Life at the shelter was, as always, terribly boring.
Tulip was born and raised inside the confines of PonyHaven, a modest no-kill shelter housing around four dozen fluffy ponies of every stripe. Her mother was a stray, rescued from a life of depravation and depravity by a good samaritan after her special friend was killed, carrying nothing but a tummy full of foals. The dutiful volunteers of PonyHaven did all they could to see her pregnancy to term, but the strain of birth proved to be the last of many injuries the world would inflict upon her. Tulip and her siblings would never know their mother, but the shelter workers did their best to raise them by hand.
As far as fluffy shelters were concerned, PonyHaven was certainly no hellhole. There was always enough food, the staff were kind, and there was even a well-kept saferoom for the rescues to romp around in. Yet while they were content, no fluffy could ever be truly happy without a loving home to call their own. After all, it was in their nature as biotoys to be loved.
So it was that Tulip laid morose in her cage before lights out. From a litter of five, Tulip was the only one left behind at the shelter. It was through no fault of her own, really. Most adoptees left the shelter as foals, and it was just dumb luck that nobody decided to pick Tulip over her siblings when they were young.
Now she was a young filly, dimly aware she was not getting any younger. She had friends among the other fluffies, of course, but every time sheâd see one who had been living at PonyHaven for years without being adopted, Tulip feared she would never know the loving embrace of a new mommy or daddy.
And so she would sulk more and more with each passing day, wanting nothing more than to be rescued from this life of tedium.
Tulip barely paid the shelter workers any mind as they did their last checkup before going home for the night, instead absently pawing the bedding of her cage with her hoof. She almost didnât notice one of the workers, a young woman who was something called a âmanager,â kneel down towards her cageâs opening and try and get her attention.
âPsst!â the manager whispered. âTulip!â
âHmm?â Tulip lifted her head slowly to meet the managerâs gaze.
âIâve got good news for you Tulip,â she said. âYouâre finally leaving tomorrow. Congratulations, you got a new daddy!â
Tulip slowly stood, struggling to register what she was hearing.
âNyu⊠Nyu daddeh!?â
The excitement had spread to the other cages, and soon the room was flooded by a commotion of tiny voices.
âGasp! Tuwip ged nyu daddeh?â
âYaay! Fwiend ged nyu housie!â
âHuuu⊠Fwuffy wanâ nyu daddeh tuâŠâ
Tulip could hardly believe it. Her fluff began to stand on end from the frisson and her eyes began to blur as tears of joy flowed freely for the first time in her young life.
âTuwip gonna ged nyu daddeh? An housie? An toysies an sketties an- an- an-â
The manager smiled, paying no mind to her coworkers trying to calm the rest of the fluffies down around her. She simply reached a finger through the mesh of the cage and began stroking Tulipâs chin.
âYep. Weâre gonna be sad to see you go, honey, but we knew this day would happen. Tomorrow will be the first day of the rest of your life.â
Tulip was still buzzing with glee well after the lights went out. Curled up in a ball at the end of her cage, her mind raced with images of the life that awaited her once her new daddy took her away.
A new life of huggies and love.
Tulip stood at the center of the saferoom, eyeing the door nervously, hooves shuffling in place.
Her friends had all wished her fond farewell. More than a few of the older fluffies glared at her jealously throughout the day, but Tulip couldnât care less about them. They werenât getting a new daddy like she was. Theyâd grow old and grey within the walls of PonyHaven while Tulip actually lived her life to the fullest, just like a fluffy should.
The manager had told Tulip that her new daddy was due to arrive soon. That was several minutes ago, but for Tulip it may have well been an eternity of staring at that door, waiting for her savior to come through.
And then, there he was.
The door opened to reveal the manager discussing the last of the paperwork with a clean-shaven young man, who smiled and nodded as she led him into the saferoom. He wore a bright magenta polo shirt with a logo embroidered on the breast that read âFFCâ in rainbow letters. The man looked down and saw Tulip staring in awe.
âWell, there she is!â he said, crouching down and spreading his arms. âYouâre even prettier in person, Tulip!â
âNyu daddeh! Nyu daddeh!â Tulip scrambled across the saferoom and up into his arms. She had gotten plenty of hugs from the shelter workers before, but this one filled her with an overwhelming sense of joy and belonging. This was it. This was what she had been waiting for her entire life.
âThatâs right!â the man said, stroking her back. âMy nameâs Martin, and youâre gonna come and live with me now. Is that okay with you, Tulip?â
Tulip nodded frantically, biting back tears. âYus! Wan nyu daddeh! Tuwip wub daddeh!â
The man, Martin, chuckled and looked up at the manager. âSheâs definitely affectionate, huh? I guess you werenât kidding when you said sheâd be perfect for the job.â
The manager smiled, her posture shifting slightly. None of the fluffies could feel the awkward air that seemed to fill the saferoom now, least of all Tulip. But she had a job to do herself, after all.
âIf you two are all set, I can take you out front and we can get you guys going.â
Martin stood, cradling Tulip in his arms. âPerfect. Letâs roll.â
Tulip gave one last wave to the rest of the shelter, who returned a mix of cheers, tears, and halfhearted whimpers as she was carried out the door and into the world.
The adoption process was wrapped up with a neat little bow not long after. Soon, Tulip found herself inside a carrying crate not unlike her cage. Her enthusiasm began to wane as she felt the carrier pitch and shift beneath her hooves, Martin placing her in the passenger seat of his truck.
She heard about these things before. Cars. Trucks. Buses. The humans used them to get around, and the shelter workers would complain about things like traffic or tickets or a million other things whenever they were discussed. As the truck shifted into gear and pulled out of the parking lot, all of the sound and motion made her stomach churn with a palpable unease.
Martin heard her whimper next to him.
âTulip? You okay?â
Tulip nodded, not exactly realizing her new daddy couldnât see her do so from inside the carrier.
âTulip?â
âT-Tulip am otay daddehâŠâ She wanted to keep a brave face. The last thing she wanted was to ruin everything by being a scaredey baby.
âYou sure? Itâs okay to be a little nervous, Tulip.â Martin chuckled, placing his hand on the seat before the carrierâs door for her to see. It reassured her somewhat.
âTuwip and daddeh go tu nyu housie?â
âUh⊠Yeah. Yeah, weâre driving there right now. Shouldnât be more than a few minutes, tops.â
â⊠watâs a minute?â
Martin chuckled again. âIt means weâll be there soon. Say, how about I tell you about your ânyu housieâ while you wait? Howâs that sound?â
Tulip perked up, curiosity nudging aside her current feelings of discomfort. âOtay!â
âYouâre going to be living in a place called the Fluffy Fun Zone. Itâs a place where fluffies go to have fun and enjoy themselves all day. Playing with toys and stuff. Dosenât that sound cool?â
âGasp! Tuwip hab housie wid udda fwuffies!?â
The possibility hadnât even crossed her mind. A new house and new friends? Maybe even a special friend? Tulip couldnât have imagined somehow being more excited about this fateful day, but there she was, giddy all over again.
âWell, yeah! Youâll be playing with lots of new friends. But most of the other fluffies will just be visiting. Youâll be working there with me, my coworkers, and a bunch of other fluffies that were rescued just like you.â
âWowk? Wat am wowk?â
âIt means youâll have a very special job playing with other fluffies all day. And in exchange, youâll get lots of food, a warm place to sleep, toys, all that stuff.â
The gears turned in Tulipâs tiny little head. Basic economic concepts, like the idea of a job, were surprisingly beyond the fluffyâs worldview. Again, Martin couldnât help but chuckle.
âDonât you worry your pretty little head, Tulip. Youâll see soon enough.â
âOtay daddeh! Tuwip gonâ be bestest at speshul job!â
âAlrighty!â Martin said, clapping his hands. âHere we are!â
As her new daddy raised her carrier from the passenger seat, Tulip saw her new home for the first time.
It was a huge building, far larger than PonyHaven. The storefront windows were covered in advertisements and vinyl details depicting joyous fluffies at play. A sign above the entrance read âFLUFFY FUN ZONEâ in tall red letters.
For Tulip, she may as well have stood before the gates of Shambhala. She was in awe not just at the tantalizing sight before her, but the joyous existence therein that it promised.
âAm⊠Am dis nyu housie?â
âYup. Welcome home, kiddo.â
Tulip was pressed against the door to her carrier, gawking at the sheer scale of the place as Martin brought her into a large front lobby. There, a portly woman behind the front desk gave them a quick wave.
âHeya Marty. That the new mare?â
âYup,â Marty said, not breaking his stride. âGotta get her prepped and set up before opening.â
The woman snorted. âWell, you picked a heck of a first day for her! Weâve got a birthday party coming in an hour.â
âYikes. All the more reason to hurry, then.â
Tulip was, of course, completely oblivious to the conversation. Instead, she continued to marvel at the sight of her new home. Somehow, it looked bigger on the inside!
Beyond the lobby was a saferoom, larger than anything Tulip could even fathom. And the toys! There were toys as far as her eyes could see, toys she didnât even know the names of yet looked so wonderful she wanted to spring from her carrier and play with them right this instant. Music played over the PA system, a jaunty, saccharine tune that filled Tulipâs head with the wonderful image of dancie babies.
And for the first time in her life, she smelt the delicious scent of spaghetti waft through the air.
Tulip pressed herself against the carrier door, looking up to try and see her daddy.
âDaddeh! Daddeh! Can Tuwip âspwowe nyu housie? Wan pway wif toysies! Anâ hab sketties! Anâ make bestest dancies foâ daddeh!â
Martin laughed. Unlike in the car, it came out as hollow, almost contemptuous.
âYeah, donât worry Tulip. Youâll have plenty of time for dancies and sketties later.â
He approached a door at the back of the saferoom, entering into a dimly lit hallway that ran along the buildingâs length. The music and smell of spaghetti quickly faded, much to Tulipâs dismay, as the door shut behind them.
âBefore that, we need to check in with daddyâs friend. Just be a good fluffy and relax, okay?â
âOtay daddehâŠâ
Martin smiled. Shifting the carrier from one hand to the other, he backed himself through the door labeled âPrep Room,â letting it swing shut behind him.
âYo Serge.â
At the back of the room, an old man rose from his desk to meet Martin. His skin was leathery, and the volume of his eyebrows were rivalled only by his moustache.
âHello Martin,â he said, sneering at the carrier. âThis the mare?â
âYup. Nameâs Tulip. Say hi to Serge, Tulip.â
Tulip felt something catch in her throat. Something about this room scared her. Maybe it was the harsh fluorescent light reflecting off the tile floor. Maybe it was the metal table in the roomâs center, faintly stained by some pinkish fluid. Maybe it was the scary man glowering at her, his eyes shining with a level of contempt the sheltered fluffy had never been subjected to.
But she was a good fluffy. She needed to do as she was told.
âH-Hewwo nice mistah-â
âYes, yes,â Serge waved dismissively. âWe have work to do and little time to do it. Martin, if youâd please?â
Martin promptly placed the carrier on the metal table, unlatching the door and letting Tulip take a few pensive steps out of it. He tapped a spot at the tableâs center. âOver here, Tulip,â he said impatiently.
Slowly, she waddle forward, keeping her head low. The pink stains on the table looked redder up close.
âDaddeh⊠Tuwip nu wike dis- EEP!â
Martin grabbed Tulip by the scruff of her neck and dragged her to the center of the table. He pushed down, hard, until she lied flat on the table with her legs splayed. With his free hand, he reached for the leather straps nearby and began tying her down.
âDaddeh!? Nu wike dis game! Pwease no mowe-â
âMartin?â Serge yelled, rifling through a nearby shelf. âDid you not get the anesthetic I asked for?â
ââŠah shit,â said Martin. âSorry man, I was gonna grab it last night-â
âFeh. Forget it. We wonât need it. You will see.â
Tulipâs eyes darted back and forth, trying to catch a glimpse at the men surrounding her. Serge stepped into her periphery, holding a tarnished looking hacksaw.
âI will need you to hold her steady,â he said. âThere will be screaming, shitting, all of that.â
âWonderful.â
âDaddeh!?â Tulip whimpered. âF-Fwuffy wanâ go home nao! Gu back to shewtew!â
âToo late for that, Iâm afraid,â Martin said, placing his hands firmly against Tulipâs back. âSerge?â
The old man grasped Tulipâs foreleg, nearly yanking it free of her shoulder as he stretched it out-
âOwies! Owies! P-P-Pwease nice mistah! N-N-Nu huwt-â
-and began to saw it off at the joint.
âSCREEE! SCREEEEE! SCREEEEEEEEE!â
Tulip wailed in agony as the sawâs teeth bore into her flesh. For a filly who had never known anything worse than a bump on the noggin during playtime, such pain was unfathomable. The two men went about the business with a casual disregard for her wordless screeching. To neitherâs surprise, she voided her bowels.
The saw worked its way downwards, carving into muscle, ripping apart tendons, and tearing into nerves.
âREEEEEEEEE! REEEEEHEEEEHEEEEE! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!â
Sergeâs hand worked faster, tempo rising, until the entire leg was severed with a wet pop. Without hesitation, he lobbed the bloodied limb over his shoulder, where it landed somewhere behind him with a wet thud.
Tulipâs body was sapped of strength, reduced to spasming beneath Martinâs hands. Each breath of air seared her lungs, and the room had begun to sway just like inside the carrier. The horrible, piercing pain in her leg grew duller, but no less agonizing. She wriggled in place, her remaining legs struggling to gain purchase on the blood-slick table to no avail.
âDaddehâŠâ she gasped, barely able to think let alone form words. âT-Tuwip nu wanâ⊠nu wanââŠâ
âThat is the first one,â said Serge as he crammed a wad of gauze against the bloody stump. âNow for the next. Then we can get to the spaying.â
Martin sighed. âJust hang in there, Tulip. Weâre almost done.â
His words did little to comfort the filly as the backroom surgeon moved to the other side of the table, taking hold of her other leg. Her slow, delirious breathing began to regain its frantic edge.
âNu⊠Nuuu! Pweeaaase nuuuhuuhuuu! Tuwip be gud! Gud foâ daddeh!â
Serge yanked the leg outwards, until he could see where the humerus met scapula.
âTuwip be gud! Nebah ebah du bad ting ebah 'gain daddeh! Pwease!â
He parted her fluff with the sawâs teeth, making sure he got a good angle.
âSCREEE! Nuuu! Nuuuuuuuuuu! Daaaddeeeeeh!â
And then the cutting began again.
âSCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱᎱá”á”á”á”á”á”á”á”á”á”á”á”á”á”á”-â
With a final, desperate scream, Tulip saw the world around her get dragged away into darkness.
âWaaaauuuuugggghhhhhâŠâ
Tulip awoke in her daddyâs arms. For a moment, she let herself give into her fluffy instincts and relax in his warm embrace.
It wasnât until she realized she couldnât hug him back did she remember the nightmare she was in.
As she began struggling in his grip, Tulip began to feel strange new agonies tugging at her core from all over her body. Her forelegs were so cleanly hewn from her shoulders that there werenât even stumps to mark their absence, only a pair of X-shaped scars crudely stapled shut, still red with inflammation. She felt a tightness down near her belly, where her flesh was opened up and sewn shut too tight. And where once her tail could be felt swishing behind her, it had been docked along with her front legs.
Tulip stared up at Martin and tried to speak-
âGuaaagggeegh? EEP!?â
-only to realize that her tongue was gone.
Martin looked down, giving a smile she would have found reassuring a few hours ago, but only filled Tulip with a sense of dread.
âHey Tulip,â he quietly said. âYou were a good fluffy back there. Very brave.â
âBuagh guaaaggeh-â
âShh. Itâs alright now. We had to take your âtalkie placeâ away for your new job, so no more âtalkies,â okay?â
Tulip gritted her teeth in terror and began to sob. Or dry heave. Or scream. Or maybe even all three at once. Martin held her tighter in any case, his embrace making it hard to anything other than tear up silently in his arms.
They were back out in the saferoom now. Unable to turn her head to see, Tulip could still hear a thin crowd of fluffies around her. Babbling conversation, the innocent laughter of foals, toys bouncing and squeaking, lips smacking as fluffies gorged themselves on spaghetti.
For some reason, all of these things made her cry even harder.
âHey! Hey Marty!â a voice called out. âThat my new mare?â
âYup,â Martin replied. âJust got back from Serge. No forelegs, no ovaries, no tongue, no problemo.â
âExcellent. Mind giving me a hand settinâ up? We got a birthday party outside itching for action. All young bucks, lilâ bastards.â
âUgh. Nasty.â Martin wrinkled his nose and shook his head. As he carried her forward, Tulip could see a sign on the wall above her, surrounded by pink and red hearts; âROMP ROOMâ.
âYeah yeah yeah,â the other man laughed gruffly, âyou try workinâ in the fuckpit all day. Câmon inside.â
The âRomp Roomâ was lit by a row of red, bare lightbulbs that ran along the ceiling. The roomâs shadows were deep, filling Tulip with a sense of yawning terror. A rank, musty smell hit her nostrils. She remembered it from her time at the shelter, but dared not imagine what it was.
Martin and the gruff man kneeled down, giving Tulip a chance to view a strange looking item sitting on the floor before her. It was a cardboard box shaped like a wedge, resembling a large doorstop, its surface decorated with pink and red hearts just like the sign outside. Along the incline were velcro straps. The terrifying odor wafted off of it, rank and rancid.
âStrap 'er down,â the gruff man said, âwhile I plug 'er.â
âGotcha.â
Martin laid Tulip along the incline of the box, face down towards the floor, rump raised upwards. âGuaagggeeh!â she whimpered as he began laying the straps across her back, fruitlessly trying to wriggle herself off of the device.
That was when Tulip noticed the other mares.
There were four others in total, all strapped down on the wedge-shaped boxes facing the back wall, maws tied down by the final strap. The mare nearest to the right of Tulip stared at her with pleading, tearful eyes, trying in vain to scream for help. The one to her left, an older mare by the look of her, instead laid near motionless, eyes lidded and vacuous. Both had clumps of fluff torn from their coats, revealing bruises both fresh and fading. Their underbellies were covered in half-healed sores, and the scars along their shoulders looked like they festered with infection.
âGaaagghhhiiieeee! Gaaa- MMF!â
Before she could finish taking in this horrible sight, Martin wrenched her head downwards and tied her mouth shut with the final strap. It quickly set in that no matter how hard she whimpered, no matter how hard she tried to scream for help, Tulip was completely helpless.
âStrapped in?â the gruff man asked. âGood. Now fer the fun part.â
Tulip felt the man grab hold of her haunch. Before she could react, he quickly crammed a small blue cork into her anus.
âMMMFFFFFF!â
âHaha!â the man laughed. âThere we go! Donât wantâcha shittinâ all over the birthday boy, do we? Ha!â
âYouâre a real sicko, dude.â
âAgain, you try workinâ in the fuckpit all day. See what that does to yerâ sense of humor.â
Tulip could barely understand what was being done to her. All she knew was that she was terrified and hurt all over. So she shut her eyes tight, imagining she was back in the shelter. A lifetime in her cage was better than this.
âAnyways,â the gruff man continued, âthanks ferâ the help Marty. Wouldâya mind sendinâ in that birthday party on the way out? Lilâ fellas looked like they were âbout to try anâ ârompâ with the buildinâ blocks out there, hehe!â
âYeah, sure man. Iâll catch you later then.â
Tulip winced as she heard her daddy walk away. As much as she feared him, the evil man who stole her leggies was still her daddy, and she wanted to beg him not to leave her alone in this place.
But there he went, voice fading in the distance as he called out to somebody.
And then came to pitter patter of hooves.
âAlrighty guys!â the gruff man called out. âRemember the rules! No hurtinâ the mares, no bad poopies, anâ above all⊠be sure to wish lilâ Boomer here a happy birthday!â
The half dozen colts and stallions cheered, diving into an impromptu fluffpile in the doorway.
âYaaay! Habby biwfday Boomaw!â
âWub Boomaw! Boomaw am bestest fweind!â
âYaaay! Ummm⊠how time tiww speciaw huggies?â
âTankâyo fwiends!â Boomer giggled. âBoomaw gunâ hab bestest birfday ebba!â
âMmmf! Mmmmmmffffff!â Tulip tried to scream for help, begging these new friends to save her.
âHa! Okay, okay, break it up fellas! Now, since Boomerâs the birthday boy, he gets his pick of the litter.â
âYaaay! Boomaw pick witta!â he cheered. ââŠum, Boomaw nu neeâ make poopies nao doe?â
âNot that kindaâ litter, buddy. Pick yerâself a comfort mare and have fun.â
âGasp! Boomaw pick comfy mawe! Gonâ gib best speciaw huggies!â
Tulipâs blood ran cold.
Boomer began trotting from mare to mare, giving each of them a thorough sniffing and looking over.
âMmf!â Tulip jumped as she felt him sniff her special place. Boomer plopped down on his haunches in contemplation for a moment.
âHmm⊠Dis wun! Boomaw wanâ dis wun!â
âMmmfff! MMMFFFFF!â
âWell donât just sit there askinâ me about it,â the man shouted cheerily, âgo on ân get goinâ!â
âYaaay!â
Boomer practically jumped on top of Tulip, who responded with a muffled shriek as she felt him press against her.
âDonâ wowwy comfy mawe! Boomaw gonâ gib bestest speciaw huggies!â
âMMMMMFFFFFFFFF!? MMMMMFFFFFFFFFFF!â
âOtay! Hewe come da enfies!â
Tulip kept trying to scream and squirm away. All around her, she could hear the other mares get mounted as well. Some tried to cry out as well, but the rest simply shut their eyes tight and let it happen.
âEeeennnnffffâŠâ Boomer moaned. âA-Awight⊠G-Gonna gib bestest enf⊠enf⊠enf, enf, enf, enf enf enf!â
âMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF!â
âEnf enf enf enf enf!â Boomer lost himself to atavistic lust, thrusting away. Soon, the room was a chorus of exertion, drowning out the whimpers of the mares and complaints of those who had to wait their turn.
âENF ENF ENF ENF ENF ENF ENFENFENFENFENF- G-G-G-GUUUUUUUUUD FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWS!â
âMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF!â
Tulip sobbed as the stallion rolled off of her, panting. Whatever this was, they werenât special huggies. They were the worst thing imaginable.
âBestest⊠feewsâŠâ
As Boomer flopped over onto the ground, the man carefully dragged him away from the action.
âSheesh. Sometimes I think yâhorny lilâ bastards should get a cigarette or somethinâ.â
Behind him, the rest of the colts and stallions grew restless.
âHuu! How time tiww Spawky get speciaw huggies?â
âSkippy wan bestest feew tu! Wan guâ afta Boomaw!â
âWan gu next! Wan bestest enfies wifâ comfy mawe!â
The man laughed as he cleaned off Tulipâs fluff. âWow! Looks like yerâ pretty popular with the fellas, hehe! Now the rest of you get in line! Youâll all have a turn, donâtchu worry!â
Tulip didnât even try to scream anymore. Instead, she shut her eyes and tight as she could and cried, thinking about the blissful existence she never even knew she had until she was torn away from it.
As she felt the next stallion clamber up behind her, she knew this was the first day of the rest of her life.