Canterlot Academy Trials

Just like with Gaea’s head from before, everyone would travel into the vast emptiness of Zesty Gourmand’s Mindscape. Also just like before, Blue had become his alter-ego known as ‘Wyvern’ with his brown, nomadic style armor and Grimrose had become ‘Priestess’ with the same gothic dress and veil costume as before.

“Alright,” Blue flexed his claws, noting how his appearance had remained consistent during travel between the Mindscapes. “Looks like I’m Wyvern again. How about you, Ros--er, Priestess?”

“Here,” the pegasus mare replied as she lifted her veil to show her face a tad before letting it back down. “But where’s the other two members of our team?”

“...woah…” Nebula stepped forward as he glanced around himself. Just like the others, he had been outfitted with his own ‘hero’ costume of sorts. A set of blue and white mage robes and a hood accompanied by a leather holster on his left hoof for his recorder to grab at a moment’s notice. The robes concealed most of his body underneath and his hood served as a way to conceal his face not unlike Wyvern’s hood. “I look like a real knight now, huh?”

“You could say that again,” Blue agreed, “Like a powerful sorcerer from one of those AK Yearling books!”

“Very nice…” Rose added with a nervous smile before turning her attention to Mei… “Mei? Is that you?”

Mei’s costume was a suit of leather that was colored both yellow and dark green to match her mane alongside a green cloak that came up to a rather wide collar. Along with this, there was now a feather tricorne hat that matched the cloak’s green color, which gave her the appearance of someone mysterious.

“...It feels a bit awkward around my flank,” Mei muttered as she took a look around herself. “But I think I like it. And the rest of you look pretty snazzy too,” she added with a giggle while looking at Blue in particular.

“Sweet!” Blue cheered with a thumbs-up. “I could barely tell it was you for a sec, honestly.”

“Nice,” Nebula added, “So this is what happens when we come here, huh? It’s like secret identity costumes…from comic books. Huh.”

“That’s right,” Grimrose added with a nod, “And to keep our identities hidden from the individual whose mind we’ve invaded, we make use of codenames so that we don’t let our target know who we are. I am Priestess, and that’s Wyvern,” she added while pointing her hoof at Blue who nodded with her.

Nebula rubbed his hoof against his chin. Taking into account the comment about looking like a sorcerer… “Hrm…alright, call me ‘Archsage’ while we’re here.”

“Archsage?” Blue mulled it over, and came to like it, “Alrighty, leader. You’re Archsage now.”

“I like it,” Rose smiled under her veil and looked at Mei. “What about you?”

The kirin mare had already figured it out for herself. Given that Blue almost didn’t know who she was with this outfit on… “Trickster. Master of mystery and confusion. And Archsage is a great name for our leader.”

“Trickster’s a good one,” Nebula agreed, “What about the rest of you guys?”

“Trickster it is,” Rose added.

“Feels cryptic and matches well with her style,” Blue grinned, “Trickster it is.”

Mei--who was now Trickster--nodded, and started to trot forward through the vast emptiness of Zesty’s mind. “Interesting. So we're essentially rooting around in someone's head and all they can tell is that it's a dream?"

"Pretty much," Priestess replied.

Archsage spoke his mind in reference to his little experience with Gaea's head. "No wonder Gaea was so spooked when we got back…it all makes sense now that I'm actually in someone else's. Feels strange, but I'm into it."

"Yep, however," Trickster remarked as she trotted forward, "...Nothing here so far. What do we do in someone's mind exactly?”

Blue--or rather, Wyvern--couldn’t help but shrug his shoulders as he spread his wings and took off. “Move in, do what we can until--”

“Wyvern, get down!” Archsage Nebula shouted as something flashed in front of the group!

A bolt of magic that barely whizzed by, and grazed one of Wyvern’s wings. When the group looked up from where they stood to locate the source of the blast, they were met with a familiar mare wearing a completely different outfit herself…

Zesty Gourmand approached them. Or at least, it looked like Zesty Gourmand wearing a black suit with a blue sash around her body. On it was bold white letters that read, 'International Culinary Ambassador' on it. “How dare you disrespect my authority as a member of the Gourmand Family? I am the international culinary ambassador who will live up to the expectations that Canterlot has placed upon me!”

“What in the fresh hell is even--?” Wyvern spread his wings and flew down to the empty floor of her mind. “What is wrong with you, lady?”

A simple observation of her attire allowed Trickster to deduce Zesty’s inner self rather quickly. “...she sees herself as a high-ranking political figure. Someone whose influence should be spread across the world.”

“You’re kidding…” Wyvern muttered in disbelief as he grit his teeth. “How fuckin’ greedy and self-centered can you be?! You’re worse than some of the dragons I know!”

“Oh please,” Zesty scoffed and waved her hoof, “You foolish children wouldn’t know good cuisine if it forced its way down your throat. Why don’t you listen to my colleagues?”

Before them, several other classy ponies would appear within Zesty’s mind. Many of them looked identical to some of the ponies living in the penthouse building that she lived in.

“Zesty’s word is absolute,” a stallion insisted. “My catering business only serves her food and nothing else.”

“My children only eat the food she approves of,” a mare added, “They’re no longer rambunctious little demons and do as they’re told.”

“Who cares if ponies get a bit thinner?” another stallion spoke up, “Large body features filled with fat are disgusting and uncouth.”

“You young ladies should be ashamed of yourselves,” another mare scoffed at Trickster and Priestess’ body shapes. “Such extra body weight is unacceptable in today’s Canterlot society. Consider working out.”

“WHAT?!” Trickster yelled as she leapt out in front of the group--her body became a jet-black nirik under her robes. “I work out plenty! Thank you very much! I’ve always just been a bit bottom-heavy!”

“Hey, hey…Trickster, calm down,” Wyvern urged her to relax as he walked up to her.

Archsage had taken a moment to deduce who those ponies were, even recognizing some as those he passed in the hallway on the way to the elevator. “...I get it now. These are the ponies that agree with Zesty’s ideas in regards to how Canterlot should be run.”

“They’re doing a terrible job at it,” Priestess commented snidely as she glared at Zesty’s inner self, “Everyone is living in a bland state of misery thanks to you. Don’t you care about how Saffron’s place is about to go out of business because of what you’ve done?”

Zesty scoffed at this as she turned around. “Hmph. That foreign nobody? She has no place in my Canterlot.”

“Bullshit!” Wyvern hissed as he spread his wings and took flight, “Your daughter and husband don’t even believe your lies--hey, why are you walkin’ off?! I’m talkin’ to you, bitch!”

“I grow tired of this constant, dragged out conversation,” Zesty muttered as she trotted away. “Deal with them for me.

The remaining ponies in Zesty’s mind stood prepared to fight for her. Not only did she see herself as a political figurehead, but to her, everyone else in Canterlot was to uphold her authority or be disposed of. Which is exactly why she had chosen to hide behind her colleagues instead of standing and fighting for her own ideals.

For she was a cowardly old mare.