Romp

Crouched upon a pillar of ancient ruins, I peer down into the open temple grounds. He clutches the ancient treasure in his tail, smirking at the thing with glee while his feline minions sleep around his throne. I reach over and grab the vine beside me, being careful to wait until he lifts the statue in just the right spot. My ears flick forward as he begins to speak…

“With Daring Do out of the way, the world will suffer mightily at my hands.” He lifts the statue into the sunlight. “I… am… victorious! AAHAHAHAHAHAAAA—”

“I’ll take that!”

Clutching tight to the vine with a fetlock, I swing down and snatch the statue out of the palm of his tail.

“Wh-what?! NOOOOO!!!”

Soon as my hooves land on the far cliff, I toss the vine away and spin around to soak in his disappointed face. “Better luck next time, Ahuizotl!” Then, with a tip of my hat, I’m off into the sunset with my prize.

And so, with Ahuizotl defeated, and the Sapphire Statue secured, the world was safe and sound once again, thanks to me! Daring D—

“OOMPH!”

… nngh… wh… wh-what just happened?

Suddenly, I realize I’m sprawled out on the ground, my muzzle dug into the thick, wet grass beneath me. The edge of the jungle glistens with dew from the blurred edges of my periphery. My nose throbs with a dull pain, and as I shift my weight forward, it presses against something firm.

Slowly, groaning, I crane my head up and blink.

Ahuizotl stands over me with a triumphant sneer— and with good reason. He snakes his tail into view to hold the Sapphire Statue just out of my reach, reflecting the setting sun behind me. “Surely you did not think I would be defeated so easily?”

I grit through the pain welling in my muzzle and stand to my hooves, tilting my hat back with a muddy hoof. “How did you get up here so fast?”

Ahuizotl’s sneer falls into a frown as he lifts the statue higher. “You thought you could evade me and capture the relic for yourself, but you are sadly mistaken, Miss Do. And now, you shall meet your doom!”

I blink at the words. Something… feels off. Something aside from the fact that I’ve lost the statue. Again.

Okay, focus. I toss my hat aside and crouch low to the ground, preparing to leap for the statue. But when my eyes meet the topaz gemstone set in its base, I freeze.

Wisps of blue steam begin to flow from the stone’s edges, then out of the mouths of the two heads, slowly enveloping Ahuizotl in a shroud of magic. “Did you ever wonder,” he says as his body slowly lifts into the air, “how exactly I planned to go about taking over the world?”

I narrow my eyes at Ahuizotl, refusing to take part in his distracting dialogue. Rearing all my weight onto my haunches, I buck against the ground and leap for the statue. My hoof manages to graze the edge, but then I fall back on all fours, statueless and wincing. “Nngh… y-you won’t get away with this,” I manage to sputter, glaring at the beast.

“Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure of that this time, Miss Do.” He and the statue turn to face me, just before the shroud of magic solidifies into a blue orb. “Allow me to show you my ultimate plan…”

I squint at the orb, folding my ears back. The magic seems to pull at everything around me – the grass, the trees, even the clouds afar. A whirlwind quickly forms around us, and I have to stumble back a few paces to keep from getting pulled in.

Then, the orb flashes white, and I’m nearly deafened by a bone-jarring bang from all around. I feel my body hurl in the air before skidding across the wet grass, only for the back of my head to slam against something hard.

“OUCH… urgh… what in the—” I hesitate at the sound of a far deeper thud in front of me. Stumbling to my hooves, I shake off the impact and pry open an eye to see…

…Oh Celestia, no…

Standing far, far above the jungle’s terminus, a giant Ahuizotl grins down at me. His voice booms across the land. “With this power, no one shall be able to defeat me!”

For once, I’m inclined to agree.

I attempt to take a step back, but find my legs incapable of making the move since they’re currently occupied with trembling uncontrollably.

Ahuizotl lifts a palm over me. What strength remaining in my limbs escapes me, and I collapse onto the ground. Instinctively, I throw my hooves over my head and close my eyes. I hear the rush of his hand through the air above me. Every muscle in my body tenses. Then…

…Nothing.

My ears flick up. The world around me is strangely silent. I weather the tremors running through my body for a moment, fighting with all my will to keep from completely breaking down. After what feels like minutes, I manage to lift a hoof away from my eyes to peek out at the world in front of me.

A pillar of soundless, dark blue magic pours down from the sky over Ahuizotl, covering the creature in a mystic aura that glistens before the setting sun. A moment later, the aura shrinks in on itself with the crackling of a strained spell. I stare in awe at the strange phenomenon – until my instincts tell me to take cover.

Wheeling around, I dive into a thicket of grass and cover my head once more. A white flash penetrates my closed eyes, followed with a shrill pop. Then… something warm blankets over me. I’m startled by the sensation at first, until I realize just how pleasant it feels.

With a bit of hesitation, I slide my hooves off my head and into the grass. I allow my ears to lift a little, just in time to hear a soothing voice murmur from behind.

“Greetings, Princess Twilight.”

A voice I’m ever so thankful to hear.