Never the Final Word (Vol. 2)

by FanOfMostEverything

Georg's Jumping the Game Shark (Asphodel Frost's "Twilight Levels Up")

Author's Note:

[Random]

This is a response to Asphodel Frost's Twilight Levels Up (1,266 words, [Comedy][Random][Sci-Fi][Slice of Life][Crossover][Alternate Universe])

TWILIGHT SPOILS UP: Equestria functions according to video game logic, including leveling. Level 1 is earning a cutie mark, along with several points that are automatically allocated to a pony's skill tree. Twilight is the first to go beyond that ever since Discord drastically raised the XP requirement, going to the realm of ascension to allocate her new skill point and learn of the true nature of reality from Celestia.

Later...

"I just don't understand," said Twilight Sparkle, nearly inaudible due to the amount of frosting on the cupcake. "There are so many options with leveling up, which I didn't even know was possible. I could have even picked Increased Cupcake Consumption to go up the Cake tree, which I noticed Celestia had cleared right up to the top."

"It's a mystery," said Pinkie Pie from behind nearly a dozen cupcakes crammed into her face.

Twilight stopped, then very slowly turned to her friend. "Wait a minute. I recognized some of those points as things you do. There's even an Unexplainable Precognition talent, but it's several links up the chain. How—"

"Cheat codes, duh!" Pinkie Pie finished stuffing the rest of the cupcakes into her mouth, gave a massive swallow, and bounded up onto Twilight's back. "Let me see here, since you're got a horn, this should be easy. Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B—

"Ow!" Twilight winced at the hoof in the eye she had just gotten.

"—and A," Pinkie finished with a boop on the nose.

One explosion of confetti and familiar fireworks later, Twilight found herself staring at the skill tree with "Level 100" floating above her.

"Oh, nuts," she muttered when Celestia's tree flickered into life nearby. "How am I going to explain this?"

Comments

[horizon]

"You're 'checking out endgame content for review purposes'?" Celestia repeated.

Twilight nodded, her smile growing wider, a bead of sweat trickling down her face.

"... Endgame content."

"How will ponies know what awesome high-level perks to aspire to if somepony hasn't evaluated all the options?" Twilight said.

"For review purposes," Celestia said, arching an eyebrow.

"Friendship letters."

Celestia stared.

Twilight smiled harder.

Celestia held her dubious expression for a moment longer, then burst out giggling. "Oh my gosh. That is an amazing excuse. I'm impressed."

Twilight blinked.

"I may have to borrow it for when ponies start asking how I got to level 100."

Twilight opened and closed her mouth. She tried to push words through. "You didn't grind?" was all that came out.

"Oh stars no. Luna was the one doing all the sidequests for 100% completion. I wouldn't have even been able to finish the Level 6 Diamond Dog Dungeon raids if she hadn't given me all the ultra-rare loot she picked up. While she was grinding, I just faffed around and learned how to break physics to climb unclimbable mountains." Celestia gestured around. "Which is why the capital's way up here."

"... Okay," Twilight said. "So, um, how did you get to level 100?"

"Confidentially? Up, up, down, down —"

"Okay. Wrong question. Why."

Celestia shrugged. "Luna got bored and enabled PVP."

[Georg]

8628396 Which explains why Luna's first words after being hit by the Rainbow Beam of Fix Everything were, "No respawn camping!!"

[nemryn]

8628396
All right buddy, knock it off. We are not having a comment-fic for a comment-fic, understand? This here is a strict No Recursion Zone.

[FanOfMostEverything]

8634569
Sorry, but to establish a No Recursion Zone here, you'd first need to establish a No Recursion Zone.