Deserts and Dragons

by Metool Bard


Overheated Overdrive

Chapter 9:
Overheated Overdrive

The sandwyrm slammed into the ground, producing a mighty shock wave and spraying sand everywhere. While it didn't hit any of its targets, everyone stumbled from the tremor and ended up buried in a wave of sand.

"Pfft! The nerve of that brute!" spat Flim, shaking the sand off of him and dusting off his hat. "Nopony likes sandy cider!"

"Well, it could've been worse, brother," said Flam, tapping his head to force the sand out of his ears. "We should count ourselves lucky that it missed us."

"Don't let your guards down just yet," said Little Strongheart tersely as she dug her way out of the mound of sand she was buried under. "It does that to slow down its prey. It's coming around again."

"Well, what do we do?" asked Braeburn.

"Distract it," said Little Strongheart.

The FlimFlam Brothers did a double take. "Pardon?" they asked in unison.

"It's a typical buffalo tactic," said Little Strongheart. "You guys run away from it and let it give chase. While it's distracted, I'll attack it from behind along with Flint and Steel."

"With all due respect, good madam, are you out of your mind?!" protested Flim. "The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000 is not equipped to deal with this kind of thing!"

"Um, I don't think we have time to argue," said Steel with a gulp.

Just then, the sandwyrm rose from the sand again and let out another screech.

"Get going! Now!" Little Strongheart barked as the creature descended upon the FlimFlam Brothers.

"We're going, we're going!" cried the FlimFlam Brothers as they sped away just in the nick of time. The sandwyrm wasn't deterred in the slightest, and continued chasing the peculiar transport.

"Right. That's that done," said Little Strongheart. "Flint, Steel! After it!"

"Right behind you, LS!" said Flint. "C'mon, Steel!"

With that, Little Strongheart galloped off while the two dragons kept pace.

"So, what's the plan?!" asked Steel, straining his voice over the sandwyrm's screeches and the thundering of hooves.

"I'm working on it!" said Little Strongheart.

"You're what?!" said Flint. "I thought you said you knew how to deal with this thing!"

"That'd be true if I had the rest of the tribe with me!" said Little Strongheart. "But our tactics usually involve jumping on the sandwyrm's back and trampling it into submission! That's not going to work here!"

Flint smirked. "Well, I know what will!"

Before Little Strongheart could ask, Flint took in a deep breath and launched a plume of dark flame at the sandwyrm. Unfortunately, the attack missed the sandwyrm just as its tail disappeared underground, and all he managed to do was singe Little Strongheart's fur.

"Ah!" Little Strongheart shrieked. "Hey! How about a little warning, Flint?!"

"She's right, you know," Steel chimed in.

Flint snorted. "Look, unless either of you have a better idea, I say we fry this thing!"

Little Strongheart snorted in return. "I'll think of something else! Let's just keep pace with it for now!"

Before Flint could object, Little Strongheart zoomed off. With a frustrated growl, he flew after her, with Steel not far behind.

***

The FlimFlam Brothers and Braeburn weren't fairing any better. The tremors from the sandwyrm constantly burrowing and surfacing caused the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000 to rattle and shake, and they were all being showered by tons of debris.

"J-j-just as a r-r-r-reminder!" said Flim, his voice shaky due to the tremors. "I-i-i-i-if our p-p-p-p-property gets d-d-d-d-damaged, y-y-y-you're p-p-paying for-r-r-r-r it-t-t-t-t-t!"

"W-w-w-w-will you f-f-f-forg-g-g-g-get the s-s-s-s-stupid bill for jus' two s-s-seconds-s-s-s?!" Braeburn roared. "W-w-w-we've got b-b-b-b-bigger p-p-proble-e-e-e-ems right now!"

"W-w-w-we're w-w-w-ell aware of that-t-t-t-t-t!" Flam retorted. "W-w-w-we're just reminding y-y-y-you!"

The sandwyrm's screech became louder and more pronounced as it snapped at the peculiar transport with its mandibles before burrowing underground again.

"It's gaining on us, brother!" yelled Flam. "We've got to do something!"

"Right!" said Flim. "Um, double the power!"

The two unicorns then shot a pair of magic beams at a prong on the back of the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000. The prong whirred and sparked, and the transport began to accelerate.

"Wait, you mean y'all could've done that all along?!" bellowed an aghast Braeburn. "Why didn't ya?!"

"This really isn't the time to argue about that!" Flim shouted back.

Braeburn groaned. "Whatever Little Strongheart has in mind, she'd better do it fast," he muttered.

***

"Any bright ideas yet, LS?!" asked Flint. "Need I remind you that Steel and I haven't eaten in a while! We can't keep this up much longer!"

Little Strongheart furrowed her brow as she continued to run after the sandwyrm. Just as a spray of sand hit her, so too did an idea.

"You two hang back!" she said. "I'll slow it down! When I give the signal, give it everything you've got!"

Before Flint and Steel could acknowledge her order, Little Strongheart leapt onto the end of the sandwyrm's tail just as it rose from the ground. She then proceeded to run along the creature's back, jumping every so often when the segment she was running on was about to disappear underground. She eventually reached the sandwyrm's head, and found herself looking over the transport as the sandwyrm's pincers snapped again. As they did so, she let out a war cry and jammed her front hooves into the creature's forehead.

The sandwyrm didn't seem to react that much to the attack. It screeched in annoyance more than anything else, and continued chasing its meal as if nothing happened. Little Strongheart snorted angrily and leaped away just as the sandwyrm dove back underground. As it resurfaced, she landed back on its head and attacked again. The sandwyrm began to slow down this time, but still kept pace with the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000. The same routine repeated one last time, but still the sandwyrm would not be fully deterred.

That's the best I can do, she thought. I hope it'll be enough.

She then turned back to Flint and Steel. "Flint, Steel! N—"

Before she could complete her command, plumes of black and silver flame shot forth and bathed the sandwyrm in intense heat. Little Strongheart managed to leap away just in time, but not before a stray plume set the feathers on her headband alight. The flames also managed to lick the back of the transport, and the FlimFlam Brothers were quick to notice.

"Hey! You'd better be ready to reimburse us for that!" yelled Flam, shaking his hoof at the dragons.

"Sorry!" Steel hollered back. "Flint made me do it!"

"Three hundred and sixty two!" Flint snarled.

Fortunately, the flames did a lot more damage to the sandwyrm. The creature roared in pain as parts of its sandy body were superheated into glass. With one final screech, it dove underground one last time, and the tremors gradually subsided. Everyone stopped for a moment to catch their breaths.

"What *pant* the heck *gasp* was that about?" Little Strongheart asked Flint.

"You didn't tell us what the signal was," said Flint with a shrug. "I just assumed it was you calling our names."

"Actually, he got impatient and jumped the gun," said Steel. "I tried to stop him, but— oof!"

Flint elbowed his comrade in the stomach. "Three hundred and sixty three," he growled.

"What, for telling the truth?" said Little Strongheart with a snort. She then sighed and turned to Braeburn and the FlimFlam Brothers. "Are you ponies alright?"

"Ptooey! Ugh, been better," said Braeburn, spitting out a mouthful of sand. "Blech, it's gonna take a lot of apples to get this taste outta my mouth." He then noticed the flaming feathers on Little Strongheart's head. "Um, Little Strongheart? Your headband's on..."

"I know," Little Strongheart interrupted with a groan. She then took it off and smothered the flames.

"Well, that was quite intense," said Flam. "Brother, would you mind checking on the engine?"

"No problem," said Flim, hopping off the transport and walking around to the back. He then opened up a compartment, and steam came pouring out.

"I take it that's not a good sign," said Braeburn.

"And that's why we didn't double the power before," said Flam. "We've told you countless times that the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000 was not designed for this. That little chase probably caused the engine to overheat. Rest assured, you're footing the bill for repairs."

Braeburn groaned. "At the rate we're goin' this is gonna end up costin' me two legs."

"You should've thought of that before hiring us for this crazy quest," said Flam. "Not to worry, though. We'll be able to perform the proper maintenance in no less than five minutes. Although you're..."

"Still payin' for the repairs, I know," said Braeburn, finishing Flam's thought. "For Pete's sake, ya don't need to keep rubbin' it in."

"I think the engine is the least of our problems, brother," said Flim, coming back around to retrieve a tool kit. "In our haste to flee from that monster, we've lost track of the tikes."

"No, we haven't," said Little Strongheart, giving Flint and Steel a sideways glance. "These two are going to lead us straight to them."

"Hey hey hey. We still haven't agreed to that," said Flint. "That Bull's Eye Gang is gonna be more trouble than any stupid sandwyrm."

"But Flint, this could be our big chance to get our nest back," said Steel.

Flint scoffed. "Oh, come on, Steel. They wouldn't be able to..."

He then trailed off as his lips curled into a sly smile.

"Hey. There's an idea," said Flint. "We help them find those ponies, and they help us get our nest back. It's genius! Glad I thought of it."

"But, I thought of it," said Steel.

Flint elbowed Steel in the gut again. "Three hundred and sixty four," he growled.

Braeburn sighed and obscured his eyes with his hat. "This is gonna be a loooooooong trip..."