//------------------------------// // *Chapter 03: Life Skills [Revised] // Story: Equestrian Earth the MMORPG // by Chaotic Note //------------------------------// A Chaotic Production presents... The Beginning Arc(a pre-arc) Chapter 3 Editors: ultra1437 and Genghis Prereaders: RemareShadows, Apuppy120, and Willow the Pegasus Theme Song: "Crossing Field" Sword Art Online (AmaLee) Twilight groaned as a wave of pain throbbed throughout her head. It felt like a herd of buffalos stampeded over her head. It sure felt like that. She picked herself off the chilly, stone floor and looked around the room for an exit. It was really dark, so she had to feel the walls for a handle. After some effort and time, she felt the curve of one and pushed it out of the way. The sunlight first blinded her as she took in the view of the sparkling city again. How long was she out for? Not for long it seemed as the sun was still out high in the sky. She decided to go for a walk, not wanting to hang around the building she assumed to be an area for respawning. It was really dark, and didn’t have a warm feeling to it. It was just the nature of respawning after all. Ponies around her went on their daily activities: some of them were speaking with the shop keepers at the market stalls, others were just hanging about, talking about who knows what. A title name popped up above the marketplace as she entered its vicinity. Players’ Bazaar She trotted past the stalls, pausing every once and a while to look at the various items players were selling. Every half second, one of the merchants would promote their goods in shouts. “Hey there! Are you interested in this nice staff? It’s only two hundred seventy-five bits!” “Potions here! Get your sparkling potions! You there, do you want a potion? I have a nice lavender bottle that matches your coat!” “Hello there! Would you like a sonic screwdriver? Made it myself! It makes this really nice sound – all sonicky-wonicky. And it will fix almost everything!” Twilight didn’t mind the various shouts and comments the shop keepers made. They were just promoting their items and business to make some extra in-game money. From what she knew, that was pretty normal in MMOs. In fact, she wouldn’t mind stopping by one of the stalls to purchase an item. The sonic screwdriver sounded really useful, but completely expensive. She looked inside her Inventory to see how much money she had. 3 Gold Bits and 48 Silver Bits. Not a lot, and the items around seemed to be of really high quality at top notch levels, and high quality means high prices. “Twilight! There you are!” She looked back to see Rarity and the others running towards her. Pinkie leapt for her with arms outstretched. “Incoming!” Twilight let out a loud Oomph as Pinkie glomped her, both ponies falling onto the road. “Augh. Hey Pinkie. Nice to see you too.” Twilight peered around Pinkie’s head to look at the others. “What happened to me? Why did I respawn?” “Them Trunt monsters that you knocked down earlier got to ya after we Leveled Up. And then them green mushroom varmints showed up and started blowing everything up! We were lucky to get out of there before it could get anywhere worse.” “We were worried sick!” Rarity added. “We didn’t see you at the Respawning House so we assumed you encountered a glitch. Are you alright, my dear?” “Yes I’m fine.” Pinkie got off Twilight and helped her up. “I was just taking a look around the Bazaar, waiting for you guys.” “Ooh, did you find a charming sugar pipe?” Pinkie Pie asked. “A what?” “A Charming Sugar Pipe! It’s one of the really really, really, really, really rare ingredients I need to complete my recipe for the ultimate dessert. The Yellow Ultimate Malt Cake, or as I like to call it, the YUM Cake! I only have the Edible Diamond Flower right now and I need the sugar pipe, a Weeping Joy Seed, the scale of a Candy Cane Hydra, a Golden Apple, and the dynamite of the Creeper Mushy!” “A what?” Twilight said. “A Creeper Mushy.” “It was those explody things that came after us earlier,” Applejack explained. “Uh, Pinkie, why do you need the dynamite from that?” Rainbow asked. “I mean, those things pack quite a punch. And I don’t think gunpowder would taste good in cake.” Pinkie rolled her eyes with a wide smile. “Because the dynamite gives the cake an explosive flavor, silly filly!” “Well there were plenty of them back there. Enough to fill twenty pastures,” Applejack said. “One of them must have dropped one.” “Yeah I know, but we’d had to have kill them before they explode. Otherwise,” – Pinkie diagonally swung a right hook upward – “boom goes the dynamite!” Pinkie sighed as she sat down on the cobble road. “And the Trunts were too much for us still. We had to get out of there as soon as Twilight went down. Other than you, Twilight was one of our best Pushers.” “Pushers?” Twilight interrupted. “You mean what I did with the Magic Missile?” “Yepperooni.” Rarity hummed thoughtfully. “So Pinkie Pie, what are you going to do with such a rare delicacy?” “Well, I was thinking of making two of them. One for all of us, and one for sale! Gummy put a lot of care and effort into the calculations of the recipe and he’s very sure that it’ll sell for the highest bidder! It should be able to provide anypony who eats it three hours of healing nonstop at a rate of 5% health per second!” “Wow,” Twilight said in a breath. “That’s amazing… wait, Gummy? Your pet?!” “Yepperooni! Here are the notes.” Pinkie tossed a piece of paper to the unicorn. Twilight skimmed over the poorly written symbols and mathematics, thinking that this was another one of Pinkie’s jokes, but as she read further and further, her pupils grew bigger and bigger. The writing seemed to be done by a little colt in preschool, but the theoretical numbers and equations looked like they were hand crafted by college professors and prominent scientists! “Wow Pinkie, I didn’t know you were such a genius!” she exclaimed. “This is impressive!” “I didn’t write that. Gummy did.” “Okay Pinkie,” Twilight said, still not believing the alligator could write. “But still, using the Candy Cane Hydra Scale’s rejuvenating properties and the boosted stimulate of the Weeping Joy Seed together is incredible! And the Sugar Pipe’s ability to extend the time limit… I don’t even know what these are but the items seem to be attuned with each other if you had the math done right, which you did.” Pinkie nodded. “Sooo?” “So what?” “Did you find the Charming Sugar Pipe?” Pinkie asked. “O– oh no I didn’t. I’m sorry, Pinkie. I wish I could have found it, but I don’t think anypony here is selling it right now.” Twilight handed back the papers to Pinkie. “Oh.” Pinkie dropped her head in disappointment, but then lifted her chin up with a smile. “Well that’s okay! There’s always another time.” Pinkie raised her hoof at the sky, shaking it. Looking up, she yelled at the clouds at the top of her lungs, “I’ll find you yet, Sugar Pipe!” “Well Ah’m all for desserts and everything, but we still haven’t shown you the entire city,” Applejack said. “How ‘bout Ah first show you my tavern? Ah could get you a nice tankard of cider.” “Oh heavens no Applejack,” Rarity said. “Twilight needs to have the proper set of clothing if she is going to go out there again. We can’t have you dying on us dear. You should visit my boutique.” “Nuh uh. What she needs is a bag of auntie Pinkie’s ole fashion sugary bottle of soda!” “Um, I think she could use a pet,” Fluttershy quietly suggested. “I know a nice pet shop nearby that we can take her to. Th– that is, if that’s okay with you, Twilight.” Fluttershy let out a squeak as Applejack pulled her in a one-arm hug. “We can take her to that pet shop after we get ‘er a drink! Twilight, you’re thirsty, right?” Rarity flipped her mane, heaving a sigh. “Please, Applejack. Can’t you see Twilight is in desperate need of some proper equipment? She did just start the game after all, and so did all of us. Besides, I want to see how my new shop looks and start leveling my Sewing Skill.” Rainbow Dash walked next to Applejack. “I dunno, Rarity. I’m with AJ on this one. I want some cider.” “But what about my soda?” “You can make it at my tavern, Pinks. Bought the necessary items needed. You can fill a pool ten times over in a matter of minutes!” “Hold on girls!” Twilight had easily caught their attention. “What are you all talking about? Applejack, Rarity, you two own places here in the game?” “Oh right, Ah’ve forgot to mention that,” Applejack said, blushing slightly. “We all have what I guess can be called jobs here in the game.” Twilight raised her eyebrows in interest. “Jobs? This game has an actual economy system, beyond the ingame money system and markets that can be run by players?” “Sort of Twilight,” Rarity said. “You see, with the Life Skills System in place, we can make use of a Life Skill to apply towards various services in the game. Applejack and I have bought a couple buildings to use for our purposes. She has a tavern, and I own a boutique! Like Applejack’s, the boutique was worth real bits. You would have to pay to own a virtual building here as it takes up memory spaces, and it costs quite a bit, but it was well worth putting a small dent into my wallet. I can gather quite an income from this.” “Same here,” Applejack chimed in. “Ah’ve already checked around my place, and it’s apple-tastic! Two beautiful, bona-fide floors, one for the rooms and one fer drinking! Ah aim to make it the best inn in the city, where you can get the best drinks and food around and a good night’s rest.” Applejack crossed her forelegs with a proud smile on her face. “Ah even got a couple players to help around.” “I see,” Twilight said with a hum. “I might try to get a profession here, but I don’t know what Life Skill to prioritize.” A small ha escaped Rainbow Dash’s mouth. “Too bad there aren’t any Life Skills for reading. I’m pretty sure would get that maxed in a heartbeat.” Twilight rolled her eyes at the jab. “How about Writing?” Rarity suggested. “I’m very sure you’ll do wonderfully, Twilight.” “Writing? There’s even a Life Skill for that?” “Why yes! I’m sure with the right materials, you’ll be able to publish a book here!” “Hmm… sure, why not? It’ll sure be a rewarding experience! Although I don’t see how I can Level Up a skill for writing when it’s all up to the mind. It’s not exactly the most technical skill.” “I don’t know, darling. That’s something you probably have to find out yourself.” “Do let us know, though. When you got it all figured out and everything,” Applejack said. “But first things first, have ya decided where you wanted to go to? Mah place or Rarity’s? Twilight weighed the options in her mind, judging the pros and cons. But in the end, it didn’t seem to really matter since she was planning to visit them all. However, Twilight was curious about Rarity’s offer of brand new equipment. “Well, I think Rarity has something interesting to offer for all of us. Is that right?” “Correct, darling,” Rarity smiled. “I do have something made for each and every one of us.” “Okay, let’s go to Rarity’s first. We can hang at the tavern afterwards.” “Well, Ah guess that’s fair,” Applejack tipped her hat towards Rarity. “Lead the way, Rares.” They walked towards the center of the bazaar with Rarity in the front, where more fabulous items and booths were at. Each shop stand after the last was more elaborate as they went deeper into the market, changing from simple wood to tents with silken tapestry for tarps. At the center of it all stood a brilliant boutique that shined with silver walls and crystal windows. The building’s dome was crafted out of a large diamond, and the frame of the door was decked with embedded rubies and sapphires. At seemingly perfect timing, the sun rose high above Rarity’s shop, its rays bouncing off its roof and casting a rainbow assortment of colors all over the market and the sky. Ponies everywhere in and near the Bazaar looked up at the sky in awe, admiring the light show. “Welcome to my humble abode,” Rarity said with a small chuckle. “The Crystalline Boutique, where everything is sweet and magnifique!” She held the door wide open. “Please, you girls first.” Twilight and the others stepped inside, and their breaths were taken away as the vast assortment of dresses and armor greeted them – literally. The enchanted servants floated across the floor, the end of the robes just barely touching the surface. Twilight and the others shook hooves with their sleeves, gauntlets, gloves, or whatever they had before they returned to their work. The inside of the shop looked very similar to the Carousel Boutique, apart from the fact that the walls were made of silver and crystal, having a shinier appeal. “Wow Rarity, how were you able to afford all this?” Twilight asked. “I had a big order a couple weeks ago, and I was saving the money for just an occasion like this. Worth every shiny bit!” A squadron of four sets of heavy plate armors came over with a red velvet couch. Rarity let out a little fit of joy as they carried her upon it. “I feel like a princess here!” Rainbow blew away a lock of her mane dangling in front of her eyes, bored out of her mind already. “Whatever, can we just go already? I want to go get wasted on Applejack’s juices.” “You can lose yourself in liquor later, darling. Right now, we need to find you the perfect fit.” Rarity dragged Twilight over to the clothes stand hung with silky robes. After picking out a few outfits, she once again lugged her to the dressing room. “Okay dear, here are a couple of outfits that would look absolutely gorgeous on you.” “Okay, but can I ask a few questions– ” “No time for that, darling.” Rarity pressed the items into Twilight’s forehooves, giggling and singing. “It’s time for a maaakeover!” MagiAdept received the following items from FashionatingDiamonds. ~ Sparkling Robes of Armament Attributes – A Leveling Item. Max Item Level: 10 Prerequisite(s) – Minimum Player Level: 8. INT 65. SPR 65. Description: A purple cloak with silver stars brightening its form. Gives the wearer +10 Armor and +25 Magic Resist. Upon Leveling Up, the item receives a permanent bonus of +5 Armor and +10 Magic Resist. When item reaches maxed level, it gains a permanent passive. When the wearer’s health goes below 10%, a powerful shield surrounds the user. The Shield Bar equals to 50% of the wearer’s total HP, blocks the physical damage and magic damage by 50%. Shield may be taken down by the wearer at will. After the shield disappears or breaks, it goes on a Cooldown of 5 Minutes. ~ Cloak of Undetecting Attributes – Enchanted Item Description: A cloak with the colors of shimmering water. Makes the wearer invisible to mobs and enemy players. Mobs and enemy players cannot look at user directly. Illusion breaks when making loud noises or sudden movements. Twilight gasped in awe. “Wow Rarity, these look really nice.” “Oh please don’t say that until you’ve put on the dress, my dear.” Twilight tried on each outfit, careful to not break the seams or ruin them in any way. After all, it’s Rarity’s work and must be treated with diligence, but it seemed it wasn’t necessary as the clothes just flash onto her as soon as she poked a hoof into them. She stepped out of the room with each outfit, and was greeted with a chorus of applauses from her friends and the enchanted servants. “You look mighty fine with them robes on,” Applejack said. “Super-duper fantastic!” Pinkie added. Twilight softly rubbed where her chest was, appreciating how comfortable it felt. “Thank you, Rarity. This will surely help me throughout the game! Should I pay you for them?” Rarity smiled and gave her a little hug. “Oh there’s no need for that dear. They’re on the house. Anything for a good friend of mine.” “Wow, now I really have to thank you. I’ll be sure to find a way to make it up to you.” “Really now, there is no need.” “But I insist!” Twilight giggled. Rarity rolled her eyes with a grin of her own. “Well alright, if you must.” “Hey Rare. How about us?” Rainbow Dash walked closer to Rarity. “Do we, um, get cool outfits?” “As a matter of fact, I’m glad you asked that, Rainbow Dash. In addition to Twilight’s outfit, I’ve made each and every one of you your own custom outfit. They’re upstairs, on the second floor.” With excitement in their hooves, the rest of the ponies rushed up the stairway, wondering what the fashion designer had in stores for them. Twilight twirled around in the violet robe, admiring the sparkles and glows of it that flowed out from the hem like fairies. It felt as if it was made recently, although she couldn’t help but get a sense of familiarity from it. “This is beautiful, but I can’t help but feel that I’ve worn this before.” “It should be. I was inspired to recreate our Gala dresses here, but of course in armor and robe sets. I’ve gotten a look at the tier of armors around our level, and I was absolutely horrified by their bland looks! I’ve never seen such dull colors mixed together in my entire life. I couldn’t stand seeing you all wear such things, so I’ve decided to take up the responsibility of making all of our armor.” Rarity then blushed with a small grin. “That is, until we start seeing better equipment later on. The amount of materials I used was very expensive, and I’m not sure how I’ll be able to afford more of it. I’ve yet to actually sell anything from my shop.” Twilight studied Rarity’s expression, and then looked back down at her robe. She admired the silver shine the star decorations had. She knew she was very generous, but this felt beyond too much. “Rarity… I really don’t know what to say now, but thank you.” Twilight wrapped her forelegs around Rarity in a hug. “You’re absolutely welcome, darling.” Rarity returned back the embrace. They shared the moment for just a bit longer until Twilight pulled away. “By the way, where did you find the time to make these? You were with us the entire time since I’ve logged on, and this robe looks very difficult to make.” “Oh I was logged onto the game for quite a while now and familiarized with our friend’s classes. I also had taken the guess that you were going to be playing a mage when Rainbow Dash said she was going to show you the game, and making items is pretty fast.” “It is?” “Yes. All I needed was gather the materials I need or want, a sewing kit, and just started sewing. As soon as I start that, the materials will start to digitize into the equipment I made.” Twilight tilted her head to the side in confusion. “I’m… I’m not sure if I really understand that. So you just thread a needle into the materials?” “I’m sorry, but that’s the simplest way I can explain how it works. Maybe I should explain how armors and weapons are created?” Twilight nodded. “Well when working with metals to create swords or armors, usually you need forge, an anvil, hammer, as well as a trough of water to cool it down. Some require more complicated equipment, but those three are the bare minimum. The most easy path of steps is simply to place the metal in the forge for a certain amount of time, depending on the metal you’re using – oh and the forge has to be heated of course!” Twilight giggled. “Of course, Rarity.” A small grin crept on Rarity’s lips. “Anyway, continuing on. After the metal is heated, you place the metal on the forge – with a tong – and hit it with a hammer. Depending on your Blacksmithing skill, it may take some time until you don’t need to hit the metal anymore. Once the metal has received the appropriate amount of hits, it shall transform into what you’re making. And then you need to cool down your piece.” “Hmm… okay I think I understand, but what will the metal transform into this ‘piece’ I want?” “You need to have a blueprint as well.” “A blueprint?” “Why yes. There are blueprints for all sorts of equipment pieces. Some have the full set listed, while others are for separate pieces. There is a slot in all anvils to place the blueprint in. That’s basically how the game knows what you want to make. Same thing for the dresses actually, except it’s slightly more the complicated part is in creating the design.” “How so?” Rarity touched her lower lip as she remembered. “Well like armor, I needed materials. But these items are actually custom made, and I had to figure out how the materials would contribute to the equipment. Each of them hold different attributes in them, attributes that add to the stats of the equipment, such as Magic Resist and Armor. For example, a Mana Crystal would have the attribute of Mana, which can allow the equipment to give the wearer some bonus Mana. The higher quality of the material, the better the stats.” Twilight studied the robe she was wearing currently. It looked very expensive and rare. “So the materials used for my robe are… what did you use?” Twilight raised her eyebrows as she noticed Rarity adopted a nervous look, then quickly smiled. “Um, let’s just say I know a friend or two.” “Really? This ‘Leveling Item’ thing seems to be pretty powerful. I can’t imagine that very many items have that sort of attribute.” “Oh no, Twilight. Almost half of the items created by the developers are Leveling Items,” Rarity hastily said. “Are you guys done talking already?” Twilight and Rarity turned towards the stairs, where Rainbow Dash was walking down with the others. “Sorry we took so long. Fluttershy had a pretty difficult time trying to get her dress on.” “Sorry.” Applejack patted her on the back. “It’s alright, sugarcube. Anyway, how do we look, Twi?” Twilight studied what her friends had on. Applejack had a long green chainmail cape going down her backside to the ends of her hindhooves, with a leather saddle cover her back. The cape was tied to a fake-leather, green collar around her neck. It had a red medal on the front of the collar in the shape of a red apple. Twilight guessed that was where the collar is locked at. Applejack was also wearing gold horseshoes on with green tinted on its edges. Her Stetson hat was still relaxing on her golden locks. On her back was a large metal hammer. It didn’t look anything interesting, but Twilight had noticed the flat ends of the war hammer were shaped like apples. On her main body was a gold hauberk with a layer of a cloth shirt underneath, its sleeves reaching down to her fetlocks, and on top of that were pieces of light iron armor. Rainbow Dash almost looked like Applejack, except she didn’t have any chainmail or iron armor. Her main source of protection was a set of light leather armor with a rainbow lightning bolt patterned on each of her shoulder pads. A long, flowing rainbow cape with tattered ends extended across her back, and a picture of her cutie mark adorned it. Tiny gold laurels were sitting behind her ears, and situated over her muzzle were large orange glasses with sharp, acute, pointed edges. Pinkie Pie at the attire of a pink ninja, with a mask over her muzzle and a couple inventory accessories wrapped around her hooves that were meant to hold sharp shurikens. Over her head was a hood with a white and red stripe pattern, reminding Twilight of sweet peppermint candy. Around her midsection was a long white sash that barely touched the floor, and on her back was a satchel. The coloration obviously didn’t call for stealth, but knowing Pinkie, she could appear from anywhere. Twilight can recall those moments all too well. Last but not least, Twilight looked over to Fluttershy. It would be an understatement if Twilight were to say that she was a breathtaking sight. Resting upon her dainty pink mane was a flower crown weaved with blue and pink flowers of exotic design, and she wore a thin light green dress with sleeves that looked like thin vines wrapping around her forelegs. The tail of the dress went just a few inches above the floor. Around her neck was a large, blue, butterfly-shaped jewel that was connected to a green cape on her. Hanging from her ears were earrings in the shape of blue butterflies. “Wow, you all look great!” Twilight exclaimed. “Thanks Twilight, that means a lot to me,” Applejack grinned. Rainbow Dash grunted. “Well everything looks pretty great on me, and rainbow is fine, but I would like something a little different.” “Don’t like the color?” Rarity asked. Rainbow nodded. “Well that’ll be an easy fix. Follow me, darling.” Rainbow and Rarity went up the stairs while the rest of the girls stepped down, deciding to wait in the living room. They talked about what’s been going on in their life outside of the game, having discussions of the usual to bide their time. After a few minutes, Rainbow and Rarity came back down, although Rainbow’s attire didn’t look all that different. “Where’s the new color?” Applejack asked. The others girls, except for Rarity, spoke out their confusions as well. Rainbow just sneered at as she presented herself, brandishing the back of her cape to her friends as she stood on her hind legs. “They’re right here!” The colors of cape suddenly changed from ones of a rainbow to the shades of a phoenix, the main body of it red while the tattered tails were orange, resembling tongues of fire. On her cape, the cutie mark was the only thing that stayed the same. The light brown hue of her armor changed to grey, although the rainbow bolts kept their colors. To add a finishing touch, Rainbow began to wrap bandages around the forearm of her legs for an even tougher appearance. “So, how do I look?” Rainbow flashed a confident smile as she looked over her shoulder. They all applauded, smiling their approval. “Wow Rainbow. I didn’t know it would be possible, but you just looked twenty percent cooler!” Twilight exclaimed. “Rarity, how does this work?” “A Color Changing enchantment scroll and some colored dye. I discovered that if you use this enchantment scroll on an item, it gains a couple extra slots for dye items. I have plenty in my shop, and Rainbow can switch between colors whenever she likes. Certainly does save me the trouble of recreating the items all over again. Applejack nodded as she got up. She went over to Rainbow and lifted a part of her cape. “The colors certainly do fit you, Dash. I wonder how you would look though in blue colors though.” “I don’t know. Rarity, do you have some?” Rarity lightly touched her lower lips in thought. “Hmm… no, I actually don’t believe I don’t. I’ve used up all the blue dye I had for Twilight’s robe. It was incredibly hard to make it right and took me so many tries.” “Oh… well that’s okay!” Rainbow grinned. “Grey and red looks fine on my anyway.” “I– I think it looks wonderful on you too,” Fluttershy gently smiled. “Pinkie, what do you think of Rainbow’s outfit?” Everypony looked towards Pinkie with expectancy. She was silent the whole time and had the look of a pro poker player on her face. It was slightly unnerving. “You wanna know what I think of Rainbow’s outfit, Fluttershy?” “U– um, sure? I– I would like to know?” Fluttershy said, her tone hesitating to speak out the words. Pinkie stood up on the couch, much to Rarity’s displeasure. “I think –” Pinkie reached behind the couch and pulled out a blue cannon, decorating the air with confetti “– that we need a party for this pronto!” The girls relaxed and grew big smiles on, giggling. “Well of course, Pinkie Pie! This does call for a celebration,” Rarity said. “Our first day in Equestrian Earth is certainly a day that won’t come around again. I’d say we make the best of it!” Rainbow moved around, watching her cape fly around. “So this is all on the house then?” “Absolutely! I can’t dream of charging you all for these gifts.” “As will mine.” Applejack announced, walking towards the door. “Cause the round of drinks are on me! To the tavern, everypony!” +Ω‡‡¥‡‡Ω+ The Sweet Fruit Tavern stood tall and proud on the outskirts of the marketplace, smelling of cider and excitement. From outside, Twilight thought its huge girth and height was enough to fit an elephant in with enough room for it to comfortable walk around. Inside, her ears were greed with the sound of people enjoying themselves and having conversation with one another. The atmosphere was friendly and warm, and the food shared the same quality. Floating candles were about, lighting the room in their bright glows. Applejack flashed a smile at her friends before going behind the bar. “Welcome to the Sweet Fruits, girls. This right ‘ere is the best place to get a nice, cool drink or a warm bed to sleep in.” She dipped her head below the counter and grabbed a tankard of cider. “Here, try this one, Twi.” Twilight eyed the golden liquid. Due to the incredibleness of the game, she was able to detect something strong from the drink as brought her nose closer for a sniff. “Is this liquor?” “Of course it is, Twi. This is a tavern Ah’m running after all. Not a salad bar.” Twilight hesitated as she reached for the drink, curious about how strong the drink would be if she was in a game. Never before did she hear anything about the possibility of people getting drunk off alcoholic drinks. Deciding to not chicken out in front of her friends, she took it all down in one gulp. The sweet taste splashed down her gullet like a holy river, its flavor strong and beautiful. Twilight tried to guess what the side hint of flavor. Was it cinnamon? Finished, Twilight slammed the tankard down and released a breath of satisfaction. “That was absolutely delicious.” Now Twilight was suddenly curious about the game’s capabilities. Never before was she able to taste anything that deeply before. The way the flavor exploded upon her mouth, the refreshing fluids that wetted her throat, it had all felt very real. Maybe she should try one more. Luckily for her, Applejack was ready to oblige, sliding another tankard towards her. “Care for another? Like Pinkie said, it’s time to party.” She looked over to a familiar red stallion that was manning the station as well. “Hey Big Mac! Can you get the special kegs from the back and passed them?” Big Mac nodded and went to the storage. As he left, Applejack leapt onto the counter and shouted out to the entire tavern, “Drinks are all on me, everypony! Here’s to day one of Equestrian Earth!” The players of the tavern filled the room with roars of cheers, delighted to drink to their bellies’ worth. Meanwhile, Twilight was drenching the second down her throat with much gusto, tipping the tankard way too far up. She didn’t even care that she was spilling some on her robe, which Rarity whimpered at. Much to her delight, the drink was just as good as the last. The sweet aftertaste of the first one didn’t impact it as much. “Whoa! Slow down there, girl!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, although smirking. Rarity placed a hoof on Twilight’s shoulders. “Darling, this is worrying me. Maybe you should go easy on the drinks.” “N– naw I’m fine!” she insisted, taking a third cider. Twilight felt her head spin a little as she finished that one. “Oh wow Applejack, you’re a – Hick! – a really great maaree.” Rarity turned Twilight around by the shoulders, wanting to talk face to face. Rarity let out a gasp as she saw one of her eyes slightly looking the other way. “Twilight, I think you had enough.” Rainbow scoffed, crossing her forelegs. “What are you talking about? She looks completely fine to me.” Rarity frowned. “Applejack.” “Relax, Rarity. I’m sure a drink or two wouldn’t hurt.” “She had three, and Big Mac is already passing her another one.” Applejack had leapt back down and passed out more of the beverages to each of them of them. Twilight eagerly took one and drank it all down while Rarity lightly pushed hers away. “I’ll just have some water, thank you very much.” “Why not?” Pinkie asked. “The cider is pretty good. Although this party could use a little something more. I’m thinking of streamers, dancers, a built-in roller coaster, cupcake pizzas, and one giant cheese wheel.” Fluttershy tilted her head to the side. “A giant cheese wheel?” “I dunno. I just feel like having one!” Pinkie drank the entire tankard’s trove and shivered as it settled in her stomach. She then burst out of her seat with energy, joining the rest of the tavern in the festivities in joyous bouts. Already there were balloons being tied to everyone. Applejack chuckled as Pinkie continued to make the party better. “So Rarity, I’m guessing you want don’t want to get buzzed?” “Well one of us should be sober to get a hold of the situation in case something goes out of control.” Rarity accepted a glass of water from Applejack. “I feel like I should be that responsible one at the very least.” “Whatever you say, Rarity,” Rainbow said between her cider slurps. “Don’t be such a downer though.” “Do not worry about me, Rainbow Dash. I won’t be a rain cloud.” Rarity said before taking a sip from her water. “I just hope that this game isn’t as deeply immersive as the game creators advertised it. I would imagine that the hangover would be horrendous– Oh sweet Celestia, Applejack! How many did you give her?!” “What in Celestia’s beard are you talking about?” Applejack demanded as she looked towards where Rarity was staring at with a gape. She then shared the same sentiments. Somehow, Twilight managed to slip away from the group and joined Pinkie in the delightful hilarity that was drinking. She was at a table with a stallion, and stacks upon stacks of empty tankards were beside them. Twilight’s stack was much taller, and she was only adding more to it with each passing moment. From the audience were chants of “Chug, chug, chug,” adding to the loud atmosphere. “’ow in the ‘ell are ya drinkin’ so much, lass?” her opponent grumbled as he drank down another. “I dawn’t knaw wat ya talkin’ a– HICK! – about,” Twilight slurred heavily. The stallion started to tip back and forth in his seat. He stared at the next liquor, and then set it down. “Well lass, looks like – hick – ya won this’in.” He then fell off his seat into a drunken stupor, causing a massive uproar among the audience, for a stallion got his plot kicked at a drinking contest by a mare. By Pinkie’s lead, they lifted Twilight from her seat and started to toss her up in the air in the wake of her victory. Rarity deeply frowned. “Oh no. The poor dear is probably getting sick from that.” Rarity pushed her way through the crowd and caught Twilight in a web of her magic. Twilight looked left to right in slight confusion, but eventually succumbed to how comfortable Rarity’s magic was. “Okay everypony, I believe my friend has had enough for today. Go on now, back to your celebration.” The crowd mumbled among themselves, and Rarity caught a few words of her being a stick in the mud, but she didn’t care. Rarity settled Twilight down in an empty chair, trying to balance her every time she tipped. Twilight giggled and snickered in spite of her state. “Eeyyy Rarity, wat are you doin’ here?” “Just trying to prevent you from making a foal out of yourself,” Rarity sighed. “Eey Rarity.” “Yes, Twilight?” “Did I eva tell ya dat ya pretty?” Rarity felt her cheeks growing warm. “Um, I believe you may have. I don’t recall though.” Twilight nodded with half closed eyes and a silly, lopsided smile. “Eey Rarity.” “Yes?” “You are suuu prettay.” Twilight then fell unconscious, crashing her head on Rarity’s shoulder. Rarity rolled her eyes and smiled. “Okay, okay. Let’s get you upstairs now.” Rarity carried Twilight onto her back and made her way to the other girls. “Applejack, I’m going to take Twilight into one of the rooms if that’s alright with you.” “That’s fine by me. Honestly, Ah wasn’t really expecting this to happen,” Applejack said with a chuckle. “Take care of her. We’ll man the fort here.” +Ω‡‡¥‡‡Ω+ The drinking had gone on for at least a couple of good hours. The air was still fresh with enjoyment, and it looked like everypony still had room in their belly for more cider. Applejack was thankful for the fact that food was quick and easy to make in the game, but she was starting to worry about the fast drop rate of her apple supply. So much cider was being consumed, she was afraid she might lose the entire stock. She wished she could go back on her word and start charging for the drinks, but it wouldn’t feel right to Applejack. The people in her tavern seemed to be enjoying themselves, and all Applejack could do is pass out more drinks and rest her head on the counter. “What’s wrong, Applejack? You look like you got a pickle in your mane,” Pinkie said. “Not really, but Ah think Ah’m starting to regret this party. Mah apple supply is dropping faster than Granny on a bad day.” “We can always get more,” Rainbow suggested, shrugging slightly. She filled her tankard again from a nearby keg. “I mean, apples aren’t very expensive are they?” “Nope they aren’t, but the apples we’re using are prime quality. I’ve actually bought some seeds and some high quality magic growin’ powder thingy in order to start up this place. I still have the seeds of course, just not the time to grow them. Mah farmin’ skill ain’t as high as it is in real life.” “Um, Applejack?” “Yeah, Flutters?” “Um, are you sure you’re running out of cider? The kegs here still seem to be full.” Fluttershy did have a point. She hadn’t rechecked on the stocks, but she was fairly certain that nopony in the tavern weren’t drinking too much. Oh how very wrong she was. Applejack felt a nudge to her shoulders, and looked up to find Big Mac slightly beaded in sweats. He leaned in towards her ear. “Applejack, main kegs are getting’ drained.” “What?!” Applejack harshly whispered back, her pupils shrunken. “That quick already?! How are we going to get more cider?” “Unless we tap into the batch for next week, eenope.” Applejack silently cursed and let out a short growl under her breath. The reserves of cider were meant for next week. Each week, Applejack estimated that at least fifty large kegs of cider would be used. If a week’s worth had already plummeted, that could mean a really huge loss of profit, and the next harvest wasn’t until next month. This would mean she was forced by actually buy apples, but Applejack knew she didn’t have enough to pay for an entire week’s worth. Just as when she was about to abuse the countertop with her hooves, she heard somepony calling for her. “E– excuse me, miss, but are you Ms. Applejack?” Applejack turned towards the four newcomers who were waiting patiently for her response. They looked pretty nervous and awed. “That would be me. And who do Ah ‘ave the pleasure of talking to?” A light brown stallion with an even paler tone of mane and tail stepped up first. Resting on his head was a thin metal circlet, and around his neck was a chestnut brown cape with strange symbols on it. They looked like something Twilight would study in her laboratory. Holstered by his side was a smooth, blunt hammer weapon, a hilt wrapped in green lizard hide and a polished, rectangular block of stone for the head. The stone had strange runes inscribed on it as well, similar to the ones on his cape. He adjusted his rimless glasses. “Oh where are my manners? I’m, um, Paperback, and these are my friends. Meet Night Stalker, Dilluted Livo, and Nitro Rush.” “Yo,” Night simply said. His coat was the tone of rugged charcoal and almost sized up to her brother. His mane looked as if it was drenched in crimson paint, or if was left to burn in the fire and the color was left as a result. Eyes were dark brown like burnt wood. His choice of armor pieces were just two shoulder pauldrons, leaving his flank bare. Applejack noticed his cutie mark was unusual: a drawn bow with a flaming arrow notched into it. “Hey, what’s up?” Dilluted Livo said, crossing her forelegs with a confident smile. Her voice sounded shy and quiet, but to Applejack, it seemed her personality didn’t match. Like Night, she was also a dark color, but had a shade that reminded Applejack of the dead of midnight. Her wing tips were red, and her mane matched her coat with beautiful stripes of violet drawn from one end of her mane to the next. All Livo had was a thin t-shirt with big, loose sleeves, making her seem like an easy target, although Applejack noticed there was something hidden in one of her sleeves. Nitro Rush didn’t say anything, but his bouncy jumps and wide smile made it obvious. His coat was blue, but that was all that Applejack could tell about how the stallion looked as a black cloak was hiding away most of his body. Although she could see two bumps on either side of him, so he was probably a pegasus. A large white scythe was resting on his back and strangely had Celestia’s cutie mark on it. “Hello,” Applejack said. “So what brings you here?” “Um, we overheard what you said about cider. Are you running out?” Paperback asked. Applejack sighed. “Yes. That’s the truth, but Ah’ll be right as rain. Ah just gotta scrape up enough bits to buy enough apples to last next week so we can use the reserves without trouble.” “Well if that’s the case, then I might be able to help you with that.” Applejack raised her eyebrows, and then adopted a serious look. “Go on… ” Paperback smiled, although it looked more like a smirk to her. “Well you see, Aeroslida is hosting a tournament with cash prizes… and something a little more.” The farmer’s ear twitched at the mention of cash and the little bonus. “Okay, you have my attention.” +Ω‡‡¥‡‡Ω+ Twilight can say without a doubt that she will never take up drinking heavy alcohol again because the hangover she was having right now is sickening. She woke up feeling as if she was wacked in the end by a rubber chicken. A rubber chicken being wielded by a titanic minotaur. She could barely see anything, as if somepony had poured water over her eyes, and had taken quite more than a few blinks to be rid of it. Her ears were ringing at a constant pitch that annoyed her to no end, supplying her massive headache. As she sat up from the mattress she was laying on, a cold glass of a blue, wispy drink was pressed against her cheek. She turned to see Rarity holding it up. “Here darling, drink this. This should help ease the pain.” Twilight couldn’t really understand what Rarity was saying, but she understood her intentions clearly. She took the glass, tiredly but graciously nodding, and drank the smoky liquid. Immediately the headache was already fleeing from her mind, and she can see and hear better, although it was still murky and her head still slightly smarted. Nonetheless, she was happy with what she got. “Thank you, Rarity,” Twilight winced, rubbing her temple. “Augh, remind me to never hit the bottle if I ever get near one.” “I’ll be sure to do that. Maybe even go as far as to scold you with a newspaper,” Rarity said, giggling. Twilight rolled her eyes as she placed down the drink on a nearby nightstand. “Well I’m ready to go back down.” Twilight went towards the door and walked out with Rarity in tow. As they walked down the quaint hall, Twilight couldn’t help but wonder what she had just experienced. Did she actually pass out from being drunk. If so, then that is pretty incredible and realistic for a game. Twilight just hoped she didn’t actually waste hours on ends from doing that. “Hey Rarity?” “Yes darling?” “How long was I out for?” “About a couple hours. I almost fell asleep while waiting for you to wake up.” Yeah. Definitely never hitting the booze again. Not unless she can handle staying conscious. Maybe she should start small? No, Twilight promised with Rarity to never drink again. Hopefully, it would never come to pass. Soon after walking for a bit, Twilight can hear the party still going on from the first floor. Twilight can see the floating candles as she turned around the corner. “We’re almost there,” Twilight said, picking up the pace. Rarity matched Twilight’s speed as they trotted out into the open and down the stairs. As they stepped downward, Twilight can see her friends still hanging around at the bar. Twilight waved to them when she got closer. “Hey girls! Sorry to worry you there. The drink was great, Applejack, but I don’t think I’ll be having another any time soon. Sorry to say that,” Twilight said with a small laugh. Twilight’s smile suddenly faded into a curious frown as she saw Applejack was just staring into her tankard. Before she could ask, the apple farmer turned towards her. A smirk was on her face. “Hey Twi. Ah have good news for yah. We’re gonna enter a PvP tournament.”