Sins of Harmony
Volume 2: Enemies Unbound
Chapter 25: Therapeutic Savagery.
March 17th, 1006 ANM
Late Afternoon
Sri Drake, southwest area
Mountain canyons, 30 miles north of Baragh clan.
Natural arena canyon
CRASH!
Cheers rose as the fight ended with the lesser drake, a young male, crashing into a rock wall by his back, beneath some raised spectator cliff edifices. He had quickly yelled to a nearby drake, who signalled the fight to stop, on a forfeit. The victor, a burly yellow adolescent drake, stood tall as he panted over the roaring crowds.
"Winner! Narzok, the Yellow Titan!"
Narzok walked off, nursing a few bruises as his fight ended. The fights were chosen by random assortment at first, with the ones who fought in the most impressive manner getting to choose their opponent. It was chaotic, with little order other than first timers having no choice in fighting.
Somehow, it worked.
In addition, if they so wished, competitors could have a 'nickname' when they're announced for a fight, whatever happened.
As crowds settled a bit, Luna almost laughed a bit as she looked on at the loser. The younger, loser drake was dragged off, somehow smiling bit despite losing. Somehow, these drakes came to enjoy this savagery.
"Is he alright?" Twilight leant out, looking at the losing drake limping towards the crowd of finished competitors, helped by an older, rough looking female drake.
"He'll be fine! A lot worse has happened to some and they've still been happy." Cal'vel reassured the ponies.
"Oh hey, looks like the next fight's already startin'!" Applejack said. As they looked on, Spike noticed that the gold and green striped eastern dragon was in this next fight.
"He must have come a long way." He said aloud, barely heard as the crowds below and around them roared again.
"And now, from the local Baraghs, Jai'lak, the crusher queen!" The announcer drake said, as the dark green, bulky female drake, a young adult, stomped out into the arena.
"And coming from the East, a visitor, Sai-kan, the Jade whirlwind!"
Min-Wei calmly padded out on his long, serpentine body, his wings tucked into his back. He had the name Sai-kan as a cover, though it was unlikely anyone had heard of him.
Flash Sentry looked on, as he saw Princess Twilight shared similar thoughts. The Eastern Dragon had little chance, given his weaker physical strength.
But these fights prohibited claws and flight only. All else was fair game.
"Begin!"
Jai'lak charged, like a large winged panther, as 'Sai-kan' coiled like a snake, his massive frame similar in rough size to the Drake's. As she lowered to headbutt him, he lunged.
Much like his snake form suggested, 'Sai-kan' flew a coil around Jai'lak's body as she missed with her headbutt, while 'Sai-kan' flung the drake, wrapped in his rear half, around to be thrown at the arena wall nearby.
A horrific crash sounded as she smashed headfirst into the wall, blearily staggering to her feet a few moments after landing.
All but slithering a few dozen metres from her, 'Sai-kan' said calmly: "Come now, actually try and fight me."
Aggravated, Jai'lak shot a stream of fire at the Eastern Dragon, which he ducked to take head on. Orange flames bellowed forth, splitting as they coated the Eastern dragon's upper body.
A few seconds later, and the flames died, smoke clearing. Jai'lak gasped as the smoking, but otherwise unharmed Eastern Dragon smirked at her.
"My turn."
A rumble sounded in his chest, as he charged his breath while Jai'lak took a reckless charge at him with her headbutt again. As she missed, she whipped her tail around, but 'Sai'lak' had moved his lithe form to dodge the tail. Right as Jai'lak's face turned to him, stunned that he'd moved so quick, he opened his maw.
A stream of dark red and green flecked flames hit the female Drake head on, causing her to writhe in pain at the abnormally hot flames. Eastern Dragons were known to have the highest flame temperatures. Collapsing under the heat, Jai'lak squirmed as the Eastern Dragon wrapped her in a coil again, and flipped her over his head, smashing her on her back and pinning her to the ground.
She signalled with her wing claws, and the fight was over.
"Winner! Sai-lak, the Jade Whirlwind!"
As he released the losing drake female, Min-Wei thought she did well, certainly since he had used nearly his full fire heat potential there. The Gold and green Eastern dragon slinked off the arena, while some of the next competitors looked on in awe.
"Man, none of these fights have been as quick as that Gold snake guy." Rainbow Dash commented. The fight right now had divulged into a pushing contest between the 2 fighting drakes, a blue male and a brown female of late teen equivalent age.
"Well, nobody else is complaining." Pinkie said, herself getting into it more quickly than others. She was first to see the full extent of how everyone was here because they wanted to be, and it helped bring the Drakes together.
"I'm not sure I agree still. Its still a bit barbaric." Rarity said, though she'd loosened a bit. Spike looked at her from their watching platform, and asked: "I'm not sure. I think its like how ponies have sports, hobbies or things to relieve stress. This is just a different culture."
Looking at Spike, Rarity said: "Well, at least you're not taking part Spike. I'd hate to see you get hurt."
Spike secretly thought if he did get hurt, Rarity would be able to nurse him back to health. After she gave him an earful that is, and after Twilight as well f he did so.
"Your love is right Kurz-uh, son. Besides, you've never struck me as someone who has a lot of pent up anger to work off." Cal'vel commented, the much bigger blue and red dragon looking at his sort-of son with honesty.
"What about you?" Fluttershy asked.
"I only took part once. I nearly broke the arena floor, so, never again." Cal'vel said. His excessive power among dragons was indeed a problem, and he needed a bigger area to work off his own stresses, usually a canyon or mountain of some kind, far away from civilisation.
The fight ended, as roaring cheers rose in the arena, as the brown female drake wearily held a wing aloft in victory. The loser, the blue male drake, limped off a bit disappointed, but feeling less stressed.
Luna whispered to Blacklight, her having a degree of trust with her head guard more than others among the ranks: "It is impressive isn't it?"
"I'm still waiting on Varkan's fight. Forgive me, but I think it will be hilarious to see him go against a full size drake." Blacklight said. Luna pictured Varkan, then his size against a Fire Drake, adolescent sized at first.
Hearing this, Applejack wondered aloud: "I think that fight might be a bit one sided."
Twilight looked around the crowds of competitors, until Flash pointed out: "Hey, I think that's him. That little flash of black among the next handful of fighters."
They all looked on, seeing the Wyvern stood amongst the drakes, all of them at dwarfing him. He was about 10 feet tall, and 18 feet long stood up. Drakes stood more lengthways than Wyverns, but the smallest was still 40 feet tall, and 90 feet long.
"That's just tragically unfair." Rarity admonished.
Cal'vel kept quiet, but he mouthed quietly to himself: "Not for him."
The second to last fight of the general brawls, before the choices by the victors came up if they wanted to fight more.
"And here on this side, from the Baragh colony, and here at his 3rd Drak-Brawl, Grund, the Grey Fortress!"
Grund, the grey fire drake male Varkan had rode here on, walked on his feet and wings, flexing his large wing and leg muscles as he did so. A few impressed hoots escaped a few drakes, mostly female, though some males.
As the announcer gestured to the other side of the arena, some laughs rose at the size od his opponent.
"And his opponent, a second timer to these fights, the only Wyvern to take part in Drak-Brawl so far, and likely ever."
The black wyvern scowled at the announcer at the last bit, flashing a rude hand gesture with his 2 fingered, 1 thumbed claws.
"Varkan, the Sun Crusher! One of the few names that actually is based on truth!"
A few murmurs, excited though, rose, though the announcer added: "Though by what I've heard, he had a lot of technology that time. Here-"
Grund looked down at Varkan a bit, feeling a bit sorry for the Wyvern now.
"-he has only his body, so that might be difficult to uphold."
Laughs rose again, but in the Equestria stand, Luna had frowned a bit at the title Varkan had assigned himself. Celestia was her sister, and it naturally irked her when Varkan took any sort of pride in his defeat of her.
In the arena, Grund whispered: "Look, I'll go easy, okay?"
"Alright, but for fairness, I'll go easy on you also."
Taken aback, Grund saw Varkan wasn't joking. Shrugging his wing shoulders, Grund readied himself, while Varkan stood still.
"Begin!"
The grey drake male charged headfirst, leaping to pin the Wyvern, albeit gently, beneath his wing claws. A quick victory that everyone expected.
But he landed on just the ground. Varkan had leapt up, clearing Grund's much larger head as he began to come down.
The Wyvern landed on Grund's back, grabbing his back spines and scrambling up his neck before he could react.
Roaring, Grung thrashed, trying to throw the Wyvern off. Not letting go, Varkan found the sweet spot behind the skull, and swung his leg up and down again while he held on.
It felt like a drake sized jackhammer, as Varkan's foot drove right into softer under neck scales, and hitting a few motor control nerves. His control disrupted, Grund suddenly collapsed, his left wing suddenly limp for a few seconds.
As he rolled over painfully, Varkan was on his neck as he stopped on his back, punching continuously in all the worst places. His wings and legs spasmed with each nerve and muscle blow, as Varkan said with a few triumphant laughs:
"Give up!"
"Hell no!"
Briefly shrugging, as the crowds roared in surprise, Varkan drove his foot into the side of Grund's neck, right in a very reflex centred area.
Before he felt the pain, Grund staggered upwards, Varkan leaping off as he did, finding himself coughing and gagging as the nerve ending was triggered continuously. Keeling over, he was forced into submission, as Varkan had hit the centre point nerves with that last kick to trigger a lasting, very uncomfortable gag reflex.
Hacking and coughing, but unharmed, Grund felt queasy, raising a clawed wing to say he forfeited. He was in no condition to fight now.
"Uh, winner! Varkan, the Sun Crusher! A good use of nerve strike techniques."
A brief pause, before the crowds roared in surprise and adulation. It was unorthodox, but the Wyvern had won with intelligence.
"How, uh, did you-?" Grund said.
"You gave me a ride, and I sussed out your nerve points as you flew. Plus, I know a lot about drake biology in general." Varkan said, a bit haughty but otherwise in good spirits.
Coughing as he staggered behind the Wyvern, Grund wheezed: "So, you cheated. You little sneak."
"If its any help, I won't have such an advantage in my next fight." Varkan said.
Grund laughed a little, as he began to feel his queasiness dropping slightly. It was true, he was out, but Varkan had got himself into another fight.
Behind them, the next fight started, the last of the random matches.
As Varkan looked around, his eyes narrowed briefly as he saw a certain podium of ponies, and 2 dragons, watching him. He feigned not seeing them however, and slunk back to the winners area.
1 hour later
Sri Drake, southwest area
Mountain canyons, 30 miles north of Baragh clan.
Natural arena canyon
"Give up."
"No." The male Drake replied, a sleek green one.
Sighing, 'Sai-kan' tightened his 2 coils around the squirming drake, asking again, sounding bored for the audience.
"Please give up."
"Nev-urk!" The Drake protested as it became harder to breathe.
Looking at the fight conductor, the Eastern dragon silently asked for a ruling, given the situation.
Shaking his head, he announced: "Winner, finally, Sai'kan, the Jade Whirlwind!"
The crowds roared, though it might have been relief that this fight was over. The actual fight had been 1 minute long, but Min-Wei, or 'Sai-kan', had spent 2 minutes constricting the drake, hoping for him to see the folly of trying to keep fighting.
His bravado got stupid after the first minute.
Releasing the drake, 'Sai-kan' respectfully bowed his serpentine head low, and slinked off the arena. He'd requested this opponent, and while the fight had been short, it had been fierce. Watching the loser limp off, Min-Wei saw that drake as the biggest obstacle in the clan for him getting at Smoulder, save for 2 in the clan. Cal'vel, and surprisingly, Varkan.
If Varkan was here, free of charges, it meant that h would have a harder time getting at Smoulder, or getting away. And Cal'vel being in order was bad enough, Varkan had resources, people, assets.
Still, it was Varkan who was next in the fights, whomever he chose.
"Ooh, there he is!" Pinkie said excitedly, as Varkan walked out on the arena to some cheers. He paraded about, in a sort of showmanship he seldom displayed. He wore only some combat leggings, his full torso exposed for his dark scales, scars, and tattered wings to be seen.
"Well, that's a bit more revealing than he normally wears." Twilight said, a bit taken aback. Flash Sentry resisted the urge to shield the princess's eyes, though not part of his duty to her.
"Oh good gracious, really?" Rarity averted her eyes, as seeing Varkan all but naked, when he normally wore a lot of clothing, was somewhat of a shock.
"So? I don't wear clothes often." Spike argued.
"Yeah, but he normally does." Fluttershy said, though she looked over the scarring on some of his scales.
"Damn, how's he even held together?" Rainbow Dash remarked.
"Hold up, lets see what he does with his fight choice." Applejack hushed them.
Luna leant forwards, while Blacklight kept watch as he dutifully did. The Night Princess commented: "Well, I can see how he could best you, and my other guards. Not meaning any offence to you of course."
Blacklight withheld his scowl, but Cal'vel nearby chuckled a bit at hearing this exchange.
In the arena, the announcer drake roared over the crowds in the canyon arena.
"Now, Varkan, the Sun crusher, who would you like to fight?"
Thinking for a bit, the Wyvern pointed to the stands, saying aloud enough to be heard:
"Well, they're not among the fighters, but I'd like a crack at one of them!"
He pointed in the general direction of the stadium, and a light shone on the audience from a small, electric spotlight they'd brought. Some drakes in the lower crowds parted.
"No no, higher, a little to the left!"
His correction reached the spotlight drake, and the light shone upwards.
The crowds roared in surprise at the illuminated Equestrians, and 2 dragons amongst them.
Varkan smiled, eying up the illuminated podium. Realistically, he only saw 4 or 5 up there worth fighting. Cal'vel though, was out of his league in this sort of fighting.
That left Spike, though he doubted his fighting abilities if not his power, and then the 2 guards, Flash Sentry and Blacklight. Then, although they were likely off limits, the 2 Princesses.
As their eyes narrowed, Varkan left if to the audience as he yelled, making the most of this, playing up the crowds of drakes for his amusement:
"SO, who do you want!? First off, to the big blue dragon, absolutely not going to fight him!"
Laughs rose, but the ponies looked around as Varkan continued:
"The smaller dragon, if he wants to, though he doesn't strike me as a fighter, and I want to face someone who actually wants to fight me!"
"I know that night guard Unicorn has a beef with me, since I sucker punched him and others when we came across each other before! And I see the stink eye the other guard, the blue maned one, is giving me, just barely!"
More laughs rose, but then Varkan tried his luck: "For diplomacy, I'm guessing those 2 Princesses are out of bounds! That's fine by me, but what about them!? The only reason I ever beat Celestia was because of some technology helping me! So, I ask one of them, up for a friendly brawl!? If not, I can embarrass your guards, again in the dark one's case! Have a test of Wyvern resistance versus magic! Let out any issues you have with me, and give me a real good time here!"
Varkan paraded, though he was being theatrical. He didn't fully feel this, but he was basically amplifying what he felt relating to them.
The announcer dragon spoke aloud: "Well? Will the Equestrians reply? The rules will allow magic this one fight if they reply with a pony opponent!"
The crowds chanted, as they saw a unique opportunity here. Varkan looked at them, his expression shifting to a more sincere, inviting but challenging one. Less showmanship, more genuine invitation.
Under the light, Twilight shook her head, which drew some disappointed grumbles from the crowds, more as Flash denied the challenge. Beside, Spike looked around, shaking his head nervously.
A few laughs rose, as the spotlight began to shift to Cal'vel, the operator thinking they weren't getting a pony challenge.
In the podium, Blacklight shifted to stand up, take up the challenge. Luna stared him down, shaking her head.
"My apologies princess, I was out of line." Blacklight admonished with a bow. The spotlight moved away, but Luna snorted decisively as she stood up, whispering back to the others:
"I shall take a shot for my guards, sister, and to deflate Varkan's ego a bit."
Using her royal Canterlot voice.
"CHALLENGE ACCEPTED, YOU RECKLESS WYRM!"
Cheers erupted, while the others in the stand stared dumbfounded at the Night Princess's sudden rise to this challenge.
Down in the arena, Varkan couldn't have been more pleased.
"Hmm, maybe I can be the Sun and Moon crusher." He muttered to himself.
The surprise match was set, as the crowds roared in agreement with the matchup.
In the crowds, even Min-Wei was taken by surprise, laughing a bit at this unusual, and rare occurrence.
In this sort of situation, as Varkan gets invested in the showmanship, he gets a little reckless, or daring, whichever you prefer. And Luna I figured might have some beefs with Varkan over
A: Him beating her sister to near death.
B: Him giving them a hard time when looking for him this story.
C: His smugness when they met in Sydnaye.
D: Linked to B, him humiliating her guards.
And Blacklight naturally trying to first challenge Varkan was a given in this scenario. Luna just decided to do it on her guards' behalf.
Plus, it will give the Ponies someone they can genuinely cheer for in these fights.
All the while, Min-Wei sits back and watches this unexpected development, as anyone frankly would. He's in no hurry, but he'll make his move within 2 chapters.
As usual, please review/critique as one would.
By the way, if I had better art skills, I'd actually be drawing comics of certain scenes in these stories. But sadly, I don't. Bugger.