter terminals. As luck would have it, they were right on time. Pinkamena didn’t even bother to hang her satchel, with Applejack, on the wall, as she made a b-line to Sombra’s office.
Lyra wondered, for a moment, what she wanted to talk to Sombra about, but before she even made two steps into the kitchen’s drive side, her world became a blur of motion as she felt herself yanked off the ground by her forelegs. Even as her head was still spinning from her radical relocation, she found herself the butt end of a barrage of questions.
“What happened to your car!?”
“Why were you with that she-devil!?”
“Were you in a wreck?”
“When did the two of you get so chummy?”
“Are you two, like, and item now?”
Lyra shook away her disorientation and looked at Lily Valley and Chrysalis. She noticed she had been moved to the storage area in the back, the usual hang out the girls went to when they wanted to talk about someone, or pony, behind their back. This was probably what Pinkamena was warning her about.
She didn’t expect an inquisition.
“Uh...I, uh,” Lyra mumbled, “I had a...uh, small fender bender on the road.”
Chrysalis and Lily Valley inched closer, hanging on to her every word. It was a feeling that Lyra usually loved, however, in this case, they may as well have had her under a spot lamp, tied to a chair in a dark room. Lyra shuddered at the memory.
“Like, what happened,” Lily valley asked, blowing a blonde locke out of her face.
“I, um, got ran off the side of the road...into the base of street lamp,” Lyra half lied.
“That’s terrible! Did you get their plate numbers?”, Lily asked, eyes wide in shock.
“N-no.”
“Never mind that!” Chrysalis interjected, “Why did you come to work with her!”
Sweat beaded off her brow. Why hadn’t she expected this? If she had given a little thought to it, beforehoof, she would have had a decent enough excuse cooked up. Lyra was a terrible liar, when put on the spot.
“Um, well, you see I thought that since Pinkamena has to walk home all the time, that I’d, um, give her a ride.”
Chrysalis’s nose wrinkled, as if maintenance forgot to remove the dead possum from the drainage, last week. It was still a mystery how it got there. “Oh? Hmm...why the change of heart? You never gave her a ride before, and I thought we were in the general agreement that she was a basket case, ready to explode, at any given moment.”
“Yeah,” Lilly Valley chimed in, “It’s not, like, you know, she’s ever done you any favors before.”
Lyra chuckled nervously. “Heh, yeah, well I just figured maybe I’d help her out this once and, I dunno, get to know her...a little better.”
Chrysalis’s expression changed in a flash, as the would be bug queen sidled next to her. The joy of intrigue filled her eyes. “Oh, I see, you sneaky bitch. A little reconnaissance to dig up some dirt on her? Daring. So what did you find out?”
Breathing room vanished, as Chrysalis and Lily closed in on her, each with a disturbing hunger for knowledge in their eyes. Despite her best efforts, Lyra failed to disappear into the floor. She should have listened to her mother, and gone to that nice unicorn mage academy, instead of taking those musical instruction classes. Lyra had to think of something, quick, to satiate the beast, known as the gossip circle of Rainbow Burger, lest it turn and rip her asunder.
“W-well...I did learn one thing.”
Pinkamena stood in Sombra’s dimly lit office, with a glare. Sombra had been expecting her. He seemed smug.
“Did you--”
“Yes,” Sombra said, cutting her question off.
She arched an eyebrow. It almost seemed too easy. “Really?”
Sombra nodded. “Really. I gave it a lot of thought, and meditation, but at the end of the day. I realized that it was the right thing to do.”
This was unexpected. She thought Sombra would have formed a half baked excuse to postpone her raise.
“I’ve decided to change my car insurance to Spike’os. Why I waited this long to save 5% on my premium is beyond me.”
Nevermind.
“That’s not what I meant and you know it!”
Sombra stared at her for a second, before it dawned on him. “Oh...Oooh. You mean your raise,” He said as he swiveled his chair away from her to his desk.
Steam shot out of her ears. “Of course, I mean my raise!”
“Mhm. Yes. I did that, too.”
He did? Pinkamena looked at him incredulously. She wasn’t sure if he was pulling her leg or not.
“A whole bit, in fact.”
Surprise crossed her face. “A whole bit? Seriously?”
Sombra noded. “Seriously.”
She didn’t know what to say. It seemed almost too good to be true. She expected a .25 bittybit increase, .50 bittybits at best.
“What’s the catch?”
“Oh, no catch.”
Human shit, she thought. He had to have been up to something. However, she didn’t have anything to go on. Then again, maybe she was wrong. She knew she had him by the ball sack with the Tom issue. She knew he needed her. But a whole bit? That put her nearly on Chrysalis’s pay-scale.
“Now if this discussion is over, I believe you’re needed on the grill.”
“The grill?”
“Yes, on main side.”
She was dumbstruck. It went against the natural order of things. Grill duty, on mainside? For her? On a Thursday? Next to oven duty, that was the easiest job there was! If this was what she got for blackmailing Sombra, she decided to make it a habit.
“I’ll...get right on it.” She was skeptical, but what could she do about it? Might as well make the best of it. She began to walk out of his office, before glancing over her shoulder one last time. Sombra just reclined in his chair, as if there wasn’t a problem in the world. Something stunk.
As she stepped out of Sombra’s office she accidentally ran into a white unicorn.
“Oof!”
The unicorn shook her head. Realizing her blunder, she began to apologize in Mexicolt, “Perdoname, yo no estaba mirando”, but then facehoofed, switching to clipped Equus, “Oh, eh, siento, I men, sorry. Mi Equus es no good.”
Pinkamena glanced down to her name tag. She looked back up to Rareza for a brief moment, then walked away, as if she never saw her. Rareza watched Pinkamena leave, taking minor offense on how easily she was dismissed. How could somepony be so rude? She watched Pinkamena walk over and tap Rover on the shoulder before disappearing inside Sombra’s office.
Half expecting it was Diego tapping his shoulder, Rover spun around in a flurry. “What!?”
“I’m taking over the grill,” Pinkamena said, not at all phased by Rover’s snap.
His ears splayed back, embarrassed, and he muttered a quick apology. Inside, however he sighed in relief. He couldn’t wait to get away from Diego. “I’ve been waiting for you. See? I got everything cleaned up, and the cooler is even stocked.”
Waiting for her? Was there something she didn’t know? Before she could ask another question, Rover was already leaving.
“Chow,” he said, with a half-hearted wave.
As she watched Rover escape from main side she stuck her satchel under the grill, before turning to Diego, asking “What did you do this time?”
Diego looked offended. “Hey, I don’t ever do anything to Rover! He’s my homie, were tight like peanut butter and jelly!”
“You’re full of shit.”
He grinned. “My eyes are brown for a reason.”
“Same reason your breath stinks.”
Diego chuckled, full of good humor. “I switched the seasoning with fry salt. Rover didn’t figure it out, until Mr.Darkheart noticed, and bitched him out about it.”
“You’re a pain, Diego,” she said, as an order flashed on the grill screen, “Drop buns.” Pinkamena pressed the patty button on the side of the grill. As the patty shot out onto the grill, Pinkamena was walked to the sink to sanitize her hooves. “So, I guess I’m working with you today?”
He shook his head. Just as he did so the unicorn from before stepped out of Sombra’s office and approached the board. “You’re working with her,” Diego said, jerking his thumb towards Rareza. “I’m working board on drive side”
“Poor Rover,” Pinkamena said as she glanced over to Rareza.
I knew there was a catch, she thought to herself.
“Why don’t they have you train her?”
“Me?”
“Don’t you speak Spanish? It’s parallel to Mexicolt, right?”
Diego, actually looked cross, for the first time. “I’m Argentinian, it’s not the same as Mexican Spanish or Mexicoltian. I don’t even think there is an Argentina parallel in this world.”
His brows furrowed in a pensive look. “I don’t really get that.”
It was true. Mexicolt was to Mexico as Cainadae was to Canada. The countries weren’t exact parallels, as Mexicolt was much smaller than Mexico, and Equestria wasn’t divided into states like America. Poor Diego spent hours of his free time looking over maps in the public library, but never once ever found anything remotely close to a parallel with Argentina. It left a sour taste in his mouth.
“Sounds like a personal problem to me.”
The insensitive remark deflected off of Diego’s skin, as an impish smile found its way back to his face. “And now,” he said, gesturing to Rareza, “She’s your problem. Have fun you two.” Diego left the two mares to fend for themselves, as he made his way to the kitchen’s drive side. “Hey Rover! Guess what!?”
Rover’s frustration could be heard from the other side of the kitchen. “Graah!”
Pinkamena shook her head. She gave it a few more weeks before Rover either quit or Diego went missing.
She noted, with agitation, the lost look Rareza wore on her face as she glanced back and forth between the ticket and the note cards that floated within her magic, next to her. She figured it was a quick translation reference for the menu. She shook her head.
What in Tarturus does Sombra think he’s doing? Is he testing me?
She knew she was going to have to train her. Sombra could have at least told her. It didn’t make any sense to put a newbie on board during the busiest part of the day. Especially one who couldn't read or speak Equus. Why did he hire her? Was it because she was a unicorn?
The buns Diego dropped in the bun toaster, finally came down. Pinkamena grabbed the head of the bun and slid it over to Rareza. The unicorn looked at the bun, back to the screen, then to her note cards, and back to the screen again. She magicked the mayo spreader out of its pan, and was about to dress the bun, when she heard Pinkamena’s voice next to her ear.
“No.”
Rareza nearly jumped out of her skin, and turned to see Pinkamena pointing to the mustard pan.
“Oh, um...gracias,” she said, placing the mayo spreader back and taking the one for the mustard instead. After spreading the mustard and putting the lettuce on the bun, she started to check her note cards again, when Pinkamena slapped them away.
“No.”
Rareza was aghast. How dare she! She was about to protest when Pinkamena pointed to the tomatoes. It ruffled her fur, but this mare was her superior here. Taking the hint, with an exasperated sigh, she scooped four of them up in her telekinesis and laid the slices on the bun.
“No.”
Pinkamena picked a tomato slice off the bun and tossed it back into the pan. She pointed back to the bun.
“Three,” She said, tapping the counter with her hoof three times and repeating the word for emphasis.
For the next thirty minutes, it continued like that. Short, simple commands, and lots of pointing. The Mexicoltian’s vocabulary expanded as Pinkamena conducted her one word training regiment. As the orders progressed, Rareza soon had all all the ingredients ingrained into her brain, from constant repetition. While the training was effective she still wasn’t thrilled by the tone Pinkamena used with her. Even so, she couldn’t deny the mare’s expertise. Or speed.
“Buns,” Pinkamena called out to her when the next order came up. It aggravated Rareza. By now she already knew to put buns down when the order printed out. Grumbling a curse under her breath, she deftly magicked a pair of buns, sitting on the bun rack behind her, out of their plastic bag. She didn’t even bother to look, before she began to toss them into the bun toaster.
“No.”
Rareza jumped once again. She spun around to find Pinkamena standing behind her with a pair of buns in her hooves.
“Small,” she said, holding the smaller pair of buns up to her face.
“Oh, heh, pequeño,” She chuckled nervously, as she replaced the large buns back into their place on the bun rack, while simultaneously tossing the small buns into the bun toaster with her magic. The tricky telekinetic maneuver didn’t escape Pinkamena’s notice, however.
Another order flashed on the grill screen. As Pinkamena turned to go press the patty button on the far side of the grill, she saw a flash of blue and the button pressed on its own, shooting out a patty onto the grill. Pinkamena turned to regard the unicorn behind her. Rareza wore a smug smile.
Decent reach. Better than Lyra’s.
As the day went on, Pinkamena had to intervene numerous times to help Rareza, where a simple ‘no’ didn’t elaborate the complexities of a customized Cloudsdale special. Rareza, for one, appreciated the help, but still couldn’t get used to Pinkamena’s shortness with her. Couldn’t the mare lighten up a little bit?
“No.” Pinkamena corrected once again. Rareza bit back a curse.
Pinkamena lifted up the bun and pointed to the ingredient she forgot. Rareza looked to where she was pointing then up to the order on her ticket. Jalapeños. How embarrassing.
“Oops,” she squeaked, correcting her mistake.
“Try not to miss the one thing you should already be able to read,” Pinkamena said, before she walked back to the grill.
Rareza wasn’t sure what she said, but it sounded like a shot at her expense. Etiquette be damned, she wasn’t raised to take that kind of tone from anypony.
“¿Por que tu no sacas eso palo de proverbios de tu cuarto trasero?” she said under her breath. It wasn’t lady like, but she needed the catharsis of letting off some of her frustration. It’s not like the mare would understand her, anyways.
“Por que, si lo hago te voy a dar adentro de tu cabeza muy duro que la tinte en tu melena va a formar una prueba de Rorschach en el pared,” Pinkamena replied back, in perfect Mexicoltian.
Rareza ‘eeped’, spinning around to face Pinkamena. “Que?! Tu sabes...todo este tiempo!”
“Si,” Pinkamena deadpanned.
The Mexicoltian stood there with her mouth open. Anger flashed on her face. “¡¿Por que tu no me dijiste antes?! ¡Eso pudo hacer las cosas más fácil!”
Pinkamena shrugged. “Tu no preguntástes. Eso es como yo entreno todas las personas.”
Rareza opened her mouth to say something else, but found a pink hoof preventing her.
“Antes que tu digas algo mas,” Pinkamena said with grave intent, “Yo quiero preguntarte algo y yo quiero que tu seas honesta conmigo.” She narrowed her eyes. “No mientas.”
Rareza broke out in a cold sweat. What did she want with her? Pinkamena drew in closer, like a jungle cat ready to tear out her jugular...then asked the one question she dreaded the most.
“Tu. Tienes. Tu. ¿Suncard?”
Bang
Sombra was enjoying building his troops on an adware ridden browser game, when the door to his office exploded open. He wasn’t surprised.
“Ah, Pinkie Pie. I was expecting another visit from you,” Sombra said, without turning around from his game. Micromanaging resources, required attention to detail.
“That’s Pinkamena,” she said, slamming the door shut behind her, “You sneaky piece of shit.”
Sombra cupped his hooves together under his chin, and spun around to face his enraged employee. “Language, Mrs. Pie.”
“Fuck you! Do you think I’m really that stupid?”
Sombra reeled his head back at the accusatory hoof, she pointed his way. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Perhaps, you could elaborate?”
“Do I really have to spill it out for you? The Mexicoltian!”
“Oh?” Sombra shrugged. “What about her?”
He didn’t think it was possible, but Pinkamena’s face contorted into an even higher magnitude of outrage. How did it not cramp up like that? It looked painful.
“She’s an illegal! The only reason you gave me a whole bit, for a raise, is because you’re undercutting her pay!”
Sombra laughed. “Nonsense! What a ridiculous accusation! To be quite honest, you should feel ashamed of yourself! I’ve been aware of your anti-human sentimentality for a while, and have tolerated it up to this point…”
What?
“However, I didn’t think your bigotry would extend to your own kin.”
Pinkamena mentally braced herself for the coming white noise.
“Just because a pony’s heritage comes from a dirty, backward, country such as Mexicolt, doesn’t mean that they’re automatically an illegal immigrant. Ignorant assumptions like that, more than anything, is what divides our noble people against each other against the menace of human corruption that has taken root in pony society,” He said, stopping to clear his throat, ”Not that I think that, of course, I’m simply pointing out the errancy of your own world view. It seems to me that it would be counterproductive to your ideals to hold such a bias against--”
Sombra had to cut his moral dissertation off short when he found Pinkamena’s face inches from his.
“Sombra,” she hissed between her teeth.
Sombra blinked. “Yes?”
“Cut it out. I know. And I know, you know, I know.”
Her glare left little room for his usual tactics. He was going to have to wrap this up, quick. Sombra was sure Tr0lld_U_Ha_101 was attacking his castle by now.
A bored expression grew on his face. “Ah...very well then. Then let me ask you one simple question.”
The angry glimmer in her eye never faltered. “Ask away.”
Sombra cleared his throat. “Why do you care?”
“What?” she asked, backing away from Sombra.
Seeing his advantage he pressed his point forward. “Why do you care, Mrs.Pie? It’s not as if it affects you in any way, you still get your raise, after all.”
“Why do I care? Why wouldn’t I care! I can’t take a raise at somepony else’s expense! I’m not like you, or Chrysalis! I.., “ she said, huffing out her chest, whilst pointing to herself, “...work and earn what I make.”
Sombra chuckled darkly. “Oh ho ho. You most certainly do. And while that certainly is cute...tell me. Why didn’t you care, before?”
Now she was confused. “Before?”
“Yes. Before. Do you remember Flora Azula? Bobo Patoso?” Sombra got up from his chair, a triumphant look already on his face. “Espina Salvaje?”
Pinkamena searched her memory. She did recall them. Sombra couldn’t be implying what she thought he was.
Of course he is, Pinkamena mentally chastised herself. It suddenly made sense. Hes been doing this sort of thing the whole time. It never really dawned on her, however. She rarely talked to Bobo or Espina, and while she dealt with Flora the most, she could speak Equus just fine.
“Surprised?” Sombra asked.
“I shouldn’t be...what’s your point?”
Sombra looked shocked. “My point? Why just that. Why didn’t you care about them?”
“I didn’t know, obviously.”
“Aha!” Sombra shouted triumphantly, “You didn’t know! But let me ask you this, now: Was it that you didn’t care, because you didn’t know, or rather, you didn’t want to know, because you didn’t care?”
An uncertainty crept up her chest. It might have been that she never figured it out, because she was too absorbed in work and her own personal problems. So what? That didn’t mean anything.
“Excuse me?”
Sombra held up a hoof. “Wait, hold that thought.”
He jumped back into his chair, swiveling around to face his computer. Opening up his browser game, he checked the latest war reports. “Dammit!” To his dismay, Tr0lld_U_Ha_101 and someone else called CharlieXSundance4ever sacked him for over 10,000 units of resources. Sombra queued up more defensive units and adjusted his city tax rates, before spinning back around to Pinkamena.
“Sorry about that, now where were we?”
Pinkamena blinked. “Don’t know. Don’t care.”
“Ah yes! That’s right. You never really cared. It wasn’t that you didn’t know, you never cared enough to find out to begin with.”
That was stretching things too far.
“Sombra, that’s stupid, and irrelevant. Besides, I know now, and I do care.”
An evil grin cracked across Sombra’s face. “Is it, now? Oh come now, just exactly why is it that you care so much? You never cared about anyone here, other than yourself, admit it. I’ve seen the way you work, and I’ve seen the way you treat others here, don’t think I haven’t. You couldn’t give less of a shit what happens to anyone here, after all, you said it yourself.”
He had her attention now.
“If one of the girls, here, ends up missing, or dead in a ditch, I don’t care. It’s on your head,” Sombra said, quoting Pinkamena word for word, from their conversation about Tom.
If looks could kill, Sombra should have been a spouting a fountain of blood from the holes Pinkamena bored into him, with her glare. She could feel the smoldering anger in her chest, threatening to burst out and immolate him. The gall he had was unfathomable.
“You’re twisting words around.”
“Am I?” Sombra asked in a dark voice, "Then why is it you suddenly care? Is it just because, in this one particular instance of exploitation, you actually stand to profit, thus staining your self image, or do you really care about them? Don’t you think you’re being a little self-righteous, I mean, they all did come to me. Willingly, so. An undercut pay is a fair enough trade-off to escape Mexicolt’s less than desirable political climate.”
“I don’t care for your rhetoric, Sombra,” Pinkamena spat.
Sombra chuckled. “You know what I think?”
“Enlighten me.”
“Gladly...I think the offense you take to what I do, stands on nothing but moral pretense. I think the real reason you care, has nothing to do with the exploitation of a single Mexicoltian, as much as it has to do with your pride, and vendetta against me...I’ll ask you another question. Have you ever thought about marriage?”
And now he completely lost her.
“What!?”
“Marriage. It’s a simple question. Have you ever thought of it?”
That...that drudged up some bad memories.
“...Maybe. What does that have to do with anything?”
Sombra, magicked from the shelf over his desk, a hoof band, and showed it to Pinkamena. The diamond in the band glistened in negative color values, within the blacklight of Sombra’s magic.
“This is a very rare and very expensive diamond...belonged to my mother actually. Quite beautiful, isn’t it?”
Pinkamena wasn’t impressed. “A gift to your girlfriend?”
Sombra laughed. “Maybe...but that’s neither here nor there. Did you know that once upon a time, diamonds and other gems used to be extremely common in Equestria, to the point that they were worth next to nil? Used to be the only thing that they were good for were decorations for clothes.”
This talk was getting boring. “I remember my middle school history class. Get to the point.”
“Right...after the Diamond Dog treaty, and the technological exchange, gems and diamonds in Equestria started disappearing at a rapid rate. They were becoming rarer and rarer, as more and more were being mined for technological use, especially for the trans-dimensional gates. Just as many were lost, during the Griffon War, in their implementation of weapon enhancement. Countless were burnt up, being used as power sources, for her Highness’s battle mages. Becoming as scarce as they are, pony and human soon had to go seeking out deposits abroad. This diamond here,” Sombra said pulling the diamond studded hoof band to his face, “was mined from Zebrica. By exploited Zebricans. Half of them probably children, or the elderly. All, grossly underpaid.”
Sombra arched an eyebrow. “More so than the Mexicoltian.”
“That still doesn’t make it right!”
Sombras eyes flashed green. “That’s the way of the world! It isn’t even a secret, anyone can do an internet search and find out, but it doesn’t change! And do you know why?”
Sombra’s visage engulfed Pinkamena’s sight. She took a step back.
“Because no one really cares. Everyone cries foul on the sweatshops that exploit Mexicoltians if it happens on our soil, but no one bats an eyelash if it happens out of sight and out of mind. All because of moral pretenses, and not because anyone or anypony really cares. That’s the real truth. We only care about our reputations.”
Sombra's voice, lowered deeper. "So long as we look good in front of our peers, the rest of the world can burn."
Pinkamena gulped. Deep down inside, though she didn’t want to admit it, she knew Sombra was right...on some levels. Maybe he was completely right. Maybe it was just all moral pretense. It's not as if Rareza walked into her situation not knowing what she was getting into. If she didn’t like it, she could always leave. Who was Pinkamena to complain, if she got paid an extra bit out of it?
He...no. He's not right.
Sombra's voice echoed in her mind. No one cared. She didn't care enough to learn more about Flora. Before today, she didn't have a clue about Zebrican diamonds. Was it really that common? If that was public knowledge, why didn't Celestia do something about it? Perhaps, Sombra was blowing smoke up her haunches.
And yet, every single day that she worked, customers would come in and demand her to fill their gullets. They'd trickle through, and then they'd pour in. When they did come rushing in, like a school of fat, blithering piranhas, did any of them care if the employees were overworked in the back? Did any of them ever sincerely thank them? No. To them they were one thing, and one thing only. A convenience. And if you made a mistake, or took too long to shovel the transfats they desperately desired, down their throats, then you were worthless to them. No one cared.
What of Rareza, then? As Pinkamena hesitated, she found herself rationalizing. If not Rareza, then who? In the end, she was just another statistic and Pinkamena was just another fast food worker. She couldn't stop the way the world worked.
She couldn't stop it then, either.
"I won't tell if you wont," He whispered.
Pinkamena's gaze lifted up from the ground. She stared at Sombra. She hated him. She hated him more, now, than she ever hated Chrysalis. He just stared back, smug and confident.
The next two words tasted like bile on her tongue.
"You win."
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Wow, I'm surprised that you updated so fast! Anyways, good work again man!
I'm glad I was able to help. I'm a bit skeptical about my use of 'adentro de', but it is more minor than anything.
I do enjoy that Monty Python reference there.
Damn... just... damn. I love you so much right now. Normally I don't care for parallels in Equestria, but since this AU ties everything so closely to Earth and humanity, it's fitting.
Can't say Sombra is wrong. We all suck.
Very well written as usual.
You make-a me cry.
NOBODY EXPECTS THE INQUISITION!
Wow. You didn't even do it right!
Shut up, Pinkie.
Wow... she's actually taking it. That's actually realistic, genuinely compromising her morals for more money.
I really like this.