//------------------------------//
// First Strike 
// Story: The Covenant 
// by Jphyper 
//------------------------------//

March 17, 2544 - Grashmul City, Dosiac

“One last thing, Chieftain,” the young Jirahanae grunted. “There seems to be a problem with one of the Equans.”

The gray Chieftain stood watching out the open window of his quarters, his rust-colored dreadlocks flapping noiselessly in the slight breeze. He rolled his eyes. “No surprise there,” he grunted.

“Apparently, one of the fliers is particularly cowardly,” the Minor continued.

Cocking an impatient glance at the brown-furred lackey, he growled, “The Unggoy are ‘particularly cowardly’. What’s your point?”

“True, my Chieftain, but even they are growing impatient,” he explained. “For once, even I agree with those rats- something must be done about her.”

“It’s the yellow one, isn’t it?” he grumbled. The Minor bowed his head in confirmation. Shaking his head in annoyance, the chieftain turned back to his window and sighed. “I will think of something. Dismissed.” The blue-armored Minor bowed and left. The chieftain strummed his fingers against the windowsill as he gazed upon the city. While much of it was a marvel of Covenant engineering, most of its architecture was still strictly Jiralhanae in nature. Scars of wars that ended centuries ago could be seen everywhere. The chieftain could feel his heart swell with pride at these reminders of his grand heritage. As he dwelled upon the history of his race, an idea began to form inside his head. His eyes wandered the cityscape until they fell upon an ancient auditorium, where many generations of his ancestors had fought to the death in games of skill. A clever smile began to form upon his face.

Two Days Later

The seats in the arena were packed. Most of the audience consisted of Jiralhanae, though numerous Unggoy and Kig-Yar could be seen as well. The stadium roared with excitement at the upcoming event. In the VIP box, the chieftain observed the group with smug satisfaction. “Quite a crowd you’ve gathered, little one,” he mumbled to no one in particular. Rising, he pounded the bottom of his hammer against the floor, sending the audience from enthusiastic cheering to silent anticipation.

“Brothers of the holy Covenant,” he began, “you have all gathered here for one reason: to see an epic battle between two unworthy challengers to see who is worthy of being absolved of their evil deeds!” In the arena below, two gates opened. In one, a haggard-looking Jiralhanae staggered out. “In the north corner, we have the Jiralhanae criminal Ranaxus, accused of thievery and dishonorable murder!” The crowd jeered at the newcomer, who simply ignored their taunts.

On the other side of the arena, a yellow ball of fur was thrown out onto the dirt floor, and the two gates were closed. He continued, “In the south corner, we have the Equan Minor Fluttershy, accused of cowardice. Competitors! Neither of you will be able to leave this arena until one of you has been killed. You may begin…” he paused for a moment, and then once again slammed the base of his hammer against the floor. “NOW!”

“Can’t we talk about this?!” the yellow pegasus whimpered. Her opponent, ignoring her pleas, charged at her with a mighty roar. Terrified, Fluttershy took to the sky, trying to stay out of the ape’s reach.

The brutish criminal leaped as high as he could, swiping at the yellow pony just beyond his reach. When the realization that he couldn’t attack her that way finally entered his thick skull, he began to search for alternate means of attack. Looking around, he spotted a pile of bones; no doubt a previous combatant whose corpse had not yet been removed. He lumbered over to the skeleton and started hurling bones at the pegasus, whose fear gave her the agility to dodge each one.
Finally, after several minutes, the chieftain pounded the bottom of his hammer on the ground twice, signaling the end of the round. Several Unggoy entered the arena to prepare for the second round. Some carried water for the two combatants, while others carried a pair of crates in, one for each side. The crates were opened, revealing a pair of spikers and a pair of plasma pistols. The criminal eagerly took the spikers from his crate, while Fluttershy hesitantly took the plasma pistols from hers. She clumsily attached them to the weapons slots on the sides of her helmet, slid the control bit into place, and tried to steel herself the best she could for the next round.

The chief pounded his hammer once, signaling the Unggoy to leave the arena. Once they were gone, he pounded twice, signaling the start of round two.

With an angry roar, the criminal charged forward and opened fire with his weapons, while Fluttershy took cover behind the crate. When he got to his opponent’s side of the arena, he dropped his weapons for a moment and lifted the large purple crate. The yellow pegasus squealed in fright and took off just in time to avoid being crushed as he slammed it down on her former position. Without missing a beat, he picked up the lid to the case and threw it at her like a disk. She did an aerial backflip to avoid it (something she did not know she could do), and it bounced harmlessly off the energy shield protecting the audience. The thief snatched up his weapons and started shooting again. The pegasus deftly avoided the deadly spikes, performing maneuvers that would have made her old friend Rainbow Dash proud. Her luck, however, soon ran out.

A few stray spikes tore through her left wing, sending her spiraling to the ground. Dust kicked up into the air as she landed with a thud. The Jiralhanae sauntered over to his fallen opponent, chuckling to himself as he did so. The dust cleared, revealing a trembling and wounded pegasus in its wake. The criminal smiled, raised his weapon, and pulled the trigger.


…Nothing happened. He had used up all of his ammunition. It did not matter, though, as the spikers still had the two deadly blades attached to their underside. Smiling wider, he raised one of them to strike a killing blow.

Desperate, the pony screamed and began tapping the buttons on her control bit repeatedly with her tongue. The ape reeled as bursts of plasma seared his flesh. Her eyes closed tightly, she kept up the assault until the weapons’ safeties activated, deactivating the pistols to allow them to cool. Opening one eye, she saw her opponent lying on the ground, his skin still smoldering from the assault. What have I done? she thought.

“The duel is finnished! The Equan Fluttershy is the winner!” the chieftain declared. The crowd burst into cheers, until another hammer pound silenced them once more. “Show’s over! Get back to work!” he declared. Grumbling, the crowd began to disperse. Exiting the VIP box, the chieftain made his way down to the arena’s edge. As a team of Unggoy removed the burning corpse, the chief leaned over the side and asked, “Now, was that so hard?”