//------------------------------// // Part 7-2: No Mercy // Story: Shim Sham's Bizarre Adventure // by Joey JoJo Shabadoo //------------------------------// Rainbow Dash searched the forest, running around aimlessly for Gilda. She wasn’t putting much thought into her search, instead trying to cover as much ground as possible, as quickly as possible, while keeping her wits about her. Eventually, she managed to stumble across Gilda, who was taking cover behind a tree, still holding the arrow. Dash took cover as well, as she tried to come up with a plan without being spotted. Her thinking time was cut short however, when the tree she was hiding behind was shredded apart by what sounded like gunfire, forcing her out into the open. “Come on, Dash.” Gilda sighed. “You really think I didn’t notice you running around like an idiot?” Dash was a little flustered from being discovered so easily, but also from meeting her old friend again. “Oh... hi, Gilda. How have you been?” “What are you doing, Dash?” Gilda asked, seeing straight through Dash’s act. “Oh, you know. I’m just... going for a walk... in the woods.... by myself.... that’s a thing people do, right?” Gilda wasn’t buying it. She didn’t even need to say anything. She just crossed her arms and waited for Dash to tell the truth. “Alright, fine! Can you just give me the arrow back?” “No.” “Gilda, please. Don’t make this any more awkward than it needs to be!” “No.” “But, why?” “My boss needs it.” “........but, why?” “I don’t know! I guess he just doesn’t want you to have it!” “..................but-” “No, stop talking.” Gilda’s stubborn aggressiveness made talking impossible. She never used to be this hostile, not to Rainbow Dash at least. “What happened to you, Gilda? Ever since you went to Crystal Prep, we hardly talk and now you’re even mopier than ever.” “I’ve always been like this.” “Well, not to me!” “Dash, I’m warning you. Leave now or I'll show you, No Mercy!” “That sounds like a challenge.” Dash smiled as she summoned her Stand, hoping a fight might help them blow off some steam. “You asked for this! Here’s No Mercy!” Gilda responded by summoning her own Stand. Dash paused for a moment pondering Gilda's strange wording. Gilda, timidly explained. “I-it was a pun, my Stand is called No Mercy.” Dash stifled a laugh. “At least your jokes are just as bad as ever.” “Mock me all you want, Dash, but the boss already showed me how your Stand works. I could shoot you out of the sky in one shot!” “Oh yeah! Well, it’s gonna take a lot more than some nerf guns to take me down!” Dash boasted, of course, what she was really thinking was: “She’s totally right, without Fluttershy, her Stand is the perfect counter pick to mine. I might get a couple cheap shots in, but I saw how fast, strong and accurate No Mercy was when she attacked that fire extinguisher, she’ll take me out in one shot. Which means, I’ll have to use my backup plan!” “Gilda!” Dash declared. “Your boss may have shown you how my Stand works, but can you honestly say you know all of it’s powers?” “What are you talking about? Are you being stupid, again?” “You’re the only stupid one here, since there’s one thing about my Stand you still don’t know about!” Gilda was skeptical and called Dash out on her bluff. “You’re lying, your Stand doesn’t have any other powers.” “Oh, but it does. It’s my secret technique.” Rainbow Dash got into position, turned 180 degrees and yelled: “RUN AWAY!” Bolting into the forest. Gilda was dumbstruck, but quickly gave chase. Unfortunately, Dash wasn’t the fastest runner at Canterlot High for nothing and Gilda lost her almost immediately. “Dash, you coward! I know you’re still here!” She was right, Rainbow Dash was hiding in the bushes, she knew using such a ridiculous tactic would anger Gilda enough to make her give chase, but it didn’t take Gilda long to work out the true motive behind Dash’s secret technique. “Nice try, Dash!” She called. “But I know you’re using a long range Stand! You’re planning to ambush me with it the moment I let my guard down, right?” “Oh no, did she find me already?” Dash thought. “In that case, let’s see how you handle my secret technique!” Gilda summoned her Stand once more, only instead of two turrets appearing over her shoulders, ten turrets appeared around her waist. “I’m gonna tear this forest apart!” Although they were stationary, her turrets fired darts in all directions, ripping apart the trees and bushes surrounding her. Dash ducked for cover and waited for Gilda to calm down as she tried to plan her next move. Gilda eventually ceased fire. With less trees and bushes blocking her view it didn’t take long for her to notice a certain, rainbow patterned boot sticking out from a bush. She crept up quietly, to not bring attention to herself and yanked the boot out. She was hoping to drag Rainbow Dash out into the open, but all she found was her boot. “Wait, what?” Gilda mumbled, dumbstruck again by Dash’s bizarre actions. In the brief moment Gilda was occupied, something flew at her at an incredible speed. She turned, but by the time she saw it coming, it was already too late. Ride on Time tackled Gilda at full speed, winding her, it then took the opportunity to steal the arrow and the boot away from her and delivered them back to Dash. Gilda clutched at her stomach, but soon started recovering. “That was a dirty trick, Dash. Not that I expected any better from you.” Dash simply smirked. “But this isn’t over, I can still shoot you from here.” “Hold up there, bird brain! If you do that, you might risk shooting the arrow and your boss wouldn’t like that, would he?” “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to aim for your face!” “Argh!” Dash was cornered now. She knew how to get the arrow back, but she had no idea how to escape with it. Freesia’s barriers would really come in handy right about now, but she still had one, final play left. “What I meant to say was, if you try to shoot me, then I’ll... stab myself with the arrow again!” “Dash, don’t be stupid!” It was just a hunch, but Gilda’s reaction was confirmation enough. “Why? Are you scared? I bet something crazy will happen if a Stand user stabs themselves with the arrow a second time.” “Don’t do it!” Dash couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen and so, she pulled her arm back and dug the arrow right into her shoulder. It hurt. It really hurt. It hurt way more than it did the first time. In fact, the pain was unbearable, as the wound started bleeding. Last time, it only lasted for an instant, before the magic took over, but now it really felt like she just stabbed herself. Gilda felt ashamed that she was outsmarted by someone this stupid. “AAAAAAAAH! OH NO! HOLY, SON OF A-! WHY DOES THIS HURT SO MUCH!?” As Dash continued writhing in pain, screaming at the top of her lungs, Gilda casually strolled up to her and punched her right in the gut, knocking her unconscious. “Dash... you idiot...” Fluttershy frantically searched for Rainbow Dash in the forest, she could hear them fighting in the distance, but once she caught the sound of Dash screaming in agony, she desperately sped up, using the sound of her friend's screams to guide her. She eventually came across all the damage to the trees and earth that Gilda had left behind. Realising she was getting close, Fluttershy slowed down and gently snuck around the area, hoping she wouldn’t cause a disturbance that would give away her position. Unfortunately, Gilda’s eagle eyes spotted her immediately. She fired a couple of warning darts as Fluttershy dived behind a tree. Although she was shaking with fear she needed to see if her friend was okay and so she put up a barrier and forced herself up. Gilda was hoping her warning shots would scare her off, but it seemed she wasn’t aggressive enough. She fired a few more shots, but they bounced off of Freesia’s barrier. Gilda was taken aback. Her Stand had enough firepower to tear down a concrete wall, but Fluttershy of all people was able to deflect it? Something wasn’t right. “Hey!” She called to Fluttershy. “Could you get lost already? I’ve got business to take care of, I don’t need some cry baby poking around, making me feel awkward!” Fluttershy tried to ignore the insult to focus on the task at hand. “Where is Rainbow Dash?” She asked. Gilda cupped her hand around her ear as she leaned toward Fluttershy. “What was that?” “Um, I-I’m asking where Rainbow Dash... is...” “What!? Speak up, I can’t hear you!” Fluttershy tried raising her voice. “I-I said, where’s Rainbow Dash!?” “Oh? Dash? I don’t know, maybe she left you behind?” “Dash wouldn’t do something like that! Not on purpose at least...” “Really? I beg to differ...” Fluttershy was confused. She didn’t understand why Gilda was being so indirect. If she really wanted her to leave she could have just lied, but instead she just made fun of her and gave non-answers. Fluttershy just wanted to take her friend home. The girls were at a stalemate as they both waited for the other to make the next move. Fluttershy knew the situation wouldn’t go anywhere if she got aggressive, so instead she thought the best course of action was to show Gilda a little kindness. She dropped her barrier and retracted her Stand. Gilda was suspicious, there was no way Fluttershy would leave herself wide open without some sort of backup plan. “What are you doing?” “To be honest, I don’t really like fighting and I’m not here to hurt anyone. I just came here to help my friend. I’ll even let you keep the arrow, as long as we can leave safely.” With a warm smile, Fluttershy hoped she could walk over to Gilda without antagonising her, only for Gilda to fire another shot. This one passed right by Fluttershy’s face, leaving a bleeding cut on her cheek. Gilda was noticeably flustered by Fluttershy’s sudden change of heart. “What the heck is wrong with you? Are you an idiot?” Fluttershy was suddenly reminded of her horrible nightmare from earlier, but she couldn’t let that get to her, not when her real friend was in danger, if anything, the insults started to make her a little mad. “No, I’m not! I just don’t want to hurt anyone! Why can’t you understand that!?” “Because that’s stupid! Our Stand powers are supposed to be used for fighting! And I’ll cut down anyone who get’s in my way, including you, if you don’t leave us alone!” Gilda became even more defensive, almost as if she was hiding something. Whatever it was, she clearly had no intention of talking about it. “I don’t know what I did to upset you, Gilda, but I’m giving you one last chance to give my friend back peacefully.” “Last chance? Or what, are you gonna squeak at me some more?” “No, I-I’ll fight you!” Gilda burst into laughter, she didn’t expect Fluttershy to be so hilariously hostile toward her. “You’re going to fight me? For real?” But after indulging herself with a hearty chuckle, there was a sudden, serious silence. “As if you’d ever have the guts to stand up to me. I don’t care if you’re Dash’s friend, I’ll put you down, little mouse.” Fluttershy accepted her challenge and took a step closer to Gilda. True to her word, Gilda unleashed a barrage of bullets at Fluttershy, but Freesia quickly emerged and deflected the gunfire with its barrier. Gilda continued her assault, but she couldn’t breakthrough Freesia’s barrier. “What the heck is going on?” Gilda thought. “How is she this strong? It’s just Fluttershy. The cry baby, the wimp, she’s always been a push over. Something’s not right about this.” As Fluttershy got closer, Gilda panicked. In a desperate ploy to gain some kind of advantage, she grabbed the unconscious Rainbow Dash lying in the bushes next to her and fired some shots at the dirt to cover her escape. Freesia swatted the dirt away before it blinded Fluttershy. Gilda was able to gain some distance, but there wasn’t anywhere close by to hide, since she had already destroyed a portion of the forest earlier. Once the dust cleared, Fluttershy finally found Rainbow Dash, who was lying beside Gilda. She was horrified when she noticed the bleeding wound on Dash’s shoulder. “What did you do to her!?” “Hey!” Gilda yelled defensively. “All I did was knock her out, this idiot stabbed herself!” “Why aren’t you helping her!? She’s still bleeding!” “Because you keep distracting me! Just go away!” “I am not leaving her behind! Just cover her wound with something!” “No way! I don’t trust you! The moment I turn my back you’ll try to attack me!” Fluttershy had never been so angry with someone before. Gilda was acting completely irrational. If she did just leave, Gilda would probably help her, but who knows what else she might do, Gilda was clearly acting strange. Fluttershy would never be able to forgive herself if something happened to her friend, all because she left her behind, she promised to protect Rainbow Dash and that’s exactly what she was going to do. Fluttershy took a step forward only for Gilda to immediately open fire. Freesia used it’s barrier to shield Fluttershy from the darts once again, which only added to Gilda’s fears. Fluttershy’s shield seemed impenetrable, she needed a change in tactics. She pointed one of No Mercy’s turrets at Rainbow Dash. “Stop, right there! Come any closer and I-I’ll shoot!” Fluttershy froze on the spot. “What!? You can’t be serious!? How can you even think of doing such a horrible thing!?” “Because... Shut up!” “Why are you doing this!? Is something wrong!? Did I do something to you!? I’m sorry if I did!” “Stop apologising! Just get lost!” “There is something wrong with you, isn’t there. I can help you!” Gilda pointed a third and fourth turret at Fluttershy, insulted by her helpful gesture. That’s when Fluttershy finally figured it out. Gilda was suffering and that suffering was causing her irrational behaviour, but she could use this to her advantage as a way to save herself and Rainbow Dash. She didn’t want to do it, but sometimes you had to be cruel to be kind. “GILDA!” Fluttershy screamed. “I may be scared, scared of fighting and hurting, but you know what? At least I’m not a coward! A coward who hides behind a bad attitude so she doesn’t have to deal with people or face her fears!” “Are you calling me a coward!? That's rich coming from you!” “Maybe so, but at least I face my fears, instead of telling them to "get lost"! I’ve done nothing wrong and neither has Rainbow Dash! You’re the one who’s afraid you’ll be left behind and forgotten. You're the one who thinks Dash’s new friends are going to take her away from you!” “Shut up!” “That’s why you attacked me and the others. You want to get rid of Rainbow Dash’s new friends so you're the only one she has left! All because you’re too afraid to just talk to her! Well, if that’s how it’s going to be, then shoot me! Shoot me with everything you’ve got!” “If I did that, I’d destroy you!” “I’m not afraid of your threats, Gilda! You won't destroy me! I’m going to march right up there, save my friend and get the arrow back and there’s nothing you can do to stop me!” “Fine! But don’t blame me if you end up dead!” Gilda’s anger reached it’s limit. She summoned all ten of No Mercy’s turrets and unleashed her entire arsenal of darts on Fluttershy, all at once. Freesia kept its barrier up as Fluttershy walked through the storm of gunfire. Despite Freesia’s strength, Gilda’s gunfire was extremely tenacious, her rage supplied her turrets with as much ammo as she needed to whittle away at the barrier. As the pressure from Gilda’s onslaught built up, Freesia’s barrier became more difficult to maintain. Fluttershy herself was showing signs of fatigue as cuts started ripping on various parts of her body and yet, she pressed on. Gilda had used so much of her Stand’s power that her body was starting to feel heavy, but she refused to give in. Fluttershy marched through Gilda’s blizzard of bullets even though every fiber of her being screamed not to, for fear of collapsing from exhaustion. She marched and marched, despite the pain she was bearing, until she finally came face-to-face with Gilda herself. At this point, Fluttershy had moved passed the turrets and Gilda was simply too weakened to focus all ten of them on Fluttershy, without accidentally shooting herself in the process. Even if she could, she was out of ammo, her rage had passed, replaced with fatigue and fear as Fluttershy and Freesia loomed over her. With its barrier down, Freesia was free to attack Gilda directly. It raised its powerful arm, ready for a finishing blow as Gilda braced herself. It released a massive punch that came crashing down, shaking the earth as it connected with the ground. However, Gilda was left unharmed, as Freesia raised its fist out of the dirt beside her. She opened her eyes to find Fluttershy smiling, reaching out her hand, ready to help Gilda up whenever she was. “You didn’t finish me off?” Gilda muttered. “I told you. I don’t really like fighting.” “But... then, why did you yell at me like that?” “I was worried about what you would do to Rainbow Dash, so I tried to direct all your anger over to me instead.” “But, what about your own body? I just ended up hurting you instead!” “Oh, they’re just scratches, I’m sure they’ll heal up in no time.” Although, Fluttershy wasn't exactly in peak condition either, Gilda's Stand really tired her out. “I don’t understand. Why did I even do all this?” Fluttershy thought that was an odd question. Surely Gilda must of had some understanding of her actions. “Maybe you were just scared of losing your friend?” She rationalised. “Well, yeah, that’s true, but I’ve never been that violent before, but ever since I got my Stand, I felt all this sudden aggression building up inside me. I wanted my friend back, sure, but I never would have wanted things to go this far...” Fluttershy comforted Gilda with a hug, but also thought about her last statement. It was possible that something caused her emotions to run wild after she received her Stand. Was it related to the nightmare she saw earlier? “Um, Fluttershy.” Gilda asked. “You can let go now.” “Oh, I’m sorry...” “Aww, ain’t that cute.” Said a sarcastic voice below them. “Rainbow Dash? You’re awake!?” Cried Fluttershy. Gilda checked Dash’s body. “Are you okay?” “Other than this hole in shoulder, yeah I’m good.” “We should get that checked right away.” Fluttershy insisted. “Don’t worry about it.” Gilda assured. “Wounds from the arrow heal pretty quickly. Look it’s already stopped bleeding.” Although she was relieved her friend was safe, there was something Fluttershy needed to ask her. “Rainbow Dash, have you been awake this entire time?” “Not the entire time. Honestly, I’m not really sure what just happened, but seeing you walk through Gilda’s bullets like they were nothing was freaking awesome!” Fluttershy blushed as Gilda helped Dash to her feet. She apologised for the damage she caused and to prove she was truly sorry, she returned the Unicorn Arrow. Dash was shocked that she gave up the arrow so easily. “Gilda. Don’t you need this, I don’t want you getting in trouble because of us.” “Don’t worry about it, I’m done working for that guy. I’m never going back.” “Why did you work for him in the first place?” “When I was shot by the arrow and received my Stand, I had no idea what was happening, but suddenly, everything went dark and that creepy, shadow dude appeared. I tried to fight him but his shadow fought back. It was like I was fighting fog and I lost... I don’t know how he knew, but he started talking about how lonely I was feeling and that he could help me. He said there were others like me, others with these powers. For some reason I believed him and I used my powers to help him and his allies. I didn’t really care for the other Stand users he gathered, but when I found out you had a Stand too, I thought that we could work together and I wouldn’t be so lonely any more, but it was obvious that you would never betray your friends just for me and I guess, that just made me even more lonely and angry. But, now I know. I know he really was just using me. He didn’t care about my feelings at all! Well, I don’t need some shady guy hiding in some run-down old building to tell me what to do! I don’t need anyone telling me what to do! NO ONE TELLS GILDA WHAT TO DO!” “Uh, Gilda.” Dash intervened. “You’re getting angry again.” Gilda quickly regained her composure. “Sorry... honestly, I just wanna hang out with you again. So, can we?” “Of course we can, ya big goof! All you had to do was ask!” Dash reached for hug and noogied Gilda’s head. “Although, to be honest, I was kinda scared of talking to you too, so I guess we’re both goofs.” The knowledge that Dash was just as dumb as she was made Gilda feel better, she even smiled a little. “Isn’t it weird that he had that much power over you, though?” Fluttershy thought aloud. “Yeah.” Gilda agreed. “I wasn’t kidding when I said he was dangerous. None of us really understand how his powers work.” “You said he was hiding in a run down house, right? I saw something just like that earlier!” “There’s only one place like it in this forest, so, yeah. That’s his hideout.” Dash felt a sudden fiery urge to kick some shadowy butt. “Alright! Then let’s go pay him a visit, right now! Come on, Fluttershy!” She stormed off, ready to face the man who dared mess with her friends. Fluttershy prepared to follow after her. “Um, I guess I should stop her, before something bad happens. Will you be okay, Gilda?” “Yeah, I just need some time to think.” The girls went their separate ways. Gilda wandered through the forest as she thought about what she wanted to do with herself next. Maybe, instead of fighting against Dash and her friends, she could work with them. Her thoughts were soon interrupted when she bumped into a familiar face. “Oh, hey. If it isn't the little diva. What do you want?” Fluttershy followed after Rainbow Dash and calmed her down, fighting the shadow man now, after they just fought Gilda was way too dangerous. They got the arrow back and that’s all they needed for now. However, Dash at least managed to convince Fluttershy to show her where his hideout was. Fluttershy directed Dash to the location of the house, it was hard to forget since it was in a small clearing, the real challenge was finding the clearing. "Are you sure it was around here?" Dash asked impatiently. "Yes, I-I think?" "You think?" "Well, technically, Freesia was the one who found it. Maybe she knows where it is, right?" Fluttershy turned to her Stand hoping it could point them in the right direction and end their confusion. It scanned the surrounding area, but it couldn't see anything through all the thick trees and so, it simply shrugged. "Did your Stand just shrug?" "Um, I guess she doesn't remember, either..." Fluttershy felt disappointed in herself, she can still remember the house clearly, but now she couldn't find it anywhere. "Don't worry about it." Dash reassured her. "We can always come back some other time, for now let's just-" Suddenly, the girls heard an explosion from deep in the forest as strong gale force winds blew past them. “What the heck was that?” Dash yelled. Rainbow Dash immediately ran toward the sound of the explosion, with Fluttershy following close behind. It took them a few minutes, but what they eventually found was total chaos. The area around them had been completely torn apart, with debris from trees and bushes scattered everywhere. Lying in the center of all the carnage, buried under bark and leaves was Gilda, unconscious and bleeding everywhere.