As our heroes journey through Druathica, rumors begin to spread across Gryphonia, and in a certain tavern where Justin once had a side-job in, business begins to pick up. The bartender, an overweight gryphon named Mr. Good Cheers, has been asked by a visitor from Equestria for a job that she could do to make a few bits that could help raise morality in the town. Unsure of what she was talking about, he decided that she could work for him at night... but after her first night there, she noticed the inhabitants stare at her for, what she could already tell was, the wrong purposes.

Taking a deep breath, a high-pitched female mare said to herself, "Alright, Pinkie... you can do this! Just a few more weeks, and I'll be able to afford a trip back home!" Then the pink mare stepped inside the tavern, wearing a pair of black stockings over her hooves, and a pair of long black gloves over her hands. While walking towards the tavern, she wore a long red coat, but once she stepped inside, she removed it, revealing a black vest and panty combo, slightly resembling a swimsuit.

When she stepped in, a large group of male creatures looked at her, and gave her a stare that only made the blood in her veins run cold. "At least... he didn't give me the same job that he gave the other girls, right?" She silently told herself, before continuing on, ignoring the stares she was getting.

Good Cheers looked her way, and smiled, before motioning her behind the bar. "It's alright, Pinkie! I'm sure you'll do fine! Now, I just need to run in the kitchen and pick up more snacks! In the meantime, I would like you to simply... put on a show!" He gave her a wink, which caused her cheeks to turn red. Noticing the image he just gave her, he chuckled, before adding, "Oh, no! Not THAT kind of show! I meant like juggling the mugs, and serving! You know, those kinds of things!"

Pinkie sighed with relief, before chuckling. "Oh, thank Celestia! I'm sorry, Mr. Good Cheers. I'm still getting over my first day here!"

Good Cheers patted her back, and replied, "Listen. I know you might not come back here again, but believe me! You aren't the only one that came here who was in dire need of money! In fact, that fellow needed to go to Equestria himself!"

Pinkie smiled, and nodded her head. "I'm glad to know I'm not the only one!" Then she looked at him confusedly, and asked, "But why did he need to go to Equestria?"

Good Cheers was about to answer, when another group of customers walked in. "I'll tell you later, Pinkie. We really need to get to work, though!"

Pinkie nodded her head and saluted, before replying, "Yes, sir, Mr. Good Cheers, sir!"

With a chuckle, Good Cheers turned around and began walking towards the kitchen, while saying, "And I must say, Pinkie Pie... you wear your title proud, that's for sure!" Then he stepped into the kitchen, while Pinkie Pie giggled, before walking behind the bar.

"And what can I get for you today, good sir?" She asked a nearby gryphon.

The gryphon placed his right claw under his beak, and asked, "Can you pour me a mix of Moon Berry Punch, with the addition of Ogre's Tear Herb in it? Oh, and make it extra salty, please!"

Pinkie Pie nodded her head and smiled, as she backed up, and placed her hands on two bottles behind her, causing a few eyes to wander in her direction. Then, without even looking, she slung the two bottles in the air, while reaching her tail below the back counter. Then, while doing a flip, she slung a tightly sealed box of salt in the air with her tail. Finally, when she stood from her quick roll, she held her arms out, while catching the two bottles, before the box of salt landed on her mane, bounced, and landed on her nose. This act caused the entire crowd to turn to her again, as she poured both bottles in the mug at the same time, before juggling them in her left hand, while she opened the box of salt, and quickly pulled a pinch of it from the box, before quickly dabbing the pinch in the mug, creating a red and blue puff of smoke in the process.

"One Ogre's Punch Supreme, good sir!" She said, pushing the mug towards the gryphon, while sliding the bottles from her mane to her tail, and back into their original places. The entire bar cheered for her, and a round of applause followed from the tables in the "Tavern" side of the room. The gryphon, now with a wide smile, lifted a bag of bits from his left pocket, and placed twenty bits on the counter. Pinkie looked at him confusedly, and said, "Wait, but that drink's only seven!"

The gryphon chuckled, before replying, "Ma'am... with talent like that, I should owe you seventy!"

Pinkie chuckled, then said, "Oh, nonsense! I'm just familiar with juggling! This is the first time I've worked at a bar, to be honest!"

As soon as she said that, a nearby minotaur spat his drink out, and stared at her in shock. Pinkie, of course, didn't notice him, and continued with the next crowd.

The minotaur, with a toothy grin, said, "Well, if she's THAT talented in new things, perhaps I should take her to my room! Maybe the famous 'Party-Planner' can learn about a new kind of party!" His two gryphon friends lightly chuckled at his statement while he stood up, and began walking towards Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie looked at him, and smiled, before asking, "Good evening, sir! What can I get for you today?"

The minotaur grinned at her, before replying in a whisper, "Well, I was wondering how much you would sell your body for?"

That statement caused Pinkie's smile to drop, and her cheeks to turn red, before she shook her head, and said, "S-sorry, sir! I'm afraid I don't do THAT kind of partying!"

The minotaur raised an eyebrow, before chuckling lightly. "And if I said I can easily TEACH you?"

Pinkie Pie, at this point, backed into the shelf, which caused a couple bottles to fall to the floor. The entire room stared wide-eyed at the minotaur, who started walking towards the entrance to the counter. Then, when he started to lift the hatch, he found a pair of claws grab him by the back of the neck, and slam his face into the counter.

Holding his bleeding nose, he looked up to see who it was that just attacked him, until a low-pitched female's voice said in a tomboyish accent, "Ya heard the lady! She said BEAT IT!" The next thing the minotaur knew, he was running out of the door, with his eyes widely opened.

Pinkie Pie, however, stared wide-eyed at her unexpected hero, and stuttered. "G... Gilda?!"

Gilda, who was wearing an outfit similar to Gilded's, with the addition of a silver and golden breastplate, shifted her golden-eyed gaze from the minotaur to Pinkie, before asking, "What're you doin' here, Pinkie?!"

Pinkie backed up nervously and sighed, before replying, "I... was wanting to see what it was like up here! I heard from Rainbow Dash that you were born and raised here, and the impression you left Ponyville told me that you must've had it rough... so I came up here, hoping to boost everyone's spirits!" Then she paused, before adding, "...But the minute I got here, I realized there was no direct routes from here to Equestria, so I had to make some extra money to get back home..." She sighed, and then scratched the back of her head. "And when I first got here, I was robbed by knife-point! So, here I am, working a side-job as a bartender!"

Gilda scratched the bottom of her beak, and sighed, before turning towards the door. Then she looked at Pinkie, and said, "You really should've stayed home, y'know?" Pinkie nodded her head in agreement.

After a long pause, Gilda walked up to her, and said, "Well, come on, then! The next stop will have to be Druathica!"

Pinkie stared wide-eyed at Gilda, before asking, "W-what?! Why are you helping me, though?!"

Gilda groaned, before walking towards the door. "If you ain't at the airship in five minutes, I'll just leave on my own!" Then she left the room, leaving Pinkie Pie staring from the front door to the kitchen.

Before even five seconds passed, Mr. Good Cheers walked up to her, and smiled. "It would seem my daughter sees something in you..." Pinkie turned towards him, and stared wide-eyed, until he covered her snout with his left claw, and placed his right claw in front of his beak, shushing her. Then, while gently patting her mane, he placed a bag of bits in her hands, and said, "Go on, then... you'll be safe around her, I'm sure!"

After a moment of silence, Pinkie smiled at him, and wrapped him in a hug, which he returned. Then, after saying her thanks, she ran out the door, picking up her coat in the process. Mr. Good Cheers looked out the door, and waved at the mare, who was now walking next to Gilda, and talking about something in the distance.

"So you and Rainbow Dash went to that place before going to Flight School?" Pinkie asked, pointing at a large wooden hut that was shaped like a dome.

Gilda looked towards it, and nodded her head. "I don't think ya wanna know what goes on in there, though." As soon as she said that, a minotaur flew out of the door, with a wooden sword following right beside him.

The sudden incident caused Pinkie Pie to jump slightly, before turning back to Gilda, who continued walking unfazed by what just happened.

Then they walked into a dark alleyway, where the bustling streets were replaced with pure, silent darkness. Gilda looked both ways and came to a complete stop, before holding her claw in front of Pinkie, which caused her to stop behind her. "Hold on... I've got a bad feeling about this place. Lemme take a look, real quick."

She slowly started to walk forwards, until the next thing she knew, a masculine voice shouted, "HALT!" When they turned to see who it was that told them that, it turned out to be the minotaur from the bar, and the two gryphons that sat beside him earlier. "Well, well! If it isn't the ol' party planner!" Then he grinned menacingly, as another minotaur appeared from the opposite corner, surrounding Gilda and Pinkie Pie. The minotaur looked at Gilda, and huffed. "And I see you brought your little hero to save you, too!"

Gilda smirked, before replying, "Actually, it was me who brought her, dumbass!" The sudden hint of profanity caused Pinkie Pie to turn towards Gilda with a shocked expression, while Gilda continued looking at the minotaur from the bar with a short smile.

The minotaur glared at her, and motioned, with his right hand, a "Neck-Slicing" signal to the minotaur from the other side. The other minotaur nodded his head and drew a long scimitar, while he slowly crept towards Gilda. Then, after he was close enough, he swung the scimitar in a downward thrust, while Pinkie Pie noticed, and gasped, as her eyes widened in horror.

Before he could reach his target, however, Gilda quickly backed closer to his arm, causing his elbow to clash into her right shoulder pad. Then, in the blink of an eye, she disarmed him of his scimitar, and with a twirling motion, sliced the minotaurs neck with his own blade.

He stood stiffly on the ground for around five seconds, until Gilda turned towards the first minotaur, and kicked the minotaur behind her to the ground. While his body flew back, his head fell forward, and rolled on the ground, ending with his frightened face angled towards the first minotaur.

Then Gilda walked in front of Pinkie Pie, and stretched her wings out, while pointing the scimitar towards the minotaur. "You bucked up big time, pal!" She said, before swinging the scimitar in the air, sending a string of blood towards the three petrified bandits.

The minotaur stared in horror, unable to say a word, while the two gryphons beside him quickly turned around, and started to run away. Before they could even take their second step, however, they were caught off-guard by Gilda swooping in front of them at a blurring speed. Then they stopped in place, as Gilda spat on the floor, and said, "What's the matter? Can't handle a little... blood?" When she said "Blood", the two gryphons gulped, and started reaching in their waists, attempting to draw their scimitars. The second their claws touched the handles, however, Gilda quickly dashed in-between them, slicing the one on her right in the stomach, while his right claw fell to the floor, followed by the rest of his body. Then the other one attempted to slice at her while drawing his weapon, only for his sword to be knocked clean out of his claw. Without sparing another second, Gilda kicked the other gryphon onto the ground, and walked towards the minotaur, who was now facing Gilda, with two scimitars in his hands. Then, once the gryphon bandit landed on the floor, his sword landed in his chest, impaling him in the heart, while Gilda took the other sword and jabbed it in his throat, while continuing to the last bandit unarmed.

The minotaur took this as his chance to strike. With a loud roar, he lifted both scimitars over his head, and attempted to slice Gilda, only for her to back up, and cause his swords to land on the ground. Then she stepped on the scimitars, pinning them on the floor, while the minotaur glared at her, released the swords, and tackled her to the ground.

"IT'S OVER, HERO!" He shouted, only to find one of his scimitars stabbed into his kidneys. Looking down, he choked, as he was rolled to her right, while she lifted the other scimitar with her tail, and placed it in her right claw.

"Yeah, you're right... it's over. Oh, and by the way, Champ..." She said, while standing over the frightened minotaur. "...I'm not a hero." Then she lowered the scimitar to the right corner of his neck, and added, "I'm a Mercenary." With that, she sliced through his neck, and stabbed the scimitar into his head, before it could roll more than two feet away.

After standing there for a few moments, she turned towards Pinkie Pie, and sighed. Pinkie Pie, at that point, was curled up in a ball near a stack of crates, crying out of sheer terror.

Gilda deadpanned at her, but her expression quickly changed to one of concern, as she remembered one of the major differences between her homeland and Equestria. This was, undoubtedly, the first time Pinkie Pie ever witnessed the death of anything.

Finally, she walked towards Pinkie Pie, and sat next to her. Pinkie was still crying, and her mane was straightened out. Gilda looked at her, and gently patted her right shoulder, then said, "Hey, listen. Pinkie Pie..." She looked away from the crying mare, and tried thinking of what to say. "Dammit... I was not cut out for this kinda stuff!" She thought to herself. Then she looked up, after the sound of thunder could be heard.

After a moment of silence, she heard a distant-sounding honk coming from an all-too-familiar airship. "I'm not gonna leave ya, alright?!" Gilda finally blurted out.

Pinkie looked her way, and sniffled a few times. "W-what? B-but... why are you doing this for me, though? Last I remember, I got you in trouble over in Ponyville!"

Gilda sighed, before turning away. "Look, I spoke with Rainbow Dash before I left... and she kinda told me somethin' that I kinda wished I knew before." She then turned to Pinkie Pie, who was staring wide-eyed at her. "When I disrespect her friends, I disrespect her, too."

Pinkie Pie's eyes widened, and a smile started to slowly form. "S-so are you saying-"

Before she could finish, however, Gilda placed her right claw over her snout, and glared. "Of course we ain't friends, yet, you dolt!" Then she stood back up, and added, "But we ain't enemies, either! Now come on!" She stretched her right claw out, which Pinkie took, still weakly smiling. "I guess I'll just say I'm doin' this for Rainbow Dash!"

"Thanks, Gilda..." Pinkie weakly said.

Gilda rolled her eyes, and replied, "Whatever, Pinkie... now, let's go, or we'll miss our ride!" With that, the two of them ran towards the docking bay, where an airship, which resembled the other ones (save for the number "48" on it), floated, accepting large numbers of passengers. Before heading that way, however, Gilda and Pinkie checked their claws and hands respectively, to make sure the blood was off of them. Then, when their claws and hands were completely cleaned off by a nearby bucket that caught rainwater, they joined the long line for the passengers in the airship. The next thing they knew, they were on a journey of their own to Equestria; one of them for a Reunion, and the other one for Redemption.