The following morning had Rainbow Dash woken up by the knocking of Ark’Nogt on her door. How long had she been asleep? He said he was coming back as soon as it was bright again but she felt like she had been passed out for a really long time. Whatever it was she was happy to throw off her blanket and rub the sleep from her eyes. She walked over to the door and pushed it open to see the smiling Ark’Nogt standing there.
“Good morning! Did you have a nice first night of sleeping in Nogt?” He asked her.
“Yeah actually. Sia’Lorna and I talked for a while after you left and then I came back here. So where’d you end up getting a room?” Rainbow asked.
“Second floor, almost right above this one. Was there anything else you wished to do or see today or do you want to immediately register for the tournament?”
“You said registering shouldn’t be a hassle so I’ll probably have time to do all sorts of stuff afterwards, right? So let’s just get registering for the tournament out of the way and then we can decide on what’s next,” Rainbow Dash shrugged. “I really want to see the stadium it’s gonna be held in too.”
“Of course, then let us be off.”
Rainbow Dash and Ark’Nogt both left the communal living area with Ark’Nogt taking them in a direction towards a more concentrated area of Nogt. It didn’t look as dense as the part of the city she had initially touched down in but there were still a lot of buildings and more actual streets instead of just little walkways through the grass. Once they got closer it was pretty easy for her to see the stadium that would hold the tournament, since it was by far the largest building around. The only buildings she had seen in Nogt that were larger were a few of the castles. But the stadium itself was a very large rectangle of polished white stone, it looked like it could’ve sat several thousand inside of it easily. Depending on how much space the grounds and ring for fighting took up. Around the stadium were numerous shops and business that as far as Dash could tell mostly had to do with food. Go figure.
Thanks to Sia’Lorna her eyes were busy looking for a teahouse too. That was something that could wait even if she did see one though.
“What do you think of it?” Ark’Nogt suddenly asked her as they approached the stadium.
She looked over at him with an even expression before checking out the building again. “It’s a big stadium yeah, pretty nice looking and all. I’ve seen a coliseum and a sports stadium at some of the other places I’ve been to on my journey—and back in Equestria—but I think this is bigger than those.”
“As long as there are others there to watch you fight I think that’s all that matters to you?” Ark’Nogt grinned.
“Heh, I’m not gonna be upset at a larger crowd or anything either.”
“In a few days there will be quite a few more Reindeer here. Not a full crowd, but still sizable of course. If it was one of the bigger tournaments it would be absolutely packed full and then some. Even a week before a major tournament this entire area would be crowded with Reindeer.”
“Everyone making sure they’re full of food and having fun, huh?
Ark’Nogt nodded. “Correct. The big tournaments are just as much an occasion for socializing and reunions as they are for watching fights. Some families and friends will use it as an excuse to take week long vacations and then some.”
“Nice. Think any of the Reindeer watching this tournament are from far off? Do you think I might be the first pegasus some of them have ever seen?” Rainbow asked him.
“Hm, not as likely on both accounts I’m afraid. Aside from the children I would wager that most Reindeer have seen at least one or two pegasus before. Although likely none quite so colorful as yourself,” Ark’Nogt said. “And most Reindeer watching the tournament will either be from Nogt itself or one of the closest cities like Melas, Zel, and Lorna.”
“Guess I’ll keep those names in mind the next time I meet any new Reindeer,” Dash said.
Rainbow Dash and Ark’Nogt then walked from their path onto the grounds around the stadium, heading right to an opening built into the end pointing north. Compared to the white and smooth streets that she had seen at the inner city area the ground here was more like a paved asphalt or concrete. Different styles for different things, huh? She also started looking around for other Reindeer or other creatures that might be coming to the stadium too but she didn’t see any. It was just her and Ark’Nogt going here for the moment.
“So is everyone else already registered?” She asked him.
“Yes. Normally most entrants would have arrived and registered themselves long in advance. There isn’t a deadline or anything, it’s just how we are.”
“Last minute entries are cool anyways. Way more exciting. Think about it—awesome mysterious fighter from out of nowhere, who nobody knows, signing up for the tournament at the last second and then mopping the floor with everyone? Doesn’t that sound way awesome?”
Ark’Nogt chuckled. “It does indeed, does that mean you already see your own victory?”
“I always see myself winning. At anything. It’s just how I handle things, it’s how I make the impossible possible. Gotta believe in myself over everything else, dude.”
“It would require a strong will to keep that attitude up one’s entire life. Obviously it has worked out for you very well though,” Ark’Nogt smiled to her.
“You bet it has. And I wouldn’t be Rainbow Dash if I didn’t know I was gonna succeed at whatever I was doing,” she pulled up a confident grin as the two of them finally made it to the front of the stadium and the archway leading inside it. “Well, lead the way some more I guess.”
Ark’Nogt was happy to oblige her and the two traveled into the well lit stadium. While it looked like this entrance went all the way into the middle of the stadium where the fighting ring would be, Ark’Nogt had them make a right turn down a hallway that went deeper under the stands and walls of the stadium. As they walked down it Rainbow Dash finally saw a few Reindeer cleaning the floors and moving boxes and crates of stuff, probably food, as they prepared for the upcoming tournament. She really wished she could see this place during a big tournament to see if it really was the beehive Ark’Nogt said it was.
Soon they reached the end of this hallway and came to a series of several doors on the walls that led elsewhere into the stadium. But Ark’Nogt walked right by them to the very end of the hallway and the door there that was labeled “Main Office”. Without knocking, he entered and Rainbow Dash followed along with him. The interior of the room was carpeted and pretty spacious with a lot of desks manned by Reindeer and a wall at the back of the office covered in portraits of other Reindeer. Squinting her eyes at it she realized all the pictures looked like they were taken of Reindeer wearing gold medals around their necks. Records of tournament winners, most likely. Directly in front of them now was a wide desk that an older doe sat behind and two chairs were stood in front of. The doe raised her head the moment Ark’Nogt and Rainbow Dash entered and gave them both a warm smile.
“Ark’Nogt, hello. And is this an acquaintance of yours? Are you here as an Embracer of the city?” The doe asked him.
“Yes on both accounts. This is Rainbow Dash from the far away land of Equestria and she would like to join the tournament,” Ark’Nogt said to the doe and then turned to Dash. “And Miss Rainbow Dash, this is Tiza’Nogt, the commissioner of tournaments.”
“Nice to meet you,” Rainbow Dash waved to her.
“The feeling is mutual. I always enjoy meeting new competitors. Please, won’t the two of you take a seat?” Tiza’Nogt offered.
“Thank you,” Ark’Nogt said and the two of them sat down at the chairs. Rainbow Dash noticed that a lot of the other Reindeer in here were watching them.
“So it’s just a registration then?” Tiza’Nogt asked, looking directly at Dash now. “We just have a form for you to fill out and have to make sure you understand the rules.”
“Ark’Nogt and another fighter have done a good job filling me in. I know there’s no flying and no permanent injuries or anything like that. Judges can decide a match or you can win by knockout and stuff. I think if there’s anything else then this dude can fill me in,” Dash grinned and hooked her hoof at Ark’Nogt.
“Sounds like it, you do seem to have the basics down.” Tiza’Nogt nodded.
“I am working personally now as Miss Rainbow Dash’s Embracer,” Ark’Nogt said. “Anything she needs I’ll be available at all times for her. When it comes time for the tournament as well I’ll make sure to gather her up and have her here on time.”
“Good. The tournament starts in four days in case you didn’t know,” Tiza’Nogt said to her.
“I didn’t, so thanks. Only knew it started soon,” Rainbow Dash grinned.
“So since you’re from a far away place—admittedly I have not heard of Equestria—have you ever fought against a Reindeer before or in a tournament such as this? What piqued your interest?” The commissioner asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Nope, never fought a Reindeer before. I’ve fought a lot of different creatures in my life but so far you guys haven’t been one of them. And nothing really piqued my interest or whatever—I just wanted to fight,” Rainbow Dash shrugged. “I like to fight. Ark’Nogt told me it’s something Reindeer are pretty passionate about for the most part and since you’ve got this tournament coming right now I thought it was a really awesome opportunity.”
“I think you’ll also bring a little extra “awesomeness” to our tournament as well… being a total outsider completely new to Nogt and our tournaments, from a land foreign and unknown to us, is a treat. It’s something that might make this small tournament as exciting as the bigger ones. You’re hardly the only pony that will be participating even in just this tournament but I think you’ll be quite the draw for our interested audience,” Tiza’Nogt positively beamed at the prospect.
“That sounds pretty awesome to me. You want me to be some kind of special event for your tournament to drum up interest? Well I love being the center of attention, heh.” Rainbow Dash grinned and leaned back in her chair, folding her hooves over her chest and trying to exude as much “coolness” as possible.
“Then it seems we have mutually beneficial desires. Well, besides all that, there’s certainly no reason to bar you from participating in the tournament. I’ll just have you fill out the form and then you’ll officially be entered,” Tiza’Nogt said and looked over to the left to a Reindeer sitting behind another desk. He nodded and retrieved a piece of paper from a binder, bringing it over and setting it down in front of Tiza’Nogt. “Here you are, Miss Rainbow Dash.” The commissioner said and slid the registration form to her while also pulling a pen out of a pen holder beside her.
“I’ll have this done in a second,” Rainbow said, taking both paper and pen and looking over the form. She doubted she’d have to think too much about anything on here. In fact she wanted to just write her name down and be done with it, but there was some more stuff for her to write down besides just her name.
Height, weight, what kind of creature she was, where she came from, any illnesses or disabilities. Stuff like that. General information that would be pertinent to a contender and the ones in charge of the tournament. She wondered if someone who had a disability or was missing a leg or something had extra stuff to sign or go through if they wanted to compete. But Rainbow Dash was just able to check most everything off as healthy and filled in her other information. At the bottom of the form she wrote her name in big, blocky letters as a signature and slid it back to Tiza’Nogt.
“That’s everything,” Dash said.
Tiza’Nogt looked it over, her eyes quickly scanning everything. “It seems so. Congratulations then, Miss Rainbow Dash, you are officially entered in the tournament, and best of luck to you.”
“I don’t need luck,” Rainbow Dash smiled widely and one of her teeth sparkled. She couldn’t wait.