Scene 12: The Hunt, Part 2- The Clearing

DC=(You'll find out later)

-Clearing-

Rainbow Dash and Gray Hoof walked through the moonlit field. The westward wind blew through the blades of grass, causing them to whistle.

RD-"'Don't stray from your goal', eh? There's nothing to stray to."

GH-"Hrmph."

RD-"So... What made your town think that having a Cutie Mark is a bad thing?"

GH-"I'd rather not talk about it right now."

RD-"Aw, come on. If I'm going to be travelling with you, I should at least know more about you."

GH-"*Sigh*... Fine. The start of Sunny Town's downfall starts exactly 1777 years ago. Sunny Town was much different then. It was full of travelling traders and out of town folk; the Everfree Forest wasn't seen the way it is now by you ponies. It was a hub for trading and business; in fact, Sunny Town was the biggest populated area in Equestria- it even housed the royal castle. It was time for our annual harvest celebration. We were setting up when something amazing happened. A large carriage drawn by two colts rolled into town."

"Just then, a weird creature came out of the carriage... He looked like a bunch of animals thrown together. He had a head of a pony, but on it he had two horns- one of a goat and one of a deer. His left arm looked like it was from an eagle while his right was that of a lion. His left leg looked like it was from a goat while his right looked reptilian. Even his wings were mismatched. One was from a dragon and one was from a pegasus pony."

Rainbow Dash dropped her jaw in awe.

RD-"Wait... I know him! His name is Discord! He came to Ponyville and turned the laws of reality into paste!"

GH-"Discord, eh? The name seems to fit. Anyway, after he exited he unloaded some blank crates from the back of the carriage. He opened one up and took out a bottle. It was labelled 'Cutie Mark juice'. He then began to talk."

*Flashback*

DC-"Come one, come all! Are you tired of having to wait for your Cutie Marks to appear? Well, you don't have to wait any longer! Witness the amazing powers of this amazing formula!"

Discord then gave the bottle to one of the blank-flanked colts who pulled his carriage. The colt proceeded to drink it. Magically, a Cutie Mark depicting a barn and silo appeared.

DC-"What do you know, we have a farm pony here! Drink this potion and discover your hidden talent! Only 50 bits a piece!"

Blank-flanked ponies swarmed the stage like parasprites to a feast. One by one, they each took a swig of the magic "soul-ution". One by one, they each gained a Cutie Mark; one got a pair of scissors and a ribbon, one got a bunch of flowers and trees, one got a picture of a pair of ice skates.

DC-"Well, don't we have a bunch of talented ponies here? Well, I must now be off to spread this formula elsewhere! Farewell!"

With that, the showman packed up his cart and promptly left.

*End flashback*

GH-"Everything seemed fine for a while. The harvest celebration was going as planned, when suddenly, one pony started to jerk and spaz. Other ponies tried to help him up, but he kept kicking around and resisting. Eventually, he snapped. He got up and started ramming everything: the pumpkin foods, the decorations, even the other ponies. We tried to hold him down, but he just kept kicking us away. Eventually, we managed to get a needle into him."

RD-"Wait... So you're saying you ki-"

GH-"Of course not. We only tranquilized him. The... *ahem* Disposal comes later. Anyway, after we tranquilized him and locked him up, we started to feel nervous. 'What was causing this?' everypony asked. After a few hours, we just let it pass. However, the next day, the same thing happened, but to three ponies this time. We started to freak out. We had no clue what was going on. The next day, seven more. Then twelve. Then thirty. The numbers just kept increasing. Eventually, there were more Cutie Mark juice-crazies than not. We had no idea what to do with them. If we kept them there, they would eventually break free and take over the town. We had to get rid of them somehow."

RD-"Wait. Why don't you have a Cutie Mark, then?"

GH-"I didn't drink the formula. I had my suspicions, as did some of the other townsfolk. Anyway, we had to get rid of them. We only had one option. We had to kill them with fire."

RD-"...You're not serious, are you? You actually burned ponies alive?"

GH-"It was our only hope. If we didn't burn them, they would break out. However, things started to get... Out of control. Some of the other blank flanks started burning regular ponies with Cutie Marks. They were indifferent. They just wanted to get rid of every pony with a Cutie Mark. I think their crazy rubbed off on me. I'm just glad I'm in my right mind at the moment."

RD-"Wow... That's... That's really disturbing. I can't believe ponies could be that cruel."

GH-"Well, you better believe it."

RD-"Hey... Where were the king and queen?"

GH-"They were working on the construction of Canterlot and a new castle... Hey... Wait... Is that the peak? I think I see it!"

RD-"Finally!"