//------------------------------// // Ch 10: Magic Duel... Eh, why not? // Story: Dream come true? // by Storm Shine //------------------------------// I laughed as Fluttershy threatened Twilight, "If anything happens to them, so help me..." She was saying, before Spike stepped up to reassure her. "Ya know, I kinda hope that she fails... Just to see what Buttercup Quiverhooves'll do." Gilda told me, reaching over to grab some popcorn from the bucket in my hands. "Yeah, that threat was pretty open-ended." I agreed, somewhat hoping to see what Fluttershy would do. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Twilight stepped up to start her magic thing. "Jeeze, I kinda feel bad for her... She's more tense than the animals." Gilda was obviously referring to Fluttershy, who had already covered her eyes and started shaking. Quiverhooves indeed... Meh, it's part of her own type of charm I guess. She seems like an adorable little sister, if you ask me. "Getting softer by the day Gilda, what next? Are you planning to hug her and tell her everything's gonna be all ri-Ow!" My little teasing session was quickly cut short via punch to the arm. "Shut up Jet." Gilda told me with a mock frown, "I just pity her a bit is all, that doesn't make me less tough." "Yeah," I chuckled "I can feel that." I told my fellow griffin, rubbing the spot she'd hit. "Aw~, poor baby..." Gilda cooed mockingly at me, fluttering her eyelashes "Now who's getting soft?" "Yeah, yeah..." I replied, waving a talon dismissively with a small smirk. "I prefer to think that you just hit hard." And then the show was over, "Jeeze... For somepony who can lift an Ursa Minor, you sure get tired with just a few animals..." I called out to the obviously sweating sparkles. "Shut up Jet!" She called back, "There's a lot more fine details to work with than lifting an Ursa!" "Sure, sure... you know what that's called?" I asked rhetorically, "An EXCUSE!" "Well you know what, if you think it's so easy than-" Twilight's attempted challenge was cut short by the arrival of a multi-colored speedster known as Rainbow Dash. "Twilight come quick, it's an emergency!" She shouted in the purple unicorn's face, just after crash landing on her. "Welp, guess it's about time for the Magic Duel... Eh, why not?" As long as Gilda doesn't get hurt in any form, I'm game. We arrived just as Applejack and Pinkie Pie were hauling Rarity off in a dress that even I could tell was completely hideous... And lemme tell you, I have zero fashion taste. Well, clothing-wise anyways... I think I make a pretty good griffin color scheme, if I do say so myself. "What's going on here?" Twilight asked, walking over. "Well, well, well, If it isn't... Twilight Sparkle." Trixie declared dramatically, throwing her hood back and causing all of the ponies to gasp. "Trixie." Twilight responded seriously, mad-face on. "What's she doin' here?" Spike wondered, claws clenched. Gilda yawned, and I verbalized my boredom quite clearly, "Yawn~, boring! Hey, how about some laserbeams?" The ponies might be surprised, but I wasn't and Gilda probably just didn't care. "You called that 'Great and Powerful?" Rainbow Dash asked, taking to the air. Trixie grinned before zapping Dash, causing one wing to become incredibly over-sized and made Rainbow completely lose her aerial stability. The twin idio- I mean the two senseless colts complemented her before getting blasted as well. And then Trixie challenged Twilight, meaningless dialogue, a bit of backstory, an insult from Pinkie Pie, more magical stuff, yadad yadda... Ah, finally! The Magic duel begins. "Draw!" Trixie shouted, throwing a magic beam at a cart and causing it to go flying at some poor unsuspecting bystanders. "Woohoo~! Laser beam!" I cheered, eating some more Popcorn with Gilda as we sat watching from a cloud. "Though it really looked more like Electricity than Lasers, so I'll give it a five outta ten." Twilight levitated the cart, and it's contents, safely to the ground and turned to confront Trixie... Only to Find some pies flying at her face. "Hah, a nice Classic Prank!" Gilda giggled, just before Twilight conjured a parasprite to eat them and then banished it and the duplicate it'd spit out. "Eh~... I'll give that counter a 7 for potential riskiness if she'd forgotten to banish it." I graded. "Though I'm surprised to hear you giggling Gilda... Maybe I should call you Giggly Gild-Ow! Gilda's fist met my arm once again in a brilliant... Well I'd say it was a battle, but it was more like a beat-down since both my arm and I know we'd never hit her back. Push her, maybe... But hit her? Nnope. Snow filled Twilight's vision, just before I watched her become a snowpony parody of herself. "Eh... That sucked." I commented, thoroughly disappointed with the quality of that attack. Twilight then melted through the snow, which was equally sucky and completely unimaginative. But then... she gave Trixie a mustache! "Nine outta Ten for hilarity!" I managed to get out, Gilda and I leaning against each other for support as we laughed. "Oh, this part... I gotta say, I feel more pity for Snails than Snips. Being that old must be painful... And now cue a painful drop, ouch..." I gave a running commentary for that part. And then the banishment... Woo. Cue heartfelt goodbye and yadda yadda, next scene! "Well... I gotta admit, those are some nice evil banners." I whistled, looking at said banners. "Though red and black is a bit cliche I think... Done to death in just about everything evil." "Nopony asked you Jet!" Rarity snapped from her sewing machine, obviously angry with the situation. "That's actually pretty ironic, coming from you Jet..." Gilda said, gesturing towards my entire body. "Hey! I'm tastefully Black and Red, thank you very much! Besides; I'm not evil, so it's not a cliche." I retorted, causing Gilda to laugh at me. "Sure, Sure..." She smirked, "You know what that's called? An excuse!" I could do nothing but simmer in my loss of the verbal battle as my own words from earlier were used against me. "Hoisted by my own petard..." I mumbled dejectedly. "The hell's a 'petard'?" Gilda asked, confused. "Don't worry about it." And then Applejack's personal 'tickle toture' began and ended... Weak~! She broke in less than two seconds, I mean come on! No wonder she wasn't the Element of Loyalty... "Who would've thought that Applejack was that ticklish?" Gilda wondered aloud, "She seems a bit too tough for that..." "So do you, but you still laugh hysterically at the smallest poke in th- ow!" And cut off again due to Gilda's punch of verbal cut-off, patent pending. "Watch it Jet." She warned, "Otherwise I'll sock your arm again." "Oh no, my poor abused arm~!" I replied in what was probably a seriously over-the-top dramatic voice... This idea was confirmed by yet another punch to my 'poor abused arm'. "Keep this up and ponies might start thinking I'm in an abusive relationship." "Tch, yeah right..." Gilda waved it off, "They're way too busy with their own problems for that." "You two! Fetch me some water!" Trixie called, pointing at us. "Fetch it yourself you whiny and demanding pain-in the flank." My feisty female friend snarled back. "Why you..." Trixie gritted her teeth before sending a blast of electricity at Gilda, a blast of pink electricity. "Stop it, that tickled." Gilda deadpanned. Yeah, she's really only ticklish in one or two spots... So meh. "W-what? That should've shocked you right out of the air!" Trixie declared in disbelief. "Yeah, it probably would've... if you were still wearing this." I said from right next to the arrogant blue mare, spinning the necklace around my claw. "It's surprising how easy it is for any random nobody to get their claws/hooves/other appendages on a powerful magical artifact nowadays." "H-huh!? How did you get that!? Only I'm supposed to be able to remove it!" Trixie demanded. "It's called being overpowered, deal with it. You think you're strong with this little trinket? Hah! I've got more power at the tip of my smallest claw than you've got in your whole body." I told her. Not sure if that's actually true, but what I do know is that I could EASILY lay a serious beat-down on her without even moving. "Here." I said, tossing the amulet back to her, "Try and harm Gilda again, and I might just have to kill you..." I punctuated my statement by having some darkness float around and radiate ill intent. Just learned to do that last part recently, actually... My darkness can cause a feeling of unease, which I can amplify anywhere from 'prickling the back of your neck' uncomfortable to 'OMG RUN!' scary, to just plain making them pass out in terror. I don't really use that last one though, leaves behind a hell of a mess. "Of course!" Trixie nodded frantically with a gulp, probably envisioning the different ways I could probably kill her... Or maybe she was thinking about spiders? I dunno. Maybe I should look into getting a pet... Maybe a bat? Nah... And so the second duel begins and ends all too predictably... Good guys always win in the end, huh? Wonder if I can change that sometime... Nah, I don't feel like stirring this world up too much... Yet. "Hey Jet?" Gilda said, getting my attention. "Yeah Gilda?" I responded with a smile, turning towards her. "What's that over there?" She asked, pointing at a spot behind me. Craning my head, I looked "What's Wha-Ow!" "Hah! You totally fell for it Jet!" Gilda crowed, grinning at her prank. I grinned too... Evilly, as I advanced on her. "Jet? ...Jet? JET!" She cried out before beginning to laugh hysterically as I pounced, my claws reaching around her neck... to gently tickle either side of it! "THAT'S RIGHT! I KNOW YOUR WEAKNESS! MUAHHAHAHA!" I laughed, as I tickled her in retaliation. "Tremble before the power of-woah!" I cried out in shock as she managed to flip us over, now grinning down evilly at me as she huffed and puffed. As much as I usually love her evil grin, I have a bad feeling about this... "Mercy?" I asked in a small voice. "Hmmm..." Gilda looked as though she was considering it, "Sorry but it's a Monday, I don't have mercy on Mondays." And so she attacked. "Y-you... You don't have mercy.. on ANY day!" I gasped out. "I never said that I did... I just said that I don't have mercy on Mondays." She replied, smirking as she continued to tickle me into submission. Well, I can't fault her logic there... With a heave, I managed to flip us again. "Than don't expect any mercy from-Woah!" And sent us rolling down a hill... The battle continues!