[copied from https://pastebin.com/gESEubg1]


> Bobbing her head to the beat of the music, Sapphire Shores closes her eyes and bounces her weight from side to side. The mare and her band are performing on-stage, and it is the guitar solo now, accompanied by the drums as prominent features of the song. The “Pony of Pop” simply dances and keeps a distance from the standing microphone, rocking her body to the beat as he, her owner and lover, dazzles the crowd with his version of the guitar solo. She takes her cue from her Master as he provides the vocals just before the ending chorus, and moving her muzzle to the microphone again, Sapphire takes a deep breath before projecting her voice into it.
> “Whhoooaaa… How do you… the things you do?… No one I know could ever keep up with you…”
> Just like in rehearsal, the backup singers are doing a fantastic job. They hit their notes just right, and the sound specialist had made sure that their microphone volumes are just nice; their singing do not overpower her own voice as she belts out the remainder of the chorus to the crowd. Coupled with the lights and the fog generated by the smoke machines, the performance of the high-energy pop song is a sight to marvel at.
> “… How do you do! …. Did it ever make sense to you to cry: Bye, Bye Bye?...”
> The pale gold ‘Earth’ pony, with her cobalt blue mane and tail, feels a deep sense of elation as she dances and sings her heart out; seeing her fans below - humans and ponies alike, dancing and singing along with her… It brings the mare much fulfilment and joy. She is living up to her purpose. She is doing what her cutie mark tells her to.
> “Yeeaah! How do you… the things you do? No one I know could ever keep up with you…”
> Never had she hoped to perform again when she was brought to Earth as a slave, but her owner… her Master… the man on the electric guitar; he gave her a second chance. He used to be a vocalist and a guitarist in a local band that folded, and after buying her and learning of her talent and history, he decided to give up his career as an accountant and pursue his childhood dream of being a performer again. Turning to give that wonderful man a grin as she sings, the pony catches him smiling warmly back at her, even as his hands seem to be flying over the electric guitar. They are performing together. They are living out their dreams and passions together on-stage in front of a crowd that adores them. Sweet Celestia does she love him so…
> “How do you do!”
> Sapphire flicks her front hoof up in the air as she closes the song proper, and there is a moment when the only thing that can be heard in the stadium is the echo of her last note. Then, the crowd explodes as they applaud the singer and her band, and even as she pants and gasps from the exertion of her performance, the mare can see many of the audience members giving her a standing ovation and waving their light-sticks at her. She grins and bows, stepping back to gesture to each of her band members with a hoof as the crowd whoops, cheers, clap their hands and stomp their hooves to show their appreciation to the musicians.
> Even as she speaks a few words to the gathered group of humans and ponies, thanking them for their support and wishing them a safe journey home, the singer cannot keep her eyes off her man. She is filled with so much gratitude and joy for the gift that he has given her, and now, all she wants to do is show her appreciation to him. He is a little crude in his speech, and he does have a habit of taking too much alcohol when the opportunity arises, but these are small prices to pay for the love, care and attention he gives her in return. And not to mention, he IS quite handsome…
> Sapphire blushes as naughty thoughts fill her mind, and she makes sure that her tail is firmly covering her backside; later, after this is over, she is going to show how much she loves him… Maybe, she will try THAT THING he suggested three nights ago. It will hurt, from what she has heard from her marefriends, but if it makes him happy... 
> The mare smirks as she watches her lover keep the guitar in its case. 
> “Tonight… is going to be sensaaational…”
> She muttered that quietly to herself just before she bites her lower lip.
> …

> *Author's note* The song featured here is Roxette's "How Do You Do!".

> Things do not always go according to plan. True, Sapphire loves her fans and appreciates the support they show her, but she tries to treat them all equally. Sometimes though, the Pony of Pop has to do more than what was required, especially when her event manager decides to offer private ‘Meet-and-Greet’ sessions without informing her first. They had talked about this, and after some… well, heated negotiations, she has decided to just offer three sessions tonight. 
> The singer smiles warmly as the small group of pony mares take their leave from her dressing room. They seem so happy as they bounce around their owner, practically prancing out the door as they giggle and thank him for his generosity. In the brief moment before the next (and last) session, the ‘Earth’ pony mare lets her smile falter as the reality of her situation sinks in. Earth… This world, and this country… has institutionalised slavery. More specifically, pony slavery. Slavery of her kind. Despite the legal protections that are offered to them by the Human government, ponies are still… property.
> Sapphire snatches up a glass of water and downs it quickly, feeling that sense of indignity flare within her. It is not fair at all… Ponies are sapient beings; no different from a human… and yet, her kind is treated no different from animals.
> No… not even animals. Equestria had animals, and even THEY are not subjected to the abuses and cruelty that she has come to witness and learn of during her time here on Earth. During her time in the pony slave auction houses. 
> Ponies are objects. Items. Commodities… Not persons.
> “Dammit… Celestia dammit.”
> Sapphire sighs deeply in sorrow, but as her gaze rests on the photograph on her dressing table, the mare allows herself a smile. It is a picture of her Master and her; she is between his arms as he holds her to his chest, and they are sitting on a picnic mat on the beach, grinning widely and cheekily at the camera in a ‘selfie’ pose. That man is more than her owner and Master… he is her lover.
> Reaching a hoof over to touch the glass, the pony sighs again, but it is one of contentment and gratitude this time. The performer feels lucky to have been chosen by him – she knows this; he is kind, generous and a wonderfully decent human, so different from the others of his kind. He bought her because he wanted a pony to look after the house when he is working, but living together as lonely singles, their relationship quickly blossomed into a love that is fierce, powerful and passionate, especially after he discovered her love for music is something that they both shared. 
> And the sex… Oh Luna’s big blue plot, the sex. He is so gentle, yet so passionate. Bold and daring, yet considerate and loving. He is everything she ever dreamed-
> *Knock* *Knock*
> “Sapphire? This is Alan, the holder of a VIP pass. He is here to see you and-”
> There was an unusual sound after the voice gets cut off abruptly, as if something heavy, like a sack of fruit, has dropped to the ground. That voice belonged to her event manager, right outside her door, and there seems to be a scuffle of sorts as she listens.
> “Preppy? Prepped Clipboard? Are you okay? Hello?”
> The mare frowns as she sits up in her chair, turning to the door as she waits for her event manager to open it. Sapphire was about to call out again when the door does open, and immediately she freezes at what she sees. A hooded human male steps in, carrying an unconscious Prepped Clipboard inside the dressing room with an arm across the stallion’s chest. The man’s face is obscured by a balaclava, and it is then that the singer’s blood turns cold – that human has a revolver pressing on the pony’s temple. Kicking the door closed, the intruder growls at her.
> “Keep your voice down, darling, or your dear friend here will get a bullet in his cutesy little pony head.”
> The mare’s eyes widen in shock and fear. Sweet Celestia, this isn’t happening… This cannot be happening…
> “Wha-… Don’t hurt him! P-please! W-what… what do you want? Who are you? Please, don’t hurt him!”
> It was all she can stammer out in her panic. Her mind is a blank, and she is already sweating profusely. Her eyes dart to her event manager and back to meet the assailant’s own. When he speaks again, she can HEAR the smirk in his voice.
> “You. I want you, darling. Sapphire Shores; the famous “Pony of Pop”. You are coming with me if you don’t want this bastard to breathe through the side of his head.”
> Sapphire’s gaze follows the man’s pistol as he uses it to gesture towards the door. The man then flicks the weapon back to her friend’s head.
> “Parking lot B. Just down the hallway. Blue sedan; boot’s already open. Move, now.”
> Not once did she think to defy him. Sapphire has undergone… well, training… during her time in the auction house, and despite her lover and Master’s efforts to rehabilitate her, the impulse to immediately obey a given order overwhelms all other thought processes, especially since her friend’s life is in danger. Numbly and almost immediately, the mare canters out of her dressing room, heading towards the mentioned parking lot with the intruder following close behind.
> How this crazed man managed to sneak in is a question only the Princesses can answer, but that is the least of Sapphire’s concerns now. All she can think of is to comply… to obey… and to submit. Fear is generally never kind to a person’s rationality.
> The instant he reaches the car, the man drops Prepped Clipboard and pockets the pistol. Before the mare can react, he reaches down and wraps an arm around her waist causing her to scream and flail. He punches the pony in her stomach, knocking the wind out of her before tossing her in the boot. Sapphire does not give in; she fights him with every ounce of strength she can muster, using her hooves, teeth and even the crown of her head in her struggle to get free. With adrenaline coursing through her system, her mind is now focused on two things: First, looking for any openings that her assailant is leaving for her, so she can exploit them to hurt the bastard who wants to take her; and second, getting away from him so she can go back to her owner and lover.
> Snarling, the man grips her tail and pulls hard, and the resulting burst of pain leaves the mare gasping and choking for breath. Clenching her eyes tightly as tears escape them, Sapphire grits her teeth and grimaces, unable to even yell as the agony of that brutal action completely incapacities her. All she can do is arc her back as an intense fire flares in her back. Then, the world becomes dark as her assailant slams the boot shut.
> “Sapphire!”
> For just that brief moment, the mare’s attention shifts to the sound of her name as she recognises that voice, but the pain in her back snatches away her focus almost immediately. It is her Master. He has come for her. He is going to-
> *Tunk!* *Tunk!*
> The semi-sealed confines of the boot make the sounds from the outside seem strangely muffled and distorted, but those two distinct sounds are clear to the singer. They are gunshots.
> Pounding her hooves weakly at the padded roof of the boot, Sapphire’s crying becomes harder and more frantic as she realised what has just happened. No… Not him… Please not him…
> “… no…. Celes… no… please… no…”
> Her soft, pained mutters of protest and disbelief are drowned out by the sound of the engine starting, and the injured mare can only sob in despair as she feels the car moving off. She had known her man for five months. Her Master and lover… only five months… And just when she thought her life has changed for the better… when she thought that she has found happiness again, here on Earth… this happened.
> Sapphire Shores cries and cries; it is the only thing she can do, other than gasp in pain when the vehicle hits a bump on the road. All that she can focus her mind on is that picture of him and her on the beach… and what he suggested three nights ago. The mare should be worried about what is going to happen to her. She should be worried about trying to get the Celestia-damned boot opened. She should be worried about her event manager… but all she can think of is him, and him alone. His safety. His well-being. His happiness. And his immense love for her.
> If only… if only she had agreed to do it.
> If only. 
> …

> Sapphire’s breathing is shallow and weak. Her body just felt like a huge bruise. She is laying motionless on the floor of her rusted cage, in the dimly-lit basement of the assailant’s house. 
> Why did she do it? Why did she tell him? He… he was so cruel… He… exploited that. He exploited her honesty… Honesty; one of the Elements! The mare lived up to it… but it did not bring her Harmony at all. It brought her pain. It hurt her. 
> That night, six days ago, when the singer was dragged by screaming by her mane from the car and into this… abyss, he forced her to list off romantic things she did with her owner and lover. Her captor, or “Daddy”, as she now is forced to call him, apparently knew her man, and from what little she managed to gather, he seems to have a grudge or jealousy of some sort towards her Master. Whatever their history, “Daddy” meant it when he said he will make her suffer for belonging to her lover. He used that list he made for his amusement, and the mare suffered much as a result. 
> Just now, he did give her “a massage that she would never forget” as he promised; similar to how her owner and lover did it with his wonderful hands and fingers, being firm and yet so wonderfully gentle, he also used his as well… except that he pressed and pushed with extreme force, attacking and bruising the pressure points on her already dehydrated, starved and sleep-deprived body. The mare screamed until her throat is burning, choosing to just give “Daddy” what he wanted: her voice; her “beautiful voice that holds so much passion”, as how he puts it. He is gone now, having raped the barely conscious pony after she had no more strength to give any form of reaction to his brutal and sadistic treatment of her.
> Staring at the same rusted metal gate of her cage for the past five minutes now, Sapphire Shores does not move a muscle except for the light heaving of her chest. She couldn’t even cry anymore – she simply does not have the strength, nor the will to do so. Instead, she just lays on the floor, her entire body aching and throbbing painfully as she cursed herself. 
> Why DID she tell him what they did? Why couldn’t she have kept that list shorter? That was the “massage”, the second item on the list, and already, Sapphire knows she will probably not survive all five of them. The first was a “bath”, where “Daddy” covered her with entire body with hot sauce and left it on her coat overnight, four days ago. How she screamed and cried and trashed that night – her body was on fire, and the sauce BURNED her mercilessly, and even after the thorough cleansing she received the next morning, her body continued to torture her for the next three hours. The mare was sure that even the worst monsters in Equestria were not subjected to such immense cruelty even in Tartarus, and she prayed earnestly that nopony should ever, EVER, have to go through what she did. The pain… that fire… It was excruciating. If she survives this, the Pony of Pop would probably never want to take spicy food again.
> Even in her weaken and numb state, Sapphire Shores feel silent tears leak from her eyes. Death is welcomed – she has gone through two of the items on that list, and already, the mare does not want to live anymore. A bath and a massage; two innocent and loving acts as given by her man, were twisted and warped into versions that mocked the comfort and care that she felt with her owner and lover when he did those things to her. Now, she still has three more items to go through: a candlelit dinner, a serenade and a sunbath, and she dreads what “Daddy”’s twisted mind will turn those into. He never even gave proper reasons for doing the things he did, and strangely enough, this was what bothered the singer the most, above the suffering he has caused her.
> Why are they so different? “Daddy” and her Master? Why is the latter so kind, generous and loving, and the former so evil, selfish and cruel? What kind of world produce persons like “Daddy”? What did he go through that made him so different from her man? What happened that-
> The sudden sound of shouting from above earned itself only a slight twist of her head as Sapphire Shores moved her eyes and ears towards the sound. Hurting too badly to move, the mare barely even jumped when there was a burst of gunfire from above. Instead, she closes her eyes and prays in her heart for the Princesses to grant her deliverance from her sorrow and pain, and to allow her to be reunited with her Master in Harmonic existence. He believed in an afterlife, but she did not; yet, the thought of having some form of unity after death does feel comforting in its own way. She wants to see her man again… To love him again, and receive his love. Celestia knows how much she wants him by her side again.
> Several pairs of muffled thumps are coming from the direction of the stairs, and the mare slowly shifts her gaze towards the new arrivals. Other humans; two of them, but dressed in a funny attire: they are wearing almost all-black, complete with helmets, boots and a variety of other equipment on a black vest that looks heavy, and their faces are covered by balaclavas. Yet, the thing that captures her attention most are the items in their hands; these humans are armed with weapons. 
> Watching them silently and without moving, Sapphire notes how they spread out to check the basement for any other inhabitants before the both of them move to the front of her cage. One of them; a male, from his physique, busies himself with the lock on the cage door, while the other human kneels down in front of her. This one is female, judging from the sound of her voice as she reaches a hand up to push a button on her radio.
> “Charlie to Zulu. Charlie to Zulu. We have located and secured the package at Lima Bravo; she is conscious but immobile. Injuries look bad. Requesting a medical team. Over.”
> Even in her weakened state, the pony manages a small frown.
> What? “Package”? “Lima Bravo”? What about “Daddy”? Who are these people? What do they-
> Removing her helmet and sliding off her balaclava, the kneeling human is a pretty and young Chinese lass with her hair in a bun; her facial features are sharp, complete with a set of small lips and a pair of hazel eyes. She is smiling gently at Sapphire when the other human reproaches her.
> “God dammit Charlie! You know we are not supposed to-”
> Her response is swift and curt as she glares up at him.
> “Fuck off Anon! She is scared of us, alright? Let me do this my way, dammit!”
> “Fine. You answer to Zulu later. He’ll kick your ass for this.”
> Ignoring her colleague, “Charlie” turns to smile at the motionless pony. Her gaze is soft and her voice is gentle.
> “Sapphire Shores? We are officers from an Equestrian Citizens Affairs Department Rescue Team. We are here to help you and bring you to your Master. He is waiting for you at Florence General Hospital, where you too, will be receiving emergency medical care.”
> The pony can only blink in surprise and disbelief. Is she… Is her man… What…
> “Charlie” reaches a hand through the metal bars and touches the mare’s dirty and dishevelled mane, trying to reassure her as best as she can while her partner continues his attempts to open the lock with a tool.
> “You heard me. Your Master is alive, and we are going to bring you to him. You are safe now, Miss Shores. It’s over.”
> ~Fin~