• Published 8th Nov 2012
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AppleDash Group Collab - DbzOrDie



Mini-fics written by AppleDash members.

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Collateral - bahatumay

"Fillies and gentlecolts! Please put your hooves together for the greatest flyer to ever come out of Cloudsdale, Rainbow Dash!"

Applejack, being the only one in the audience, stomped her hooves politely.

"I can't hear you!" Rainbow shouted, waving her hooves and inviting the cheers.

"Rainbow, I've gotta get back to work," Applejack pointed out.

Rainbow exhaled. "Fine... Rainbow Dash, the greatest of fliers, will now perform one of the most daring and dangerous stunts in the Wonderbolt repertoire!"

Applejack lifted her hooves to her mouth. "Or she'll sit and jaw for another forty minutes," she heckled.

Rainbow scowled and snorted in Applejack's general direction. Just to prove her wrong, she spread her wings and took off into the sky.

It really was a fantastic trick. Spins and rolls pegasus magic crackling along the edges of her wings. Applejack had to shield her eyes as lightning crawled along Rainbow Dash's body as she forced all her energy into a swirling ball of cloud.

Finally, Rainbow pushed the ball into the ground, and it released its energy with an explosion of color and wind. When the smoke and cloud remnants cleared, Rainbow Dash stood, panting but triumphant, and looking rather unphased. "Don't mind if there's a little collateral damage," Rainbow said, brushing nonexistent dirt off her barrel.

"A- a little?!"

Rainbow opened her eyes and saw Applejack, sitting slackjawed and utterly stunned. And around her, apples were on the ground. Piles and piles of apples. Her little trick had knocked them all clean off their trees.

"Heh heh..." Rainbow scratched at the back of her neck. "Just a little?"

* * *

Rainbow Dash grumbled as she tossed the last apple into the wagon. The sun was going down; she'd been at this all day. But Applejack had sworn to blacklist her from the next cider season if she didn't pick up every single apple, and so here she was hard at work.

She nosed her way into the harness and yanked it tight. When she tried to step forward, though, the wagon remained still.

Rainbow Dash scowled. There was no way she was taking two trips.

Exerting a major effort, she dug her rear hooves in and pulled. Slowly but steadily, the wagon began to roll, and she dragged it one step at a time through the orchard and back towards the barn.

She made her way across the ground and under the open air for the first time in a while. Something about the open sky made her breathe a bit easier. Something about the sky made her wings just...

"Rainbow Dash?"

...clench tightly against her sides. Rainbow's ears pinned against her head. That had sounded oddly like...

Sure enough, when she turned around, there stood Spitfire.

"H- hey, captain," Rainbow said with a nervous smile. "What are you doing here?"

"Just doing a little training." Spitfire jerked her head over her shoulder.

Rainbow's wings drooped as she realized she was looking at the next round of Wonderbolt cadets. She gave a sheepish wave. She was so dead. Her reputation was ruined. She would never perform again-

Spitfire turned back to her cadets. "Now, this is what I was talking about."

Rainbow closed her eyes, bracing for impact.

"Cross-training!"

Rainbow's eyes flew open. Huh?

Spitfire began to pace in front of the panting recruits. "If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: you can't fly on your wings alone. Your wings are just a part of you; you need full body training if you're going to be a success. This is why Rainbow Dash is a success; and you're still in training." A devious smile crossed her face. "So that's why you're all going to run back to Ponyville on your hooves; and if I catch anypony flying, I'll send you all back here and you can start over!"

Amidst the groans and whimpers of the assembled cadets, Spitfire leaned in and winked. "I've been wanting an excuse to do that," she said. "Keep up the good training, eh?"

Rainbow chuckled sheepishly as she watched them all run off, Spitfire hovering and shouting 'encouragement' from behind. Collateral damage had collateral benefits. Who'd've thought?

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