> Video Game Magic
>  by FoxMcCloud7921
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was another warm summer day in Canterlot. By now, most schools were done with the spring term, which meant a large number of students were enjoying some much needed R&R. Many were spending their morning at the local coffee shop, talking about vacation plans or in some cases what they were thinking of taking the next coming term. All except for one, that is. 

The girl was wearing a black hoody, which covered her amber-colored hair, streaked with shades of dark red. Despite everything, the girl didn’t seem to care whether she’d be sweating underneath or not. She had more pressing matters to tend to. 

Her name was Terra, and every once in awhile she would look up from her laptop and check her surroundings, only to see the same things: people were chatting, drinking their coffee, or surfing the internet. Maybe she was being paranoid. 

She was also keeping an eye out for someone from the staff that would approach her and kindly remind that if she wanted to use the Wi-Fi here she’d have to pay for something. She’d been coming everyday for the last week and no one paid her any mind. It was probably better that way. 

Terra looked back to her computer screen and looked back at the news. Nothing of major importance was going on, other than that Camp  Everfree had been saved from being torn down to payments being paid. She clicked on the link, not because she was interested in the story but rather who was in the story. 

There was a picture of seven girls all grouped together with members of who she assumed were part of the camp staff. The story also mentioned how the girls teamed up with others from Crystal  Prep Academy to do an online original music video. She didn’t have to look it up, she’d heard over a million times by now. 

In truth, she’d been keeping an eye on those seven girls for the past week now. Terra felt they could be very important. Luckily, they all had social network accounts which made her job much easier. She started to look them up one by one. 

The first was Twilight Sparkle. She had been going to Crystal  Prep Academy for the last couple of years but only recently she transferred to Canterlot High. She didn’t have to find out the details, she already knew. 

Then there was Rarity, fashionista extraordinaire, or at least that’s what she says on her Facebook account. Fluttershy, the timid one who gave up a lot of her time to help local wildlife. Rainbow Dash, the athlete who was almost guaranteed to earn a scholarship to any college of her choosing. Pinkie Pie, the- 

Terra had to pause for a moment to gather her thoughts on this one. “She’s…unique as far as I can tell.” Actually, she had encountered her a few times though thankfully she never approached her. If she had, Terra would have to switch places of interest. The library was always opened but it attracted the wrong crowd sometimes. Plus their Wi-Fi was slow at times. 

Next was Applejack, she was well-known all across Canterlot due to her family business. Terra wasn’t much of a cider person but the Apples made good cider. Good pie too whenever she got the chance to try some. 

Then there was Sunset Shimmer. She was a bit of an anomaly. Up until a few years ago, Sunset Shimmer wasn’t a name people knew. She only created an account over a year ago, though as it turned out Sunset had an old one but deleted it due to getting a lot of backlash from other users.  

Oh yes, she was able to look up that information because she was good with computers. You didn’t want to make an enemy of her that was for sure, though no one ever interacted with her and she liked to keep it that way for now. 

Terra had been going through Sunset’s photo album when she noticed a recent photo that was taken with a girl she didn’t recognize. She had different shades of purple in her hair and again and wearing a pink beany. Considering she was apparently friends with Sunset, it meant she had to be friends with the others. 

“Interesting…” Terra had been curious about this group before but now she was fully intrigued. She was well aware of the…incidents that surrounded them which attracted her to them in the first place. “Could they be the ones?” she thought. “For so long I’ve been trying to put an end to this…game, but I can’t do it alone, and no one else can help me. But these girls…maybe they can help me. Maybe they can finally put an end to all this.” 

She stared at her computer screen, almost spacing out. It was funny, all anyone here could see beyond the screen was 1s and 0s and code…but they had no idea. It was much more than that, so much more. Terra shut down her computer and put it back into her bag before getting up. She glanced up at the camera watching her as she put in her earbuds connected to her MP3 player. “I bet you’re watching me aren’t you…?” she thought. “You’re probably thinking ‘What’s her next move?’ Get ready to be surprised…” She wasn’t going to let them continue to get away with their acts. Even if they managed to catch her, she’d eventually slip from their grasp again. 

Terra walked out of the coffee shop, the rest of the world apparently oblivious to her presence. As she walked down the sidewalk, she lowered her hood, letting her short hair flow in the wind. It probably would’ve been better to confront them face-to-face but she couldn’t and it pained her to use such deceitful measures but what choice did she have? In the end, she hoped they could forgive her…if there truly was an end to all this. 




                                                                                                                  


Video Game Magic

> A Brand New Digital World
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been a crazy week for the girls of Canterlot High. Doing a music video, solving a mystery on a movie set, and then getting sent to a plane in between dimensions and dealing with yet another individual corrupted by Equestrian magic was a lot to deal with in a short amount of time. Luckily, it seemed as if things would finally calm down again, hopefully in a more long-term sense.
Pinkie Pie had made a promise about throwing Starlight a party and she always delivered. Shortly after the events at the Canterlot Mall, the girls headed to Pinkie's house, bringing over sleeping bags, snacks, drinks, and entertainment (on Rainbow’s behalf).
“You really went all out on this party Pinkie,” Starlight commented as the group of girls were hanging out in Pinkie’s room. Applejack and Rainbow were currently playing Mario Kart 8 while Rarity was busy styling Fluttershy's hair. “But I shouldn't be surprised since this technically isn't my first Pinkie party.”
“Oh I know,” Pinkie said. “But technically this is your first human Pinkie Party.”
“She's got a fair point,” Sunset added.
“So...the girls you know in your world are the same as the girls here?” Twilight asked.
“Pretty much,” Starlight replied. “Princess Twilight hasn't told me much about the world here but, you'll have to excuse the pun, you're practically mirror versions of yourselves.”
“Hmm, well I admit I am curious about my counterpart's recent successes,” Rarity said.
“To be honest, I never really thought about an animal sanctuary until you mentioned it and now I'm kind of interested in that myself,” Fluttershy stated.
“Sunset told me you guys have never seen...well, human me?” Starlight asked.
“Nope, and I know everyone in this city,” Pinkie said.
Starlight looked slightly uncomfortable, which thankfully Sunset noticed. “Come on, it can't be that bad,” she said. “She's practically you right?”
“Well maybe she doesn't have the capabilities to enslave an entire village but if she's anything like I used to be, she'd be the most selfish, stubborn-”
“I think we get the picture,” Sunset said quickly.
“If that's the case, maybe she just needs a friend?” Twilight suggested. Her question was met with stares. “Okay fine, silly question.”
“Honestly, I don't believe the whole thing about sharing same personalities,” Sunset said. “I haven't seen my own counterpart but I'm sure she's down-to-earth... hopefully…”
Meanwhile, Rainbow and Applejack were engaged in a Battle Royale. “Hahaha! Eat bombs AJ!” Rainbow cackled.
“Ugh, stop screen hopping!” Applejack snapped.
“I'm not!”
“Ah just saw you glance at mah side of the screen!”
“Whatever I-what the!?” The text came up saying, Isabelle just sidelined Inkling Girl! “How did you-!?”
Applejack chuckled. “You get distracted when you get all fussed up.”
“...Well played Applejack,” Rainbow said as the round ended, Applejack's team winning by one point. “Honestly, you girls need to get in on this!”
“Honestly, I don't see what's so fun about racing or blowing each other up,” Rarity scoffed. “What are video games even good for anyway?”
“...It's good for hand-eye coordination!” Rainbow argued.
“That argument has been exhausted by this point darling.”
“Fine, anyone but Rarity interested in playing?” Rainbow asked.
“I'm game,” Sunset said. “Hey Starlight, you interested in trying it out?”
“Sure,” Starlight replied. “I guess 'hand-eye coordination’ is probably a good thing to develop.” Sunset handed her the pair of Joy-Con controllers and Starlight looked at them quizically. “These are...kind of strange.”
“Yeah, every console nowadays is guaranteed to have its own type of controllers,” Rainbow commented. “They're pretty comfortable though.”
Rainbow was right, they did fit in Starlight's palms rather comfortably. Sunset quickly explained the control scheme as they chose their characters. Sunset went with Yoshi while Starlight decided to go with Link.
Rainbow snickered. “Figures she'd chooses the one who rides a horse.”
Starlight blushed. “H-Huh?”
“Don't listen to her,” Applejack said, rolling her eyes. “Just Rainbow being Rainbow.”
“Oh yeah... she's never seen Equestrian sports has she?” Rainbow wondered.
“Dear Celestia let's not get into that,” Sunset groaned. “Long story short, equines here aren't the same as in Equestria and people here ride horses for pleasure or sport.”
“Huh…” Starlight would have that on her mind for awhile. I wonder if Twilight knows about that…
After picking a racetrack, the race soon began. It was a one-on-one race (thankfully Sunset chose only 50cc) so that Starlight wouldn't feel too embarrassed if she lost. As expected, Sunset got off to a fast start while Starlight got a quick feel of the controls. However, once the second lap came around, Starlight was starting to catch up. It was on the third lap that Starlight was closing in.
“Uh oh Sunset, I think the newbie's gonna upset ya,” Rainbow grinned.
“We'll see about that.” Sunset tried to maintain her lead, but just as they closed in on the final leg, the screen suddenly went black.
“What the-!?” Rainbow flipped out. She looked around and saw that the lights were still on. “Who pulled the plug!?”
“Uh...the console’s still on,” Sunset stated.
“Uh oh, did the system freeze?” Twilight asked.
“It better not have, I paid over $300 for this thing!” Rainbow snapped. “Stupid TV…”
“Hey, that's a brand new TV I'll have you know!” Pinkie glared at her.
“Look, we can just reset it and….uh...what’s going on with your television?” Applejack asked.
The TV screen suddenly went white and a ripple pattern began to form. “Uh...is that normal for those new 4K televisions?” Rainbow asked.
“I...don't think so,” Twilight replied.
“Um...girls…?” Fluttershy asked. “Maybe it's just women's intuition but...I got a bad feeling something bad is about to-”
No sooner had she spoken that the TV emitted a low soundwave as the girls suddenly felt themselves being pulled towards it. “W-What’s going on!?” Twilight yelled. “Is this Equestrian magic!?”
“Nothing like I've ever felt!” Sunset shouted. “Everyone hold on to something!” The girls tried to brace themselves against anything but the force pulling them forward became too much as the girls flew straight into the large widescreen television. As soon as they disappeared, the screen returned to normal as the race from before resumed.




At first, all the girls could see was white light and the sounds they could hear were disorienting at best. Once they finally hit solid ground, it took awhile to recover from the dizziness. Sunset was the first to stand up and as she looked around, her eyes widened. “What the…?”
They appeared to be on the outskirts of a city of some sort, one that closely resembled Manehattan. However, that wasn't what got Sunset's attention. There was no sky, no sun. The “sky” was pitch black with no stars. Perhaps they were in some sort of compound? Something felt very off here.
“Where are we…?” Twilight asked as the rest of the girls got to their feet.
“That whole sensation from before felt similar to when we went through the portal,” Starlight noted.
“You're right,” Sunset said. “Could this really be some other alternate Equestria?”
“Um...girls?” Fluttershy then spoke up. “What are we wearing?”
The others looked down and saw they were all wearing the same attire: a blue suit with yellow trimming. “Blue and yellow,” Applejack commented. “School colors.”
“Man, if this is some weird induced dream on account of me watching all those sci-fi movies I'm not amused,” Rainbow snapped.
“If we came through a portal, how do we get back?” Rarity asked. “I don't see a way back.”
“Let's just take a moment to calm down,” Sunset said. After everyone quieted down, she continued. “If there is a way back, it has to be somewhere around here. I'm sure someone here can point us in some direction.”
The girls then made their way towards the city, the dark background giving the many buildings a sinister look. Once they managed to get onto the busy streets, the girls couldn't help but gawk in surprise. People were walking in all directions along the streets as vehicles, both on the ground and in the air passed them by. But what was even more surprising was that the people, both male and female, were wearing the exact same suits and yet they continued on their way as if nothing out of the ordinary was going on.
“Okay...now this is creepy…” Rainbow commented.
“Like dystopian world creepy,” Twilight added.
“I don't like it. I don't like it one bit,” Pinkie stated, her eyes narrowed. “Nothing about this feels right.”
“So what do we do?” Starlight asked.
“We blend in with the crowd, figure out where we are,” Sunset answered. “Then we figure out how to get out of here.”
As they walked along the streets, it didn't take long for them to figure out where they were exactly. Many of the large digital billboards and neon lights all said the same thing: Mainframe.
“Mainframe?” Twilight said. She then paled. “Wait...so we're inside a computer!?”
“But...we went through a TV,” Applejack stated.
Twilight shook her head. “Televisions and computers operate the same, especially nowadays. Everything a computer does, for example, is based on binary numbers. 1 and 0.”
“So...this is all code?” Sunset asked.
“It would appear that way. The people, the buildings, it's all one big simulation. But why were we brought here? And better yet, whoever did it, how'd they accomplish it?”
“You realize this is all going over my head right?” Starlight asked.
“Don't worry sugarcube, Ah only know a fraction of what they're sayin’ as well,” Applejack grinned.
“Wait...if what Twilight says is true and if this is a computer…” Sunset's face paled as well. “Oh no…”
“What is it?” Fluttershy asked.
“We're foreign code...and how does a computer respond to it?”
It then finally dawned on the group. “Uh oh…” Rainbow commented. No sooner after she said that, an alarm suddenly went off as a group of small drones appeared.
“Now would be a good time to run!” Twilight yelled.
They took off in the opposite direction as the drones followed in pursuit. Most of the people in their way managed to move but many others were getting knocked over. “The alleyway!” Sunset shouted.
The alleyways connected to other streets in the city, but Sunset was hoping there was somewhere to hide and lay low. Unfortunately, there was one thing none of the girls took account for.
Just as they were about to reach the adjacent street, a group of cruisers suddenly appeared, cutting off their route. Just as they were about to turn around, the drones, as well as a small group of armed men, carrying weapons that belonged in a future setting, stopped them in their tracks. “Well that didn't work,” Pinkie said.
“I'm sure you guys could magic your way ot of this...right?” Starlight asked.
Sunset just shook her head. The situation was already bad and she didn't want to make it worse. Best case right now was that this was all a misunderstanding.
The door opened from one of the cars and a woman with long teal hair, wearing a long trench coat and sporting a pair of aviators stepped out, staring at the group with a rather stern look. “Foreign programs huh?” She lowered her shades and a small smirk appeared on her face. “You're all coming with us.”