Deep in the heart of the Everfree Venom was far from pleased. Her whole plan that day was perfect! The dam would be damaged and Mare-Do-Well would appear. She would try and fix the dam but then she would be attacked by Venom who would then keep her tied to a nearby tree. She would then fly off and fix the dam and nopony would ever care for that upstart little nag. But…. then something happened. She couldn’t understand why it happened or who forced her but she found Twilight wearing a Mare-Do-Well outfit and appeared at the dam meant for her.
No it wasn’t meant for her! It was meant for Mare-Do-Well and by our honor We will find the bitch who forced Twilight into that get up and RIP HER TO SHREDS! She told herself as she tried calming down to no avail. Slash some trees? She’s done enough to make a lumberjack jealous. Fight a random creature? There was no point since her anger would more or less come back tenfold. So naturally she tried some breathing exercises that Fluttershy taught her a while back. Her anger was soothed for a bit but then she and the suit had a little…. chat.
‘We fail to see what the problem is Rainbow. You wanted vengeance on Mare-Do-Well and you almost had it. Why did you stop when you had her in your grasp?’ The symbiote asked in an irritated voice in her mind.
‘That’s because you haven’t met them! Twilight is one of my closest friends in Equestria! I-I can’t just hurt her like I was going to hurt Mare-Do-Well! That’s wrong! It’s clearly Mare-Do-Well trying to mess with me… That’s it! She knew I’d want payback, so she must have forced Twilight to dress up like her! It’s the only thing that makes sense! But, how far does this go? Who else does she have working for her?! I DON’T KNOW WHO I CAN TRUST! EYES ARE EVERYWHERE! EVERYWHERE! Rainbow yelled in her head as Venom roared in pain and grabbed her head with her hooves in an attempt to stop her splitting headache.
‘Have you ever considered the fact that maybe, just MAYBE-
‘Don’t you dare finish that sentence! She wouldn’t do that! THEY WOULDN’T DO THAT TO ME! THEY KNOW ME ENOUGH TO KNOW THAT I CAN HANDLE THINGS ON MY OWN!’ Rainbow said as she cried a little ‘I’m not the helpless filly I was back then…. I can save ponies….. I do it for Blitz. She said as the memory came back to her. Her flying in the sky as a small red colt was staring at her in awe and admiration at what she did. Then the colt was falling. The last thing she remembered was the body covered by a white sheet…. the tiny frail body. She was snapped out of her stupor when she heard the sound of cheering coming from Ponyville. Having raged as she did led Venom near to Ponyville and soon she saw the town preparing to celebrate it’s new hero. Mare-Do-Well. “Well… We hope they brought flowers because today…. today we END Mare-Do-Well. Venom said as one of her tendrils slashed a tree in half. She didn’t even notice that during her little walk she was leaving a small little trail of tears.
Ponyville was all excited the next morning as it prepared it’s parade for their town hero, The Mysterious Mare-Do-Well, and everypony was excited…. except for five of them. Twilight Sparkle and her four friends were watching them through her library window and just sulking about. They never wanted this attention in the first place at all. All they wanted to do was to show their friend Rainbow that, while it was great to be a hero, she didn’t need all the attention going to her head either. The plan, it appears, to have backfired on them as not only did the whole of Ponyville practically worship Mare-Do-Well but it seemed to have enraged their friend Rainbow to the point of being a recluse.
Now Mare-Do-Well became such a popular character that any thing they did as her seemed to have been nothing more than a iconic moment to the town. Twilight sighed as she turned towards her friends.
“Alright girls, the parade is going to be in an hour. We’ll all need to be around just in case something happens.” Twilight said as she donned her mask.
“What in tarnation could happen at a parade Twi?” Applejack asked, leaning against the wall.
“A lot of things Applejack.” Twilight said blankly, as recalled the black creature running it’s slimy tongue across her mask. She shivered as she then teleported to a nearby rooftop.
Pinkie Pie quickly made her way to the stage at the start of the parade, waving to the crowd. Suddenly a black tendril yanked her away from her adoring public and into a dark alleyway. Pinkie soon tore the tendril off and tried to see who it was that grabbed her but couldn't so instead she relied on her Pinkie Sense. When her strange sixth sense couldn't pick up anypony she lowered her guard. This was a mistake as she turned and saw a black hoof punch her straight into a wall. She tried getting up but the debris kept her pinned as the form of a huge pony loomed over her with a crooked smile but….. it didn’t seem happy.
"W-We have to be sure." A strange voice told Pinkie before she lost consciousness. Venom slipped the mask off… and a growl of rage vibrated through her.
“How deep does this bucking thing go?! Don’t worry Pinkie Pie, we’ll make sure Mare-Do-Well never hurts you again.”
The citizens of Ponyville were in a panic as they tried to find a trace of their lost hero but what they didn't notice was that two ponies were also looking for the missing pony as well.
"Land sakes alive where is she?" Applejack asked Twilight under her mask but noticed that Twilight seemed to be staring at something. Before she could ask just what she was staring at they heard a loud roar of anger.
“MARE-DO-WELL! WHERE ARE YOU COWARD?!” A loud booming voice called out. Many ponies looked around for the source of the voice before a giant pony landed on the pedestal Mare-Do-Well once stood at. They all stared in utter shock as they saw the giant ebony black creature. It had a strange white spider symbol on it’s chest, it’s eyes were demonic in appearance, and it’s face had a permanent smile with fangs sticking out and a long tongue that was covered in green saliva which lashed every way that it could. “Oh Mare-Do-Well! Where are you?!” The creature asked with anger and hate dripping from it’s voice.
“Come on! OLLY OLLY OXEN BITCH!” Venom roared at nopony in general. When silence was all that answered her Venom just growled and reached a tendril down the same alleyway it appeared from. “Fine but just so you know…. We know what you’re doing. Using our friends against us but We’re on to you.” It growled as the tendril returned to reveal Pinkie Pie in a Mare-Do-Well costume to the whole town. Everypony stared in shock at who the pony in the suit was but Venom was just getting started. “You call yourself a hero? You couldn’t do anything on your own. Instead you used cheap parlor tricks and forced other ponies to do your so-called heroics. But now your lie has been exposed! Pinkie is not the first I’ve uncovered. Twilight Sparkle has also been brainwashed by this lying pony you ALL had the GALL to call a hero!” Venom snarled. Twilight just stared in shock.
That creature actually AVOIDED Pinkie’s sixth sense? I-it doesn’t make sense! Twilight thought to herself.
”Follow that cold shiver running up your spine…” Venom said as she looked at the towns ponies. “Let it be known that as of today. Mare-Do-Well is no longer this town’s hero. WE are. If anypony at all is discovered having harbor this…. deceiver. We will know.” Venom said as it started to walk off only for a rock to hit the side of her head.
Venom looked to see none other than Fluttershy with a look that told her the Stare was about to come out.
‘Okay… maybe I better get out of here now. If Fluttershy’s doing this kinda stuff then yeah, probably crossed a few lines’ Rainbow Dash thought as she quickly beat a hasty retreat.
‘Why did you leave?! We had them enthralled like passive sheep!’ The symbiote hissed from in her mind. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes under the living mask.
‘You can look into my memories, take a gander at Fluttershy when she’s mad’ Rainbow Dash mentally responded. The symbiote did so… And went deathly quiet for a few long moments.
‘You made the right call’ The symbiote finally said. ‘But you do realize this means she has Fluttershy as well correct?’
‘I know but that doesn’t explain why she’s mad. She only gets that way if one of my friends is in danger.’
‘Yet you think that they have nothing to do with Mare-Do-Well?’
The air was moist as the two combatants faced each other. The hippogriff stared down the Hydra as he sliced one head off with a sword, then another, then another. Finally the beast was dead
“That was it? Bah! I was lead to believe this monster t’would be a challenge!” The hippogriff said as he began to leave the swamp. Suddenly a loud roar erupted behind him, causing him to swing around in surprise at the source of the noise. He saw many more snake-like heads twisting around and snarling at him.
“What is that saying again? Careful what you wish for?”
“Hey mister, you alright?” A small voice called out, as a hippogriff wearing a lion skin was snapped from his thoughts. He turned to see three small fillies, a pegasus, unicorn, and earth pony with a large red bow in her mane, looking up at him.
“Ah, yes young ones. I was merely lost in thought.” The hippogriff said as he looked back at the movie poster which read “Night of The Hydra” and depicted the legendary beast attacking a pair of helpless ponies.
As Rainbow Dash trotted through Ponyville she stopped at Sugarcube Corner to get a snack before heading home. As she entered a large muscular stallion, about as large as Big Macintosh, almost immediately appeared next to her.
“Hey there little lady. How’s about we blow this pop-stand and go get us some quality hay burgers? I know of a place down the road.” The stallion said in a voice that sounded very much like the legendary King of Rock and Roll himself. He was a golden stallion with a large blond pompadour for a mane and wore a pair of black sunglasses and a black t-shirt, with his cutie mark being a black comb.
“Look I was just gonna…” Rainbow Dash started, but was cut off when a hoof touched her mouth.
“Shush! I know you want to runaway with me, but it’s so sudden! Then again, I am studly so take me pretty mama!” The stallion said, practically jumping on Dash, who caught him. If it wasn’t for the symbiote increasing her strength they would have both tumbled over.
“Alright creep, hit the road!” Rainbow said as she threw the stallion out of the store. As she turned around the stallion was again in front of her somehow.
“Oh mama! I love a girl with spunk.” The stallion said, completely oblivious to the fact Rainbow Dash had literally just thrown him out of the place as a means to be rid of him.
“I didn’t introduce myself before. The name’s Bravo… HUH…. Jolter Bravo.” The stallion introduced himself, pausing to flex his muscles in the middle of his introduction.
“Look I tried to be nice but…” Rainbow Dash then decked the obnoxious stallion in the face, knocking him over.
“Whatever.” Was all the stallion said as he laid on the ground before losing consciousness.
‘Idiot.’ The Symbiote said in Rainbow’s mind who silently agreed. A moment later she walked into the store when a pair of lavender hooves automatically wrapped around her neck in a tight hug.
“Rainbow! Oh thank Faust you have no idea how glad we are you’re alive!” Twilight exclaimed as she hugged Rainbow.
“Yeah I’m fine, Venom totally saved my flank back there though. Lucky we have such an awesome hero around am I right?” Rainbow Dash said, raising her hoof for a high-hoof, but received a confused expression from Twilight, and the others present.
“Venom saved you? How… and for that matter why? She’s a supervillain isn’t she?” Twilight said as she tried to wrap her head around what the cyan pegasus had said.
“Super… What?! She totally saved me! She… uh… Yanked me down when I was about to hit a helicopter! Yeah, that’s it…” Rainbow Dash said, quickly going over her story in her mind to make sure it made sense. Nodding to herself quickly when she was sure, she looked to see that her friends weren’t really convinced.
“Are ya sure it was Venom? What about that other new hero that’s been runnin’ round town? Uh… Spider-Mare I think her name was? Yeah.” Applejack said as she remembered reading about a similarly costumed character.
“Spider-Mare?! No way! That loser is all the way in Manehattan!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, looking almost insulted at the mix up.
“Whoa there sugracube. Ah was only makin’ a suggestion that’s all.” Applejack said as she threw her hooves up in defense.
“Anyway, all I know is Venom saved me so she’s a hero!” Rainbow Dash insisted for the third time, but she was still met with unsure looks.
“That’s like saying that just because a bee didn’t sting you it did it on purpose. Venom is a maniac at best and a monster at worse. You saw what she did today Rainbow! She may have saved you, but to me all that does is prove she’s incredibly unbalanced.” Twilight said in an analytical tone which seemed to make Rainbow Dash glare at her a bit.
‘Stay cool Rainbow, stay cool. If I put up too much of a fight about this they’ll think something’s up. Just gotta do more heroic stuff as Venom and then they’ll see!’
Meanwhile deep in the Everfree Forest, a sinister slime stealthily slithered across the swampy ground. It flowed from a deceased timberwolf, and searched with a predatory lust for new prey. It came across a chicken and latched on… Quickly discovering it was no chicken but instead a cocatrice, but it was not picky. This would do for the time being… it would do rather nicely. Suddenly it heard a loud rumble from a large cave, sounding very much like snoring, with a small bit of fire coming from it. The creature wriggled in excitement… a fine host this mysterious creature would make indeed.
Deciding to put the unpleasantness of the day behind her, Rainbow Dash swung by the Golden Oaks Library to pick up a few new comic books to do a little unwinding and figure out the best approaches she should take on her heroic endeavours. Before she could begin her search she ran into a young dragon that was very familiar to her. “Hey Spike.”
“Dovahkiin, Dovahkiin, naal ok zin los varhiin…” Spike sang to himself as he dusted the library.
“Uh, Spike? You okay? What’s with the Martian speak?” Rainbow Dash asked as Spike noticed her.
“Oh, hi Rainbow Dash! That wasn’t Martian, it was Dragon, I picked up a lot of it when I went on the dragon migration last month.” Spike said as he continued dusting.
“Okay… so was that some kinda song or…” Rainbow Dash asked, only having been able to tell that Spike had been singing, but the foreign tongue having caused her to not understand the meaning of the lyrics.
“Yeah it’s a song, The Dragonborn Comes. It’s about this really cool legendary dragon!” Spike said enthusiastically as Rainbow raised an eyebrow in curiosity.
“Legendary dragon huh?” The pegasus asked as Spike ran to get a rather old book from the back of the library.
“Here we go, one complete thesaurus of ancient legends of the world.” The drake said as he turned the pages of the book to a particular one. It depicted a rather small dragon, at least small compared to most dragons she had seen, wearing armor with a large sword in its claw and a helmet that went down on its face like a mask with two horns bent downward on either side. In front of it was a gigantic ebony dragon, with piercing red eyes that was breathing fire at it.
“Legend says that the Dragonborn is chosen by the Divine Dragon Akatosh to battle Alduin, the World Eater and his army of Ancient Dragons. The Dragonborn is known for his ability to use the Thu’um.” Spike read from the book as Rainbow stopped him once he reached the last word of the paragraph he was reading from.
“Thu’um, what the hay is that?” Rainbow Dash asked as Spike looked up from the book and at her.
“Thu’um is the Dragon word for shout, but can also be translated as ‘storm voice.’ It’s an ancient form of Dragon magic that takes hundreds and hundreds of years to master, but the Dragonborn is unique in that he can master it in only a few days.” Spike read on, with Rainbow Dash growing more and more intrigued.
“But the Dragonborn has yet to defeat Alduin permanently and so every few thousand years or so, Alduin will return with his army and the Dragonborn will be reborn into a new dragon chosen by Akatosh himself.” Spike finished reading as Rainbow Dash thought carefully about the legend. She didn’t believe a word of it, just chalking it up to a simple fairy tale that dragons probably told their hatchlings, but it did give her the answer she was looking for.
‘If I’m gonna prove I’m a hero… I gotta do something great like that! I gotta be all mythological, find me a big monster threatening some ponies and beat the living crap out of it!’ She thought smiling deviously as her teeth began to sharpen, which Spike noticed.
“Uh, Rainbow? Something wrong with your teeth?” The dragon asked, as Rainbow stopped smiling and rushed out the door.
“See ya later Spike!” She yelled out as she exited in a hurry, leaving Spike very confused.