Equestrian Throwdown

by Hex Mark

A brief rest: The story behind the games

Author's Note:

Edit: I *really* need to stop impulsively uploading the prototype chapters. I revised some things since I realized that the chapter didn't seem to fit the intended direction I was going for

And finally, we get to kick off with the underlying story~

Elizabeth the Morning Star belongs to JM95, the same friend who made the current artwork. All credit to the character's concept and actions goes to him :)

How far had the human plummeted? Ten yards, twenty, thirty perhaps? The pit wasn't without its hazards, as the bloodied human had the misfortune of finding out first hand. Tumbling down, hitting various outcroppings, Skylark had managed to survive his landing, but just barely. With his shaky breathing, he looked up, waiting for a few long moments. A soft sigh of relief left his mouth as he checked to see if he still had the key, he didn't need to worry about Rajah coming to finish him off. Propping himself up against the wall, he shuddered slightly before looking forward. Nodding to himself, Skylark's eyes slowly closed as he relaxed, his breathing slowing down. I can't go any further like this...I need to rest for a bit... he thought to himself, and against all sense of reason, fell asleep.

"I...I can't believe it! After all of that punishment, Skylark is still alive and- Wait, is he napping?! Is that even allowed?" The announcer asked, calling over one of the officials for the rule book and skimming through it. Laughing their plots off at the announcer's expense, the audience, save for Lyra, opted to focus on one of the other crystal displays to watch Taurus's progress.

Skylark would look around, seeing familiar faces as his hands were cuffed and his ankles chained together, back in the tattered clothes he was wearing when he was first brought to Equestria. He didn't even bother asking why he was there; he remembered every detail of what this was.

"Finally wake up, you little shit?" a woman's voice asked, although Skylark did not turn his head yet. "You wouldn't imagine how much fuckin' trouble it was to cage you." the woman was clad in silver-colored armor, the direction of her voice indicating she was on his left side. Looking to his left, Skylark recognized the woman, her fire-red hair along with her sun-soaked complexion. Skylark could only offer a disappointed glare before taking a breath.

"Elizabeth...the Morning Star...Foul mouthed as always.." Skylark identified the woman, who had a confident smirk on her face as she and a fully-armored knight were dragging him along. Eventually, they would stop in the middle of a field, surrounded by a group of about fifty people. Some were knights, others archers. A fair share of them, however, were civilians who wished to see this for themselves. There was only one kind of occasion in Athelina that Skylark knew of that would have this kind of gathering."Execution.." he murmured, looking ahead of him to see the Captain of the Queen's Guard. He couldn't recognize this one's face, but he knew enough to ascertain that fact.

"Miles Skylark...You already know why you are here. Monsters like you don't even deserve a trial! Do you have any last words before we put you down?" the Captain asked, and Skylark tensed a little, clenching his teeth.

Don't sit there...Break free, rip them to shreds! his anger manifested itself as a wild voice in his head.

No...they don't even know what happened...

And they're going to kill you in their ignorance!

But going on a rampage won't prove me innocent...

The bending of wood caught his attention as he snapped back to the scene in front of him, seeing the archers preparing their arrows for a fatal barrage. He stared in disbelief, tears slowly leaving his eyes as he shut them, bracing himself for his death. A death that would never come to pass.

A soft breeze was the next thing that caught Skylark's attention, and almost as soon as he opened his eyes again, he lost balance as the bindings on him were suddenly removed and he was no longer restrained. Face in the grass, the human was dumbstruck when he didn't hear anything but the breeze. No arrows being fired, no cheer or sigh of satisfaction.

"Your memories must trouble you greatly, if they have manifested into such a nightmare..." a soft voice commented, prompting the human to get up onto his knees, looking up to see just who the voice came from. Through his eyes, there was a humanoid silhouette with long, flowing hair. For a brief moment, he had mistaken the individual for someone familiar.

"L-Lady Celena?" Skylark stammered, only for the silhouette to change into its real form; an equine who dwarfed the human in height. The midnight blue mare looked down at the bemused Skylark with a gentle, yet somewhat confused look.

"It seems you've mistaken me for another." The mare smiled a little as the human recoiled a bit.

"I-I'm sorry...But...thank you..." Skylark thanked the mare, only then registering what she had said before. "A dream? Does that mean that-?" he pondered, but the mare interrupted him, feigning confusion.

"Yes. You have indeed fallen for a pony to have dreamed about one so easily~" the mare teased the human, watching him blush in embarrassment before letting herself giggle. "I jest. My name is Luna, one of the Royal Sisters of Equestria, and I used my magic to walk into your dream." she introduced herself, and the human bowed his head, having already been on his knees.

"It's an honor, Your Highness." he replied, only for a gentle hoof to prop his head up once more as the Princess of the Moon stared down into his eyes with a soft smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Miles Skylark. I only wish it wasn't under such circumstances." Luna lamented a little, allowing the human to stand up as she looked to the crescent moon in the sky, her smile having turned into a soft frown. "To compete in such a grim competition, it's not the best of reasons to be in Equestria." the alicorn looked back to the human. "I wager you already know this, but this competition is not of Equestria." Luna stated.

"Then how did this all start?" Skylark asked.

"Three years ago, a unicorn by the name of Trixie Lulamoon sought to prove her power above all others. To that end, she found the Chaos Grimoire, a spell book of unspeakably dark magic. Using its magic, Trixie summoned a creature from a distant land. The one you call 'Balrog', I presume?" she waited for a silent verification before continuing. "Balrog's first course of action was to create a monument to display his power in Equestria, his foul magic spreading like a plague across the land. The ponies of Equestria's minds were distorted to the point that they were encouraged and compelled to be their audience. It was then that The Games were created, unicorns who joined in were taught the same spell, summoning their own creatures." Luna explained.

"And they fight amongst themselves to see who is supreme..." the human summarized, receiving a nod from Luna before "As foolish of a question as this may be; has anypony tried to do anything about it before I got here?" Skylark asked, and the alicorn nodded.

"Twilight Sparkle and her friends, the current bearers of the Elements of Harmony, tried to expel him. The monster had stolen the elements before they could use them, however." Luna tried to explain, only for the human to interrupt.

"Elements of Harmony?" Skylark asked, and Luna gave him an almost bewildered look.

"They are artifacts of incredible magical power. Only able to be wielded by those who have an inherent understanding of their concepts." Luna explained. "My sister and I first wielded them, but after a certain..incident, we lost our connection to them. With the elements in Balrog's possession, and the dark magic he uses to defend his territory, Twilight Sparkle and her friends can only act to make sure Ponyville doesn't fall under Balrog's influence, while my sister and I protect Canterlot. I fear that he might grow strong enough to take them by force with enough time."

"Your Highness...I think I may have an idea." Skylark crossed his arms as he thought everything through. "If Balrog is the same as he was when he was first transported here from Athelina, then his power is dependent on the deaths he causes, by his own hand or the hand of another." he started, pausing a bit as he rubbed his head. "Before Miss Twilight brought me to Madam Zecora for a brew to synchronize myself with Equestria's time-scale, a few hours would take the toll of a few days on my body. If the brew is as difficult to make as Zecora said, than Trixie could not have secured the same potion for her creature."

"What are you saying?" Luna asked, and Skylark nodded with a smirk, unfolding his arms.

"I am saying that all that need be done is to deprive him of his source of power. To starve him. If further unnecessary deaths are prevented, then Balrog will exhaust his own power to the point where he can no longer maintain his grip." Skylark summarized, much to the alicorn's relief.

"So a battle of attrition. But can you prevent him from killing any of the contestants out of nowhere?" Luna asked, prompting Skylark to think back to his fight with Balrog the day before.

"You're lucky that the rules forbid me to end your life here. If you do manage to make it to the top and fight me again, you better be willing to transcend your humanity. ..."

"I don't think him killing indiscriminately will be a problem. He is bound by his own rules, and Trixie is powerful enough to have bound him to her will. She would not risk her position in this competition. " Skylark added in, and Luna nodded.

"Thank you. As soon as we are able, my sister and I will return you to your homeworld." Luna smiled softly in gratitude for the new information, much to the human's chagrin.

"No, Your Highness." Skylark replied flatly, much to the alicorn's confusion. "Balrog is a criminal from Athelina. Although he may have been left to his own devices since being summoned to your land, he is still Athelina's responsibility. Please allow me to be the one clean up my world's mess." Skylark looked to the princess.

That look....He really means this.. Luna thought before giving him another nod with a more genuine smile. "Very well. I shall entrust the task to you." she declared, only to notice a strange, almost taken-off-guard look on the human's face. "Something wrong?" Luna asked, and Skylark shrugged.

"I dunno, for some reason it felt like I tasted something sweet and bitter at the same time." he muses, shaking his head before Luna smiled.

"Perhaps you were thinking of banana cake? My sister loves cake!" she commented happily before the dreamscape flickered a little. "It seems its almost time for you to wake up. I will tell my sister about this encounter, and I wish you luck in your endeavors." Luna bid Skylark farewell as she and the dreamscape faded, the human waking up a few moments later. Standing up with a yawn, stretching a bit with a satisfied smile on his face, Skylark cracked his knuckles.

Alright, its about time I got moving! and with that, he took off at full sprint, going down the only path available to him.

[To be continued]