“Welcome ladies and gentlemen to Friday Night Smackdown! I’m your host, Jim Ross.”

“And I’m Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler.”

“And have we got a treat for you. The hype is over and the match we’ve all been waiting months for has finally arrived! For those of you who have been in the loop, the workhorse of the WWE, Twilight Sparkle, has been granted an officially sanctioned match against our very own Stone Cold Steve Austin.”

“That’s right, everyone, you heard it right. Twilight Sparkle is going to fight against Stone Cold Steve Austin in what has been declared a no disqualification, pins count anywhere match. Last week, Austin came on the Chris Benoit memorial show and-”

“Wait a sec, King. Who are you talking about?”

“For Christ’s sake JR, has your memory gone or what?”

JR pulled Jerry under the table and spoke in a whisper. “Listen, the producers said we can’t talk about Benoit anymore.”

“But Jerry, this is important. We can’t just pretend like he never existed.”

“I hear you, King. But we gotta buck up and just accept it. If you don’t, they might never allow you into the Hall of Fame.”

Jerry sighed in defeat and nodded in agreement. Together, they rose back up. “Sorry everybody, what I mean is that Austin came on last week and showed such disrespect to Twilight that she said ‘Enough’s enough. I had it with these monkey fighting wrestlers on this Monday to Friday show!’ And she went straight to McMahon to challenge Austin.”

“Those were her exact words, right King?”

“Twilight is such a phenomenon that I wouldn’t put it past her, she’s just so amazing and cool and-”

“Alright, well when you’re done drooling over the newcomer, let’s get on with the show. It seems we’re gonna have a helluva match today folks. But first, a word from our sponsors.”

While the show paused in the arena proper, Twilight waited in the closet that served as her room. This was it, this was her one chance to avenge Benoit and tie up whatever loose ends she has.

“Yo, Twilight.” Gregory Helms sat on the sole bench in the room and dawdled idly. “So, Austin’s gonna probably try some junk.”

“I know. I’m expecting it. I have my own surprise if he does, though.”

“I’m just saying, I’mma be there in the stands, but all I can offer is moral support. So you best work extra hard, alright?”

Twilight nodded in appreciation as she worked at psyching herself up. If the trend she saw happened, she didn’t need to worry about anything except for the brutality she is about to inflict.

“That goes double for all of us, kid.”

Twilight turned to look in the doorway and see the entire 2007 lineup of wrestlers from the WWE gathered just outside her door. There was the Smackdown alumni she knew so casually including Mark Henry and MVP as well as the RAW cast with John Cena and Randy Orton. There were also men she did not know, but could best surmise as coming from ECW were also gathered alongside these more prominent wrestlers, and so it seemed that everyone she ever met or seen was her tonight in that very hallway. It was a spectacular sight, and leading off with none other than Triple H.

“What are you all doing here?”

“Just like Hurricane there, we’re gonna cheer you on from the sidelines. So you best make us proud and give us a damn good show, because we’re a bigger audience than you’re used to.”

Twilight was nearly moved to tears, but forbid herself from crying. Instead, she bucked up and stood tall, but her eyes shimmered with emotion. “Thank you all! You have all been great, thank you!”

The group of wrestlers gathered outside her door parted to the two walls of the hallway. As Twilight strode down, she was accompanied by the clapping of all these people that she knew briefly in her extended time spent in this strange place. Each and every person, though, congratulated her and wished her luck as she passed by.

“I’m just Montel, but you’re the true Most Valuable Player,” Said MVP

“You,” Twilight stopped as Kane spoke in a very audible and demanding tone. “You’re going to make us all proud.”

Twilight continued only to be stopped again by the commanding gaze of Mark Henry. She turned to face him, with growing fear that she had not felt until just that moment. “Twilight, you got one chance. Go for it.”

It was clear he wasn’t only talking about the match. “Really?” She asked. Mark Henry responded by nodding his head with an approving smile. “Thank you, Sexual Chocolate.”

Twilight continued along her way, with much the same being said by every wrestler that the WWE had to offer. As she turned a corner, she could still hear the cheers loud and clear. But as she approached the ring closer and closer, she could hear the dulled footsteps of leather on concrete behind her.

“They hurt your friend, they hurt your pride,” Said the voice behind her. It was familiar, like the sort of sound she could only hear in her nightmares, and so she didn’t turn back. “But you gotta be a man, you can’t let it slide.” What was that? She thought. Approval? But. . . Why would her nightmare say such a thing?

And so Twilight turned around to be faced with a man wearing a glorious red bandana on his head and a bright yellow shirt that was emblazoned with a red phrase. His 24 inch python-like arms were bulging with sinew and vein and extended all the way into a well arched back. Though he had a friendly looking handlebar mustache, he was still the thing of her nightmares.

“Please, don’t hit me with the strap! Not the indian yapapi strap!”

The man laughed at such a proposition and patted Twilight on the head. “Nah brother, don’t worry. I’m here to wish you luck. You’re fighting for what’s right. So fight for your life. You are a real American.” He then took a step back and gave her a wicked two thumbs up. “Now give that Austin an all American ass-whooping! Show him what the power of Hulkamania can do!”

“Y-Yes sir!” Twilight then fled with the approval of the the WWE legend.

All the pieces were set into motion, and Twilight was at the prime that she could’ve been and ready for the match of her life. She had only one chance, and it’s only one chance that she needed. Because while friendship is forever, revenge is not.

“Welcome back ladies and gentlemen.” King said, welcoming the audience with his dulcet voice. “Without any further interruptions, the wrestlers will now be called up to the ring.”

JR straightened up his suit and cocked his hat back. No way in hell was he going to miss a moment of this show. “Coming from Texas after spotty appearances in the WWE, we bring you Stone Cold Steve Austin!”

Stone Cold came out in his usual attire of a black T-shirt and what may as well have been his underoos, combined with the stains of a now gone six-pack of beer. He approached the ring in a slightly stumbling walk not unlike that of a grown gorilla. Vince McMahon would later that year adopt such a walk for his entrance.

He climbed into the ring proper, and stood in the middle to take a full 360 view of the crowd. The crowd offered him well deserved boos, in return he delivered them two high flying fingers with a big, slurry smile on his face.

“Would you look at that, King? He’s evil and he loves it! You gotta respect that.”

“Oh come on man, show some class! There could be kids watching.”

“Well, I reckon that’s about as much as we need to see. King, I’m gonna let you introduce our next contestant.”

“Damn right, JR.” King stood right up and cleared his throat, using his pipes to their fullest extent. “Ladies and gentlemen and the viewers at home, we introduce you to the sight that will change your lives forever. What you are about to see is the pinnacle of the human body that will shake you to your foundations on a mental, physical, and spiritual level.”

“Whoa now, King, keep your pants on. Like you said, kids could be watching.”

“We bring you, no, the force that keeps us in check brings you all,” JR then took a deep breath away from the mic and delivered a fine salute towards the entrance ramp. “TWILIGHT SPARKLE!”

The proud princess stood high on the ramp as her music began playing. It was a simple title going along the lines of Equestria Girls as song by some no-name up-and-coming star named Katy something. The initially booing crowd all stood tall and clapped their hands until they were red and raw. Twilight descended along the ramp, feeling each sinew of flesh tense upon every step, bracing herself for the oncoming punishment she was to deliver. She stretched her form, and cracked any kinks. There was no way she was going to let Austin get off easy.

With a small flourish, Twilight flew in the air and dived into the ring and began a brief trot until she settled her inertia and faced off against Austin in an opposing corner.

The referee was in the typical black-and-white shirt, yet he was only there more as a suggestion than as a legitimate party. He was only there to count to three, and no matter how broken these two were going to get he would not step in. If he did, he would end up just as battered as the wrestlers were going to be. This was a serious match. No DQs, no rules basically. Weapons were not only legal, but encouraged. The only one left is who could drag their body onto the other’s to secure the pin.

And so it was that these two briefly stared each other down, with Twilight to break first and look in the stands. There, she saw in the front row all the wrestlers she saw in the hallway. They were there, cheering alongside the fans and even lifting a few of them up to their shoulders for a better view. Secretly she was overjoyed, and openly she was confident. She turned back to face against Austin, and ready to fight.

“Look at the power coming from these superstars.”

“You got that right, King! No words are needed, we can all feel the rising tension right here.”

The referee stood out of the way of the direct path between the two wrestlers. The bell clanged, and the match was off!

Twilight and Austin charged right at one another. Austin grabbed Twilight by the mane and delivered a swift jab to the side of her head, but with the force she was going at she still managed to knock him over and head over to one of the corners.

Twilight climbed atop the turnbuckle and from there she leapt at the rising Austin with her legs all splayed out.

“The bodysplash, JR! Looks like Twilight’s gonna end this quick!”

Austin caught Twilight mid-fall and quickly spun around to slam her on her back.

This isn’t working, she thought. Why is he able to fight back? He should just be standing around doing nothing, just like everyone else!

Austin ran and bounced off the ropes and returned to Twilight before going into the air and dropping his knee right on her midsection. Twilight coiled around briefly before Austin pushed off and gave her a kick in the side, which hurt her more than the thought it should.

“Oh man! A knee drop is fine, but laying into him with those steel-tipped boots is just overkill.”

Austin was in the position to secure the pin, but instead he utilized surprising strength by lifting her up and holding her upside down with her back facing Austin. Austin gave a small hop and let his knees fall from under him, dropping Twilight right on her head in a devastating piledriver! The mass of her weight was so powerful that she could’ve broken her neck!

“The piledriver? He can’t do that, it’s an illegal move!Somebody call the ref, he’s killing Twilight!”

“No way, King. Remember, this is a no DQ match, anything goes.”

Austin squatted down and lifted Twilight by her neck. He then turned around and held her head to his shoulder and lifted her up until her forelegs were clear off the ground and she was standing not unlike a hunched man.

“It’s the stunner! It’s the stunner! Come on, Twilight, fight back!”

With a small hop, forward, Austin landed right on his rear and used the combined force to smash Twilight in the chin with his shoulder. A small spurt of blood came from the corner of her mouth and Austin got up to stand over her. He gave her one last hard kick to the ribs and laughed at the bruised body before him.

“This doesn’t look good, King. Twilight’s getting slaughtered out there!”

Twilight was too weak to get up. The piledriver disoriented her, the kicks knocked the wind right out of her, and the stunner left her in a fragile state. An honorable person would allow her to recuperate or secure the pin. Austin reached into his boot and pulled out a knife!

“Twilight! Good god, somebody save Twilight!”

Austin grabbed Twilight by her mane and whispered in her ear. “I’m going to kill you worse than how Benoit got it.”

He lifted the knife into air and was about to bring it down when he suddenly stopped. Two resounding, sharp noises echoed throughout the massive arena. Two lights blew out showering some of the crowd with shards of glass. Austin looked at the walkway to the ring and saw one Lexi Pillman standing with a glock in her hand pointed to the sky. Lexi, now with Austin’s attentioned, trained her sights on the wrestler.

Upon the shots fired, JR and King immediately got up and ushered the cameramen to stop recording. The cameramen bailed but JR and King returned to their seats. The show was just getting good, after all.

Lexi reached into her back pocket and pulled out a microphone. “Austin!” She called out, still aiming at him. “I won’t let you kill anyone, anymore!”

The crowd began to whisper amongst themselves, incredulous as to the claims this strange lady was making. Austin slammed Twilight’s head back onto the mat and got over to the ropes on the side of the ring nearest Lexi. “Come up here and fight me, I’ll beat your ass, punk!”

“Like you beat your wife?”

“Oh god, did she just say that?” King commented.

“I think she did, King.”

Austin was furious now, but still he tossed the knife out of the ring and opened his arms wide. “Come at me, then!”

“Oh no, I’m not stepping in that ring. You’ve already murdered my father and Chris Benoit. Not to mention Owen Hart.”

The questioning whispers continued louder and louder, all the while Austin got a growing smile on his face.

“That’s it? That’s all you think I killed?” He laughed like a hyena and threw up his two middle fingers. “I got to where I am by eliminating the competition when I could. Andre the Giant, the Junkyard Dog, Gorilla Monsoon, Hawk, Yokozuna, the British Bulldog, the Sheik, Miss Elizabeth, Eddie Guerrero. I killed them all! Hell, I even beat the living crap out of that assclown, Doink! And now, bitch, I’m going to come after you!”

The crowd erupted in anger and began tossing all sorts of trash at Austin from snacks to the loose seats that they could rip out.

“You’re a monster, Austin.”

Another sinister laugh came from Austin before he replied. “In this business you have to be a monster, that’s all they trained me to be! And I love every moment of it. Biggie Smalls, Tupac, and Proof got what they deserved for keeping my hit rap song from topping the charts. Heck, Steve Irwin stole my first name, and now look what happened to him. You thought it was a stingray that got Steve Irwin, but it was me! AUSTIN!”

Lexi lost her breath at the admitted atrocities so proudly committed by the awful human in the ring. Every fiber of her well being desired for his death, and little else was stopping her aside from her proud spirit.

“So what’s it gonna be, little girl? You think you can take me?”

Lexi stood tall and lowered her gun. “I know I can take you, Austin. Because the FCC says guns can’t be featured on live television, there’s no footage that can be taken of what I could do to you. But I won’t do a thing.”

“Damn right you won’t do a thing, cus your bitch ass is ascared!” Austin then let loose another evil laugh.

Lexi shook her head. “No, Austin. I don’t think you got what I said. I won’t be doing a thing, because while you took my father away from me, there’s still someone else who wants you all to himself. I lost my dad, but he lost his whole family because of you, and he gets dibs.”

“Oh no freaking way!” King shouted.

“Is she saying what I think?”

“It can’t be! It’s impossible!”

Just then, the theme music so well known by the WWE community. The emblematic anthem to accompany none other than one of the greater wrestlers that the WWE has given the world.

At the top of the ramp was a figure topped in a tarnished cloak from which only his colorful green wrestling pants could be seen. The crowd cheered with such force that the winds from each person gathered to rip the shredded cloth right off of the enigmatic man. With the cloak off, the crowd cheered even louder so that the entire hosting city could hear.

“Benoit?” Said the announcers.

“Benoit!?” Said Austin.

“BENOIT!” Yelled Twilight.

“Soory about the sudden appearance, eh. My agent thought I was gone.” Said the familiar Canadian Crippler as he gave an expressive shrug. He then returned to a more serious posture and pointed a finger at Austin. “But no, seriously, you’re dead meat, Austin.”

Benoit swiftly ran over to the ring as Austin fled to the other side of it. With a great leap, Benoit went from the floor to the mat in moments and was soon facing off against Austin. Twilight, meanwhile, dragged herself to a corner as she marveled at the conflicting emotions. Her friend was back, Austin was a murderer, and she was just barely conscious enough to accept it all.

Austin built up some bravado and lifted his chin at Benoit. “Ha! Shouldn’t you be crying over your family?”
Benoit slammed his fist into his hand and looked dead on at Austin. “I’m just driven by anger.” He said and then pointed a finger at Austin yet again. “And you’re under attack.”

Austin looked over at the referee at the side of the ring. “Come on, they can’t do this. It’s two on one!”

The referee shook his head, turned to Benoit, and gave a thumbs up. Benoit saw this and returned his sight to Austin. “No disqualification. No rules.”

“Y-Yeah, well!” Austin slid out of the ring as Benoit stood nonchalantly. Austin soon returned with something behind his back. Meanwhile, the wrestlers outside the ring who were cheering on Twilight all gathered together and started beating on Triple H.

“You idiot! We told you to stop doing that, and now look what happened!”

“I’m sorry, I have a problem! It’s an addiction!” Triple H cried out as he curled into a ball like a child.

Austin whipped out from behind his back a sledgehammer and held it high. “You come at me, Benoit, and you’ll be getting a face full of this!”

Benoit shook his head and stepped slowly at Austin and managed to get nearly chest to slobbery chest with the guy. “You had this coming, Austin. This was a beating forty-three years in the making. You’ve been hurting people you’re entire life. It stops, now.”

Austin panicked and swung high with the sledgehammer. Benoit ducked and countered by standing up and smashed his forehead full-force into Austin’s exposed nose. Austin got stunned by the blow and turned around, and Benoit seized at the opportunity and gripped him around the waist, ducked with his knees, and threw Austin clear behind him.

“Did you see that? A headbutt followed by a perfectly executed German Suplex!”

Austin was on his hands and knees, blood splashed from his chest and onto the floor from his broken nose. He caught Twilight off-guard because she thought he was a mere jobber, but Benoit came at him with all the might that could be mustered.

Benoit walked on over to Austin, and once he was close Austin slammed the head of the sledgehammer right into Benoit’s gut, forcing him to double over in agony!

“A low blow! Austin, that sly dog!”

Austin bounced to his feet and raised the sledgehammer with both his hands over his head and prepared to deliver a fatal blow. “This time, I won’t mess up. See you in hell, Benoit!”

Benoit coughed up briefly and fell to his knees, and when he looked up the sledgehammer was falling towards him. This was not the end. It could not be the end. He knew that he did not get this second chance to let Austin win.

Austin glared with glee at the seemingly helpless Benoit. What he did not see, however, was the fighting force filling Benoit’s right fist that flew upwards! But it wasn’t heading to Austin, but rather it was going straight into the shaft of the sledgehammer and shattered it in two!

The broken shaft landed and embedded itself deep into the mat as the other half with the head flew off into the stands and crashed into some steps, sending debris flying. Benoit got back up as Austin continued to stare in disbelief at the shattered ash handle.

Benoit didn’t bother waiting for Austin to look back at him. He hit Austin with a right punch, then a left, then a right again, and a left for a second time! Right, left, right, left, right, left! He continued his barrage of fists until Austin was at the ropes.

Austin was absolutely stunned, unable to defend himself. Benoit took this opportunity to grab Austin by the arm and swung him around right into the corner Twilight herself was in.

“Twilight, do a headbutt!” Benoit shouted.

Twilight, beaten and bruised, wavered up to her knees and used what little strength she had to force her head, horn first, right into Austin’s gut and send him reeling into the center of the ring. Austin hit the mat like a sack full of very drunk babies, and yet according to Twilight’s sight her horn didn’t seem to visibly damage him in the least.

Benoit climbed one of the turnbuckles and took a deep breath. He looked at Twilight, who was still confused, and she looked back at him. With a reciprocated nod, Benoit flew off of the turnbuckle and landed forehead-first onto Austin’s face with the force that would obliterate a man’s skull. Austin, however, remained in one very intoxicated piece.

“The diving headbutt!”

“Such a high-risk maneuver, how can anyone live from that?”

Benoit suffered somewhat from the blow, but he powered through the pain and dragged Austin over to him and forced him face-down. He took Austin’s arm and pulled it above his head and wrapped his legs around it and kept it straight. He then reclined on the arm and near Austin’s back as he gripped his own wrist and pulled back against Austin’s neck, choking him.

“The crippler crossface! It’s the crossface! That’s right, Austin, that’s what you get!”

Austin was about to go unconscious and fast, but he also knew that he could get out of this right now by tapping out. That is what Austin exactly did, he took his free hand and began smacking the floor fast, and the referee crossed and uncrossed his arms to let everyone know that Austin lost.

“Well there you have it, folks! Austin loses by submission!”

“Hold up there, JR! It seems Benoit’s not letting up!”

Indeed, it was as the announcers said. Austin was desperately trying to grasp at anything he could as Benoit only pulled harder and harder against Austin’s neck. Even the referee tried futilely to separate the two, but couldn’t come close to managing to do so as Benoit kept his vice-like grip.

Spinal cord fluid slowed and disks scraped against one another inside Austin’s body. The blood flow was cut off and he wasn’t getting enough oxygen to his brain. Inevitably and soon enough, he passed out and went limp in the Crippler’s arms. Only then, did Benoit release his captive and slowly get to his knees and then back up on his feet.

Benoit walked over to Twilight with a slight limp and shook her. “We did it.”

Twilight nodded and rested her head against her returned friend.

Author's Note

I feel like this is going to be a legitimate WWE storyline.