The Equestria Games

I stood with my allies in the training center, looking around at all the others. The Careers were huddled in a different corner, laughing and joking around with each other.

Our group was different. Papercraft was looking around the room nervously as Nightshade and Cherrycloud fought over where to go first. Outback was eyeing some rope on a table.

Finally, I had enough. "Guys!" I snapped. "We have one day to train, the rest is private showings, then we're off. Can we squabble later and get to work now?"

Cherrycloud nodded. "Yeah, come on, guys. Let's split up and do something efficient, and practice something. We can do this."

It was settled. Outback went to play with the rope, Cherrycloud went to work on making a fire or something, and Papercraft went with Nightshade to go practice throwing knives.

I nodded to Page Turner, who went with Cherrycloud. I, on the other hoof, made a beeline to the station where quick thinking was put to use: the virtual Equestria Games.

"Welcome!" The computer told me. "Name, district, and age, please."

"Raven Nightwing, District 3, 16."

The computer swirled, taking it in. Then the first question appeared. "You are being chased by an 18-year old unicorn who is casting a spell at you. What do you do?"

"I fly up, snuffing out his horn. Then, while he is dazed, I stab him with a knife."

"Where do you find the knife?"

"I either get one from my bag with things or steal his."

"Correct. You find two types of berries, one of which is poisonous. How do you find out which is edible?"

"Open it. If it is blood-red on the inside, or some other unnatural color like purple, it's poisonous."

"Correct. One of your teammates was just ambushed, hit with a spear in the stomach. The attacker is an earth pony and getting ready with another spear. What do you do?"

"Find the nearest weapon and charge with it, or just fly up and ambush him from the top."

"Correct. Continue?" I pressed "no", and walked off from the platform. A line of ponies waiting to get to the computer waited behind me, staring in awe.

I looked at them, smirking. Nopony was going to get past me in the Games. Let them stare.

Next, I went to the archery range. Moon Breeze was already there, shooting stuff. She hit them spot-on every time, straight in the heart or head.

She nodded to me when I grabbed a bow, as if taunting me.

I pulled notched an arrow, pulling back the string. I put it to my face, aimed, and fired, flinching at the noise.

When I put it down, Moon Breeze was looking at me with her mouth dropped open, her bow on the ground. Looking to the target, I gasped.

I had hit it right in the center! I had only shot a bow a few times back home, when Stormwing would teach me self-defense. Never thought it would lead to anything. And yet, here I was, an archer! With glee, I shot a few more targets, all getting kill-shots.

My luck was over the roof right now! Moon Breeze gasped. "You should totally be in our group! The Careers need you, Raven!"

I acted like I didn't hear her, walking over to the knife throwing area. Picking up one, I heard a "splat!" and evil laughter. Bloodlight was next to me, throwing knives at the targets. SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT! Cautiously, I set the knife down, backing away from the creepy stallion.

~~~~~~

Now, I won't bore you with the remains of my training, because it was fairly boring. I practiced survival skills and fighting skills, all with flying colors. Then I went to go eat dinner, and was scurried off to go for individual training.

Before letting us go, Ash Wither stopped us with his wing. "You guys, show your strengths. You need the Gamemakers to know you mean something, 'kay? Good luck, you two. We need you."

He pushed us in the general direction of the waiting area, where Medley from District 1 was already being tested. We were met with stares, looking us down as we sat on the bench.

Suddenly Medley exited the room, smiling crudely. "Good luck everypony!" She yelled out to us, walking out of the waiting room entirely.

The next few ponies' individual assessments passed by very quickly, and suddenly, Coldblood was walking out of the room, and the name "Raven Nightwing" blasted through the intercom.

Cautiously, I stepped into the training room, waving goodbye to Page Turner.

The Gamemakers, led by Joy Stick, were staring at me intently. Joy Stick's voice boomed as he said, "You have ten minutes to show us your desired skill. Please make sure you show us all you've got."

Joy Stick sat down on the couch, watching my every move, noting it on a piece of paper.

I gulped, taking it all in. First, I headed over to the Survival area, where all of your survival skills were put to the test in a virtual reality.

The Survival area consisted of a timed course, telling me what to do. It was a bit different than the computer questionnaire, but effective nonetheless.

"Make fire," the computer told me, and I obeyed, flicking a flame in a few seconds. "Find food." I flipped around, grabbing the nearest berry available, and checking it for poisons. I ate it, and the computer said, "Find clean water." Flying up, I saw a nice little stream a ways off, and I flew there with lightning speed, cupping the water into a bent leaf. The water looked pure, so I drank it. Sure enough, the computer started to tell me more demands, and I obeyed each time. After twenty different survival questions, it stopped automatically. "Your time was: five minutes and twenty seconds. New high score."

Then the virtual reality shut off, and I looked at Joy Stick, who was nodding at me. "Carry on. Show us another skill."

I extended my wings, flying up to the Flight area, where all of your speed and agility was put to the test. It extended into the open air, so Joy Stick could only see me with a flying camera operated by a pegasus.

I sighed as the computer beeped out a flight course, harder than I've ever been in.

"Proceed." The voice of Joy Stick boomed through the camera, and I lurched forward, launching all of my speed into one single takeoff. I dodged the clouds they put in front of me with ease, and I spun into a tornado as fast as possible, calming it as well. My agility was proven, now, I only needed to show my speed.

Once again, I lurched forward, telling my wings to flap harder, push faster, fly swifter. I must be fast. My mind shifted into speed-zone, and my thoughts revolved around one single thing: flight. I would not fail.

All of a sudden my body felt lighter, and I felt it grow thinner. Honestly, I didn't know what was happening. Flight was my main priority. And suddenly, my body, it snapped. The barrier was broken, and I flew at such a speed, I couldn't feel my body.

And then, it was all over. After doing a few loops around the course, a rainbow following my every move, I landed.

My mind was spinning. What had I just done?

Joy Stick's mouth was wide open. His eyes glowed with excitement, and the corners of his mouth twitched up in a smile. "Raven Nightwing...do you have any idea what you have just done?"

"Um...no, sir."

"What you just did was called a sonic rainboom. Only one pony in the history of Equestria has ever done that. And she's dead!"

I looked at him, not knowing what to expect. In an instant, Joy Stick's smile disappeared, and his expression hardened. "You are dismissed," he told me, waving me off.

My head was still spinning as I walked out of that room, and it was spinning until I fell onto my bed, falling asleep almost instantly.

~~~~~~

"Raven! Wake up! Raven!" I heard Page Turner's voice echo distantly as I opened my eyes, my head still woozy from that sonic rainboom or whatever.

"They're announcing scores, Raven! Come on!"

Against my will, I was led to the living area where the projector screen televised everything. Ash Wither and Photo Finish were sitting calmly on the couch, watching Hoity Toity talk about the tributes and what they were in store for.

"And so, without further interruption, I give you the scores for individual assessments for the fifteenth Hunger Games!

From District One: Medley, with a score of eight.

From District One: Eighth Note, with a score of ten.

From District Two: Cherrycloud, with a score of seven.

From District Two: Coldblood, with a score of ten.

From District Three: Raven Nightwing, with a score of...twelve."

A wave of excitement rippled through our group, followed by a big shush.

"From District Three: Page Turner, with a score of...five."

We were quiet for a second after that one.

"Page, I...I'm sorry."

He shook his head. "No, no. I'm sorry. I'm a major setback to our allies." He sighed. "Excuse me." And walked off.

"...From District Four: Tuna, with a score of one."

Ash Wither sighed. "I'll go talk to him." And followed him to his room.

I sighed, and Photo Finish shushed me again. "Vatch!"

"From District Six: Bioshock, with a score of ten.

From District Six: Bloodlight, with a score of nine.

From District Seven: Mousha, with a score of nine.

From District Seven: Papercraft, with a score of seven.

From District Eight: Golden Quill, with a score of six.

From District Eight: Glass Mirror, with a score of two.

From District Nine: Starstorm, with a score of...eleven."

I kind of zoned out after that one.

Starstorm, my biggest enemy, was literally one point behind me. Oh buck.

I left the room, flying off to sit and sulk in my room, all I was ever doing nowadays. I plopped down on my bed, grateful I had one more day before I was sent to the slaughterhouse that was the arena.

It was silent in my room, except for the occasional yelp of a Canterlot pony from the outside.

Finally I was so bored, I kicked the nightstand next to me just so things could get interesting. The nightstand fell over, and a bundle of projector DVDs fell out, scattering across the floor.

Curious, I picked one up and looked it over. "Third Equestria Games" the label said, and I immediately knew what the mysterious DVDs were.

They were recorded versions of old Equestria Games.

I picked up another, and saw it was the Eighth Equestria Games, which had Ash Wither on the cover.

Realizing what this was, I gasped. This was Ash's Games, when he won! Without hesitation, I started to insert the DVD into the slot for the room's projector screen and hit "play" on the remote.

~~~~~~

Seven years ago...

It was time. Oh, buck, it was time. The pedestal lifted into the air, revealing the arena before me. I gasped, realizing where we were.

Oh buck. The arena was a mountain, of all places. Literally. The mountainous area was vastly layered across the entire arena, their tips touching the sky. Clouds surrounded the peak, and in a silent thank-you to the Gamemakers for putting it there, I decided that was where I would head to first.

After the Cornucopia, of course. It was overflowing with weapons and survival things. I looked for the weapon I had shown to the Gamemakers in my personal evaluation in training: an electrified axe. Sure enough, deep into the Cornucopia, my weapon of choice stood.

Good. It would be stupid not to add my weapon in. They want a bloodbath, they're going to get one from the stallion who got an eleven as a score.

The countdown began. I had ten seconds to decide what I would choose. I looked to the Cornucopia again, and saw a big backpack next to the axe. Target spotted.

Suddenly an alarm, louder then I've ever heard one, pierced through the air, and the tributes launched themselves off of their platforms. I did the same, delaying about a half second. My wings extended and I flew as fast as I could to the bell of the Cornucopia, being the second pony there. Then the Careers flooded in, grabbing the biggest maces and swords, and killing whoever crossed their paths.

Should I be scared? No. These are my allies.

"Ash! Grab what'cha need and get the buck here to help us!" Grover, lead Career, told me. I flew over to the axe, turning it around in my hooves. It was so much more beautiful in person. Then, in a split second, I grabbed the backpack, tossing it on my back and tightening the straps.

"A backpack? Seriously?" the mare from my district, Zap, called to me.

"We need all the supplies we can get, not just weapons."

She nodded, and picked up another one. "Good idea. This place'll be way too bloody by the time Grover's done with it to you know, stay here."

I nodded my head, looking at Grover brutally slay ponies who came too close. It almost disgusted me, the way he just mindlessly killed ponies, but I didn't tell him that.

I couldn't tell him I was afraid of dying.

~~~~~~

A week later...

The Careers trudged through the mountainous areas, looking for a good place to stay for the night. Zap's wing, still in the makeshift sling we made her, bounced awkwardly and yet stiffly as she walked next to me, trying to make it look as if she was strong.

It wasn't working.

Gently, I lifted the backpack off of her back.

"No!" she whisper-shouted to me. "I have to make sure Grover doesn't see I'm weak!"

I scoffed. "You are weak, Zap. Trust me. I got this one, and I'll defend you until the very end of this bucking Games."

Finally, she sighed, and let me lift the pack off of her and place it on my own back.

"I can give you a ride to the top too if you'd like," I told her, noticing her limps.

"No! That I can do on my own, thank you very much."

I shook my head. "Okay."

~~~~~~

Three hours later...

Zap collapsed onto the campsite we made, heaving a sigh of exhaustion. I was scared now, her fever had gone up and she had gone pale.

But I didn't tell her that.

Instead, I wrapped her up in a blanket and put her in the tent, telling her to sleep.

When I got outside, Grover was already waiting for me.

"Well?" I asked him.

He looked at me with pure hatred. "You know what. Zap is an unreliable weight to the Careers. She's pretty much dead."

I scoffed. "She is not dead. Look at her! Her fever has gone up I don't know how much, and she still insisted on walking on her own. She's strong, Grover. Why can't you see that?"

All of a sudden a rustling came from the tent where I put Zap. Her head poked out, looking at me with anger. "You...you told me I was fine! You said-you said I was getting better! You lied, Ash!"

"Oh, I know why he lied, my dear Zap," Grover interjected, pushing me away. "Because you have no chance of surviving. Your wing is probably already infected from that nasty fall you took a few days ago. And I'm sorry, but you are just hanging by a thread here."

"But...I feel fine! I didn't come here just to-" she went silent.

Because I knew what had just happened.

Grover snatched a spear from one of his buddies and with a swift, quick motion, stabbed her in the chest. Zap looked to her chest in shock, staring at the blood spilling out, and trying to plug the gaping hole where it was coming from. Her eyes immediately went to me.

My eyes bugged out, and my ears started to ring with a high-pitched squeal.

"You...should not...have done that..." I whispered to the crowd of Careers who had gone silent.

Grover looked at me with fake concern. "Oh, and what are you going to do about it, lover colt?"

But half of me didn't hear him. My vision turned blood-red, my thoughts grew evil.

Because you do not just kill somepony right in front of me.

Somepony I love.

With a swift motion, I yanked my electric axe and swung it just high enough so I could connect with Grover's head. It obeyed, and a fountain of blood spewed from the neck that no longer was Grover.

The other Careers immediately went into full shock mode as the cannon sounded, reminding me of what I had just done.

My first kill.

I guess it was then when I just...snapped.

My mind shut down, all I could think of was revenge. And I, Ash Wither, never thought of revenge before. The only way I got an eleven was my using my survival skills and self defense with the axe.

My body swung, over and over, and I could feel it connecting to so many different bodies.

And then I collapsed, covered in blood. But I didn't care. Oh, no. Allies were not my option anymore. This time, I would attack alone.

Let them be scared of Ash Wither: destroyer of Careers.

~~~~~~

I leaned back, not noticing the tears in my eyes. I'd never seen these parts of his Games before. Only where he was a brutal killing machine (I had too much tutoring to do.).

Suddenly, my fear of Ash Wither came back, overflowing me with emotions. He obviously cared for the other tribute, Zap, very much. And to watch the team captain kill her before his very eyes?

I sighed, turning off the projector screen, and lying down on my bed.

Suddenly, I heard a chuckle behind me, surprising me so much that my head almost hit the ceiling. Turning around to most likely yell at the person who scared me so much, when I noticed it was none other than Ash Wither himself.

The guy who has just relived the stuff he has nightmares about.

"Having fun, Raven?" he asked, walking calmly to my bed and sitting down.

"I...I'm so sorry, Ash. It just, well, it fell and I just picked it up and it floated! Yeah, it floated into the projector slot and turned on! Can you believe that? It bucking turned on! All by itself! It must be unicorn magic right there-"

He cut me off, facehoofing. "I know you turned it on, Raven. But I'm not mad. No, I would've done the same thing. In fact, I did. When I was your age, I did the same. I saw all of them, actually. Rough night. I was just...well, I was just..."

"Afraid I would see you go crazy?"

"Yeah. I just don't want you to be afraid of me."

I chuckled. "Yeah, that emotion was here days before I saw the clip."

"I know."

I looked up at his head. It was hanging low, with his eyes sunken.

"The Capitol loved my craziness, and even Discord came to my new home to tell me to keep the charade up, because it was giving him good money. None of the Capitol freaks know what it's like, living in a district. So Discord has to make sure everypony in the Capitol thinks we're terrible, evil ponies.

I, naturally, disagreed. My, well, my mare friend was disgusted by the way I acted in the arena, but she forgave me. I promised her she would never see that again."

He sighed, and quickly swiped his hoof over his eyes.

"And he killed her," I finished.

"Yup. He killed her, and forced me to act like a crazy stallion that's so...lustful. That's why I was freaking you out when we first met. And if I didn't, well, things would get bad for my family. My dad was already blaming me for everything, and my mom was depressed half the time."

"But you don't have any family."

"I don't now. My mom died a few years ago. It was just her time, I guess. And my dad, well, he committed suicide. Blamed me in the note."

"Oh, Ash, I'm so sorry."

"Not your fault." A single tear rolled down his cheek, which he shook off immediately.

I looked closely at my mentor who I haven't known this entire time. Then, I saw a little tattoo right on his neck...the place he always covered up. Squinting, I noticed it was a moon.