Darkness Rising

by Nurarihyon

Tournament of the Sun pt 3

Midnight grunted as he crashed against the wall of the arena and tumbled to the ground. He rose back up on slightly shaking legs and looked out at the arena. Midnight’s latest match had taken quite a toll on the arena. Great pillars of earth jutting out of the ground were interspersed with roaring blazes of various colors, from the deep crimson of pure fire to the inky blackness of abyssal fire. In the middle of the devastation stood his opponent. An old Minotaur shaman. Unlike Stone fist this wizened old bull was covered in lush white fur that was braided and painted to represent the spirits that the Minotaur clans called on when their shamans invoked magic. Also unlike Stonefist this Minotaur's eyes shone with barely contained mirth, not rage and condescension.

Midnight narrowed his eyes at the old Minotaur. Midnight had spent the last ten minutes being thrown about the arena by the strange magic of the shaman, and yet he had been unable to so much as ruffle his opponents coat.

“What will it take to hurt this guy? No matter what I try he just refuses to….I’m an idiot.”

Midnight kept his eyes on his opponent as he channeled his magic into his hooves and began to walk around the arena. With each step he left behind a trace of his magic, invisible to the naked eye.

The old Minotaur chuckled, “Now what is this? Do you tire of our game? I was just beginning to have fun, you almost hit me the last time, maybe if you keep doing the same thing something different will happen eh? Or are you just going to watch me and walk until I attack you? I hate to disappoint, but Whispering Rock is a very patient bull.”

The Minotaur frowned as Midnight kept walking without rising to his bait. “What are you doing. Walking in a circle will accomplish nothing. If you will not fight then surrender.”

Midnight simply continued to walk, and ignored Whispering Rock until he was nearly back at the point where he had started, at which point he smirked.

Suddenly Whispering Rock’s eyes got wide as he realized that perhaps his opponent wasn’t just stalling for time. In desperation he stomped the ground and sent a wave through the earth towards Midnight.

=====================================================================

Luna’s smirk mirrored Midnight’s own as Whispering Stone struck at Midnight.

“To late shaman, far too late.”

=====================================================================

Midnight closed the circle an instant before a pillar of earth shot up from beneath him and flung him through the air, but it was too late to stop his spell from completing. The entire arena floor pulsed with a hellish red glow to the beat of Whispering Rock’s panicked heart. The light began to congregate underneath of Whispering Rock’s hooves, and it followed him even after he broke his connection to the earth to try and escape the building light, then at the same moment Midnight impacted the ground the light erupted into a pillar of flame that completely hid Whispering rock from sight.

As Midnight struggled to his hooves the pillar of flame dissipated, revealing the charred body of Whispering stone, who promptly fell to the ground in a cloud of ash and dust. The steady, if shallow, rising and falling of his chest proved that the wards had done their jobs, and even though he was very much unconscious and would likely have a few burns, Whispering Stone would be fine.

As Midnight limped towards the tunnel that would lead him back to his waiting room where he would be treated he ignored the roaring of the crowd.

I got lucky. If that shaman had been more aggressive he would never have given me time to make that circle. That spell is meant for funeral pyres, not combat.”

Midnight stumbled as he passed into the tunnel, the effects of his massive mana expenditure catching up with him.

“Hahh, I can’t worry about that right now. I need to get back to my stall and get patched up.”

Midnight continued to trudge through the passages between stalls, most of which now were empty. The tournament was finally nearing it’s end after a full six hours of bouts. Finally Midnight reached his stall, and pushed open the door, only to find himself face to face with a very irate nurse.

“You’re hurt. Again.”

Midnight sighed, “Yes. That’s what happens in a fighting tournament. The contestants get hurt, I thought you were aware of this.”

The nurse snorted, “My awareness doesn’t change the fact that this contest is completely idiotic, now get into bed, and I’ll fix you up. Again. Honestly, you stallions and your fighting, why can’t you play a game of bridge or something.”

Midnight let out a bark of laughter as he laid down on the cot and the nurse got to work patching him up in time for the next bout, “Stallions, right. I’ll have you know I’ve fought at least three females, two of which were griffon janes, in this ‘stallion’s contest’.”

The nurse shook her head as her spell knitted Midnight’s tissue’s back together and erased his bruises, “Yes, whatever. It doesn’t matter anyway. Here, drink this.”

The nurse cut off her healing spell and levitated a bottle filled with a thick green sludge that smelled of swamp gas in front of Midnight’s face.

“This will deal with your mana exhaustion. Though you’ll have to pay for it tomorrow, so I hope you don’t have plans.”

Midnight took the bottle in his magic and swiftly chugged down the liquid. As soon as he finished he started coughing, his face twisted into a mask of disgust. The medicine had tasted like something one would scrape out of a cat box, and had the consistency of week old milk.

After he finished retching Midnight spoke up, “When you say pay do you mean-”

“You won’t be able to move at all tomorrow. Normally you’d just be extremely sore, but since I’m pretty sure you’re going to need a dose of that stuff coupled with even more accelerated healing after every bout I can pretty much guarantee your immobility tomorrow. The soreness will last for two days after that.”

Midnight watched the mare leave before he laid his head down on his front legs, “Great. Just great.”

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Once again Midnight found himself standing in the center of the arena across from his foe, only this time he didn’t know just what to make of his opponent.

The being standing across from him looked just like a wolf, only blown up in size to stand nearly as tall as Princess Luna. The wolf also seemed to radiate cold, and constantly had frost forming on the tips of his ash-grey fur.

Above them the announcer declared the contestants in this fight, “In this fight we have the Captain of the Lunar Guard Midnight Silver versus the ambassador from the newly discovered Wolven clans of the far north,Ivan Frostfur!”

Ivan grinned showing off his impressive fangs, “Hello pony, I hear tell of mighty warriors from long ago belonging to your people, but so far I have been disappointed, will you disappoint me also?”

Midnight grinned back, showing off his own set of fangs, “We’ll just have to see won’t we.”

Ivan merely chuckled in response, before he lowered himself into a fighting stance, an action mirrored by Midnight.
Above them the announcer cried out, “Begin!”

Midnight’s horn immediately lit up as he launched a black chain with a ball at the end towards Ivan, who at the same time let out a harsh bark, which prompted a sheet of ice to rise up between the two, blocking the chain, though it did shatter the wall. Both combatants leapt back and glared at each other.

With another bark Ivan’s fur bristled and became covered with sharp ice shards as he rushed at Midnight, who stomped his hooves to the ground, causing a wave of fire to race to meet Ivan. Ivan rushed through the fire, the ice on his fur protecting him even as it re-froze itself an instant before he slammed into Midnight. The shards of ice cut into Midnight’s skin as Ivan brought his powerful jaws down on Midnight’s withers. Midnight’s mouth filled with arcane flames as he responded in kind, biting down on Ivan’s shoulder, the fire in his mouth melting the ice away as it tried to reform.

Ivan yelped and let go, pulling away from Midnight, who still had flames flickering in his mouth. As Ivan rose back up to his paws Midnight let loose with a wild shout, red hot flames pouring from his mouth towards Ivan, who rolled out of the way just in time to only receive a mild scorching along his left side.

As Midnight panted, recovering from the use of such intense internalized magic Ivan rose up and let loose a long howl. Ice began to form around Ivan’s paws as he howled. The ice began to shoot tendrils along the ground towards Midnight, razor sharp spikes of ice shooting out of the ground in it’s wake. Midnight Stumbled and began to run, but the icy tendril kept following him, every time it got close enough Midnight would have to jump out of the way and continue running, which was becoming more difficult as the stress of the fight made his injury worse.

Finally Ivan stopped howling and fell to the ground, and the tendril stopped chasing Midnight, just as he tumbled to the ground in exhaustion. Both struggled back to their feet and looked each other over. With a snarl Ivan began to lope towards Midnight, who in turn began to brace himself for the coming blow. As soon as he was close enough Ivan lunged at Midnight, mouth opened wide to rip into Midnight, but Midnight rose up on his hind hooves, the tell tale glitter of magic shining on the bottom of his forehooves. Midnight slammed his forehooves down on Ivan just before his teeth were able to close on Midnight’s exposed stomach, and the magic he had stored in his hooves detonated, sending Midnight shooting back while slamming Ivan to the ground in a huge explosion.

For a moment both fighters lay still, then Midnight stirred. He slowly rose up to his hooves, barely conscious, but conscious all the same.

The crowds went wild as the announcer declared, “Midnight Silver wins!”

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Another visit from the nurse later, Midnight was once again standing in the center of the arena, ready to fight, though this time a much more familiar face stood across from him, as the announcer rambled on the two contestants spoke.

“Hello Shining Armor, it’s been awhile hasn’t it?”

Shining Armor chuckled, “Yeah, it has hasn’t it? Are you still trying to make peace with those parasites?”

Midnight laughed, while Shining’s words were harsh, he had long since accepted that the changeling attack during his wedding was one of desperation, and had moved on from his grudge, even if he hadn’t actually forgiven the changelings yet.

“Of course, you still trying to play the part of a prince in that gaudy city you call an empire?”

Shining grinned ruefully and shook his head, “Unfortunately yes. I wish I could just be a guard again, but it seems that the crystal ponies can’t do anything without either my or Cadance’s input.”

Midnight sighed, “Well what do you expect from ponies who were placed under mind control for most of their lives? Independent thought is a foreign concept for quite a few of them, even after a few years.”

Shining let out a sigh of his own before he set his jaw and assumed his battle stance, ready to begin the fight.

Midnight did the same, his ear flicking occasionally as he paid some small attention to the announcer who was just ending his speech describing the two contestants.

“FIGHT!”

Midnight instantly shot a blast of abyssal fire at Shining, who responded with his trademark shield bubble, completely neutralizing the blast. Midnight had expected this, and had leapt back to dodge the magenta plane of telekinetic force that embedded itself into the ground where Midnight had been only a second before. Midnight was forced to keep dodging as plane after plane rocketed towards him from the side of the still shielded Shining Armor.

Midnight grunted as he just barely managed to shatter one of the magical planes with a shot of abyssal fire, only to be hit by two more across his back. He winced when he landed, but didn’t falter, instead letting off three bursts of abyssal fire at the dome over Shining before he started dodging again, Shining Armor apparently unfazed by the magic eating flames.

Suddenly three spinning planes appeared behind Midnight as he dodged yet another barrage, and all three of them connected, two deepening the slices made across his back earlier, and the third slamming him to the ground. A fourth plane materialized right above him and shoved him into the dirt as he attempted to rise, effectively pinning him.

Shining stomped his hoof in triumph, “Just surrender, or I’ll keep pushing down until you pass out!”

Midnight gritted his teeth as he was pushed harder and harder into the ground, “Like Tartarus I will!”

With a spark of his horn Midnight’s entire body was engulfed in a blast of abyssal fire, shattering the plane of force and obscuring him from view. When the smoke cleared it revealed a burned and bleeding Midnight, who was panting in exhaustion as he stood on shaky legs.

Shining stared at his opponent, shocked that he was able to stand after that.

“Just surrender, you can’t fight like that, it’s over!”

Midnight didn’t bother to respond, and instead taking a deep breath as both his horn and mouth began to glow, before he suddenly opened his mouth, releasing a whirling inferno of abyssal fire from his mouth, completely engulfing Shining’s bubble and the area behind it.

As suddenly as it came the inferno ended, and Midnight stumbled, but remained standing as the smoke cleared, revealing a completely unconscious Shining Armor, his horn blackened at it’s tip and sparking erratically, a sure sign of a massive overuse of magic.

Midnight remained standing just long enough to hear the announcer declare his victory before he fell on his side, his vision being filled by the hooves of the medics as everything around him went black.

Author's Note:

Alright, 7 months to update. Oops. In all honesty, this has been ready for about a month, but as with my other story I've been having trouble getting an editor, so I posting this without edits, sorry about any mistakes. As always, please comment what you think.

Oh, and next chapter the Tournament ends, and the story moves on, sorry about how long this took.

Comments

[Grekoy]

Don't worry about. I'm a patient reader...most of the time.