Generation 4: P-1 Grand Prix

by TundraStanza

Ch. 6: The Magician

Chapter 6: The Magician
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Shut-in In Canterlot, And Egghead Of Ponyville

The 3000-IQ Killjoy Librarian of Magic

TWILIGHT SPARKLE!

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"Killjoy?! Why you-! Who came up with this demeaning descriptor?"
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She shook her head after that long rush through a wind tunnel. At least it felt like a wind tunnel. Her hair had gotten all flipped out of shape from the ride. But how could a box having a rudimentary electronic interior have been able to absorb Twilight Sparkle and all of her friends in the room? It couldn't just be because Pinkie had been the one to turn it on. The package had come from a mystery sender. She was somehow inside this place filled with an orange sky and scattered apple trees along the ground.

"This is not scientifically possible," muttered Twilight. "How am I inside the 'T.V.'?"

"Fillies and gentlecolts!" declared a loud voice, "We are ready to begin the P-1 Grand Prix Tournament. Here every pony shall receive the opportunity to release their pent up anger and frustration with each other. No hoof-holding will save them here. We shall be thy host Princess Luna of the Night. We shall bring thee, how you say, the play-by-play of all the action. The last filly standing shall claim the champion's seat and title of The Best Pony!"

"Princess, what's going on?" asked Twilight. "Why are you doing this?"

"The time has come, most faithful one," commented a new approaching voice. Her presence matched her regal tone.

"Princess Celestia!" exclaimed Twilight. "The time has come? For what?"

"Show me the results of your studies of friendship," ordered Celestia, "and defeat my unintentional tyranny."

"What? Princess, you're not making sense," said Twilight taking a step toward her mentor.

"Destroy me or the heat of my sun will destroy you!" shouted the princess.

Twilight choked on her own breath, "Th-that makes even less sense!"

I guess I'll have to spar with her until I can get a more concrete answer, she thought to herself.

Round 1

Fight!

As soon as the starting bell rang, Celestia's horn was already glowing gold. Some of the apples from the scattered trees were ensnared by her magic and were lifted from their branches. Still not completely sure of what she was about to do, Twilight decided to imitate her mentor's motions. Her own horn glowed as magenta magic took some of the remaining apples from the trees. An apple in the golden hold was tossed in Twilight's direction as an apple in the magenta hold moved to block. Both of the apples splattered into mush before falling to the ground.

From there, it became a bit of a sport of apple chess. Both Twilight and Celestia focused hard. They looked for openings while moving other apples to defend their weak spots. Eventually, neither pony had any apple ammo left. Celestia decided to use this moment to aim her horn to release a magical beam. Reluctantly, Twilight countered by firing her own beam of magic. The beams collided and started a push of war. Neither side had any pressing advantage, though it was apparent that using so much magic at once was tiring both of them out.

"Neither one of them is giving an inch!" observed Luna.

The strain was starting to make Twilight sweat profusely. She had to stop this fighting soon, but how? Then, it came to her. She started galloping forward while still maintaining her beam at full blast. Celestia noticed this and decided to gallop during her shooting as well. While the relative position of the colliding magic wasn't changing, the teacher and student were closing the distance between them. When the ponies were within three feet of each other, all of that magical energy just exploded.

"Waugh!" yelped Twilight as she was launched backward. Celestia shared a similar fate by also falling back, though her gasp of shock was much less audible.

Twilight shook her whole body after standing up. She took a look around, but Celestia had disappeared. Except, she wasn't on the ground anymore. No, the princess had decided to fly up to some slightly warmer sun rays. She then looked down at Twilight and started to fly at a diagonal. Twilight didn't have enough magic for a shield to protect against that kind of speed. What she did have would have to rely on precision and punctuality. Celestia was flying closer and closer as Twilight stood with her tail in front of one of the apple trees.

As soon as Celestia was within relatively one-pony's distance, Twilight focused her remaining energy to her horn. In a flash of white-tinged magenta light, Twilight vanished. Celestia flew face-first into the tree that Twilight had been standing in front of just a second ago. Even a princess could feel pain from a fast impact with wood. Twilight reappeared in another burst of pale magenta magic behind Celestia as three invisible bells rang one after the other.

"Victory goes to Twilight Sparkle!" declared Luna.

"Princess!" exclaimed Twilight, "Are you all right?"

"Ugh... I'm fine, Twilight," Celestia groaned slightly as she stood up and turned to look at Twilight.

"It sounds like you're talking normally again," exhaled Twilight in relief.

"Oh, I see," nodded Celestia. "From my perspective, it was you that was acting uncharacteristically."

"Simply amazing!" commented a third voice. A screen-shaped light projection appeared with some pony that looked like Celestia inside the image.

"You're well on your way to reaching the top," the Celestia in the image continued. "By the way, only the winner may leave the arena. Be sure to remember that as you continue." The image faded leaving behind two rather confused ponies.

"Princess, who was that?" asked Twilight.

"I don't know," Celestia shook her head, "Obviously that was not me."

"A fake Princess," thought Twilight aloud. "Is that who's behind the T.V. sucking every pony inside? And what about this weird 'P-1 Grand Prix' tournament that was mentioned before? What's that all about?"

"Perhaps the truth will reveal itself as you move on," offered Celestia.

"Are you sure you'll be all right staying here?" inquired Twilight.

"Don't worry, my faithful student," smiled Celestia gently. "I feel as though all of the magic I used in that conflict has somehow returned to me."

"Now that you mention it," paused Twilight, "I noticed that feeling as well. But magic takes time to restore itself."

"This world is very strange," agreed Celestia, "but I know you can solve its mystery."

"Thank you, Princess," nodded Twilight, "I won't let you down!"

She then galloped out of sight.

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Who do we have here?

Her Wings Provide The Perfect Source Of Clean Energy

SCOOTALOO!

A door creaked open as Twilight galloped into the room. The first thing she noticed was the circle made of students' desks. Upon seeing the desks, she looked around the room's perimeter. Scattered books and misguided sheets of paper were all over the place. A chalkboard behind a much neater desk was a big giveaway to the kind of place she was now in.

"The schoolhouse," muttered Twilight. "No, wait... I haven't actually left the interior of the T.V. Just how big is this other world?"

"Prepare to be stomped flat, egghead!" yelped a young voice.

From out of nowhere, Twilight saw a familiar filly ride in on her blue scooter. The young Pegasus stopped her buzzing wings and her motion as soon as she was inside the desk circle.

"Scootaloo?" asked Twilight. "Don't tell me you want to fight as well."

"You bet I do!" grunted Scootaloo. "You're the source of words that I don't know the meaning of. As soon as I beat you, I'll no longer be bound to the name 'dodo'."

"That's hardly rational," frowned Twilight. "In fact, I think your current reasoning may very well be the result of a ludicrous, psychological hallucination."

"Ergh!" growled Scootaloo. "Stop reading words out of Sweetie Belle and just fight me already!"

No good, thought Twilight, I'm not getting through to her. I suppose I'll have to duel her delusional disorientation.

Round 2

Fight!

"Here cometh the child Scootaloo from parts unknown!" announced Luna's voice.

The aforementioned Pegasus filly started flapping her wings again to mobilize her scooter. Before Twilight had a chance to react, Scootaloo was already up in her face. The littler pony performed an ollie jump before spinning her vehicle in a 1080. This in turn smacked Twilight a few times as she was knocked backward.

"She's certainly piling on the pressure," noted Luna.

Twilight groaned a little before quickly getting back up. She looked around the room and then got an idea. Focusing magenta magic to her horn, she started levitating some of the various books all over the room. She was glad that something felt familiar in this twisted world. Sparing no time, she started throwing the books from strategic points in their flying dome around Scootaloo. A few of these hardbacks smacked Scootaloo hard before she let out a growl of frustration. A stray book knocked her off her scooter and somehow simultaneously sent her helmet sailing.

The little girl wasn't done yet, however. As the next volley of books headed her way, she put her natural dancing spin to work. The twirl was enough to knock back all of the remaining projectiles. As she came to a stop, she smirked at her accomplishment... only to be knocked off her hoof by Twilight who had galloped over while Scootaloo was distracted and delivered a back kick. Scootaloo was sent flying into the chalkboard before sliding down to the floor just behind the desk.

Three bells signified the end of the match as Luna's voice declared, "It appears as though she has just been schooled."

Scootaloo groaned as she used a hoof to lift herself into view standing behind the desk, "Why did you have to be so mean, Twilight?"

"Sorry, Scootaloo," apologized Twilight, "but you were saying things that were really out of place for you."

"What?" Scootaloo tilted her head. "But I was just telling you that I wasn't a chicken."

"So it was just like with Celestia," realized Twilight. "Neither one of us could hear what the other one was actually saying."

"Wait," paused Scootaloo suddenly realizing as well. "That sounds like the idea that Sweetie Belle was thinking."

"Sweetie Belle's here too?" asked Twilight in surprise.

"Yeah," nodded Scootaloo, "but some weird barrier left her in the last arena that I was in."

"Then this tournament's rules apply to every pony involved," muttered Twilight. "I need to hurry and get to the bottom of this. Will you be all right waiting here, Scootaloo?"

"Heh," scoffed Scootaloo. "Do you even have to ask?"

"I'll take that as a yes," smiled Twilight before she galloped off through the next doorway.

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Onto the next match!

She Graces Villages With Her Presence

PRINCESS LUNA!

Entering the next arena, Twilight was still a bit surprised at the nonsensical connection between the classroom she was just in and the forest clearing that now surrounded her. She also found it strange that the daylight of this world had quickly darkened to resemble the colors of an evening sky. Still, that didn't surprise her nearly as much as who she saw approaching from the other end of the clearing.

"Our skin was crawling from watching these battles that we could not stand by any longer!" bellowed the opponent. "Therefore, we arose to one, single conclusion. By putting our own life on the line in the heat of a fight, the fun shall surely be doubled!"

"Princess Luna?" gasped Twilight.

Wait, she thought, What is that peculiar black aura that's surrounding her? Something's not right here.

"Prepare thyself for defeat, Starswirl the Bearded!" challenged 'Luna'.

I guess she's not giving me a choice, thought Twilight in resignation, I'll have to focus on fighting her first.

Round 3

Fight!

Some of the black aura that Twilight noticed from before reconfigured into a swarm of bats. These bats flew around and started surrounding Twilight. Some of them simply screeched in annoyance. Others whacked Twilight with their wings. Still others went so far as to leave tiny bite marks. To these pricks, Twilight let out a yelp in pain. She quickly formed a bubble shield around herself and knocked the majority of the bats away.

After the swarm was averted, Twilight started focusing blasts of magical energy in 'Luna's' direction. To these, 'Luna' countered with her own bolts of magic that resembled lightning in appearance and sound. Hoping to copy the success of her earlier victories, Twilight charged in for a galloping approach. But unlike the other princess, 'Luna' just stood there smiling as she waited for her opponent to come closer.

As soon as Twilight was within a hoof's distance, the black aura seemed to merge with 'Luna's' mane and twisted around into wide whips. Utilizing these whips with slapping sound effects, 'Luna' smacked the advancing Twilight in the face, neck, and back. She followed up by wrapping one of the whips around Twilight's mid section and lifting her way up. This rise was immediately followed by a spinning throw into the grass below.

Twilight was in pain from being bitten by bats and whipped by what was possibly darkness itself. It was starting to look hopeless for her. She started to worry that blood was rushing to the wrong place of her body as her vision was suddenly engulfed by a crimson light.

'Luna', however, was seeing a slightly different picture. She watched in curiosity at the red energy that resembled torch fire flowing from Twilight's own essence.

In an instant, Twilight's fear turned into something else entirely: eyebrow-squinching rage.

"YAAAAAAAAAAH!" she yelled as a surge of power coursed through her. The red magic filled her eyes and her horn with fluctuating energy. The aura transformed into an orb of energy with Twilight as its center. 'Luna' could only lift her front hooves and open her mouth in horror as the wall of energy hit her and basically blew up the entire forest clearing.

The surge and energy faded as Twilight sat down to catch her breath. A bell rang three times as 'Luna' stood and looked happily at the pony who had bested her.

"Thy challenge isn't over yet," she chuckled. "Farewell." The black aura that she wielded swirled around her before she just vanished completely.

"Wait!" called Twilight lifting a hoof in her direction, but 'Luna' had already left.

"But, she didn't win," thought Twilight out loud. "How did she leave this area?"

It was at this point that a light-projected image in the shape of the T.V. screen appeared and flickered in Twilight's vision.

"Is any pony there?" asked the moving picture of Luna. "Please respond!"

"Princess!" gasped Twilight. "Is that really you?"

"Oh, thank goodness," sighed Luna. "I've managed to talk with you, Twilight Sparkle. Listen, there is an impostor that has taken on the guise of my sister..."

"Yeah, I saw her for a moment a couple matches back," confirmed Twilight.

"Then, do you also know that she has also taken my voice and form to masquerade as a tournament announcer?"

"Was that the Luna that I was just fighting with?" pondered Twilight.

"That would be a very likely case," agreed Luna. "Twilight Sparkle, I implore you to hurry to the Announcement Room. That's where the impostor Celestia has somehow trapped me in."

"Where's that?" asked Twilight.

"It's at the end of all the arenas- Oh, no! She's back!" finished Luna as her image faded from view.

"I'm on my way, Princess!" stated Twilight as she charged forward through the unknown.

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We've been waiting.

Everything about this one is a complete mystery!

????

An organized display of switches, lights, and buttons marked the room that Twilight entered. Some flickering screens marked the devices as well. Galloping to the center of what seemed to be the 'Announcement Room', Twilight was glad to find herself standing next to...

"Princess Luna!" she hollered.

"Twilight Sparkle?" wondered Luna. "That was a swift arrival."

"Congratulations," said a third voice. From the other end of the room, a pony that looked like Celestia walked in with a captain's hat instead of a crown.

"You've come so far," she continued. "You truly are the best of the best, my faithful student."

"You can stop this charade," responded Twilight. "I know you're not really the princess. Who are you?"

"Heh heh heh," chuckled 'Celestia' as a cloud of dark purple smoke swirled around her. As the smoke revealed the user's true form, Luna let out a gasp.

"Nightmare Moon!" exclaimed Twilight in a confused shock.

"How are you faring?" asked Nightmare Moon.

"That's impossible," whispered Luna. "How can you exist?"

"Humph," snorted Nightmare Moon. "You were separated from my dark powers. I'm no longer you."

"You're the one behind all of this?" asked Twilight incredulously.

"Isn't it perfect?" smiled Nightmare Moon. "The rulers of Equestria and their beloved Elements of Harmony are trapped in this world. Soon, all of pony kind shall be my slaves... or my examples of insubordination."

"You're insane," growled Twilight. "I won't let you get away with this!"

"In that case," chuckled Nightmare Moon as her wild starry mane whipped around in a giant whirlwind. "I'll gladly destroy you where you stand, Element of Magic."

Final Round

Fight!

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Action -- Practicality -- Precision -- Being Objective