It was yet another successful run for Trailblazer, AppleJack, and Rainbow Dash. While those two got caught up in the pack in the end of the other two races, Trailblazer managed to win the Expert grand prix, although not winning on each course. On one of the sky-themed courses, he slipped on sone ice in the middle of the final lap and ended up in 3rd. Pack Rat on the other hand, ended up in 6th place overall, AppleJack in 4th, and Rainbow Dash in 3rd.
This grand prix closing ceremony ended in a different way. While the other 29 participants stood off to the side of the track near the lap line, Trailblazer was instructed to run a casual victory lap. Once he completed it, confetti rained down on the track, and he stood tall and in his usual prominent manner, off to his side with his right foreleg hanging in midair.
"Our Champion!" the announcer called out. "TRAAAAILBLAAAAZER!"
The spectators shouted out more cheers and praises as Trailblazer started to headbang a little bit. A set of stairs folded down from a tall podium on the opposite side of the track. A worker beckoned him to walk up those stairs.
"The Max-V Comittee will now present the Champion's trophy," the announcer rang out.
Trailblazer made his way up the stairs and saw the third Sacred Star on the trophy. He got a grip on the trophy and hoisted it in the air, celebrating by looking at the roaring crowd and headbanging some more.
AppleJack and Rainbow Dash looked at it, knowing that their work was done in this city. Pack Rat knelt down, looking very disappointed in himself.
"What the... Why...?" he asked, looking down at the floor and shaking his head.
Up in the middle of the starting gate, an unremarkable ball of light appeared and disappeared, revealing a unicorn made up of secondary colors. Pack Rat quickly looked up at the unicorn.
"Well, what do we have here?" he asked. "Did they get you a little too good here?"
"I don't want to talk about it!" Pack Rat yelled at him.
"Whoawhoawhoa." Trailblazer put the trophy down and looked at the unicorn. "Just you are you, barging in like this?"
The unicorn laughed softly. "If you must know, I am, Hat Trick, your greatest magician! Remember that name well." The last sentence was said sternly.
"Oookaaaaayyy... But why are you here?"
"Ahhh, it's because of that Sacred Star you hold. I cannot let you have it."
"Well too bad. I earned it, and we're gonna keep it."
"Hmmm, how about we make things interesting. Say, let's see HOW much you want it."
His horn glowed, and he, the Sacred Star, and Twilight Sparkle disappeared from the stands in the same fashion that he entered with. Trailblazer stammered and looked around urgently, noticing that his trophy that the Sacred Star rested upon was gone. He ran back on the track and grew worried.
"Oh no, oh no, oh hell no..." he said. AppleJack and Rainbow Dash trotted up to him, trying to make out what to do
"I'd like to deck that guy. He's asking for trouble!" said Rainbow Dash.
"O-kaaaaaayyyy, you can come in now...!" they all heard Hat Trick's voice echoing.
A rift opened, hovering just inches above the track. On the other side, there was imagery that made out a cave, with stalagmites and rock tunnels. Even a racing track was present in the rift.
"Well, here goes nothing..." said Trailblazer.
"Wait, stop!" AppleJack yelled, trying to stop him.
He jumped through it, and the rift closed behind him, leaving the other five to wonder what was going on, as well as the rest of the racers and spectators.
Beyond that rift was a brightly lit cave, with a racing track that winded through it. He walked through the cave and reached the lap line, where Hat Trick waited for him.
"Trailblazer!" he heard Twilight shout.
Trailblazer looked around, then up. Above him was a part of the circuit, which was broken, creating a ledge. Twilight Sparkle was suspended in the air, with her body tied up by a rope that hung from the ceiling. On the adjacent side was the trophy, hanging around in the same manner. Below them were some sharpened stalagmites.
"I'm giving you a choice," said Hat Trick. "It's either the Sacred Star, or your friend here."
Before Trailblazer could ask where he was, he disappeared again. Twilight Sparkle screamed.
"Now what?" Trailblazer yelled. He looked up at her, and saw an axe, with a magical aura around it. It was sidewinging away in the air, inching towards the ropes that Twilight and the Sacred Star were dangling by.
"Hurry!" she yelled.
"She's right," they heard Hat Trick say. "Time's running out."
Trailblazer began to run on the path, running on the starting straightaway. He reached the end of it and made a sharp right turn. Beyond that corner was a big domed area, with more parts of the track winding through it. Another straightaway that curved slightly to the left was ahead of him. He ran across it, but then, some stalactites fell onto the track, creating gaps. This startled him, and he looked up at the ceiling. Hat Trick was levitating in the center of the spacious room, responsible for causing the track to fall apart.
"Now THIS, is going to be so, much, FUN!" he shouted.
Oh, hell... thought Trailblazer. This isn't going to be pretty...
He sprinted across the course, avoiding the gaps. Up ahead of him was another right turn. He took it and got into the tunnel, only to find a u-turn ahead of him. The path took him back into the domed area, where Hat Trick observed his progress. With another sweep of his magic, he hurled some boulders at the track, causing parts of the next straightaway he was crossing to get blocked or break off in chunks. One of the bigger ones landed inches behind Trailblazer, breaking off part of the track that it collided with. A few others landed on the track itself, blocking parts of the circuit. He simply got out of the way and ran through the openings. One more big one landed before the mouth of the next opening, breaking the circuit. Without thinking, Trailblazer leapt over the gap and landed on the next part of the track. It sloped downwards a little bit, and then banked towards the inside with a right turn ahead of him. It then banked to the opposite side, with a banked left u-turn. Up ahead, Trailblazer could see some stalagmites sticking out from the track, narrowing the course a little bit. From the right, splitting the center, and then on the right again. With another left turn, he got back in the domed area, with the last straightaway sloping upwards.
"Now, for the main event!" yelled Hat Trick.
With a clap of his hooves, the course started to fall apart behind him. He quicy peeked behind him to see that the track was crumbling and falling. The rate of it falling apart was slightly faster than Trailblazer's pace could muster. With a sense of urgency, he hustled up the slope and out of the domed area, with the fragile track in hot pursuit. Once he reached the peak, he found himself level with where Twilight and the trophy were held. As he ran towards it, he saw her on the opposite side of the gap, untied.
"Go, get the trophy!" she yelled.
Trailblazer was confused as to how she got there, but he kept running towards the gap. Just as soon as the track collapsed underneath him, the axe cut apart the rope that held the trophy and the Sacred Star resting on it. He jumped and stretched his legs out to grab it. He caught the trophy and landed on the opposite side of the circuit, where Twilight was. He landed hard on his side, cradling the trophy. He looked up and got back on his feet.
"C'mon, let's go!" he ordered. Twilight used her magic to carry the trophy through the air, following Trailblazer back down. Ahead of them was a gap with a medium drop. He jumped and cleared it, but Twilight slipped. Her magic inertia sent the trophy over the gap, but she fell down. Her belly struck the edge of the lower gap hard, and she tried grabbing onto the course, inching towards the spikes below her.
"Heeelp!" she yelled desperately.
Trailblazer turned around, seeing as she was hanging onto the edge for dear life. He ran towards her to get her up.
"Here, let me help you up." He took his hooves and let her grab onto them. She hung on as she was dragged back onto the track.
"Thanks, Trailblazer," she said, shaky.
They both ran down a pigtail that spiraled twice and back down where the starting area was. Twilight rested the trophy back down on the floor, upright.
"Now, we all like surprises..." they heard Hat Trick say. "Let's see what your priority was."
He appeared right in front of them to see what Trailblazer picked. Much to his own surprise, he saw both Twilight and the trophy with Trailblazer.
"What?!" he yelled. "But how? How did I lose at my own challenge??"
Without hesitation, Trailblazer rammed him, and then gave him a hard kick with his hind legs. The unicorn let out a cry of major pain, stumbled, and fell.
"Oh, take it like a colt, wuss," Trailblazer said sternly. "That was just a gift for trying to mess with me."
"And I shall. I will... Accept! Defeat." Hat Trick said, as he got up. He held onto his chest, straining to talk. "Next time, you'll be mine..." He created a rift to get back to Mutait, and then disappeared.
"Is I good, or is I good?" Trailblazer said, smiling.
"Hey, Trailblazer?" Twilight said. He looked at her, and she smiled. "Thank you."
"Well... How did you get out of those ropes? I saw that he had you tied good." wondered Trailblazer.
"What happened was, when you were running on that track, I swung myself back and forth with the track. As I gained momentum, I saw that the angle of the rope I was tied to would hit the axe early. So, I kept going. Once it got cut, I landed on the opposite side of the track from where you were coming from. After that, I untied myself, waiting for you to come."
He looked at the unicorn, in awe. "That... Was pretty cool."
"Still, you're my hero!" Twilight snuggled up to Trailblazer's side and planted a kiss on his cheek. He was shocked at her action, but then, he thought that it wasn't right to scold her after saving herself in the first place, and welcomed the gesture.
"Yeah, all right. You're welcome." He turned around to look at the rift. "What do you say about getting out of here?"
Twilight Sparkle nodded, and they both walked through the rift. Just as soon as they walked through it, it disappeared behind them. They were welcomed by the audience after the rescue Trailblazer made. The other five saw the safe return and cheered themselves, stomping their hooves too.
"Oh my God, Trailblazer! Yer safe!" AppleJack ran up to him and held him tightly.
"I knew we could count on you, 'blazer!" Rainbow Dash shouted. "What did you have to do there?"
"I raced through a cave with a track that was falling apart," he replied. "In a way, it was kind of fun."
"Oooooooooohh!" Pinkie Pie said curiously. "That WOULD be fun! A track that fell apart as you raced on it?!" She gasped loudly. "We ought to suggest this to this commitee!"
"Hold your breath, dear," said Rarity. "We can all see that Twilight Sparkle is back, and the Sacred Star in this area has been obtained. Our work here is done."
After the celebration in the stadium, the racers were escorted out of the stadium and to the offices, where they got their paychecks. Trailblazer carried the trophy with him out of the building, with a big grin on his face.
"Okay, you have to admit, how cool, was THAT?" he asked the main six.
For the ones that did well in the races, they responded in favor of the Max-V Grand Prixs, while the ones that did poorly had a low opinion of it.
"Well, whatever," he said as all seven of them walked towards the Mutait train station. "Mission accomplished."
All of them took the train back to Rautsong. It was near midnight by the time they made it back in that city, so they checked back into the hotel and hit the hay.
"WHAT??" spat Steel Sword in utter disbelief. "You are having a joke with me! Please tell me that this is a joke!"
"I'm afraid not, sire," said Hat Trick.
The two minions that went against Trailblazer and his friends were back in Steel Sword's throne room. None of them were in good moods.
"Unbelievable!"
"So, now what?" asked Pack Rat.
"Get out of my sight! Both of you!"
Without saying anything, the two minions backed away slowly out of his room, somewhat ashamed at their failure.
"Well, now what are we going to do about these ponies?" asked Clear Night.
"I know just who to send..." chuckled Steel Sword. "I now summon, Red Rover!"
Some footsteps were heard in the castle, growing louder with each tread. Then, Red Rover burst through the double doors.
"Ready for duty, my lord!" he shouted. "What will I be doing?"
"Find out where these ponies are headed, and keep them from getting the next Sacred Star."
"Now, I just want to be sure, do you want them, dead, or alive?"
"Either or."
"Dead it is! Red Rover, OUT!"
He barged out of the room with his stomping treads and ran off.
"Be careful, my dear adversaries..." Steel Sword chuckled again.