Several weeks had passed since Flash and Lightning returned from their adventure in New Omniara. In that time, Twilight and Starlight managed to repair the Friendship Map, Heart, Soul and the CMC also got to enjoy the Applewood Derby, with Flash and Twilight helping the twins out while the CMC asked for the help of the big sisters. It had been an...eventful day, though it was almost ruined after a big crash. Finally, the only event of significance was the town wide prank everypony had pulled on Rainbow Dash in order for her to stop her own slew of pranks, which involved cookies, rainbow colored mouths and a zombie apocalypse.
And after all this happened, a certain couple was now packing for a journey. It was Fluttershy and Iron, the defender speaking up first, "Got the earmuffs." he commented as he carried a set of gray muffs with a black band while the other was white with a blue band and a purple flower on the side. Fluttershy nodded as she took hers, putting in a saddle bag before looking up and gasping in surprise.
"Tea?" a certain multi-animal creature known as Discord asked as he stared at the half-packed bags. "Trendy coats? Bedrolls? Saddlebags? Oh!" He smiled at the two, "Are you both heading off on a couples retreat? If so, I'd be happy to send you somewhere sunny and deserted." With a snap, he was suddenly on a deckchair atop a pile of sand while wearing sunglasses. "I hear Puerto Caballo is lovely this time of year." He picked up some of the sand and blew it, "Sand like powdered sugar."
Fluttershy and Iron stared at him, Fluttershy raising an eyebrow while Iron let out a groan. "Um, Discord?" the pegasus spoke up, "Princess Celestia is taking us on an overnight goodwill tour of Yakyakistan. We just found out."
"And I'm on security detail with Grand and Sentry," Iron added, "Though save that secluded beach idea for another time. I may decide to take you up on it."
As he said this, the two now saw Discord frowning. "Well..." he cleared his throat, "That's fine." He began to fold a tray holding a tea set up like a book, folding it again before pulling at his brown fur, opening it up and dropping the object inside, "I wasn't thirsty anyway."
Iron rolled his eyes at this, Fluttershy speaking up, "Discord...I'm sorry. I know we were supposed to have tea, but I have to do this." She bit her lip at her words, only for a bulb to go off in her head, "Say...if you're looking for something to do, you could spend the evening with Spike and Big Mac."
This caused Discord to break out in laughter, the draconequus rolling back through the air until he did a full circle. That is, till he stopped when he realized Fluttershy wasn't laughing, the amalgamation of creatures staring down at her. "You aren't kidding."
"They're very nice," Fluttershy replied while continuing to pack her bag. "They have a top secret thing they do whenever we leave Ponyville." She let out a giggle, "Although everypony knows about it, so it's not a very good secret."
"I think they're planning on having the bat pony join them today," Iron chimed in as he stuffed a sweater into his bag.
Fluttershy nodded back before turning to Discord. "I think you'd have fun with them."
"Fun?!" Discord yelped, "With sidekicks?! Oh, you must think that we're in a dimension where everything is opposite." He snapped his fingers, the three now finding themselves in a world where every color was its exact opposite. "Da-dee-la! I'm Opposite Discord, and I want to hang out with Spike and Big Mac! I'm sure I'd have fun!"
His laughter came to a stop when Fluttershy flew up to him, anger stemming off her face, "WELL GUESS WHAT, SASSAFRAS?!" She suddenly grew twice as big as Discord, "I'M OPPOSITE FLUTTERSHY, AND I'M SICK OF BEING NICE AND QUIET ALL THE TIME!" Discord was quick to snap his fingers and return them to normal, Fluttershy covering her mouth while shrinking down to half her normal size. Iron just stared at her with a smirk on his face, mentally wishing he could hang out with that Fluttershy from time to time.
"Let me explain it to you as simply as I can," Discord responded, "Me? Amazing! Them? Well, I've already forgotten who we're talking about. You see?"
Iron rolled his eyes at this as Fluttershy flew down, returning to normal before continuing to pack her bag. "All I'm saying is that it's an opportunity to expand your circle of friends." Fluttershy put her purse in her bag before giving Discord a look that screamed sass, "Unless you're afraid they won't like you?" Iron's smile grew, this version of Fluttershy being his favorite.
"Oh please," Now it was Discord's turn to roll his eyes...and roll back into his head and come out of his mouth before putting them back into their holes, "Don't stoop to tedious reverse psychology. You're better than that."
"It never hurts to make new friends," Fluttershy instantly replied.
"Unless that new friend is a porcupine," Iron pointed out. "Then an un-careful hug can really hurt."
Fluttershy glared at him as Discord let out a scoff, "Consider it considered." With that, he disappeared in a puff of smoke. Fluttershy began humming as she tried to close her bag, only to gasp when it opened back up to reveal a miniaturized Discord looking at her pleadingly. "Couldn't I just come with you instead?"
Fluttershy opened her mouth to reply, only for Iron to walk up with a jar, "Sure, as long as you stay that size and I have permission to stuff you in this jar if you start messing around." Fluttershy and Discord turned to him, the mare surprised at how direct he was being while Discord growled at him. Iron then let out a sigh, turning away, "I never get to do anything I want."
He and Fluttershy continued packing while Discord chose to teleport away. Once that was done, they quickly worked to set out enough food for all of Fluttershy's animal friends before getting dressed in their cold weather gear. Fluttershy was wearing a purple jacket, while Iron was wearing a black turtleneck with their earmuffs. Once that was done, they headed off to the castle, only to find the group there was still packing up. As such, the two headed off to the station, hoping Rainbow, Rarity or somepony else was there.
And while one of their friends was there, it wasn't one who was going to Yakyakistan. Instead, it was the strangely somber looking draconequus. "I suppose this is goodbye then. Have an absolutely fabulous voyage." But then, he snapped his fingers behind his back, the ponies sensing something occurring behind them. They both turned to see the train line suddenly reshape to wrap around a large mountain that had smoke coming out the top, making Fluttershy look back at her friend, "Discord..."
The master of chaos gasped. "Well, it's not my fault the new train route leads into an active volcano. Guess you'll have to stay." Fluttershy raised an eyebrow, making Discord sigh. "Oh, you're no fun." He snapped his fingers, returning the train back to normal just as the rest of the Mane Seven arrived with Grand, Spike and Mac. Springer and the younglings were also there, though they weren't carrying any luggage. All but Spike and Mac were dressed in warm clothes, Flash wearing the parkour he had gotten for his birthday with his cutie mark on the shoulders.
Applejack shined a big smile as she walked onto the platform. "Ah got mah bedroll, parka, unattractive but functional hikin' boots." She turned to her fellow earth pony mare. "Uh, anything ah forgot Pinkie Pie? You're our resident Yakyakistan expert."
"Nope!" Pinkie shook her head, "I brought yeti food!" This made them all stare at her with wide eyes, "Oh, did I forget to mention that there's a pony-eating yeti on Frost Field Glacier?"
"Oh, we know." Flash replied, Twilight nodding. The two exchanged glances next, blushing as they remembered what happened last time.
Pinkie began jumping up and down, "We're gonna have so much fun!"
"Heh!" Rainbow laughed before punching the air. "If he messes with us, I'll turn that yeti into confetti!"
"Still, probably a good thing that we sent Heart, Soul and Scootaloo to sleep over at their friends."
"But Springer's bringing Ace and Mira?" Rarity asked, pointing to the younglings.
"Nope," Springer replied, "I'm taking them to see the Crystal Empire. Ruby said she'd give us a tour." Mira clapped her paws while Ace just looked away, his eyes stuck in a comic. The sight made Springer let out a sigh, "And maybe get some help with training them."
In that moment, the whistle of an approaching train rang out. And as the train pulled up to the station and came to a stop, Mac pushed Applejack toward the opening doors, making his sister laugh, "Heh, somepony's in an awful quick hurry to get us out of here." She turned back to give her brother with a giant smirk, "Don't y'all have too much fun without us."
"I bet you boys have big plans," Twilight giggled while stroking Spike's head spines back. "Right, Spike?"
Spike crossed his arms, "I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about." He then smirked while running over to Rarity's side. "Although if I did, I certainly wouldn't be allowed to discuss it with you girls."
Rarity rolled her eyes at this, walking into the train while Twilight and Flash followed, "Buh-bye!"
"Don't get to bored without us," Flash laughed.
"And try not to make a mess of the castle," Springer added as the jakhowls climbed on board, Springer having to drag Ace. As soon as they were all on the train, the doors slammed shut, the train soon beginning to pull away. And as this happened, the ponies waved goodbye while Discord, Spike and Mac did the same. Once the train was out of sight, Discord looked back at the two before looking away and crossing his arms.
Mac and Spike stared at him for a moment before Mac whispered something into Spike's ear. Spike then whispered back, the earth pony nodding with a hushed, "Yup" before they turned back to Discord.
The draconequus summoned a magazine and pretended to read it. "Fascinating article, yes?" He let out a nervous laugh before whispering to himself, "Don't let them come over, please don't let them come over, please don't let them come over, please, please, please-" But as he said this, they came over as Discord was forced to throw his magazine away, "Oh salutations, my friends! Wish I could stay and chat, but I don't want to."
"Wait!" Spike yelled, causing Discord to stop his finger from snapping, "Um..." He rubbed the back of his head, "We were wondering...what are you up to tonight?"
"Oh," Discord slapped his hand onto his face, pulling it down while extending his goatee to be five times its length, "Here we go..."
"Do you wanna, I don't know, hang out? Is that like, something you do?"
Discord tried to resist rolling his eyes, "Oh, Twilight's friend and Applejack's monosyllabic brother. If only I weren't super busy this evening." He crossed his arms, letting out a huff as Spike turned to Mac.
"I guess guys' night will only be having one new member." Mac nodded before the two began to walk off, only for Discord to suddenly fly past them.
"A guys' night?!" He extended his head right into their faces, "You mean a rowdy evening of reckless revelry?! Zoot suits, fedoras, swing dancing?!" He clapped his hands, about to summon a zoot suit as Spike gave him a half-smile.
"Eh, something like that. You should totally come. Four of us would be way better than three. Rogue'll be there too, so the more the merrier."
Mac also gave a nervous smile at this, the pony nodding his head.
"So, the newest character of Banshee's story is joining in..." Discord took one of his horns off and began scratching his chin in thought with it, "That does sound fun..."
"Too bad you're busy," Spike responded, only for Discord to vanish in a flash, only to then reappear wearing a business suit and sitting behind a desk.
"Well..." He took out a calendar, "I suppose I could squeeze you in if I move a few very important ponies around." He reached down and tapped his intercom. "June," he said in a gravelly voice, "Honey, be a dear and reschedule Luna and Cay-Cay." He turned to the two and spoke normally. "That's what I call Princess Celestia, what a hoot!" He then went back to the gravelly accent. "In fact, clear the whole evening. Tonight is guys' night. These fellas invited me to spice things up and bring a little class to the whole affair."
Discord then vanished again, only to phase out of the floor, pulling them into a hug. "Tonight will be the best night of your lives, and not just because you get to bask in my greatness."
"I do like basking in things," Spike replied, "See you tonight." He grabbed his ear and whispered into it, "Twilight's castle. The fun starts promptly at sundown."
Discord smiled before dropping the two. "Technically, the fun starts when I arrive, but I'll make sure it's around sunset." He gave them a bow. "Adieu, fellas." With that, he disappeared, leaving Spike to go to the castle while Mac headed off to the farm to grab Rogue.
It was a very rare event where every female that would normally be at the castle to be gone, whether it be off to Yakyakistan or having a sleepover at a friend's house, or going to visit her dad in Starlight's case. Hours passed, both Mac and Rogue soon arriving at the castle as Rogue looked like he had just woken up while taking off his glasses. "Right on time," Spike commented as they walked inside, "You ready for the most awesome night of your life?"
"You bet," Rogue replied, "I'm been waiting to do this since Mac first told me about it."
"Well you won't have to wait much longer," Spike responded as they walked up to the castle's balcony, the group now seeing the sun hit the horizon before being replaced by the moon. "And now..." he said as the sun completely vanished behind the horizon, "We have sundown. I repeat, we have sundown." He then shined a massive smile, "I declare tonight's guys' night ceremonies officially open!"
"Eeyup!"
"Guys night!" Rogue cheered before Mac and Spike started dancing and singing together, Rogue laughed before doing his own dance. But as he did this, his wing smacked a nearby table, knocking something off before his other wing grabbed the object.
"Phew," Spike sighed before walking up to him, "Be careful with that. It's Soul's school project." He grabbed it out of Rogue's wing, Rogue and Mac now seeing it was some kind of model. It had a pony head with an open mouth, connected to a pipe leading to several organs.
"What is it?" Rogue asked as Spike put it back.
"A model of the pony digestive system. Soul, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon have been working on it for weeks." He rubbed his chin at this, "Odd...I thought she said she was taking it over to Diamond's place to finish."
But before any of them could say anything else, a sudden loud noise rang out under them. The trio ran downstairs, only to come to a stop as Spike yelped, "What the hay?" He was now staring at two Discord clones, both were playing the trumpet on either side of the front door. It was then that a miniature version of the draconequus suddenly began skedaddling into the castle, coming to a stop and pulling out a scroll before speaking in a high-pitched voice.
"Announcing the much anticipated arrival of the spirit of chaos and disharmony, the purveyor of pandemonium, lord of lawlessness, earl of turmoil, bringer of bedlam-"
"We get it," Rogue called out, now realizing this was Discord that Applejack had told him about.
"Discord!" the mini-Discord yelled, a banner with Discord's face appearing before the real one suddenly ripped through it while dribbling a basketball before throwing it at them. The ball exploded seconds before hitting, Discord laughing as he appeared in front of them. "So, shall we hop to it? I made a list of the rowdiest establishments in Ponyville." He pulled out a scroll and unfurled it, only to show it was an inch long and had two lines on it. "It's rather short."
Rogue raised an eyebrow at this before turning to the duo, "You didn't tell him what we were doing today?"
"Actually," Spike turned to Discord and rubbed the back of his head, "We're staying here. I hope you like awesome games!"
"Games?!" Discord gasped, "I love games! I'm great at games..." He snapped his fingers, the four now teleporting to a wooden cabin. The three were on a couch while Discord sat in an armchair with a bowl of paper in his claws. "Famous pony charades?" He reached into the bowl and pulled out a slip of paper. "Oh, this is an easy one." He rubbed his face with his hands, pulling them away to show a white face that looked like a horror movie version of Celestia. "Who am I? Huh? Huh?"
"Well, I know what'll be haunting my nightmares from now on." Rogue commented while Spike just frowned.
"Uh," he began to twiddle his claws, "I'm talkin' about a real game."
"Oh," Discord's Celestia hair jumped off his head, landing in his lap as he began to stroke it, "You mean like trapping best friend ponies in hedge mazes and turning them against each other? Those were the days." The hair then leapt out of his lap, making a cat like sound before he snapped his fingers, puffing them back to the castle.
"Not exactly. Wait here." Spike replied before running off.
"Whatever it is, it can only get better by adding me to the mix."
"Hope so," Rogue added while pulling out a bag, "I've been waiting to try this out for a week." He reached inside, taking out a golden apple before munching on it.
"Okay!" yelled Spike's voice behind the throne room door, the three walking up to it. Mac and Rogue went in first, Discord looking inside to see the room was pitch black. But then, a light filled it, originating from a flashlight Spike was using to illuminate his face. "In a world where evil reigns supreme, a small band of warriors stands tall against the darkness. This is..." The lights switched on, revealing a table covered in maps, books and dice. "Ogres and Oubliettes!"
Discord let out a gasp, now realizing what the three of them intended to spend the night doin: Nerd stuff. He flew over the table, frowning at as he mumbled, "Oh, this looks like..."
"The best game ever?!" Spike finished for him, "You're right!"
Discord huffed as he slumped over in Rarity's throne, "Yes..."
"Ogres and Oubliettes is a fantasy role-playing adventure game," Spike explained as he held up a book. "Our goal, defeat the evil Squid Wizard." he and Mac smirked at one another, "Or as we call him...the Squizard!" He held up a card with the character drawn on it, which was a blue octopus with a wizard's hat, cape and wands.
"Oh, give me strength," Discord whispered as the others laughed.
Spike then climbed onto the table, placing the drawing on the game board. "The Squizard has laid siege to the last free city in Spiketopia, that's the name of the land. He's kidnapped a beautiful unicorn princess named Shmarity." He blushed as began to sweat, "We started this game a while ago. Been meaning to change that name."
"Fear not, your romantic delusions are safe with me." Discord made a mouth-zipping motion, causing an actual zipper to appear over his mouth.
Spike chuckled as he hopped back into his chair before taking out a piece of paper. "First things first. You've gotta create a character!"
"I've been working on mine all week," Rogue replied as he did the same. "I've taken inspiration from my name and chose it as my class." He then held up a card showing what looked like him, only dressed in black leather that covered everything except his eyes and wings. "I am Gureo, a thestral rogue with high stealth and agility along with slight of hoof."
"Nice, nice, loving the energy," Spike pointed at him before looking back Discord. "Now for your character. Name?"
The lord of chaos tapped his chin before replying, "How about...Discord?"
Spike and Mac shared a glance, Spike responding, "Discord...the whole point of the game is you get to use your imagination to be someone you're not." He reached into the box, pulling out his own card that showed a drawing of him dressed like a wizard. "I'm Garbunkle, a famous magician. Everyone treats me with the utmost respect."
"Just like in real life?" Discord asked sarcastically, the draconequus now clipping his toenails.
"And don't get jealous, but I'm a level 30 Enchanter with major skill points assigned to intellect and perception."
"Go on..." Discord was now reading a magazine while his head was in a hairdressing machine. "I'm listening."
Spike then held up a card showing Big Mac, except he was a unicorn in black armor. "Big Mac's character is Sir McBiggun, a level 27 Black Knight Unicorn from Castle Chadwick!"
"I'm listening..." Discord muttered while putting the top layer on a house of cards.
"When his king aligned himself with the Squizard, Sir McBiggun would not besmirch his honor."
"Nnope!" Big Mac shook his head before seeing Discord was now in a floating bed with a sleeping fold over his eyes.
"I'm listening," he mumbled after clearing his throat.
"And so it came to pass, the magician and black knight vowed to rid Spiketopia of the evil Squizard."
Rogue shined a big grin as he put his card next to the other two. "And on this latest journey, they'd be joined by a dashing young thief who says he's only in it so the princess would reward him handsomely. But deep down, he truly does want to help the kingdom of Spiketopia." Spike and Mac smirked at him, only to hear the sound of a deflating balloon...and seeing the balloon is Discord.
"So..." Spike grabbed the character sheet, "Your character's name?"
"I already have the best name in the universe," Discord growled as he shifted back to normal before crossing his arms. "Why would I change it for something like Captain Wuzz?!"
"Captain Wuzz, it is!" Spike laughed as he wrote it down, Discord letting out a groan, "What class are you, Captain Wuzz? There's Archers, Mages, Clerics..."
Discord snorted at this, "Can I suggest we take a break and, I don't know, go out and have some fun?" He held up a bucket of paint and a brush, "Ponyville's not going to paint itself red...or polka dot as I would like it."
"You'll love it once we get started!" Spike grabbed some dice and rolled them before looking back at Discord, "How 'bout an Archer?"
"Sounds just as miserable as the other options," Discord threw the paint and brush away. "So fine." Discord watched as Spike began drawing on another card, then put it down to show an image of Discord dressed in green clothes with waving blonde hair while holding a bow and arrow.
"Are you sure this won't copyright us?" Discord asked, seeing the three just blink at him. "Nevermind. I'm betting legal issues will be more fun than this."
Spike then turned to the ponies, "Sir McBiggun, Gureo, are you prepared to enter the world of Ogres and Oubliettes?"
"Eeyup."
"Bring it on," Rogue added.
Spike turned to the draconequus. "Discord, or should I say Captain Wuzz, are you-"
"Oh, get on with it," Discord grumbled while crossing his arms again.
Meanwhile...
At the mansion of Filthy Rich, Soul, Diamond and Silver were laughing as they were doing makeovers. Soul had borrowed a book from Twilight about what you would do during a slumber party, the first activity being makeovers. "The mud masks are ready," Diamond announced.
"Sweet." Soul replied, "After this, it's ghost stories before roasting marshmallows and then truth or dare."
"This is gonna be so much fun," Silver clapped her hooves. "We've never done this before..."
They then heard a knock at the door, Mr. Rich's voice calling out to them. "Girls, I know you're probably having fun, but I hope you haven't forgotten to finish your school work."
Diamond let out a moan, "Alright dad." She turned to her friends, "Let's get it done so we enjoy the rest of the night."
"Got it," Soul responded, only to see the two stare at her, "What?"
"You had the model, remember? You were gonna add the intestine because you're the only one that can stomach doing that kind of stuff."
"Oh yeah..." Soul replied, a frown appearing on her face.
"You did bring it...right?" Diamond's question made Soul let out a nervous laugh, the filly groaning at this, "Great. Now what do we do?!"
"No problem," Soul responded before heading for the window. "I'll just fly home and grab it, though I'll have to be careful so I don't ruin Spike and Big Mac's 'secret guy thing'." She giggled while opening the window with her magic.
"Wait! You can't go out after dark!"
"Why not?" She asked as she began to float outside before turning back to the duo, "I spent three years living in an abandoned city with only my brother for company. You don't go through all that and still have a fear of the dark."
Diamond and Silver shared a glance, only to walk up to the window, "Then we're going too," They then looked down, seeing the ground be quite far away. "Though uh...any idea how we get down?" As they asked this, they found themselves glowing as Soul used her magic to lift them up before gently lowering them down.
"Wow. You're getting good at that."
"Just don't ask me to do anything too complicated," Soul replied, her friends seeing she was slightly panting after that. "Now come on."
Jazz music was the first thing Rogue heard after Discord snapped his fingers, teleporting them somewhere. He had been enjoying the game so far, especially when Discord turned his fingers into carrots, but the draconequus hadn't enjoyed it so much and after making Mac float in a giant bubble, he warped them someplace else. That place was some kind of jazz club, with Discord now dressed in an orange suit.
"This is the life!" He yelled as he began teleporting all over the shop. "Jazz, dancing, the best table magic can buy!" He teleported back to them, "This is what guys' night is all about. Am I right, fellas?"
Mac looked like he was about to say no, but then a mare walked by and winked at him. "Eeyup!"
Rogue rolled his eyes before a flash of light summoned a pair of bat pony mares on either side of him, both beginning to hang off one of his front legs. "Care for a dance?" One asked while fluttering her eyes.
"Discord!" Rogue roared while pulling himself free.
"Oh, don't be such a baby," Discord replied. "Or is the problem being your more of an earth pony kind of stallion." The mares suddenly morphed into clones of Applejack, the thestral blushing at the outfits she was wearing. Luckily, Mac hadn't noticed this as Rogue quickly pulled himself free.
"Knock it off!" He barked while he and Mac moved over to Spike, the drake now beginning to set up their game board on the table Discord had gotten them.
"I know you probably didn't do this on purpose, but this table's the perfect size and shape!"
But before he could say anything else, Discord swept the game pieces away. "I don't think so. Let's have a drink." He commented before warping the four over to the bar, the draconequus growing an extra arm to grab all three of his companion's drinks. "Chocolate milkshakes?"
Spiked sighed as he took the drink, "No, we want to go back to Ogres and-"
"Oh, how 'bout a different game?" The four were suddenly zapped back to their table, where they and several dogs were suddenly holding cards. Spike looked around in both confusion and annoyance as Discord chuckled, "Those are very bad cards."
Spike threw the cards in his face, "Stop messing with us! We wanna-" He didn't get to finish as the group was once again warped to another part of the club, Discord beginning to bust a move when they appeared.
"A dance contest?" He did several very outdated moves before the room was filled with confetti, streamers, balloons and party blower sounds. "Surprise! We won!" He passed them all a trophy, Spike growling at this.
"DISCORD!" He screamed while throwing the trophy away.
"Yes?" The ultimate lord of chaos asked as he turned back to him with a sinister smile.
Spike took a deep breath, Rogue now seeing the drake trying to take a calm route. "Look, we don't wanna do these things." Mac and Rogue stood on either side of him, nodding as the little dragon spoke up, "We wanna play our game. If you don't want to play with us, you can, I don't know, sit and watch."
"Sit and watch?!" Discord yelped, a look of horror on his face before being replaced by a look of anger. "Fine. We'll play your game." His costume dissolved as his body began to grow, storm clouds started spiraling around him. "Are you ready to enter the world of Ogres and Oubliettes?!"
Before any of them could reply, he thrust his hands forward, unleashing a zap of energy into them. The three found themselves blinded, the trio crying out as they felt something happen. They felt pieces of clothing appear around their bodies, Mac feeling something beginning to grow out of his forehead while Spike felt hair start to grow around his mouth. And as the light faded, they opened their eyes to see they were now wearing the exact same clothes as the character they had designed for.
"Sir McBiggun?!" Spike yelped as Big Mac looked himself over.
"Eeyup!"
Spike turned to Rogue, who reached into his cloak and pulled out some daggers. "And you're...Gureo."
"Yeah," Rogue replied before glancing over at Spike, "And you're Garbunkle."
"I am?" Spike responded before looking down, "That means..." He let the pieces fall into place as a smile appeared on his lips, the transformed dragon glancing back up to see that they were in some kind of valley surrounded by giant O&O dice. It looked just like the map he had designed for his campaign. "Sweetness!" He jumped for joy, "We're in the game!" He then swung his staff, "Check it out! Ka-zam!" A burst of magic shot out of the staff, hitting one of the dice, making it explode.
"Nice." Rogue commented as Spike then did a freezing spell, making a pillar of ice. He then did a back-flip and fired another spell at a dice, granting it wings. As it flew past them, Mac found he could use his magic to draw his sword while Rogue started spinning the daggers around in his hooves, Mac slicing the blade around while Rogue threw the daggers around with incredible accuracy.
Once they were done, they both smiled as Spike, Rogue and Mac started singing and dancing a re-breathed version of their guys night song. Once that was done, Spike looked up at the sky. "Discord, where are you? This is great! You made the game real!"
As he said that, a large white cloud was hovering toward them, only for the reverberating laughter of the lord of chaos started echoing out of it. They stared at the cloud as Discord's head formed from it, the draconequus continuing to laugh, "Aren't games fun?"
Spike turned to the ponies, "Should we be worried he's using his scary voice?"
"Eh, what's the worst he could do?" Rogue replied, only for the sound of marching to ring out. They turned to the noise now, seeing an army appearing on top of the die.
That army was made up of the same card-like figures Spike had been using earlier, only these were much bigger. All but one of those walking cards depicted the image of a pony skeleton with black boots and swords in their mouth. But the one that wasn't a skeleton was a certain octopus wielding magic wands, "Behold! I am the Squizard!"
The players gasped while Discord chuckled. "You're welcome."
"ATTACK!" The Squizard yelled before he and his army jumped off the die, the trio backpedaling at the sight.
Outside the castle, Soul and her friends were now at the front door.
"See? Got here with no problems." Soul commented as she opened the door, "We'll just sneak in, grab the model, sneak out and get back to your house before anypony spots us." But as they entered, they suddenly found themselves trotting through some kind of magical barrier. "What the?"
As they walked in, they found them suddenly transformed. The three looked down, seeing they were wearing new clothes. Shining Soul was dressed in a set of white robes with a tiara on her head, also having a staff strapped to her back. Diamond Tiara was wearing a simplistic gi with a headband on her head and white hoof coverings, both having holes in the front and back. Silver Spoon was dressed in leather clothing, a light gray cloak over it along with an acrostic guitar on her back.
"What's going on?" Diamond asked as Silver held the guitar. She strummed it, letting out a soothing sound, causing her to play it some more, now getting a rhythmic melody.
"When did you learn to play the guitar?" Soul asked as she finished.
"I didn't," Silver replied, "I've never played any instrument."
"Huh." Soul hummed as she pulled the staff off her back, "Weird. This looks...familiar." She turned around to see the place was now covered in die, looking nothing like the castle. The filly grimaced at this before spinning around, "Maybe we should get out of here before whatever's causing all this decides to come looking for us." The other two nodded, Diamond then grabbing the door's handles.
But as she tried to open it, she let out a yelp, "It's locked!"
"What?" Soul grabbed the handles with her magic, her horn flaring as she tried to open it, "That's not right. The only way to lock these doors is with...magic."
"So just use your magic and unlock it!" Silver responded, "Or better yet, teleport us out of here!"
"I don't know how to teleport," Soul replied, "I've only just learned how to control my magic without much thought. If I tried teleporting, I could send us into a volcano or make us materialize inside out!"
Silver and Diamond gulped at this, Diamond then chiming in, "Well...maybe whatever this is is only happening on the ground floor. Think we can get to a balcony and you do what we did at our house?"
"Good idea," Soul added, "But where are the stairs?" As she asked that, a new sound caught their ears. They turned to it, now seeing an army of...cardboard. "What the heck?!" she yelped, now seeing the cardboard had skeleton drawings on them, all the drawings glaring at the three.
"Are we in trouble?" Silver asked, only for the skeleton to raise the bows they were carrying. Before they knew what was happening, a bunch of cardboard arrows shot out before arcing down at them.
"RUN!" Soul screamed as the girls ran away, soon hiding behind a large twenty-sided-die.
"What's going on?!" Diamond cried as they curled up, the arrows falling all around them. "What do we do?!"
Soul grimaced at this before looking down at the staff she was holding, "Wait...I knew I'd seen this thing before. It was in one of Spike's Ogres and Oubliettes books!" The other two raised an eyebrow at this, "It's a game. He left the book out once and I read through it while he was out." She rubbed the staff with her hoof, "Sure feels real." The filly looked back up at her friends, "I think we've become characters from that game."
"So?" Silver asked, only to see Soul leap out from behind the die.
"So I should be able to do this!" She pointed her staff at the army as it began to spark with lightning, "Guided Volts!" The staff unleashed a burst of lightning, striking several skeletons, causing them to melt.
"Whoa...how'd you do that?!" Diamond gasped as she and Silver poked their heads out from behind the die.
"I'm a cleric. It's what I do." She pointed at Diamond, "You're a monk." Her hoof went to Silver, "And you're a bard. If this is following the rules of that game, that means we can do anything our classes can do."
"Is that why I can play this thing?" Silver asked, holding up her guitar.
"You can do more then just play it," Soul replied before another wave of skeleton drawings appeared in front of them. "Point it at them and strum!"
Silver did so, unleashing a burst of energy in the shape of musical notes, a lullaby sound coming out of the instrument. The energy flew around the skeletons, wrapping around them before they fell over, "What did I do?"
"Slumber. You put them to sleep."
As she said this, several more skeletons appeared, the two then using the same attacks as before. While this happened, Diamond stayed behind the die as she asked, "What about me?! I don't have a weapon!"
"Just punch them!" Soul screamed as a skeleton sprinted past them, about to get to Diamond. She closed her eyes, throwing a punch at the charging cardboard creation. As she did this, her hoof began to glow and as it made contact, only to unleash an explosive force that sent the cardboard flying back.
"Wow..." she gasped as she opened her eyes, "That was so cool!" Several more skeleton charged at her at this, only for the filly to start using a series of martial arts she had never known how to use before, doing several spin kicks and moves from tiquando and even krav maga.
Alas, the girls soon found that their new skills and abilities weren't enough, "Sleep!" Silver yelled as she strummed her guitar, sending out the lullaby energy....but the skeletons weren't affected. "What's happening?"
"I don't know," Soul replied, trying to remember what she had read in Spike's book, but was blanking. This distraction allowed one of the skeletons to get up close, using its bow to knock her staff out of her magical grasp, making her gasp as she jumped away.
"Look out!" Silver cried as some skeletons fired at Soul, Silver running up and swinging the instrument like a bat that deflected the cardboard arrows. But this caused her instrument to break, leaving her with only the neck that she quickly dropped.
While this happened, Diamond found the skeletons beginning to dodge her moves. She attempted a flying kick on one of them, only for the skeleton to step back, making her go flying past it and land in front of her friends. "Outh!" She moaned before looking up at the girls, "Now what?"
"Run!" Soul screamed, grabbing the two in her magic before flying away. She dropped them on the other side of the skeletons, the trio running as fast as they could into the battlefield, all the while dodging arrows and whatever else the skeletons threw at them. "Oh, please let us find somepony that can tell us what's going on and who has an idea of how to stop all this!"
Spike had no idea how to stop all this. He, Rogue and Mac were running as fast as they could, having just survived a barrage of arrows thanks to rolling a seventeen. It was here that they saw a nearby cave, going inside and jumping behind another giant dice. Once safe, the three began panting, gasping for air as they slumped down.
"This is nuts..." Rogue moaned, "What do we-"
"Boo."
The group let out a scream as Discord's suddenly appeared, upside down with a big grin on his face. "DISCORD!" Spike yelled, his outburst now making their pursuers turn to the cave as Discord warped over to the mouth before turning back to them.
"Sir McBiggun, I'd cover the entrance if I were you." Mac replied by drawing his sword, charging the approaching foes while Rogue did the same.
Mac began slashing away at the skeletons, only for Rogue to jump in front of him. "I got this!" He took a deep breath before letting out a, "RAAAAAAAAAAH!" But as he did this, he saw the skeletons just stare at him, making him go wide-eyed, "What the-my scream attack!" He suddenly found himself about to be struck by a cardboard sword, Mac barely managing to block it for him. "I don't have my scream!"
"Of course you don't." Discord summoned his character sheet. "Do you see hyper-sonic scream on your skills list? I don't, so why would Gureo have such a thing."
"This isn't funny!" Spike barked, pointing the tip of his staff at him.
"Isn't this what every gamer wants?" Discord asked while pushing the staff head away, "To live the game?" His smile morphed to a frown, "Like this?!" He snapped his fingers, the creature of chaos transforming into the Squizard. The drawing pointed its wand at Spike, firing a blast of magic that Spike barely managed to block with a magic shield. He then began to run away, dodging magic beams as the drake quickly found himself at the very back of the cave.
He turned to the Squizard as several skeletons charged into the cave, carrying Mac and Rogue. They threw the ponies at Spike, both landing atop of him, making him cry out as he was crushed. The dragon let out a groan, "This kinda hurts! Like, real pain!"
As he said that, a miniaturized Discord appeared on the tip of his nose. "Oh, how kind of you to notice. It's the little details that really bring alternate dimensions to life, wouldn't you say?" Spike glared at him, only to then hear some new screams. Discord blinked at this, turning to the exit of the cave. "What was that?" He snapped his fingers and before anypony could say anything, they were suddenly warped outside.
There they spotted three fillies running for their lives from a bunch of skeletons. "Soul!" Spike cried as he recognized the flying one, soon seeing her two friends, "What are they doing here?!" He turned to glare at Discord, the creature just blinking at the sight.
"Don't look at me. I didn't bring them here."
"Well stop this before they get hurt!" Rogue yelled before he, Spike and Mac ran off to save the girls. Discord rolled his eyes, simply floating after them as they found the girls now getting cornered and surrounded by skeletons.
"Ahh!" Diamond screamed as the three were backed up against a large die, Silver looking close to tears while Soul was hyperventilating.
"Get away...get away..." Soul whispered as her panting got more out of control.
"Oh no...don't do it Soul!" Spike cried, trying to pick up speed as he called out, "SOUL!"
"GET AWAY!" Soul's eyes shot open as her horn exploded with light. That light formed a dome around her body, now shooting magic in all directions. The blasts hit several die and cardboard villains, making them all explode. Silver and Diamond gasped at this, hopping behind other die as the alicorn's magic continued to flow.
"Soul!" Spike yelled before seeing a magic coming for him. "Get behind me!" He said as he turned to Mac and Rogue, summoning a barrier to push the beam back, only for the blast to hit the shield and shatter it, knocking them all back.
"Gyah/Outh/Ahh!" They cried as they were sent flying over the floating Discord.
"Soul!" Diamond called out, "You can stop now!"
"AAAAAHHH!" Soul continued to scream, the magic pouring out of her horn as beams flew across the field, "I...can't! HELP!"
"What's wrong with her?" Rogue asked as he pushed himself back to his hooves.
"She's lost control of her magic!" Spike yelled, "And in a terrifying situation like this, it's no wonder she lost it." He turned to Discord. "This is your fault, so deal with it!"
Discord rolled his eyes, sighing, "Fine..." He drifted over to Soul, not even attempting to dodge the magical blasts. "Now now young lady, I think it's about time you calm-AUGH!" He cried as one of the blast struck him in the chest, making him backpedal while clutching the spot. Once the pain was gone, he pulled his hands away, now seeing a large hole going straight through his body. "That...actually hurt."
"Oh, how kind of you to notice." Spike growled, "It's the little details that really bring being in real danger to life, wouldn't you say?!"
Discord let outa huff as he summoned a jar of Fun-Doh, the draconequus taking the brown putty and sticking it into the hole to repair himself. Once that was done, he turned back to Soul, summoning a captain america shield before charging. "Victory or death!" He flew in closer, the shield reflecting every blast.
And as he got to the filly, he reached out to her with his claw. He pinched the tip of her horn, everypony surprised to see that technique was actually working as the magic began to diminish, soon stopping as Soul slumped over. The dome vanished next, Discord letting her horn go as she fell face first.
"SOUL!" The others ran over to the filly, Spike dropping his staff and picking her up in his arms. "Soul, you okay?!"
Soul let out a moan, her eyes squinting open as tears began to form in her eyes. "I'm sorry."
Spike shook his head, "Don't apologize. It's not your fault." He then glared at Discord, "It's yours!" He handed Soul over to Mac as he got up, "Not only did you ruin our game night, you also put not just us, but these girls in danger and possibly scarred Soul! And just when she was getting more confident with her magic! You're the worst!"
"If I'm the worst, then why did you invite me?" Discord instantly replied.
Spike grit his teeth as he yelled, "Because we felt bad for you!"
This statement was met by a horse neigh coming from Discord, the creature going wide-eyed, "Because you...WHAT!?" He snapped his fingers, a flash of light coming next as they suddenly found themselves back in the throne room with everything being as it was before.
Spike looked around and gasped, seeing Soul and the others there with him. "We're okay, we're okay!" He turned back to his ill-fated house-guest. "No thanks to you, Discord!
"You felt sorry for me?!" He growled, making the dragon look back at him.
"Who wouldn't?!" The dragon replied, "Fluttershy told us you practically begged her to stay! And then at the train station, you were just standing there, all alone!"
"This can't be!" Discord barked back, "I'm supposed to feel sorry for you because I'm me and you're you."
"Why?" Rogue asked, "What makes you so much better than us?! Sure you've got a lot of fancy powers, but so does Flash and he doesn't go lording it over us."
Spike nodded at this, "We only invited you to be nice! I mean, you're kind of a...weirdo!"
"Eeyup," Mac added while Rogue nodded.
"I ruined your night, and you don't even think I'm cool?" The ponies and dragon simply glared back, giving the draconequus the answer. "Ugh..." he moaned as a paper bag appeared over his head, "How embarrassing. I should go." He took off the bag and leapt out of the throne, "I have a lot of other friends I need to see tonight."
"Good!" Spike yelled.
"Yes..." Discord headed for the door, "so many other friends." He stopped just at the entrance, letting out a wimpering sound before suddenly warping behind Spike's throne. "Farewell, Garbunkle the magician." He turned to Rogue, "and young Gureo. May you become as devious as me." He pointed to Big Mac. "And brave Sir McBiggun." He patted his shoulder, "May providence smile upon thee in thy quest to rid Spiketopia of the dreaded Squizard." He let out a sigh while stroking his beard. "When I say it that way, the game doesn't sound half bad." He warped over to the door, placing his claw on it, "Oh well."
With that, he warped away and left Spike and the ponies Discord-free. The drgaon let out a sigh before turning to Soul, raising an eyebrow. "I forgot our school project. I was hoping to just sneak in and grab it without you noticing."
"That plan sure got kiboshed," Diamond added.
"We'll just grab our project and head back to Diamond's place," Soul replied while Spike nodded back. The girls headed out of the room, Spike grabbing the dice before turning to the pony stallions. "It...it's better this way, right?
"Eeyup," Mac responded, a slight frown on his face.
"He was the one who didn't want to play," Rogue continued, "It's not our fault he isn't...interested."
"Right..." Spike sighed, "And now he can't bother us, 'cause he's off somewhere by himself...all alone...with no friends."
"Eeyup."
Spike sat back down at this, clearing his throat and grabbing the book. "We find ourselves in the dungeon of the evil Squizard..." He let out another sigh, "The bars are locked and...ah," he dropped the book, "Who am I kidding?" He turned to the others, "We should give him another chance."
Mac nodded, but Rogue just frowned, "How many second chances has he had up until now?" Spike raised an eyebrow, "Fine..."
Spike cleared his throat before speaking out loud, "Captain Wuzz? Can you hear me?" Barely a second later, there was a flash of light, Discord now floating above the table.
"Oh! You realised how amazing I am and that I make you cooler just by being around me?" The dragon and ponies gave him deadpan stares, "Uh...no, no. Actually, that's not what I meant to say." He grimaced as he took a deep breath before speaking again, "I'm...sssssss..." He tried to get the words out, but his mouth refused to open.
"What?" Spike asked, Discord's mouth now fumbling.
"I'm ssssssss-"
"Can't hear you," Spike added while Mac shook his head.
"Nope."
"Try opening your mouth," Rogue commented, "I find it makes talking much easier."
This seemed to make Discord finally snap as he yelled, "I'm trying to say I'm sorry, all right?! I'm sorry for ruining your game, and I'm sorry for putting those fillies in danger and making Soul lose control of her magic. And most of all, I'm sorry that I thought I was better than you!" He let out several pants before slumping back into Rarity's throne. "Now let's play before this evening gets any sappier, shall we?!" He summoned his game card and placed it on the board, Spike chuckling at this as Mac and Rogue leaned up and whispered into Spike's ear.
"Huh? Yeah, yeah! Okay!" He turned back to Discord, "What if we forgot the board and the pieces for a minute?" Discord raised an eyebrow at this. "I mean, the whole game coming to life was completely terrifying, but also kind of the best thing ever!" Spike gave a sheepish smile, "So we were wondering...what if you toned it down just a teensy bit?"
Mac nodded as Rogue turned to Discord, the master of chaos rubbing his paws together. "I say...let's stop the Squizard." With that, he snapped his fingers, the four now back in their adventure world.
At this moment, Soul and her friends returned downstairs with their project, only to see they were on the battlefield again. "Not again..."
Spike turned to her with a big grin, "It's okay. We asked Discord to do this."
"You girls want in?" Rogue asked as he jumped behind a skeleton and stabbed it in the back. "Or would you rather have Discord send you back?"
Soul, Diamond and Silver exchanged glances, smiles appearing on their faces next as Soul quickly put their model out of harm's way.
The next day...
The ponies and jakhowls that had left the previous day had now returned home after an interesting voyage. It had been a fun visit to Yakyakistan, but they were all happy to be home.
"I can't believe you caused an avalanche," Springer laughed while Flash rolled his eyes.
"Cut me some slack," the pony replied as they reached the castle. "There was a lot of dust on that mountain. I couldn't help sneezing."
"Dust...on snow?" Rainbow asked as Twilight opened the door. But before anypony could reply to her, they came to a stop when they found themselves staring at a battlefield covered in large die. In that battlefield, Spike, Mac, Discord, Rogue, Soul, Diamond and Silver were doing battle against cardboard skeletons, all dressed in bizarre clothing.
"I have been seriously underestimating the awesomeness of guys night," Flash whispered as he watched Soul lift her staff over Diamond, unleashing a wave that made her injuries go away.
The six were then surrounded, with Spike turning to Discord. "I've got your back, Captain Wuzz!" With that, he fired a magical blast while Mac sliced a skeleton in half with Rogue and Discord launching their projectiles. Silver strummed her guitar as Diamond threw a barrage of punches, knocking the skeletons down while Soul gave them a power boost.
Once the last skeleton was defeated, the seven began to pant before hearing roar of laughter. They turned to see the Squizard charging at them. "Garbunkle!" Discord yelled, "Follow my lead!" With that, he fired an arrow over the Squizard's head while Spike shot it with magic, causing the arrow to glow and bounce off a die before hitting the Squizard in the back.
The creature let out a scream before running off, "Bull's-eye!" Spike cheered as he leapt up and high-fived the archer.
"Nice one!" The seven exclaimed, only to turn and see they had an audience, Discord and Fluttershy smiling at one another.
That is, till Twilight's horn shined, her magic grabbing the door handles, "Maybe we should just close the door and let them finish...whatever this...is."
"No way!" Rainbow yelled, "Did you see Big Mac's sword?! I totally want in!" She ran past the alicorn as Pinkie followed her.
"Yeah! I don't know what it is, but it looks like super duper fun!" The two entered the magic field, Rainbow transforming into a gray version of Rogue's suit while Pinkie was in a jester outfit mixed with something from Asterix. Both looked down at their new looks, grins on their faces before charging at a fresh wave of skeletons, smiles on every face.