//------------------------------// // Episode 1, Part 1: Leap of faith // Story: The Mole: Pony edition! // by Key Lime Pie //------------------------------// "Welcome back to The Mole!" Derpy announced, giving a little jazz hooves action. Carrot Top nodded. "When you were gone the contestants met each other and started to get to know everypony. Let's see what happened while you were away." ... Rarity and Octavia found themselves having a gentle chat in one corner of the room. Being more sophisticated than some of the other contestants, they struck a chord immediately. "Your mane is amazing, Rarity! How do you get it like that? Mine is just plain and black..." Octavia complimented the white unicorn, dragging a hoof through her ordinary-looking locks. "Why, thank you, Octavia, Darling. Black is a wonderful colour and very in. But when is black not in? It's a classic!" Rarity laughed at what she thought to be funny, but Octavia stood there, confused. Obviously, even if she was high society, she wasn't well aware of fashion. Rarity:: Octavia is wonderful, she really is, and I think this a friendship that might prove to be useful in the contest! It's always good to have someone behind your back. Trixie sat on a leather couch by herself. Considering most of the other ponies were from Ponyville they pretty much knew each other anyway. So she was the sore thumb left out, or so she felt, anyway. Besides, she told lies to all of Ponyville. They probably all hated her anyway. Letting out a deep sigh, she slumped back into the sofa further. To her surprise, a cream colored pony with blue and pink hair came and sat beside her, smiling. "Nice get-up! Are you a magician?" "The Great and Powerful Trixie is a magician of sorts, yes." "Cool! So..is that your job?" "Yes, I'm a travelling performer. I came to Ponyville once, don't you remember?" "I can't say I remember your face." Trixie: It may sound odd, but I was kind of pleased that this Bon-Bon character had forgotten about me. I could start on a new slate. Maybe she would make a nice friend. "The Great and Powerful Trixie thinks, perhaps we could be friends." Trixie said, confidently as possible. Bon-Bon smiled gently. "That would be wonderful. I have to say it seems as if you are the only one I don't know here. I'd love to get to know you better. Maybe we could form an alliance." Bon-Bon winked at her last word, causing Trixie to giggle lightly. There was something about Bon-Bon that put her at ease. She didn't feel like she had to be so uptight and act so majestically. Suddenly, A loud knock on the door drew all conversation in the room to a halt. All eyes fell on the door to the greeting room, but when it creaked open, they say the two presenter ponies and smiled at them warmly. Carrot Top and Derpy walked into the room, nodding at the contestants who awaited patiently for the two presenters to say something to give them an indication of their mission. "Applejack. Bon-Bon. Fluttershy. Lyra. Rarity. Octavia. Pinkie Pie. Rainbow Dash. Trixie. Twilight. All 10 contestants...one of them not who they say they are...The Mole! The first challenge begins shortly! Could you please come with us?" Carrot Top asked politely, to which all contestants rose from their seats and trotted outside the door into the large parking lot, where something met their eyes that surprised all ponies. "A Helicopter!" Rainbow shouted in glee, flapping her wings with excitement. Everypony started chatting to each other, looking at the magnificent piece of equipment in front of them. "These are expensive! I wonder what the challenge is?" Twilight asked nopony in particular, but everyone heard her and were reminded of the challenge ahead. There were bits to be won, and a Mole to be found! "This challenge is called The Leap of Faith!" Derpy Hooves announced, waving her hooves in the air as she said the name. Rarity looked around anxiously. She knew exactly what this challenge would entail, but looking around, she noticed several other ponies were still clueless. "We're taking you to a remote island off the coast of Southern Equestria in this helicopter! But the helicopter isn't going to land at this island..." Carrot Top continued, and those who hadn't dawned on the challenge yet, did now, with either glee or fear. "You're going to have to jump off this helicopter into the sea below using a parachute!" Derpy called out, which was met with mixed responses from the small group of ponies, some good, some bad. Pinkie Pie:Wow, a parachute jump! How cool is that? I mean, most ponies never get to do that kind of thing in their whole lives!! I didn't care about the other rules, I just wanted to jump in! Or would it be jump out? What do you think?! Lyra:Hey, I'm game for a lot of things and consider myself adventurous, but I'm not one for heights. We'll just see how much bits it earns us and see what happens. "Each pony that jumps adds 100 bits to the Team Pot. That means if you all jump, it's a hefty 1000 bits in the bag already. But if you don't jump, you have to pick somepony else to not receive their bags. You have 5 minutes to discuss a strategy. And good luck!" Carrot Top finished, leaving the 10 ponies stunned at all the information they had to take in. An awkward silence broke out, but it caused a shrill loud noise in everyponies ears anyway. Twilight broke the deafening silence, being a good leader and also great with words. "Let's start this way. Who doesn't want to jump? It's okay, we won't be mad at you. It is a difficult thing to ask for." Twilight asked, to which Fluttershy, Bon-Bon, Rarity, and Octavia put their hooves up. Fluttershy:I think everypony was expecting me not to do the jump. I mean, I know I'm a Pegasus, but it's not the heights that bother me. It's more the landing in the sea that scares me. All the sharks, rare as they are, could gobble up anypony in one bite!" "Now who would be willing to give up their bags?" Twilight asked politely, to which Applejack sighed heavily. "I don't really mind about my bags. Just a few ol' work duds, ain't nothin' really. I'll take this one for the team." Applejack said truthfully. Possessions didn't mean much to her, and the only article of clothing she wore most the time was on her head. Seeing Applejack give up her bags, Rainbow also put a hoof in the air. "Yeah, I just got some sweaty workout clothes and a few bits of junk in there. The only thing I really care about in there is the Daring Do books, but I can live without those." There was another ear-splitting silence. Everypony knew that 4 ponies not jumping and only 2 willing to give their bags didn't add up. But nopony else really seemed willing to give up their bags. Eventually, Rarity flicked a hoof through her hair and stomped a hoof. "Very well. I shall give up my bags. Even though I spent hours packing, It's the least I can do." She said confidently, to which Pinkie Pie gasped. "You can't can't CAN'T do that Rarity! You spent ages packing fancy pants stuff into your bag and you're going to give it up?" The party pony asked her friend, who nodded solemnly. "Yes. It's not like the producers are going to keep it the whole show. They have to give me my clothes and possessions back at some point anyway. So, who else is going to give up their-" "Time up! No more discussion on the matter, or it's a hefty penalty! And you wouldn't want to know what the penalty is, would you?" Carrot Top announced, to which the ponies shifted uncomfortably. Only 3 ponies had offered to give up their bags, and 4 weren't jumping, as far as they knew. So what was going to happen? "All aboard!" Derpy shouted, sliding open the Helicopter doors, allowing ponies to pile into the large piece of machinery.Plush seats lined the walls, making it even grander than your regular helicopter. There was silence as the ponies struggled to think of a conversation piece that wouldn't be too awkward. No-one could think of anything, so many ponies resorted to making notes in their journals. Octavia:I knew right now was the moment the contest began. The Mole always wants to cause disruption in the group, so that's what i'm looking out for. Anyone who stirs Horseradish will be in my bad books. The helicopter blades span as the sky blue stallion pilot pulled some levers and pushed some buttons to operate the machine. Slowly lifting off the ground, ponies of a more nervous disposition fidgeted in their seats or clapped their hooves together in anticipation. Slowly climbing higher and higher, other more adventurous and less frightened ponies looked out of the window in excitement. A lot of them had never been this high before, let alone in a flying machine. "So where do you think we'll be going?" Lyra asked, evidently worried from the steep rise of the helicopter. Trixie smiled. Being a traveller, she knew all about different places and the geography of Equestria. She was something of an expert. "Well, they said an island on the southern coast of Equestria. That's islands like Haywaii. Really hot and tropical." She told everypony, who nodded with interest. Twilight formed a lopsided smile. "Yes, we went there not so long ago. Didn't end out so well, did it, Pinkie Pie...?" Twilight glared at her friend. Last time they went there they made a narrow escape thanks to Twilights magic being strong enough to power a speedboat away from a very angry Wyvern Dragon. Pinkie Pie smiled sheepishly, somehow burrowing herself inside Fluttershy's mane. Twlight siddled up to Trixie and whispered in her ear, "I'm sorry about what happened in Ponyville. I wasn't trying to upstand you. I just wanted to save the town from the Ursa Minor. That's all it was. If I offended you in any way, I'm sorry." Trixie waved a hoof, blinking rapidly. "The Great and Powerful Trixie beleives that is all in the past. Your words meant a lot to me in Ponyville. Trixie beleives that she was a bit arrogant back then...I think I may have turned a new leaf." "I'm glad you came around, Trixie. Here's hoping we can be good friends. Maybe I can teach you some magic." "Trixie thinks that would be wonderful." The two magic ponies continued talking, obviously now one of them was slightly less boastful, they got on like a house on fire. Their talking relaxed the other ponies on the helicopter, and everypony began talking amongst eachother. It seemed that this was going to be a fun adventure, and for a while, everypony forgot all about The Mole. Except The Mole herself, who was feeling very pleased at where things were going. A stallion co-pilot clambered back from the cockpit and into the main body of the helicopter, making eveypony stop talking and look up at him. "I'll be your parachute instructor for today! You can call me Breezy." He told the mares, who listened intently on his every word. He explained to them the mechanics of the jump, what to do and the automatic opening mechanism, so they wouldn't have to worry about pulling a cord. He told them about what to do in an emergency, and then smiled, taking off his sunglasses. "Who's first?" Rainbow Dash shot up from her seat. "Me, please! Celestia, I just want to do it!" She shouted, grabbing a parachute pack and starting to strap herself up. Breezy helped her, and went through with her once again the processes of the jump. It seemed as if Rainbow wasn't listening but rather looknig out the open door at the blue sea below, tongue wagging like an ecstatic puppy. "And once you're in the sea, make your way over to the boat immediately. Have fun!" Rainbow Dash braced herself and leapt out of the aeroplane, screaming as she fell at increasing speeds. Suddenly there was a 'phoomp' sound as her parachute opened and she gently floated down into the sea. THe first parachute jump was over, and that was 100 bits in the Team Pot. "Who's next?" ... It was a little while later, and the only ponies left in the aircraft were Rarity, Fluttershy Bon-Bon, Lyra, and Octavia. Breezy glanced over to the five ponies, chuckling at Twilights crazed screaming as she plummeted towards the ocean. She might have been a bookish, slightly shy pony, but she was plucky and didn't say no to a challenge, especially when it helped others. "Who's next?" He asked, and everypony glanced at Lyra, who shifted in her seat uncomfortably. "Guys, I don't think I can do it..." She said, to which all the ponies looked at her in an annoyed fashion. "Lyra, you were meant to jump. Why the sudden change of heart?" Bon-Bon asked, stroking her best friends mane softly with her hooves. "It's a different thing when you're up here, isn't it? It's scarier..." Lyra whimpered. Rarity felt sympathy for the turquoise pony and sighed for what seemed like the 100th time. "I shall jump then. It might mess up my mane, but if Lyra isn't up for it then it's not fair to say otherwise." "Wow, Rarity, that's so brave of you." Fluttershy said, in relief. She didn't want an argument to spark up. Rarity strapped herself in with some help from Breezy as Bon-Bon comforted Lyra. Bon-Bon: As bad as I feel for Lyra, it does seem suspicious she would suddenly change her mind. So maybe she's The Mole? But it is risky to sabotage the first challenge. Or is it? Is it a double-bluff? Oh, all this thinking is making my head hurt. Down below at the boat, Pinkie pointed up at the helicopter. "Look, here comes Lyra!" She shouted, grabbing the attention of the other 4 ponies on the boat. "Wait a minute...That's a white pony...with purple hair...Rarity?!" Rainbow Dash shouted, squinting her eyes to make sure she was seeing right. "What in tarnation? So Lyra ain't jumpin'?" Applejack asked, to which Trixie shook her head. "We can't be certain. Maybe Rarity had a change of heart." She told everypony, as Rarity's parachute opened and she drifted slowly into the ocean. Her screams stopped as she surely made her way over to the boat with a determined look on her face. Climbing aboard the rope ladder, she shook her mane dry, her perfect curls ruined. She moaned, and held her limp mane up, a pout placed firmly on her face. "What gives?" Rainbow asked her friend, who stomped a hoof on the floor. "Lyra isn't jumping. She said it's different when you're up there, but I'm not sure about that. She showed no sign being afaid before, and then suddenly, she wouldn't jump." Rarity summed up, causing disruption amongst the group unintentionally. "She lied! She lied to us! Rarity, if she sacrifices your bags, i'll be having words with her! I bet she's the Mole!" Pinkie Pie shouted, sticking up for her good friend for many years. "Hang on a minute, we all have moments of weakness. I'm sure Lyra will understand that Rarity deserves her bags." Twilight sated, trying to be the one who patched everything up as usual. But the damage was already done. There was already tension in the group and the competition had barely started. Twilight:Lyra didn't jump. But that doesn't mean she's The Mole. Pinkie Pie did seem awfully quick to shift the blame onto Lyra. And for all we know, Rarity jumped to make herself seem like the hero. But I could be wrong, and Lyra is The Mole. Maybe it could be somepony else altogether! This is really exciting! "Look, the important thing is 6 of us jumped! 600 bits. How's that?" Trixie told everyone, and ponies seemed to calm down. TEAM POT: 600 bits "So, somepony here is going to have to lose their bags who didn't plan it." Applejack reminded, everyone, and they looked up at the Helicopter, flying toward the mainland to land and let the ponies off who didn't jump. ... Four ponies stepped out of the helicopter into the city plaza where it had landed. Bon-Bon, Fluttershy, Lyra and Octavia took in the sights of the tropical city. It was beautiful, terracotta towers dotted evenly along the street, and a waterway flowed through the floor for no real reason other than decoration, however, some smaller ponies used it as a drinking fountain. They almost forgot about their mission, but a sight of a certain grey Pegasus snapped their attention back to the contest. Two familiar ponies greeted them with wide smiles. Carrot Top and Derpy Hooves had overtaken them at some point, reaching the island before they did. Nopony was sure how exactly they managed to, but they knew better than to question Derpy Hooves logic. "So, four of you decided not to make the leap of faith. And now you have to pick four ponies who will not receive their bags." Carrot Top said mysteriously to the ponies, giving them an offhanded gaze, one eyebrow raised. "We'll go in alfaber...alfabeht..." Derpy Hooves struggled to form the word. "Alphabetical." "Alphabetical order! That means Bon-Bon, you get to go first." "Applejack." The cream pony said with no hesitation. She knew her fellow Earth Pony didn't mind if she didn't get her bags for a while. Fluttershy flicked a stray hair back into place, knowing she was next. "Rainbow Dash." She said, feeling as if she had betrayed her childhood friend, even though she had said herself that she didn't mind if her bags were taken away. "Any reason why?" Carrot Top asked the yellow Pegasus, seeing her upset and thinking it would make good TV. "She said she wouldn't mind if she didn't get her bags, so, um, that's it. I think she said that. Did she? Oh no, I hope she said it..." Fluttershy squeaked, to which Bon-Bon patted her on the back. "She did." She reassured, both of them turning to Lyra, whose turn it was right now. "I pick...Trixie. Just because I don't know her very well. Nothing against her, I just had to pick somepony." Lyra stated, opting not to choose Rarity, even though she had offered, because she took up her jump, cutting Lyra some slack in the process. Octavia sighed deeply. She had to be last. This was tough. Who was she going to pick? "Well, I'll pick Pinkie Pie. She did disrupt my band at the Gala. That was a big break for us, and she kind of ruined it." Octavia decided, everypony else nodding in agreement. She had to pick somepony, and if she had a choice, she would pick Lyra, but those that didn't jump automatically received their bags. "So you have picked Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Trixie and Pinkie Pie to not receive their bags. That means Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, and all of you four will receive their bags. Please follow us to your hotel." Carrot Top told the ponies, who nodded and silently followed the two presenters into a grand hotel. The foyer was small for such a big building, green carpet with wood paneling for the walls, and an interesting yet slightly tacky ocean theme going on, with decorations such as dried out starfish and colourful shells adorning the walls. There was a pink unicorn pony with puffy white hair awaiting behind a counter, where ten bags lay, each labelled in a ponies name. Carrot Top whispered something to the check-in desk mare, who swiftly lifted four of the ten bags with a white glow magic and placed them in a cupboard behind the check in desk, locking the door with her magic as well. She smiled before resuming a blank expression. "Welcome to the Green Grass Inn!" Derpy told the four ponies, who continued looking around until Carrot Top cleared her throat, which made them look back at the two presenting ponies. "Here is where you and your fellow contestants will be staying. We're leaving, but when they arrive, talk to the pony behind the counter and she'll give you the keys to five rooms, each with two beds in. And I leave you with the motto of the Green Grass inn: The Grass is always Greener on the other side..." Carrot Top said, giving a wink to the ponies in a slightly strange way. The two presenter ponies left, leaving an air of mystery in the hotel lobby that even the strongest air freshener wouldn't be able to get rid of. Fluttershy:So we had to share a room with somepony else. I hope we get to choose who we're with. ... A few moments later, six more ponies burst into the hotel room, their hair still slightly damp, but otherwise looking good. Applejack sidled up to Lyra. "So we didn't jump, did we?" "No, it's really scary up there. Sorry for letting the team down..." Lyra murmured, sounding genuinely upset about the ordeal. Applejack decided to lay off the matter for now. She obviously wasn't in the right condition to talk. Pinkie dashed to the bag table. "Cm'on, where's my bags! I need them!" She said, throwing bags left, right and center. Octavia trotted up to her side. "I chose you not to receive your bags. Is that alright...?" Pinkie Pie frowned, her face twitching. It looked as if she was about to blow up and yell at Octavia, her face reddening and shaking violently, before she just suddenly, quite literally, stopped. "Okie Dokie Lokie. I can get party supplies here, I guess." She said, hopping off, smiling happily. Octavia turned to face the others. "As well as Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash, Trixie also did not receive her bags." She told everypony, who nodded, silence taking over the foyer once again. "So what's the deal with the sleeping arrangements?" Rainbow piped up, and Octavia stood up, readying a response yet again. "There's five rooms, each with two beds. So we have to share, basically." Octavia explained. "The check in desk pony has our keys." She said, remembering what Carrot Top had said. Hearing this, the check-in desk mare pulled out five sets of keys; each numbered: 1a, 9a, 18b, 20a and 25b. "So the rooms aren't all next to each other?" Rarity asked, "How dissapointing." "How odd. I wonder if these numbers mean anything." Twilight asked herself, looking at the check-in pony for conformation. "Not really. These are just spare rooms." She said in a nasal tone. "Except 25b is on the other side of the Hotel. It's actually a five minute walk to there." Twilight sighed and wondered why, wherever she went, receptionist ponies had a nasal tone. It was becoming all too common an occurrence. "Dibs not having THAT room!" Rainbow and Pinkie shouted at the same time, before hoof-bumping each-other. "Great minds think alike!" They said at the same time, before pausing and then bursting into laughter. Everypony sighed at their crazy antics. "Hey pinks, we can have room 1 together, if no-one else minds." Rainbow said, to which everypony shook their heads. Pinkie quickly grabbed the key and the pair dashed off to their room, leaving 8 more ponies and 4 keys. "I don't mind having the room at the back, 25b, or whatever it was called." Applejack told everypony honestly. "Me either." Twilight said, also honest with her intentions. It might be a nice bit of peace and quiet. "Oh, actually, I kind of wanted that room. 25 is my lucky number." Lyra said, forming an odd grin on her face. Applejack and Twilight shrugged, accepting the fact Lyra could have the room if she wanted. They didn't know the pony very well, but who were they to question what she wanted? "Bon-Bon? Wanna share?" Lyra asked her best friend, who nodded quietly, before the two of them trotted gently off to 25b, talking about the day ahead. "I doubt any of us really mind where we end up, it's more a matter of who with." Trixie said, knowing nopony would really want to go with her. "Well, I'll take 9a. Octavia, want to share with me?" Rarity asked her fellow high society pony, who nodded politely and the two of them made their way to their room. "Oh, if it's no problem, can I go with Applejack?" Fluttershy asked, squeaking her last word. She didn't like telling other ponies what she wanted, she didn't want to come off as too assertive. Never again. "No problem Sugarcube! Ah'm sure Twilight won't mind sharing with Trixie." Applejack winked at her purple friend, who nodded with understanding of the situation. Besides, she could take this opportunity to get to know Trixie better. The four remaining ponies took their respective keys and went off to their rooms. "Twilight, if it isn't so much trouble, could you teach me that teleportation spell of yours? It's sensational!" Trixie said, in an attempt to be friendly. It didn't turn out so bad, she thought. "I'd love to teach you Trixie. But first, how much do you know about teleporting other objects? ..." ... Meanwhile Lyra burst into 25b, finally having made her way there. "Oh, there has to be something here!" Lyra shouted, digging underneath the bed sheets, looking for something frantically. "What are you doing? Calm down, Lyra!" Bon-Bon said, walking over to her green friend and tapping her gently on the shoulder. "Now, tell me what's going on. You've seemed full of beans ever since you announced we were taking 25b." "Didn't you get it? There was a massive clue! When Carrot Top left, what did she say?" Lyra asked her pale friend, who gave a confused look. "Why is that important?" "Just do it! What did she say?" "She said the...motto of the hotel, I think. The grass is always greener on the other side. But still, that's hardly a clue." Bon-Bon said, still not exactly getting what Lyra was going on about. She tended to do things without explaining them a lot of the time. "That's not all! What did the check-in desk mare say about 25b?" "That...25b is on the other side of the hotel!" Bon-Bon said, finally getting what Lyra was banging on about. "So, you think there's a prize here?" "Who knows? Help me look for something weird or out of place!" The turquoise pony told the cream, and they both started rummaging through drawers and under carpets, even checking behind pictures hung on the wall, until eventually, Lyra squealed in delight. "Bon-Bon, get over here!" The blue and pink maned earth pony trotted over to the unicorn, who was holding two slips of pink paper. "I found them pinned to the door." Lyra told her friend, who was too busy reading the paper to notice what she was saying. "Dear ponies," Bon-Bon read, "Congratulations! You picked up on the hint (or didn't, and this is sheer luck) and won an exemption! This means at the next elimination, you will be safe from going home and are guaranteed a place in the competition!" Bon-Bon said, laughing in delight. Lyra picked up the tickets with a faint green glow of magic, bounding up and down, before noticing some font on the other side. "You must be aware that you can't tell anypony about these exemptions at all, even after they have been used. Tell somepony, and the whole team will face consequences." She read. Well, that put a dampener on her spirits. Bon-Bon laughed yet again. "Still! We're guaranteed a place! How wonderful..." She said, the two of them talking about the competition. ~~~ That's it for part 1 of this weeks episode! Tune in next time for more challenges, mystery and intrigue! And remember, The Mole is always watching.