Friendship Ends With You

by PaxtheDreamer

Rating: everyone
Tags: Gilda, Dinky Hooves, Adventure, Derpy Hooves, Pinkie Pie, Crossover, Trixie, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Length: 9929

Gilda's a jerk. We all know this. But after dying and landing in the Changeling's Game, she's given a second chance-both at life, and at friendship. "You have 7 Days. Fail and face Erasure."

Meet Gilda the Griffon. You might remember her from the season 1 episode "Griffon the Brush Off." She was a bully and a jerk, thinking she was cool and everyone else in the world (save Rainbow Dash) were a bunch of "lame brains." By the end of the episode, Rainbow Dash told her off and she left Ponyville in a huff, telling Rainbow Dash to call her back when she decided she wanted to be cool again.

Of course, Rainbow Dash never did... and that's the problem. Not only was she Gilda's best friend, she was her ONLY friend. Left alone for three seasons, Gilda's been traveling Equestria in search of... something. She just can't put her talon on it, though. Maybe she can find it at Canterlot's Festival of Friendship, a rare celebration that's happening in a little less than a month! There's just one teeny problem that's getting in her way of that goal:

Gilda is dead.

After sacrificing herself in the single selfless act she's ever done in her life, the Powers That Be give her an option to partake in a usually Ponies-Only challenge: The Changeling's Game. If she can survive for seven days, invisible on the streets of Canterlot, she can take back her life.

Strange things are happening in this game, though. Hidden agendas, double agents, and more Xanatos Gambits than you can wrap your head around... can Gilda get out of the game and take back her life? Will she be able to forge friendships along the way? All will be told, in time. Until then...

"You have 7 Days. Fail and face Erasure."

Published 2013-04-23 17:00:02 UTC
Last updated 2013-04-27 00:27:11 UTC

Prelude

Streets were full of ponies, walking this way and that. They were talking between each other, each one seeming to blend into the herd of movement while simultaneously standing out. From the plain Earth Ponies wearing naught but their coats and Cutie Marks, Unicorns trying to be the fanciest of the bunch, and… a single Griffon, trying to push her way through. To her, it seemed like everything was just closing in on her, suffocating her…

“Outta my face, dweebs!” The Griffon shoved against the Ponies. “You’re blocking my view.”

They gave her a few dirty looks as they parted. Groaning, the Griffon moved forward through the city, walking on all fours. The talking picked up in volume and rate, large packs of School Fillies chattering between each other, talking about the city, fashions, and the funny looking Griffon walking by.

“Ew, what is that?”

“Looks like a Griffon.”

“What’s a Griffon doing in Canterlot?”

“Dunno. You think we should talk to her?”

“How do you know it’s even a her?”

“Shut up!” Said Griffon snapped, turning her head to the Fillies. “Stop talking!”

The Fillies looked a bit taken aback by this, backing up in fear. The Griffon turned to find even more dirty looks thrown her way. She turned to see pretty much everypony in the area was glaring at her. She clenched her talons and growled.

“Just go away, lame brains!” she roared, taking off into the sky. She kept flying until Canterlot became a small dot in the distance.

That place was lame, anyway.

She focused her thoughts on flying, letting all her thoughts and cares fly through her mind. For a second, she could see the mental image of a rainbow-colored pony flying by her side, challenging her to a race and-

She shook her head, knocking that image out of her mind.

Friends… who needs friends? I’m the only friend I need.

She turned her head back to the dot with a glare.

I’ve got my values… so you can keep yours, alright?

She returned her gaze forward, losing herself in the clouds.

I don’t get any of those losers.

Never have.

Never will.

Twilight adjusted a new picture set above her mantle place. It was a cute little family photo that Twilight even remembered helping to take: Derpy and Dinkie Hooves sitting together under a tree, each one with a smile wide enough to rival the other's. It made Twilight tear up just looking at the picture, so she moved her head slightly to the left. This didn't help matters either, as her eyes fell upon a picture of Trixie. She remembered having that picture taken, too. In fact, it was only a month ago, shortly before she became an Alicorn. The two of them were starting to get along so well, in fact. Sure Trixie could be a bit self centered and annoying, but there was still a good Pony under all of that.

But now, she... all of them, they're...

Twilight choked back a silent sob, turning her head away from the pictures.

“Twilight?”

She blinked the tears from her eyes, finding herself looking at Spike. He was standing in the doorway, looking at Twilight in concern.

“Are you okay?” he asked, cautiously approaching her.

“I... yeah,” Twilight nodded as she dabbed at her eyes with a hoof. “I’m really sorry Spike, I know you hate to see me like this... I just...”

Twilight shut her eyes tight, a part of her hoping that if she closed her eyes hard enough she could stop up the tears before they could flow out. This was, of course, in vain.

“...this is about Derpy and Dinky, isn’t it?” Spike asked, stepping up to Twilght’s side. He placed a gentle hand on her side, the feathers of her wings brushing gently against his palm.

“And Trixie, and... and everypony else,” Twilight shook her head. “I... I feel like there was something I could do, anything.”

“Don’t think like that,” Spike said softly, looking up at her face. “Trixie’s wagon crashed, it was a complete accident. And Dinky, she was already getting sick with all of Ponyville’s best doctors looking at her.”

“I could have been there more!” Twilight’s voice broke slightly. “I could have... Derpy needed more support, and Trixie... I didn’t try as hard to be with her as I did my other friends, I just-”

She was cut off when Spike squeezed closer to her in a hug.

“Please stop saying things like that.” The wavering in his voice let Twilight know he was fighting back tears as well. “This has been hard on everyone. It’s NOT your fault they’re dead, Twilight. It never was.”

He looked up, meeting her gaze. Tears were welling in his big, childlike eyes.

“We need you, Twilight,” he said. “I need you. We’re all trying to be brave for each other... can’t you be brave, too?”

Twilight couldn’t help but smile slightly. “Spike...” She closed her eyes and nuzzled her head against his body, giving him the closest thing to a hug she could. “Do me a favor?”

“Anything.”

“...don’t ever stop being you.”

Spike beamed. “I can do that.”

They stood in silence, holding each other close. That is, until the silence was broken by a shattering BOOM!!! The tree shook, books flew off the shelves, and the two of them were thrown off their feet and onto the ground.

“What was THAT?!” Spike lifted his head and gave it a shake. “Is Rainbow Dash doing another Sonic Rainboom?”

“That felt a lot more violent than a Sonic Rainboom,” Twilight replied, hurrying to the door. “Stay here Spike, I need to make sure nopony else was hurt!”

Twilight slammed the door shut behind her, leaving Spike alone in the mess of a Library. Ponyville seemed to be in a minor state of chaos as Twilight made her way through town. She tried to get the attention of a few nearby Ponies, but they were mostly trying to make sure everything was okay. The few words she did manage to get out of them were about the Everfree Forest.

The Everfree... Zecora!

Horrible mental images flashed into her mind, the best of which was simply seeing Zecora’s picture added next to Trixie’s and the Hooves family’s. She put on an extra burst of speed, planning on shooting straight into the forest and to her hut.

“HEY! TWILIGHT!”

A rainbow streak shot down from the sky, and Rainbow Dash was suddenly in front of Twilight. Roughly five seconds later, the two of them were tangled up and sprawled out on the ground.

“Ow...” groaned Twilight.

“You have wings and you didn’t use them to break?” Rainbow Dash asked as she pulled herself up, offering a hoof to Twilight.

“I forget, okay?” Twilight took Rainbow Dash’s hoof in her own and pulled herself upright. “Look, we don’t have time! That explosion that came from the Everfree forest-”

“I know, that’s what I’m here to tell you!” Rainbow Dash interrupted. “Zecora and Fluttershy were found, we took them to the Hospital!”

“Oh no...” Twilight felt a rock drop in her gut. Rainbow Dash noticed how pale her friend’s face became.

“Look, they’re not hurt TOO bad!” Rainbow Dash clarified. “Just come with me!”

“Right!” Twilight nodded. Rainbow Dash took off into the sky, Twilight following on the ground behind her.

“...uh, Twilight!” Rainbow Dash called down to her. “Wings! Use them!”

“Oh!” Twilight spread her wings and shakily took off, following behind Rainbow Dash. In but a few minutes, the two Mares burst into the hospital lobby. Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie were all gathered in the Lobby, Zecora sitting nearby. She had gauze wrapped around her body and front legs as a Nurse tended to her wounds.

“Oh thank Celestia!” cried Twilight as she pounced on Zecora, hugging her close. “I was afraid you were... I mean, what with all the deaths that have been happening recently...”

“I appreciate your love, as right as rain,” Zecora wheezed. “But your hug is granting a lot of pain!”

“Oh!” Twilight pulled away, taking a few steps back. “I am SO sorry!”

“It’s alright, your reason was just,” Zecora shook her head. “But I’m afraid that I must, remind you all, and please don’t cry, but our worry should be for Fluttershy.”

“What even HAPPENED, anyway?” Twilight asked, looking between all her friends in the room.

“I don’t know!” Pinkie Pie jumped up. “I was hopping along to Zecora’s hut because I wanted to talk about my party cannon because it’s been jamming up recently and I thought she would have something to help make it stop jamming up because she’s good with dusts and oils and stuff and I figured some kind of oil might help but the only oils I have at the Bakery are for baking stuff and the last time I tried that the pudding was stuck in the drywall for DAYS and-”

Rarity clapped her hoof over Pinkie Pie’s mouth. She was still talking under it, but it was muffled.

“Long story short,” Rarity continued for her, “Pinkie saw our friend’s hut blow up, and both Fluttershy and Zecora were laying injured in the crater. She carried them both as far out as she could before Applejack and I met up with her.”

“We’re not answerin’ the important question, here,” Applejack noted, turning to Zecora as Rarity pulled her hoof off Pinkie Pie’s mouth. “What CAUSED that explosion?”

“Fluttershy came to me,” Zecora explained, “to help with a new recipe. A potion, that, in theory could calm the Monsters in the Wood. Fluttershy, with her stare, could get ingredients from anywhere. She could get fur from a beast as easy as Pinkie could finish a Feast.”

“Hey!” huffed Pinkie Pie. “I may eat a lot of pastries, but I’m not a PIG!”

“But,” Zecora continued, “I made a bad mistake; Rather than stir, I gave it a shake. I tried to use my magic to protect us both, but... I feel blue.”

Zecora buried her face in her hoofs.

“Fluttershy got most of the hit,” she said gloomily. “I only saved myself... I feel like a twit.”

“It was a mistake, dear,” Rarity said softly, putting a hoof on Zecora’s shoulder. “We don’t blame you for this.”

They stayed gathered in the lobby for the next hour or so. Rarity had gotten Spike and brought him to the Lobby, so he was waiting there with the others by the time a doctor stepped in to speak to them.

“Is she going to be okay?” Applejack asked.

“She’ll be fine,” the doctor assured them. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

“However...” They tensed once again. “The explosion blasted out her eardrums.”

“You mean she’s deaf?!” Pinkie Pie gasped. “NOOOOOOOO! She can’t hear music if she’s deaf! Music is essential to a good party! HOW CAN I THROW A PROPER GET WELL SOON PARTY IF SHE CAN’T HEAR THE GET WELL SOON MUSIC?!”

“Pinkie, put the doctor down!” Rarity said with the stomp of her hoof. Pinkie Pie blinked, realizing that she had picked up the doctor and was shaking him.

“Oh...” she sat him back down, backing off. “Sorry! Continue~”

“Right...” the doctor shook his head and cleared his throat. “We did our best with our magic, but there was apparently some magical element to that explosion, some kind of ‘curse’ that’s getting in the way of things. She’ll heal, but it’ll take roughly five days to do so.”

“I see,” Twilight nodded as Zecora looked away, shame painted on her face. “Can we see her?”

“She’s clear for release right now, actually,” the doctor nodded. “Her physical wounds aren’t that bad, just make sure she gets plenty of rest.”

Ten minutes later, the eight of them were walking out of the hospital.

“I-I’m really sorry...” Fluttershy muttered. Her voice still had a quiet tone to it, but she was still subconsciously raising the volume of her voice since she was deaf. “If I had only... If I hadn’t messed everything up, I wouldn’t have destroyed your hut...”

"It is fine, do not be sad," Zecora replied. "It is I who should feel bad. If I had not muddled up the Potion, you would-"

"Uh, she can't hear you," Rainbow Dash reminded Zecora. As if to prove this, Fluttershy was still staring mostly at the ground, completely oblivious to what everyone else was saying.

"Ooh! Ooh!" Pinkie Pie jumped around enthusiastically, waving her hoof in the air like a Fillie trying to get her teacher's attention.

"Yes Pinkie?" Twilight asked.

"I have an idea!" Pinkie Pie said cheerfully before turning around and rummaging behind her, as if looking through a bag of items, even though nothing was there. A few seconds later, she turned back around, holding a small chalkboard out for them to see. She turned it back to herself and scribbled a message on the board with a piece of chalk that the others could have sworn she wasn't holding a second ago. Pinkie Pie tapped Fluttershy on the shoulder and, once she looked up, held out the board for her to read.

"...Zebra sans donut world?" Fluttershy blinked, tilting her head in confusion.

"You REALLY must work on your penminship, dear," Rarity noted at the scrawled mess on the board.

"Well ex-CUSE me!" Pinkie Pie stuck her tongue out. "Fine, Spike you write it!"

"Wait, wha-" the Dragon's query was cut short as Pinkie Pie tossed the board at him... which smacked him right in the gut, knocking him onto his back.

"Doncha think you're bein' a mite TOO enthusiastic?" Applejack asked.

"I can't help it!" Pinkie Pie retorted. "I'm just SOOOOO glad that Fluttershy's okay and I want to make sure she's nice and safe and happy and healthy and and and... DON'T SCARE US LIKE THAT AGAIN BWAAAAAAAAAAH!"

It was as if a switch inside of Pinkie Pie's brain switched from perky to sad as she attached herself to Fluttershy in a tight hug, gushers of tears ejecting from her eyes. Fluttershy blinked at this in confusion.

"Did I do something wrong?" she asked, looking at her other friends. Spike quickly wrote on the board and showed Fluttershy the message: "No, she's just happy that you're safe."

“Oh...” she blinked and slowly started patting Pinkie Pie on the back. “There there Pinkie. There’s no reason to cry or anything.”

“I’m just so... I was WORRIED!” Pinkie Pie said after gulping down another sob. Spike was writing down everything being said, working quickly so Fluttershy wouldn’t be left behind. “So many bad things have been happening, and only a month before the Festival of Friendship! I’m starting to think this year’s festival is... is...”

She jumped away, standing on her hind hooves as her face suddenly darkened. “CUUUUUUURSED!!!”

“Was that seven or eight Us in Cursed?” Spike asked, tapping the chalk against his chin.

“Iono,” Pinkie Pie shrugged, falling back on all fours. “Whatever floats your boat!”

“Oh you’re just being superstitious,” Rainbow Dash shrugged off as Spike decided on the proper number of Us to write down. “There’s no way this thing’s been cursed!”

She turned her gaze to Zecora. “...right? I mean, not that I’m worried or anything, but just to double check.”

“I don’t know, it’s hard to say,” Zecora shook her head. “Though a dark wind does seem to be blowing our way. Either Lady Luck’s glaring at us with a frown... or we’d better prepare to bunker down.”

The others simultaneously gulped. Fluttershy’s gulp came about a second later when she read Spike’s message.

“Come on girls,” Twilight said comfortingly. Spike cleared his throat.

“And Spike,” she added, to the Dragon’s satisfaction. “It can’t be all bad. I mean, Princess Celestia entrusted us to help set up the Festival.”

“A whole month of settin’ up for one giant party,” Applejack nodded. This sentence caused Pinkie Pie to emit a loud squee. “We know Twilight, before all these tragedies started it was all anypony could talk about.”

“But Twi’s right, guys!” Rainbow Dash assured her friends. “Celestia HERSELF is looking after things here! When has she ever let us down?”

“You do have a point,” Rarity agreed. “I could understand a spell or an artifact being cursed, but an event? We’re just being silly.”

“Right,” Twilight nodded. “What’s been happening recently are just accidents. Horrible, tragic accidents, but they’re not related to the Festival of Friendship in the slightest.”

“I know that,” Pinkie Pie sighed. “Still... it makes me feel better if I can pin the blame on SOMETHING. You know?”

“...yeah,” Twilight nodded, wrapping a hoof around Pinkie Pie’s shoulders. “I completely understand, Pinkie. Come on, why don’t we head back to my place and have some tea? I think we could all use a cup after what just happened.”

“...oh! Oh no, I couldn’t,” Fluttershy said a few seconds later after she read Twilight’s suggestion. Spike took this moment to shake his wrist and blow on his aching hand. “I mean, I’d really like to, but... well, we’re leaving for Canterlot tomorrow, right? I was planning to wrap up my preparations for the animals, make sure they’re all safe and happy. A month IS an awful long time, after all...”

“Look, you just got caught in the middle of a nasty explosion,” Rainbow Dash said. “You really need to rest more than anything. We can always take care of your animals. Just tell us what we need to do and-”

“NO!” squeaked Fluttershy as she read “we can take care of your animals” on the board. “I mean... d-don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the thought, but... well, my animal friends need a firm-but gentle!-hoof.”

“And you don’t think we have those kinds of hooves?” huffed Pinkie Pie. Everyone turned to just stare at her.

“...okay, you have a point,” she admitted. “But still! At least let us help you!”

“I don’t know...” Fluttershy tapped her hooves together. “I don’t want to bother you or anything...”

“It’s the least I could do, after what I did to you,” Zecora said, patting Fluttershy on the shoulder.

“And we’re your friends!” Rainbow Dash assured her. “We WANT to be bothered!”

“Well...” Fluttershy gulped. “I guess... if I can’t change your mind...”

===

Gilda finally touched down on a grassy field.

This looks secluded enough... no losers around to bug me.

She jumped in the air, spinning slightly, and landed with a flop on her back. She intertwined her talons and leaned her head back on them, blinking up at the blue sky.

Great day out... Heh, Dash couldn’t make a better day if she tried.

She blinked, then growled at herself.

C’mon Gilda, you’re going soft. That whole “Festival of Friendship” malarky must be getting to you.

Still, despite the effort the Griffon put in pushing her out of her mind, she couldn’t help but see the ghostly figures of her childhood memories flying by in the sky.

”C’mon Dash!” the Fledgling Gilda laughed, turning around and leaning back in the sky, taking it easy. “Should I just change your name to Rainbow Slug? ‘Cause I’m not seeing very much dashing here!”

“Oh,” the Filly Rainbow Dash’s eyes narrowed. “It. Is. ON!”

She leaned forward, her wings turning to a V behind her, and a rainbow streak exploded from behind her as she blasted ahead, so quickly that she made Gilda spin in the air.

“Now THAT’S more like it!” Gilda grinned, flying after her friend.

Gilda slapped her claw over her eyes, trying to force the memory back into the back of her mind.

Dash... Gilda blinked hard, finding tears welling up in her eyes. Why didn’t you ever give me a call? I couldn’t be that hard to find... have you just forgotten about me?

She bit her talon, shutting her eyes tight to force the tears back into her heart.

Suck it up, Gilda, she snapped at herself. It’s her loss, anyway. She can keep those losers, I’m fine without any lame brains dragging me down with them.

She lay still, clearing her mind of all thoughts. Her body eventually relaxed, and she fell asleep on the grass, dreaming of more childhood memories with Rainbow Dash.

===

“So let me get this straight,” Applejack clarified, trying her hardest not to laugh. “Ya have mystical, God-like powers... and ya can’t even wrassle down a couple of antsy beavers?”

“If I... didn’t know any better, I’d... assume these things were... still under Discord’s control!” Twilight grunted as she flew in the air, trying to shake off the angry beavers that were clinging to her torso. “Get off! I was just trying to-OW! THAT’S MY EYE!”

Applejack shook her head and pulled out her lasso, helping to pull the angry beavers off her. Thankfully, Fluttershy was walking by, and she managed to defuse the situation within five minutes.

“Thank you, and I’m so very sorry!” Fluttershy called after the beavers as they left. “She’s quite new at this, please forgive her!”

A beaver at the back smiled at Fluttershy, but then turned to Twilight and blew a raspberry at her, running off as she scoffed in anger.

“Now calm down Twi,” Applejack said, patting Twilight on the back. “Thanks a bunch, Fluttershy. Don’t know what we woulda done without... ya...”

Fluttershy walked right past them, not recognizing she was saying anything. She hurried along to her cottage, reaching out a hoof to open the door. She noticed as she reached, however, that the door was already propped open slightly.

“That’s strange...” she muttered to herself, pushing the door further open. “Angel? Did you leave the door open again?”

She was caught off guard as she felt herself tackled from behind. She cried out in surprise, instinctively curling into a ball. It took a minute of nudging and poking for her to finally peek an eye out, seeing Pinkie Pie frantically trying to tell her something.

“Pinkie?” Fluttershy blinked, standing up. “What’s wrong?”

Pinkie Pie pressed her hooves to her mouth, seeming panicked as she thought hard. She finally clapped her hooves together and began hopping around.

“What are you... doing?” Fluttershy blinked. “You’re hopping around like a bunny.”

Pinkie Pie nodded, pointing at Fluttershy.

“You’re talking about a bunny?” Fluttershy asked. Pinkie Pie nodded again, then moved her hooves around her head, causing a golden halo to appear over her head. She flapped her arms to her side and actually lifted off from the ground.

“Angel!” Fluttershy nodded. “Oh my... did something happen to Angel?”

Pinkie Pie nodded nervously. She dropped to the ground, losing the halo, and hopped like a bunny out of the cottage and toward the distance.

“Angel left?!” gasped Fluttershy, covering her mouth. Pinkie Pie nodded and pointed in a specific direction.

“Tell the others, I’ll be right back!” Fluttershy said as she took off into the sky. Normally she didn’t fly very fast, but when the right occasion came along, Fluttershy could rival even Rainbow Dash in speed.

She crossed the countryside like it was nothing, eventually coming to a large, grassy field. She recognized it as that large section of “nothing” that they passed on the train. A quick circle over let her spot the train tracks, and standing on them was Angel.

“There you are!” she flew down onto the tracks, next to Angel. The rabbit seemed to be in some sort of... daze, not even registering that Fluttershy was there.

“What’s wrong?” Fluttershy grabbed Angel from under her arms and tugged up, but Angel’s foot was caught in the track.

“What are you tangled up in...” Fluttershy muttered as she leaned closer. It wasn’t just the track, it seemed to be tangled in long tufts of grass, tangled and knotted and trapped. “Here, I’ll get you out of that...”

A loud train whistle woke Gilda up from her nap. She leaned her head up to see the train approach from the distance.

Huh... just my luck, I took a nap near some tracks. Gilda blinked sleepily, looking over the tracks. Her eagle eyes zeroed in on a yellow colored speck on the tracks.

“What the...” Gilda sat up, focusing on the speck. It took focus and became...

Isn’t that the marshmallow who hangs out with Dash? Gilda tilted her head in confusion. She shrugged and turned to fly off, but the sound of the train whistle caught her attention again. Gilda turned her head back, seeing the Pony still sitting on the tracks.

“Does she have a death wish or something...?” she stepped toward her. “HEY! LOSER! A TRAIN’S HEADING YOUR WAY!”

Fluttershy didn’t even so much as flinch. Gilda looked between the Pony sitting on the tracks and the approaching train, which was blaring it’s whistle constantly. The conductor apparently was aware of the pony, seeming to just be waiting to get hit.

“...she can’t even hear it,” Gilda said in disbelief. Her heart started beating faster as the concept of watching someone get hit by a train. “Oooooh geeze. Okay. Um. Um.”

Her eyes darted around. Nobody was around to help her. Nobody, that was, except...

“Me.” Gilda gulped, spreading her wings. “Alright. Sweep in, grab her, sweep away. Quick and easy, nobody gets hurt.”

She ran forward and spread her wings, jumping into the air. A painful sprain in her back made her cry out and land on her face, rolling along.

“No!” Gilda looked at her sore wing. “Not NOW! I knew I should have stretched before I took off for hours!”

Gilda scrambled to her feet and made her way on the ground toward Fluttershy, running as fast as she could. It wasn’t nearly as fast as she could have gone by flying, but she was still a pretty fast runner. The train, seeming to realize Fluttershy wasn’t moving, threw on the brakes. Gilda quickly looked over the approaching train, doing a few calculations in her mind, similar to the lighting fast accounting she did every time she flew.

There’s no way that thing’s going to stop in time, she’s going to get hit!

She took on an extra burst of speed, hoping beyond hope that she’d be able to make it to the pony in time. The train was approaching, Gilda was sprinting, and Fluttershy...

“Got you!” Fluttershy managed to pull Angel free, holding the rabbit in her arms. “What’s bothering you, Angel? Did you have a bad carrot?”

The train was approaching quickly, ready to make contact with something. Everything in the world seemed to step into slow motion for Gilda as she jumped toward Fluttershy and shoved her out of the way. Fluttershy cried in surprise as the Griffon tackled her, landing in a heap on the grass. Gilda fell to the tracks, turning her head in time to see the train approach closer, closer-

Bang.

Pain. Excruciating, sharp pain, all over her body.

Then... nothing.

Darkness.

Day 1

Streets were full of ponies, walking this way and that. They were talking between each other, each one seeming to blend into the herd of movement while simultaneously standing out. From the plain Earth Ponies wearing naught but their coats and Cutie Marks, Unicorns trying to be the fanciest of the bunch, and… a single Griffon, waking up in the middle of the street. Blinking in confusion, she stood up and looked around at her new environment.

What the... I'm back in Canterlot? When did THAT happen? Last I remember, I was flying AWAY from this dump...

Her memory returned to when she was flying away from the city... when she touched down to take a nap... when the train woke her up to see...

Gilda gasped at the memory, patting herself down to assure herself that she was still in one piece.

Alright, so, um, I must not have been hurt too bad. That pony took me to a hospital, and... they dumped me in the middle of Canterlot? What? No, that's stupid, Gilda. There must be some better explanation for why I went from getting hit by a train to waking up in the middle of... okay, something's on my chest, what is it?

She looked down to see a milky white crystal, hanging on a chain around her neck. She gently took it between her talons and lifted it to her face to examine it closer.

"When did I get this?" Gilda muttered to herself, tapping a talon against the crystal's surface. "Maybe whoever brought me here put this thing on meeeeEEEAUGH!"

It was as if a barrier around her mind that she never new existed broke free and spread outward, catching hundreds upon hundreds of voices, all piling on top of each other, piercing into Gilda's mind. In surprise, she let go of the crystal and let it drop against her chest. At once, the barrier pulled back inward and the voices stopped.

"What was THAT?!" Gilda gasped, patting her head down. "No, I know what it was: FREAKY!"

She took a moment to calm herself, taking deep breaths. She turned her attention back to the crystal around her neck.

That happened when I just tapped the surface... is this a schizo-stone or something?

She gripped the crystal tightly in her claw and turned to a Pony staring up at a statue. Wait... there are a bunch of Ponies around here. I wonder...

Focusing solely on that single pony by the statue, she relaxed her tight grip on the crystal and gave it a light tap with the tip of her talon. At once, the barrier surrounding her mind lifted again.

Wow, so THIS is Canterlot! Man, oh MAN! This is even more exciting than those posters said it would be! Nopony can stop talking about this Festival happening in a month... I just GOTTA check it out! Maybe I can ask my friends to come over and-

Gilda tapped the crystal once again, and the voice faded from her mind.

Okay, so this thing lets me read others' minds, Gilda thought as she held the crystal up to eye level. Cool... but that doesn't explain how I got it, or how I even got here in the first place. Is Celestia herself pulling some elaborate prank on me? Maybe-

Her thought was cut short as the crystal started glowing a bright green. Gilda screamed and jumped back as a green flame erupted from the crystal and formed a ghostly scroll floating in the air, rolled up and waiting for her to take it.

"Uh... look, I don't even know where this thing came from, I don't even know how it made that..." Gilda started, explaining herself to the Ponies walking by. None of them even turned their heads to acknowledge anything strange was happening.

"Stuff like this must happen all the time if they don't even flinch at a ghostly fire-scroll..." Gilda muttered as she took the scroll in her claws and unrolled it, reading the message to herself:

"Reach the castle's stairs. You have 60 minutes. Fail, and face erasure. -The Changelings."

Gilda scoffed as she tore the scroll in half. "Alright, joke's up, whoever you are. Now actually show yourself and stop screwing with me."

In response, the two halves of the scroll turned back into fire and jumped together, re-forming as a whole message again.

"You're really going the extra mile for this, aren't you?" Gilda asked to whoever was causing this, snatching the scroll roughly in her claw. "Look bub, I'm not in the mood. Just tell me what's going on and maybe I won't re-arrange your face when you-GAH!"

She dropped the scroll and gripped her right wrist with her left claw as a sharp pain shot through her palm. Grunting, she brought her claw up to her face and opened it, revealing a red timer printed on her palm, ticking down:

59:50
59:49
59:48
59:47

"Wh... WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!" Gilda screamed, looking all around for the source of this. "WHOEVER YOU ARE, YOU'RE ASKING FOR A POUNDING WHEN I FIND YOU!"

As she was turning this way and that, her face bumped up against a small, round creature, flying around on insect wings. It had a tiny smile and was staring at her with huge, green eyes. Most people would have found the site of the thing adorable.

However, most people were not an irritated Griffon.

"Outta my way you puny little..." Gilda grumbled as she swatted the creature away with the back of her claw. She turned her head to see a few more of those same creatures buzzing about. She groaned and walked up to them, fully intending to squish them together, when a LOUD buzzing came from behind her. She froze and slowly turned around to see an entire SWARM of those creatures coming at her.

"Um... no," Gilda said quietly, her eyes as wide as dinner dishes. "Nu-uh. Too much weird stuff has been happening already, this is just too much."

She turned and prepared to dash away, but two clumps of the creatures flew ahead of her and dropped on the ground. Each individual creature seemed to blend together until two giant frogs were standing ahead of her.

"Wh..." Gilda took a step back, terrified. "What ARE you?!"

In response, one of the frogs leaped at her. Gilda screamed and jumped out of the way, landing with a thud on her shoulder.

"OW!" She stood up and gripped her shoulder in pain. Crud, I think I dislocated it!

The frogs didn't falter; They hopped on after her, seeming to have the sole purpose of hunting her down and crushing her.

"Okay, screw this!" Gilda turned away from the frogs, taking a running start. "I'm outta here!"

She jumped into the air, prepared to fly off... and promptly fell flat on her face.

"What the..." Gilda turned her head to examine her back, only to discover that her wings were missing. She opened her mouth to scream, but it turned into a grunt as one of the frogs slammed into her. The force of the tackle knocked her back, making her roll into the statue nearby.

"H... Hey!" she called out, sitting up and hugging herself in pain. "Someone! ANYONE! Help... me..."

She slowed to a stop as she realized that she was standing inside of the Pony she read the mind of, as if he were a ghost. She cried in surprise as she scrambled to her feet and claws, running in a random direction.

I don't know WHAT'S going on... but I've gotta get out of here!

Atop of a nearby building sat two Unicorns, staring at the streets below them. They were completely indistinguishable from other Unicorns, save for their insect-like wings that fluttered on their backs, littered with holes.

"Here we go again, brother..." yawned one of the Unicorns, playing with the tip of his mustache.

"No point in bellyaching," his bare-faced brother pointed out, rolling his head on his neck. "We haven't had work in a long time."

"Exactly," the mustached Unicorn pointed out. "It feels like the Monday after Vacation."

"And you would prefer a permanent vacation?" the bare-faced Unicorn asked darkly. "Day 1 has the most Players. Now is the perfect opportunity for us to gather points! How else are you gonna make up for last month?"

"Okay, I get it," the mustached Unicorn assured his brother, holding up his hooves in defense. "One week won't kill me. Probably."

The two stood in silence for a moment, watching the Ponies that were invisible to most others running around in panic as the small round creatures and the frogs they turned into chased them.

"While we're at it..." the mustached Unicorn quipped out of the blue. "Why don't we play a little game?"

His brother's eyes sparkled. "A game, you say?"

"So it doesn't feel as much like work," the mustached Unicorn elaborated. "C'mon, I know you love them."

As he said this, he was jokingly poking at his brother's side. The bare-faced unicorn, in response, rolled his eyes and pushed him away, though he was still grinning.

"Alright, you know me," he admitted. "Shoot."

"Why don't we play Changeling Sport 3?" Offered the mustached unicorn. "A Player Hunt? We see which one of us bags the most Players during today's mission."

"That's it?" The bare-faced Unicorn raised an eyebrow at his brother. "You're losing your touch, Flam."

"Oh?" Flam tilted his head at his brother. "You don't like it?"

"Of course not!" Flam's brother wrapped a reassuring arm around Flam's shoulders. "I mean, I would just crush you! That wouldn't be fair at all!"

"Oh, NOW it's on, Flim!" Flam laughed as he pushed away. "You know the drill. Loser buys winner lunch."

The brothers shook each others' hooves, turning back to the edge of the roof. They jumped off and, with the buzzing of their wings, flew in different directions across the city.

===

Gilda panted as she pressed her back against a nearby wall, watching a few Ponies walking by. A few Ponies in the distance seemed panicky and darting all over the place, but Gilda didn't really care about them, she was more worried about her own safety.

"Alright..." she panted, sliding down and hugging her knees to her chest. "I think... I lost 'em... should be... safe-"

Without any warning, clumps of the round creatures fell from the sky like meteors, melting into frogs and jumping around to directly face Gilda.

"Grr... stupid frogs!" Gilda growled as she pushed herself back to her feet. "Just leave me alone, you freaks!"

Nearby, the panicking Ponies found themselves attacked by their own frogs. One by one, they were knocked down and swarmed by the creatures, and when they finally separated and flew into the air... there was no trace of the Ponies they had just attacked. Gilda could only stare in shock.

"Wh... what did you..." She turned back to the slowly approaching frogs, a look of terror painted on her face. "What's happening... why am I even here?! WHAT IS GOING ON?!"

The frogs jumped at her, one hit, two, three. She fell to her knees, panting heavily. Her eyes were shut and her claws clenched in pain.

This is it... She thought to herself. Hit by a train, killed by Frogs... and here I was hoping I'd die in a flying accident or-

"HEY!"

Gilda's eyes opened as she looked up. A cobalt pony in a star printed wizard hat and cape broke through the "wall" of frogs, her crystal necklace beating against her torso as she galloped over toward Gilda.

"You! Griffon!" she panted. "Forge a pact with me!"

"What?" Gilda blinked. "What do you-GET DOWN!"

Gilda rolled out of the way, and the Pony jumped just in time to avoid another frog jumping at them.

"Kinda got my hands full here!" Gilda retorted, looking back at the Pony.

"Listen!" the Pony snapped, stomping her hoof. "If we forge a pact, we can beat the Parasprites! Otherwise, we're BOTH toast!"

Gilda looked between the Pony and the frogs. "Well, it's not like I have anything to lose here. Alright, I accept this 'Pact' thing!"

Both Gilda and the Pony's crystals floated in the air, as if gravity turned off for them. Each one sparked with yellow energy before blasting beams of yellow light at each other, meeting in the middle and becoming as one beam. Gilda could feel a powerful pulsation of raw energy ripple through her body for a minute before the light faded and both their crystals dropped.

"What in Equestria was THAT?!" Gilda cried, holding up her crystal in confusion.

"Never mind that, here!"

Gilda looked up in time to see a smaller crystal being tossed at her. She caught it in her claw and held it up to her eye. It was similar to the crystal around her neck, only it was smaller, completely clear, and it had the image of a flame embedded in its core.

"Use that Crystal to fight!" the Pony said, turning to face the frogs that were surrounding them.

"Now hold on a second!" Gilda snapped. "I want to know, right now, what's going on!"

"Is now REALLY the best time to-DUCK!"

Gilda did as the Pony said, a frog soaring over them both.

"Look, let's crush these Parasprites first!" the Pony said as she jumped back onto her hooves. "Then we can play Twenty Questions as much as you want!"

"How do I even USE this thing?!" Gilda shook the fire crystal vigorously.

"Oh for the love of..." the Pony facehoofed. "Smash that sucker against your necklace, you idiot!"

"Hey, who are you calling-"

"JUST DO IT!"

"Okay, fine!"

Gilda smashed the fire crystal as hard as she could against the crystal hanging around her neck. The fire crystal shattered, but rather than spreading out, the shards absorbed into her necklace. The image of a flame appeared on her crystal, and her claws suddenly felt tingly.

"What in the..." Gilda held her claws up to her face. They were glowing with a red aura, rippling with power.

"BEHIND YOU!"

Gilda turned to see a frog leap at her. Acting on instinct, she held out her claw toward the frog. A stream of flames erupted from her palm and engulfed the Frog, making it break apart back into the round creatures-the Parasprites. Jaw agape, she slowly brought her claw to her face, watching the faint flames flicker on her talons.

"...oh," she smirked. "This. THIS, I like."

She ran forward, both her claws outstretched as she burnt all the frogs she could see. As each one was engulfed in the flames, they broke apart into individual Parasprites and flew off into the air. In less than a minute, all of the Frogs were destroyed.

"Alright!" Gilda pumped her fist. "I have absolutely NO idea how I just did that, but who cares?! I just burnt those suckers to a crisp!"

"Hm... so you can use that Crystal, then?" the Pony asked as she approached Gilda. "Guess you're at least halfway decent with spells... you know, for a non-Unicorn."

"Was that an insult?" Gilda scowled.

"You should just be happy I found you in time," the Pony said calmly, leaning against the nearby wall nonchalantly. "You were THIS close to being Parasprite food."

"So those things were Parasprites?" Gilda looked in the air, not a single creature in sight.

"No need to be so paranoid," the Pony rolled her eyes at Gilda. "We made a pact. Parasprites don't go after Players who have a pact."

"Players?" Gilda blinked.

"Did you just drop on your head when you started the Game or something?" Trixie scoffed. "Honestly, it's like you don't know ANYTHING."

"I know that every word that comes out of your mouth makes me hate you more and more," Gilda snarled.

"Oh, I never even told you my name," the Pony realized, not seeming to acknowledge Gilda's remark. "You may call me..."

She stood up on her hind legs. "The GREAT and POWERFUL Trixie!"

And I'm the Angry and Irritated Gilda, Gilda thought, wanting to wring her claws around Trixie's throat.

"Look, we've got a long week ahead of us," Trixie informed her. "So we better get used to-"

"Wait, a week?" Gilda asked. "A week of what?"

Trixie stared at her. Not an "you're an idiot" stare, but more like "Oh my Celestia, you're serious" stare.

"The Changelings' Game is seven days long," she said slowly.

Changelings? Like... wait, that's how my scroll was signed. Who is this Pony, and how does she even know all this?

"So, I suppose I'd best ask for your name as well," Trixie said, though Gilda tuned her voice out.

Oh forget her. Who's in charge of all this? How did I even get here in the first place?

"Look, I'm trying to be nice, at least tell me your name."

I went from a train, to... what, is this the afterlife? I'm not floating on clouds, so it's not heaven... and I don't see a bunch of fire and laughing demons, so it ain't Tartarus, either.

"Uh, something wrong?"

Wait... the center of Canterlot. Maybe I can find my way to the exit from there.

Gilda turned around and walked off. Trixie stared at her back like she was insane.

"H-hey!" She chased after. "The Great and Powerful Trixie DEMANDS that you wait for her!"

Gilda picked up the speed as she eventually made her way back to the center of Canterlot. She had to take a few detours to try and shake off Trixie... and yet, she was STILL hot on her tail by the time they made it to the center.

"Oh for the love of... why are you following me?!" Gilda snapped, whirling toward Trixie.

"Why are you... making yourself... so hard to follow... oh my lungs..." Trixie panted before flopping down on her rear, holding a hoof over her chest.

"Look," Gilda growled as she crossed her arms. "I go where I want, and no losers are gonna stop me. So why don't you make like a bee and buzz off?"

"Where are you going to go?" Trixie scoffed. "We're TRAPPED in here, you brain-dead dolt!"

"I'm going to ignore that insult," Gilda snarled. "Don't be stupid, the gate out of here is just a bit south."

"You're the one being stupid," Trixie rolled her eyes.

"Say that again!" Gilda snapped, leaning so close to Trixie's face that her beak was touching Trixie's nose.

"We made a pact, birdbrain," Trixie growled, pushing her forehead against Gilda's. "We're supposed to stick together! You can't beat the Parasprites alone! You. Can't. Survive!"

"Survive what?" Gilda scoffed, pressing her head further in an attempt to push Trixie down.

"The GAME, you stupid little canary!" Trixie shouted. "Don't you want to, you know, WIN?!"

"Pft." Gilda pulled away to the side. Trixie cried out as she fell to the ground, falling flat on her face. "Play games on your own time, loser."

"That's... not funny!" growled Trixie as she pushed herself back to her hooves, adjusting the hat on her head. "They'll destroy us if we don't win! Didn't you see what happened to those Ponies? You feel like JOINING them?"

"..." Gilda clenched her fist, remembering the swarms attacking the Ponies and leaving them... vanished.

"Besides," Trixie continued, "we're partners. And, as much as I hate to admit it, partners work together."

"Uh, no way," Gilda shook her head, making an X with her arms. "I'm not going to be a part of this, Pony."

"You're already a part of this," Trixie sighed, facehoofing again. "You're a Player, just like me."

"There's that word again," Gilda noted, raising an eyebrow. "What do you mean, Player? I'm not playing anything."

"Oh yeah?" Trixie rolled her eyes, poking Gilda's chest. "Then why do you have a Crystal? Probably have a timer on your hoof-sorry, erm... claw?"

Gilda turned her claw to her face and opened, looking down at the timer.

20:05
20:04
20:03
20:02

"I... what..." Gilda had no words to express her shock at that moment.

"See?" Trixie puffed out her chest, an air of haughtiness in her voice. "You're a part of the Changelings' Game-wait. What did that timer say?"

Trixie checked her own hoof and gasped.

"We don't have time for this!" she turned her head to the north, seeming anxious. "The clock's ticking! We've only got 20 minutes left! Quick, we need to make our way to the Castle!"

"Castle?" Gilda asked. "Wait... that scroll. Reach the Castle's stairs or face erasure."

"So you can think after all," Trixie rolled her eyes. "Come on bird brain, the sooner we get this over with, the sooner we get out of the woods!"

Please, Gilda rolled her eyes at Trixie as she darted around, seeming to gather her surroundings. What kind of nut would believe any of that? Then again... this day has been pretty weird. Plus, she's gonna follow me anyway... eh, might as well go along with it. Maybe I'll be able to track down the punk who put me in this situation anyway. I'd love to have a little talk with them.

"Alright," Gilda spoke up. "You win, Great and Crazy Trixie."

"That's Great and POWERFUL," Trixie snapped, glaring.

"I think I'll call you that around the same time I visit the moon," Gilda yawned. "'Till then, move it. You know your way around here better than I do."

"First," Trixie insisted, "tell me your name."

"Why should I?" Gilda retorted.

"Because I'm not putting my life in the sharp talons of some bird that I don't even know the name of," Trixie snapped. "You need me to show you around, so I'm not moving a muscle until you tell me your name. Unless your bird brain is so small you can't even keep that bit of information in?"

Gilda growled, clenching her claws.

"Gilda," she said through a clenched beak. "The name's Gilda."

"Gilda?" Trixie smirked. "Cute name. Seems like a name made for a fledgeling than anything."

"Shut up," Gilda snarled.

"Alright Gilda," Trixie turned northward. "Let's get over to the castle."

"So it's just in that direction, right?" Gilda nodded in the same direction, stepping to Trixie's side.

"Yeah, see that tower?" Trixie pointed. "That's the top of the Castle. Follow the path that way, and you can't miss-HEY!"

Gilda took a running start north. With a growl, Trixie followed behind.

I know that loser has it in her head to follow me, Gilda thought with a smirk, but that doesn't mean I'm going to make it easy for- "GAH!"

Gilda was blasted back as a clear wall of honeycomb-shaped blocks of... light, it seemed, appeared around the spot she hit for a second before vanishing again.

"What the..." Gilda stood up and knocked on the air. When her knuckles hit the air, they rebounded off as the wall appeared for another second, vanishing a second later.

"There's an invisible wall here!" Gilda cried, stepping back and grabbing tufts of her crest with her claws. "This is INSANE!"

"Wait, the path is blocked?!" Trixie gasped, pounding her hooves against the wall. "We HAVE to get through!"

"Couldn't we just take another path?" Gilda asked.

"Not if we want to get to the castle in the next..." Trixie checked her hoof. "17 minutes!"

Gilda was silent for a second, the feathers on the back of her neck lifting. She stepped away from the wall and looked into the crowd.

That's weird... why do I feel like I'm being watched? That... that THING over there... what is it?

Gilda's eyes zeroed in on a creature standing in the middle of the moving crowd... in fact, some of the Ponies were actually walking THROUGH it. It was black, had insect wings and a curved horn on its forehead, and its entire body was covered in holes.

"Pact confirmed," the creature said, though it was too far away for either Gilda or Trixie to hear him.

"C'mon..." Trixie muttered, leaning her hooves against the wall as she looked to the left and right. "What are we going to do about this wall? Maybe there's a switch nearby, or-EEP!"

She lost balance and fell forward as the wall suddenly vanished in front of her.

"Huh, guess it's open," Gilda noted as she stepped forward. "Wonder how that happened?"

"No, don't bother yourself, I can pick myself up." Trixie's voice was dripping with sarcasm as she pushed herself back to her hooves and shook her head, re-adjusting her now askew hat.

"Good," Gilda smirked. "Wasn't planning on helping you anyway."

Trixie shot her a glare, but Gilda didn't notice it as she turned her gaze back to the crowd.

Maybe it had something to do with that freaky Pony thing... wait, huh? Where did it go? Weird...

With a shrug, Gilda turned around and started back toward the castle. Trixie still seemed miffed with her, but she trotted along by her side anyway. Roughly ten minutes later, they made it to the long staircase leading up to the castle.

"Made it!" Trixie cried victoriously as she jumped onto the bottom of the staircase. She checked the bottom of her hoof and grinned. Noting this, Gilda looked at her own claw and saw that her palm was bare.

"It vanished," she blinked.

"Well we completed the mission," Trixie rolled her eyes as if this were obvious. "Of COURSE it'll vanish. The point is, we got through the Day without getting destroyed!"

"Big deal!"

Both Gilda and Trixie jumped at this new voice. They looked around their area, but nothing seemed to be there.

"Who's there?!" Gilda demanded.

"You'll find that only idiots would fail the mission on Day 1," the voice continued. Gilda couldn't quite pinpoint where it was coming from, but she could tell it was higher up, possibly sitting on a window or something.

"Must be talking about you," Trixie smirked at Gilda.

"Oh bite my-"

"As I was saying..." the voice interrupted, sounding a bit irritated that the two of them would just drop him. "The two of you are going to be Erased sooner or later, and judging by how you're dealing with each other, my money's going to be on 'sooner.' So why don't you help a guy out and earn me a few extra points?"

A buzzing sounded as Parasprites flew down from above.

"It's them again!" Gilda growled, gripping her Crystal. It seemed to react in the presence of the Parasprites, as the image of a flame already appeared on the surface. The two of them watched as the Parasprites formed together. Rather than clumping into smaller piles, they all formed together into a rather tall creature. Soon, a massive Bear stood before them, standing on its hind legs and wielding arms made of constantly shifting Parasprites.

"That's not a Frog!" Gilda gulped, lighting her claws on fire.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious!" Trixie shook her head, her crystal glowing with a blue aura, similar to her coat. "Look, this won't be as easy as the Frogs earlier! We'll have to work together to take this thing on!"

"What?!" Gilda snapped her head toward Trixie. "No way! I don't play nice with anyone, least of all an arrogant little snot-wad like YOU!"

"Why don't you shut your fat beak for two seconds and actually LISTEN for once in your life?!" Trixie shouted at Gilda, stomping a hoof. "That thing is big and tough! If we go at it alone, it'll CRUSH us! But if we work together, we might get out alive! We already made a Pact, I don't want to know what happens if my Partner dies! Most likely, it will be REALLY. REALLY. BAD. So, unless you want us BOTH to be destroyed, GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSE AND WORK WITH ME!!!"

"..." Gilda's jaw was clenched so hard that it was in danger of shattering. She looked between Trixie and the Bear, the later of which was slowly approaching.

"Grr... fine!" Gilda got into fighting position and held out her claws. "But ONLY because my life depends on it!"

"The feeling is mutual," Trixie retorted, running forward. "Take THIS!"

She jumped into the air, her crystal glowing brightly. She held suspended in the air for a moment as the stars on her cape peeled off and flew into the Bear, making it stagger back slightly.

"How in the-" Gilda started as Trixie landed back on her hooves, the stars flying back to her cape.

"You can shoot fire from your claws and you ask how I can do that?" Trixie scoffed. "Look, now's not the time, help me fight!"

"Right," Gilda nodded, running forward. "Can't stand the heat, then DON'T MESS WITH ME!"

She let out a scream as she held out both claws, jets of flames coming from them both. They engulfed the bear and burnt it to the bone... for about five seconds, where upon the flames fizzled out.

"What?!" Gilda looked down at her claws, then at the crystal. It turned grey, but it was slowly turning white, starting from the bottom and filling up.

"The Crystals have a limit, and need time to recharge!" Trixie said as she pushed herself ahead of Gilda, throwing more stars into the bear. "What, did you think you could just keep burning things without a limit?"

"That would have been nice, yeah!" Gilda said as she watched the crystal refill, her eyes darting up to the bear. "...hey, keep pumping it full of stars! I have an idea!"

"You? An idea?" Trixie laughed a bit. "That's the funniest thing I've heard all day!"

"I'm going to ignore that bit," Gilda snarled as she ran around to the bear's back. It started to turn to her, but Trixie brought its attention back to her with a well tossed star, straight to the face. With a roar, the bear slowly marched toward Trixie.

"Is that all you've got?" Trixie scoffed. "Ha! The Great and Powerful Trixie could best you while she SLEEPS!"

The Bear slammed its arm down, a chunk of Parasprites rolling toward Trixie like a boulder. She screamed and quickly jumped out of the way, grunting in pain. The bear closed in on her and...

"GOTCHA!" Gilda fired a plume of flames into the bear's back, making it roar with agony. "HURRY, PUMP IT FULL OF STARS!"

As she said this, the last of the flames faded. The bear started to fall forward, but Trixie held her head outward and the stars printed on her hat shot up and straight through the bear. This was all it took to vanquish the beast, as it exploded into Parasprites afterwards, the individual creatures flying off into the sky. Gilda and Trixie were left panting, the buzzing of the Parasprites' wings now long gone.

"Alright..." Trixie panted. "Well, you saved my plot, so I guess I should thank you."

"I didn't do it to save you," Gilda spat. "You're right, I don't know what'll happen if one of us gets Erased... and I'm not willing to find out."

Trixie and Gilda sat there for a minute, glaring at each other.

"...be that way," Trixie scowled, getting back to her hooves. "You heard that guy, though. Day 1 is nothing. The Missions are only going to get harder and harder, and I don't expect you to drag me down."

"Me? Drag YOU down?" Gilda laughed. "You've got that backwards, Pony!"

"Don't test me, Griffon!" Trixie snapped. "We've got six more days! I don't want to spend them putting up with you, but it looks like I don't have a choice, so do us both a favor and keep your beak shut!"

"Up yours." Gilda turned her back to Trixie, crossing her arms and fuming.

I don't believe this. I'm stuck here in the middle of Loser Central with the biggest blockhead I've ever met in my life! She's worse than that Pink Pony, and THAT'S saying something! And I still don't know what happened to me after that train hit, what kind of a game this is, or how I even got here in the first place!

She turned her face to the air and shook her fist. I don't care who I've gotta crush or climb over! I'm gonna find out who put me to this, and when I do... they'll be SORRY!