Author's Notes:

If you're a Sunset fan, you can put the fight to the tune of The Violence
If you're rooting for Spike, here's Dragon's by Stratovarius

“‘Things you know but shouldn’t know?’” Twilight tilted her head to the side.

Spike used some charred remains of the bed to rake his back. “Yeah, it just keeps coming to me in bursts.”

“I mean, we studied a lot over the summer.”

“Not about dealing with pegasus weather manipulation or fighting off a mental spell.” Spike belched but forced his jaw shut with his claws. The flames hissed through his fangs, but they dissipated before they could cause any damage. After a few coughs and thumps to his chest, Spike sighed, “I just don’t get it, and there’s no way I could have learned it before meeting you.”

“Before meeting me…” Twilight tucked her chin. After a moment of contemplation, she took a breath and looked at Spike. “I wouldn’t worry about it for now, you just focus on your fight…”

The prismatic glow coming off Spike reflected in Twilight’s eyes. “So, I was right.”

Pinkie bent over to her. “Right about what?”

“Oh, uh…” Twilight’s eyes darted left and right before a half-truth escaped her mouth. “Over the summer, Spike and I teleported together once, somehow some of my knowledge must have spread to him.”

“Lucky you two didn’t get spliced together,” said Dash.

“That only happens in books,” Twilight replied. She centered her focus back on Spike. To think the Elements would affect him too.

Up in her box, Celestia shared Twilight’s thoughts. She mused, “How curious. Now, is he a full bearer or is this just from having them used on him? But, if that were the case…”

“Color me impressed.” Smolder grinned. She then furrowed her brow. “What’s with the glow? The molt’s over and it’s definitely not a summon from the lord. Just hope Lady Ember isn’t too cheesed when I try and tell her about all this.”

“What an upset!” Vinyl declared. “Sunset had Spike on the ropes, but he managed to pull what looks like a victory! I’m pretty sure the rules don’t say anything against growing actual wings, so let’s get that ten-count started!”

“Aye,” said Rockhoof. “One!”

“Astounding,” Tantabus muttered.

“Two!”

“That’s that,” Starlight sighed. “He’s in a league of his own.”

“Three!”

“I think, with the right strategy, we could take him,” said Trixie.

Starlight furrowed her brow. “He could smell you. He can resist me. Suri would probably break against him, and we saw how he handled Thunderlane. Lightning wouldn’t do much better.”

“Four!”

“Sheesh,” Suri pouted. “Talk about a hay of an advantage.”

“It’s more than that,” said Starlight. “Natural talent can only get you so far. Behind all that, there needs to be a drive.”

“Five!”

Twinkle Shimmer ground her hooves into her leg rests. “Damn! Damn!”

“He did beat my Shim-Shim,” Firelight mused.

Twinkle shot him a glare and then focused back on the ring. “Sunset! Get up! You’re better than this! You think Princess Celestia would just lie there and take it!?”

“Six!”

To Sunset, Twinkle’s shout came through muffled and accompanied by a constant ringing. All she could feel from the left side of her face was a faint burning sensation, like standing too close to a fire. The rest of her body felt distant from her brain. Her vision was blurred and the sensation of rock pressing against her was dulled.

“Seven!”

Then, Spike looked down at her. He looked at her with those eyes that shone not just with multiple colors, but with something that made the haze ebb away from Sunset. Sparks ignited in her chest.

No, she thought as the sparks started a fire. Not here. Not to him! Not to that look!

“Eight!”

I worked hard! I slaved to master my Talent! I threw everything I had at this! Tiny flames licked at her coat. Her jaw clenched. Stop looking at me like that! I… I…!

“Nine!”

Twilight’s friends pressed against the rails. Twilight leaned forward in her wheelchair. The word was right on the tip of Rockhoof’s tongue.

“Te—”

Sunset exploded off the ground, knocking Spike back. The air warped around her as the heat in the ring skyrocketed. Veins ringed her irises as they shifted from cyan to crimson. Her shout echoed throughout the colosseum. “I will not lose!”

Flames consumed her entire body. They did not fade but rather got sucked into Sunset. It left her with a mane and tail of ruby and gold plasma. A near blinding white coat had overtaken her regular amber fur, even covering up her cutie mark.

In a burst of heat that shook the barrier, she crashed down on Spike. He raised up his arms to block at the last second, but the blow still lifted him off his feet. Sunset’s hoof brightened and Spike felt his arms grow hot. He flapped his wings and flipped over Sunset an instant before an explosion obliterated the space he had occupied a moment before. His velocity spun him upwards. Sunset snarled and gave chase.

“And another shocking turn of events!” Vinyl announced. “Sunset’s pulled out a trump card of her own! I’ve never seen anything like it!”

“It’s thaumic combustion,” Tantabus gasped.

Vinyl swiveled towards Tantabus. “What?”

“It’s rare, but the proper amount of magic and a precise emotional trigger can cause a unicorn to, for a very short time, have magic radiate through their entire body, not just their horn. It’s the first time I’ve seen it last more than a few seconds.” Aside from sister.

“You heard it, folks…” Vinyl paused to cough. Her throat felt dry.

Jackpot levitated his water to his mouth, but found the cup was empty.

Rarity waved a hoof in front of her face. Pinkie offered fans to everypony.

“My job as announcer is over,” Tantabus declared. Before Vinyl could ask what Tantabus meant, Tantabus melted away.

While Sunset shot after Spike inside the barrier, a translucent night sky overtook it. The barrier now glowed a soft blue and twinkled with stars. Everyone felt the heat die down a little. Some of the younger attendees were able to breathe easy again.

Tantabus’s voice echoed, “For security purposes, this match is now limited to one minute! If neither contestant is rung out or knocked out by then, the match will be a draw!”

“‘Draw?’” Sunset stopped and hovered in the air, propelled by the fire streaming from her hooves. She ground her teeth. “A draw!?”

She angled her horn down and fired. Rockhoof blanched. “Ah, hay.”

He rushed over to Cheerilee and swung his shovel down. Earth morphed upwards and around Rockhoof and Cheerilee, sealing them against the barrier. Seeing their predicament, Tantabus opened a hole in the barrier for them to escape through a second before Sunset’s attack crashed into what remained of the ring.

Plasma shot out in all directions and lashed at the barrier. The ring was consumed, leaving nothing but scorched dirt.

“There!” Sunset yelled and went after Spike again. She fired a blast of fire laced with veins of plasma. Spike rolled and fired a blast of his own to push away from the blow. It sent him hurtling toward the barrier, but he flapped his wings and managed to come to a stop. Sunset raced straight at him. “No more ring! Just us!”

Spike snorted. The glow around him brightened and he flew at Sunset. “Fine.”

Hoof crashed against claw. An explosion rippled up Spike’s arm and burned his palm, but with his free arm, he slashed through the smoke from the blast and aimed for Sunset’s horn. She fired her hooves and swooped back, but Spike managed to shred her cheek. The wounds instantly seared shut.

At the same time, Sunset hooked Spike with a hoof to his right shoulder and sent him tumbling down. His shoulder smoked but he managed to turn with his back to the ground. His wings cut through the air, blasting it away in a cloud of debris only held back by the barrier. His right shoulder and left palm were scorched, and his left arm felt numb. He pushed the pain down and charged upwards. Sunset zoomed down.

Rather than fighting with his claws this time, Spike shot a flurry of fireballs. They glowed green with a volatile inner core of blue now. Sunset zoomed around some and took the brunt of others. They left charred marks on her, but she kept flying at Spike. Seeing her dead set on him no matter what, Spike swung to the left, missing Sunset by inches. She tried to swing at him and blasted the area behind Spike, but the force of the attack just forced him further upwards. While he climbed, he continued to shoot fire that careened back at Sunset.

“Get back here!” Sunset roared before launching her own fiery torrent at Spike. He spiraled around the torrent while he felt his lungs get close to bursting. In her mad chase, Sunset failed to notice that some of the fireballs had missed her completely and were now converging behind her.

All of Spike’s friends looked up to Spike. He was as high up as Twilight had been in her fight with Dash just as Sunset felt the heat behind her. The massive fireball soared toward her, but she snarled and fired a blast at point blank range. Smoke obscured her for a moment.

“Thirty seconds left!” Tantabus declared.

Spike gasped for breath.

Then, a blinding point of light shone through the haze. Jets from Sunset’s hooves cleared the air. She angled her horn at Spike. “I’ll knock you off this damn planet!”

Spike felt the muscles on his back straining. With time ticking, he glanced at his friends and then filled his lungs with as much air as they could hold.

Smoke rose off not only Sunset’s horn, but other parts of her body as well. Various ponies gripped their seats. Guards had noticed Smolder trying to take off but had grabbed her before her feet left the ground. Fleetfoot glided a safe distance away. Celestia and Twilight did not dare to blink.

Sunset and Spike fired at the same time. A beam far bigger than anything Sunset had summoned before tore out from her horn in a shower of sparks. Gold and crimson plasma swirled together and soared up to Spike.

Bright flames of every color flooded out of Spike’s mouth. They coalesced into a burning rainbow torrent that washed down on Sunset.

Tantabus braced himself. When the attacks met, he could not fully contain the force of their shockwave and directed it down. The colosseum rumbled. Ponies were jostled out of their seats. Smolder managed to shake off the guards and went into the air to get a better view.

The attacks surged against each other. Spike blew with all his might while Sunset fired her jets even as her hooves distorted from the heat. More smoke spilled off of Sunset. The forehead near her horn blistered. Spike felt himself sliding back and he slashed through the air with all the force his wings could muster. His muscles strained but he inched forward.

Everything burned to Sunset. Her horn. Her hooves. Every fiber of her. Yet, she kept her jets at maximum blast as her horn blackened. She would not loosen up on her spell.

“Ten seconds!” Tantabus rasped.

“No!” Sunset shouted. With every scrap of magic she could muster, she plunged forward at Spike. She heard multiple cracks around her, but her world crumbled down to only Spike. Through the flames, she could see his shadow looming over her. “I will not lose! I will not lo—”

Sunset barreled at Spike with all her might as Spike’s flames consumed her. Rainbow flames swirled out of the air meters below and Sunset plowed out of the flames straight at the ground. Tantabus bunched up around the earth at the last second, cushioning the blow. The explosion from the crash once again made the colosseum shudder.

Smoke covered the lower half of the area inside the barrier. The time limit had expired. Tantabus pulled back, his form a little shaky from taking the brunt of the collateral damage. Spike glided downwards, barely able to keep his wings open. His limbs felt like lead and his breath was ragged.

Yet, as the smoke cleared and everyone leaned forward, they saw Sunset on the ground before Spike flopped onto it. Her body was covered in burns, her mane singed off in places, and her muzzle was bent slightly to the left. It was only thanks to Tantabus that her muzzle rather than her horn hit the ground first. At that speed, and in its brittle state, it could have easily broken off. Her hooves had partially melted. She lay prone letting out only the smallest of breaths to indicate life.

“He did it,” Twilight gasped. With her casts, she could only tilt her head up, but she shouted at the top of her lungs, “He did it!”

“Woohoo!” Pinkie fired off her cannon and showered the stands in confetti.

“Spectacular!” Rarity cheered.

“Awesome,” Rainbow Dash murmured with a slack jaw.

“Winner of the First Year Sports Festival…” Vinyl amplified her voice with her magic to its maximum non-harmful volume. “Spike the Dragon!”