Literally Snails

Topaz brought one of her hooves up and took a step back in case of accidental blood splatter. In the split seconds before Canteen's gauntlet's reached Dynamo, she said, "Get ready for some blood!" The whip curled around the blade, tying itself tightly around it. The whip glowed bright, fighting against Jade's own aura surrounding the blade. Tatterhoof tried to pull back, hoping to disarm her.

((Shoulda been shining armor. Fixed)) "And we have our first real blows! The fight is underway!" Topaz announced. At this point in the fight, Topaz made her second comment, "I don't think a ten count is necessary in this case. Dynamo is flying back into the ring as quickly as he left it!" Jade hurled herself like a drill at Cumulus. His firey aura extended well past his body, and it was the first thing Jade touched. The flames mixed with the aura surrounding her, raising the heat around her body like she was cooking in an oven, but it was still a lot less painful than if she had no barrier to protect her. Cumulus crossed his hooves defensively but she managed to drill hoof first into his chest, earning a pained grunt from him as the two crashed into the cave wall. Cumulus was smashed into the cave wall, creating a small crater. His form slowly disappeared into a faint blue cloud. "Eheh... Next time, love..." He said before fading away. However, there wasn't a moment's rest as Tatterhoof hurled a spectral energy whip at Jade's back from his cane.

@Dynamo Pad "Sure! no problem at all!" Topaz said to Canteen, watching the two fighters square up against one another in the center of the ring. "Alright fighters, are you ready?" She paused for a moment in case one of them actually wanted to answer the hypothetical. "Match three and Team Lotus is up by two. Dynamo Pad versus Canteen. Begin!" @dragon4111 @reader8363 Shining Armor turned to Rose on his left. "Looks like you'll be up next unless this fight goes really well for us. Stay sharp." Cumulus grinned at her and chuckled playfully. "Right then! One made special for you!" He kicked his front legs out and pressed his hooves together, spitting out a torrent of flames directly at Jade. Behind her, Tatterhoof slammed his cane on the ground, creating an energy barrier behind her to keep her from backing away.

@DwhitetheGamer Topaz started another ten count, "One! ... Two! ... Thr-" But she suddenly stopped when Defiant got back up again. "And Defiant is up again! Guess the name isn't just for show." Topaz stopped and listened to Canteen's explanation. She blinked at him and walked closer to Defiant. "I'm really not supposed to let you get on the ring but..." She waved a hoof in front of Defiant, then pressed on his nose to test if he would respond. "...Yes and I suppose a ten count would be kind of ridiculous at this point." She admitted before turning to the crowd and proclaiming, "The winner by knock out is Copper!"

"Three!" Topaz kept counting until Defiant was on his feet. "It looks like Defiant is back up after three counts! This fight is still underway!" With the hoops shape, hooking the inside with her blade was easy enough. The only challenge was avoiding hitting her self with it when she redirected it. The hoop curled around her blade and bent when she slung it upward at Cumulus. Cumulus was hovering beside her and crossed his legs in front of himself defensively. The hoop wrapped around him and the orange flames turned green while he struggled to endure the pain. He unfolded his legs and grunted angrily, and the green flames around him exploded and dispersed, suddenly being replaced with a brand new layer of orange flames.

Cumulus turned around in midair while Jade was focusing on the light. Her downward kick connected with his chest, but with all the power he was generating with his flame armor, it didn't hurt him as much. He retaliated with a kick to her chest as the ringleader drew a glowing hoop in the air with the tip of his cane and sent it flying at Jade. "Finally, some blood!" Topaz announced. "These two fighters have been zipping around and taking pot shots so far. Could we finally be getting into it?" Topaz had her ears covered by her hooves, "Cover your ears!" She recommended just before the sonic boom cracked through the stadium. She stood up straight when it was over and looked at the aftermath of what happened to the ring. "Well, there's the kind of audience participation you get front row seats for." @reader8363 @Dynamo Pad "Unbelievable! Copper is like fighting a brick wall, though I suppose those sonic kicks would have taken down a brick wall, huh? What is this pony made of?" She walked to Defiant who was laying on the ground. "Defiant is down, so naturally I'll start a ten count!" "One! ... Two!"

"It looks like the track meet is over and things are really heating up!" Topaz announced. "Defiant is making the first move, hurling himself at Copper like a missile!"

"That's it! Let's have a go!" Cumulus said, redirecting himself in midair and dropping down at Jade's back, hind hooves first like a dive bomb. Tatterhoof tapped his cane on the stone floor, leaning on it. The tip of the cane glowed yellow, lighting up the cave.

"It may have made sense to him, but that doesn't mean we're in a good situation without him. When we fight Rokata..." Shining Armor stopped and narrowed his eyes, "If we fight Rokata, we can never truly be ready. It may be necessary to-" Shining Armor stopped himself dead in his tracks and looked at Dynamo. "No, you're right. We'll win for sure now, thanks to him." When Jade took a step back, she felt a hard object collide with the back of her head, smacking her roughly onto the cave floor. She caught a glimpse of her second assailant when she hit the ground. It was Tatterhoof, wearing his red, penguin tailed, carnival ringleader uniform with his top hat and cane. His eyes also had the same blinding blue glow like all the others. But there was no way he could have possibly snuck up on her like that! He just appeared behind her. "Heads up, darling. Show's on in five," He said, and moments after he spoke, Cumulus dove at her like a missile with his hooves stretched forward.

Topaz nearly jumped when defiant appeared next to her, taking the polearm from the ground beside her. "Um, o-kay..." she said, the hairs standing up on the back of her neck.

"You shouldn't have made a promise like that. You're right that there was nothing you could do and there's no way you could have known either." Shining Armor said. His eyes were trained on the fight in the ring but his focus was on Dynamo. "Maybe this can help ease your mind. Part of leading this team meant that I had to research all of you as best I could. Ponies like Snow, they aren't like you and I. It doesn't matter to them when they die or what they leave behind. What's important to a pony like him is how it happens. The meaning behind it, the moment itself. Most ponies die when they have no other choice but Snow had a choice today. He could have survived but he chose to die. I think he saw this as an opportunity. One that he might not get again." A yellow light flickered in the distance as she traveled through the cave. At first it looked like the light of day at the mouth of the cave, but it got bigger with each passing moment until it was close enough for her to make out details. It was Cumulus flying toward her, bathed in flames. His eyes solid blue lights.

"Things are moving quickly, but I'll do my best to keep you fans posted!" Topaz announced. "Things were looking evenly matched at first with a contest of speed, but now Defiant appears to be taunting Copper! Perhaps he was just the alternate for a reason."

@DwhitetheGamer "Alright, its the second round of the semi finals and Team Lotus is up by one. The next match will be Defiabt versus Copper!" Topaz announced. "Fighters, you may begin!" The cave was empty aside from the flickering candlelight. The only direction to go was back the way she came in.

The redirection was surprisingly easy. Jade was having an easy time sensing her opponents presence and outmaneuvering him, unlike the last time she fought him over a year ago. The treasure hunter fell to the ground and when Jade swung at him, he dissappeared in a flash of blue light.

Snow was probably dead just like Arid, and definitely wasnt conscious. So Canteen just ended up talking to himself. The crowd was struck silent by the crack of thunder as Defiant entered the ring. "Another interesting development ponies! It looks like Team Lotus is sending out their alternate to fight! What could be behind this decision?" The staff nodded as the left the ring with the bodies on the gurneys, leaving just Topaz, Defiant and Copper in the ring. "And it looks like team Crimos has sent Defiant to fight! We hardly know anything about either of these fighters. This will be an interesting fight to watch!" Topaz announced. @Dynamo Pad @reader8363 Shining Armor sighed and sat down between Rose and Dynamo, giving up on Canteen.

((Sorrysorrysorry)) The treasure hunter crossed his dagger extensions as Jade's blade swung. There was a flash of sparks and blue light. The dagger on his right hoof broke off and flipped into the air where it disappeared into a fading cloud of blue energy. The treasure hunter grunted angrily and stabbed toward her chest with his remaining weapon. @Arid_Blitz @Dynamo Pad @reader8363 @DwhitetheGamer Topaz was still standing over Arid and Snow's motionless bodies. "Eight! ... Nine and ten!" She announced. "It's all over! The winner of this double match is team Lotus! But since it appears that Snow Frostflame has died, only one point will be awarded." Staff ponies in white uniforms made their way to the stage, carrying white gurneys to carry the bodies off on. Even though team Lotus had won, a portion of the audience was cheering. "Four more to go! Four more to go!" They cried.

"Five! ... Six! ... Seven!" Topaz counted, followed by boos from the crowd, fans ordering Virdi to get back up.

Topaz shielded her eyes from the sunlight reflecting against the monolith of ice. "It's... so beautiful." She said, seeing the two fighters encased in the white structure, blood trickling from both their bodies. Simultaneous death. The highest honor one fighter can give another. @Dynamo Pad @DwhitetheGamer @dragon4111 @reader8363 Snow's eyes shut as his light flickered away. The ice covering the stadium suddenly turned to water, washing out onto the grass in front of the ring. The ring was left covered in water, blood, and broken spikes from Virdi's attack. Snow, Virdi and Arid were all lying on the ground. "It looks like we have three fighters down thanks to a sudden explosive display by team Lotus! I'll start the countdown!" Topaz announced, stepping closer to the center of the ring where she could observe all three bodies. "One! ... Two! ... Three! ... Four!"

Arid's sword might be useful in these fights. She was beginning to sense more dangerous presences in the cave, and something told her anything could happen in this bizarre trial. The treasure hunter crossed his legs and ran at her, dragging the blades against the stone floor and creating sparks that lit up the cave in bright flickers. Once he neared her, he lashed out with his bladed legs, aiming for her neck.

@Arid_Blitz @dragon4111 Topaz squealed and covered her head as the monolithic spikes shot up around her. She slowly opened her eyes and looked at the ruined stadium around her. "Virdi has turned the stadium into a pincushion!" She declared. "It looks like we might even have some friendly fire." Snow felt the ground around him shift and jumped instinctively, but one of the spikes was almost directly beneath him, and its jagged edge scraped against his belly, leaving a nasty laceration in his chest. He balanced himself on one of the protruding spikes, dripping blood and breathing heavily. His garment was soaked in crimson red. He clenched his side, feeling the warm blood soaking into his fur. You couldn't be more wrong about how safe that amulet makes you, Arid. Snow thought, looking at his opponent with hazy vision, remembering the first time his ice broke through and cut his hoof, and the time his sword managed to hit his ear. An attack with sufficient energy could propel past your defenses. And any mundane object can break your defenses as well. He looked down at the spikes covering the stadium floor. Those could be used to his advantage. The only problem was, in order to do what he had planned. He'd have to use a lot of life energy. All of it in fact. Well. It was fun while it lasted. @dragon4111 Snow took his blade and pressed it against the wound on his chest, cutting it even deeper and coating his sword in blood. The blood that held the only way to access his new powers. "Draco," He called out. He pulled the hat off his head and tossed it at him like a Frisby. It was the only clothing he had left that wasn't soaked in his blood. "Try not to mess this up okay? I'm trusting you to finish this now." He pulled his sword all the way across his chest, splattering blood on the spikes below and earning a pained expression on his face. Take out Arid. Weaken Verdi. Snow's blade was suddenly encased in a sleek coat of glowing ice, but that was only the start of it. An ice wall encased his entire lower body, originating at his wound. Before his hind legs were completely covered, he sprung at Arid with his blade poised forward, but while he was in midair, he tilted his blade down as if he wasn't aiming to hit Arid at all. A mound of ice materialized beneath his sword, splitting open seams in the already damaged ring. The ice rose beneath him in a uniform mass, uprooting several of the massive spikes and carrying them inside the gigantic glacier he was creating. The wall of pointed spikes encased in ice followed him like a tidal wave. At the same time, the original mass of ice he created when he started his charge rose up and suddenly blasted out at Virdi like a shotgun blast, shooting out shards of enchanted ice mixed with pieces of the spikes she created. He was propelled by the massive energy created by the attack like a bullet toward Arid, his sword pointed directly at his chest. Meanwhile, spikes encased in ice rose beneath them and shot out at Arid as well. The two clashed with an explosion of energy, shards of ice shooting out across the ring, but disintegrating when they got too far away from him. The blue ice became red as he poured out all of his life energy to ensure the assault would be at its maximum effectiveness. He could only hope to feel the sensation of his blade sinking into flesh because his consciousness was already fading. He'd given too much up.

My powers are all there. And I know I have enough to defeat Arid. I just can't reach it. If I can't reach it then it must be sealed inside of me. Snow dashed at Arid with his blade trailing behind. And if it's sealed inside of me then it must be in my blood! Snow swung at Arid with an upward strike, the bloody bandana on the hilt of his sword glowed purple while he attacked and the blade was coated again in a slick layer of enchanted ice. @Arid_Blitz @Dynamo Pad "Are you two having fun?" Shining Armor asked, walking behind Dynamo and glaring at Canteen. "Shouldn't you be somewhere else?" These two would probably not be a problem. She'd improved a lot since she fought them and even with the magic cuffs on, she was far stronger than them. She'd just need to find an efficient way to do it, being outnumbered. Her wing hooked the bounty hunter's leg and he stood up on his other three legs, trying to muscle through, but he was overpowered and sent back toward the treasure hunter. The treasure hunter instinctively held out his hooves and the bounty hunter was stabbed in the back by his bronze knives. The two crashed into the cave wall, but soon after, the bounty hunter disappeared in a flash of blue light, leaving behind no blood or trace.

If Jade couldn't remember their names, then their names didn't exist. These assailants were being conjured by only what remained in her memories. The treasure hunters knives struck against the cave floor, creating a flash of sparks. The bounty hunter redirected his momentum and lunged at Jade's leg, trying to get a grip on it.

No, I don't think that's right. Or that can't be all of it. It still feels like my magic is being sealed away. That must be why I can't even teleport! Whatever this new power is, my body is still locking my magic off to develop it. Load of good that's doing me now. I'd be much better off with my normal powers if I could at least use them! Damn it! The kick to the chin connected while Snow was still trying to recover from the pain his own magic had caused him. He was sent back a few feet but managed to recover on three legs. Blood trickled on the ring from his chin and Snow's eyes wandered down to the crimson puddle. Wait a second. Snow wiped the blood from his chin with his bandana and then wrapped the soaked bandana around the hilt of his blade.

There was something different about the ice surrounding Snow's blade. It was hard as steel and glowed with a faint blue shimmer. This ice was imbued with magic, created directly from his essence. Finally! The new ability Tricis said I was creating! Just in time. The Tonfa wasn't enough to block the swing, but it did slow his momentum. Snow closed his eyes and concentrated, then the ice surrounding his sword suddenly shot out in broken shards like a blue shotgun spray. "Eyes up people! It looks like Snow has a new move! let's hope it's as deadly as it is pretty!" Topaz announced. Snow pulled his blade back, now feeling renewed confidence. Before he even surveyed the damage of his last attack, he tried to coat his sword in a new layer of the enchanted ice. His blade was slowly coated in a new layer, starting at the hilt, but it only traveled halfway down before the ice stopped growing and suddenly shattered. Snow cried out in pain and hunched down as a shockwave of agony traveled through his body. What the hell is wrong with me? "Yes, and it seems like team Crimos just made the mistake of using a wind attack against an aeromancer. Look out, everypony. This could get painful!" Topaz commented.

The earth pony took a step forward, always keeping his glowing blue eyes on Jade. His voice echoed in the cave. "You proved yourself against us with luck on your side." *Click!* *Clank!* The bounty hunter boomed, "You were never worthy to have Tricis' training! You'll never leave this cave!" He charged at her with his right hoof ready to strike. From behind, another assailant attacked. The purple earth pony treasure hunter, the second enemy she fought to win Tricis' approval. He had two metallic devices strapped to his hooves that extended into bronze knives that expanded when he struck. His eyes too were glowing bright blue.