Hey everyone. I'm stuck on a 24hr duty shift, so I had some spare time. I hope you all enjoy this chapter! I know it was long overdue.
Chapter 7
There had been very few times in Skylight’s life where she had to truly question a decision. Ever since she was a little filly she had demonstrated conviction, determination, and a steadfast attitude that wrought her a successful career in the Royal Guard. However, as Lemon Scent helped her tighten down both of the gloves covering her hands, the mare couldn’t help but waver in her conviction to make amends with Devin. The unicorn was no stranger to boxing, as it was a common tool used to help guards relieve stress with one another. If two guards had issues, a few rounds in the ring was more than enough to settle the dispute and often resulted in the two of them grabbing a drink afterwards. It’s just how things worked. Mares could go from beating the living Tartarus out of each other, to smashing down shots like they had been friends for years. She was no exception and had her spat with a few guards, though it always ended the same. Both mares bloody and bruised, but completely content with the results with no animosity towards each other. After one final check from Lemon Scent, Skylight turned her attention towards the far end of the garage to see Streamline’s uncomfortable expression as she tried one last time to convince Devin of another way to work out their issues. The stallion in question didn’t even respond as Streamline finished tightening his gloves before turning to meet the gaze of his opponent.
“Devin, are you absolutely sure you want to go through with this? Please, if there is any other way to make amends, just tell me and I will do it,” Skylight all but begged. To his credit, Devin remained silent as he made his way to the middle of the garage and into the makeshift ring. The ring was nothing to boast about, but had been created a few days before everypony had moved in. Skylight had the foresight to install it as a means to stay in shape and to train any new guards in hand to hand combat, should they become personal guards of the thestral. Granted, she could have never predicted she would be using it this soon and for such an outlandish reason.
“You asked me what it would take to earn back my trust. To make amends for everything that’s happened between us. This is the way you will earn my trust back,” the thestral stated before rolling his shoulders and limbering up. Skylight knew the stallion was unlike any stallion she had met before. Surprisingly, a tiny part of her was excited to step into the ring with a stallion who claimed to be able to hold his own against her. It took guts to do what he was doing, and given his unique background, maybe she didn’t need to be so worried. However, the instinctual mare in her overruled that tiny part of herself.
“If this is what I must do, then I will do it. I am a mare of my word,” Skylight reluctantly responded, as she made her way into the ring and began to limber up as well. It was another couple of minutes before both challengers finished their warmups and properly locked eyes for the first time.
“Here are the rules. Only body shots. Nothing below the belt if you can help it and no face shots. Timer is set for two minutes. We will go for three rounds,” Devin paused for a moment as he stared Skylight down. “Another thing. There will be no going easy on me or using the excuse that I'm a colt. We give it everything we have and leave it all in the ring. If I think you are pulling your punches or are going easy on me, I will stop the fight and you will never get another chance to gain my trust back. Is that understood?” Devin waited a good few seconds for the mare’s response. Almost every fiber of her being was shouting at her for putting herself in this situation. Her instincts had always told her that she should be protecting stallions, no fighting them. Though this was her only chance to make amends. Her only chance to start off right with the stallion. The only chance to possibly salvage something she had given up so long ago.
“I-I agree to the rules. Sergeant Streamline will be our time keeper. Lemon Scent will be standing by for first aid.” Seemingly satisfied with the mare’s answer, Devin extended a glove towards the mare as a sign of good faith. She couldn’t help but form a small smile on her lips as she lightly tapped his glove with her own before making her way to her corner. It was another twenty seconds later before a loud shout from Streamline initiated the fight.
Making her way slowly out of her corner, the mare raised both hands as a guard as she watched the thestral move about the ring. His movements were nothing fancy, though a bit foreign to her. She chalked it up mostly to the differences in culture of where he is from compared to Equestria. As the gap dwindled between the two, it was the thestral who made the first move. Dashing in towards the mare, Skylight instinctively threw out an intercepting punch, hoping to stop the stallion in his tracks. To her surprise, the thestral’s footwork allowed him to seamlessly dodge the jab before delivering a powerful two-hit combo on the mare’s torso before being forced away with another missed jab of her own. All of the mares in attendance were caught off guard at the sudden attack, though that did little to slow Devin down. Making his way back in, the thestral relied heavily on his footwork and speed to avoid hits from his opponent. Despite the hits not being as forceful as other challengers she has faced, the constant hits were beginning to wear the mare down. She had only managed to land a couple of glancing blows on the stallion’s torso. Though she was getting used to the rhythm of his movements. If being in the guard had taught the mare anything, it was that she needed to always be able to adapt to any situation she might find herself in.
There was only about fifteen seconds left in the first round before the thestral had his first taste of what real damage the mare could do. Relying on his speed once again, Devin dashed in to try and deliver another quick set of hits before retreating out of range of Skylight. Sensing the timing, Skylight was able to intercept the stallion before landing a powerful blow to his chest, sending him reeling back and knocking the air out of him. Normally, Skylight would advance on the staggered opponent, though the mare’s instincts were quick to stop her from advancing on the winded stallion. She just couldn’t help it, though after a few seconds the stallion raised to his feet with a smile on his face. It took Skylight a second to notice the look on his face. It wasn’t one of hate, anger, or pain. No, it was an expression she had seen all too many times from her experience in the ring. He was having fun. Before the two could move again, Streamline was quick to stop the match as the first bout had ended. Both Skylight and Devin made their way over to their respective corners, as a frantic looking Lemon Scent scanned Devin’s body for any reason to stop the fight. Granted, even if she found one, that wouldn’t stop him.
Skylight had finally hit him, and not a gentle hit either. She had put a lot of power into the punch that got him. And for some odd reason, that invigorated the stallion. Maybe it was because this was the first time since he had been in Equestria that he had been treated like a normal pony. No pony was fretting over his mental or physical state, or if he was getting proper nutrition. No, the previous exchange was from an opponent that didn’t see gender, but an opportunity during the fight and she took it. That only caused the stallion to smile even more. Hearing Skylight shout that there was only ten seconds left of the break, both parties stood up from their corners and awaited the pegasus to start the second bout. It didn’t take long before the two were off to the races once again.
This time, it was Devin’s turn to be on the defensive. He knew he couldn’t just blindly rush in and use his speed to dodge the mare’s attack. She had adapted way too quickly to his movements, so he would need another avenue of attack. After wrestling control of her instincts to not to harm her charge, Skylight was ready. She knew Devin wouldn’t rush in like he had before during the first part of the fight. And she wasn’t going to give him a moment to contemplate his next move. Wasting no time, Skylight drove straight towards the thestral as she delivered a quick succession of punches. Luckily, Devin was able to barely dodge most of the hits, while escaping with a couple of glancing blows. Despite it only being glancing blows, the mare still had power behind every punch she threw. It was then that Devin knew what he had to do. He needed to keep distance between the two of them, though still be able to reach the mare without her being able to reach him. Although he didn’t explicitly state it, there was never a rule against what he was about to do. Only that all hits were to remain as body shots.
Backing off a bit more from the mare, the thestral waited for her to make her move. As he predicted, the mare was not about to let Devin gain a moment of reprieve. Though that was quick to change as he delivered a devastating sidekick into the mare’s torso, forcing her back and to a knee. Everypony was quick to cast a glance at the smiling stallion as he reiterated his rules.
“Only body shots. Didn’t say anything about only using your hands,” he playfully added. In most cases, Skylight would have been pissed. Even though it wasn’t explicitly stated, they were under the assumption that it would only be hands. However, she couldn’t fault him for it. He had found a way to stop her advancement and whether she wanted to admit it or not, she was not that well versed in kicking, preferring to use the brute strength of her punches to win fights. This did present a good opportunity to level the playing field though. And as the mare stood to her feet, she began to wear the same smile the thestral had adorned earlier. This change in her behavior was quick to be noticed by Devin, and he returned her smile with one of his own.
Both parties finished off the rest of the bout with a few more bruises and a gash to match. Each pony was breathing heavily, though they seemed to be enjoying every second of it. Every mare was surprised by just how long Devin had managed to sustain himself in the ring. They knew they were both in pain, but to have a stallion able to dish out hits and take them too? Streamline was all too eager to come up with a few… activities the two of them could do to strengthen their friendship and more.
After Lemon Scent confirmed that both parties were still able to fight, Streamline called the two for the final bout. The last bout was nothing like the first two fights the mare’s had witnessed. During the first two bouts, both parties tried their damndest to minimize the damage they had taken. This concept was all but forgotten as both Skylight and Devin collectively decided that this last match was going to be a slugfest. Punches, kicks, and even more punches accompanied both fighters opted for a more offensive approach. However, it was during one of these exchanges that completely ended the fight.
Seeing fit to tank another punch or two from Skylight, mostly due to the adrenaline surging through his body, Devin reared his dominant hand back for a hard-hitting blow. However, as the thestral stepped forward, a patch of sweat caused him to lose his footing and send his face directly into the path of the mare’s glove. He saw it coming like everything was in slow motion, though his body refused to register his movements as he felt his glove connect with the mare before blacking out.
There had been only a few times in which the human turned thestral had blacked out in his life. The first time was his first experience with alcohol. Nobody warned him that some of the vodka at the party tasted like watermelon sprite. Luckily his friends were keeping an eye on him and were gracious enough to throw his body into the bathtub, after they sharpied his face of course.
The second time was when he was going through desert training in his old unit. Due to logistical issues, water was not on the top of the priority list for some strange reason. That was until he passed out from dehydration and a medic had to pump him full of fluids to keep him alive. It was fun though to watch his commander get his ass chewed out for lack of planning.
And finally, the most recent time. Where a small pool of sweat sent the thestral’s face careening straight into the gloved fist of the mare he was fighting. The good news was that the fight had ended and Devin won due to a technicality. The bad news, the repercussions of the fight that he was beginning to feel as he stirred from his unconscious state.
“I knew it, I just bucking knew it. I knew something like this was going to happen. I tried to talk him out of it, but no, he just had to do it. Way to go Streamline, what is everypony going to think when we show up with a battered, bruised, and unconscious stallion at the hospital? They are going to label us stallion beaters and we will be thrown in the dungeons. And the worst part of all, I won’t be able to have cloud sex with Devin!” Streamline ranted to herself. The admission of the pegasus’s fantasy caused Skylight and Lemon Scent to do somewhat of a double take, though their main focus was on the stallion that was beginning to stir.
Groaning from the throbbing headache he had, Devin was able to slowly push himself up from the couch he had been placed on. Skylight and Lemon Scent were quick to offer him some support as he groaned again from the amount of pain he was in.
“Note to self. Get the tag of that truck that just ran me over,” he managed to wheeze out with a chuckle. Upon hearing his voice, Streamline stopped in her tracks before appearing in a flash of blue feathers in front of Devin.
“Devin! Thank the gods. Please tell me you’re alright?” Streamline begged, tears streaming down her cheeks. Noticing the state of his friend, he felt a wave of guilt crash into him. He knew the mare cared about him and that seeing him unconscious must have sent her off into a panic attack.
“H-Hey Streamline. I-I’m fine,” he managed to say with a soft cough. Dashing towards the kitchen, Devin’s sensitive hearing picked up the faint sound of a glass being filled with water as Streamlined chastised the faucet to hurry up. Devin, reflexively pinned his ears towards his head as he knew how much he had worried his friend, and most likely all the mares there.
“How are you feeling?” Skylight questioned, breaking the silence between them.
“Honestly, I feel like shit. Though that is to be expected after I got drilled in the face by your punch,” he stated. He didn’t mean too, though Skylight pinned her ears against her head before looking away from the thestral.
“Devin, I’m so sorry that happened. I swear to you, that I didn’t mean for that to happen,” Skylight added. Looking towards the unicorn, Devin could make out the faint signs of tears. He knew she had reservations about fighting a stallion, though he made her do it. And during the fight, he had gotten injured, even though it was an accident. Mustering a bit more of his strength, Devin managed to sit up fully before reaching towards the downtrodden unicorn and pulling her into a hug.
“Skylight, I’m sorry I forced you to do something you were so uncomfortable with. I just wanted a chance to prove to you all that I’m not some defenseless stallion and that I can fight back and take a hit if needed.” Releasing the hug from the mare, Streamline returned with a glass of water, insisting she help him drink from the glass. After an awkward second or two, Devin finished his drink with a smile.
“Skylight, what happened was an accident and I don’t blame you. You have more than obliged my selfish request. Thank you,” Devin said with a small nod of his head and an extended hand. “Like I said before, we leave everything in the ring. I have forgiven you and I sure hope that punch to the face was forgiveness for me,” Devin tried to joke. Wiping away a few of her tears, Skylight nodded her head with a small laugh as she accepted his handshake. She was gentle and made sure not to shake his hand too hard. With everything seemingly right between the pair of combatants, Streamline used this opportunity to help hoist Devin off the couch and onto his feet.
“O-Ouch! Damn, settle down Streamline. I’m in a lot of pain here,” Devin quietly yelled. It didn’t take long for him to notice the piercing gaze the pegasus was delivering to the thestral.
“Damn right you’re in pain. You’re a bucking idiot with a death wish! Though don’t you worry. You aren’t leaving my sight for the next few days. I’m going to fix you up, good as new. Now wrap your arm around my shoulder. I'm going to help you up the stairs and into bed.” Streamline left no room to protest as both Skylight and Lemon Scent watched Streamline all but drag the stallion up the stairs and into his room.