The Invisible Mare

by Thunderhalk89

8: Master's Pets

Supernatural.

The word echoed around Scootaloo’s mind. How could a pony be supernatural? What did that even mean?

“I think we need to investigate this further.” Pinkie Pie seemed to be thinking the same thing.

“But we aren’t allowed to search for the ghost anymore,” Sweetie Belle reminded them.

“We aren’t going after the Invisible Creeper… well, not directly.”

“Well than what are we investigatin’?” Apple Bloom asked.

“They didn’t say anything about investigating that mysterious advisor pony!” Pinkie bounced happily.

“I guess she’s right,” Scootaloo shrugged. “Technically,” she added, disheartened. “But, I could have been mistaken. I mean, how often do you pay attention to a unicorn’s aura?”

“All the time!”

Scootaloo ignored Pinkie as she turned to her friend who shook their heads.

“Well, we’ll know more when I meet up with her later today.” Uh-oh. I completely forgot about that. “We should probably get started on our report.”

“What report?” Apple Bloom was giving her that suspicious eye of hers.

Scootaloo winced. “Well -” she tried to give it to them gently “- she may have told me that she wants us to write a report on everything we know about the ghost.” She ended with a small chuckle as she scratched the back of her head.

“When, exactly, do you have to go over there?” Sweetie Belle asked slowly.

Scootaloo looked away. “About an hour.” She spoke as fast as she could, hoping that if she spoke fast enough it would somehow change the fact.

Her friends stared at her, blinking in bewilderment.

“So, let me get this straight: we got an hour to write a report on everything we know about this ghost?”

“He-he,” she put on a fake smile and tried to sound jovial. “Yea, I guess so.”

~~~

Twilight was sitting at Mayor Mare’s desk, reviewing the report presented to her by the three fillies sitting before her. She had previously told the mayor to take the rest of the day off and that she deserved a break. She had even suggested she even treat herself to a session at the local spa.

Almost expectedly, the Crusaders had brought Pinkie with them. (She was currently waiting in the reception room just behind the ornate double office doors). Even with her Master disguise, she was still a bit hesitant about having her friend so close, yet she knew that she might want to question the odd pony as well. It would after all, allow her to keep appearances.

The report sitting before her was nothing special. It appeared to have been rushed, with sentences and words occasionally scribbled over amongst poor wording, sentence structure, and grammar. There were even a few lines written in what looked like crayon. Overall, it revealed that the Crusaders did not know much of anything. The only things of real note were that they thought the ghost resided near the construction site and the mention of a “Proton-String-Pak”.

“This is certainly -” She tried to find the best word to describe the report “-interesting,” she decided. “Tell me more about these Proton-String-Paks that you mention. How can silly-string defeat a ghost?”

“They don’t actually defeat the ghosts,” Apple Bloom began. “It’s really more ‘bout targeting were ya think it is, and then making it visible.”

“And then what?” This was something that Twilight had been curious about since her encounter the previous day.

“I don’t think Pinkie ever told us that,” Sweetie Belle admitted. “Honestly, I don’t think even she knows.”

Twilight leaned back in the chair, deep in thought, still keeping a close eye on the three fillies. Either, they are telling the truth or they don’t trust me enough to reveal their strategies. I had better assume the worse, just to be safe. “So Miss Pie might have a plan then?”

The three fillies looked at each other briefly.

She waited several moments for a response before letting out an annoyed sigh. “Scootaloo, please go ask Miss Pie to join us.”

Scootaloo nodded, hopping out of her seat, and trotted over to the door. As she began to open the door, Pinkie Pie hopped passed her, into the room. The bouncing pink earth pony bounced once more, doing several somersaults and flips in midair, before landing in an empty seat alongside the Crusaders.

The disguised invisible mare watched in amazement. No matter how many times she saw her accomplish acrobatic feats with ease, Pinkie Pie always amazed her.

“So, Miss Pie,” - she started after recomposing herself back into a professional mindset - “I assume that you already know what is in this report. Do you have anything else to add?”

“You can call me Pinkie Pie; all my friends do.” she smiled brightly. For a moment, Twilight feared she had been discovered. “Unless you want to remain formal? You can informally call me by my formal full name. It’s Pinkamena! Pinkamena Diane Pie.” Pinkie sat there smiling with her eyes closed. After several moments of silence, she opened her eyes, looking expectantly at the oddly dressed pony and gestured. “Now you say your name.”

“Yes, well then,” she cleared her throat. “You can call me Master. Now, do you have anything else to add Miss Pinkamena?”

“Nope, I don’t think so,” she shook her head. “Ooh, can I see your screwdriver!”

Twilight ignored the question, “Then, perhaps you can elaborate on any plans you may have had about catching the vandal, or ghost, as these girls seem to think it is.”

“It’s an invisible creeper.”

She blinked at that. She could understand all the names the townsfolk had given her: ghost, phantom, vandal, and even spy. Invisible creeper: she still did not fully understand that one. Then again, this was Pinkie.

“Didn’t they tell you about the Proton-String-Pak?” She did not recall Pinkie bringing one in with her, but she now held one of the strange devises in her hooves. “You just shoot the invisible creeper by pulling this trigger, and then it’s visible again.”

Master ducked behind the desk, fearing that the crazy pony was going to actually pull the trigger with the nozzle pointed right at her mask. Before Pinkie could however, Scootaloo had grabbed it, aiming it toward the floor.

“I think what she wants to know is what we would do after it’s visible again.”

“Oh.” Pinkie rubbed her chin in thought. “I supposed we would have locked all the doors so it couldn’t escape first, then we would know where it was so that we would know where to look when we talked to it.”

“Talk to it?”

“Yep!” Pinkie answered happily, despite Master’s exasperated tone.

“You plan on covering an invisible being with frosting, just so you can talk to it!?” Master could feel her blood heating up as it pumped through her circulatory system.

“Umm…”

“And then what? Are you going to just throw it a party?” She took several deep, calming breaths. Where does this anger keep coming from? It also became clear to her that she had been thinking of herself as “Master” ever since the Crusaders had first arrived at her office.

“How did you know the silly-string was frosting?”

She was taken aback. She could not call the voice quiet. It was… soft. She had no idea Pinkie’s voice could be that soft. It was almost as disturbing as the skeptical glare in her friend’s inquisitive eye.

“How did I know the silly-string was frosting?” Master repeated the question. You shot me! “I heard it from one of the witnesses of yesterday’s confrontation.”

Master and Pinkamena continued to stare at one another, trying to size the other one up. Pinkamena’s expression had returned to its trademark grin, while Master’s remained hidden beneath her beaked mask. She was now certain that Pinkamena Diane Pie fully suspected her. She continued her staring contest with the pink mare. Pinkamena’s unwavering blue eyes stared through her mask and into her very being. Determined, she stared back; attempting to find her opponent’s weakness. If she had one, Master was confident she would find it, and break it.

“Why don’t we work together?” Sweetie Belle could not take the silence and building tension any longer and had to break it. The silence following, however, was even more deafening.

Apple Bloom quickly nodded her head in agreement. “Yea, that’s a great idea Sweetie Belle. With Master’s resources here in the mayor’s office and Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie, I’m sure we’ll get this ghost caught in no time.”

Scootaloo agreed, as they turned back to the two ponies still staring at each other, “What do you say Master? You could have us observers looking out for any signs of the ghost, and relay them back to you, so that you and Pinkie can go after it.”

“You are not very good at listening are you my pet?” Master still had not refrained from staring at her opponent. “I thought I told you to leave that to the proper authorities.”

“Pet?” Scootaloo was confused by the title. Her friends had nothing to offer, and were just as perplexed.

“All inferiors are my pets.” She finally broke her eye contact with the pink mare and glared down at the three fillies.

Hidden by the mask and goggles, her eyes appeared to be empty black holes. No light could escape, not even the glare that reflected off them.

“So, Miss Master? Or should I say Miss Invisible Creeper!” Pinkie had lunged across the desk, attempting to grab hold of the mask.

Master quickly teleported; her disguise, now without a pony inside to hold it up, slumped to the ground. Pinkie pushed the cloak around with her hoof, searching for any sign of its owner and occupant. She silently reappeared at the other end of the office. She watched with curiosity and amusement as her pets began to twist their heads, looking around the room in confusion.

She began to quietly chuckle. That chuckle soon crescendoed into full demonic laughter.

The four ponies looking over her previous location jumped, facing the general area they heard the laughter coming from. Master laughed even harder at how the area they were looking was nowhere near where she was currently standing.

“Why are you now referring to us as pets?” Pinkie stood her ground, undaunted by the bodiless dark laughter filling the room. The three fillies huddled behind her, reacting in the opposite manner.

“Because, I see the truth now!” She began to creep across the room, like a predator stalking its cornered prey. “There was a time when I was opposed to even referring to my own pet as a pet.” She paused, blinking at the awkwardness of the phrase, but continued. “I believed that calling him a pet sounded like I owned another conscious living thing. I now realize how foolish that seemed.”

“You want to turn ponies into your slaves?” Scootaloo stammered, her eyes wide with fear.

Twilight tilted her head at that. “No! Good heavens no.” She was genuinely shocked. She could not imagine anypony doing such a thing. “I am trying to explain that a pet is a lesser being: one that should bow down and worship you. You feed it. You give it shelter. Without you it would probably not be able to survive, for they are dependent upon you.”

“And why should we bow down and worship you? You don’t seem all that great: all you are is an invisible meany who runs around scaring everypony and causing a fracas.” Pinkie shot back.

“I am doing what is necessary to create a utopia. Once Princess Celestia sees what I have done here in Ponyville, we will implement the system throughout all of Equestria. She will reward me, and I will be revered by all.”

“How is vandalism going to make Equestria a better place? I’m guessing your thinking it will help make it safer. And, I bet you were behind those new rules. Well, guess what Master, those rules are stupid… Well, okay, some of them are kind of useful. But, Ponyville didn’t need them. We already followed them.

“Our weather team might not always be as punctual as you would like, but they get the job done. We don’t have a littering problem, so there was no need to post a rule saying that there would be a pay a fine if you did. If you were to just walk around town you would see that most everypony gets along and tries to help each other out.”

Master squinted, trying to stare a hole into her friend. Pinkamena clearly did not see what Twilight had seen. “I have walked around. I have seen the ponies. It is why I chose Ponyville as my test subject. With it already being so close to perfection, I knew not much work would need to be done. I would carry it those few small steps remaining toward perfection, with me ruling as its Goddess!”

“Goddess?” Apple Bloom asked from the safety of Pinkie’s shadow.

“With my connections plus the power of invisibility I have transcended.”

“That’s blasphemousios!”

“You mean blasphemous.” Sweetie Belle whispered, cowering behind her friends.

“That’s what I said.” Apple Bloom argued.

Master rolled her eyes in annoyance. “Enough!” Her pets stopped their bickering and stood still, facing forward, still hiding behind a defiant Pinkie.

“What makes you think Celestia will crown you supreme-ruler of Ponyville?” She noted that Pinkamena was careful to avoid calling her a Goddess. That was somewhat upsetting.

“I do not deny that I have -” she had to choose her next words carefully “- broken a few minor rules. Nothing I cannot fix. I will be sure to repay any debts when this is over and Celestia will look at all the work I have done and forgive me for engaging is such childish pranks. She will see that it was all done for the greater good. All of Equestria will see.” Pride consumed her, for she knew her cause was just. Equestria would be the epitome of utopia.

“Forgive me, Master.” Scootaloo had bravely stepped out from behind Pinkie’s shadow, quivering and her voice shaky. Master smiled to herself as the small pegasus bowed.

“Finally. A pet who knows how to show some respect; you may speak.”

Scootaloo and Pinkie shared a quick glance before turning back to face the empty room. “You mentioned having connections? What does that mean?”

Master ceased her circling to address the one pet who seemed to possess some intellect. She noted a large grin on Pinkie’s face, but thought nothing of it. So what if she liked the child’s question, it was meaningless. Once Celestia saw her work they would know exactly what she meant by it. Knowing would certainly not help them stop her, but just to be safe, she decided not to be fully forthcoming. Her identity would remain a secret. “I have connections to the Royal Court and have held private meetings with both of the Princesses. Both of them know and respect me; as does the Court. They will all see my greatness, my potential, and will know that only the Princesses stand above me as we lead Equestria into a new better and brighter age.”

Pinkie’s grin grew even wider. “You stopped moving.”

“Your point?” She loathed how this one pet could be so defiant. Why couldn’t Pinkamena see that she only wanted what was best for Equestria? Why couldn’t she show respect like the small orange pegasus. The pink pony was driving more hatred into her veins.

“I know where you are,” Pinkamena sung.

Master had little time to react. Within an eye-blink, the defiant pink mare had acquired, aimed, and fired her Proton-String-Pak. Master quickly levitated the four chairs that her pets had been occupying earlier, and used them to shield herself from the incoming blast. At the same time, she began to gallop around the room, hoping to find a secure location.

The silly-string collided with the chairs, covering them completely in the slowly foaming frosting as they clattered to the ground. The explosive sound of Pinkamena’s weapon nocking miscellaneous items from shelves and the mayor’s desk reverberated throughout the office. The chairs were hit again, forcing them into a wall with a thud.

Master stopped before the lavish double-doors. She heard the clopping of hooves running up the stairs beyond the reception area behind her. She grinned, laughing as she flung the doors open with a burst of magic. Two security guards halted in surprise as they ran into the reception room. Quickly, she ran past them, toward the stairs. She heard Pinkamena give chase. As she came to the bottom of the stairs and entered into the town hall’s lobby, she teleported away.

Master did not want the rebellious pet to know she could teleport. She may have revealed too much about herself already.

She vowed to let nothing get in her way. She would not allow it. Pinkamena would be shown the light, or be denied the pleasure of knowing the greatness of an Equestria under Master’s rule.

She looked into the mirror in her lab and saw Twilight curled into a ball, tears streaming down her eyes. “Hah! You cry for my pet? She is getting in the way of my goals; I will stop her. Equestria will become utopia, and I will be worshipped as its Goddess.”

The image sniffled, “These tears are for me. For you. Not, my friends.”

“Friends?” Master’s tone was spiteful and cold. “They are my pets. All who are below me are. Were you not listening? That pink-one might be onto me now, but I will crush her and take over this town. It shall be the first to witness the utopia that only I can promise it!” She laughed once more, darkly.

Within the mirror, Twilight curled tighter into herself, unsure of what she was doing anymore. It almost felt as though she was no longer in control: like she had not been in control for a long time.

Her invisible body was now Master, and she was helpless.

Comments

[Cynderfall]

Uh oh...

[kamil]

“You’re point?”

Twilight, I am disappointed. The rest of this is to be expected, but using "you're" instead of "your"? Inexcusable!