//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: I summon... // by Xinrick //------------------------------// I was on my way home, enjoying the cool breeze as the summer sun began to set. It was summer, my senior year was still another month away and I was just enjoying life right now. I spent my free time how I wanted, playing card games with my friends in the park, at their house, at… well, anywhere really. “Living the dream.” I smiled, enjoying the nice summer day carrying my book bag filled with at least four yugioh decks all sealed and in a deck box, my card mat, and in another pocket of it was my water bottle. I had a few good decks on me, some good cards too. I had a fair win to lose ratio and all in all I was happy. Grades weren't bad either and I was even expected to get into the honors program. All in all, life was just going my way. As I turned the corner I spotted a man in an all purple tuxedo and top hat covering his face. He was leaned against the building and he gave me this… vibe I did not like. Is this guy a pimp? “Uh...hi?” I asked nervously to the strange man. "Why hello there boy." He spoke, a strong New Orleans accent in his words. "Life treating you well?" “It’s treating me very well.” I said carefully. “And...who are you?” "Hehehe. Now that's a question, but I have one for you first." He said, reaching into his coat. I was about to start backing up when… he pulled out a Yugioh card. "Do you play games with cards boy?" “Yes…” I said carefully. “This better not be a weird attempt to kidnap me…” "My boy, if I wanted to kidnap a child all I'd need is a white van and a ps5." He chuckled… sadly he's not wrong, those are hard to find these days… "Let's play a game, simple and sweet really. I win, you will be my entertainment. You win, you get this." He flipped the card around and… holy shit! That's a signed japanese Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon! “Where the hell did you get that one of a kind card?” I asked in shock. “That’s one of the rarest cards ever, over four hundred grand!” "Pocket change to me really. So, what'll it be boy? Care to gamble?" “Uh...I’d rather not ruin my chance with my honor’s program…” I said sheepishly, knowing that gambling with a stranger was not only a bad idea, but possibly illegal and could ruin it. “Hm, well, suit yourself.” He said, taking the card and- hold up! I quickly swiped it before he could rip it. “Heh, change of heart then?” “Even if I’d rather not lose that honors...you're taunting me with a one of a kind card worth four hundred thousand dollars.” I started. “Also, no ripping...so...how do we do this?” “Simple. It’s your basic duel. Winner get’s their prize, loser loses. Shall we get started?” He asked, pulling a deck from his coat. “Um...alright.” I said while taking off my book bag. “Alright...which deck should I use?” I muttered, wondering if I should go Orcust, Dragon Rulers, Dark Magician or Blue Eyes. “Fuck it.” I muttered while grabbing my Dragon Rulers deck, one of the strongest archetypes made that’s been leveled out by...all the extra horseshit this game has to offer. So the two of us started playing, me with my Dragon Rulers and this weird guy with cards I’ve never even heard of. Even though I was always able to have a stable board of monsters and disruption, he always seemed to either know exactly what I was about to do, or he had some weird card that hampered even the Dragon Rulers ability to rebound from close to anything. After about ten minutes, which in most cases of Yugioh was way too long, of back and forth as I kept being on the back foot with all his creatures' weird abilities, I finally was able to break through it. “And I swing with Blaster, Dragon Ruler of the Inferno, for game?” I asked carefully, seeing he still had two cards in his hand. “Hmm…” The man hummed, and even though I couldn’t see his face I could tell he had a shit eating grin. “How about we make it even more interesting eh?” “How so?” I asked carefully. “You seem the type to collect, given you knew the value of the card. If you win, you get the card, and this.” He said, pulling out… holy shit is that a duel disk? Woah… that looks… really good. “And if I lose?” I asked carefully. “I’ll make sure you provide me quality entertainment. After all, no worse enemy than boredom.” “I...suppose.” I said nervously, not liking that. “But let’s see what you got.” “Alright.” He nodded. “I activate Trickster Shaman’s effect.” He started. “When I get attacked directly, I can exile it and choose any spell card in my hand and activate it.” He stated as he moved the jester masked shaman card from his graveyard to his exile pile. “And then I play Painful Decision.” He told me...aw shit. “So it’s up to a game of chance whether you get a monster to keep yourself alive, or lose the game huh?” I asked, seeing him draw two cards from his deck and bring them up. “And hey, would you look at that.” He said as he showed me he did indeed have a monster and a spell card, the monster being another thing I haven’t seen before, some weird zombie monstrosity with attack way higher than Blaster, and Graceful Dice. “Now all you need to do.” He said as...his hands seemed to blur as he moved both cards between his hands so fast I didn’t even know he was moving, and showed the back of each card. “Now take a guess my young friend.” “Uh…” I started nervously, not expecting him to show me his cards and then move that fast. “Doesn’t matter if you win or lose.” The man said ominously, as I picked the right card, and he revealed it to be...the monster card. “Damn it…” I sighed out. “Well...that sucks...there goes my honors…” I grumbled, feeling rather disappointed that I’m gonna be some weird pimps errand boy. “Heheheh. Here, you’ll need this.” He said, handing me the duel disk.  “But I lost.” I said. “This was a part of the bet right?” “Oh, just trust me, you’ll be needing it.” He said, tossing a card to the ground… it grew massive and I was falling into the black part of the design. It finally showed me his face… it was just a skull with glowing purple eyes. “Have fun.” He said, it all going black as I fell in. I felt… sore. Ugh… where… opening my eyes I was… in a park, I think? I was on the grass and felt… ouch… what the hell was that guy? “What the hell happened?” I groaned as I tried to get up from all my soreness. I looked around… I don't recognize this park… huh? At my feet was the duel disk. And my backpack. Everything still here, that's good at least. I put the thing in there and checked myself. A few brushes but nothing serious. Where the heck am I… what the? I felt along my body. I felt… smaller? No… what? I walked around, finding a public restroom and checked the mirror… I'm… younger? I look… fourteen again. “What the hell is going on?” I muttered to myself, thankful that I still had my bookbag at least cause with this new development I wasn’t sure if what I felt on my back was real. “How am I fourteen?” After collecting myself I headed off, finding the park entrance and, yeah. Definitely not a park I remember, never even heard of Canterlot Gardens. Wait… this… this town… I don't recognize it at all... “Where the hell am I?” I asked worriedly, looking around for anyone around here cause I am stupidly confused and...honestly scared. When I finally found someone I froze… what the. The people… their skin, it's… yellow, green, blue, orange, red… their hair is wild colors too, it's like a crayola box here… where… in the hell am I? “What in the name of hell?” I muttered, slowly taking a step back. Everyone seemed to be acting normal, like nothing was up. Am… am I not even on… “I’ll make sure you provide me quality entertainment. After all, no worse enemy than boredom.” … what in the hell is that guy... “Can someone please tell me what’s going on?” I asked myself in a slowly growing case of panic. As I walked through the town, trying not to cause a scene as I looked around. Aside from the people… this place looked like any other town. As I was walking around I spotted a school, there was this girl sitting next to a statue there. She wore a red tanktop, black skirt and had red and yellow hair. Her skin was a bit of a golden yellow too. I'd have passed her over if it wasn't for her eyes… they looked… panicked… like mine. “H-hello?” I asked carefully. She looked up at me. We locked eyes for a moment. After a bit, she spoke. "W...why do you… look scared?" “It’s...a weird story.” I said nervously. “But why are you scared?” "... Doubt you'd believe me… I guess you can sum it up as I ran away from home… you?" “Mine sounds even weirder, cause...I’m pretty sure a witch doctor in a purple pimp outfit teleported me here.” I said honestly. She gave me a look, chuckling. "It's so ridiculous it has to be true…" She sighed. "See this statue?" She pointed to it behind her. "It's… a portal, to another world inhabited by magical talking ponies. I'm from there and I ran in through it to prove my teacher wrong about me not being ready for the more dangerous magic… and it only opens once every three years…" She said. “So we’re both in the same boat...both stuck in some world neither of us know about, in a town with a bunch of people that look like a massive crayon box.” I said honestly. “So yeah...it’s...it’s perfectly fine to panic…” "Actually, aside from the… buildings and species, the colors match how they looked back home… So, same boat huh? What's your name?" “Mike Tompson.” I said. “And what’s your name?” I asked, sitting down near the strange but...pretty girl. "Sunset Shimmer… so, how different is this place from your world?" “A lot.” I said honestly. “Firstly...nobody's skin tone should be green unless they somehow became part plant.” I said honestly. “And secondly...all those hair colors looked legitimate, not some hair dye.” "Is that the only difference?" She asked. “I also have absolutely no idea where I am.” I said honestly. “I’ve never seen this place or even heard of ‘Canterlot’...” I said honestly. “But I don’t know since...I’ve just been trying not to make a scene.” "I've been here about a day already. Aside from the race and the buildings, locations, names, it's almost like some weird… mirror world…" She facepalmed. "Oh the irony…" She sighed. “Well it’s better than being dropped through a giant card.” I said honestly. “That’s the last time I play a children's card game with a witch doctor.” "Well, at least we… might be able to help each other…" Sunset said. "Last night I slept in an abandoned store so at least we can keep our of the cold. Our main issues will be food, water and hygiene. This world functions differently from mine… but it's still similar to yours it seems. Any ideas?" "We could get jobs maybe?" I brought up. "I don't know if they have any labor laws that stop minors from working though…" "Minors? We're still considered kids here?" Sunset asked, surprised by that fact. "Back home I'm already considered an adult, my classes in magic were something I chose to continue." "How old is adulthood?" I asked curiously. "Cause where I come from, it ranges from eighteen to twenty one range...and I look fourteen at the moment." "Thirteen. So… how do we get jobs? I doubt it's as easy as back home." "We just apply to any place that has a help wanted sign?" I shrugged. "Can't get any simpler than that." "Hopefully it is…" Sunset said as she got up, and we walked around town, looking for someplace to hire us. Thankfully we managed to find a place that was hiring, no questions asked. A sushi shop. I worked washing dishes and Sunset was waitressing. We also got paid by the day so by nine PM, the store was closed and we each walked out of there with ninety dollars each. We then made it to a restaurant and sat down for an eat. "Well, that was easier than I thought…" Sunset said, eating a salad while I ate a burger. "Also for eleven fifty an hour to boot." I said honestly. "I can already say this place is a bit better than back...home…" I trailed off, looking down sadly as I put my burger down. "... So, what next? Doubt we can stay at the abandoned store forever." “We’ll have to look for a place to stay...I didn’t see any apartments around but as far as I know we haven’t even seen half the town yet.” I said honestly. "If we're minors, then we should also be in school and that's probably another hastle entirely…" “We don’t have...literally anything to prove who we are or anything…” I groaned. “This sucks…” "Hmm… they still print birth certificates in hospitals, right?" “I’m pretty sure, but I’m not a hundred percent sure considering we’re both in another world…” I sighed out, still not knowing what’s completely different from here and back home. "Hmm… I might have an idea, but we'll have to break a few rules… or, laws, to get some believable identity. You in?" “Are you sure we should do that?” I asked nervously. "Either we get caught, pulled into the system and get questioned as to why we have no identification at all, or spend our days keeping low working when the adults should expect us in school. I highly doubt a fourteen years old can drop out of school. At least if this works we can coast by easier." “That’s...true…” I started. “I really wish there was an easier way though...I’d rather not do something illegal…” "Can't make an omelette without cracking a few eggs." When the moon finally came up Sunset and I made our ways to the nearest hospital. It was open and not busy. Thankfully, the night shift nurse was sleeping at the desk so we were able to swipe keys and make it to the basement where various records and files were kept. The computer here was on par with early two thousands computers back home but it was simple enough to print us both birth certificates… huh, they auto generate SSN on the birth certificate too. Huh. With that done I placed a spare set in a bin that was to be shipped to city hall and we made our way out leaving the keys back with the nurse. The next day, we needed ID cards. Thankfully the DMV here was nothing like back home… it was faster and easier. Didn't even ask for parents, just showed the birth certificates and we got them as we left after paying the fee. "This is a lot simpler than I expected." Sunset said as we looked at our ID cards. “This is way too easy…” I said honestly. “Back home...well first up, those computers are practically dinosaurs where I come from, and that’s only for twenty years.” I started. “But also...people aren’t asking important questions...I also haven’t even heard a single siren go off all day.” "Guess this place is a mix of my and your world. More advanced and lacking magic than my home, and less chaotic and slightly behind technology wise." Sunset shrugged. "Guess all that's left is finding a place to live. Hopefully that's the same here as it is back home." She said, paying a quarter for a newspaper and flipping to the advertisements. "Thank Celestia…" She sighed. "Okay… here's a two bedroom, single bathroom apartment for four fifty a month." Hold the fuck up! “That’s half of what rent normally goes for back home!” I said incredulously. "Really? I've seen more for less back in Equestria." Sunset added. “A two bedroom apartment would cost almost eight hundred dollars back home…” I felt my right eye twitch. “And you said...there’s cheaper...how?” "Well, back in Equestria the Princess made residential laws pretty fair. Rent is affordable for all working minimum wage and allows them to build up savings. Now if you're buying a house or land then it can be around eight hundred per month. Or more depending on size and location." “Good lord…” I muttered. “And...just to ask...what’s minimum wage in Equestria?” "Well the currency is different." She said, holding a dollar in hand. "But typically eight to ten bits per hour. Average work days would be seven to nine hours depending on the day or place." “Well...I wouldn’t know how to convert bits to dollars...but that at least sounds about right with my world at least.” I said honestly. "Well, let's go check it out." Finding the place wasn't hard. The unit was on the second floor, nearby work and a high school. The landlord just asked for ID cards and made copies, then had us sign the lease. Rent is due the first week of every month. At the moment Sunset and I just kind of sat on the floor, no beds or furniture yet but that will come later. "I have to admit, these apartments are pretty neat. So tomorrow our shift is in two hours… mind if I shower? I know we don't have soap or anything but some hot water will feel amazing right now." “That’s fair.” I nodded. “I need to look through my bag to see if I still have everything.” With a nod Sunset headed for the bathroom and I looked through my bag. It was my decks, my… no… no! My phone! I had an Iphone 11 and now it's a flip phone! … does this even get a signal here? “God damn it…” I grumbled, pulling out my ‘new’ flip phone. “I worked hard to get that Iphone to…” I grumbled. “But at least all my decks and water bottle are still there...but what about that duel disk?” I started, knowing I held onto it when I was sucked in but it wasn’t on my person when I came to. I found it in a side pocket, pulled it out of my backpack, noticing it was… is this all metal? Huh. Wait, there's a card in it. I pulled out the card, and nearly felt my stomach drop. It was… him, that… thing… the card showed his attire, name and skeletal head and glowing purple eyes. His name, Voodoo. No stats or anything, just one line. Summon once per day. “Should I even…?” I muttered to myself, wondering if I should test it out to see if this would indeed summon the guy. I spend a long time just staring at the card. "Hey, shower's yours." I blinked, Sunset got out already. I looked- ahh! I immediately covered my eyes. She was sitting across from me… naked… and that position I saw everything! Wow, she's… developed… for being fourteen… I mean, I didn't notice how… curved, she was… ahh! “Why aren’t you clothed!?” I asked in panic, feeling my entire face heat up as Sunset’s naked form was being ingrained into my head. "Huh? Oh, you wear clothes indoors too?" Sunset asked. "Back home we are ponies, clothes are only really worn for events and such. I don't even know how I got the ones I have, walked out of the portal and they were on me." She said, still being way too casual about her nudity. "I don't get the big deal really?" “Your...privates are showing.” I said nervously. “And...your breasts are on your chest, not...anywhere else when you were a pony…” "Yeah, I noticed that day one… kinda weird but eh. And my privates? Really? Come on, nudity can't be that big of a deal?" “Yes, it is.” I started. “Alright...so if we’re just going to ignore the fact that all the private stuff is being shown, notice how you don’t have fur?” I asked. "Isn't that what clothes are for outside?" “It’s also used indoors.” I told her. “God...I never expected this conversation to happen…” I grumbled. "Seriously? Weird customs. Alright give me a second to put them back on." I heard her walked off for a bit and then walk back. "Dressed now, you can look." I peeked, seeing she was dressed and breathing a sigh of relief. She rolled her eyes. "Honestly it's like you've never seen another person naked before." “Porn is completely different than seeing it standing right in front of you.” I pointed out. "... I never said anything about porn." Sunset said. “You said it’s like I’ve never seen another person naked before.” I countered. "... Well, yeah it's just photos." Just… oh, guess the internet is non-existent on her home. "Besides, it's just biology, see?" I went red again as she flashed me. "Though I don't get why they're so big… I don't feel in heat and no milk comes out of them." Good God help me... “Human biology is...different from pony biology.” I said nervously, crossing my legs to hide something very important that’s not helping me right now. "How so?" She asked. “I...don’t know much since I’m a guy, but no heat cycles, you’ll produce breast milk when your pregnant or...if you're weirdly lucky and can just do it normally...but once a month things won’t be pleasant for you from what I’ve been told by some friends of mine.” "Monthly heats! That's bullshit!" She huffed. "Well there goes my sex life… course, I could try toys if those exist here too…" This girl is gonna be the death of me... I covered my face with my hands and let out a muffled groan. “It’s not like being in heat...it’s other things that I don’t know about…” "Well without magic how do I have a sex life without risking having a foal… or, wait they aren't call those here… baby, that's it." This conversation lasted way too long and at some point I gave up when somehow it went back around to being nude in your own home. The next day we got up, Sunset got dressed, Don't ask… I am not repeating that whole mess of a conversation again… and we went to work after a quick breakfast. Thankfully work was uneventful and the full days pay was a hundred and twenty. After that we had to get furniture so we found a second hand store and looked around. "So what should we buy?" Sunset asked. Clothes. Lots of clothes… especially for you… I mentally replied. “We should start with some bare essentials, food, soap, and clothes. Then we should save at least ten percent of what we earn for rent or other unforeseeable things.” I said rather readily, having been taught by my mom about looking for essentials and saving. "Alright, so we can start with some beds, clothes, then food. Good thing the apartment came with a refrigerator."  We got some basic twin bed cot's for sunset and I. They were cheap and worked so once those were set up in our rooms we got some spare clothes and had enough for food. Mostly canned soup and noodles. I was so happy we got paid daily. “I’m super glad that things are so stupidly affordable here.” I sighed out thankfully. "Yeah, it's a lot like back home." Sunset said. At this point I'm getting used to her being… at least I convinced her to at least keep undies and a bra on when indoors. We just got back from work and some more shopping. We put half our pay to the rent and the rest was all food. Sunset already knew meat is a thing humans eat but she was still on the fence about trying it, thankfully I got enough to make spaghetti with hotdogs in it and she's agreed to eat it. "So what's all this stuff?" She asked, holding an electronics magazine in her hands… just be happy she's in a bra and panties dude, that is legit the lesser of two evils here... “Those are electronics.” I said honestly. “Also you didn’t mention that before when we went through that hospitals computer...why is that?” "Well, I was a little focused on making sure we didn't get caught to really notice. Though after I kept thinking bling back about it. There's nothing like this in Equestria. Well, we have radios but they're magic powered, not electricity powered." She said, looking through it.  “Quite a lot has changed since the invention of the humble radio.” I said honestly. “That’s only a small bit of what you can see tech really doing.” "It's really impressive how far this world has gotten without magic. And you said this was behind compared to yours?" “Twenty or so years in fact yes.” I nodded. “But...might as well double check what date it is.” I said while bringing out my phone and checking the date at least. June 14, 9312… wait what? That can not be right… “I think my phones busted, it says it’s year 9312.” I said honestly. "Huh, weird. That's off by about seven thousand compared to years back home." Sunset said. I simply turned to the girl with confused look. “Excuse me?” I asked carefully. "What, the year is 16,350 back home. My home. At least in terms of recorded history." … what? “So...there’s no divide between years?” I asked carefully. “Like...some major event that started a new year cycle?” "Hmm… nope." She shook her head… swing… swing, stop it! I shook my head. For fucks sake... “Alright...so in my world, in technical standards of time my world is over four billion years old, and the human race started three hundred thousand years ago, we only say that, at least at the time, it was 2021 was because it was after the christan era kinda sorta wanted to...be the only religion to exist on my world.” "Huh… weird. So, that aside, how's the food coming along… as much as it weirds me out, those hotdogs smell nice." “It’ll take a few minutes to finish and cool down enough to eat.” I said honestly. “And...hopefully you eating meat won’t be too bad for you considering your...previous race.” "Well, biologically I am human now, so it should be fine. Though the idea still disturbs me…" Dinner went well and Sunset did enjoy the food, hotdogs and all.  All in all everything was going well… until… I was sleeping in bed, tomorrow was our day off so we were going to see about getting Sunset a phone. I felt something… pressing on me and… ahh! "So… remember that monthly heat thing…" Sunset said, naked and hugging me. "I need something to stop this pain… like now!" “Uh…” I started. “Listen...it’s just cramps and stuff...periods are a dangerous thing…” I started nervously, my entire face beat red and I swear to you I felt steam coming out of my head at this point.  "So what do I do?" She asked, yelping and squeezing me tighter. "Shit! I think I prefer the heat season to this…" In the end, I tossed her in the shower and had to change, and had to look up pain meds and period supplies for the poor girl… And I spent our day off doing laundry. Sadly, this was not the last time she would appear in my bed… apparently, cuddles are a common thing for her race. While I don't mind that… it's different when she's either naked or in her undies… And so the month went by like that and it came time for school enrollment. "So this is a high school?" Sunset asked as we reached the local high school. Canterlot High. "What does it teach?" “Even though I’m an honors student…” I sighed out. “Not much really, you’ll learn more of the ‘advanced’ math, science and other things if you study for it or care, but other than that or any extra classes you take...there’s not much to highschool.” I shrugged. “You’ll learn new things elementary and middle schools don’t normally teach but…eh?” "So… it's more or less pointless?" She asked. “Not entirely.” I brought up. “High School is the place where you study or work hard enough to prepare for College, the actual place that matters what you learn about and will also bleed you for every ounce of money you have because my country's idea of schooling is having unending student loan debt.” I frowned, honestly angry that College costed thousands to tens of thousands and, unless you were some really good athlete or got all the scholarships, you would still probably be in debt. "... That's so stupid…" She said. “Oh you don’t even know the half of it.” I groaned. “Even though I was planning on going to College...from what I was told, unless you have a plan, money, or both, don’t go to college. Cause it’ll only be pain and suffering through it as you either drop out early or get a degree and still work fast food.” "... If I ever get back to Equestria I have a lot of apologizing to make to the princess…" Sunset said. Thankfully the enrollment wasn't that hard and given we didn't have any prior school documentation, a simple 'lost in the move' lie had us scheduled for a placement exam two weeks before school starts. And a letter from the school to our employer so our schedules can be adjusted. As we were walking out we bumped into the principal. She was rather pale skinned, a hair like rainbow sherbet and wore a proper suit. "Oh, hello. You two are new students? I am Principal Celestia." "Uh… yes…" Sunset said, looking panicked. “It’s nice to meet you ma’am.” I said, softly putting a hand on Sunset’s shoulder to try and calm her down by way of ‘I’m here, don’t panic’. “How’s your day been going?” "Well, meeting the new teachers so, there's that. But you kids don't want to hear about that, go on back to your summer fun." She walked inside and once we were a ways away Sunset was finally walking down. "That… woman…" Sunset said. "It's her… my old teacher, Princess Celestia…" “Now that I didn’t know.” I said nervously. “You okay Sunset?” "Y… yeah. Just, old emotions and memories… shit… I knew the people here we're similar to back home but… that… this means it's more like a parallel world to mine. Fuck… if she's here… then another version of me should be too!" “Listen...let’s not think about that at the moment alright?” I asked nervously. "Y… yeah… yeah. It's not… her, anyway. She clearly didn't recognize me, so my other in this world isn't in this town at least… I need some sweets. Let's go check out that bakery we saw the other day, Sugar Cube Corner." “Sweets are always a good idea.” I nodded. We headed to the bakery, taking a seat and- "Hi I'm Pinkie Pie! May I take your order?" A pink girl with poofy pink hair and… stop staring at the body damn it. She was pink and very hyper. Huh, She's also our age. "I'll take a milkshake and ice cream Sunday." Sunset said. "This is my first time here so...got any recommendations?" I asked. "Well that depends on what you like silly billy. We have cake and cupcakes and muffins and ice creams and milkshakes and crepes and danishes and pies and-" "Can… he get the same as me if you'll take a breath?" Sunset asked. The pink girl, Pinkie Pie, nodded, then took a deep breath. "Okie Dokie Like!" And she was gone. "... Well, she's hyper…" Sunset said. "I'm pretty sure she eats way too much here and...how it hasn't made her fat or have diabetes I'll never know…" "Fast metabolism maybe?" Sunset shrugged. We enjoyed the shakes and Sundays and after paying we sat around talking. "So… what's school like here? Back home school was pretty different." “I literally just got to this world last month.” I deadpanned. "So did I, but this world is more like yours than mine. I just thought maybe the schools were that rant about how college here works meant anything." “Honestly, this entire town isn’t like back home because of several reasons.” I said honestly. “One of which being the people here don’t look emotionally dead inside half the time.” I started. “And second is that hard work actually let’s you live a decent life.” "The more you talk about your world the more I'm amazed you're race ever got far enough to invent technology above what this world has." Sunset said. "So, that aside, what's with that one card you keep looking at? The one with your undead pimp?" “His name is Voodoo...so I was right in calling him a Witch Doctor.” I started. “And...it says I can ‘summon him once per day’...and I’ve been thinking if I should or shouldn’t cause he’s the reason I’m here...all because I lost a bet in a children’s card game…” "Ouch… do you think that card can summon him? He sounds pretty dangerous if he sent you here. Not many back in my would could pull that off easily." “I’m here for his ‘entertainment’...” I said. “Whatever the hell that means.” "Well that's… unsettling… you know… if you do decide to summon him… I got your back…" Sunset said. "You did help me a lot and it's only fair…" I smiled warmly. “Thanks Sunset, it...it means a lot right now.” "Heh..  yeah." She said, giving a smile as she twirled her hair. "After all… what are friends for?" Over the next few days we finally got not only rent together, but also got a TV, antenna, and lastly a gaming console. I was honestly surprised that it was an Atari… did not see that coming. It came with pong but we also got Super Mario Bros for Atari. Damn, back home these would be worth a small fortune, not a hundred fifty bucks for the console and game. Needless to say we found Mario more fun than Pong, and by this point I was pretty used to seeing Sunset in just undies in the house. This is why we keep the current closed… "Damn mushrooms!" Sunset huffed.  “Goomba’s but same thing.” I shrugged. “But...good lord, it feels like going through time seeing Mario on an Atari 2600.” I shook my head with a little smile. "This was a thing back in your world?" “It’s a saying.” I said. “Cause the Atari 2600, the consol we’re playing on at the moment was...the first consol ever made in my world in the seventies.” I said honestly. “Which was twenty six years before I was born.” "Huh. Wow…" Sunset said. "So… mind if I ask a… personal question?" “Depends on the personal question.” I answered. "Well… it's kinda dumb… I just… do you… enjoy it, when I cuddle up with you?" She said, blushing a bit. “Cuddles are great.” I said. “Just uh...it’s embarrassing when you do it either...in your underwear or naked…” I blushed brighter than her while I admitted that. "It's just how I'm used to things is all… as is wearing clothes outside is still weird to me but understandable since it's a social norm for your and this world… as is… well, cuddling… parents, siblings, friends… it's just part of my culture and social norm is all… even with Princess Celestia. It feels… safe…" “I understand.” I nodded. “And...to be honest…” I sighed out. “If it weren’t for you...I’d probably have been breaking down every other day…” "Heh, yeah. Without you here I'd probably not even have a proper roof over my head…" She said, scooting a bit over to me and leaning on me. "Leaving home I… was letting my pride guide me… the first night the… reality hit me and… it's why I was there by the portal when you found me. Part of me hoped she'd somehow… keep it open or… send me a message… I broke her trust… not surprised after all this time, still nothing…" “I...was trying my best to make my parents happy, even if I would rather just try and fuel my hobbies.” I sighed out. “Being an honor roll, staying out of trouble, and overall just being a good kid...but...but now I’ll never see them again…” I teared up. “I’ll never see my family again…” Sunset pulled me into a hug. "Shhh… it's okay…" Sunset said, tearing up too. "You're not alone…" We just sat there, holding onto one another crying like… like kids. We made mistakes. I was tricked… and she let pride guide her… we were both alone in this world… but we have each other… two people who don't even belong in this world… "You sure about this?" Sunset asked. For once she was fully clothed indoors, Because I was holding his card. It had been three days since Sunset and I cried our regrets out and now we were… closer. It was still embarrassing when she slept nude or in her undies in bed with me but I didn't mind it as much… I could trust her… and her me. “Might as well give it a shot.” I said, putting on the duel disk and turning it on, it activating just like the anime. “God this is so cool.” I muttered with a smile, seeing it softly glow. “Alright...let’s hope this works.” I said as I put Voodoo’s card on my Duel Disk carefully, seeing the card ‘register’ as the machine glowed softly and made it’s signature jingle. In a flash of purple and black, Voodoo the… whatever he is, was in the middle of the room now. "Ah my lovely Entertainment, you haven't disappointed so far, and this," I turned, seeing him suddenly next to Sunset. "Such a fiery little filly, and quite the catch~" He said, pushing her next to me. "Such emotion and drama, love it!" "So you are watching him, that whole Entertainment thing was… exactly that?" Sunset asked, backing up against me from him. "Oh if course my darling little bacon head, there is no better entertainment than real life, my associates and I just… tweek it, to make things more interesting." Even without a face, I swear he was smiling at us. “Then why give me this?” I asked, bringing up my Duel Disk. “And who are you, really?” He laughed. "I am Voodoo, All Maker of all things and expert in the art of wheeling and dealing." "You're a god?" Sunset asked. "Ha! Don't shuffle me in with those wimps sweetie pie, my powers are…above divinity. And as for why the duel disk I take it you didn't try putting some of your other cards inside it, have you?" “Are you somehow related to Gavlan?” I asked "Ha! No. But humor me child, put a card on the disk." “Uh...sure.” I started as I dug through my bag and pulled out my Orcust deck and put it in the deck slot. “We should probably do this outside though...I’d rather not ruin our place we just got started renovating.” "Then pick a simple card my boy, after all, best not go public with such a flashy toy." He laughed. "At least, not yet…" “Well...alright.” I said honestly as I pulled out a card. “I summon Armageddon Knight.” I said as I put Armageddon Knight on my Duel Disk in attack mode. The dark flashed on the disk as, manifesting in a flash of light, appeared the Armageddon Knight in front of me. "Functions just like the real thing… and then some." “Uh...huh…” I blinked. “Wow, I didn’t think that was gonna happen.” "So… Mike can… use magic?" "Whatever his cards show, he can do." "Awh… lucky." Sunset pouted. “That is amazing.” I said happily, finding this extraordinary cool. "Now, don't think this power comes completely without purpose my boy. My friend Pain will, at some yet to be decided point in time, decide to send her… pets, to frolic and cause one hell of a mess." “I knew something bad was gonna come out of this…” I sighed out. “But good to know.” "How… how bad?" Sunset asked. "Oh, well… last person Pain sent her pets to play with, half that town got destroyed, over half died, and that's just the area where the two were, not counting the rest of the planet. A lot of blood was spilled to put it bluntly." "How… how can you just… kill so many?" Sunset asked, looking terrified of him now. "Hey, hey, the dead will be taken care of. Paradise awaits those who don't survive this little play." “And what about us?” I asked. “Is it going to be just as murder happy here as with those two?” I asked, even though I was glad to hear that there were other people like me. "Depends… Pain is… unfiltered, unrestricted. She doesn't believe in holding back. Her first little tests more often break our heroes, but, Genie, Demon and yours truly work to build y'all up stronger and better for the next time. I'm just happy ya used the card there so y'all can get a head start." “Well...good to know.” I nodded. "Help how?" Sunset asked. "Well let's start with you darling." Voodoo said, up next to Sunset now. "Powerful unicorn you are, but pride and selfishness brought you here." He said, making her look saddened. "Care to put that magic to use, and be somebody your dear old teach can be proud of?" “Oi, don’t make her sad.” I snapped at him, seeing my Armageddon Knight draw his sword at my response to Voodoo upsetting Sunset. "Please." He snapped his fingers, the knight getting a large gash across it's torso and fading away into dust. "Here child." He said, pulling a typical black and white wand a kids birthday magician would have. "This little stick here will let ya use your magic like back home, try not to lose it." Sunset took the wand. "Uhh… thanks?" “Well...I suppose that works.” I commented, only to notice a weird portal open up and...oh my god it’s adorable! A chibi anthro wolf walked out of the small portal holding a sign. “Oh? What’s the sign?” I inquired as they cutely raised it up.  This story isn’t dark or gorey, already told Pain...so no death’s, family friendly fun and high school teen romance. "Did ya tell that to Pain?" Voodoo asked, the wolf nodding. "Huh… So, what's the worst that will happen then?" The wolf spun the sign around and pulled out a pencil and wrote down on it, flipping it around and bringing it up.  Injuries, property damage, and scarring the shit out of people due to monsters unknown is fine, just no death or bad permanent damage… "Hmm… so I take it that means you pulled Pain off this work huh?" The wolf nodded. "Alright, but ya know she'll just make the next one even bloodier." Voodoo sighed. "Now then, how to fix this… ah, so yeah, property damage, trauma, bla bla… how's capturing and possession work for ya?" The wolf wrote down again.  Capturing and possessions are fine, just no permanent damage. You know what I mean. With that the wolf left.  "Uh… what… the fuck… was that?" Sunset asked. "Just a viewer who hates blood and gore. So congratulations, you get off easy." Voodoo said. “Uh...huh…” I started. “Well that’s...good to know, doesn’t stop the town getting destroyed though…” "Nope, now till next time ya both better start practicing with your gear." “Alright.” I nodded. “This is...certainly gonna be interesting.” "Definitely not what I was expecting… ever…" Sunset said. The school year began and surprisingly Sunset and I had the same classes in the same schedule. The placement test we took earlier before the start of school placed us in the more advanced classes, all save for history and P.E. which was fair as the history of this world was unknown to us and there wasn't a test for P.E. Our first class was Math and it was actually easy. Compared to home it was actually old material. Sunset picked up fast and didn't have any issues. "This is...way too easy…" I muttered to myself at the old and easy math as I got done with the assignment real quick. The rest of the classes were pretty much like that, save for History which had some similarities to both mine and Sunset's world but still were vastly different. When Lunch rolled around Sunset and I sat together. "It's almost creepy how similar some historical events were to Equestria." She said, picking at her egg salad. "Yeah...really creepy." I said nervously. "But...really? A war on cheese?" I asked, finding that weirder than the banana war cause that had more to it than just fighting for bananas. "I didn't get it back home either…" Sunset said. "So after school we head right for work then. Our day off was also moved to Sunday but Saturday is a full day at least so no real worries about money there." "Which is gonna suck. Even if school is easy, work after school is never fun." I sighed out. "Well, so long as we don't join clubs or anything we should be fine. Worst case scenario one of us can skip a day to work and catch up on schoolwork from the other who went." "That's fair." I nodded. Gym was, well, gym. Girls did laps and boys did pushups, then they switched. Halfway through we were told to work on one another and Sunset and I opted to jog while talking. "So far this is more routine than I imagined." Sunset said.  "That's school for ya." I said honestly. "But at least the teachers give a crap." I said honestly. "They didn't back here you- ompf!"  "Shit!" I yelped. We both fell over as an unseen runner rammed into us, knocking the three of us down. "Ouch…" Said the unseen runner. She got up and off of us and Sunset and I got a look at her. She was wearing a mid sized top, shorts and sneakers, with sky blue skin, crimson eyes and a… rainbow hair… no seriously her hair was a rainbow… "Heh, sorry." She said, pulling us both up by the arm. "Didn't pay attention or something?" Sunset asked. "I was trying to see how fast I could run backwards…" She said, red and a bit embarrassed. "Plan on joining track so, getting all directions for running settled. "Little… much for track isn't it?"  "Nah, besides, it's fun. Names Rainbow Dash." "Sunset Shimmer, and this is Mike." She introduced. "Nice to meet you." I nodded. "And also, best not to try something reckless if you want to join track." "Yeah I know but I gotta stand out. Freshmen typically get benched for sports unless they can really bring it." The whistle of the coach caught our attention. Looking he was motioning us to keep moving. "Heh, woops." She said as we all started running again. "So, you two gonna try out for any sports?" "Not likely." Sunset said. “Never been interested.” I said honestly. "Lame." Rainbow said. "Why not? Sports are great. You at least watch them right?" "Well… don't think I ever have really." Sunset said. “And I don’t really care.” I shrugged. “I’ll listen if it’s on the radio, but I won’t actively look out for it.” "How come?" Rainbow asked. “Why I don’t care or why I’m not looking forward to games?” I asked curiously. "Both." “I just don’t like sports is all.” I shrugged. “It’s a thing that exists, people like it, I don’t, never been particularly good at any of them anyways.” I explained. “Just not my thing.” "Huh… so what do you like?" “Collecting, playing video games, and playing card games.” I said honestly. "By which he means collecting video games and cards from card games." Sunset added. "Oh… so, you're a nerd." Rainbow stated. "Well… maybe? What even classifies a nerd?"  “It’s a broad range that basically boils down to ‘if your not a jock, cool, or a jackass that wants to be either of those things, then you're a nerd’.” I said honestly. "So… yeah he's a nerd." Sunset stated. "Guess by that logic so am I." Rainbow laughed. "I like you two, you're pretty blunt and don't mince words like others would." “Says the sports nerd.” I joked. Rainbow looked offended, then seemed to be processing that. "Heh, maybe." “I mean, the word ‘jock’ started off as someone who’s really into sports, like a nerd is to comic books.” I brought up. “So effectively, we’re all nerds in one way or another, and that’s fine with me.” I said honestly. “But uh...sorry for being really blunt about things…” I added sheepishly, thinking I’m crossing a line here with how blunt I’ve been. "Nah, don't be. Not enough people speak their mind these days, and honestly it's refreshing. You and my friend AJ would get along well, she's blunt and honest like that." After Gym the rest of our classes were average and as we walked over to work from school Sunset and I were finishing up some homework. Yeesh, first day and homework. It was mostly a little bit of review work and some notes to study. Work came and went and now we were on our way home. “Yeesh, figures after school we'd get to work just in time for the dinner rush…" Sunset sighed. “And that’s why working immediately after school can be a pain in the ass.” I sighed out. “But at least we weren’t understaffed, so that’s a plus.” "True, and the tips were good." Sunset said, holding a small roll of bills. “Thank god people are generous.” I sighed out thankfully. “But to answer your question before we accidentally bumped into Rainbow...in my world at least, when you hit high school, it depends on the teacher cause often times you’ll just get a teacher that just does not care...albeit the school system is underfunded as shit to begin with…” "Ah. That's… messed up." We got home and quickly began making dinner. As usual the second the door was closed she, ritualistically, undressed to her undies and helped with dinner. At this point I am getting immune to seeing her like this... ”And hopefully I won’t be super horny as I have to go through the later stages of puberty...again…” I mentally groaned. After dinner we were pretty much out of it, as usual she was cuddling me but I am used to this already. THUD! "Ahh!" Sunset and I yelped, that vibration tossing us off the bed. "What was that?!" She asked. Before I could reply I realized how she landed on me… and where my face was… soft… so soft… it wasn't helping she wasn't moving yet. In fact she seemed to be pressing down, though the still functioning part of my brain figured it was because she was expecting another shake and not… what the rest of my brain was fantasizing. ”Curse you teenage hormones!” I mentally cried out in agony. “We should check outside to see if it was an Earthquake.” I said, my voice muffled by her big breasts. "Okay, I'll get dressed." She said, thankfully finally getting off me and letting me compose myself and breathe. Running outside I saw a bit of smoke in the distance, no fire though. Looking down the street I saw… clowns. A group of clowns jumping and running around breaking things and stealing whatever… "Okay, not what I expected…" I turned, almost doing a double take as Sunset was wearing my shirt and my shorts… it took a lot of effort not to think about all those implications. “Uh...huh.” I started as I pulled out my duel disk, still having my Orcust deck in it. “Well...might as well stop them.” I started as I pulled a card from my deck. "This is definitely weird…" Sunset said, taking out her wand. "Hope this works…" She said, pointing it at the clowns, a reddish orange glow covering it as soon several balls of fire shot at the clowns from the wands tip. "Holy shit I honestly didn't think it would work!" Sunset said. The clowns were hit, getting knocked over. “Well...it worked.” I said honestly. “I summon Girsu, the Orcust Mekk Knight!” I said dramatically as I put the monster on my Duel Disk, the jingle played as the monster arose from the light as the knight. If I were to describe it in simple words, it would be a really cool, instrument themed power ranger, or a lance wielder with cooler keyblade armor. After that I sent Harp Horror to my graveyard and then used it’s ability to bring out Orcust Nightmare out, which was this kind of creepy combination between an anime girl, instrumental machinery, and the fact she had a giant fuck off scythe for an arm. “Girsu, attack all the clowns, Nightmare, use your defense to protect any bystanders.” I commanded the two, as they both nodded and moved rather quickly to deal with the clowns. "So, I doubt we should be seen doing this…" Sunset said, using her wand and in a blink we were atop the building across the street. My summons were doing well against the clowns and Sunset shot off some more magic against the ones still running around. I noticed that the clowns after a few hits poofed in a mist of grey fog, leaving behind just their costumes and… is that… stuff? Baseball bats, a scooter, I think that one dropped gold! "That doesn't look like the stuff they stole…" Sunset said. “It looks like...loot?” I asked. “Wait, these are rpg monsters? That’s good to know.” I started as I started to play another Girsu into another Nightmare Combo. “I link summon.” I said as a square with arrows on each side and corner appeared in the sky as I used my second set of Girsu and Nightmare to summon Galatea, the Orcust Automoton, which I then linked away straight into The Phantom Knight of Rusty Bardiche, a possessed suit of really cool looking armor, completely powers by blue spectral flames and pulling out it’s signature rusty Bardiche. “Go help Girsu and Nightmare deal with the clowns.” I told the knight as it bowed and dove down to the other clowns cause...there was a lot of the bastards as I put Ancient Cloak to the graveyard and put Phantom Knight Dusk Blade face down in my magic and trap zone in case something weird happens. While my summons were batteling, Sunset used her wand and magic'ed over a few of the gold coins. "Well, this will help with rent and such at least." With the nearby clowns dealt with we moved from the rooftops and saw more of the clowns in town looting and causing damages. I sent my Summons after them as Sunset cast spells to stun or deal with them. By the time it was done and we headed home it was pretty early. Thank God, the news had announced that the school was closed as it also sustained a few damages. Nothing bad but it let us sleep. Of course when I woke up… huh, why does my pillow feel softer than normal? … And why… oh… god I need a bigger bed if this is gonna be a normal thing from now on… at least that puts more space for us… mostly me… "What? We were up all night playing hero, forgive me for not stopping at my undies when we finally got back to sleep." Sunset said, rolling her eyes as she was now back in said undies and making brunch. "I...I know but still…" I stuttered a bit, trying to get my face to a normal color than beat red. "But last night night was weird…" "Well that Voodoo… whatever guy did say we'd deal with stuff, plus, it wasn't all bad." Sunset said, pulling up a gold coin from her bra. "Huh, as pockets these aren't so bad." I face palmed. "Since gold is apparently worth a lot more here than back in Equestria, so we might get a fair amount for this." "If they don't question where the hell we got it." I said honestly. "Hopefully not. So, looks like it's a day off for us. What should we do?" "Practice?" I asked. "Gonna need to figure out what we can and can't do right?"" "True, plus there might also be other cards that thing can work with. Pretty sure I heard Voodoo say any card placed on that thing works so, worth a shot. Where though? Not too many secluded places two teenagers can hide to practice magic and… wait what's your thing called again?" "I can summon duel monsters with my Duel Disk." I said. "I know, great names." "Still, where can we practice safely?" "Is there a forest nearby?" "I think I saw one near the school but I'm not sure. Worth a shot if nothing else." She shrugged, finishing our omelets and handing me my plate as we both ate. After that we, and by we I mean Sunset, got dressed and we found the forest near the school. It was fairly deep and had a small clearing where, "Huh- oh! I uh, didn't see you there…" Said a green skin and haired girl, making a small area filled with large rocks into a garden. "Sorry, we didn't know this place was occupied." I said sheepishly. "Heh… yeah, not many would…" The girl said sheepishly. "This used to be the Canterlot High Garden, but the gardening club hasn't been around for a few years, thought maybe I'd try and revive it."  "So far it looks pretty good." Sunset said, taking a look around. "You grew all these yourself?" The girl nodded. "Y-yeah. From seeds Mostly. Flowers, fruit and vegetable plants. It's a… hobby… So… I'm, uh… Wallflower Blush…" "Sunset." "Matt." I nodded. "This place looks great."." "T-thanks. So, what brings you two here? I doubt it's for the gardening club, I haven't even printed out fliers yet." “We were going to do…” I stopped, trying to think of a way to say this without it sounding dirty. “Training.” "Look at the damage." Sunset said. "Those crazy clowns were everywhere and we saw when those weird monsters killed them they dropped random stuff, wanted to see if any of it was just laying around. I mean, they dropped this." Sunset said, pulling the gold coin from earlier out of her bra. Wallflower nodded. "I can understand that, lot of people are cleaning up just to see what those… clown… things dropped. I hear it's giving people ideas." “Thankfully no one was hurt from what I’ve heard.” I said honestly. "Yeah. Wonder how this will affect the school year? First day back and some massive attack. Lot of the other kids are expecting it to be closed for a while or maybe even try something else." "Huh. So, did you… see anything about last night?" "Like the monster clowns and the ones that attacked them. Yeah, came out of nowhere the both of them. Woke me up when I saw one of those clown things smashing up my greenhouse. My dad actually shot it down and it dropped something weird." “What was the weird thing?” I asked curiously. Wallflower walked over to her backpack, pulling out a seed packet. "It dropped like a hundred of them. I've never even heard of this plant." I took the seed packet, seeing the name and it raised an eyebrow. Oran Berry tree? Isn't that…A Pokemon thing? “I...think I know what these are.” I said honestly. "Oh, really? I've never heard of an Oran Berry Tree before. Couldn't find anything at the library either." Shit! How do I explain that?! “I’ve uh...went out of town as it were with my parents.” I said, which wasn’t a complete lie. “Their a rare normally but in some places they are common in the wilderness.” "Huh, are they any good? I was considering growing them but I didn't want to risk growing anything poisonous." “They're not poisonous.” I said. “Their said to have restorative properties actually.” "Oh, if that's the case I'll grow them then." She said. I gave her the seeds back and we were about to wave goodbye before Sunset spotted a dirty rock tossed aside next to some others. She picked it up, dusting it off a bit before looking over at Wallflower.  "Hey, where did you get this rock?" She asked. "Hm? Oh, I just found it when digging up space for a tree I'm bringing in tomorrow." Wallflower said. "Mind if I take it?" "You… collect rocks?" "... Yeah." "...Sure?" And with that we left, Sunset cleaning the rock off entirely and I saw it was more shaped like an egg with an eye carved into its design. "Is… this what I think it is?" Sunset seemed to ask herself as we walked further into the forest. “I’m already concerned that your saying ‘is this what I think it is’.” I started. "Back home there was a legend about the greatest sorcerer, Starswirled, he faced a foe with an artifact known as the Memory Stone. It's said to have the power to erase and implant memories into others. He supposedly tracked this villain into another dimension and after defeating them hid it away. I studied him a lot under Princess Celestia's tutelage and this looks just like how the scrolls had it drawn. The only reason I noticed it was that wand Voodoo gave me started getting warm when we passed it." Before I could ask she revealed said wand was hiding inside her long sleeve jacket sleeve. "Since I picked it up it's stayed warm. It's almost like an automatic Detect Magic spell." “Interesting.” I started. “Didn’t think we’d find something from your world.” "Which actually worries me…" Sunset said, putting that stone in my backpack. "My world doesn't really do… killing, only a few times, so the popular alternative is banishment… to the moon or… another dimension… and if this is here than who knows what other dangerous artifacts are. It's bad enough we might get random Monster attacks, but now Equestrian junk and possibly even dangerous criminals too is concerning." “Yeah...that’s gonna definitely suck.” I said honestly. "Definitely…" Sunset sighed as she and I walked further into the forest, finding a cave and… what in the god damn… Sunset and I stood before a scene straight out of Disney. A yellow skinned girl with pink hair sat atop a large rock, surrounded by various animals, wild animals mind you that by natural law should be trying to run away from or kill one another, all sat around her peacefully as she pet and fed them. "Huh, didn't know this was a thing here too…" Sunset whispered. “I’m sorry but did I step into a Disney movie?” I muttered in both awe and confusion. We watched the girl for a time. Even a freaking bear was being gentle with her. Sadly, at some point Sunset stepped on a stick by accident, sending the girl and animals in a worry as all the animals ran into the forest, leaving just the startled girl looking at us like a deer in headlights. "S-sorry!" Sunset said. “Uh...hello there Ms. Disney Princess.” I said sheepishly. We stood there, the girl trying to hide behind her fairly long hair.  "Umm… So, were you… checking on the animals?" Sunset asked. "Given what happened last night, they probably were pretty scared huh?" There was still silence, but she gave the faintest of nods. “So...my names Mike, and this is Sunset, we go to...possibly the same school if you didn’t magic yourself out of whatever fairyland you came from.” Silence… "So… what's your name?" Sunset asked. "... Fluttershy…" She spoke in a low, almost mumble that if it were not for the silence around us would have been near inaudible. "Okay, Fluttershy, nice to meet you… so, I guess we'll see you around?" The pink haired girl just gave another faint nod, then quickly fled like her animal friends. "Well, that was… perhaps the most awkward thing I've ever done…" “Yeah.” I agreed. “That was...definitely something.” "I didn't even know anyone, human or pony could be that socially awkward…" “Or that weirdly enchanting cause...seriously, did you see how everything around her looked like a fairytale?” I asked, still finding that the most incredible thing. "I've seen that in Equestria all the time, but, yeah, it's always amazing how in tune someone can be with nature like that." “Didn’t expect to see it here honestly.” I shrugged. “But...this should be a good enough spot right?” "Maybe further in. Rather not be levitating something and walk into her feeding a baby deer or something…" So we kept on walking for some time until we arrived at what looked like a cave entrance. It was partly hidden behind vines and oddly was… floored? "Pretty sure caves don't have floors…" Sunset said, stomping on the rusted metal floor. “Super secret bunker?” I commented. “Cause if so...then this day just got a whole lot better.” We walked along the floor, finding a rusted bolted door that we managed to pry open and once inside, I felt around and found a light switch. To my thankfulness, the power worked and- There was a man, dressed in a long blue cloak that the hood and face wrap covered his face and left only his pale white eyes visible. "Welcome!" He cheered at us.  "... What even is our lives now…" Sunset whined... “What?” I blinked. "Happy to meet ya both. I'm Barter, guess what I do." He said, laughing a little as he walked over to us. “You barter?” I asked, having a strange feeling about this guy. "You got it." He said simply. "Simply put, my whole reason for existing is ta sell you lot useful or interesting nicknames and items, or trade. I can also upgrade your gear if need be but that takes supplies and cash." “And...Voodoo won’t have a problem with this?” I asked carefully, now having an even better feeling about who he is. "Kid, who do you think created me? Given the lack of… ah, what did he call it, suspense, there was a concern about your progression not just power, but equipment wise. That's where I come in." "Voodoo… made you?" Sunset asked. "Out of thin air and atoms." “Well...I do only have four yugioh decks.” I said honestly. “There’s still a lot and...my collection is back home…” I took a deep breath, trying not to feel that crushing bout of possible depression at the moment. “So, what do you got for us today Barter?” He had a lot… a…Lot. For now I settled on a few card packs to try and rebuild my old decks. Sunset found out he buys stuff from us twoz selling her gold coin for two hundred. "Nice, so you'll be stupidly useful… so, what's with this place?" Sunset asked. "An old military bunker, used to house missiles but that has all been removed and gutted. For a specific item I will renovate parts of it to suit your needs." Barter said. “Really glad I called this being a super secret bunker.” I said honestly as I sorted out the four packs of yugioh cards. "Items… like this?" Sunset asked, pulling out that memory stone and showing it to him. "Precisely. For this, the entrance room here will be cleaned up, furnished and have some basic living amenities." Sunset and I shared a look. “Excuse me...what?” I started. “We...also have some base building mechanics or something?” "Yes." He said plainly. "Sold." Sunset said, handing the stone over to him. "Pleasure doing business." He said, taking the stone. I blinked and- what! I stood up, seeing this room was now… it looked nice. Kinda like a home, couch, small kitchen with fridge, bathroom, bedroom, and a TV. The rest passed a certain point was still rusty and old. "That was… fast…" Sunset said. "So… we have a secret base/backup housing. Sweet." “It is really sweet.” I nodded in agreement. “And hey, rent free if need be.” "I'll be here when and if ya need me." Barter said. "So, we went from two displaced people to basically becoming super heroes in the making…" Sunset said, chuckling. "Well, guess I wasn't doing anything else really." “Better to help out the people that are either getting attacked by these monsters or help others in our situation right?” I shrugged. “Now...that just depends on if we can get a portal room to other places…” "Easily, so long as you got the cash." "Well, looks like we have some goals to get at… best we collect that gold and other stuff cause that won't be cheap will it?" Sunset asked. "Not really." “Well...it’s certainly something.” I nodded. “But...looks like things are going on the up and up.” In an ancient demiplane, far away from Matt and Sunset’s new base, the Six Elemental Monarch’s convened for a very important summons. “Who dares to summon us here in our domain?” Caius, the Shadow Monarch, a massive creature covered head to toe in black and grey armor that irradiated his power over the darkness. "Oh, you know." Voodoo spoke as he looked up at Caius. "Just a little skeleton man, looking to liven his entertainment up." “You’re no mere ‘skeleton man’.” Mobius, the Frost Monarch, pointed out carefully. “Only the Heaven and Underworld Monarchs can call us all so easily…” They stated, their voice that of a military woman’s even if their pearl and turquoise themed armor showed otherwise. "Oh please, even you lot have heard of… what's above that." Voodoo said, taking a rapid spin around to face the others. "I come offering a proposition for all y'all." “And what’s your proposition?” Thestalos, the Firestorm Monarch, asked curiously, his voice having a strong polish accent as they looked at the skeleton. "There's a certain planet where one of my current Entertainment projects is going underway. Simply put, let's make this more thrilling." He snapped his fingers, an image of the world Mike was on appearing above him. "Let's make it interesting. You defeat the boy, you can rule the planet, and conquer the surrounding universe. Lose, well," With a flick of his wrist several cards, each displaying the image of the Elementals was in his hands. "Then you're his little play things."  “At least this time we’ll be able to see if our master will be worth it.” Raiza, the Storm Monarch grumbled, her german accent holding some disdain for the few that have tried to claim their might in battles. “Simple…” Granmarg, the Rock Monarch and the largest out of all of them, stated in a thick russian accent. “And what’s this kid got to handle the six of us or any of our vassals?” Zaborg, the Thunder Monarch, asked carefully in a traditional japanese accent. "For now, nothing much aside from a roommate who still doesn't fully grasp the effect her nudity puts him through, but in time, I feel he will become quite powerful, the both of them. In the mean time, feel free to send a few… tests, his way." “I’ll send my Vassal first.” Mobius stated, hearing grumbles from the other five. “Is there a limit to what my vassal can do in his world?” The water monarch inquired. "Yes, a certain wolf doesn't want bloodshed. Destruction and some light injuries are fine but try not to kill anyone. If ya want, possession and obduction are also on the table." Voodoo said. “Good enough.” Mobius nodded. “Best not to kill our future subjects.” Mobius said. “Escher!” “Yes my lord?” Escher, the Frost Vassal asked as he kneeled down to his monarch. “Go and test out the human in that portal view.” Mobius said, pointing to Matt. “Yes my lord.” Escher said as Voodoo opened the portal up for him. “And remember.” Voodoo said as he looked up, the purple flames in his eyes flaring up. “Have fun.” He said ominously and jovial as he vanished. To be continued...