//------------------------------//
// Showcased 
// Story: Kill Or Be Killed 
// by Shadic Midnight Blitzer 
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Firestorm sat on the leaned-back medical seat with his arm facing upwards, and his sleeve rolled up. They had taken as long as they possibly could getting ready, but by the time Foal Bearer started yelling he just decided to wear something similar to what Silver Chance had on. He’d probably find something that looked better on him later, but right now his newfound clothes were the last things on his mind.

After Foal Bearer had fetched them from their room, she’d led them through a series of black portals as per usual. They had arrived in a sterile medical examination room where several nurses proceeded to sit them down and run every test imaginable on them as they waited. From blood tests, to blood pressure, to their senses, and finally about a gallon of different immunizations and vaccines for their stay. 

Firestorm almost felt like he had to remind them that he wasn’t a pincushion, what with how many needles they jabbed into him at once. Silver Chance didn’t seem to be faring much better, although that was admittedly due to his lack of patience.

“Ow, ow, ow! Hey! Watch where you’re poking!” Firestorm looked to the chair directly to his right where Silver Chance sat and watched on as he snapped at the stoic nurse, prompting her to simply shift her tired eyes up at him and reveal the many bags beneath them. He froze for a second as he was roped into an impromptu staring contest, then yelped as the nurse jabbed the needle into him again without even looking. 

With no hint of emotion, the nurse slapped another band-aid onto his arm, adding it to the literal sleeve of bandages that had now accumulated there. “It’ll be a few minutes for them to settle, then you’ll be good to go.” She said with a bored tone of voice as she and the other nurses went off to the other sides of the large room and continued their work.

“Nurses? Brunch of hacks if you ask me.” Silver whispered as he rubbed his aching arm for a moment. There were a few seconds of silence as they both kept an eye out for any prying nurses nearby, but once they realized that they were all too busy to pay any attention to them, they began their hushed conversation. “Well, when you’re right, you’re right. They weren’t stupid enough to let us see the others here.” Silver started.

Firestorm looked over the large room, taking note of the many other empty chairs that were either covered in tarps or topped by haphazard medical supplies. Seeing as how they had another chance to breathe, he decided to follow up on Silver's knowledge. “Yeah, but that was more of a given,” He whispered. “What do you know about this place so far?” 

Silver looked up as he wracked his brain. “Well, I know about the same as you. Stupid tournament, alternate dimensions, 23 ponies dead. Above all else though, I know that their leader is textbook evil. Nopony who sets this thing up like a sporting event could ever have a shred of decency in them. Not to mention how creepy he makes himself look at all times."

Firestorm nodded along with him, though he made sure not to look his way to avoid drawing any unwanted attention. “Yeah. I remember him telling me about ‘making copies’ if we were to lose our souls here. I don’t know about you, but that sounds just like what a user of soul magic would say.

“It could explain why everypony around here is so… empty all the time. The nurses, Twilight, and even the twins from time to time. They all act so aloof and look like they’re running on a half-hour of sleep. Wouldn’t surprise me to find out that they’ve been walking, talking, husks this whole time.”

“No kidding?” Silver mused as he heard Firestorms theory. “Well, we’re definitely going to need a plan to deal with him. In my time here I’ve seen very little in the way of defenses unless we count that ax Foal Bearer likes toting. That means that he’s probably really confident that he and his lackeys can mop up anypony who makes a break for it.”

Firestorm considered his words. It was more than likely that their leader knew front and back how to deal with dissenting contestants. He wouldn’t just roll over and let them escape, meaning they’d need to find a way to deal with him as soon as possible if they were going to get anywhere. He was pretty confident in his physical abilities and was sure that many others would be too, but they were going to need more than muscle to carve their way home. 

“You’re right. We’re going to need powerful unicorns on our side if we want to stand a chance against his magic. Not only that, but I’m pretty sure that the only way out of here is through a spell.” Silver Chance nodded along silently, not having much else to add aside from his agreement to the plan. 

There was another moment of silence between them until Silver Chance glanced slightly towards Firestorm and asked a question that had been on his mind ever since he’d come to this world. “Why do you think they’re doing this?” Firestorm looked at him in surprise, before quickly shifting his gaze elsewhere and remaining silent. 

His lack of an answer stood out to Silver, but he just decided to continue regardless. “If what he says is even slightly true, which I highly doubt, then why do any of this?” Silver clenched his fist for a moment. “It’d be easy. Take a pony’s soul, erase their memories, plop them back in their world. What they won’t know won’t hurt them, right? So why make a big spectacle out of this? Why have us all try to kill each other?” 

Firestorm thought on his words for a moment but had trouble coming up with a definitive answer for such an impossibly ludicrous idea. “Well… hell if I know,” His answer caused Silver to look up in confusion. He figured that his partner was expecting a much more profound answer, but Firestorm really couldn’t help but give it to him straight. “Maybe there’s some magic mumbo jumbo that prevents that, maybe he’s a sadistic bastard, whatever it is I doubt we’ll know for sure.

“Besides, I’m a guard. I’m not paid to understand the crazies, I’m just paid to take ‘em down when they threaten others. If we get the chance, maybe you can ask him yourself.” That explanation seemed to do the trick, as Silver nodded with more determination and passion than before.

Before their conversation could gradually return, the door to their left flew open as Foal Bearer barged inside and looked around. As she spotted the two of them sitting side by side, she motioned her head towards the door behind her in a nonverbal order for them to follow. The stallions rolled down their sleeves and followed after the maid, only this time it wasn’t through some dark abyss or portal leading them to the next room.

They followed her down a hallway made of concrete and metal, the only sounds being the echo of their steps. Silver and Firestorm shared a nervous glance as the usually intimidating and chatty maid remained as silent as a ghost while leading them further down the hall. Silver was about to inquire why her sister wasn’t accompanying her like before, but one quick look at her emotionless face made him second guess that action.

“It’s almost time.” Foal Bearer said cryptically as they came to a stop at the end of the dark hall. She turned to face them, then stepped aside to reveal a dark platform behind her covered in red lights and embedded into the wall.

“Please step up you two.” She said as more of a request than a command while gesturing a hand towards the platform. Firestorm and Silver Chance didn’t even need to look at each other to share their feelings on this situation. Something was very wrong here, as her cold, more delicate, annunciation sent tingles down their spine. Needless to say, they were hesitant to move any further.

“Foal… what’s going on?” Firestorm asked as he bent his knees ever so slightly in preparation for a fight.

Silver noticed Firestorm’s subtle battle stance and decided to follow suit. He wasn’t too sure how much of a help he’d be with just his fists, but he was confident that Firestorm knew what he was doing well enough to get them both through any possible trouble. What he wouldn’t have given to have his katana with him.

Foal Bearer let out a sigh, then slowly nodded her head. “You two are about to be revealed to the entire world. So if you are ever going to listen to a piece of advice anypony gives you, listen now.” They both stepped back in confusion, as her usual abrasive tone came back in full force. 

Foal Bearer stepped up to the platform, then faced them completely as she explained. “When you step on here, you will fall unconscious as you are transported to the stage. It will feel like moments to you, so don’t panic. When you wake up, the show will commence.” 

Firestorm and Silver Chance gulped in unison as she explained, dreading what this show could entail. Foal Bearer must’ve noticed the uncertainty on their faces, as she stepped forward and aggressively continued.

“Listen, those ponies out there are more than an audience, they are your lifeline. Which means that impressing them should be, and is, your number one priority,” She said while pointing to the ceiling behind her for emphasis. “It could, quite literally, be the difference between life and death.” 

They looked at her expression as she spoke, and for a moment they thought they could see a flash of pain behind her eyes. Perhaps it was remorse? Whatever it was, it disappeared almost as soon as it came. Foal Bearer sighed once again and gestured to the platform silently. Firestorm and Silver looked to each other, then shared a nod, both understanding what needed to happen next. It wasn’t like they had much of an option but to accept and play along for now.

They stepped onto the platform with a metal clang, and as soon as they did, the floor beneath them burst to life with an even deeper red light. They looked to Foal Bearer nervously, but the maid just calmly stood before them. If she hadn't been colored differently, they would’ve been convinced that she was just Wet Nurse in disguise.

“You don’t have to stand out… yet… you just have to avoid making complete asses of yourselves on stage,” She continued before the spell could take place, then flashed them a familiar smirk. “I know that can be especially hard for you two, but there’s at least a 30 percent chance that you’ll surprise me. So just smile, wave, and for the love of God...” suddenly her face darkened as she leaned forward, the red light of the platform illuminating her in a beautifully haunting display. "Do not, under any circumstances, piss Pinkie off. There's no quicker way to end up in a grave." And suddenly, everything went black.

What followed was, as Foal Bearer described, a fleeting moment of unconsciousness followed by immediate lucidity. It was disorienting for Firestorm, as his sudden shift in position made him nauseous beyond belief. It felt like mere seconds prior he was looking down at Foal Bearers face, but now he could see that he was in a large, dark, and empty area of some kind.

He could tell that it wasn’t a void, the air pressure alone was enough to set it apart, but that did little to quell his anxiety. He felt a soft breeze running past him, the sensation of the same metal platform beneath his hooves, but all of his other senses were reduced to faint hums as he waited for whatever came next. Finally, it commenced. There was thunderous noise, roaring voices, and applause all gelling together into an incomprehensible tsunami of sound that threatened to leave him deaf. 

His eyes quickly opened as blinding lights shined down onto him, but still, he could not see himself or move. It seemed that despite the newfound lighting illuminating his surroundings, he was still shrouded in darkness. He pushed past that bit of confusion and looked at all of the other things that had been revealed. He found himself on a massive stage, once again as Foal Bearer had said, surrounded by towering bleachers at least two stories high, all of them full to bursting with ponies. 

He could see the flashes of cameras in the distance, and even when far away he could barely hear the sound of his own breaths over their roars and cheering. He found slight comfort in the fact that they could not yet see him, giving him a much-needed respite to gather his emotions together for the fast-approaching runway show. It was a moment he sorely needed, since the sheer magnitude of the stadium he now found himself in was nothing short of breathtaking. 

Firestorm tried to lift his hands to cover his eyes from the light but failed to do more than twitch as he remained as still as a statue. He then tried to move his head around for a better view of his surroundings, and while he found slight success there, he still couldn’t move more than an inch or two. 

Even with the shadows surrounding him, he could still make out several other cones of darkness conspicuously cutting through the bright lights all over the massive stage. Call him a betting pony, but he was sure that those were the other contestants, all of them also waiting in the shadows. It was the moment of truth, the moment where they were revealed to not only the world but their co-competitors as well. All they had to do was wait. 

The screams and cheering gradually died down over time, as a pair of massive screens along the ceiling across from the stage flashed on. Some generic inspirational orchestral music played, as images of ponies flashed by in time with the beat, each one with a weapon in their hands. Finally, an animated bleeding heart appeared, its blood falling to the ground and sprouting into a rose. From the blooming rose came a title card that said 'Trial of Sustainment L' and another burst of applause came from the crowd.

As the screens faded into black once more, several bright lights flashed on and aimed towards a suspended white platform floating above the stage. On it was Pinkie Pie, in the same black dress she had worn in the interview, holding a microphone in her hands and smiling. The screens turned back on, all of them showing a close-up shot of the pink party pony.

"Welcome everypony! You know what time it is!" The mare yelled, her bubbly voice being projected throughout the stadium. "It's time for T.O.S 50!" She pumped her fist into the air as she screamed, her proclamation accentuated by fireworks and pyrotechnics sprouting out of the stage and bursting in the air dangerously close to where she was. Pinkie however didn't seem the slightest bit fazed by it, and just tossed her straightened hair aside once the explosions and roaring crowd had stopped.

"As always, I'm your host, Pinkamena Diane Pie," The screens zoomed in on her face as she winked at the camera. "But you can call me Pinkie." Firestorm looked up as her platform began to levitate closer to the stage and swivel from edge to edge as she addressed the crowd. 

"Are you excited? Cause I'm excited. I've never been more excited!" Once again, the crowd roared in agreement with her. "Because tonight we unveil the first of the 24 brave heroes who have gathered here to save our world from destruction," The cheers continued, but steadily grew quiet as she dipped her head downwards. "It's no secret, these past few years have been some of the longest, and hardest, times we've ever gone through. But in the midst of it all, we've never given up. Because we are strong! Give yourselves a round of applause!" 

Once again the crowd cheered as Pinkie Pie gave a coy smile. Firestorm couldn't help but scoff as he watched them cheer for such a blatant bit of pandering. He had to admit though, she wasn't exactly wrong. After all, it did take a strong will to pretend that everything was fine while getting others to die for you. He had to hand it to Pinkie, it seemed that no matter what dimension or mindset she was in, she still knew how to work a crowd. 

"We have a booked-up crowd tonight, and millions watching from home!" She spun around her platform while pointing to the stands surrounding her for emphasis. "So let's not waste any more time and get started shall we?" There was another short round of applause as some more generic orchestral music was played. 

Pinkie Pie reached into her mane, and despite it not being the poofy mess he'd come to recognize, she was still able to procure a stack of cards from within. As her platform descended further, she twirled the microphone in her hands and giggled. "Up first we have… Firestorm of ARLA!" The shadows immediately lifted from Firestorm as he was introduced, and with it the restrictions on his body. 

He raised a hand to finally cover his eyes from the light and looked all around in awe as the crowd applauded his reveal. "Firestorm, a happy-go Lucky stallion, enlisted in the military at 16. He rose through the ranks, proved his grit, and finally joined an elite task force called the Guardians of the Sun at only age 22!" Firestorm looked up at Pinkie in disbelief, as she continued to read off his bio to the crowd of thousands. "He likes defending his friends, protecting the weak, and cracking jokes, a stallion after my own heart. Above all else though is his dream to finally get laid!"

Firestorm looked up at Pinkie Pie in confusion as she wiggled her eyebrows at his apparent 'dream'. He had no idea what she was even talking about until a certain mishap with princess Twilight came back to the forefront of his memory. The cameras zoomed in on his look of shock, eliciting roars of laughter from the crowd and making his cheeks burn a bright red. "H-hey! C'mon now. You do know that I was… joking right? It was just a harmless joke I’m not..." He trailed off into a nervous chuckle, and the crowd gave another, much louder, laugh with Pinkie joining in this time around.

"Oh Stormy, I'm suuure you were." She said with a condescending shake of her head while Firestorm cringed in embarrassment. Just how much of his life had these maniacs been watching? If he had known sooner he would have done the unthinkable and actually thought about what he'd say before saying it. Even the idea of it made him shiver.

Pinkie leaned forward against the railing of her platform while lightly swinging her head from left to right. "Well hey, don't look so glum, chum. If you come out on top at the end of this, then I guarantee that your wish will come true," She gave him a wink, and a small bit of 'ooos' came from the crowd in response. "Before we move on, do you have anything you'd like to say? A fun fact? Maybe a question for little ol' me?" She said as her platform hovered closer to him.

"Oh," he was caught off guard by her proposition, but quickly recovered and tried his best to come up with something to say. Even if the spotlights were directly on him, he was still desperate for answers to his mounting questions. What kind of tragedy did their world face for them to resort to such a horrific game? Just how much of his life had they watched before capturing him? He thought on this for a moment but knew that now wasn't the time or place for those questions. Eventually, he settled on a question that was the most likely to be answered. 

"Well… I'm curious. What does ARLA stand for? Why did you introduce me as ‘being from ARLA’?" He asked while adding in the appropriate air quotes. There were a few moments of silence before she answered, and in those moments Firestorm struggled to get a good look at her face. Suddenly, her platform hovered just in front of the light, casting a shadow over her grinning face as she stared at him with murderous intent.

He stumbled back as she focused her psychotic expression solely on him, then quickly looked around to see if anypony else shared in his reaction. His eyes drifted over the massive stadium screens, and his heart sank. On the screens, Pinkie Pie's face was as cheerful as ever, but in person, she was still staring him down with an ever-growing smile, and eyes the sizes of pinpricks.

Foal Bearers warning echoed in his head, a warning that he now realized was not nearly specific enough to help him. "What a great question Stormy!" She said in a chipper tone as she floated higher into the air and quickly reverted to her cheery smile. "ARLA is your home dimension’s name. Every Dimension has one, like LOOT, or TLM. For example, ours is called…" She pointed the microphone into the air as the roaring crowd finished her sentence for her. 

"K.O.B.K!" 

Pinkie nodded her head and looked back down at Firestorm. "Does that answer your question?" She asked while sticking her tongue out and winking cutely. Firestorm stood in shock at what he'd witnessed, but once again soldiered past the confusion. In actuality, the answer was helpful, but it also made him question whether or not the letters stood for anything. He decided however that one poke at the bear was enough for now. If one simple question was enough to set her off like that, he didn’t want to imagine what another would do.

"Heh, sure did Pinkie." He said with a forced smile. He watched as she gave a giggle and floated towards another cone of shadows on stage, shaking his head slightly as she passed him. There was obviously some spell in place to hide her deranged looks from the masses, but not the contestants. No doubt that it was the real hosts doing, setting her up as a kind of maniacal guard dog to keep everypony in line until the trial. Yet another obstacle added to the list.

Just like with Foal and Twilight before her, he felt an ominous and overwhelming power behind her eyes. Only this time it seemed far more unhinged and unstable, a perfect complement to her demeanor.

"Here we are everypony. He's a fighter, he's a survivor, fillies and Gentlecolts, put your hands together for Silver Chance!" She pointed to the shadows as they lifted, revealing Silver Chance to the crowd. The sudden control over his body must have come as a surprise since he stumbled forward and fell onto his face with his fedora slowly floating onto his head.

Pinkie let out a giggle as he quickly stood back up, and shuffled the cards in her hand a bit more. "Silver Chance, a scrappy pegasus from 'WRPG' who has a worrying track record of having… hmmm," she flipped through the cards while humming to herself for a moment, before letting out a small 'aha's as she pulled up a specific note. "Having all of the friends and family in his clan die! Oof, talk about a genocide." She leaned towards the crowd and spoke from the side of her mouth as if she were trying to keep it a secret, but the damage was already done.

The crowd let out a wave of laughter as her pitiful attempt at a joke landed without a hitch, and while Firestorm was certainly taken off guard by the remark, nopony was more furious than Silver Chance. His mouth was agape as he looked up at the pink devil, still reeling from shock after what she'd just said. The ludicrous smile on her face, accompanied by the crowd's applause, served to feed the growing fire in his chest.

Pinkie let out a gasp and covered her mouth as she looked down at Silver Chance. "Oh my gosh! I am so, so, sorry!" She looked at the notes once again, then back to him. "You're 28? That means you only have two good years left. My condolences."

"How dare…" Silver muttered under his breath, doing his best to heed Foal Bearer's warning about the Pink menace. He could see the look in her eyes, the slight change in her wicked grin as she stared down at him. She was waiting for a reaction, doing her best to push his buttons so that he'd lose control, and she knew that it was working.

After another moment of prodding, Pinkie eventually moved on to the final bit of information she needed to put out. "Silver Chance vows to avenge the Silver clan, his family, so I guess that means you better win huh?" Silver continued to look down and avoid her gaze while doing his best to ignore her words as well. 

"His interests include playing children's card games," he tensed his muscles as she disrespected his favorite pastime. "His *snrrk* fashionable fedora," he growled as she snickered at his favorite piece of headwear, handed down to him by his grandfather. He was so very close to losing it, but he knew that he had to persevere. "And his signature trade, the art of 'the blade'. Watch out everypony, we have a bad flank over here." 

He was an inch away from snapping as the crowd's renewed laughter continued to cut at him, but against all odds, he barely held it together. "What about you, hmm?" Pinkie asked playfully. "Anything you'd… like to say?" It took every ounce of his power to remain still and quiet long enough for her to lose interest. "Hmph, so edgy." She said with a roll of her eyes. 

Her platform continued towards the next cone of shadows, leaving Silver to catch his breath. He and Firestorm shared a subtle thumbs up before looking towards the next contestant. "You all know that reptiles are an endangered species here, but none are as rare as our next contestant. Green Scale!" There was a loud chorus of gasps and 'oos' as the veil lifted, revealing the same lizard pony from before.

The cameras zoomed in on him, and the flashes grew more frequent as they gawked at his scaly green skin, his claw cutie mark, and his blood-red eyes. "He may not be a looker, but he sure is a fighter even when he's on four hooves! Green Scale of RRGS was tossed aside like garbage by his noble family in Canterlot all because of his looks, but thankfully, he was scooped up and raised by the fearsome Ahuizotl. Ever since then he's been protecting the artifacts of the jungle with extreme prejudice.

"Even when a single one had gone missing, he made it his mission to hunt down the raiders responsible and return it to its rightful place. You want to mess with this 17-year-old killer, then you have your work cut out for you," Pinkie wrapped up the explanation and floated closer to Green Scale, as was custom. "Anything to add?" If one listened closely, they could almost hear everypony lean on the edges of their seats at once, curious to finally hear him speak.

He raised his head and looked around, lingering on the unrevealed contestants for a moment. "This battle is inevitable," he eventually said, his voice lacking any strange inflection or warble, somewhat killing the built-up anticipation. "In the end, all but one of us will face our demise. So keep your purpose close at hoof, use it to drive you forward into the fight, and only then will you claim victory. If you lose your will to live, then the outcome will be the same as facing me on the battlegrounds," he glanced towards Firestorm, his slitted pupil growing smaller for emphasis. "You will surely perish."

There was a small round of applause as he finished his speech, but Firestorm only responded with a glare. This weirdo didn't seem like the kind of ally they were looking for, but there were still other options on the table. 

"Boy, starting early with those threats, huh?"

"They are not threats," Green Scale quickly responded while batting his hoof at the accusation. "They are facts."

Pinkie smirked for a moment before responding. “Well, can’t say you’ll make many friends with that attitude,” She turned to the side and gave him a knowing glance. “But I suppose at the end of the day, there is only room for one.” Green Scale gave a silent nod, before sitting down and closing his eyes dramatically. 

Pinkie continued along the path laid out and stopped at the next cone of shadows while fanning herself off. “Wow everypony, so much heat and we’ve only finished number 3! I don’t think we’ll have time to catch our breaths though, not with our next contender Tarantula ‘Inkwell’ Brush!” The shadows lifted to reveal an anxious-looking changeling, also a quadruped like Green Scale, who lifted his hoof to cover his eyes from the sudden lights in his face.

At first glance, he seemed changeling enough, but on closer inspection, it was clear that he was no ordinary changeling. While his carapace was the same black color that most changelings sported, it seemed to have little to none of the holes one would expect to see. Instead of membrane or fins, he had a pronounced light blue mane atop his head, and while his eye shape was certainly changeling, he instead sported pupils and irises as opposed to blank and soulless turquoise orbs.

“Uh, Ink is just fine, or maybe Brush if you’d like. No need to… say the whole thing,” He said in a voice that sounded quite young for one his size. 

“Hey, no problem Inky,” She suddenly gasped as a realization hit her. “Inky,” She pointed to him. “Pinkie!” She pointed to herself enthusiastically. She leaned over the railing on her platform and put her hand over her eyes as she scanned the arena. “Where’s Blinky and Clyde? You guys hiding in the shadows over there? I’ll find you!” Many of the ponies who watched her tangent shook their heads in confusion, including Ink.

“Okay first, weak reference, and second, how do you even know that? They have Pac-Man here or something?” He asked.

Pinkie looked over to him and tilted her head in genuine confusion. “What’s a Pac-man?” Ink cocked his head forward, desperately trying to tell whether or not she was serious. The results were inconclusive.

“Whatever,” He said with a sigh. “Just... introduce me or something.” Pinkie Pie nodded and referred back to her notes.

“Inky Brush here is what people in his world call an arctic changeling, one built to withstand all kinds of cold temperatures, but you could probably tell that that’s not the whole story,” She looked into the camera for a moment and rolled her eyes. “When it comes to the trial, it’s never the whole story,” Looking back at her notes, she continued. “He’s a hybrid, born to a pegasus mother, and has strived to make himself more than what the world sees him as. How noble! 

“Our 15-year-old competitor comes from dimension VIL and has used his strength and skills to survive in a world reeling from war. If you know changelings, then I’m pretty sure you’ll know what he’s capable of. Say Hi Inky!” She gestured to the boy, and it didn’t even take a second for him to respond.

“Thanks Pinkie Pie, for that stunning introduction that explains next to nothing about me,” He replied in a droll tone that managed to make the audience giggle. “While what she said is mostly true, I am not like every other changeling. If you think you know what to expect from me… well, that’s your funeral,” He said with a veritable heel turn. 

“Short and sweet!” Pinkie exclaimed. “I like i-”

“I didn’t say I was done,” He suddenly interrupted, and just like that Pinkie stopped. “I have no interest in being a part of your off-brand, grimdark, hunger games rip-off. So mark my words, you psychos, I will get out of here.” He shot Pinkie a glare, and with it came the held breaths of his fellow contestants.

Firestorm and Silver Chance looked between the two, curious about the reaction she’d have to his impromptu proclamation. Either the young changeling was exceedingly confident in his resilience, or his juvenile lack of impulse control was taking control of his judgment. Regardless, both of them could hear the determination in his voice, the determination bred from a lifetime of adversity. Even if they hadn’t realized that he was the youngest competitor so far, they would still have kept him in mind from his guts alone.

Green Scale in the meantime decided to glance in his direction, his curiosity managing to be piqued by the strange hybrid pony. As he looked upon Inkwell he noticed a very familiar aura around him, the aura of a child forced to be something brutal to survive in a harsh world, then growing into something much more deadly. It reminded him so much of himself, and thus a plan began to form. 

Ink narrowed his eyes at Pinkie, uncaring for whatever she’d have to say next. He could see it while hidden in the shadows, how hard she forced her intimidating presence over the others. If she wanted him to fear her then she’d have to try harder than creepy smiles and dark magic, because to him that was just another Tuesday. 

“Hmm…” She hummed while tapping her chin for a moment. “I see what you’re saying. I hear ya looooud and clear,” She said while pointing to him and giving a side smirk. Before Ink could get in another word, she gave her fingers a snap and called down the dark shadow cone above him once again. 

“Ah, there’s one every year,” She said with a shrug as her platform floated away from his cone. “It’s just like what granny pie used to say though, nothing a good time out can’t fix.” As the others looked to Pinkie’s coy smile, they could tell that something much more sinister was happening to Ink. They couldn’t hear or see him, but whatever was happening under that cone was certainly making Pinkie one happy host. 

“Let’s speed this along shall we? We aren’t getting any younger! Well, not all of you at least.” She mumbled one more phrase under her breath, but nopony else was able to make it out over all of the noise. “Time for rapid-fire!” As she shouted, several cones lifted to reveal the next few contestants. First, there was the grey wolf diamond dog that Firestorm had seen come in after him, this time with a less noticeable black eye, followed by a fairly large blue dragon standing on two legs. Last was a dark brown anthro pony with wings and a horn, by far the most intriguing one revealed.

“Up first, Odium,” The cameras focused on the dog. “This 27-year-old grey wolf from DOR is a very talented fighter, trained by a seer named Cozbi to one day punish the Mane 6 for their actions. What did they do? How does he plan to do it? What even is a Seer? All these questions and more will be answered…” She turned towards the dog who remained unamused by her bubbly and overblown way of announcing. “Right Odium?”

Odium rolled his eyes at the mare and crossed his surprisingly thin arms. “Information that is as useless as this farce of a ceremony. Take our souls for whatever cause you delude yourselves into believing is right, but I can see the truth,” He looked all around the stadium coldly. “This is a sadistic venture into the psyche of this populace, and as a pillar of justice, I cannot stand idly by and watch it unfold. I am, however, no fool.

“Escape is an impossibility, so if ending the others is the only way to ensure justice’s longevity then so be it,” Pinkie nodded her head in moderate respect for the wolf. “Besides, I can already sense the evil brewing from this stage alone. Playing this game won’t be a total loss.” He looked back and eyed Greenscale, then looked over to the winged unicorn as well, both however seemed unaffected by his words as well as his gaze. 

She continued to give Odium a favorable nod before randomly shifting gears and speeding towards the dragon on her platform. “Rapid-fire!” She shouted while flipping through her notes. ”Numero sixo is his Highness Kirouac! A dragon with a whole heap of DNA coming down to 50% Dragon, 25% Unicorn, and 25% Pegasi! From universe NLK, King Kirouac was born after a prophecy predicted that one day a creature would rise and become the most noble ruler in existence. Whether or not he's the one, however…”

She looked over to him, her eyes traveling up and down his body curiously. “25% Unicorn, 25% pegasi huh? I can, uhh, see the resemblance?” She said warily. 

Kirouac lifted his hand calmly and shook his head. “It’s fine really. I know it’s not plain to see, but I assure you I have proud equine blood coursing through my veins!” He said with a triumphant fist against his chest. 

“Neat,” Pinkie replied simply. Before she could move on, however, Kirouac let out a loud cough. 

“So… I don’t suppose there’s any way to veto my participation in the trial? Not for any personal gripes against your beautiful dimension of course, but because my kingdom would be in dire trouble should I perish,” He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “I… don’t exactly have an heir at the moment, so our line of succession is a tad muddy.” 

Pinkie smiled at him and leaned against the railing of her platform. “Well then, guess you’ll just have to win!” She leaned even further ahead, nearly falling off entirely, while laughing like she’d told the funniest joke in existence. Kirouac forced out a nervous laugh alongside her as she floated away, then silently cursed under his breath. It seemed that a different plan would have to be concocted. 

Perhaps an escape was in order? He’d certainly have the skills to survive in the tournament, but there were just too many unknowns to guarantee his victory. He had always been a skilled diplomat, so if he could just get a few of the more powerful contestants on his side, there could be a chance. The only question was who.

“Rapid-fire!” Pinkie exclaimed yet again as she zoomed in front of the next contestant. “Here lies Silent Talon of HGST everypony! A day walking Unicorn-Pegasus-vampire hybrid, oof what a mouthful. It’d be easier to tell you what species isn’t rolling around in there. Somepony’s mother had a good time,” The crowd gave another laugh, and, surprisingly enough, Silent Talon joined in. Pinkie gave a slight scowl for half a second as she watched him before returning to her smile.

“This stallion comes with way more battle experience under his belt than any other vampire we’ve had before, and that’s saying something. He’s fought in the army of his homeworld for years, was captured by ravenous vampires and converted, fought back the darkness to earn his freedom, and participated in five different trials… oddly similar to the one we hold now.” She said with exaggerated surprise that got the crowd more invested.

“Fair to say that you’re pretty good at what you do, huh?” She asked him cheerfully. 

“What? Surviving despite the odds, or killing people who mess with me? Honestly, I’d say I’ve become kind of an expert at both so far,” He gave a cocky shrug and stuffed his hands in the pockets of his cargo pants. “But you won’t have to worry about either, you know? For you to end up on my bad side you’d have to, oh I don’t know, kidnap me from my world just after I found a way to be free,” He started to walk around his section of the stage as he spoke, keeping his hands in his pockets to hide their movement. “But you wouldn’t do that, right Pinkie?” He asked sarcastically.

As Pinkie started prattling on about useless information and technicalities, Talon continued his hail mary plan. He had never attempted this before, but he knew that it was possible. Pinkie had not yet mentioned his electrokinesis, the power to control the flow of electricity, so he knew that there was a chance they had missed that fact altogether. It was seriously unlikely though, considering how much they knew about the others, but if there was even a small chance he could gain an upper hand, he needed to take it. 

With a wave of his fingers, he discreetly looked up into her eyes and attempted to alter the electricity in her brain, that way her decision-making would take a slight hit. If all went well, she’d be more willing to listen to him down the line. He just had to make sure he kept it subtle so that it’d be no more than a faint tickle.

Pinkie suddenly let out a hearty laugh, even snorting a couple of times by accident, that sent a wave of confusion coursing through Talon. “Oh, something tickles, hee hee! S-stop it!” She exclaimed while laughing like she’d never laughed before. Talon stopped the shock out of sheer confusion and watched on in horror as she stood up and smiled like nothing was wrong. Only this time, he could see the glee in her eyes, one reminiscent of a hungry lion messing with its prey. “Haven’t you been paying attention? We know everything about you.” Silent Talon flinched at the sound of her words, then chuckled at his foolishness.

It was so obvious now that he thought about it, it made him sick. Just like with that idiot pegasus from earlier, she was baiting him into action. She knew exactly what he wanted to do, and let him try just to demonstrate how pointless it was. Either she had some kind of hyper-advanced spell protecting her at all times, or her brain was so scrambled that nothing short of the electric chair would faze her. Still, though, he couldn’t say he regretted it. It was always better to try than to assume everything was hopeless. He’d just have to keep waiting for his opportune moment. 

“Can we get an instant replay?” Pinkie asked a faceless pony in the crowd, garnering some confused looks from everyone else on stage. Suddenly, the large stadium screens showed a recording of Silent Talons eyes as they flashed with a silver light for a few seconds before returning to normal. The crowd gasped, and Pinkie turned to him while clicking her tongue and shaking her head. “I didn’t think we’d have to tell you that magic was a no-no during the ceremony, but I guess you just really liked waiting in the dark.” 

She reached out a hand and snapped her fingers at him. “Wait, hold on!” Silent Talon’s face was contorted in fear as he tried to reason with her, but it was too late as the dark cone fell onto him once again, muting him for the rest of the night.

Without so much as a second look, Pinkie continued with the ceremony as if there hadn’t just been an attempted assault on her. “We’re almost finished with the first twelve, but we’re not slowing down, no siree! Tell them what’s behind door number eight Pinkie!” She said while holding out her palm to the next contestant. “Well don’t mind if I do Pinkie. It’s…” 

The cone was lifted, and an echo of gasps traveled around the stadium. Everypony fell into a bout of pin-drop silence after the reveal, and even the flashes of the cameras slowed to an eventual stop. Not even the rabid journalists could continue to function in earnest after what they now saw on stage. 

Pinkie, either uncaring for the mood shift or just plain unaware of it, floated gently above the newly revealed fillies on stage, both of them shivering and holding onto each other like their lives depended on it. “Color me surprised when I saw these two popping out of the portal at the same time! It all worked out though since they were so small they were able to share a space! Saved a truckload on shipping too. Give a warm welcome to Fighter Swan and Golden Gild!” Pinkie’s voice echoed into the night air with absolutely nopony joining in her cheer or out of place clapping.

On stage, all of the previously revealed contestants looked to the young fillies with mixes of shock and disbelief. Kirouac trembled as he watched the innocent youths shiver beneath the gazes of the crowd. Both the stoic Green Scale and Odium had dropped their jaws upon the reveal, but in Odium's case, his look of shock was quickly replaced with one of frustration. Firestorm and Silver Chance once again shared silent looks of affirmation, neither needing words to express their intent to protect the children. Beneath their masks of calm determination though, they were frozen with shock and fear.

The silence continued for a full minute as the crowd gawked at the new contestants, but before anypony could consider it a product of disgust or horror at their inclusion, a single echoing clap erupted from the stands. The singular pair of hands was soon joined by another, then another, then hundreds more as the crowd went wild with cheers. 

To them, this wasn’t a tragedy. No, it had just become the most interesting trial of all time, and they couldn’t wait for more.