As they walked through the opulent halls, the three humans couldn't help but admire them, or the art they walked past. There were many paintings and statues, some showing Celestia in her radiant glory, some showing another pony, slightly smaller than Celestia, with a dark blue coat and a shimmering mane of stars. They assumed that this was Celestias sister and the other Princess, Luna, the assumption only helped by the fact that she was the only other pony around with both wings and a horn.
Most of the ponies in the congregation were still there, even Fluttershy, who said that she wanted to help if anyone got hurt badly, but a few had collected their recompense and had taken the train back to Ponyville. Darvish was still looking around when Twilight trotted up to him, Rarity next to her.
"Ah! You are the one that brought us here, correct?" He questioned.
"Yes. I'm Twilight Sparkle, and this is Rarity," she motioned to the white unicorn, "I think that we got off to a bad start, so we'd like to formally make your acquaintance."
"Of course," he laughed. "Darvish Stone-Shield, pleased to meet you."
"So, you're not, you know, mad that I, well, forcibly dragged you out of your own world?"
"Believe it or not, no," he was sincere. "My life had become something of a routine. There really wasn't much that I could do around Skyrim, not after I saved it."
Rarity was intrigued. "Save it? From what?"
"Tell me," he spoke, "Does this world have dragons?"
"Yes, Equestria does. In fact, I have a baby dragon as an assistant. Though he's more like a little brother."
Darvish blanched. This is going to be awkward, he thought. "Well, I saved the land of Skyrim - and in doing so, all of Tamriel- from a dragon called Alduin, the World Eater."
"Sounds like a pleasant fellow," remarked Twilight.
"Please, it was no laughing matter. The appearance of dragons in Tamriel only meant one thing: The destruction of the entire world."
The two mares looked at him in shock and awe, before Rarity said "And you beat him? How?"
"As it turned out, I am what is known as the Dovahkiin." At the confused looks he got, he continued. "Sorry, that's dragon tongue for 'Dragonborn', which meant I was born with the soul of a dragon."
They were stunned. Born with the soul of a dragon? How? So they asked him.
"I'm honestly not sure. I don't think anyone is. But it did mean that I was the only one who could slay Alduin."
"Why?" enquired Twilight.
"Well, while dragons could be killed, they weren't truly dead. You see, there were other dragons, and they all followed Alduin. Well, almost all. Anyway, if a dragon was killed by a normal mortal, they would just have to wait for Alduin to come and resurrect them."
"Resurrect them?! But, I'm pretty sure only somepony as powerful as Princess Celestia could do that!" Twilight exclaimed.
"I will put it in context. Alduin was basically a god in physical form, but the main reason the dragons could be revived was because they still had their souls. That was where I came in. You see, being the Dragonborn I could... well..." he groaned. There was no easy way for him to say this. He really didn't want to tell the truth. Soul stealing, even if it was for good, wouldn't exactly translate well to anyone without proper context.
He didn't really have much of a choice.
He sighed. "Whenever I slay a dragon, it is permanently dead. Being the Dovahkiin makes it so I absorb the souls of any dragons I kill."
The mares had a disturbed look on their faces. He was glad all the others were engrossed in their own conversations.
"Please, let me elaborate. The dragons of Skyrim, while not completely evil, were ruled by their basest desires, the strongest of which being the desire to rule and to subjugate 'lesser' species. With Alduin dead, the only one in charge was his second-in-command, Paarthurnax."
He realised that a full explanation would take a while.
"I understand that you probably have a lot more questions, but we do not have enough time for me to properly explain. And I am sure that the other two have a lot more to talk about as well. Perhaps after the fight, we could talk more?"
The mares agreed. "Of course," said Twilight. "And I would love to learn more about your species."
After an uneventful journey, they finally arrived at the sparring arena for the guards. It was a large stone ring, with a combined sun and full moon emblazoned in the middle and there were numerous alcoves for storing gear. There were stairs leading up to viewing stands, and Celestia was surprised to see Luna observing the guards training.
"Luna! I thought you would be resting?"
Luna looked over to them. "Nay, sister. We were interested in seeing how your guards have been faring." She finally noticed the three humans. "What - Who are they?"
"I'll explain in a moment, but first..." Celestia turned to the ponies currently in the ring, who had stopped sparring when they saw her. "My little ponies, I am going to have to ask you to leave the arena for as long as this battle takes place."
One of the pegasus guards flew up to her. "Your Highness, what do you mean? What battle?"
She motioned to the three. "Those three are paying the final part of their recompense for damaging Ponyville, and have decided to do so by treating us to a 'show', as it were. Considering the damage to Ponyville, it would be interesting to see what exactly they can do. And please, tell anypony else that asks that I will explain later."
The guardspony saluted with an affirmative, flying back down to tell the other guards to clear out.
Celestia excused herself before quickly teleporting away, coming back just as quickly, but now with a large bundle of weapons in her grasp. She levitated them over to the alcoves as the three took positions in the ring.
There was quite the audience growing in the stands. Word must have spread of three strange beings duking it out.
The Princess looked down at the figures standing in the ring. "I will let you choose the rules, since you are the ones offering this. Do not worry, there will be medical aid if needed."
Darvish glanced at both women before him. "Unconsciousness, your out?"
The two agreed, with Shepard adding "And all abilities allowed," once again following with agreement.
They walked over to the alcoves, pondering what weapons to choose.
Darvish chose a particularly vicious looking hammer, the centre of its head slowly pulsing red. Volendrung had never let him down, but it was definitely going to slow him down, so he also took a simple looking sword, the only oddity being the bright orb shining in the hilt. Dawnbreaker was going to hurt.
Zia rummaged through the pile for a bit, though she finally decided that she only needed her fists.
The only thing that Shepard could think to herself was 'Where is my goddamn Claymore'. She was rooting through the pile of weapons, and she saw so many guns. Shotguns, handguns, machine guns, a damned minigun. But no sign of HER shotgun or handgun. "Dammit all", she muttered to herself. Her Carnifex had sentimental value.
She turned to see Zia looking over her shoulder. "Need any help?" she asked.
"Please" Shepard responded. "Why do you need so many guns. I make do with just three. And how do you even carry all this stuff?!"
"Believe me, we need all the weapons we can hold in the Mojave."
"Fine. Just help me find my shotgun and pistol. You'll know they're not yours."
A few moments later, Shepard let out a relieved sigh. "Finally found them. Let's try not to get them mixed in the same pile again, okay?"
The Courier just laughed.
They took their positions again, this time Zia taking off her duster and hat, placing them next to the pile of weapons.
Darvish gave his sword and hammer a few experimental swings. "I guess I also forgot to mention some things."
He held out his left hand, sword in the right. There was a pause before he cupped his hand, flames appearing round it.
Shepard and Zia gawked for a couple of seconds, as well as everypony in the stands. The flames in Darvishs' hand turned to lightning, then ice, then back to flame. "I kind of have magic, and that's not even the best part. Being the Dragonborn lets me learn the dragon language. In Skyrim, dragons don't breathe fire. They shout fire. Let me demonstrate." He looked up into the sky.
"YOL-"
Everybody was thinking the exact same thing: "Wait, what?"
"-TOOR SHUL." And from the Dragonborn's mouth erupted a fireball of massive proportions.
The whole arena was quiet. Everybody there could only stare at Darvish, mouths completely agape.
From somewhere in the crowd, somepony went "Fifty bits on that guy."
There was a clamour of voices as people started to place bets, before they died down as they remembered the Princesses.
The diarchs looked at each other, before Luna said "We believe the other two deserve a chance to 'show us what they've got', before any final concessions are made."
The crowd burst out into cheers, all eyes focused on the other two.
"Fine," said Shepard, "I was trying to surprise them during the actual fight, but since he decided to show off, I guess I have no choice." Like in the throne room, her entire body started glowing with a blue, flame looking energy. She crouched down, before jumping high into the air and landing with her fist impacting the ground. What resulted was a five metre shock wave of blue energy. "And that's only a taste of what I can do," she finished.
The crowd cheered in wonder once again, before finally all eyes were resting on Zia.
She looked around the arena. "What, you expect me to have some kind of crazy power like that?"
She took the silence as a 'yes'.
"Well sorry to dissapoint, but I don't. I'm just a perfectly normal human being." The gathering of ponies moaned in dissapointment, and there were a few murmurs of pity for the Courier.
"Did I say I couldn't hold my own? I've beaten seven foot tall mutant lizards with razor sharp claws. I single-handedly took control over a city right from under the noses of three competitors. Do you see any weapons on me?"
There was a resounding "No" from the crowd.
"Well, that's 'cause I don't need any. The names not 'Zia Ironfist' for no reason. Now then, are we going to do this or what?"
"Very well," said Celestia. "On the count of three."
"One."
Shepard grinned. Those two have no idea what a Vanguard can do, she thought.
"Two."
Darvish readied Volendrung.
"THREE!"
"FUS RO DAH!" yelled Darvish, hoping to knock Zia off her feet with the blast.
Then he felt his legs being swept out from under him. Thankfully, his helmet protected him from a concussion, or he might have been out early.
As he picked himself up, he could only wonder what happened. He turned around.
Only to have Zia uppercut him while he was still confused.
He stumbled backwards, but managed to catch himself before he fell. "How in Oblivion did you do that?!" he demanded.
As she was about to respond, Shepard came charging through the air, surrounded by a field of blue energy. She slammed right into Zia.
She was about to admire Zia flying through the air. Then she realised that Zia had only moved a couple of inches.
"What the- how! Nobody can stay standing after a hit like that!"
Zia only laughed. "Another advantage of being an Ironfist. We're taught the 'Stonewall' technique. Nothing can knock me down, and I've been hit with plenty of heavy things."
She splayed her palm out flat, then hit Shepard square in the chest. The Commander could only fall as she felt her entire body become as stiff as rock.
"What did you do to me?!"
"Don't worry," the Courier replied, "You'll be back up in no time. Just a small full body paralysis so I can focus on... oh crap."
She had somehow completely forgotten about Darvish, and regretted her mistake as she felt the blade of his sword bite into her arm.
She cried out in pain. It felt like the wound was being burnt.
"What the hell is with your sword!" She said through gritted teeth, turning to face him.
"Enchanted," he replied. "Burns anything it cuts, but doesn't cauterize the wound."
The Courier grimaced. The wound would heal quickly, she knew, but it still hurt. She couldn't let him have another shot in.
Unleashing a flurry of punches upon the Dragonborns stomach, she couldn't help but smile at the fact that a normal person would have broken all the bones in their hands if they tried.
Darvish couldn't believe what was happening. He knew that his armour should completely negate her punches, but he still felt them. What was she.
The irony of that statement wasn't lost on him.
He caught one of her fist in his hand, but she simply turned it against him by flipping him over her back and onto the unforgiving ground.
At this time, Shepard had fully regained control of her body. She saw Zia pulling back to give Darvish a brutal blow.
She didn't really think it was fair if he was kicked out so early. So she stopped the Courier.
For her part, Zia didn't fully register what was happening until she was floating three feet above the ground. The spinning world was making her feel dizzy.
"Oh god what's happening!"
As she helped Darvish off the ground, Shepard couldn't help but burst out laughing. "Oh, a biotic can do SO many wonderful things!"
Zia herself was also laughing at her own predicament. "But seriously: When does this wear off?!"
Shepard gave her a cheeky smile. "Oh, right about now I'd say."
The Courier fell to the ground with a painful crash. "Ow."
As she staggered back to her feet, she saw Shepard glowing blue, preparing to charge at her once again.
There was a sound of impact as Shepard went tumbling towards Zia. Behind her was Darvish, hefting the massive hammer.
Another "FUS RO DAH!" sent Shepard flying back even farther, almost managing to make Zia topple.
Sprinting towards the Dragonborn, Zia leapt into the air, bringing her fist down on his helmet. Regardless of any of the damage that was negated, she still had enough momentum to send him crashing to the ground. Leaping on top of him, she tore of his helmet and grabbed the sides of his head.
There was a loud THUD as foreheads connected.
Darvish, already dazed by the previous beatings, flopped backwards, unconscious.
Zia rubbed her forehead for a moment. That hadn't exactly been the smartest idea.
She turned, only to see the Commander once again charging towards her. They collided, and Zia stumbled backwards, the dizziness not helping her balance. Shepard followed up by repeating the move she had shown before the fight, jumping into the air and slamming her fist into the ground, the resulting shockwave enough to knock the already unbalanced Courier off her feet.
Zia quickly climbed back up onto her feet. She saw Shepard pulling back her fist, the tell-tale sign of a strong punch, though hers was wreathed in blue energy.
Zia wasn't about to be beaten at her own game, so she pulled back as well.
The women's fists crossed, each colliding into the others face.
Both fell backwards onto the hard ground, the resulting collision of heads on stone knocking them out.
The crowd was silent for a long time. It was finally broken by Princess Celestia.
"That was... unexpected."
The crowd burst out into cheers. For once, they had witnessed a fight that didn't endanger their kingdom!
There were a couple of annoyed ponies in the audience, sour that their bet resulted in nothing.
Celestia signalled for the medical ponies, who had been waiting in the wings, to retrieve the out cold trio. Luna turned to her. "That was most entertaining, Sister. They are very... unique individuals. Do you think they would object to us enquiring about their services?"
"I am not sure," Celestia mused. "Though I think it is best if we let them rest first. There is also the matter of..." She turned to Twilight, who had been watching the fight with amazed eyes, the same going for the rest of her friends.
"Twilight?" Celestia found her reaction adorable as Twilight came out of her stupor.
"Oh Princess, did you see that!? They have such amazing powers! I mean, one of them breathed fire! And the other-"
Celestia cut her off before she started rambling. "Yes Twilight, I did see that." She deadpanned.
"Oh, right." Twilight flushed slightly. "Of course you did. We all did, yeah." She turned towards Celestia. "Um, was there something you wanted, Princess?"
"Yes, Twilight." Celestia was glad Twilight wasn't as giddy as before. "I need you to find a way to send those three back to their own worlds."
Twilight looked crestfallen. "Oh, yes, of course. That should be the number one priority. Even still, I would like to learn more about them. And from what he told me, it seems that Darvish doesn't really mind that he's here."
Celestia could understand where her student was coming from. A completely new species, three incredibly unique specimens. Who wouldn't like to do research on them?
"I know what you mean Twilight, I really do. But I do not believe it would be fair if they were trapped here for the rest of their lives. And who know, it might take you a while to find a way to send them back."
Twilights face lit up once again. "You're right, Princess! This'll be so exciting!"
The Sun Princess smiled at her students eagerness. "Of course it will, Twilight. Now, get a move on. I'm going to make sure those three don't cause any more trouble when they wake up."
Luna followed behind her sister. Equestria has a side quite opposite to its idyllic surface, and those three could be of much use, she thought.