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// To Burn it To the Ground 
// Story: The Paths We Choose 
// by discord7 
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	The Equestrian 500, the biggest race in the world. It was only held once every 10 years to crown the best flyer in the world. This was my opportunity to show my stuff, to finally prove that I, Rainbow Dash was the best flyer in Equestria. My nerves were killing me.
"It's alright, Dash you'll do fine." Soarin said placing a hoof on my shoulder.
"Thanks." I replied.
"Oh, get a room you two." Spitfire remarked, she'd heard Soarin asked mo out and didn't seem pleased about it.
Soarin laughed, "Maybe after I win the race Dash and I will."
I saw Spitfire blush and puff as she trotted away.
He looked back to me, I gave him a quick hoof to the arm.
"What?" he asked, apparently clueless.
"Idiot." I said before going to the Racers  Lounge to scope out the competition.
It was mostly pegasi but it was an open species race to all flyers so I saw a few griffons. There was one creature though that stood out in the groups of pegasi's, griffons and harpy's, one that I had only seen Twilight reading in her books. It was called a Feng, and it was humongous. It stood about ten feet and had a gigantic wingspan of at least twenty five. I didn't know if I could beat it, I'd heard Twilight talk about the mythical birds but she'd said that all of them had gone extinct centuries ago.
It was poised upright and didn't seem interested in any of the other competitiors. I had to find out about my biggest threat so I decided to fly up there and find out more.  Opened my wings and took to the air, right up to the closed eyes of the Feng.
"Hey you!" I called, it opened it's eyes to reveal two stunning emerald pupils.
"What?" It replied.
"Oh, I'm just being friendly." I said, it seemed annoyed, "My name's Rainbow Dash." I told her.
She paused, "Tourine." She replied.
"So I thought that all the Fengs were gone?" I asked her politely.
She glared at me, "They are." she said.
"Oh, I'm sorry." I told her apolagetic actually dropping a few feet.
"Don't be it was a curse cast upon our species by a wicked spirit, only one of us at a time can live. Therefor I must guard the only egg until my time passes. My death will hatch that last egg and our cylce of eternal lonliness will continue on. My last moments must be spent explaining the history of my people."
"Wow, now that's a story. So what brings you to the Equestiran 500?" I asked.
"I am not a participant of this race, I'm here to scout the greatest flyer in the land so that when I pass on my child will learn to fly." She said.
"Well you don't have any farther to look 'cuz I'm gunna win this thing." I told her.
"Yes that's what all the flyers here have been sayin." She rolled her eyes.
"Ya but I am! You see I'm the only one who has ever been able to pull off a Sonic Rainboom." I told her proudly.
"Well, I may not know what that is, but if you do win miss Rainbow Dash then I will be glad to know that my species has had the pleasure to meet such an enthusiastic character such as yourself." She smiled and closed her eyes again.
I wasn't sure if she was serious or not but I brushed it aside, I was just glad I didn't have to compete against her.

"FILLIES AND GENTLECOLTS! WE'RE HERE TODAY TO BRING YOU THE CHANCE TO CROWN THE BEST FLYER IN EQUESTRIA!" The announcer boomed. "AND NOW A WORD FROM THE FORMER CHAMP HIMSELF MISTER LIGHTNING SPEEEEEEED!"
A red colt with a short cropped black mane steped up to the microphone.
"I would like to announce the official start of the Equestian 500, a race to test young fliers all over the world. This decade has produced some amazing talent and I want you all to know that this is the last time I will be competing in this race. After this I fear I will be much too old to offer any competition to these wonderful winged competitors. That is all, the race will begin shortly."

We were all at the starting line, which was almost a hundred feet long to house all of the ponies, griffons, and harpies racing. We were all waiting for Lightning to get on the line. He took his place next to me.
"I want you to know Rainbow, I've been following your progress carefully. You will not win this race do you hear me?" He said almost threateningly.
I saw the flag to signal start drop and we were all off. This was the largest track in all of Equestria, but racers stratagy to keep any other racer from getting to you we all formed into a stream only about two lanes thick. All around mini battles for a place up were taking place as the faster racers took the lead and slower or smaller ones took the rear.
Up at the front of the pack were Lightning and I going head to head, going faster and faster. We were probably just a blur to the audiance but they didn't care, through the wind in my ears I could hear them shouting and cheering in the excitement. This was a true test of strength and endurance, five hundred laps around a track that (all around) was about four hundred feet. Yessirie this was going to be the race of my life.
We were zooming down, I was keeping track of the laps fifty so far.
"Like I said before kid you're not beating me!" Lightning wheezed.
"Ya? Then why are you the one out of breath!" I shot back, I laughed.
He looked angry which made me laugh even more.
"What's the matter afraid your old flank can't keep up?" I did a loop de loop and came to settle back next to him. "Face it old man you're just too slow."
UH-OH FOLKS IT LOOKS LIKE THERE'S A PERSONAL BATTLE BETWEEN NEW WONDERBOLT RAINBOW DASH AND CHAMPION LIGHNINT SPEED!
I heard the announcer and decided it was time for some fun. I began doing some tricks and flips and spins to show off for the crowd. They loved it before I knew it I had the whole crowd cheering my name.
"RAINBOW DASH! RAINBOW DASH!" They all called in unison.
IT'S AS IF RAINBOW DASH IS TAUNTING LIGHNING, HOW'S HE GUNNA REACT TO THIS ONE. WILL THE CHAMP KEEP HIS COOL AND RISE TO BEAT THIS YOUNG BLOOD, OR WILL THE POWER OF THIS LITTLE FILLY BE TOO MUCH FOR THE OLD KING!
Even though I was busy being the crowd pleaser I was still keeping track of the laps, I was at three hundred-ninty six. Not even breaking a sweat yet, all that training as a Wonderbolt had paid off.
Something in the stands caught my eye. It was Scootaloo, in her own Wonderbolt VIP section waving trying frantically to get my attention. I waved to her and she went ballisic. I smiled like an idiot and decided it was time to kick this race into overdrive.
I flapped my wings as hard as I could and pushed forward, I zoomed in front of Lighning. I pushed against the wind resistance, it was pushing against my face. Then I felt it, the breaking through of that powerful sound barrier. Only a few competitors behind me managed not to get thrown off the track from the explosion, one of them was Lighting.
YOU SAW IT HERE FIRST FOLKS THE LEGENDARY SONIC RAINBOOM PERFORMED BY THE ONE AND ONLY RAINBOW DASH!
I whized through almost a hundred laps with my rainbow tailing me. This by far was the longest I'd ever kept it up but I couldn't quit now I was ahead of the pack by a longshot. I was gunna win this race litterally with flying colors.
I was almost there when Lightning came from the side and knoked me into the wall. My Rainboom streak was over, I went back to his side and kept the race going.
"What was that for?" I shouted.
"Quit showin off!" He replied in the same volume.
"Ha, you're not gunna beat me old man thanks to my Sonic Rainboom I must be at least fifty laps ahead of you." I told him.
I could see him getting flustered, he bumped me again. I bumped him back. There was only four more laps left.
OH! LOOKS LIKE ANOTHER BATTLE HAS BROKEN OUT OVER THE FEILD ONCE AGAIN RAINBOW DASH AND LIGHNING ARE AT EACH OTHERS THROATS. THIS BATTLE CAN ONLY END WITH ONE VICTOR, WHO WILL IT BE?
The bumping went on until on one occasion when I went in he dodged me by going up. The sudden motion made me falter a bit. I looked up just in time to see him come crashing down and pushing me to the ground. I tumbled on the clouds, worse than my crash during my Wonderbolt race. I felt something snap and felt an excruciating pain in my back. That's when I passed out...