Chapter 38 - Bloodsport
"Aaaaaah!"
"Aaaaaah!"
"Aaaaah?"
"We're lost!" Pinkie Pie cried.
"We're lost!" Sunny cried.
"Where's Applejack? I've sent Gummy to bring us cake, but the cake isn't here. It isn't here! Curse you Gummy! You doomed us all! Doooooomed! (I still love you Gummy)."
"Are you done panicking, my little ponies?" said Verde through a nearby speaker.
"Actually sir, we need to redo the panicking thing again," said Pinkie. "We didn't even get a chance to run around screaming, 'cause you know, we just stood here screaming."
"I have split you off into teams, with earth ponies on one, and the pegasus and the unicorn on the other..."
"Hey, he's not even listening!"
"He's not listening," said Sunny.
"Meanie pants! How dare you interrupt our panicking! Hey, look at these axes! These are so cool!"
"Pinkie, watch out!"
As Emerald Verde's voice droned on, one of the axes Pinkie pulled out turned out to be a load-bearing axe when it shouldn't be. The stack of axes collapsed on the pink pony. Usually the worst would be assumed, but in this scene, Pinkie emerged with an axe stuck blade-first on her rump with nary a bloody cut or gash. Otherwise, she was essentially unscathed.
"Aw, this axe likes me," said Pinkie.
"Pinkie, your mane!"
"What about my mane?"
"It's all straight."
"My mane's sexuality is kind of a personal thing, Sunny."
"What I meant is that it's all flat. Your tail is too."
"It is? Oh no. Oh no. No-no-no-no-no-no-no! Sunny, I gotta fix it!"
"But how?"
"Do you know where we can find a rainbow?"
"Uh…"
"No time! Desperate times calls for desperate measures. Stand back Sunny!"
Rummaging through her outfit, Pinkie procured a metal fork upon which she zipped around the staging chamber looking for an exposed wall outlet. She located one right underneath surveillance camera, and promptly she stuck the fork’s metal prongs into it. Sunny helplessly watched as the electrifying shock suspended the pink pony in the air, and Pinkie was thrown back after she or the outlet could not take anymore. Yet Pinkie Pie survived. She emerged from the same pile of fallen axes with the fork blackened and her outfit singed. Still her mane and trail remained straight. Disappointed, she proceeded to clean the soot off of her body.
"That didn't work," said Pinkie as she coughed out a puff of smoke. "Maybe Twilight knows how to fix it."
"We might have to fight against her," said Sunny as she browsed the armor racks, "and Fluttershy."
"Why would we do that? We're all friends!"
"Emerald Verde is a sick dragon with sick pleasures. He'll kill all of us immediately if we do not attempt to kill each other first."
"But that's just wrong!"
"I know it is, but we can't argue about it right now. Pinkie, pick out your armor and weapons."
"I don't want to fight them!"
"Listen Pinkie. We have to fool Verde into thinking that we're serious. Thirty minutes does not sound like enough time, but it is. Think of this as a game."
"I love games! What are we playing?"
"Hide and go seek… with axes."
"Axes, got it!"
"Now, do I have every pony's consent to participate in the Bloodsport?" Verde asked through the speaker.
"I consent to the match!" cried Sunny as she raised her hoof into the air.
"The white pony known as Sunny has confirmed."
"I confess!" cried Pinkie who also raised her hoof, "to the consenting of my confirmation in the battle."
"The pink one known as Pinkie Pie has confirmed."
"But I still don't want to hurt Twilight and Fluttershy," Pinkie said to Sunny on the side.
"We'll have to believe in them," said Sunny. "Especially Twilight. She will think of a plan."
"Like taking out all the cameras and hide ourselves in an enclosed space where the dragon can't see or touch us?"
"Something like that. Now let's finish picking out our armaments."
Racks of swords, spears, axes, and many other medieval weaponry lined up the walls of Sunny and Pinkie's staging chamber, yet in no time at all both ponies had already chosen their weapons. In addition to her axe, Pinkie donned a set of seemingly heavy plate armor of a darkened metal, which in contrast with her pink coat did not make her appear menacing. The armor did little to weight her down, and each bounce she did in the staging chamber rattled the metal with a dull clang.
The Earth-Alicorn kept her camouflaged outfit on, but added a brigandine vest on top of it. Her choice armament was a chamber's sole three-sectioned staff she kept holstered on her back.
The delightful chime rang out through the overhead speakers, and the two ponies had hurried out just in time before the staging chamber doors closed behind them.
"It looks the ponies are armed and ready," spoke Verde. "Now commence the Bloodsport!"
"This way," Sunny said to Pinkie. "We shouldn't rush, but we shouldn't dawdle either. We have only thirty minutes to think of something."
"Whatever you ponies are planning," said Verde, "I can still see you. I can still hear you, even when there are no microphones nearby."
He's taunting us, thought Sunny, but given his long imprisonment, it would behoove me to take into account that he should already be proficient in lip-reading.
Sunny started the search for Twilight and Fluttershy with a stately trot, whereas Pinkie Pie melodically bounced up and down alongside her as if she was on a leisurely outing. Knowing Twilight, it would be best for her to take into memory the structure of the Cavern of Treasures and their chamber or riches. They passed through many, but she dared not go through them due to Verde's warning about there being dormant traps lying about. Whether he was bluffing or not, the evidence was convincing. Down the many massive halls and turns, remnants of sprung traps like open pits, fallen spikes, and hundreds of arrows on the wall were a common sight. So far, neither Sunny nor Pinkie Pie had sprung any, but they kept their guard up. The surveillance cameras continued to pivot on each and every one of their moves.
"I have a feeling that we are getting close to Twilight," Sunny spoke softly as she minded the cameras, "but we're going to spring a surprise for Verde at the last five minutes. Pinkie, where are you?"
Sunny had lost her! The Earth-Alicorn spun in place for any visual of her pink friend. Usually she would participate in her silly endeavors, but there was a time for fun and time for seriousness. Pony lives were at stake, and the pink one had been seen wandering off into one of the open chambers. Cautiously, Sunny stepped in. It was dark inside, and Pinkie Pie was inside sitting and staring at a giant glass wall.
"Pinkie Pie, we cannot dawdle," said Sunny. "Come on."
"But I saw something move in there," said Pinkie Pie. "I think they're nasty."
"There's nothing in there."
Suddenly, a small, round creature with a saw-like teeth, big puppy-dog eyes, and four fairy wings snapped at her from the behind the glass. One of them would have been a nuisance if they were released, but thousands of them attempting to gnaw at the ponies made both Sunny and Pinkie Pie uneasy. Whether this was a trap or not, nopony knew, and the two of them were glad it had not sprung. They backed away until they were back in the gargantuan halls. If they could close the massive doors of that chamber, they would.
"Twilight!" Pinkie cried out as she and Sunny resumed their search. "Fluttershy! Marco! Polo!"
Ordinarily, this would irritate anypony, and in this situation, it would irritate Sunny. Yet the Earth-Alicorn repeated in her mind for Pinkie to not stop talking, because her incessant chattering would certainly throw off Verde's lip-reading ability, mess up his concentration, and just plain annoy him.
"Pinkie Pie," said Sunny. "What time do you have?"
"I got five till 'Party Time o' Clock' on my watch," said Pinkie after looking at her custom-made watch. "Why do you ask?"
Sunny grabbed one end of her three-sectioned with her mouth, and in one leap she used it to smash the nearest surveillance camera. She landed, and ran off to smash another.
"Smash every camera you find and keep running," she said.
Verde's roar was heard, and the entire cavern began to rumble. The ceiling shot out jets of flame, and one wall far from Sunny and Pinkie's present location opened up to reveal a giant boulder rolling towards them.
If not for Spike's scornful presence, Fluttershy would have lagged too far behind from Twilight Sparkle as she continued to memorize and then chart out the Cavern of Treasures on a note rolled on her left front hoof. The pegasus nearly fainted after seeing such sprung traps, like a wall of spikes at each side that contained evidence of the unfortunate victim, namely their clothes. She did not say it outright, but she had subtly expressed her discomfort of her armor and the dragoon lance she carried on her back. She would get rid of it, but she did not want to alienate Twilight in doing so.
At least Twilight didn't sense any hatred from her, but there was certainly doubt. Throughout their trot, the pegasus gave up several times to speak up to say what was on her mind, and between the scary traps and an angry baby dragon, Fluttershy could not find the right time.
"You can't give up your faith in ponies because of what you have seen," Twilight said to her.
Did she read her mind? Were unicorns capable of such things?
"You agree with me too, don't you? What Gaea did to them was horrible, and Emerald Verde had every right to be angry with us. But we can't give up on hope. We don't just have to find a way to escape, but we also have to find a way to convince the error of his ways. He's an intelligent creature, and I'm sure we can find a way to his heart."
The unicorn had said all this while she occasionally glanced back Spike. The words were meant for him as well.
"You didn't have to get involved with us, Fluttershy,” Twilight continued. “Still, it was a really brave thing you did to stand up against Trixie. Thank you for saving us."
"Um, I tried," said Fluttershy.
"Once we escape, you can return home to your animal friends. We're so sorry that you got mixed up in all this."
Fluttershy suddenly found herself trotting shoulder to shoulder with Twilight, and she wrapped one of her yellow wings around the unicorn's body like a giant hand. The unicorn was almost taken aback by the sudden affectionate gesture, and she was not used to a wing being used in such a manner. The touch of a wing was surprisingly soft, and it made Twilight relax comfortably.
"I'm fine," said Twilight. "I'm not cold."
"Can you ponies hurry up?" demanded Spike. The two ponies then stopped.
"Spike, you know that this isn't what you want. You're only acting like this out of fear."
"Out of fear of you ponies. It's your kind who killed most of my race and then ripped the wings off of Verde's back."
"I am still responsible for you, but you leave me no choice." Twilight faced her pegasus companion, and nodded to her a subtle instruction that Spike immediately became suspicious of, causing him to put a claw on the handle of his sword.
"Fluttershy, let's run!"
"What are you doing?" Spike cried. "Hey, come back here!"
The baby dragon drew out his short sword and began the chase. Twilight sprinting off and fired from her crossbow two bolts towards two cameras on the wall. Picking up on Twilight's motive, Fluttershy, after overcoming her initial fear, flew up and destroyed a camera that was too high up for any normal pony with her dragoon lance.
Verde's roar suddenly echoed throughout the Cavern of Treasures, and it was powerful enough to blow the speakers that were supposed to carry his voice. The cavern rumbled, and several rocks fell from the ceiling.
"What are you doing?" Verde shouted through the remaining speakers.
"We're not playing your games, Verde," said Twilight. "We're going to escape, and that's that!"
"Don't think you can escape from me, ponies. Many have tried; all have failed. This is my cavern, and I decide who lives and who dies!"
The cavern rumbled harder, and aside from rocks, boulders began falling. High up in the ceiling, giant spinning buzz saws attached to mechanical arms lunged at the two ponies. Both of them dodged in time, and right before the machines make their second strike, Twilight shot a bolt at the exposed wires high up in the ceiling. The buzz saws stopped, but then whatever machination remained active had self-detonated and sent a fireball to the ground.
The unicorn and the pegasus ran for their lives with an angry baby dragon right behind them. Twilight and Fluttershy destroyed more cameras, and prioritized destroying the ones with the mounted machine guns. They encountered more traps, such as pits opening before their hooves, falling spikes, and hidden harpoons shooting out from the walls. While the speed of the traps was frightening enough to kill an inattentive pony, the lack of accuracy gave Twilight and Fluttershy a chance to dodge them in time. The plan was working. With Verde's vision of the caverns gone, traps sprung on their own with no pony to trap.
Nopony knew where they were amidst the chaos. Fires were shooting up from heaven knows where, and deadly machines lay mangled and destroyed thanks with Twilight firing her crossbow at exposed joints and wires. Eventually their actions caused a cave-in, whether it was intended or not, and the two ponies hurried even faster. Soon, they reached a large hall within the maze that was the Cavern of Treasures where they swore they had not been into, but the damage had already been done. Somepony already destroyed the surveillance cameras Twilight and Fluttershy passed by.
Twilight and Fluttershy ended up in a corner, and upon turning they beheld a giant boulder rolling down their way. They could not turn back, because behind them was Spike, falling rocks, and narrow bridge crossing over a spiked pit.
"Fluttershy, fly off!" cried Twilight.
The pegasus was scared for herself and for Twilight that she quaked in her hooves petrified in her indecision. The unicorn readied herself to use her own body to shield her companion, and, if at all possible, Spike who had been fleeing from the same deadly traps Verde had sprung.
Then to everypony's astonishment they saw Pinkie Pie and Sunny riding on the giant boulder that was ready to crush Twilight and Fluttershy.
"Get your backs against the wall, now!" Sunny cried.
The unicorn and the pegasus had to trust her words. Twilight and Fluttershy were now upright on their hind legs doing as Sunny had instructed, while Spike did the same out of caution. Right at the last minute, Sunny threw down her three-section staff onto a pile of rocks on the ground before jumping off. The boulder shattered the staff easily, but that was enough to give Pinkie Pie a half a second delay to fling her affectionate axe straight towards the wall high above Twilight and Fluttershy's heads. The axe's blade stuck to the wall at sharp angle, and with that Pinkie Pie leapt off to safety. The boulder soon made contact with the wall.
The boulder was literally millimeters from Twilight and Fluttershy's muzzles. The stuck axe's handle stopped it from crushing them, and there was enough space for them to slip out and reunite with the rest of their party at the other side of the boulder.
Sunny gave her unicorn the usual hug and lick on the cheek, and Pinkie Pie hugged all the ponies all the same. Then she bopped Twilight and Fluttershy on their noses before saying, "Tag! You're it!"
"I saw your girls' hoofwork," said Twilight. "You followed my idea, even when I didn't tell it to you."
"I figured you would do that anyway," said Sunny.
"Hey you ponies!" Spike cried. "Come back here!"
The four ponies jumped in surprise before running away. Their turncoat dragon friend resumed chasing them with the short sword in claw. Almost all of the traps and the cameras had been destroyed, but the baby dragon was still in hot pursuit.
He chased them into a dark chamber, when in actuality Pinkie Pie led them all inside. Spike was too late to attack when Sunny somersaulted over him. She disarmed him with a kick to the gut and claw, and wrapped her front legs around him to give Twilight a chance to bind him by claw and feet with rope from her saddlebags. She did not tie him as good as Applejack, but whatever she did was enough to keep Spike from moving.
"You won't get away with this!" Spike cried, and then his mouth was gagged with an extra pink sock Pinkie had on her.
"Please forgive me, Spike," said Twilight before she turned to the other ponies. "Where are we?"
"Apparently some kind of holding tank filled with these fearsome things," said Sunny. The creatures inside slammed into the glass to attempt to gnaw at the guests before them. Their ravenous appearance kept Twilight back away from them, and Fluttershy approached them seemingly without fear. The swarm of those creatures swam down to her general direction. Upon her touching the glass, they stopped biting, and their movements calmed down.
"I've seen those before in my books," said Twilight. "They're supposed to be parasprites. Gaea often uses them to destroy farmlands run by Pegasopolis."
"Something's wrong with them, Twilight," said Pinkie Pie. "They're supposed to look adorable, but these black parasprites look mean and nasty."
"It might be another one of Gaea's experiments, but why would they store it in the Cavern of Treasures instead of the Labs? But never mind that. We still have to plan our escape out of here." Twilight looked about for any semblance of a surveillance camera, microphone, and bugging devices. Of all the chambers thus far, this was the only one that had none.
"Girls, have you found anything that might lead us to an exit?" Twilight asked.
"I found the rockslide where Verde found us," said Pinkie Pie, "but the hole to the surface was already covered up."
"I didn't find anything either," added Sunny. "We could ask Spike."
"We can't," said Twilight. "Even if we force the answers out of him, Verde will kill him if he learned of this. This is something we have to figure out ourselves."
"Verde is sure a picky eater," said Pinkie Pie, "but he still has to get his food somewhere."
"And whoever imprisoned him here must have set it up that the sole entrance and exit would be too small for him to go through, but still allow truckloads of food to come in. It has to be an area that is readily accessible to him."
"I did however notice that there was a large gate right behind him when I woke up. It's large enough to fit his head, though."
"So that must be the exit then. Now, if we can find a way to get through without engaging him."
"Leave it to Pinkamena D. Pie, bearer of the Element of Pleasure. I'll use my Pinkie Gear to slip underneath him and storm the gate."
A wall of green flame rose up from behind her. From it extended a large green claw that squeezed Pinkie Pie's armored body with enough grip to force out blood from her mouth.
The ponies screamed while the green flame grew taller and wider. The other green claw appeared, pulling in Emerald Verde's spiny and reptilian visage. Noxious smoke billowed from his nostrils, and his lips pulled back to exposing the angry hiss that seeped from his interlocking fangs. Twilight fired all of her crossbow bolts while Sunny dug through her bags to throw all the knives at the dragon. It had no effect against his armor-like scales, and the old medieval weapons bounced off like twigs hitting a rock.
It was impossible. From her limited understanding of dragon magic, there should be a Tele-Orb device installed somewhere here, but she saw none until she looked up. There it was, merged into high up in the ceiling and firing an array of green lasers that sustained the flamegate. Even more astonishing was the fact that Verde was able to teleport himself.
"Let Pinkie go!" Twilight cried.
"Or what?" Verde asked. "Your actions are a sign that you refused to participate in the Bloodsport, and you ponies shall pay the penalty! I'll start by squeezing this pony until she throws up her own organs!"
"No, stop!"
Another delightful melodic chime echoed throughout the cavern, and this one sounded more like a doorbell. Verde hesitated answer its call for but a moment, and soon enough his grip on Pinkie Pie loosened enough for her slip down towards the ground.
"You ponies got lucky," said Verde. "Spike, take them to the Chamber of Bones."