Flamebow Dash

All was peaceful in Ponyville, its inhabitants just now waking to the rising sun. One particular pony was fast asleep in the clouds, her rainbow colored mane blowing gently in the wind. As the sun rose over the clouds, its bright rays hit the pony in the face, causing one eye to squint open. Sitting up, the pony stretched her wings and shook the kinks out of her body.

"Okay, Rainbow Dash! Today is the day!" The young Pegasus exclaimed, trying to bolster her confidence.

Recently, just about every pony has begun to ignore poor Rainbow Dash, even Fluttershy, the friendliest of all the ponies of Ponyville. She'd had dreams - exciting dreams - of joining the Wonderbolts and impressing them with her Sonic Rainboom. It was unusual for a pegasus to be able to do one of those and she'd been revered for a while after she'd achieved her second one, but it hadn't lasted. The Mysterious Mare Do Well had appeared and, even though she'd turned out not to be real, she'd stolen Dash's thunder.

One thing was very clear to Rainbow Dash: she needed to steal that thunder back!

The previous day while trying to come up with ways to get them talking about her again, she came across a flyer right outside of Ponyville, describing a bounty for whoever got rid of the dragon in the nearby mountains.

"A dragon, you say? This is just the thing I was looking for! If I take down that dragon, everypony is sure to brag about me endlessly!" Of course, Rainbow Dash barely slept that night, looking up the location of the dragon and thinking about what she could use to give her an advantage.

The blue Pegasus stood, opened her wings, and rocketed towards Ponyville. Nearing the ground, Rainbow Dash reduced her speed and landed without crashing into anypony. Seeing Apple Jack, Rainbow Dash tried say good morning, but the usually friendly pony turned her tail towards Rainbow Dash and trotted off. With a disheartened sigh, the thought of defeating the dragon deepened her resolve and off she went to the armory.

xXx

Having bought what she thought was necessary, Rainbow Dash came out covered in a steel breastplate and a few pieces of armor for her legs. Next she went to the blacksmiths to find a suitable weapon. At first she thought a sword, but she realized that she also wanted a bit of distance from her adversary. It wasn't long before the Pegasus picked up a sturdy looking spear, she even practiced with it for a few moments before making her decision.

"Oh my, seems to me that you're going on a journey my dear." The blacksmith commented as he confirmed her purchase.

"Well, its a bit of a secret. I'll tell everypony about it once I get back."

The blacksmith nodded before rubbing his hoof against his chin. "Then I suggest going by the alchemist shop. They have some excellent potions and maybe they have one that might be of help."

With a huge grin on her face, Rainbow Dash thanked the blacksmith, strapped the spear to her back and immediately flew over to the alchemist shop.

It took a few moments to ask the alchemist pony for something that would help her defend against fire, but it was also hard coming up with a good enough excuse as to why she needed it.

Eventually the pony produced a bottle with glowing red liquid inside. "This will make you temporarily fire proof, but-"

Rainbow Dash didn't hear the rest of what he said, as soon as he said fire proof, she let his words go in one ear, but right out the other. "It's perfect! How much?" The Pegasus was literally bouncing about within her armor.

The alchemist pony told her that it was prototype, and that he would let her use it on a trial run. "Just come back and tell me how well it works."

Rainbow Dash took the potion and quickly left the shop, and flew up to her cloud. "Now, just to the find the dragon."

It wasn't hard figuring out which mountains looked like a dragon was living in them, but what was difficult was reaching the dragon. Rainbow Dash had already tried flying to the top, only to come back to the ground, her wings completely covered in ice. Not only was it too cold, but the wind was so strong, it nearly blew her all the way back to Ponyville.

The Pegasus sat there for a few moments as she tried to come up with another way to reach the dragon when she noticed a cave nearby. "If there's a cave, then there might be a tunnel, which means, it might take me to the top." And with that hope in mind, Rainbow Dash trotted into the cave, the only sound that could be heard now was her hooves echoing against the cave floor and the sounds of her armor clinking together.

At first it seemed as though the cave tunnel just went straight, Rainbow Dash was starting to grow impatient, until she came across an opening, but instead of only one route, there were two more openings in the far wall. The Pegasus knew that she wanted to go up, so after she examined the two different paths, she found that the left path went down but the right one went up.

"Then it has to be the right path. Watch out dragon, Rainbow Dash is coming for ya!" With a bounce in her trot, she quickly made her way up the path. After a few moments, Rainbow Dash could see what she could only assume were scorch marks on the walls, the Pegasus taking a hoof and planting it against the scorched wall. As she pulled it away, she left a hoof print and her hoof was covered in ash.

Several feet ahead of her, she could make out large gouges scoring the wall, the Pegasus mistaking it for natural cracks at first, but as she got closer, she realized her mistake. She had to look straight up just to see the top of the claw marks.

As she continued up the tunnel, she then decided that now would be the best time to take the potion, the glowing contents casting a red light onto the wall and her armor. Taking the cork with her teeth, she popped the bottle open and spat out the cork. Rainbow Dash downed the potion in one gulp, the Pegasus noticing the spicy cinnamon flavor.

Just as she peeked around the corner, a blast of fire rushed towards her, the Pegasus able to scramble back in time just as the flames forcefully hit the wall. Taking to the air, Rainbow Dash readied her staff, the head glinting from the fading flames. Her eyes grew wide as she took in the massive size of the dragon, Rainbow Dash's confidence almost went out, but the glint of the potion vial made Rainbow Dash remember that she was now fire-proof and with that in mind, rushed at the giant, winged lizard.

"I, Rainbow Dash, declare you defeated! I will take you down and everyone will have to continue talking about me." Spear poised, she swiftly dodged another stream of fire and swung as hard as she could. The tip bounced off the dragon's hide with a spray of sparks and the recoil immediately made Rainbow Dash vibrate as she held on to the spear.

The dragon began to make a huffing sound, Rainbow Dash could only figure that the dragon was laughing at her. Gritting her teeth, she went in for another attack, but instead of attacking randomly, like before, she found a soft spot under the dragon's armpit. With another swing, the tip pierced the soft flesh and tore a small wound, a small bead of blood beginning to form. With a smirk, she went to strike the spot again, when suddenly the dragon's tail appeared from behind her and caught her on the behind, the cave resounding with an audible snap as the tip made contact with her left butt cheek.

"Ouch!" With two quick flaps of her wings, the Pegasus quickly flew out of range of the dragon's tail. Rubbing her cheek with her hoof, she glared at the dragon. 'A sneak attack with the tail, huh?'

Her eyes narrowed as she tried to come up with a plan to at least cause some damage. Her biggest problems were the teeth, claws and scales, but she also needed to be careful of the tail too.

The dragon's eyes just watched as the horse fly fluttered about out of his range and so far his flames haven't come close to touching her. With a growl, the dragon coiled his muscles, the movement causing his scales to have a ripple effect along his body. With ease, the dragon hurled himself into the air and with his right claw, he went to swat her out of the sky.

Rainbow Dash was not expecting the dragon to suddenly jump, nor did she expect the sudden impact that sent her flying towards the earth. The initial pain had her stunned at first, but just as she was about to become Pegasus puddle, her wings flared open and drastically slowed her descent.

Still landing in a heap, Rainbow Dash rolled head over heels until she came to a stop at the cave wall. Blowing out some air, she moved her tail out of her face only to see the dragon's front claw come rushing down at her. With a mad scramble, she managed to right herself and fly out of harm's way, with milliseconds to spare. Breathing heavily, she realized that she no longer had her spear. Looking around wildly, she managed to catch sight of it beside the dragon, the tip embedded in the earth.

"Crap."

Rainbow Dash felt less secure without the spear, but she still had her speed, and with a determined stare, watched to see what the dragon's next move would be.

"Come on ugly. I know ya want to!" She sneered, trying to goad the dragon into attacking. Which of course, ended up working. The dragon roared in annoyance and let loose another stream of fire, but instead of just letting her dodge it like before, he opened his wings and began to flap until there was a strong gust blowing against the Pegasus. This caused Rainbow Dash to be blown straight into the flames, but luckily the fire was already faded and so Rainbow Dash was blown into the cave wall instead.

Letting out a grunt, she pushed her head away from the wall, despite the strong gust the dragon was making, and struggled to stand against the wall.

"I will not fall!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, and with several flaps of her wings, she slowly but surely got herself off the wall.

The dragon, not expecting this, stopped making the wind and barely caught sight of Rainbow Dash as she sped past him and straight for her spear. Trying to react quickly, he turned around and tried squashing her underneath his feet. The Pegasus dodged each stomp with quick zigzag movements and as she reached her spear, the dragon's tail came slamming down on her.

The dragon, having expected to see a flat horse with wings, lifted his tail, only to reveal Rainbow Dash with a bloody spear. She had managed to manoeuvre the spear head just as the tail reached the tip of her hair, making the tip plunge right into flesh, creating a small pocket of space for Rainbow Dash to survive the impact.

Coughing up some dust, she used the spear as a way to hold herself before she took to the skies again.

"You're strong for an insignificant insect." The dragon's voice rumbled as he was watching her movements. "However, you will never defeat me with your puny strength."

The dragon began to laugh at Rainbow Dash for her efforts but with his attention distracted, the Pegasus suddenly dashed at him and swung the spear. The tip caught the dragon's eye and with the feel of resistance, Rainbow Dash add more strength, the flesh tearing open.

The dragon roared painfully and clamped his front claw to his left eye, blood running down his cheek and hitting the earth. Letting loose flames in random directions the dragon had Rainbow Dash dancing around just to avoid the onslaught of attacks. Rainbow Dash wasn't quite sure on how long she had been battle locked with the dragon, her breaths coming out in gasps.

Not taking a moment to ponder on it, she went airborne just as the dragon's tail rushed right underneath her, the tip of her tail hairs swaying from the sudden gust of wind. Rainbow Dash kept a firm grip on her spear as she made her way to the far side of the cave.

Feeling cold wind behind her told Rainbow Dash that she was by the exit, but she quickly decides against taking the fight out there, for the dragon would have the advantage. She was lucky enough that the cramped space gave her enough room to menuaver out of the dragon's attacks.

"You should know better than to underestimate a Pegasus! Keep doing so and I will defeat y-!" Her confidence never wavered, nor did her determination - but she had to dash out of the way as he spat a plume of flame at her.

Charging the dragon, she aimed her spear for the dragon's other eye, but a sudden incoming flame caused Rainbow Dash to change course, instead, the spear head to through the thin membrane of the dragon's left wing.

Thinking that maybe if she kept him from being able to fly if they so happen to take the fight outside, she sliced another hole through the dragon's wing.

Feeling the sting on his destroyed wing, he deftly turned his body and swiped at her. The tip of his claw hooked her armor and sent her flying away from him. Righting herself, Rainbow Dash's breathing came in short breathes, sweat beginning to drip from her snout.

Everypony back home only thought of her as a braggart, and that may be true, but she did have a heart and she always helped them out when they needed it. Despite them turning their backs on her, Rainbow Dash stayed loyal and with her friends in mind, the Pegasus charged at the dragon, except this time, she went for his right side.

Quickly dodging the dragons bite attack, she went to the soft flesh of the under arm and plunged the spear head easily through. Twisting the spear, she began to push, the blade easily cutting through the tissue. The tip barely touched an artery when the dragons tail came for another whip on the butt.

This time however, Rainbow Dash expected it and dodged it. Swinging the spear, she also managed to cut the tip of the tail off. The dragon roared, trying to get the pest away from his soft underbelly, but Rainbow Dash continued to attack and run until the dragon was nearly bleeding from each wound she inflicted.

Annoyed that the horse with wings had not died and even took out his eye, the dragon started to grow even more irritated, the great lizard flapping his wings before settling them on his back. Deciding now would be the best time to use his last resort attack, a blue light began to glow within the dragon's maw.

Rainbow Dash was too tired to see the light until blue flames began to lick about from between the dragons teeth. With wide eyes, Rainbow Dash dived down just as the blue fireball flew from the dragon's maw and missed her by the length of a horseshoe.

Misjudging her trajectory, she tumbled head over hooves away from the dragon, but Rainbow Dash's triumphant dodge would soon be interrupted, the fireball having bounced off the wall and honed in on the Pegasus's butt. At first Rainbow Dash didn't feel anything, assuming the potion was doing it's job, that is, until the fiery hot pain blinded her mind.

"YEEEEEOOOOOWWW!" She screamed and zipped right out of the cave exit and into a small pile of snow nearby, screaming "Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot!" as whe went. Her poor butt stung so badly that even the snow only seemed to make it worse. "Oh my Celstia! Hot! Hot!" The pain was as if Rainbow Dash had stuck her hooves in an oven and tried pulling out a hot pan without oven mitts on. The heat had been so intense, that when Rainbow Dash had plunged her glowing, bright, red singed butt into the snow pile, it quickly melted around her and steam soon took to the sky.

Not even thinking of why the potion didn't work, she instead thought about how hot the fire had been and how she didn't realize that dragons always had an ace hidden.

"The flame... It hurts so much! Even the snow doesn't help." She whimpered, her bravado clearly nowhere to be seen, of course, who wouldn't become afraid of a dragon that could make you his next meal.

The dragon had watched the Pegasus stare dumbfounded at the blue flame for a moment and burst out laughing at her pained reaction. Her speed had increased though, so the dragon hadn't been able to keep her from fleeing from him and barely missed as she flew outside.

Soon the dragon could make out cries of pain and the smell of melting snow, the lizards lips curling into a smile. With a chuckle, the lizard decided that this battle must come to an end and that meant Pegasus steak for dinner. Letting out a loud roar, the dragon flapped his great wings and slowly made his way to the exit. He wanted to savor his victory as he looked the horsefly in the eyes and saw the true terror there would he be pleased.

Tears sprang to her eyes as she thought about her loss with the dragon, she was quite lucky that the fireball didn't do anything else by burn her butt cheeks, her tail still shining and singe free. With each movement she made, she cried out, but the dragon's roar soon turned her pain into fear. Adrenaline pumping through her veins, Rainbow Dash half galloped and half slid down the mountainside, of course, this didn't help things when it came to her burned buttocks. With each cry of pain, she could hear the sound of the angry dragon echoing in her head. The further down the mountain she went, the less she was able to hear the dragon, relief beginning to fill her.