//------------------------------// // Road to Nowhere // Story: My Little Bizarre Adventure: The Midnight Riders // by Lemon Lime Light //------------------------------// Rainbow Dash sped overtop the trees of the Everfree Forest on the back of 2 Minutes to Midnight with a single-minded determination. The air ripped past her Stand, yet none of it slowed her down. The noise was almost deafening, yet her ears weren’t even folded back. She only had one goal in mind, one singular drive that was fueling every single fiber of her being at this very moment: rescue Fluttershy. Those creeps had crossed a line that nopony ever crosses. It was an unforgivable offence, and for their sake Dash hoped that the blood was just a scare tactic like Twilight said it was. Otherwise, there would be a lot more in the Castle of the Two Sisters.  The treetops were nothing more than tiny dots that blurred together into an indistinguishable mass underneath her. If she were to go this speed while diving, she’d likely achieve creating a Sonic Rainboom. The pocket of air that 2M2M was creating in front of her certainly looked like it would. Yet with such a sight in front of her, it didn’t take long for Rainbow Dash to realize that something was wrong though.  In her fury and drive, Rainbow was making her Stand fly as fast as it possibly could. On her own, Dash could fly from Ponyville to Manehatten in about an hour at top speed. 2M2M could easily fly twice her normal top speed. In addition, Rainbow Dash was making it go even faster by isolating her Stand from outside friction, creating a permanent slipstream effect around it. She knew just from experimenting outside of her home with that affect that would almost triple her normal flight speed. With all of these factors in place, Rainbow Dash should have reached the Castle of The Two sisters within minutes, if not seconds. When her fury subsided enough to focus on her surroundings more actively, a thought flared up in her head. She had been blasting her Stand’s jets at full speed for at least ten minutes now, and she couldn’t even see the Castle of the Two Sisters. It was impossible that she overshot it. Even if she did, she would have reached the other side of the Everfree by now. Something was incredibly wrong. As if to add to the growing number of worries and problems she was having right now, Rainbow Dash saw the outline of what looked to be a strange shadow rapidly getting closer to her. Or, she was rapidly getting closer to it. As she tried to develop the shadow into a full image, the colors formed into what appeared to be a bipedal figure. An enemy Stand user perhaps? Dash grunted. she didn’t have time for this. Twilight had warned her about the presence of more cult members like Crimson in these woods, but even as it approached, she knew her speed was too much to deal with. She didn’t even want to deal with this. So she resolved to not.  It’s just floating there in my way, Dash thought to herself. I’ll just hit it as hard as I can and fly off! Dash willed 2 Minutes to Midnight to raise its fist and deliver the the hardest blow she could towards the enemy Stand. With the momentum she had going, this could likely shatter a pony’s jaw just by the impact force alone. To add to that, her own Stand gave a cry like an engine as it blasted its arm right into the Stand’s face just as to they came into range. The punch passed right through it. No feedback at all registered on her hand. No signs of impact. It was as if Rainbow Dash hadn’t even hit anything at all, just thin air. But she knew she saw her first on a direct course with that thing’s face! She didn’t see it move out of the way at the last second either. Her perception filter would have caught that! Before she could think more, a massive force slammed hard into Dash’s chest. The tree line below her had grown exponentially closer until 2M2M ran face-first into it at mach speeds. It wasn’t until she felt the full force of a tree breaking into two against her face via her Stand that Rainbow realised she was crashing into the ground. And by that time, she was already eating mouthfuls of dirt and feeling the ground scrape against her Stand’s body. The pain reflected back onto her own torso as the dirt drove her to a complete standstill. It took almost ten seconds before her Stand came to a complete stop. Groaning from the aches, Rainbow stood up and tried to wrap her head around what exactly had just happened. Brushing the dirt away from her body, she remembered that she was trying to throw a punch at the Enemy Stand in her path. For some reason, she didn’t pay attention to her trajectory while doing so. How in Celestia’s name had she done that?! That was a mistake that she was literally taught to not make in elementary school! The fact that she did something that only fillies who don’t even know how to properly fly yet do made Rainbow Dash ground against her smoldering anger. Standing up caused Rainbow Dash to feel a pain in her back. At first it felt like she had been punched there, but then the pain grew much sharper. She reached backwards and felt where it was coming from. She felt blood on her fingertips. Something solid was protruding from her back. Dash grabbed whatever was in her back and pulled it out of her, only increasing to pain she was feeling. Through squinting eyes, Dash saw that she was holding a bloody stick. She had been stabbed with a stick from the tree she had broken.   Instantly Rainbow turned around to try and find the culprit. Whoever had stabbed her wasn’t directly behind her. She looked to her left. Nothing was there. To the right was empty as well. There were only more and more trees. Then she looked up to where she finally found the culprit hovering in the air.   Just from looking at it, Rainbow knew it was the enemy Stand. The Stand stood just a few inches shorter than 2M2M, yet it lacked any of its bulk or power in its build. The Stand shone as the moonlight hit it, as though its body was made of something shiny. A closer inspection showed it to look almost like… latex? Yes, the Stand’s entire body was covered in latex. Even its face was covered in it, though the imprint of both eyes and a nose could be seen in them. Dash could see it lacked any sort of mouth.   The right half of the Stand was covered in black latex, while the left half was in a deep maroon colored latex. Going down both the side of its arms and legs were small little golden rings embedded into the latex itself. Hanging off of both of its arms were sets of long leather straps and bands attached to these rings which seem to wave in the wind. Some sort of gloves were affixed to both its hands which looked to be a form of silver brass knuckles. On its feet were tall high heels with what appeared to be spiked ends. Across its torso was a black harness with points to attach all of the straps. The Stand hung its head, its chest gently rising and falling as it hovered there.   A few seconds later it dawned on Rainbow Dash that she was standing completely still while her assailant was less than ten feet away from her. She hadn’t thought of what she wanted to do when she found it. She knew that she wanted to find it when she was looking for it. But that was the only thing she was thinking about in her search.   Good, I’ve found it, Let’s see how I should punch its face in and… Dozens of combat options ran through Rainbow Dash’s head. She tried to punch it last time and that didn’t work out. Would kicking it fair any better? Maybe she should go for some sort of indirect attack involving 2 Minutes to Midnight creating a vacuum?   A shiny knee slammed Rainbow Dash in the chest. The air was knocked out of her. Her thoughts scrambled from the impact. Once the pain subsided she silently berated herself. She had flat out ignored the Stand and just allowed it strike her like that! Her hands snapped out to try and grab the knee, but it was gone.   Huge breaths of air filled Rainbow Dash’s pained lungs as she tried to keep herself from keeling over. What was going on? Rainbow acknowledged that she wasn’t as hyper aware of everything as an egghead like Twilight was. But she wasn’t single-minded. At the very least, she should have been paying attention to the Stand directly in front of her! One that she saw was already gearing up for another kick.   This time Dash was ready. She growled as she willed 2M2M to stand in front of her. Her Stand turned its body to the side to receive the kick. Once it had followed through 2M2M would grab its leg and throw it to the ground. The Stand looked wimpy with its small frame and completely encased body. One or two punches should completely shut the Stand down.   The kick slammed into the side of 2M2M’s leg just as Dash suspected. 2M2M’s hands closed around the shin of the Stand. A smirk crossed Dash’s face as she knew it was trapped now. She turned her head off to the forest. 2M2M threw its weight to its side to sling the Stand into the trees.   A sharp pain filled Dash’s face. Both she and 2M2M recoiled as the Stand drew its fist back from 2M2M’s cheek. The shock made her drop her hold on the Stand’s knee. Two more sharp jabs came up to 2M2M’s face a second later. Dash’s face was snapped left then right as the pain lanced through her. Instinctually 2M2M raised its hands to cover its face. Another kick to the knee caused Dash to drop to her knee with a grunt.   “Are we enjoying the session so far?” A new voice entered the scene. From above the Stand, Rainbow Dash saw another figure emerging. It was a pony this time, likely the Stand’s user. She was a red female Pegasus. At first it appeared that she was completely naked. However, she was simply wearing what appeared to be a red leather outfit that was the same color as her fur. It was hard to make out, but Rainbow Dash was pretty sure the leather covered everything halfway below her cleavage. The skintight nature of the outfit, however, meant any sense of modesty with such a garb was impossible. Her hair was a bright magenta that flowed down her back and glimmered in the moonlight. Several items were hanging from her belt, most prominently of them being a massive coiled silver whip.   It took Dash a bit to make sense of the mare’s clothing. This allowed herself to be punched in the face by the enemy Stand again. Dash recoiled as she felt like her nose was bent and one of her front teeth was knocked loose. Blood dripped down onto the hands she covered her mouth with Again she hadn’t paid attention to the Stand! What was going on? Why couldn’t she focus right now?!   “I do apologize for that,” The mare said in a condescending voice. “My Stand isn’t the strongest, or most precise you see. Otherwise this would be a quickie. But since you’re still standing, it seems like this is going to take a lot longer than I thought. Not that I mind having you to play with tonight. I feel that introductions are in order. I am Lady Scarlet. The Stand about to kick you in the head is mine. You may call it Road to Nowhere.”   Rainbow’s attention was yanked away by Road to Nowhere slamming the dorsal of its foot against her. Blood that Rainbow had been covering with her hands flew in the direction the Stand’s foot was swung in. The force wasn’t strong enough to take Rainbow down onto the ground. Yet it still burned her face from the pain of the impacts.   This time Road to Nowhere had been right inside of Rainbow Dash’s vision while it was attacking her. She saw it raise its foot. Lady Scarlet had even told her what was about to happen. Rainbow had heard it and understood what that meant. Yet it didn’t process in her mind. The only she was doing was listening to Lady’s words. How had such an obvious attack been somehow blocked from her head?   “What are you doing to me?” Rainbow Dash spat blood and glared right up to Lady Scarlet. “Why am I being so stupid right now?” Dash spat some blood from her mouth onto the ground. With her questions finished she manifested 2 Minutes to Midnight. She dug her hands into the handles on the Stand and kicked back with her foot. Flying right at this Scarlet mare would give her too little time to react and dodge. Dash would grab her and beat the answers out of her!   Before she could even mount her Stand Road to Nowhere grabbed Rainbow Dash and threw her to the ground. She spat up more blood before the sight of Road to Nowhere rearing its fist to strike her on the ground registered in her head. Dash rolled and dodged it. The fist slammed into the ground right where her face had been.   I’ve had it with this! Rainbow screamed in her head before jumping to her feet. I’ll fight her stupid Stand first! No more getting distracted. Rainbow Dash would fight Road to Nowhere. Once more she willed 2 Minutes to Midnight directly in front of her. She ran right towards Road to Nowhere. Both Rainbow and her Stand had their fists raised and were ready to hit as hard as they could.   Her momentum was canceled as a hot lash flared on her back. Her shirt was torn and fresh blood soaked through what was left of it. The searing main made Rainbow let out a strained shriek through gritted teeth. Rainbow looked over her shoulder and saw that Lady Scarlet was reeling her whip back with her hands. The silver tip was recently dyed red. She had focused only on the Stand and forgotten about its user.   Rainbow Dash was full of fury at herself. Something was wrong. She began scolding herself internally the way she did whenever she failed a workout routine or an advanced flying method. She knew she should be better at this. This was basic fighting 101! If there were two opponents in the ring you had to always keep an eye on both of them. At the very least she knew that she should have been able to pay attention to more than one thing at a time. Something was making her stupid right now. A light bulb lit up in realization inside of Rainbow Dash’s head. The reason why this was happening became obvious. It was the same reason weird things were happening to her all this week.     “You’re Stand’s doing this!” Rainbow Dash declared after turning to point at Lady. “Your Stand is making me simple minded! I can’t multitask because of your Stand!”   Unfortunately, Dash turned out to be right. She received confirmation of her statement’s validity in the form of a painful lash across her face. She saw the lash coming from the corner of her eye. But she’d been talking at the same time. As the lukewarm blood crept down from the burning cut across the bridge of her nose, Dash knew she had figured out the enemy’s ability.   “Oh, I don’t think you need Road to Nowhere’s help to be simple minded, my Rainbow,” Lady taunted with a mischievous grin, “But you are correct. I guess if you’re already seen my toys, you can at least know what I’m doing with them. My Stand takes away my opponent's ability to process more than one thing at a time as long as you’re in its girthy range. While you focus on one thing, you will be completely oblivious to everything else. For example, I know you were preoccupied with my explanation. Otherwise, you would have seen what I just did.”   Lady Scarlet ushered for Rainbow Dash to look at her own body. Dash had been focusing just on her voice. Now Scarlet had walked forward until she were mere inches away from Dash’s face. Instinctively,  Rainbow tried to send her fist right at Lady. Now she found that she couldn’t move it. A tight leather strap had been wrapped around her wrist and the nearest tree trunk. She tried to pull against it. The strap had been completely tightened. Her arm was completely restrained and immobilized against the trunk.   The thought of being restrained finished processing. Now Rainbow Dash felt the full front of Road to Nowhere’s knee right in her chest. The air sailed right out of her lungs leaving her unable to breathe. Doubling over meant she could see Road to Nowhere readying itself for yet another similar attack. She manifested 2 Minutes to Midnight and attempted to block against it.   This only proved to leave Dash open to another attack from Lady coming from a different angle. The Pegasus felt the crack of her whip sting against body. It tore another rip through her shirt and skin around her right side. Dash had to bite her lip to keep from crying out and showing weakness. But all this resulted is allowing Lady to see her grit her teeth and hold back tears.   2 Minutes to Midnight abruptly changed directions and snatched Lady’s whip with speed faster than the eye could see. Rainbow’s squinted eyes turned into a scowl. She intended to have 2M2M give a forceful tug on it and pull Lady directly into its first. Taking her eyes off of Road to Nowhere now meant she was unaware of the large tree branch that was being swung at her head until the moment of impact. Darkness burned in her vision as the blow struck the side of her skull. By then the pain she felt made 2M2M release the whip reflexively.   “Aww, look at you all restrained and helpless,” Lady taunted. “Everything you do is futile, pest. If you try to fight me, my Stand will hit you. If you try to fight your Stand, I’ll punish you! My Stand’s ability makes it impossible for my opponents to fight two people at once. Or even dodge two different attacks at once. Since I’ll always have my Stand, I’ll never lose a one on one fight! I almost think it’s unfair, but seeing you whimpering like that is making this too much fun…”   “I could just end our session right here,” Lady strolled up to Rainbow Dash. Dash in turn tried to raise her hand to strike her. Her free fist was restrained by Road to Nowhere, “At any time now, me or my Stand could thrust a knife into your heart while you’re focused on the other. Your life is in my hands, my little Dashie.”   “But that’s what makes it so exhilarating!” Lady cracked her whip and swung it towards the tree. It coiled around the trunk and Dash’s neck twice before going taut. On the completion of its second revolution, Lady crapped the end and began to pull. “You’re in my complete submission! I can do whatever I want to you and never have to worry about anything. You’re just my helpless little toy now. Oh it must be such a beautiful feeling, knowing there’s nothing you can do about it! Sometimes I wish I had that luxury..”   The more Lady pulled, the tighter the cord wrapped around her neck. Dash’s airflow slowly cut off and robbed her of her ability to breathe. Her face had begun to turn a deep blue in the cheeks. Dash had to admit that Lady was right. Trying to fight one meant the other would catch her by surprise. The pain of being asphyxiated brought to her mind the regret of having taken off so suddenly to go after Fluttershy. Having her friends here could have beaten this Stand already!   But Dash was stubborn. Stubborn enough that regret evaporated from her mind as quick as it came. Stubborn enough that she’d force her way out of the mess she had forced herself into. She had to act fast. Otherwise the lack of oxygen reaching her brain would make planning harder than it already was. Scarlet’s explanation meant Dash could only keep one train of thought at any moment. She’d need a single plan to get out of this. A single plan to try to attack both of them at once. Dash would need to use only a single move to free herself. Not that she would get much more than that.   The ground around Lady’s feet started to shake. The mare curiously raised her head, only to see 2M2M standing at the foot of the tree. It had dug its fingers underneath the roots of the tree and was attempting to pull it up. In response, Lady simple yanked her whip another inch closer to herself. Looking back at Dash, Lady could see that she was running out of breath even faster now. Her face turned from blue to purple as she felt the stress of her Stand’s action on her own arms.   Lady did not know what Dash was doing, but she didn’t want it to happen. She shot her gaze towards 2M2M, with Road to Nowhere darting towards it a moment after. The punch it made to the plane-like Stand’s gut definitely registered, as Lady saw Dash recoil from it, but it did nothing to phase the 2M2M itself. The Stand’s body shook as it drove its feet into the dirt. It cried out from underneath its own mask as loud cracks splintered from the dirt underneath them. The entire tree Dash was strapped to raised up from the ground.   2 Minutes to Midnight swung it by its roots with wild abandon. It wasn’t focusing on Lady Scarlet or her Stand. The only thing it and Dash were focusing on was swinging the tree around in a circle. Dash felt the force of swinging the tree in an arc cause the leather strap holding her wrist to snap apart. She quickly used her wings to stop herself from being flung in a random direction and fly of her own will. She darted up above the tree just as 2M2M completed a full revolution with it.   2 Minutes to Midnight dropped the tree to the ground with loud crash. Dash’s arms felt like they were on fire. The most intense weightlifting sessions she’d even done couldn’t compare to the screaming her muscles were doing right now. This was one of those instances where Rainbow wished she was like Applejack. Country Girl would have made that so much easier.   Now she was free. Now she could get back to her mission. 2M2M flew up to her and she immediately mounted it. Its engines fired up immediately to burst through the air and towards the Castle of the Two Sisters. Dash didn’t care what its ability was. Absolutely nothing was faster than 2 Minutes to Midnight. Road to Nowhere was useless if it couldn’t catch her. Even if it had some massive range. She’d get out of it and just ignore this Scarlet!   The tree settled into the ground. Dash heard coughing from nearby. She must have finally pinned the mare down with that motion. No more taking pot-shot punches from that stupid Stand. Just looking at the mare caused her to stop readying 2M2M’s engines. Dash tapped her now bruised forehead to her Stand with a groan. This ability was so damn annoying! She couldn’t think about Lady. Just think about the engines. The engines going and starting up to carry her off. The engines fired up again.   “Going so soon?” Despite carrying a taunting tone, Lady’s voice was pained. The tree shifting had been Road to Nowhere using its shoulder to roll it off of its user. Scarlet herself stood up slowly, hissing as she pulled her arm backwards, “I thought you could handle more than that. Clearly you need to learn how to pace yourself better when it comes to our fun. You’re one of my most disappointing submissives yet…”   Again her engines stalled. Rainbow kept her head tilted the other direction. She couldn’t focus on this mare! It was all apart of her plan! Just another second and she would be miles away from here. She just had to ignore Scarlet and get back to her goal. 2M2M’s launched from the ground. The air zoomed past her face. Dash felt her perception filter kicking right back in, and she let out a long and strained breath.   “Though not as disappointing as that Fluttershy,”   2M2M’s engines died down. Dash heard them as though they were right in her ear. The exhaust disappeared all together. Her Stand landed on the ground with a crack as it broke several bushes. Dash leaped off of its back and landed on the ground. She marched straight up to Lady. The mare was still struggling to fully get up. The light illuminated Dash’s dead serious face.   “What did you just say?”   It was at this point that Lady Scarlet gave a low chuckle, “I’ve rarely had one of my mares know the other, but yes, nowhere near as disappointing as that yellow Pegasus…” Lady Scarlet gently shifted her weight back onto her feet, running a hand up the side of her body, “She wouldn’t even make any noise, no matter what I did to her. Nothing worked! I think Derry went a little too harsh with her before turning her over to me. Oh she looked so tired, so sad, so upset. I wanted to maybe give her some fun before the night was over! It’s a shame… I’ve heard she has the loveliest voice when she sings.”   Flames seemed to light in Dash’s irises, “What did you do to her?!”   “Interested now?” Scarlet pushed herself up onto her feet, “Well, I love to go for more than a single round. You’re not my first toy for the night, and I do hope not my last. I tried every single trick in my book to get her to sing for me. Not even my favorite toys got her to do anything other than gasp. Then again,” Now that she was on her feet, she ran her finger along the spine of her whip, “This at least got her to shriek for me.”   The fury inside of Dash’s eyes had broiled up to the point of overriding her own common sense. Her thoughts silenced in her brain. Her fist came down in a massive roundhouse straight towards Scarlet’s face. She let out a yell of rage as she did it. 2M2M mirrored her actions with the same look of unadulterated lividness filling its form. Both Stand and User were ready to likely give Scarlet reason to need a reconstruction if she were to ever be recognized again.   The blow never landed. Scarlet swung her body to the right, throwing her whip out in front of her and causing the tip to wrap multiple times around Dash’s arm. At the same time, her Stand slid directly in front of her, crossing its limbs and guarding against the attack. Dash was yanked hard towards Scarlet, while 2M2M’s fist connected with a full body cross guard.   “You really want to make me work for my time with you tonight, don’t you, my little Rainbow?” Scarlet’s fingers seized Dash’s chin, pulling her face up close before planting a kiss on her cheek, “Well, I do love it when they beg for my attention!”    She needed cover. Rainbow needed cover. She looked around until she saw a massive trunk. She quickly dashed behind it. 2M2M darted to the other side and readied itself for combat. Rainbow had to take her time to catch her breath. She couldn’t afford to do anything else right now.  This thing, it’s like its everywhere! I have to find a way around it! And maybe help… maybe… Her thoughts flared up and then immediately fizzled out.  “R-Rainbow…?” A soft voice fluttered from behind her.   “Fluttershy?!” Rainbow snapped her head behind her. She ran as fast as she could towards the trees. There she was! The mare was clinging to a burned tree and sobbing into it. Her hair was matted and filled with dirt. That normally flawless yellow fur was covered in whip marks and bruises. All thoughts about Scarlet and Road to Nowhere melted away as she reached her hand out towards the mare.   Something snapped shut around her hand. Fluttershy vanished. Dash’s eyes shot upwards to see Road to Nowhere grabbing her wrist. Dash was immediately yanked out completely from her protection. A massive uppercut was delivered right to her face. Blood flew up into the air and splattered over the grass behind her. A kick sent her back right into the tree that she’d seen Fluttershy clinging onto.   “H-Hah…hah….” Dash’s body was burning. It hurt to the point of tears. Road to Nowhere was in front of her again. 2M2M shot in front of Dash and raised a cross-guard. The force of the blow was countered. Another punch was blocked by 2M2M.   A white-hot pain seared across her left shoulder. Dash felt something lodge into her skin. She turned to see the silver whip imbedded in it. The whip yanked backwards. A massive gash was torn into her body. A now bloodied shard of glass attached to the tip of the whip flew backwards until it fully recoiled into Scarlet’s hand.   “Normally I enjoy these to be just between myself and another, but I can appreciate having more to play with,” Scarlet laughed, “But perhaps we can see what other ponies you care to hear?”  Dash saw another punch incoming. 2M2M raised its guard again. She had to put up another vacuum. She would die out in the open. She’d be vulnerable. Completely exposed. Scarlet was still trying to get inside her head and mess with her. She didn’t know why she’d heard- “Rainbow Dash!” Twilight called out, “What are you doing?! Get up and fight her!”  “Gah! I’m trying Twilight!” Dash shouted back, “This isn’t as easy as it-” Her Stand dissipated as she turned to look towards Twilight. Dash barely managed to pull her face out of the way before the tree she was up against was given a new hole. Dash scrambled her way away from the Stand. 2M2M appeared above of her crawling form to knock away more punches.  “Please Rainbow!” Fluttershy called out again, “I-I can’t, it hurts, it hurts so much! S-She’s doing, so many, horrible things to me!”  Applejack leaned up against a nearby tree. Rainbow saw her boots before she even saw her hat. Dash tried to pull herself up onto her hands and knees. She could see Rarity now with all four of her Diamond Dogs darting through the brush. Pinkie zipped out of the skyline and landed in front of her, then shot back into the sky. Was that Vinyl?  A massive blow to her back drove Dash into the ground again. Road to Nowhere ground its heel into her. The pain was almost unbearable. Dash had been beat up many times before. This was on another level. She tried to pull herself upright again. Instead she felt cold steel pressing against her neck.  Scarlet ran a finger along the small knife that was pressed to Dash’s jugular. The mare got down on her knee and took Dash’s chin with her fingers again. But she only gently tilted it upwards to look down into her eyes, and then she giggled.  “Seeing a few of your friends?” Scarlet sighed, “I’m sure you do. You see, it’s fun playing with you just by myself, but I think we can do better. Much, much better. I’m sure you’re going to see a lot by the time I’m through with you....”  “Can you see them?” Scarlet pulled Dash’s face up from the ground higher, “I like to think of this as a simple re-purposing. All those little silly thoughts you’d be using for planning and strategizing get turned into everything you’re seeing and hearing in front of you. Being able to keep you from focusing on your little power is exactly what I want.”  Dash felt her body being pulled up into the air. She was pushed forward onto her feet. The blue Pegasus stumbled forward several steps just to keep from falling over. Blood was running down her face and arms. Scarlet and Road to Nowhere stepped backwards towards the treeline.  “Like I told you earlier!” Scarlet’s voice faded as she stepped into the darkness, “I could kill you at any moment! Let’s see how long you survive, Rainbow Dash!”  Dash took these seconds to savor her breath. She pulled her fists in front of her face. She had to ignore anything else. She couldn’t win this fight if she didn’t focus. She could only focus on one single thing at a time. And now Road to Nowhere had just shown it was going to play dirty.  I have to defend myself from those two and stop… and stop… and…. Her line of thought stopped. Dash couldn’t keep the second though in her head at once. She had to defend herself from those two. Scarlet and Road to Nowhere had to be her priority.  Dash saw it before she heard it. The knife was whistling through the air right at her. 2M2M shot in front of her and knocked it aside with its fist. The knife stuck in the ground to her right. She snapped her head away just in time to catch Road to Nowhere barreling out with its restrained fist raised. 2M2M blocked the blow. The Stand disappeared back into the forest.  Dash turned her head back. The knife was gone. Turning her head meant she saw Scarlet’s whip coming from the trees again. This gave her enough time to sidestep it. It snapped back into the leaves and caused a few to fall to the ground.  Where are they coming from?! Dash’s thoughts flared, I can’t defend myself from these two and- “Ta Dah!” Pinkie’s shrill voice sounded to Dash’s right. Dash turned her body instinctively towards it. Why would Pinkie be attacking her?  Now Dash felt a searing pain on her right hip. A large knife wound had appeared on it. A rustle in the bushes behind her sounded. She darted her head to see the last of Scarlet’s leather-clad leg disappearing. The knife wasn’t in her wound. Scarlet must have cut her. Another rustle behind her. Dash shot her body to look to where it sounded from. She was just in time to swipe herself onto her left knee to avoid a roundhouse kick. 2M2M reached up and grabbed ahold of the thigh of Road to Nowhere. Dash shouted as she prepared to drive it down into the dirt.  Another gash appeared on her back over top of her whip marks. The pain snapped her from 2M2M and Road to Nowhere was freed. She looked up to see it already trying to land another punch on her. Dash shot backwards and fell onto her rear. The second she did, she felt something tingling in her spine. She dropped to the ground to avoid another stab from Scarlet.  “Come on, partner!” Applejack called out. Her left arm integrated with a tree branch to swing from it, “We’re waiting for ya! Y’all better get a move on if ya wanna get there on time!”  “Shut up, Applejack! I left… before you!” Dash shouted and dragged herself upright once more. It was by chance she saw another kick from Road to Nowhere coming out to try and nail her in the chin. She hit the ground again with a huff as it missed her. 2M2M grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her upright to her feet. It then pulled her towards the treeline to as to avoid a knife swipe from Scarlet.  “You’re doing better than I ever could have hoped!” Scarlet giggled, “How long can you keep going?”  My friends aren’t real! Dash shook her head, They’re just stupid tricks! Stop focusing on them and attack… and… Dash wanted to scream now. She couldn’t keep two Celestia-blasted thoughts in her head at the same time!  I need to get her close to attack her! There! Dash could focus on that! She had to just focus on getting her close. What could she do to get the mare close enough to attack her? There were lots of things. She could trip her. She could throw dirt at her eyes. She could… she could…  Dash barely dodged another swipe from Road to Nowhere. Her train of thought crashed. She turned her head away from a spinning Mr. Sandman and back towards what hse had to do. She could only pick one course of action. Just one. No options. Just pick one idea!  This has to get her! Dash threw herself towards the nearest tree. She hit her back against it. She threw her hands behind her back. She let out a long huff and then shouted.  “Scarlet!” Dash cried out, “I give up!”  Almost as though she’d been summoned from the mist, Scarlet appeared in front of Dash. The mare eyed her with a bit of confusion. She approached Dash slowly, her hips rolling but her hand staying permanently bound on her whip. Before she even got close to Dash, she coughed.  “Do you now?” Scarlet cooed, “Hold out your hands then.”  Dash slowly nodded. She held her hands out in front of her body. Suddenly Scarlet’s whip was coiled around them several times. It stung as it pulled her hands together. Scarlet just purred as she made her way up to Dash again. She produced two more leather straps to bind Dash with. “Oh… you actually did…” Scarlet murmured, “Well this isn’t fun at all. It’s a rather disappointing climax. I wanted to take you alive, just to have a little more fun with you later in my proper arena. But… well, if you insist to end it here,” Scarlet raised her knife, “Then perhaps you don’t deserve to be played with by me!”  Dash grinned. She summoned 2M2M’s fists over top of her own and threw her arms outwards. The force was enough to cause the whip to snap apart and break into pieces. Dash raised her shoulder and rammed it directly into Scarlet’s chest. The two hit the ground with Dash on top of Scarlet.  Road to Nowhere took hold of Dash immediately. It picked her up and threw her hard away from its master. Dash went flying and hit the ground hard off to the side. Scarlet spat hard as she used her Stand’s arm to pull herself to her feet.  “Normally I’d say that was the fault of the mistress!” Scarlet growled, “But I’ve become rather angry at having such a fussy brat as my sub!”   A loud yell of fury and disgust cried out from Dash’s lips. Her Stand slammed its hands together and produced a massive vacuum. It rejected anypony in a ten-foot radius around her that wasn’t her. The result was Scarlet flying backwards until Road to Nowhere caught her against a tree. The vacuum expanded until it hit its limit. Scarlet’s hair dangled in front of her face as she let out a little hiss.   Lady Scarlet curiously leaned forward and tapped it with her finger but found a massive resistance. Then, she reared her whip back and slashed at a single spot twice. The whip went right through it, hitting the dirt on the ground. After a moment, she just sighed.   Don’t listen to her. Don’t even look at her. Don’t even think about her. Just trying to listen to her voice made her vacuum flicker. She couldn’t afford to do anything but focus on her vacuum. She forced herself to stop listening to anything. Just that focus would break her shield.   Vacuums that Dash created would last on their own for a while. Thankfully even if she wasn’t focusing on them. This meant that she could buy herself some time to think. Flying away was no longer an option. A line should not be crossed had been so multiple times today. Scarlet was just the latest one on Dash’s “Punch as hard as I can in the face” list. Scarlet would not be leaving here with all of her teeth.   Rainbow tried as fast as she could to think of a solution. “What if I used 2 Minutes to Midnight to grab her Stand and…” Road to Nowhere in her Stand’s grasp could fly as far away as possible with it. Then it would get out of it range and… just make it disappear. She would be out of its range. She probably wouldn’t be under its influence anymore. But that would be running away. She couldn’t run away. Not after all of this pain.   It instantly became apparent what the problem was. Rainbow’s plan involved multiple lines of thinking. Grabbing the Stand then fighting it. But fighting it would be focusing one something else. That was something she couldn’t do. Whatever solution she came up with would have to be something simple.   The time for thinking ended when Rainbow felt herself be forced to the grass. She saw that Road to Nowhere’s foot was right on her face. It took the back of her head being ground into the dirt to realize that she had only rejected ponies. Stands could still getting in. Rejecting absolutely everything but herself would yield embarrassing results. There was no in between when it came to her vacuums.   Road to Nowhere threw Rainbow out of the vacuum she created and into Lady’s arms. She said something that probably amounted to another taunt. But Rainbow wasn’t focusing on that. She put her focus on easily breaking out of Lady’s grip and turning around to strike her. Yet again this resulted in the stronger Stand catching off off guard and restraining her in its user’s stead.   “You pathetic worm,” Lady’s insults didn’t sting nearly as much as the lashes that came with each one. “You’re nothing but a disobedient little filly. You’re really wearing down the fun of our session. So I think it’s time to draw this to a close.”   Dash’s feet were lifted off the ground. Both Lady and Road to Nowhere were levitating into the air. It didn’t take much focus for Dash to know that she was probably going to use gravity to finish her off. Dash struggled with all the strength she still had. She couldn’t do anything to affect the Stand that was holding her in place. This fact made her hate it even more. This Stand was the problem. If only she could get rid of it.   Dash’s struggling suddenly ceased. She couldn’t think about this idea. She just needed to do it. Act on pure instinct and do the first things that come to her mind. Just like when she was falling behind in a high stress race.   I need to get rid of this Stand, from me. Was Dash’s first though. A clear concise thought. No more thoughts after that. Only instinct. 2M2M manifested in front of her. It punched Road to Nowhere as hard as it could in the face. The enemy Stand recoiled and let her go. Lady clearly felt the same pain as blood dripped from her mouth.   Dash’s first thought was finished. The limited processing power of her mind was now free for another one. It was the same thought. I need to get rid of this Stand, away from me!   Rainbow Dash had kept practicing with 2 Minutes to Midnight until it became second nature for her. She was able to use its powers of rejecting and isolation on an instinctual level. Which mean without even focusing she could create an expanding vacuum that would do exactly what she needed it to do. She had to do that right now.    Then she did it. All Lady could do was helplessly watch as Road to Nowhere was pushed away from her. A vacuum had formed between 2M2M’s hands and expanded until it reached its full radius. Scarlet, however, was not pushed away this time. The enemy tried to have it fly back towards her, but only found an impassable wall in front of it. It was pushed even further and farther until it was nearly out of site. Lady tried to recall it and draw it out again. The result was Road to Nowhere being violently launched out, even faster than before.   If Lady had been focusing on something else other than her own Stand, a luxury that only she had right now, she would have seen that 2 Minutes to Midnight had the same effect done onto it. It was pushed back until it was out of Dash’s range. At which point it simply disappeared. But Dash didn’t try to manifest it again. She knew what was going on.  “What… what have you done?!” Scarlet raised the remains of her whip and snapped it out towards Rainbow Dash, “Where is my Road to Nowhere?!”   “I have to admit you’re right,” Dash cracked her neck from side to side. “Your Stand ability is unmatched for one on one fights. I don’t really think it matters how strong or fast they are, as long as you and your Stand are fighting together, you can’t be beat.”   Dash easily smacked away the broken whip, “But you don’t know how annoying that is! And here’s the thing: I don’t like it when what I’m trying to do is annoying. While I like to think myself so awesome that I can do almost anything, and I am, don’t get me wrong, I’d like it a lot more if things just went my way. “What I’m trying to say is, that I don’t want to fight both you and your Stand. So I’ve rejected Stands and isolated ponies from them. Just the Stands themselves though. I can’t keep out their abilities. So I still can’t multitask. But I don’t think that’ll be a problem for me anymore.”   Dash finished her speech just in time to see Lady. She was clearly knocked down several pegs at this point and trying to fly away to the edges of the vacuum. Dash just shook her head and overtook her in no time at all. She reached out and snapped her fingers around Lady’s shoulders, dragging the struggling mare towards her.    “Second place in the Fillydelphia 500. Top Ten in the Pegasus Ball Run. First Place in the Cloudsdale Derby,” Dash looked very coy about the list she was going on about. “These are the awards I’ve won just this year. Do you have any idea how much training and exercise getting those takes? How much muscle power flying those races takes? I don’t mean to flex, but,” Rainbow Dash flexed her arms, letting her triceps bulge out against her skin. Then Dash suddenly stopped and realized what she just said. “Oh my Celestia, I’m sorry, that was a horrible pun.”  Lady shrieked out and threw her arms apart. It seemed she was rather terrified without her Stand by her side. With her shattered whip, it was hard to blame her. She saw Lady trying to fly away again. This time Dash just grabbed the trailing tail of the whip and yanked her face to face with herself.   “Here, I’m done talking now. I want you to take a message for your boss. Something I really want to say to him, ok?” Dash cracked her knuckles, and sent her fist faceward.