• Published 18th Jul 2014
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Tales of Apple Scratch: Roseluck & Fleetfoot - RoyalRainbow



Since the beginning of the Equestria Games, Roseluck and Fleetfoot quickly became friendly rivals and good friends with one another. But when they started to develop secret attractions for each other, will they emerge triumphant in the end?

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Chapter 6 – Blitz-ball, Game 2: Canterlot vs. Neigh Orleans

Author's Note:

This chapter roughly takes place right after Chapter 29 – Opening Blitz in "Apple Scratch: Onward to the Equestria Games!"

For more information and rules about Blitz-ball, go to the chapter link above and/or go to Apple Scratch Verse's Forum: Equestria's National Team Sport: Blitz-Ball.

Chapter 6 – Blitz-ball, Game 2: Canterlot vs. Neigh Orleans

After the exciting opening match where Ponyville emerged victorious over Cloudsdale just by one point, Roseluck and the other players went back to rejoin with the rest of the team so they could rejoice over the underdogs’ victory. As their celebration came to a close, they heard Pinkie Pie announcing the next matchup in the Blitz-ball Tournament.

“WOO-HOO!! What an amazing finale that was, folks! Well, I hope you’re still glued to the edge of your seats, because we have time for one more match in our Blitz-ball Tournament: Canterlot versus Neigh Orleans! And if you’re still stuck to your seats after that, well… call for a medical personal immediately. Ahem, now then… Team Canterlot and Team Neigh Orleans! COME ON DOWN!”

As the next two teams entered the arena, Cloud Kicker playfully informed her florist friend, “Heh, looks like you’re in luck, Rose. You get to see your girlfriend in action twice in one day.”

With a predictable blush, Roseluck stammered in mild annoyance, “Sh-sh-she’s not my girlfriend, Kicker!”

“Rrrrright…” was all Cloud could say with a very wide, all-knowing smirk as some of the other teammates mirrored that shrewd expression of hers. Ignoring their teasing, Roseluck fixated her gaze onto the field and tried to spot Fleetfoot onto the playing field.

“Hey, look over there!” Allie Way pointed something out. “Trixie is the Magic Player for her team!”

“Huh, I hardly recognize her without her hat and cape on.” Vinyl Scratch commented casually.

Meanwhile, on one side of the sports ground, the white-haired Titanian with her light blue uniform and a blue band around her waist that represented her position as the team’s Magic Player was shuddering to herself as she complained lightly, “Ugh! The Great and Powerful Trixie feels utterly naked without her trademark attire! Sigh... but like any good entertainer, Trixie will have to make due with what she can get, and she certainly can’t leave her fans disappointed without putting on a spectacular performance for them!”

On the other side of the field, the four players from Team Canterlot entered the area as they took their starting positions. The team’s captain, Shining Armor, took up as their goalkeeper. Spitfire as the Wing Player. Soarin as the Ground Player. And lastly, to Roseluck’s delight, Fleetfoot as the Magic Player.

“Ho-hoo!” Cloud grinned over this. “It looks like they’re already bringing out the big guns for this one.”

“Wait, I get that Soarin is the Ground Player for the team and Spitfire is the Wing Player. But why is Fleetfoot a Magic Player?” Raindrops asked as she pointed to the Magic Player blue band that was wrapped around Fleetfoot’s waist. “Wouldn’t Shining Armor be a better substitute?”

“Trust me, with the boss as their goalkeeper, there’s no one else better for that task than him.” Cloud answered in a perceptive manner. “And unlike the other two Wonderbolts, Fleetfoot’s Jupitarian Magic can be very versatile, whether it’s on the battlefield or on the playing field.”

“How versatile are we talking about?” Roseluck inquired with deep curiosity.

Without giving too much away, Cloud broke into an all-knowing smile and replied shrewdly, “You’ll see.”

In the central ring, Fleetfoot faced off with Trixie. With the players in position, the goal rings glowed upon activation, and the Magic Players leaned forward in preparation for the opening throw-in. With the players and referees ready, Pinkie Pie launched the maroon-colored ball from her cannon as it lobbed across the field before landing right between the white-haired athletes. As soon as the ball landed on the ground, the bell ringed out, which signaled the beginning of the second match.

After the leather ball’s rebound, Trixie quickly seized it above her head with the use of her magic. However, with a wave of her hand, Fleetfoot created a small yet strong gust of wind as it knocked the ball right out of Trixie’s magical grasp. While the masterful illusionist was briefly stunned by that steal, Fleetfoot wasted no time in this fast-paced game as her strong legs conjured up some miniature cyclones and mightily sprung over Trixie’s head.

Neigh Orleans’ Wing Player was about to retrieve it, but Spitfire beat her flying opponent to it as she intercepted the throw. Then, the Wonderbolt flyer passed it to Soarin as he carried the ball forward. The opposing Ground Player tried to tackle Soarin, but it did little to stop his charge before he threw it to Fleetfoot, who caught it within her small twister.

Without losing her advancement toward the goal line, Fleetfoot passed it Spitfire, who quickly took a shot at the top-right yellow ring. Neigh Orleans’ Jupitarian goalkeeper flew up and stands ready to intercept the shot. But to the goalkeeper and spectators’ surprise, the hurled ball was suddenly redirected by Fleetfoot’s swift, magical current at it headed for the lone, blue ring.

“WOWIE-ZOWIE!” Pinkie Pie broadcasted gleefully. “It’s only been twenty seconds, and Canterlot scored the first point of the game! And what’s even more astounding is Fleetfoot’s swift save as she redirected the shot into the other ring!”

After the ball was turned over to Neigh Orleans, they pressed forward as they kept passing the ball back and forth between the players. In-between the pass however, it was incompleted when Fleetfoot used her wind powers to thrust it toward Spitfire. Soon, the bell started to chime as a sign to the first change of the goal ring’s color change before Spitfire passed it Soarin. Once the third ring was heard from the bell, the blue-haired Wonderbolt flung it to Fleetfoot, who was closer to the goal rings. With a quick spin, her gusty magic launched the sphere toward the blue ring.

However, after the bell’s sixth and final chime, the ring she was aiming at changed to a different color, much to the goalkeeper’s relief. Noticing this sudden change quickly enough, Fleetfoot still had control over her magic that wrapped around thrown ball and hastily directed it in a semi-circular pathway before it was casted into the recently changed goal ring that matched the proper color to the Wing Player.

“Unbelievable!” Pinkie screeched out with wild excitement. “In less than a minute, Fleetfoot pulled off another save and earned three points within three seconds after the first change of the rings’ colors!”

As Fleetfoot went to the other Wonderbolts before they give each other high-fives, Roseluck and the rest of her friends stared at their favored team with complete astonishment over the quick lead that Fleetfoot pulled off recently.

“Incredible!” said Allie in amazement. “Her use of Jupitarian Magic is beyond that of Cloudsdale’s Magic Player in the last game!”

“Yep.” Cloud Kicker smirked with proud over that fact. “Because of her mastery over wind, Fleetfoot is an invaluable player due to how she could swiftly turn the tides of this game into her favor.”

“Not just that, but their teamwork is truly astonishing!” Vinyl added with a grin. “The Wonderbolts really do live up to their names!”

As for Roseluck, she was surely impressed by Fleetfoot’s remarkable feats as a professional athlete. And since this match had just begun, the Eponian couldn’t wait to see what her favorite Wonderbolt can do for the rest of the competition.

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Canterlot: 21 Neigh Orleans: 0

It was the end of the first quarter, and the players of Neigh Orleans haven’t scored their first goal just yet. Even when they were able to break through the Wonderbolt’s defense, the indomitable Shining Armor was a challenging goalkeeper to bypass due to how his hands can conjure up two large energy shields that can block just about any shot. In the middle of the 2-minute break, the struggling team contemplated on what to do for the next quarter.

“This is impossible!” One teammate complained in a tiring voice. “How are we supposed to score when their goalkeeper can conjure up the strongest defense in Equestria?”

With a mild harrumph, Trixie commented, “Trixie didn’t expect you fools to throw in the towel already!”

Tired of Trixie’s self-righteous attitude, another player retorted, “Well… if you can do better than either one of us, then by all means, enlighten us, O' Great and Powerful Trixie!”

Ignoring the sarcastic quip from one of her teammates, Trixie responded with a sly, cocky smile, “Ask and ye shall receive! But first, Trixie is going to need a volunteer…!”

For the second quarter, Neigh Orleans was fortunate enough to get the ball first. Once the ball was in Trixie’s possession, she passed by her team’s Ground Player and quickly launched it toward her respective ring. Unfortunately, Shining Armor already saw in the incoming projectile and had one of his shields ready to block it. But upon impact, the ball miraculously passed through his defensive magic. As Shining blinked in surprised by Trixie’s fazing shot, everyone suddenly heard the horn that indicated Neigh Orlean’s first score.

Looking behind his back, Shining saw one the brown-colored rings glowing rapidly as the Ground Player, who passed Trixie a few seconds ago, stood next to it with a victorious smile. Upon his recollection with his Magic Duel with the sly illusionist, Shining understood the mastermind’s real intent as Pinkie Pie explained it to the awestricken audience while Trixie grinned and waved toward the surrounding crowd.

“In case you just missed it, Trixie Lulamoon passed her teammate earlier and created a magical replica of the ball that she was carrying before passing it to the other player, who scored the first goal for Neigh Orleans! This brilliant fake-out for Team Neigh Orleans was all thanks to Trixie!”

“Ahem! That’s Great and Powerful Trixie mind you!” the attention-seeker called out from down below.

“Fine fine! I’ll keep that in mind next time!” Pinkie dismissed that notion with a casual wave of her hand. “Yeesh, what a bragger!”

From hearing that muttering comment thanks to the surround speakers, Trixie snapped out loud, “What was that?!”

Slightly embarrassed by that slipup, Pinkie reassured with a semi-innocent smile, “O-oh nothing, O' Great and Power Trixie! Nothing at all! Note to self: be careful what you say in front of the megaphone next time. Oh, and as a friendly reminder, Magic Players can use any form of magic as long as it doesn’t cause any serious injury to the other players. So the tactic that Trixie demonstrated is perfectly acceptable according to the game’s rules.”

“Hey! If you going to praise Trixie, get the title right this time!” the white-haired magician nitpicked loudly.

Through mocking ignorance, the perky announcer reacted with a hand over her ear, “Hmm… what was that?! I can’t hear you from hundreds of feet in the air while I’m on my personal blimp up here!”

“You just heard me awhile ago!”

“Any who… enough jibber-jabbering!” she putted a hold on their squabble as she wanted to refocus on match itself. “It’s Canterlot’s turn to go on the offense now!”

With a subtle grump, Trixie got into position with the rest of her team as they get ready for Wonderbolts’ assault once again. With the help of their star player, Neigh Orleans still had a fighting chance to go up against the best of the best from Canterlot.

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Over the course of another exciting match, the audience constantly cheered for the clashing teams. More specifically, they were cheering for the two opposing Magic Players: Canterlot’s Fleetfoot and Neigh Orleans’ Trixie.

Thanks to Fleetfoot’s extraordinary control over wind, she could be quite nimble on the ground as well as in the air. Her unique method of aerial mobility could even keep up with Spitfire’s flying. Also, with her wind manipulation, she could extend her reach to retrieve and intercept the ball. Plus, if the ball was imbued with her Jupitarian Magic, she could easily control its trajectory with her unnaturally curve throws. Other than boosting her own capabilities as a ball receiver, runner, and thrower, she served as a valuable assist to her players, such as providing a temporary spring for Soarin so he could keep up with Fleetfoot and Spitire.

As for Trixie, her biggest advantage over Canterlot regarding with her own magical abilities was to provide distractions and confusions, which can break up the Wonderbolts’ legendary coordination. Other than fake-outs, her tricks include smokescreens to conceal the ball and players’ location. In the midst of a smokescreen, she could imbue her own eyes with magic to see through the smoke in order to retrieve the ball with ease. As for her own goal shots, she could create a multitude of duplicates when she casted her original shot to make it more unpredictable. Along with that, her magic-imbued throws could spiral in various fashions to make them even more unpredictable, which can bypass Shining’s well-known defenses.

Canterlot: 53 Neigh Orleans: 50

During the final quarter’s last minute of the intense match, Neigh Orleans was starting to catch up. And in the middle of the game’s final stretch, there was a fumble where Spitfire, Soarin, and Trixie were caught in one of the later’s smokescreens. Eventually, Soarin got the ball and exited out of the glittering smoking. However, he heard a familiar voice calling out to her.

“Soarin! Above you!”

Looking above, he saw a hovering Spitfire with her arms extended outward as she anxiously waited for the pass. With his time nearly up, he flung the ball upward. But just right after that, he heard the same voice coming from the smokescreen behind him.

“No, Soarin! Don’t!”

To Soarin’s surprise, another Spitfire rose from the smoke as she was too late to warn him. Once the first Spitfire retrieved the ball with the use of unforeseen levitation, she smirked to the baffled Ground Player and threw it to a player from Neigh Orleans. With her diversion completed, she cancelled her disguise with a poof of smoke and revealed herself as the proud Trixie, who was able to levitate herself with a brief hovering spell.

After she cancelled her short-lived self-levitation, Trixie ran by the mystified Soarin and playfully patted him on the shoulder while gratifying with a sarcastic grin, “Thank you, Soarin~!”

Seconds later, Trixie managed to catch up with the rest of her team before the Wing Player passed the ball to her. As soon as that pass was completed, Trixie was confronted by Fleetfoot after she landed in front of the forward illusionist. At once, Trixie summoned another magical puff of smoke, and out of the latest concealment, there were five smirking Trixies, each of them carrying their own levitated ball.

Without delay, Fleetfoot spread her arms widely and crossed them over in a swift, sweeping fashion. With a mighty wave of her hands, Fleetfoot literally blew away the competition as it knocked down the real Trixie and her ball while also destroying her shadow duplicates.

With the ball fumbling out of Trixie’s magical grasp, Fleetfoot noticed the final warning for the last color change before the game is official over. As soon as she picked up the ball with her wind magic, the blue ring switched from the lower-left goal to the central one. Quick as the whip, Fleetfoot launched the ball like an air cannon as it whistled across the field. Even the opposing goalkeeper won’t dare touch that screeching ball and instinctively cowered away from it. And in the very last second of the match, the spiraling ball aimed its mark and tallied up the last three points for Team Canterlot.

FINAL SCORE:

Canterlot: 56 Neigh Orleans: 50

CANTERLOT WINS!!

The audience applauded ecstatically as Team Canterlot gave each other a big group hug over their recent victory. In the midst of their celebratory embrace, Fleetfoot picked up a familiar, high-pitched cry of joy. Facing that welcoming cheer, the white-haired Wonderbolt smiled upon seeing the cute, squealing face of her number-one fan from Team Ponyville.

“YAAAAY! WAY TO GO, FLEETFOOT! I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT!”

As her cheerful screeching began to settle down, Roseluck abruptly ended her excitement when she noticed the shrewd, smiling faces of Cloud Kicker, Vinyl Scratch, and the others. Filled with sudden embarrassment from facing the presences of her gawking friends, Roseluck blushed immensely on her over-the-top enthusiasm as she cleared her throat before restating her cheer in a much quieter manner.

Ahem… I mean… yay!”

After seeing Rose blushing as usual, Fleetfoot then turned to her attention to Trixie, who was still lying on her back on the ground after the Wonderbolt knocked the wind out of her. With her unrestricted wings, Fleetfoot flew up to the staggered magician before offering a hand to her.

“Here, let me give you a hand, Trixie.”

Reluctantly, Trixie accepted the friendly gesture as Fleetfoot pulled her up while the star player of Neigh Orleans groaned lightly in disappointment with herself, “Sigh… Trixie never thought that her first act in this tournament would be her only act as well.”

“Well… if it means anything, you certainly put on quite a good show out there.” Fleetfoot responded sincerely as she extended her hand once again for a friendly handshake.

Humbly, Trixie accepted it as she commended with a smile, “Thanks… you weren’t so bad yourself.”

After a good handshake between the two Magic Players, Fleetfoot still locked her grip around Trixie’s hand before she raised it up high and announced to the cheering crowd, “Hey, let’s give it up for the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

While Trixie was greatly startled by the Wonderbolt’s open broadcast, the audience offered a rolling applause for the magician’s efforts. Despite receiving such overwhelming praise, Trixie was completely flabbergasted by Fleetfoot’s good intentions.

“Wh-what are you--?”

“Just thought you deserve a standing ovation, that’s all.” Fleetfoot winked at her.

As a way to show her gratitude, Trixie silently signaled Fleetfoot to follow her lead as both of them bowed graciously before the applauding audience. As the two female athletes continued their bowing to each side of the stadium, Team Ponyville smiled over the welcoming sportsmanship between the two.

“Well, that certainly was a close match, won’t you say?” Cloud Kicker asked.

“Yeah, Trixie may be a bit of a showoff, but she got some brain and skills to back it up.” Vinyl admitted with an appealing grin.

With a soft smile of relief, Roseluck added, “I’m just thankful that Fleetfoot’s team managed to pull through and win this match.”

“I wouldn’t be counting my blessings just yet, Rose.” Vinyl responded in a less laidback tone.

“Why’s that?”

“Because if things go accordingly, we might have to face them in the finals once more.”

Rose’s cheerful mood was replaced with urgent concern after Vinyl Scratch mentioned that. It’s true that this Blitz-ball Tournament was far from over just yet. Ponyville may have eliminated Cloudsdale in their previous match, but at some point, they may have to face off Canterlot in the finals just like Vinyl said. And it’s from there where Roseluck would have to go head-to-head with Fleetfoot once again. The question she had to ask herself was will she be able to give it her all when that day comes?