Prologue: The Deal
“Rise and shine, sleepy head!”
SPLASH!
A waterfall came crashing straight down onto the unconscious human from the non-existent ceiling above.
He shrieked, jerking awake from the sudden splash of cold water. “W-what the fu—”
Disoriented and confused, he coughed and sputtered. He blew his nose to get rid of any foreign substances up his nose and gave a quick rub on his eyes to reaffirm his status.
With his vision returned, he immediately took in his surroundings. Everywhere was dark, or rather, it was all black and the only thing that had light was his own body. There was literally nothing around him no matter which direction he faced.
That was until he finally looked up and stared at an inconceivable creature before him. He blinked and rubbed his eyes once more, but to his annoyance the illusion didn’t disappear.
It was a large serpent-like creature floating above him, but after taking a closer look, the human saw it was a fusion of different animal parts; making the hallucination all the more preposterous.
The creature stared down at him with a toothy grin on its face and its arms crossed. It was terrifying, but if it wasn’t the monstrous appearance that scared the disoriented human, then it was the devilish smirk that sent shivers down his spine. Then, as if by instinct, he quickly got to his feet and started to run away from the creature, that is until he slipped and fell from the leftover water on the floor. But as he landed, the floor stretched far lower and bounced him straight up. It then opened up beneath him, which the human thought was plainly ridiculous considering the entire room was just black. But then he shook his head realising the impending danger as he fell right into the abyss.
“Oh shoot, he fell in,” the creature said as it looked down the trapdoor.
He was screaming, spinning around in the air as he awaited the inevitable outcome. And as he looked around himself there was still nothing, only the blackness of the abyss. Yet the human still tried to cling onto something, anything, to prevent him from becoming a bloody pancake. Then with a thud he fell into a wooden fixture, which seemed so precise the human easily recognized it as being a chair. It almost felt uncanny.
“So are you comfy there?”
“GAH!” The human jumped but was still fixated on his seat. He seemed to be trapped which caused him to panic further while glaring at the creature before with the same evil smile he had on before. “Where am I? Who are you? What the fuck are you? What the fuck is going on? Why can’t I—mrph mrph.” Derek was cut off mid sentence as his mouth was zipped shut with an actual zipper.
“Shush, shush, shush. So many questions, so fast. You should breathe between words and calm down,” the creature suggested, snapping his paw and restraining the human further with binding straps.
“Mrph mrph mrph,” the human muffled in panic.
“Huh, what that you say?” The creature leaned in, cupping its ears with his talons. “Yes, I suppose the first three questions are important. My name is Discord,” the creature said, standing back, displaying a large neon light above him that read ‘Discord’, “and I’m a draconequus, the details of which are not important. And as for where you are, you are in my realm. Did that answer your questions, Derek?”
Derek could only stare at the creature and mulled over what it just said. Where the hell did that sign come from? What the hell is a draconequus and what did it mean by realm? How did he know my name? Derek tried to calm down to find a simple solution to this madness, but his mind drew a blank.
“Oh, do you perhaps think you're dreaming or going crazy? Well, you might be going a tad bit crazy, but I can assure you this is no dream.” Discord pinched Derek in the arm. Derek’s eyes grew large at the short pain, proving to him that this wasn’t a dream or hallucination as he hoped.
“Now, if I unzipped your mouth and untied you from your chair, will you promise to stay calm?”
Derek slowly nodded his head.
“Good, here we go.” Discord pulled the zipper off and untied him. Much to Discord’s delight, Derek was willingly calm.
Derek tried to open his mouth, but found that his mouth wasn't there. Derek jumped up with panic as he trace his face for his mouth opening. Nothing was there, it just felt like smooth skin where his mouth should be. Derek looked at Discord in panic, pointing at his mouth to the draconequus.
Discord first looked at Derek then looked at the zipper, he looked back at Derek then back at the zipper, a playful grin growing on his face. “Oh, it seem your mouth came off with the zipper. Here let me fix that.” Discord said, slapping the zipper on Derek’s face then peeling it off slowly like a cheap tatoo, leaving Derek’s mouth behind this time.
“What the fuck did you do to me?!” Derek screamed as soon as he was able to speak. “Stay away from me you… you… you monster!”
“Ouch, your words wound me so.” Discord snaked above Derek’s head and pretended to faint.
“I don’t care, just get me the fuck out of here or take me back home. I don't care which.”
“Oh, is this how you treat someone who saved your life?” Discord asked, hanging upside down near Derek’s face.
“What? Saved my life? You?” Derek asked in disbelief. He contemplated Discord’s statement and admittedly realized he had no recollection what happened to him before ending up in this place. But as he observed the freakish monstrosity before him, he couldn’t help but feel somewhat ominous. This creature, Discord, looked absolutely sinister, so why would he even save his life?
“Yes, you was about to go splat or even crunch. Here let me show you.”
Before Derek could respond, the room had morphed into a movie theater and that he was now sitting next to Discord, who had in his possession a pair of opera binoculars and popcorn.
“How did we… when did you?” Derek stammered as he looked around his new setting. Seeing the abomination of a creature was one thing, but transporting to a movie theatre in a blink might have been overkill, Derek pondered. And he had a feeling this wasn’t over yet.
“Magic my dear boy. Now hush, the film is about to start.”
Derek wanted to argue that magic didn’t existed, yet there was no explanation as to what was going on or how this creature was doing all of this. Derek couldn't even justify how this creature was even talking to him in the first place. A huge part of his mind told him that magic was indeed the best explanation for all of this, and the more he thought about it, the more he was inclined to believe it.
The theater lights started to dim as a black and white video showed up on screen. It had one of those old-fashioned three-two-one countdowns iconic in historic films. Derek simply surrendered, and just sat back and watched the screen.
“Meet Derek. He is our average seventeen year old teenager.”
Derek leaned in closer as he couldn't comprehend what he was being presented before him. It was almost like a documentation on him, presented by a deep and mature male voice.
“Today, Derek decided to go to a party at his friend's house. Even though Derek is underaged, he decided it would be a good idea to have a few drinks of liquor, like most normal teenager would. Derek had fun at the party, laughing and joking around with his friends. Later in the night as the party was ending, Derek figured it would be a good idea to drive back home. Derek wasn’t too drunk, as he made sure he only had a few beers, but he had enough to impair his vision. Driving down the road, Derek soon came to a turn. But seeing the turn far too late, Derek found himself sliding on the turn as if he was drifting. Without knowing how, Derek’s car skidded off the cliff.”
Derek’s eyes widened as the memory of that night finally came back to him. He soon started to pat his body down, wondering how he even survive that crash with no injuries.
“But as our young lad was falling to his doom, his savior, Discord, appeared!”
The entire screen was occupied with an almost cartoonish representation of a smiling majestic creature, and that was putting it lightly according to Derek. Discord was dressed up in a stereotypical latex superhero getup, fitted with a large fluttering cape, boots, tight underwear worn outside and belt, plus a large ‘D’ emblazoned on his shirt. A bright halo was shining behind the unorthodox hero while a orchestral brass fanfare was playing in the background.
“Creating a large bean bag with a snapped of his finger. The car crashed into it without any damage done to it. Yet our young driver managed to hit his head on the steering wheel and knock himself out, giving himself a concussion. Discord, being the nice draconequus that he was, took the young lad out of his car and brought him to his realm, where his injuries would be quickly healed by magic. Discord then also took the liberty to turn the car gently upside down and draw a crude ,smiling face on the door before escaping into the portal with the young teen on a gurney. Once again our hero saves the day!”
Derek watched as the video came to an end and credits started to rolled. The lights in the theater came back on, but Derek stayed watching the screen, unable to comprehend what he just saw.
“Well, what did you think? It was quite… smashing, wasn't it?” Discord said with a chuckle.
Derek put a hand to his forehead, where he remember hitting himself at before blacking out. “So... that's what happened?”
“Every motion,” Discord answered.
“...Why did you flip my car upside down and drew a face on it?”
“No reason. Just imagine the authorities’ faces once they arrive to the scene.” Discord snapped his talon and was now wearing a police uniform with a magnifying glass. “Won’t they be surprised.”
“Officer, we do not understand. How do a car fly off a cliff and lands upside down without a dent or scratch on it? And where is the driver, the door doesn’t look like it was broken in? And… is that a face drawn on the door?” Discord said with a stern voice, then he buckle over and started to laugh. “They will be so baffle and confuse for months, maybe even years.”
Derek only looked at Discord with mild amusement. While he did think that was pretty funny and would have joined in on the laugh, right now, he wasn't in the mood for any jokes. “Well, thank you for saving my life, but I really must get back home. Can you take me back to my car or take me home and bring my car back with you?”
Discord stopped laughing and raise one eyebrow at the question. Snapping his talon, the room change into that of a business room. Derek was now sitting in front of a large desk as Discord turned around in his chair from behind the desk.
“My boy, you must know as well as I do that not everything in life come free of charge,” Discord said, folding his talon and paw. “Including life.”
Derek looked at Discord to see if he was joking, and if he was, then Discord had one hell of a poker face.
“Okay, so what is it that you want? In terms of saving my life that is,” Derek asked, raising an eyebrow
“Oh, nothing too big. All I want is to play a simple game with you.” A smile grew on Discord’s face.
“A game?” Derek queried, eyeing Discord with suspicion.
“Oh yes, a simple game of hide and seek.”
“Hide and seek? Why do you wanna play a kids game like that?”
“I can assure you that this is no mere game for little kids.” Discord brought out a deck of cards and started to shuffle them.
“How so?”
“Simple, it's a game for your life.”
“My life?”
“Yes, your life. Since I saved you, your life now belongs to me.”
“Wait a minute? What the fuck are you on about?! It don’t work like that!” Derek yelled, now standing up with both his hands slammed on the desk, glaring at Discord.
Discord gave out a hearty laugh as lighting flashed in the background, even though it wasn't raining. “All righty then, let's make a better deal then.”
“What kind of Better Deal?” Derek eyes were firmly fixed on the draconequus before him.
“This kind of deal: We will play a game of hide and seek with your life at stake. If you win, I will give you back your life.” Discord placed a King of Spades on the table. “I’d then send you home with your car,” Discord placed a Queen of Spade on the table, “and you’ll also get one free wish.” Discord concluded by placing an Ace of Spades on the table.
Each card had a image of what Discord mentioned. The King had a picture of a ghost on it, the Queen had a picture of him and his car, and the Ace had the words ‘One Free Wish’ on it.
“And if you win, you just get my life?” Derek asked sceptical.
“Not just your life, my boy. See if I win, not only do I get your life,” Discord placed down a King of Diamonds, “you will also become my servant,” Discord place a Queen of Diamonds down, “and you won’t be able to return to your world, forever,” Discord concluded by placing down a Joker. “As far as others know, you are already dead.”
Derek saw the room shift into a grey liquid fog that swirled around them. His eyes were then set upon the two set of cards on the desk.
“And if I choose not to play your little game?” Derek asked, weighing his limited options.
“Well, I can leave you stuck here for all eternity or turn you into stone. Or better yet, turn you into a cloud and make you my personal pet. There are so many things I can do, but I’m not evil…” Discord drawn out. “Not anymore at least.”
The hairs on the back of his neck rose as Derek heard that last bit. “So where are we gonna play this game?”
Discord picked up the six cards and reshuffle them into the deck. Splaying the cards out fully on the desk which then changed into pieces of a map that suddenly snapped together, creating a holographic image of a town and forest.
“This game will take place in a different world, within a small town called Ponyville.” Discord pinched the map smaller as it now showed a full fledge map. “The world you will arrive in is called Equestria.”
“Another world?” Derek mumbled to himself as he watched.
“Since the game will take place in Ponyville, there will be a bubble placed over the town and a nearby forest call The Everfree Forest. If you so happened to walk out of the area, the game will be over. I will be hiding somewhere within the confined area. If you can find me, you win. You have one lunar cycle to find me, that's thirty days if you don't know. If you can't find me within that amount of time you lose, simple as that.”
“Thirty days? Will that be enough time to find him? The town does look small and Discord isn't small, so it should take me no longer than a week.” Derek said, under his breath in a self conversation. “What are the rules of your little game?”
“Ah yes, the rules.” Discord pulled out a scroll from nowhere and unfurled it. “The rules are loose but firm: Do Not Leave The Area.” He displayed the scroll to Derek with those exact same words.
“Is that the only rule?” Derek asked, suspicious laced in his voice.
Discord grinned mischiefly. “Being precautious are we? All right, the rules are as such,” Discord said taking a step back. He then snapped his talon causing the scroll to disappear and summon a whiteboard. Discord was also now wearing a military outfit with a pointer stick in his paws. “Do not leave the confined area,” Discord said, smacking the board with his stick, large red letters appeared that read what he said. “No mentioning of this game in any way.” Discord smacked the board again as more words appeared. “You get thirty days to find me.” Another smack followed by more words. Everything else is free for your use, that's including friends and magic.”
“Okay, that sounds—”
“But,” Discord cut in, “you will be in a new body.”
“A. New. Body?” Derek said, each word leaving his lips as though they was alien to him.
“Why yes, this is a different world, and as such, you will need a body to match it.”
“What type of world is this where I need a new body?” Derek yelled.
“Hmm?” Discord put a talon to his chin as he floated near Derek. “A magical world.”
“So what, I’m I going to be an elf or dwarf?”
“There are no humanoids in this world. Well, I’m not too sure about minotaurs, but anywho.” Discord snaked around Derek like a shark. “In this part of the world, you will become a pony.”
“A pony?”
“Yes, a pony. They are not that different from you and I in many ways, but they are nowhere near the same.”
“What? That makes absolutely no sense.”
“It makes perfect sense,” Discord said, laughing.
“So you're telling me that this world is run by ponies?”
“No no no, not just ponies but other races as well, but don't let that boggle your little mind.” Discord said, bopping Derek on the head. “Now, back to the main topic. I will change you into a pony, there are three different types of ponies: unicorn, pegasi and regular earth ponies. Each race has its perks and weaknesses, and for this game I will allow you to change between the different types.”
“So I can change anytime I want to between the three pony types?”
“Yes, and no.”
“What?”
“You can switch whenever you want to, but you can only switch a certain amount a times a day, and they do not roll over to the next day.”
“So how many times can I switch?”
“Four times. You can only get four times to switch before you are stuck in that type for the rest of the day.”
“Four times, three types of ponies.” Derek pondered that as he walked around the room, being mindful to not touch the liquid fog wall. “Ok let me get this straight. By accepting this game, I will be sent to a different world, I must not leave the area or mention anything about this game. I get thirty days to find you and I can switch between the three types at will, but I can only do it four times a day. Is that right?”
“Ding Ding Ding,” Discord announced, ringing a bell. “You are correct, and here is your prize my fine good lad.” Discord held out a prize box with a large red bow on it to Derek.
“Seriously?” Discord only shook the box as to prompt Derek to take it. Tentatively, Derek took the box and pulled the bow string. The box exploded in his hand in puff of smoke and confetti, when the smoke was cleared, Derek was holding a bright blue deck of playing cards in his hands. “Playing cards?”
“This is nothing but a game within a game my boy, and those cards will help you.”
Derek open the fresh deck of cards and slide them out of its box. Spraying the cards out in his hands, he saw that the cards was no different than that of a regular deck of playing cards. Derek looked up at Discord who had kept a grin on his face.
“Wait, what if you just started hopping around the place everytime I get close? How will I know you will stay put?”
“Are you accusing me of future cheating? I will do no such thing. Where’s the fun in that? I promise you on my chaotic magic that I will not leave my hiding place.”
Derek looked at Discord with an inkling suspicion. “You promise?”
“Why would I make a game only to cheat in it? I’m purely doing this for the fun of it, but you have my promise, scout's honor,” Discord said, placing a paw across his chest and and tried to make himself look dignified. “So, are you game?” Discord stuck his paw out for an agreement handshake.
Derek looked at Discord’s paw, spotting the joy buzzer Discord was holding. He weighed his options in his mind before giving an exasperated sigh. “Well, it’s not like I have a choice, do I? Ok, I’m game. I got nothing to lose at this point.” Derek reached out his hand to give a confirmed handshake.
“That's the spirit!” Discord said with an evil grin, gripping Derek’s hand in a tight shake.
“Gah!!!” Derek scream, feeling a jolt of electricity coursing through his veins. As soon as Discord let go, Derek felled to the floor on his knees, gripping at his smoking right hand. “What the fuck was that!? That wasn’t no joy buzzer!”
“That my boy, was our deal, sealed with a magical sigil.” Discord said, shaking the smoking joy buzzer away.
“A what?” Derek asked, turning his hand over. There branded on the palm of his hand was a red circle, with several disorientated lines. Derek watched as the lines started to rotate within the circle. The mark glowed yellow as the lines moved faster and faster, and with a small yellow spark, the mark on his palm was replaced with an image of a raging grey tornado with two yellow eyes at the top.
“Do you have any other questions?” Discord asked.
Derek shook his head with a ‘no’, his eyes never leaving the palm of his hand.
“Good, and what luck, Celestia is about to raise the sun. This is a perfect time to begin our game on the break of day, on a new month. Get ready, the game has just begun.”
“Huh?” Derek looked up at Discord, as he loomed over him.
SNAP!
With a snap, Discord teleported Derek out of the realm, a bright kaleidoscope of colors invaded his vision. His body swirled, vertigo hitting him with full force, as the disorientation took hold of his perplexed mind. Too soon did the hallucinating mindscape finally ended, as he dropped onto a patch of luscious grass and soil. Disorientated, dizzy and a throbbing headache, Derek passed out the moment he landed on the lush fill grass.
A bright light flashed next to Derek’s body, followed by a cackle that reverberated within the forest. “Now lets see how you fare yourself in our little game, in a new life,” Discord said, mulling over the knocked out human pony. “Hmm, the name Derek won't fit you here? I know! Let's give you a new name, shall we?” Discord put a talon to his chin as he thought about possible names for Derek. “Oh I just got the perfect name for you.” Discord snapped his talon and a notepad and pencil appeared. “Oh silly me, I forgot one more rule. I’ll just leave it on here.” Discord ripped the paper off the pad and taped it on Derek’s face. Smiling with satisfaction, Discord snapped his paw and teleported out.