//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: The Bracket Matches // Story: The Night's Knight // by PrinceMoonDustLight //------------------------------// We arrive again on Equestria’s hindered morning, Nightmare Moon freshly trotting out from her warm waking shower, her dark navy coat fully wet with droplets of stray water landing on her brilliantly shiny floor. Her magic was actively holding a towel to slowly dry and soak the extra struggling liquid to escape into a dry trap, the feeling of a soft custom-made towel felt way better than the instant drying magic that she could effortlessly generate, she’d rather have some form of comfort other than her bed to use. Besides, even evil knows not to use a bed to dry off on, that’s just pure insanity and stupidity, and why would she sleep on a wet bed, it’s just uncomfortable and wrong. She eyed herself in a mirror, her mane still eternally flowy, her eyes still slit and glossy, and her one of a kind so called “daughter” behind her head with pristine white glowing eyes following in suit with slimy white saliva. “Tantabus, to what do I owe the pleasure.”, Her majesties tone unwaveringly unsurprised. “Were you scared mom? Tell me honestly.” The ineffably ethereal creature wiping off the foam comically off where presumably her mouth was. “I was close to being scared, although the cosmic sludge is a new touch.” Her returned sarcasm had no intention of holding back from its obviousness, along with her not holding back a toothbrush from her muzzle, brushing vigorously. “Oh it was nothing really, just the trillions of unspeakable horrors taking their physical form inside of a liquidy ball. Nothing really that out there.” The sludgy creature scooping up the white sludgy material, slurping the “ball of horrors” like a milkshake. “So, the mini figurine survived the first round. Are you proud of their resilience or your strange foresight?” The queen took a simple swig of tap water, spitting every piece of foamy toothpaste out of her mouth, wiping her muzzle with the same towel after her full body drying, and responded promptly in her cold calm demeanor. “Pride is a chain that could be clutched from under ones own cockiness. I for one, am only seeing if the most unprecedented and unpredictable could also be the most victorious.” “That isn’t what I think you are planning, but I know you wouldn’t lie to me mother. Why would you need me to rant about my ideas when I can simply find out the result at the end of the games though? Even though we’re mentally connected, I’d rather give your the privacy of mind no matter how...tempting it may seem.” The Tantabus dared to dream of pushing her limits to the full on her mother, but all she was rewarded with was the metal regalia set piece by piece on the navy blue coat of her mother. “I acknowledge the fact of the temptation Tantabus, but why spoil the cake with sugar when the guests aren't near. Isn't it best to save the surprise for everyone to witness at once ?" The jet navy mare dawned her helm, fixing her regalia to a comfortable setting on her torso. "Besides, I cannot be sure of what you talk of. I do not see the future, nor can anyone else now could they?" A knock on the queens door had echoed in the room startling her from her mirror talk. She pranced to the entrance of her quarters and opened the door to find one of her royal guards, sporting a cyan blue coat and a buzzed rainbow mane in the form of a mohawk. Her magenta eyes could be recognized from their fierce color contrast, and popular recognition from those beyond the fourth wall. Lieutenant Rainbow Dash of the Shadow Bolts division, and her fastest protector by far, better than that Flash guy that barely ever showed up to duty. "Your highness." She bowed with her wings lowered but full, showing unwavering loyalty to her superior as she should. "Arise Lieutenant Dash, explain the meaning of your sudden arrival ?" Her voice was just, calm yet had the potential to be forceful if the wrong answer was given, like that of an assault. Assassins tried their best to bring her close to deaths door more than once, the previous chef, the strange dentist, even a spectator of the last Nightmare Games had tried a frontal assault. They all failed in their attempts at poisoning, physical injury, and sudden idiocy, but the queen could never be too cautious with her subjects, or with toothpaste. "Forgive me for my sudden presence," the lieutenant began in earnest, "but the brackets for the opponents are yet to be decided. We have tried to make fair and worthy matches for each contestant during your resting hours, yet every time we do dutifully there is some disagreement between the rest of the council. Since the contestants are still at rest as we speak, we would like to request your preferred matches for the remaining six your excellence." The queen had nodded in her approval of the circumstances given, and followed her guard to the awaiting council. From their trot, she had noticed her lavender flowers had wilted from their usage, yet to be replaced with freshly picked ones. "The lavender needs replacing Lieutenant. Should I assume my seamstress has also attended the council without permission again ?" An annoyed but less fierce face plastered on the queen of the night. Dash sighed in response to the more than likely assumption, "Yes your highness. We had told her kindly to keep out from official business, but her insistence only slowed the status of an official answer for the placements of the contestants, to where I had to ask for your gracious intervention without notice." "You are pardoned. Your loyalty to me, your Queen, have only proven your loyalty more for requesting my aid in such a time of need, rather than try to usurp power from the council and take up command. Very honorable and commendable." The praise built Dash's confidence without the mare noticing, thankfully not showing to much of her enthusiasm. "Thank you your majesty, your compliments are always filled with a gracious welcoming." As they had trotted forward, the once quiet halls started to hold the bickering of aggressive ponies hitting their hooves to the floor and wooden cider mugs splashing against the walls of the room they finally stood across from. "The court hearing is being held here." The last bit of her thought was mistakenly unrestrained and flew out without warning, "I bet ten bits, that the seamstress is still arguing with the commander." "Lieutenant Dash, I would never take such insolence from you to disrespect even someone as important as my seamstress." A few seconds of silence and a stiff looking Rainbow Dash trying to find the words to apologize with, and the alicorn mare spoke with humor. "Make the bet twenty bits." With that, Dash's jaw dropped mentally while she physically sighed in praise for her queens humor. The doors to the court open instantly, revealing the sight of a room in total disarray and audible chaos. Tankards of cider were spilled everywhere, a few ponies were eating popcorn and laying back without seeing their ruler behind them, watching the main event of two feuding ponies kept going at it without any restraint. "You've gotta be fuckin' jokin'." a bright orange coated mare with a cowboy hat and a country accent kept an aggressive tone to a continuing argument, "The dragon should take on the midget and get rid of them to have a chance to take on the other opponents! Get rid of the squirt and have an actual battle!" A retorted remark from another mare, grey in her coat wearing a gothic torn looking vest with her mane and tail in a purple bun. "I fully disagree! The audience clearly wants a match worth remembering, so they must find entertainment in the magic of a proper duel between a unicorn!" "And I demand SILENCE!" The queen had finally made herself present in the audience with the royal shout. The guards who were laid back and uncaring, stood at the ready fixing their uniforms in a swift manor. The other two court ponies had stood silent, their backs instantly straightening like quick set stone. "Commander Applejack, seamstress Rarity, your unprofessionalism is undoubtedly unpleasant to say the least, and to the rest of these guards. Your duties are now doubled, starting with the full restoration and cleanliness of this room!" "Yes our mistress! May the night reign supreme!" At that point, the guards started cleaning up like it was a do or die situation, with Lieutenant Dash passing her majesty twenty gold bits in full. The rest of the guards rushed out the chamber without a second thought to hurry back to their stations, or doing other tasks around the castle. "Now, from what I've been informed of, the bracket for my remaining competitors remains undetermined. I demand an honest answer and if I do not have one I shall not hold back an appropriate punishment." "Oh your majesty." the seamstress started. "I can tell you exactly what had caused this troublesome commotion to take place-" but was cut off by her opposing rival, an orange earth pony mare in a cowboy hat. Standard guards with proper armor would be condemned from wearing anything else from their standard equipment, but this one was special due to fighting every guard at once on her recruitment day with nothing but a lasso, because her hat was demanded to be thrown to the nearest trash bin. It made her instantly jump from rookie to sergeant for her strength and will power alone, instantly gaining respect among the guards and of course Nightmare Moon herself. "Yur majesty. Forgive me for intervening her ramblin, but in all honesty we were just startin' to pair up the victors from last nights rangle by studyin' their entry forms. Well, that was the case until Rares over there made her rounds to this space. She pranced in 'ere when we brung up the short stack goin' by the number '4' with what that their form says. She started blaberin' 'bout how unfair it would be to put someone so small up against a real challenge." The seamstress revolted in a pompous regal retort, "You were putting the poor thing up against a grown dragon challenger Applejack, at least my suggestion for pairing up the little twerp against a unicorn is more fairly balanced, and better than what Rainbow had come up with." The rainbow maned mare beside the mistress of the night took no hesitation on responding to the white mare that roped her into this chat. "Putting that small fry up against a griffon is a challenge that meets straight in the middle for both of your suggestions, and way better than just a magic duel or strength stand off, but the rush of a real battle where speed is unpredictable and free to factor into the flashiness of a battle." It only took the third line of dialogue from the mare to return the council to a state of unrestrained aggression again, showing their true emotion leading their actions without their ruler standing tall literally right next to them all. The mistress of the night however, hated the ignorance of her subjects surprisingly instantaneous attention span loss, and used her royal shout again to regain the attention of her subjects. "Enough! Your insolence drives me to the conclusion of lowering your ranks or fully stripping them if you all do not shut it!" That was all she needed to get their full undivided attention back to the mystic mare of the night, a cold sweat immediately dripping down their hides. "We're sorry for our ignorance our Queen." Rainbow and Rarity both bowed in a frightened manor, fear being the only expression they knew, excluding Applejack who had no visible fear. Nightmare Moon kept herself from an inevitable face hoof and breathed a sigh of dissatisfaction. "At ease." She returned from a laid back posture to a stern stoic form. She'd wasted enough time with her half brained council shenanigans, it was time to return to business. "So, the remaining opponents are the traditional three pony races, a griffon, a dragon, and our mysterious short contender. I see the possibilities of this decision are strongly weighed in favor of seeing our concealed character fall to a far more skilled opponent than expected. Unicorns are powerful when their magic is skillfully crafted in their own unique ways, pegasi are their most powerful when the winds are at their sides to make various aerial maneuvers, and earth ponies are naturally powerful due to their close bond with the planets naturally produced magic. Our foreign competitors, the griffon and dragon both are powerful in land and sky, but one is clearly the stronger of the two can only use brute force, the other is more adaptable and we can presume less cocky than our draconic competitor. We know very little about our visitors from other lands, but tales and rumors do sound from others mouths that dragonkin seem very arrogant." "My decision has been made, and my choice is clear. The matches will be as follows..."