Honour Bound

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Specialist Glamerspear pumped her hoof in the air. "Awright! Let's get 'em!"

Standing in front of Honour Bound, Anonymous leaned back and seemed to relax his expression a bit. "What's the plan of attack, Corporal?"

Still holding onto her best authoritative tone, Honour responded. "We'll challenge them to three one-on-one duels, best two-out-of-three..." She glanced meaningfully at Sparkshower. "... That way only two of us need to win a fight."

The color seemed to drain from the Pegasus' face. That wasn't good.

Honour turned to Glamerspear, raising an eyebrow. "We'll take them on all at once so there's no pressure from momentum. Glamerspear, you're an anti-air defense specialist; challenge them to a duel in service equipment with no restrictions."

Their unicorn teammate grinned. "Oh, I am going to sweep them from the air!"

Lifting her hooves, Honour began to play with one of her light brass sabots. "I'll demand a duel without the use of any equipment at all. They'll think they have the advantage because of their wings, but I'll profit more from their lack of armor."

Honour checked back on Sparkshower. She was not looking any better.

"Sparkshower, you'll ask for a fight in the air with service equipment..."

Honour leaned over and put a hoof on her shoulder. She was actually shivering in her armor. That was really not good.

"... All you have to do is fly as high and as far as you can. They can out-turn you and fly faster than you, but they'll tire more quickly. Play the long game..."

Sparkshower was facing Honour Bound, but it felt like she was looking straight through her. The Corporal brought her head closer to try to get her attention. That's when she noticed that there were actual tears coming from her eyes.

'Better try to shut this down fast.' "... Soldier! Trust in your equipment and you will be victorious, do you understand?"

The shivering didn't stop.

"Y-Y-Y-Yes, Corporal!"

Honour squinted at her. "I didn't catch that, Specialist?"

"YES, CORPORAL!"

That was not a confident, or even a composed response.

It was almost a terrified scream.

And now Sparkshower was shivering so hard, the whole group could hear her armor rattling like a box full of empty tin cans. Honour Bound shot a worried glance at Glamerspear. She just looked concerned and shrugged her eyebrows, with a 'What do you want me to do?' kind of look.

Sparkshower clearly hadn't seen real combat. There wasn't enough time to solve her confidence issues, and it didn't matter, anyway. Glamerspear should win easily, and Honour had an excellent shot. Sparkshower could lose, though she'd prefer if the pegasus didn't get hurt.

Anonymous got onto his feet but stayed low, squatting down with the rest of the group. "Specialist Sparkshower, I apologize for the interruption, but something has just piqued my imagination. May I ask you a question about general tactics in the Equestrian Royal Guard?"

The fresh and apparently-unrelated line of conversation seemed to calm her down a bit, as she stopped chattering quite so hard.

"Sir?"

The Royal Engineer affected a theatrical air and gestured up at the sky. "Tell me, Specialist: If an enormous dragon were to attack Canterlot right now..." He pointed over at Kilfeather's squadron. "... Is that the force the Guard would send up to defeat it?"

With some hesitation, Sparkshower looked over toward her feared enemies. "No, sir."

"No? Could you explain to me why not?"

The heavily-armored pegasus swallowed, and Honour could tell it was to hold herself back from crying. Her nose was running, too.

"Well, sir, as an air-superiority squadron, they're focused on high-energy turning fights against comparably-sized enemies. They're lightly armed and lightly armored so as not to compromise their air handling. Without heavier equipment, against a big dragon..." She turned back to Anonymous. "... they'd only be useful as harassment."

The Royal Engineer leaned in almost awkwardly close to the corporal's nervous pegasus.

"Specialist Sparkshower..."

She inhaled sharply, holding her breath.

Anonymous loudly and forcefully banged his knuckles against her enormous brass breastplate, twice, leaving the digits pressed against her armor. He clearly enunciated every word that followed.

"... be the dragon."

There was a long delay while Sparkshower looked down at the fist held against her plate. Her eyes darted from the fist, to Anonymous' face, to the fist, and then back again.

"Be the dragon... Yes, sir. Thank you, sir!"

That was sounding a little better. Not much, but a little. Anonymous nodded, before he removed his fist and stood up. Honour watched Sparkshower's eyes nervously follow him up.

'Seems like this is as good as it's going to get.'

"Okay, let's get back in there."

Everypony started back toward the bridge. To Honour's right, Glamerspear was wearing a smirk like she was going to enjoy this. Just ahead of her, the Royal Engineer dusted his trousers and jacket off, before donning his top hat once more. He even put on the white gloves he had hanging out of his jacket-pocket. And on her left, Honour could hear Sparkshower repeatedly muttering under her breath.

"Be the dragon... Be the dragon... Be the dragon..."

If a mantra helped get her through this, then all the better.

The bridge was less than fifty yards away, and the walk back went quickly. Lieutenant Kilfeather was still posing with his squadron, blocking the bridge a few yards beyond the 'borrowed' MXP totem.

"Well, Lord Anonymous, what shall it be?"

Anonymous raised his hands and adjusted his gloves, pulling them on tightly before balling his hands up into fists. There was a disturbing, cracking noise as he squeezed his knuckles. An intimidation tactic of his own? There was no visible reaction from the air-superiority pegasi with an obvious air of superiority.

"My bodyguards shall challenge three of your number to one-on-one duels; two victories out of the three shall carry the day."

Kilfeather nodded in approval, grinning. "Excellent! I accept, with one condition: If you do not sweep us in all three matches, we will consider ourselves entitled to continue our 'Pas de Sabots'."

Unlike earlier, Anonymous' reply was instantaneous. Clearly, he'd had the time to think this through.

"I accept your condition with one clarification: If we win without a sweep, you shall allow us to pass unhindered upon our return voyage today."

The Lieutenant laughed, and a few of his crew chuckled along with him. "Ah, clever! So perhaps you are a warrior-lord, after all!"

Turning to the ponies behind him, Kilfeather pumped his hoof in the air repeatedly, and the little crowd started to cheer, clap, snarl, and roar with excitement.

Kilfeather spun around back to face the four of them. "... Yes, We accept! Carriage-bearers, retire yourselves to our tents, and Royal Engineer, let your bodyguards step forth and issue their challenges!"

The two carriage-pullers shot each other a glance, then slowly walked the coach back, taking the side-path off of the road, into the fallow field with the squadron's colorful tents.

Honour paused to consider her squad. On her right, Glamerspear looked ready to shoot every one of the pegasi down, if given the chance. To her left, even Sparkshower had found her nerves again and wore the proper, steady gaze of a soldier.

Honour Bound made the first move, stepping up past Anonymous, to just in front of the totem. With an air of disdain, she looked over Kilfeather's squadron before uttering her curt pronouncement. "Hooves only, no armor, first submission."

Most of the squadron-members arched their eyebrows and looked at each other with amused expressions, saying 'Ooooh!', which then devolved into general excited hooting and hollering.

One of them stepped forward and swayed his shoulders with a grin on his face. "Well, all right! Cool foxy filly wants to turn this mêlée into a real brawl, huh?!"

He was a young colt, but big for a pegasus; huge, even. His coat was light red, and his blond mane was cut high-and-tight. Coming right up in front of Honour Bound's snout, he almost towered over her.

"... Little fox, I'm gonna smash you good."

She just gave him a cold stare, as she reached down and started to pull off her sabots. That set his companions off again, with cat-calls mixed in with the hooting. He turned and gave them a confident grin, though it briefly faltered when he started to undo his armor as well.

Lieutenant Kilfeather's laugh rang out. "All right, who's next?"

Behind the corporal, Glamerspear shouted out as she charged up to the challenge line that she'd established. "That'll be ME! Fight in service equipment, with no holds barred!" She hunched down, swiveling her neck left and right like a snake looking to strike. "... Come on, which of you airborne pests is ready to get turned into an ugly smear on the ground?!"

Again, there was laughter from the assembled pegasi. Kilfeather's roar rang louder than the rest. "Oh, so Miss Air-Defense thinks Canterlot's finest are easy targets, does she?"

Glamerspear snarled right back. "Yeah! Changelings, Griffons, or Pegasi; you're all just bugs to be squashed, to me -- and I've got a fly-swatter bigger than even your ego, Val!"

He laughed it off, and, in the blink of an eye, dashed forward with one quick pump of his wings.

If the move impressed Glamerspear, she didn't show it.

"Your fly-swatter's got nothing on my moves, Lil'. So I'll take your challenge, and that's two!"

'Now it's all on Sparkshower.'

Eschewing Glamerspear's quick entrance or Bound's steady walk, she took to the air and slowly flapped her way forward. Upon reaching the totem, she did not land.

"I proclaim a clash of storm-fronts... in service equipment." She sounded confident as she issued the traditional pegasus challenge for a duel. But she didn’t try any of the emotional theatrics like Glamerspear. Or like herself, if Honour was being honest. After all, that cold stare was a calculated move, too.

The lack of excitement from Sparkshower seemed to carry over to the opposing side as well. Just one pegasus made any noise at all, chuckling loudly. "Oh-hoo-hoo! A 'clash of storms', eh? Like it's a rainy day in Cloudsdale? Big talk for a little pegasus!"

A purple-colored pony with a slicked-back green mane took to the air and flew up slowly to meet her. "... Or maybe it's just a big joke? I'm laughing, after all!" Amused with his own words, he continued to giggle to himself.

By that point, Honour Bound had removed all of her equipment, and so had her oversized opponent.

Kilfeather looked down the line and spoke up. "Very well, the challenges have been made, and met! Competitors, touch the totem together and identify yourselves to receive its protective blessings, then retreat twenty paces until the Lord Anonymous does us the honor of declaring the start!"

Honour reached out at the same time as her foe, but he spoke first, leaning in over the invisible line that divided the two teams. "The only name you need, little foxy filly, is my call-sign: 'Duck'. Which is what you oughtta do when I come flapping for you, by the way."

Her voice was flat as she replied. "Corporal Honour Bound."

There was an almost musical hum from the golden medallion, and the red-colored hairs at the totem's peak suddenly waved as if blown by a gust of wind. She could feel a kind of electrical energy envelop her, making her hair -- body and mane -- briefly stand up on end. Duck's short mane scarcely moved, though his puffed-up coat made him look even larger.

As both of them retired, Glamerspear and Kilfeather stepped up. Once again, the air-superiority team-member spoke first. "Lieutenant Valiant 'Icepone' Kilfeather, wing commander, First Canterlot Air Defense Wing, and Leader of Kilfeather Squadron, Winners of the MXP Games Grand Mêlée."

Glamerspear leaned in close, baring her teeth. "Specialist Lily Glamerspear, Centurion of the Order of the bucking Ram!"

That was a visible shock to Kilfeather, but he took it with a smile. "Well, well... Went and became a war hero, did you, Lily?"

"That's right, Val. Want to give up now before I do to you what I did to the Changelings?"

He licked his lips.

"Mmmm, 'fraid not, Lil'. You're about to get a harsh lesson in tracking hard targets."

Their exchange complete, both of them retired to the starting lines. It was Sparkshower's, and her still-giggling opponent's turn. Almost simultaneously, the pegasi reached out and touched the staff.

But both remained silent. All anypony could hear was the beating of their wings.

It was a somewhat disturbing contrast. Sparkshower, with an armor load more than three times that of the lightly-equipped air-superiority pony, not to mention carrying a long and very bronze spear versus just his sabots, almost appeared to be struggling to stay in place. Each beat of her wings lifted her several hooves up into the air. And in-between those intervals, she dropped like a stone back down again.

By comparison, the purple pegasus before her almost seems to be effortlessly soaring in place, barely flapping his wings at all. After several moments in silent challenge, at last, he leaned forward.

"Well? Aren't you going to tell me your name, little filly?"

Sparkshower stayed silent, staring him in the eyes.

He started to giggle again. "... Come on, bold and brassy! Speak up!"

Again, she said nothing.

He blew a raspberry, annoyed. "... Thhbbbbt! Oh, fine then, I'll go first, party-pooper. You can call me 'Joker', and I'm the Lieutenant second-in-command of this bunch of fun-loving colts, hee-hee-hee!"

'Aaand he's back to the obnoxious giggles again.'

Sparkshower remained quiet.

Joker eventually ran out of laughs and fell silent. Only then did Sparkshower speak up, with the most bravado Honour had ever heard from the pegasus.

"I'm the dragon."

Before he could react, she quickly jerked her head forward in a nod, and the visor of her bascinet-helmet snapped down to cover her face with a resounding 'clang'.

That set the non-participating pegasus crowd off again, amused by her display of defiance. But 'Joker' didn't seem to be laughing any more.

"The 'dragon', huh? I'll get your real name by the time I'm done with you, don't you worry, filly-girl."

He leaned forward like he was trying to peer behind the eye-slits of her full-face helmet, but Honour doubted that he could see anything. Perhaps out of frustration, he spun his hind legs forward and used them to kick off the totem, quickly pushing back by the required distance.

Sparkshower just slowly backed up, flap by flap, until she was level with Honour Bound and Glamerspear.

Both lines of battle were now drawn. Behind them, Honour could hear the Royal Engineer's boots crunch against gravel as he adjusted his position to clear the way. Then she heard him clear his throat.

"Gentleponies, conquer your fears and you will conquer the enemy..."

'That's a good line. Especially for Sparkshower.'

"... Remember, no interfering with the other duels. Spread yourselves out at the earliest opportunity. We will go on the count of 'three.’"

"One..."

"Two..."

"Three!"

As soon as the count was spoken, 'Duck' came thundering at the corporal, hooves held forward.

She immediately rolled to her left, letting him fly by.

While Duck circled around for another pass, Honour took a measure of their starting positions. To her left, Sparkshower had immediately taken off into the air away from her, pursued by 'Joker', who'd overshot her initial position. On her right, Glamerspear already had her defensive shield up and was galloping back and to the right, trying to put herself in the center of the largest open area around. Kilfeather was climbing straight into the air, opting to gain altitude right off the bat.

Good. That just left her with 'Duck'.

Time for her to show him her moves.

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Suggested interlude music: Christopher Gorden - 'The Battle', from 'Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World' [2003]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAXJ7jek5-4

Next Chapter: Chapter 16 Estimated time remaining: 35 Hours, 12 Minutes