Equestria: The Gathering

by Indigo Steel

Rating: teen
Tags: Slice of Life, Alternate Universe, Human, Romance, Comedy
Length: 2060

The kids of Canterlot High play a card game featuring familiar characters. It's time to DUEL!

Equestria: The Gathering is the latest, greatest card game ever, and for obvious reasons, the kids of Canterlot High are particularly crazy about it! Sweetie Belle is one of the better players, and she has entered into the first international tournament! Her victory is far from assured, however, as she must contend with Diamond Tiara, her rival Button Mash, and a certain group of six friends…

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2015-03-14 02:59:07 UTC

Throwing the Gauntlet

Despite the existence of a magical doorway to a world of multicolored ponies and other assorted beings, with said doorway being the source of the occasional "incident" or two, Canterlot High was a normal school in a normal town. In fact, now that both the existence of the portal and the concept of Equestrian magic has become more or less common knowledge, the school, and by extension the town, has simply learned to adapt and move forward.

In fact, some have even managed to thrive and profit from the situation...

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The two combatants glared at one another; One with fierce determination, the other with boundless hatred.

One of them stood vigil upon a vast plain, with mesas and rock formations in the distance. The normally serene and peaceful place now played humble host to a magnificent army unlike any other...

Pegasus Angels ruled the sky, flying in formation with flaming swords and shining silver armor draped in pristine white robes, their eyes and halos shining like stars.

Earth Pony Knights marched in perfect rank and file, wearing full plate armor of gleaming polished steel, their blades sheathed on one side, their shields worn on their opposite forelegs. The mighty Paladins that commanded each unit wore similar arms and armor, only more ornate and gold-trimmed to show their authority.

Intermixed within the ground forces, Unicorn Wizards walked at their own pace, their beautifully embroidered white robes flowing in the breeze, their horns and various amulets, wands, and staves crackling with raw power. The Unicorn Clerics were far less noticeable, their robes clean yet simple, as they, too moved with the army, speaking prayers or silent mantras while their horns emit a warm, subtle glow.

The leader of this great army was a blindingly beautiful Alicorn wearing ornate golden armor, bejeweled with rubies and topaz that reflected the radiance of her flowing aurora-like mane that moved gracefully, as if in a constant breeze. The elegant sun-shaped sigil that was her Cutie Mark was emblazoned upon the front of her armor.

Not far away, The opponent  stood, holding dominion over a dark swamp of bubbling puddles, dense overgrowth and a light shroud of fog. The swamp was likewise disturbed by the approach of a terrifying horde the likes of which could only exist in nightmares...

The skies were awash in the chaotic swarms of buzzing and humming horrors best described as more insect than pony, with their solid blue eyes, malformed legs, chitinous skin, massive fangs, sharp horns, and of course, their gossamer-like insectoid wings.

Crawling low to the ground were long-bodied variations of their brethren, skittering in s-shaped patterns upon a thousand short legs attached to a hundred body segments. The heads resembled their body segments, with eyes, antennae, and small muzzled to distinguish them.

Walking also along the ground where similar pony-insect hybrids, except these had mandibles in place of muzzles, their wings replaced by two arms that extended to jagged, scythe-like blades.

Lumbering behind was yet another insect-pony variant, these were quadrupled in size, with thick, shiny chitinous armor throughout, Their horns were long and massive like thick pikes, their wings protected by a set of armored wing flaps made from the same thick chitin. One or two of them actually took to the skies, their swift wing beats making sounds like helicopter blades.

At their pinnacle was their ruler, an insect pony hybrid that stood tall and elegant, having a regal bearing despite her terrifying appearance, with long hair that seemed wispy yet full at the same time, shining green eyes full of malice, and a suit of armor that appeared to be made from a green glass-like substance, accented by green-gray metal inset with emeralds. A green flame pattern was  etched all across the armor. Behind her, her large wings sat almost cape-like upon her back. Her jagged horn glowed a bright green, along with her eyes.

"Your time is over, Solar Princess!" Spoke the regal insect-pony, "For I, Chrysalis Insectia, am the mightiest of the Planeswalkers! I will steal your love, steal your blood for my Changeling hive!"

The bright Alicorn's response, "Your vaunted might exists only in your twisted mind! I am Celestia Solara, and through me radiates the light of the sun! It is good and light that shall prevail this day!"

Chrysalis merely sneered at her foe. "We shall see who prevails when my forces and I drain you into nothingness! ATTACK!"

Both hordes charged one another, finally clashing in a furious chaos of sound and light! The two Planeswalkers, on the other hand, fought each other on their own terms...

"Sun Burn!!" Celestia called out, calling forth a torrent of golden plasma, scorching the Changeling Queen where she stood!

"AAAARRGH!!" Chrysalis yelled in pain, on her knees with smoke rising from her form. Meanwhile, a flock of Pegasi Angels made an attack formation, devastating a swarm of Changelings!

Rising to her hooves, Chrysalis countered, "Royal Jelly!"

Celestia suddenly became encased in a flowing orb of sickly green viscous fluid. She struggled to both move and breathe before the spell finally dissipated, leaving the jelly-stained Alicorn Princess coughing and gasping for precious air. Not far away, a Beetle Changeling crashed into a rank of Earth Pony Knights!

The battle raged on. Millipede Changelings carried off their wounded on some of their segments while detaching other segments, either as mines for the unwary or bombs for the flyers to drop. While Unicorn Clerics healed the injured, Unicorn Wizards provided wards and shields to protect them, as well as throwing fireballs and magic beams at the enemy. One wounded Earth Pony Paladin dueled with one of the Changeling Mantids, losing ground against the better armed adversary, until a trio of Knights came to his aid to vanquish the creature.

Celestia stood to her full height, her eyes radiating power. "This ends now! SOLAR FLARE!!"

A massive white plasma inferno engulfed Chrysalis, vaporizing her into ash before she could even register the sheer heat of the blast!

The Changeling Swarm retreated into their swamp at the defeat of their leader, the swamp itself vanishing. A mighty cheer rose from the remnants of the Solar Army, victorious once more!

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"Aww!" Twist said, picking up the cards she laid down from her Chrysalis Deck. "That's all my life points!" Sweetie Belle and Twist sat in the cafeteria of Canterlot High, their expansive card decks spread out over their respective sides of the table.

Equestria: The Gathering was a fantasy trading card game, The brainchild of Filthy Rich, marketed by one of his subsidiary toy companies, Funny Money. It was clear that he was inspired by certain "events" that were no doubt brought to his attention by any number of sources, including rumor, news reports, and his daughter Diamond Tiara. Whatever it's origin, however, the game was received with phenomenal acclaim,  a massive international fan base and, of course, billions in profit. Not only has the game thrived, but grown in size and complexity, creating new cards, new decks, expansions to old decks, accessories like dice, tokens and mats, even venturing into the realms of books and video games!

Canterlot, of course, was where the popularity of the game was at it's strongest. In fact, the town was preparing for what would be one of the biggest, if not THE biggest event in it's history: The first ever Equestria: The Gathering International Tournament!

Suffice it to say, the town populous was ecstatic, and anyone entering would need to get in all the practice they could get...which included Sweetie Belle and Twist.

"Thanks for the game, Twist." Sweetie Belle spoke, as she and Twist left the cafeteria, "I love 'Solar Flare!' Its a strong spell for a cheap mana cost!"

"You're just lucky I didn't draw 'Love Drain,' then I could've tapped all your mana and finished you off!" Twist said, lightly bumping Sweetie's shoulder.

Sweetie grinned. "So, are you still entering the tournament?"

"Absolutely!" Twist said, "Once I get my new Changeling Drone cards and Changeling Mite Swarm Tokens, I'll be able to use my "Changeling Rush" strategy to overwhelm my opponents early on!"

Sweetie Belle replied, "I believe in quality over quantity; I've finally got all three Sol Artifact cards, and If I get to use them with my Sword of Sol card, I can make Celestia an OP game-breaker! Nothing could stop me then!"

"That's what YOU think, loser!" A voice chimed, one that always grated on Sweetie Belle: Diamond Tiara.

Sweetie met her gaze. "You have something to say about my strategy, Miss 'I-keep-losing-despite-having-every-card-ever-made?'"

It was true, despite literally having access to every single item of ETG merchandise produced, her win\loss ratio was unbelievably embarrassing...having all the troops and weapons in the world had little impact if you lacked the ability to properly utilize them. Despite Sweetie's jab, Diamond's smirk remained. "What I have to say is this: A NEW DECK is going to be introduced at the tournament this weekend!"

The entire hall went silent. You could hear a pin drop. You could hear time itself moving. All eyes were on Diamond Tiara and she smiled, absorbing the rapt attention of several students and loving it.

Then came a cacophony of questions, demands, challenges, and comments, to all of which Diamond simply raised her hands for silence, which she got, at least to the extent that she could continue:

"The new deck has been dubbed the Twilight Deck, and it will feature a new Planeswalker, Twilight Starshine, and it will be a Dragon and Golem based deck, with a special focus on Spells..." Diamond looked at Sweetie, "and Artifacts."

Sweetie Belle was slightly unnerved, but kept her cool. "So you're just going to use my strategy and pump up your cards with artifacts. How's that going to stop me from using my OP Celestia to own you?""

Diamond's smirk grew into a devious grin. "Simple. The Twilight Deck will introduce a new concept: Enchantment  Breaking!"

Gasps and murmurs could be heard amongst the students. Now, Sweetie was worried. "W-What?"

Diamond continued, "Can't beat a card because it's empowered by spells and artifacts? Not anymore!" She pulled out a deck of cards that did not appear to be her usual deck. "Guess who gets to use this new deck before ANYONE else?"

The students crowded around Diamond, all of them fawning over her new deck, as she fanned out the cards for all to see. Then, a voice with a southern accent called out, "HEY! Y'all can't have a new deck 'fore anybody else! That's cheatin'!"

Sweetie smiled at her friend Apple Bloom as she made her argument, a couple of other incensed students and fellow players backing up her opinion. Diamond Tiara, however, didn't miss a beat. "On the contrary, hayseed, this is perfectly legal! All Promos and Beta Tests are allowed...and I'm beta testing!"

Apple Bloom fumed. "That's a load o' horsesh..." The bell rang during the last word, and the students began to break up and report to their next classes.

"Look it up in the rules, if you don't believe me. See you at the tournament, losers!" Diamond said as she walked off.

Sweetie stared after her before continuing to class, with Twist and Apple Bloom walking alongside.

"Well..." Twist spoke up, "Maybe she'll play against me first in the tournament? MY strategy doesn't rely on artifacts or spells."

Sweetie shrugged. Apple Bloom chimed in, "Yeah, an' this is Diamond Tiara we're talkin' about...she couldn't win with three Planeswalkers and a deck o' nine-nines!"

"SWEETIE BELLE!" An adolescent male voice spoke dramatically. Sweetie groaned, turning to face her self-proclaimed rival...

"I challenge you....TO A DUEL!!" Button Mash challenged with a mighty point of his finger.

Sweetie motioned to the clock. "It's almost time for class." She deadpanned.

"Well, duh!" Button replied, "I meant after school! The soccer field! DO YOU ACCEPT!?"

Sweetie rolled her eyes. As annoying as he could be, he was still an excellent player, and did indeed rival her own skills. Plus she needed the practice...

Finally, she spoke, "Challenge accepted."

Button Mash grinned. "Then I'll see you on the field of battle! Now, TO CLASS!"

He rushed off to his next class. Sweetie couldn't help but smile at his antics. Still worried about Diamond Tiara but admittedly feeling better, she and her friends proceeded to class themselves.