//------------------------------//
// The Day Before 
// Story: Pinfalls, Promos and Princesses 
// by Redback Spino 
//------------------------------//

"Hey Twilight, I'm back!"

Spike's voice echoed through the glittering halls and chambers of the massive crystal castle that was his home. It had taken some getting used to, but thanks to some renovations and redecorating here and there, the place was starting to feel like home. He sniffed the air and gave an appreciative sigh as he smelt the distinct aroma of freshly baked pancakes wafting down the hallway from the kitchen.

"Come on into the kitchen Spike," Twilight's voice replied from a few doors down. "Breakfast's ready!"

The young dragon jogged to the kitchen, following the sweet smell of batter and syrup, his charge tucked under his arm as he ran. He had been up at the crack of dawn to complete his first chore of the day: picking up the morning newspaper.

He plopped himself down at the kitchen table, watching with glee as a plate of thick, fluffy pancakes were levitated onto the tabletop before him, enveloped in a lavender aura. Following close behind them, held in a turquoise aura, were a small jug of syrup and some cutlery, laid out expertly by Spike's other house- or rather, castle-mate, Starlight Glimmer.

"'Morning Starlight," Spike said. "How ya doing this morning?"

Starlight gave a smile and yawned. "Ooh, I'm good Spike. Just a little sleepy because somepony had me up all night reading up on the correct form for conjuration of edible fruit, because that's apparently a useful spell," she added with a smirk and a raised eyebrow at Twilight.

"Now Starlight, if being the Princess of Friendship has taught me anything," Twilight replied, "it's that you just never know when you need to conjure up a quick snack out of nowhere."

Starlight simply rolled her eyes and chuckled under her breath, before digging into her own plate of pancakes. Spike and Twilight followed suit, the latter levitating over the newspaper from where Spike had left it, and flipping through it as she ate.

"Anything interesting in there, Twilight?" asked Spike through a mouthful of pancake.

Twilight's magic raised the newspaper up from where Spike had left it and started flipping through it as she skim-read the headlines.

"Hmm, not really. The Mayor dedicated a new gazebo in the park the other day... The Rich family are in talks to open a new Barnyard Bargains in Trottingham... Ehh, I'll read it properly later. Here Starlight, you want to tackle the crossword?"

She tossed it over to Starlight, who eagerly flipped it towards the funny-pages, where the puzzles awaited, a quill pen already in her magical grip. But she overshot a bit, and found herself confronted by an altogether bizarre image instead.

"Now this is new..."

Twilight looked up from her breakfast. "What is?"

The pink alicorn levitated the paper for all to see, revealing a brightly-coloured full-page advertisement. Bright, bold flashy text filled up the centre of the page, with small boxes of text scattered around the page, with the remaining space filled by headshots of athletic-looking stallions and mares who looked back at them. The ponies' images were gathered together in groups of three, some smiling proudly or confidently, while some were growling, gurning or sneering out of the page. Several wore colourful full-head masks of various garish designs, and a few had their faces and muzzles painted with elaborate designs. 

Among the trios of ponies displayed on the page, there was a group of ponies in sinister red, black and white costumes and masks, a trio of ponies whose matching masks appeared to have black antennae sprouting from them and a group of unmasked ponies dressed in what appeared to be police costumes. A strange mishmash of characters filled the top left corner, including a pony wearing what appeared to be a stylised frog-mask under a golden winged helm, a burly stallion with a horned iron helmet one would see in a museum who wore an expression halfway between a grin and a snarl, and a young mare with a bright purple mane, her graceful smile framed by the elegant silver tiara she wore on her head. 

There were many other colourful characters scattered about the page, including a trio of masked griffons in black bodysuits and masks with coloured stripes running up and down their bodies, a pair of mares in scaly lycra outfits joined by a stallion wearing elaborate purple and yellow facepaint that only highlighted his glaring yellow eyes, and strangest of all, a pair of ponies whose costumes seemed to be based on, of all things, ice-cream cones. The whole thing seemed to have a similar presentation to the front-cover of a comic-book.

"'Starting at 7pm tomorrow evening, Equestria Wrestling Entertainment is proud to present wrestling's premiere event, the King of Trios Tournament, in Ponyville Town Square'..." Starlight read aloud. "'Three nights of high-flying, hard-hitting, side-splitting wrestling action, as sixteen trios of the greatest wrestlers from EWE's roster and beyond, compete for the prestigious title of the King of Trios...'"

Twilight peered over at the paper with curiosity. "A wrestling show? Here in Ponyville?"

"There's more," Spike took over from Starlight, reading aloud in a tone much more excited than Starlight's. "'Watch in awe as Equestria's finest take to the air and find out who is the highest-flying wrestler of them all in the Rey De Voladores mini-tournament. Duck and cover as 10 teams clash in the Tag-Team Gauntlet. And best of all, families are welcome as everypony under 12 years of age enter free with a paying adult.' Cool!"

Starlight frowned. "Huh, I'll be honest, I had no idea wrestling was still a thing. I remember some of the colts and fillies back in my hometown were super into it when I was a little filly, but I never really got into it. Were you ever into wrestling, Twilight?"

"No, but my brother was," Twilight said with a reminiscent smirk. "Way back when we were young back in Canterlot, he was a huge fan. Hehe, knowing him he probably still has all his old magazines and wrestling dolls stashed away somewhere."

"Action-figures, Twilight," Spike said, wagging a claw. "Not dolls, action-figures."

Twilight tapped a hoof on part of the text. "It's kind of unusual that they promise that it'll be 'side-splitting', among other things. From what I remember, wrestling isn't really known for its comedy, is it?"

"Maybe they work standup into it? Or slapstick or something?"

"Whatever they do, I definitely wanna see it!" Spike said, clapping with glee. "It sounds awesome!"

Twilight raised an eyebrow at her young friend. "Really? I never took you for a wrestling fan, Spike. Have you ever seen a show before?"

Spike shook his head. "No, but this definitely makes me want to. And what better time than now, when it's right here in Ponyville! Plus, it says right there that I'd get in free if somepony comes with me."

But Twilight was not sure. Even back in her youth, wrestling was never something she was interested in. Her parents had always been wary about Shining Armour watching wrestling shows when they came to Canterlot, lest he get any ideas about moves he could try out with his cadet friends, and she had caught onto the 'sport's' not-so-secret secret pretty early on: That it was all fake. What point was there in fake fighting?

"Well, I'd be glad to chaperone you Spike, but I'm out of town tomorrow," Starlight said. "Trixie is doing a show a few towns over and wants me to help her set up."

Spike turned with eager eyes to Twilight. "Can we go Twilight? Please, oh please oh please?"

The alicorn frowned. "I dunno Spike. Doesn't wrestling seem kinda... Silly to you? I mean, they're using fake names, competing in fake-fights for fake-prizes ."

"It's not fake, Twilight, it's just staged," Spike replied. "Can we at least go check it out while they're setting up?"

Twilight opened her mouth to deny him this request. After all, she had a lot of reading to catch up on today, that simply could not wait. But then Spike did it.

The eyes.

Those big, pleading, puppy-dog eyes that he was oh so good at. How can I say no to those?

She rolled her eyes and gave him a smile "Oh alright, we'll go see what they're doing. I guess it can't hurt to at least see how big the show is-"

Her last words were cut off as Spike leapt at her with a massive hug. "Ooh thank you thank you thank you! C'mon, let's not waste any time. Who knows, maybe we'll even get to see some of the wrestlers!"

Twilight nodded. "Alright, just let me finish clearing up breakfast. Starlight, you good to look after the castle until we get back?"

"Can do. Let me know what it looks like when you do, it sounds kinda intriguing."





Twilight and Spike strode through the streets of Ponyville on their way to the town square. The streets seemed particularly busy for such a day. Then, Twilight noticed. "Hmm, there's a lot of ponies in town I don't recognise... Excuse me, are you here for the wrestling show?" she asked a passing pair of ponies, a stallion and a mare both in matching t-shirts with the slogan, 'Time for a sugar-rush!' emblazoned on it in yellow and black striped letters.

The mare nodded enthusiastically. "Heck yeah we are! We've been following EWE all over Equestria on tour. We never miss a show!"

"Especially when Songbird Starling is involved," the stallion added. "She's gonna be in the Tag-Team Gauntlet as one half of the Rumblebees! Can't wait!"

"You follow the show all over Equestria? Wow, that's... Some dedication you have," Twilight said, trying to sound as polite as possible.

One of the ponies then took a close look at Twilight. "Wait a minute... You're Princess Twilight Sparkle, aren't you!"

Spike nodded. "Yep, the one and only."

The two ponies squealed with glee. "Oh my gosh! I heard ponies say you lived in Ponyville, but I never believed them. It's an honour to meet you, your majesty!" they bowed low before Twilight, who could not help but blush at the attention.

"Uhh... Hehe, that's okay, it's... Nice to meet you too." She said nervously.

"So are you gonna be at the show too?" the stallion asked. "I never would have guessed one of the Princesses was a wrestling fan."

"I'm not!" Twilight quickly replied. The pair looked taken aback. "I mean... I don't have anything against it, I've just... I saw stuff about it when I was a little filly and I've never really been that interested."

The ponies chuckled. "Oho, well this sort of show probably ain't wrestling like you remember it. EWE shows are... Unique, shall we say," the mare said with a knowing grin.

"What do you mean?"

"You'll have to watch it to find out!" The stallion said with a laugh as they walked on. Twilight watched them go with a curious eye. What could that mean?

Finally, having navigated the hubbub of the town, the alicorn and the dragon found themselves in the town square, which was barely recognisable. Hundreds of seats were set up in the centre of the square, mostly on the ground, but the outermost  rows were on raised platforms, much like the  bleachers of a buckball game or a racetrack. A long raised walkway carved its way through the seats, from a large doorway obscured by a curtain to the centre of the arena, where the ring stood. About as tall as a rearing pony, it was a simple affair, a square platform with a canvas surface and steel scaffolding frame, with large metal posts sticking up in each corner, holding up three cables wrapped in PVC wrapping, stretched taut around the ring. In the centre of the ring, printed on the canvas were the three letters, EWE, standing out in bright white against the blue mat. 

All about the arena ponies in simple blue t-shirts and earpieces could be seen milling about, setting up chairs, lights, cables and all sorts of other preparations. A few muscular looking mares and stallions, and even a couple of griffons, could be seen among the staff, looking over the ring and testing the ropes and mat. Many were dressed casually, but several could be seen already in their masks and costumes. A small handful, Twilight noticed, were wearing casual attire, but still wearing their masks. A closer look revealed two of them to be the same bug-masked stallions she had seen in the newspaper ad.

Spike gazed around in awe. "Wow... You could probably fit, like, five hundred ponies in this place!"

"Seven hundred and ninety, to be precise."

Twilight and Spike jumped as a strange voice spoke up from behind them. They turned, and found themselves facing an altogether bizarre sight.

There before them stood a tall muscular stallion, his brown fur and strong build mostly concealed by a pair of black trousers, a heavy green belt and a long, dark coat with a high collar, ribbed in a way that the hem and collar resembled the wings of a bat. His head was entirely hidden under a black mask, with bright white eyes and trim, in a stylish imitation of a praying-mantis' head, complete with a pair of silver antennae sprouting from between his ears.

If Spike's eyes were wide at the sight of the arena, they were the size of dinnerplates at the sight of the strange masked stallion. "Woah... Who are you?"

"It is an honour and a privilege to meet a pony such as yourself, your majesty, and likewise to your little friend," the pony said in a nasally, but  powerful and elegant voice, no less dramatic despite being slightly muffled by his mask. He bowed dramatically to Twilight and Spike. "The Grrrreat and Deeeeevious Ultramanetis Black, at your service."

What is it with everypony bowing to me today? Twilight smiled and waved sheepishly. "Erm... Nice to meet you, mister... Black. Uhh, are you performing tonight?"

Ultramanetis stood up. "Of course. The Neo-Solar Temple will be making their mark, not only on the bodies, but the souls of those foolish enough to face us in combat! The King of Trios medallions will be ours before anypony can say..."

"There you are Manetis! Hydra and Crossbones have been looking for you!"

Three more figures approached them from a large gazebo set up outside the arena. A pair of masked ponies strode towards them, one a massive, portly stallion in a costume that seemed to be inspired by classical pegasus armour and a stylised skull mask, the other a far smaller, skinnier pony in a pair of form-fitting trunks and a mask that resembled some primordial sea creature, complete with fins protruding from the cheeks and grinning pointed teeth. The third was not a pony, however, nor was he masked. He was a ram, much smaller and slightly older-looking than the two masked stallions he accompanied, dressed in a simple blue and white polo-shirt with the EWE logo printed on the front pocket.

"Ah, Bryce," Ultramanetis said, waving gracefully to the approaching trio. "I was just welcoming none other than the Princess of Friendship herself, Twilight Sparkle, and her dragon companion here, to our little show."

The ram, beamed and bowed his head respectfully. "Oh really? It's an honour to meet you, your majesty."

Twilight grinned nervously and nodded back. "Likewise." Please can everypony stop bowing to me, it's getting kinda awkward.

"As for you Manetis, our 'little show' is far from being ready to begin, and you guys are cutting a promo tonight before your match. Shouldn't the Neo Solar Temple be rehearsing and warming up, perhaps?" Bryce said, raising a knowing eyebrow at the Great and Devious one.

Ultramanetis nodded. "Very well, Ramsburg. We shall retire to our quarters, to prepare for the night that lies ahead. Until this evening, your majesty, we hope to see you at the show."

With that, and a dramatic sweep of his coat, he led Hydra and Crossbones away towards the gazebo, both of them giving a polite nod to Twilight and Spike as they passed.

"Erm..." Spike watched the trio pass by with a mix of awe and concern. "Is he... Always like that?"

"You'll have to excuse Manetis," Bryce said to Twilight with a chuckle. "Even outside of shows, he likes to stay in character as much as possible. Heck, you can count the number of ponies who know what his real face looks like on one hoof. I'm Bryce Ramsburg, by the way, senior official of Equestria Wrestling Entertainment. So to what do we owe your visit?"

Twilight gestured with her head towards Spike. "We saw your ad in the newspaper, and Spike here insisted we go and check it out."

"Ah, a young fan, eh?" Bryce knelt down to Spike's eye level with a friendly grin. "So little guy, who are you rooting for in the Tournament?"

Spike sheepishly scratched the back of his neck "Well, er, I dunno really. I've never actually been to a wrestling show."

The ram's grin fell comically. "Never? Oh no no, that won't do, you two must come along! I guarantee you a show the likes of which you've never seen!"

Twilight raised a hoof in protest. "Well, that's nice of you to say, but I'm not so sure... I mean, are these sorts of shows really appropriate for a young dragon like Spike here?"

"I'm not that young..." Spike muttered under his breath.

"Oh yeah, we're big on family-friendliness at EWE," Bryce replied. "We keep bloodshed to a minimum, there's no bad language, everything's perfectly safe for our younger fans."

"See Twilight? I won't get traumatised or anything, it's all good. Please can we go? Plleeeeeaaaase?" Spike begged. Twilight was still unsure. Bryce's insistence on the show's family-friendly atmosphere assuaged her fears somewhat, but one nagging thought still gnawed at her: What would ponies think? How would ponies react if they saw that Princess Twilight Sparkle, part of the royalty of Equestria, was watching something as violent and, for lack of a better term, silly, as a wrestling show?

But then there they were again. Those big, pleading eyes of his. The same ones that had gotten Spike his first Power Ponies action figures, and had gotten him countless days off so that he could spend time helping Rarity at her boutique. And he had refined the puppy-dog eyes look to a fine art. Twilight could not help but smile at her friend. Well, if it means this much to him...

"Alright, you've convinced me" she said to Bryce.

Spike looked up at her. "You mean it, Twilight?"

The alicorn hugged him close. "Sure thing Spike. I'll be your accompanying adult."

"Wonderful!" Bryce said, braying with glee. "Oh this is such an honour! An actual princess at one of our shows! Wait until Buckenhoof hears about this, he'll be over the moon! And of course, we'll give you the real VIP experience, your majesty."

Twilight shook her head. "Oh please, just call me Twilight, and that's not necessary, really. I mean, I wouldn't want you guys going out of your way to..."

But Bryce would not hear it. "No no, we insist. If Equestrian royalty is gonna be gracing our show, you'll be getting the appropriate treatment. Front row seats right next to the ring for the same price as standard seating, half price on snacks and merchandise, free photos with the talent, the works!"

"Well, if you insist," Twilight said, conjuring up her coin purse. "I guess I better by myself a ticket then."

A few dozen bits later, and Twilight held a ticket in her magical grip. She could not help but smile at the look of sheer excitement and joy on Spike's face.

Bryce gave her a firm hoofshake. "Pleasure doing business with you miss Twilight, and you too, mister Spike. We can't wait to show you what we have in store tomorrow night, you two are gonna love it!"

Twilight nodded, as she turned to head out of the arena. "I'm sure we will."

"See you tomorrow Mister Ramsburg!" Spike called as they headed out the gate that would no doubt serve as the ticket barrier tomorrow. "Thank you so much Twilight! I know you don't seem that keen on seeing the show, but I'm super excited to see it. I owe you big time!"

Twilight gave him a playful noogie. "Well... I'm just glad you're excited. And who knows? Maybe it won't be as silly as I expect. If nothing else, I have to admire the scope of it."

"The scope of what?"

Twilight froze as she heard a familiar voice speaking from ahead of them. Turning from Spike she found herself face to face with Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie.

"Oh... Hi girls."