The Equestria Games

by Shell Shock

Rating: teen
Tags: Dark, Alternate Universe, Sad, Adventure, Crossover
Length: 20477

In the ruins of what was formerly known as Equestria, lies a capitol surrounded by 12 districts. Each year the Capitol forces one pony of each gender to be transferred into a public arena, in a kill-or-be-killed event, also known as the Hunger Games.

In the ruins of what was formerly known as Equestria, lies a capitol surrounded by 12 districts. Each year the Capitol forces one pony of each gender from each District to be transferred into a public arena, in a kill-or-be-killed event, also known as the Hunger Games.
How can one lonely filly survive in a game where betrayal, hatred, and murder is always right around the bend?
An even better question, how can anyone?
Author's Note: As of January 3rd, this fic has been canceled with only a small possibility of revival. Sorry for wasting your time.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-09-27 22:51:32 UTC

Chapter 1: Reaping

The Equestria GamesA crossover, by PrismaticsDISCLAIMER: I do not own MLP, or The Hunger Games- You know what? Screw this. Just read the goddam story. People don't care about this. Oh what? Gonna cut off my author's note, author? You can go kiss my-

A freezing cold gust of air brings Azure from her peaceful slumber. She rubs her eyes, her normally cheerful demeanor replaced with a fearful look that comes on the most despised day of the year.

Reaping Day.

She staggers her way into the second room of her small house. It's a multipurpose room, used for dining, cooking and washing. She shakily grabs a carrot out of her icebox; she couldn't afford a fridge.

"Might as well get it over with." She shrugs. "I'm only in 8 times this year. The odds ARE in my favour."

Grabbing her scarf, Azure heads out the door towards the forest. Nopony else left the borders of the District, as most thought the electric fence was active. Azure knew better. 12 only got electricity in short spurts, if anything at all. This includes the fence, apparantly. Slipping through her usual spot, Azure crosses over to the everfree forest. She's heading out to meet somepony, somepony she hasn't seen in a while. The reapings are always in the evening, so she's got plenty of time to meet this pony, then get back before the names are called.

Reaping day is the 'opening ceremonies' to one of the most brutal events known to pony. The Hunger Games. Every year, the Capitol forces one colt and one filly from each of the twelve Districts to be locked in an arena, where they fight to the death until only one remains. Some of the luxury districts, like 1 and 2, train their tributes to fight and kill. But most of the other ponies in the outlying Districts just shut their eyes and pray that they aren't picked.

The last victor District 12 had was several years ago, when Twilight Sparkle created an IED out of sap, gunpowder, and metal shavings. Killed 5 tributes in the blast. Apparantly she read the recipe in some sort of book.

Azure reaches the clearing where she was going to meet her old friend, Jilly Joke. Those two have been meeting with eachother since Azure's very first reaping day 4 years ago.

Entering the clearing where they had always met up, the smell of burning dung overpowers Azure, forcing her to cover her nose in disgust.

"Oh my goodness, what is that smell?" She coughs. The scent is a barrage on her nostrils, an ever-present cloud of disgust.

"That, my friend, is the smell of a failed prank." A voice from behind Azure says. Whipping around, Azure finds herself face to face with her only friend she's ever had, Jilly Joke.

"What did you do?" Azure asks, still covering her nose. Jilly does not seem to be affected, but with her knowledge of plants, she could easily find one that eliminates her sense of smell for a bit.

"I tried creating a harmless explosive. Just noise, smoke, and... well, smell." She laughs. "Now come on, why did you want to meet here?"

"You know why. We always meet here before I go to the reaping. Also, I ran out of those flowers that smell like chocolate." Azure adds sheepishly.

Jilly goes over to some sort of garden, and plucks some brown, chocolate scented flowers before replying. "Well, looks like I'm going to the reaping this year. Capitol idiots finally put their foot down. They said I could keep this cabin and live out here, but I still have to participate in the yearly reapings." She chuckles. "I think the only reason they let me stay here is because of Frost." She lets out a shrill whistle, and a loud thumping can be heard in the other room.

A grey wolf, almost the size of a full grown pony, trots into the room, his tail wagging furiously. He makes his way over to Jilly, and she begins stroking him and rubbing his belly.

"Who's a good timber wolf? You are. You are!"

"So anyways," Azure clears her throat. "I just wanted to wish you good luck, and I wanted to say goodbye, in case this is the last time we meet."

"Uh huh, but I don't think it will be the last time." She looks at Azure enigmatically. "It may be the last time in the clearing, but we will meet again."

"How do you know?"

Jilly smiles, and does the closest thing a pony can do to shrugging. "No clue, I think I might have eaten the wrong flower."

"Well, I just wanted to say that, so now I guess I'll leave."

"So soon? The kettle hasn't even started steaming." Just then, the kettle that was recently spoke of, began steaming. "I'll go get that."

A few moments later, Jilly comes back carrying two mugs with some fruity smelling, hot liquid. Both sit in silence as they savour their beverages together.

Jilly looks up at the sun, then turns to her friend. "I think it might be time for you to go."

"I guess, thanks for the tea." Azure replies. Placing the flowers in her saddlepack, she heads off towards the fence of District 12.

* * *

As she nears the fence, Azure begins to hear a faint buzzing sound, like a bee flying around beside you. When she gets beside the barb-wire fence, the buzzing becomes louder, almost as if it's coming from the fence itself.

"Oh, buck." Azure says to herself. "It's on."

Alright, so how am I going to get across without getting electrocuted. She asks herself.

She attempts to dig under it. It doesn't work. She tries climbing a nearby tree and jumping off. She lands so close to the fence she can feel the electricity radiating off of it. Not the best feeling.

Throwing it into one last throw of the dice, she manages to find a hole in the fence barely wide enough for her to fit, but small enough that one wrong move delivers a fatal dose of electricity. Carefully manoeuvreing herself through the tiny gap, she manages to cross with only a light shock, when her tail catches on a wire.

"That could have been fatal." She says, staring at the blackened part of her otherwise aqua-green tail. She then gallops off to the square, just as the warning sirens begin to sound.

* * *

The reaping is pretty straightforward. You go to a desk, where a pony pricks your hoof, and puts the blood sample into the computer, then sends you to a sectioned off area, where you are grouped together with other ponies your age. After that, comes much boring stuff, which Azure is pretty sure was strategically designed to force you to feel an immense sense of anxiety. Then the name drawings, and nopony knows what happens after that, as 12 has only ever had one victor, and she secludes herself for most of the year.

Azure has just finished giving the blood sample, and is now standing in her designated age group. The group has a collective feeling of fear radiating from it, and for very good reasons. District 12 has the highest Hunger Games mortality rate, followed by 10, which has only had 2 victors. 1,2, and 4 however, have a very low mortality rate, as they almost always win the games. They have, over the years, been accused of training their tributes to fight at special Hunger Games acadamies, which is against the rules. The Capitol doesn't seem to mind, as it gives them a good show to watch.

A bubbly pink pony hops up to the stage, babbling something about what an honour it is to be here, and cupcakes. "Hello everypony! My names Pinkie Pie, and I'm here today to choose which of you lucky ponies will have the honour of representing your District in this years Hunger Games! But first, we have short video for you guys! Yay!"

They show the same video every year, an old propoganda film from 40 or so years ago. It shows footage of the war, and the signing of the Treaty of Treason. There's a monotone announcer talking about how this treaty unified out country, and relations have been better since. Nopony actaully falls for this film, as even the dumbest of ponies can understand how idiotic the Capitol can be at times.

"Now, in a break from tradition, we will be selecting from the colts drum first!" Pinkie says in her trademark high-pitched Capitol accent. She bounces her way over to a large glass ball, filled with thousands of paper slips. There are only about 400 ponies eligible for the Games, but for every year you are in the pool, you gain an extra slip. But here's the catch. Say you are starving, poor, and only barely surviving. You can elect to sign for tessarae, which is hardly a years worth of grain and oil. You can do this for every memeber of your family as well. Now Azure, who lives on her own after her parents died in a fire, and her other brother was killed in the games, only needs tessarae for herself, has 8 slips. She has been in the pool for 4 years, and has been getting tessarae for the same amount.

Pinkie opens the cap for the glass drum, and sticks her head inside and thrashes around very violently for several minutes. When she finally pulls a slip out, she appears not tired at all after the whole ordeal, and in fact looks more rested than she did before selecting the envelope. She tears open the envelope and reads the name in a loud voice that nopony her size should be capible of.

"Ice Shard." A visible wave of relief washes over the colts section, except for one small, ice blue, foal. He slowly makes his way up to the stage, his blue tail dragging on the ground, when an unexpected voice calls out.

"I volunteer as tribute!" Everypony, other than the small foal, looks for the source of the sudden outburst. The foal, on the other hoof, begins to tear up as his older brother lightly pushes him out of the way to reach the stage. The stallion is much taller than his younger brother, and stronger. His mane is pure, straight white. His coat is light cyan, which looks well groomed for a pony of District 12. Grooming is the least of worries most ponies out here have.

The stallion whispers something to his brother, causing him to cry louder. Then he walks up to the stage to stand by Pinkie, who is actually shocked by something for once.

"Well! It looks like we have a volunteer. Wonderful! Nothing like sibling love! This calls for a party!" She looks towards the mayor, and seems disheartened when he shakes his head. "Or maybe later..."

She walks up to the stallion and shakes his hoof madly. "What's your name? Oh, let me guess! Braveheart? Cheerio? Snowball? That-one-pony-that-volunteered-for-his-younger-brother?"

"It's Snowy. Snowy Mountain." He says, barely audible.

"Ok, Snowy Snowy Mountain. I wish you the best of luck." She swings around to face the crowd. "Woah, isn't this tense? Well, moving on! Now for the fillies."

She makes her way over to the second drum, and rustles around for yet another few minutes. While she is doing this, Azure can't help but think about her brother. He volunteered for his best friend, the only person to ever do so in any District. It drove Azure to the brink of insanity for a long time when the very next year his friend was chosen as tribute.

"I miss you, brother." She whispers to herself.

* * *6 Years Earlier.

"Azure, come on." The stallion is trying to drag the blue filly out the door. "It's just another reaping. I'm only in 10 times. Out of thousands."

"No! I don't wanna go... I wanna stay home."

"You can't. You have to come." He starts pulling again. "Don't make me use my horn."

She squeals in fear. "No! It tickles!"

The stallion laughs, already starting to charge up his magic. "Alright, then come on. Trust me, nothing bad will happen."

"Do you promise?" Azure asks, wide-eyed.

He nods. "I promise."

She stops resisting, and hops on his back. He gallops to the town center, which was in the process of being rebuilt after a tornado ripped straight through. He sets her down with his friends mother, a kind and tender pony, who is still scarred at the loss of her daughter a few years back.

After the usual video and propoganda is finished, a well-known pink pony bounces on to the stage, forcefully ripping the mic from its stand. "Hiya everypony! Whose ready for some fun?!" Silence. "Wow, nopony wants some fun?" More silence. "You guys are laaame. Let's just get this over with. Fillies first!" She crosses over to the infamous glass ball, at quickly plucks a name from the top. She tears open the envelope with her teeth, and reads the name out, her high-pitched voice almost a scream over the speakers.

"Candy Corn."

A loud shriek materializes from somewhere in the younger, female zone. An orange and yellow pegasus is being dragged up to the stage by two stallions in white. The filly is kicking and flailing furiously, screaming the entire time. She is set down on the stage, where she huddles into a ball, crying.

The hyper pink pony is completly unfazed by the display of emotion, and continues on. "Now, for the colts." This time she reaches in and roots around for a while before pulling the uniform white envelope out. She opens it up, and reads the unlucky males name out.

"Spark Plug."

"NOOOO!!!!" A voice calls out, but it isn't from the green unicorn that's making his way up to the stage. Azure recognizes the voice. It's from her brother.

"I volunteer! I volunteer as a tribute!" The same voice calls out. This time, it was Azure's turn to cry out.

"NO! Pyro! Please!" She screams, breaking away from another mares grasp. She runs to hm as fast as she can, and throws her forelegs around him. "No! You can't go, don't leave me!"

He looks down at her. His eyes have changed from their normally cheerful gleam, into a pair of deranged, bloodshot eyes. His mind was broken.

And two weeks later, so was his body.

* * *Present Day

Azure snaps back to attention, suddenly aware that everypony around her is staring.

"What?" She asks, with much more venom then intended.

Another filly, a grey one with a red mane, points towards the stage, where Pinkie Pie and the mayor are staring expectantly at her.

"I don't understand." Azure states. Then it hits her. And when it hits, it hits like a freight train.

She's a tribute.

Chapter 2: A train ride

The Equestria Games, by Prismatics. Chapter 2

"No no no no no..." Azure mumbles, afraid to admit the inevitable.

She's going into the arena. To fight 23 other tributes. On national TV.

Pinkie Pie's annoying voice calls out from the stage. "Well come on, Azure. Don't be afraid!"

Azure slowly makes her way up to the stage, aware that everyponys' eyes are on her. I hate being the center of attention. She thinks. Azure struggles to appear emotionless, and barely keeps herself from breaking down in front of the cameras. Everypony knows what crying at the reaping means. It makes you look weak. Weak, and easy to kill.

But Azure will not go down without a fight. She has no real combat skills, but a cornered rat will always fight back. And they will fight back hard.

"Well that was surprising! A volunteer... from District 12! There's only ever been two volunteers in the history of the games." The end of Pinkie's sentence makes Azure flinch in memory of the only other volunteer. "Now let's have a round of applause for this years tributes.

A long, painful silence ensues. Nopony applauds out here. Everypony always gives a respectful silence, and the announcers never seem to grasp that.

"Right... Now you two, shake hooves." Pinkie says, a little miffed nobody applauded.

Azure turns to look at the stallion next to her. Despite his overwhelming appearance, he fails to conceal the fear in his eyes. He forces a smile as he shakes her hoof, but it's not a very reassuring one.

"Alright, guys. I wish you luck, and hope th eodds may be forever in your favour!" Pinkies squeals in that annoying Capitol accent. Why is it so high pitched? Azure asks herself. And why do they make any sentance sound like a question?

They leave the stage and enter the rusty, derelict Justice Building. Still, it's one of the best quality buildings in 12.

"Right, now let's get you two into your quarters, before we load you on to the train." Pinkie leads them into the elevator, which smells of sour milk and coal. Azure has never ridden the elevator before, and reflects on how, if she has the choice, never wants to again. It's slow, loud, and very rickety, almost as if a single poke will collapse the entire structure.

The elevator grinds to a halt, creating a high-pitched screeching noise that causes everypony but Pinkie to cover their ears. She ushers the two tributes into separate rooms, and tells them they have one hour to say their goodbyes.

The room is definatly more luxurious than expected. There's two couches, made of some soft material Azure has never seen, or felt before. The table is made of mahogany, and is quite obviously hoof-crafted by a pony with expert skills. There's a bowl on said table with several colourful fruits, some that Azure can't even name. Within minutes the bowl is empty, the only evidence that something was ever contained something is the small droplets of citrus splattered around the container.

Voices can faintly be heard on the other side of the door, and at several points, crying. A pang of loneliness hits Azure. She never really had nay friends in school, she was always the filly who sat in the back and read for most of the day. The only family she had is dead, and it was only because of a lack of interest she managed to live alone. Azure never had a 'knack' for survival. In fact, the only reason she didn't starve was because of Jilly.

Jilly had struck a deal with her when they first met. Jilly would supply her food, in exchange for her company. Living in the Everfree forest tends to drive most ponies mad, and Jilly figured that having somepony to talk with would keep her sanity in check. Apparently, it worked. But just barely.

Azure instead spends the hour moping about her assured death, and also what her token will be. The latter surprised her, as the token is normally the last thing on a tributes mind.

Azure never really had naything that could be used as a token, other than her brothers old cap, which burned in a fire last year, and the scarf she made for herself. Anything will do, I suppose.

An hour passes, but to both ponies it seems like a lifetime. Pinkie raps on the door, more sharply then intended. "Time to board the train!" She escorts the two to the foul-smelling elevator again, and they take yet another 5 minute trip to the ground floor. Pinkie rambles on about 'What an honour this is', and 'Wait until you see the train. It's AWESOME!'.

They reach the ground, and are escorted by two ponies in white jumpsuit to a fancy, retro looking car. The two surprised looking tributes are ushered in, both nervous about the ridiculous amount of reporters lined up beside the car.

Pinkie doesn't stop talking about the supposed magnificence of the Capitol, and how amazing the parties are, but Azure tunes her out as she thinks about what will happen.

I have no chance of winning, but I'm not going down without a fight. She thinks. Perhaps I can save somepony that deserves it. You know, if I don't die instantly. The thought of somepony else through probably the hardest point in their life comforts her, even if it means certain death.

The car stops at the local District train station, but instead of the usual coal transports there's a luxurious, sleek train that looks like a massive, gleaming, silver bullet.

Probably travels like one too. Azure thinks.

As if she can read her thoughts, Pinkie Pie begins explaining exactly how fast this thing actually travels.

"It's like a magical bullet! We'll be at the Capitol in less than two days! Isn't that exciting? Ooh! I'm gonna go get Twilight!" She bolts off down the station platform and into the train, leaving two tributes and two Peacekeepers throughly confused as to how a pony can travel that fast.

The two tributes are escorted into the train, shown their quarters, and left alone to bide their time however they please.

Azure decides to examine her surroundings, unable to contain her shock at the splendor of it all. The room is a plain, creamy white, with many wooden tables and dressers, all perfectly crafted by hoof. Her bed is relatively small, but it's comfort value more than makes up for it. A tray with some colourful fruit-shaped candies rests on her nightstand, and a mug of some brown liquid that looks different than anything Azure has ever seen.

She flicks on a flat-screen TV in the corner and watches a recap of the reapings to get a feel for the tributes she'll be facing. Only a few stand out, such as a grim, wordless pony with a green coat and an odd pair of gold-coloured goggles from District 2. The stallion looks as if he could tear a small pony like Azure in half, and probably has done so in the past. A deep purple pony from District 3 who doesn't stop laughing for the entire reaping, and playing with a glowing yellow cube. A twitchy young pony from 6, who has an odd chip taken from his ear. A grey stallion from 10, who has the strange appearance of electricity sparking on his coat. But when they get to the District 7 reapings, the female tribute completly shocks Azure, yet at the same time, comforts her.

"Jilly Joke!" The announcer for 7 shrieks in a strangely familiar voice. Apparently all Capitol escorts sound the same. The dark blue, pegasus mare Azure knew so well hops up on to the stage, a massive grin on her face. A grin that almost says she would have volunteered if she was not picked already.

The reapings are scattered throughout the day, never in any actual order. Yet oddly enough, every year District 12 is always the last. The tape shows the colt called Ice Shard being picked, and Snowy volunteering to take his place. Then it shows Azure being picked, and standing there, oblivious to the world around her. Atleast she didn't break down and cry like the filly from 3. Atleast she doesn't look weak.

It cuts to a a couple of ponies discussing first opinions on this years tributes, pointing out their favourites, and those who they believe will not make it past the first day.

Azure flicks the TV off, and decides to go visit the others. She wanders through the many cars of the train, glaring at each Peacekeeper she meets. It doesn't affect them, but it makes her feel better.

She finally reaches the car where the rest are, the dining car. They don't seem to acknowledge her coming in, and continue doing what they were previously. Pinkie is drinking some fruity beverage with a ridiculous amount of bubbles, Twilight is reading a book, and Snowy has his head facedown on the table, making quiet sobbing noises.

"So... hey." Azure begins, attempting to start a conversation.

Pinkie immedietly snaps out of her... daze, and spills her drink all over Twilight as a result.

"Oh hi Azure! How's your day going- oooops sorry Twilight! Oh well, atleast it matches your mane!" She rambles off, and suddenly producing a cloth from her giant poofy mane, begins to clean the sticky drink off of Twilight's scowling face.

"It's fine." Twilight says curtly.

After cleaning and grooming herself, Twilight turns to Snowy and Azure. "So, I'm assuming you two want some life-saving advice for the arena, right?"

Azure never believed she had any chance to survive in a games, but that won't stop her from trying. Azure nods, causing Twilight to go on a rant about survival tactics and 100 different ways to construct improvised weapons.

Azure wanted advice, but not like this. She want solid advice, not a detailed explanation of every single survival tactic known to pony.

"Sweet Celestia, please shut up." Snowy groans, covering his ears.

Twilight gives him an angry glare, then snorts and returns to her book. An awkward silence ensues, leaving Azure wondering if coming out of her room was a good idea.

A sudden, loud voice scares the daylights out of everypony in the room.

"DINNER!!!" Pinkie Pie shouts, holding 6 trays of various delicacies on her back, defying several laws of physics at the same time.

Twilight uses magic to grab a single roll, then leaves the room, still reading her book.

Azure has never seen most of the dishes laid before her, and resolves to try each and every one before she gets to the Capitol. She starts off with a salad covered in some white sauce, and a couple of polished red apples shined to perfection. Taking a bite, her brain almost explodes with the sensations of awesome. These fruits must be modified in some way to be that sweet!

"This is amazing!" Azure exclaims.

Pinkie has already finished off two dishes of salad, and one pitcher of the brown liquid Azure noticed earlier. Snowy hasn't even touched any of the food. He just sits at the edge of table, face down, light sobs coming from his body.

"I know right? This stuff is simply divine! Hey, that sounds like something Rarity would say. Have you met Rarity? Oh who am I kidding of course you haven't! Hear, try this!" Pinkie says, stuffing a cupcake in Azures mouth before she can react. "See what I mean? Man, you should see the Capitol, the food is waaay better than this."

Snowy lets out another groan, and glares at Pinkie. "Is anypony here not insane?" He grabs a small bowl of fruit and gets up to leave, mumbling something under his breath.

"I'm not insane! My mother had me tested!" Pinkie responds cheerfully, all the while stuffing her face with cupcakes.

"Right." Snowy replies curtly.

He exits the dining room, leaving Azure and Pinkie left to dine in silence. Well, as silent as Pinkie Pie stuffing her face is.

"So!" Pinkie says suddenly, causing Azure to jump. "How is it going? You don't look like you're having fun! What's your idea of fun? Do you like parties? Maybe you should have a party! Ooh! I love parties! Will you invite me? Of course you will! I'm the one who gave you the very idea! Will it be a surprise party? I love surprises! I'm gonna go plan my surprise face now! Bye!" Pinkie zips off down corrider, and moments later a door slamming can be heard several cars down, leaving Azure and a very surprised looking Peacekeeper alone in the room.

Azure is still trying to comprehend what in the holy name of Celestia just happened as she returns to her luxurious quarters. Even though it is only mid-evening she feels fatigued and dazed, like her life energy has been sapped out like a maple tree.

Azure tiredly makes her way over to the oversized, overly comfy bed in the corner of the room, and promptly collapse on to it.

Some seconds after, she is asleep.

* * *

"WAKE UP SLEEPYHEAD!"

Azure snaps up in bed, disoriented about where she is for a moment, before her eyes focus and relay her surroundings to her brain. The resulting information makes Azure sigh in sadness, as it reminds her that she's on her way to a brutal bloodbath. But at the moment, she'll deal with the hyperactive pink pony who has her face only a couple inches from her own.

"Pinkie." Azure begins. "Can you get your face out of mine? Please?"

"Okay!" She responds enthusiastically, bouncing off the bed as she does so.

"Ugh, what time is it?" Azure asks sluggishly.

"Noon!" Pinkie replies.

"Noon? What time did I go to bed?"

"How should I know? I don't watch you sleep. Or doooo I?"

Azure decided that any continued conversation with Pinkie would cause her to go insane, so she instead shuffled past her, quickly groomed her mane and went into the living room car of the train, where everypony else was sitting around. Twilight was reading a different book, a book titled '138.2 Different Ways to boil Eggs.' Snowy was sitting in a corner, listening to some music on a small device. Pinkie Pie had somehow made it to the room before her, despite there only being one hallway and Azure knew she had passed by her on the way out of her quarters.

Azure shakes the questions of logic out of her mind. There's no place for logic when Pinkie involved.

The pink Capitol escort was currently fiddling with some kind of cube with a bunch of colours on it. Azure watched her for a few moments, then lost interest.

"We will be reaching the Capitol in 2 hours and 23 minutes. Don't ask me how I know that, I just do." Twilight says, not even looking up from her book. "You will then be taken to your prep teams. You will be tempted to resist. I know I was. But don't do it. Your stylist will then come and design an outfit for you to wear during the Tribute Parade. Do everything they say. No buts." Pinkie snickers, getting a glare from Twilight.

"Ok... Anything else?" Azure asks.

"Nope! That's it." Twilight replies, returning her attention to the book.

Azure shrugs, then sits down on the couch and turns on the TV. The only channels are the Capitol broadcasts, the Hunger Games channel, and the previous games highlights. The Capitol channel is streaming propoganda, the Games channel is interviewing a Gamemaker. Azure flicks to the highlights channel and begins watching a replaying of the cornucopia bloodbath of the games a few years ago. She recognizes the female from her District, a grey mare with a blond mane, with an odd cutie mark of bubbles. The oddest feature about her is her crossed eyes. Nopony ever survives  in Twelve with a disablity like that.

The arena was fairly simple, a plains that spread out almost for what seemed infinitly, with trees dotting the countryside here and there. Many tributes later died of thirst, as the only water at all was in the cornucopia, controlled by 5 careers.

The initial bloodbath was gruesome, with a total of 12 deaths in the opening minutes. The mare from 12, Azure thinks her name was Derpy, was one of the lucky survivors, making it out of the cornucopia with only an ice pick and a small saddlepack.

The rest of the games passed on, most of the tributes dropping like flies on the 3rd day, due to a lack of water. Derpy was lucky enough to have a water bottle filled to the brim, and she carefully rationed it to last. On the fifth day, the careers caught up with her, and would have killed her had it not been for a small colt from District 5, named Shock Sphere, who came in at the last moment and killed two of the four careers. A short skirmish ensued, ending in the deaths of all the careers, and leaving Derpy and Shock to nurse their wounds. Only 5 tributes remained at this point, scattered around the arena. Their deaths followed soon after, two dying from thirst, the other dying in combat.

Derpy and Sphere were left to fight it out for the crown, during a large thunderstorm engineered by the Gamemakers to ensure a dramatic showdown between two friends. The combat was quick, Derpy quickly disarming Sphere and holding him to the ground, a sword against his neck. Derpy stood over him, as he patiently awaited his death. then she removed her sword and fell back.

"I can't do it." Derpy had said. "I can't kill you." She started to cry, and collapsed completly to the ground. A brief silence followed, punctuated only by the sound of thunder and the flashes of lightning. Then a voice spoke up.

"That's a real shame." Sphere said, his axe preparing to fall upon Derpy. "Because I can." And the axe fell.

A cannon fired.

Shock Sphere, the young colt from District 5, had won.

Azure shut off the TV, only now aware that Pinkie and Twilight had sat down to watch the highlights with her. She looked at their faces. Pinkie's, overcome with glee, and Twilight's, radiating sadness. They all exchanged glances, an unspken conversation going on between them.

"Look!" Another voice called out. "It's the Capitol!" Snowy said, pointing out the window.

Chapter 3: The Luxuries of a Capitol

The Equestria Games, by Prismatics. Chapter 3

"There it is! Look! It's the Capitol!" Snowy was shouting, his normal depressed state overcome with astonishment for the beauty of the Capitol.

Azure rushed to a window to catch a glimpse of the Capitol before the train went into a tunnel. But the brief glimpse was enough to see the absolute magnificence of the Capitol city. It was called 'The Shining City' for a reason. No wonder District 12 rarely got power! This place is brighter than anything I've ever seen!

The train exits the tunnel, and the two tributes get a better look at the Capitol and its shining magnificence. Both stand in awe as they gaze upon the city that ironically, will be hosting the brutal deathmatch that Snowy and Azure are currently on their way to participate in.

They pass through another tunnel, and emerge in a grand train station, with hundreds, thousands of cheering Capitol citizens lining the platforms. Tribute trains have a unique look, designed to be immedietly recognized by the residents of the Capitol. Another tribute train has boarded on the far side of the station, and Azure only manages to catch a quick look at the pair of tributes being escorted from the train. From the colours of their coat and mane, she guesses they are the pair from 4. Nothing really stood out to her about those two, so she pays little attention to them. Just an interesting distraction.

The Peacekeepers escort Snowy and Azure past the large crowd, and into a large limo. They ride in the limo for about 15 minutes, the driver giving up his attempts at small talk after the first 5. Azure spends most of the time staring out the window at the cheering throngs. So eager to watch me die... She thinks. What kind of sick place is this? Snowy, on the other hoof, is pressing his hooves up against the window and smiling into the crowd. What has come over him? He seemed so depressed on the train. Shrugging, Azure returns to staring out the window somberly.

Time passes by quickly, and the next thing Azure knows she's being led to a small room with only a simple table in the center of the room, and a framed picture on the wall.

"You are to lie on the table and wait for your prep teams." The Peacekeeper instructs. "They will get you cleaned and groomed so your stylist can create your outfit. Do not resist." The Peacekeeper turns around swiftly, and slams the door behind him, leaving Azure all alone in her room.

Minutes seem like hours to her as she awaits her prep team. I wonder what they'll be like? She snorts. Probably like last years team, snooty, arrogant, apathetic, and shallow. And with that annoying voice as well.

Whilst waiting for the late prep team, she decides to examine the simple furnishings of her room. It's a bare, blueish grey room, with the walls and floors a smooth stony texture. The painting on the wall has the Capitol logo surrounded in flames. Whatever that's supposed to represent, Azure doesn't know. But oddly enough, it makes her want to buck that picture into Oblivion.

Sighing, Azure makes her way back to the table. "This is so boring!" She says, slamming her hooves down on the table. At that moment, the door slides open and three VERY colourful ponies shuffle in with a cart filled with various devices and a surprising amount of combs.

"HelloooOOOoo." One of them says, the one with a coat so yellow it glows almost radioactively. With the amount of chemicals probably used in that coat... I wouldn't be surprised if she was radioactive.

"You must be Azure! Please, please, lie down on the table and let us do our job." A blue one says, the only male in the group. He doesn't sound and look as... 'modified' as the others. But he's certainly far from normal.

Azure lies flat on the table and watches with mildly nervous eyes as they pull out various machines from that cart of theirs. Everytime they pull a new one out, it looks odder than the rest, and Azure feels obligated to ask what they're for. They answer each one politely as possible, but Azure can easily see that they're growing annoyed.

Finally, Azure decides to just stop asking questions, close her eyes, and lie limp on the table while she waits for them to finish cleaning her up. But they don't just stop at cleaning, they literally polish her entire body to perfection, or near perfection based on the snooty remarks of the yellow prepper pony.

The entire time they are having a conversation around her, as if she's not even there. They talk about odd things, Capitol things, stuff that Azure is unable to process.These Capitol ponies are really messed up... Azure thinks, as she's being scrubbed down with a rough comb. What happened to them to make them so twisted?

"So, who do you think will win the games this year?" The blue one asks, whose name Azure learns is Bubbles. Who names their foal Bubbles? Really. Azure thinks.

"That stallion from 2 looks pretty strong." The yellow responds. Azure is forced to repress her anger. They're pretty much talking about her death like it's just something fun to watch and discuss.

"I don't know. That filly from 10 looks deadly enough. I wouldn't want to be at the other end of her hooves." The third one, an orange pegasus with a wavy manecut, says. The other two laugh happily at the statement.

After a short silence as they shampoo Azure's mane with some citrus-smelling foam, the blue one speaks again. "What about that colt from 3, the one who laughed the entire reaping? Somethings wrong with that pony." Azure grits her teeth as they begin combing her tangled, scruffy tail.

"Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if he went insane and killed himself. Besides, what was that cube thing he was playing with? It makes no sense. Why wasn't it confiscated?"

Yank! "Beats me." Oh I'd beat you alright. Azure thinks, glaring at the oblivious yellow pony.

"Are you guys almost done?" Azure asks, unable to keep her irritation from leaking into the sentence. The trio, however, remains happily clueless to her annoyance. Either that or they just don't care.

"Almost done sweetheart!" Bubbles replies. Yank!

"Just a quick scrubdown to remove any dirt and... ugh... grime, that may still be hiding in your coat." The orange one pulls out a small device with a hose attached and begins to wash down Azure's coat for the twelth time in the last few hours.

A few short, yet very very relaxing seconds later, Azure is wrapped in a bathrobe and left alone yet again to wait for her stylist. Azure begins to daydream about her home, her brother, and the grey mare that couldn't bring herself to kill that colt. These daydreams calm her, and she loses track of time as she's wrapped into the magical world of her own mind. Memories and feeelings flash by her as she stands numb, oblivious to the outer world, and incidentally, the impatient unicorn trying to get her attention.

"Excuse me! Oh, goodness, what's your name again... Azure, was it? Yes, Azure! Wake up, darling!" Rarity exclaims, yet still projecting an aura of dignation despite her tone. She starts waving her hoof in front of the non-responsive ponies face, breaking her out of her entranced state.

Azure snaps back, a confused and surprised expression upon her face. "Wha... what? Oh! You must be my stylist." Azure says, immedietly remembering her location and situation.

Rarity gives an elegant shrug. "I don't know if I must be, but yes. Remove your robe." Azure does this, and the stylist then begins looking over every inch of Azure's body, studying, measuring, already forming an image in her mind.

Azure doesn't talk, her voice unable to work as she feels slightly violated by the cloud white unicorn that is scrutinizing her body. Pony nudity is accepted in all of society, as most ponies spend their time without clothes, because that is considered an unneeded luxury, the only exception being the long winter months, where the cold seeps through all but the thickest of coats, and some form of protection is required. But staring at a naked pony extensively is usually bound to raise some questions, even if it is of the same gender.

Azure understands that Rarity is actually trying to help, in her own Capitol way. But that doesn't mean she can't feel even a tiny bit wronged.

"Now, last year the other stylist somehow managed to convince me that those drab miner's outfits were a good idea. I've never seen a reaction, or rather, lack of a reaction to my creations since, well, I can't even remember. This year I'm going with something new. Something exciting. I asked Twilight for some ideas, as she knows about pretty much everything that's ever been written. She suggested that I do something with electricity. I, of course, inquired as to how electricity could come from coal."

"She said that the coal from 12 goes to 5, where it is burned in massive buildings called 'plants'. Don't ask me why, seems like such a silly name for a buidling that creates such a black smoke. Anyways, what I've designed for you and that other colt to wear is a simple garment, yet will reflect the dozens of lights that will be trained on you. The light reflected will come off as a red glow, giving you the appearence of a lightbulb!" She smiled brightly, as she pulled a deep red gown out of a plastic bag.

Putting it on turns out to be a nightmare, as Azure has no experience in putting on dresses, and her stylist feels there is an exact method of putting the dress on.

"No, your left leg, then your right!"

"No, darling, the torso has to be right here. Take it off and try again, and try not to let the cuffs touch the ground again."

"Almost, almost, almost... *Facehoof*"

"There we go! No... wait."

Finally, after several tense minutes of trying to get into a freaking dress, Azure stands in front of Rarity, a scowl on her face as the unicorn ties several things, and loosens others. Is putting on a dress really this difficult? I would hate to be a Capitol pony...

"Now come, Azure. Let's go see how smashing Snowy looks in that jacket I designed for him."

Azure doesn't really want to see Snowy in her dress, for reasons she doesn't even understand. But it's not like she can do anything.

They make their way through the corridor, Rarity nodding to several ponies as they walk past. They come out into some giant room, almost like a hanger, where Snowy and some other pony are already waiting.

The older one is tapping is hoof impatiently on the ground. "You're late."

Rarity smiles sheepishly, nodding towards Azure. "I'm sorry, but this one here has no idea how to put on a dress.

"Whatever. Now, you two are going to be put on carriages to be shown to the Capitol in your outfits. This may not be your chance first impressions, that time was at the reaping. So you guys are going to have to look your best for the Capitol crowd, and that means smiling, and waving." He raises a hoof, silencing the two tribute's protests. "No exceptions. You guys want to get sponsers so you can survive? This is one of the few ways you can. The others getting a good score in training, and proving yourself in the arena. Now follow me."

He begins walking towards a large, ornate carriage with black gems studded all over the sides. The carriage is very open, to give the audience the best views of the tributes inside. A good idea, except that the tributes have nothing to keep them from falling out other than a rail right at the front of the chariot. There have been a few years where tributes have fallen out of their seat.

"Now, fillies on the right, colts on the left, got it? Good. Just remember, smile and wave. Hold onto the rail, or even eachother if you feel like you're gonna fall out, ok?" Rarity steps back from the carriage, nodding in approval.

"Good luck, we'll see you after the Parade." The other stylist steps back and begins talking to another pony in a full Royal Guard attire. He nods, and begins hooking himself and another pegasus with similar armour.

"Alright." The pegasus smiles. "Let's rock."

Azure hears and feels nothing for the next few moments, the shouts of the crowd and the lights dazzling around are lost to her as she gazes numbly around. She catches sight of a familiar, yet at the same time unknown pony in the crowds, his eye fixed on hers. They watch eachother for a few moments, before the pony mouths a few words, that Azure automatically understands, despite all the distractions.

"Welcome to the Capitol."

* * *

"Ah, it is a wonderful evening today, is it not? Perfect weather for tonight's parade."

"It is indeed, Spotlight. So, wanna give the viewers your thoughts on this years batch of tributes? I certainly want to!"

"Well, it is hard to form a reasonable opinion based on just the reapings. But this year... this is gonna be something. I can feel it already. Something about the way all these tributes feel... Yes, definitely, this year is gonna be a good one. An unusual batch of tributes, a brand new arena the Gamemakers have been teasing for weeks, all of this gonna come down to be one of the best Games yet! Wouldn't you agree, Matrix?"

"I certainly do, Spot. By the way, what do you think all those clues the Gamemakers have leaked mean?"

"I have no idea, GM. But hey, what do you say we give our viewers a chance to guess. Maybe one of them will understand those clues better than us."

"What a simply smashing idea, I say. Shall we begin?"

"Where'd you get... monocle... Well, the first of three clues was in my opinion the trickiest! The snake's first is the first letter. That's all they said."

"A tricky one indeed. The second was an interesting one as well. An unifinished 6 is the second letter."

"The last one is almost as hard as the first one! It was a picture of the Head Gamemaker wearing an eyepatch with a caption reading 'Aye, Aye.'"

"Well it's obvious isn't it?"

"Not really, I'd say. Why, do you think you have it?"

"No. But it is obvious, am I right?"

"I have... no idea... Matrix, you're being pretty odd."

"Why would you say that? I'm as normal as anypony is gonna get. Now, another question, who do you think is most likely to win this years games?"

"I honestly can't tell. Many ponies look like they have what it takes to win this years games. Besides, anything can happen. Remember that one year when the helpless colt won because the two careers ended up killing eachother?"

"Ah yes. That was a fun year. Perhaps this year will- oh, look! The first carriage has appeared!"

Chapter 4: The Parade

The Equestria Games, by Prismatics. Chapter 3Caution, Chapter may contain silly OC names. You have been warned.

"Oh look, this years first carriage has appeared!"

Two announcers are sitting in a booth, elevated high above the main street of the Capitol, where they can get a bird's eye view of the tributes as they are revealed to the crowds for the first, official time.

"My my! They look simply smashing, wouldn't you say, Matrix?" The one called Matrix nods his head furiously.

"They do indeed, Spotlight! What do you say we start introducing the tributes to the readers?"

The other one, known as Spotlight looks confused momentarily, allowing a flash of incomprehension to break through his proffesional mask momentarily. "Readers, GM? Don't you mean viewers?"

Matrix smiles widely. "Nope!" He says, pointing a hoof at the wall behind him. The wall shatters in several large pieces, revealing an odd sight.

A tall creature with a black hooded sweatshirt, jeans, and bright white socks is sitting on a couch in the middle of a large blue room. His shaggy brown hair is continuously being swiped out of his eyes as he scribbles furiously on a small notebook.

As if noticing some change in the atmosphere, the creature looks up, and groans audibly. "Dammit guys! Can't you see I'm trying to write a story here?" The creature gets up, pulls a roll of duct tape out of his pocket, and begins taping the pieces of the broken wall together. "Honestly you guys. Keep this wall intact, please."

Matrix shrugs and returns to watch the parade. "Hey, it's your fault. You're the one who made me break the wall."

The creature snorts before fitting the last patch of the broken wall. Spotlight stands dazed, having not moved from his position for the whole ordeal.

He slowly begins to speak again, with a slight stutter. "C-can you f-fill in for m-me, GM? I n-need to g-go lie d-down n-now..." He slowly walks out of the booth, shivering heavily.

"Allllllrighty then!"

* * *

The first carriage, a dazzling white chariot marked with a glittering 1, contains two occupants. Both are wearing outfits studded with several thousand tiny crystals, reflecting a rainbow across the chariot and it's neighbors. The male is a unicorn, sport a long black mane, heavily contrasting against his white coat. His smile is genuine, one can see from afar, as he catches a rose from a group of giggling mares somewhere in the crowd. He winks in their direction, then eats said rose. The female, a shorter mare with curly rose-coloured mane and a shimmering sky blue coat, is not smiling, but is waving to the crowd with an enthusiasm that makes up for the lack of a grin.

"Here we have Eighth Note and Viola, from District 1! Don't those two look simply fabulous in those sparkling outfits? The crystals... they daze me... Anyways, these ponies are from the luxury district, where they create all the dresses, jewelry and other assorted items that you treasure! Got a necklace you adore? Chances are it came from 1!"

The next carriage is a bright gold, reflecting every light that focuses its beam on it, causing one of its passengers to squint her eyes as the gilded light shines in her eyes. The carriage is marked with a polished stone 2. The pair tributes are outfitted with a luxurious set of glimmering Royal Peacekeeper armour, very similar to plate armour the guards of old used to wear. The mare is waving, absorbing the cheers and cries as if it was a solid substance. Her electric blue-green mane glides through the air as smoothly as her wings, occasionally slapping the other stallion in the face. The stallion is strongly built, his coat a deep green. His armour plating adds several points to his intimidating appearance, and his bright golden goggles he wore at the reaping add to his mysterious aura.

"And from District 2, we have Legend and Zephyr. Don't they look so intimidating in that armour? I wouldn't want to be on the other end of their hooves! For those who don't know, 2 is where they mine the ornate stone for our buildings, and train the Peacekeepers that keep us safe!"

The carriage that follows afterwards is a deep grey steel, with an assortment of wires and lights flashing across it. A plate of steel with several blinking lights in the shape of a 3 mark this chariot. The two ponies are wearing labcoats splattered with some bluish liquid that glows brightly even in the well-lit Capitol street. The male pony, a colt, barely old enough to be selected in the reaping, is curled up into a ball on his seat and making shivering motions, despite the warm temperature of the evening. His dark purple coat leaps out from the white labcoat, as does his shaggy, blood-red hair that nopony was able to groom properly. His stunning green eyes leap back and forth between ponies in the stands around the street. The small colt is easily dwarfed by the large mare, her purple and red mane tied back with a gleaming silver wire, and her brown coat nearly undetectable to the crowd.

"From District 3, Atomic and Cam! I don't know what's wrong with the colt, he appears almost scared of everything. Or would, if it wasn't for that massive creepy smile... Jeez... Well, District 3 is where all of our beloved technology is made in massive, towering factories. TVs, cars, computers, you name it. If it has a wire, it was made in 3. I think."

The next carriage is a glassy blue colour, as if it was created out of solidified water. A silvery green cross is marked with an ornate 4. The tributes of this District are clothed in a outfits made of a metallic blue fabric, slightly lighter then the carriage itself. The fabric shimmers with every move the two make, imitating the look of flowing water. The stallion, with his blue outfit and his coat combining to create an amazing spray of blue, accompanied by a dual shade mane of black and white, isn't reacting to the crowd, but to the buildings around the crowd. He is simply entranced by the architecture. The mare, on the other hoof, is overjoyed by the attentions of the crowds, much like the tributes of 1. She has a sky blue coat, similar to her partner, with her mane a whirlwind of silver. She is soaking all of the crowds cheers in, and occasionally shouting cheerfully for more.

"And from District 4, Papercraft and Swift Gale! My goodness, she looks like she's enjoying it all! But what is he staring at? Anyways, District 4 is where we get our seafood from! The delicious, salty goodness of a dried stick of seaweed, am I right? District 4 collects all of that and ships it out to us!"

The carriage that comes next is a generic, brownish copper look. Like 3, it has wires running along, but these wires are made of steel, and spark with every movement the chariot makes. A brass 5 adorns the sides of the chariot. The two passengers are wearing what looks to be a bright red engineering jumpsuit, with a shining yellow hardhat and a sturdy brown toolbelt to complete the outfit. The leaf green stallion is just lying still with his deep green mane blowing in the wind, looking straight ahead, his eyes boring into the back of the pegasus mare in the chariot ahead of him, despising her joyfulness. The mare is sitting back slyly, watching the crowd with emotionless eyes. Her brown and electric yellow mane lying limp despite the wind, and her orange coat drawing many an eye away from her partner, not that there were many eyes on him to begin with.

"Cloud Nova and Electra Static from District 5. What is with these ponies and staring at things? Haven't they seen the Capitol before? It's not that amazing. District 5, however, is pretty cool. 5 is where all of our power comes from. They have a very important job there; controlling those nuclear power plants is a big responsibility. But don't worry, those plants are safe. I hope."

Them next chariot to follow them looks the very image of a steampunk machine. The gears placed on the sides, the unworking steam jets, the grand, dark colour scheme it sports. A thick gear is marked with a 6, letting the ponies know which District this amazing design of a carriage it belongs to. The two passengers are wearing a luxurious design of a train engineer, complete with a marble whistle that hangs around their necks. The male, barely bigger than a colt, is simply enjoying the ride, occasionally waving or smiling at the crowd. For the most part, the brown tribute with the messy blue mane forgets the existence of the entire crowd, and his partner beside him. His partner, a dark blue pegasus with a vivid lime green mane, is content to ignore her partner, concentrating instead on the tributes ahead and behind her. Judging. Measuring. Assessing strengths and weaknesses. Targeting the strongest and the weakest.

"And from District 6, we have Scribble Page and Dusk Moon. My my, doesn't their chariot look amazing? Those gears... ohhh... I don't even understand why the carts are like that. District 6 is the transportation District. Most of you know that the Districts supply us with stuff, but do you know how it gets to us? From 6, of course!"

The following carriage is unique in design. While the others were made of mostly lightweight metals, this one is made of a dark brown grain of wood. A perfect number 7 is carved into the ornate brown wood of the chariot. The tributes of this District are wearing heavy woolen clothes reminiscent of a old-style lumberjack. The stallion, a large white unicorn with a long shaggy mane of light pink and green, and a build almost the size of the stallion in 2. He stares at the crowd and tributes with a shifty looking gaze. The mare, a completely blue pegasus, is easily dwarfed by her companion, but she intimidates nonetheless. Her eyes have a hypnotic value towards them, and her cutie mark of a poison joke flower is enough to frighten a few on its own.

"From 7, we have Strawberry Fields and Jilly Joke. I don't know why, but I got a gut feeling that Jilly is going to get a good score in training. Something about the way she carries herself. Anyways, District 7 is the lumber District, where we get all different kinds of wood for our marvelous buildings, and on occasion, arenas. So a big thanks to 7 for that wonderful hand crafted table!

After the last chariot comes a plain, light grey chariot, with no unusual decorations at all. A patch of fabric with an 8 crudely drawn on it is taped to the carriage. The two passengers are outfitted with clothes seemingly made of random, mismatched patterns of fabric loosely sewn together to form a dress and tuxedo for the tributes of 8. The male, a shining blue unicorn with a wavy mane that glides like water as the wind flies through it. He's smiling, a rare occurrence for most tributes above 7, as a victor amongst them is an uncommon event. The female stands tall and straight, her lime and blue mane in a jagged mess across her face. Her face masks any emotion whatsoever, as she refuses to acknowledge even her District partner, despite their apparent friendship earlier.

"Here from District 8, we have Hydra Wolf and Cherrycloud. Sorry about the chariot, folks, but it was sort of... destroyed in an accident involving a very large smoke grenade. But nice choice of outfits, I must say. District 8 is where all the textiles are produced. For those of you who are unaware if what textile means, it is essentially cloth and various wool-like materials. At least I think thats what it means. Whatever, next carriage."

The one to follow is a large brown carriage, with various metal trimmings along the side. A generic 9 is stamped on the chariot in a bright red colour. The two occupants are wearing basic farmers outfits, with a few added luxuries. Straw hats, coveralls, and a small pitchfork held limply at their sides. The male, a stiff built unicorn with a full green body, is studying the crowds around him, tracking every movement any of the crowd members make. His smooth, deep green mane is unaffected by the wind, and stays in exact place as the chariot rolls down the street. The mare, a deep blue unicorn with stunning blue eyes is doing a similar thing to her partner, but is focusing on her tributes, much like the mare from 6. She avoids looking at the crowd, ignoring the gazing eyes of the public as she determines who will be her priorities during the Games.

"And from 9, we have Cloverleaf and Nous. Seriously, does anypony smile and wave at the crowd? What in Tartarus are they staring at? Seriously! Geez, anyways, District 9 is where they farm all of the grain in massive fields, some larger than one of our hoofball arenas. Wheat from 9 makes some of our best cakes. Have you ever tried one of the cinnamon rolls from that donut shop down the street. AMAZING! Alright then, on to the next District!

The next chariot is a dark red colour and generic in design. The only outstanding difference from a normal carriage is the logo painted on the sides, a chicken egg with two crossed cleavers behind it. A gold circle is marked with a silvery 10. The tribute are dressed in gold trimmed cowpony outfits, complete with fully ornate Stetsons and black leather boots. The plaid jackets are made from the most delicate of materials, unsuitable for any real work in the profession. The male, a dark grey stallion with a jet black mane with a curious red stripe, strangely has the appearence of electricity coursing through his fur. He waves, nervously at first, then grows in confidence throughout the ride. The female is similar in colour to Dusk Moon from 6, albeit with a lighter blue coat and a shorter mane. She is waving cheerfully at the audience, elated to the point of snapping as she takes in the attention of the Capitol audience.

"Here from 10, we have Ultrastrike and Ocean Wave. Ultrastrike? What an odd name. And an odd name matches an odd appearance it seems, is that electricity on his coat? Uhh... right. Anyways, District 10 is the livestock District, where they gather eggs from their industrial sized chicken coops. Reminds me of the omelet I had this morning... mmm, so cheesy. Ahhh... well. On to the next carriage, we're almost done here!"

The following carriage is a dark green colour, with various splashes of paint in several colours splattered alongside the length of the chariot. A orange diamond is marked with a number 11. The two occupants are wearing plantation uniforms, with a much classier look then what is usually used in 11. Their uniforms are normally tattered and sprayed with some sort of wet goo, but these are brand new, embroidered with silver thread, and inlaid with multiple jewels. The male, a large brown stallion with a straw coloured mane, is sitting back, a look of defeat and sorrow in his eyes, despite instructions from his mentor to look his best for the parade. The mare, who has a green mane the exact same as the chariot itself, is waving to the crowd, but holds her other hoof in the stallions. She keeps looking over at him, forcing a weak smile for him every time she glances.

"From District 11, we have Catch Release and Heartfelt. Those plantation outfits look totally amazing on them! I almost would have never guessed what they were compared to the uniforms from the previous year. Well, interesting. District 11 is where they have the massive fruit farms and orchards. The apples and oranges and other fruits that are a staple of your breakfest comes from the wonderful outlying District of 11!"

The last chariot to arrive is dark black, with even darker black gemstones inlaid alongside the sides of the carriage, reflecting a dark shadow on the area around them. A dark steel-coloured circle surrounds a 12 in bright white lettering. The two tributes are wearing an odd choice of clothes, bright red outfits that reflect the lights trained on them, giving them both the unusual appearance of having a glowing red aura surrounding them. The crowd applauds at the unique choice of dressing, before returning their attention to the other tributes as a whole. The male is a light cyan coloured unicorn, with an icy white mane and grey eyes that cut like daggers. He glares at the Capitol audience for the duration of the ride, cursing their joy at watching his death. The mare is watching him in between waving at the audience, staring at him with an amused grin. Her teal coloured mane blows in the wind, unable to be kept down. Somewhere, Rarity is quietly sobbing.

"And last, but certainly not least, we have Snowy Mountain and Azure, from District 12. My, those outfits are stunning. Wouldn't you say Spotlight? Spot? Oh ya... Anyways, District 12 is where they mine all the coal for our fireplaces and stoves. They work very hard, so take a moment to appreciate the effort gone into producing the coal so we can snuggle up with our special someponies and enjoy a nice, warm crackling fire."

"And that's it folks, we'll be right back with our speech from President Discord in just a moment!"

Chapter 5: Bending the Rules

The Equestria Games, by Prismatics. Chapter 5

The air rushes past Azure as the chariot makes its way down the streets. The Capitol audience is cheering wildly at the choice of clothing Rarity had selected for them. The red aura is a bit distracting to her, but if it helps get sponsors, deal with it.

Still waving, Azure looks over at her partner. He's slumped down, glaring daggers at the audience, wishing with all his heart that they'd be cast into the fiery depths of Tartarus. Or, atleast, that's what she thinks he's thinking about. He glances back at her, tosses a weak smile in her direction, and gets back to giving the audience the death stare.

Azure rolls her eyes and concentrates on other things, such as the tributes in front of her. One of them appeared to be sort of... comforting the other. Azure racks her brains trying to figure out the mare's name from the reaping. Was it Heart...beat? No, it was Heartfelt. Ya, Heartfelt! Heartfelt seems like a nice pony, but it's those ones you gotta watch. And the strong ones. And the weak ones. So, pretty much everypony you gotta watch.

Story of my life... Azure thinks to herself, before chuckling a bit. Snowy looks over at the unexpected laughter, before realizing it wasn't at him and turning back around to face the crowd.

The carriages make their full course, stopping at the end of the main street in front of a massive marble palace. A large balcony juts out from the building, where a draconequus is sitting in a gold throne with a jeweled crown upon his head. He seems to notice the tributes for the first time, standing up and dusting himself off. Three Gamemakers move to stand behind him, flanking the President on all sides.

Discord motions towards the tributes, making a friendly, welcoming gesture at the 24 ponies all waiting for him to say his speech and be done with it. Except for a young purple colt, who seems to be on the edge of his seat, engrossed by every movement the President makes.

"Welcome, Tributes, to the Capitol! I welcome you all, to the Capitol. You are all..." He pauses, for dramatic effect, before lowering his voice so it can just barely be heard to the tributes. "...welcomed, in the Capitol." He laughs a bit. "My my, you all look absolutely stunning." He gazes over the chariots, studying each outfit. Upon reaching District 8, he frowns. "Except for 8. I don't know what happened there, but it's a disaster." The audience laughs as the two from 8 shamefully hide their head. Now. Let's get serious here for a moment." He casts his steely gaze over the gathered tributes. "This year, these Games, are going to have an interesting... rule change. You know how every night there is a death toll, where it shows a headshot of the fallen tribute, along with their District and name? Well, now, in addition to this simple head count, there will be a smaller picture in the corner, displaying the name, District, and another picture of the fallen contestants killer. Just to spice things up a bit! Won't it be fuuuun?" He laughs hysterically.

Azure stands shocked at the sudden rule change. So the players killer will be displayed to all, as well? That's not good...

Discord waits for the applause and initial shock to die down, before shouting the everyone gathered. "I, President Discord, of the grand nation of Panem, officially declare that the opening ceremonies for the 23rd annual Hunger Games, are officially open!" With that, he slams his fist down on a large red button, launching several fireworks into the air, much to the delight of everypony there.

The cheers of the crowd deafen Azure, and she clamps her hooves over her ears to attempt at reducing the headache-inducing noise the audience is producing. She shuts her eyes hard, cutting herself off from the cheering throngs of ponies.

Finally, her chariot lifts up and exits the streets to makes its way the gigantic Justice Building. Not that Azure is aware, of course.

* * *

"It's over Azure. We've left." Snowy puts his foreleg around her neck, providing comfort, and at the same time, causing her to panic.

As if sensing the surge of anxiety he withdraws, and finds something interesting to stare at on the walls of the tunnel. The atmosphere between the two thickens. and any words are left unspoken as the Justice Building grows nearer and nearer with each passing second.

The massive steel doors into the parking garage open, and the chariots scatter as they make their way to the individual gates. Each gate is marked with a large black circle and and a number from one to twelve. In front of the gate marked '12', four ponies are standing, all of them waiting for the pair to arrive in the carriage.

Rarity is the first to greet them, congratulating them on the reaction her outfits got. Twilight simply nods, not looking up from her most recent book. The other stylist, a stallion Azure doesn't know the name of, is smiling at them both, greatly pleased with the outfits. He has a bright white mane with golden streaks, and a light green coat. He wears a pair of dark blue sunglasses, and has a smile that would absolutely entrance her if she didn't know any better. Pinkie Pie is the fourth pony in the group, and bounces up and down as she hugs both of the tributes for no particular reason.

"You guys did so awesome! The waving! Ooh, Snowy, the glaring. That was simply amazing! You guys are definitely getting sponsors now!" Pinkie releases them from her choking bear hug, and bounces back as the two drop to the ground, gasping for air.

How can one pony be so strong? It felt like my lungs were gonna pop out of my mouth. She chuckles to herself. Death by affection... What a way to go.

"What's so funny, darling?" Rarity asks.

Azure looks up at her with a deadpan expression. "Death by affection."

Rarity appears flustered, and nods confusedly. "Alright then." She looks behind her at the elevator. "Well then, shall we be off?"

Snowy puts on an uncaring expression. "Lead the way, then." Rarity glares at him, then enters the glass elevator.

* * *

"Now, each District gets their own floor. Since you two are from Twelve, we get the penthouse suite!" She smiles brightly. "Been a while since I've been in a penthouse. I was the stylist for 6 last year."

Azure knows that 12 is usually an unwanted District for most stylists, so she can't help but wonder why Rarity was posted to 12. She decides to press her luck and ask. "Rarity?"

"Yes, darling?" She blinks gracefully, if such a thing is possible.

"I can't help but wonder, why were you posted in 12?"

She bites her lip. Apparently she doesn't like talking about it. "Well, I was... you know, I don't like talking about this, ok?"

Azure shrugs. She didn't want to know that bad. "It's fine. How fast does this elevator go, anyways?" Anything to change the subject now would be welcomed.

The stallion stylist appears slightly shocked for a moment, forgetting that he had to press the button for these lifts. In other buildings at the Capitol, you simply had to look at a screen to change levels. Technology in the Capitol is making ponies less and less active with each passing day.

The unnamed stylist presses the button marked '12' and the glass elevator shoots up. Despite the intense speed the elevator amasses, the passengers feel almost no movement at all. The short ride is exhilarating to Azure, the ground rapidly becoming smaller and smaller in seconds. They arrive at the top floor in no time and step out to indulge in the sight of the apartment they will be living in for the next 4 days.

It was extremely luxurious, atleast twice as grand as the train had been. The crystal chandeliers, the hoof-carved tables and chairs, The massive, digital projection screen in the corner of the room with snazzy couches filled with the softest substance known to ponies, also known as Cloud. The room is a sleek straight design, with one main room and a hallway leading to some bedrooms, each one containing a personal bathroom for each pony. Azure walks into her room and quickly scans it, before resting her gaze on the bed. Her eyes light up as the comfort level seems to radiate from the grey piece of furniture. She wastes no time jumping on to it, her body collapsing into the relaxing bedspread.

"Mmmmm..." She mumbles, sweeping her legs across the sheets, marveling in their softness and the pleasuring feel. I could use a nap, anyways... She starts dropping into sleep, before a voice snaps her out of her entranced state. Azure curses the voice, and curses what it says.

"Dinner!" Rarity calls from the main room. "I'm not going to call again, darlings!" Grumbling, Azure reluctantly drops off her bed, and angrily makes her way into the central room. Snowy leaves his room around the same time as her, and appears just as annoyed as she was, if not more. She rolls her eyes at him, gesturing with her head at the oblivious stylist in the next room. He nods silently in agreement, before dropping eye contact with her and speeding up a bit to the table.

Laid out on the table is more food than Azure has ever seen at one location ever in her life. Her eyes widen as she takes in the spread. There is a variety of breads and vegetables, with a selection of flowers that can only be found in the Capitol. There's several pitchers of different coloured liquids that she can only assume are drinks, and a tin with varied fruit-flavoured candies that makes Azure salivate in anticipation of eating them. Candies in District 12 are far and few between, and Azure has only had one on a single occasion, which was given to her by an old mare after her brother was reaped for the Games years ago. She feels a wave of sadness overcome her, so she shoves the memory into the back of her head. Returning her attention to the food, she feels the gazes of the other four ponies as they take in the pairs reactions to the food. Twilight shows understanding, while the two stylists express confusion at the overjoyed reaction to the large spread. They grew up always having enough to eat, so they don't understand the astonishment at having enough food for once. Pinkie Pie only appears indifferent, as the food is simply food to her. Pinkie Pie has already began eating, and is decimating the salad selection, much to Rarity's chagrin.

Twilight frowns at the pink pony, who is currently overfilling a wine glass with some orange fluid. "Perhaps we should eat before Pinkie here finishes off the whole layout."

Snowy's stomach growls at the mention of eating, and he grins. "I couldn't agree more. Let's eat."

* * *

The dinner was excellent, leaving nopony still hungry. A silent orange pony clears away the dishes and brings them each a small dish of orange sherbet, and delicacy Azure cannot even imagine. Everything here is so new here, it absolutely astounds her.

As they enjoy the fruity desert, Twilight begins talking about what to expect the following day.

"Now, tomorrow you guys are going to be sent to the training grounds. I need to know if you have any special talents. Don't try to exaggerate or downplay your skills, I need you to be honest with me, so I can use your strengths to get you more sponsors."

Azure thinks hard about her talents. She can't use weapons very well, she's not overly strong, she can't identify many plants, and she doesn't have any major survival skills such as building a fire or a lean-to or something like that. Than it hits her. A talent that kept her alive whenever she went into the woods.

"I'm stealthy." Azure says proudly.

Twilight still seems skeptical. "How stealthy? Like on a scale of 1 to 10, how do you think you'd stand? Obviously, I'll need to see you in action, but I need just a small bit of information. I can tell you two aren't in the mood for an interrogation"

"Uhh, probably a 7 and a half."

She nods, filing this piece of information for later. "I'm going to see an example later, but until then that will have to do." She looks towards Snowy, who is clutching at his forehead, fighting the pain of his brain freeze. An ironic affliction considering his name and talent. "And you?"

The excruciating sensation subsides, and Snowy happily points out he is a master of frost-based magic. He frowns when Twilight solemnly shakes her head.

"Snowy, magic is disabled in the arena. As is flying." he nearly spits his sherbet out upon hearing this.

"What?! How can they do that?" He sputters.

Twilight shrugs. "They're the Capitol. They can do whatever they want."

"Well, crap. I guess I can use a knife pretty well. Father taught me how to use it briefly when I was young." He says, clearly disheartened by the lack of magic.

"I'm surprised that you didn't know this. Didn't you feel the magic disabling spell when you exited the chariots?" He shakes his head. "I guess they made it go into silent mode this year. Usually they enjoy watching the tributes freak out upon feeling the spell. Oh, by the way Azure. Don't worry, Earth ponies aren't affected by the spell in any way."

That's a relief. But then again, what would they take away? We don't have any game-changing magic in our bodies. I've heard that we're naturally more hardy than the other races, but the pegasi are faster and the unicorns are generally more cunning. It's an even playing field, now.

The stylists have already left, and Pinkie has disappeared again, leaving the two tributes and their mentor alone in the room to discuss strategies for the games, training and the interviews. These discussions last long into the night. Snowy eventually heads to bed, after a misplaced comment embitters him, and he offers little more than a half-sarcastic goodnight before leaving.

Twilight finally heads off to her separate quarters away from the penthouse suite, leaving Azure alone in her thoughts. She ultimately decides to forget about pretty much everything for now, and head off to bed. She does spend a long time exploring her room. The closet is completely empty, as is the dressers and nightstands. Her bathroom contains dozens of different soaps and lotions, and the shower has about 40 buttons for various functions, everything from 'citrus shampoo' to 'dry with cold air'. Curious, Azure pushes wets her mane, and presses the last button. A gust of cold rushes through her mane, freezing the droplets of water and causing them to fall to the floor and shatter. Running a hoof through her hair, she is surprised to find it is completely dry. Chuckling, she leaves the bathroom and collapses on the amazingly soft bed, drifting off to sleep shortly after, with thoughts of combat fresh on her mind.

Her dreams are dark and hellish, and she cries in her sleep several times. But a somepony's touch causes her to stop and sleep soundly. His job done, the nameless stylist leaves the room smiling.

Chapter 6: Training I

The Equestria Games, by Prismatics. Chapter 6

"Wake up, darling." A disembodied voice calmly says.

The sleeping figure half-heartedly swats at the voice with her foreleg. "Mmph. 5 more minutes, Mom."

"I said wake up, and I'm not your Mom!" The voice gets louder, and closer.

Azure is suddenly picked up from her bed and shook awake. She opens her eyes to find herself in a magical aura, with a certain alabaster stylist glaring at her with red-rimmed and bloodshot eyes. "Now, you will wake up when I tell you to wake, up do you understand me, darling?!"

Azure is taken aback by the unicorns drastic change in personality. "Y-yes! Rarity, what's gotten into you? You're normally so nice!"

In response to the question another voice chimes in from the main room. "Lack of freshly made coffee."

Rarity swivels her head to glare out the door at the speaker. "Shut up, Twilight!" She returns her deadly gaze back to Azure. "And as for you, get dressed. We'll be going down to training in a half hour."

"Get dressed in what?" Azure asks. All of her drawers and closets were empty, and no outfit was in sight. A bundle of plastic landing on her back interrupts her thoughts.

"Get dressed in that." Rarity sighs. "Tacky, I know. But it's what they gave you." She mumbles something incoherently about 'bloody tasteless Gamemakers' before spinning around and repeating the same act on Snowy. Azure chuckles to herself hearing his reaction, as it was very similar to her own.

Grabbing the outfit, she heads into the bathroom and scans it over. It's nothing special or unique. Quite bland compared to her Parade outfit. It's a simple black and grey jumpsuit, with the District 12 logo drawn on the shoulders. She slips it on, remarking on how lightweight it is; she can hardly feel its presence. She turns to the mirror and begins admiring herself. Not bad. I think it looks nice.

"Hurry up and get out here! Your breakfast is getting cold!" Somepony calls out from the main room, annoyance evident in their voice. Azure reluctantly pulls herself away from the mirror, and exits her room.

Everypony else is already there, enjoying a hearty breakfast of oatmeal, orange juice, and toasted bread with a fruity spread Azure found disgusting. The group sits in silence as they enjoy their meal. After they finish, Twilight sets down her book willingly, eliciting small expressions of surprise from some of the older ponies, before being silenced by a glare from Twilight.

After confirming she has the attention of the two tributes, she continues on. "Ok, so in about 5 minutes you will be taken down to the training grounds. There will be several stations for various different skills you will need in the Games. I suggest you work on the survival skills first before moving on to the combat exercises. There will be instructors there to help you learn these things. But remember. The other tributes will be watching you, especially the careers. Do you know who the careers are?"

Snowy answers quickly. "They're from 1 and 2. And they form alliances to hunt down the other tributes."

Twilight nods. "Correct. But they will also 'hire' tributes from other districts, commonly 4, to join their alliance. They are ruthless. Their main weakness is that they're cocky and overconfident. They will sometimes make stupid decisions affected by their ego. But make no mistake. They are your biggest threat in the arena, second to only the arena itself."

"Next, these careers during training will most likely head to the deadliest weapons in the room and attempt to intimidate the field. Don't pay any attention to them. It's psychological warfare that they're using, and it works every year on most of the others." Worked on me, for sure. Twilight thinks somberly. She shakes that thought away, and glances at the clock. "Alright then. Time to go. You got your pins on?"

The two tributes nod. Twilight acknowledges the confirmation and gestures towards the elevator. "Oh, and Pinkie? Don't forget to- oh for the love of Celestia where did you go?"

"Right here silly!" A voice pops up from behind her.

Twilight jumps at the sudden voice, nearly falling on to the hyperactive pink mare behind her. "What the- dammit Pinkie. How many times have I told you to appear like a normal pony!"

Pinkie thinks for a few moments, before responding. "Counting this most recent one, 71."

Twilight seems shocked at the number. "Really? That many? Never- ugh, getting distracted. Into the elevator you two." She heads forward to press the button.

"Wait, Twilight, didn't you have something to tell me?"

"Oh yeah, don't forget to sign the sponsor on."

Snowy lets out a slight expression of surprise. "We have sponsors?"

She shakes her head. "Not sponsors, sponsor. There's only one. A rich pony by the name of Goldmine. Millions to his name. You two are lucky."

The elevator flies down the shaft and goes to a floor way down below the lobby. The doors open to reveal a massive open chamber, with weapons racks and training areas scattered around the room. It appears 12 is the last District to arrive, as all of the other tributes are gathered in the center of the room. A few look up at the newcomers, but most ignore them as the two join them all into the center.

A loud stomping sound can be heard nearby, as two ponies clad in dark black military suits step out into the center of the group. One has a spectrum of a mane, the hair the colours of the rainbow, dazzling underneath the lights of the training center. The other has a tied back blond mane, covered by a Stetson hat.

The rainbow-haired mare steps into the middle and begins speaking in a commanding tone. "Alllllright maggots. Welcome to training. My name is Rainbow Dash, and this here is my co-officer Applejack."

"Howdy."

"And we're going to help you learn valuable combat and survival skills so you can survive in the arena. Now, only one of you can win, and who that is depends on how well you pay attention for the next few days. If you listen well, you have a chance. If you slack off, you will die. Do you hear me?!"

A few mumbled yesses ripple through the gathered tributes. Dash makes a annoyed gesture. "Do you hear me?!" She shouts, causing the ponies nearest to her to jump back in fright.

The scattered  yesses become a massive collective "YES" after her outburst.

Dash passes her steely gaze over the group, before giving an approving nod. "Alright then. I'm gonna let AJ take over to explain the various stations for you all."

The orange mare steps forward and begins listing off various skill training areas in an accent that strangely bothers Azure. These trainers have apparently been living in the Capitol for years, yet Applejack speaks in an accent similar to the one they use in 10. And Rainbow sounds more like a Peacekeeper from 2.

Applejack finishes explaining the various stations, and releases them to go do as they please. Just as Twilight said they would, the ponies from 1, 2, and 4 immediately head over to the weapons areas, and begin demonstrating their brutal combat skills. The male from 2, the one with the gold goggles, throws a spear almost across the room and impales a dummy's head. Azure stops working on a snare to look up at them, just as the mare from 4 skewers a dummy's heart with an arrow from a fairly long distance away. A feeling of fear wells up in her stomach, and her heart rate increases drastically.

A familiar voice inside her mind draws her away from the deadly show of strength the careers are performing. Don't pay any attention to them. It's psychological warfare that they're using. She smiles as Twilight's words come back to her, and then finishes her snare with renewed vigour. After a quick test, she confirms it works, and moves on to the next station, the camouflage painting area. It doesn't appear to be used at all, signaling to Azure that she is the first one to use this station.

She messes around with the various dyes and natural colourings for a short while before deciding to move on yet again. The next station, the climbing section, is already manned by the pair from 5. The stallion, a pegasus with a flaming hoof as a cutie mark and scorch marks along his coat, is struggling to climb up the rope while his partner, an orange unicorn watches in slight amusement.

Suddenly, he loses his grip and falls to hard floor with a sickening thud. The other mare is quick to begin laughing, and the infectious nature causes Azure to find herself chuckling at his fall soon enough.

The stallion slowly picks himself up, groaning audibly, and upon seeing Azure laughing at his fall, allows his pain and embarrassment to transform into anger. He shoots her a piercing glare, and growls. "The fuck are you laughing at, weakling?" He smiles wolfishly. "Come on, don't be shy, you little-"

His insult is cut off as an orange hoof is shoved in front of his mouth. "Cool it Nova, she did nothing wrong." The unicorn pats him on the head, ignoring the deadly glare that she receives. She grins amusedly, forcing him to drop the stare and walk away. Both watch him go for a few moments, before he drops out of sight.

The unicorn turns to Azure, sporting the same grin as before, and extends a hoof outwards. "Hiya, my name's Electra Static, what's yours?"

"I'm Azure." She returns the hoofshake, noting Electra's firm, yet slightly weak, grip. You can learn a lot about a pony just by their grip, her Grandpa had once said. "So, who's your buddy?" She asks, nodding in the direction of the green pegasus.

She appears distracted for a moment before replying. "Huh? Oh, no, he isn't my buddy. He's just a temperamental brawler who probably won't make it out of the cornucopia alive." Azure manages to catch a hint of a blush as she says the sentence, but pays it no heed.

Electra suddenly seems eager to get away from her, for a reason unclear to Azure. "Heh heh, well, I really must be going now, those dummies aren't going to spear themselves, am I right?" She then zips off to another station, startling some ponies in her way.

"Ok then..." She shakes her head free of confusion, and decides to visit one of the weapons stations. She tries to find on not currently used by the careers. Her eyes land on a table with a selection of knives, with several thoroughly punctured targets at the edge of the room with varying distances.

She selects a dagger, and mid-sized blade with a broad hilt and a serrated tip. Getting a feel for it's weight and balance, she sights a target 15 metres away. Holding the knife by it's blade, she flicks her wrist and sends the dagger flying towards the bullseye.

And misses spectacularly.

Frowning, she picks up another dagger and throws it. Another miss. And then another miss. Sighing in frustration, she tries a different tactic. She imagines the the target in her mind, then thinks about the knife smoothly cutting through the air and embedding dead center on the bullseye. She repeats this, this time using her own foreleg to throw the knife. The blade whistles across the room, streaking towards the set of targets.

And misses yet again.

Azure throws her forelegs up in anger. "Whatever, I give up." She then notices the pony standing slightly behind her, watching intently. "Can I help you?" Azure snaps.

The mare looks up at her, smiles, then shakes her head. Then, reaching over to grab a knife, she points at the farthest target from where they're standing. "Watch this." She says, throwing the blade across the room, where it impales the bullseye. Azure stares, mouth agape at the quivering dagger. She turns to the mare, who has a triumphant grin on her face.

"How did you do that?"

"Practice. Lots and lots of practice."

Azure gives her a confused look. "Practice? Where can you practice in..." She glances at the number written on the mares shoulder. "Eight. Isn't that the textiles district?"

She nods. "Yeah. But I manage to capture animals that come inside the fence on occasion. Anyways, I didn't catch your name yet."

"Azure."

"Nice name. I'm Cherrycloud, pleasure to meet you." She chuckles. "Too bad we'll be enemies by the end of the week. You seem like a nice pony."

"Riiight... Anyways, where's your partner?"

Her smile drops at the mention of her teammate. "You mean Hydra? Oh, he's over at the archery station trying to show off to the careers. I'm planning to go for him on the opening day."

This piece of news doesn't surprise Azure in the slightest. "Any reason why?"

"That colt, and his group of friends, made my life a living hell back in the earlier grades. He's since stopped now, but I don't forget the past. Ever."

"So you're going to kill him because he picked on you when you were young?"

Cherry smiles. "Precisely."

Azure slowly nods, not sure how to react to the explanation. She eventually chooses to ignore it. "Ok, so can you teach me how to throw a knife?"

Cherry's smile grows wider. "Nope! Seeya later!" And with that, she trots off to go join another tribute down by the survival skills section.

Azure stands dazed for a moment, before clearing her head just in time to hear the lunch bell go. The tributes stop what they're doing and head into the cafeteria. Azure, being at the edge of the massive training center, arrives last, and casually grabs a tray of food before realizing there's no empty tables. Sighing, she sets her tray of various greens down at a table with only two other occupants. Both of them have a number 6 on their shoulders, and only offer a halfhearted greeting before returning to their meals.

Most other tributes are scattered around the room, most of them silent and dark, whereas the career pack of 7 ponies are having loud conversations, punctuated by bouts of laughter. The pack ignores the rest of the players, treating them as inferiors. This act annoys Azure greatly. Someone's going to have to teach them a lesson. They will not be the strongest among us. They will fall.

Chapter 7: Training II

The Equestria Games, by Prismatics. Chapter 7From this point on, the story will not constantly be in Azure's point of view, and will change to other viewpoints on occasion. There will be no notification on whose it is, but that's part of the fun. Azure will still remain the main character, and will obviously receive the most screen time.

The group of careers sit at their table, their previously animated conversation changed to a few hushed whispers. The rest of the tributes do not seem to notice the change in tone from the large group. Or they're scared to respond to it. This fact pleases Papercraft greatly. Being a force to be feared is a great thing in these games.

His mind is returned to the conversation they're having. The gathered ponies are discussing who they think they should target during the games. Many opinions are weighed, and some are more logical than others.

"That Electra has the look of a killer. From what I've seen, she is a ruthless fighter." Zephyr says.

"What about the guy with the electric coat? That can't be natural, he must have some kind of unworldly powers." The stallion called Eight Note replies.

Hydra appears skeptical. "I don't know about that, Eighth. Anyways, I personally think that Miss Ocean can be a threat. Have you seen her throw that spear?"

Paper clears his throat, attracting the attention of the pack towards him. "Just remember guys, we can only have so many high value targets. There's 7 of us, and taking in our fighting styles and skills, we can only really afford to have 5 primary targets. So why don't we decide who are our priorities, and go for them early on. The thing is, we will still eventually have to kill everypony else, so don't ignore a weak tribute by you if somepony else is a farther distance away."

The careers come to a state of agreement, and a short silence follows before another question is raised.

"What's our plan for the bloodbath?" Swift Gale asks curiously.

Legend replies quickly. "First, we grab weapons and control the cornucopia. We'll need ranged weapons. Who here is good with a bow or a spear?"

Zephyr slowly raises her foreleg. "I can shoot reasonably well."

"I can chuck a spear pretty accurately." Hydra tells him.

Legend waits for a few seconds before replying. "Nopony else? Ok, I guess that's good enough." He draws away from the topic for a few seconds, calculating tactics, before resuming again. "Now, there's seven of us, correct? Zephyr, I want you on top of the corn, picking off anypony you see trying to run off. Hydra, your spear throwing skills will be needed. If somepony gets close to the corn, you impale them with a spear, got it? The rest of you, start running out and attacking the tributes that still remain. We will dominate."

The group nods, and goes back to their meals in silence. Papercraft looks around at his allies. It's too bad that Discord has that bloody 'show your killer' thing set up now. These guys wouldn't stand a chance if I decided to pick them off one by one.

* * *

Azure stares at her tray of food with disgust. I thought the Capitol could afford to give their tributes better food. What is this stuff? She contemplates the food with such strength, she almost misses the mare drop down to sit by her, nearly knocking her food over. "Hey, what the- Jilly?" Azure stumbles at seeing her best friend sitting by her.

She smiles. "The one and only."

"I can't believe you got reaped. What were the odds?"

She waves the comment away. "Ah, they probably just got fed up with me. I'll show them. I will win." Her eyes twinkle momentarily, causing a slight ripple of fear to travel through Azure.

Jilly seems to notice Azure's fear about her. "Oh don't worry, I'll only go for you if we're the last two remaining. We've been friends too long for me to betray that for a silly thing like survival."

Despite the circumstances, that statement oddly calms Azure down, despite its apparent oddities. "Silly thing like survival...? I don't understa- Whatever. So, whose your partner? Hang out with him a lot?"

Her face darkens slightly. "I don't know what's up with that guy. He rarely speaks, he only comes out of his room to eat, and then goes back in and stays there for the rest of the evening. Something's wrong with that stallion."

"Ah, he's probably just in shock or something. He'll get over it, or die in the arena."

"I guess, but I'd like to know what his problem is, y'know? Anyways, how you been doing? You seemed like you were in shock yourself for the reaping."

"I'm fine, thanks. And I wasn't in shock, I was daydreaming."

Jilly raises her eyebrows, or does the closest thing to a pony raising eyebrows. "Really now? Whatever you say, sweetheart." She laughs. "Now, are you gonna finish that?" She points her hoof towards Azure's untouched tray of food.

Azure chuckles lightly, and pushes the tray over to her. "Naw, I don't know what this stuff is, but it certainly isn't food."

She shrugs. "Hey, if you're going to be picky, you won't live long in the arena."

Azure concedes this point, and shrugs. "Fair enough. But I'm still not having any of that stuff."

"Now, tell me about your partner now? He seems to like you."

"What? No, he doesn't really seem to like me that much, actually. He's sorta like your partner... ah... what's his name? Strawberry Fields?" Jilly nods affirmation. "Ya, he sorta keeps to himself most of the time. He got upset when he heard about the no-magic rule."

"There's a no magic rule? Perfect! Cheating stuck-up unicorns finally brought down to our level, hey?" She smiles widely, and glares at the short unicorn sitting on the opposite end of the the table from her and Azure. The colt looks up uncertainly, and scoots away quickly. She laughs for a bit, before diving into her tray of food again.

Azure watches in slight amusement, before finding something interesting to stare at on the ceiling.

* * *

Rainbow Dash's voice blasts across the room where the tributes have gathered. "Allllllllright maggots! Listen up! It has come to my attention that a certain somepony," She glares at Applejack, "neglected to inform you all of a certain, some would say game-altering rule. But first, I have to ask you a question. Did anypony feel any sort of wave wash over them as they entered their quarters?"

Several 'no's' can be heard from the group, which become amplified shortly after due to another glare from the trainer. She nods in approval. "Good, the Gamemakers actually listened to me for once. Anyways, the rule bans two things. Flying, and magic. The spell you did not notice has disabled your-"

She gets no further, as a wave of protest crashes through the crowd, with voices raising to intense levels. Many of the voices raised shout accusations at the trainers, while others shout at anything in general. Many of the unicorns attempt to cast the most basic of spells, confused as to why they didn't think of it sooner. The pegasi attempt to fly, only to find out that their wings no longer generate lift. The rest of them, the earth ponies, sit back with smug grins on their faces. The chaos last for quite some time, before a thundering. voice silences them all.

"ENOUGH!" Applejack slams her hoof down on the floor, creating a loud cracking sound. "If y'all could just shut your traps for one moment, perhaps Dash and I could explain this rule!" The tributes stare worriedly at the other trainer, and remain silent.

Rainbow looks at her partner with a look of awe. "Thank you... Applejack..." She shakes her head to clear away the shock. "Anyways, perhaps with you guys silent, I can explain why this rule is needed. Each of the races have their own advantages. A unicorn and a pegasus have powers that are obvious game-changers. Flying and magic are completely unfair in these games, and thus, have been removed."

"But what about the earth ponies! How come they aren't affected?" A unicorn calls out.

"Simple. Earth pony magic is in their strength. They are hardy, and strong. But strength is not all you will need in these games. You will need agility, intelligence, and most of all, you will need to be a quick thinker. Nothing ever goes right in the arena, just remember that. Now, you may all return to your training until 4:30, where you will return to your suites until tomorrow."

The players file out, returning to the places they were doing previous to the lunch call. Azure, not seeing anything better to do, decides to experiment with some different weaponry. She begins with spear throwing, and fails spectacularly, moves on to archery, and fails with that as well.

"Why am i not good with any weapon skills?" Azure exclaims after another missed shot, this one nearly taking out a light. "How will I survive if I can't fight worth anything?" She snaps off another shot, which goes wide of the target yet again. "Screw this!" She says, throwing her bow on to the ground.

"I'll try a different station, and that's IT!" She gazes around for her next chance to learn something decent, and her eyes land on the swordfighting station. She crosses over a picks up one of long blades. It's heavy, with blunted edges for training. The trainer for this station notices her examining the sword and calls out.

"Hey, 12! You wanna test out your abilities by sparring?" He draws his own sword and plants it firmly on the ground.

Azure considers the request for a moment, then realizing she has nothing to lose, grabs a sword and holds it in a ready position. "Ya, why not."

The trainer grins and returns the ready stance. "Let's dance."

Azure lunges forward, relying on speed rather than accuracy. The trainer sidesteps the thrust, knocking her off balance. He then brings his own sword down, stopping an inch from her back.

"That would have killed you. Try harder."

Azure, still shocked that she could have been killed before getting into the arena, steps back to the ready position. The trainer smiles again. "Round two."

She does not immediately strike out at the trainer, and instead waits for him to strike first. He does, with a swift side sweep to her back leg. Azure barely manages to block the blade, before she is pressed under an onslaught of cuts and jabs. One large swipe knocks her sword away, and he thrusts with the blade directly at the spot where her heart would be placed, again stopping the strike before serious damage is caused.

"You're not good at this."

"Did you expect me to be?" She says through gritted teeth.

He shrugs, then steps back. "Shall we continue?"

"Fine." Azure replies abruptly.

The fight continues, and this time lasts much longer, not out of any increase in skill, but instead because of a lack of any combat. The sparring has attracted the attention of some other tributes, namely the group of careers, who watch in mild amusement.

The first strike is delivered by an impatient Azure, a quick darting attack intended to tense him up. It works, but not the way she intended it to. He fell under the strike for a moment, then recovered and responded with a counter strike of his own. A quick skirmish ensued, with Azure inevitably falling under the strikes. She tosses the sword on to the ground in frustration, and storms off to a sanitization station across the gigantic gym.

The careers watch her, than start laughing and patting the trainer on the back.

"Nice job, man. Keep em' leveled."

"She's one of ours."

"Great fight, bro! We'll teach her how to fight in no time."

The trainer, taken aback, simply smiles and nods, waiting for the group of fighters to head off. They do, and he stands there, staring at his sword, absolutely confused.

* * *

"So, Eighth, tell me why exactly we want her to join our group? Because you're being pretty unclear about it." Swift Gale sits on a sword crate, impatiently twirling her knife.

Hydra lies with his back to a spear rack. "Yes, sir, please explain to me why we want the filly with no skills in combat whatsoever to be helping us kill the rest? It seems like a such an amazing idea." He snarls, words dripping with sarcasm.

Eighth Note is unperturbed by his skepticism, and continues explaining. "I'm just saying we take her as cannon fodder. Of all the tributes I've seen, she has the worst combat skill level of them all. If we take her in, we can just use her as a free life, persay."

Hydra still appears skeptical. He opens his mouth to speak, but is silenced by Zephyr. "It's not a bad idea, really."

"Yes, but what if she's like that one colt last year that appeared weak, then ended up owning everyone? What if she's like one of those ponies?"

"I doubt it. She looked like she was trying pretty hard during that duel." Zephyr shrugs. "And if she is, we kill her. Simple as that."

"Ugh, fine, but how do we ask her? I don't want to look like an idiot." Hydra says.

Papercraft laughs. "Too late for that, Hydra."

Viola frowns at Hydra, giving him an annoyed, confused look. "What do you mean, 'How do we ask her?' We just do! We walk up to her and say, 'Hey, 12, wanna join our crew? It's the only way to ensure you don't die instantly.' it's simple!" She slaps him upside the head to drive the point home.

he rubs his head angrily. "What was that for? You could've just gave me a non-sarcastic answer for once.

She shrugs dismissively. "Hey, you joined our group, you gotta deal with my sarcasm." She stands up, brushing the dust off. "Now, are we gonna go or what?"

Hydra rolls his eyes at the concept of asking this filly into their group, but gets up anyways. "Ugh, fine, let's just get this over with."

* * *

Azure finishes constructing a spit for a fire, and sits back relaxing as she watches the flames glow. I am not gonna last long in these games. I can't fight, I can't design traps, I have no usable skills whatsoever. I can't even- The sound of hoofsteps nearby drags her out of her thoughts, and she looks up to see the approachers. The career group, seven ponies, stands in front of her, looking expectantly at one mare in the center.

The mare clears her throat, then stares down at the pony, who is watching her through the flickering tongues of the fire. "Ok, uh... 12... We wanted to ask you if you wanna join our group. You, know, the group that kills everypony and usually wins? Ya, that's us." She gestures a hoof at herself.

Azure is shocked. Why would they ask me? They watched me lose to the trainer! I have no skills whatsoever, so why would they even consider letting me tag along with them? Unless... oh those sons of bitches... Azure's cheeks begin to flare, and her temper rises.

"Why? So you can use me as a meat shield against your stronger opponents? Or so that you can use me to carry out your menial tasks in the arena, without worrying about having to lose one of your own?"

Swift steps back, startled at the response. "Well no... we just..."

Azure jumps up, her voicing raising even higher. One of the things her brother used to say about her, was that she got angry too easily. "Just what? Hmm? You just wanted to come over and ask if I wanted to act as your insurance? No thank you!" Azure steps past the the fire and spits in Swift's face.

The rest of the careers instinctively back off as Swift casually wipes the saliva off her brow. "You will regret that, 12. You will regret that dearly, I promise."

Azure chuckles, waving the threat aside. "Yeah, bite me."

Swift gives her a wolfish grin. "Oh, I will do more than that. I will make thousands of tiny cuts on every limb of your body and watch as you slowly, painfully bleed out. Now, we gave you a chance for survival in these games, but you threw it away, and now you got yourself a nice red target on your head. Enjoy thinking about that." She turns to her comrades. "Let's leave this scum behind, and go train some more."

Azure watches them go with a cocky grin on her face. The can't kill what they can't find.

Chapter 8: Aftershock

The Equestria Games, by Prismatics. Chapter 8

"So, Game Matrix, now that you've seen the tributes on their first day of training, what do you think of them?"

"Well, Scott-" Game begins.

"Spotlight." The other announcer explains sternly.

"Whatever John," Game says, ignoring the sigh of frustration from his co-host, "Anyways, like I was saying, I think that this years Games are going to be... interesting, to say the least."

Spotlight raises an eyebrow. "Oh really? And why is this? Anything in particular you can tell the viewers?"

The perky announcer smiles excitedly. "Well, I saw the blooming beginnings of a beautiful friendship, a few small alliances made, and most importantly, I saw who is going to make up this years career pack!"

"Well... isn't it... isn't it kind of obvious, Matrix? We already know who's going to be this years pack. It's not exactly hard to figure out."

"Shut up, Mike. Now, is there any more questions? Or shall we let the viewers get back to our regular scheduled programming?"

"That about wraps it up, Matrix. We just wanted to hear your opinion on our latest batch of tributes."

"Well than I'm Game Matrix, saying good night, and may the odds be-" He stops abruptly, glancing at his partner.

"Ever in your favour!" Spotlight finishes with much enthusiasm.

* * *

The elevator doors silently slide open, allowing the three ponies inside to enter the luxurious suite before them. The scent of something delicious and fruity finds its way to the pair of tribute's noses, immediately causing their saliva glands to work overtime.

The other members of their entourage are already seated at the table, patiently waiting for them to sit down so they can dig into the extravagant spread before them.

Twilight places her book down on the table. "Well, nice of you two to finally join us. Sit down, I can tell you're both hungry."

Both gratefully slip into their chairs and wordlessly load their plates with various salads and rolls. The others follow suit shortly after, and a silence slips over the table as they enjoy their meals. Pinkie is the first to finish, and sits back in her chair, sighing in appreciation.

After a short while, every last plate is cleared, and they pass small talk as they sip a special fruit drink for dessert. Only once they are finished does Twilight decide to breach the subject of their training.

"So, how'd you do?" She asks.

Azure remains speechless for a few moments at the abrupt question, before answering. "I tried all of the fighting stations. I'm not good at anything, it seems." She decides to leave the encounter with the careers out. She doesn't need to know about it. It doesn't matter, anyways.She doesn't need to know about that. It doesn't concern her anyways. Twilight slowly nods, filing away the piece of information. She studies her face momentarily, catching a small, telltale light in her eyes. Her years of experience working with tributes taught her how to understand them. She's hiding something, ,she thinks. I'm going to have to ask her about it at some point.

"So, did you work on any non-combat skills? For example, trapping, agility, edible plants training, anything like that? Those skills are just as useful as fighting tactics, you know. It's one thing to simply be stronger than your opponent, but if you can outsmart them, you have a better chance of defeating them."

"We-ell... Not as much as the weapons training. I didn't exactly think those were the priority. I mean, it's a game about killing other ponies, right?"

Twilight facehoofs, pushing her annoyance down into the recesses of her brain. "Well, technically yes. But starvation, dehydration, and exposure can kill just as easily as a sword. So perhaps you should consider investing some time at those stations a bit more. Got it?"

She turns to Snowy, taking in his proud stance as he grins at her. I think I know his answer before I ask the question... She asks him the same thing as before, a bit hesitantly this time. "And how did you do, Snowy?"

"Great! Turns out I don't even need magic to be skilled with weapons!"

She sighs again, before responding. "Same advice for you. Spend more time on the survival stations tomorrow. You can be great with a sword, but nothing can protect you from heatstroke. Well, there are many things that can, but you have to know how to use them. Other than clouds." She shakes her head to clear. "But anyways, lay off the weapons training for a bit. Also, start thinking about what you're going to show to the Gamemakers to impress them." She gets up from the table, wiping her mouth with an elegantly designed napkin, before walking off to her bedroom. Before she leaves, she makes a dismissing gesture with her hoof. "Ok, you two are free to go."

The stylists sit confused, wondering why they didn't get a word in at all during the short discussion.

* * *

Azure sits on her bed, staring out the window at the brightly coloured ponies of the Capitol. She watches as they go about their day to day lives, walking home from work late at night, picking up foals from daycare centers, and talking to eachother as they pass on the streets. Is this what perfect is supposed to be like? She feels a twinge of sadness for her home, before realising she had nothing there, anyways. I'd honestly rather die here than return to my lonely life back home... The sound of a door creaking open behind her dispenses her thoughts, and she turns to face the newcomer. With only a slight sense of surprise, she recognizes her mentor in the doorframe.

She looks around quickly, spots the mare sitting on the bed, and smiles slightly. "Can I come in?"

Azure returns the smile, gesturing inwards. "I don't see why not."

Twilight walks over, and sits beside her, staring out the window as she had done moments ago. A moment of silence passes, before Twilight speaks up again.

"So... there's something I wanted to talk to you about. It's about training today. Something happened, didn't it?"

Azure is taken back by the not-so-subtle question. Not knowing how to react, she stands there, mouth slightly open as if she was to say something, but no sound comes out. Twilight sees this expression and nods slightly.

"It's ok, Azure. I'm your mentor. I'm here to help you, I just need to know what happened." I'm willing to bet that it had something to do with those blasted careers... She thinks to herself, before vaguely gesturing to explain.

The smaller mare reasserts herself, and starts speaking. "Well... fine. Near the end of training today, the careers asked if I wanted to join their crew-"

Twilight interrupts her with an abrupt question. "And how did you respond?"

She flashes her a quick look of annoyance, before replying. "I kind of... blew up on them." She looks at her mentor, and notices the widened eyes and concerned expression, instantly masked.

"I see..." She shakes her head grimly, exhaling audibly as she does so. "This isn't good, Azure. They're going to hunt you down now. Nopony defies the careers without them being upset about it."

Azure's voice becomes worried, and her face radiates her fear. Her words come out stuttered. "W-what am I g-going to d-do?"

Twilight looks down at the floor and sighs. She pauses before speaking, concentrating on the words themselves. "Well, there's not much you can do, I'm afraid. Just... survive." She mentally demerits herself on the useless advice, but drops interest in it moments after.

Azure chuckles a bit, and forces a grin. "Thanks. I guess that advice is better than nothing. I'll do my best."

Twilight smiles genuinely, and places a reassuring hoof on her shoulder. "That's what I'm hoping for. Don't worry, I'm not about to let somepony die one more time." There's a trace of sadness in her last sentence, but the younger pony fails to notice it. Instead, she nods, and resumes watching the Capitol in silence. Twilight watches with her for a few minutes, than pats her one more time, and gets up to leave. At the hallway, she turns one more time to look at the relieved filly. She smiles once more, and gently closes the door behind her.