//------------------------------// // Chapter 14, Something Good . . . // Story: Friendship is Life // by alejin //------------------------------// Spike was warming up inside his room while Alex gave him some advises for his next fight. The dragon was focusing on one goal: Take that trophy with him. “That’s great Spike! Keep it up. Ten more pushups and we are done!” “…Ok…” Spike completed the exercises and was feeling more than ready to compete. He put his entire gear on and left his room accompanied by Alex. “Spike, I’m just going to check if the girls have already arrived and then will come back with you, ok?” “Ok, please make sure to be on time.” “No problem Spike. I’ll be right back!” After Alex left, Spike decided to check on the rest of the finalists. He walked towards the side of the arena were the final matches would take place and found them there; the other eight competitors were already waiting for the matches to start. The group consisted of three Minotaurs, one Unicorn, a Horse, a Zebra and a Griffin. They all turned around to see Spike after noticing he was walking towards them. “So you are the dragon who made it to the finals?!” – The Unicorn asked. “Well, yeah! Here I am.” The Griffin stood next to Spike – “Your armor looks cool! I hope you are as good as everypony says!” “I believe I am. Not to sound arrogant but I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t.” – Spike replied. There was one Minotaur that wasn’t impressed by the little Dragon. After hearing all of the others ask Spike random questions regarding his armor, weapons and training, he approached Spike and asked: “Why are you guys so impressed? He is just a simple little dragon who was trained by some kind of freak!” The other competitors went silent after hearing this. All of them noticed the tone of voice he used to say these words. Spike knew that not all the competitors would be nice to him, especially after meeting Maximus Heart. He got a little upset not because the Minotaur called him “little Dragon” as if he was a joke, but because the Minotaur insulted Alex by calling him a freak. “… And who are you supposed to be? The funny guy who thinks he is invincible or just a simple jerk?” – Spike asked. The Minotaur was furious. He was more than pissed off after hearing the other six finalists laughing so hard at him. “You better watch your mouth Dragon! Don’t you know who I am?” “No, I don’t know who you are and being honest I really don’t care.” No one was laughing this time. Everypony could feel the tension between them. The Minotaur got closer to Spike and said: “I am Platinum Guts, the grandson of Bright Courage! And I will be the winner of this tournament. If you think you can talk to me like that, you better make sure that you and your stupid human friend…” – The Minotaur was interrupted after feeling the cold tip of Spike’s hidden blade on his throat. He jumped backwards to escape from the dragon’s weapon. “Don’t you ever insult Alex again or I will leave a scar on that neck of yours! You got me?” - The look on Spike’s eyes was cold. - “Alex trained me so I could protect my friends against anyone, I didn’t start training after hearing of this tournament so every technique I know was meant to be lethal. You might be Bright Courage’s grandson, but I can guarantee you have never faced anyone like me and for sure your grandfather has never faced an opponent like Alex.” The Minotaur drew one of his weapons too. “Whatever! You better pray not to face me at the tournament because if you do, I will make you suffer!” – Platinum Guts put his weapon back in its sheath – “And make sure to include your friend in your prayers too because he will pay for what you said in case he is unlucky enough to face my grandfather in the arena.” The Minotaur turned around and walked away while the rest of the group surrounded Spike, the Unicorn stood in front of him and said: “That was amazing Spike! You are so brave! This is the way a Dragon should always be! That’s why I like them so much!” “Do you like Dragons!?” – Spike asked. “Yeah! Dragons have always amazed me. They are so cool! And now here I am talking to one. This is amazing!” “Thank you! And what’s your name?” “My name is Aura Breeze, I’m from Manehattan!” – She answered. “Nice to meet you Aura! – The rest of the competitors walked away – It is awesome to see a Unicorn compete in the finals. How did you learn to fight?” “My daddy is a Royal Guard so he trained me since I was four. It’s my dream to become the first Royal Guard mare in all of Equestria; I know my dream will come true after winning this tournament! There is no way they will reject me if I show them I can win this thing at this age!” Spike was so impressed after hearing her words. Her optimism and determination were unique. She was right, he hadn’t heard of any Royal Guard mares in Equestria at all. “Aura, you are amazing!” – Spike had to admit he liked her attitude. He knew she was beautiful too, but he wasn’t going to say that. “Thanks Spike!” – She said while looking at Spike directly into his eyes making him nervous - “Ok, I must go now! I… I have to do something. Well, good luck in the tournament. See you there Aura!” “Good luck to you too! Bye.” --- Alex got back into the coliseum after a couple of minutes and met with Spike. “Hey Spike! The girls have already arrived and they are in their seats. They are so excited to see you compete!” “G… Great. Thanks!” “Is there anything wrong? You look nervous. Are you ok?” “Yeah, I am ok! It’s just because my match is about to start.” The human was going to say something, but the announcement of the final matches started: “Finalists, it’s time for you and your coaches to come to the center of the Arena!” There were thousands of fans inside the Coliseum, all of them were cheering for their favorite participant. The sound of the audience made the whole place tremble as the competitors and their coaches walked towards the center of the arena. This arena was not a regular one; it had a diameter of 40 meters and was full of big and small rocks. These rocks offered the competitors perfect hiding and tactical places for them to compete. Spike was planning his strategy as he was walking past these rocks. The competitors arrived at the center of the Arena, where the princesses were waiting for them. Princess Twilight welcomed them with a big smile using her magic to levitate a golden box in front of them and said: “Please take a paper from this box. Each paper has a number that will be assigned to the finalist that picks it. You will read it aloud so everypony knows which number you got!” – The princess walked towards Spike – “Please, take one…” The Dragon put his claw inside the box and took his number. “I got the number 2!” The referee wrote Spike’s number as the number 2 in the board. “Spike, you will be the first one to fight! Now, let the rest of the competitors grab their pieces of paper.” – Twilight moved to her right and stopped in front of another finalist – “Platinum Guts please take one!” The Minotaur put his hand inside the box and took his piece of paper. He unfolded it in order to read it. Everypony in the place was waiting for him to read his number. “…I got number 6!” – He said while clinching his teeth. Easy Glider, the Griffin was next. “I got number 4” Twilight kept walking towards the other competitors. “Aura Breeze, please take one.” The little Unicorn took a piece of paper from the box – “I hope I get a good one!” – She said with a smile on her face. She unfolded the piece of paper and looked at the number; there was a sad look on her face afterwards. “Little filly, what number did you get?” – The princess asked. She looked at Twilight who noticed the sadness in her eyes. “I got . . . number 1!” Spike was shocked, he could not believe his first opponent was the filly he just met; it looked like some kind of joke. Aura Breeze got next to him while the next competitors were given the rest of the numbers – “It’s you and I then, let’s do our best Spike!” – Spike smiled at her and replied – “Ok Aura, let’s do our best” – The Unicorn got closer to him and whispered in his ear – “If you don’t take me seriously, I will never forgive you!” – Her words made him sad because he didn’t want to be the one facing her, he didn’t want to be one putting an end to her dream – “I promise I will fight with everything I have!” Once every competitor had their respective numbers assigned, they walked outside the Arena in order to wait for their corresponding matches to start. Princess Twilight stood in the middle of the battle field again: “It’s my honor to announce the start of the Coliseum Tournament finals for the younger competitors division. I know they will give us great matches. Competitors please be advised of the following: there is no time limit on this matches, the only way to win is to reduce the opponents points to zero. Additionally, the victory can be achieved by making the opponent surrender. Please take these things into consideration to adjust your strategies.” – The eight finalists nodded – “Competitors, the final matches start, NOW!” The crowd went wild as they heard these words. The place was full of fans from all over the world. The referee stood in the middle of the Arena. “The first ones to fight are both representing Equestria. Spike the Dragon and Aura Breeze the Unicorn! Competitors, please step into the Arena.” Spike and Aura walked to the center of the Arena, Alex and Aura’s coach were standing inside the borders, ready to support and give instructions to their respective fighters. The Dragon was wielding his Katanas, hidden blades, knives. a short bow and arrows were part of his arsenal. Aura was covered in golden armor; this armor had some sort of mechanisms on each side – “I wonder what those things are…” – Spike said to himself. Aura’s helmet had spikes all over; it was perfect for charging against the opponent. Both competitors stood in front of each other. “I’m glad you are my opponent Spike. Being honest, I wanted so badly to fight against you. I will do my best to win this but if I lose, I’ll have the honor to lose to a Dragon!” – Spike felt honored - “Thanks Aura, It’s a real honor to face you!” The referee gave the order to activate Faker Barrier; the spell scanned them both for their respective Faker weapons except for Alex and Aura’s coach. Once the scanning was complete, the number 100 appeared over Spike and Aura’s head. The referee turned to Spike – “Are you ready?” – The Dragon nodded – “Aura, are you ready?” – “I am” – She answered. “Begin!” Aura threw a little round object between Spike and her which exploded in less than a second. The place was immediately covered in a dense fog – Damn it! A smoke bomb!” – Spike said. He drew his Katanas and charged forward right to were Aura was standing a second ago. With a quick move, he managed to dissipate some of the smoke, but to Aura wasn’t standing there anymore. “I didn’t expect her to start the fight in that way! I must be careful.” Spike turned around thinking Aura would attack him from behind, using what was left of the smoke to cover her moves but he was wrong. An arrow flew through the air, hitting Spike on his right knee. Even though it wasn’t a “real” arrow, it still pierced his armor. The numbers floating over his head went from one hundred to eighty in an instant. “I have to be careful; she is attacking me from a distance.” Another arrow flew straight towards him but this time he was able to dodge it. After the smoke was dissipating and Spike was able to see the whole Arena again. He managed to see Aura aiming a crossbow at him and shooting a third arrow – “Where did he get that? – He asked himself. Spike put his Katanas back in their place and drew his short bow aiming towards Aura, but she wasn’t there anymore. Spike felt another arrow piercing the armor on his back taking thirty points off from him. He jumped as far as he could in order to take cover under a rock. He sat down and closed his eyes to try to calm down and focus until he could listen to Aura moving. Long ago, Alex found that the Dragons posses very accurate senses, that is why is almost impossible to steal a dragon’s treasure since they are able to hear when someone is coming towards their lair from miles away. Spike kept his eyes closed; finally, he was able to hear Aura moving across the Arena, she hid behind a rock and pulled another smoke bomb out. Her plan was simple, keep herself covered by the smoke. Spike was able to hear her movements; he readied his short bow and started running towards her, Aura saw the Dragon coming where she was and realized he was going for a direct attack, she threw the smoke bomb at him but Spike was ready, he shot his arrow which made contact with the smoke bomb making it explode at a few inches from Aura’s face, the explosion made her close her eyes and breath a high amount of the smoke which made her cough and lower her guard for a second. Spike threw his short bow away and drew his Katanas, Aura opened her eyes and saw him coming towards her as she readied her crossbow but it was too late, Spike was faster and with a swift movement he cut her weapon in half. It all happened in less than a second, Spike turned around and hit Aura’s face with his tail and then with his foot, it was some sort of round house kick that sent her flying through the air. Aura landed on her back but jumped back on her hoofs as soon as she hit the ground. The counter over her head lost twenty five points. Aura could still feel the pain from Spike’s tail and the kick to his face. She was hurt but happy at the same time because Spike kept his promise and was using everything he had to fight against her – “He is a great fighter, but I am a warrior!” Spike saw her drawing her spear and pointing at him. Aura attacked him with quick movements but the Dragon was too fast, she couldn’t land any of them; knowing that Spike was too god at close combat, she jumped backwards and threw her spear in order to gain a better position. Spike saw the spear coming towards him and cut it with his Katanas. The Unicorn landed at least fifteen meters away from Spike. He smiled after noticing she didn’t have any weapons left. “I see now how good you are Spike. Being honest, none of my previous opponents were able to avoid my arrows or my spear attacks. Now, let’s see if you can avoid my Spin Attack!” “Spin attack? - Spike didn’t understand what she meant, but he wasn’t going to let himself get caught by surprise. Aura adopted a crouching position. Spike stood still, he was waiting for her to make her move so he could react accordingly. The mechanisms on Aura’s armor started to move and her armor began to change. After a few seconds, she was covered in long razors from head to hooves. Aura smiled after seeing his opponent standing there in front of her. “Now!” – Aura said out loud. She ran towards Spike and began to spin like a giant shuriken. Spike was barely able to dodge her attack by jumping to his right; she seemed to have become faster after her armor changed. “That will not work!” Aura shouted as she used her leg to change her direction towards the place Spike would land. He was shocked, there was no way he could dodge this attack while in midair. Aura was getting closer; Spike had to use his Katanas in order to block the attack. The speed and force she used on this attack was unparalleled. As soon as the Katanas made contact with her razor-armor, Spike was sent flying and crashed against the Faker barrier. Twenty points were deducted from his counter. He stood up and was able to see Aura stopping; she looked a little dizzy, maybe from changing her direction that fast. Spike stood up and got ready for a counter attack as Aura started spinning again – “I can tell she is moving faster this time” –Aura flew directly at him at an immense speed. Spike jumped towards her and attacked with his Katanas which were shattered to pieces after making contact with Aura’s armor. However, the strength Spike used on his attack was enough to send her flying to a different direction. Luckily for Aura, she managed to stop before hitting a rock. Spike’s arms were hurting like hell, both of his Katanas were broken – “I don’t know if I’ll be able to do this again. Damn it, that attack is really strong!” – He turned around and saw Aura, standing next to the rock she was about to collide against – “She looks dizzier this time.” The Dragon was right, Aura wasn’t looking any good. Maybe it was the speed at which she had to spin or the strength she was using on her attack but it was obvious that she could only use her technique one more time. “It seems you are the one with no weapons left Spike!” – Aura yelled – “All I have to do is use my attack ONE MORE TIME and this fight will be over!” A cloud of dust was created under her as she started spinning for a final attack. None of the weapons on Spike’s arsenal could stop her – “Sweet Celestia, if I could only… wait!” – Spike remembered the way Alex ended his fight against Tyros the griffin – “That’s it!” The speed Aura reached this time was incredible, she was going all out on her last attack – “Spike, you were great, really great! Nopony has been able to dodge my Spin Attack, but you managed to do it twice. However, this will be the last one; it was fun while it lasted. I really want you to sit in the front row on my next match. Thank you Spike!” The Dragon started walking towards the center of the Arena – “Is that the place that you chose for your defeat? Spike stopped in the right in the middle – “Come and get me Aura!” – He yelled at her opponent. Aura smiled – “As you wish!” The Unicorn flew straight to Spike at full speed - “Nice fight Spike!” - She shouted while she flying through the air. Everypony knew it was the end, everypony but Alex he knew Spike had planned something and Aura fell for it. Before being hit by Aura’s razor armor, Spike let himself fall flat on the ground letting Aura fly right above him and using his tail as a spring he kicked her on her stomach with both legs. The kick was so strong it made her fly directly to a rock that was behind them. Aura couldn’t stop or change direction because of how fast she was flying this time. She crashed against the rock shattering it to pieces. Spike stood up and turned around to get ready for his next move but his ankles were hurt – “There’s no time to rest!” – He said to himself as he noticed Aura standing up among the debris – “Damn it, she is tough!” “That was really unexpected” – Aura said while smiling – “I thought… I thou… I…” – Aura’s life counter dropped to zero as the fell knocked out on the floor. “THE WINNER, SPIKE THE DRAGON!” The crowd was silent, this was an amazing fight and both competitors gave everything. Alex was the one to break the silence: “WAY TO GO SPIKE! YOU DID IT!” The whole crowd stood up from their seats and applauded. They were chanting Spike’s name. Aura started to regain consciousness; Spike noticed it and ran to her in order to help her stand up. “Are you ok?” “Yes, a little hurt but I am fine. I can’t believe you found a way to counter my best move. I’ll definitely have to work harder to fix that.” She stood up completely and hugged Spike – Thank you for giving me the honor to fight against you!” – She extended her hoof and gave him a little piece of paper – “Write me something when this is all over…” Spike looked like a statue, before he could say anything Aura trotted away. He turned around and saw Alex walking to where he was – “Wow! What was that all about?! Hehe! I bet she gave you her address for you to send her a letter, didn’t she?” – Spike had a smile on his face. “Come on Spike! Let’s go back to the dressing room. You need to get ready for your next fight.” “Sure Alex, I’ll catch you up in a second.” “Ok, but don’t take too long. We have to get you new weapons and armor!” Spike took the piece of paper out of his pocket and unfolded it. Aura’s address was written on it. “Aura Breeze… this could be something good.”