The Camping Glitchby PonyBlazeChaptersChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 1A young unicorn colt trotted through the streets, his hooves sloshing in the puddles that were littering the ground, it was raining heavily and each bolt of lightning seemed to make him jump. His onyx coat was very damp, and his indigo-violet mane was plastered like a thin veil to his face. His glasses were soaked, making his vision highly obscured. He walked into Sugar Cube Corner, and as the door opened the jingle of a bell rang throughout the shop. Quicker than possible a pink frizzy-maned mare was at the counter with two baby foals in each of her arms. “Hey Iridescence!” She cheered in her normal manner. “Hey Pinkie!” He happily smiled back. “The usual?” “Yep.” And with that, the cheery mare sprang into action, performing unnecessary acrobatics while jumping to get the food. She stood upside-down in the air while waiting for the special order to be finished. Mrs. Cake walked downstairs with a paler-than-normal coat and an expression like she'd just seen a ghost. “Mrs. Cake what's wrong?” The young colt asked, as the crazy party pony was waiting for the oven to beep. “Mr. Cake is gone!” “It's okie-dokie-lokie Mrs. Cake! I mean the writer wouldn't kill anypony as nice as him, now would they?” The two ponies stared back at the upside-down mare with a quizzical look. “Oh. Right. Fourth wall again!” She smiled. Mrs. Cake shook her head and looked back to the matter at hand. “What if he's dead?” The baker pondered. “Wrong!” Pinkie Pie chirped. “Ponynapped?” “It's a surprise!” The seemingly-crazy pony winked. A loud beeping sound rang through the bakery. “It's ready!” Pinkie sang. “One Iridescence special coming right up!” The colt smiled. He grabbed the bag with his warm cookie in it and looked in. A cookie with purple icing frosted on it and a green smiley face looked back up at him. “Here's your six bits!” “Don't worry, it's on the house, since we know you'll be back tomorrow.” Mrs. Cake smiled at the foal's generosity, wondering who had taught him such a virtue. All three ponies stood there, Pinkie looking at who-knows-what as the other two sat on their haunches, unaware of the dangers lurking out in the streets of Ponyville. The tension seemed to rise until it escalated to a fine point. The school colt looked at his watch and realized the time. “I wish I could help some more. I really do, but my mom is probably expecting me home.” The colt blurted, breaking the tension that had built up in the room. He ran out the door in a hurry and stepped into the streets, wandering, but still with a direct location in his mind. A hooded figure stepped out of the shadows cast by a large building, His glowing yellow eyes looking hungrily at the unicorn, he took a device out and sat on his haunches, playing with the settings of the obscurity as the colt rushed by. The strange stallion began to walk behind the foal. The poor foal was completely oblivious to who was behind him, and what was about to happen. He stopped in his tracks as he remembered that he had read some basic spellbooks from Ponyville's Library. His eyes began to glow, which differed from a normal unicorn's magic, as a small iridescent purple platform appeared below him. This wouldn't prevent getting soaked, but he could travel quite fast with the usage of this spell. About to set into motion, his platform dissipated into the air. He was only about a foot off of the ground, thank Celestia, so he tried to get back up, but he realized none of his legs were responding to him. “What's going on?” He challenged, false bravery evident in his voice. “Look at the brave little one.” A snide voice hissed in his ear. “Your last moments of your own free will, and you're still willing to stand up to me.” The hooded figure snickered. “Too bad none of your limbs are working, or you might actually stand a chance.” Iridescence's eyes glowed, and a large disc of purple appeared above the threatening pony. The disc began to slowly press down, his intentions now obvious. The assailant pointed his strange contraption at the disc of magic, and it was gone in a flash. He then pointed it at the colt, and his device scanned the colt, graphs began to show up, stating things like his speed, intelligence, dexterity, strength, magic, chaos, potential and skill. He smirked at the shocking stats that showed up. “Quite the character for a young pony. Looks like I struck gold tonight.” The device sent out large lines of magic data, which encircled Iridescence and began to draw him in. His last thought before his body became dormant and his mind was erased, was “Stay safe Pinkie!” “Good morning, my little ponies,” Cheerilee sang as she trotted into the classroom. “Good morning, Miss Cheerilee,” her sleepy class echoed back. Cheerilee looked around the class, and saw an empty desk. After counting heads, she was shocked at the pony who was missing. “Well that's odd,” she announced quizzically. “Iridescence is always here.” She considered for a moment, and figured he was out in the rain too long the night before. Cheerilee trotted over to the desk of a pale-olive filly with a brilliant amaranth mane and a large pink bow in her hair, her eyes were gently closed and she had a dreamy smile on her face. Snickers could be heard as their teacher stared intently at the sleeping figure. “Ahem, Apple Bloom,” “One more minute AJ, ah'm kinda tired.” Cheerilee sighed. “Apple Bloom, it's Miss Cheerilee.” “Oh mah gosh! Ah'm so sorry Miss Cheerilee!” “Apple Bloom, you seem to have had a long night... What were you doing last night?” “Well ah was really focused on gettin' mah Cutie Mark! And Ah figured that since apple-based Cutie Marks run in the family, that would be mah Cutie Mark! Ah tried everythang! Bakin' apple pie, apple tarts, apple crumbles, caramel apples, Ah even started buckin' apples from the trees! And then Ah” “Apple Bloom, that's nice but...” “Tried to go tah bed but Ah couldn't! Ah was too rahled up!” “Apple Bloom, it's time for me to teach...” “Oh raht, sorry Miss Cheerilee!” The school filly cheerily replied. Miss Cheerilee trotted back to her desk and sat down. She looked on her desk and saw an apple she smiled. “Who was so generous as to give me a lovely treat?” Cheerilee asked. “Oh, well it was my sister! She's the Element of Generosity, y'know” A light-grey unicorn filly happily replied. “Oh, Rarity, of course! I should've known! That pony's always going out of her way to do people favours.” “Ya!” The content Sweetie Belle replied. “Now, it's time for us to start Marematics!” A large chorus of groans cried out, obviously displeased with the statement. The hour of Marematics passed by much slower than expected, especially without Iridescence, he was normally the one who answered everything, and he also helped anypony that didn't understand the lesson. A large, ear-piercing bell saved the day, signalling the end of Marematics, and the beginning of recess. The happy foals piled out into the schoolyard, as some grabbed jump ropes, some went to play dodge ball, and some just talked with their friends. What older ponies say was proven to be true, “time flies when you're having fun.” The minutes passed by in what seemed like seconds and a second bell rang, as the foals all began to trot back inside. “Welcome back my little ponies, grab some paint and sit at your desk, because now it's time for art!” Cheerilee exclaimed. The ponies all grabbed colours and began to paint many things, some painted skateboards, while some painted food, and then you-know-who painted their rainbow-hued idol. “Scootaloo, why don't you try to paint something besides Rainbow Dash?” Cheerilee questioned. “Because! One day I'm gonna be just like her!” The young pegasus quickly responded. “Yes, I understand, and I admire you for having such a clear sight on your dream, but-” “It's not a dream it's a mission!” The orange pegasus exclaimed as she cut-off her teacher. “Okay, but, variety is the spice of life, right?” “Save that namby-pamby talk for Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon! I'm gonna fly and grow up to be just like Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo, now standing on her desk, challenged. “Scootaloo, there's no way a dodo could fly as fast as Rainbow Dash!” Apple Bloom laughed. “Yes I can! I'll fly even faster! You'll see!” “Actually, a dodo is a flightless, extinct bird, related to pigeons but about the size of a turkey, which inhabited the islands of Mauritius, Réunion, and Rodriguez therefore, you would not be able to fly at all if you were a dodo.” The dim-witted Sweetie Belle commented. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo looked at Sweetie Belle with an eyebrow cocked, and smirked. “I am NOT A DICTIONARY!” Sweetie Belle hollered at the top of her lungs. “Yeah, well then I'm not a dodo!” “Never mind I am a dictionary.” Sweetie Belle giggled. Scootaloo frowned. “Now girls, let's all get along,” Cheerilee soothed as the lunch bell rang. The classroom of these school ponies was utter chaos, a scene that Discord would have more than loved. Ice cream, cookies, pie, sandwiches, and many other desserts and food were stuck to the ceiling, the walls, and the floor had a thick layer of flour over the majority of it. One half was all of the fillies, all using lunch trays as shields, and the other half was all of the colts, protected by barricades made out of desks. The colts were all throwing food at the fillies as they began to advance. Cheerilee walked in the classroom, oblivious to all as she trotted in, humming a tune, and went to sit at her desk. Anyways she would have, had it been there and not in the barricade line. She opened her eyes, looked around and shrieked. The class looked like Sugar Cube Corners had exploded in it. Cheerilee glared with a look that could cut glass. “Where is my desk?” The foals scrambled wildly to put her desk back in place. “Now, how did this start?” Cheerilee glared on. Apple Bloom stepped forward, head lowered to the ground and she confessed “Miss Cheerilee, Ah'm terribly sorry, we shouldn't a' done it. It's all mah fault, and don't blame anypony else!” “Thank you for your honesty Apple Bloom, but how did this start?” “Well Ah was eatin' mah lunch, just like everypony else, and Ah was bored, so Ah asked who was bored. And a lot of people put their hooves up, and Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon t'were bein' twits, so Ah thought that maybe ah should possibly start a li'l fun bah maybe throwin' mah lunch at 'em and then they went and hid in the supply cupboard, where we found the big bags of flour, and Pinkie brought in a huge tub of ice cream because she thought it t'was a party, and then we started throwin' that everywhere, and then the colts grabbed all the desks and Scootaloo and Ah had the great idea of grabbin' all o' the lunch trays, and then Sweetie Belle grabbed some pots and pans out o' the cafeteria, and, and...” “Okay, Apple Bloom, I think I've decided on your punishment.” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo stepped forward. “It was our fault too! Don't only punish her!” Twist and Dinky Hooves stepped forward. “Ours too!” Dizzy Hooves stepped sideways, she would have stepped forward but her wall-eyed-ness was making it difficult for her to see straight. “Mine too!” Soon, the whole class had stepped forward, save Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, and Cheerilee decided that their punishment would be that they would just have to clean up the room. After expending all of the English period, it was time for Pony's Ed. It was more free time than it was exercise, which made it much more enjoyable. The Cutie Mark Crusaders all grabbed hula hoops and began to spin them, Scootaloo was quite mediocre, and Sweetie Belle wasn't fairing so well either, but Apple Bloom was a champion! She had 6 around her waist, three on each front leg, and one on her back left leg, while balancing on her right leg. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, looking to spoil Apple Bloom's fun, each grabbed a hula hoop, and taunted. “Apple Bloom, catch!” The hula hoops whirled towards her direction, about twice her height off the ground and Apple Bloom lept in the air catching one on her front left and the other around her neck. The two “primps,” as the other foals called them, sauntered off in a foul mood. Twenty minutes before dismissal, all of Cheerilee's students were inside. “Okay, now as I'm sure some of you know, we have not had a big trip yet, and the end of the school year is approaching, my little ponies, and I enlisted for all of the fillies to go on a camping trip” The fillies all cheered, minus the two primps, and the colts all began to holler about how they weren't going. “Don't worry, all the colts will be going to Equestria's PonyLand!” Cheerilee happily stated. The colts all began to cheer this time, and Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon approached Miss Cheerilee. “Miss Cheerilee, why do all those stinky colts get to go to Equestria's PonyLand but all of us stunning fillies have to go camping?” Diamond Tiara whined. “In the woods!” Silver Spoon added. “Because my little pri-- I mean ponies,” Cheerilee started, clearly annoyed. “The colts all get along with each other, but there is some very noticeable fighting going on with the fillies. Don't think of it as camping, think of it as bonding!” Cheerilee beamed. “But I don't need to booonnd!” Diamond Tiara retorted. “Now, this trip is a great opportunity,” Cheerilee explained, while handing out the forms, skipping over Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. “And I'm not going to let any of you skip this one.” She specified towards the two primps. The rambunctious chatter began, everypony clearly excited about their trips, the chatter continued out the door, and dragged on until they all had to go their separate ways. Pinkie Pie smiled at the door of Sugar Cube Corners, waiting impatiently for a special something. Mrs. Cake looked over and then remembered “Oh right today's the day Ponville ends.” Mrs. Cake walked by several times in the next few hours, as Pinkie somehow grew a moustache and beard. “Pinkie, honey, it's 11:00p.m., maybe their train was delayed until tomorrow,” Mrs. Cake suggested. “Nope! It's only 5:00! My inexplicable reality-bending window and cuckoo clock made it seem like it was11:00!” She beamed. Mrs. Cake sighed and walked away, and was about to ask about Pinkie's beard when she heard a bell. Death. The door flew open as two school aged fillies walked in. One was the spitting image of Pinkie Pie, albeit she had wings, and the other had a blue, straight mane, with most of it hanging in her face with a pale cyan coat and deep purple eyes. Her cutie mark was a boxing glove. “Pinkie Fly! Fighter Fly! Excited to be living with cousin Pinkie?!” “Yo.” “Oh my gosh cousin Pinkie long time no see I haven't seen you in such a long time I love coming to visit you! How have you been? Gotten taller? Older? Wiser? More super duper Pinkie-riffic Pie-mazing party-tastic?” Pinkie Fly exhaled and began to breathe again. “Pinkie, deary, don't forget to tell them about their new school!” Mrs. Cake reminded. As if on cue, Cheerilee walked in. “Hello Pinkie Pie, hello Mrs. Cake, how are you?” “I'm super! Watcha doin' here Cheerilee? Say hi to my cousins Pinkie Fly and Fighter Fly because they're gonna be in your class tomorrow!” Oh Celestia no... “Great Pinkie! Then they'll be needing these!” She handed the fillies each a form for the camping trip. “Also, Pinkie I was wondering if you would like to be a chaperone for the trip? There's going to be fourteen fillies! I can't watch them all! And plus you could have tons of fun with your cousins!” “Ohgoshohgoshohgosh! Yesyesyesyes! Where do I sign?” Pinkie asked. “Nowhere, you just come to school in a week with your camping gear!” Applejack grunted as she kicked a tree with full force, knocking all of the apples down into a bushel underneath the shade of the tree. Cheerilee trotted up and leaned against the side of an apple tree. “Hey there, sugarcube.” “Hi Applejack! How are you.” “Good, thanks, how may Ah help ya sugarcube?” “Oh, well I need some chaperones for a camping trip, and you came into mind, would you be able to help me?” “Of course sugarcube! When'll it be?” “In two weeks from now, please remind Apple Bloom to get her trip form signed, and aside from that bring your camping gear for 3 nights!” “Can do.” Cheerilee trotted off to the next pony's house on her list, bringing her to Derpy Hooves' cabin. She knocked on the door. No answer. Again. Nothing. Then, suddenly, a flying figure crashed behind Cheerilee, scaring the mare half to death. As the pegasus began to get up, her coat and mane completely covered in dirt, her wall-eyed-ness the only defining feature at the moment. Which eye do I look in? I don't wanna ask because that would be mean, but if I look in the wrong one she'd think I'm rude... “Hey there Derpy!” “Hi Miss Cheerilee!” “How are you, have your sisters come home yet?” “Nope they're coming up the path right now!” The mailmare confirmed. “Oh, well they're being invited to come on a camping trip and I wanted to know if you could be a chaperone?” “Of course Miss Cheerilee! I will be there!” Derpy responded with a clumsy salute. “Bring camping gear for three nights, at the school in two weeks from today!” “Yes ma'am!” Halfway done, Cheerilee thought. Outside of Fluttershy's cottage looked quite different, like an odd place for a pony to live. But it wasn't just for a pony, it was for birds, bunnies, cats, dogs, bats, hummingbirds, mice, squirrels, badgers and any other animal that Fluttershy pleased. Cheerilee walked up to the door and knocked, Fluttershy immediately answered the door, inviting her in. “Um... H... Hi Miss Cheerilee.” “Hi Fluttershy, I'm sorry for being hasty, but I'm in a rush. In two weeks, all the fillies and I are going on a camping trip for three days, I've already invited some of your friends, and they also agreed and you'll get to see tons of animals so it would be a great opportunity for you!.” Cheerilee finished, out of breath. “Man, how does Pinkie do it?” “Oh... of course! I mean if my friends are going it should be fun right?” “Thank you Fluttershy!” Only three more! She ran into Carousel Boutique and noticed Sweetie Bell sneaking away some fabric to bring to the Cutie Mark Crusaders' clubhouse. “In a minute dear! Rarity is making perfection!” “Hi Rarity! Has Sweetie told you about the camping trip?” “Oh, but of course! Such a lucky dear being able to go with all of her friends!” “Well I need some chaperones...” A loud laugh scared Cheerilee. “Oh dear, I... I didn't mean I would like to go!” “But you just said...” “I know but imagine the dirt! Think of my hooves! My mane! My tail! My coat!” The dramatic pony gasped, and started to fake hyperventilate, falling onto her couch. “Please Rarity! You can bring anything as long as you can carry it!” “Oh! But of course dear! Why didn't you say so!” Rarity laughed, grabbing a gigantic tent. “Thank you! The information is on the form!” “But of course, darling!” Cheerilee ran to Ponyville's Library, and asked the small dragon assistant where his purple unicorn friend was. “Oh she's over there, studying!” The purple dragon answered enthusiastically “Thank you Spike!” Cheerilee trotted over to the purple unicorn hunched over the desk, reading many books furiously. “Hey Twilight...” Cheerilee cautiously greeted, hoping it wasn't one of those times again, shuddering remembering the Smarty Pants incident. “Hi.” “Can you possibly be a chaperone for a camping trip that I'll be taking with my class?” “No.” “Come on Twilight I've always wanted to go camping!” Spike relented “No.” “You could study the magic of friendship and have more to put in your next report!” He continued. “Well...” “Princess Celestia might give you an “Astounding Magical Breakthrough” award” He finished, his voice dripping with sarcasm. However, Twilight didn't sense the sarcasm and immediately accepted. “Okay, in two weeks, for three days.” “Spike, write that down” “Yes ma'am!” Cheerilee's final chaperone idea, Rainbow Dash. Unsure of where the pegasus would be, she ran towards a field, and began to search. “Rainbow Dash! Rainbow Dash! Come on Dash, I need your help.” She hollered. She searched in a bush and when she turned around, a multi-hued pegasus was standing there, smiling. “What can Equestria's fastest flier do for ya?” “Well I was bringing the class on a camping trip and I need one last chaperone. Maybe you could help?” “La-ame.” “Scootaloo will be so disappointed,” the schoolteacher sighed, hoping that her plan would work. “The Squirt? Haha that changes everything! Maybe Ill even get to teach her how to fly!” “Thank you so much Rainbow Dash! Two weeks, three days trip!” A hooded pony with glowing yellow eyes smiled. Equestria's fastest flier, eh? Maybe this one will actually put up a fight. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic © by Hasbro/Lauren Faust All Characters belong to their rightful owners I do not claim ownership over anything used in this story. Chapter 2Apple Bloom lay in her bed, staring blankly at the beautiful morning outside of her window, she was uninterested in anything going around her, her mind only focused on the camping trip that was still 10 days away. She was tired. She was anxious. She was worried. What about what happened to Iridescence? He's been missing for four days, the police have filed a Missing Pony's Report, looked all over Ponyville, and Pinkie, and Mrs. Cake said that she clearly saw him walk out of her bakery towards his house. It's like he up n' disappeared. If a strong colt like him was ponynapped, what about a filly like me? “Apple Bloom it's time to wake up!” Granny Smith cheerily announced, nudging Apple Bloom as she lay down. “Apple Bloom it's time for uh.. uh...” “Soup's on everypony!” Applejack hollered. “Oh right! Breakfast! That's what it's time for!” “Okay Granny Smith one more minute Ah'm tired.” Granny Smith trotted over to the bed and blew a kazoo in her granddaughter's ear. Apple Bloom shot up, confused as to what just happened, and a little angry at being woken up. “Granny what was that for!” “Why am I in here again?” Apple Bloom sighed and giggled at her forgetful, but awesome Granny Smith. Granny Smith lept across the room and flew down the stairs. Apple Bloom winced as she heard a crash. “Granny! Are ya'll okay?” Apple Bloom ran out of her room to see her Granny clutching her hip at the bottom of the stairs. “Of course, Applesmack.” “It's Apple Bloom.” “Ah know, Dining Room.” Apple Bloom laughed and ran to help her Granny up, and insisted on taking her to the hospital, but Granny Smith just cracked her hip, jogged on the spot, and started walking again. They trotted into the kitchen, as Applejack gave each of them a nice big golden delicious apple. Both of them ate their apples, and Apple Bloom grabbed her lunch bag and began the long trot from Sweet Apple Acres, to Carousel Boutique, to Scootaloo's house, to school. Apple Bloom walked along the dirt road that winded through the apple orchard, as she kept looking at the path ahead of her even though she could have walked along the path backwards with her eyes closed. If anybody was watching her, and somepony was, they would have seen her looking around the orchard every couple of steps, as the obviously paranoid filly sped up every time there was a bird chirp or a twig snap. And... safe! Apple Bloom thought as she arrived in Ponyville. But when she saw the streets devoid of any ponies on a beautiful morning like this, she got scared. She ran to Sugar Cube Corners, and realized that most of the ponies were in line for some “Pinkie-tastic treats,” for half price. Relieved, she walked back out into the streets of Ponyville as they slowly came to life, Carrot Top, Doctor Whooves, a weeping Lyra without Bonbon- wait, Lyra without Bonbon? That can't be right. She looked back, double-checking, making sure that what she saw was correct. It was correct, Lyra was crying, asking everypony who walked by her if they saw her best friend that was now missing. “Somepony find Bonbon!” Lyra sobbed, the plead seemed to echo throughout the streets, making it much more sad as people walked by, looking at the puffy-eyed lonely pony. Apple Bloom took one last look, and saw something in the alley behind Lyra. A pair of glowing yellow eyes, floating in the darkness. She ran at top speeds, as if trying to escape something that hadn't even confronted her. She didn't care, she kept running, no matter how much out of breath she had become. Apple Bloom skidded to a halt in front of Carousel Boutique, almost slamming into the door and Sweetie Belle. “Whoa Apple Bloom! Slow down, you could have killed me, crazy!” “Sorry Sweetie, but I saw something that scared the mane off of me!” “Hey, did you hear that Bonbon was ponynapped? Poor Lyra...” “Ah saw Lyra this morning! She was so sad...” “Wait, what could have possibly scared you? You're the toughest filly in Ponyville!” “A pair of glowing yellow eyes, Ah saw 'em! In a dark alleyway, too!” Sweetie Belle paused for a moment, as if waiting for something to happen, but it didn't, she remained with a blank expression all the way to Scootaloo's house. And then it clicked. “So! They were just eyes! You should've poked em! What are you a chicken?” “No... not really but with all the disappearances lately, Ah tain't takin' any chances!” “Yeah, I heard that even Thunder Lane was ponynapped!” Scootaloo chimed in. “And no Sweetie Belle, Ah tain't a chicken,” and with that Apple Bloom gestured to Scootaloo as Sweetie Belle laughed. The three fillies arrived at the school, but the doors were locked. They looked around, and nopony else was dropping their foals off at the school. They then read a sign on the door that stated “Sorry, school will be closed until further notice, a teacher has gone missing.” The three fillies gasped. With all the disappearances and ponynappings going on lately, there was no way that this was a coincidence. The three fillies rushed to Cheerilee's house. They arrived at their teacher's house, out of breath, and fatigued, and they knocked on the door. The three fillies breathed a sigh of relief at what they saw next. Cheerilee, as happy as ever, greeted them with a smile on her face. “Hi girls, how are you?” “Oh... Miss Cheerilee, thank Celestia you're alright!” Apple Bloom managed to breathe out in between heavy panting. “Well of course I am girls! I really hope that Mr. Doo is okay!” “Ah hope so too Miss Cheerilee.” Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom trotted away, content that their teacher was okay, but worried about Mr. Doo and his fate. Scootaloo looked at Miss Cheerilee one last time, and realized that her eyes began to glow yellow. Scootaloo dashed away, and told Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Apple Bloom shivered at the thought. “Was Miss Cheerilee ponynapped?” Scootaloo pondered. “Or even worse, is she the ponynapper?” Apple Bloom continued. “Nah, Miss Cheerilee is the nicestest pony of all time! She wouldn't hurt a hair in a pony's mane!” Sweetie Belle added. The fillies trotted by another Cheerilee and looked in shock as their teacher walked by, towards her house. “Was... that just... Miss Cheerilee... again?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Yup.” Scootaloo barely managed to squeeze past her lips. “I suggest you ponies stop snooping, it might just save your lives.” The three fillies turned around in shock as a hooded stallion with glowing yellow eyes glared at them. “Hello girls, let's see if you would make good ponies. I've had a hungering for a fun one to fight lately, but everyone in Ponyville seems so weak. The strongest one was that colt from 4 nights ago.” Scootaloo, not knowing of what to do, flapped her wings furiously, and to her disbelief she began to hover a bit. The hooded stallion, tired of this pattern, yawned and pointed the device at her wings. Her wings became tied in a knot, as she fell to the ground. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom ran around the bend, looking back at their friend, who was being encircled by thick streams of magic data coming from the device. “No! Scootaloo!” Apple Bloom cried. Sweetie Belle, not willing to gave up, sped by as fast as she could, and pulled her friend out of the sphere of capture. Apple Bloom, obviously inheriting some of her Granny Smith's strength and speed, ran and kicked the stallion's foreleg, which could have easily been fatal, had he not had the device. Scootaloo remained unable to move, and Sweetie Belle tried to untie her wings with magic, as their brave little friend was fighting a battle that she was more than likely to lose. Agile little Apple Bloom, ran behind him and bucked his back leg with all the strength she could muster. This sent the stallion forward a little bit, and he began to limp. He turned to aim the device to heal himself, but at the last second, the olive little filly kicked the device out of his mouth. The device went spiralling, as Apple Bloom was shocked that she was actually beating him, but this victory was short-lived. Apple Bloom glanced over to see the device locking onto it's former target, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle hadn't noticed the threat approaching. “Sweetie Belle, run!” Sweetie Belle looked up, seeing what was about to happen. They say in a period of danger an animal's instincts will take over, and that's exactly what hers did. She kicked Scootaloo out of the way, and began to run, but she realized the air had gotten much denser, and she wasn't on solid ground anymore. The stallion smirked. “Looks like these three little ponies are quite worth the fight.” Sweetie Belle was imprisoned in a large sphere of energy, a one way barrier. Anything could get in, but nothing was getting out. Scootaloo was lying face-down on the ground, her wings weren't in a knot anymore, but the device had paralysed her from any further movements. Apple Bloom could move, and remained uninjured, but her friends would be impossible to save. Save Scootaloo, lose Sweetie Bell, save Sweetie Belle, lose Scootaloo, or all three of them are doomed. Apple Bloom backed away, and realized a major flaw in the device. All the buttons were so large because of the possibility of pressing more than one with a hoof, that the labels were easy to see. She set her sights on a large blue button labelled “release” she looked at the stallion, who was happily walking over to claim his prize. “Not on mah watch you don't!” a deep voice, obviously coming from a stallion, declared against the hooded pony. “It's okay li'l Apple Bloom! AJ and Big Mac are here to save the day!” Apple Bloom glanced over to see her sister, rope in hooves, staring intensely at the stallion. Big Mac tossed Scootaloo on his back, and they released Sweetie Belle shortly after, but by the time that was done, the Stallion was gone, and so was the device. “Well our luck,” “It's okay sis! You saved all three of us! That's more than enough.” “That's not the point, Apple Bloom, your brother and I wanted to catch this ponynappin' stallion before he hurts anypony else, we want Ponyville to be safe! And the 5,000 bits is enough to fix Granny Smith's hip, buy a new barn and silo, and have some livin' money left over!” “Eeyup.” “Is that all Big Mac can say?” Scootaloo inquired quizzically. “Nope.” The strong stallion responded. The five ponies laughed and began to trot back to the Apple Family's apple stand, Applejack and Big Macintosh refusing to let the fillies go off alone while that stallion was roaming around free. At the apple stand, Rarity passed by, and stopped to chat with Applejack. “Applejack, darling, what's wrong?” “Uh... Nothin' Rarity.” “Applejack, I can tell you're worried, and judging by the way you're fidgeting, it isn't over something trivial.” “Well, these three little fillies were almost ponynapped today, and Scootaloo hasn't been able to move a muscle since. She can talk, but we think it was a strange spell of some sort, maybe Twi'll be able to reverse it.” “Can I take a look at the darling, look for any signs of magic being used?” “Go 'head, partner.” Rarity trotted over to Scootaloo's motionless figure, and gently examined her body, looking for signs of magic that would be impossible for a regular pony to notice. “Rarity, what're ya pokin' and proddin' at her for?” “Looking at signs of magic entry, no matter how small, there is normally a very slight discolouration of matter where the magic entered, after years of using magic, somepony with such an eye for detail will start to notice these things, and I also searched her system with my magic after and there was no signs of remnants of magic, so it must have been something quite odd to be able to do that.” “Rarity, 'r ya shore that this wasn't usage of magic?” “Darling, do you think that my eye for detail would be unable to notice such large things like this?” “Quite frankly, Rarity, Ah'm not shore, but your eye for detail is the only one Ah'd trust, so it's all we've got to work with fer now.” “I'm sure Twilight will be able to fix her, but for now, she can't go home, her mother is one of the recently captured.” Fluttershy happened to be walking by at this time, noticing Scootaloo lying down in the apple stand. “Um... I... Um... can't help but overhearing that Scootaloo needs a place to stay?” “Yes, that is right Fluttershy, Applejack and Big Macintosh over here actually saved the poor darling before she was almost ponynapped.” “Oh... Oh my!” “Rarity, Ah need you to take Sweetie Belle and go home, shore, her and Apple Bloom are watching Scoot over there, but it's troubling running the stand, watching those three, and staying alert for that thar stallion, even with Big Mac's help!” “Of course, darling, and I suppose you would like Fluttershy to take Scootaloo?” “Thank you, girls, Big Mac 'n Ah are really grateful!” “One more thing, I really am sorry to trouble you so much, but what does this stallion look like?” “Y... yes, I would like to know that too, if it's okay with you.” “Well he has a black hood, with a golden trim, and a dark coat, Ah couldn't catch his mane, but his eyes glow yellow, and he's really fast, Ah didn't even notice he disappeared!” “Thanks again, darling, Sweetie Belle, it's time for us to go home!” “Aww, come on!” Sweetie Belle wailed. Fluttershy walked over and placed Scootaloo on her back. She said goodbye and walked off to her cottage. “Apple Bloom, you do not leave this stand without Bic Mac 'n Ah, ya hear me?” “Okay, sis.” “Big Mac, keep 'n eye on Apple Bloom!” “Eeyup.” When Rarity and Sweetie Belle arrived home, Rarity told Sweetie Belle to go upstairs, because she had lots of business to attend to. In reality, her eye for detail came to the rescue again, as she noticed a pony in the distance, walking slowly towards Carousel Boutique. Sooner than he knocked on the door, he was assaulted with threads, needles and rolls of fabric. He easily dodged all of them, and as he moved, Rarity noticed his cutie mark. “Hmm, you're not the brightest stallion, are you?” “Huh?” “It's easy for me to see many things about you. First of all, most of your coat is faded, meaning high exposure to magic, possibly a fight with a unicorn? Secondly, your mane is like bedhead, and even it is faded, being originally a bright orange, now being a pale tangerine, suggesting more than one fight, and against a very strong unicorn, judging by the expression on your face, you lost. And, there is multiple hoof prints on your legs, and sides, some deeper imprints than others, implying you fought at least one other stallion, not just Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. Next, Your unicorn horn isn't very well hidden by your spiky hair, and judging by the magic residue emanating from the device on your waist, it takes quite a lot of magic to control. Your eyes also aren't the green that is told by your contacts, suggesting that you thought such a poor trick could possibly fool me. Also, your cape is far too light, meaning it flows with the wind quite a lot, allowing me to see your cutie mark. Which is a joystick for a video game, and you are panicked that I know all this information, which is why you are preparing the device for a capture, judging by the magic surrounding the capture button. Finally, that lovely shade of pink your cheeks are turning makes me think that you have a crush on me. And I have also already figured out what you do with the ponies, using common sense, and I find it disgusting using other ponies for your own entertainment, the only thing that is even more disgusting, is that they are mindless, because Scootaloo told me that when you attacked her with that device, she said her mind began to fade away, everything going blank.” The stallion stood dumbfounded, as all these deductions were dead on the nose. “Oh, and darling, by the way, that cloak is very inconvenient when fighting a unicorn.” “What?” His hood was quickly pulled over his face, and sewn to the neck on his cloak. Without any delay, Rarity rushed towards him and delivered a swift kick to the nose as he howled in pain. “Rarity, what's going on down there, there's a lot of crashing, can I come down?” “No! Do not come down Sweetie!” “But-” “Sweetie! If you even THINK about coming down here, you will not see the other Crusaders for a MONTH!” “Hmm, looks like this pony's got a lot of fight in her.” The stallion smirked. “You are darn, right you ruffian!” Rarity, adrenaline taking over, quickly bound his legs with a roll of fabric, and tossed him outside, where he slowly backed away from Carousel Boutique. “And stay away from Ponyville!” Rarity screeched as she slammed the door, and then swore as she realized that she just let the ponynapper go. “Rarity, what happened?” Sweetie innocently asked, standing at the top of the stairs. “Oh that ghastly ponynapper came back, but his nose and left legs are broken, so don't worry darling, he'll be gone for a good month or two.” “No, he won't! His device allows him to heal any and every wound!” “Please say that you are telling me a horrid joke!” “.... I can't lie to you Rarity...” “Oh, Celestia no!” “Yes, Rarity.” The stallion, broken and beaten sat down with his device, setting it to heal, and pointed it towards himself, a crackle of blue energy engulfed the stallion as the pain pinching every nerve in his legs slowly releasing, as if melting away. He smirked. The Elements of Harmony, eh? I'll have a lot of fun with these ponies, especially when I capture them. He walked over to Fluttershy's cabin, looking in as she treated all of her animals, and a paralysed Scootaloo, he could see her cabin overflowing with kindness. Stealthily trotting up, he quickly knocked on her door, and hid. When a different purple unicorn answered, he was astounded, but he still remained hidden, and when he realized that she was looking at him, his heart froze, and he became unable to move. She then grabbed a bunny that was in the bush beside him. “Angel, you really need to stop running away from Fluttershy, she's as nice as can be, and she really cares for you.” The two pegasus ponies were now with Twilight, conversing with her over why she walked to the door. Scootaloo then hugged Twilight, and thanked her. He managed to overhear their conversation. “Oh my gosh Twilight, thank you so much! It feels so good to move again!” “No problem, Scootaloo, but all that magic using will leave me weak, so we'll need to be extra careful, Fluttershy, you don't mind if Spike and I stay here tonight?” When hearing this, the stallion smirked, easy prey. “Oh... well... of course not. I'd love to have a couple of friends over, I'm really scared with all these ponynappings happening lately.” “Thank you so much Fluttershy!” “No problem, I love helping other ponies!” “Okay girls, let's go inside, we've got a long night ahead of us.” Twilight suggested. “Yeah!” “Y.... Yeah.” The next two hours were a long wait, with all the losing that he had been doing lately, he wasn't tolerating anymore. Sitting in this bush was boring, but thinking about the one and only Rarity made everything worthwhile. Somewhere along the line, his thoughts turned to dreams, and those dreams were happy ones, the types of dreams where you could stay forever and not leave, the last thing he remembered was hearing the inhabitants of the cottage next to him saying a chorus of “good nights” before the environment around him blurred and a dopey smile slowly spread across his obscured face. Fluttershy, however was unable to sleep, her feelings a platter of worry for herself and ponyvillians, excitement over the approaching camping trip, happiness that Scootaloo was fine, and sorrow over all the lost ponies. She stayed awake, sitting at her kitchen table, worrying of what would happen if the stallion came back. She didn't have an eye for detail like Rarity, a cannon like Pinkie, the ability to fly at sonic speeds like Dash, she wasn't strong like AJ, and even though Twilight was with her, her magic was weak at the moment. She wouldn't be able to help anything, she'd just be able to sit there and watch as one by one, her friends were taken, and eventually she would be, too, but eventually, her worry went away, and she too fell asleep at the kitchen table. The stallion rose with the sun, wondering what had happened, and then he remembered. This morning, I've got a job to do. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic © by Hasbro/Lauren Faust All Characters belong to their rightful owners I do not claim ownership over anything used in this story. Chapter 3The bright sun slowly rose over Ponyville, signalling the end of the night and the start of a new day. It slowly pushed the moon out of the sky, giving the sky a purple-pink tinge to it. A stallion sat on his haunches, rubbing his temples with his hoof. “Oh sweet Celestia, I can't believe I didn't manage to catch even one of them.” He remembered the past week and three days, trying to capture one, two, three... eleven ponies, and every attempt failing. He remembered back to the very first fight, attacking those three little fillies, and the elder Apples came to the rescue. Oh man, my neck hurts just thinking about what could have happened with that rope the orange one had. And the fight with the Rarity, smiling and blushing as he remembered every stunning detail of her Boutique, and her. The sweet smell of perfume, the amazing dresses and suits, even the fabric was so gorgeous. And her, she was the perfect embodiment of beauty. He smiled even wider. Her eyes. Her deep blue eyes. Her mane. Her luscious purple mane. Her laugh. Her sweet laugh. Her hoof print on his cheek, that killed like a witch, he'd get her back, even if he did love the simply stunning mare. He then thought back to the fight with the purple unicorn and the orange pegasus. Fluttershy slept at the table, the stallion peering in through the window in the early morning watched the cute butter yellow pegasus, her snores more quiet than a butterfly flying. Even she was cute, not Rarity cute, but I-wanna-hug-you-and-talk-to-you-and-you-are-super-adorable-like-a-puppy cute. The stallion slowly crept in through the front door, looking around at all the sleeping animals, and pressed his hoof against Fluttershy's neck. The pressure made the more jolt from her sleep, shocked and scared. “T-Tw-Twi-TWILIGHT!” The pegasus cried out. “Fluttershy! Don-” A lavender unicorn, a purple dragon, and an orange pegasus pony all rushed into the kitchen, to see the stallion with his hoof against Fluttershy's neck, ordering them not to move. “Finally, two Elements of Harmony... in one fell swoop!” The stallion smirked, obviously pleased. Twilight and Scootaloo lunged at the stallion, and he heard the sweet pegasus mare crying. Even he had a soft spot for such a cute creature. Not knowing what to do, he ducked, taking Fluttershy with him. Fluttershy began to cry much more. Not knowing what to do, he stayed under the table, and realized that he had the device on his waist, again. “A... A... Angel! Gr... Grab the thingy on his waist! If that's okay with you...” She ordered. The small bunny obliged, grabbing the device, and biting his owner's captor. Fluttershy jumped away, still scared and shaken, and rounded up her animals. The stallion then felt a large hoof swipe across his face. Twilight smiled and began to cast telekinesis magic, grabbing the... spatula in Fluttershy's kitchen. “Fluttershy! Where are the utensils?” “Well, since I don't really entertain company, I don't need the utensils, the animals don't use them, and neither do I, please don't be mad at me!” The purple unicorn sighed, and began swatting the stallion like a fly. The stallion, ignoring the actual slaps to the face, grabbed his device. He was going to prey on somepony, no matter the animal. He pointed the device at the animal horde, which took extra long to be drawn in, being of thirty, or more, animals. “Finally, a victory!” The stallion happily sang. “A hollow one, at that.” Twilight responded. A cry of pain rang out through the cottage, and Fluttershy began to shriek. “Fluttershy, what's wrong?” “My animals...” The pegasus mare sobbed. “My friends...” She continued. “Fluttershy, you'll be okay.” “No... I won't.” She paused. “It's my fault they were taken, and I'm going to get them back!” “Fluttershy, that stallion is long gone, you'll have to wait for the next time he comes.” Fluttershy began to openly cry in front of Scootaloo and Twilight. Twilight went to comfort her, something Angel would normally do. Fluttershy pulled away from Twilight, refusing to let anypony pity her. The stallion, leaving the cottage on the edge of the Everfree Forest, looked back. I won't be able to get them, yet. Magic seems as formidable as Honesty and Generosity. But when Kindness is alone... The stallion snapped back to reality, still upset that he hadn't captured anypony. But relieved that not a single pony, out of the eleven he had fought had turned him into the pony police. Just those ponies, the Elements of Harmony, the walleyed one, the trio of fillies, and that brown-maned stallion. If I can get them, the rest of Ponyville will be “easier than buckin' that thar Apple orchard.” As a farmpony would say. “Ugh, speaking of farmponies,” He grunted. He began to think of something, obviously bringing him pain just thinking about it. An orange pony with a Stetson hat planted her front hooves in the ground, using them as a pivot, and launching her back legs into a tree. The tree shook, and the apples came loose from the branches. They plummeted to the ground, and landed in bushels on either side of the tree. The farmpony smirked. “Hey Big Mac! That's the fourth parfect buck in a row!” She declared. “Oh is it, dear?” A stallion hissed. She whipped around, but it was too late. Lines of magic data encircled her, and she gasped. “You again! How dare ya'll show yor face 'round here again!” “Quite easily, there's very few ponies left that can stop me.” “Who're ya? What's yor name?” “Since you won't remember anything soon, I suppose it's a fine courtesy. I prefer the name, the Master of Games.” “Ha! Ya fool! Didja get that Big Mac?” “Eeyup.” A husky voice triumphantly cried. The stallion gasped. He had forgotten about that one. He whipped around, realizing his device had a weakness, if they were in two different places, he was only catching one. Applejack strained to get up, but none of her limbs responded. “Big Mac! Help!” The deep red stallion ran up to the circle that entrapped his sister, but it was more than too late, it was solidified. “AJ!” He began to cry. “Cutie Mark Crusaders Heroes! Go!” Three fillies grabbed the device out of his hand, pressing cancel before Applejack was drawn in, the shell was disconnected from the device, but it remained, not weakening at all, which made the stallion smirk. “It's been to long for her in that shell, she won't be able to move for at least a week, with magic.” Apple Bloom gasped. She dashed towards her sister, pawing at the shell. Sweetie Belle somehow forced magic, making the shell softly lighten. “Apple Bloom, it's no good.” Sweetie Belle strained. “We'd need Twilight and Rarity's combined efforts to get rid of it.” “Really?” Apple Bloom lamented. “Don't... worry girls,” Applejack winced, flinching with every breath, “get rid o' that thar stallion first! One more second and I'll be more simpleminded than Ditzy Doo!” The paralysed pony managed to force out. “Yes, ma'am!” But before the girls could do anything, they turned around, and the stallion was gone again. Winona, Applejack's pet dog, ran to her owner. The canine began to bark and bare her fangs, pawing at the shell. Big Mac grabbed the poor dog, and brought her back to the barn. Sweetie Belle strained with all her might, and stepped back, her body falling limply to the ground. “Sweetie Belle!” Scootaloo cried. Apple Bloom picked up their friend while Scootaloo worked on pushing the shell of magic data. They brought the two ponies back to the Apple family farm. The stallion snapped out of his thoughts once again, and looked around. That stupid mare deserved it, messing with me like that. If she somehow does recover before the camping trip, she'll be the first one to go. Who else did I go after this week? Oh right, that pink one... and the rainbow pegasus, the walleyed pegasus... and that brown-maned stallion with the hourglass cutie mark... On the outskirts of Ponyville, a stallion with a grayish-amber coat and dark amber mane stared intently at the hooded stallion that had appeared so much in the past week. “So... you're the famed Doctor Whooves then...” The Master of Games began. “Maybe, but your funeral is the next time someone will hear your name.” He retorted. The hooded stallion reached for his device, but Doctor Whooves was much faster, delivering a swift kick to the assailant's side and regaining his composure before the stallion hit the ground. “I suppose you can't have been very weak to capture half of Ponyville, but I know I can handle you with a blindfold.” “Well, the others never avoided me long enough for me to get serious.” Doctor Whooves didn't bother giving the stallion a chance. He stomped on the stallion's ribs, causing him to cough up blood and then disappear into green script of ones and zeros. “What the...” “Surprised? I suppose it's not everyday a stallion disappears.” The Master of Games began. The lines of data wrapped around Doctor Whooves, effectively hogtying him. “But, I suppose someone as strong to you must be quite dimwitted.” He finished. “Nope, just waiting for a good moment.” The Master of Games whipped around, and was met by a hoof across his cheek. Doctor Whooves was obviously at the advantage. “I suppose it would be easier to turn you over to the authorities if you weren't conscious...” The Doctor wound up for another attack, but was blasted by a wave of heat. A tall unicorn mare with a silver mane and a brilliant golden coat looked at Doctor Whooves. Her cutie mark was a number one. “Nobody can escape the grasp of Pride.” The mare claimed. Doctor Whooves gasped. “Pride? The Pride?” I can't let her hit me again while I'm this cocky, think of humiliating thoughts... The Doctor began to hang his head in shame, whatever he was thinking of was working. The Doctor began to stand up, recovering from the blast, but another blast hit him. It was cold, it made him feel like he wanted to kill things... Many things. A crimson stallion sat in front of the doctor, his face twisted in a frown. His mane was spiky, and a pale blue, his cutie mark was a face mimicking the one he made just then. “Wrath will also be joining you, Doctor.” The Master of Games stood up, obviously gaining ground. Pride... Wrath... I suppose that today is the day I lose. Wrath blasted him again, sending the same frosty sensation surging through his insides. He began to stand up, this was even more humiliating, being destroyed by one pony. Pride joined in on the assault, kicking him ruthlessly. Pride then conjured a mirror with her magic. She looked at the mirror, admiring herself. “You're so vain Pride, show a little restraint at least.” “How can you when you're as gorgeous as I am?” The Doctor scoffed. She really hadn't changed since the last time he'd seen her. Wrath cackled like a madman, and ice began to charge from his body, and now I die.... but he slipped on Pride's tail. “Pride? WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU!?!? YOU DID THAT ON PURPOSE!!!” Unless... “Wrath.” “What, ugly?! I wanna kill you, so hurry.” “That man,” He gestured to the stallion in the hood. “That man thinks you're useless, in fact, after this, he'll probably toss you aside.” Pride began to smirk. She would survive no matter what, she was untouchable. Wrath would kill the Doctor, and the Master of Games, and she wouldn't have to lift a hoof. Wrath's eyes slit like daggers. He looked towards the stallion in the hood, and gathered ice around his hoof. Wrath rushed at the stallion, and knocked him out with a single hoof. Wrath turned towards the Doctor. “Going easy on him, I see.” The Doctor taunted. “My wrath will reach everyone. I'm saving him for later.” Well, I'm dead. Just then, a bluish grey streak of light collided with Wrath, knocking him over and forcing the angry stallion to swear. The grey blob stood up, and revealed a blonde mane, and gradient amber eyes. The eyes focused for a short time, and then became walleyed, giving her a cute, goofy expression upon her face. She bounded over to the Doctor, making sure he was okay, and turned around, realizing she accidentally knocked out the stallion she crashed into. She gasped. “Doctor! I didn't mean to hurt him! What do we do!?” “It's okay Derpy, he isn't very good anyways.” Derpy smiled, and looked at Pride, who stood shocked. Derpy flew away, and the Doctor limped towards Ponyville Hospital, leaving the stallion and those two behind. The Doctor... Quite the formidable foe... The stallion's gaze fixated on a rainbow, and then remembered the last of his many fights in the past week. A hooded stallion walked into Sugar Cube Corner. It was early, so nopony was around. He trotted up to the counter, confident in his stride, and placed his hoof over the bell, signalling Mrs. Cake or Pinkie Pie to assist the customer. Like he had hoped, it was the latter. A frizzy maned pink mare landed on the floor at the bottom of the stairs, but not before doing a triple backflip. She trotted over to the customer, looked up, and gasped. “YOU! The author told me about you! The author told me a lot of things! A LOT!” The stallion stood in disbelief at what she was saying. He thought about it for a moment, letting his brain process the information, but before he came even close to his goal, icing splattered all over his face. “That's right, the author told me you didn't like cake!” Whoever this author person was, he certainly knew a lot about the Master of Games. The author? If he finds out anymore, I'll track him down even if he's in Fillydelphia! The stallion began to move again, clearing up his clouded thoughts, and lunged at Pinkie with death in his eyes. Pinkie flipped out of the way, and grabbed her party cannon. The stallion lunged at her again, this time missing and hitting a shelf of cake, which Pinkie's extendo-tongue ate all of. Pinkie smiled and leaned back, her belly swollen slightly from eating such large amounts of food. The stallion ran at Pinkie one more time, and slipped on a banana peel. Oh how he wanted to get out of that crazy place, but if he did the pink mare would spread the information that the author had told her. He had to stop her! But by the time he had snapped out of his thoughts, he was loaded into the party cannon and ready for fire. “HEY RAINBOW DASH! RAINBOWDASHRAINBOWDASHRAINBOWDASHRAINBOWDASH!” “WHAT PINKIE!?” “FIGHT INCOMING! PREPARING FOR FIRE!” “GOT IT! LEMME STRETCH!” The stallion struggled, trying to get out of the cannon, but it was too late, the fuse had burned out, and he was fired through the clouds, and caught by a rainbow-maned pegasus mare. The mare threw him up even further, meeting his peak height before he did. And with a swift hoof-spin, she had hoof chopped him, definitely strong enough to hurt, but he was somehow still in mid-air. He then felt a rush. An extremely strong rush. Hooves planted into his stomach, and wind forcing it's way through his mane. Was he falling? No. Too fast for that. Maybe... That crazy mare was trying to pull that off! He could feel a wind funnel forming around them. The tunnel was getting thinner as his body was contorted like an ironing board, almost folding in half. He heard a boom, felt a rush, and blacked out. The pegasus mare however, landed in a different spot than he had. Luckily for him. Well, not so luckily. Six broken ribs, one broken hind leg, and he couldn't get the taste of cake out of his mouth. At least he was still on his lucky streak of avoiding arrest. The stallion shivered. He remembered each detail of that fight vividly. He would never forget the pain in his ribs, and he was going to get those Elements if he had to kill them. The sun began to set over Ponyville, giving a stunning pink tint to the sky. It was amazing. “Twilight darling, how much longer do we have to concentrate?” Rarity whined. “We've got to go pack for the camping trip tomorrow!” “Just a little longer Rarity, we can't touch the shell directly with our magic, otherwise paralysis could afflict us, too.” “Uh, sugar cubes, I don't mean to be rude or anythin', but you've been at this magic for two days straight, and the shell hasn't wavered in the slightest!” “Oh... Um... I'm not very good at standing watch... Maybe.... Pinkie Pie and Rainbow are fine?” “Okay Fluttershy, just don't make any noise.” “O... Oh... Okay, I'll try not to...” She whispered, barely audibly. “Rarity, start forming a shell with your magic, make sure it covers Applejack completely, but don't touch the data spell.” “Yes, dear.” Brilliant blue light slowly began to encircle Applejack, gently lifting her slightly off of the ground. “Applejack, this may be putting slight strain on your body since you just healed, bu when Rainbow and Pinkie stretch the shell, you need to buck it as hard as you can.” “Er... Won't ah get paralysed again?” “Oh.” “Twilight, dear, maybe we could try poking holes in it with our magic?” “But Rarity, we'd get paralysed.” “No, darling. The outside of the shell is rough, and judging by the data running through it, it's a weak lightning link that has a chance to induce paralysis.” “Yes, Rarity, we could get paralysed.” “The middle of the shell however, is made of a plasma-like substance, which our magic will not be affected by at all, we could gently push it open through a magic drill, if you will.” “We can try.” The two unicorns began to strain their magic, as a small drill made of blue-and-pink glow began to spin rapidly. It slowly moved towards the shell, and with the precision of a surgeon, Rarity quickly swerved the drill, causing Twilight to panic, but Rarity had found a new angle. It was a small crack around the side of the shell, but Rarity noticed the plasma layer. The drill lunged forward, and slammed right through the shell. As soon as the plasma began to drip out, the shell became soft, and it's energy had faded. Applejack stood up, and stretched. She looked around, and began trotting again, as if making sure everything was okay. She began to trot home. She couldn't wait for the camping trip tomorrow. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo made their way into the schoolyard, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo carrying a sleeping bag, while Sweetie Belle seemingly carried Carousel Boutique on her back. The trio walked into the classroom, and took their seats at their desk. Miss Cheerilee counted off the fillies. “Apple Bloom?” “Here, Miss Cheerilee!” “Diamond Tiara?” “Ugh, over here.” “Dinky Hooves and Dizzy Hooves?” “Here!” “Over...” crash “Here!” After counting off all fourteen fillies, seven mares walked into the room. Applejack was the first to walk in, followed by Derpy Hooves, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Twilight and Spike, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity. “Applejack, you'll be watching Diamond Tiara, and... Peachy Pie!” “Yes, ma'am!” “Derpy Hooves, you'll be watching Twisty Doo, and Fighter Fly!” “Okay Miss Cheerilee!” “Rainbow Dash, you're in charge of Scootaloo and Dizzy Hooves!” “Yes! I got the Squirt!” “Fluttershy, you don't mind watching Mango Dash and Sunny Daze, right?” “Oh... Um... Yes Miss Cheerilee.” “Twilight and Spike, Dinky Hooves and Sweetie Belle.” “I see....” “Pinkie, you get Pinkie Fly and-” “YESYESYESYESYES!!!” “Twist...” “NicetomeetyouTwist,mynameisPinkiePie,andIlovetomakepeoplesmileandlaugh,Ihopewehavefuncamping!” “And finally, Rarity, you get Silver Spoon, and Apple Bloom.” “Thank you for inviting me, dear.” The fillies each went off to their councillors, all unaware of the eyes watching them. I do not own anything used in this story! My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is © by Hasbro I think that's it.
Chapter 1A young unicorn colt trotted through the streets, his hooves sloshing in the puddles that were littering the ground, it was raining heavily and each bolt of lightning seemed to make him jump. His onyx coat was very damp, and his indigo-violet mane was plastered like a thin veil to his face. His glasses were soaked, making his vision highly obscured. He walked into Sugar Cube Corner, and as the door opened the jingle of a bell rang throughout the shop. Quicker than possible a pink frizzy-maned mare was at the counter with two baby foals in each of her arms. “Hey Iridescence!” She cheered in her normal manner. “Hey Pinkie!” He happily smiled back. “The usual?” “Yep.” And with that, the cheery mare sprang into action, performing unnecessary acrobatics while jumping to get the food. She stood upside-down in the air while waiting for the special order to be finished. Mrs. Cake walked downstairs with a paler-than-normal coat and an expression like she'd just seen a ghost. “Mrs. Cake what's wrong?” The young colt asked, as the crazy party pony was waiting for the oven to beep. “Mr. Cake is gone!” “It's okie-dokie-lokie Mrs. Cake! I mean the writer wouldn't kill anypony as nice as him, now would they?” The two ponies stared back at the upside-down mare with a quizzical look. “Oh. Right. Fourth wall again!” She smiled. Mrs. Cake shook her head and looked back to the matter at hand. “What if he's dead?” The baker pondered. “Wrong!” Pinkie Pie chirped. “Ponynapped?” “It's a surprise!” The seemingly-crazy pony winked. A loud beeping sound rang through the bakery. “It's ready!” Pinkie sang. “One Iridescence special coming right up!” The colt smiled. He grabbed the bag with his warm cookie in it and looked in. A cookie with purple icing frosted on it and a green smiley face looked back up at him. “Here's your six bits!” “Don't worry, it's on the house, since we know you'll be back tomorrow.” Mrs. Cake smiled at the foal's generosity, wondering who had taught him such a virtue. All three ponies stood there, Pinkie looking at who-knows-what as the other two sat on their haunches, unaware of the dangers lurking out in the streets of Ponyville. The tension seemed to rise until it escalated to a fine point. The school colt looked at his watch and realized the time. “I wish I could help some more. I really do, but my mom is probably expecting me home.” The colt blurted, breaking the tension that had built up in the room. He ran out the door in a hurry and stepped into the streets, wandering, but still with a direct location in his mind. A hooded figure stepped out of the shadows cast by a large building, His glowing yellow eyes looking hungrily at the unicorn, he took a device out and sat on his haunches, playing with the settings of the obscurity as the colt rushed by. The strange stallion began to walk behind the foal. The poor foal was completely oblivious to who was behind him, and what was about to happen. He stopped in his tracks as he remembered that he had read some basic spellbooks from Ponyville's Library. His eyes began to glow, which differed from a normal unicorn's magic, as a small iridescent purple platform appeared below him. This wouldn't prevent getting soaked, but he could travel quite fast with the usage of this spell. About to set into motion, his platform dissipated into the air. He was only about a foot off of the ground, thank Celestia, so he tried to get back up, but he realized none of his legs were responding to him. “What's going on?” He challenged, false bravery evident in his voice. “Look at the brave little one.” A snide voice hissed in his ear. “Your last moments of your own free will, and you're still willing to stand up to me.” The hooded figure snickered. “Too bad none of your limbs are working, or you might actually stand a chance.” Iridescence's eyes glowed, and a large disc of purple appeared above the threatening pony. The disc began to slowly press down, his intentions now obvious. The assailant pointed his strange contraption at the disc of magic, and it was gone in a flash. He then pointed it at the colt, and his device scanned the colt, graphs began to show up, stating things like his speed, intelligence, dexterity, strength, magic, chaos, potential and skill. He smirked at the shocking stats that showed up. “Quite the character for a young pony. Looks like I struck gold tonight.” The device sent out large lines of magic data, which encircled Iridescence and began to draw him in. His last thought before his body became dormant and his mind was erased, was “Stay safe Pinkie!” “Good morning, my little ponies,” Cheerilee sang as she trotted into the classroom. “Good morning, Miss Cheerilee,” her sleepy class echoed back. Cheerilee looked around the class, and saw an empty desk. After counting heads, she was shocked at the pony who was missing. “Well that's odd,” she announced quizzically. “Iridescence is always here.” She considered for a moment, and figured he was out in the rain too long the night before. Cheerilee trotted over to the desk of a pale-olive filly with a brilliant amaranth mane and a large pink bow in her hair, her eyes were gently closed and she had a dreamy smile on her face. Snickers could be heard as their teacher stared intently at the sleeping figure. “Ahem, Apple Bloom,” “One more minute AJ, ah'm kinda tired.” Cheerilee sighed. “Apple Bloom, it's Miss Cheerilee.” “Oh mah gosh! Ah'm so sorry Miss Cheerilee!” “Apple Bloom, you seem to have had a long night... What were you doing last night?” “Well ah was really focused on gettin' mah Cutie Mark! And Ah figured that since apple-based Cutie Marks run in the family, that would be mah Cutie Mark! Ah tried everythang! Bakin' apple pie, apple tarts, apple crumbles, caramel apples, Ah even started buckin' apples from the trees! And then Ah” “Apple Bloom, that's nice but...” “Tried to go tah bed but Ah couldn't! Ah was too rahled up!” “Apple Bloom, it's time for me to teach...” “Oh raht, sorry Miss Cheerilee!” The school filly cheerily replied. Miss Cheerilee trotted back to her desk and sat down. She looked on her desk and saw an apple she smiled. “Who was so generous as to give me a lovely treat?” Cheerilee asked. “Oh, well it was my sister! She's the Element of Generosity, y'know” A light-grey unicorn filly happily replied. “Oh, Rarity, of course! I should've known! That pony's always going out of her way to do people favours.” “Ya!” The content Sweetie Belle replied. “Now, it's time for us to start Marematics!” A large chorus of groans cried out, obviously displeased with the statement. The hour of Marematics passed by much slower than expected, especially without Iridescence, he was normally the one who answered everything, and he also helped anypony that didn't understand the lesson. A large, ear-piercing bell saved the day, signalling the end of Marematics, and the beginning of recess. The happy foals piled out into the schoolyard, as some grabbed jump ropes, some went to play dodge ball, and some just talked with their friends. What older ponies say was proven to be true, “time flies when you're having fun.” The minutes passed by in what seemed like seconds and a second bell rang, as the foals all began to trot back inside. “Welcome back my little ponies, grab some paint and sit at your desk, because now it's time for art!” Cheerilee exclaimed. The ponies all grabbed colours and began to paint many things, some painted skateboards, while some painted food, and then you-know-who painted their rainbow-hued idol. “Scootaloo, why don't you try to paint something besides Rainbow Dash?” Cheerilee questioned. “Because! One day I'm gonna be just like her!” The young pegasus quickly responded. “Yes, I understand, and I admire you for having such a clear sight on your dream, but-” “It's not a dream it's a mission!” The orange pegasus exclaimed as she cut-off her teacher. “Okay, but, variety is the spice of life, right?” “Save that namby-pamby talk for Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon! I'm gonna fly and grow up to be just like Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo, now standing on her desk, challenged. “Scootaloo, there's no way a dodo could fly as fast as Rainbow Dash!” Apple Bloom laughed. “Yes I can! I'll fly even faster! You'll see!” “Actually, a dodo is a flightless, extinct bird, related to pigeons but about the size of a turkey, which inhabited the islands of Mauritius, Réunion, and Rodriguez therefore, you would not be able to fly at all if you were a dodo.” The dim-witted Sweetie Belle commented. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo looked at Sweetie Belle with an eyebrow cocked, and smirked. “I am NOT A DICTIONARY!” Sweetie Belle hollered at the top of her lungs. “Yeah, well then I'm not a dodo!” “Never mind I am a dictionary.” Sweetie Belle giggled. Scootaloo frowned. “Now girls, let's all get along,” Cheerilee soothed as the lunch bell rang. The classroom of these school ponies was utter chaos, a scene that Discord would have more than loved. Ice cream, cookies, pie, sandwiches, and many other desserts and food were stuck to the ceiling, the walls, and the floor had a thick layer of flour over the majority of it. One half was all of the fillies, all using lunch trays as shields, and the other half was all of the colts, protected by barricades made out of desks. The colts were all throwing food at the fillies as they began to advance. Cheerilee walked in the classroom, oblivious to all as she trotted in, humming a tune, and went to sit at her desk. Anyways she would have, had it been there and not in the barricade line. She opened her eyes, looked around and shrieked. The class looked like Sugar Cube Corners had exploded in it. Cheerilee glared with a look that could cut glass. “Where is my desk?” The foals scrambled wildly to put her desk back in place. “Now, how did this start?” Cheerilee glared on. Apple Bloom stepped forward, head lowered to the ground and she confessed “Miss Cheerilee, Ah'm terribly sorry, we shouldn't a' done it. It's all mah fault, and don't blame anypony else!” “Thank you for your honesty Apple Bloom, but how did this start?” “Well Ah was eatin' mah lunch, just like everypony else, and Ah was bored, so Ah asked who was bored. And a lot of people put their hooves up, and Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon t'were bein' twits, so Ah thought that maybe ah should possibly start a li'l fun bah maybe throwin' mah lunch at 'em and then they went and hid in the supply cupboard, where we found the big bags of flour, and Pinkie brought in a huge tub of ice cream because she thought it t'was a party, and then we started throwin' that everywhere, and then the colts grabbed all the desks and Scootaloo and Ah had the great idea of grabbin' all o' the lunch trays, and then Sweetie Belle grabbed some pots and pans out o' the cafeteria, and, and...” “Okay, Apple Bloom, I think I've decided on your punishment.” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo stepped forward. “It was our fault too! Don't only punish her!” Twist and Dinky Hooves stepped forward. “Ours too!” Dizzy Hooves stepped sideways, she would have stepped forward but her wall-eyed-ness was making it difficult for her to see straight. “Mine too!” Soon, the whole class had stepped forward, save Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, and Cheerilee decided that their punishment would be that they would just have to clean up the room. After expending all of the English period, it was time for Pony's Ed. It was more free time than it was exercise, which made it much more enjoyable. The Cutie Mark Crusaders all grabbed hula hoops and began to spin them, Scootaloo was quite mediocre, and Sweetie Belle wasn't fairing so well either, but Apple Bloom was a champion! She had 6 around her waist, three on each front leg, and one on her back left leg, while balancing on her right leg. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, looking to spoil Apple Bloom's fun, each grabbed a hula hoop, and taunted. “Apple Bloom, catch!” The hula hoops whirled towards her direction, about twice her height off the ground and Apple Bloom lept in the air catching one on her front left and the other around her neck. The two “primps,” as the other foals called them, sauntered off in a foul mood. Twenty minutes before dismissal, all of Cheerilee's students were inside. “Okay, now as I'm sure some of you know, we have not had a big trip yet, and the end of the school year is approaching, my little ponies, and I enlisted for all of the fillies to go on a camping trip” The fillies all cheered, minus the two primps, and the colts all began to holler about how they weren't going. “Don't worry, all the colts will be going to Equestria's PonyLand!” Cheerilee happily stated. The colts all began to cheer this time, and Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon approached Miss Cheerilee. “Miss Cheerilee, why do all those stinky colts get to go to Equestria's PonyLand but all of us stunning fillies have to go camping?” Diamond Tiara whined. “In the woods!” Silver Spoon added. “Because my little pri-- I mean ponies,” Cheerilee started, clearly annoyed. “The colts all get along with each other, but there is some very noticeable fighting going on with the fillies. Don't think of it as camping, think of it as bonding!” Cheerilee beamed. “But I don't need to booonnd!” Diamond Tiara retorted. “Now, this trip is a great opportunity,” Cheerilee explained, while handing out the forms, skipping over Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. “And I'm not going to let any of you skip this one.” She specified towards the two primps. The rambunctious chatter began, everypony clearly excited about their trips, the chatter continued out the door, and dragged on until they all had to go their separate ways. Pinkie Pie smiled at the door of Sugar Cube Corners, waiting impatiently for a special something. Mrs. Cake looked over and then remembered “Oh right today's the day Ponville ends.” Mrs. Cake walked by several times in the next few hours, as Pinkie somehow grew a moustache and beard. “Pinkie, honey, it's 11:00p.m., maybe their train was delayed until tomorrow,” Mrs. Cake suggested. “Nope! It's only 5:00! My inexplicable reality-bending window and cuckoo clock made it seem like it was11:00!” She beamed. Mrs. Cake sighed and walked away, and was about to ask about Pinkie's beard when she heard a bell. Death. The door flew open as two school aged fillies walked in. One was the spitting image of Pinkie Pie, albeit she had wings, and the other had a blue, straight mane, with most of it hanging in her face with a pale cyan coat and deep purple eyes. Her cutie mark was a boxing glove. “Pinkie Fly! Fighter Fly! Excited to be living with cousin Pinkie?!” “Yo.” “Oh my gosh cousin Pinkie long time no see I haven't seen you in such a long time I love coming to visit you! How have you been? Gotten taller? Older? Wiser? More super duper Pinkie-riffic Pie-mazing party-tastic?” Pinkie Fly exhaled and began to breathe again. “Pinkie, deary, don't forget to tell them about their new school!” Mrs. Cake reminded. As if on cue, Cheerilee walked in. “Hello Pinkie Pie, hello Mrs. Cake, how are you?” “I'm super! Watcha doin' here Cheerilee? Say hi to my cousins Pinkie Fly and Fighter Fly because they're gonna be in your class tomorrow!” Oh Celestia no... “Great Pinkie! Then they'll be needing these!” She handed the fillies each a form for the camping trip. “Also, Pinkie I was wondering if you would like to be a chaperone for the trip? There's going to be fourteen fillies! I can't watch them all! And plus you could have tons of fun with your cousins!” “Ohgoshohgoshohgosh! Yesyesyesyes! Where do I sign?” Pinkie asked. “Nowhere, you just come to school in a week with your camping gear!” Applejack grunted as she kicked a tree with full force, knocking all of the apples down into a bushel underneath the shade of the tree. Cheerilee trotted up and leaned against the side of an apple tree. “Hey there, sugarcube.” “Hi Applejack! How are you.” “Good, thanks, how may Ah help ya sugarcube?” “Oh, well I need some chaperones for a camping trip, and you came into mind, would you be able to help me?” “Of course sugarcube! When'll it be?” “In two weeks from now, please remind Apple Bloom to get her trip form signed, and aside from that bring your camping gear for 3 nights!” “Can do.” Cheerilee trotted off to the next pony's house on her list, bringing her to Derpy Hooves' cabin. She knocked on the door. No answer. Again. Nothing. Then, suddenly, a flying figure crashed behind Cheerilee, scaring the mare half to death. As the pegasus began to get up, her coat and mane completely covered in dirt, her wall-eyed-ness the only defining feature at the moment. Which eye do I look in? I don't wanna ask because that would be mean, but if I look in the wrong one she'd think I'm rude... “Hey there Derpy!” “Hi Miss Cheerilee!” “How are you, have your sisters come home yet?” “Nope they're coming up the path right now!” The mailmare confirmed. “Oh, well they're being invited to come on a camping trip and I wanted to know if you could be a chaperone?” “Of course Miss Cheerilee! I will be there!” Derpy responded with a clumsy salute. “Bring camping gear for three nights, at the school in two weeks from today!” “Yes ma'am!” Halfway done, Cheerilee thought. Outside of Fluttershy's cottage looked quite different, like an odd place for a pony to live. But it wasn't just for a pony, it was for birds, bunnies, cats, dogs, bats, hummingbirds, mice, squirrels, badgers and any other animal that Fluttershy pleased. Cheerilee walked up to the door and knocked, Fluttershy immediately answered the door, inviting her in. “Um... H... Hi Miss Cheerilee.” “Hi Fluttershy, I'm sorry for being hasty, but I'm in a rush. In two weeks, all the fillies and I are going on a camping trip for three days, I've already invited some of your friends, and they also agreed and you'll get to see tons of animals so it would be a great opportunity for you!.” Cheerilee finished, out of breath. “Man, how does Pinkie do it?” “Oh... of course! I mean if my friends are going it should be fun right?” “Thank you Fluttershy!” Only three more! She ran into Carousel Boutique and noticed Sweetie Bell sneaking away some fabric to bring to the Cutie Mark Crusaders' clubhouse. “In a minute dear! Rarity is making perfection!” “Hi Rarity! Has Sweetie told you about the camping trip?” “Oh, but of course! Such a lucky dear being able to go with all of her friends!” “Well I need some chaperones...” A loud laugh scared Cheerilee. “Oh dear, I... I didn't mean I would like to go!” “But you just said...” “I know but imagine the dirt! Think of my hooves! My mane! My tail! My coat!” The dramatic pony gasped, and started to fake hyperventilate, falling onto her couch. “Please Rarity! You can bring anything as long as you can carry it!” “Oh! But of course dear! Why didn't you say so!” Rarity laughed, grabbing a gigantic tent. “Thank you! The information is on the form!” “But of course, darling!” Cheerilee ran to Ponyville's Library, and asked the small dragon assistant where his purple unicorn friend was. “Oh she's over there, studying!” The purple dragon answered enthusiastically “Thank you Spike!” Cheerilee trotted over to the purple unicorn hunched over the desk, reading many books furiously. “Hey Twilight...” Cheerilee cautiously greeted, hoping it wasn't one of those times again, shuddering remembering the Smarty Pants incident. “Hi.” “Can you possibly be a chaperone for a camping trip that I'll be taking with my class?” “No.” “Come on Twilight I've always wanted to go camping!” Spike relented “No.” “You could study the magic of friendship and have more to put in your next report!” He continued. “Well...” “Princess Celestia might give you an “Astounding Magical Breakthrough” award” He finished, his voice dripping with sarcasm. However, Twilight didn't sense the sarcasm and immediately accepted. “Okay, in two weeks, for three days.” “Spike, write that down” “Yes ma'am!” Cheerilee's final chaperone idea, Rainbow Dash. Unsure of where the pegasus would be, she ran towards a field, and began to search. “Rainbow Dash! Rainbow Dash! Come on Dash, I need your help.” She hollered. She searched in a bush and when she turned around, a multi-hued pegasus was standing there, smiling. “What can Equestria's fastest flier do for ya?” “Well I was bringing the class on a camping trip and I need one last chaperone. Maybe you could help?” “La-ame.” “Scootaloo will be so disappointed,” the schoolteacher sighed, hoping that her plan would work. “The Squirt? Haha that changes everything! Maybe Ill even get to teach her how to fly!” “Thank you so much Rainbow Dash! Two weeks, three days trip!” A hooded pony with glowing yellow eyes smiled. Equestria's fastest flier, eh? Maybe this one will actually put up a fight. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic © by Hasbro/Lauren Faust All Characters belong to their rightful owners I do not claim ownership over anything used in this story.
Chapter 2Apple Bloom lay in her bed, staring blankly at the beautiful morning outside of her window, she was uninterested in anything going around her, her mind only focused on the camping trip that was still 10 days away. She was tired. She was anxious. She was worried. What about what happened to Iridescence? He's been missing for four days, the police have filed a Missing Pony's Report, looked all over Ponyville, and Pinkie, and Mrs. Cake said that she clearly saw him walk out of her bakery towards his house. It's like he up n' disappeared. If a strong colt like him was ponynapped, what about a filly like me? “Apple Bloom it's time to wake up!” Granny Smith cheerily announced, nudging Apple Bloom as she lay down. “Apple Bloom it's time for uh.. uh...” “Soup's on everypony!” Applejack hollered. “Oh right! Breakfast! That's what it's time for!” “Okay Granny Smith one more minute Ah'm tired.” Granny Smith trotted over to the bed and blew a kazoo in her granddaughter's ear. Apple Bloom shot up, confused as to what just happened, and a little angry at being woken up. “Granny what was that for!” “Why am I in here again?” Apple Bloom sighed and giggled at her forgetful, but awesome Granny Smith. Granny Smith lept across the room and flew down the stairs. Apple Bloom winced as she heard a crash. “Granny! Are ya'll okay?” Apple Bloom ran out of her room to see her Granny clutching her hip at the bottom of the stairs. “Of course, Applesmack.” “It's Apple Bloom.” “Ah know, Dining Room.” Apple Bloom laughed and ran to help her Granny up, and insisted on taking her to the hospital, but Granny Smith just cracked her hip, jogged on the spot, and started walking again. They trotted into the kitchen, as Applejack gave each of them a nice big golden delicious apple. Both of them ate their apples, and Apple Bloom grabbed her lunch bag and began the long trot from Sweet Apple Acres, to Carousel Boutique, to Scootaloo's house, to school. Apple Bloom walked along the dirt road that winded through the apple orchard, as she kept looking at the path ahead of her even though she could have walked along the path backwards with her eyes closed. If anybody was watching her, and somepony was, they would have seen her looking around the orchard every couple of steps, as the obviously paranoid filly sped up every time there was a bird chirp or a twig snap. And... safe! Apple Bloom thought as she arrived in Ponyville. But when she saw the streets devoid of any ponies on a beautiful morning like this, she got scared. She ran to Sugar Cube Corners, and realized that most of the ponies were in line for some “Pinkie-tastic treats,” for half price. Relieved, she walked back out into the streets of Ponyville as they slowly came to life, Carrot Top, Doctor Whooves, a weeping Lyra without Bonbon- wait, Lyra without Bonbon? That can't be right. She looked back, double-checking, making sure that what she saw was correct. It was correct, Lyra was crying, asking everypony who walked by her if they saw her best friend that was now missing. “Somepony find Bonbon!” Lyra sobbed, the plead seemed to echo throughout the streets, making it much more sad as people walked by, looking at the puffy-eyed lonely pony. Apple Bloom took one last look, and saw something in the alley behind Lyra. A pair of glowing yellow eyes, floating in the darkness. She ran at top speeds, as if trying to escape something that hadn't even confronted her. She didn't care, she kept running, no matter how much out of breath she had become. Apple Bloom skidded to a halt in front of Carousel Boutique, almost slamming into the door and Sweetie Belle. “Whoa Apple Bloom! Slow down, you could have killed me, crazy!” “Sorry Sweetie, but I saw something that scared the mane off of me!” “Hey, did you hear that Bonbon was ponynapped? Poor Lyra...” “Ah saw Lyra this morning! She was so sad...” “Wait, what could have possibly scared you? You're the toughest filly in Ponyville!” “A pair of glowing yellow eyes, Ah saw 'em! In a dark alleyway, too!” Sweetie Belle paused for a moment, as if waiting for something to happen, but it didn't, she remained with a blank expression all the way to Scootaloo's house. And then it clicked. “So! They were just eyes! You should've poked em! What are you a chicken?” “No... not really but with all the disappearances lately, Ah tain't takin' any chances!” “Yeah, I heard that even Thunder Lane was ponynapped!” Scootaloo chimed in. “And no Sweetie Belle, Ah tain't a chicken,” and with that Apple Bloom gestured to Scootaloo as Sweetie Belle laughed. The three fillies arrived at the school, but the doors were locked. They looked around, and nopony else was dropping their foals off at the school. They then read a sign on the door that stated “Sorry, school will be closed until further notice, a teacher has gone missing.” The three fillies gasped. With all the disappearances and ponynappings going on lately, there was no way that this was a coincidence. The three fillies rushed to Cheerilee's house. They arrived at their teacher's house, out of breath, and fatigued, and they knocked on the door. The three fillies breathed a sigh of relief at what they saw next. Cheerilee, as happy as ever, greeted them with a smile on her face. “Hi girls, how are you?” “Oh... Miss Cheerilee, thank Celestia you're alright!” Apple Bloom managed to breathe out in between heavy panting. “Well of course I am girls! I really hope that Mr. Doo is okay!” “Ah hope so too Miss Cheerilee.” Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom trotted away, content that their teacher was okay, but worried about Mr. Doo and his fate. Scootaloo looked at Miss Cheerilee one last time, and realized that her eyes began to glow yellow. Scootaloo dashed away, and told Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Apple Bloom shivered at the thought. “Was Miss Cheerilee ponynapped?” Scootaloo pondered. “Or even worse, is she the ponynapper?” Apple Bloom continued. “Nah, Miss Cheerilee is the nicestest pony of all time! She wouldn't hurt a hair in a pony's mane!” Sweetie Belle added. The fillies trotted by another Cheerilee and looked in shock as their teacher walked by, towards her house. “Was... that just... Miss Cheerilee... again?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Yup.” Scootaloo barely managed to squeeze past her lips. “I suggest you ponies stop snooping, it might just save your lives.” The three fillies turned around in shock as a hooded stallion with glowing yellow eyes glared at them. “Hello girls, let's see if you would make good ponies. I've had a hungering for a fun one to fight lately, but everyone in Ponyville seems so weak. The strongest one was that colt from 4 nights ago.” Scootaloo, not knowing of what to do, flapped her wings furiously, and to her disbelief she began to hover a bit. The hooded stallion, tired of this pattern, yawned and pointed the device at her wings. Her wings became tied in a knot, as she fell to the ground. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom ran around the bend, looking back at their friend, who was being encircled by thick streams of magic data coming from the device. “No! Scootaloo!” Apple Bloom cried. Sweetie Belle, not willing to gave up, sped by as fast as she could, and pulled her friend out of the sphere of capture. Apple Bloom, obviously inheriting some of her Granny Smith's strength and speed, ran and kicked the stallion's foreleg, which could have easily been fatal, had he not had the device. Scootaloo remained unable to move, and Sweetie Belle tried to untie her wings with magic, as their brave little friend was fighting a battle that she was more than likely to lose. Agile little Apple Bloom, ran behind him and bucked his back leg with all the strength she could muster. This sent the stallion forward a little bit, and he began to limp. He turned to aim the device to heal himself, but at the last second, the olive little filly kicked the device out of his mouth. The device went spiralling, as Apple Bloom was shocked that she was actually beating him, but this victory was short-lived. Apple Bloom glanced over to see the device locking onto it's former target, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle hadn't noticed the threat approaching. “Sweetie Belle, run!” Sweetie Belle looked up, seeing what was about to happen. They say in a period of danger an animal's instincts will take over, and that's exactly what hers did. She kicked Scootaloo out of the way, and began to run, but she realized the air had gotten much denser, and she wasn't on solid ground anymore. The stallion smirked. “Looks like these three little ponies are quite worth the fight.” Sweetie Belle was imprisoned in a large sphere of energy, a one way barrier. Anything could get in, but nothing was getting out. Scootaloo was lying face-down on the ground, her wings weren't in a knot anymore, but the device had paralysed her from any further movements. Apple Bloom could move, and remained uninjured, but her friends would be impossible to save. Save Scootaloo, lose Sweetie Bell, save Sweetie Belle, lose Scootaloo, or all three of them are doomed. Apple Bloom backed away, and realized a major flaw in the device. All the buttons were so large because of the possibility of pressing more than one with a hoof, that the labels were easy to see. She set her sights on a large blue button labelled “release” she looked at the stallion, who was happily walking over to claim his prize. “Not on mah watch you don't!” a deep voice, obviously coming from a stallion, declared against the hooded pony. “It's okay li'l Apple Bloom! AJ and Big Mac are here to save the day!” Apple Bloom glanced over to see her sister, rope in hooves, staring intensely at the stallion. Big Mac tossed Scootaloo on his back, and they released Sweetie Belle shortly after, but by the time that was done, the Stallion was gone, and so was the device. “Well our luck,” “It's okay sis! You saved all three of us! That's more than enough.” “That's not the point, Apple Bloom, your brother and I wanted to catch this ponynappin' stallion before he hurts anypony else, we want Ponyville to be safe! And the 5,000 bits is enough to fix Granny Smith's hip, buy a new barn and silo, and have some livin' money left over!” “Eeyup.” “Is that all Big Mac can say?” Scootaloo inquired quizzically. “Nope.” The strong stallion responded. The five ponies laughed and began to trot back to the Apple Family's apple stand, Applejack and Big Macintosh refusing to let the fillies go off alone while that stallion was roaming around free. At the apple stand, Rarity passed by, and stopped to chat with Applejack. “Applejack, darling, what's wrong?” “Uh... Nothin' Rarity.” “Applejack, I can tell you're worried, and judging by the way you're fidgeting, it isn't over something trivial.” “Well, these three little fillies were almost ponynapped today, and Scootaloo hasn't been able to move a muscle since. She can talk, but we think it was a strange spell of some sort, maybe Twi'll be able to reverse it.” “Can I take a look at the darling, look for any signs of magic being used?” “Go 'head, partner.” Rarity trotted over to Scootaloo's motionless figure, and gently examined her body, looking for signs of magic that would be impossible for a regular pony to notice. “Rarity, what're ya pokin' and proddin' at her for?” “Looking at signs of magic entry, no matter how small, there is normally a very slight discolouration of matter where the magic entered, after years of using magic, somepony with such an eye for detail will start to notice these things, and I also searched her system with my magic after and there was no signs of remnants of magic, so it must have been something quite odd to be able to do that.” “Rarity, 'r ya shore that this wasn't usage of magic?” “Darling, do you think that my eye for detail would be unable to notice such large things like this?” “Quite frankly, Rarity, Ah'm not shore, but your eye for detail is the only one Ah'd trust, so it's all we've got to work with fer now.” “I'm sure Twilight will be able to fix her, but for now, she can't go home, her mother is one of the recently captured.” Fluttershy happened to be walking by at this time, noticing Scootaloo lying down in the apple stand. “Um... I... Um... can't help but overhearing that Scootaloo needs a place to stay?” “Yes, that is right Fluttershy, Applejack and Big Macintosh over here actually saved the poor darling before she was almost ponynapped.” “Oh... Oh my!” “Rarity, Ah need you to take Sweetie Belle and go home, shore, her and Apple Bloom are watching Scoot over there, but it's troubling running the stand, watching those three, and staying alert for that thar stallion, even with Big Mac's help!” “Of course, darling, and I suppose you would like Fluttershy to take Scootaloo?” “Thank you, girls, Big Mac 'n Ah are really grateful!” “One more thing, I really am sorry to trouble you so much, but what does this stallion look like?” “Y... yes, I would like to know that too, if it's okay with you.” “Well he has a black hood, with a golden trim, and a dark coat, Ah couldn't catch his mane, but his eyes glow yellow, and he's really fast, Ah didn't even notice he disappeared!” “Thanks again, darling, Sweetie Belle, it's time for us to go home!” “Aww, come on!” Sweetie Belle wailed. Fluttershy walked over and placed Scootaloo on her back. She said goodbye and walked off to her cottage. “Apple Bloom, you do not leave this stand without Bic Mac 'n Ah, ya hear me?” “Okay, sis.” “Big Mac, keep 'n eye on Apple Bloom!” “Eeyup.” When Rarity and Sweetie Belle arrived home, Rarity told Sweetie Belle to go upstairs, because she had lots of business to attend to. In reality, her eye for detail came to the rescue again, as she noticed a pony in the distance, walking slowly towards Carousel Boutique. Sooner than he knocked on the door, he was assaulted with threads, needles and rolls of fabric. He easily dodged all of them, and as he moved, Rarity noticed his cutie mark. “Hmm, you're not the brightest stallion, are you?” “Huh?” “It's easy for me to see many things about you. First of all, most of your coat is faded, meaning high exposure to magic, possibly a fight with a unicorn? Secondly, your mane is like bedhead, and even it is faded, being originally a bright orange, now being a pale tangerine, suggesting more than one fight, and against a very strong unicorn, judging by the expression on your face, you lost. And, there is multiple hoof prints on your legs, and sides, some deeper imprints than others, implying you fought at least one other stallion, not just Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. Next, Your unicorn horn isn't very well hidden by your spiky hair, and judging by the magic residue emanating from the device on your waist, it takes quite a lot of magic to control. Your eyes also aren't the green that is told by your contacts, suggesting that you thought such a poor trick could possibly fool me. Also, your cape is far too light, meaning it flows with the wind quite a lot, allowing me to see your cutie mark. Which is a joystick for a video game, and you are panicked that I know all this information, which is why you are preparing the device for a capture, judging by the magic surrounding the capture button. Finally, that lovely shade of pink your cheeks are turning makes me think that you have a crush on me. And I have also already figured out what you do with the ponies, using common sense, and I find it disgusting using other ponies for your own entertainment, the only thing that is even more disgusting, is that they are mindless, because Scootaloo told me that when you attacked her with that device, she said her mind began to fade away, everything going blank.” The stallion stood dumbfounded, as all these deductions were dead on the nose. “Oh, and darling, by the way, that cloak is very inconvenient when fighting a unicorn.” “What?” His hood was quickly pulled over his face, and sewn to the neck on his cloak. Without any delay, Rarity rushed towards him and delivered a swift kick to the nose as he howled in pain. “Rarity, what's going on down there, there's a lot of crashing, can I come down?” “No! Do not come down Sweetie!” “But-” “Sweetie! If you even THINK about coming down here, you will not see the other Crusaders for a MONTH!” “Hmm, looks like this pony's got a lot of fight in her.” The stallion smirked. “You are darn, right you ruffian!” Rarity, adrenaline taking over, quickly bound his legs with a roll of fabric, and tossed him outside, where he slowly backed away from Carousel Boutique. “And stay away from Ponyville!” Rarity screeched as she slammed the door, and then swore as she realized that she just let the ponynapper go. “Rarity, what happened?” Sweetie innocently asked, standing at the top of the stairs. “Oh that ghastly ponynapper came back, but his nose and left legs are broken, so don't worry darling, he'll be gone for a good month or two.” “No, he won't! His device allows him to heal any and every wound!” “Please say that you are telling me a horrid joke!” “.... I can't lie to you Rarity...” “Oh, Celestia no!” “Yes, Rarity.” The stallion, broken and beaten sat down with his device, setting it to heal, and pointed it towards himself, a crackle of blue energy engulfed the stallion as the pain pinching every nerve in his legs slowly releasing, as if melting away. He smirked. The Elements of Harmony, eh? I'll have a lot of fun with these ponies, especially when I capture them. He walked over to Fluttershy's cabin, looking in as she treated all of her animals, and a paralysed Scootaloo, he could see her cabin overflowing with kindness. Stealthily trotting up, he quickly knocked on her door, and hid. When a different purple unicorn answered, he was astounded, but he still remained hidden, and when he realized that she was looking at him, his heart froze, and he became unable to move. She then grabbed a bunny that was in the bush beside him. “Angel, you really need to stop running away from Fluttershy, she's as nice as can be, and she really cares for you.” The two pegasus ponies were now with Twilight, conversing with her over why she walked to the door. Scootaloo then hugged Twilight, and thanked her. He managed to overhear their conversation. “Oh my gosh Twilight, thank you so much! It feels so good to move again!” “No problem, Scootaloo, but all that magic using will leave me weak, so we'll need to be extra careful, Fluttershy, you don't mind if Spike and I stay here tonight?” When hearing this, the stallion smirked, easy prey. “Oh... well... of course not. I'd love to have a couple of friends over, I'm really scared with all these ponynappings happening lately.” “Thank you so much Fluttershy!” “No problem, I love helping other ponies!” “Okay girls, let's go inside, we've got a long night ahead of us.” Twilight suggested. “Yeah!” “Y.... Yeah.” The next two hours were a long wait, with all the losing that he had been doing lately, he wasn't tolerating anymore. Sitting in this bush was boring, but thinking about the one and only Rarity made everything worthwhile. Somewhere along the line, his thoughts turned to dreams, and those dreams were happy ones, the types of dreams where you could stay forever and not leave, the last thing he remembered was hearing the inhabitants of the cottage next to him saying a chorus of “good nights” before the environment around him blurred and a dopey smile slowly spread across his obscured face. Fluttershy, however was unable to sleep, her feelings a platter of worry for herself and ponyvillians, excitement over the approaching camping trip, happiness that Scootaloo was fine, and sorrow over all the lost ponies. She stayed awake, sitting at her kitchen table, worrying of what would happen if the stallion came back. She didn't have an eye for detail like Rarity, a cannon like Pinkie, the ability to fly at sonic speeds like Dash, she wasn't strong like AJ, and even though Twilight was with her, her magic was weak at the moment. She wouldn't be able to help anything, she'd just be able to sit there and watch as one by one, her friends were taken, and eventually she would be, too, but eventually, her worry went away, and she too fell asleep at the kitchen table. The stallion rose with the sun, wondering what had happened, and then he remembered. This morning, I've got a job to do. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic © by Hasbro/Lauren Faust All Characters belong to their rightful owners I do not claim ownership over anything used in this story.
Chapter 3The bright sun slowly rose over Ponyville, signalling the end of the night and the start of a new day. It slowly pushed the moon out of the sky, giving the sky a purple-pink tinge to it. A stallion sat on his haunches, rubbing his temples with his hoof. “Oh sweet Celestia, I can't believe I didn't manage to catch even one of them.” He remembered the past week and three days, trying to capture one, two, three... eleven ponies, and every attempt failing. He remembered back to the very first fight, attacking those three little fillies, and the elder Apples came to the rescue. Oh man, my neck hurts just thinking about what could have happened with that rope the orange one had. And the fight with the Rarity, smiling and blushing as he remembered every stunning detail of her Boutique, and her. The sweet smell of perfume, the amazing dresses and suits, even the fabric was so gorgeous. And her, she was the perfect embodiment of beauty. He smiled even wider. Her eyes. Her deep blue eyes. Her mane. Her luscious purple mane. Her laugh. Her sweet laugh. Her hoof print on his cheek, that killed like a witch, he'd get her back, even if he did love the simply stunning mare. He then thought back to the fight with the purple unicorn and the orange pegasus. Fluttershy slept at the table, the stallion peering in through the window in the early morning watched the cute butter yellow pegasus, her snores more quiet than a butterfly flying. Even she was cute, not Rarity cute, but I-wanna-hug-you-and-talk-to-you-and-you-are-super-adorable-like-a-puppy cute. The stallion slowly crept in through the front door, looking around at all the sleeping animals, and pressed his hoof against Fluttershy's neck. The pressure made the more jolt from her sleep, shocked and scared. “T-Tw-Twi-TWILIGHT!” The pegasus cried out. “Fluttershy! Don-” A lavender unicorn, a purple dragon, and an orange pegasus pony all rushed into the kitchen, to see the stallion with his hoof against Fluttershy's neck, ordering them not to move. “Finally, two Elements of Harmony... in one fell swoop!” The stallion smirked, obviously pleased. Twilight and Scootaloo lunged at the stallion, and he heard the sweet pegasus mare crying. Even he had a soft spot for such a cute creature. Not knowing what to do, he ducked, taking Fluttershy with him. Fluttershy began to cry much more. Not knowing what to do, he stayed under the table, and realized that he had the device on his waist, again. “A... A... Angel! Gr... Grab the thingy on his waist! If that's okay with you...” She ordered. The small bunny obliged, grabbing the device, and biting his owner's captor. Fluttershy jumped away, still scared and shaken, and rounded up her animals. The stallion then felt a large hoof swipe across his face. Twilight smiled and began to cast telekinesis magic, grabbing the... spatula in Fluttershy's kitchen. “Fluttershy! Where are the utensils?” “Well, since I don't really entertain company, I don't need the utensils, the animals don't use them, and neither do I, please don't be mad at me!” The purple unicorn sighed, and began swatting the stallion like a fly. The stallion, ignoring the actual slaps to the face, grabbed his device. He was going to prey on somepony, no matter the animal. He pointed the device at the animal horde, which took extra long to be drawn in, being of thirty, or more, animals. “Finally, a victory!” The stallion happily sang. “A hollow one, at that.” Twilight responded. A cry of pain rang out through the cottage, and Fluttershy began to shriek. “Fluttershy, what's wrong?” “My animals...” The pegasus mare sobbed. “My friends...” She continued. “Fluttershy, you'll be okay.” “No... I won't.” She paused. “It's my fault they were taken, and I'm going to get them back!” “Fluttershy, that stallion is long gone, you'll have to wait for the next time he comes.” Fluttershy began to openly cry in front of Scootaloo and Twilight. Twilight went to comfort her, something Angel would normally do. Fluttershy pulled away from Twilight, refusing to let anypony pity her. The stallion, leaving the cottage on the edge of the Everfree Forest, looked back. I won't be able to get them, yet. Magic seems as formidable as Honesty and Generosity. But when Kindness is alone... The stallion snapped back to reality, still upset that he hadn't captured anypony. But relieved that not a single pony, out of the eleven he had fought had turned him into the pony police. Just those ponies, the Elements of Harmony, the walleyed one, the trio of fillies, and that brown-maned stallion. If I can get them, the rest of Ponyville will be “easier than buckin' that thar Apple orchard.” As a farmpony would say. “Ugh, speaking of farmponies,” He grunted. He began to think of something, obviously bringing him pain just thinking about it. An orange pony with a Stetson hat planted her front hooves in the ground, using them as a pivot, and launching her back legs into a tree. The tree shook, and the apples came loose from the branches. They plummeted to the ground, and landed in bushels on either side of the tree. The farmpony smirked. “Hey Big Mac! That's the fourth parfect buck in a row!” She declared. “Oh is it, dear?” A stallion hissed. She whipped around, but it was too late. Lines of magic data encircled her, and she gasped. “You again! How dare ya'll show yor face 'round here again!” “Quite easily, there's very few ponies left that can stop me.” “Who're ya? What's yor name?” “Since you won't remember anything soon, I suppose it's a fine courtesy. I prefer the name, the Master of Games.” “Ha! Ya fool! Didja get that Big Mac?” “Eeyup.” A husky voice triumphantly cried. The stallion gasped. He had forgotten about that one. He whipped around, realizing his device had a weakness, if they were in two different places, he was only catching one. Applejack strained to get up, but none of her limbs responded. “Big Mac! Help!” The deep red stallion ran up to the circle that entrapped his sister, but it was more than too late, it was solidified. “AJ!” He began to cry. “Cutie Mark Crusaders Heroes! Go!” Three fillies grabbed the device out of his hand, pressing cancel before Applejack was drawn in, the shell was disconnected from the device, but it remained, not weakening at all, which made the stallion smirk. “It's been to long for her in that shell, she won't be able to move for at least a week, with magic.” Apple Bloom gasped. She dashed towards her sister, pawing at the shell. Sweetie Belle somehow forced magic, making the shell softly lighten. “Apple Bloom, it's no good.” Sweetie Belle strained. “We'd need Twilight and Rarity's combined efforts to get rid of it.” “Really?” Apple Bloom lamented. “Don't... worry girls,” Applejack winced, flinching with every breath, “get rid o' that thar stallion first! One more second and I'll be more simpleminded than Ditzy Doo!” The paralysed pony managed to force out. “Yes, ma'am!” But before the girls could do anything, they turned around, and the stallion was gone again. Winona, Applejack's pet dog, ran to her owner. The canine began to bark and bare her fangs, pawing at the shell. Big Mac grabbed the poor dog, and brought her back to the barn. Sweetie Belle strained with all her might, and stepped back, her body falling limply to the ground. “Sweetie Belle!” Scootaloo cried. Apple Bloom picked up their friend while Scootaloo worked on pushing the shell of magic data. They brought the two ponies back to the Apple family farm. The stallion snapped out of his thoughts once again, and looked around. That stupid mare deserved it, messing with me like that. If she somehow does recover before the camping trip, she'll be the first one to go. Who else did I go after this week? Oh right, that pink one... and the rainbow pegasus, the walleyed pegasus... and that brown-maned stallion with the hourglass cutie mark... On the outskirts of Ponyville, a stallion with a grayish-amber coat and dark amber mane stared intently at the hooded stallion that had appeared so much in the past week. “So... you're the famed Doctor Whooves then...” The Master of Games began. “Maybe, but your funeral is the next time someone will hear your name.” He retorted. The hooded stallion reached for his device, but Doctor Whooves was much faster, delivering a swift kick to the assailant's side and regaining his composure before the stallion hit the ground. “I suppose you can't have been very weak to capture half of Ponyville, but I know I can handle you with a blindfold.” “Well, the others never avoided me long enough for me to get serious.” Doctor Whooves didn't bother giving the stallion a chance. He stomped on the stallion's ribs, causing him to cough up blood and then disappear into green script of ones and zeros. “What the...” “Surprised? I suppose it's not everyday a stallion disappears.” The Master of Games began. The lines of data wrapped around Doctor Whooves, effectively hogtying him. “But, I suppose someone as strong to you must be quite dimwitted.” He finished. “Nope, just waiting for a good moment.” The Master of Games whipped around, and was met by a hoof across his cheek. Doctor Whooves was obviously at the advantage. “I suppose it would be easier to turn you over to the authorities if you weren't conscious...” The Doctor wound up for another attack, but was blasted by a wave of heat. A tall unicorn mare with a silver mane and a brilliant golden coat looked at Doctor Whooves. Her cutie mark was a number one. “Nobody can escape the grasp of Pride.” The mare claimed. Doctor Whooves gasped. “Pride? The Pride?” I can't let her hit me again while I'm this cocky, think of humiliating thoughts... The Doctor began to hang his head in shame, whatever he was thinking of was working. The Doctor began to stand up, recovering from the blast, but another blast hit him. It was cold, it made him feel like he wanted to kill things... Many things. A crimson stallion sat in front of the doctor, his face twisted in a frown. His mane was spiky, and a pale blue, his cutie mark was a face mimicking the one he made just then. “Wrath will also be joining you, Doctor.” The Master of Games stood up, obviously gaining ground. Pride... Wrath... I suppose that today is the day I lose. Wrath blasted him again, sending the same frosty sensation surging through his insides. He began to stand up, this was even more humiliating, being destroyed by one pony. Pride joined in on the assault, kicking him ruthlessly. Pride then conjured a mirror with her magic. She looked at the mirror, admiring herself. “You're so vain Pride, show a little restraint at least.” “How can you when you're as gorgeous as I am?” The Doctor scoffed. She really hadn't changed since the last time he'd seen her. Wrath cackled like a madman, and ice began to charge from his body, and now I die.... but he slipped on Pride's tail. “Pride? WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU!?!? YOU DID THAT ON PURPOSE!!!” Unless... “Wrath.” “What, ugly?! I wanna kill you, so hurry.” “That man,” He gestured to the stallion in the hood. “That man thinks you're useless, in fact, after this, he'll probably toss you aside.” Pride began to smirk. She would survive no matter what, she was untouchable. Wrath would kill the Doctor, and the Master of Games, and she wouldn't have to lift a hoof. Wrath's eyes slit like daggers. He looked towards the stallion in the hood, and gathered ice around his hoof. Wrath rushed at the stallion, and knocked him out with a single hoof. Wrath turned towards the Doctor. “Going easy on him, I see.” The Doctor taunted. “My wrath will reach everyone. I'm saving him for later.” Well, I'm dead. Just then, a bluish grey streak of light collided with Wrath, knocking him over and forcing the angry stallion to swear. The grey blob stood up, and revealed a blonde mane, and gradient amber eyes. The eyes focused for a short time, and then became walleyed, giving her a cute, goofy expression upon her face. She bounded over to the Doctor, making sure he was okay, and turned around, realizing she accidentally knocked out the stallion she crashed into. She gasped. “Doctor! I didn't mean to hurt him! What do we do!?” “It's okay Derpy, he isn't very good anyways.” Derpy smiled, and looked at Pride, who stood shocked. Derpy flew away, and the Doctor limped towards Ponyville Hospital, leaving the stallion and those two behind. The Doctor... Quite the formidable foe... The stallion's gaze fixated on a rainbow, and then remembered the last of his many fights in the past week. A hooded stallion walked into Sugar Cube Corner. It was early, so nopony was around. He trotted up to the counter, confident in his stride, and placed his hoof over the bell, signalling Mrs. Cake or Pinkie Pie to assist the customer. Like he had hoped, it was the latter. A frizzy maned pink mare landed on the floor at the bottom of the stairs, but not before doing a triple backflip. She trotted over to the customer, looked up, and gasped. “YOU! The author told me about you! The author told me a lot of things! A LOT!” The stallion stood in disbelief at what she was saying. He thought about it for a moment, letting his brain process the information, but before he came even close to his goal, icing splattered all over his face. “That's right, the author told me you didn't like cake!” Whoever this author person was, he certainly knew a lot about the Master of Games. The author? If he finds out anymore, I'll track him down even if he's in Fillydelphia! The stallion began to move again, clearing up his clouded thoughts, and lunged at Pinkie with death in his eyes. Pinkie flipped out of the way, and grabbed her party cannon. The stallion lunged at her again, this time missing and hitting a shelf of cake, which Pinkie's extendo-tongue ate all of. Pinkie smiled and leaned back, her belly swollen slightly from eating such large amounts of food. The stallion ran at Pinkie one more time, and slipped on a banana peel. Oh how he wanted to get out of that crazy place, but if he did the pink mare would spread the information that the author had told her. He had to stop her! But by the time he had snapped out of his thoughts, he was loaded into the party cannon and ready for fire. “HEY RAINBOW DASH! RAINBOWDASHRAINBOWDASHRAINBOWDASHRAINBOWDASH!” “WHAT PINKIE!?” “FIGHT INCOMING! PREPARING FOR FIRE!” “GOT IT! LEMME STRETCH!” The stallion struggled, trying to get out of the cannon, but it was too late, the fuse had burned out, and he was fired through the clouds, and caught by a rainbow-maned pegasus mare. The mare threw him up even further, meeting his peak height before he did. And with a swift hoof-spin, she had hoof chopped him, definitely strong enough to hurt, but he was somehow still in mid-air. He then felt a rush. An extremely strong rush. Hooves planted into his stomach, and wind forcing it's way through his mane. Was he falling? No. Too fast for that. Maybe... That crazy mare was trying to pull that off! He could feel a wind funnel forming around them. The tunnel was getting thinner as his body was contorted like an ironing board, almost folding in half. He heard a boom, felt a rush, and blacked out. The pegasus mare however, landed in a different spot than he had. Luckily for him. Well, not so luckily. Six broken ribs, one broken hind leg, and he couldn't get the taste of cake out of his mouth. At least he was still on his lucky streak of avoiding arrest. The stallion shivered. He remembered each detail of that fight vividly. He would never forget the pain in his ribs, and he was going to get those Elements if he had to kill them. The sun began to set over Ponyville, giving a stunning pink tint to the sky. It was amazing. “Twilight darling, how much longer do we have to concentrate?” Rarity whined. “We've got to go pack for the camping trip tomorrow!” “Just a little longer Rarity, we can't touch the shell directly with our magic, otherwise paralysis could afflict us, too.” “Uh, sugar cubes, I don't mean to be rude or anythin', but you've been at this magic for two days straight, and the shell hasn't wavered in the slightest!” “Oh... Um... I'm not very good at standing watch... Maybe.... Pinkie Pie and Rainbow are fine?” “Okay Fluttershy, just don't make any noise.” “O... Oh... Okay, I'll try not to...” She whispered, barely audibly. “Rarity, start forming a shell with your magic, make sure it covers Applejack completely, but don't touch the data spell.” “Yes, dear.” Brilliant blue light slowly began to encircle Applejack, gently lifting her slightly off of the ground. “Applejack, this may be putting slight strain on your body since you just healed, bu when Rainbow and Pinkie stretch the shell, you need to buck it as hard as you can.” “Er... Won't ah get paralysed again?” “Oh.” “Twilight, dear, maybe we could try poking holes in it with our magic?” “But Rarity, we'd get paralysed.” “No, darling. The outside of the shell is rough, and judging by the data running through it, it's a weak lightning link that has a chance to induce paralysis.” “Yes, Rarity, we could get paralysed.” “The middle of the shell however, is made of a plasma-like substance, which our magic will not be affected by at all, we could gently push it open through a magic drill, if you will.” “We can try.” The two unicorns began to strain their magic, as a small drill made of blue-and-pink glow began to spin rapidly. It slowly moved towards the shell, and with the precision of a surgeon, Rarity quickly swerved the drill, causing Twilight to panic, but Rarity had found a new angle. It was a small crack around the side of the shell, but Rarity noticed the plasma layer. The drill lunged forward, and slammed right through the shell. As soon as the plasma began to drip out, the shell became soft, and it's energy had faded. Applejack stood up, and stretched. She looked around, and began trotting again, as if making sure everything was okay. She began to trot home. She couldn't wait for the camping trip tomorrow. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo made their way into the schoolyard, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo carrying a sleeping bag, while Sweetie Belle seemingly carried Carousel Boutique on her back. The trio walked into the classroom, and took their seats at their desk. Miss Cheerilee counted off the fillies. “Apple Bloom?” “Here, Miss Cheerilee!” “Diamond Tiara?” “Ugh, over here.” “Dinky Hooves and Dizzy Hooves?” “Here!” “Over...” crash “Here!” After counting off all fourteen fillies, seven mares walked into the room. Applejack was the first to walk in, followed by Derpy Hooves, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Twilight and Spike, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity. “Applejack, you'll be watching Diamond Tiara, and... Peachy Pie!” “Yes, ma'am!” “Derpy Hooves, you'll be watching Twisty Doo, and Fighter Fly!” “Okay Miss Cheerilee!” “Rainbow Dash, you're in charge of Scootaloo and Dizzy Hooves!” “Yes! I got the Squirt!” “Fluttershy, you don't mind watching Mango Dash and Sunny Daze, right?” “Oh... Um... Yes Miss Cheerilee.” “Twilight and Spike, Dinky Hooves and Sweetie Belle.” “I see....” “Pinkie, you get Pinkie Fly and-” “YESYESYESYESYES!!!” “Twist...” “NicetomeetyouTwist,mynameisPinkiePie,andIlovetomakepeoplesmileandlaugh,Ihopewehavefuncamping!” “And finally, Rarity, you get Silver Spoon, and Apple Bloom.” “Thank you for inviting me, dear.” The fillies each went off to their councillors, all unaware of the eyes watching them. I do not own anything used in this story! My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is © by Hasbro I think that's it.
