Here we go again, with another sort-of crossover and another first-person story. This time, we're looking at Caramel as Equestria's equivalent of Ranma Saotome - the aquatransexual weirdness magnet with an ever-increasing stable of fiancées. This one is actually pretty low on the romance, spending most of its time on the setup. Hope that doesn't detract from anything. Zeke out.
How do I get myself mixed up in these things?
Alright, basically, here's the story. This crazy horse, didn't get his name, is apparently looking to open a casino, but he doesn't have the land for it. So he's decided to get it the quickest way he can, by kidnapping a couple of farmers' daughters and using them as leverage. He took Blinky Pie from the Pie family's rock farm, and Apple Bloom, poor filly barely old enough to defend herself, from Sweet Apple Acres. Only, did I mention he's crazy? Because instead of demanding the deeds to the land in exchange for the return of the hostages, he's putting on something he calls a "Pinball Rodeo". So now it's us against his team, winner take all.
Us... our team looked pretty good. We brought both of Apple Bloom's siblings along. Applejack is a big rodeo star, and Big Macintosh is, well, he's big. I was kinda surprised to see Rarity was coming along. Not that I doubted her, it's just that dressmakers don't usually enter rodeos. She said something about a dare and left it at that. Then there was this Blues guy, not sure what his deal is. As for me, the Pies sent me. The parents are too old for this, and they didn't want to tell either of their other daughters what had happened.
Besides, they said it was my responsibility, since Blinky is technically my fiancée. Only not really. It's a long story. Oh, and as luck would have it, it rained during the first round, so now I'm stuck competing as a filly. That's not as long a story, but I'd rather not get into it right now.
So, we had a powerhouse lineup. That sure didn't long. Big Mac was the first to be eliminated. Yeah, the first. Apparently, in a Pinball Rodeo there are these giant metal spheres rolling around that you just don't want to get hit by, and Big Mac was the biggest, slowest target. We'd gotten our own back, but not easily. We spent a lot of round 2 barely saving each other, and then Blues got taken down anyway. If it hadn't been for Rarity's magic, that would've been me.
Long story short, it's the final round now, and it's two on one. The good news is, I just have to outlast them. The bad news is, I'm trapped. No room to run. Ball heading straight for me. As it hits the wall, I can hear the nutjob bray his victory.
Yeah, whoop it up. I'm not done yet. The sound catches in his throat when he notices I'm standing on top of the giant ball of doom. Well, not standing. Running. I'm glad it rained now, because if I was a colt that would've crushed me for sure. I felt a bump just now. Think I hit his teammate. I can't really steer this thing, though.
I don't have to. As I jump off, it smashes into another ball, which sends that careening into another. I'm charging at the last guy, but I realize halfway there that there's no point. He turns too late to see that the chain reaction just now has sent a giant ball hurtling straight toward him, and before he can move it knocks him into this hole in the middle of the arena.
It's over now. The rest of the team walks back into the arena, and we climb the stairs and release the girls. Rarity's got a kettle ready and boiling, I swear she's always prepared. She's like the Batmare or something. She pours the contents over me, and I feel my usual shape reasserting itself. It's good to be back. Blinky is half-glaring, half-smiling at me after I got so careless back there, and she hugs me. I feel a hoof on my shoulder - Big Mac is offering his silent thanks for my help. And then here comes our cheering section, about to turn this into the biggest group hug I've ever seen.
Maybe I should run... nah.