//------------------------------// // Night of Nightmare Moon Part 1 // Story: Super Mario Galaxy: Equestrian Stars // by warpd //------------------------------// Equestrian Galaxy Star 1: Night of Nightmare Moon Twilight Sparkle is many things: she works hard, is disciplined, very studious, and at that moment undeniably frustrated. Thanks to good old fashion research she had figured out Nightmare Moon was going to break out of her thousand year prison (isn’t that always the case) when four stars come to her aid. Despite warning Princess Celestia, she was not going to help with the defense from the thousand year old foe, but was instead forced to organize a small town celebration in Ponyville. A small town filled with absolutely crazy ponies that all seem have a strong desire to be her friend. Did I mention they are crazy? I did, well I’ll say it again, they are all crazy! Twilight, in the span of a few hours, was stuffed with more apple concoctions than she had ever read about from Applejack, a orange earth pony that had a country accent despite nopony else in town having one, only to be blown through a hair drier curtsy of Rainbow Dash, a cyan pegasus that decided tackling her into mud was a good way to meet new ponies. Then she got forcibly dressed up like a doll by Rarity, a white unicorn tried a little too hard to act like Canterlot nobles, almost to point of pulling teeth from Fluttershy, a butter colored pegasus so quiet Twilight still did not pick up her name until her dramatic mood change when she saw Twilight’s baby dragon. All this lead up to the grand finale that was Pinkie Pie, oh what a piece of work that one is. The first pony Twilight greeted in town defied all physics and goes running off like a pink spaz only to pop up later in that night at her temporary home host a surprise party with the entire population of Ponyville. Unwanted guests aside, the perpetrator does not ever stop talking, and Twilight was pretty sure most of what Pinkie Pie said was utter nonsense. The celebration Twilight was in charge of supervising finally went into full swing. The Summer Sun Celebration, which celebrates the longest day of the year, was its thousand year mark so this one was rather special. Princess Celestia shows up and raises the sun, rather simple. Well, that was what supposed to happen; the Princess disappears and Nightmare Moon shows up in her place. The thousand year old mare’s tale that Twilight predicted to be true coming to end the world, check. Unfortunately, she was right about the second coming of eternal night, which meant doom for everypony. Twilight felt rather conflicted with this turn of events, vindication and utter terror made for strange bedfellows. Thankfully, the purple unicorn had figured out a way to defeat the old demon, the Elements of Harmony. The good news was that she knew where they were; the bad news is that they are located in the Everfree Forest, an unnatural forest that repelled any attempt to control it. Everything takes care of itself; the trees grew on their own, animals fend for themselves, and the weather took care of itself...so creepy. Oh ya, the giant pony eating monsters that live there are something to look out for. Not really a place Twilight would want to be, but there really is no other choice. Twilight stood bravely in front of the Everfree Forest...with the before mentioned ponies. Much to Twilight’s obvious chagrin they had decided to follow her. “Look, I appreciate the offer, but I rather do this on my own.” “No can do sugercube!” Applejack told her with a sly smile. “We sure ain't letting any friend of ours go into that creepy place alone. We're sticking to you like caramel on a candy apple!” Pinkie Pie grinned as she started to follow the group of ponies. “Especially if there’s candy apples in there!” Twilight did not look amused. “What? Those things are...” The pink pony stopped in her tracks as her tail started to vibrate. The look of shock was soon followed by a scream, “Twitchy Tail!” The other ponies froze in their tracks and their heads immediately looked towards the sky. Twilight stared at Pinkie with confusion. “Twitchy wa?” She looked up and saw a comet heading straight for them. Her eyes shrank to pin points and quickly started to prepare a teleportation spell to move out of the way. Then the comet did something is shouldn’t have, it changed directions. Comets don’t change directions for no reason. Twilight’s thoughts ended abruptly when the UFO (unidentified falling object) impacted in the ground before them, knocking her and the rest of the ponies off their hooves. Dust and dirt flew into the air dramatically obscuring all their vision. Twilight scrambled to her feet and carefully snuck up to the crater to inspect the ‘comet’. The so called comet did something she did not expect, it moved. Something leaped high out of the crater and yelled “Wahoo!” and landed in front of her. Twilight jumped and scrambled back from the...thing. Welcome to the Galaxy! ‘Don’t panic Twilight.’ Twilight told herself, ‘Just quickly analyze the situation. Living organism, biped, round snout err nose, ears on side of head, black mustache, bright blue eyes, brown hair, wears a red hat with an M, shoes, and oddly enough overalls. It’s a...um...I got nothing. May I panic now?’ Thankfully Twilight did not to respond first, Rainbow Dash did for her. The brave pegasus shot forth and got in the intruder’s face quickly. “Who are you, what are you!? Some kind of spy!? Did Nightmare Moon send you after us!?” The rapid questions made the man look confused and ready to bolt. Applejack grabbed Rainbow Dash’s tail and pulled her back. “Rainbow, cool it! You’re doing exactly what you did to Twilight when she ran off after Nightmare Moon appeared.” “Hey, Twilight was actually going to find a way to defeat Nightmare Moon, I just didn’t know at the time.” Rainbow Dash defended herself then pointed at him. “How do you explain that? It was flying and it doesn’t have any wings. Look at that crater it left behind.” “Actually he was falling.” Pinkie Pie piped up. “Falling with style; straight corkscrews spin into a triple spinning tuck ending and stuck the landing!” The other ponies looked at her. “I give him a ten out of ten, quite the entrance.” “Are those overalls you are wearing?” Rarity gave him a stern look while Fluttershy hid behind her. The man’s confused look was slowly turned into one of annoyance. Twilight shouted over the ponies as they clamored around him. “Hold on everypony! We can keep asking him a million questions or we can let me speak.” The ponies became quiet as Twilight stared at the intruder. “Now then, who are you?” The man took off his hat, bowed, and then grinned. “It’s-a me, Mario!” His voice was a high tenor and it sounded joyful, a cheerful voice that could bring a smile to a child’s face. Pinkie Pie couldn’t help, but grin. The other ponies stared at him with unimpressed looks. Twilight rolled her eyes and slightly grumbled, “Right, and what are you?” Mario readjusted hat. “I’m-a plumber.” He stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Obviously. “Well that explains your clothes.” Rarity shrugged, blue collar work clothes are practical, but she couldn’t help but wonder why he was wearing those now? “That is a job description not an explanation of what you are!” Twilight stamped her hoof. He was distracting her from the real problem and that really annoyed her. Mario thought quietly to himself, he got unicorns, pegasi, and ponies, this was a first for him though not the strangest creatures he has seen by far. Their reactions told him they might not know what the Cosmos had to deal with; great battles which involved a megalomaniac spiky turtle who turned the Universe into his playground. This was first contact for them and Mario needed to be careful with what he said next. Honesty is a good approach usually. “I’m-an alien.” A look of disbelief colored the ponies’ faces and brought about an uncomfortable silence. Mario scratched the back of his neck and coughed awkwardly. Applejack squinted. “Girls, I don’t think he’s lying.” Rainbow Dash threw her hooves dramatically in the air. “You’ve got to be kidding me! You’re an alien!? You don’t even look remotely cool enough to be an alien.” “W-w-what no way.” Twilight stammered. “You have to be some sort of distraction created by Nightmare Moon.” ‘Aliens? Really, that was the best he could come up with. If he was an alien why would he be speaking Equestrian.’ “Um, Twilight I have read about all the animals that live in Equestria, even the ones that are extinct and...um...he is not from around here.” Fluttershy mumbled to Twilight shyly while she glanced at Mario. “So he is definitely an evil construct created by Nightmare Moon.” Twilight stared intently at Mario. Pinkie Pie appeared next to Mario and picked him to present him to Twilight. “Does he look like somepony made by an evil sorceress that’s been trapped in the moon for a thousand years?” “Please put me down.” Mario asked Pinkie Pie as he wiggled in her grasp. “Then what are you doing here?” Twilight poked him. “My ship was passing by and it detected trouble, so I came to help.” Mario explained. “How convenient.” Twilight replied evenly. “Twilight, really now darling, if he is a traveler from the stars we should be a little more courteous.” Rarity scolded her. “Mr. Mario I’m afraid you’ve come at an awkward time so please forgive our skittish attitude. I am Ms. Rarity.” Rarity held out her hoof and Mario accepted it. ‘He is a gentlestallion so he can’t be all that bad. That is a lovely mustache.’ ‘A unicorn with a posh accent. Sure why not?’ Mario snickered in his mind. Before he could say anything Applejack bumped Rarity aside, grabbed his hand, and shook rapidly. “Well howdy, welcome to this side of wherever you’re from. I’m Applejack, and it a pleasure to meet you. Glad to see that aliens don’t have crazy tentacles going everywhere.” “Well thanks.” Mario grinned. ‘How is she gripping my hand with her hoof? Just one of those mysteries in life, like how a Goomba can hold a baseball bat when they don’t have arms.’ His vision was soon covered in pink. “I only have one question for you.” Pinkie Pie’s face was impossibly close to him. “Are you alone and do you have any friends?” “That was two questions.” Mario raised his eyebrow. “Huh, you’re right.” Pinkie Pie agreed but did not move from her spot. “Well?” “On the ship.” Mario answered as sweat began to form on his face. This is not the first time he met someone that didn’t know the meaning of personal space. Pinkie Pie bounced high with a shout, “YES! I can host the biggest, greatest most stupendous party ever! Welcome to Equestria we’ll take you to our leader after cake! I’ve always wanted to host a party for aliens.” “Always?” Mario asked. “Yup, since the last two seconds that’s all that’s been on my mind.” Pinkie Pie bounced around for a few moments but stopped suddenly when realization hit her. “Darn, we still have to take care of an old moldy mean moon monster.” Pinkie Pie looked back at her group and grinned. Like a blur she grabbed Fluttershy and placed her in front of Mario. Fluttershy started to tremble with a mixture of fright and excitement. The pegasus was timid to a fault, but show her an animal then she becomes ecstatic. Mario talked like a pony, but he didn’t look like a pony so it confused her greatly. Mario kneeled down to eye level. “I have someone that you might like to meet.” Fluttershy looked up from under her bangs and watched as Mario took off his hat. “Luma, I have some friends that would like to meet you.” An ivory star creature magically sprung out of Mario. “XXOOX!” Any reservations held by Fluttershy immediately left her as her face lit up. “Oh my, you are the cutest thing!” She started to hug the little alien as it cooed in response. “My name is Fluttershy little Luma. Are you two friends?” Mario nodded. “We’re partners working together to find his mother.” Fluttershy’s eyes betrayed her feelings. “You poor thing, you lost your momma.” Mario stood back up and started to walk towards the Everfree forest. “Wait!” Twilight called out, “Where are you going?” “Into the forest.” Mario answered. “Hold on and give us a moment.” Twilight gave a determined look to the other. “Girls group huddle.” The ponies jumped into a tight circle. Twilight’s eyes darted between them trying to gauge all their reactions. “Should we trust him?” “I like him, he’s an alien.” Pinkie Pie grinned. “What if he’s just lying about that?” Twilight countered. “Better yet, what if he is an alien super hero coming to save the day. You know like Captain Marevell only not an alien pony, just an alien with a really nice hat.” Pinkie Pie waved her hoof around. “The guy is wearing overalls not a super awesome costume. Alien or not I don’t think he really is all that...super.” Rainbow Dash sighed with disappointment. “Why are you two talking about comic books? This is real!” Twilight rubbed her head. “You’re right Twilight, this isn’t a comic book.” Pinkie Pie agreed. “Despite his blue collar clothes, I find him to be a true gentlestallion.” Rarity brushed her mane back. “And did you see his mustache, it’s so well groomed.” Murmurs of agreements could be heard from the herd of ponies about the mustache. Applejack then glared at Rarity. “What’s wrong with a blue collar job?” Rarity fidgeted a little before Applejack snorted, “I think he’s alright, if he wants to help than I don’t see why not.” “Well even if he’s not a nice alien we should keep our eyes on him just in case he tries to hurt anypony.” Fluttershy stated confidently only to hide behind her bangs. “I mean...just my idea...we don’t have to it if you don’t want to.” Twilight nodded. “You have a good point, and you’re still hugging that luma.” Fluttershy meeped as she let the little star alien go. “Sorry.” “Let’s keep an eye on him for now. Let’s not tell him everything for now until we can figure him to be trustworthy.” Twilight looked back at Mario. “This is first contact...” Twilight walked up to Mario with running thoughts. ‘Oh my gosh, if this is first contact I can’t mess this up, this could change Equestria! Do we look weird to him, what is his diet, does he eat weird food? Is he in a symbiotic relationship with the luma? As soon as all this is over I need to direct him to the Princess for further analysis.’ “You ok?” Mario tilted his head at the distant unicorn. “Fine, just fine!” Twilight jolted. “Do you mind if you join us? I’ll fill you in as we go along.” Mario nodded as the group started their journey into the haunting woods. A dark presence watched their every step, planning on the best way to dispose of them. The jagged trees loomed over the group making them nervous, most of them anyway. Mario and Pinkie Pie seemed rather relaxed; the pink one bounced as she went along. Rainbow Dash and Applejack eyes darted back and forth, wary of any dangers that might jump out. Fluttershy hugged close to Rarity and Twilight as they explained to Mario the situation. “Look up at the moon and tell me what do you see.” Twilight started to explain. Mario looked up and shrugged. “Um, it’s not moving?” Twilight’s eyes stared at him inquisitively. “How did you notice that?” “Lucky guess.” Mario replied as he continued to stare at the moon. “The moon use to have a figure of a mare imprinted on it, at least until tonight. What was once legend has now become reality and the Mare in the Moon has now come to bring eternal night to Equestria. We are looking for a way to defeat Nightmare Moon.” Twilight calmly explained. “She might be the reason why I’m here then.” Mario told her. “And why, exactly, are you sticking your snout in other ponies’ business?” Rainbow Dash asked pointedly. “I wouldn’t actually be here if something else didn’t attract my attention.” Mario sighed. These ponies were still a little uneasy with him and the shadows that darted overhead did not help. They were nearing a cliff that the narrow trail started to precariously follow, winding down into the shadowy ravine. “What would that be?” The other ponies stared at him curiously. “Nightmare Moon is getting help from an outside force.” Mario stated ominously. “You mean like that?” Rainbow Dash pointed at the large flying pirate ship that hovered above them. Mario’s eyes shrank as he started to panic. “That’s an airship! Find cover!” Before any of the ponies could react the cannons on the airship fired on their position. Explosions destroyed the cliff side they were on and the ponies started to slide down the steep embankment. The two pegasi reacted quickly and flew down to grab their friends. Rainbow Dash picked up Pinkie Pie while Fluttershy was able reach Rarity before she could slide off the cliff. Applejack grabbed on a root that wormed out the ground while Twilight continued to slide down towards the edge to the point of dangling. She tried to scamper up, but was unfortunately stuck and too scared to think straight. The airships fired off more cannons, they missed their targets, but succeed in causing a large amount of panic. Applejack watched as Twilight struggled and let go of her support to slide down to assist her. “Hold on. I’m-a comin’.” Applejack grabbed on to Twilight, but was not able to pull her up. They were soon joined with a third individual, a blue cloaked Koopa who levitated above them. The Magikoopa chortled as his wand started to glow. “Farewell my little ponies; this is a gift from Nightmare Moon and Lord Bowser!” Before the Magikoopa could fire his spell a shadow loomed overhead. The turtle looked up and before he could cry, out his face was kissing the boots of a plumber. Mario slammed into the floating turtle and they both fell down the cliff side. The Magikoopa crashed into a tree while Mario landed in a clearing where Rarity and Pinkie Pie were being dropped off at the bottom of the cliff. “Come on Fluttershy, we have to help AJ and Twilight!” Rainbow Dash yelled. Fluttershy nodded as they flew back up the rock wall. “Girls, we have a problem.” Mario told Rarity and Pinkie Pie with a loud whisper. A dozen large turtles jumped into the clearing the moment the pegasi flew away and surrounded them. “What are these creatures?” Rarity’s eyes darted around at their foes. “Ninjas...” Pinkie Pie said in a hushed voice and performed a Crane Posture. “...Turtles of the teenage verity.” “Koopas.” Mario corrected. “And we’re not teenagers.” One of the Koopas growled before he lunged at Rarity trying to catch her off guard. Rarity jumped up and landed on the turtle’s back forcing him into his shell. Pinkie Pie kicked the shell sending it flying towards another Koopa, with Rarity still on the shell. Rarity screamed as the shell she rode became a proverbial pinball. The shell ricocheted off one of the Koopas sending it skidding, the shell veered off towards Mario allowing him to kick it to another Koopa. The poor Koopa was flung into the air when the shell crashed into him. Working together, Pinkie Pie and Mario kicked the shell allowing the unwitting passenger to control the shell into the remaining enemies sending them flying. Finally Rarity had enough and jumped off it, allowing the shell to crash into the cliff wall. “Wow, you were a pro Rarity!” Pinkie Pie laughed as she bounced around a dizzy Rarity. “The turtle ninjas were like ‘roar’ and you were like ‘no way’ then boom bam now they’re all shellshocked!” “Never again!” Rarity tried to hiss, but it mostly came out as a gurgle. “What happened here!?” Twilight called out while Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash carried her down. From their perspective a group of unconscious turtles were lying all around them. Applejack, who was equally surprised as she hopped down the cliff ledges. “Why did you hurt all these turtles?!” Fluttershy glared at the group. “They tried to attack us.” Rarity responded still trying to stand up straight. “That one wearing a blue cloak tried to kill Applejack and me.” Twilight looked around and spotted the culprit still hanging in a tree. She levitated it out of the tree with her magic and shook him to wake him up. “OW, ow, I’m awake!” The Magikoopa cried out. “Urg, what was I doing?” The Koopa looked around and saw the ponies giving him the coldest stare they could muster. “Oh right we were supposed to take you all out.” He then noticed his dazed underlings. “That...is not good.” “Alright, who are you and why did you just try to kill me?” Twilight interrogated. “How did we mess this up? You’re just ponies; this was going to be an easy job.” The Koopa muttered. “Answer her question, shell head.” Rainbow Dash flew into his face to intimidate him. “We’re Koopas and we serve the Koopa King.” He answered. Then he noticed a certain plumber with an amused expression behind the herd of ponies. “Oh crud, you have Mario with you that explains a lot now...and why my face hurts. Sorryhavetogobye!” The Magikoopa quickly threw up his wand and the rest of the Koopas around him vanished in a puff of smoke. The ponies looked up at the airship as it circled overhead. Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth as it slowly flew higher. “I’m going up there.” Before Twilight or the others could protest Rainbow shot up towards the airship. As soon as she cleared the canopy Rainbow Dash was greeted with scores of airships on all sides. Rainbow Dash didn’t have time to gulp as her location immediately came under fire. The sky was filled with fire, explosions, and cannonballs as Rainbow Dash quickly dived back down to the safety of cover. Several trees caught fire as the airships continued their assault hoping to hit the hidden pegasus. Rainbow Dash slammed on the ground where the other ponies were. Mario was quick to rally them. “We need to move.” Rainbow Dash looked visibly shaken as they quickly moved through the brush. Fluttershy flew up next to Rainbow Dash as they avoid the fire. “What did you see, Rainbow?” “A lot of flying ships and saucers; I think we really do have an alien invasion on our hooves.” *** A shadowy form watched from afar and started to brood. A puff of purple smoke appeared next to it as the same Magikoopa that attacked the ponies appeared along with some other Koopas. “You have failed.” The oozing fog whispered. “Well there was this and that and of course MARIO showing up!” The turtle exclaimed. “This mission has turned from a bronze star difficulty to Grand Star levels!” “I hear a lot of complaining...it’s irritating.” Nightmare Moon growled. “This mission just went from a 95% success rate to zero the moment that plumber showed up!” The Koopa pointed his finger at the translucent cloud. “This would not be a problem if you didn’t beg for that Power Star from my master.” In an instant, the air’s temperature plummeted as the as the dark shadow snatched the Koopa and dangled him into the air. “You are dancing on thin ice, insignificant turtle. I did not beg for the Power Star and I expect the troops I was given to perform as expected. Your king may be too dimwitted to squash this pest, but the human is now dealing with living embodiment of the night.” The turtle fell to the ground and started to shiver. “Then what is your next move?” he coughed out. Nightmare Moon glimmered. “I’ll be sending a beast to stop them, have a patrol of Hammer Brothers ready to pick off the scraps. Have your ships set fire to the Everfree forest to cut off an escape. They will know despair.” The purple mist disappeared into the woods leaving the Magikoopa with his thoughts. “That plumber is not the only problem we have now.” The Magikoopa looked over at the injuries his squad was recovering from. “Those ponies are a lot tougher than they look. Agent Orange!” “Yes sir.” An orange Koopa spoke up at attention. “Get the fire squad ready. Burn everything to the ground.” *** “So let me get this straight.” Twilight tapped her chin as the group continued down the path. “The Koopa clan is a group of turtles, with a few other creatures, that work together under the rule of this Koopa King from your home planet. You defend your world from his many attempts of world domination, kidnapping your Princess, and you sometimes go go-karting with him.” Pinkie Pie was hysterical with that last point. “And right now he is trying to take over the Universe and he has once again, as you say, kidnapped your Princess.” “Pretty much.” Mario nodded. “I’ve defeated his army plenty of times.” “So we are now not only fighting a thousand year old legend, but an alien invasion at the same time...”Rainbow Dash crossed her forearms with her eyes closed. Another explosion could be heard nearby as the airships continued to bombard the forest. The fiery blaze burned at a safe distance, but it was enough to cast the area in an ashy orange glow. “Why couldn’t they be nice turtles?” Fluttershy pouted. She looked like she could start crying at any moment. “There are nice Koopas, but they don’t work for Bowser so we won’t be seeing any.” Mario shrugged. “Great.” Twilight sighed as she rubbed her forehead. “I was not prepared for the possibilities of aliens. Any other day this would an incredible historical moment; you would meet the princess and open up relations between two worlds so we can exchange ideas, cultures, and magic.” Twilight groaned out loud. ‘And some new books...oh yeah, that would be nice right about now.’ “Keep your head up, Twi.” Applejack nudged her. “We got each other’s back.” Twilight had a small grin. “Thanks again, for helping me back there.” Applejack flipped her hat up. “Anytime partner.” “Hey now, don’t forget I caught you.” Rainbow flew overhead. “With Fluttershy darling.” Rarity added. “Ya, ya still it was pretty cool how we saved you.” “I appreciate both of you.” Twilight answered with a happy smile. “Oh, it was no problem.” Fluttershy quietly replied. Another fireball could be heard crashing in the distance causing the ponies to flinch. The black smoke billowed into the night sky covering what little light the stars had to offer. Applejack sighed. “This is so unsettling. I don’t care for the Everfree Forest, but they are destroying this place.” “So many animals probably lost their homes.” Fluttershy sniffed with remorse. “I have noticed a pattern with their attacks.” Twilight looked like she had an uneasy revelation. The others looked at her with mixed expressions. “I’ll explain, they are not attacking us directly but are instead setting fire all around us.” “So they don’t know where we are exactly so they are setting fire around us trying to catch us.” Rarity gulped when the realization hit her. “They’re tryin’ to corral us into a trap.” Applejack gritted her teeth. “We need to get movin’ fast.” “Just don’t fly above the canopy so they don’t see us.” Mario started to run faster to keep up with the ponies. Before they could continue a menacing growl permeated from the thick tree line. The group froze and stared at the darkness hiding the threat. A large monster with the body of a lion, wings like a dragon, and tail similar to a scorpion jumped out from the shadows roaring with fury. Twilight recognized the creature. “A manitcore! We have to get past it!” They all went into defensive positions (except Fluttershy, she cowered), but their problems only got worse with the arrival of the Magikoopa. “Oh you silly ponies. You really think you can stop us?” The Magikoopa’s wand glowed bright as a shower of rainbow sparkles enveloped the manitcore. The monster glowed brightly forcing the ponies to cover their eyes and look away. The blinding light dissipated and the ponies found themselves staring up at a manticore three times its normal size. Previously he was formidable, but then he terrified them. The ground quaked with when it took a single step forward. “Run little ponies!” The Magikoopa cackled. “Or just sit there, shivering in fear. Whatever works, I don’t really care.” He vanished in a poof of purple smoke as he laughed maniacally. The beast raised his mighty paw in the air, it was big enough to block out the moon. The manticore let loose a hideously feral growl before it slammed its paw down. The ponies barely had time to scatter as his attack struck the earth, the impact was powerful enough to send most of them flying. Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth and took off towards the sky to set up an aerial strike. “Alright you oversized cat, time to cut you down to size!” Before she could attack a fireball streaked past her. Rainbow whipped her head behind her and remembered the airships still chasing them. “Oh pony feathers.” A hellfire of cannons and fireballs (and strangely enough a single coconut) rained all around the ponies as they tried their best to avoid the rampaging beast. Flames burned the trees all around them, casting the manticore in a red glow, which emphasized his angry eyes. They were trapped in a ring of fire with an angry monster as company. Rarity, in a rather bold move, picked up a sizable rock with her magic and chucks it at the creature. “Here you big brute!” The rock bounced off the manticore’s nose and his complete undivided attention immediately went straight to her. Rarity did not falter as he quickly stomped his way towards her. She had a mischievous grin that a lady would have never worn in polite company. “Darling, you must simply be more aware of your surroundings. You might find yourself flathooved.” Rarity’s horn glowed briefly as the ground gave way beneath one of manticore’s paws. The manticore tripped over Pinkie’s trap and crashed headfirst into the ground. Pinkie Pie patted her shovel with satisfaction. “Now, Applejack!” Twilight commanded. Applejack nodded as she took out her rope and threw it around one of the oversize paws. “Rainbow, grab the rope from Applejack and tie it around his legs! Be quick!” Rainbow saluted and grabbed the rope from AJ. In an instant Rainbow Dash became a blur as she tightly flew around the legs which allowed the rope to restrain the legs. “Got it.” Rainbow spat out the rope Meanwhile, Mario used his herculean strength to grab the tail and, with some help from Pinkie, slammed the stinger into the ground which wedged it into the hard dirt. Despite the manticore’s angry struggle, it was held down tightly as Twilight applied some magic to the rope to strengthen the bonds. She also gave it a rather elegant bow tie. Despite being a deadly foe, it didn’t even last ten seconds. “Woo, go team!” Pinkie Pie threw confetti into the air. The manitcore growled pitifully as it tried to break its bonds. Fluttershy cautiously approached the beast while the others tried to find a safe way to escape the fire that surrounded them. “I’m so sorry we hurt you.” Fluttershy started to rub the snout of the beast. The manitcore grumbled in response. “Oh, you’re still in pain. What’s wrong?” She stared at him quietly as she studied his facial expressions and half-hearted grumblings. Fluttershy nodded and walked over to Mario. “Can you help? He has a thorn stuck in his paw that’s why he is so upset.” Mario nodded and walked over with her to the injury in question. Sure enough a large pulsating thorn was embedded in the manticore’s paw. Mario grabbed the thorn and quickly plucked it out of. The beast roared. “Whoa!” The other ponies jumped. Rainbow was the first to react. “What did you two do?” “He was hurting so we helped him.” Fluttershy happily replied as she nuzzled the manticore’s nose. He purred with a relived grin. “I think we can let him go now. He won’t hurt us.” “...You sure about that?” Twilight did not look entirely convinced. Fluttershy nodded. “He wants to help by putting out the fire.” The girls looked at one another and at Mario who merely shrugged. Twilight gulped as she her horn glowed. The manticore snapped its bonds, pulled its tail out of the ground, and stood back up. He towered over them as he growled at the flames that licked the trees around them. He reared back and let loose a mighty roar that shook the forest and the flames died under the intense pressure. The ponies gapped at the display as Fluttershy flew up to the manitcore. “Thank you. Sorry for not helping you sooner.” The manitcore paid her a short glance before it turned its gaze at the armada that was still firing flames. It clawed the ground as he became enraged at the invaders. With a mighty leap, the manticore sailed into the skies and started its attack on the air ships. The ponies and plumber watch with awestruck expressions. “Well that fixes our attacking space ship problem.” Twilight let out a dark chuckle. *** “Well that was disappointing.” The Magikoopa watched the ponies leave. “There goes another ship...and another... I should probably remove that spell on that monster.” “How are you capable of conquering galaxies? You’re such pathetic creatures.” Nightmare Moon growled around him. “If we can’t use brute force then we shall persuade them with other methods.” The Magikoopa rolled his eyes. “Where are they heading right now?” Nightmare Moon looked far ahead. “Darkness will overtake them in the forest. I will transform the woods into bale forms that will break their weak wills.” “Oh, you know what likes spooky woods?” The turtle asked rhetorically. “Boos.” “Is that some kind of joke?” Nightmare Moon angrily whispered. “No, not ‘boo’, Boos.” The Magikoopa sighed. “Ghosts, we have ghosts that work for us.” “The Koopa King has the dead serving him!?” The mist swirled around the Koopa. “Show me.” The Magikoopa snapped his fingers and a chill could be felt in the air. Feint hollow laughter followed. “Boo.” Nightmare Moon found herself looking at a grim phantom with an unusually large maw and a hideously overgrown tongue inches away from her. “This is a ghost.” She mused as she watched the undead hallow eyes track her movements. “No kidding, meet our chef.” If Nightmare Moon was in physical form her eyes would have squinted in disbelief. “Excuse me?” “What, you think King Bowser just lets us sit around while we wait between invasions? We all have jobs to keep us all busy.” “I make sssandwichesss.” The dead answered. ‘That is ridiculous...but very practical. I’ll have to ask the Koopa King to raise my old masseuse once I reclaim the throne.’ Nightmare Moon then put on her incorpial game-face. “Bring some friends, restless spirit of sandwiches. We will crush their spirits.” She disappeared off into the dark woods as several ghouls followed her. “This is going to be fun.” The Magikoopa said as he chortled loudly before he doubled over and started to cough uncontrollably. *** The trail slowly became narrower as the tree line encroached around the ponies. The canopy overhead filtered out enough light that the group could not see more than a few meters ahead. Every sound around them was amplified as unseen things scurried from beyond the brush. Everyone looked around nervously. “Reminds me of a few places I’ve been to.” Mario said as he walked in front of them. “What do you usually do in this situation?” Rarity asked as she hopped over a mud puddle. “Mud here.” “Get a little light.” Mario held out his hand forming a small fireball illuminating the path. Twilight looked impressed at the small display. “Wow, you can use magic.” The fireball flickered for a moment and quickly died before Mario quickly summoned another. Twilight’s horn started to glow bright enough to add to the light from the fireball. “At least we are going the right way. I hope.” Twilight gulped. She heard faint laughter, but could not distinguish the source. “Did you hear that?” “Hear what?” Rainbow Dash asked as she tried to understand the shapes in the darkness. “...Nothing, my mind is playing tricks on me.” Twilight concluded. “Probably not.” Mario made another fire ball. “We are being hunted after all.” Rainbow Dash shuddered a little. “Right, anyway, what can you do Mario? You were strong enough to hold a giant monster’s tail and jam it into the ground. Plus, you can use magic. Are you, like, a magic knight or something? Mario raised an eyebrow. “A magic knight?” “A knight you say?” Rarity’s eyes sparkled. “Do you happen to have a lady you serve, this Princess Peach perhaps?” “Well, yes.” “He doesn’t have a sword, I would say he’s more along the lines of a monk.” Twilight answered. “Not sure how being a monk would lead him to plumbing.” Applejack pointed out with a hint of amusement. The darkness that once troubled the ponies was now a mere distraction. “Ooooh, a monk. That’s neat,” Pinkie Pie interrupted the two. “But not neat enough. I say he is a battle traceur/free-runner of the mystical parkour style.” The others looked at her with dumbfounded expressions. “...What?” Twilight answered in a flat tone. “Parkour?” “Where you try to get from point A to point B as fast as possible regardless of what is in your way.” Mario chuckled. “That’s sounds right actually, probably a mixture of all those with Pinkie being the closest.” “So do you have a weapon?” Rainbow asked eagerly. “What kind of magic do you use?” Twilight pressed up close to Mario with enthusiastic eyes. “Do you sometimes give discounts for your plumbing services?” Pinkie Pie joined in as they squished Mario into a ball. “Because I have a neat little project where I can pump juice from anywhere in Ponyville. That way when I throw a party I can hook up the portable fountain.” Mario slightly lurched back as all the ponies quickly surrounded him with their chattering. “Hammer, mostly fire and transforming magic, and sometimes.” “What about the flying thing you did earlier?” Fluttershy finally spoke after being constantly interrupted or drowned out. “Ship’s propulsion system.” Mario answered with a cryptic grin. “So you got shot out of a cannon?” Pinkie Pie beamed at the silly idea. “Pretty much.” “Wait, how can you survive the vacuum of space and entry through the atmosphere with only overalls?” Twilight poked Mario in the chest. “That’s Luma’s magic.” Mario rubbed his hat. “He allows me to travel through space safely.” “Darling, I hope you have a set of shining armor to match your heroic nature.” Rarity looked over his clothes with mild loathing. “A knight should always look his best for his lady.” “That would be horrible.” Mario groaned as his internal thoughts processed him clanking down a lava filled castle in full armor. At that moment he was glad Princess Peach did not require him to wear anything like that. Unless she never thought of it...tennis would be impossible. At that moment Fluttershy screamed, making everyone jump. The trees around them had distorted faces with jagged teeth and growled. Mixed in with the unnatural growls was cold laughter as white ghosts circled around them like vultures. They had beady black eyes and blood red tongues that hanged out of their mouths. The girls screamed while Mario’s eyes were darting back and forth looking for a way out; he could not find one. Something broke through the ghoulish atmosphere, it was cheerful laughter. Twilight watched helpless as Pinkie Pie was in the face of one of the bale form trees as she laughed and made faces at it. “Pinkie, what are you doing? RUN!” A Boo hovered down to her, ““You make fun of our treeesss. We worked sssso hard on them to sssscare you.” “Well, you shouldn’t have made your trees have funny faces on them Mr. Ghostie.” Pinkie Pie replied with a huge grin. “Shadowssss and darknessss are scary, for this is where ghostsssss like ussss lie in wait for you.” The Boo growled. “Well, I have something to tell you then.” Pinkie Pie started to tap her hooves. Mario’s ears perked up. “Do I hear music?” “What music?” Applejack stared at the prancing pink pony. “Oh, can you hear it too? I always thought it was all in my head.” Pinkie Pie hopped next to him. “Dance with me!” “When I was a little filly and the sun was going down...” Pinkie Pie flung Mario into the air and caught him in one fluid motion. “Mama mia!” Mario yelped. “Please no.” Twilight stared wide eyed. “The darkness and the shadows, they would make me frown.” Pinkie Pie sang as she bounced around the girls and twirled Mario around. At that moment he wished he didn’t say anything. “She is.” Rarity confirmed Twilight’s suspicions. “Why is ssshe sssinging!?” One of the Boos cried out. “I have the mossst horrible feelingsss right now!” “I’m ssstarting to feel...h-h-happy!” “I sssuddenly have the urge to eat a cupcake.” “I'd hide under my pillow from what I thought I saw, but Granny Pie said that wasn't the way to deal with fears at all” Pinkie Pie continued to dance with her dizzied partner. “Then how do we face these ghosts?” Rainbow Dash asked. “She said Pinkie, you gotta stand up tall Learn to face your fears You'll see that they can't hurt you Just laugh to make them disappear.” Pinkie Pie got into one of Boos’ face and promptly laughed at it. “I am in despair! This pretentious pink pony’s cheers and whimsy has left me in despair!” The ghost cried out and disappeared. Everyone gasped with this turn of events. “So, giggle at the ghostly/ guffaw at the grossly/ crack up at the creepy/ whoop it up with the weepy/ chortle at the kooky/ snortle at the spooky!” All the ponies started to laugh at the apparitions which forced them to flee. The trees’ frightful disposition vanished into normal trees and the darkness that was so oppressive earlier was being lifted. “And tell that big dumb scary face to take a hike and leave you alone and if he thinks he can scare you then he's got another thing coming and the very idea of such a thing just makes you wanna...” Pinkie Pie broke down in laughter as she ended her song. “We can’t let these puny pathetic pansy ponies beat us!” One of last Boos yelled out. “Come on, fuse together and join forces!” The Boos that had vanished appeared once more and they all rushed into one location fusing together into one giant ghost. The colossus Boo loamed over them with glowing red eyes as a grotesque amount of slobber oozed from behind his jaws. “Be chilled to the bone!” “Alright girls, all together now!” The heroines turned towards the savage specter. “HA, HA, HA!” The enormous Boo cried out in terror. “The joy! The unrelenting joy! Their faces are too much; they are so horrifying to look at!” The Boo took off screaming leaving the ponies and plumber alone. “I’ll admit. I have never done that to Boos before.” Mario chuckled. “You were a great dancer Mario.” Pinkie Pie patted him on the back. “More like ragdoll.” Applejack giggled. *** “When I was a little Koopa and the sun was going down.” “Keep singing and you’ll be a Boo.” “Aw.”