//------------------------------//
// Old Enemy Mine 
// Story: The Olden World 
// by Czar_Yoshi 
//------------------------------//

"Stop! Stop," Shinespark commanded, lifting a hoof and lighting her horn and pushing everyone away from the table so Valey could climb off and get to her hooves. "Someone explain what's happening. Monks?"

Groaning, Valey sat up and rubbed her head, glaring at Morena and looking both angry and concerned. "Ow, that hurt..." she complained, stiffly rubbing herself before looking to Shinespark. "So I spent a night at sea during a storm by kicking a boulder out of the cliff and sleeping in a cave about the size of my body. Got a little wet, very cold, very cramped, stiff, all that good stuff. Then I flew for way too many hours getting to a boat and stowing away until land, and was so sore I couldn't use my wings, which was why it took me so long to get back to you. Forget about running around that castle... I'm still stiff. I thought I just needed to sleep it off, but apparently miss rough-and-tumble here thinks it's actually a nerve attack or something from that stupid codger. It's not like I can't walk, or anything..."

"So those monks Diego was saying things about?" Maple tilted her head, breathing shallow. "Did you fight one? I don't remember you telling us about any fights."

"No, I... argh." Valey slumped, burying her head in her hooves before wincing and straightening back out. "It was that dumb mysterious-past batpony geezer from the sewers. I was wandering around there and found a room that was supposedly quarters for this tournament thing?" She sighed. "Dude was like, 'Hey, you look sore,' and his friends were like, 'Hey, he can help with that,' and I let them talk me into getting poked and prodded for a bit just like you just tried..." She flung a hoof at Morena. "I probably would've knocked his block off within a few seconds if it hadn't actually helped with my wings. I don't think it felt dangerous but... ugh. He said he used to work for their Night Mother church or something, too, I think."

Maple opened her mouth to ask why Valey didn't detect any danger, but suddenly thought better of it, noticing she had always avoided mentioning what her cutie mark did in the war room. She was dancing around it, but maybe she didn't want her biggest advantage revealed?

Slipstream huffed. "That's rude. Why would anyone just attack a stranger? Was he trying to rob you? You're both batponies, so if things are as hard as you described for you in this city, you'd think they'd want to work together!"

"Diego!" Wallace announced, protectively watching the proceedings. "An aged sarosian stallion, proficient in the northern ways and participating in pools during a Gyre delegation's visit?" He arched a massive eyebrow. "Something tells me we've stumbled across an old friend of yours."

Diego pounded one armored hoof against the other, nodding grimly. "It sounds like we have."

"What?" Shinespark glanced at him, Maple and Valey along with her. "That sounds familiar?"

"Oh, aye," Diego confirmed, staring out over the balcony railing at the setting sun. "He ended my very first streak in the tournament, third match of the third round, and then the dirtbag carded me. There are a lot of battles in my life I say I'll never forget, but that one sticks out at the forefront of my memory because I've never had a chance to return the favor. I know it's not a very heroic thing to think about, but some day I'm going to get a rematch, and teach him that cheaters never win."

"Cheaters? In this tournament?" Valey blinked. "Wait, he was..." Her eyes widened. "Bananas. He did that right after I mentioned wanting to enter, didn't he? Was he trying to sabotage me!?" She hissed, coat rising as her eyes narrowed. "I was thinking about helping them! Grrrrr..."

Diego shrugged. "Sorry to break it to you, but this tournament you've got your eyes on is an event specifically for entertainment purposes. The only purpose of the rules is so fighters can compete in getting away with breaking them."

Valey clenched her eyes shut. "I hate to break it to you, but this is pretty much making me want to enter just so I can pound him back in front of an audience. He kept going on about some way to enter late, but wouldn't tell me, and I thought he was just being annoying."

"Valey?" Maple interrupted. "Sorry, but you want to enter this tournament? We were watching some of the fights earlier, and even though they were lower-ranked, they looked brutal. And I thought we weren't trying to draw too much attention to ourselves? I did think of you when I saw it, but why?"

"Well, maybe the crone was lying there, too..." Valey relaxed, sighing. "But he said the prize for winning is that you get one wish granted by Garsheeva. Whatever you want. Including one of your Plains of Harmony passes, which would be a year faster than waiting for Yakyakistan to give us Birdo's."

Maple frowned down at her companion, who was still out cold. "Speaking of Gerardo, maybe someone should wake him up..."

"On it." Morena emptied the remains of her tankard over the snoring griffon's head, looking like he had passed from fainted unconsciousness into a regular deep sleep. With a sputtering cry, Gerardo awoke, shaking and spraying her, Wallace and Diego with droplets of drink.

"Bwaaaugh! Cease that!" Gerardo squawked, flailing. "My uniform does not take stains-" He quickly realized who he had just doused, beak drooping in shock.

"Peace, my friend!" Wallace laughed, patting Gerardo on the head with a wing. "You've missed quite a lot, but your sarosian ally is currently the focus of conversation!"

Diego nodded at Valey, ignoring being splashed. "Something tells me we're about to get sidetracked, but if you're looking for a Writ of Harmonic Sanction, that's definitely one of the popular prizes. However, wanting to be number one really isn't a good reason to enter the tournament. I'll let Wallace say why. He explains it far better than I do."

"The reason is simple!" Wallace grinned, ignoring Gerardo's stammered apologies and turning to Valey. "Because I have a wish too, and to claim victory, you would need to defeat me!" He coughed uncomfortably. "Ordinarily, I would challenge you to a friendly sparring match to give you a taste of what you would be in for. Unfortunately, I can't bring myself to fight an opponent who is at such a horrible disadvantage, so that will have to wait until you are at the top of your game! But realize that there can only be one champion, and many of the contenders will have devoted their entire lives to their cause! If I hear correctly, you want to save a year obtaining a rare item you already have stake to at the far end of the world? The tournament has been won by countless creatures over the centuries, but all of them have one thing in common: they choose their path and fight for it with every fiber of their being! From fiendish tricksters to heroic paragons to those blessed by forces beyond mortal comprehension, it takes everything the most dedicated of us have to give and more to succeed! While stories and legends are sung of those who capture the crown, the true winners in this battle are those who can accomplish their goal while still failing to become number one."

Valey blinked. "Blessed by forces beyond mortal comprehension? Are you exaggerating again?"

"A question for the ages," Wallace said mysteriously, Gerardo growing hopelessly lost behind him. "Many would assure me I am! But the wonderful thing about reality is that it is far more difficult to prove something not to exist than to discover that it does. And as every sarosian will tell you, the world is far bigger than just Garsheeva. During my travels I have met many creatures who say many things, and some who believe they are supernaturally empowered! The most famous of these is Giovanni Goldfeather, a lord who lived several generations ago and is enshrined in legend. Whether their tales are rooted in fact or fantasy is not for me to determine. But these are stories for another time, because you want to hear about the War of Heroes, and this tournament is an adventure one shouldn't go into unprepared."

"Pardon?" Gerardo sputtered, finally finding his voice. "We're not discussing Valey's potential entry into the Empire's yearly dueling event, are we?"

"We kind of are," Valey answered, standing unevenly with one shoulder beginning to twinge. "Listen, Bathtub, I've really just got one question..." She raised an emerald eyebrow. "The bozo in the sewers was going on about how the event had already started, but there was a late way in, or something. But he kept saying it was immoral, reprehensible, all that... Was he pulling my tail?"

Diego snorted, trying and failing to contain his laughter so hard that he fell out of his chair.

"Reprehensible, says he?" Wallace wore a knowing grin. "It sounds like someone got their just desserts after all! Late entry is dangerous, perhaps, and can earn you the ire of powerful enemies if you attempt to use it for harm, but I would hardly call it immoral! All you need is one of these!"

He whipped out a gleaming, golden something, and Valey's pupils went thin in the glare of reflected sunlight. It was a card, bearing the flawless portrait of a sphinx, tiny bits of color woven into the enchanting material in the form of shards of crushed gemstone.

"...Huh," Valey said, captivated by the shine. "This is a totally hypothetical question, but how common is it for hobos to mug you in bars just to slip one of those in your saddlebags?"