Always Pay Your Pon-E Dealer


                                            Silver Mist's heart pounds with his navy-blue mane flowing in the gentle bay breeze. He stretches his silver wings and stands on the edge of the building with the evening Marine layer giving him the cover to secretly indulge in his pony fantasies. His dream seems within reach after almost a year of practice and training his wings. He sees the glow of the Golden Gate bridge in the distance and tells himself tonight is the night he flies to the Golden Gate and back. With unwavering confidence in his wings and his ability, Silver Mist leaps from the rooftop. Taking flight and touching the bay water with his hooves, he soars through the evening marine layer. Grunting and flapping his wings, he picks up some speed and climbs piercing the fog twirling through the night sky liberated from his human form. With the bridge closer in sight, he dives back into the thick marine layer. He races over the deck of a cargo container with a grace and poise never before seen from any PonE users. The distance that used to make his wings feel utterly useless, feel like a mere walk in the park. Pressing on past Alcatraz with a beaming smile on his face, he sees the glowing lights start piercing the fog. "Come on Silver Mist, you've got this" he yells to himself as he rounds the first pylon. With an immense burst of energy, he rockets skyward. With his wings flapping intensely, he soars above the marine layer and up to the top of the pylon. With a brief glide to catch his breath, Silver Mist closes his wings and dives at free fall speeds. Seeing the deck below and hearing the noise of late-night traffic, he spreads his wings and levels out. Flying just over the cars on the bridge, he performs a roll before flapping his wings and rocketing once more to the sky to gently land on the second pylon.

                                            Catching his breath from the top of the Golden Gate Bridge, Justin admires the beautiful city behind him as he lay on the truss folding his wings tight. Nothing could make Justin happier than being Silver Mist in that moment. The cold misty air, the city lights glowing in the distance, the aircraft above circling to land all captivate him as he lets his wings rest thinking about how much this world would have to offer if he just left it all behind. No job, no responsibilities, just him, his wings, and the open air.

                                            With a joyous smile, he takes position on the edge of the pylon gazing down at the sea of fog below. He leaps from the bridge once more diving down in a flash of silver fur and feathers. Throwing open his wings at the last second, Silver Mist's hooves graze the water as he finishes the arc and gently comes to a glide over the marine layer. His wings ache with exhaustion as he occasionally flaps his wings to maintain his glide speed. Taking gentle turns and meandering above the clouds, Justin basks in the rush of his accomplishment wanting the moment to last forever. However, as he gets closer to his destination, he sees his dirty crumbling apartment complex in the distance and dulls his excitement. An uncomfortable thought comes across his mind, he has accomplished his big goal, the one thing keeping him going. Now what? He tells himself as he lets himself sink into the fog below.


                                            That morning, Justin can hardly drag himself out of bed as the pain radiating from his wing scars nearly cripples him. Why do I keep pushing it, he asks himself as he turns on his heating pad. Laying there in his bed, he tries to ignore the temptation. The voice that used to just be there every so often now screams at him begging him to take the second pill now. Justin’s heart pounds as the anxiety starts to settle in. He keeps trying to ignore the voice but he can’t. he needs to be Silver Mist again. Grabbing for his phone he frantically cancels all his notifications, last notice for rent, multiple job application updates, texts from his dealer. All of those notifications claw at his heart turning it into ribbons as the anxiety consumes him. The timer he set himself still reads 9 hours till he can take his next dose of PonE. With virtually no sleep, he trembles with anticipation.

                                            “Today’s the day,” he tearfully tells himself, “I can’t do this anymore. I can’t stand this anymore! I’m Silver Mist, I’m a pony.” He cries painfully clawing himself out of bed to look for his next pill. looking around the room tossing empty pill bottles to the edges of the room, he scrambles hyperventilating rummaging through his drawers, “I could have sworn I had another bottle!” He tells himself as his search becomes more frantic. "FUCK! Just one more dose, please!" He yells out into the trashed apartment throwing the drawer across the room. He collapses in anguish landing on a pile of dirty clothes as his phone vibrates again and again with more and more weight with each passing second waiting to crush him entirely. With nothing left to lose, he grabs his phone, eviction notice, a text about the job interview he missed that morning, and the inevitable text from his dealer, Gooch E. Clear cut and dry: "We need to talk, NOW". With no job and dozens of empty PonE bottles to show for it, he found himself owing a lot of money to Gooch. "Why didn't I just double dose when I had the chance", he cries to himself throwing his head against the wall behind him in frustration.

                                            With the sun fading away over the horizon, Justin nervously looks around the rapidly darkening industrial park before squeezing through the gate at the abandoned warehouse, he knew whatever Gooch E wanted to talk about, it wasn't good, but if it meant potentially scoring some more PonE he was willing to try just about anything. Justin hesitates giving the special knock on the door. "Gooch, it's Justin, you wanted to talk?" The loading bay door shrieks and opens just enough for Justin to shimmy under as he comes face to face with Gooch.

                                            "You know, I respect that you actually manned up and came on over here. You had me a little worried there. I mean, you blew me off for a full week asshole. You better have been working your ass off too busy to text me back, where's my money?" Gooch demands with deafening silence from the PonE addict. "I gave you those last two bottles because you said you had a job lined up and you were gonna get my money, that shit is only getting harder to find, now again, where's my money!"

                                            Justin scrapes together a couple crumpled $20 bills from his pocket before he cracks and sniffles. "$80 is all I've got Gooch, please, help me out, I'm good for it, you know that. I'm gonna get another job soon and I'll get you paid up, just please I only need two." Justin begs desperately craving the freedom of his wings at least one more time.

                                            Despite being pissed at Justin, seeing the utterly pathetic human on display begging him for two doses causes him to pause filling the air with a chilling silence. Despite never taking the drug, Gooch knows all it takes is two for a truly desperate user to have a permanent pony transformation. Despite the money on the table, it forces him to take mercy on the poor guy realizing he's at the end of his rope. "Oh, come on dude, quit your crying. What do you go by as your pony name, what was it, uh, Silver Mist right? I know you guys on that stuff always wind up with a pony name" He asks knowing that a permanent transformation was sadly inevitable

                                            Justin lowers his head in shame remembering the time he told Gooch about his pony self. Shifting around uncomfortably, Justin admits, "Yea, I'm a Pegasus: when I transform, I go out at night and fly around the bay. Soaring through the fog last night I actually managed to get to the top of the Golden Gate bridge." Justin explains as Gooch leads him over to the couch and has him sit.

                                            Gooch perks up under his poker face as he takes a seat across from him. "Look, I know you're good for it my guy, but I'm running a business here, I can't keep losing money on you friend. but if you want, that money you got right there, that will do for 2 pills." He gazes straight through to Justin's soul as they both understand they all know what Justin wants to do. "You know I can't let you do that while you owe me money”

                                            Justin quickly interjects. "No, I didn't mean it like that, I have 2 days till I start my new job, I just need some to tie me over you know," Justin lies with nothing but a head shake from Gooch.

                                            "Dude, tell the truth. You want to be Silver Mist forever, don't you?" Gooch sighs and gets up from the couch and over to his safe, “Not too long ago I’d be cool about it, you know? Thing is, it’s not like you can just go to a petting club and make that money anymore, cops are shutting them down left and right."

                                            Justin snaps and starts crying, the pain of his human form causes him mental agony every second he has to endure it. Life may be hard as a pony, but it cannot be as bad as being a human for one more day, he reasons with himself. "Yes, I want to be a pony forever, I admit it. I just want to fly away from here, far away and I'll just live free somewhere out there. Trust me, I want to get us square man, but I really don’t know if I can last another day as a human." Justin admits, now expecting to never get his double dose.

                                            Gooch smiles rummaging through his safe finding the clinical strength PonE pills and putting two in his hand. A Pegasus that can fly that well? He's gonna pay his debt ten times over, he thinks to himself thinking about how easy he will be to sell. Those crazy collectors always want talented Unicorns and Pegasi, he thinks to himself with restrained excitement. Walking back over to the sulking addict, Gooch drops the two unusually shaped tablet style pills into Justin’s hands. "Go on, I'll forgive your debt. I just want to see what the transformation looks like, I've never seen it happen before." Gooch explains watching with intense fascination.

                                            Justin looks at the pills in his hand with great suspicion, as he owes a little over a thousand bucks in pills and he seems to just be willing to let it all go for no apparent reason. They have the normal PonE symbols on them but they seem bigger. He rolls them in his hand and sees the one pill was partially chipped at some point "Are you sure this is two doses? I don't want to take the wrong amount." Justin asks hesitant to take the leap. The thought of the transformation becoming permanent constantly fueled his fantasies but now that the pills lay there in his hand, he has cold feet.

                                            Gooch maintains his poker face despite his annoyance with the freeloader. "Yea, it's the right dose. My guy had to get those from a different supplier, so they're shaped differently but they're the same dose as the ones I usually get." Gooch explains leaning back in the couch trying to put Justin at ease.

                                            Gooch has always been there for me, Justin thinks to himself. He would never screw me over, right? He thinks to himself before popping the pungent spaghetti sauce tasting pills. He notices the intense taste of the pills and wants to spit them out but the voice in his head calls to him. “Silver Mist, what are you waiting for? Free yourself! Just swallow and be your true self.” With a choke and a hesitant swallow, he seals his fate.

                                            With a smile, Gooch leans back and sends out a text to his contact. He patiently waits for the call as he starts counting down to the transformation. As far as he is concerned, Justin will be yet another satisfied customer.

                                            Taking off his clothes and covering up, the weight of his decision begins to shatter Justin’s cool as he starts to fidget in the chair. No, this is what I want, I’m sure of it, he tells himself as the permanence of his ponyhood looms over him like a spectre. He wonders how he could even face his friends again as a pony, or how he will survive on his own. The realization of how poorly he has planned this out starts to dawn on him “Oh God, what have I done!” He cries to himself as the anxiety sets in. Scrambling for a way out, he starts trying to gag himself to try and throw up the pills. With his methods not working he begins to panic as he feels the pills begin to take effect. “Gooch, help me! I can’t be a pony forever!” Justin begs horrified by Gooch’s apathy.

                                            Gooch patiently waits as Justin starts to groan in pain watching his legs snap and reform themselves into a pony form. The gruesomeness of the transformation always makes him wince especially when the wings sprout from Justin’s backside. The screaming makes him wonder why so many people are desperate for this drug and keep taking it. However, as the transformation finishes and he looks at the exhausted silver pony on the floor, he can’t help but find him adorable.

                                            Trembling and looking at his all too familiar hooves Justin trots over to the couch and hops up next to Gooch. “Please, you have to help me, I can’t be stuck a pony forever! There has to be a way to reverse this.” Justin begs as he feels a massive crippling headache that forces him to flop where he stood groaning in pain as he starts passing out. Confused, Justin looks up to Gooch bleary eyed wondering why he’s having a headache when he hasn’t had one before. With some effort he manages to force himself to stay awake as Gooch pulls him onto his lap.

                                            Stroking the limp pony’s head and scratching behind the ears to get Justin to relax and let the mental changes take effect, Gooch gets a call back. Shimmying to get his phone out he answers. “Hey, what’s up. Yep, got a new one. A silver Pegasus, blue mane, gorgeous little pony. Yea, of course he took the 4 doses, I watched him do it.”

                                            Justin wiggles hearing about 4 doses, wait, what? I only took 2, unless he…The speculation of Gooch’s motive instantly turns to the money he owes him, would he do that, am I dying? Who’s on the phone with him? All these questions start pouring through his mind between painful throbs of his brain.

                                            Gooch continues holding the weakly squirming pony putting the guy on speaker, “Yea, this isn’t some petting club pony, this is collector grade, he can fly really well.”

                                            The guy on the phone feigns disinterest but his voice shows excitement at the idea of a flying pony. “Y-yea, let’s see here, maybe I can have someone come on by. What are you thinking on price? Remember, I have to make it worthwhile on my end.”

                                            With a top tier pony on his hands, Gooch ratchets up his price, double, no triple! he thinks to himself as he gets comfortable. “He’s gonna cost you, that’s for sure, I’m thinking 20Gs.”

                                            Justin whines and weakly tries to escape before being pulled back onto the couch. Hearing the men calmly discuss selling him, a sentient being, into what sounds nothing short of slavery, sounds like nightmare fuel. At best, it sounds like he will be some collector’s pet to be gawked at behind the bars of a tight cage. I have to escape! he tells himself nodding off with exhaustion in between throbs of his brain

                                            Gooch laughs with offence at the counter offer on the phone. “Dude, be serious, maybe for a basic pony but were talking a flying Pegasus. 15 grand, minimum, I know you got to make your end but I have to make up some costs here, fucker was a hardcore deadbeat.”

                                            Gooch breaks his poker face as he secures the deal. “Awesome, I’ll make sure he’s ready for pick up, his wings will be bound and I’ll have him sedated. Alright, have your guy give five knocks on the door when he gets here.”

                                            “He did take the four doses, right? I don’t want him fighting my guys when he wakes up.” The voice on the phone asks wanting to be sure this pony is going to be a compliant pet pony and not some transformed junkie.

                                            Gooch looks down to the dazed Pegasus drooling onto his lap and gives the pony some scratches behind the ear. “Yea, don’t worry about it, I watched him down two clinicals. When he wakes up, he’s going to be a happy little pony, compliant and ready to obey. I’ll wait for your guys to pick up.” Hanging up on the caller he turns his attention to Justin, “Sorry it had to be this way man.” Gooch apologizes, locking with the worried eyes of the Pegasus.

                                            Sick with worry, Justin sniffles and leaks tears, hardly able to get out any words. “Please, anything but this” Justin quietly begs desperate for anything but to be some slave pony. The worst-case scenarios play through his mind, a plaything for some crime lord’s kid, a circus pony, a sex slave. As his eyes start to feel heavy, he wonders if he will even be himself when he wakes up or if he will be some zombie brainwashed to love his owner. Either scenario burns him inside before finally nodding off and fading to sleep.


                                            Groaning from his headache and recovering from his 3 doses, Justin opens his eyes and to his shock, he finds himself surrounded by colorful ponies all excited to meet their new friend. Justin manages to get himself to his hooves and backs himself against a wall. Wondering what’s happening he starts trying to remember what happened, the squeaky voice of one of the ponies hurts his ears as he still recovers. Given that he can remember what happened and be angry about it, Justin sighs with relief knowing he isn’t some brainwashed zombie. With a tremor he finally makes eye contact with a red unicorn.

                                            “Hey look guys! Our new friend is awake. What’s your name?” The happy-go-lucky unicorn stallion asks the dazed Justin concerned for his wellbeing.

                                            Justin finally clears his mental fog and gets a good look at all the colorful collector ponies around him. He gazes around the warehouse and their little fenced in area with dog beds. He starts to well up tears. Oh no, it’s too late, I’m a slave, I’m such an idiot, why did I trust him! He whines to himself in a spiral of self-pity even as the other ponies try to get his attention. As he starts to hyperventilate, he notices the open top of the cage. Leaping at the opportunity, Justin instinctively tries to unfold his wings to make his escape, but his wings struggle against the tight fabric binding his wings shut. His heart stops with fear as he struggles against the fabric binding his wings trying to find a way to get it off.  As he struggles, the open top of the pin mocks him as he finally throws himself onto the floor crying.

                                            The ponies approach Silver Mist trying to comfort him, in particular a Pegasus puts her wing around him. “Aw, what’s wrong, are you hurt? Maybe we can get the human to help you.” The Pegasus asks with genuine concern as Justin sobs uncontrollably

                                            The red unicorn stallion gets close and tries to console his new friend. “Aw, no need to feel sad, you should be happy, we get to be happy ponies now and soon we will all have an owner who will take good care of us. If you impress the human you get to be a premium pony too, isn’t that exciting!” He explains as the Pegasus continues to cry on the cold concrete floor. “Even if you aren’t ready to introduce yourself, my name is Leo Starswirl.” He proudly announces using his unicorn power to bring over and put on his cape.

                                            As Justin starts to calm down and cry out his remaining tears, he listens to Leo Starswirl, proud of his slavery, talking about how to be a better pony for their human overlords. He starts to wonder why he’s the only one upset about their shared predicament. He took the same amount as the rest of them, right? Why are they all acting like being slave ponies is no big deal? He remembers the big chip in the one pill. With gasp, he realizes he must have only got 3 doses of Pon-E. He looks to the happy cheery ponies around him talking to each other and starts to realize how lucky he is to have escaped their fate. As Starswirl pokes at Justin with his hoof, he’s snapped to attention. “Oh, my name is Silver Mist.” He manages to say through his hoarse voice.

                                            “Wow, Silver Mist, that’s such a good name! When the human makes your collar. You should ask to get one that matches your mane.” Starswirl casually mentions showing off his collar that matches his own golden mane. “It really does complete the ensemble, don’t you agree?”

                                            With a gulp, Silver Mist trembles at the idea of wearing a collar. Imagining its chocking tightness around his neck as his new owner yanks him along fills him with another wave of fear. His mind spirals with thoughts of never being a human again, losing his freedom and more. He shakes his head and tries to keep his mind focused on his escape mission. The first priority is figuring out why they all get to roam free and use their wings and magic at will. It seems stupid to have hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of ponies be able to escape at any given moment especially without a single human to keep an eye on them.  He remembers hearing Gooch saying something about him being fully compliant when he got there which he assumes the extra dose was meant to do. Are they just brainwashed zombies? He asks himself as Leo gets his attention again.

                                            “Are you okay friend? You seem really confused. If you aren’t feeling well, I can get the humans and they’ll help make you feel better.” Leo smiles wanting to make a good impression on the nervous newcomer.

                                            Silver Mist tries coming up with an excuse scrambling mentally. “Oh, yea, no big deal, I just have a uh, headache. He whines to himself wishing he had a better excuse for constantly being lost in thought but its apparently enough for Leo.

                                            “Oh, why didn’t you say so, everypony gets a headache after their 4 doses. Here, let me get the humans, they’ll help you out.” Leo proudly offers hardly waiting from any affirmation from the newcomer before opening the door to the fenced area with his horn and politely shutting it behind him as his hooves clack on the concrete as he makes his way to get help.

                                            Silver Mist’s mind breaks watching the unicorn just leave the cage at will, it isn’t locked!? He asks himself in disbelief scrambling over to the door and opening it with his hoof. He can’t even believe it as he steps out of the fenced area, his breathing labored and trembling as he prepares an ill-conceived escape. I’ll just run out run west and uh, try to find the bay area, maybe I can find Bryan and maybe I can find a way out of this mess. His mental ramblings are cut short as he sees Leo and the human returning. With a disappointed groan, he looks to all the tall shelving around him and boxes stacked everywhere. With his wings he could escape the warehouse without breaking a sweat, but with his wings bound, he’s little more than a feathery basic pony with a big human blocking the way out.

                                            “Don’t worry Silver Mist, Doug has the stuff to make you feel better.” He proudly trots as he makes his way back to the fenced area.

                                            The human eyes the silver Pegasus with suspicion, although he doesn’t appear to be trying to escape, it was highly unusual for any of them to just let themselves loose without permission or having a good reason to be out. Normally he would already have the Pegasus unbound, however his off behaviors keep setting alarm bells in his mind. He puts out his hand for pets and much to his surprise, Silver Mist leans away.  “Here you go, take that, that’s just an aspirin.” The guard explains before ushering Silver Mist back into the cage.

                                            Silver Mist tries to see what means he has for escape but with the imposing human reaching out for him, he flinches subtlety revealing he was underdosed. Fearing the pill may be to correct him and accepts the pill and slips it into his cheek carefully checking for that familiar marinara taste. Much to his relief it just has the awful taste of aspirin that sits in your mouth. “Thank you, sir.” He utters, politely going back into the cage without hesitation.

                                            With nothing seeming to be completely out of the ordinary, Doug chalks it up to Silver Mist being shy. As he enters the cage, the ponies surround Doug as he smiles and starts giving out pets and scratches to all the good little ponies. “Yay, nap time!” They all cheer and nuzzle up against him as he tries to give out as many pets as possible. “Come on, cuties, let me lay down.” He laughs unable to contain his joy interacting with the ponies. He manages to get himself down to the dog bed as the near dozen ponies try laying on him. “Come on, get off Berry Puff, aw how are you doing sweethearts.” He gets himself comfortable as he chuckles trying to stop the Pegasi from hitting him with their excited wings. “Ah, Dashie, Poppy Blossum, no, keep your wings to yourselves.”

                                            Silver Mist watches from a distance trying to understand what made the other ponies like this. He looks to the door to the cage and contemplates making a run for it but he doesn’t know for certain if he can get out of the warehouse, or what is even outside of the warehouse, he can’t just fly away, could there be another guard? He shudders as the guard calls to him causing him to flip back around. Blushing watching all the cozy ponies laying on the guard for a nap.

                                            Doug starts growing increasingly worried about the new pony. He starts patting a spot next to him. “Come on Silver Mist, nothing to be afraid of.” Doug examines every little expression and hint of body language Silver Mist makes as the pony hesitates. No pony can resist the alure of cuddles with humans especially with an invite.

                                            Silver Mist wrestles with fear wondering if this is going to mess with his brain and make him a brainwashed pet pony like the others, but being the only pony in the cage not piling onto Doug makes him feel compelled to join in. Locking eyes with Doug, he sees the stern suspicious look in the human’s eyes and, with some hesitation, he takes his place next to the guard.

                                            Doug invites the pony to lay under his arm, prime real estate for cuddles. As the pony finally starts making himself comfortable giving him scratches behind the ear to get him to settle in. “That’s right, Doug is a friend, all humans are good friends.” He explains still suspicious of the pony’s mental state. All he knows is he’s going to have to tell the distributor about Silver Mist before they make any arrangements to have him shipped to his new owner.

                                            Silver Mist tries resisting, he is a free spirit and not some pet, and he intended to keep it that way. However, he knows he has to be compliant enough to not arouse any further suspicion so as the guard’s hand gives him ear and chin scratches, he initially groans with anger but quickly finds himself enjoying the scratches and pets. With the occasional wave of anxiety, he questions if its genuine comfort that he is finding laying on Doug or his brain being rewired to enjoy the pets. Either way, the resistance doesn’t go unnoticed.

                                            “Good boy Silver Mist, just relax, I’m here for you buddy.” Doug softly whispers to the tense Pegasus as the ponies take their nap with Doug. As he lays with all the ponies Doug can’t help but to think how much he absolutely loves his job.


                                            The next day, fearing the guards might be onto him, Silver Mist discretely rips and tears at the fabric binding his wings on a sharp exposed bolt. In the distance he hears Doug talking with another person fueling his desperation to rip his wings free. They’re talking about me, they’re gonna brainwash me! With a quiet grunt and another rip, he tries opening his wings to no avail. They’re gonna make me take another pill he frantically thinks to himself trying to rip another chunk of the fabric. The sounds of boots echo through the warehouse as the ponies line up on the fence. “Doug has a leash!” one of the ponies cheer causing Silver Mist to tremble trying to get another tear out of the fabric, how many layers did he put on me! He cries to himself before stopping and acting casual so he doesn’t alert the guards.

                                            Doug starts showing off the leash as the ponies all trot in place stirring up their excitement. “Amber Rose, your owner is here to pick you up.” Doug cheers allowing the ponies to hug their friend goodbye and wish the unicorn safe travels. Doug notices Silver Mist again hiding in the corner not even saying goodbye to Amber Rose. Definitely not right for a properly medicated pony. He already called in their doctor to remedy Silver Mist, but keeping an extra eye on the Pony has made him a bit nervous. As the unicorn nuzzles against Doug, he clips her leash on and starts leading her away. “Who’s a good girl, I’m gonna miss you sweetheart. I bet you’re so excited to meet your owner” Doug explains as Silver Mist finally stops his hooves from trembling. With the human finally gone he starts tearing at the fabric again more frantic getting some suspicion from Leo. As the red unicorn locks eyes with him and walks over Silver Mist leans against the wall hiding the side he’s been working at. With an annoyed groan his mind counts down the seconds

                                            “Silver Mist, you didn’t say goodbye to Amber Rose. Are you feeling okay?” Leo asks trying to get a glimpse of what Silver Mist has been up to in the corner.

                                            “Oh, I’m fine, I was just sad she’s gone.” Silver Mist rambles trying to get the pesky Red Unicorn to go away, however, he keeps prodding.

                                            “Don’t worry, your owner will come to get you soon” Leo smiles thinking he’s cheering up the silver Pegasus but as the Pegasus growls at him he doubles back in fear.

                                            “Don’t remind me.” He growls stamping his hooves unwittingly giving the unicorn a view of the ripped fabric binding his wings. Initially confused, Leo starts to understand and back away.

                                            Seeing the look in Leo’s eyes he starts to panic; he wouldn’t rat me out, would he? He asks himself as Leo goes to the fence. Causing him to slip into mental anguish. Shit, if Doug catches me, I’m so screwed! He tells himself looking at the low security around the warehouse. He imagines getting hauled off to a separate cell until they fully medicate him, as he hears Leo calling for Doug he lays down pretending to nap on the dog bed.

                                            “What’s wrong Leo,” He exchanges glances with Silver Mist. The Pony and the guard instantly understand each other as Leo explains how Silver Mist has been acting weird the entire time. With his suspicions confirmed and a terrified expression in Silver Mist’s eyes, he decides it’s too late to do much about it. Considering the doctor will be there shortly to help his undermedicated pony, he decides its better to not rile up any fear in the pony till the doctor gets there. “What, Silver Mist? Oh no, he’s just a shy little guy, he’s super well behaved too. I bet he’s excited to let his wings be free. I’ll take the binder off after dinner, okay buddy?” Doug smiles trying to put the pony at ease.

                                            Silver Mist feels the pressure to escape, with the pressure on he keeps rubbing on the sharp bolt trying to get himself free repeatedly scratching himself and even drawing a little blood. However, as the hours tick by with little progress he hears the sounds of humans chatting as the Doctor arrives. With a bloody wing and a partially torn open binder Silver Mist huddles in the corner.

                                            The doctor ignores the happy ponies and instantly locks eyes with the only despondent pony in the cage. The pony doesn’t even attempt to make eye contact as the doctor kneels down in front of him. “Silver Mist, I’m Doctor Bacall, I’m going to be helping you today. Are you doing okay, looks like you’re hurting yourself. Doug is worried about you; your friends are worried about you.” The doctor soothingly calls out to him trying to get the defeated Pegasus to respond. “I know why you’re feeling this way Silver Mist, I can help you with that.”

                                            Silver Mist leaks tears as the doctor whispers to him. “Please, I don’t want this” He whispers back to the unrelenting doctor as the doctor presents another clinical Pon-E pill. He finally meets the doctors gaze and trembles in fear. “Just let me go”

                                            “We both know that’s not going to happen.” The doctor explains shattering any illusion of this ending any other way for the silver Pegasus. The stern look and voice tell Silver Mist he was married to his fate the second he took those pills. “I just want you to be happy just like the other ponies here” He again presents the pill once more. “There is no going back, you’re already a pony for the rest of your life. Now you can just accept it, and be ready for your owner to get you or we will have to force you to take it. The choice is yours Silver Mist. You’ll still be yourself you’ll just be a happier you.” The doctor explains presenting the pill as just a means to alleviate the pain of the experience to make everyone happier.

                                            (If you want Silver Mist to take the pill, skip to line: 95

                                            Silver Mist backs against the corner with the doctor blocking the only escape, he shivers in fear looking at the pill, all he has to do is swallow it and everything will be fine, or so they say. He looks to see a few ponies standing waiting to see if Silver Mist will join them or if he will resist. Silver Mist imagines soaring free in the skies roaming place to place seeing everything but the pill will resign him to being nothing more than a pet, and worse, be happy about it. Seeing the door to the cage open and Doug distracted, He sees this may likely be his only chance for escape, taking a quick glance at the doctor sitting at attention waiting for Silver Mist to make a move, he cautiously laps up the pill. The Extremely strong taste initially sends a shiver of fear down his body but as he fakes a swallow, he carefully watches the doctor

                                            Feeling more at ease with the compliant pony, the doctor smiles and reaches down for a pet. “Good boy, you made the right decis-,” The doctor is knocked out by a powerful headbutt.

                                            Without a second to even recover from the daze, Silver Mist bolts out the cage spitting out the pill. High on adrenaline he runs through the endless lines of shelves before finding himself at a wrong turn.

                                            “Tyler! Tyler! The silver one is making a run for it!” Doug yells sprinting after Silver Mist. With the pony stopping he tackles him and the start wrestling on the cold concrete floor. In the struggle Silver Mist begs to be let go as he holds onto the binding trying to pin him to the ground.

                                            “No! you can’t do this to me! No!” Silver Mist yells thrashing under the guard. Finally managing to get his hooves under Doug he gives the guard a powerful kick straight to the chest as his grip rips the binder off of the pony’s body. Stumbling to his hooves, Silver Mist finally spreads his wings and takes flight. Flying high over all the shelves he knows this is his chance hearing the second guard he manages to find the door and dives on the unsuspecting guard. Bracing himself he slams into the guard sending both of them flying out of the building and tumbling across the lot. Silver Mist struggles to get to his hooves. Feeling an intense pain in his wing, He turns to see the guard scramble to get him. Fueled by adrenaline, he takes flight. The intense pain is almost too much for him to bear as he manages to clear the fence of the ware house with inches to spare. With almost no land marks to tell him where he’s going, he simply flies to the mountains praying they won’t be able to follow.


                                            After an agonizing flight with the sun rapidly setting, the exhausted Pegasus flies over a valley rapidly losing altitude despite his best efforts. Barely clearing trees, he tries to flap more and gain some speed and altitude. However, with a cry of pain, he gives up and braces for a tumble across a field landing in an irrigation ditch. With a bloody mangled wing, silver mist crawls out from the irrigation ditch. Confused and scared, Silver Mist is convinced the guards must be looking for him, tracking him. The paranoid machinations cause him to gaze around in fear and start sneaking around. He sneaks past the aircraft hangar and sees a barn across the way. Hearing horses inside and his own growling stomach, Silver Mist dares to venture inside to see if he can find a scrap of food. With the door sliding open the horses seem to roar in confused excitement as the tries to quietly search for food. Feeling safe inside the barn he finds a pile of hay in the corner and a trough of water. Fearing what might happen to him if he tries to keep running, he decides taking refuge in the barn will be his safest bet, at least for the night. Considering the alternative is possibly being attacked and eaten by a mountain lion, he quietly munches on the hay thinking about what he’s gonna do now, with an injured wing, and being a bright silver pony with a navy-blue mane, he’s going to be found by the guards eventually. He starts to wonder if he made the right decision. Being on his own was going to be much harder than he thought but with his exhaustion creeping in, he finally drifts off to sleep.

                                            Feeling a rope sinch down on his neck he scrambles himself to his hooves wondering if the guards found him, panicking he finds something much worse, a woman with a lasso tying him to the post on the barn with a holstered revolver in her hand. With a soothing voice she tries calming the little pony.

                                            “Woahhhh Woahhhh, Easy there, don’t you panic little guy. Poor thing, you must be lost.” The young woman stands in the dawning light of the open barn. Her brown hair and tan skin with dirty old duds show that this quite literally isn’t her first rodeo. Hoping to go on an early morning ride, she’s quite surprised to see a pony hiding out in her barn eating all her hay. With the pony seemingly calmed down she pulls the lasso bringing the little pony out into the open where her mouth nearly drops.

                                            The once beautiful silver Pegasus limps into the light as the sun finally crests over the mountains through the smoggy air. He finally gets a glimpse of his own crippled wing and his body being covered in hay and mud. He starts to cry wondering if she’s about to turn him in, or if she will sell him herself or worse make him into some sort of petting attraction. Considering he had only been free for a few waking hours, he gives up. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to break in.”

                                            The woman is nearly floored as the pony manages to speak to her. Thinking she must be insane, She asks the talking winged pony a question. “I’m Marie, what’s your name? may I touch you.” She asks trying to be polite to the magic horse.

                                            Silver Mist allows the women to approach him. “I’m Silver Mist, please help me.” He sniffles feeling her hand touch his head, feeling some comfort in her embrace, he leans against her pressing his head against her belly submitting to her knowing he cannot survive on his own, even if he wanted to try and escape.

                                            Feeling sorry for the pony and seeing the badly damaged wing she knows she has to do something for the poor pony. Feeling the pony lean against her and surrender himself to her she starts to pet the pony. “It’s alright, don’t worry, I’ll call the vet, she’s gonna fix you up, she does horses and ostriches, she will know what to do.” She pets trying to comfort her new pony.

                                            Despite the lasso around his neck, he feels safety that he hasn’t felt in a long time. He puts his trust into the woman. “I’ll do whatever it takes to pay you back.” He pleads with her as she hushes him.

                                            “Don’t worry about that now Silver Mist. Let’s get you cleaned up first.” She reassures him leading him off to get cleaned up. Proud of her new little pony.


                                            Silver Mist lays on a cloud enjoying the warm day floating in the cool breeze. He diligently followed through with his end of the deal doing chores around the farm and ranch. In his free time, he generally enjoyed being adorable for the family even dressing up as Rudolf for Christmas. The day his bandaged wing was healed and he could finally fly again was one of worry for the family as they weren’t sure if the pony would stay with them or fly off. However, his time grounded made Silver Mist realize that family wasn’t something to tie him down but rather something to find purpose and meaning in. His chores, though a burden are something he can do to help his family. Getting to sleep in the house, getting all the sweet vegies he could ever want, he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. He holds his collar with pride and smiles, something he would have found entirely alien nearly a year ago.

                                            “Silver Mist, quit napping and do your chores!” Marie yells into the clouds looking up to the pony looking down at her. With a little giggle she looks up to him. “Yes you! You eat my hay and sleep in my house, the least you can do is do your chores.” She smiles watching her goofball Pegasus take flight.

                                            Okay, check the fence, check on the cows, and make it rain on the field, he tells himself making a little checklist. Flying low over the fields using all the little tricks she taught him about air convection and ground effect. He’s been able to fly far longer than he ever has before with just subtle changes in his wing shape and identifying rising air. He finds himself challenging himself to complete his daily chores without flapping his wings. Some days closer than others but being a fairly cool day, he just can’t seem to find any convection currents to ride. No problem, I’ll just have to work harder today I guess, he thinks to himself as he goes through the sky gathering up the clouds to make a good enough rain cloud to help water the fields. With a happy canter, he puts his magic to work gently stomping on the cloud to make it rain. Pushing along the cloud he gets a gentle drizzle across the fields before finally squeezing the clouds dry. Continuing on his routine, he does some tricks to amuse himself flying low over the fields checking on all the cows and making sure the fence is intact. With a day of work behind him, he gently comes down gliding to a cheery canter as the dinner bell rings. He comes trotting along as the family gathers for another meal. With smiles and jokes they set out a plate for Silver Mist with sweet potatoes, apple slices, carrots and more. With a pat on the head for another good day’s work Silver Mist smiles and digs in a happy family pet.


                                            Silver Mist backs against the corner with the doctor blocking the only escape, he shivers in fear looking at the pill, all he has to do is swallow it and everything will be fine, or so they say. He looks to see a few ponies standing waiting to see if Silver Mist will join them or if he will resist. Silver Mist imagines soaring free in the skies roaming place to place seeing everything but the pill will resign him to being nothing more than a pet, and worse, be happy about it. Seeing the door to the cage door closed and Doug keeping a watchful eye on the two, He realizes his only method of escape is blocked. With his wings bound tight, and any element of surprise gone, he knows resistance would be futile. He starts to sniffle and cry as the doctor gives him a tight hug pulling him tight against his chest.

                                            “It’s alright, let it out.” Doctor Bacall soothingly whispers into the pony’s ear. “it’s a lot to take in. I understand you’re scared but you have to trust us, we are looking out for your best interests.” The doctor reassures the pony as he sets the pill to the side as a sign of good will.

                                            Silver Mist finally has an objective look at the situation before him and hangs his head in shame. Blaming himself for being so shortsighted. This isn’t a Disney movie, If I managed to escape now, then what? Where would my next meal come from? I’d be digging through garbage, constantly trying to find somewhere safe to sleep. “What am I thinking” He whines to himself finding comfort in the doctor’s embrace. With a heavy heart he asks one more question. “I will still be myself? I won’t forget who I am?” Silver Mist desperately asks looking at the pill in terror.

                                            The Doctor strokes the pony’s mane trying to reassure him everything will be fine. “You’ll still be yourself Silver Mist, whoever you were before will still be there. Think of it as an anti-depressant. Just because the person taking it is happier, doesn’t mean they aren’t the same person.” The doctor explains feeling the pony in his arms finally relax.

                                            With a heavy heart, Silver Mist gives up. Worried and scared, he puts his faith in the doctor. “I’ll take the pill” He softly utters with a hoarse voice sniffling as the pill is once more presented to him. He has to close his eyes and lap up the single clinical PonE. Hesitating with the taste of marinara flooding his mouth he finally swallows surrendering himself to his fate.

                                            “You made the right decision.” Doctor Bacall says comforting the little pony as the apprehension seemingly leaves the pony’s body. “Don’t worry, we’ll make sure everything is fine. You’ll be yourself when you wake up, you’ll remember everything, you’ll just be a happier you.” The doctor explains as the pill starts to take effect.

                                            With a crippling headache, Silver Mist collapses into the doctor’s arms as the doctor lays him on one of the beds. He worries about what he had done to himself but he cautiously trusts that the doctor has his best interests at heart. With his head throbbing he closes his eyes and drifts to sleep.


                                            Silver Mist patiently waits in the cage having a good time chatting with one of the newcomers sharing their stories about how they wound up there. The mix of stories ranged from, willingly selling themselves to, much like Silver Mist, coerced but as they all have a little laugh about their strife, they can’t feel mad about what happened to them. After all, it was very selfish of him to not pay for his Pon-E, but Gooch is probably happy now. Doug comes down the hall, the boots signal joy as he lines up on the fence to see what’s happening, is it nap time already? He thinks to himself as he sees a leash in his hand. A wave of excitement hits the ponies as they all speculate who’s going to their new home.

                                            Doug locks eyes with Silver Mist holding up the leash. “Silver Mist, your ride is here.” Doug smiles watching as the little Pegasus tearfully says his goodbyes to all of his friends. As Silver Mist trots out of the cage and patiently waits for his leash to be clipped, Doug gives the pony a final brush of his mane to make sure he is presentable before clipping the leash.

                                            Proudly trotting next to Doug, he tries to understand what about this he was truly scared of. Seeing the new escalade outside waiting to pick him up he starts getting butterflies in his stomach excited to see his new owner as the owner’s vet inspects the pony checking his wings. “Am I good?” He asks as the trunk to the escalade pops open with a nice cushy bed for him to lay on. With a whinny of excitement, he hops up into the SUV. “Bye Doug, thank you for your help” He cheers as the tailgate closes and he leaves for his new home.


                                            Floating off the coast of Italy in the breezy Mediterranean, Silver Mist basks in the sun at his owner’s side while he entertains his guests on his yacht. His owner, Tony is a demanding but kind soul who expects a lot out of his prized pony but he can hardly imagine wanting to be anywhere else. Every second training to be a better flier and working with personal trainers has forged Silver Mist from a casual flier into a precision instrument of speed and aerodynamics. Nothing makes Silver Mist happier than seeing his owner happy. Speaking of, overhearing a boasting match between his owner and his guest he lifts his head to be given some pets.

                                            “500 miles an hour? That’s impossible, no Pegasus and fly that fast I head the fastest ones can only get to 300” The guest looks to the smug Pegasus as he stretches his wings.

                                            With a pleading look in his eyes, Silver Mist begs his owner for permission to show off to their guests. Please, just let me rub it in this guy’s face, I’m the fastest and you know it. His eyes beg as his owner scratches under the chin.

                                            Unclipping the designer collar from his pony, Silver Mist seems to be ready to take flight already. “No, not yet, go get the speed gun. How else can we prove you’re the fastest.” Tony explains as his pony cheers with excitement and retrieves the Laser gun. With the laser gun in hand, he can hardly wait as his pony trots to the end of the deck. “Be safe Silver Mist, I’ll be watching.” Tony cheers as his Pegasus takes flight with utter grace and poise as some of the neighboring boats cheer for the silver Pegasus.

                                            Being somewhat self-indulgent, Silver Mist can’t help but to do some tricks as he gains speed and eventually altitude, much to the joy of the humans in the harbor. However, his owner isn’t looking for fancy wing work, he wants to settle an argument about speed. With countless hours of training and practice he has found his ideal high-speed dive. Though dangerous, it fuels him with pride and gives him something to work towards. Every time that speed gun ticks an extra mile an hour of speed, he feels a rush unlike anything he has ever felt before. High above the harbor, he takes position standing on a cloud. Like his days in San Francisco, he closes his eyes and takes a leap from the cloud. Tucking his wings and streamlining his body like many times before, He can hear the sounds of the air whizzing and cracking as he closes in on his leveling altitude, with intense strength he extends his just enough to pull up. With a herculean feat of strength, his wings take a delta shape as he eyes the yacht leveling off just before giving his owner flash of silver as he races past. Fully extending his wings and taking artistic liberty with the skies, he bleeds off his speed and altitude performing tricks and performing low passes over the other yachts. Hearing clapping and cheering from his Yacht he slowly brings himself to the deck letting his hooves clop gently against the wood.

                                            Not wanting to reveal anything to his pony, Tony maintains a dour expression. “Silver Mist, how fast do you think you went?” Tony asks stirring fears of disappointment in his Pony.

                                            “I had to have done 500, I could feel it, I could hear it too”, he explains worried that he may have upset his owner, however as tony laughs and turns the gun around to show 511 miles an hour Silver Mist jumps with joy with his wings flapping with joy taking his spot next to his owner proud of his new personal best.

                                            “Who’s my good boy, let’s get you some treats, I’m thinking kiwi, strawberries, that kind of thing.” He explains letting the tired Pegasus lay his head on his lap. He rings the kitchen for snacks as he strokes his pony’s mane. Though he spent a small fortune on this pony, he feels as though he could have spent a lot more and still have been happy with the feathery bundle of joy.

                                            Laying on his owner’s lap, he never could have possibly imagined how life would have turned out. Had he known, he would have sold himself to this a long time ago. He thinks back to how silly he was worried about being sold as a pet but living it, he realizes taking that second pill was the best decision he could have made.