//------------------------------// // Monday Night Magic IV // Story: Equestria Wrestling Federation // by chillbook1 //------------------------------// Cheers filled the arena as the show began, the excitement from the previous night’s DisHarmony event still infecting the live crowd. The night after a pay-per-view was always an interesting night, if for no other reason than the fans. They brought with them a certain energy, a feeling that permeated the entire show.     “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Monday Night Magic!” said Celestia. “The most exhilarating part of your Monday nights! My name is Celestia Regal, joined, as always, by my broadcasting partner, Discord Redrum.”     “Starting us off, tonight, is a message,” said Discord. “A message from none other than the Magic General Manager, The Showstopper, Trixie Lulamoon!”     The regal, classy theme of Trixie floated into the arena, bringing with it the typical cascade of boos. Trixie emerged from backstage, in full ring gear, and with her EWF World Championship securely around her waist. After a moment, she was joined by her goons; First, the EWF Nationals Champion, Starlight Glimmer, and her tag team partner from the night before, Ember Torch. Then, a bit surprisingly, came more champions: The Dazzlings made their way along with the group, two of the three members wearing satisfied smirks. Only Sonata looked a bit apprehensive, no doubt due to the fact that two of her new cohorts were her opponents roughly twenty-four hours prior. She and Aria were the ones carrying the gold tonight while Adagio walked a bit ahead of them in a more managerial position.     Trixie led her Sovereignty down the ramp and to the ring, where Ember and Starlight propped the ropes apart to let their leader into the ring. The rest of Sovereignty followed, with Adagio entering last on account of rounding the ring to retrieve a mic, which she handed to Trixie.      “Times are good in Trixie’s kingdom,” laughed Trixie as the crowd voiced their displeasure. “My Sovereignty is growing! Ladies and gentlemen of the EWF Universe, give a warm welcome to Trixie’s newest acquisitions: The EWF Tag Team Champions, The Dazzlings!”     Adagio and Aria twirled around Trixie, striking a pose with one hand on their hip, while Sonata simply sat and watched meekly. The crowd peppered them with boos and jeers, which visibly irritated Aria. She was one-third of the greatest tag team to touch boots to the canvas, and she was literally seconds away from becoming Intercontinental Champion the night before. The continued disrespect was really starting to get under her skin.     “What you are looking at, ladies and gentlemen, is a collection of the most elite that the EWF has to offer,” said Trixie. “These five women represent the most skilled, the most savvy, the most loyal that Trixie has ever seen. They are my go-to girls. And they were one of the many, many, many reasons why I will continue to hold the EWF World Title, and why I will continue to be better than that washed-up, talentless, spineless former partner of mine, Twilight Sparkle, that old fool who thinks she could ever make it without the Great and Powerful Tr—”     The crowd erupted into cheers upon hearing the first few notes of a classic rock theme. To the shock of all who were watching, Twilight Sparkle made her way down the ramp, waving to the fans as she approached the ring. Though the ring was filled with six people who were nothing if not enemies of The Magician, Twilight limped her way into the ring with no fear. She took a mic from the approaching timekeeper, leaning idly on her cane.     We love Twilight! We love Twilight!     Twilight couldn’t help but grin as the crowd serenaded her with chants. She waited a bit for her fans to collect themselves before she addressed them all.     “You guys seem surprised to see me,” noted Twilight, immediately hit with another wave of cheers. “Well, that makes sense. It’s been years since I stepped foot in a Magic ring. You know, my very first match was on Magic. It was Might & Magic versus The Illusions, and we came out on top, didn’t we, Trixie?” Twilight smirked at her former friend, who had nothing but disdain for Twilight. “Ah, the times we had, back before you hated my guts. Those were the days. So, I guess what I’m saying is… It’s good to be home!”     The crowd burst into another series of cheers, loud, rhythmic chants of “welcome back” to the twelve-time, World Champion. Twilight gave a little bow of respect to her fans, her friends, who had been with her through the highs and lows of her career.     “What the hell are you doing here, Sparkle?!” demanded Trixie. “And give me one good reason why Trixie shouldn’t have you escorted out of the building!”     “I work here, Trixie. Even though you refuse to show up on my show doesn’t mean I can’t show up on yours. And—a bit of advice—I’d shut my trap if I were you,” said Twilight. “You’re going to want to hear this.”     Twilight waited a bit, letting the mystique build, before she began her habit of pacing the ring.     “I stand in this ring with some truly brilliant competitors. Starlight Glimmer, the perfect marriage of brain and brawn. Ember Torch, possibly the best technician in this ring not named ‘Twilight’.” The crowd popped at the slight dig from the Ascension GM, while Ember just seethed. “And who could forget The Dazzlings, arguably the greatest tag team wrestlers alive—again, out of the ones who aren’t me. Then you’ve got Trixie Lulamoon. The Showstopper. The thirteen-time World Champion. The only person to ever make me tap out. My old friend. The one who’s determined to be the last EWF World Champion in history.” “What's your point, Sparkle?” snapped Ember, having commandeered a mic of her own. “Where are you going with this?” “Oh, so she can still speak. I assumed you'd need your master’s permission.” Twilight was clearly having a bit of fun, which was a bit unlike her. She was usually all business, so this was a refreshing, albeit unexpected, departure. “And where I'm going with this, Ember, is that there is a lot of talent in this ring. I was wondering if, out of all this talent, we had any wrestling historians amongst us.” The arena went quiet, no one entirely sure what Twilight was getting at. The Magician seemed to be expecting this, as evidenced by her devious grin. “And I ask this because, Trixie, because I’ve been looking over our history lately. Our bloody path to the top, from the best of friends to the most bitter of enemies. And I noticed an interesting trend. So, who here can tell me, what is the interesting statistical anomaly regarding me and Trixie?” It stood quiet, not surprising Twilight in the slightest. “No guesses? There’s a trend among them, I swear, and it’s fairly strange. A semi-common occurrence. Nobody has a guess?” “Luchas de Apuestas.” Suddenly, all eyes were on Sonata Dusk, who, up to this point, had remained silent. She fidgeted on the spot, unsure if she had misspoken. “Very good, Ms. Dusk,” said Twilight with a grin. “Luchas de Apuestas! Gambling fights! Yes, Trixie and I have an inordinate amount of wager matches between us. Some of them as a team, some against each other, and others still against our various rivals. We won most of them, though our records aren’t perfect. The reason Might & Magic split, if you recall, was because we actually lost a Team vs Title match many years ago. So, why, you may ask, did I bring up this apparently irrelevant piece of trivia? Simple. I want to add one more wager to my record.” Immediately, the crowd began rabidly chanting “one more match”, which brought a bittersweet smile to Twilight’s face. She calmly raised a hand and slowly shook her head. “Not quite what I meant, I’m afraid,” said Twilight, receiving an audible “aww”. “Listen, I say to you honestly, I do not regret my retirement, and I’m certainly not intending to back out of it. No, no, what I mean is a wager, a proper wager. By my count, you have five wrestlers by your side. And, very easily, I could get five of my own. So, let’s have a match. Five on five, elimination tag match. Team Twilight versus Team Sovereignty, and, if my team wins… You will vacate the EWF World Championship.” “Why on Earth would I agree to anything as boneheaded as that?!” demanded Trixie, barely heard over the vehement cheers. “I have nothing to prove to you, Sparkle, I’ve made my point by beating you for the title that is currently sitting around my waist! What could I possibly have to gain by risking my title?” And, just like that, the entire tone of the conversation changed. Twilight shed her humorous, casual demeanor, suddenly becoming deathly serious. She stopped her pacing, staring down her rival with unwavering intensity. “I refuse to work in an industry in which the likes of you stifle the careers of up and coming talent,” said Twilight. “So, if your team beats mine, I will resign from the EWF and relinquish control of Ascension to you.” The crowd gasped, murmuring their shock and confusion. “You’ll have everything you ever wanted. The title, the company, and me, miserable and out of work. And all I ask of you is one match. One shot at the belt. If you prove that your team is superior to mine, then you can keep that belt for as long as you want. But, if I win… I want it up for grabs.” Trixie turned to her crew behind her, the Sovereignty, with a cautious gaze. All but Sonata were unwavering, stoic, but the last Dazzling couldn’t help but fidget. Trixie appraised her team, a devious grin slowly materializing onto her face. “Well, Twilight Sparkle,” said Trixie. “You’ve made a lot of foolish decisions in your life, but challenging Trixie is by far the most foolish. The Sovereignty will crush your team and claim what should have been Trixie’s from the very beginning!” Trixie unstrapped her belt and held it over her head. “Trixie accepts!” The crowd erupted into cheers, even clapping and stomping their feet. This was their chance, their last opportunity to see a new champion, and they couldn’t wait.     “Excellent! Then, why don’t you give me a few weeks to gather my five? Why don’t we have this little match of ours in three weeks?” suggested Twilight. “Three weeks from now, at the Nightmare Night pay-per-view, it will be Team Twilight versus Team Sovereignty in a Five-on-Five Elimination Tag Match! So, Trixie, I suggest you take your five and get to training, because I’m bringing my best.”     “Actually, Ms. Twilight.” Again, all eyes were on Sonata, especially those of her fellow Dazzlings. Just what was she doing? “Trixie doesn’t have a team of five. She has a team of four.”     The crowd cheered wildly as Sonata crossed the ring, standing by Twilight’s side. Sonata recoiled slightly at the glares she was getting from all of Sovereignty, no one more furious than Aria Blaze. The Siren Submission Specialist snatched the mic from Ember’s hand, glaring at her tag team partner with enough fury to melt steel.     “What the hell are you doing, Dusk?!” shouted Aria. “Get your skinny ass back over here before I break your spine!”     “Aria… I can’t. I can’t be with you and Adagio, not while you’re with Trixie,” said Sonata. “It was one thing when we were cheating to keep our titles, but what you and Adagio did last night to Luna… That’s too much. Is that what we are now? We just beat up on people for no reason? We’re not thugs. That’s not what The Dazzlings are supposed to stand for. So I won’t stand for it.”     “Airhead, get back in line,” said Adagio, swiping the mic from her less linguistic partner. “Whether you like it or not, you’re outvoted. Both Aria and I want in on the Sovereignty, and the Dazzlings move as one or not at all.”     “You know what?” Sonata pulled her title off and slid it across the ring. “I guess I’m not a Dazzling anymore.” Adagio slowly raised the belt from the ground, shaking her head in disappointment.     “You dunce… You’re going to regret that…”     “Welcome to the team, Sonata,” said Twilight. “With talent like yours, the title is as good as vacant.” As Twilight expected, Sonata gave no response. “Well, it’s been nice catching up, but I’ve got a team to put together! So, my dear friends, I’ll be seeing you! You recruit your competitor, Trixie, and we can finalize things when we’re ready. Until then… Good night, EWF Universe!”     Twilight’s theme resumed, and she made her way for the ropes. Sonata followed her, only to be stopped by a hand on her shoulder. Trixie held her in place while Twilight filed out to cheers and chants of her name. When she was gone, and her music ended, Trixie finally spoke.     “You will regret making such a decision,” said Trixie. “Because you’ve got a match, right now.” She waved Sovereignty out of the ring, and they began making their way up the ramp. “And hopefully, Slow-nata Dusk, this will teach you never to go against Trixie.” She disappeared up the ramp and backstage. Sonata stood in the ring anxiously, waiting for her opponent to make themselves known.     A sound akin to a cannon firing rang throughout the arena, followed by the deep pounding of a bass drum and the clash of cymbals. Sonata went pale in the face as none other than the massive, destructive force of nature that was Tirek Crimson.     “Twilight Sparkle drops a bombshell on us, with the proclamation of a tag team match to determine the future of the EWF,” said Celestia, finally recovering from the shock.     “Speaking of dropping, Tirek is about to drop Sonata Dusk dead, by my guess,” said Discord. “They say it’s not the size of the dog in the fight, but I wonder if that applies when one of the dogs is actually closer to a bear or a rhino!”     Sonata watched her opponent as he stomped his way down the ramp and climbed into the ring. He stared down at the downright puny woman with a scowl. Sonata, the fighter that she was, extended her hand in a show of sportsmanship. Tirek swatted Sonata’s hand away with his own, which had to be the size of a frying pan. Sonata gave a nervous gulp and backed away, waiting nervously for the referee to ring the bell. The match began and, boldly, Sonata ran forward and kicked Tirek as hard as she could in the thigh. It was like kicking and oak tree, and Tirek reacted about the same. Sonata  gave another kick, with similarly underwhelming results. She took in a deep breath and unloaded on Tirek with a series of high-step kicks to the leg, each failing to get any reaction from the walking mass of destruction that was Tirek.  “I'm not sure that did anything more than annoy Tirek Crimson,” noted Discord. “The poor girl… I love a good mauling as much as anyone, but this… Sonata Dusk is beyond the underdog tonight.” “Sonata Dusk, five feet even, barely passing 130 pounds,” said Celestia. “That's going against seven feet and nearly 400 pounds in the form of Tirek. If that girl wasn’t such a courageous fighter, I’d suggest she lay down and take the loss.” “There comes a point where courage becomes stupidity, and I think Sonata Dusk might be beyond that point.” Tirek glared down at the much smaller Sonata with a bored look on his face. When he was certain that Sonata was finished with her pitiful attempts at offense, he went for some of his own; He swung one of his massive tree trunk arms forward, just barely missing Sonata as she ducked. Tirek tried again, with similar results. The third lariat attempt was the most unsuccessful; When Sonata ducked that one, she found herself an opening. She went low, clipping Tirek’s knee with a dropkick. The behemoth dropped to one knee, which opened him up for another kick to the leg. Now his height effectively cut in half, Tirek was in a perfect position for Sonata to get in some proper offense. Sonata brought frantic right hands onto Tirek’s head, doing little more than annoy him. Tirek pushed her away with one arm, sending her tumbling back into the corner. Sonata took this as an opportunity to get in some high-risk, high-reward offense and pulled herself up to the top rope. She spent little time there, afraid of Tirek gaining the wherewithal to counter, and she gave a jumping flip through the air in a bold attempt at her trademark shooting star press. With speed thought impossible for a man his size, Tirek hurried to his feet and plucked Sonata out of the sky. He held her over his shoulder like an empty knapsack, as if she weighed nothing at all. Sonata struggled in Tirek’s grasp, but to no avail. Tirek toted Sonata around like a toy, taunting the crowd before driving their favorite through the mat. A slick guitar solo stole Tirek’s attention from his prey. To the immense annoyance of Tirek, his persistent, resilient rival made his way down the ramp. “Big T, come on, you're better than that!” said Spike Emerald, shaking his head. “Beating me up is one thing, but now you're hitting girls?” Spike flinched slightly at what he said. “Not that Sonata can't fight, she's got a better win-loss record than me. What're you trying to say, Tirek? You think she can't fight just because she’s a lady? What are you, some kind of sexist?” “What the hell is he even talking about?” asked Discord. “What is that buffoon doing here, anyway?” “Spike is many things, but he is no fool,” said Celestia. “I don't know what he intends to do, but I'm certain there's a reason he's here.” “T, I'm not okay with what you did to me and Mac at DisHarmony,” said Spike. “You can't just get away with that. So, I figure, until I get an apology, I'll be coming down, hanging out, killing some time until Sonata finds herself an opening.” Sonata found her opportunity and swung from Tirek’s shoulder, attempting to bury her feet in his gut. Unfortunately, Tirek is significantly taller than her typical opponent, and her foot hit someplace other than where she was intending to. “Ooh, that's not a fun time for anyone,” winced Discord as Tirek dropped to his knees, clutching his groin. “I never thought the day would come, but I feel genuinely bad for Tirek Crimson.” “The winner of this match, by disqualification, TIREK CRIMSON!” Sonata looked confused for a bit until she saw the state of her opponent, and then she grew instantly embarrassed. She apologized profusely, even as Spike rolled into the ring and dragged her out. “Tirek’s got a short temper on a good day, sweetheart,” said Spike, a devious grin on his face. “Don't push your luck. Get outta here!” Sonata and Spike escaped up the entrance ramp, the latter laughing wildly while the former just kept on apologizing. Twilight Sparkle pushed open the door to the locker room with a grin on her face. Immediately, Spike and Sonata stood to meet her. “Twilight! It's good to see you!” said Spike. “What brings you here?” “I wanted to thank you, for one. I wouldn't normally condone your actions, but these are extenuating circumstances,” said Twilight. “If Tirek would've injured Sonata… Well, it didn’t come to that, so I thank you. But we have to talk about Nightmare Night.” She turned to Sonata. “I don't want you wrestling until the pay-per-view if we can avoid it. The fresher you are, the better.” “Makes sense. Who else do you want on the team?” asked Sonata. “I have some ideas, and we'll see where that goes,” said Twilight. “Right now, I actually needed to talk to Spike about the match.” Spike’s eyes lit up, and his grin matched it. “You want me on the team? I'd be honored!” said Spike. “You've always been the one to give me a shot, Twilight, and if I can pay you back in any way, you just say the word and I'll—” “Actually, Spike… No offense, but this match cannot go wrong. I'd normally love to see what you can do, but when the stakes are this high…” Twilight looked a bit past Spike with a grin. “I like to go straight for the big guns.” Spike turned around to see what Twilight was looking at and immediately understood. He shrugged, knowing that his bid for the team was a long shot anyway. “Yeah, that sounds about right,” said Spike. “You down, buddy?” Big Mac stood up slowly, cracking his knuckles threateningly.  “Eeyup.” Bon-Bon briskly brought her fist to the dressing room door, knocking firmly before pushing her way into the room. As she entered, she caught the glare of her begrudging tag team partner as she laced up her boots. Lyra and Bon-Bon stared at one another before the former Intercontinental Champion broke the silence.  “What do you want?” she asked. “Look, I'm about as happy about this arrangement as you are,” said Bon-Bon. “If it were up to me, we'd never share the same locker room, let alone a ring corner. But it’s not up to me. It’s not up to you, either. So, it seems to me that we’re stuck together.” “Unfortunately,” snorted Lyra. “That being said… The sooner we start to work together, the sooner we can request a termination of our team,” continued Bon-Bon, undeterred. “I know you want to start your climb back to the IC title, and I would absolutely love to be the one to take it from you. In order to make that happen… We need to work together. I need you, and you need me. So… Let's put last week behind us and work towards our common goal: getting the hell out of this partnership.” Bon-Bon extended her hand in offering, but Lyra simply stared at her for a moment before standing up and crossing her arms over her chest. “I don’t need you,” said Lyra. “Unless you want a repeat of Friday, I suggest you stay out of my way. Now, if you excuse me…” Lyra walked past her partner, heading for the ring. “I've got a match to win.” A few short chords of a cello floated throughout the arena, immediately chased by the loud electronic tones of Vinyl and Octavia’s entrance theme. The two made their way down the ramp, with Vinyl amping up the crowd’s energy by dancing and vibing with them as she approached the ring. “The following contest is a tag team match, scheduled for one-fall! Introducing first, from Ponyville, at a combined weight of 312 pounds…. VINYL SCRATCH AND OCTAVIA MELODY!” Octavia and Vinyl stepped into the ring and touched fists, prepared for the coming match. The two didn't have to wait long for the first of their opponents to make themselves known.  Bon-Bon’s bubbly theme blasted through the arena, bringing with it Bon-Bon herself, bowl of candy in tow as usual. Bon-Bon didn't even have an opportunity to begin tossing candies before her theme was cut off, replaced by the heavenly strings of Lyra’s entrance music. The former Intercontinental Champion pushed past her partner, knocking the candies from her hands as she approached the ring to thunderous boos. “And their opponents, at a combined weight of 345 pounds, the team of BON-BON AND LYRA HEARTSTRINGS!” Lyra briskly rushed into the ring and immediately descended onto Octavia with stiff right hands to the head. She only managed a few hits in before Vinyl came to intervene, socking Lyra in the face while her partner worked the body. “We've got a brawl on our hands!” cackled Discord. “That’s one of the reasons I love Lyra Heartstrings! She doesn't hesitate to bring the fight right to her opponents!” “It seems her anger at her situation is clouding her judgement,” said Celestia. “Why on Earth would she go into this conflict knowing full well that she would be at a disadvantage? The referee tried to pull them apart, but struggled in the mass of flailing limbs. Bon-Bon hurried into the ring to aid in the separation, but all she got for her efforts was a firm kick to the gut by Lyra. Lyra bent her over at the waist, hoisted her up and slammed her to the mat with a thunderous powerbomb. “Hands Down Powerbomb from the former IC champ!” cheered Discord as Lyra nudged Bon-Bon’s unmoving body out of the ring with her foot. “That should teach Bon-Bon to mind her own business!” “Bon-Bon was helping her!” With the scuffle separated, Vinyl slipped out of the ring and into her corner so that Octavia could represent their team. Lyra cracked her knuckles, gesturing for Octavia to make a move. The referee ensured that both women were capable of competing, and rang the bell so that the match could begin. The two locked up, vying for control of the hold. It was Lyra who did so, quickly transitioning to a side headlock. Not missing a beat, she brought Octavia to the ground and slipped into a rear chinlock. “Lyra Heartstrings like a well-oiled machine out there,” said Discord. “This looks like it’s going to be an easy win for the former Intercontinental Champion.” “How can you say that so early?” asked Celestia. “The match has only just begun, and I happen to see Lyra as with a distinct disadvantage on account of her attacking her own tag team partner!” “Pah! Lyra Heartstrings could win this match with a partner, with no partner, it doesn’t matter, because she’s simply that good.” Octavia rolled on the mat, pushing Lyra onto her back and pinning her shoulders to the mat. Lyra kicked out immediately, which freed Octavia and allowed both competitors to hurry to their feet. Lyra swung wildly, which Octavia ducked and grabbed her opponent around the middle in a firm waistlock. Octavia backed up, dragging Lyra into enemy territory. When she was within range, Vinyl tagged herself into the match and slipped between the ropes. She got a running start and buried her knee into Lyra’s gut, then wrapped her arm around her neck and ran in the opposite direction, finally jumping and bringing Lyra’s face down to the mat with a fierce running bulldog. “Speaking of well-oiled, we’re looking at a well-oiled tag team in the form of Vinyl Scratch and Octavia Melody,” reported Celestia. “That teamwork is incredible! These two know each other inside and out.” “Yes, but if Lyra can just find their team’s weak link, all that cooperation falls apart,” said Discord. “And Lyra is a very cerebral competitor, she excels at uncovering weakness and snatching opportunities. We’ll just have to see where we go from here.” Vinyl quickly went for the pin and got a swift kick-out for her troubles. She hopped to her feet as Lyra made it to all fours and struck her opponent in the head with a knee. Vinyl dragged Lyra back to her corner and jumped, burying her feet into Lyra’s back, before tagging Octavia back into the match. “Credit where credit is due, that is some beautiful, classic tag team offense right there,” said Discord. “Those quick tags ensure that whoever is in the ring is fresh as can be, and they’re isolating Lyra from her partner. Not as if Bon-Bon would be much help to Lyra at this time.” Bon-Bon was in a bad way, only just then pulling herself to stand in her corner. The Hands Down Powerbomb had thoroughly shaken her, but her insistence on cooperating with Lyra seemed to stand with her at the turnbuckle, waiting for a tag. “Octavia, bringing the fight to Lyra,” noted Celestia as Octavia dropped to a full mount and shot furious rights and lefts at the back of Lyra’s head. “I think she’s taking exception to Lyra’s cheap shots at the beginning of this match.” Octavia battered Lyra for a bit more before dragging her to her feet. Before she could do much for offense, Lyra snuck in a hook to the midsection, then another, then finally a double fisted club to the head, which created some much need separation. Lyra delivered a boot to Octavia’s gut, grabbed her around the neck, and brought her down to the mat with a picture-perfect snap DDT. “This is it!” called Discord. “This could be the opening Lyra needs! All she has to do is tag her partner into the match, and she could swing things in their favor!” Bon-Bon reached forward while Lyra crawled towards her, begging to get in the match. Bon-Bon had almost forgotten about Lyra’s attack on her early. All she cared about was winning, so she could finally get out of this awful team and get her career back on track. Lyra brought herself to her knees, her hand ready for the tag, and she stopped herself. She looked Bon-Bon in the eyes and shook her head before standing up to face her opponents. “What is she doing?” asked Celestia. “Bon-Bon reaches out for the tag, but Lyra Heartstrings says nay!” Octavia Melody, on the other hand, did no such thing; She dove to her partner, allowing Vinyl to rush into the ring and throw Lyra into her corner, where Octavia was currently climbing. Vinyl slipped her head between Lyra’s legs and boosted her up on her shoulders, lining her up with Octavia. After a moment to ensure her shot was perfect, Octavia leapt through the air, smashing her forearm up and into Lyra’s chin as Vinyl fell backwards with a thunderous boom. “Electric Drop Maneuver from Vinyl and Octavia!” called Celestia. “And the pin!” One! Two! Three! Vinyl and Octavia cheered as the bell rang, their fists raised high in victory. “The winners of this match, VINYL SCRATCH AND OCTAVIA MELODY!” Bon-Bon slipped into  the ring to rouse her partner. Lyra just glared and pushed her away before rolling out of the ring and stomping her way up the ramp. Bon-Bon rolled her eyes, but had no choice but to follow her partner to the locker room. Applejack let out a grunt as she swung her fists into her punching bag, while Sunset Shimmer paced around her, critiquing her form. Though Sunset could only dream about having the size and stature of her partner, she knew wrestling well, and made for an excellent coach. “You're not planning to go easy on her, are you?” asked Sunset. “Hell naw,” grunted Applejack. “She asked for the match, she can handle me at my best.” “Good. Kick some ass for me, partner. I’m not scheduled a match til next Monday.” There was a knock on the training room doors, which stole Sunset’s attention from her partner. “Yo! Come in!” The door creaked open, bringing with it the General Manager of Ascension. Twilight crossed the room briskly to shake hands with a very surprised Sunset and AJ. “Hello, hello, sorry to drop by like this,” said Twilight. “But it was imperative that I speak with you, sooner rather than later.” “What can we do for you?” asked Sunset. “Alright, I know I might be barking up the wrong tree here. You two are arguably one of the greatest teams to ever set foot in between the ropes. You two have long, illustrious careers as a team ahead of you, with gold being a matter of when and not if. So, I understand that you have no real dog in this race. But I want you on my team for Nightmare Night.” Twilight could see the surprise in their eyes, and she spoke quickly. “I get it, I get it, it doesn’t make sense for me to ask you, but I want you two because you know tag team wrestling better than just about anyone. But, since you gain nothing by having the World Title vacated, I’ll grant you this: If you join my team and we win, you can go ahead and consider yourselves #1 contenders for the Dazzlings Tag Team Championships. What do you say?” Sunset and Applejack shared a quick glance, then grinned. “Ma’am, you don’t gotta bribe us to beat up the Dazzlings,” said Applejack. “Driving their heads into the mat is incentive enough.” “So you’ll join the team?” asked Twilight, just to confirm. “Does the pope sleep in his hat?” “Er… I’m not sure, actually.” “Actually, Twilight,” said Sunset with a grin. “I think what she’s saying is…” The two cupped their hands around their mouths and shouted as loudly as they could. “Hell yeah!” Twilight grinned, patting both of them on the back. With a team like this, there was no way she could lose. “Hell yeah, indeed,” said Twilight. “Hell yeah, indeed…”     The electric blare of guitar slashed through the air, bringing with it cheers, “Hell Yeah!” chants, and, most importantly, Applejack and Sunset Shimmer. The two led the crowd in their chants, ramping the energy of the arena way up as they approached the ring.     “The following contest is scheduled for one-fall! Introducing first, accompanied by Sunset Shimmer, from Appleloosa, weighing in at 200 pounds, APPLEJACK!”     Sunset patted her partner on the shoulder, staying at ringside while Applejack made her way between the ropes. The big southern brawler ran the ropes a few times, waiting patiently for her opponent to make herself known.     An angelic hymn floated throughout the arena, immediately transitioning into hard, grimy, industrial beats, and then mellow country notes. There was the sound of a record needle scratching, and then a new, more rebellious rock and roll theme began.     We walk alone, through the unknown. We live to claim another victory…     The Crusaders made their way down the ramp, with Scootaloo leading the charge. She walked forward with a noticeable limp, feeling the effects of her hellacious 3 Stages of Hell match. Still, she led her friends into battle, stopping at ringside with Sweetie Belle, before gesturing for Applebloom to step up. She looked much like her sister, wrestling in simple jeans, a tanktop, and black boots. Whereas Applejack stood intimidatingly, essentially towering over the rest of the female locker room, Applebloom was smaller, leaner, more scrappy. That said, anyone who had seen her work on the indie circuit knew that she could throw hands with the best of them.     “And her opponent, accompanied by Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, from Appleloosa, weighing in at 137 pounds, APPLEBLOOM!”     Applebloom looked up at her sister, giving her a confident grin before touching gloves and putting her fists up to fight. Applejack did much the same, and the bell rang to begin to bout. The two began strafing, their fists up to their face to make it abundantly clear that this match wouldn’t come down to technical wrestling skill. This match would come down to a fistfight.     “It’s time for our main event! This matchup is a bit unorthodox,” noted Celestia. “Sister versus Sister, this match was made on Applebloom’s request.”     “Indeed, she wanted her singles debut in the EWF to be against someone who she perceived to be her biggest threat,” said Discord. “Which I find to be smart thinking. As soon as she signed here, she must have known that people would compare her to her sister. Toppling Applejack now would give the young Bloom some quick credibility and stock here in the Equestria Wrestling Federation.” It appeared that Discord was right in his thinking, because Applebloom was quick to bring the fight to to her sister, immediately working the body with fierce punches. Applejack found her footing quickly and pushed her sister back a few steps. Utilizing her reach advantage, Applejack swung fiercely and caught Applebloom in the ear. The younger Apple stumbled, but recovered and rushed forward, ramming her shoulder into Applejack’s gut. Applejack stumbled, but maintained her vertical base. The two leered at each other, then broke into matching grins.  The two locked up in a contest that Applebloom was unlikely to win, with her sister having the advantage in size, strength, and experience. The only advantages that Applebloom had over Applejack was her speed and agility, which she used now; She slid between Applejack’s legs and slipped behind the much larger woman, then delivered a fierce kick to the back of her knee. Applejack buckled, bringing her to her knees and closer to Applebloom, who fired off right hand after right hand at her sister’s head. Applejack guarded as bast as she could, but Applebloom’s fierce jabs were clearly breaking AJ down. “Applebloom showing us what she’s got,” said Discord. “Her strikes are incredible! For someone that size to be able to do such visible damage to an opponent that much larger is frankly impressive.” “Be that as it may, I worry that Applebloom may have picked the wrong battle,” said Celestia. “I can’t think of many people I’d like to throw hands with less than Applejack.” Applebloom went for a right cross, hoping to knock her sister out for the pin, when Applejack ducked and slipped her head under Applebloom’s arm. She reached across Applebloom’s chest and hoisted her up, only to slam the much smaller Apple down onto her back. “A devastating uranage from the Southern Brawler!” called Celestia. “Good lord, Applejack just about drove her sister through the mat! And the pin!” One! Two! Applebloom managed to work her shoulder up, with not a second to spare. As soon as she was free from beneath her sister, she rolled out of the ring and to her team. “AB taking a much needed reprieve from the continuing onslaught at the hands of her sister,” said Celestia. “Discord, what do you think Applebloom has to do to take back control here?” “Well, she's at a massive disadvantage when it comes to size, strength, and experience,” noted Discord. “So she's going to have to use that speed and agility of hers to somehow whittle down the much larger Applejack. Alternatively, The Crusaders have the numbers advantage.” “If you think those three are going to cheat, you clearly don't know The Crusaders.” “I'm just saying, Applebloom has the numbers. It'd be wise to use them.” Applebloom leaned on her team for support for a moment, listening in to their advice. Meanwhile, Sunset pulled herself to the apron in order to give much a similar pep talk to her partner. She patted AJ on the shoulder as she advised her, Applejack’s gaze focused on her sister as she hung onto every word. Applebloom slowly slid into the ring, sizing her sister up. She ran forward, ducking under Applejack’s big swing. Applebloom jumped to the middle rope and springboarded back, turning in the air to deliver a swift kick to the side of AJ’s  head. The Big Southern Brawler dropped to her knees, opening her up for a series of stiff kicks to the chest. Applebloom aimed her next kick carefully, then swung with the intention of taking her sister’s head off. Applejack ducked and grabbed Applebloom’s leg, standing up and pulling Bloom up and onto her shoulders. The crowd cheered AJ to her feet, urging her on. AJ stumbled a bit, then slammed her sister down to Earth with a ground-shaking powerbomb. “Applebloom’s gotta be out after that!” called Celestia. “And the pin!” One! Two! Scootaloo shouted at the ref, calling his attention to Applebloom’s foot, which she managed to slip beneath the bottom rope. The referee saw it and stopped his count. Applejack broke the pin and brought Bloom closer to the center. By then, Applebloom has regained enough wherewithal to kick out after a count of two. Applejack chuckled tiredly, applauding Applebloom’s perseverance. She stood up, grabbing her sister by the hair, pulling her to her feet. Applebloom grabbed AJ about the neck and brought her down to the mat, pinning her shoulders to the mat in a small package pin. One! Two! Applejack powered out, but was slower to her feet than Bloom. The younger Apple immediately chopped her sister down to size with a a basement dropkick. AJ dropped to one knee, then even lower to both knees after a stiff forearm to the face. Applebloom hurried to the turnbuckle, scaling to the top rope and diving onto her sister. With incredible speed, Applejack jumped to her feet and caught Applebloom, spinning and slamming her down to the mat with a vicious spinebuster. “Stellar counter from the Southern Brawler!” called Celestia. “And the pin!” One! Two! Three! The bell sounded, and Applejack slowly rose to her feet, finally victorious. She raised her fist above her head in triumph, grinning as Sunset slid into the ring to celebrate. As Sunset entered the ring, so did The Crusaders, with Scootaloo and Sunset immediately coming face to face. While Sweetie checked on her fallen comrade, Sunset and Scootaloo engaged in a tense, cautious stare-down. Slowly, Applebloom worked her way to her feet. She gently nudged Scootaloo’s shoulder, urging her to take a step back. She then touched gloves with her sister and gave her a hug before rolling out of the ring. Carefully, Scootaloo nodded, backing away from Sunset and leaving the ring with Sweetie Belle. “A very tense moment here after that match. It seemed as if Scootaloo was suspicious of Sunset Shimmer,” said Discord. “Considering the poor girl’s history of being ambushed, I’d say a bit of paranoia is justified,” noted Celestia. “In any case, it’s for the best that the conflict ended as peacefully as it did.” “Boring! I wanted to see a fight!” complained Discord.  “You'll have to wait until Friday for that, where General Manager Twilight Sparkle will be stacking ammo in preparation for Nightmare Night. But, until then, this has been Celestia Regal and Discord Redrum, wishing you all a good night!