It’s been escalating for a while now.

Fully adorned Christmas trees have shown up in cubicles. Employees have had their nameplates changed to “Justin Bieber.” Office furniture has been gift-wrapped. And, for too long, one man has been at the center of it all: NVIDIA’s Chris Holmes.

That, sources say, is why Chris had it coming. That is why his Honda Fit was transformed Thursday afternoon, taking on the fearsome countenance of Pinkie Pie – the pink, magical pony worshiped by small children, loathed by women and feared by men of all ages.

“I deserved this,” said Chris, after he strode into the NVIDIA parking lot Thursday afternoon to discover what had been done. “I have been officially gotten.”

The story behind the story: a small faction of NVIDIANs led by software engineer Clay Causin were inspired after a report in the corporate blog quoted Chris saying his “many targets” have not been “brave enough to get even.” The result: a quick brain-storming session and a trip to the local art supply store.

The real craft here, however, lay in the set up. Colleagues scheduled meetings with Chris at odd hours. Others dropped cryptic hints. Posters of Chris went up around campus, put up by a mysterious group of “Bronies,” – as adult male fans of My Little Pony are known. The net effect: Chris was led to believe the hammer would come down Friday.

He was wrong. Instead, on Thursday, while Chris was distracted by a lunch appointment with a colleague, another NVIDIAN borrowed the keys Chris had left out on his desk. His Honda was then rolled into position outside his office, and quickly covered with pink paper. An enormous pink pony head was attached to the hood. Inside, the car was stuffed with balloons.

Chris, of course, was already planning his retaliation. The next day Clay’s cube was thoroughly redecorated. He is now the proud owner of a huge collection of Jar-Jar Binks memorabilia. Looks like this isn’t over. Yet.