The Story That Never Was - Chapter 17

>>How do you keep getting yourself into these situations?

>>You stand before a hulking colossus that wants you dead

>>At your feet lay three fillies, one of whom is related to Applejack

>>Not that you care about Applejack, right now

>>You take a step back and clench your teeth

>>So much time, maybe two hours, down in this dustbowl and it comes down to this?

>>You're in no condition to fight, but they slammed the gate closed on you

>>There is no escape

>>This four to five hundred pound monster is intent on your destruction

>>And all around you are the cheers and jeers of its peers, waving their arms like it was a sporting event

>>The three fillies shake, they quiver in fear

>>They are frozen in horror as they look on the Diamond Dog

>>There is no hope

>>But you made a promise

>>And you will die before they do

 

Girls, take off

>>You command, keeping your gaze, hateful and venomous, locked on your challenger

>>Just like the old days

>>“A..Anon...”

>>Sweetie Belle stutters

>>Scootaloo and Apple Bloom are able to summon up the courage to grab her by her forelegs and drag her off

>>They head as far across the large fighting pit as they can from you and he

>>The pit at the bottom of the Colosseum is large, so they should have no trouble avoiding collateral damage

>>The crowd is vicious, but you and he face off in a stare down for approximately ten seconds before he speaks up in his raspy voice

>>“My name is Tecumseh”

>>You furrow your eyebrows

>>“What's yours?”

Pug.

 

>>He snorts aggressively, slamming his fists against the ground as he edges closer and closer

>>“No. Your real name. I want to know who killed my brother before I end you.”

>>You ball your fists. They vibrate with blood pressure. Your knuckles go white.

I am Anonymous

>>He snorts again

>>“Anonymous, huh? Well... I'm going to make this as long and painful as I can.”

>>You sneered at him

>>You acted tough

>>A real badass

>>But you were pale from blood loss

>>Your left eye was encrusted shut from blood streaming down. This makes your left side blind

>>You're hungry

>>You're thirsty

>>Your throat is sore

>>You are choking from the course air of the underground

>>“Any last words, Mister Anonymous?”

>>You use this second to analyze your opponent. With those long arms, he had range over you

>>Just like his brother, you will be best served getting inside

>>He could floor you in one good shot. You've already experienced this

>>You cannot, under any circumstances, try to block this guy

>>He will overpower any sort of attempt to block and you'll get floored, such was the size and strength disparity

>>You doubted that you would even be able to counter

Your brother knew the risks.

>>The poor crusaders didn't know what was going on. This dialogue went over their heads

>>They hardly knew you

>>They didn't know these guys

>>They were just in the crossfire

 

>>You throw up your dukes

>>He goes for an overhand

>>You try to slip to the inside, but get nailed

 

>>In one shot, you are on the ground, your head bouncing off the stony surface

>>Your cut bursts open, and yet more blood seeps out

>>The crowd goes crazy

>>The three fillies gasp, hugging one another

>>Hope drained from them instantly

>>You lay on the ground, your mouth hanging open and your eyes closed

>>Your body tells you 'that's it, I'm done.'

>>Your brain agrees. 'Sorry, anon. You've pushed us too hard for this shit'

>>You relax, just... a little sleep, that's all. Just a little sleep.

>>A foot scoops under your torso and kicks, flipping you onto your back

>>“My brother was tougher than that. I can't believe he died to a worthless like you.”

>>Slowly you force yourself to get up, even if your body resists cooperation

>>He raises an eyebrow

>>The crowd, as ever, is wild. They're crazy for it.

>>Blood. More blood for their entertainment

>>Your hatred for the ponies seemed so far away, now

>>Their betrayal was not even a factor

>>If you couldn't do this, you were so dead. There would be no more life, even if yours wasn't really worth living

>>Human greed

>>Maybe Celestia was taking notes

>>As if it mattered

>>“Anon! Watch out!”

>>Apple Bloom called out

>>Your wherewithal was so shot, that you could not evade the right hook that slammed into the entire left side of your face

>>It sounded like thunder, and sent you reeling

>>What came next was a body shot, a hooking punch that caused you to double over and actually lifted you off the ground before you fell on your hands and knees

>>You vomit

>>The familiar taste of blood fills your mouth

>>The sand and stone runs red with your blood

>>Thoughts are hazy

>>Double vision

 

>>You used to be the Ponyville champ. Now look at you

>>Target as big as a barn. Few weeks ago you were begging for something like this

>>This sucked, too. You liked to emphasize counters

>>If you can't block, it was hard to counter

>>You crawl back up to your feet

>>Come on, body. We die if you give out, here

>>You put up your dukes, like a fuckin champ

>>You're Anonymous

>>You aren't going to go down that easily

>>Another overhand is thrown at you

>>You manage to slip to the outside, and put up some sort of offense

>>However futile it may be

 

>>The last few minutes have been a blur

>>It all melded in to itself

>>You did not know what was going on

>>You could not think ahead

>>You could not think behind

>>You live second by second

>>He has figured out your blind left side, so whenever you see a muscle on his right side flinch you get cautious

>>He has also noticed this, so he's starting to throw feints

>>He's hitting you far more than you've hit him, and his hits are each like a bullet train

>>He goes for a straight punch, since he has you at range

>>It's with his right

>>You slip to the outside, using your size to maneuver out of his direct view

>>You're trying to force him to track you

>>He really committed himself to that one, your eyes shoot open

>>His right side is completely open and unguarded

>>You throw your right out in a hooking motion, throwing your hips into it

>>Then a left hook

>>Then a right

>>Then a left

 

>>You lay into him, you close the gap and Your left hand latches his shoulder, your right tucks down by your hip and sockets up into his kidney

>>Again

>>And again

>>And again still

>>You push off of him to observe the damage you've done

>>And you are immediately deflated when, given the pest chance you can hope for, he is just staring at >>you before he slowly turns to face you

Well...

>>Your left eye is black at this point in the fight

>>You put your dukes up, and go back on the attack

>>“This is a totally lost cause”

>>Scootaloo observes, cringing as you get thrown down to the ground again

>>“Girls, we need to think of somethin'!”

>>Apple Bloom speaks up, hitting her forehoof to the ground

>>Your body slaps the ground just in front of them before being dragged off to the massacre machine for yet another round

>>They recoil

>>“Yeah, but Anon is kinda a wimp”

>>Scootaloo observes again

>>You didn't hear that. Good thing, too. It was the last thing you needed to hear

>>“I don't wanna stay here forever!”

>>Sweetie Belle speaks up

>>“We won't. This is what we'll do:”

>>Scootaloo organizes their grand strategy

>>But you're getting destroyed

>>Your face is a train wreck

Uhhh...

>>Is about the only sound you can produce on your own free will

>>You're a better fighter than this guy. You know you are.

>>But with all these handicaps? You were done before you even started

>>He lunges forward at you, and you instinctively swing in low and drive an uppercut into his chin

>>It sends him flying back

>>By harmonizing the legs, hips, shoulders, and elbows you punch far in excess of your weight

>>The crowd falls silent

 

>>It was your first good hit on this guy

>>He gets right back up

>>And the crowd goes wild again

>>Fucking dogs, every one of them

>>This guy is just PHENOMINAL

>>It's like fighting a sentient boulder

>>You stagger back

>>Hope is starting to waver

>>“That was a good shot. But I bet you're out of gas, Anonymous.”

>>He was right

>>You were fighting your own body to follow your commands more than you were focusing on fighting this guy

>>He walks forward, no longer even worried that you will fight back

>>“Well, it's been a real hoot. But your time is done. Say hello to my brother when you see him”

>>He lines up a shot on you

>>This is it

>>You look death in the eye

>>You are Anonymous

>>You will not back down

>>But your attention is grabbed when Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom dart behind him

>>Suddenly, Scootaloo

>>You don't know how she did it

>>She somehow leapfrogged off your shoulders, and right into this guys' face with a karate kick

>>He is surprised, nailed right in the nose

>>He staggers back, his ankles come in contact with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle

>>He falls on his back

>>You are left wondering just what happened

>>Scootaloo jumps on his chest and sticks out her tongue

>>“Try picking on someone your own size! Blawawawa!”

>>She shakes her head left and right, flinging her tongue all over

>>“Gah!”

>>Tecumseh roars a beastly roar and tries to close his arms around her, but she skilfully darts away

>>Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom all get in a side-by-side formation and show their bottoms to the large canine, lifting their tails and taunting.

>>“Nya nyanya nyanya NYA~!”

 

>>He scrambles up and bolts after them

Is...is this a joke?

>>You mutter to yourself The three take off in the direction of the gate keeping you all penned up

>>He follows

>>Sweetie Belle pulls a hard right

>>Apple Bloom pulls a hard left

>>Tecumseh lunges with all his strength

>>Scootaloo screeches to a stop and ducks

>>Tecumseh, the big ball of mass, sails over the young filly and slams into the gate, busting it open

>>You can't believe it

>>You just can't fucking believe it

>>“Anon! Come on!”

>>Scootaloo bounds over Tecumseh

>>Followed by Sweetie Belle

>>But Apple Bloom waits for you

>>“Come on, Anon! What are you waiting for?”

>>You suddenly blow bloody chunks on the ground

>>Okay, there you go, you feel like you can move again

>>You move with Apple Bloom and bound over the fallen opponent

>>The crowd is furious about their lost show, and you can feel the hive rumble with motion

>>More to the point, Tecumseh has gotten up and is bounding after you

>>“ANONYMOUS!!”

>>He roars

>>You are quickly overshooting the fillies, and so you scoop all three of them up in your arms as you pass

Oh, Celestia; Oh, Celestia

>>You chant

>>“I'M GOING TO DESTROY YOU!”

OH, CELESTIA; OH, CELESTIA

>>You have no clue where you're going

>>You're a rat in a hostile maze

>>You've lost sight of Tecumseh, but you know he is somewhere behind you in those tunnels

>>Suddenly, you come to a pitfall and stop right at the edge

>>Loose rocks fall in, and as they disappear into the abyss you never hear them hit bottom

Oh, Celestia

 

>>“Come on, girls. The trail leads this way.”

>>You know that voice

>>On the other side of the chasm, Twilight Sparkle appears from a tunnel

>>She is followed by Applejack, Rainbow, Rarity and Pinkie

>>“Apple Bloom!”

>>Applejack cries

>>“Sweetie Belle! Sweetheart!”

>>Rarity shrieks

>>“Alright, Anon. You drop those fillies RIGHT NOW!”

>>Twilight rears herself, and her horn begins to glow

>>The crusaders are now more confused than ever

Is that the way out?

>>Hah! Wouldn't you like to know?

>>Rainbow Dash taunts in her fucking broken-ass voice

>>You look back in the tunnels

>>The rumbling gets louder

>>“ANONYMOUS! YOU WON'T ESCAPE ME!”

>>You gulp

>>You put the fillies down and hold Scootaloo out as far as you can

Here! Hurry up!

>>Getting over their distrust of you, for now, Rainbow Dash zips over and gets Scootaloo, bringing her to the other side

>>You perform the same with Sweetie Belle, and then with Apple Bloom

>>“Alright, Anon. Can you make the jump?”

>>Twilight asks. They all heard the impending doom approaching

>>You suddenly feel a little woozy, and you vomit a waterfall of blood

>>Something inside of you was cut

>>The ponies on the other side of the chasm all recoil as they see you wobble around

I promised em'...

>>You are proud of yourself

>>So happy, now

I promised em'... that they would see light again

 

>>You smile, dumbly

>>Your skin is bleached white

>>Tecumseh finally finds you

>>“Anonymous! No more running!”

>>He roars with all the fury of a V-12 diesel engine and charges you

>>“What? No, Anon! Wait!”

>>You don't know who it was, but you get tackled, hard

>>You and Tecumseh vanish into the abyss

>>It's okay, body

>>You have done good by me

>>And you, mind

>>You can sleep

>>Today is a good day to die

>>You are happy