It's Time to Duel!

by thisissparta789789

Duel 15-Terror Cubes

The second block fell, luckily far from everyone else, as the gang tried to figure out where and when the next blocks would fall.

A third block then fell, startling Rainbow Dash. She said, "Somebody better figure out this God damn pattern fast before we get squashed!"

"I'm trying," Twilight yelled back in frustration. "Hmmm," she thought. "The blocks can't just fall randomly. There has to be a pattern to them. They all fall at the same time interval."

After the fourth block fell, Fluttershy spoke up, saying, "Uhhh... I think I may know the pattern. I learned it when I was a dancer."

"Now that you mention it," Rarity said as well. "I think I may recognize it too. I am a dancer myself. If me and Fluttershy are right, the next block should fall there." She then pointed at a spot next to Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie.

Sure enough, a block fell there. Twilight said, "Good thinking, you 2! We're saved!"

For the next 5 or so minutes, the group easily dodged the blocks as Fluttershy and Rarity pointed out where each block would fall. Also, they began to climb them as they built up to the opening in the wall.

Finally, a block landed on the same level as the opening's floor, allowing the gang to climb up and enter. Twilight went up first, followed by Applejack. She said, "Come on now, we ain't got all day, folks!"

As another block fell next to the climbing block, Rarity and Spike climbed up, soon followed by Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie. Finally, Flash Sentry climbed in, and Rainbow Dash was getting ready to as well.

Suddenly, however, a block fell right next to Rainbow Dash, causing her to scream from what seemed to be fright. Rarity yelled, "Oh my God, they must have changed the pattern!"

Fluttershy yelled, "Dashie, hurry up!"

"Agh," Rainbow Dash said. "You'll... You'll have to go without me..."

Twilight said, "What do you mean go without yo-"

Suddenly, Fluttershy screamed, "HER WING WAS CRUSHED!"

Sure enough, Rainbow Dash's right wing had been caught and crushed by the block, trapping her. She winced in pain, but still gave a thumbs up as she said, "Don't worry about me, guys. I'll find a way outta here somehow."

Twilight yelled, "Rainbow Dash, no!"

Fluttershy screamed, "DASHIE!"

Then, another block fell, blocking off the opening. Twilight screamed, "RAINBOW DAAAAASH!"

Applejack said, "Oh my God... No way..."

Pinkie Pie began to cry loudly as Fluttershy started quietly sobbing to herself. Rarity banged on the block blocking the entrance as she yelled, "Listen to me, Rainbow Dash! You better use your fucking head to get yourself outta there, you hear me?! I'm not gonna let you just die here, alright?! FIND A WAY OUT!" She then began to cry herself.

Twilight suddenly spaced out as she heard her own heart beating rapidly and began to breathe heavily. She thought, "I... Rainbow Dash... No... I let her die... I let her die... I LET HER DIE... RAINBOW DASH IS DEAD BECAUSE OF ME... MY FRIEND IS DEAD BECAUSE I DIDN'T ACT IN TIME... I'M A WORTHLESS PIECE OF TRASH... I'D BE BETTER OFF DEAD MYSELF... BETTER OFF DEAD... BETTER OFF DEAD..."

Flash Sentry noticed that Twilight had spaced out, and he said, "Hey guys, hold up. Something's wrong with Twilight..."

Spike asked, "What do you mean?"

Applejack looked at Twilight and said to her, "Are ya alright there, Twilight? Are ya with us?"

"If you're worried about Rainbow Dash," Rarity told her. "Don't be. She'll find a way out. I know it, she is not dead."

Then, Twilight snapped out of it. She shook her head and said, "Ugh... My head hurts again..." She then began to cry. "I... I had bad thoughts... I haven't felt this hopeless since I was just 13 and 14... I haven't thought about harming myself since then, until now, with this." She then broke down. "I failed..."

Angered, Applejack grabbed Twilight by her shirt and yelled, "GET A GOD DAMN GRIP, TWILIGHT!" She then delivered a hard punch to Twilight to try and literally knock sense into her, causing Twilight to fall to the ground and stop crying. "I'm... I'm sorry I did that to ya... But y'all need to calm the hell down before something else bad happens..."

Twilight looked up and said, "I have... I have 2 confessions to make... One, when I was around 13, I was bullied and harassed pretty bad. Now, you may think it was on the level of the "old" Rainbow Dash, but no. Hell, compared to what happened back then, Rainbow Dash was a saint..."

---

Several years earlier

Twilight had just returned home from another terrible day at junior high school. After dinner, where she had mostly remained quiet, she went upstairs to her room. There, she plopped down on the bed and began to quietly sob to herself. She had once again been harassed by a group of girls who bullied her, primarily over a false rumor that she asked out a popular boy and got rejected, alongside the unfortunately typical 'she's smarter than us, so she must be ugly and unattractive.'

As tears stained her pillow, she thought to herself, "I need a better way to let this out. Crying isn't cutting it. Hey, cutting it... Cutting..."

The young horned girl got up and quietly tiptoed to the bathroom upstairs in her house. When she got there, she found a container of razor blades in a cabinet and picked one up. She said to herself, "Do I really want to do this?"

She then lowered the blade onto the skin of her left arm, fearing what would come next. She then fought back her urges to stop and pushed hard enough to draw some blood. At first, the pain felt bad, but after about a minute, Twilight began to feel numb to it. She made 4 more cuts before stopping and washing the blade and the blood in the sink. After putting the blade away, she grabbed a bandage and wrapped it around her left arm.

When she went back to her room, she put on a long-sleeved shirt and fell back on her bed as she began to cry again. She said to herself, "Oh, what am I doing to myself?"

---

"No way," Applejack said. "That's... That's awful..."

Spike, having been the only one to know until now, said, "Not even her parents know. It's very sad."

Twilight then followed up with, "Now, don't get all worried about me. I haven't actually cut myself since I was 14, and I'll be damned if I do it again." She then wiped her eyes. "My second confession is... Well..." She grabbed the Alicorn Puzzle with her left hand and held it up, its rope necklace suspended in the air. "Ever since I completed this puzzle, I feel as though there's another "me" or something."

Applejack and Spike said in unison, "Another "you?""

Rarity asked, "What do you mean another "you," Twilight?"

"Well, several times, I've blacked out during certain situations." She then sighed. "I did it at least 7 times before now. Every time, I feel as though someone else took over." She then put the puzzle down. "I didn't want to tell any of you because I was afraid you'd think I was a mental nutcase and leave me." She began to sniffle. "You guys have been the best. For the first time in my life, I've had good and dependable friends. I don't want that going away."

Spike walked up to Twilight and put his hand on her shoulder, saying, "Look, Twilight, even if that puzzle is doing something to you, I promise on my grandfather's grave that I will never abandon you."

"Neither will I," Fluttershy said.

"Neither will I," Applejack followed with.

"Of course I never will," Pinkie Pie said as she gave Twilight a big smile. "I'm nothing like that."

"I'm not gonna leave," Flash Sentry said. "I promise."

Rarity nodded and said, "Neither will I."

Twilight began to smile again as she said, "You all really are my best friends..." The 7 of them then all got together in a giant group hug as they laughed and smiled, ready to take on whatever was coming next.