//------------------------------// // Act 4 // Story: Date at Dodge Junction // by Rated Ponystar //------------------------------// Date at Dodge Junction Act 4 By The Rated Ponystar Edited by: Apple Spice and Mr. Minimii *** While the assistants of the rodeo started to set up for the second event, the obstacle course, Rainbow Dash found herself being dragged toward her stable with Applejack. She didn’t mind this as she had a few questions herself, mostly about the last event. She knew Applejack was strong, the contest with those three losers proved that, but her best friend knew how to control her strength. She found it hard to believe that Applejack ripped that rope so easily. Sure enough, her suspicions proved right when Applejack told her what happened. “Why that no good, lousy, bunch of horseapples!” growled Rainbow Dash, glaring at McShady in the distance as he watched his boys worked with the others in preparation for the event. “We should tell the judges. No, wait, kick his flank. Wait, we’ll kick his flank, then tell the judges, and then kick his flank again!” “We can’t do either of them ideas for the followin’ reasons, Sugarcube,” said Applejack, drawing three lines in the sand as she spoke. “One, we’d get in trouble for hurtin’ another contestant. Two, we ain’t got proof on him. And three, if we accuse somepony of cheatin’, there will be an investigation, and the rodeo will be canceled. We won’t be able to help Miss Jubilee if that happens.” Rainbow Dash tried to come up with something to counter Applejack’s list, but her head fell in defeat as she tried to think of something, but failed. Applejack was quick to nuzzle her and lift her head up. “Ah know it doesn’t seem right, but we gotta push forward, Sugarcube. For Cherry’s sake. Besides, he seems to be targetin’ me, so yer gonna be in the clear.” “That’s not gonna make me feel any better, AJ,” muttered Rainbow Dash. “Besides, you shouldn’t have to deal with any of this sabotage by yourself. What if he does something drastic that hurts you?” Applejack grinned and tipped her hat. “This farmpony knows a few tricks of her own. Besides, Ah’d rather it be me then yerself.” “I can handle myself fine, Applejack. I’m not made out of glass. I’m made out of awesome,” Rainbow Dash pointed out. Blushing, Applejack nervously pawed the ground and nodded. “A-ah know, it’s just y-yer important me, Rainbow. A-ah... Ah just don’t want to see ya get hurt is all.” This made Rainbow Dash tilt her head in confusion. It just seem out of character for Applejack to be blushing and stuttering so much, or even at all. Then again, she has been doing that a lot lately, thought Rainbow Dash. “Hey, Applejack. You’re okay, right? You’ve been acting a bit... weird ever since we came to Dodge Junction. Actually, maybe even a bit before that.” Applejack turned even redder, raising Dash’s suspicions even more. Gulping, Applejack answered, “J-just a bit nervous is all. A-a-anyway, let’s head on back. We gotta a rodeo to win!” Without waiting for a reply, Applejack strolled out of the stable and started making her way back to the center of the rodeo with the other contestants. Although she wanted to find out what was bothering her best friend, Rainbow Dash knew the rodeo was more important to focus on at the moment. Pushing her thoughts away for the moment, she soon followed Applejack back to the games. *** Ah gotta be more careful, thought Applejack as she took her place with the other cowponies. Dang it, Applejack, keep yer emotions in check. Y’all can tell Rainbow yer feelin’s when this is all over. For now, pay attention to what’s in front of ya, girl! The next event was the obstacle course, an event Applejack knew by heart. There was the usual objects such as barrels, jumping vaults, mud puddles, low wire, and more. It was also the only event where all of the contests would be facing each other instead of going one on one. From her end of the starting line, she could see McShady completely focused on the course in front of him while stretching his legs. For a brief moment, he turned his gaze upon her and their eyes locked, but he smirked and turned away. Applejack spat on the ground, making sure to keep both eyes on him while she was running. One of the judges came forward with a flag in his mouth. He raised his flag in the air as the contestants readied themselves and bent down, hindquarters poised in the air.. Rainbow Dash, who was right next to Applejack, quickly said in a cocky tone, “Hey, don’t worry, second place isn’t so bad.” Applejack smirked. Even when they were fighting for something serious, Rainbow Dash was always in her competitive mood. “The only thing that’s gonna be in second place is that ego of yers.” “Oh, it’s on, AJ,” said Rainbow Dash, licking her lips. Soon, the flag came down and the race was underway. Applejack galloped on the right moment, and soon found herself in first place with McShady, Rainbow, with a few others right behind her. Adrenaline filled her spirit up as she focused on remembering what her Pa told her about running in a race. The first thing was always look ahead and never stop for anything, the moment you lost your focus, you were already in last place. Second was being ever on alert, and that proved to be true when one of the other contestants managed to catch up and try to trip Applejack in order to take the lead. With honed reflexes she had developed over years of hard work, Applejack was able to jump out of the way, and let the poor stallion’s hoof slip, causing him to tussle down into the dirt head first. The other racers jumped over his defeated body, and that was the last Applejack saw of him as her focus shifted towards the first obstacle: barrels. Unlike in the single competition where barrels were more or less in a straight line, the barrels were spread out, but close enough so that you had to weave left or right just in time to avoid hitting one, lest you wanted to lose points. Applejack barreled into the barrel field, bobbing and weaving past the multitude of wooden obstacles as she tried to maintain her pace. When she found the time, she made sure to quickly check on both Rainbow and McShady to make sure the former was alright and the latter wasn’t up to anything. Rainbow, Celestia bless her, was as agile as could be, even without her wings. She had a relaxed smile and made the barrel dodging look easy, even doing a few turns backwards just to show off. McShady, as much as she hated to admit it, was fast for his size. He had a look of pure concentration, like nothing else mattered him but his goal of finishing first place. He had the look of a seasoned veteran in this game, but it bothered Applejack a bit. If McShady is so good, then why does he have to cheat? Applejack’s thoughts were interrupted when she saw something that made her eyes widen. One of the barrels was moving, just slowly, towards her direction. Applejack didn’t know how it was moving, nor did she care, she knew she had to find someway to avoid it. At the last second, she slammed her hooves down and came to a sudden halt, just as the barrel did as well. This was long enough for McShady to pass by her as she cursed and quickly went around the barrel. She glanced back at it, hoping that Rainbow Dash would notice as well. The sight of Dash bumping into the so called moving barrel and nearly tripping on her hooves proved her wish went unfulfilled. Applejack shook her head before passing the last of the barrels was on the curved stretch to the next part of the obstacle course. Turning, she tried to figure out how that barrel moved. There was no aura around it, so that ruled out magic, and moved only slightly so that only those with a sharp eye could have spotted it. Pushing aside her thoughts on it for now, Applejack prepared herself for the next obstacle: hurdling. Each of the hurdles were lined up from shortest to tallest, and you had to go through each one or be disqualified. Applejack took a quick look behind to see about the competition. Rainbow Dash was naturally right beside her—slowly it would be neck and neck for both of them—while the rest were a mile away. McShady was already done with the first hurdle when Applejack grinned, and both her and Rainbow Dash jumped over their first one with ease. “First one to screw up pays dinner!” shouted Rainbow Dash. “Yer on!” cried out Applejack as they jumped over the second. One by one they jumped over each of the hurdles until they were right by the tail of McShady who was sweating a workload just to keep up. When they saw the final hurdle, taller than even Big Macintosh, the two friends winked at each other before jumping on top of McShady and used him as a springboard. “Hey!” he shouted, but Applejack grinned as they were flying in the air. She knew the rules by heart and the rules didn’t say anything about this. The two landed on the other side of the huddle while McShady, stumbling from being used as a springboard, crashed into the huddle much to the amusement of the audience. Applejack and Rainbow Dash quickly bumped flanks before focusing back on the race. With McShady now out of the picture, it was time for the final part of the course: the mud pile. All she and Rainbow had do was go right through it, and the top two spots was theirs. Having been around mud all her life, this wasn’t going to be a challenge at all. She and Rainbow Dash, neck and neck, carved through the mud like a warm knife against butter. Suddenly, Applejack felt a sharp pain on her right flank, but ignored it, chalking it up to a rock that got mixed it when they were making the mud. The final sprint soon came and Applejack could feel her entire body heating up as she tried to run as fast as she could to win first place, Rainbow Dash right beside her. Her hooves and flank were on fire, she could barely hear the could roaring as she kept going, fighting the fatigue and pain her body were going through. With on last gallop, she passed through the finish line alongside Rainbow Dash as they came to a hault. Applejack felt her entire body burning, even smiling was a pain. Then a thought came to Applejack. This wasn’t exhaustion. This was something else. She weakly lifted her head, struggling not to puke as Rainbow Dash looked at her with worry. “AJ? Is something wrong? You look horrible.” Applejack tried to answer, but all she could do was gurgle before falling onto the floor, passed out. *** “Applejack!” screamed Rainbow Dash as she went to her side. She was no doctor, but she could see something was wrong. She turned around, looking with fear in her eyes. “I need help! Now! Medic!” An elder pony in a black suit and top hat rushed forward, a first aid kit in his mouth. The crowd began to quickly silence themselves as security urged everypony to stay calm. The doctor put his bag down and ordered, “Help me get this mud off of her.” Rainbow Dash quickly went to work, and used her hooves to wipe away as much of the mud as she could. When she cleared Applejack’s right flank, she noticed something. Pointing to it, she asked, “Doc, what’s this?” The doctor looked closer and bit his lip. “As Ah thought. It’s a snake bite. She’s been poisoned.” “P-poisoned...” whispered Rainbow Dash as a shiver went down her spine. Sh could feel the air in her lungs slowly leave her as she looked upon Applejack’s painful and sweaty expression. “H-how did she even get bit?! I didn’t see it, unless...” Rainbow Dash quickly turned to the mud pile where some of the workers were getting ready to clean it up when she rushed over and screamed, “Get away from there!” Before they could question her, Rainbow Dash already dove in, and started searching through the mud despite the danger of getting bitten herself. This later proved to be true as she saw something red, yellow and black jump out of the mud, and, thankfully, bit the ropes that were holding her wings together. Quick as a flash, Rainbow Dash took the snake by the tail with her mouth and threw it into the dirt, stomping on its face and crushed its head. She could already imagine Fluttershy berating her for killing the animal, but Rainbow Dash didn’t care, feeling satisfaction for getting revenge on it for biting her best friend. Taking the snake’s remains, Rainbow Dash presented it to the doctor who looked at it and nodded. “A coral snake. Deadly, but Ah can cure it. Ah’m afraid she’s gonna be outta the contest though, can’t recommend her doin’ this with that there bite.” Rainbow Dash bit her lip, knowing that Applejack was going to be devastated to know she had to be eliminated out of the contest. It was her idea in the first place to help Cherry Jubilee with her farm by winning the whole thing, now she was no longer a part of it. It’s up to me now... She watched as Applejack was placed on a stretcher by security with the doctor right behind them. She looked at the snake and wished she could smash the thing all over again, but soon found herself wondering how the snake got in the mud pit at all. There’s no way it would have traveled from the outside to her without anypony noticing it... that means it was planted some how, but who would— Rainbow Dash gasped upon realizing the one pony who both her and Applejack suspected of cheating since the contest began, and soon sported a furious look that would make even a warrior griffin squawk in fear. Nostrils flaring, she whipped her head around, looking for her suspect. She found him propped against a wall, watching Applejack get hollered of with an impassive look on his face. That was quickly replaced with a hiss of pain as Rainbow Dash slammed him into the wall, and pounded him in the nose with a solid right hook. “What the hay!” he shouted before Rainbow Dash slammed him again against the wall and growled, her eyes filled with a burning desired to maim until he was broken and bleeding on the floor. “You... piece of manure... you sorry sack of dragon dung! You want to win this thing so bad you’re even willing to kill for it?!” cried out Rainbow Dash, right in his face. “What are ya talkin’ about?” asked McShady, keeping calm despite his situation. “Don’t give me that bunch of horse apples! That snake! The one that bit Applejack?! It’s bad enough you snapped her rope, but to try and kill her?! What kind of low piece of scum are you?!” Rainbow Dash growled and wish she had some sort of proof that could kick this guy out, but instead she let him go. But not before she was going to make it clear why he should mess with her. Staring into his eyes, she said, “Look at me right here and right now. Do you know who I am? I’m the Element of bucking Loyalty! And if there is one thing in this world that you should never do, if you want to see the light of day again, is hurt my friends, much less kill them! Mess with any of them, including Applejack, and I’ll have no qualms getting back at you, and that means even ending you,” she growled. “That’s right. I have no problem getting blood on my hooves or breaking whatever laws because I would rather die than see them hurt. I will drag your sorry flank as high as I can in the air and drop you, just to hear you scream as you get closer and closer to the ground. And I will be there for you to beg and plead for me to save you... but I will not. And just before you hit that sweet earth, your body parts nothing more than a mess, you will look at me and realize that you shouldn’t have messed with somepony I care about. And I will not cry, I will have no regrets, I will not even give you a second thought before I spit at your corpse and leave you for the bugs to feast on. Understand? Leave my friend alone!” Rainbow Dash didn’t even give a second look at McShady before she rushed to where they were taking Applejack. *** Uh, Ah feel sick... muttered Applejack as she slowly opened her eyes, the sight of a room filled with jars of medicine, operating tools, and beds confused her. Looking to her left, she weakly lifted herself up, but was soon pushed down by a hoof. “Don’t get up. Ya haven’t fully recovered yet,” muttered the doctor pony as he took her hoof and started checking her pulse. “W-water...” muttered Applejack, desperately. Her pleas were soon heard as the doctor let her lips suck on a straw sitting in a cup of cool, clear fluid. She sucked the whole thing dry before she smacked her lips and moaned. “What... happened?” “A snake was found in the mud, and it bit ya right on the flank. We managed to cure ya, but Ah’m sorry to say that yer body is gonna take a bit longer to recover,” he answered. Applejack could feel her stomach clench up upon learning how close she had come to death, but an even greater fear entered her mind. “Will Ah... compete?” Her hopes were squashed when the doctor shook his head. “Ah’m sorry, darlin’, but yer too weak to go out there and wrestle with the rest of them. Ah’ve no choice but to tell them judges yer out.” Applejack closed her eyes and let out a sorrowful sigh. She was out of the rodeo. Her one chance to save Cherry’s farm, and she was out. She failed her. She failed a good friend. A part of Applejack wanted to shed a tear, but she felt weak enough as it was. Crying wasn’t gonna solve anything. The doctor patted her on the shoulder for comfort before saying, “Cheer up youngin’, there is always next year. And ya should be glad to be alive at all. Good thing yer friend was there to help ya out.” “Rainbow Dash...” whispered Applejack as she began to feel her tiredness return. Rainbow Dash was the only one left who could win the contest. She was the only that could save Cherry’s farm. She smiled, knowing there was still hope. Dash would give everything, a hundred and twenty percent to win this contest not just for Cherry, but for Applejack as well. “Get some rest, darlin’,” said the doctor. “Ah’ll tell yer friend that yer okay.” Applejack weakly nodded before she closed her eyes, her mind still on Rainbow Dash. *** Rainbow Dash was already at the door the moment she heard it unlock, and waited with halted breath. Despite her attempts to get in, the doctor had strictly told her that she was to remain outside while he did his work so she paced for what had to be almost an hour, not knowing the condition of her best friend. She had faith that Applejack would push through, she was the strongest pony that Dash knew besides herself. But even a pony as confident and sure as herself sometimes had doubts that lingered in the back of her mind. The doctor looked at her with a comforting smile and nodded. “She’s gonna be okay. Just needs some rest.” Rainbow Dash sighed in relief before asking, “Can I see her?” The doctor nodded before allowing her to enter where she saw Applejack, sleeping peacefully as if she had a long hard day of apple bucking. Sitting next to the bed, she smiled and slowly pushed away a few strains of Applejack’s mane off her face, allowing her to see her better. The doctor excused himself, which Rainbow Dash was grateful for as she took one of her hooves in her own and held tight, tears threatening to break in her eyes. She was really glad Applejack was asleep. She hated shedding tears in front of others. “Hey, AJ, I don’t know if you can hear me... but I’m glad your okay,” whispered Rainbow Dash, smiling. “You really gave me quite the scare there. A part of me wants to buck you good for nearly kicking the bucket from that snake bite, but I don’t think that would help in this situation, huh?” She chuckled a bit before frowning and closed her eyes. “I’m going to win this one for you, Applejack. I’ll save Cherry’s farm, and then we’ll end this vacation with a party. Some good old cider, and dancing, too. Then we’ll go home and tell the gang about this, and have an even bigger party that Pinkie will want to set up for us.” She leaned forward and smiled. “So get better, okay? And root for me. I’ll be back soon.” Rainbow Dash got up and made her way to the door, ready to open it. Her hoof was on the handle when she heard moaning nearby and quickly turned around to see Applejack squirming in her bed a bit. “Rainbow...” Dash made an effort to move, but she froze when she heard what came next from Applejack’s lips. “... Ah love you...” Never before had Rainbow Dash’s jaw drop lower than it did at that point in time. A small gasp escaped her throat while her cheeks turned pinkish like tulips. At first she thought her ears and mind were playing tricks on her, but she knew she heard correctly. Her best friend, her rival, was in love with her. Is that why she choose me? How long as she felt like this? Why me? thought Rainbow Dash as more and more questions started to form in her head. She glanced at the clock and shook her head, remembering that the contest was still going on. Pushing aside this newest revelation away in the back of her mind for now, Rainbow Dash quickly exited the room and rushed to get back onto the field with her heart skipping with each step. *** Rainbow Dash had made it back into the stadium at record time. While Applejack’s “confession” still lingered in her mind, she knew that the most important thing to do right now was concentrate on the next task—a task that she had been waiting for. It was now time for the freestyle performance part of the competition, where each competitor performed anything as long as it was a display of athletic performance. Best of all? Wings were allowed. And that’s all Rainbow Dash needed. It was a good thing that the stadium was an open roof; that allowed her more space for some of her more daring tricks. One by one she watched the other competition do various acts such as rope lassoing, acrobatics, juggling, and more. There was even one earth pony who managed to show off some pretty mean dancing moves that had the crowd eating him up for a long time. Then it was his turn. McShady. The crowd grew real quiet all of a sudden, even the other contestants who watched with wide yet frightened eyes. It wasn’t until she saw what he was packing did Rainbow Dash understand why. Holstered next to his hip were two pistols, just like the fake ones she had gotten from that costume store earlier, that were huge, black, and had a green snake painted on the barrels. Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but shiver in her feathers. Real guns were a rarity out in Equestria, with only a few ponies carrying them: mostly law enforcement, collectors, or really tough criminals. Otherwise, they were just plastic toys used for games and such. Rumors had it that Princess Celestia had been considering using them for the military just like the griffins had done for over a hundred years now, a decision that had many ponies split on opinion. She had heard many rumors about them, how they could kill a living being in a split second, and pierce straight through diamonds. Now she was gonna have a chance to look at them in action. Duke McShady calmly walked up to the center of the stadium while his assistants, the three bozos she and AJ beat earlier in the day, were setting up stands with glass jars and silver plates. The big one, Crack-A-Barrell, put up a suit of armor that was worn by the royal guard which made Dash snort. She had seen her dad’s old armor and fired his old crossbow against it, there was barely any dent. No way it’s gonna even make a crack, thought Rainbow Dash. A buzzer sounded, and before Rainbow Dash knew it, it was already over. His hooves were like lightning as he drew both pistols and spun around. Loud cracks firing in the air that made Rainbow Dash jump more the once; She was sure others had as well. The jars and plates all explode without warning, their debris raining upon the ground. McShady then turned toward the suit of armor, and finished of the remaining ammunition he had by firing bullet after bullet into the metal. The loud sounds of the piercing armor were loud enough to wake the dead. When it was over, McShady put his guns away and smirked like he had just won the lottery.. The three goons each took the armor and dragged it over to the judges for inspection. Rainbow Dash, unable to ease her curiosity, slowly made her way close enough for a better look. What she saw made her turn stone cold. There were six holes in the armor, clean through like it was swiss cheese. There were two in the shoulder guards, three in the chest cover, and one in the helmet. If there had been a guard in there, he would have been dead six times over. Rainbow Dash couldn’t believe how strong, and dangerous, the power of a gun was. Not to mention McShady. He had fired those things like lightning, never once batting an eye. It only made Dash want to be even more cautious of him, lest she have an open hole in her head.   Unsurprisingly, the judges gave him a high score which made Rainbow Dash growl. She would have to give them something they had never seen before if she was gonna impress them. And there was only one move that could do it. An assistant walked over and undid the ropes holding her wings back, a feeling of release that Dash greatly missed. After a few stretches to prepare herself, she flew towards the center of the stadium and prepared for lift off. After the count of three in her head, she was already off. The familiar sense of adrenaline coursed through the pegasus’s veins, bringing a smile to her lips as she sailed high into the sky.  Her cyan wings beating with every heartbeat as she left behind her signature rainbow streak, the crowd chattering in amazement at the sheer speed behind her. The air started to get cooler as she rose higher and higher, performing a few twirls and corkscrews for show. Gathering her thoughts, Dash began her stunt by slowing down, letting herself stall until she hung in the air like a small, sky-blue cloud.  Gravity then tugged her gently as she turned her body towards the ground.  The consistent downward pull assisted in Dash’s ever-accelerating dive as her colorful tail streamed out behind her.  Before her fall could terminate in a bone-shattering crunch, the pegasus flared her wings and turned her diving dip into a blazingly rapid glide. The crowd gasped in shock, thinking it was the end for her in a messy doom, but cheered once they had seen her rise above at the last second. Rainbow flew dangerously close to the ground, to the point where her furry stomach was inches away from touching the dirt and rock covered ground.  Excitement began to swell up within Rainbow Dash as she focused on her second task. She then shot straight back up into the sky, right past three sets of clouds on her way, leaving them as holey as donuts. Flying higher than before, Dash found a nearby cloud, and started to circle it.  The nebulous white mass moved slowly at first, but the powerful winds dragged in by her wake pulled irresistibly at the cloud.  While Rainbow Dash circled around it even faster, the billowing cloud became a spinning top. Her nerves thrummed with a growing sense of confidence as Dash accelerated again. By this point, a rainbow-colored blur was all the audience could see. Rainbow Dash could feel the energy pulsing inside of her as she broke away from the cloud. After performing one more flip, Dash let it all loose by diving downwards with her wings completely flat and her body poised like an arrow. A mach cone began to form in front of her, signaling the start of the stunt. All she had to do now was resist its attempts to stop her and resist. A determined smile slowly began to spread on the face of the diving pegasus, who could feel it in her heart that success was finally in her grasp. Pressing herself against the funnel, Dash started to push down with all her might. It started to get wider and wider, all the while exerting a strong front against her. As she approached the ground, the cyan pegasus could feel the barrier slowly breaking, the stored energy ready to be unleashed. A huge explosion of rainbows and energy rings erupted right above the stadium, and over the town could see it happen. Many outside wondered what it was they were seeing. Rainbow Dash conditioned her fly around the entire town, dragging the rainbow streak behind her until she was able to cover the whole town with it, a feasible feat for her at her speed. Everypony who saw this felt a joyous wonder in their heart. Some cried, others smiled larger than they ever had in life. The Sonic Rainboom, Dash’s ultimate technique, had been introduced to the good ponies of Dodge Junction and they fell in love with it instantly. Generations from now, the story of such a tale would be told to each child, and they in turn telling their children of the tale. The tale of such a feat that no other founder's day ever had. Feeling the juice inside her running out, Rainbow Dash made a beeline for the stadium, and landed perfectly with a proud look on her face as her wings flared out. She was met with an entire audience of cheers. Everypony was clapping, stomping, cheering, and hollering for Rainbow Dash. Even the other contestants, judges, and security staff were up in celebration. Rainbow bowed as flowers were thrown at her very hooves before smiling in triumph as the judges gave her a perfect score, making her first place in the entire running. She looked around to see if she could find that snake McShady, but he was no where to be seen. Probably cut his losses, and went home with his tail between his legs. Finished with her performance, Rainbow Dash went back to the line of contestants who came to congratulate her one by one. After the announcement of the points, which got Rainbow Dash another round of cheers, it was announced that the final contest would be held tomorrow. Rainbow Dash didn’t mind as she was eager to check up on Applejack. After the final dismissal, Rainbow Dash rushed as fast as she could towards the medical wing of the stadium. She prayed Applejack was awake so she could tell her the good news. When she arrived, however, there was nopony there but the doctor. “Hey, doc? Where’s AJ? Where is my mare.. uh, my friend?” asked Rainbow Dash. The doctor shook his head in confusion. “Ah don’t know! Ah looked for yer friend, but she was gone! Ah’m afraid she’s missin’!”