//------------------------------//
// Time to Draw 
// Story: Masters of Magic: The Gathering 
// by Mod On Death 
//------------------------------//

	Recess; a time of day where everypony goes out to play and have fun with friends.  Normally everypony would be on the playground equipment or running around. Today, however, was different. Not too long ago word about this card game called "Magic: The Gathering" was spread around the class. Nopony knew who had first started talking about it, but it didn't matter. Somehow the entire class was compelled to buy the cards. Soon, everypony in the class knew how to play. Recess was no longer just about exercise and running around, but now included cards.
"I just got my first deck a week ago," Sweetie Belle told her two friends, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. "I haven't won yet, but I think that'll change soon." 
"What deck did you get? Mine's the 'Fire Surge' Deck. Smoke my rivals out!" Scootaloo declared. 
"I got that 'Psychic Labyrinth' Deck. It looked really neat with that snake on the front, but now I see other decks that have stronger monsters." She looked glumly at her deck, feeling like she may have made a mistake.
"Well, I got that 'Death Reaper' Deck and I later realized that I can't just depend on my creatures. I have to use my spell cards with it as well. That's what you need to do," explained Apple Bloom.
"Oh. You mind if I try it out with you?" she asked.
"Sure!" Apple Bloom took out her deck and the two took a seat and started playing. "I'll go first." She played one of her Swamps and said, "Your turn!"
"Okay." Sweetie Belle drew a card and played an Island. It was Apple Bloom's turn then. During that turn she played another Land and summoned Gnawing Zombie. It then went back to Sweetie Belle, who managed to summon Coral Merfolk that turn.
"While you guys are playing, I'll be on the swings," Scootaloo told them. While she did enjoy the new card game, she felt like the class had started to spend most of their recesses playing that game. She passed by a group of students who had grouped around another game that was going on.
"Woah! I didn't even know you could do that," one of her classmates remarked. Scootaloo thought of passing by, but decided to give a quick glance at what was going on.
"Now, I cast Volcanic Hammer. Game over." The crowd was astonished by how quickly Truffle Shuffle had been defeated. Everypony thought he was the best player in the class. Obviously, that wasn't the case. Scootaloo pushed past her classmates to get a look at the pony who'd won.
"Diamond Tiara?" she asked, not believing her eyes. The class bully had somehow become the master of the new card game. Nothing was safe in this world.
"I admit that you lasted longer than most ponies. After all, you managed to actually get more than one creature on the field before I defeated you," she told him in a manner that nopony could tell whether it was an insult or compliment. Maybe it was both. "Now, who else wants to try?" Scootaloo felt like stepping up and trying her skills against her, hoping to knock her down a peg. She was about to pull out her deck and challenge her when the school bell finally rang. Everypony gathered up their stuff and went inside. Diamond Tiara strode through the group of students, head held up high. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle approached Scootaloo who was just standing there.
"You okay, Scootaloo?" Apple Bloom asked.
"I just saw Diamond Tiara destroy Truffle Shuffle at Magic," she told them. 
"Wait, Diamond Tiara managed to beat Truffle Shuffle?" the two asked. 
"Yeah. Not only that, but she used cards that I haven't seen in any of the other starter decks. I think she might have bought some extra cards to help her get stronger."
"Seriously?" Apple Bloom asked. "We all just get started with this game and she goes and spends her pa's money just so she can have better cards than the rest of us? We don't have that many yet."
"It's like she has to be better than everypony with everything she does," Sweetie Belle said angrily. "We can't let her be the best player or else she'll never let it down."
"What can we do? Truffle Shuffle was the best player we knew? Do you want to face her on your own?" Apple Bloom had a point. None of them were that great at the game.
"It doesn't matter! I'll try my best and defeat her." Cheerilee stood behind the group, tapping her hoof impatiently as she waited. "Right after class, of course." The three went to their seats, Scootaloo ready for a battle.





During class, the only thing that Scootaloo could truly focus on was defeating Diamond Tiara. She wasn't about to let the meanest mare who'd ever lived beat everypony at their new favorite hobby. They knew that she'd constantly lord it over them. It was time to stand up to her.
Diamond Tiara's mood seemed to be the exact opposite of Scootaloo's. Every time the teacher asked a question she was the first to raise her hoof and answer. In fact, she seemed to grin more as well. Obviously this was the result of crushing several ponies at card games.
After the final bell rang everypony started to leave. When Diamond Tiara reached the exit, Scootaloo put a hoof up, blocking the doorway.
"Um, what exactly are you doing?" she asked, trying to get through.
"I'm challenging you to a duel." Everypony heard this and immediately stopped what they were doing. Ponies who were originally heading home stopped and went back to see what would happen.
"Really? After I beat Truffle Shuffle? You need to get better before I consider," Diamond Tiara told her.
"Are you sure you're not chicken?" Scootaloo started making clucking noises, trying to force her to play. 
Instead of being agitated, Diamond tiara let out a sigh and said, "Fine. I'll use the same deck I used with him. Just don't cry when I've beaten you, alright?"
"Don't worry about that. Just get ready." The two chose one of the park tables outside to play their game, the entire class watching them. They got into position and shuffled, ready to begin.
"Play, or draw?" Diamond Tiara asked.
"Draw," she replied. With that, the game had begun. Diamond Tiara was the first to play, placing cards down while announcing their titles.
"Flagstones of Trokair" she announced, placing down the unfamiliar Land card. "I tap that and summon Icatian Javelineers. Your move."
"I play a Mountain Land and that's my turn," Scootaloo told her, frustrated that diamond Tiara already had a creature out on the field.
"I play a Mountain as well. I also attack with my creature." Great. Now Scootaloo had taken damage early on. Hopefully this wouldn't be a trend. She drew her card and saw something that could be useful.
"I play an Island and end my turn," she declared.
"I play another Mountain and tap that to play Rift Bolt in Suspend. I also attack" She placed a card to the side and ended her turn.
"I play another Island and tap these three to play Phantom Warrior!" Scootaloo felt confident now. She had a creature out on the field that not even Diamond Tiara could block.
"Very well. I play Godless Shrine and activate my Rift Bolt, destroying your Phantom Warrior."
"What?!" Scootaloo exclaimed, forgetting that Tiara had put one of her cards in Suspend, meaning it would activate later on.
"I also tap and summon Savannah Lions. Lastly, I attack with my available creature." With that, Scootaloo was now down to 17 health.
"Come on," Scoots said to herself as she drew a new card. She looked at it and exclaimed, "Yes! I play a Mountain and tap to summon Regathan Firecat. Now I can take out your guy or do some damage to you."
Diamond Tiara blew some air out of her mouth and said, "Now I play another Mountain, tap all my lands to summon Giant Solifuge, and then activate Icatian Javelineers' ability to take out your cat." Scoot's expression of joy faded as she realized that the Javelin guy had the ability to do one damage to a selected creature when tapped, meaning that her cat, who had one life, was now destroyed. "I also attack with Savannah Lions and Giant Solifuge, doing a total of six damage to you. You're now at 11 health"
"But how can-" Scootaloo silenced herself and finally bothered to read her opponent's cards, realizing that the Solifuge guy (which was apparently a big spider) could attack right after being summoned. It also couldn't be targeted by spells or abilities and didn't even need to attack Scoots directly to do damage with its Trample ability. "Alright. I draw, play a Mountain and tap these to summon Chandra's Phoenix." Scootaloo realized that she had managed to summon a creature that could actually do some damage now. It had both Flying and Haste, so it could avoid her creatures and attack after being summoned. "I attack with it!" she declared, finally managing to do some damage. The class cheered when they saw this.
"I assume that was the rest of your turn then," Tiara replied coldly. "I play a Plains and use Seal of Fire to destroy your Phoenix. I also tap and summon Knight of the Holy Nimbus. I also attack with Savannah Lions, Giant Solifuge, and Icatian Javelineers, reducing you to 4 health." Scootaloo didn't even react to this. It was starting to feel too common to her. "Your move."
"Um," she said, looking through her hand nervously. She drew a card and hoped that it would be some kind of miracle card. She needed one now. Instead, she decided to go for a tactical approach. "I play a Mountain and tap to summon two Dragon Hatchling's. That's my turn." She knew that if she might as well try to lessen the blow, but realized that it didn't matter at this point. She knew what was coming.
"Hmm," Diamond Tiara said to herself, contemplating. "I'm not sure if you have something up your sleeve, but I'll play a Plains and tap all my cards to cast Demonfire directly at you. With all my tapped cards, it does a total of six damage. Unless you have something, you lose." Scootaloo checked her hand over and over to find that she had no cards that would save her.
"I....I...lose," she said, placing her hand down.
"Alright," Diamond Tiara said, collecting her cards and leaving without another word. The students looked on with awe to see how efficiently she had defeated her opponent. Scootaloo slowly collected her cards and got up from her seat.
"Alright," she said, her voice filled with energy. "We WILL defeat you and your deck, no matter what! Sweetie Belle! Apple Bloom! We must find a way to defeat Diamond Tiara and save the world!"
"Really? I mean, it's just a card game," replied Sweetie Belle.
"It's not just a card game! It's a way of life!" Scootaloo was not handling defeat well. "We have to find somepony who can help us train better and, if needed, get better cards. We must do this, or else we can only imagine the horrors that await us."
"Um, okay?" Apple Bloom replied hesitantly. "Where do you suppose we go to learn more?"
"The nerdiest, most-"
"Let me guess; Twilight's place." Apple Bloom knew that 'nerd' was synonymous with 'Twilight' when it came to Scootaloo.
"Yes. Hopefully she knows this game. Alright! Let's go!" And with that, the three embarked on what would hopefully be the journey to defeat the evil bully and her unstoppable army of cards.