Silver Spoon glowered at the colt as they stood face to face. “So, you’re Scootaloo’s friend, huh?”
Doldrum Whimper smiled back at her. “Yes. And you’re the Feather Cloak School’s top rookie.”
Her mouth cracked the tiniest smile at that. “You must be pretty good, if you could beat August and Starfall.”
“Thank you. You must be pretty good, too, if it takes that much arguing to get to face you.”
“You just wanted to fight me, didn’t you? You wanted to fight me from the start.”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“Why?”
The muscled colt rose up on his hind hooves and settled into a low stance. “To test my abilities. I want to see what you can do. Master Blazing must have taught you well.”
She suppressed a smirk at that, rising up in her own Bear Stance. If you don’t wanna admit it’s a grudge match, fine. Master Blazing isn’t the only one teaching me.
Ash grumbled as the two kids squared off. “Why did you insist on him beating those other two kids first?”
“To see how he would handle himself,” Luna replied. “I’m trying to keep track of his progress, and that’s not always easy.”
“Uhuh. And his suspension from school? You knew about that?”
She sighed. “Word reached me of that, yes, but it’s out of my hooves. I’ve already extended my power as far as I could with him. Any more and ponies would take notice. And if they take notice, they take issue.”
“Why, though? I mean, sure, he’s a strong fighter, and I can assume he came your way after some problems, but why go through all that effort?”
“Do you recall that water devil the Royal Guard tracked from Rainbow Falls to Froggy Bottom Bog? Last seen about a year and a half ago, heading towards Ponyville?”
“Kludde? O’course. Gave me a run for my money, the coward, couldn’t finish him off. Last I heard, he waylaid some kids and one of’em...”
Luna smiled knowingly.
Ash barely managed to pick up his jaw. “No.”
“Yes.”
“Wasn’t that one older? A teenager, at least?”
Luna shook her head and pointed discreetly at the muscular colt. “Hmm, no, no, that’s… that’s the one, right there.”
“That’s him? That overstuffed half-pint is the kid who...”
“The very same. I think some of the Royal Guards recognise him now, too, if the nervous shuffling is any indication. He has the same condition as you, you know, same as your daughter.”
“In such a young body, too. Now it makes sense. You tried to heal him.”
“Among other things, yes. I also recommended he study martial arts. I’m the one who pointed him to that shop in Canterlot, after sending him some material of my own.”
“So what can he do?”
Luna shrugged and chuckled. “It’s funny, you know; I’m not even sure. Last Warrior Meet in Manehattan, he fought alongside that Live Wire boy over there. They complemented each other quite nicely for a first time fighting, but his technique was still… rugged, unrefined. He was still too scattered in his efforts then. Still reeling from the stress of his suspension, I imagine, but that’s been a few months now, and he’s had nothing to do but practise all day for such a long time. I can only assume Master Lee has been taking full advantage of the opportunity. As for what he’s been learning in the meantime? Well, I believe I can formulate an informed speculation at his choice of training, I’m sure you have, too.” She nodded to the blocks they’d used to test him.
“Yeah. Well, we’ll see if he’s got any real mastery in him. Begin!”
Ash’s ears twitched towards those blocks. The kid hadn’t even put a scratch on the top one.
But the centre one had a clean crack in it, right down the middle.
Silver Spoon thought long and hard before choosing her first attack.
Let’s see… he’s got weak lungs, and he waited the last two fights, so he’ll wait for me to make the first move.
He’s got big muscles. Strong muscles. Heavy muscles. If I can target those, mess up his tendons, he won’t be able to move. Then I just have to choke him. Easy peasy. Just like beating August.
She shifted her lead hind hoof and braced herself to lunge. Her whole body tensed. She dashed towards him, concentrated her magic into her right hoof and-
“Haiyah!”
“Whoa!” Silver Spoon’s heart skipped a beat as she jumped back. Her right arm was already out, about to strike when that attack had come out of nowhere.
Whimper stood there, left arm extended. His off arm. He didn’t even bother trying to hit her with a right.
Silver’s body shook. “W-what was that?”
Nothing had shifted in his expression. He still looked calm, collected. Silver was sure she saw him get angry, though, she’d even felt it. But Whimper looked relaxed now, it was uncanny. “I attacked. We’re fighting, aren’t we?”
“You didn’t move,” she whispered.
“Sure I moved.”
“No, you didn’t. One second, your arm is down, the next it’s out, there was nothing in between. You didn’t move.”
He cocked his head, curious. “I thought you were the top rookie? You couldn’t see through that attack? You can’t track that speed? It’s a pretty standard pegasus speed, you know. I mean, they call it ‘Wonderbolt Speed,’ but it’s not that rare. Not for higher-level fighters like you, I mean.”
She growled and realised the mistake. Her father had taught her how to sense danger, how to react to the threat of an attack. It was that skill that had made her top rookie, that made her so fast.
But this? This was different. Every instinct she had had screamed at her to move, so move, she did.
It took her a second to realise, but that heavy left arm of his wasn’t even straight. He’d pointed it next to her head, not at it.
That was a bluff. She’d reacted to a bluff. “Tss. Nice feint.”
“Thank you.”
He’s still too meek. He’s not gonna hurt me.
But I can hurt him.
She dashed towards him again and let rip. Her hooves lashed out like snakes, snapping at Whimper’s shoulders and neck, always taking just that split second to line up and seek out their target.
Whimper’s hooves, though, didn’t need to move like snakes. All he did was flick around his lower arm like a fencer’s rapier to keep the tips of her blows at bay.
Come on… just a little… faster… There!
She found an opening.
So did he.
What the…
She felt his arm on her belly. He wasn’t punching, or pushing, or twisting, just a little touch to remind her he was faster than her.
Silver Spoon, however, mashed her hoof straight into his belly. Right side, just below the bottom rib, a flat blow to unbalance him before she pushed her magic into him.
Thump! “Ow! H-haa… that hurt...”
Confusion ran through the crowd as it was Silver Spoon who recoiled in pain, not the boy she’d struck.
She shook her hoof and winced. “Geez, what are you made of?”
He chuckled. “Sorry. I guess you didn’t realise, huh? Starfall didn’t notice, either.”
“What are you doing, Silver Spoon?!” Master Blazing called out. “He didn’t hit your hoof!”
“No, but… it’s his body, sir. It’s like trying to hit an… an...”
Whimper cocked his head the other way, still looking as calm and innocent as a puppy. “An anvil?”
It finally dawned on her.
An anvil.
Hammer… and Anvil.
He didn’t just train with Rumble, he trained with that electric unicorn kid.
If he can keep up with a pony of that level, no wonder he took out August and Starfall.
“Cute. You trained with that Live Wire kid, didn’t you?”
“Yup.”
“And I guess that little trick just now was you using Silver Skin?”
Whimper straightened up and wriggled his shoulders to warm up again. “Why would you think that? Silver Skin is, you know, skin deep. It only protects from cuts.”
“Not if you manage to tighten your skin, too. Like, oh, I dunno, with a lot of muscle underneath. You turned yourself rigid just before I punched, that’s why you couldn’t hit me back.”
He smiled. “I knew you were different.”
“What?”
“That August kid, Starfall, they didn’t look at me like you do. They only cared about their own techniques. But you’re trying to analyse me. You’re trying to read me. Does that mean you respect me?”
“Don’t get cocky.” She braced herself. “Just because you got some lessons as a Feather Cloak doesn’t mean you can take me.”
“Maybe not, but I didn’t learn Silver Skin from Master Blazing. We never got around to that. Not that it matters; little slaps like that don’t hurt me.”
No. You’ve definitely got Silver Skin, like me. But besides that, you’ve got hard muscle underneath, like August. Physical punches need to be delivered precisely.
I can’t hit you with the flat frogs of my hooves, and the edges won’t cut you.
The sharp tips should still hurt, though. If I push and twist, you’d feel that.
“So, what are you gonna try now?” he asked.
And you’re still unprotected against magic.
Starfall didn’t land a critical hit on you, that’s why you didn’t buckle. She couldn’t keep up the pressure long enough. And you stalled the grandmasters to buy time to recover.
“Hiyah!” She jumped and turned in mid-air to wind up a kick. He blocked it on that bracer again, as expected, but it got him backing up, and that’s all the room she needed.
Silver went back into a steady flow of punches, this time striking with the tips of her hooves to do more damage. Whimper blocked one low blow, sidestepped the second, but she had her eye out for her target on the third.
His right shoulder. One sound hit with Mercurial Hoof and he’d be powerless.
The blow landed with a hard ‘thump.’ She heard the hiss of her magic as it connected. Whimper winced, but didn’t back down.
“Not bad,” he said. “Was that it?”
“You didn’t notice?” she asked.
“Notice what?”
“This!” Another wind-up and she slammed her arm into him, aiming for the side of his neck.
Thunk!
He blocked it. He blocked a high-speed swipe. With a paralysed arm.
“You mean your attack? Yes, I did notice.”
She pushed down on his bracer, but he didn’t budge. His arm was fine. He could still block with it. It didn’t even slow him down.
Silver tried to kick him, only to get kicked back herself. “Oof!” She stumbled backwards, she didn’t have the presence of mind to grab his hind hoof when he’d kicked her.
He must be flushing out my magic. He knows how to do that, too?
Okay, I can deal with that. I just have to wear him down, get him to tire out, then overload him with a combo.
She went at him again, going into a slower, more powerful rhythm this time, carefully slapping this way and that to probe his defences.
To his credit, for such a muscular boy, he had no trouble keeping up with her. He pushed down her hoof as it went for his chest, then sideways, he tilted his head just in time to dodge a jab for his nose, he stepped back at the exact same moment she stepped forward to drill her hoof into his lower ribs.
And all the while, he took every opportunity to slap her right back. A quick poke at her nose, a slap across the belly, a shove on her thigh, she was getting roughed up and she didn’t like it one bit.
This Whimper kid was her equal, simple as that. This wasn’t like fighting Rumble, who kept up with some effort, this kid was on her level.
He was on Live Wire’s level.
Still, while she wasn’t sure if she could beat Live Wire, at least this kid didn’t have any lightning shooting out of him.
He’s only a training dummy to that other kid.
I am a strong disciple of the Feather Cloak school.
I can take a training dummy.
A gulp came from behind Rarity and Fleur. Cheerilee’s class was shaking in their proverbial horseshoes.
Live Wire turned to face them. “Is something wrong?”
As one, the herd of kids took a step back.
“You’ll have to pardon my class,” Cheerilee said as she came back from checking on Rumble. “It’s not every day they meet a pony that can electrocute them where they stand.” She looked past the boy and at Rumble and Spike, still in the medic ward. Apple Bloom and her friends rushed past her towards the hurt boys, no doubt wanting to avoid any more questions about Scootaloo’s choice of friends. No matter, she could give that girl a good talking to any time.
Live Wire made a face that was somewhere in between a painful wince and an embarrassed smile. “Eheh, yeah, I try not to. It’s not that dangerous to be around me, not anymore. Just as long as you don’t touch me and I don’t get too startled. Or too excited. Or too bored. Or too sleepy. Or too awake.”
Fleur rolled her eyes and continued munching happily on her corn. “Yes, yes, we’re still working on fine-tuning that.”
“With him, I take it?” Moongazer nodded her head towards the two fighters on the platform.
“Of course. Doldrum Whimper is the finest sparring partner I could ask for,” Fleur said. “His skills are a perfect match for Live Wire’s.”
“And what, pray tell, would those skills be, exactly?” Rarity asked. “He’s fighting Silver Spoon on equal footing.”
Fleur narrowed her eyes as she watched him finally moving at his regular pace. “Yes, he’s quite fast on the short range, and unpredictable, as I’m sure you’ve noticed. Hard to follow his motions, sometimes, even for me, the way he throws his whole body around all at once. Like I keep telling you, it’s so hard to find a good sparring partner for Live Wire. That Whimper boy is fast enough to dodge my apprentice’s attacks, most of the time.”
“So that wasn’t a fluke against Starfall, then? You mean to tell me that boy can dodge lightning?” Cheerilee asked. “He has super speed?”
“Well, magical lightning travels more slowly than regular, but yes, he has super speed, in a manner of speaking.”
This was a hard pill to swallow for Cheerilee. “The blue one? With the tree trunks for arms? That one has super speed?”
“Yup. And they’re not so much tree trunks as they are anvils,” Live Wire remarked. “That’s part of where he got his nickname: The Anvil.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Nope,” Live Wire replied with a chuckle. “That’s his warrior alias, like how they call me Hammer. But he doesn’t use it that much, so not a lot of ponies know it.”
“Oh, my. He’s got Silver Spoon on the ropes, from the looks of it,” Rarity said.
“Indeed,” Fleur concurred. “But he’s taking too many risks. He hasn’t retaliated yet.”
“I beg your pardon? He’s been knocking her just as much as she’s hit him,” Cheerilee said. “Even more, I should think. She can’t land a decent punch.”
“Oh, she doesn’t need to, with her techniques,” Live Wire remarked. “He’s just slapping for now, and she’s trying to wear down his defences. Trust me, Whimper’s good when he’s wearing his talons, but his trump card is something else. I don’t think he’s gonna want to use it before Silver Spoon tries hers. In a fight like this, it all depends on who breaks through first. They can fight to fatigue, or they can burst their opponent down. And Whimper’s not one to burst too quickly.”
Fleur grumbled and cast her glance towards the medical ward. Scootaloo and Rumble looked worried, and she couldn’t blame them. “He’s putting on a show for Master Blazing. That could mean trouble. He got those other two when they made that mistake.”
“Your friend had better be careful,” Diamond Tiara said. “If Silver Spoon hits him with her Seven Deadly Blows, the fight’s over.”
Live Wire snorted, almost chortling. “Well, you’re right about that.”
The two were an even match, exchanging blocks and blows, stepping back and forth as they tried to get a clean shot in.
Silver Spoon groaned as she pushed aside another heavy blow. “G-give up. You can’t keep this up forever.”
Whimper smiled and slapped away her counter-attack. “Neither can you.”
“Okay. If you’re not gonna surrender, then you leave me with no choice: Seven Deadly Blows!”
“What?”
It was a simple trick to increase her speed for a few seconds. A mere adrenalin rush combined with some mental imagery, and even Whimper couldn’t keep track of her striking arm. He hadn’t been able to track August that well, and that was with a rush. This close, only a few paces’ worth, he was toast.
Though, to be fair, he did manage to look down before the blow landed.
“One!”
She hit him with full power this time, not like the demo against Rumble. This kid, she couldn’t afford to hold back against. His belly fur rippled with the impact. The air around her sizzled with cold hate.
“Two! Three!”
The blows on his chest set him upright, but his footing remained stable.
She couldn’t knock him back. All that strength behind her attack, full power, and he wasn’t standing back. She had to take a step back herself to make room.
“Four!”
Her right arm hurt, hitting that hard skin of his. Her muscles ached, but she pressed on, flooding his body with poisonous metallic magic.
“Five six seven!”
The final three blows were enough to make him buckle at the knees and fall forward.
He didn’t scream, or cry. He just went down.
Silver Spoon panted for air when she was done. She could see why Master Blazing wanted this kid on their team now. A talent like that, he would bring home a lot of trophies. But he was still no match for her. She’d gotten him. She’d burst him down.
“Err, Blazing?”
The unicorn turned to face the pegasus Royal Guard who’d spoken up. “Yes?”
“You tried getting that kid on your team?”
“Yes. I’ve taught him a few things, helped him out, he didn’t feel like joining. He made a mistake, and I intend to correct him on that. Why?”
The unicorn smiled, but the tension on his face betrayed how much force it took to keep that up. “Err, eheh, just, umm… you might wanna leave that kid alone. He’s got a reputation.”
“I know, and I shall put it to excellent use. He’ll make a fine Feather Cloak,” Blazing insisted.
The guard shook his head. “No, he won’t. He’s too violent, even for your school. You can’t control a kid like that. You don’t know what he’s done.”
“I know he’s attacked his classmates, and he skips out on classes.” Blazing squinted. “And why would a Royal Guard even care about that?”
Said Guard gulped. “Because if you get that kid in your class, you’re gonna get a lot of injuries. I’m telling you, let him go. It’s better that way. You don’t know what else he’s done. Everyone else agrees, I’m just here to warn you: he’s not worth the risk. No kid is worth that kind of risk. If you don’t wanna listen, that’s fine, but it’s on you, then. That kid is dangerous.” He turned and walked away.
“Risk, huh? Please. What did he do, rip a guy’s head off?” Blazing asked as the guy’s back was turned.
That remark made the Guard’s jaw lock. “Well, now that you mention it...”
Blazing didn’t hear. A Feather Cloak must be focused on the battle, after all.
Whimper was down. She’d done it. Her arms trembled, both from the muscle tension she’d forced through them and from the magic she’d injected, something pulsed in her head, and she was pretty sure her heart wasn’t beating normally. But that was to be expected, after pushing her body past its limits like that.
She turned her back on his prone form and walked away to let the medic ponies take care of him. “Geez… he almost got me.”
“Behind you!”
By the time Master Blazing’s cry reached her ears, the cold stabbing pain in her back registered. It felt like a sting, only with a very large and very cold stinger behind it. She felt herself be pushed forward and hit the ground face-first.
When she got up, Whimper was up again, like nothing had happened.
“Ow!” she cried out, rubbing over her itching back. It wasn’t a hard blow, probably wouldn’t even bruise, but she still didn’t appreciate it. “What was that? Don’t you have any honour?”
“Don’t you?” Whimper asked. “You train in ninja martial arts. So do I. Honour only matters when you live.”
She got back on her hooves, shakily. “Wait… how are you still standing?”
“You like to call out your attacks, don’t you?”
“Wha…”
“Seven Deadly Blows? That’s a Mercurial Hoof thing, right? I know that trick, too. It’s pretty neat. But it’s only a warm-up.”
Silver Spoon felt the blood drain from her face. “But… but you should be in agony right now. I hit your internal organs; you can’t train to protect those.”
Whimper let his head hang and laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
When he looked up again, that smile of his had turned downright creepy. “You read too much Neighruto.”
“I don’t understand.”
Whimper rose up on his hind hooves and took a deep stance. Shadow Stance; one arm up, one down and behind his back, leaving a hoof at tail height.
“Didn’t your master tell you? I’m a hard case. I like looking into the weirder martial arts. And in the one I practise, learning to protect your internal organs is the first thing you learn.”
“No way.”
“Yes, sorry. Most ponies don’t bother with it, but it’s fun for me. And no one taught me. I learned on my own, and I’m here to measure up. So far, I think I’m doing pretty well. What do you think?” He tensed his arms, making the veins under his fur throb. Silver Spoon could almost see the ghostly form of arm blades sticking out of his bracers.
He was flexing. He was trying to intimidate her.
“I think you’re bluffing.”
“Only one way to find out.”
Diamond Tiara was aghast when Whimper got back up. “How did he take that?”
“Take what?” Live Wire asked.
“Silver Spoon hit him dead-on! He should be out cold.”
“You really don’t know much about martial arts, do you?”
Whimper dropped his guard to let his arms fall to his sides and took a deep breath.
Silver shivered. This is bad. My combo didn’t work. Why didn’t it work? What kind of pony is this?
A slight pang of familiarity rang through her brain then.
That stance… that’s not a regular ninja stance, not with his arms bent like that.
“Eagle Talon Style: Sinking Island Strikes.”
He closed the gap in the blink of an eye and punched into her lower belly, before turning the motion into an uppercut slice that ran up the surface of her torso, then pushed her chin up and back so she couldn’t see.
How? How did he counter that attack?
Stumbling back, she barely saw him go back into his scissoring pose and open up, pressing into her neck and cutting down at her chest fur with the edges of his hooves. He made a full circle and brought down his arms on her shoulders, forcing her down and making something crack in her arms.
Lastly, Whimper put the edges of his hooves together. He swooped up, smacking her on the nose, then down on the right side of her neck, like a sword cut.
Silence fell.
Whimper backed up, Silver stumbled upright. “Tch… di… T-that’s it?”
“Do you want to surrender now?”
She was in agony. Every nerve ending in her body screamed at her to make it stop. “No. What kind of fighting is that, anyway? Why aren’t you out cold?”
“Umm, maybe you didn’t hear: my style of fighting is called Eagle Talon, it’s usually with blades sticking out of these things here, adds a nice weight to the workout. And I’m not out cold because you didn’t really hit me that hard.”
“Liar. Eagle Talon’s just a physical style, it doesn’t have any internal jutsu. You don’t have any internal jutsu; you can’t if you don’t have a master. You’re cheating somehow. There’s no way a pony like you can take the Seven Deadly Blows. That’s why they’re called deadly.”
Whimper pouted, then tilted his head again like a curious puppy would. “If the Seven Deadly Blows are so deadly, why do you need seven of them?”
Silver Spoon’s cheeks reddened with rage. “I don’t have to take that from you. I’m the top rookie in the Feather Cloak School, my daddy is Silver Bullet.”
Whimper smiled for the briefest moment. “Oh, I know. Where is he?”
“What?”
“Where is your dad? Is he here to watch you? I mean, this is a Warrior Meet, right? Showing off those fancy moves? Pretty big day. My parents aren’t that much into fighting, but I’m sure a Royal Guard would want to see this sort of thing. So, which one of the Guards is he?”
She growled. “None of them. He’s not here.”
“I’m sorry.”
His words hurt almost as much as his combo did. “I don’t have to take that from you.”
“You said that already. Is your dad the one who taught you how to react to an attack? Or the threat of one?”
Silver Spoon felt herself backing up, in a reflex. “Yes.”
“It takes a special kind of sensitivity to get that. I’m sure that’s why you’re so good at Mercurial Hoof, too, huh?”
“Did Scootaloo tell you that?”
He shook his head. “She didn’t need to. I know Silver Bullet, I’ve heard of him. Come to think of it, he might know me. And I know the techniques. I know what the Royal Guard can do. I know what to expect from you.”
“That doesn’t make a difference. I’m still way better than you.”
“What do you mean?”
“What?”
“Do you mean you’re a better pony than me, do you mean you’re more important, or do you mean you’re a better fighter?”
Silver Spoon shook her head to clear it. “Stop trying to get in my head. You don’t know whom you’re dealing with.”
“No. But I can take a guess. And I’m pretty sure your master didn’t tell you anything about me, aside from maybe my lung problem. Besides that, as strong as you are, your energy skills are coarse, umm, diluted. So I still have the advantage.” He took a deep breath and folded his front hooves, before pressing them together. If he’d been wearing his blades, they’d have locked. “But it’s okay. Your friends couldn’t figure me out, but I’m sure you could, with your background. Do you know what this is? You should. It’s what your master would be teaching, if he knew anything besides the warm-up.”
Of course. Those attacks, he always stopped in specific stances. Arms out, arms up, arms folded, arms wide… I know this.
Extending her senses, she felt his energies swirl and condense inside of him.
He wasn’t just packing muscle under his skin; he was packing magic.
That’s why her attack didn’t work; his internal organs were already coated. He was armoured inside and out, he didn’t have to flush out her magic. Only now did the bit drop in Silver Spoon’s mind. “That’s no normal martial art. That was an Iron Saddle form? You know Iron Saddle?!” She called out loud enough for the crowds to hear.
“What’s Iron Saddle?” Diamond Tiara asked.
“It’s a conditioning technique, or a whole bunch, actually, usually reserved for Wonderbolts and stunt ponies,” Live Wire explained. “There are two basic ways to use energy and intent in combat: healing and harming. Both require technical skill in projection and a mastery of your emotions. But then there’s the middle ground, used for training: packing.”
Diamond raised an eyebrow. “Say what?”
“Using a regimen of, err, unorthodox training methods, an Iron Saddle user compacts their energy in their body. The result is different kinds of hardness in the body. Silver Skin, what the Feather Cloaks can do, is one of the techniques,” Live Wire explained. “They only know the two basic skills. The actual Iron Saddle positions are the advanced form of that.”
“But I know that August guy. He never used any other techniques like that,” Diamond said.
“He wouldn’t. Like I said, projection requires a technical skill, too, and packing’s no different. Packing energy requires a strength most ponies don’t have: static strength. You have to be able to stand perfectly still and breathe into your body.”
Fleur nodded. “Iron Saddle made its way into several different schools, but most of them only studied it as a curiosity: blood washing, marrow cleaning, that sort of thing. The techniques themselves are legion, and the intended uses just as diverse. The ones related to hardening muscles are Chineighse in origin, and are usually summarised to eighteen postures: nine sitting, nine standing: Pan’Do Palm and Pan’Do Fist. Well, technically it’s over twenty, I suppose, but there are eighteen that are specific to that discipline, each focusing on different muscle groups. Most of them don’t have much of a combat application, and their effects tend to come naturally for advanced warriors anyway, so, like I was explaining earlier, most martial artists don’t bother with them. Most don’t even believe it works; they think the hardness in the body is a side effect, not something you can train. Regardless, with it coming naturally, there’s no point in even trying to develop it, for most. For him, though…”
“So it’s just that? Postures?” Cheerilee asked. “That doesn’t sound so bad.”
“Iron Saddle is purely postures, yes,” Fleur replied. “If that. It’s an internal technique, advanced meditation and breathing. It’s closer to yoga and tai chi than anything else.”
“What about attacks?” Cheerilee asked. “Is he going to strike her again? With… Iron Saddle?”
Fleur shook her head. “Oh, no, no. The Nine Stances of the Pan’Do Fist is purely a conditioning technique, not a martial art. That kata he performed just now was an Eagle Talon form, it has nothing at all to do with his skill in Iron Saddle,” Fleur lied. “But of course, it can be used in combat with a few alterations. That’s why he likes his arm blades: it lets him get used to using the length of his arms as a weapon, rather than just the striking points. It’s easier to incorporate Iron Saddle into a style like that. Look closely now, you’ll not easily find another pony who fights like this. It’s not something most ponies even believe in, and the ones that do, don’t use it for martial arts.”
Then again, he does have that... other technique in his inventory to combine it with.
Okay, Silver Spoon, think, think. If he’s using Iron Saddle, and his only physical moves are Eagle Talon, that probably means he doesn’t have any fancy moves; he wouldn’t have had time to learn. That’s why he didn’t do anything special with Starfall and August. All he’s got is regular strikes, and he’s used to arm blades, so expect him to swipe and stab.
So what kind of fighter is this? He’s not a regular ninja, or you’d know. The Pan’Do Fist is too generic to tell anything. But Eagle Talon, that narrows it down. Which school did he study? What book did he read?
She concentrated, and she practically saw the uniforms of the ninja schools overlap on him as she went over the options.
Black Calves of the Smoky Mountains? No, he’d be headbutting more. Wave Walkers of Tengu Lake? His head’s moving too much for that. What did he call that combo? Island Sinking? There’s no ninja school that sunk islands. Unless...
It finally clicked when she remembered that scissor pose of his.
Island Turtles. He targets all the points that aren’t covered by turtle shell armour. That’s what he is, that’s what he studied: the turtle killer style of ninja. That’s what this kid is.
A Shredder. He’s an armour-shredding ninja. An anti-tank tank, trained to weaken high-value targets so others can attack freely. An assassin that looks like a common grunt, right until they rip through the back lines.
“So you’re a Shredder, huh?”
Whimper went quiet for a good five seconds, before he smiled at her. It wasn’t even a mocking smile, or a cocky one. It was warm, welcoming, even thankful. “You really are good. Not a lot of ponies know about that.”
“I’m not like normal ponies. You must have read about those from Grandmaster Ash’s book.”
“I did. I like a lot of the ninja stories, but Shredders… they just appealed to me more, you know?”
“No, I don’t. What’s so special about them?”
“Can’t you guess?”
She grumbled. She should have known. “Shredders never run. They walk through the battlefield, out of sight.”
“Exactly. I liked that idea. Plus, I wanted to learn about pressure points anyway. So I read up on that style, copied what I could. Now, here I am. I guess now you know what to watch out for, too, huh?”
Silver Spoon nodded.
The Shredders didn’t act like regular ninja. They acted more like the Feather Cloak style; intimidation before stealth. Two things to watch for against one of those: the blow that breaks the armour and the blow that bypasses it. His scissor move would rip through armour in a big fight, but then there’s the soft spots he can target, weaknesses in armour.
Lower ribs, neck, under the arms, inner thighs. If I can block those off, he can’t do any real damage to me.
“Yup. The Iron Saddle thing is a nice decoy, actually. You almost had me worried. But I know what style you’re using now. I know what moves to expect. You can’t surprise me anymore.”
The tiniest of shy smirks appeared on his face. “Okay. If you’ve figured out what to do, do it.”
She looked at his belly then. His taut, muscular belly, swelling and compressing slowly. For some odd reason, despite the pain washing over her body, it relaxed her.
No wonder Scootaloo likes him.
Ugh! Get your head together, Silver Spoon! You can’t beat him in a long fight. Shredders are trained to take attackers head-on, split up crowds, stop rushes. His muscles aren’t gonna tire before yours, and he’s messing with your head. And even if he’s not wearing armour, you can’t break through his defences, not after the last tries.
Whimper tilted his head. “Well?”
Silver Spoon growled. A traditional Shredder would be wearing armour, with hidden knives at the ready to complement the arm blades. As brutal as their style was, it was still a tanky style, one that lacked pure speed. Theirs was a slower, more calculated way of fighting: they favoured situations where the pressure came towards them, to cut through enemy lines and stop advances. They didn’t rush forward or dash headlong into combat; they marched with the rest of the army until they could blend into the chaos and either find their mark or wade through the back lines with carnage in their wake. The best way to deal with one, aside from getting a Shredder of your own, was to immobilise them from all sides, find the chink in their armour.
There’s only one way to finish it quick: do a feint, get behind him, choke him.
He couldn’t block my last attack. I can still get the drop on him when I move at Deadly Blows speed.
Her joints creaked at the very thought. Her body wouldn’t take much more punishment like that, especially after the beating Whimper had given it.
I can’t lose.
As soon as she thought of it, she moved.
She feinted left.
Whimper didn’t react.
“Huh?” Regardless, she went into superspeed again and blurred her movements to go right and get behind him.
Swish.
With a quick tug, she got out a hidden piece of string from her mane and wrapped it tightly around his neck. She planted a hind hoof on his back, and pulled.
He pulled back, fighting her grip.
“Grrr… w-what? How did you-”
Whimper’s tail was up, caught in between the string and his neck. He’d managed to block her attack, and he pulled on his tail to relieve the pressure. But he didn’t pull hard enough to stop it.
He saw it coming. Could he have blocked me from doing this?
What is this kid?
“That was a dirty move, Silver Spoon. I’m not sure how I feel about that.”
Silver Spoon growled as she pulled the string tighter around his neck. “Come on, just a little more… you can’t keep this up forever, Whimper. Even you can’t do this; there’s no way your triceps can hold up against my legs.”
Whimper laughed, heartily and sincerely, even with the pressure mounting. His breath was coming in more raggedly now.
Silver Spoon rubbed the string side to side to get the tail hairs to flatten, increase the pressure. “What’s so funny?”
He coughed. “Nothing. It’s just something my counsellor used to say.”
“Huh?”
“A while back, before I bulked up, I had to see a counsellor, or a therapist, depends on how you look at it. He taught me how to relax, how to make clear pictures in my head. It’s helped me a lot with all this other stuff. It’s funny, because I’m really good at it. So good, he said that, if I’d been born a little different, I’d have gotten into Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. That’s why I have such a weird cutie mark.”
Silver Spoon had wondered about that. His cutie mark was some kind of blend between a whirlpool and an ancient magic symbol, but she couldn’t place it. It was three ink swirls orbiting a black circle, probably some kind of symbol of introspection or some such, or a makeshift ninja star. Her daddy would know what it meant.
“Then, when I started trying to get stronger and buff, well, you can imagine what the Earth ponies had to say about that.” His voice croaked as he spoke.
“Don’t try to stall me. That fancy Iron Saddle conditioning works with your breath. Shredders can’t block a choke. Rope jutsu are your weakness.”
“You know my style well.”
“I learned from the best,” Silver boasted. “I’ve got you dead to rights. If you can’t breathe properly, you can’t focus. You can harden your body as much as you want, but eventually you’re gonna fall.”
“Then I guess I shouldn’t try just elbowing you in the gut, huh?” He tried to gulp, but the pressure on his neck cut him off. “If you get flung back and don’t let go, that would hurt my throat even more. And a real choke would have thinner cord, or a sharper one, so I’ll pretend I can’t risk it at all.”
“Give up.”
“No. I wanna keep going. I want to show you, and your master.”
“There’s nothing more to show. Your Eagle Talon doesn’t have blocks against chokes, and even with your Iron Saddle on the side, Iron Saddle doesn’t have any attacks. I’ve read all the books on it, I know it doesn’t.”
“For most fighters, no, since Iron Saddle is only a conditioning technique. Nine seats, nine stances, nine muscle groups. Usually. But you only know the stuff martial artists wrote down. Training your internal organs, liver, lungs, kidneys, I didn’t get any of that from a martial arts book.”
“What?”
“I got it from an exercise book, actually. Conditioning for Stunt Ponies, by Hurricane Hue. Kind of a bigshot in Canterlot theatre, but only in the stuntpony crowd. You wouldn’t know him.”
Her arms shook with tension and rage. He was getting on her nerves with his incessant expositioning, and to make it worse, she couldn’t tell if he was doing it on purpose or if he was just this annoying by default. “Stop stalling. You’re done. You don’t have a counter to this and you know it.” She gritted her teeth and tightened her grip.
“Yes, I do. I’m trying to tell you: you’re forgetting one other technique. A very important technique for stunt ponies, but not one everypony uses. It’s a stance, a defence, and if you haven’t noticed it yet, you’re gonna want to let go really soon. I’m surprised you fell for it, honestly. But I guess your daddy wouldn’t have told you. I’m sure you’ve seen it, though.”
Silver Spoon’s blood boiled. He really did know who her father was. “What are you talking about?” She squeezed the boy’s neck again. He pulled right back, using his tail to fight her grip. As much as he wanted to stop herself, she went over the list of Iron Saddle techniques she knew he could use, but none of them would help here. Brass Belly? Treetrunk Thighs? Axe Arms? Bear Traps? Lead Chest?
“I’m smiling because you forgot. I’m smiling because this is the first time it’s come up. You get to be the first pony I try this on. I hope it doesn’t hurt too much. Do you like the Wonderbolts? Ever see one of their shows?”
Silver Spoon felt a bead of cold sweat roll down her back, right as she felt the pressure mounting on her belly. That moment of trepidation, when she realised her mistake, she realised she was about to die. “Oh no.”
“I wasn’t born an Earth pony, or a unicorn. But I wasn’t born wrong, either. I was born a pegasus. And you forgot about Iron Saddle’s tenth seat and stance.”
Silver Spoon braced herself, but the feeling of metal digging into her flesh was too much for the girl.
Her life flashed before her eyes in the mere seconds he took to announce her demise.
“Pan’Do Fist, Stance Ten: Steel Wings!”
SHING! With a mighty flap, his wings spread back, and his attacker let go.
Silver Spoon barely had time to register the pain all over the front of her body.
Cut me. He actually went and cut me. He would have torn open my chest if it hadn’t been for my Silver Skin.
She got a rough encounter with the hard stone of the arena, back first. While she rubbed her chest to check for any bleeding, Whimper turned and rose to his hind hooves slowly, calmly, rubbing his neck.
His taut belly swelled and shrunk as he breathed in deep and discarded that ninja string. He raised his front hooves up to chest height, elbows hanging limply.
“Guess you want to play rough now? Okay, now we’re both roughed up.”
“Oh, now she’s done it,” Live Wire said.
“Done what?” Rarity asked.
“She tried to choke him. Never, ever, try to choke him.”
“I think he’s done playing around now,” Fleur said. “Pay close attention to this, Rarity, this next trick is a great conversation piece.”
“What trick?” Moongazer asked. “What did you teach him?”
“I keep telling you, I don’t teach that boy anything. He learns on his own. And to answer your earlier question, Cheerilee: Iron Saddle itself does not have any substantial attacks, no moving katas. What it does, the actual practice, is bring power and tension into different groups of muscles and organs, sequentially. That, along with the difficulties in replicating results, is why most ponies don’t bother. Power like that is an adjunct to practice, but ponies like Whimper make it into a practice itself. His motions, he got from a book. He has no teacher. So you should realise, what he’s about to do… he didn’t learn from me.”
Apple Bloom tensed when she saw Silver Spoon be forced to let go. “Did he just… did he just try to cut her open?”
“I don’t think he would’ve gone very deep,” Scootaloo replied. “It’s just a scratch. Scary, though.” She shuddered.
“Has he done that to you?”
Scootaloo shook her head. “No. But things get out of hoof with him pretty easily. That’s part of why I didn’t bring him over. I wanted you to like him.”
“Like him?! He’s every bit as bad as Silver Spoon, he might even be worse.”
“Not worse; stronger,” Rumble replied. “He’s got her now. Silver Spoon’s burned out, so he can pretty much beat her down if he wants.”
“And how would that be different from what he’s been doing?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“Just watch. He’s the one who taught me how to do contact magic. He can do a lot scarier than me.”
“Scarier, how?”
Rumble lowered his voice to a whisper. “You can’t fight him as long as he’s touching you.”
“Huh? So he’s got another Death Touch?”
“That, too. But he’s got another ace up his sleeve. Something even the Feather Cloaks don’t know about.”
Silver Spoon felt something cold and heavy land on her left shoulder. It was his arm.
“What are you doing?”
“Showing off my technique. You’re spent. You’ll be slow enough to demonstrate it now. Starfall went too fast for that.”
“I am not spent!” She swung a punch at him, despite the pain in her muscles.
A harsh nudge threw her back before her arm moved an inch.
“Huh?” She slapped his arm off her, he replaced it on the other side.
She tried to kick him, he kicked her before her hoof left the ground. She jabbed him, he slapped her arm away before she could take aim. She tried to step back, he’d already taken a step forward. And all the while, he kept touching her.
He wasn’t grappling her, or pushing her, just touching her, always touching her.
“You’re not going to give up, are you?” he asked.
“Never. I am a strong disciple of the Feather Cloaks,” she managed to say. “I’ll never surrender to a runt like you.”
“Isn’t that kind of the problem?”
“What?”
Blazing Trail grumbled as he studied Whimper’s motions. Always that little extra tug, bending along to follow the arm of the opponent while it was retreating, always that gentle touch on her shoulder, or keeping his hind hoof touching hers. He was sticking to her, reading her even as he jabbed so mercilessly into her flesh.
So that’s how he beat Starfall. That’s what she was trying to say. “No question now. Silver Spoon! Don’t let him maintain contact!”
“What?!” Silver Spoon called out.
“He’s using Blind Bullfrog Technique! He can read your moves as long as he’s touching you!”
“What’s Blind Bullfrog?” Silver Spoon asked.
“You don’t know about this technique?”
“No.”
“I’ll show you, then.” With that, he delivered a gentle nudge to her shoulders, jabbing an icy cold into her arms. “You were saying something about Eagle Talon being too simple? This is one of the higher level techniques of the armed style, a secret anti-ninja ninja technique that takes a special kind of training to master. Think of it as the long-lost secret of the Shredders. It’s kind of like your Death Touch, or a Healing Touch. Only, you know, not. I’ve never measured it against anypony outside of a sparring match. I wonder how well it works on you.”
Silver Spoon’s lungs ached, and trying to move her right arm made her left leg twitch. Her body was being overloaded, poisoned somehow. But worst of all was the boy’s touch. Every instinct she had screamed at her to get away, get him to stop touching her, but nothing she did helped.
She tried to turn, he’d already stepped forward to block it. She tried to kick him in the belly again, his off hoof was already down to push it aside.
And through it all, he kept one hoof on her. On her shoulder, on her chest, on her head, she couldn’t shake him. He was everywhere.
“Stop… touching me.”
“Make me.”
“Slow down and I will.”
“I am slowing down, this is just to show off. You know you can’t predict my moves. But I can, umm, how do they say it, read you like an open book.”
“Don’t talk to me like that. I’m stronger than you, and faster.”
“Okay. Prove it.”
“Rrrhaaaa!” She flailed her arms out and shoved him back. Whether he was genuinely caught off guard or if he’d let her get some distance, she didn’t know, and she didn’t care. She was just glad to be away from him.
Now all she had to do was punch him until he was unconscious. And she had to do it without passing out. And somehow getting through his Iron Saddle defences. Without taking a hit in the process. At least the cold creeping up on her numbed some of the pain.
I am an alpha pony. I can do anything.
Whimper blinked and nodded. “Wow. That was pretty impressive.”
“Told you I was the best.”
“Top rookie, I know. And your dad is Silver Bullet. You’ve been going on about that for a while now. I mean, I don’t mean to disrespect you, but I’d be careful with the bragging, especially now that you’re worn out. Ponies usually want you to prove stuff like that.”
She groaned and winced. “So what? You think you can just waltz in here and hijack my big day? You think you can do what Scootaloo did to me?”
He shook his head and smiled. “No. If I really wanted to, I could have finished it a while ago. I’m just trying to do you a favour. Like your Master is trying to do me a favour.”
“How do you figure that?”
“Well, for one thing, I know how you feel. I used to be like you: torn up.”
“I am not torn up.”
“Sure you are,” he explained. “On one hoof, you want everyone to acknowledge you, to tell you how great you are. That’s the part that’s trying to fight. That’s the part that won’t give up. But on the other, there’s the part that’s scared and lonely. The part that just wants to curl up somewhere warm and hide with a friend. The part that doesn’t want ponies to think you’re a monster, but to pity you. That’s the part you’re trying to bury. But you can’t. No matter how you look at it, you’re trying to fight a part of yourself.”
“You really are full of it. I guess that’s where Rumble got it.”
“Am I?”
Silver Spoon growled and wiped her eyes, but not for any tears. “Come on. I broke your technique once. I won’t fall for it again.”
“Are you sure? You’ve tried to go through four adrenalin rushes now.”
Four? It was only three. Wasn’t it?
She panted and coughed. “Of course I’m sure. Do you have any idea who I am? I’m the youngest pony to ever take the Spear Test. Do you even know what that means?”
“Uhuh. It means you’re really fast. But even that, I still wouldn’t brag about.”
“Why not?”
He fell silent. His gaze hardened. “Do you know who I am?”
“You’re Scootaloo’s friend from Flight Camp, so what?”
With a face that was somewhere in between a cocky smirk and a nervous smile, he reached in between his left arm guard and his cannon. Once he got what he wanted, he pulled it up for all to see.
An alicorn patch, one of a black figure with a white moon cutie mark and a white one with a black moon mark circling around each other. Thread by thread, a woven proof of mastery.
The filly staggered back at the sight of it. “No way. That’s a fake.”
“It’s not.”
Silver Spoon shivered. Her resolve, hardened and burning, had sunk into the tips of her hooves. “Wha… who are you?”
Whimper shrugged. “I’m the youngest pony to ever pass the Spear Test.”
Ash grumbled at Princess Luna. “You went behind my back.”
“He had the aptitude for it, Ash. And his condition was worsening by the day. I had no choice. And it did fix his acute problems.”
“Did you at least use the modern standards this time?”
“What modern standards?”
Ash groaned and pressed a hoof to his forehead. “Oh, for the love of… we don’t use live blades for the Spear Test anymore, Your Highness! We haven’t done so in fifty years.”
“Huh. Well, today is proving very educational. I approve.”
“It’s over, Silver Spoon. You’re finished. You can surrender now, there’s no shame in it.” Whimper put his patch away.
She trembled with rage. “You… you took away my big day. The one time I could beat those blank flanks at something, and you took it away.”
“Is... that a ‘no’ on the surrendering?”
She screamed and galloped for him, only to freeze in mid-punch.
“G-guh...”
She collapsed into a coughing fit, tears flowing down her face. The pain that had been numbed by the cold magic came back with a vengeance, and circled around her lungs.
She couldn’t breathe. Her lungs were on fire, blackness crept into the edges of her vision. The air she so desperately needed was right there in front of her, but no matter how hard she tried to gulp for it, it wouldn’t pass through. She could feel claws digging into the soft flesh behind her ribcage, squeezing to cut off her futile attempts at breathing. “What did you do to me?”
“What you tried to do to me: I hit a nerve point. One attached to the lungs. It wasn’t a surface blow, either, so… sorry.”
“B-but the point for the lungs is...”
“On the back. Pretty small, too. There are three, actually, so I could take my pick.” He tilted his head and gave her a gentle nudge to put her on her back. “You might say I have some experience with those targets. An attack through the skin’s surface would have been too obvious. Starfall didn’t even notice hers bouncing off me. You Feather Cloaks are all about the big targets, attacking or defending. You’d have looked out for that kind of crude attack. But a precision strike? One on a tiny pressure point? You didn’t even feel it with all that adrenalin rushing through you.”
It dawned on her. When I hit him with the Seven Deadly Blows. He got me in the back. That’s where those points are. “But… all that time...”
As if on cue, she heard a cracking from where the judges were sitting. The middle block finally crumbled.
H-he… he cracked the middle stone. That’s an armour-piercing blow. That’s second or third level in his style. If he hits me in the chest with that, he could strike my heart, he could…
He could have killed me.
He could have killed me even if I’d worn armour.
She realised why he’d asked her about the Seven Deadly Blows then.
Why would he be interested in the Seven Deadly Blows? He only needed one.
Whimper gestured to the cracking stone. “Pretty cool, huh? It’s a delayed Death Touch. Gives you some time to talk, to let the opponent surrender. And if they refuse, or if they turn on you after you think they’ve given up, well… at least they can’t go after anyone else.”
Silver Spoon shuddered. The pain in her lungs, those claws that weren’t there, tightened like a vice.
He planned this. He knew I was going to try this.
He could have blocked that attack.
He’s got a lung problem, he can’t dash behind me to hit me, he had to wait for me to turn my back on him.
He knew.
He knew everything I was going to do.
He smiled at her. “Don’t worry; it’s not permanent. I know how much this hurts, you don’t deserve that kind of pain for life. But it’ll last for a while, longer than this fight will. You’ve lost now. Do you want to give up?”
“Never.”
“I thought you might say that. Go on, then.”
“What?”
Whimper took a deep breath through his nose and closed his eyes, thinking out loud. “Your master keeps saying any pain, any damage you’ve suffered, is something you can get past if you just will it hard enough. That’s what he said I should do to get over my weakness. You still think you can beat me. Your master says your weakness can be overcome. So I want to see you do it.”
“You’re just making fun of me.”
“Yes. I’m making fun of you,” he said matter-of-factly. “Pretend I’m making fun of you, if you think that’ll help. I want to know if he’s right.”
She bit through the pain and got up while he backed away to give her space, then she swung straight at his chin with all her might.
Apple Bloom winced. “What is she doing? I thought she was down for the count?”
“Feather Cloaks are all about adrenalin,” Rumble explained. “She’s got one last rush left. After that…”
“Geez. It’s like she’s dying or something.”
“No,” Scootaloo said. “She’s not dying. There wouldn’t be any point.”
Whimper dodged the punch effortlessly, giving her a rough clap on the chest. She still flung that same arm at him with the last ounce of strength she had left. He swatted it away so she’d fall like a ragdoll.
He leaned over her as she wheezed, desperate for air and power. Still, he had that damnable smile on his face. “Had enough?”
Silver Spoon panted, her whole body burning with pain. That last rush had destroyed what little strength she had left. The itch on her back was driving her mad, her right arm, her striking arm, felt like it was broken, her legs were deflated somehow. And that agony in her chest wouldn’t relent.
The reality of it finally sunk in.
I can’t beat him. He’s stronger than me.
There’s nothing I can do.
I lost.
He’s gonna hurt me, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.
She couldn’t even cringe when the boy leaned in close to whisper in her ear. “Do you surrender now?”
She tried to croak out a response, but nothing came out. Her throat had locked up, too.
I can’t give up. I can’t surrender. He’s just gonna choke me, to get even for Rumble.
To get even for Scootaloo.
What have I done?
He’s gonna go after Diamond Tiara next.
I won’t be able to stop him.
I’m so sorry, Diamond Tiara.
I tried.
“She gives up.”
What?
“She gave up, everyone,” Whimper said to the crowds. “She just told me.”
Ash shrugged. “Victory to Doldrum Whimper, then. Master Blazing, any other contestants you’d want to throw at him? Any remarks or observations regarding his performance?”
“No,” came the reply. “No, I think I will turn over the matter of judgement to the Association, Master Ash.”
Ash snorted. Sure. Make somepony else responsible for him. After that, can’t say I blame you.
Silver Spoon felt something lift her up. Something cold, that warmed up as it moved her around.
“You did really well, you know. Your techniques are amazing, and you know a lot, too.”
“W-wuhre...” she stammered as she felt her body be moved. The warmth flowed into her throat and let her voice return, slowly.
“I’m giving you what you wanted,” he whispered as he carried her. “This is your big day, remember?”
The warm thing underneath her gave way, and her body slid unto a soft thing instead.
“There. Now you can relax, and enjoy the attention,” he whispered again, before backing away.
Fluttershy needed no further cue to get to work. “Oh my gosh, what did he do to you? Umm, does this hurt?” She picked up the girl’s right arm and stretched it.
“Ow!” She yelped. “H-haa...”
Fluttershy put an ear to the girl’s chest. “Looks like he got your lungs pretty hard. Oh, you two… you’re injured too, little boy.”
“Whimper, Miss. My name is Whimper,” he rasped, rubbing his sore throat. “I’m fine, I think. I’ve been choked before. I don’t suppose you have a eucalyptus drop?”
“Here,” Fluttershy gave him something to suck. “Is that better?”
He smiled and nodded, before clearing his throat. “Lots. Thank you.”
Silver Spoon stared at him. How was he so calm about all this? Why wasn’t he angry?
Whimper noticed the eyes on him. His ears twitched, and Silver Spoon averted her eyes, clenching them shut to hide the pain of getting balmed and bandaged up in front of everypony.
Whimper turned around to face the other pairs of eyes on him. Rumble, on the makeshift hospital bed next to Silver’s, didn’t look at him; he was too busy wincing in sympathy at the treatment Silver was getting.
Scootaloo and her friends, however, had their eyes firmly on the muscled pegasus colt.
It had finally happened: he’d made a first impression on Scootaloo’s friends.
Not exactly how he’d pictured it in his head.
“Umm… hi?”