• Published 28th Mar 2017
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The Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse: The Equestrian Adventure - wingdingaling



All Mickey had ever known was his own home. And for years, peace and prosperity had reigned. However, unknown to him, there is another magical kingdom in need of a hero.

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Chapter 9: The Belly of the Beast

Chapter 9

The Belly of the Beast

All was still and quiet deep in the underbelly of the Manor Serpente. For what seemed like centuries, the pipes, vents, boilers and all the other inner workings of the house were as neglected as the yard outside. Creaking metal yearned for the touch of oil, wishing to one day come alive and carry out the purpose they were built for.

"Oh man! That was some fall," Spike said, lifting his head from a pile of broken machinery.

Pluto stood up next to him, shaking the flakes of rust and dust from his fur. Never before did the hound dog find himself in such a situation. Not even looking after a litter of five puppies was this harrowing.

Spike looked around at their surroundings, finding it nearly too dark to see where they were exactly. However, from the tiny bit of light that shone in from the open window above, he guessed that they were in some kind of boiler room, where a massive tank stood to his side.

"I wonder if there's a light in this place," Spike thought aloud.

The dragon tried to walk forward in the darkness, only to step on a pipe that had broken loose, fumble, and fall forward. His head hit something that was cropping out from one of the other pipes, sending it flying into the light.

Pluto examined what had fallen off, and found it to be a gauge of some kind. Whatever it was, it couldn't have been so important if it fell off so easily.

The old dog that led them into the room in the first place crawled out from the pile of metal, past Spike, who raised his head to watch the dog walk towards the shadows in the room and start pawing around at the wall before them.

Seeing that the dog wanted to get out of the room, Spike picked himself up from the floor, careful to avoid bumping into the furnace again. When he reached the wall, he groped about for a latch or a knob to exit the room. Soon enough his claws found one, allowing him and the dogs to leave.

The old dog left first, but Pluto stayed behind to look out into the dark room beyond.

"Do you think you can find your way through the dark?" Spike asked.

Pluto's eyes would be of no use to him in the darkness, but his nose never failed him in such situations. Putting his nose to the floor, he waited for Spike to take hold of his side and guide him through the darkness.


Minnie continued to creep her way through the halls of the mansion, ever listening for the sound of The Massster's slithering body, or his distinctive hiss. Neither had been heard in some time as she followed after the light that had guided Spike to her.

In her time alone, she had been wondering what had become of her friends. It had been a while since she saw Spike and Pluto. She didn't know about Spike, but she knew that Pluto was more than capable of handling things on his own. But, what worried her the most was what had become of Loving Care.

Ever since her new friend was captured by the snake, she tried not to imagine what terrible things were happening to her. Hopefully, wherever the magical stardust was leading her, it could help Loving Care to escape.

Minnie froze when she heard the sound of slithering over the carpet. The Massster was nearby, and he was steadily coming closer.

A look behind herself yielded no sight of the fiend.

A look ahead, and still nothing.

Somewhere the snake was coming toward her, and she had no way of knowing whether or not the guiding light was leading her right to him. But, standing still was the surest way of getting caught. Taking her chances with the hall behind herself, Minnie retreated backwards to the room she had come from. At least, she would have, had she not seen the tip of a flickering tongue peer around the corner.

Quickly and quietly as she could, Minnie ran away from the snake, down the hall and around a corner, where she was met with a dead end hall. Thinking quickly, she hid herself behind one of the decorative suits of armor. Standing tall and straight, she folded her hands atop her fan, taking the exact pose of the armor beside her.

Sweat dripped down her brow when she heard the sounds of slithering coming closer.

Minnie gently pressed her back against the wall, allowing herself to peer through space between it and the armor next to her. Peering back at her was a reptilian eye, its slit pupil gazing directly through her tiny window. A scream nearly escaped Minnie's throat, until the eye quickly passed by.

The sounds of slithering continued down the hall, making Minnie slowly lean forward to peer out into the open. The Massster had indeed not seen her, but the experience had left her wary. If she was going to rescue any of her friends, she would have to keep a constant watch for her enemy.

"Come out, little beasst," The Massster called, sickeningly sweetly. "I've a friend of yourss, who'ss ever sso eager to reacquaint hersself with you."

As The Massster's body slid past, there came a certain coil, wherein Loving Care was still tightly bound. The mare's eyes locked with Minnie's. Her mouth opened ever so slightly, only a faint breath escaping her lips. Though the call was unheard, Minnie could feel exactly what was said: 'help.'

Somehow, she was going to help her friend. Someway, she was going to release Loving Care from the snake's grasp and take her away from that horrid mansion. And the first option presented itself right before her eyes.

There in the hallway, right along the walls, where several suits of armor, alternating between quadrupedal and bipedal fashions. More importantly, each one was holding a weapon. Minnie gently ran her finger along the blade of the sword next to herself. It wasn't sharp. In fact, it was quite blunt. However, the sheer weight of the weapons may have been exactly what she needed.

Stepping into the middle of the hall, Minnie unfolded her fan and took careful aim. She waited for the exact moment that Loving Care would be between the blades.

Loving Care looked at Minnie, then to where the mouse's gaze led. Were her breath not constrained by The Massster's coils, she would have gasped. She had no choice but to watch in horror as Minnie flicked her wrist.

The lady in waiting felt a gust of air pass by herself, the sudden chill making The Massster's body recoil slightly. Down the hall, she watched as one after another the metal arms of the hollow soldiers began to sway.

It started from the far end of the hall. A cacophony of metallic creaks as the swords, axes, maces and morning stars rained down onto the length of the snake's body.

Somewhere up ahead, The Massster was yelling in pain as he thrashed his body about. His waving body slammed against the walls, breaking apart any of the armors that lined the walls. Even some of the ones that hadn't yet moved dropped their armaments onto his body.

The ploy was working. Loving Care could feel herself slipping from The Massster's grip as he swung his body about. She was close to escaping. The worst part, she knew, was going to be after her shoulders slid out, leaving her neck to the fury of The Massster's powerful coils. Mustering what strength she could, she allowed herself to quickly drop.

The snake's body thrashed about, his coils cinching shut.

Loving Care kept her eyes closed, until she felt her hooves land on the carpeted floor.

She was knocked aside by one of The Massster's undulations.

Scrambling to her hooves, Loving Care rushed down the hall toward Minnie, dodging and jumping over every thrash of the snake's body.

Minnie rushed forward to meet her friend halfway, and received her with a tight embrace.

"Are you hurt?" Minnie asked.

"No. I'm just..." Loving Care's answer trailed off as she clung tighter to Minnie.

Down the hall there was a loud hiss, alerting them both the approach of the snake.

"This way!" Loving Care said, briefly pulling Minnie by her hand to guide her in the right direction.

Minnie had no intentions of facing the wrath of the enraged serpent, and quickly followed. She found that where they were going was right down the dead end hall and was about to say something, until she saw that just past another suit of armor there was a door.

Rushing inside, there was another large room beyond the door. At the other end of the room was another door, which Minnie and Loving Care quickly rushed toward, until they heard slithering on the other end. Diving behind a large sofa, they heard the door burst open as The Massster charged in.

"Where are you, you impudent little gutterssnipe!!?" the snake growled as his body jolted across the floor. "You're going to pay for sscarring my sscaless! And jusst after I've shed!!"

The mare and mouse both scurried around to the other side of the sofa, just as the snake peered around to where they would have been.

"I knew I should have chasssed you into the foresst with all the other worthlesss sstaff! You and that filthy animal you brought with you!" The Massster said.

Minnie looked up when a shadow passed over their heads, and saw a length of The Massster's body come over the side of the sofa. Grabbing Loving Care by her hoof, she pulled them both out of danger just as the massive coil slammed down and squeezed against the furniture.

They were encircled by The Massster's body, trapped to a single area.

"And you, Minerva!"

Minnie swallowed when she heard the snake address her without having even seen her.

"I don't know how you plan to keep avoiding me! There iss nothing in the manor that I don't know or cannot track! I will find you! And you will regret ever coming to my domain!!"

Minnie held tighter to Loving Care's hoof. She had never been so frightened in her life. However, it was a slight relief when she heard The Massster burst through the door at the other end of the room and saw his body slithering after.

Slowly, the two rose to their feet, ever careful to not touch the snake's shifting body.

The snake still had them encircled, and his excessively long body showed no signs of ending any time soon.

Minnie looked about the room for a way to escape, only to find nothing that could assist them to walk around their opponent. The only thing to do was to jump.

Loving Care watched as Minnie climbed onto the couch cushions and crouched slightly, before leaping over the snake's slithering body.

Minnie's landing was just short of touching The Massster. The mouse leaned far over, her nose nearly touching The Massster's side as her arms circled about in an attempt to find her balance. Slowly, she started to lean back and her center was balanced.

Looking back to Loving Care, Minnie saw that she was already on the couch and opened her arms to receive her friend.

Loving Care looked down at the snake's body, and hesitated to jump. Mustering her strength, she prepared to take the leap.

Minnie saw that Loving Care wasn't the most physical pony there was and decided to give her a boost. Just as the lady in waiting's hooves left the cushions, Minnie unfolded her fan and swept upward.

A gust of air carried Loving Care slightly higher than she would normally have jumped. And for a moment, she swore that the breeze took the shape of a pair of hands that lifted her up.

Minnie raised her arms to catch her friend, and was knocked backwards into the wall by the heavy impact.

"Sorry," Loving Care apologized.

"It's alright. You have nothing to be sorry about," Minnie answered.

Briefly, she realized that she had been knocked so hard that she dented the wall behind her. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw that underneath the pleasant exterior it was just as decayed and rotten as the outside. A perfect reflection of The Massster of the Manor. Glancing over her other shoulder, she saw that her elbow was resting on The Massster's slithering side.

With a gasp, Minnie retracted her elbow quicker than she could blink, before she and Loving Care were knocked aside by the snake's body thrusting into them. They looked up, and rolled to the side as their opponent's body came slamming down on top of them.

They both ran for the door on either side of The Massster's body. With every undulation of The Massster's coils, Minnie and Loving Care had to compensate for their path to avoid him.

Minnie stumbled to the side and bumped into a hat rack, which fell over and leaned on The Massster's side. Taking the opportunity, she quickly ran up the impromptu ramp, stood on The Massster's back, reached for Loving Care's hoof, and the two of them jumped over the remainder of the snake's slithering body through the open door. Minnie assisted their distance with another gentle fluttering of her fan.

They had passed the danger for now, and were back in the mansion's foyer. Running out the front door would be so easy, if not for The Massster slithering down the hall toward them.

He said nothing as he approached his terrified opponents. Only hissing loudly as he opened his mouth, revealing his needle-sharp teeth and bottomless gullet.

Minnie swung her fan, the gust blowing a suit of armor into The Massster's mouth, jamming it open. It stopped him from swallowing them, but it didn't stop him from swinging his massive body in front of the door..

The front door was already not an option, so the only hope was to lose sight of The Massster and escape him that way. Loving Care began the chase by running up the stairs, but stopped when she saw that Minnie was still dodging the snake's wild swings.

A glittering light to her side guided her eyes to Minnie's magical light. Currently, it was rapidly buzzing around a marble bust.

Rather than waste time wondering about the mystery light, Loving Care took the bust in her hooves and heaved it as hard as she could at her target. However, not being the strongest pony, she came up several hooves short.

Minnie saw the flying projectile and swung her fan, catching the bust in the breeze and sending it on a beeline right for The Massster's head.

The snake recoiled from the blow, knocking the armor out of his mouth and diverting his head from smashing Minnie.

Taking the chance to run, Minnie bolted up the stairs with Loving Care.

The magical light twinkled brightly, signalling for the others to follow it.

Minnie took the signal, but Loving Care had a bit of trouble understanding, prompting her to take her friend by the hoof again and guide her in the right direction.

Neither dared to look behind, as they knew that The Massster was sure to be in hot pursuit. They knew that trying to outrun him was going to be short of impossible, but they felt they were better off not knowing how close they were to a slow demise.

After rounding a few corners, they both began to realize that there were no signs that The Massster was chasing them. No sounds of slithering. No vicious hissing. Not even a taunt. Then they realized why.

Somehow, through seemingly impossible means, The Massster rounded the corner at the far end of the hall in front of them and began slithering toward his targets.

The magical light screeched to a halt and looked for a way to lead the others out of danger. However, it had already brought them to where it was leading. It passed right through a solid door to its left, prompting Minnie and Loving Care to follow after. Just behind them, The Massster's jaws snapped shut.

In the room, Minnie and Loving Care wasted no time stacking as many things as they could find against the door to barricade them from their pursuer. Some of the heavier items were fanned toward the door by Minnie and her phenomenally, cosmically powerful mastery of wind. Dressers and chests full of fine linens, golden statues, chairs and tables. Minnie and Loving Care both grabbed what they hoped wasn't a taxidermy of an actual dragon and lastly put it against the door. Feeling appropriately protected, they both took a quick breather.

"You're amazing," Loving Care exhaled.

"Thanks. You too," Minnie responded.

The two had been looking after one another, but they weren't prepared for when their entire barricade lurched forward from a sudden tremor beyond the door.

"Don't think you're going to be protected in there!" The Massster yelled. "Nobody enters my perssonal chamberss uninvited!"

Loving Care gasped quietly as she looked around herself, realizing that they had indeed entered The Massster's private quarters. For as long as she had been working for him, she had seen that he had ways of appearing from nowhere at any time he wished. Surely, he was able to do the same in his own room.

One last tremor on the door, and it suddenly stopped altogether.

"Very well," The Massster said, eerily calm. "If I can't enter by force, then I will have to take an alternative entrance."

That last sentence carried a chilling sense of ambiguity. Minnie and Loving Care's eyes darted about the room, looking for any way the snake could get in. Through the walls? Somewhere in the floor? Or would he come right through the ceiling?

Outside, The Massster began to slither away, until a noise stopped him in his tracks. From somewhere deep in the underbelly of the mansion, there came a low, deep groaning noise. One that made a smile spread across his scaly face.

"Well, it sseemss that a reprieve hass found it'ss way to you. I'll jusst go and take care of the matter thussly. And, Loving Care: if you ever loved your preciouss dog, I ssuggesst that you begin looking for him now. And when you do, take him to the forest with you, and sstarve together in the wildernesss."

Loving Care shuddered at the thought. However, she froze completely when she heard The Masster's voice, louder now, right on the other side of the door.

"I know exactly where he iss now. If you want to ssave him you had better be fasst. For if I ssee either one of you, I'm going to devour you on the sspot."

The sounds of slithering happened on the other side of the door, leaving Minnie and Loving Care alone. Though they would not be completely alone, until the sounds of slithering stopped altogether.

The twinkling magic appeared before them, and darted over to a panel on the wall, revealing it to be a vent. There was the means of escape.

"I'll go with it. You get out of here," Minnie said.

"What?" Loving Care wondered.

"You need to get out of the mansion. Go into the forest and wait for me to come there with your dog."

"No. I can't let you do that. I have a responsibility as his owner. He--"

Minnie cut off Loving Care by gently pressing her folded fan against her friend's mouth.

"It won't do any good if either one of you is caught and eaten by that monster! Trust me: if you aren't here, that gives you a better chance to reunite with your friend."

Loving Care fought to argue with Minnie, but saw the logic in her words. With a defeated sigh, she conceded to Minnie's will. Minnie offered her comforts with one last embrace.

"I promise you I'll find your dog," Minnie said.

Loving Care didn't say anything. Slowly, she released Minnie, allowing her to follow after the light, crawling into the vent and disappearing into the darkness beyond.


Back in the mansion's underbelly, Spike was tumbling in the air, having just been standing on Pluto's back to open a furnace door and blow flames into the cold contraption. When the furnace ignited, there came a sudden loud rumbling as the machinery came to life, which frightened the hound dog and sent him running out from under Spike, making him fall to the ground. When the dragon sat up, he found that the furnace had brought some light into the dark basement, however miniscule.

"I hope nopony upstairs heard that noise. But, at least now it's not so dark in here," Spike said, before standing up. "Pluto?"

Spike looked around the room for Pluto, and saw a nearby pile of garbage shivering. He walked over and lifted the entire pile as if it was a sheet, revealing the cowering hound dog underneath.

"It's alright now. The noise is gone," Spike assured him.

Pluto perked up his ears, and heard no more of the scary noise. Putting a confident smile on his face, he stepped out of the garbage, shaking an empty can off his tail before marching off like a soldier.

Spike scoffed at the sight, seeing right through Pluto's brave facade. He was about to follow after, but something in the pile of garbage caught his eye. There in the refuse was a pair of grubby, brown boots. He looked them over, thinking that if they were touched up a little bit, they would look pretty nice with some of the clothes he had back home. Keeping that in mind, he stuffed them into his backpack before following after Pluto.

Some time ago they realized that escaping from the labyrinthine halls of the basement was going to be difficult with all the darkness and dust, considering Pluto's sensitive nose. Now, if there were any more lights, they would have an easier time getting out of their self-imposed confinement.

"Hey, where'd the old dog go?" Spike wondered.

The extra light revealed that the old dog had disappeared without a trace, somewhere into the darkness beyond. Then, from somewhere in the dark before them, they heard the sounds of something large slithering.

"Do you...do you think the snake got him?" Spike asked.

Pluto didn't need to think of an answer. He was completely certain that was what had happened.

There was movement beyond the light of the furnace. Something very large and impossibly long was coming out of the walls. A glint of its orange eyes, and Spike knew it was looking right at him.

"Dragon..." Spike heard the snake's voice growl, "If not one pesst, it'ss another!"

The Massster began slithering toward them, the light rapidly lending harsh shadows to his already fearsome appearance.

Pluto grabbed Spike in his jaws and flung the young dragon onto his back, before charging into the darkness.

Behind them, The Massster didn't follow as quickly as he normally would. There were many pieces of jagged metal down here, and his larger size would run him a constant risk of badly cutting himself. Here, he would have to fight not harder, but smarter. That in mind, he slithered into one of the open vents to the side of himself.


In another part of the basement, the glittering magic exited through the grate of one of the vents. Soon after it, Minnie pushed her way through, easily pushing the rusty screws out of the brittle stone.

"How horrible," Minnie muttered. "So cramped and sluggish. Not to mention noisy. I don't see how the people in movies can stand it."

However, it was that noisiness that would benefit herself when she heard the sound of slithering coming from nearby and then moving rapidly past her.

The magical light shivered slightly, then hid underneath Minnie's hat.

"Now, don't get scared. I'll need you to use your light to let me see," Minnie said.

The light ever so slightly peeked out from its hiding spot, and shone its light in front of Minnie.

"Alright. I'm counting on you to help find Loving Care's dog. You just do the best you can."

Now with something to guide her, she ran through the dark halls in search of her friend's beloved pet.


The pattering of paws on the floor rapidly grew silent, as Pluto halted to a stop to listen to the noises around himself. Nothing but the creaking of old, rusted pipes, chutes, vents and everything else metal in the basement was heard.

"Do you think we lost him?" Spike asked.

In the pitch dark, Spike couldn't see Pluto shake his head, but he knew for certain that their trail hadn't been lost by the snake. And so far, it looked as if nothing could be done to do so. What they needed was an advantage against him. Some way that they could get the better of him in his own domain.

Pluto backed away, and Spike's head hit something that was jutting out of the wall.

"Ow! What the hay was that?" Spike wondered. He reached a claw out to feel what he had just bumped into, and was delighted by the find. "Another furnace!"

This was going to be the advantage for them. Their enemy knew the terrain better than they. He would have no problem navigating in the darkness and finding them. But, if they could see him, that would put them on the higher ground.

"It looks like somepony's already lit this furnace before," Spike thought, noticing the two orange embers inside. This was a good thing in his mind. It meant that the contraption was still functional. He welled up a flame to spew into the open grate, until he noticed something.

Those orange embers were, in fact, not inside the furnace, but above where the door would be. A closer look, and he saw they were embedded in a darker shadow, which rose to tower over him and Pluto.

"Leaving sso ssoon? I've ssuch ssightss to show you," The Massster chuckled, baring his fangs.

It was a snap decision. Spike spewed forth the flame he had welled up into the furnace. The contraption boiled to life, its light illuminating the area enough to reveal The Massster protruding from a broken pipe near the ceiling.

Spike shot his flame harder, firing forth a stream that made the snake recoil from the heat, giving him and Pluto enough time to run away.

The Massster quickly recovered and was after his quarry, which had just disappeared into the darkness.

Pluto fumbled through the halls, his paws stumbling over anything that was lying around. He stepped on something that made his whole body spin, allowing him and Spike to see the snake gradually slithering toward him.

"Keep going, Pluto!" Spike spurred the hound dog.

Pluto quickly turned around and ran away from the snake, who had surely lost sight of them in the darkness.

All around them, Spike and Pluto could hear the sounds of something large moving through the metal workings of the basement. Suddenly, it seemed like The Massster was literally everywhere at once. Worse still, there was no telling where he would come from next.

Pluto's dash was stopped when he ran into something large and scaly that blocked his path.

Not knowing what else to do, Spike spewed a flame, its light revealing The Massster's body raised into the air to crush them. The rest of him was wrapped around another furnace to their side.

Pluto quickly backpedaled, and he and Spike watched the snake's body continue slithering across the hall in front of them. In the hall ahead of them, they saw a twinkling light approaching.

"Spike? Pluto? Is that you?"

"Minnie?" Spike answered. The dragon blew his fire into the furnace to see better.

"Oh!" Minnie yelped, when she saw the snake's body blocking the path.

"Can you help us get past?"

"Yes. Just give me a second."

Minnie thought of ways for her to help her friends reach safety. She looked to the fan in her hand, then to The Massster's body wrapped around the furnace, and an idea sparked to life.

"I know what to do. Stand back, boys," Minnie instructed.

Pluto did as he was told, and backed away with Spike.

Minnie waved her fan at the furnace, sending a wave of air that made the flames within roar as they grew larger, then quickly diminished.

Minnie waved her fan again, making the flames grow higher and brighter than before.

With every motion, the fire grew larger, making more heat and more light. With the light came the revelation of The Massster at the far end of the hall behind Minnie. Upon sighting the mouse, the snake began slithering as fast as he could towards her.

"Minnie, whatever you're doing: do it faster!" Spike said.

Minnie already knew the danger she was in. She had heard him coming when she first started fanning. All she needed was a few more seconds.

The flames in the furnace were starting to climb up the chute, and Minnie waved her fan in a way that created a little whirlwind inside the contraption. The swirling wind fanned the flames more and more, until the entire furnace began to bulge.

The Massster was upon Minnie, his mouth open to attack.

Pluto covered his eyes, while Spike welled up another flame to assist Minnie. His fire flew forth as Minnie waved her fan into the furnace again. The mixture of air and fire mingled together inside the furnace like a pair of ballroom dancers, before it grew so immense that the rivets that held the furnace together blew apart, and the flames within all started pouring out, right onto The Massster's body.

"YOU!!! YOU TREACHEROUSS LITTLE RODENT!!!" The Massster bellowed, as his body thrashed about to escape the flames.

For The Massster, escaping would not be an easy task, as the wild flames from the one furnace traveled through the many chutes and pipes they were connected to, igniting the other furnaces and burning whatever part of his body was nearest. Deeper in the basement, the flames were slowly waking the boiler from its slumber.

The boiler powered to life, steam blowing from its pipes as its inner working rumbled and groaned, devouring the power fed to it by the many furnaces at once. However, the power may have been too great for it to handle.

On the ground, laid the gauge that Spike had knocked off earlier. Etched onto its side a label that read 'PRESSURE REGULATOR: DO NOT REMOVE'

Back in the halls, Minnie ran underneath The Massster's body as he thrashed around to regroup with the others.

The snake's head arched over his body, jaws snapping wildly to catch his opponents.

Minnie rushed the others down the hall away from the mad serpent.

The flames from each furnace had lit the halls barely enough for them all to see where they were going, but that was enough.

To their left, The Massster's body quickly slithered across the hall through a vent and into a pipe, revealing it as the path to avoid.

Behind them, The Massster saw as they avoided his flailing body, while he twisted about to get away from any of the flames that afflicted him. Fighting them in those cramped, volcanic quarters was going to be difficult for someone as large as he, so he would have to either get them quickly or move them someplace where it would be easier to eliminate them. He came closer to his prey, deciding to do whichever came first.

Spike looked over his shoulder and saw the snake rearing to attack. His attention was drawn forward by a loud rattling, when a pipe suddenly burst open and The Massster's body hung low to ensnare whoever passed.

"This way!" Minnie said, guiding the others to the side.

The new path led down a long hall, where pipes were bursting from the excessive pressure, shooting their rivets every which way.

Rather than turn around to face The Massster, Minnie swung her fan as she ran, blowing away any of the red-hot projectiles, while the snake followed closely behind.

There was an open door at the end of the hall, which Minnie, Spike and Pluto all charged through, slamming it shut behind them.

Outside the door, The Massster stopped short of ramming into it. There was only one place that room led to, and he knew precisely how to get there. He quickly slithered into a vent to his side to head off the others.

"What's he doing out there?" Spike wondered, knowing that he should have tried to knock down the door at once.

"I don't know. But, we should leave before we have a chance to find out!" Minnie said, taking Spike by his claw and leading him through the room.

This room was something of an oddity. Here, there were painted backdrops, musical instruments and trunks full of costumes. The problem was that there was no other door to lead elsewhere. Instead, there was a single lever in the middle of the room, just in front of a backdrop of a forested kingdom with birds and squirrels in the trees, and a grand castle in the background. Not knowing what else to do, Minnie pulled the lever, and jolted slightly when the ground beneath them began to raise, along with the backdrop.

"Is that a new dress?" Spike asked.

"Why, yes it is," Minnie answered.

"You look nice."

"Well, aren't you just a sweetheart."

Looking at the dress, Spike wondered how Rarity may look in something similar, but he was brought back to reality when the rising platform arrived at its destination.

The first thing Pluto did when they arrived was start sniffing for any unwelcome scents, and the first thing he caught were bones.

Bones of any kind would be welcome about now, but what would bones be doing in a place like this? From what he could see, this was a stage like the ones he and Mickey would sometimes perform on. But, there were never any bones in those places.

Following his nose, Pluto looked where the scent was the strongest and saw that in some of the seats in the audience sat the bones of an equine creature, around each of their hooves was a single shackle. A literally captive audience that was never released.

Legs flailing, the hound dog quickly hid behind Minnie and Spike, who both looked in shock and disgust at the sight.

"How awful!" Minnie said.

There was a sudden noise of motion that heralded the arrival of The Massster. All around, they watched as the length of his body blocked the path behind them, drape over the backdrop, weave through the ropes and pulleys above, until finally the snake himself lowered his head into view, dropping in like de Bergerac.

"Well, well. SSo, you made it to the show after all," The Massster said.

"And I plan on leaving. Just as soon as I deal with you, you horrible, loathsome, dust-sucking, thug!!" Minnie spat.

"Quite the causstic tongue on you, Minerva. However, I musst ssay that I feel the ssame about you. You, who have done nothing but reprobate me ssince you arrived. And after I've shown you ssuch kindnesss."

"What would you know about kindness? You chase animals away from your house! You leave your staff to die in the woods! You tried to kill my friends after you promised you'd find them for me!"

"Find them, I ssaid. Not return them alive. I wass never under any obligation to fulfill your requesst as you ssaid. However--" The Massster opened his mouth again, this time revealing a cluster of twinkling magic that drifted from his maw. "--It hass been requessted by my employer that I deliver you to him."

The Massster laughed as the light from the stardust grew brighter, sending a wave of fear through Minnie and her friends.

From under Minnie's hat, Spike's magical light flew forth and intercepted the snake's magic, stopping it in its tracks.

"Eh? What the devil!?" The Massster said, examining the magic he had been given. He tried forcing it to move with his head. "Move, you worthlesss twinkle!!"

"It looks like nothing's been going your way lately," Minnie said.

"True..." The Massster muttered. "But, you should know that I wass never insstructed to deliver you alive."

Once again, the fear Minnie felt when she first met him was welling up when she saw him rear up to his full height. But, she knew that she couldn't let that fear take hold of her. Pluto and Spike needed someone who could look after them, and she still hadn't fulfilled her promise to Loving Care.

Taking her fan in hand, Minnie unfolded her weapon, ready to take on The Massster of the Manor once and for all.

Author's Note:

Props to The Massster for quoting 'Hellraiser.' And, check out Minnie. She's become a serious air bender in such a short time.
Things have taken a pretty serious turn for our leading lady. Whatever will become of her when she doesn't have Mickey around to help pull her out of a jam? That answer should be easy enough, if you've watched the older black and white shorts. You'll see what I mean.
This here was a pretty fun chapter to write. I had a lot of fun thinking of ways that the others could stay one step ahead of The Massster without facing him, as well as ways that Minnie could use her fan effectively.
Next chapter, we're going to wrap up the story arc with Minnie and move onto another character. Who? I think I already mentioned it before, but go ahead and psych yourselves up for it anyway. Rock on \m/

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