That, of course - with such an eventful life - would not come true. It was, literally, broken in a few seconds, to be truthful. As it turned out that we'd dwelled in that room a little too long.
As in - midnight. Animatronics wakey-wakey time.
Woopee.
Back to the Mane Hall.
"Blitz, I won't cause you anymore trouble." I smiled, trying to let him know that this time, I'd listened.
"Then let's get out of here."
"And go where?"
"Mine."
"Oh, so I can walk in on you playing with your…"
"No. But I didn't know you'd decided to drop by!"
"But! Eew! -"
A sudden clang of hooves announced their presence. Stood. Right. Next to me. I could almost feel their non-existent breath crawling down my neck. The chiming of the clock now only faintly carried through from the Office, its small, weak and helpless bongs warning us of an already immediate danger.
"Well, well, well - look what pretty little ponies we have here." The screech of a metallic voice sounded through the dark silence, swirling around me. Twinky's nose touched the base of my ear, the frozen metal sending the fur around it into spasm; hair flicking like the wildest fire. I held my breath. She and her friends had us in their hoofs grasp. Exactly where they want us to be. And one decision, and we'd both be ended.
Terribly.
Then, I felt the touch of her serrated teeth as she dragged them down my face. Wincing, I grit my teeth, and dared not to move, petrified of the outcome if I did.
"Brave girl, aren't you now? They usually don't get this far…"
"This treatment is normal?!" I exclaimed in a whisper, a thought escaping my lips. Realising I'd just spoken, I squeaked, and shrunk a little further.
I felt my animatronic self smile around my skin, as she replied, "Only for those who are special."
I felt my eyes peel open, daring to look at Blitz, who had both Ani-Shadow and Ani-Crystal nipping at his ankles. The determination to not yelp shone through his face, and each time, they bit harder, and I saw the small pinpricks of red beginning to show.
"How?"
"You're us, my fellow Twinkleheart." She answered casually, releasing my ear from her toothy grip, "And we're made to be you. For entertainment. Now tell me - what kind of life is that? Being a tool of fortune, living only to re-enact someone else that is alive."
I'd never seen it like that before - they knew exactly what they were for. Brighter even then we imagined.
"And - if we're copies, the originals are around. If we kill all of you - we're the real ones. No longer a tool. But something we can call ourselves."
I remained silent - they felt like they were nothing. Just like me.
So much like us. And yet so different.
All us living ponies feel - and they are the same. Not robots. But… dare I say… pony. I'd got it wrong. I'd got life wrong. Everything I ever knew was a lie from before - until this point.
Lie after lie after lie after lie after lie after lie.
"Killing us isn't the answer though." I replied, sounding surprisingly calm, even in this situation, "And, besides, how can you kill all of us?"
"That's where you were meant to come in… did you really think we'd kill you for no reason? We would if you refused to bring them." Ani-Shadow began to be part of the conversation, both animatronics now abandoning Blitz's tasty hooves.
Blitz exclaimed with a pained tone in his voice, "What kind of idea is that?"
"One we have no choice upon."
"But you do!" I whined, my hoof clicking incessantly on the tiling, aggravating everyone more than needed.
Twinky blankly stared at me, almost saying "We'd be doing this otherwise?" in her eyes, before she turned away from all of us, and began to pace off into another direction. Ani-Shadow and Ani-Crystal watched after her, before looking back at us, confused; and chased after her.
"Should we go? I'm not sure…" Blitz asked, standing next to me as we watched the fading figures of the three robot ponies.
"To be honest, I'm not sure of anything now."
Slowly, and slightly dazed from our close encounter, we plodded towards the Office, a flickering light blinking as we walked in.
"I doubt much will happen tonight…" I sighed heavily, flopping onto my seat as if I hadn't sat for years.
"If you think so."
My head snapped round as I found Ani-Shadow leaning casually against the back of my chair, and she stared at the cogs in her hoof moving as she twisted her metal wrist. Why in Equestria was she here?
"I've been waiting for you. You left the doors open - easier for me than climbing through that awful venting system." She span around, her head resting against the top of my shoulder.
I awkwardly shifted away from her, minding not to fall off of the dangerously small-seated chair, "That's apparent."
"Anyway, I was wondering whether you'll…" Shadow started, before trailing off and staring at the walls, pasted with the crumbling pictures of Twinky's World of Fun, "-Whether you'll just…"
"Just what?" Blitz urged, as he leaned forward.
"Maybe… help us."
"With what?" I started, as I turned to face her, beginning to feel for them in my heart.
"-Save us. From her. She'll destroy us."
I cocked my head in confusion, the exaggeration on "her" making me believe there was some kind of threat to contend with. Whirring sounded from down the corridor, the echoing hoofsteps slowly approaching.
"I - I said too much. Forget everything. I have to go!" Ani-Shadow babbled in her metallic voice, and before I could stop her; leapt away from us; out of the door; her running calling down the hall, melding with the others.
"What was she gonna say?" Blitz questioned openly, as he looked at me in bewilderment.
"I guess we won't know unless she comes back one time. I guess there's those who can't be helped…"
The hazy Monitor buzzed as it showed us the animatronic ponies huddled together in the hall, and as they slowly crawled their way back to the Mane Hall, I decided to breathe - most likely there would be no trouble tonight.
"They're off back to the Mane Hall." I told Blitz, fully aware he'd already worked that out himself. We remained to switch our cameras, watching them as they travelled from room to room, passage to passage. They appeared to be scolding Shadow for coming to us. I pitied her - her (imaginary) heart was in the right place for all of them. Even if she wasn't always agreed with. Just like our Shadow.
I looked up from the Monitor for a moment, and took a glance at the clock - 12:30 am. Five and a half hours of an easier night. At least, from the Ani-Ponies. The split wood of the stage moaned as they lay down upon its rough surface, worn with ages of performing and excitable fillies, and they sat. Just sat together; united. Nothing unsettled - just peace for once in a lifetime of chaos. I slid the wheeled chair back; away from the burning screen (both metaphorically and literally - the heat that old thing produced to make a monotone image was ridiculous), and slid towards my stallion friend.
"Hi!" I smiled, a stupid greeting I did to anypony - even when I'd already been with them all day. My invitation to make a conversation.
He picked his hoof up, waving in a cautious manner, "Don't you think we should shut the doors?"
"No - they won't bother us tonight…"
The faint echo of humming filled the air.
"No no no! Shit! Not again!" Blitz cried, darting to the doors and swinging straight for the button.
"Blitz!" I gasped, surprised at his petrified reaction to say how collected he usually was. I walked over to him, placed a hoof on his back, and guided him back to his chair. I waited for him to listen.
"See - it's just a normal song. It isn't out of tune, or sang with aggression or hunger. They're making up."
The sweet notes filled the child's play-place, wrapping our ears in tender voices and calm souls as their words reached us. A peaceful, harmonious round that both of us knew from our childhoods. It didn't take Blitz long to realise what it was.
"…Is that… "Together"?"
"It is." I smiled softly, rocking side to side in time with the steady beat.
He gazed to where the voices were calling from, and a beam spread across his muzzle,"…Honestly? It is!"
"I just said that!" I giggled as he began to sway in time too. The place seemed quite merry in that moment - two silly, swaying ponies, and six singing animatronics. We let ourselves soak in the oh-so-familiar chorus we grew up with, letting their round twirl through our minds:
No matter what anypony says,
We'll be together always,
If you're true to yourself, then you shall see,
What you all mean to me!
" - Music seems quite a big thing here, don't you think? It seems to rule the place…" I pondered, wondering if song did have any true relevance here.
"Yeah - and it isn't to us lot? I mean, you write, play and sing; I dance; Willow uses it in her performances; Crystal hums while she works… that to say only a few…"
"…I never really thought about how much we're all connected to it…"
"What about we go to them?" I came out with after some time of quiet chat, the round of song still unfinished.
"Seriously?"
My head bobbed with a nod, as I replied, "I don't think they'll hurt us now. This could be an enjoyable job…"
"…Maybe…" he pondered, his hooves tapping the rough exterior of the desk, "Fine then - we can fare our chances against the Ani's."
I wooped with happiness, before crying, "I thought you'd never say that!"
"Neither did I, ironically…" he sighed as I leapt out of my chair, bouncing on the spot like an excited 5-year old.
"C'mon!"
"I'm coming - I'm coming!" He laughed as I darted out of the door, him chasing my tail.
*****
The same criss-crossing paths gave us a cold reception once more, and I soon began to replace my excitement with nervousness - the Ani-Ponies song had hushed, and now the only sound that echoed through the halls were our hoofsteps and their whirring.
"Hey…that door's over there…" Blitz pointed out, slowing to a stop as he stared at the same sign and keyhole we'd encountered earlier, "Think that that thing's still there?"
"Where else would it go while the door's locked?" I smiled, slightly nervous of whoever was in there. That eye had burned like fire when it saw us…
He suggested, inching closer to the door, "Maybe it's not as bad as we think - like the Ani's?"
"Wow - you've changed your tune, stallion!"
"That's a problem…?" He chuckled, as this time, he peered through the keyhole of secrets. He shifted himself into a fountain of different shapes and bends - I was surprised he hadn't broken his back yet!
"There's something glinting in there…" he concluded, "And it's further away this time - I can see it. It looks like a… hoof of some kind?"
"Not another dead pony I hope…" I sighed, before lining up next to him, hinting him to move so I could see. Lining myself up with the angle of the keyhole, I caught a glimpse of a sleeping animatronic, its transcending hair splashing around its neck like the ocean.
"Woah…" I smiled, the soft, calm features of the robot instantly making me feel comfortable around it. I stared some more - the eye from earlier surely wouldn't be from such a placid android? I scanned every corner of the room, not seeing anything besides dark walls.
Mumbling to myself, "There has to be another one…", Blitz watched my determined stance in amusement, me trying to catch a sight of anything.
"That could be the only one…"
"It won't be. That one doesn't seem to fit the eye."
"It's asleep - how would you know?"
"Trust me." I grumbled, tiring of his argument against my gut feeling. I knew it, deep down, that something wasn't quite right. Then, disbelieving my own eyes, I thought I saw the darting shape of a flame, its orange glow dancing in my eyeline.
"There is -!"
A voice that rolled like thunder stopped my sentence, the vibrations of its growl running through my hooves, "Go."
I gaped - indeed there were something. Obviously something that didn't want to be disturbed, "But-" I began, trying to defend my curiosity.
"I said leave. Now."
In that moment, he reminded me so much of my past, I stammered back from the door. The thing was, I'd heard a voice so similar to that one before from someone I grew close to - a second father to me. And then, he was ripped away from Equestria by a kikiyaon. Never to be seen again: trapped in a rift between life and death forevermore. I shall take my revenge once they return; one day, they will.
"Twinks?" Blitz puzzled, standing by me, staring at the door in surprise.
I heard a fierce rumble from inside, "Twinks? As in Twinky? How dare you come here again!"
"No no no!" I cried, waving my hooves in protest, "I'm a real pony! This place was built in tribute of the Gang!"
"It was your fault, then?"
"For what?"
"This was our child's place. Now it's yours - well, at least your counterparts…", his voice quietening now as we heard a faint whirring from inside.
"Hello?" I questioned, thinking it probably had walked away. In truth, it had. But it was replaced with the now awake, female-looking one.
"What is it, Twinky?" This time, a softer, definitely feminine voice questioned, sounding much calmer and kinder than the last, "Or is it the real one?"
"She's the real Twinkleheart…" Blitz assured her, tapping the door in an almost welcoming gesture.
Her voice lowered to a whisper, "They can't find you here - you need to go. Metal may sound brutish, but he's doing the best for you… And I wouldn't contemplate going to them - they're bad news through and through."
"We know…" I sighed, looking at the floor sheepishly. Could I trust them - they could be with the others, for all I know!
"Quick! They're stirring! Run!" She cried quietly, as her hasty hoofsteps retreated into the crevices of the room. I could only think about how great her hearing must be if she knew… Unless she was lying... I wasn't trusting towards these two, random and suspicious animatronics.
Either way, we moved away from the door, and I began to turn towards the way of the Mane Hall - Blitz going the other.
"What are you doing?" he snarled a vicious whisper, showing his utter disbelief in me. I tossed my plait out of the way, ignited my horn in sea blue magic, and grabbed his tail in my grasp. He displayed an exasperated expression as he'd began to be dragged along, but didn't struggle, nor did he say anything. Good decision, I would say.
*****
It didn't take long before we reached the Mane Hall, and Blitz's lack of a struggle made dragging him here an easy task. My hoofsteps reverberated in there, spiralling around the draping, scarlet curtains, as I walked in, my fellow pony in tow. The Ani-Ponies heads' snapped up, staring at me and my prize as I trotted in in a merry manner. Their eyes widened, surprised at us (mostly me dragging Blitz, I think).
"Hi there!" I grinned, as I swung Blitz along the floor to stand next to me, and finally letting go.
"Um…hi?" Ani-Willow, the first I had seen of her in person (what the hay is a person, anyway? An expression we use, with no idea what a "person" is…), said cautiously, "And he is?"
"Oh, Blitz." I smiled, gesturing to him to introduce himself. He picked up a hoof in a very unenthusiastic greeting. Wonderful.
"…Anyway!" I quickly moved on from my shameful pal, "We were -"
"You were wondering…" Blitz sighed, shrugging casually as if he were trying to annoy them. My hoof struck out lightly, tapping him in the side - a warning to shut his mouth before I did it myself.
"No, we were wondering if it would be OK to join you? With everything else being water under the bridge, right?"
They all exchanged unreadable glances. Admittedly, the expression that they didn't show made me even more nervous than if they'd grimaced in disapproval.
Twinky stood up, and leapt down from the stage fairly feline-like. She paced up to me, slinking across the room in caution (obviously the no-trust was two ways, to my relief). Finally she stopped a few hooves in front of me, and I smiled nervously, hoping she wasn't going to take this all the wrong way and kill Blitz and I. I stepped backwards in surprise as she smiled, and gave a bow, welcoming us to their home.
"Of course. If we're going to get on, we all should communicate nicely. And what better way to learn about one another than to talk tonight?"
I nodded with a hum of agreement, and I traced her hoofsteps with my own as we approached the stage. I turned back to regard Blitz, completely glued to the spot, his mouth hung open in shock. I trotted back to him, sighing slightly as he stared into space.
"Blitz?"
He still remained frozen solid in surprise.
"Blitz!" I exclaimed, tapping him on his back a few times, as he, startled, jumped back into ponykind.
"You coming?"
"Er…yeah?"
"Okie, you're definitely not with it…" I chuckled to myself as I lead the bewildered stallion up to the stage, he taking no notice about where he was actually going. Twinky had waited for us, and as I joined her, I noticed the Ani-Ponies all had fairly solemn, but smiling, faces, which I'd not noticed before (everything must be destroying them inside, I bet). The rough wood creaked beneath me, and I slowly, cautiously, lay down on its rickety surface, careful not to send me hurtling through it. It moaned quietly, before its wailing settled to silence.
"…So…" Ani-Raindrop sighed awkwardly, looking sidewards at Blitz and I, lacking any trust in us. She rubbed her hoof against her plain, furless chest, before lying on the floor, "How's life?"
"Life - a very strong word…" I responded, looking skyward to see if any stars smiled down on me, assuring me that I hadn't made a huge mistake that would end in all of us arrested, killed or of the like, "To say that we were playing on a swords edge with it yesterday…"
Ani-Willow popped her head up in my eyeline, "Or night!" She grinned merrily as her hooves tucked up under her chin in a small buzz.
"I guess so! But yesternight… I've never heard of that term…"
"We have." Ani-Fireshine (I may as well just call her Ani-Shine; less of a mouthful to me), as she finally made her mellow voice known. She trembled her wings, nervous, before continuing, "As we're hardly on anymore in the day, and only awake at night, we refer to yesterday as yesternight, and so on. Nothing to do with bad programming, I can say."
Blitz chuckled in his usual, hearty way, "We can get used to that!", and I couldn't believe my eyes, for I saw a stallion, that earlier was so intent on staying away from this company, now nestled comfortably between Ani-Crystal and Ani-Shadow, seeming unfased (and even more relaxed than I!) to be in, what I considered, such a vulnerable position if they suddenly turned on us.
"You ponies aren't as bad as we thought!" Ani-Crystal giggled, sliding a little closer to Blitz and his radiant smile. Welcoming her in, Ani-Shadow soon followed suit.
"Anyway…" gagged Raindrop, making a sound like metal throwing up, "Why did you guys show up here?" she seemed to be almost threatening us in her own way, rebellious of her friends and their much more welcoming gestures, "It's not like we invited you to stick your muzzles into our business!"
"I think what Raindrop is trying to say…" Ani-Crystal started nervously, trying to pick things up before it got out of hoof, "Is why you first applied to come and work here? After all, you have such a profile in Equestria!"
"Well, evil has dried up a bit, and we both needed the money to keep ourselves in good stead. And, besides, I was as curious as a cat about this place, and you guys!" I explained with a small smile balancing on my muzzle.
Ani-Raindrop grumbled in annoyance, "Were we the boring robots you expected, huh?"
"Not at all." Blitz answered for me, "In fact, you gave us the opposite! We never expected being near-murdered."
"We apologise for all of that… It's in our programming to care for children, not adults, and anything that encroaches on our turf has a confrontation to deal with…" Twinky spoke courteously, give a slight head shake at herself.
"Although sometimes it goes wrong!" Raindrop growled as she gave Ani-Shadow a knock against the head with her back hoof. Shadow wore a blank expression, not caring, nor enjoying the treatment she received, "It's your fault we're stuck like this!"
"Hey!" Twinky cried, "We had this before! Pack it in, Raindrop. Now! We know she couldn't help her glitch, and neither can you! You did this to me!" The angered animatronic tugged her (realistic) plait away from her neck, revealing a large breakage through the back of her neck and head, "I don't remind you every day of it, do I! Now back off!"
The tone of the tin growls that resonated deep inside their voice boxes made my ears throb wildly, and, in that moment, I wanted to slide away from the scene and forget all about it. The aggression and tension between everyone was like a swirling hurricane.
"Why! Who says I should listen to you? Who says any of us does?"
"I do! And Twinkle, here, is head of her group, too! Not my choice! Isn't that right, Twinkle?"
I shrunk back, hoping they'd forget I was there, not wanting to get involved in this argument.
"Twinkle?"
"Um…yeah?" I gave an awkward grin, pretending to know nothing.
Twinky gave me an exasperated stare, "You seriously missed all that?"
I looked sidewardly at Blitz, watching him screw his face up in a cute, awkward way, while Ani-Shadow stared in deep thought at the floor, seemingly reflecting on her actions many years ago.
"Urgh." Ani-Raindrop sighed, before flopping to the floor in an annoyed manner, giving in on any and all of us. I blankly looked on as all fell still, silent, fairly tense and awkward - the only sounds we could hear being the faint breathing of the living ponies in the room. My hooves drummed against the wood of the stage, it creaking beneath us all, as I began to hum any random tune I could think of - my answer to avoid awkwardness (always). Quickly, I was shot an exasperated glance by Twinky, which, somehow, immediately hushed my movement, and I darted to sit up straight, perfectly still.
"So…err...anyway?" Blitz tried to shatter the muted tongues of us all, and soon found every head had turned to regard him, "Are those friends of yours in the cupboard?"
Ani-Twinky sat up in confusion, her ears flicking as if it would charge her brain to think, "What cupboard?"
My hoof (involuntarily) brought itself straight to my face in shame for Blitz and his barn door for what he calls a mouth. The moon itself even hid its radiant face behind the darkening clouds.
"Y'know? The one on the way to the showstage?" He still hadn't realised that he probably shouldn't have mentioned our encounter with bigger animatronics that, for some reason, didn't like the Ani-Ponies, maybe as it was just at least a bit suspicious? Honestly, I believe that stallion has hot air where there should be a brain…
Meanwhile, it appeared that the cogs in Twinky's head were revolving, trying to think of anything that we would possibly know about. Suddenly, she stopped, frozen, and snarled to the air.
"What did they say to you?" She commanded, venom filling her words. At that moment, it seemed to dawn on Blitz that he shouldn't have said anything about our encounter, and tried to resort to, well, being an idiot.
"Who said what?"
"Don't play games with me."
"What game are we playing?" He grinned like a happy child, yet I could see perspiration rolling down his face. He looked at me for a glancing moment, where I proceeded to go along with his stupid idea.
"I do hope it's something to do with cards! We love card games, don't we Blitz?" as I began to shuffle awkwardly. I felt like I was giving such a terrible, cheesy performance, when I really should've been acting like it was the last time I ever did - many a time I'd starred alongside Willow in her daily shows, and I were never quite as bad as this.
"Stop hiding things…" Twinky pushed on, now standing up in a threat, "Because that then leads me to believe they have said something."
I tried to resort to another tactic of mine - changing the subject. I peered around, looking for anything to talk about, when my eyes fell upon the warm glow of the moon above, scattering light onto the several strewn chairs. Splashes of paint dotted the walls in places, now beginning to fade with time.
"Hey, you guys never did painting in here, as I remember?"
"That's because we didn't."
We all turned to face Ani-Shadow, wearing a solemn expression as she stared at all of us, each in turn, "It's linked with our friends."
"So they aren't your friends, then?" Blitz asked, raising a hoof as if he needed permission. Admitting accidentally about our earlier conversation, he drew a stern scowl from Twinky as she returned back to her place.
"Those two ponies in the cupboard are our predecessors, Evolution and Heavy Metal… animatronics based off of the extremely popular game, "Robot Unicorn Attack" and it's alternatives. They used to be the main attraction here." Ani-Shadow began to tell us, introducing to us some of the history of this unfortunate story.
"Why aren't they still out here, with you guys?" I cautiously asked, being careful not to pry, yet still find out the answers I so desperately wanted. Twinky regarded Shadow with a stormy look, before nodding ever so slightly, granting her the free reign to tell us the tale.
"They never really did anything wrong, I guess, but they were old. Less popular as what they used to be. The owners decided to swap their attractions for us guys, with you and your friends now being quite a big hit in the child world." She slowly spoke, as if deliberating every word. The last bit was indeed news to me - since when was fighting evil so highly respected? Shadow breathed in (although she didn't really need air), continuing once more, "Yet, they didn't want to get rid of them, just in case there were some kind of problem with us; if we didn't take off with the children, or we were faulty. It appeared that we were perfectly fine, and a huge draw of children, parents in tow, to our little play place, luckily for us. However, it was unfortunate for them-"
"Why? Do you pity them, Shadow?" Twinky interrupted, still wearing a snarl in disapproval.
Ani-Shadow shook her head steadily, "I never said anything like that - but yes, I do. You never needed to taunt them like you did. Anyway, they were locked away. For good. In that small, empty, dark room with no energy supplies and no company apart from each other."
Blitz and I just watched her lips close, soaking in all the information like a pair of equine-shaped sponges. This place was here even longer than I originally thought - I knew that it had been here for longer than I'd been about, but who knows. It could've been around when my parents were born, too. We remained silent, waiting for the rest of the story to pour out of Shadow.
"You, Twinky, had to go and disturb them. I'm not starting a fight, before you bark at me, but I'm just letting these ponies know what really went on here. There's no point lying anymore, is there? We don't have reputations to keep, nor any other company for an amount of years since the last mare we caught…" She looked at her leader in concern, and awaiting a reply.
Twinky just looked at her, seeming to understand that the metallic tone in Ani-Shadow's voice wasn't one of a challenge, but merely just a calm, truthful one.
She began again, after her break:
"She went to see them - anger them a bit. Make them see what they were missing out on. Those ponies have much more emotion towards those foals than we could ever imagine, and neither did they have evil in any one of their gears. Twinky had a fight with Metal over this, and although neither pony came out well, Metal certainly sustained the more severe casualties. A detached ear and broken eye." Twinky gazed away, quite guilty as I could read, before Shadow started up again, "Either way, they were stuck in there, now in the knowledge that their favourite fillies were in the hooves of us: venomous, sly animatronics with too many programming faults to count."
"Like mine." Ani-Raindrop sighed, studying the void in the back of Twinky's head, blackened like the darkest night sky, "I'm glitched. So are we all (except Shine). But not all of us can be controlled by it. But, if you can, we make terrible mistakes."
"Hmph!" Willow exclaimed, prodding Ani-Raindrop in the shoulder, "You've changed your tune!" She was returned with a "gentle" shove, sending her toppling over onto the dusty wood as she returned to her speech.
"Twinky and I… we fought over… something. A big something."
All the Ani-Ponies watched her curiously, awaiting her next words. At that moment, it struck me that they never truly knew why they had ever fought in the first place.
Seeing Ani-Raindrop freeze in guilt, silent, Twinky said the words for her, "It was over you, Shadow. After you… the incident. We fought over me, and what I didn't see inside of you, what I could've done to save that foal. We just… argued."
"But I went out of control, and I fought you. Hard. And I did that to you, before anypony could stop me." Raindrop began to murmer, trailing off into nothingness, as she stood, slowly walking off of the stage as if she had been expelled from the confession circle. She paced around a few times, before throwing herself at the wall, "Why did I?" she lay down where she stood, her back resting against the wall. We all saw as she tucked her head into her hooves, lying motionless as she peered up sadly at us.
"Go on then… continue your story time." She peered up at us like an expectant child. Her sudden change in nature - from an argumentative, challenging animatronic to a child-like, sad one unnerved me a little. She seemed to swing in attitude unpredictably, like the rapid swaying of a tree in a hurricane.
Ani-Shadow finally turned away from her fellow pony android, before looking on every one of us in turn, "We are all unpredictable. All of us. When we are in that mode, we're capable of doing anything - even killing." She moved her mouth side-to-side, as if she had something stuck in one of her jagged teeth, "See that mark on the floor, over there?" She gestured a wing to the stain we had seen earlier, soaking the floor in a tinge of faded red, "That was me. And, those bite marks on the wall?" She pointed out yet another battle scar this place had, "Me again. Always me."
I watched her with increasing fascination as she stared deeply into each point - every dent, scratch, stain; all prints of the past. Her eyes shut as a drop of black liquid fell from them, then peering back with wells of oily sea, her usual purple pupils a dazzling white. I turned away, feeling intrusive on such a sensitive moment of a pony I barely knew.
"Look at me."
I forced myself to obey, swirling my head to face her.
"What do you see?"
"Darkness." I said aloud, involuntarily, yet it was true - I saw blackness literally on her: her eyes, paint… and in her heart, too.
She smiled, almost as if she'd wanted me to say that, "This is me. The real me. The one which murders. The one with daggers in her kiss. The glitched me." Her head swayed on her neck, an ear flicking slightly as her head darted sideward in an instance, juddering steadily, "I've killed many like this - this is why. I hate it. I hate it with every thread of my lingering soul. Yet I love it; I want more."
"Like a drug…" I finished off her sentence for the animatronic, glancing around both sides of me cautiously, as if something would leap from the shadows. My eyes fell upon Blitz for a moment, who was bending away from the robot pony with the needle smile laid next to him. Easily in target range.
A loud, shrieking bong filled the air with its song, replaced quickly with another, and another.
Six times - had time really flown so fast? I peered up curiously at the window above us, and was greeted with the sight of the first early, golden streaks of morning mixing with the murky fog.
"…It's - It's OK…" Twinky smiled faintly, pity tainting her lips, "You can leave now; its fine with us."
I looked at Blitz, and he looked at me. We weren't exactly sure what would be the right thing to do - leave, and look insensitive, but stay, and look like we're prying. Deciding that perhaps departure would be the best idea (especially as Shadow began to bawl into her hooves), we slowly inched off of the stage, towards the exit of the Mane Hall. Then, Ani-Raindrop's voice called from the stage (she'd got back on there quick!), stopping us in our tracks.
"But, repeat anything out of these walls…" she snarled a threat, dragging her hoof back in the dust, "And you'll have me to answer to. And I'll not let you leave until I've ripped you apart."
I gave an extremely awkward grimace-turned-grin, nodded like a lunatic, and made a hasty escape, Blitz trailing after me. I've noticed, there's a very nasty habit of this place leaving us with haunting words to dwell on until the next night… I'm hoping that we keep the Ani-Ponies sweet until the end of the week.
Only I fear two strangers will jeopardise it all.