>Be Anon, sleepy in bed.
>You glance at the clock.
>Thankfully you have like 5 more minutes to laze about before it's time for you to get up and get started on your Big Day.
>You use that time to stretch and rub the sleep out of your eyes.
>Today was the day. The day of your duel with Winner Podium aka Born2Win, a competitive streamer. Your latest catch.
>If you want to get under competitive player's skin, just insult their skill and challenge them a 1v1 duel. Easy as pie.
>Do it in front of an audience and they will have no choice but take you up on that offer.
>Hell, they will go to ridiculous lengths to actually duel you!
>What Winner Podium doesn't know is that by doing this she'll be handing you her entire viewer base on a silver platter.

>Jumping off the bed in a fluid motion you head into your streaming room. It is, however, not yet the time for streaming.
>Born2Win's game of choice for the duel was Thaumic Tournament.
>You're a bit surprised that it wasn't Dark Snuggles, but you don't mind - shooters *are* your forte, after all. Tactical, arena, twitch, milsims - doesn't matter.

C0mpound_EY3: And this is why bug pussy is strictly superior!
TotalyNotAChangeling: holy tartarus, you gals are early today, it's like 2 more hours before stream starts!
C0mpound_EY3: Speaking of - my sister wanted to watch this stream but dozed off. Brb, giving her a cunt-punt...
L3monD3mon: I'll always be there for my precious horsebando!
BtnSm4sh: Eh, i've got nothing better to do anyway...

>Despite its name Thaumic Tournament was closer to Quake III Arena in dynamics.
>You give free-for-all mode a whirl with bots on highest difficulty, trying to get used to mechanics.
>So weapons are spells, health is endurance, armor is spellbound armor. Huh. Ok.
>Strangely enough, most spells are not hitscan, outside of most basic beam one and a stand-in for railgun.
>At least frags are still called frags, even though game's term for death is a 'knock-out'. Silly poners cannot into violence!
>Still, you can already tell that you're going to trip all over the terminology.

>For the better part of round lower player height was throwing your aim off, but you're nothing if not adaptable.
>You wisely decide to practice until that lazy shit Born2Win shows her muzzle.
>She'll be in for a big surprise today!
>She seems to be the type that takes game way too seriously, and that's coming from -you- of all people. Annoying these types always results in hilarity.
>And you just so happen to have a certain playstyle that was often referred to be 'extremely annoying'. It tended to throw people off their game.
>What do you know, impotent rage is *perfect* for pumping views.
>You smile wide and pick silliest, most obnoxious player model the game has.
>And thus today, Annoying is the name of the game.

>Be Born2Win.
>You've picked the map where you'll stomp this pretty cute face into tears of defeat.
>TTSM04: Overgrown Archive.
>Deceptively small level, perfect for 1v1s.
>You can already see mares going mad in the chat for challenging a colt. Pfft! It was him who challenged you, not the other way around!
>You boot game up and stomp some pubbies to get in the groove.
>After few rounds and a lot of frustration taken out on unrelated players, you feel a bit calmer.
>It was almost time to get this show on the road.

>Be Anon again, and oh shit, you almost overestimated your ability to prettify yourself!
>You barely manage to lay down finishing touches and slip into skimpy clothing in time for duel stream.
>You appear on stream to chants of the chat that devolve into thundering roar upon seeing you.
>After joining videochat with Born, you nod to her, indicating that you are ready.
>She's too busy to reciprocate, though. Looks like she's fumbling with setting up a server for the duel, giving you a small breather.
>That's great, she's putting herself under EVEN MORE scrutiny.
>You just know that all players worth their salt will watch her like hawks so that Born doesn't try anything stupid with the server console.
>However, her being the host also means you'll get latency disadvantage, but it barely matters with high-speed connection and almost complete lack of hitscan weapons.
>So it's not a big deal, but you remember the times when people would go as far as requesting duels to be held on official or unaffiliated third-party servers that would have equally shitty ping for both of players. Dueling code was some serious stuff back then.
>Oh, looks like she finally figured out the server.

BtnSm4sh: IT BEGINS!
TwilitBandit: Girls, I've got a bad feeling about it. Unnamed may be really good at Dark Snuggles, but the multiplayer match, let alone against a competitive player is a whole different beast!
xXM00n_DanceXx: I wouldn't be so rash with assumptions...
FlareSlayer: Hah! If a colt wants to get rekt, I say - let him! :popcorn:
TotalyNotAChangeling: you clearly haven't been on the last stream
S1mple_3YE: Wait this isn't Dark Snuggles
L3monD3mon: Go Unnamed! I believe in you!

>Camera does a fly-through of the level as the round preparation timer is ticking down.
>You don't know this map - there simply wasn't any time to learn each and every one out of massive selection provided by Thaumic Tournament.
>The map itself is set in some abandoned and decrepit castle. Crumbling walls are lined with bookshelves, vines descend from ceiling and morning sun shines gently through giant holes in the building.
>Some particularly big openings allow you to observe endless lush forest below. You have to admit, the detailing is superb - way nicer than Q3 maps, that's for sure.
>You feel like you might return to this game more than once.
>Finally, timer reaches zero.
>Showtime, bitches!

>You scramble from spawn point, mentally building the map of the level and location of any and all items you meet.
>You have to make conscious effort to avoid bunnyhopping - that movement technique is practically ingrained into your cerebellum at this point.
>So far this map is really stingy with wea- spells. You take a note of elevated platform, several jump-pads and what looks like mega spellbound armor pickup chilling in a spot that's just asking for crossfire.
>Talking about crossfire, you're taking fire!
>It's Born, bombarding you with blast spells from elevated platform, making use of her height advantage. Normally you'd do your fake-out routine and bait shots only to avoid them at the last second, but you're caught in a really bad spot.
>She's the one to earn first blood. You'll let her have this little victory.
>For now.
>"Ha! You messed with wrong mare, Unnamed! I won't go easy on you 'cause you're a colt!"
>You just smile at her.

FlareSlayer: HA!
S1mple_3YE: Aw, mare! My sis' told me that this colt kicks flanks...
L3monD3mon: Just you bucking wait!

>Part of the chat is trying to cheer you up. Aw, that's so sweet! Not that you need it, but it's still sweet.
>Born continues to dominate platform hogging the only high-tier weapon on the map.
>Camping in a Quake-like game? What is this, amateur hour?
>Quake's about moving fast and kicking ass!
>You pester her with potshots, appearing from unexpected angles and generally being a total nuisance.
>You could technically just jump over there and nab the weapon, but you want to play it safe. Annoyingly safe.
>Once you whittle down her HP, er, endurance, she'll be on her way to health pickups.
>That's when you strike!

>Be Born2Win, and be annoyed at this colt's cowardly tactics!
>Sure, you had concussive blast spell all to yourself, but instead of coming at you to try and take it away like a real mare would, he took occasional shots at you and then hid his cowardly colt flank from your righteous vengeance!
>What was worse, your viewers didn't even boo him for such show of complete un-sportsmareship! Had he been a mare, they'd get on his case in an instant!
>These occasional but annoyingly accurate shots have been adding up for a while and you'd best find closest endurance pickup. There should be a 25 in lower gallery somewhere...
>You speed down the long corridor towards endurance bonus, but then all of a sudden that colt jumps through it and starts filling the corridor with spreadshot spark spells!
>You're already low on endurance, and there is no Luna-damned escape from all these sparks bouncing around in a tight space!
>"One-one"
>Having said only that, Unnamed barrels down the corridor, over your knocked-out body and steals your spell, the bastard.
"DANG IT!"

S1mple_3YE: OK, color me interested!
FlareSlayer: That was some nasty ambush, alright!
C0mpound_EY3: See, told ya, sis!

>Be Anon and boy, your blood is pumping!
>Giving you a rocket-launcher, or, to be precise, its alternative-universe cousin, the concussive blast spell, was a biiiiig mistake.
>You smile at the camera again, this time with teeth.
>You've always had a raging hard-on for rocket trickshots.
>Railgun is good and all, but you love fragging IN STYLE!

>From this point, tables turn. Born is on the run and you're the pursuer that breathes down her neck, rocket-launcher ready. Well, magical equivalent of.
>You can certainly say that you have solid grasp on Born2Win's skill ceiling. There was no bunnyhopping, barely any tactics and her aim could use some work.
>If all competitive players are like that, then boy, you sure have some news for them...
>You catch her in the open, give her a concussive blast off and then seal the deal with mid-air shot. Standard practice in Q3 and many other arena shooters.

FlareSlayer: Damn, daughter.
BtnSm4sh: That's horseapples! How?!
xXM00n_DanceXx: That's a thing called skill, you might want to try it.

>Oh, they're impressed with previous trickshot? It wasn't even anything special!
>You can't help but wonder what they'll have to say about something more involved...
>You chase Born2Win into a familiar tight corridor, sending two blasts her way. First blast lands at her feet and launches her into the ceiling.
>That's where second blast catches her and launches her back into the floor with tremendous velocity. She crumples down like paper.
>"LUNA-DAMNED CHEEKY SLUT!"
>Can you make her buttmad enough to ragequit?..
>Anyway, it was a pointless trick, but since you're way too much invested in the game to commentate or spare the chat more than an occasional glance, you might as well put on the show.
>Huh? Neat, the game actually gave you the point for what you did, despite it being a fall damage that finished Born off.
>Not that you needed that point that badly. There was more where that rocket trick came from.
>When it comes to rocketlaunchers, you got a deck-worth of aces up your sleeves!
>You give camera a full-on wicked predatory smile.

C0mpound_EY3: Unf!
S1mple_3YE: B-by the Queen!
BtnSm4sh: shes so mad, lmfo

>You learned that flipping between cute colty and assertive predatorial modes gives bug mares mad hots. They're also seemingly into teeth display.
>It's a strange crowd - they barely posted in chat last stream, yet they made up almost 20% of yesterday's donations, so you decided that you might indulge them a bit. Or more than a bit.
>And now they're coming out of woodwork. Hopefully this won't bite you in the ass.

>Be Moon Dancer.
>Relax in your mare cave, stretched out in a bean bag chair and watching your new favorite colt streamer.
>He's got a cute face.
>And a cuter package...
>Your gaze wanders off the general carnage happening on the screen and to the feed of Unnamed's camera.
>He's the image of fervor of the chase, unblinking stare tracing every motion on the screen, and muscled hands performing dance of dishing out punishment.
>You wish he held you in those big, muscular hands, before holding you down against bed as you flag and... Unf!
>You readjust your position to avoid smearing your bean bag chair with your incidental excitement.
>While your body relaxes, you reach for another bag of snacks, while your eyes stay glued to the screen and your mind races.
>This colt is different. Not only he's been a good workout for your hooves, he's also a good workout for your brain.
>You pride yourself on knowing just about anything about games and gaming in general.
>You are often referred to as ultimate authority when it comes to settling disputes on obscure game trivia.
>You knew every tournament, major open- and closed-doors event in the community.
>Tartarus, several forums lauded you as omniscient demigod of gaming, which you admit, did tickle your ego a bit.
>And what you're seeing here is uncharted territory for you. Different tactics, tricks and maneuvers you haven't seen before.
>All of this done by a mysterious exotic colt, no less.
>Which, to be honest, is quite a thrill for you.
>It's hard to guess the intent of some of things he does, or how exactly he pulls off certain feats.
>Just keeping up is a hard task in itself! The match has gotten to a point that it's difficult to decipher all the action going on without slowing down the footage.
>Like just now - screen is almost entirely occupied by sparkling and glowing spells flying and going off. You can barely make out contours of Born's unconscious body being launched from this mess.
>Seriously, this is some A-grade Thaumic Tournament flank-slappage, and lesser mares already gush all over chat.
>But not you. You know how to keep your emotions in check.
>That thought makes treacherous hoof retreat from your loins. How long has it been there?
>Anyway, you know just the pony who would be interested in this level of play.
>She's also going to be your key to solving this colt's mystery.

>Be Anon again.
>Born2Win resists fiercely and actually starts putting up a fight! She even managed to steal super spellbound armor and concussive blast spell right from under your nose!
>It suddenly hits you that she's not shooting at your legs. She's aiming for your torso. You mentally facepalm at that.
>Instead of turning tail, you get ballsy and just whittle her down with constant stream of blasts interspersed with beams and spreadshot sparks, all while easily dodging her blasts.
>At this point you're in doubt. Is she REALLY a competitive player? Maybe she competes in some other game?
>With a precise blast aimed at her feet, you send Born airborne and off the elevated platform.
>With a flinch of hand you send second rocke- concussive blast on its way and leave to pick up some items.

>Be Born2Win, airborne.
"Where are you going, bastard? We're not done here!"
>The colt just left the platform. His last shot wasn't even aimed at you.
>Wait, you're falling down on the floor and incoming blast is aimed right at your landi-
"Oh, HORSEAPPLES!"

>Be Anon again, and you've snagged the items you wanted.
>You note message in killfeed signifying Born's unsuccessful landing.
>Immediately, you turn to unassuming patch of cobblestone floor and just spam blasts there.
>There are only four spawns in this arena, and thus you're running 1-in-4 chance to get a free frag.
>"EXCELLENT!"
>There it goes. High level play is not only skill, but a bit of luck too.
>You got to admit, they at the very least got The Announcer right - hammy and badass, the way it SHOULD sound. Even though it was a mare's voice it still would fit any number of arena shooters back home perfectly.

xXM00n_DanceXx: Buck me sideways, that's the first time I see an Excellent in a 1v1 match!
TotalyNotAChangeling: what's an excellent?
BtnSm4sh: 2 frags in 2 seconds
BestQueen: Oh great, we got noobs in chat. Shoo!
TwilitBandit: Scoring two knock-outs within two seconds of each other, it's not that hard to achieve in Free-For-All with high player count, but nigh-impossible in a 1 versus 1 duel for reasons that should be obvious.
Lunacy_Instigator: We have been clued in to massive quantities of metaphorical flank-spanking on this channel. We are intrigued and wish to see more!

>Oh fuck! It's got to be Luna!
>She 'secretly' runs and sponsors several biggest gaming tournaments. 
>She uses a stage name for that but with her being an alicorn, it's kind of an open secret.
>Having her blessing would put your channel in the limelight for a looooong time.
>And that obviously equals money. Loadsa money!
>Pandering mode: 100%
>You reach to box of fetish-gear you had the foresight to install outside of camera's FOV and rummage around.
>There it is! You whip out ported, studded paddle and playfully wave it around with mischievous smile and suggestive eyebrow wiggle.
"Did somepony order extra-large serving of flank-spanking?"
>You check the second monitor - after a small delay, Winner's muzzle turns beet red and she looks slightly disgusted, all the while her tuft gets bigger and fuzzier.
>If that isn't mare equivalent of "Boner, no! Boner, why?!" then you don't know what is.
>Choking the chuckle, you give camera a lecherous look.

BestQueen: Oh my~
P3culiarD1amond: Mare, no matter what I do I just can't coax colts into using one of these. :sadtimes:
Applejack01: Ah'm nawt sure 'bout them paddles... Hey, Unnamed, you don't 'appen to be any good wit' rope?
P3culiarD1amond: Darling, please tell me you at least did boil the rope! Otherwise it would be rough and irritating and that would destroy the mood completely!
Applejack01: Well... Ah'm jus' gonna say that country mares make do!

>Meanwhile, your fussing about and pandering nets Born2Win a free frag at your expense.
>It's not a big deal.
"Your grand spanking order is en route!"

>Time to abuse your headphones to fullest extent.
>You spin around, pinpointing rough direction of sound of hooves against cobblestone, and pre-firing rocket there.
>Blam! Source of sound rapidly changes its direction. You smirk, position yourself just right, take careful aim at second exit and count down.
>Right about... now. 
>You fire a rocke- a concussive blast, and immediately turn the corner to stock up on supplies.
>Message in killfeed secures the fact that B2W just ate that projectile with her face. Your score is 10-2 now. You hit the voicechat button.
"Know your place, trash!"

>Be Queen Chrysalis.
>Your hooves were working non stop for past 10 minutes as you can't take your eyes off the screen.
>That sheer drive to dominate...
>U-unf!~

>Be Born2Win, and you're getting wrecked!
>Respawning after last incident you comb the level in search of this lucky bastard.
>You're sure you saw familiar piece of flank flash behind that very corner. Faint memory flashes before you eat another concussive blast and get finished off with basic bitch beam spell.
"DAMN IT!"
>Chat explodes into laughter and condescending emotes. Not helping.
>You respawn nearby and break into sprint.
>Remembering what happened last two times, you screech to a halt, and concussive blast whizzes past you and into the wall, only catching you with minor blast damage.
"I'm onto your tricks, colt!"
>You needed to stock up on spells and spellbound armor before facing off that cocky little shit. 
>You glance to the chat - it has been nothing but trashtalk this entire duel. Friggin clit-for-brains idiots.

>Be Anon, one and only.
>You notice lack of items and bumrush attacks from Born.
>Oh, she wants to play item-control? Fine by you.
>You start moving around arena in complicated orbits. You don't even think about your path, it comes to you naturally.
>In one rocketjum- concussive blast jump you cross arena and snag 200 spellbound armor right from under Born's nose
>She scrambles for cover, as you pelt her with rapid fire beams.
>Instead of following her, you check on your internal clock: yes, the concussive blast spell should respawn in a few seconds, time to pick it up and deny her sole high-end weapon of this level.

xXM00n_DanceXx: Look at this! He's using self-damage to both move fast AND deny Born endurance and armor pickups!
TwilitBandit: OMC, that's one devious strategy...
P3culiarD1amond: And he sticks the landing!
FlareSlayer: How can we even be sure that the stream is coming from him and not some high class player?!

>Be Born2Win, and where did all the items go?
>It's like the level has been cleaned out, no matter where you go, there's absolutely nothing for you to pick up!
>Looks like your plan to stock up and dish out is down and out. It's somehow this colt's doing, you just know it.
>There he is!
>He rapidly approaches you in wildly winding jumps. Not only that manner of movement is weird, it is incredibly fast!
>He's upon you in an instant!
>Anon's fancy player model keeps hopping across your screen as you desperately swivel around trying to catch the bastard in your sights, but every time you think you think you lock on, he jumps away at the last moment.
>You noticed your endurance draining too late.
>"HUMILIATION!"
>Did he?..
>Did he just punch you out with a hoof? And on a winning frag, no less!
"FATHERBU-"

>Somewhere far away certain bug Queen tensed up and straightened out in her chair.
>Her tongue lolled out as her eyes rolled back, and, with few body twitches and gasps, she painted her seat with slightly green royal goop.

BtnSm4sh: HA! Booped into obedience!
S1mple_3YE: I'd let him boop me into obedience if you know what I'm saying.
C0mpound_EY3: Hooves off, sis! I saw him first!
L3monD3mon: Get your bug butts outta here, he's MY HORSEBANDO!

>Be Anon, and be watching Winner's cam feed intently.
>You just couldn't resist the temptation to whip out your bunnyhopping prowess.
>Plus rubbing in that final melee kill. Knockout. Whatever.
>You can see her throwing her headphones down and stomping hard on them. Ouch.
>You feel bad for doing this to her, but she DID call you a fake gamer and a slut...
>Bitch got served what she deserved.
>All you have to do is secure your new viewers, which were your actual primary goal all this time.
>You address the camera.
"This game is fun! I like it!"
>And to twist the knife...
"Might play it on some following streams, what do you think, chat?"

BtnSm4sh: BUCK. YES.
Lunacy_Instigator: It would be splendid!
TwilitBandit: More games would be nice but please please please don't abandon Dark Snuggles.
FlareSlayer: I'll be watching you on the off chance this WASN'T a fluke. Which it probably was!

>You're quick to reassure chat that you won't drop your ongoing Dark Snuggles playthrough.
>Not only it's a bad form for streamer, the game is actually much more than just a parallel universe Dark Souls doppelganger. It may be mellow but you really dig the atmosphere.
>Besides, the duel lasted for only what, thirty minutes? There's an entire day ahead of you!
>You switch your gears to try something different.
"In fact, I'll be picking up our Dark Snuggles where we left off last time - unless Born wants a rematch?.."
>You give Winner Podium a meaningful look through the camera.
>Her turning off the videocall is only confirmation you need.

>Grinning, you launch Dark Snuggles, eager to get back into it.
>You turn it up to maximum comfy, adopting slower and more methodical gameplay as you explore new areas in thorough manner and allowing yourself and your viewers to sink into the atmosphere of bleak, yet oddly beautiful world.
>You keep the interaction cozy as well, discussing interesting plot points you piece together with chat from descriptions of items and ramblings of occasional lunatic NPC.
>Chat seems to love it, especially since you try to make up for lack of interaction during the match.
>Of course you still throw in a few of your trademark salacious comments every now and then, and sometimes an odd flex or two of your peculiar pectorals, but your focus is on the atmosphere first and foremost.
>These games just aren't supposed to be speed-ran the first time around. Besides it's really fun to take your time learning the game, searching for secrets and ruminating on the mysteries it presents.
"That's the thing, we do know that all kingdoms of Colthran have fallen - I mean, it's obvious - but we don't know *why*. We've got some leads - demonic incursion, Eternal Moss gnawing on the place and of course there's this whole Crystal Spire Conspiracy we've been hinted for a while..."

TwilitBandit: M00n, I know what you're thinking but - no spoiling!
xXM00n_DanceXx: My lips are sealed. I can't wait for when he reaches THAT part, though.
TwilitBandit: Yeah, no kidding! I'm pretty giddy myself!

>Resisting the temptation to spoil something?
>That is... really considerate of them. You might want to promote these two to mods on your channel later.
>So far prospect of comfy streams look really promising. Paying more attention to chat attracted more donations. Neat!
>You had a hunch that there's untapped potential in running a relaxing stream that helps mares unwind after a long and hard work day.
>After all, you don't want to exclusively capitalize on pure sluttiness, but neither you are keen on watering it down too much. 
>The way you see it, most of your viewers come for flanks and stay for skills. The perfect combo.
>In this rhythm, hours really fly by.
>More careful exploration allowed you to rack up various new semi-secret booping implements - you particularly enjoy dual-wielded backscratchers and their quick, vicious moveset.
>You thought that some of Dark Souls movesets were intricate, but quadrupedal animations of this game are on the whole different level, complexity-wise.
>And all the magic- oh, would you look at that, it's evening already!
>You wrap up the stream and slip into more mundane clothes. Wearing revealing clothes feels... interesting but you'd rather not do it more than strictly necessary.
>Leaving the streaming room through small corridor you've turned into noise-canceling 'airlock', you're stopped in your tracks by the sight of unexpected guest letting off cute quiet snores on your disheveled bed.
>That's right, you completely forgot: Fluttershy's visit was today! Oops!
>She's curled up in a circle with her muzzle nuzzled in her side.
>Probably fell asleep waiting for you to be done with your 'job'.
>You have her thinking you're doing some sort of voice recording work as a hobby-with-profit. Which is technically not a total lie.
>You lay down on your bed carefully beside her.
>As you trace her side with your hand you feel certain tension in her as well as occasional stir. Her sleep is troubled. 
>In fact, you know exactly what's troubling her.
>You pull yellow pegasus in closer, hugging her tight and feeling as her sleep-shudders subside. Planting a goodnight kiss on your little spoon, you smile to yourself as you drift off to sleep.
>That dream veterinary clinic of hers will be funded on time.
>Your clandestine help is probably going to take form of a generous anonymous (har-har) donation to charity fundraiser you convinced her to set up.
>And she'll be happy and none-the-wiser to your involvement.