Equestria Hockey League

by XFizzle

EHL Part 8.5 - All-Star Adventure

Equestria Hockey League Part 8.5 – All-Star Adventure
by XFizzle

It was day one of EHL All-Star Weekend. Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash were excited to leave Ponyville behind for a small vacation and to mingle with the greatest the EHL had to offer. Since all the festivities were being held in Canterlot this year, Twilight and Rainbow were transported by a royal chariot to the capitol city. When their chariot landed, they were met by EHL Commissioner Gary Bettpony and the rest of the EHL executives. The royal palace was adorned in multiple banners and decorations. Each EHL team had their logo emblazoned on a banner as well as a magical floating portrait of their all-star selections. Twilight and Rainbow squealed excitedly when they saw their massive photo shot floating above the Golden Leafs’ banner. As the all-star Golden Leafs trotted on toward the palace, a trumpet fanfare from the royal guards blared out, announcing their arrival.

As they approached the royal chambers, Twilight and Rainbow noticed that the other all-stars had arrived and were talking amongst themselves. From the Appleloosa Black Apples, Sheriff Silverstar and Braeburn, from the Canterlot Equestriens, Pony Joe and Prince Blueblood, from the Cloudsdale Red Wings, Spitfire, Pucks, and Soarin, from finally the Manehattan Rangers, Lyra and The Great and Powerful Trixie. When Rainbow saw Spitfire and Soarin, she bolted away from Twilight and tried joining in their conversation. Twilight kept to herself in the back of the crowd until Trixie turned around to notice her. Almost immediately, Trixie began laughing out loud, drawing the attention of all the all-stars.

“Hahaha! No way! Please don’t tell me the EHL thought YOU were an all-star?”

“Hello, Trixie,” said Twilight through her clenched teeth.

“Why are you here, Twilight Sparkle? Did they need more janitor mules for the big weekend?”

“No, Trixie. The EHL thought I was good enough to be here. It must be because I’m such a great leader and defensepony.”

“Don’t make me laugh any harder than I already am, Sparkle. Are there any other loser Golden Leafs here too?”

By this time, Rainbow Dash had rejoined Twilight’s side and was getting annoyed with Trixie’s trash talk. “I’m right here! You got something to say, Trixie?”

Trixie rolled her eyes at Rainbow and went on. “Oh great, the talking rainbow is here as well. No matter, I won’t let you losers spoil my fantastic all-star weekend.”

“You better hope I don’t spoil your face!” snapped Rainbow.

Trixie growled and went nose to nose with Rainbow. “How rude!”

Suddenly a blast of trumpets rang out to stop the verbal showdown. A royal guard appeared on the platform with a scroll levitating in front of him. He cleared his voice and announced to all the creatures in attendance.

“Welcome to the EHL All-Star Weekend here in Canterlot! Now presenting the royal highnesses, Princess Luna and Princess Celestia!”

The audience applauded as Princess Celestia and Princess Luna emerged from a curtain and trotted up on the platform toward the all-stars. Luna was smiling brightly as Celestia had a warm, welcoming glow about her. Twilight’s mouth hung open in happiness as she waited to hear her mentor’s words. Trixie looked over at Twilight and mockingly imitated her star-struck stare.

“Good afternoon Equestria Hockey League all-stars! You all should be very proud that you were recognized among the league as elite players! My sister Luna and I welcome you to Canterlot and we hope you enjoy your weekend here. I shall now give the platform to Gary Bettpony to review the weekend’s activities. Mr. Commissioner?”

The all-stars sarcastically clapped off-rhythm as the Commissioner took over the floor.

“Thank you, your majesty. As you all know, tonight is the All-Star Skills Competition. We will be having three events. First, the participants for the fastest skater competition are: Spitfire from Cloudsdale, Soarin from Cloudsdale, and Rainbow Dash from Ponyville.”

Spitfire and Soarin gave each other a hoof bump while Rainbow squealed again in pure glee. The Commissioner continued with his announcement.

“The second event is the hardest shot competition. The participants for that event are: Braeburn from Appleloosa, Lyra from Manehattan, and Prince Blueblood from Canterlot. Finally, the last event is the accuracy competition. The participants for that event are: Silverstar from Appleloosa, Trixie from Manehattan, and Twilight Sparkle from Ponyville.”

Trixie bursted out laughing again as Twilight’s heart sank in fright. Twilight began imagining herself on the ice with everyone staring at her when it was time for the competition. She imagined missing every target in the net and the crowd relentlessly laughing at her. Twilight shook as the announcement was wrapping up.

“Last but not least, I would like to bring the Princesses back to the stage to begin picking their teams for the All-Star Game tomorrow.”

Celestia and Luna returned and stood at opposite ends of the platform with a pile of goodies at their hooves. Each princess also had their teams’ all-star game jerseys ready to be given out. Celestia’s team would be wearing bright orange jerseys with the EHL logo placed inside her sun cutie mark. Luna’s team would be wearing cool purple jerseys with the EHL logo placed inside the crescent opening of her moon cutie mark. The all-stars gave out oohs and ahhs when the princesses showed off their jerseys in front of them. Once the noise settled, the team selection was underway. Twilight crossed her hooves that Princess Celestia would choose her while Rainbow Dash crossed hers so that she could play alongside the Wonderbolts.

“With my pick for the center position, I, Princess Celestia, choose…Spitfire of Cloudsdale!”

“Then for my pick at center, I, Princess Luna, choose…Rainbow Dash of Ponyville!”

Rainbow slumped with disappointment at first but then realized she would be going head to head with Spitfire once again. Thrilled by this new competitive opportunity, Rainbow perked herself back up and proudly strolled to the stage to collect her Team Luna jersey.

“Now for the left wing, I, Princess Celestia, choose…Lyra of Manehattan!”

“I, Princess Luna, choose for left wing…my nephew, Prince Blueblood of Canterlot!”

Lyra and Blueblood were next to trot up to the platform to retrieve their jerseys. Rainbow waved to Twilight from the platform and then waved to Soarin in hopes he would be picked for her team next.

“For the right wing position, I, Princess Celestia, choose…Braeburn of Appleloosa!”

“Then I, Princess Luna, choose…Soarin of Cloudsdale!”

Braeburn let out a “yeehaw!” and Soarin flew up to the platform after their names were called. As soon as Soarin put his Team Luna jersey on, Rainbow rushed over to him and began talking non-stop about how well they were going to play together on the same line.

Now it was time for the defensive selections. Twilight closed her eyes and began muttering to herself “Please let Princess Celestia pick me, please let Princess Celestia pick me!”

“For defense, I, Princess Celestia, choose…Pucks of Cloudsdale! I must also share that this shall be Pucks’ last All-Star Game as he has stated he will be retiring at the end of the season. Let us give him a round of applause for his amazing eleventh all-star selection!”

The all-stars applauded Pucks as he bashfully trotted up to the stage to receive his Team Celestia jersey. His jersey also had the captain’s “C” on it as he was now appointed the team captain for tomorrow’s game.

“For my defense, I, Princess Luna, select…Trixie of Manehattan!”

Trixie stuck her tongue out at Twilight before heading for the stage. Twilight did not care because she was sure she was going to be picked next by Princess Celestia.

“The other defensepony for my team, I, Princess Celestia, choose…Sheriff Silverstar of Appleloosa!”

Like a vicious hammer, Twilight’s hopes were smashed. She fell to the floor in despair as Sheriff Silverstar went up for his jersey. Twilight didn’t want to be there anymore. She already was anxious about being in the accuracy competition and now she would not be playing on her mentor’s team.

“For my other defensepony, and designated team captain for tomorrow, I, Princess Luna, select, Twilight Sparkle from Ponyville!”

Twilight slowly lifted herself up until she heard the words “team captain.” When she looked up and saw the bright, glowing “C” from her Team Luna jersey, Twilight tossed away her sadness and trotted up to the stage. She put her jersey on and was greeted by her soon-to-be teammates, except Trixie. Princess Celestia looked at Twilight and gave her a small wink, showing she had planned this all along. Twilight smiled back and stood proudly with Team Luna as the goaltenders were finally picked.

“Finally, the goaltender for my team, Team Celestia, shall be…Pony Joe of Canterlot!”

“And my goalie, I, Princess Luna, choose…Bloomberg of Appleloosa!”

Pony Joe went to the stage to join his team while Team Luna looked all over for their tree teammate. Suddenly, a crane crashed through the wall, hoisting Bloomberg high above the room.

“Sorry Princess Celestia! We’ll have this fixed up in no time!” yelled the crane operator.

The all-stars stood back in fear for an angry Celestia, but the Princess gave out a soft laugh and magically repaired the wall herself. “There shall be no need for fixing now. Carry on, operator!”

Everypony let out a sigh of relief and were then given the instructions for the night’s All-Star Competition. The princesses departed and each team were shown to their sleeping quarters for the weekend. Twilight and Rainbow’s room was covered in Golden Leafs royal blue and gold. Rainbow rambled on to Twilight about how excited she was for the skating competition tonight and how she was going to play against Spitfire the next day and how Soarin was going to be her right winger. Twilight only nodded, preoccupied with her anxiety for the accuracy competition that evening. Rainbow noticed Twilight’s shortness with her answers and tried calming her.

“What’s got your tail in a knot today? Aren’t you excited to be back in Canterlot?”

Twilight sighed. “Yes, I’m glad to be back home but I’m afraid of embarrassing myself tonight at the Skills Competition. I don’t want to make a fool out of myself in front of everypony! I ‘m afraid I’ll miss every target.”

“No worries, Twilight. You’re going to be the best shooter out there! I’ve seen your shots and they’re pretty darn close to perfect! When it’s your turn, just pretend you’re all by yourself back at Ponyville Pond.”

“But what about Trixie?”

“Forget that saddle sore. She’s going to be too busy worrying about how magical and phony she looks. Bleh. You can take her, no problem!”

“Thanks, Rainbow.”

“Don’t mention it. Now come on, we have to get to the arena!”

Twilight and Rainbow left their room and headed down to the chariot line where they boarded a chariot for the Celestia Centre, home of the Canterlot Equestriens.

---

When they arrived at the Celestia Centre, Twilight and Rainbow were escorted to the Team Luna locker room. Prince Blueblood, Soarin, and Trixie were already at their respective stalls getting ready. Twilight and Rainbow were shown their stalls. In their stalls were their royal blue Golden Leafs home jerseys, gently hanging from hooks and shining brighter than usual. On the left shoulder of their sweaters was a patch depicting the All-Star Game’s logo. The two Golden Leafs put their gear on and waited with the rest of Team Luna for their cue to head to the ice.

The inside of the Celestia Centre was a vibrant collection of colors and logos. All six teams had ample amounts of their colors glowing about the arena. The Celestia Centre was about 85% full of cheering ponies. They cheered loudly for each all-star’s introduction, with especially loud cheers for Prince Blueblood and Pony Joe, the hometown Equestrien all-star selections. After the introductions were complete, the competition participants broke away towards their respective events while the others either sat in the benches or on the ice to spectate.

The first event was the fastest skater competition. Cones were placed around the entire rink, a few feet from the boards to outline the track. Spitfire and Soarin tightened up their skate laces and pressed down their red Cloudsdale jerseys as Rainbow Dash stepped up to the starting line ready to race. Spitfire and Soarin joined Rainbow at the line and all three coiled into starting position.

Tweeeeeeeeet

When the whistle blew, the three racers were off in a giant red and blue blur. The first lap of three was a close one and each pony jockeyed for the lead. They all turned together and crossed the line for the start of the second lap, nearly matching each other in stride. Three turns of neck and neck and neck closeness later, the skaters crossed the line for the final lap. Spitfire and Rainbow tried mustering up extra strength and were soon breaking ahead from Soarin. Spitfire and Rainbow skated side by side as they crossed center ice and were heading into the final two turns. With the finish line quickly approaching, Rainbow skated lower and stretched her neck out. Spitfire saw this and followed suit. Around the final turn they came, each pony taking a slim lead then being overtaken by the other. They rumbled toward the finish line as the spectators stood up for the finish. In a large blur, both ponies crossed the finish line and a bright camera flash lit up the ice. The crowd exploded with a loud cheer as Spitfire and Rainbow were met by their teammates to celebrate a race well done. When the photo developed, the photographer handed it to the emcee for the evening.

“The race result is in! In a photo finish, and I don’t mean the Equestriens’ defensepony, the winner, by a nose, is…RAINBOW DASH OF PONYVILLE!”

The crowd cheered again as Rainbow leapt up in celebration. The emcee skated over to place a medal around Rainbow’s neck. Twilight applauded for her fellow Golden Leaf as Rainbow received hoofshakes from both Spitfire and Soarin for a great race. When Twilight was done cheering, her anxiety ramped back up as it was getting closer to time for the accuracy competition. But first it was time for the hardest shot. Braeburn, Lyra, and Blueblood drifted toward the net to await their event. As Twilight nervously looked upon the hardest shot competition, Trixie sat down next to her.

“Hope you’re ready to lose, Twilight Flopple! I’ve been practicing my shot accuracy all week because I knew I was going to be chosen for this event. I’ll do you a favor though. I’ll shoot so well, everyone will pay attention to me and they won’t even care about your pathetic attempts. I’m going to give them a show!”

Twilight kept looking on, not giving Trixie one ounce of attention. Trixie saw her words weren’t getting through and stood up to leave. Trixie let out a snort before skating away to get ready for the accuracy competition. Braeburn won the hardest shot competition and was given his medal as the crowd once again erupted with cheers. Finally, it came time for the accuracy event. Twilight shook as she stood up and skated over toward Trixie and Silverstar. Rainbow skated by to give Twilight some last minute words of encouragement and also to show off her fastest skater medal. Twilight focused in and just wanted the event to be over.

First to shoot was Trixie. Soarin and Spitfire stood at the sides of the net each with a pile of pucks to pass to the shooters. In the net were four targets placed in the corners. The goal was to hit all four targets without missing in the fastest time. Trixie added some flair to her attempt by making her stick shoot sparklers from the ends. With the shooter and passers ready, the whistle blew.

Tweeeeeeeet

Trixie hit her first shot into the top left target. The next shot drilled the top right target as well. When the next pass came, Trixie one-timed it into the lower left corner to become three for three. With one last target glowing in the bottom right corner, Trixie began to get cocky. When the next pass came, Trixie flicked her stick. The puck flew at the bottom right corner but just narrowly missed the target, hitting the post instead. Trixie’s eyes expanded in disbelief and let out a frustrated growl. When the next pass came, Trixie tightened up her grip and let the shot fly. Once again, she missed the target and became angrier. Finally, one the next pass, Trixie fired the puck into the bottom right target, finishing up at 4 for 6.

Twilight’s uneasiness faded a tiny bit after seeing Trixie struggle to finish, but she still shook in her skates. Twilight took her place at the shooter’s spot and cautiously waited for the whistle.

Tweeeeeeeeeet

Twilight was startled by the whistle and let out a yelp as the first pass came to her. Twilight closed her eyes and shot the puck on net. Although she didn’t see it, the first shot busted the bottom right corner, eliciting a cheer from the crowd. Hearing the crowd, Twilight reopened her eyes and saw she was 1 for 1. She smiled as the next pass came toward her. She wound back and shot again, this time cracking the bottom left target. Her confidence rocketed upward as the third pass came. Twilight focused in on the top left target and shot. The puck blazed in on target and obliterated it. Twilight was now 3 for 3 and was ready to go 4 for 4. The fourth pass came in from Soarin and Twilight wound up. When Twilight unleashed her shot, Trixie’s horn glowed and she put a spell on the puck. Twilight’s shot flew toward the top right target but suddenly stopped and fell to the ice. Twilight was dumbfounded but already had the next pass coming at her. She focused again and quickly flung the puck into the final target, busting it up. Trixie stomped her skate down as Twilight finished 4 for 5.

The crowd cheered Twilight’s effort and she skated away feeling like a weight was lifted from her shoulders. Trixie stomped about in frustration as Silverstar took his turn to shoot. The Appleloosa defensepony went 4 for 4 and won the event. It did not matter to Twilight as she bested Trixie and her anxiety was now gone.

The Skills Competition ended with a declaration from Gary Bettpony.

“Fillies and gentlecolts, as is tradition, I will now announce the host of next season’s All-Star Weekend! Without further ado, next year’s All-Star Weekend shall take place in…”

The royal band started a drumroll as the Commissioner stretched his neck back up to the microphone.

“Ponyville!”

Twilight and Rainbow began celebrating as the crowd applauded. The other all-stars, except Trixie, smiled at the two Golden Leafs and then headed for the locker rooms.

---

The following day was the All-Star Game. Team Celestia and Team Luna arrived at the Celestia Centre to prepare for the star-studded event. Twilight, with the captain’s ‘C’ on her jersey, addressed her team while Pucks did the same in the Team Celestia locker room. Before long, both teams were introduced out in front of the sellout crowd. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna took their place in the royal suite high above the ice and the All-Star Game was underway.

Since the all-star game de-emphasized hitting, the game jumped out to a fast start. Team Celestia took an early 1-0 lead when Spitfire dangled through the Luna defense for a highlight reel goal. Team Luna quickly answered back when Rainbow Dash countered with an equally impressive goal of her own, tying it up at 1-1. Team Luna was back on the offensive and scored on a bang-bang passing play were Blueblood and Rainbow traded passes and then ended with Trixie sniping a shot in from the blue line. The 2-1 Team Luna lead did not last long as Lyra and Spitfire were up on the two-on-one after a big check by Braeburn on Rainbow. Lyra notched the goal and the game was tied again at 2-2. The 1st period ended that way and the crowd showed their appreciation for the all-stars’ entertaining performance.

In the 2nd period, Team Celestia regained the lead when Pucks received a pass along the blue line from Silverstar and fired it on net. Braeburn skated through the crease to tip the shot past the immobile Bloomberg for the go ahead goal. Down 3-2, Team Luna fought back and tied the game up with a deflection by Soarin off a Twilight shot. With the game tied 3-3, Team Celestia bolted down and played tighter defense. They pressured Team Luna into committing turnovers which turned into two more goals by Spitfire and Braeburn for Team Celestia to take a 5-3 lead. Pucks added another goal from the point to extend Team Celestia’s lead to 6-3. At the end of the second period, Team Luna found themselves down by three goals. With bragging rights and pride on the line, Twilight pepped up her team and got them ready for the 3rd period.

The 3rd period got off to a hot start as Team Luna chipped away at their deficit with a Rainbow goal from Twilight. The Golden Leaf connection made the score 6-4 as Team Celestia started playing more conservatively. Team Luna did not let up and was soon back on the scoring end when Blueblood muscled to the net and poked the puck in past his Equestrien teammate Pony Joe to cut the Team Celestia lead to 6-5. With the score closer, the defense on both teams stepped up. A little amount of shots were fired as Team Celestia tried to hold onto their lead. With two minutes left, Soarin was on a breakaway with Spitfire close to catching him. Rainbow flew up quickly and nudged Spitfire away to allow Soarin to complete his break. With a deke, Soarin beat Pony Joe and tied the game up for Team Luna, 6-6. Only minute remained and the crowd grew louder with excitement. Team Celestia won the faceoff and deployed a keep away strategy. The clock wound down and Team Celestia kept looking for their opportune shot. Lyra passed to a raging Spitfire who cut through the center. Twilight dove at the Team Celestia center and poke checked the puck off to the side where Soarin took it up with Rainbow. Rainbow and Soarin passed back and forth with only Pucks between them. Soarin knew his Red Wing teammate’s weakness and rushed to Pucks’ weak side, the left side. Rainbow skillfully threaded the puck between Pucks’ legs to Soarin on the other side to one-time the game-winning goal into the net.
Time expired and Team Luna won 7-6. The Celestia Centre was rocking with cheers and music as Princess Luna came down to the ice to present winner’s medals to her team. Soarin was the All-Star Game MVP and was given a small trophy for the feat.

---

After the celebration was over, both teams cleaned up in the locker room and headed back to the palace for a banquet dinner that evening. After the dinner was over, Twilight and Rainbow packed their things and returned to Ponyville with their all-star jerseys and medals in tow. Although they arrived back late, Twilight and Rainbow entered Twilight’s house and were met by a surprise party. Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Spike decorated the house and waited all day for their all-star teammates to return. The Golden Leafs were reunited again and they partied for the rest of the evening.