//------------------------------//
// Armed And Dangerous 
// Story: The Olden World 
// by Czar_Yoshi 
//------------------------------//

The preparation room was packed as Valey stepped in, with more fighters arriving right behind her. She spotted Wallace's huge head in the background, several other bulky figures interspersed through lithe, speedy acrobats and powerful unicorns.

Saffron was clear across the room, and Morena and Diego both stuck close to Wallace's side, but she couldn't make out any more of her friends from earlier. Probably because most of them were out of the fight...

Valey may not have recognized the other fighters, but most of them recognized her. A lot of ponies and griffons gave her a clear berth as she strolled to a wall covered with a huge bracket board. Four fights were ahead of her. Due to the number of competitors, the first two would be three-way free for alls. She rubbed her chin as she found her name: second timeslot after the first. Not only that, it looked like her battle was one of four that would be sharing a timeslot with another fight. Two teams of three in the arena, each fighting their own enemies for their own champion, but able to interfere with the other if they desired...

She was up against Diego. His name, she recognized. Her other opponent was someone called Master Kickface. She had a feeling the point was to make opponents laugh before getting kicked in the face... Not someone she was going to underestimate.

Valey licked her lips. This was going to be fun.





In the viewing rooms high above, Starlight, Maple, Gerardo, Shinespark and Amber watched as three fighters were escorted onto the field. The early morning sun cast a tall shadow over the ground, a wall tower to the west reaching out touching the dusty ground like a sundial. Maple paced, Gerardo and Amber relaxed, and Shinespark and Starlight stood at the railing, watching the grounds intensely.

"There's Yulio," Starlight muttered, frowning as she watched the stallion carry a tiny streak of black at his side. She wouldn't tell it to Valey, but she had been nothing but apprehensive since she woke up. None of her usual methods helped, and she couldn't find any reason for it aside from the obvious: Valey was about to fight someone with a dangerous sword, and she didn't remember what it did to batponies.

"The one Gazelle just mentioned?" Shinespark scanned the combatants keenly. "There's also Morena. Valey's fought her before. Does anyone recognize the third?"

Amber leaned forward, shading her brow. "Some griffon. So, who wants to take bets on why Gazelle thought this guy would see Valey in the finals?" She frowned. "Saffron and Shill sure didn't seem to like him when we ran into him that night in the restaurant."

"You've met him?" Shinespark looked up.

"He came around our table," Starlight mumbled, watching intently as the fight prepared to start. "We'll see how he fights."





"Well, this will be interesting," Yulio remarked as the three combatants began to circle, Howe and Neon Nova fleeing for cover. The black sword stayed sheathed at his side, and his golden mane waved gently atop his head. "This will be my first time crossing blades with someone as distinguished as you."

Morena frowned. "Flattery will get you nowhere. I'm not here for a battle of words."

Yulio winced hard. "Oh, I'm sorry, I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about the griffon."

The griffon in question changed the direction of his circling, moving to put Yulio between himself and Morena. "Bad move, drawing dishonorable attention to yourself against more than one opponent. You're new to this, aren't you?"

"But I am! Haven't you heard?" Yulio quickly backpedaled, moving to keep both foes in his sights. "Black sheep, up-and-comer, rising star. A considerable advantage, I might add. And highly preferable to being an honorable nobody or a cheap date. Rumor even has it you're the kind of mare who's happiest kissing griffons."

Morena's hackles rose. "You're doing a lot to make an enemy of yourself."

"Or was it sarosians?" Yulio shrugged, drawing the sword and sticking it point-down in the earth. "Heretical flying rats, birds who don't understand how to grow proper ears or muzzles, they're all the same to me." He covertly bumped his flank against the embedded sword's hilt, the bright sun hiding the faint, resulting rings of runic light.

"I tire of you already," the griffon declared, speeding his trot and getting Yulio perfectly between him and Morena. The stallion made no move to escape his situation, and the griffon beckoned with a wing. "Time for you to become the first casualty of round four!"

"Careful!" Morena warned. "He clearly wants-"

The griffon didn't listen, rushing at Yulio's turned backside and brandishing his sharpened talons. "Yaaagh!"

With a back hoof, Yulio kicked the sword out of the ground and into the air, spinning and grabbing the hilt in his teeth to cut the griffon down with a surprise counter. But his adversary was ready. Launching into a spin, the griffon ducked the slash, catching Yulio's jaw with a sharpened parry and sending the sword bouncing away, bloodily slicing his lip. As Yulio flinched, his other talon came around, balled into a powerful punch, striking the stallion in the side and launching him straight toward Morena.

Morena pounced before he could even stop rolling, catching Yulio and pinning him in a crushing bear hug. He could barely even struggle against her muscle mass. "Admit defeat!" Morena demanded.

"So... gentle and physically caring..." Yulio wheezed. "Perhaps you're attracted to normal ponies after all..."

Morena raised a hoof to strike him, ready to pound him into unconsciousness or worse. "The world doesn't need fighters like-"

With an inaudible whistle, the black sword flew through the air, embedding itself in Morena's side and cutting her sentence short. Yulio's eyes went wide. "That dastardly griffon. You two had an alliance going, and he betrayed you!?"

Morena couldn't move her mouth to reply.

"Or not." Yulio shoved her roughly off him, getting to his hooves and dusting himself off. "You fell for my distraction. So much for not listening to-" He whirled, pointing the hovering sword tip at the griffon who was about to ambush him. "Stay out of this! I am exchanging words with my defeated opponent!"

Morena's eyes quivered with rage. The griffon stared at the sword, taking a wary step backwards.

"No hard feelings," Yulio promised, turning back to Morena. "Just doing what it takes to win. You actually were quite high up on my threat list. And by the way..." He leaned down, giving her a tiny kiss on the cheek. "Consolation prize. I never actually cared who you like. You're too blocky to be my type, and who else but me has tastes that matter?"

With a yell, the griffon flung himself again at Yulio, his focus dead-set on avoiding the floating sword. "I've fought unicorns before! However you're doing that, I know your tricks!"

Crack! The griffon was so set on avoiding the sword that he dodged into a bad position against Yulio himself, and was helpless before an ensuing trip and subsequent slam as he hit the ground. "And you, my feathered, less-famous friend," Yulio lectured, "really need to learn to keep your cool when you see a fellow fighter getting disrespected. No offense once again, Morena! For real, this time. As I said, only doing what it takes to win."

The sword floated closer, stabbing into the griffon to ensure he stayed down.

"And that, fillies and gentlecolts," Yulio proclaimed, standing up and sheathing his sword as he wiped the blood from his sliced lip, "is how you win a two versus one you actually asked for! You will know my name, Admiral Valey! And you had better not get knocked out so I can fight you myself! It's me everyone should be talking about, and I'll be more famous than you in the end!"

"Hey dude," Neon Nova said, he and Howe returning to the center of the battlefield now that the action was clear. "You totally know you're not microphoned right now since fighter conversations have a right to privacy, right?"

Howe cleared his throat. "Yes, indeed, Valey cannot actually hear you..."

Yulio legitimately reddened. "...This is a new rule for this round, right?"

Neon lifted his shades. "No way. You didn't even attend any of our earlier productions to see that you couldn't hear the fighters when you were in the audience? We put a lot of effort into those!"

"Yes, yes, how quaint." Yulio brushed them aside. "Go tell her word for word everything I said. I am going to spend the time until my next match relaxing in the victors' break room..."