Three days had passed since Rainbow Dash had acquired her Stand. In this time, both her and Twilight had been learning things about said Stand. Twilight was able to give her some training with it, which allowed Dash to be able to call 2 Minutes to Midnight out whenever she wanted. At first, this seemed promising, with Dash seeming to master control of the basics.
After a few hours of training, however, this turned out not to be the case. As time went on, Rainbow Dash discovered that the major problem with her Stand was she couldn’t get it to do just about anything else. It would move its limbs at her command, but it wouldn’t move more than a few feet away from her.
“It’s obvious that your 2 Minutes to Midnight is a close-ranged type Stand,” Twilight had explained to her, “Stands like that are unable to move very far from their user. To compensate, these Stands also tend to have the most destructive power inside of them. Put this against my Night Wish, which is a medium-ranged type. Sure, I can move its ink farther away, but I couldn’t hope to pack the power yours can in a single blow with it. Though, most short-ranged types I’ve heard of are able to move at least one meter away from their user.”
That was all Dash had been able to get out of the nerd. She had opted to spend the rest of her time studying up on Stands, trying to figure out why Dash had suddenly acquired one. And once Twilight was in study mode, there was no pulling her out of it. Dash was lucky to have been able to get what little tutelage she had.
Twilight’s extensive research, however, had yet to discover why Dash had been able to acquire a Stand with no apparent catalyst. Hours of studying, researching and investigating had come up empty. After a few days of complete failure, she’d even gone as far as to speak to Dash’s parents, without mentioning the Stand specifically of course, but had absolutely no leads as to this strange occurrence.
This meant that Dash would mostly have to rely on herself for to become the best with this Stand. Just like she had to with everything else. She was used to this, so it wouldn’t be much of a change for her. Still, Rainbow Dash felt that she had come a long way since she had first started training to become a professional Wonderbolt. She had friends, friends who wouldn’t hesitate to help her. Or so she thought, because she seemed to be right back to where she was before.
It had been a solid week since Rainbow Dash had actually been into town. The three days after she recovered she mostly spent bumming at Twilight’s palace because she didn’t want to go back to her house and start fixing the damages she had 2 Minutes to Midnight cause in her panic. Cleaning was not cool, and a hassle at that. Now that she was faced with the dilemma of trying to figure out how to master her Stand on her own, Rainbow Dash felt like a walk through town to nowhere in particular was just what she needed.
Dash walked with her head held high and hands in her pockets, like she normally did. Even though it felt like forever since she had last seen it, Ponyville didn’t seem to have changed at all. And, for the most part, nobody seemed to have noticed her absence. A few of her coworkers asked if she had been sick, but that was about it. The mare spent most of time napping or training after all, so her absence wasn’t anything totally out of the norm. And that all suited Rainbow Dash just fine because she didn’t really know how to explain what had happened to her if she was asked.
At first, Rainbow Dash’s walk went rather well for her. It was quiet and relaxing. It felt good to finally get some exercise again after spending so many hours each day simply staring at her Stand and willing it do something, and to no avail at that. She minded her own business for the most part, simply looking around and seeing if she wanted to stop anywhere for lunch. Everything seemed normal, until she saw him out of the corner of her eye.
While she wasn’t exactly sure what it was, Rainbow Dash knew that there was something about that stallion she didn’t like. Something about him made him stand out from the rest of the crowd he was in. Maybe it was the way he walked, like he was so full of himself. Maybe it was because how he was dressed could be described as nothing short of a sleaze ball. Maybe it was just something about his face. Either way, Rainbow Dash did not like that stallion.
For these reasons, she chose to focus on him, seemingly studying him to try and pinpoint exactly what she didn’t like. For the first few minutes, there didn’t seem to be anything out of the ordinary, minus his appearance. He was walking like her, simply minding his own business. Yet it was because she was focusing on him that Rainbow Dash was able to notice what he did next.
The sleazy looking guy kept walking like he normally did, like the entire world was just an ant beneath him. He kept on looking forward, not at anypony else directly. But, as he passed a mare with a low hanging purse, something came out of his body.
It looked like a purple claw, seemingly translucent. The claw went right through the mare's purse and pulled out a wallet, which it put into the stallion’s pocket. The entire time, the stallion kept walking along, not even looking at the claw or the mare he was robbing. Both of them walked past each other like nothing had happened.
Rainbow Dash had to stop dead in her tracks at what she had just witnessed. That stallion was a pegasus like her, not a magic user. There were way too many ponies for that claw to have gone unnoticed if it were visible. And the look on that stallion’s face was just smug enough for Dash to know that he was aware that it had happened. There was no mistaking it. That stallion had a Stand just like her! He had a Stand that he had just used to rob that poor mare of her money in a way that she would be none the wiser until he was long gone.
This got Dash’s blood boiling to dangerous levels. That just wasn’t right. Twilight had told her only Stand Users could see Stands. Which meant even if the mare had noticed her wallet gone, she would have had no clue as to what had taken it. That was simply not cool. She couldn’t just let him get away with that. She wouldn’t let him get away with it.
So, her relaxing walk ended right then and there. All rationale and common sense was thrown out the window at that point. Rainbow Dash crossed the street and started tailing the guy from behind. She only had one singular goal in mind now: to teach this creep a lesson.
Said creep must have picked up on Dash, for he seemingly altered his course. He took a sudden turn and walked over a bridge into the park. The park was much less crowded than the streets, but still had a fair number of ponies. The guy just kept on walking, to a spot that was partially hidden by some trees. Dash, against any better judgement, went around the trees to face him.
“Yes, may I help you?” The dirt bag asked as soon as Dash rounded the corner. He had turned around to face her, revealing his 5 o’clock shadow and deeply chiseled features. His hands were in his pocket and he held the confident, irritating, smug grin on his face. “You’ve obviously taken an interest in me sweetie.”
“I saw what you did,” Rainbow Dash stated bluntly. “Back on the streets a few minutes ago, I saw it.”
“I’m sorry?” The stranger asked in a tone that was obvious that he was feigning ignorance and innocence. This only served to further Dash’s fury, which was already climbing to dangerously high levels, “I’ve been doing nothing but minding my own business this whole time. You must have me mistaken with somepony else; there are an unusually large amount of ponies on the streets today.”
“Quit being such a smug asshole!” Rainbow Dash shouted, stamping her foot, “I saw you use your Stand to steal that mare’s money!”
“You saw…my... Stand?” While he still had his irritatingly smug grin on his face, the stranger looked rather surprised. “Well would you look at that. I never knew that there was another Stand User in this town.”
“Well, yeah!” Dash growled, “You’re not as clever as you think you are! Now give me that wallet!”
“Really? Would that make you a thief too?” The stallion grinned, “Though I suppose if you already know I have one, there’s no use in hiding it.” Bringing his left hand up, he snapped his fingers, calling out his Stand.
Now that she was able to get a clear look at it, Rainbow Dash could tell that the claw she saw wasn’t a claw at all. Rather, it was a purple claw-like gauntlet. It had huge bushes of white fur on the wrists, covering bare yellow arms. The Stand’s slender body was wearing what looked like some purple vest and tights over its otherwise dark yellow body. A purple hood, resembling some sort of large feline rested over its head with fangs so long that it obscured its eyes when looked at from the front. Dash, however, could tell there were all sorts of purple tribal markings on its face.
“My name is Basil Leaf,” The stallion declared as his Stand stood menacingly behind him. “And this is my Stand, Death Leopard!”
In response, Rainbow Dash made 2 Minutes to Midnight appear in front of her. That was something else she noticed: 2 Minutes to Midnight would only appear in front of her while the only other two Stands she’s seen both appeared behind their masters. Add that to the list of things that were apparently unusual about her Stand.
“So if you know that I have a Stand,” Basil started to explain as Death Leopard crossed its arms. “Then you know why I took that hag’s money.” Death Leopard took the wallet out of Basil’s pocket and tossed it in the air tauntingly.
“Like hell I do!” Dash growled in anger, “You have something amazing in you! And you use it to steal from other people?”
“Exactly!” Basil exclaimed. “You and I, we’ve been given a gift. We’ve been given a gift that makes me above the common crowd. We’re the strong, and they’re the weak. It’s only natural that we prey on them. If we have the power, why don’t we use it? The powerful will always take from the meek. It’s only natural. It’s the law of the world.”
That was Dash’s breaking point. Everything he had said made her teem with anger. Everything about him, everything he did and every one of his qualities, everything only seemed to exist to make her filled with more rage. Even worse, Basil was lumping her in with his scummy ways. Everything he said was the exact opposite of what she thought. Being compared to him, it only made Dash have one desire at that point: to punch Basil square in the face as hard as she could.
Nothing was stopping Dash from acting on these feelings either. So, that’s exactly what she did. She burst in a sprint from where she was standing, her fist raised high, gearing for a punch and growling loudly the entire time. Since 2 Minutes to Midnight couldn’t move far from where Rainbow Dash was, it moved along with her. Likewise, it also had its arm raised, mimicking its master.
Basil did not seem intimidated in the slightest. In fact, he only seemed to grin more and grow even more cockier than he already was. Death Leopard circled around from behind him and stood directly between him and Dash. Immediately afterwards, it used both of its claw gauntlets to slash downwards. At first, Rainbow Dash was confused by this move. There was large and clear gap between where the Stand slashed and where Dash was currently. It was like it wasn’t even trying to hit her.
That, Rainbow Dash discovered, was completely correct.
Claw marks had been left in the air where Death Leopard had slashed. It looked like space itself had been torn open by the Stand’s gauntlets. Inside of the gash was an aura of multiple different colors. Rainbow Dash didn’t have enough time to react to this new development. She ran straight into the tear with 2 Minutes to Midnight in tow.
Immediately afterwards, Basil Leaf was gone. Everything was the same, except Basil, his Stand, and the tear it had made were all gone. No, that wasn’t correct. The trees behind him, they had grown bigger. No, they had grown closer. Rainbow Dash turned around as fast as she could, to see Basil standing there. He was looking over his shoulder with an arrogantly amused grin on his face.
“W-What the?!” Dash stuttered in surprise as she skidded to a halt and pivoted a full one hundred eighty degrees. The entire time, 2 Minutes to Midnight was staying alongside her, mimicking her movements. Her face was of shock and confusion.
“Hmmmp,” Basil laughed. “Are you impressed with Death Leopard’s powers? Using the claws on its gauntlet, it is able to tear through the very fabric of space, forcing its way through to another location. It’s how I was able to so easily steal that mare’s money. It’s what separates me from the rest of the common crowd.”
While it was making her even angrier, Rainbow Dash wasn’t focused on Basil’s self-indulgence. The second she turned around, one question was burning in her mind: where did Death Leopard go? It wasn’t until a second later when she felt a heavy pain in her spine and was knocked off of her feet did Rainbow Dash get the answer to this question.
It felt as if she was hit in the back by a metal pole. Which, given her frequent crashes during training, she knew very well. As she flew from her feet in pain, she looked to the side where 2 Minutes to Midnight was. She saw Death Leopard, a tear in space, and the Stand’s legs making contact with the back of her Stand’s spine. But Dash felt like it had done that to her instead.
Suddenly, she remembered one of Twilight’s rants: “Remember, whatever happens to your Stand is reflected upon you. So if another Stand were to, say, stab your Stand, the feeling and injury will be transferred onto you as well.” Twilight was telling the truth when she said whatever the Stand felt, she did too.
Intense waves of searing pain coursed through her body, causing Rainbow Dash to fall to her hands and knees. She grabbed handfuls of grass and gritted her teeth hard as her entire torso surged with brute pain. As much as it pained her to, she looked up at Basil Leaf, who was standing right above her now. And of course, his arrogant self was just eating up all of this.
“Do you see?” He taunted as Death Leopard floated down next to him with its arms crossed. “This is what I was talking about. The strong and worthy will forever rule over the meek because they can! I’m strong and you’re not. So, I can do this!” He used the toe of his shoes to deliver a swift and hard kick right to Dash’s face. The already down mare recoiled back onto her hindquarters. 2 Minutes to Midnight flew in front of her and tried to punch him in defense, but the disgustingly short limits of its range showed as Basil was easily able to jump backwards.
“In fact,” Basil mocked as he spread his wings. “You’re so pathetic that you’re not even worth any more of my time!” He took off into the sky, Death Leopard still looking down at her while he slowly flew out of view before it disappeared from the world.
With a groan, Rainbow Dash stood up and wiped away the blood that was leaking from her nose. She looked up at the ever-shrinking form of Basil Leaf. Despite the fact that her blistering hot fury screamed at her to chase after him and not let him get away with any of what he’s done, Rainbow Dash’s body screamed with an even louder pain that made even moving her own wings hurt. Rage boiled up inside of her like a volcano, just moments before erupting. Since she couldn’t catch Basil, Dash was forced to unleash all of this anger upon 2 Minutes to Midnight.
“You’re completely useless!” The athlete in pain screamed at her Stand. “You can’t move anywhere; you can’t do anything! You practically just let him beat me up!” 2 Minutes to Midnight offered nothing in response. It was not sentient, after all.
“Gah!” She screamed, nearly pulling her hair out. “Go after him! Do something!” Dash pointed up towards the air, where Basil was nearly out of sight. 2 Minutes to Midnight’s only response was to turn around and look up where she was pointing.
“That’s it!” Rainbow Dash screamed in anger. “You know what, if you won’t go anywhere without me…” Dash doubled over in pain as she tried to sit up. This, however, made her turn to stare at her Stand’s back.
It was at this moment, however, that she noticed something she had previously dismissed. She saw that platform on the Stand’s back. It looked like it was made for someone to ride on. Twilight had said that her Stand was made to fight in close range… so if she could ride it, that would negate that little problem, right?
In frustration, she forced her aching body to leap into the air and onto the platform. It was just wide enough for her to kneel on it comfortably. The handle bars seemed to be made for her. She gripped onto them tightly. yelling, “Then I’m going to go with you!”
At that exact moment. Something clicked inside Rainbow Dash. She suddenly had a deeper understanding. A realization struck her hard. It was as if, everything about 2 Minutes to Midnight suddenly made sense. It wouldn’t go anywhere without her, because it was made for her to ride it. It wouldn’t move away from her, because it wasn’t made to!
2 Minutes to Midnight understood too. Its stance changed completely. The Stand crouched its legs and squared its hips, staring directly at Basil Leaf. For a second, Rainbow Dash thought she heard the sound of a jet engine starting to fire up. That second was all she had to ponder what the source of the sound was, however, because the following one was when 2 Minutes to Midnight lifted off the ground at the speed of a jet.
In the first second, Rainbow Dash’s mind told her that she should have been holding on to those handlebars as tight as she could to keep from falling off. It told her that she should have been bracing her body for the g-force that was being put against it, that she should close her eyes to protect them from the high-speed winds that would be blowing against them.
In the second second, Rainbow Dash realized that none of this was the case. It was clear that 2 Minutes to Midnight was moving at what could only be described as the highest speed Dash herself had ever reached. But, it didn’t feel like that at all. It felt like she was in a bubble that shielded her from the outside forces. She didn’t feel like she could fall off of her Stand at all. In addition, despite the high speeds she was moving at, Rainbow Dash was completely aware of all of her surroundings, as if she had been studying them for hours.
In the third second, Rainbow Dash passed Basil Leaf. Instantly, Dash knew she needed to stop. In that same instant, 2 Minutes to Midnight halted immediately where it was. Again, Rainbow Dash felt no recoil at all. It was like she and her Stand were one, and yet neither of them were bound by earthly limitations.
Her Stand turned around so both of them could face Basil, who had summoned his own Stand once more. The look on his face could only be described as disbelief. He quickly looked from Dash to the spot she was standing in only three seconds ago. His brain was struggling to comprehend the speeds Dash had to have moved at to accomplish a feat like that.
“This is your only warning,” Rainbow Dash declared with confidence, ceasing this moment of confusion and using it to her advantage. “Give back that money you stole. If you don’t, I’m going to make you regret it.” 2 Minutes to Midnight pounded its right fist into its left palm.
“Are you seriously making orders of me?” Basil smirked with amusement. “You think that just because you’ve decided to ride that thing that you’re in any position to tell me what to do? You’re even more pathetic than I thought! An ant will never cease being an ant, and a giant will never cease being a giant. I’m the giant, and you’re a mere ant compared to me!”
Rainbow Dash offered nothing in response. She had given him his warning, and he chose to ignore it. In less than a second, 2 Minutes to Midnight took off from where it was at the same speed as before. It flew outwards and made a wide circle around in order to charge Basil from his left side.
When Dash and her Stand were less than two seconds of flight away from Basil, Death Leopard flew between them, instantly creating a large gash in space. Basil had timed this so that Dash would have no time to react, making flying into the hole unavoidable. The pulsing rip in space grew as the two approached it.
However, as she had discovered before, Rainbow Dash had heightened perception when her Stand was moving at high speeds. Her mind was able to register every movement Death Leopard made. She saw the hole in space form as it was being ripped open. She had already figured out what to do by the time it was halfway completed. It was as though she was faster than time itself.
Mere inches away from the portal, 2 Minutes to Midnight suddenly jumped in the opposite direction. It had appeared as if it had pushed off of a wall made of solid air. It made a small circle around said invisible wall and delivered a punch right to Death Leopard’s head with all the force of its speed. In an amount of time time too short for either Basil or Death Leopard to even react to, the two of them were launched backwards in the air at high speeds, reeling in the pain from Rainbow Dash’s blow.
After flying backwards for at least twenty feet, Basil finally flared his wings opened and stopped himself. Death Leopard flew backwards behind him and stopped likewise.
The seemingly smug look in Basil’s face seemed to vanish as he glared at the two still flying through the air. He opened his mouth to sputter obscenities at the two, but Dash had already sped forward on 2 Minutes to Midnight to intercept them.
Basil turned his head to the right and flew in that direction, pulling Death Leopard along with him. The Stand’s large gauntlets flared and tore large rips in space, filling the air with obstacles as the two sped towards them. The pair flew in a large circle, ripping tiny holes in space to try and deter the flying pair.
Dash, however, seemed to know where the rips would be before they appeared. Her mind was a heads-up display, constantly flashing and alerting her while her brain processed it in milliseconds. Dash’s hands tightened on the flying Stand and she quickly drove the Stand upwards into the sky, flying above Basil.
Death Leopard’s tribal markings flared a deep purple as the Stand turned, extending its gauntlets and slashing in small circles. Basil quickly retreated towards Death Leopard, flapping close to it. The Stand seemed to have created a pulsing ring of ripped space around it, shielding it from attack.
Seeing this development, Dash’s hands only tightened harder around 2 Minutes to Midnight. The mare spun her Stand hard towards the pair from above. For a moment, it seemed as though the two of them would be able to attack Death Leopard from above.
Basil, however, looked up just in time to see the two speeding fast towards them. Snarling, he turned to Death Leopard, who reached up with its gauntlets and ripped a massive tear above them. At the same time, the ring around the two of them disappeared.
Dash blinked as she saw this, but it was too late for even her enhanced perception to catch. She quickly pulled up on 2 Minutes to Midnight, trying to halt their descent. Yet the two entered into the rip before they were able to fully slow down.
To her surprise, Dash suddenly found them right in front of Basil and Death Leopard. The two were still slowing down, as though they’d simply gone through a portal, meaning that they were now decelerating right at them. Dash saw a wicked grin on Basil’s face before Leopard drew its fist back, aiming directly at 2 Minutes to Midnight’s face.
With Dash’s focus broken, 2 Minutes to Midnight defaulted to its prime instinct: protect its master. The Stand veered off hard to the right, barely dodging the massive punch from Death Leopard. This, however, only served to disrupt Dash further, giving Basil enough time to have his Stand summon yet another rip in front of them.
Without her heightened perception or focus, Dash was unable to steer away from it. This time, the two were transported to directly underneath Death Leopard, who quickly reached down and delivered a hard blow to Dash’s back with its gauntlets. Bright red flashed in Dash’s vision as pain coursed down her already sore back, distorting her again and making her almost make 2 Minutes to Midnight vanish.
With his ever present grin, Basil let out a small laugh, “You’re fast, I can give you that. I have to say, you’ve surprised me! That little trick you’re doing with your super speed is neat. But being fast is nothing when you can be smart!”
Pointing down at the stunned duo, Basil willed Death Leopard to grip onto the neck of 2 Minutes to Midnight. At the same time, Dash’s airway became constricted as the pain of being choked formed over her neck. Dash raised one hand up to claw at her neck instinctively, but there was nothing there to pull off. The two were lifted up into the air, 2 Minutes to Midnight likewise reaching up to mimic Dash’s struggling.
Having Death Leopard drag Dash’s face up close to his own, Basil leaned forward, “I’ll tell you what. I’m feeling nice today, maybe because I met another Stand User who entertained me for more than a minute. So if you simply apologize to me and Death Leopard, then I’ll let you go. I think that sounds fair to me.”
Upon giving his request, Death Leopard tightened its grip on 2 Minutes to Midnight for a moment. Dash’s face went blue as her airway throbbed in pain of being strangled, and yet she couldn’t pry off the invisible hands that were holding it.
As Dash stared into Basil’s eyes, however, the mare felt her rage heating up. Rage that he was trying to make her say she was lesser than him. Rage for the fact he thought she would just apologize to him for protecting the innocent. And most of all, rage that he had the audacity to even speak to her like this.
Suddenly, a thought popped into Dash’s mind. The mare quickly shrugged it off, not letting him know that she’d thought of it.
“Well?” Basil snickered, willing Death Leopard to lighten up just enough for Dash to speak, “What is it going to be? Apologize, or get hurt even more? Just remember, I’m good for either one.”
Huffing, Dash growled before she sputtered out in a hoarse voice, “N-Neither! G-Go to hell!”
With that said, suddenly the propulsion system on 2 Minutes to Midnight activated. As Dash had realized, the Stand worked like a machine that was controlled by her thoughts rather than buttons and levers. And this meant that, once the Stand had let up on her throat, she had just enough focus to have the boosters reactivate.
Death Leopard’s grip was no match for the sudden surge of velocity. 2 Minutes to Midnight soared up into the air at a high speed, breaking free of the grasp. Dash, who still had her feet on the platform, was able to quickly fly up with it, escaping the choking grasp and letting her quickly sputter out a few breaths.
Caught off guard by the sudden move, Basil had completely expected for Dash to surrender to him. Instead, the two were stunned as Dash and her Stand spun about in the air. The two made a wide circle around Basil, keeping him vigilant and unable to retaliate.
While the two flew, however, Dash knew that she couldn't last much longer. Her entire body was throbbing from the pain of being struck twice with the full force of Death Leopard’s strength, and her neck burned from lack of air. If she didn’t think of a way to take these two out fast, then she would soon be on the ground.
There had to be something, some weakness that the Stand had. Everyone on the Wonderbolts had one. Soarin had high stamina but he couldn't bank turns like the rest of them. Fleetfoot had showmanship but lacked stamina. Surprise was easy to adapt but not the fastest flier. Everyone she knew had a flaw, just like how 2 Minutes to Midnight was a close ranged Stand and only worked at short distances.
And so that only begged the question: what was Death Leopard’s flaw?
The moment she took to think, however, gave Basil enough time to recover. His face was now a twisted scowl, and if Dash had to guess, it was all bets were off. Death Leopards’ markings only flared harder as Basil’s teeth grinded against each other.
“I’m going to get you for that you little punk!” Basil shouted, “You’re an ant, and ANT! I’m a giant, and I’ll crush you underneath my heel!”
With that, Death Leopard quickly flew towards the two, opening up a massive tear in front of Dash again. The Stand’s entire strategy seemed to rely on getting them through that one portal. 2 Minutes to Midnight quickly went under it, escaping its grasp. Another tear likewise opened up in front of them, forcing 2 Minutes to Midnight to shoot up this time. Apparently, Death Leopard was fast enough to follow them, but not to attack.
For a moment, Dash didn’t see it. But when she turned around to look at the rips, they were gone. Dash blinked and looked forward, only to see another tear in front of her. She quickly veered off again, escaping it and turning around to look at it. But it was already gone.
“Wait a second…” Dash muttered as the duo continued to escape each tear. The two were flying so fast, Dash wasn’t sure why the Stand wasn’t leaving the tears open. Why would Death Leopard remove the tears if they were still trying to capture them?
That’s it!! Dash shouted as an epiphany shot through her head. She quickly spun to the right to avoid another shot, That thing can only keep one rift open at a time! It has to get rid of the other one before it can place the next!
With this knowledge in hand, Dash quickly sped down and had the two stop within shouting distance of Basil. If what she had realized was right, then she knew how to beat this thing.
“Hey, Basil!” Dash shouted, “You said that you’re a giant right? Well that would explain why you’re so slow!”
His right eye twitching, Basil’s gaze darkened as Death Leopard quickly appeared in front of him, “You little! Forget beating you up, I’m going to MAIM you! Get over here you little brat!”
Her plan already working, Dash quickly spun hard, veering up towards the sky as Basil flew in pursuit. Dash grinned internally as she had 2 Minutes to Midnight spin about and quickly fly in a wide circle around the two at their incredible speed.
Just as she expected, the strange rips appeared in front of them again. Dash quickly steered 2 Minutes to Midnight to the left, towards the center of the circle. Death Leopard responded by opening up yet another rip in front of them again, to which Dash quickly went above.
As the two dodged, Dash willed 2 Minutes to Midnight to speed up. To Basil, the two began to become a blur, spinning fast in a circular motion around him, with him in the epicenter. His anger continued to build as he turned to Death Leopard, who continued to try to rip open space in front of the two again.
Dash smirked as she continued to have the Stand dodge to the left, in effect making the radius of their flight smaller and smaller. With Basil so blinded by rage, just as she figured he would be, he didn’t seem to know or didn’t care. His focus, and likewise Death Leopard’s, was entirely focused on trying to catch the two of them in a rip so he would have the advantage.
The two only continued to fly faster and faster, becoming nothing more than a blur within their flight. Death Leopard opened rifts as fast as it could, but it was no match for the two’s speed. Soon the Stand was resorting to simply ripping open holes at random, simply trying its hardest to even touch them.
When Dash and 2 Minutes to Midnight were flying only about ten feet away from the two of them, Dash knew that this was her chance. She took a moment to brace herself before she willed 2 Minutes to Midnight to fly upward, shooting up towards the sky. At the same moment, Dash herself let go of her Stand, falling off of it towards Basil.
At that moment, Death Leopard opened a rip in front of 2 Minutes to Midnight. However, just as Dash had painfully learned from her training, within seconds of her falling off, 2 Minutes to Midnight went stiff and no longer moved. A moment later, the Stand vanished.
With just how fast the two had been moving, Dash’s descent was extraordinarily fast and unexpected as she flew hard towards Basil. When Basil realized that Dash was now flying towards him, he frantically tried to make Death Leopard open a portal above them to catch her. However, again as Dash predicted, Death Leopard had to seal the rip it had made above them, giving her the few precious seconds she needed to get close to Basil. Her form flew hard towards him, her eyes narrowing as she drew back her fist.
Basil had no time to even come close to blocking as his face took the full force of her punch. Dash let out a yell of anger as her fist connected with his jawline, punching right through his cocky grin.
The force of the blow sent Basil plummeting in pain towards the ground. Dash, in this moment of absence, shut her eyes and summoned 2 Minutes to Midnight back to her. The Stand appeared in front of her, which she finally understood. She grabbed onto the handles again and the two shot down towards the falling Basil.
Basil gasped as he spun about, trying to focus enough to have Death Leopard attack them. Dash, however, gave him no quarter as she let out a scream of rage, just as 2 Minutes to Midnight drew back its fist. Basil’s face went pale as he saw the unavoidable attack.
With all the rage and power that Dash’s Stand had to offer, the fist struck Basil square in the chest. A surge of brutal and agonizing pain coursed through him even as the force of it sent him straight towards the ground, plummeting at such high speeds that it rivalled 2 Minutes to Midnight. The stallion was at the ground before he even realized it.
With a massive THUD, Basil’s body struck the ground, and hard at that. Death Leopard’s form disappeared as the stallion let out a pathetic gasp for air as the wind seemed to have been knocked permanently out of him. The sheer force of impact had sent him at least two inches into the dirt.
As Basil struggled to breathe, Dash landed 2 Minutes to Midnight beside him, stepping off and unsummoning it. As the Stand disappeared, Dash got down on one knee and leaned forward, getting close enough for him to hear her. Basil turned his head feebly with his eyes wide as he stared at her.
“You may be a giant, but you know what I was told at the Wonderbolt Academy? The bigger they are,” Dash reached down into his jacket, taking the wallet from him, “The harder they hit the ground.”
Sputtering, Basil tried to form words, but his body was in so much pain that he quickly devolved into gasping breaths. Taking a moment to breathe, Dash looked at the wallet in her hands, smirking to herself as she realized that she hadn’t just gotten back what she wanted, but she’d learned something else as well.
Sighing, Dash braced her back and turned to the air beside her, which was instantly filled by 2 Minutes to Midnight. Taking a moment to smirk, Dash quickly got on the back of the Stand, looking at the wallet and smiling.
“C’mon, let’s go find who this wallet belongs to!” Dash smirked, “And remind me to have Twilight call an ambulance.”