Rainbow Dash Around the World

by MagicS

Dice Roll

Two die rolled out of Rainbow’s blue outstretched hoof and onto the green felt of the Craps table, they tumbled down its length before colliding with the end of the table and coming to a stop. All eyes of the ponies surrounding the table were glued to the small dots on the face up sides of the die. Chips were piled up at numerous spaces, their destiny tied to the roll of the dice. A lot of money was riding on this single roll. On every roll.

A four and a three.

“Lucky seven!” The dealer exclaimed exuberantly as he moved his rake to gather up the dice for Rainbow Dash while most of the crowd cheered around him.

Lots of winners on that roll.

Barnaby looked over at the grinning Rainbow Dash with a surprised look on his face. “And you’re sure you’ve never played this before?”

“Pretty sure.”

“How?” He wondered aloud as he scratched his head beneath his helmet. “How do you win on every single roll? Is it just beginner’s luck?”

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “That’s just how it is when I play games like this. I never lose.”

“The casino might end up getting suspicious and kicking us out at some point then...”

“Bunch of sore losers if they do,” Rainbow snorted. She grabbed the dice but instead of throwing them again she passed them along to the next shooter. “Here you go, pal. See if your luck is as good as mine.” It probably wouldn’t be and all the other gamblers at the table groaned in disappointment as their meal ticket left.

The casino of Copper Section was pretty large, as large as the main building of Las Pegasus’s resort and much bigger than the small casino she had briefly visited in the Metal Mountain earlier on her journey. Dozens of tables for all kinds of different games and hundreds of rows and circles of slot machines filled it up while mares and stallions from all trots of life came to hopefully make a fortune and not just throw their money down the drain. Mares and stallions in pin-striped uniforms worked as dealers or waiters/waitresses bringing drinks around to ponies in the casino. Free of charge of course, they wanted to give you a reason to stay. All in all it led to a cacophony of ringing noise and beeping from the machines as slots rolled and from ponies as they threw everything on the line.

To Rainbow Dash it was just a fun place to be right now.

She walked up to one of the slots and Barnaby offered her a coin to put in. Rainbow Dash pulled the lever and watched as it spun and spun until all three wheels stopped and showed her a gold bar. A celebratory ring came from the machine and dozens of coins fell out into the tray at the bottom of it. When Barnaby gave her a questioning look, all Rainbow Dash could do is shrug.

“I’m just a lucky pony. Watch me play poker, I’ll get a Royal Flush.”

“Do you mind if I put down a lot of money on you? I could use to make some extra cash,” Barnaby said.

Rainbow Dash just laughed. “Go right ahead. Hay, put your life savings on the table. I may lose a hoof or two but I always come out ahead.” She grinned at him. “Thanks for bringing me here, needed something a little more exciting lately.”

“Well that goes for me too. And after some of the stories you’ve told I figured you’d enjoy this place, even if you didn’t play any games or do some gambling of your own I thought someplace lively would do you a lot of good,” Barnaby said.

“And it does,” Rainbow nodded. She looked at the coins that had come out of the slot machine. “I don’t really need any of this so you can keep it, or we can just give it to somepony else.”

Barnaby coughed into his hoof. “Let uh, let me get a bag...”

“Yeah, you do that,” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and wandered over to some of the other tables where they had Poker, Blackjack, Baccarat and Roulette. She didn’t even know how Baccarat was played but she figured she’d probably win anyways even if she tried it, or if she put some random chips down on the Roulette table.

Maybe I should get into gambling when I go back home? Rainbow thought. Totally an easy way to make some extra bits.

She saw an open spot at a Poker table and hopped on, waiting for Barnaby to get back since she wasn’t carrying any chips or money on her. The ponies at the table were obviously a bit surprised to see their new arrival but Rainbow Dash just gave them an easy grin. “I’ll join in on the next hoof, you guys play another round first, then you can go back home bragging about how you got to play a game of Poker with the Rainbow Dash.”

That got a round of smiles and laughter from the others and shortly after Barnaby came back and found her. He stood behind her while Rainbow Dash traded in some of his newly obtained coins for chips to play with. After that it was just easy as pie for Rainbow. Ugh, not pie, make it cake.

Rainbow Dash cracked her hooves and casually sat back as five cards were dealt to her. So it wasn’t the same kind of Poker she had played back at the Metal Mountain, this was just standard 5 card Poker. You could still bluff easily enough but you didn’t have any guesses as to the possible hooves that the other players might have. No problem for Rainbow, she’d still just win it all anyways. She picked up her cards and made sure to hold them close to her so nopony but her and Barnaby looking over her shoulder could see them.

Queen of Hearts, 5 of Diamonds, 5 of Spades, Queen of Diamonds, 2 of Diamonds.

Barnaby rolled his eyes.

---

After a few quick hooves, Rainbow Dash was pretty much surrounded by piles of chips. The table was like a revolving door of gamblers now who came to play with her and fill in the spots of those who didn’t want to lose anymore. The whole time Barnaby was just shaking his head in disbelief.

“How do you get drawn four Kings? How?!” He pulled at his mane.

“I dunno, dude. I’m just awesome like that,” Rainbow shrugged and got ready for the next hoof.

“I wish I had your luck,” he grumbled.

“There’s not enough spare luck in the world for that,” she winked at him.

Five cards quickly came at her and Rainbow Dash held them up to find three 10’s a 7, and a 2. Rainbow Dash discarded everything except for the 2. Barnaby shot her a befuddled expression but Rainbow Dash completely ignored him for now and called all the bets placed by the other players. Her four replacement cards then came.

2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

Barnaby’s eye twitched.

None of the other hooves on the table could beat the Straight and Rainbow Dash once again took the pot. That was the end for her, she had won enough at Poker.

“Alright, hope you all had fun!” Rainbow Dash said with a big smile on her face. “Whoever wants these chips can take em!” She said and quickly hopped out of the chair while the ravenous crowd around her all dove for the small fortune.

“Uhh, perhaps there was a better way to give those away,” Barnaby said as he walked away with Rainbow.

“Maybe. Anyways, gotta find something else to kick butt at in here,” Rainbow said, looking around the floor of the casino. “You got any games or sports to bet on?”

“Not the season for anything like that,” Barnaby shook his head.

“Guess I could just pull a few more levers and make you rich...” Rainbow considered.

Barnaby coughed. “Ahem, well, while I appreciate the sentiment I’m not sure how I feel about using your supernatural luck to essentially scam the casino.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Oh come on, it’s not stealing. And this is a casino, they’ll be fine.”

“Still, I think the amount you’ve already won for me is decent enough. I mostly prefer to work for my money,” Barnaby said.

“You and Applejack would get along great,” Rainbow laughed.

Something else caught her eye then, and it wasn’t a table. Rainbow Dash walked right over to a mare carrying a tray of drinks and caught her attention. “Yo! Once you’re done hoofing those out, bring me back something tasty!”

“Of course, Miss diplomat,” the mare smiled and walked away to finish delivering her drinks.

Rainbow Dash watched her go, quietly, and then turned to Barnaby. “I still feel weird being called that. Especially since I’m not really doing much diplomatic stuff. I’m just doing whatever I want, really. Having fun and stuff. I wish I could ask Twilight or the Princesses right now and get some advice on what they would do in my situation.”

“Considering I’ve essentially conscripted you into my own business I don’t exactly think you should be blaming yourself,” Barnaby said.

“If I really wanted to though I could refuse, nothing stops me from doing what I want, if I wanted to be a real diplomat and really give my all to making friends with this place and connecting you to Equestria I could have… but I went along with you cause it was more fun,” Rainbow sighed.

“Hasn’t been very fun at all though,” Barnaby gave a short, mocking laugh.

“Whatever,” Rainbow said and sat down at a small table in a lounge area of the casino, waiting for her drink.

“We’ll get Lord Copper though,” Barnaby said as he sat down with her. “We definitely will.”

“If he really is the mastermind. Honestly after meeting him a couple of times he seems too dumb to be the pony that could threaten Dolph and the others so much that they wouldn’t dare speak out against him,” Rainbow said.

“They didn’t know him personally. Probably not at least. They just knew about his power and had likely heard bad rumors. That’s all he needed. I’m still sure it’s all him,” Barnaby frowned.

“Would make things simpler. And I don’t think that stooge is capable of being too much of a threat, but he might do something stupid,” Rainbow shrugged. “The two of us will take him down the moment he tries anything.”

The waitress then came back with Rainbow’s drink, a white cocktail of some sort with a mint leaf stuck on the top. Rainbow had to admit that it tasted pretty darn good. She looked across the small table at Barnaby and shot him a questioning glance.

“Did you want anything?”

“No, no, I’m fine like this. Just thinking.”

Rainbow Dash look out across the casino at everypony gambling and having a good time inside the exciting venue. “Me too I guess.”

---

Lord Copper crumpled up a piece of paper and angrily threw it off his desk before slamming his hooves down. “Why? Why did things have to go so terribly? It’s all Barnaby and that stupid pegasus’s fault! Things would be done already if it wasn’t for them!”

He fumed and sat back in his seat before swiveling his chair around and staring out the window. This new temporary office he was using didn’t have near the same view his old one did, but that had been a necessary sacrifice. He had been backed into a corner with no other options other than try his best to shift suspicion from himself and appear to be a victim as well. It worked temporarily but in the aftermath he had been cut off from his most important resource and ever since he’d been trying to come up with a new plan to work around it or somehow get his hooves on TNT again.

It hadn’t been going well, as evidenced by his current frustration.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid… I can’t believe I’ve been reduced to this!” Lord Copper growled. “Oreville should be sitting in my hooves.” He turned and knocked everything else off his desk in a rage aside from his intercom. “There isn’t anything else I can do, I need that TNT. It doesn’t matter what problems it may cause—if I can just get my plan rolling again everything will turn out fine.”

He bit his hoof as he mulled the idea over in his head. It wasn’t a new idea, it was a last resort he only wanted to do if he couldn’t come up with anything better. Which unfortunately he hadn’t been able to. It was a risky gamble he was about to set into motion but it was all he had.

Lord Copper took a deep breath and stared at his intercom before bringing a shaking hoof to it and buzzing his secretary.

“Yes, Lord Copper? Is there something you need?”

He swallowed. “Could you contact my chief of security and have him bring both his A-squad and my special guests to my office? He’ll know what that all means.”

“Yes, my lord, right away!”

The intercom buzzed off as soon as he removed his hoof and Lord Copper sat back in his chair, trying not to sweat. There was no turning back now with this decision. By tomorrow, no matter how it turned out, it would all be over. He clasped his hooves together and let out a slow breath, wishing that he had a cup of coffee or at the very least some water to drink.

Comments

[THERDSTORYWHISPERER]

Great chapters!

[redmar]

It seems that Lord Copper is panning a gamble that he will lose. His attempt to shift away suspicion would never have prevented the inreased security at the warehouses something he clearly didn't think about.

[TheCommunistDog]

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In today’s chapter:Rainbow shows us why everything always goes wrong around her.