BRAWLER

“Consarn it Rainbow! I’m not taking off my hat!”

“Fine, wear the cap on top then!” The tip of Applejacks hat came down heavily as Rainbow dropped the merchandise on top. A baseball cap laden with two heavy drinking mugs took it’s toll on her neck. She fumbled for the straw and drank the fizzing cherry apple juice. Stopping for a breath

“Why do you have to be this...buying?”

“Hey! Why not? These are collectible memorabilia. If this is the last fight of the champion, don’t you want to get the good stuff?”

“It’s just a t-shirt and hat. Why do they have to be so white anyway?”

“Oh I forgot the badges! The belts! We have to go back!”

“Oh no, I’m not going back to that craziness. Not a snowflake’s chance in a desert.”

“Fine! I’ll be back!”

“Wait!” Rainbow stopped her takeoff, waiting with irritation. “Let’s just watch, we can go after, alright?”

“What if they run out?”

“Did you see how much they had?”

“But-”

“Sugar cube! They wont run out,” she assured her.

“...Fine...”

The crowd in the lobby had simmered a little. Applejack did not mind waiting to take their seats. She and Rainbow had snatched a hum dinger of a deal from that filly in the neighbourhood bar.

It had taken some doing, but Applejack tracked down her old favourite brawler. She only knew him as the first champion in Brawling, a hero amongst all the fighters. The reason she, and Rainbow, both loved him; was the benevolence he showed in each victory. Never once did one too many a blow land on the opponent, he always showed camaraderie and kindness to the loser of each battle.

Applejack had actually shaken his hand once. She did not intend to do it but as he came out of the back rooms, he shook her hoof with the others. The thing that caught her attention the most, was his size. Brawlers were very large creatures, although she had no idea what they exactly were. It was the reason she jumped at the backstage pass to see the winner, to see him again. There was this little filly in her that hoped he could recognise his biggest fan.

Of course there were other ponies that showed their enthusiasm for a brawler, especially her old favourite. It was probably true that everypony was the best fan of the champion himself. Right now she was more excited for the fight to end, so she could meet the winner.

“Hey Applejack...you wanna...”

“Wanna what?” Rainbow sheepishly smiled while pointing to the booths on the side. “No! I’m not gambling for one single bit!”

“Aw come on!”

“No Rainbow! You earn your bits and they are yours for life. Gamble and they are just borrowed.”

“That sound like your grandma!”

“That’s Granny alright. Never not listened to her and I never regretted it.” Applejack nearly fell over as she stood proudly high, the two cherry apple jugs unbalancing her with ease.

“Well fine. You know you keep raining on my cloud, Pinkie could get into this!”

“Its evening anyhow. And I’m the only one who’d agree to com to this, it’s way too much fun to miss out!” As expected Rainbows ears betrayed her by perking up, the excitement clearly showing.

“It is,” she smiled.

“Do you think that there mare was serious Rainbow?”

“Whoa! Where did that come from?”

“I mean-”

“Look Applejack; when a pony sells something, they want other ponies to buy it.”

“Right...”

“So they are gonna talk it up.”

“I would never do that!”

“No, but then you’re the element of-”

“Shhhhh!” Applejack cut her off in an instant. “We don’t need that kind of attention here.”

“But-”

“I’m here to watch our champion again, not to have no pony asking nothing about nothing they need to know.”

“Applejack...”

“I’m sorry to rain on your cloud sugar cube, but-”

“It’s okay, I get it. Thanks for coming alright? It’s really nice to do this with a friend than alone.”

“Hey now, you getting mushy on this old apple?”

“I’ve been working on it, Fluttershy said I need to be more-” Rainbow stopped as the creak from the iron doors sounded and the crown they were in shifted forwards.

“Later, alright?”

“Sure. I just hope those tickets are worth it!”

“It’s Champ right? They will be.”

“Who is this twist anyway?”

“Never heard of him before, not an apples chance in cider he’ll win.”

“Oh I hope he does the Alley Oops again!”

They reminisced old tourneys as an usher in a red suit escorted them to the front row of the arena. It was a daunting place. The room was not as large at the stadiums which played host to brawling, yet it was easily large enough to accommodate the ponies. The stage in the centre was impressive. Instead of the barred square, there was a massive cage with mesh wiring and thick pillars on each of the four corners. At this distance Applejack could smell the rusty iron.

As Rainbow leaned back to look about, she saw just how many types of creatures there were; Minotaurs, ponies, sheep, goats, even a sea pony in his, or her, bubble suit. This was one of the reasons she loved this sport, the unity it could bring from a simple fist fight.

A pony came and offered her a complimentary box of popcorn, which she gratefully devoured. It was a very nice ay to begin the night. The crowd grew more bustling as time went on, waiting for the event to start. Rainbow Dash grew bored, unable to talk to Applejack from the sheer volume of her surroundings.

At least the seats were comfortable, the smile from her friend as pleasant when they exchanged a glance. It was of course not just the fight she enjoyed watching. Rainbow liked bonding with Applejack, especially since she was...almost as good as her.

The arena went dark a moment, the spectators fell silent. Applejack felt a sense of anxiety, retained enthusiasm for the fight. Rainbow’s hoof, or at least she hoped, grabbed hers with an almost bounce of excitement. When the lights came on, the crowd roared a welcome to the brawlers in the ring. There was Champ and Twist.

What made the strongest impression was that their arms were chained to the floor. This was an amazing start already, a lot of show.

The display carried on to their costumes. Champ had some sword attached to his arm, the makeup made it look like it came out of his arm. There was a hole in his right cheek, a plated eye patch just stuck over the same side; no straps hanging there. The patch has an awesome snake eye drawn over it. The markings he had were very cool. The word brawler was drawn over the right chest, a shield coat of arms underneath on the belly. The right chest on the front had a piece of armour, again made to look like it was coming out of the body. As Champ twisted about she saw the left of the back had the same design. The hands were interesting, in that one had a single spike on the second finger. The left arm was armoured in a similar style to the chest. Both legs of Champ seemed fine, no problem at all. This was the first time she had been this close, brawlers were very large. If she stood next to one she might have reached waist high, it was amazingly cool.

Twist did not have as many pointed pieces, aside three forward facing horns on ether side of his jaw and in the centre of his forehead. He was even larger than Champ, scary in the hulking height as he calmly focused on the smaller opponent. His body was plated around the shoulders and belly, very intricate spray paint markings on the areas. The designs were graffiti in their style, proudly bearing the marking of a magnificent eagle clawing out the back. There were five silhouetted of brawler shaped creatures on the right shoulder, a clear warning that made the aesthetic more awesome.

All this detail Rainbow could see proved one thing; these tickets were an absolute bargain.

The announcers voice called a hush to all, booming over the speaker system and flat walls.

“LADIES AND GENTLECOLTS. WE HAVE OUR BRAWLERS! STANDING TALL WITH A GRAVITY DEFYING FOUR HUNDRED...TWIST!” The approval for the announced fighter was deafening.

“Champ’s got his work cut out for him!”

“What Rainbow?” It was very difficult to hear with all the shouting.

“Champ! Work cut out!”

“Oh yeah! Still want to take back the bet?”

“No! Champ can do it!”

“If you say-”

“STANDING OPPOSITE AT A MEASLY, TITANIC THREE HUNDRED....CHAMP!” The cheering that followed was impossibly louder. What was surprising is how such a small crowd could even achieve the volume. They fell silent as Twist shouted out.

“YOU KNOW THE RULES...” a blue mist started to envelope the cage, the fighters began to pull at the chains. For a show, this was surprisingly...scary. That was the only word for it. Each tug shook their bodies and the stage floor, their anchoring was real as they seemed to desperately struggle.

“BRAWL!”

Applejack cheered out, alone. She quickly silenced herself as many eyes glared in apparent irritation. She could only smile sheepishly, grateful when they returned to the cage and the struggling two. Champ was having trouble breaking the bonds, Twist had no problem there. He ripped the bracket out of the stage, throwing the arms out high to pull the chain apart in spectacular fashion.

Applejack enjoyed watching the muscle flex as they each pushed through. Now she understood why this fighting was better; the rules were different, they were meant to fight with everything they had. One thing though creeped into her thoughts; was that pony just selling the show?

Twist waited as Champ tore his wrist free of one shackle; the one of the sharpened armour. He used the spike to cleanly break the other shackle, it was certainly real. The snarling and anger of the two were magnified in the silence.

Each readied to charge. Twist seemed to be enjoying this, being larger than his opponent the fight already decided to him. Champ did not share the content, his face still bearing a snarl under the plating. He took a step forward with a loud thud, Twist mirroring the action. They each broke to a charge, their beating stride quickening as the bodies came to one another. Time slowed for Applejack as they collided. Champ ducked under a shot from Twist, roaring as he threw the body up in a furious grip to slam it to the floor. With that echo of a hit, the crowds silence erupted to a chorus of cheering. The fight had begun.

Applejack was as enthusiastic as Rainbow, chanting their favourite with forelegs over shoulders as he worked on Twist. The hit winded him, enough time for Champ to land a few shots to the stomach. Each one was strong enough to shake the stage as it hit, the scraping of metal on one another as Twist threw him off with an artful spin.

Applejack and Rainbow ceased their cheering with a shock at the sight of Twist. As he rose, there was apparently punctures in his stomach, the plated armour over his heart had been scraped badly. They glanced to each other a moment.

“Just... Just show,” Applejack read on Rainbows lips. She nodded and watched on, this time her smile and cheer did not come.

Twist did not wait for Champ to get up. He sent a shocking kick to the body, apparently reeling back with pain at the shot. Champ used the spin and returned to a low crouch, eyes focused on Twist. He kicked off the charge again, the larger Brawler was ready this time. As champ ducked under the shot again, the other hand came up to the throat. Champ was lifted clear up with a roar, he was held in suspension with the crowd.

The cheers and scorn loudened with the action, the ponies behind banging their hooves on the seats in front.

“Come on Champ!” Applejack had to cheer for him, this fight had fewer rules apparently. Rainbow did not cheer, she seemed to be in a state of shock. That was strange considering she convinced Rainbow this was all staged.

Applejacks smile faded then as champs arm rotate, and the bladed armour swiped upwards to apparently slice into the arm of Twist that held. The hand opened with halfhearted shot from the other arm. Champ staggered back, but did not fall. He threw the spiked elbow forward, Twist blocking it with the plating of his own to throw sparks.

As they beat into one another, one thing was shocking in its display; every second hit drew more colourful spray from them. If this was a show, it was amazing, and baffling, how they had done it.

Twist tried to ram the spike on his head into Champ, it failed as the protrusion bent away on the eye’s plate. He screamed for some reason as he pushed away to break the contact. The reason became clear as he held his neck, a neat trailing of grooves from the jaw. The reason became clear as Champ visibly spat to the floor, the white underhoof no longer carrying the neatness it once did.

A smell drifted to Applejack a moment, this was not an imitation. That smell was real. All enthusiasm faded as the reality sunk in; this was no brawl they were watching. A hoof on her shoulder and a glance affirmed Rainbow’s equal revelation. She wanted to look away from the battle, but this little feeling would not let her.

Champ had capitalised on the stumbling of Twist. Applejack had missed the movement, but now the spike on his elbow was neatly embedded in the back of Twist. The eye closed in a way that gripped her stomach, such an haunting expression. Champ spun about to slice the bladed arm into Twist’s face, the larger brute stumbled to collapse on one knee.

Twist widened his eyes in a mighty charge forward, it was futile as Champ threw the plated arm upwards to hit the jaw and pivot the larger brawler to the ground. The crowd fell deathly silent as Champ went on. It was the sounds that were the most horrible, a snarling animal would have been music compared the agonised screeches. Twist kept trying to hit Champ, each time the injuries just became worse as his arms were clawed and bitten. Now the smaller brawler’s eyes widened, the mouth opening to fully illuminate those shining teeth as he collapsed to Twist.

Applejack looked away, taking Rainbows hooves in hers with a squeeze. Her friend held her tightly, a foreleg pressing Applejack’s muzzle to her chest. It felt warm here, soft with mild pricks of coldness. Rainbow’s muzzle on the back of her head confirmed her friend was following the example.

Neither had to look to know what he had done. The stifled, gurgling roar of Twist was all that was needed. With a deafening silence, the weight of the brawler fell to echo about the arena. Champ’s scream was one of pain as Rainbow saw him fall to his good knee.

The crowd remained silent a moment, waiting for the winner to stand once more. He did with great effort, that leg severely trembling. She had forgotten entirely it had been damaged before, the mare mentioned it in the bar. What was haunting to Applejack as she stared at the victor, was his eyes. They did not carry rage or triumph, they barely held a single emotion as the shimmer from the metal arm raised high.

“Ladies and Gentlecolts! We have a winner! Put your hooves and whatnot together for...CHAMP!” While the cheers around them were deafening, Applejack could not join in. As she looked to Rainbow, the feeling was clearly mutual. Unfortunately the description was no enticing banter. That mare had spoken the truth about these fights.

The lights fell dark a minute, the snarling made Applejack hold tighter to her. Finally it rested, and the lights cam on to reveal only Twist in the ring.

The ponies around them stood up as the ponies in red suits escorted them to a different doorway. Rainbow tapped Applejack to recover, the reaction was not unique. Looking out over the murmured crowd, there were a few who shared it with them. This...Rainbow could have lived a lifetime without seeing this. Her only comfort here, was her need to comfort her friend. Today they had seen a death of the hero they once knew.

“Excuse me Madam, you want to see the winner?”

“Umm...AJ?” She nodded in her chest, although why was a complete mystery. “Could I get a minute?”

“Of course, Champ wont go anywhere. I understand it’s lousy to loose a bet, sunk a lot of bits into Twist I am sure. I lost a pocket too on him, tell you that guy will not go down.”

She wanted to scream at this beast, but this was neither the time nor place. As she thought about it, her desire to see the champ was fearsome. She wanted to know he would be alright, she needed to know that. Having seen this, she was sure of two things only. First, he was still the champ. Second, they needed to stop this. Now.

It became more silent, the board above them showing the name of Twist struck through with a glimmer of magic. The next two names Rainbow did not recognise, there was no chance she was going to stay to watch more.

She thought about stopping this now, standing up there and pleading to the creatures. The only thing that stopped her, was the question of why these brawlers would fight each other like that. What could have possessed them to do this. The greatest fear was what would happen if it did not work, especially with Applejack here. It was clear that the Princesses needed to stop this, and she knew four. Rainbow knew the place now, she could find it again. A plan had formed. Applejack’s sob brought back her attention.

“Maybe we should just...go?”

“Then...then what?”

Rainbow had to lean in, whispering carefully. “Then we come back with the Princesses.”

“No.”

“Applejack?”

She pushed herself off Rainbow, instantly composing herself. “I am not leaving here without him.”

“What?!” Rainbow glanced to the usher as his attention focused on them, looking away as she scowled. She lowered her voice, “How do you plan to do that?”

“Granddad used to be an auctioneer. He learned me a thing of two about the power of bits. Didn't know him long, but learned a lot. Let’s see what it takes.”

“And if we can’t pay?”

“We will.”

“Look I’ve got maybe five bits left after-”

“Dash, I promise you I can pay.” Rainbow stared at her hooves as if they held the answer. She could understand it, if anypony could it was her. This though was dangerous. So many questions came to mind. She she stared down, she nearly lost that popcorn in revulsion. These once white shirts suddenly made sense, seeing Twist on them.

“Rainbow?”

“This is crazy.”

“Now how did I become the crazy one?”

“I’m not arguing, but please just be safe okay?”

“Pardon?” Applejack seemed taken aback by that one.

“Please don’t do anything...ditzy. I’ve got your back.”

“Thanks...let’s go bag us our brawler.”

As she wiped her eyes and followed the usher with Rainbow to the back rooms, only one question came to mind; just how in the tarnation of tartarus was she going to do this...