The Hallucinations
Starlight Glimmer’s ear twitched as she heard someone knocking at the door. “Hello? Anybody in there? Open up!”
Starlight lowered the bottle from her mouth. “Do you think I should let her in?”
Star Breeze, the friendly little breezie who called this barn her home, smiled and waved dismissively. “Ah, I wouldn’t worry about it lass. Ye still haven’t finished your antitoxin, the little lassie can wait a minute.”
Another breezie shook his head. “Hmm, I don’t know about that lass. Sure, this might be our home away from home, but this still be her property.”
“Ugh, don’t get me started on pony property, Light Breeze. Hey, Miss Glimmer, did we ever tell ye about the-”
“About Mrs. Capricorn’s garden? I remember that!” Starlight said with a smile.
“Starlight?” she heard Apple Pony say. Starlight looked up as Apple Pony opened the barn door and Smiled at her. “Starlight? What in the hay are you doing here?”
“Hey! That’s pretty funny!” Starlight giggled. “What in the hay am I doing sitting in a pile of hay! Good one!”
Apple Pony blinked a few times as Starlight took another sip of her medicine. “Starlight? Are you okay?”
“Ugh! ‘Are you okay, Starlight?’ Don’t ye just get sick of that question?” Star Breeze. “Honestly, when was the last time ye put this silly pony in the Equalization House?”
“Do you know what would be better? Put her little sister in the house! A family that learns together, grows together!” Light Breeze said.
“Starlight, everybody’s really worried about you. Here, let me help you-”
“That won’t be necessary. Thank you for your concern, Apple Pony, but I’m fine. Really!” Starlight said.
Apple Pony raised an eyebrow as she watched Starlight take another sip of medicine. “Starlight, where did you even get that? I thought you banned all Antitoxin beverages.”
“A ban on antitoxin? This mare really is a few apples short of a pie, ain’t she?” Star Breeze muttered.
Starlight rolled her eyes. “There’s no need for insults.”
Apple Pony blinked in confusion. “What? Starlight, what are you talking about?”
“Oh! Maybe she just wants to know why the hospital sent you here to get more!” Light Breeze said.
“Well clearly, I had to get more when the hospital ran out! I got as much antitoxin medicine I could find, but this infection just won’t DIE, you know? Then I remembered that you had some medicine stored away. I didn’t ask because I knew you wouldn’t mind, dearie. It’s the neighbourly thing to do.” Starlight said and took another drink.
“Starlight stop!” Apple Pony said as she very rudely pulled the medicine away. “You shouldn’t be Curing in your condition!”
“Now that was just rude!” Star Breeze shouted. “Hey, you wanna go, tough mare?!”
Light Breeze held his sister back. “Now hold on, darling. Self-medication is always a tricky road to travel. She’s just concerned about our sweet little Starlight.”
“I guess you’re right,” Starlight sighed as she stood up.
“Hey there, easy now,” Star Breeze said as Apple Pony helped her up. “Your hooves are probably asleep; you were sitting down for a while there, lassie.”
“Don’t worry, I’m up,” Starlight said as she removed the pajamas on her hooves.
“Starlight, you shouldn’t be Taking Off Pajamas there. The Apple Pie might open up and then there’d be a real mess.”
“Did you find her?” Starlight smiled as she saw Big Red and Bow Girl walk into the barn.
“Hello there my little ponies!” Starlight said as she waved cheerfully with Star Breeze and Light Breeze. “It’s a beautiful day this morning, isn’t it?”
Without waiting for an answer, Starlight levitated herself up and flew past the Apple family. She touched down outside and gazed up at the clouds. She chuckled as she watched blackened soot equal signs slowly drifted past, like leaves gently flowing down a river.
“Whoa! How’d you do that?” Bow Girl asked.
“He, he! Silly little earth pony! It’s like she’s never seen magic before,” Light Breeze chuckled.
“Now, now, it’s not right to laugh. It’s not Bow Girl’s fault that she’s an uneducated mud pony,” Star Breeze said. “She’s just woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, ye know how it is.”
“I’m sorry if I interrupted your morning routine everypony,” Starlight said.
“Oi, ye could never be a bother to us, lassie!” Light Breeze and Star Breeze said.
“Listen um, Miss Glimmer?” Bow Girl asked. “You look really tired. I was talking to Sweet Voice and Scooter Kid and they said Purple Book wanted-”
“I think what my Slapstick wanted to say was…why don’t we help you Find The Filly? The Doctor Worm should know what’s wrong with HER,” Apple Pony said gently.
“Oi, ye don’t need these lazy farmers. We’ll help ye, lass!” Star Breeze said.
“Thank you for the offer, but I can get back to my search on my own. Thank you,” Starlight said.
She frowned as Apple Pony dashed in front of her. Her pink eyes narrowed as her rainbow wings flapped in agitation. “Sugarcube, I insist I help you Find The Filly.”
“Why? I can find The Filly on my own,” Starlight said.
“Starlight, you’re not feeling well and you Won’t Feel Well Until You Catch Her. The Hench Gorillas said that you need to recover from what happened with the Parasites, not go running off to catch The Bane Of Harmony.”
“Apple Pony, I know you’re concerned about me, but I do this for the safety of Equestria,” Starlight said with noble purpose.
“Holy cow, look at you!” Starlight spun around to face The Filly. “You’ve really lost it, haven’t you? Several dozen apples short of a pie. Ooh, it’s everything I could have hoped for!” The Filly giggled as she scooped up popcorn with her long, snakelike tongue.
“Gotcha!” Starlight shouted triumphantly as she tackled The Filly. But The Filly easily drifted away from Starlight.
“He, he, he! Time for Hide and Seek. Come and seek me, Starry!” The Filly cheered as she flapped her blood-soaked, bat wings and flew away.
“You’re not getting away, traitor! I am the best at Hide and Seek!” Starlight shouted heroically as she ran levitated herself with her awesome magic and flew towards The Filly.
“Starlight?” She looked over her shoulder to see Darling and Scooter Kid. “Sweet Sun Princess, are you okay?”
“Thank you for your concern Darling, but I’m fine. I just need to find The Filly. She’s very good at Hide and Seek.”
“Um, Darling?” Scooter K-K-Sweet Voice spoke up and twirled her hoof around her head. “I think Starlight has finally Realized She Is the Hide And Seek Queen. Shouldn’t we take her to the Filly So She Can Be Punished?”
“Oh, you girls know where The Filly is?” Starlight asked.
“Now Starlight, please listen to us!” Darling said. “You need to let us take you to The Fashion Pony. We Have Cloaks This Month.”
“Can I Play Hide And Seek With You?” Sweet Voice said.
“Of course, darling,” Starlight said as she lifted the giggling unicorn into the air.
“Starlight! Put her down! She hasn’t done anything Today, Because She Is A Lazy Filly!”
“Um, yeah! I’m a Lazy Filly Who Needs To Play House!”
“Well okay then.” Starlight turned towards the Fun Time Happy House, but stopped when D-d-D-Rarity blocked her path.
“Starlight, please, let her go,” Rarity pleaded, as strawberry sauce spilled out of her pink eyes.
“Now Rare it Darling, let me make this clear. Some pony is going into that house today. It can be Sweet Voice or The Filly. What’s it going to be?”
“Hey Starlight, look at me!” The Filly said as she waved at Starlight. “I’m crowd surfing!”
Starlight glared at The Filly as two stallions in distress carried her on a throne of candy coated spikes. “There you are!”
She leapt at The Filly and gasped as The Filly split into multiple copies of herself.
“Whoa! Miss Glimmer, are you alright? Why’d you go and smash that fragile G-g-G Filly? Don’t you know that She will cut you?”
“Why don’t we take this party somewhere private, hey Starry?” The Filly asked innocently, her scorpion tail twisting behind her. “Follow me now!”
Starlight gasped for breath as she galloped after The Filly. She was so close. So close she could almost reach and grab her neck...
“Oh Starlight! Are you okay?”
Starlight growled as yet another distraction interrupted her heroic quest. “What do you want Shut-Up Fly?”
Shut-Up Fly cowardly cringed at Starlight’s completely reasonable tone. “N-nothing. I just asked you how your day was going.”
“For the last time, I’m fine! I just have to grab that aggravating Filly and throw her in…what’s that?”
Shut-Up Fly smiled. “Oh, it’s the most wonderful-est thing ever! Dragon Sidekick came back to us! He ran off to see Purple Book before we could really reconnect. But look! He brought my friend back! Isn’t he just the cutest little bunny you’ve ever seen?”
Starlight snorted at the rabbit. “Adorable. Now if you don’t mind getting out of my way, I need to-”
“We meet at long last, vile witch.”
Starlight blinked several times before she take a closer look at the rabbit, who was now wearing a black and red cape.
“I couldn’t help but notice you cowering in fear of me! Continue to do so, as this is the proper action when faced with the dark lord of kick flank and chewing vegetables.”
“Uh…”
“As it is custom, I shall introduce myself. I am the Count Angelus von Bunniculus. I have allowed my loyal thrall Fluttershy the honour of shortening my name to Angel Bunny. You have not earned this honour, nor the privilege to bask in my presence. This grave transgression can only be resolved by the shedding of your blood upon my afternoon salad.”
“…Mommy, Sunburst enchanted my doll again…” Starlight mumbled.
“Ah, so it is madness. Not an uncommon reaction to my presence. Perhaps a bedtime story shall bring you to your senses, fractured though they may be.” Angelus von Bunniculus cleared his throat. “Once upon a time, there was a village filled with a Bunny Lord and his many thralls. But one day, a vile witch dared to think that she could brainwash and enslave the Bunny Lord’s loyal servants. So the Bunny Lord summoned a mighty pink and white dragoness to vanquish the evil enchantress.”
As Angelus von Bunniculus talked, he took out a purple coloured carrot. “First, the dragoness bit off the witch’s horn, so that her witchcraft could never be used to harm another.” He bit the top of the carrot off. “Then she bit off the witch’s legs, so that she would not escape justice.” He bit off the bottom of the carrot next. “Once the dragoness knew that the witch could not escape…she savoured her meal. Peeling away at the despicable…yet delicious flesh…”
Angelus slowly sank his teeth into the carrot and pulled upward. Starlight watched as the purple carrot was peeled into pieces; watched as the flesh began to bleed and rot; watched as all her carefully laid plans were stripped away until there wasn’t a shred of hope left for Starlight, only the roaring madness in an endless field of grass and blood and laughter, make it stop, make it stop, make it…
“Starlight! Starlight, snap out of it!” Shut-Up Fly said as she shook Starlight awake.
“What the…hey! What did you do to me?!” Starlight snapped at the pegasus. She glared up at the grass and said, “And who told the weather team to put mud in the sky? I specifically asked for spaghetti sundae…” Starlight trailed off. She blinked several times and shook her head. “Something is very wrong.”
“I’ll say. Starlight, I don’t normally do this kind of thing but I refuse to keep quiet anymore. I’m taking you to a hospital. Now let’s go and…”
“Oh Starry!” Starlight snarled as she saw The Filly, cheerfully waving from the door of a public restroom. “I just wanted to remind you about your appointment! With my obvious trap! That you’re going to fall into like a dummy!”
“Ah ha! Got you now!” Starlight cheered as she chased The Filly into the bathroom. She grinned as she finally cornered the floating Filly, hovering over the sink.
“Ah ha, got you now. Congratulations Starlight. You caught up with your own reflection.”
“What are you talking about?” Starlight asked.
“What are you talking about, Starry? I’d say it’s pretty obvious.”
“Nothing is ever that simple with you.”
“Of course, nothing is ever that simple with you. I need to explain the joke as always.”
“Hey! Stop copying me!” Starlight calmly asked.
“Lady, this is a mirror. This is kind of what they do,” The Filly said.
“I…” Starlight scratched her head. “I don’t understand.”
“There, there, it’s okay Starry. I’ve been where you are now. Allow me to be the first to welcome you to the Wide World of Hallucinations.”
“What?” Starlight asked as she carefully removed the pajamas on her hoof.
“You’re afraid, dearie. You’re so afraid that you’ve scared yourself out of your mind. That would have to be the case if I’m the one you see in the mirror now.” The Filly giggled at her. “Look at you. Twitching all over the place, jumping at shadows, and scratching yourself silly.”
“What? I’m not scratching myself. That would be unladylike! I’m just having trouble removing my pajamas. My…” Starlight trailed off as she looked at her bare hooves, which were looking really red.
“My insanity is contagious, darling. It spreads like wildfire,” The Filly whispered in her ear. “You’ve got a case of bad blood, and you’re desperately trying to scratch it out.”
“No…No, I’m…I’m uh…” Starlight stammered.
“That wasn’t antitoxin or some Cure All medicine you were drinking Starlight.”
Starlight paled. “Then what was I drinking?”
The Filly gave her a nasty grin. “That’s for me to know and you to imagine. It’s time to face facts Starry. You’ve lost your mind. The only way to get it back now is with my help.”
“Why would I want your help?! You insane, diseased, hyperactive, chocolate drinking, lunatic!” Starlight growled as her horn glowed with power.
“You know this is still a mirror, right? Oh, what am I saying? I’m inside your head, of course you don’t remember that. Well allow me to remind you, I’m not the real filly. I’m a part of you, darling. And as a part of you, I have your best interests at heart. You want this nightmare to end? Find the real filly.”
“There’s…there’s a…” Starlight’s eyes widened. “There’s a book I can use to find you.”
“Aw, see? It’s not hopeless after all! Come on Starry, let’s see a happy smile.”
Starlight ignored the giggling in her mind and ran out of the bathroom. She froze in her tracks as she encountered a crowd of pink eyed ponies. There was Apple Pony, Darling, Sweet Voice, Grown Up Enemy, Purple Book, and Shut-Up Fly, along with her friends Double Diamond and Muffin Girl.
“You really think it’s that simple, silly filly,” Grown Up Enemy asked, as she brushed her chocolate cake filled mane away.
“You can’t run from yourself, darling,” Shut Up Fly said. “Believe me, we’ve tried.”
“You could just give these people their magic back. Things would go so much smoother,” Sweet Voice said.
“Tune out the voices, Starlight Glimmer,” Purple Book said. Her pink eyes glowed brighter than the others. “There’s something in my castle. It could help you.”
“If you’re going to threaten my family for our own safety, you’ll have to go through us,” Apple Pony said, as the pink in her eyes slowly changed to green.
“Get out of my head!” Starlight shouted as she fired a bubble of telekinetic energy, knocking back all her enemies. She levitated herself and flew to the castle as fast as she could.
She teleported into the library and took several deep breaths. “Okay, Starlight. You’ve got this.”
“No you don’t,” The Filly said as appeared in a puff of pink smoke, lazily flipping through a book.
“Quiet,” Starlight grumbled at what she knew to be a hallucination. “I just need a spell to get everything back under control.”
“Oh sure, because when has that ever backfired?” The Filly giggled. “You’re just delightful, ya know that Miss Mental Meltdown?”
“I SAID QUIET!” Starlight snapped.
“Watching Starry, melting down! Do da, do da!” The Filly sang.
“Argh! How can you still be so annoying when you’re in my own mind!” Starlight grumbled for a few seconds before an evil smile formed on her face. “My mind…that’s what it is. It’s all a matter of the mind. Yes…”
“Ooh, sounds like you’ve captured a particularly devious idea. I approve.” The Filly chuckled. “Well, while you take the bait and fall into my trap for the twelfth time, I’ll be over here making out with your boyfriend.”
“Jokes on her, I don’t have a boyfriend,” Starlight chuckled. She levitated several books down and flipped through, giggling to herself as she worked. “I know just the thing to bend these lesser minds to my will. Fiducia Compelus…oh, that’s not good enough. Ooh…maybe Cogeria…if I combined the two! And just a hint of Persuadere. Ooh, this will be spectacular.”
“Mm, speaking of spectacular, I can see why you’re so passionate about Sunburst here.”
“Wait, WHAT?!” Starlight spun around to see The Filly, kissing Sunburst.
The two ponies kissed with escalating passion. Eventually, Sunburst broke away from The Filly. “Hey, aren’t I a little too old for you?”
The Filly shrugged. “What can I say? I like boys with a sense of maturity. Opposites attract and all that. Plus, I just find redheads so irresistible. Your mane is like fire. And blood.”
Sunburst gulped as The Filly licked her lips. “Okay, you’re starting to creep me out. I really think I’m too old for you.”
“Hey, you’re a hallucination. What do you care?”
Sunburst smiled. “Oh. Good point. Back to kissing.”
Starlight felt her blood boil as the two went back at it. “I see what you’re trying to do. Well your distractions won’t work anymore. I know the real Sunburst would never do that!”
“Well of course you know. That’s the best part.” Sunburst disappeared as The Filly crept closer to her. “You know that you’re just talking to thin air. You know this is a trap. You know that I’m tricking you. Lying to you. Manipulating you. And you have no way of stopping me. No way out of this trap.”
“I do now!” Starlight grinned as she held the book up. “Once I cast this spell, you’ll have no choice but to obey my every command. You’ll become equal and my life will go back to the way it should be.” She let out a crazed laugh. “Who knows. Maybe I’ll cast this spell on every pony in Equestria. Just to be sure you don’t have a contingency plan.”
The Filly returned Starlight’s evil grin with one of her own. “Not bad Starlight. Overpowering my brilliant strategy with your brute magical strength. That could almost work. But you’re forgetting something.”
Starlight frowned. “What’s that?”
“I just told you. You know what I’m doing to you. I guess you just haven’t wrapped your mind around the extend of how much I’ve lied to you.”
“What are you babbling about, you blasted…” Starlight trailed off as something clouded her vision. Black and white spots, lazily floating around her. Like letters in alphabet soup. Exactly like letters in…
Starlight’s eyes widened as she looked at her books and saw the words for the spells float off the pages.
“Oh, I’ll bet a mind control spell would put quite a whammy on me…but are you sure that’s the real spell?”
“You…you’re just trying to trick me! I know this is the real Fidelio Compelus. No…the…the Fiducia Calculator. Cog…cogs on wheat toast…the…” Starlight trailed off as she tried to read the book.
“It’s probably for the best. After all, how can you control the minds of others…when you can’t even control your own?”
Starlight gulped. Her hallucination was right. Mind control spells could be found in almost any library but that’s only because so few ponies had the magical strength to cast them. There was no danger of giving a weapon to hundreds of people when only two of them would ever know how to use it.
“Still, I think I’ll go and encourage you to use it. Whether the spell works or not…I’m sure it’ll be very entertaining.”
As The Filly laughed, Starlight frantically pondered her next move. The Filly was right. Casting the spell was a bad idea…unless that’s what she wanted…unless she knew that she’d figure it out…which meant that she’d…”
“That’s what makes my plan even better!” The Filly giggled. “Do you fall into my trap? Or do you fall into my other trap? I’m actually forcing you to choose how you’re going to torture yourself!”
“No…no…there has to be another way…” Starlight muttered, choking on a sob.
“There probably is. And there will a third trap, waiting for you.”
“You’re lying.”
“Of course, I am. But are you willing to risk your very soul on that?”
Starlight stared at the glowing pink eyes of The Filly and teleported the castle, hoping to end the nightmare. No matter the cost.
Starlight quickly zipped past another group of ponies who were looking in the opposite direction. She faded back into the shadows as she evaded the people of Ponyville. Starlight wasn’t even sure how she was doing it or what spells she was using but as long as it got the job done she didn’t care. She couldn’t trust anyone in Ponyville until the filly was under her control. Once that was done, nobody would ever be able to defy her.
…Starlight swore she heard someone laugh at her, but dismissed it as another hallucination.
Unless…that’s what the hallucination wanted her to think.
A huge grin sprouted on Starlight’s face as she finally caught sight of the thing that she had been searching for all day. “AHA!” She rushed out of the shadows and barged into a local bakery where two ponies were talking to each other. “I FINALLY got you!”
Annoying Rainbow stared at her in shock while the filly stared at her with growing amusement. “Starlight? Yeesh, you don’t look so good.”
“She looks perfect to me!” the filly said
“Okay seriously squirt, not the best time. Starlight, you look even worse than Pinkie Pie did that one time she thought we forgot her birthday. And trust me, it was WAY worse than what it sounds like,” Annoying Rainbow frowned. “Now the only reason I haven’t kicked your flank is because you look like you’re gonna pass out, so you’d better listen to-”
“GET LOST!” Starlight shouted as she grabbed Annoying Rainbow with her magic and sent her flying out the window. She locked the doors and shut the windows with her magic before turning to the filly. “At last. At long, long, last. We’re finally alone.”
The filly grinned. “Indeed we are. I’ve been dreaming of this moment.”
“Oh no, little nameless one. This isn’t like last time. I’m in control now. A little Fiducia Compellus mixed with some Corgeia and Persuadio, and you’ll be all mine!” Starlight let out a dark chuckle as her horn glowed with power.
The filly’s eyes widened. “Oh no! W-what are you going to do to me?!”
If Starlight hadn’t been so enraged, she might have picked up on the very sudden mood change. “Oh ho! I’ve finally got you scared, do I?”
“P-please, Starlight! You don’t need to do this!” the filly cried very loudly as she hid her face from Starlight.
“YES! Yes I do!” Starlight laughed. “Finally! I’ve finally got you afraid of me! And now, I’ll make sure you NEVER defy my orders, ever again! He, he, he!”
Her horn glowed with even more power as she got ready to cast her spell. “Alright, you nameless freak of nature! Time to make you equal once and for all!”
“Starlight, please! Don’t hit me – OW!” the filly cried as she slammed her own face into a table.
That particular action shocked Starlight out of her anger for just a moment. “Huh? W-what are you doing?”
The filly ran into the bakery’s kitchen, crying loudly. “P-please Starlight! I promise I’ll put the mark on! Just please don’t hurt – OW!” she shouted as slammed her face into a drawer.
“What are you doing, you diseased lunatic!” Starlight growled as she ran into the room…and almost into something much deadlier.
Starlight’s eyes widened as she felt the tip of a very large knife brush up against her throat. She froze in fear as she stared at the filly holding the knife up to her. An evil grin and angry pink eyes gazed up at her, staring straight into her soul.
“Be careful what you wish for, Mommy.” The filly hissed before she spun the knife around in her hoof and stabbed herself in the flank.
Starlight's jaw dropped as the filly screamed in pain. “OW! LET ME GO!” She pulled the knife out of the bloody cut only to stab herself yet again in the flank. “OWWW! STOP! PLEASE I’M BEGGING YOU!”
Before the filly could hurt herself any further, Starlight yanked the blood soaked knife out of her hooves with her magic. “Have you lost your mind?!”
Rainbow Dash burst into the room wearing a scowl on her face. “Hey! What’s the big idea-AIEE!”
Starlight spun around to face Rainbow; her mind still too overwhelmed to do much beyond that. But the filly was ten steps ahead of her, as always. She dove behind Rainbow Dash and hugged her tightly, tears welling up in her eyes.
“Rainbow Dash! You’ve gotta help me! Starry’s finally lost it! She s-said if she couldn’t make me e-equal with her magic, she…s-she’d…”
Starlight gulped as her mind processed the sobbing filly, the furious Rainbow, and the blood-soaked knife that she was still foolishly levitating. “S-she’s lying! Rainbow, y-you need to-”
Rainbow swung her hoof at Starlight, punching her hard in the face. And while the loss of her cutie mark prevented Rainbow from flying fast, her body was still that of an athlete. As Starlight laid sprawled and dizzied on the floor, Rainbow grabbed the filly’s hoof and galloped out of Sugarcube Corner. “RUN FOR IT, KID!”
Starlight groaned as she pushed herself to get back on her hooves as quick as she could. If she didn’t hurry, the filly would spread her lie to everyone in Ponyville. Fighting through the pain, she galloped out of Sugarcube Corner. Not too far away from the bakery, the former Element bearers, their friends, and a large crowd of other ponies were gathered around the filly.
“You poor, poor thing,” Fluttershy whispered as she wrapped bandages around the filly’s flank. “I can’t believe Starlight would do something so horrible.”
“I do,” Applejack grumbled. “Starlight’s been acting nuttier than a squirrel’s breakfast for days now and she hates this kid. I reckon it was only a matter of time.”
“As do I,” Rarity growled. “You didn’t see the way she threatened Sweetie Belle. I shudder to think of what would have happened if you hadn’t been there Rainbow.” Sweetie nodded and hugged her sister a little tighter.
“She’s got a point. Thanks for saving my hay-bacon, RD,” the filly said, managing a weak smile.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m awesome. Is she gonna be alright Fluttershy?” Rainbow urgently asked.
“I stopped the bleeding as much as I could. I’m surprised you were able to run away.”
“Hey! Hey guys, it’s Starlight!” a stallion in the crowd shouted, pointing and glaring at her. The other ponies turned and gave her a look so frosty it could have frozen the sun.
“You’ve got a lot of nerve, Starlight,” Applejack growled at her. “Apple Bloom get behind me.”
“Listen everypony,” Starlight said, trying her hardest to keep her tone friendly. She knew that even one wrong word would condemn her in the eyes of the village. She had to say exactly the right thing. Something that was so much harder to do with the filly staring at her. Even though she wasn’t smiling for once, the way her mouth twitched and her eyes narrowed…Starlight could practically feel her senses threatening to snap once again. Exerting the last of her willpower, she buried her impending mental breakdown and forced herself to look sympathetic. “It wasn’t what it looked like.”
“Really?!” Rainbow snapped. “Because it looked like you were carving an equal sign into a kid’s flank, you sicko!”
“That’s a lie!” Starlight cried, her eyes twitching with suppressed anger. “She cut herself and made it look like I…”
“Are you kidding me?!” Rainbow shouted.
“What sort of idiots do you take us for?!” Rarity cried.
“Everyone, settle down,” Twilight said, her voice radiating with authority. “You’re only giving her the attention she wants.” She glared at the crazed unicorn. “Starlight, I am very disappointed in you.”
“Oh, shut up!” Starlight snarled, her horn glowing furiously. “You don’t get to pass judgement on me, Sparkle!”
“Careful, Twily! She’s still got her magic!” the filly cried with concern. Starlight grit her teeth ever more. Concern! As if that freak of nature cared about anyone other than herself!
“Starlight…how could you?” she heard Double Diamond say. She turned to the group of ponies in the crowd that she recognized the most. Sugar Belle, Party Favor, and all the other friends she had made in Her Town. Her heart ached for the simple days even as her mind continued to snap.
“How could I?! How could any of you keep falling for this monster’s act!”
“She’s not the one who stole our cutie marks! You took away our special talents; saying that they were evil! But you’re the one who’s evil!” Party Favor shouted.
“You lied to us!” Sugar Belle cried.
“You want the truth, do you?!” Starlight snarled. “Fine! Here it is! Yes, I kept my cutie mark even as I took yours! My magic is the only thing strong enough in Equestria to do it! The staff of sameness is just a piece of wood! THERE! Every lie I’ve ever told! Everything else I said was true! I created equality in your miserable lives! I united all of Equestria together in harmony!”
“You stole power from everyone! You treated us like servants! And for the past week or so, you’ve been terrorizing the only filly brave enough to stand up against you!” a pony in the crowd shouted. Starlight didn’t know who said it and at this point she had stopped caring.
“Brave enough to stand against me?! How can you all be so stupid! Everything is all her fault! The changelings, Discord, Spoiled Rich being attacked, that dead rat on the door, the Crystal Heart freaking out! It’s all her fault! I’m the victim here!”
“Starlight, that’s enough ! You’ve terrorized us for too long!” Twilight said sternly.
With great effort, Starlight tried to pull her rage back. “Please, Twilight, she’s lying to you! She hurt herself to frame me! She’s the monster, not me! Twilight, she-”
“QUIET!” Twilight shouted, stomping her hoof. Her wings unfurled as she declared, “That’s Princess Twilight Sparkle to you!”
Pinkie gasped. “Oh snap! Twilight’s calling rank!”
“Starlight Glimmer, as a princess of Equestria I am stripping you of all the power that Equestria has given you. You’re not fit to live peacefully in our home, much less govern it! Me and the other princesses are taking back everything you stole and giving it back to the people! As for you, you will face justice for your crimes!”
A crazed smile violently tugged on Starlight’s face. “He, he, he! Oh, is that so, darling! And how are you going to do that, Twily dearie!” Her horn glowed with power. “I’m the only one who still has her magic! I’m in charge here! All I have to do is cast the Fiducia Compelus and soon, none of you will be able to disobey me! Once I’ve set things back to normal, I’ll throw that blasted filly in a cell to ROT!” She giggled madly. “And then all my problems will be solved. He, he, he!”
Her horn shot out a huge ball of magical energy. The crowd gasped and Starlight grinned as the ball of magic expanded, flashed…and fizzled out.
“W…what? N-no. No, no, no!” Starlight cried. She tried casting the spell again, only for it to fizzle out. “I…I know the right words! Why can’t I cast this spell?! Anypony with half a brain could cast this spell!”
“Well I think you just answered your own question, Starry,” the filly mumbled.
The death glare Starlight sent could have melted icebergs. “I’LL DESTROY YOU!” She fired a powerful blast of offensive magic at the filly, not caring in the slightest who else she might hurt.
“And I think that’s my cue.” With a flash of light, Discord appeared and snagged Starlight’s spell out of thin air. He crumbled it up into a tiny ball and tossed it with his tail. His eyes widened as the spell detonated safely away from the crowd. “Oh dear. Don’t know what you just broke, but it sounded expensive.”
“Discord!” Fluttershy cried happily. Many of the other ponies cheered as Discord smiled at them.
Starlight glared at the chaos spirit and charged her horn to fire another spell, only to gasp as it disappeared with a pop. Discord rolled her horn around in the talons with a smirk. “Yes, I do believe we’re done with that. Now, what to do with such a dreadfully dangerous toy.” He tapped his chin in thought before his eyes lit up. “Ooh! I know just the thing.”
“Hey! Give that back! Give m-mmm!” Starlight’s eyes widened as her mouth was literally zipped shut. Starlight could only watch in horror as Discord teleport over to the crowd of ponies and attached her horn to the filly’s head. She didn’t know if it was Discord’s magic, or the filly’s cursed nature but she could almost hear the colour being sucked out of her horn as it turned just as white as the filly.
“Wow! I’ve always wanted to try my luck with magic! Thanks buddy!” the new unicorn filly said with a cheerful smile. Her grin widened as Discord snapped his fingers again, causing the bandages and the cuts to disappear leaving her flank completely healed.
Starlight unzipped her mouth and scowled at her. “Buddy?! As if a monster like you could ever make friends with anyone, you blasted, diseased, delusional, pile of – gerk!”
Starlight gasped as she was lifted into the air by her neck. With another flash of light, Discord had donned a strange black costume with a long cape and a weird helmet. “I find your lack of friendship…disturbing.”
He flicked the weird helmet off his head and glanced at Twilight. “Well, I’ve got her by the throat. Quite literally, I may add! What are your orders, princess?”
“Orders?” Twilight asked.
“You were about to punish Starlight for her crimes before she so rudely interrupted you. What are you thinking? Imprisonment? Banishment? A little of both? I don’t normally recommend being turned to stone, but if anyone deserves it, it’s her.”
“Discord, let her go please. She can’t breathe,” Twilight said.
“Don’t be like that Sparkle. After all the pain and suffering she’s caused you? Come on Princess Twilight.” He shot an evil grin at Starlight. “Give her a taste of what Tirek got.”
“He’s right,” Fluttershy said, shooting a glare at Starlight.
“Fluttershy?” Rainbow, Twilight, Applejack, Pinkie, and Rarity asked.
“Girls, she’s willing to hurt an innocent filly. A child. She’s not going to stop unless we make her,” Fluttershy declared with a stomp of her hoof. “I don’t know what we should do. So…in the meantime, let’s lock her up in the Equalization house.”
Discord’s grin stretched even wider. “A taste of her own medicine? Ooh, how deliciously ironic! I like this side of you Fluttershy. When it’s not directed at me of course.”
“NO! You can’t do this to me!” Starlight cried.
“You’re not the boss of us, Starry. We can do whatever we want,” the filly declared, standing tall and proud.
Discord leaned in close to Starlight. “Just between us, and just because I know it’ll freak you out,” His eyes briefly flashed white and pink. “Have fun, Starry.”
His eyes changed back to yellow and red before he thrust his claw out, magically pushing Starlight across town until she was flung into the Equalization House. “NO! No, no, no!” she cried as the door locked behind her. She pounded at the door with her hooves. She scratched, clawed, threatened, begged, and pleaded for over two hours. Eventually all her exhaustion came crashing down on her as she collapsed onto the floor, letting out a huge wail.
“It’s not fair! It was her fault! How could they do this to me! After everything…everything I…” Starlight sighed and rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling as she fell into despair. As she stared at the ceiling, she heard a harsh whispering in her ear.
“No…”
Starlight whimpered as words began to appear on the walls, floor, and ceiling. Or maybe they had been there before and she just hadn’t noticed them.
NO HOPE. NO ESCAPE. ONLY PAIN. WRONG. LOSER. WEAKLING. NOT LIKE SUNBURST. MARKLESS. EVERYPONY HATES. HELPLESS. I’M SORRY MOMMY. NOT SPECIAL ENOUGH. ALONE.
Starlight shuddered. They were just words, and yet they were scrawled all over the place. It felt like they were hammering into her skull. Although, there was one phrase that made her pause. It reminded her of what the filly said right before she…
“No. Don’t ever think about it. That filly is insane. She has redefined insane. She’s just making up any kind of lie she can think of to drive me crazy. I’m not crazy, I won’t give up, I’m not crazy, I won’t give up…”
“I was almost hoping you wouldn’t. That part comes at the end of our story. And what a story it’s been, eh Starry?”
Starlight spun around to face the door as it closed behind her adversary. The filly stood there with a manic smile and a white horn glowing with power.
“The grand finale is finally upon us Starlight Glimmer. And I promise you, by the end of this show you’ll have such a smile on your face! Neh, heh, he, he. Aha, ha, ha! Bwa, ha, ha, ha!”
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This did not go the way I thought it would. This was a weird chapter...at least Starlight really has fallen apart now.
Who, that was...well, just whoa. I really look forward to the finale now. With STARLIGHT now trapped and without her magic, what will the ponies do now? Also, how does it end? The anticipation is killing me.
Yeah, this went about the way I expected it would go.
Although I thought that Starlight would actually kill the filly, thus fulfilling her roll as a martyr and spurring the Herd mentality to stampede over Starlight.
Wow. I love the insanity of the first half, and the action of the second. More, please!
'there were'? And something is missing or too much with those quotation marks.
'Don't know what'?
It's unreadable.
And that, if the beauty of it. Because, obviously, she's insane. So, good writing.
Holy crap that was brutal. This chapter actually had be pitying Starlight a bit, though she still deserved every moment of what transpired. Eagerly awaiting more!
Also happy birthday!
Couldn't understand a word in the beginning until i realized it was meant to show how far Starlight had gone down the crazy path. With that in mind the chapter became much more enjoyable, though i personally don't think you made it clear enough the random names were to show her going nuts.
Also, a fault with your logic i noticed.
i think it is safe to say that it usually only takes one person with the ability to use mind control magic to cause a lot of trouble and danger. Also, saying it is less dangerous giving a weapon to hundreds of people who don't know how to use it makes as much sense as a pregnant virgin. And why would libraries even be allowed to have any books about mind control to begin with? Hello there, sir or madam. You're looking for a rocket launcher to blow up a school of orphans? They're right next to the Machine Guns and the Nuclear Bomb sections! Have a nice day!
Sorry, but this was just the strangest logic even for a crazy person to think. Please nobody think I'm bashing the story at all because I honestly am enjoying this, but I just couldn't let that bit slide under the carpet.
Damn, I actually feel pretty bad for Starlight right now.
Alright then. Glad you're all enjoying the show.
7751986 Thanks for the well wishes.
7752415 Don't worry, Starlight won't die. The filly's got something else in mind...
7751901 Typos, you say? Where? We don't see any typos.
7752063
To be honest, I agree with you. Let me try and explain.
First of all, how strange is too strange? Is there truly a limit to what kind of crazy thoughts Starlight could have? Starlight was having problems even before the filly showed up and now she's filled to the brim with anger and fear. Who's to say what the limits are in her new, paranoid imagination.
Now on to the main topic. Think about how mind control in the canon show isn't considered that big of a deal to Twilight. She used the Want-It Need-It spell to control ponies, while implying that she's used it plenty of times before. She tried to use a reform spell on Discord. She tried to mentally alter the eating habits of parasprites and vampire fruit bats. The crusaders got their love potion idea from her. And in the show, the spell books that Starlight Glimmer used for her Fiducia Compelus were just sitting there in her library, for anyone to pick up.
Why are mind control spells so easy to come across in the canon show when the ponies know how dangerous they are?
Like I said, I agree with you. There is always a danger to any kind of weapon, whether or not anyone knows how to use it. But this chapter was told from Starlight's perspective, not mine.
With that said, I could just remove that part from the chapter if it gets too distracting. I dunno. I'm glad you still enjoyed the chapter.
7752443 Chrysalis is still alive. Beyond that, you'll just have to wait and see.
Just read through all the current chapters. I have to say, this is really good. I love seeing Starlight fall apart like this.
7752467
Oh no no no! If you want to keep it in do so! I just thought it was a bit weird to say that, that's all. Nothing problematic whatsoever, mate.
Hmm...you make a good point about those mind control spells...although considering that it was Twilight who used those spells the most, perhaps those spells aren't a part of her actual library, but rather a part of her personal collection? I don't see Twilight as the type to leave such dangerous spells laying around on the shelves, but rather in a personal study or something. It just doesn't sound like something she'd do. But that's just my opinion though. I think when other characters use those kind of spells they just 'borrow' them from Twilight (with the exception of the love potion, but then she probably didn't expect them to actually go through with it?)
"Angelus von Bunniculus"
...You made Angel a vampire and named him after the book series about the vegetarian vampire bunny and the evil alter ego of one the characters from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Nicely done!
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I love this filly. She's awesome. I can't help but wonder what would happen if she met the Cheshire Cat.
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I just realized how fucking much this relates to communism, or the result of communism. Some bumfuck from nowhere says he knows how to make their country great again by making the working class "rule", either the people accept it or are forced to accept it, and in the end the average person is worse off and the person who started it is then ironically apart of the class they declared hatred for.
Mason Vanguard: "You aren't fit to govern, let alone live!"
That's some serious taunting.
I wonder if the filly calling Starlight "mommy" might have been more than mocking
Cicero stared up at the door as it opened, the dark form of the listener entering...
"And here we are... the grand finale!"
And here... We... Go.
I guess some people enjoy this kind of karmatic torture, but I really can't stomach it anymore.
Beautiful
I'm so confused....
And then the Emperor!
Star Wars reference detected!
Yep she's sadistic alright and I still like her.
Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire, Harry?
I have had no sympathy for Starlight here. Hope the ponies get their cutie marks soon, but it's fun seeing the filly take Starlight's horn and now Starlight is getting a taste of her own medicine with nobody to feel sorry for her.