Chapter Two

The ropes that were strapped around Rainbow Dash's head pulled her along with the bunch of mafia ponies. Rainbow Dash had come up with the term herself. The mafia ponies kept urging her on. Whenever Rainbow resisted continuing, the ponies she pushed on harder.

On the first day of travel, Rainbow Dash resisted all day long. There wasn't a moment where she didn't stop tugging away at the ropes. She was determined to break free. Of course, the mafia ponies had taken into account that Rainbow Dash was a pegasus, so they snapped a bone in her left wing. The bone would heal itself over time, but until it did heal, Rainbow Dash was grounded.

On the second day of travel, Rainbow was pretty tired, but she continued to struggle. She still had plenty of pride as the mafia ponies led her through valleys and hills. She hadn't a single clue where the ponies were taking her, and she didn't know how much longer she had to struggle. This worried Rainbow Dash.

On the third day of travel, Rainbow gave up the struggling. As she marched by canyons, she knew that if her struggling would work at all, it would've gotten her free by now. Rainbow hung her head low as she walked alongside the mafia ponies and their other captives.

Fourth day of travel. Field marching. The mafia ponies seemed to be a bit happier. Were they approaching their destination? Rainbow wouldn't take chances. She skidded her hooves to a halt, but the ponies dragged her on. Her strength had partially been replenished, and so she was determined to hold back. As she was struggling against the ropes, she heard a familiar caw echo throughout the atmosphere. Rainbow Dash quickly looked back to see her racing partner, the eagle, flying in the air. When the eagle was closest, it cawed again, and both it and Rainbow Dash wore a longing look to race. Rainbow Dash shouted out to the eagle, but the mafia ponies began pulling again.

On the fifth day of travel, Rainbow Dash held her head low despite the lightning bolts that flashed in the blackened sky. Dark storm clouds loomed overhead. At this point, Rainbow Dash had no idea where she was. She was far from any town for sure, so where were the mafia ponies going?

Sixth day. More canyons.

On the seventh day, as the mafia ponies led Rainbow Dash through a field, Rainbow could see a very faint structure in the distance. As time progressed, the group drew closer, and Rainbow found that the place was some sort of base for these mafia ponies. Rainbow was reluctant to go in, but the mafia ponies dragged her in no matter how hard she tried to stay out.

As the wooden doors to the entrance opened, Rainbow Dash saw dozens of ponies bound by ropes being pulled across the base. Rainbow's mouth dropped open in awe as she examined the perimeter. There were wooden stables, a wooden ring in the center of the base, a dirt flooring, and the entire base was surrounded by a thick wooden fence.

The next thing she saw was a perfect block of  ponies marching across the base, led by mafia ponies. What kind of sick cult is this? Rainbow thought. Rainbow glanced from left to right to see mafia guards watching her intently, making sure she didn't make any wrong moves. Hearing the wooden gate close behind her, Rainbow whipped her head around, a pleading expression on her face. Now she was trapped in here! The ropes that were bound to her head were pulled and dragged Rainbow from her longing. She was pulled forward and came to a halt as the block of innocent ponies marched by. Rainbow Dash watched, awe-struck. She called out to these ponies, and only one pony looked up at her, but was forced to trudge on.

The ponies marched in synchronization, each pair of legs walking the same way as another. Rainbow Dash would not end up like this. Without making haste, Rainbow began thrashing her hind legs all over, trying to hit something. Mafia ponies tried to hold her down, but everypony stood still at the sound of a loud bang.

Rainbow Dash looked up to see a blue unicorn mare with a silvery white mane standing not too far away from Rainbow Dash. Fog surrounded her hooves as her purple eyes were fixed on Rainbow. Silence.

"What seems to be the problem, ponies?" Trixie asked in a flat tone.

"We got us a crazy one here, ma'am!" A mare with a rope in her mouth spoke up.

"Really?" Trixie stepped closer, coming face-to-face with Rainbow Dash. "The Great and Powerful Trixie has dealt with wild ponies before. This one will be no different."

Rainbow Dash seized the moment and snapped her teeth at Trixie, trying to bite her face.

Trixie chuckled softly to herself. "Induct this pony."

"Yes ma'am!"

Rainbow Dash soon found herself between four wooden poles, where her ropes were bound to the front two of them.

"Okay, Big Mac. She's all yours." A colt said, slowly walking away from Rainbow. "She's a wild one!"

A low chuckle came from the shadows, and a large red colt with a golden-bronze mane stepped out. He was holding a pair of scissors between his teeth. "Let's see how wild she is when Ah'm done wit' her." Placing his scissors in one hoof, he lifted up a lock of Rainbow Dash's mane with his left hoof. Rainbow gritted her teeth, then quickly bit his hoof.

"OW!" Big Macintosh exclaimed, dropping his scissors and stepping back. After examining his hoof, he looked up at Rainbow. "Ya wanna fight, do ya?"

The next thing Rainbow knew, her snout was in a small bag held down by ropes bound to the wooden poles. Big Mac freely cut Rainbow's mane. As one of his hooves rested on a wooden post, an idea crossed Rainbow's mind. As he was cutting, Rainbow slammed her body up against the wooden post, the sound of cracking bones filling the air, as well as Big Mac's yelling.

Big Mac fell back onto the dirt floor, caressing his right hoof with the left. He looked up at Rainbow, wearing a deviant expression. "Right," he groaned.

Ponies looked up from watering troughs and such to watch the display, interest sparkling in their eyes.

Pretty soon, Rainbow's body was strapped by ropes, holding her body tight. Big Mac walked over, a knife in his jaws, and lifted up one of Rainbow's hooves. He took the knife and began scraping the dirt out of her hooves. Rainbow pulled her hoof back, then bucked the colt in the rump, forcing him to tumble over. Rainbow's chuckle was muffled by her bag, but she could even hear the giggles of other ponies.

Now, the hoof that Big Mac was working on was strapped up against a wooden pole. "Make sure that's good and tight," he told the pony that was securing Rainbow's leg.

As Big Mac was working on a hoof, Rainbow raised a hind leg, ready to buck forward.

"Big Mac, watch out!" somepony called out.

Big Mac looked up, his mouth dropped open, and Rainbow bucked him square in the face, sending Big Mac back by a couple of yards.

Ponies from around the base began laughing with volume.

Big Mac wiped his face with a hoof, then revealed his blackened eye. He wore an evil expression, but it didn't scare Rainbow Dash a bit.

Now, mafia ponies were strapping up each and every one of Rainbow's legs to a separate pole. Rainbow looked up, her snout still bagged, to see Big Mac slowly walking forwards with a metal object in his teeth. The end of the metal was in a strange shape, and it was orange-white hot. At this point, ponies watched in awe, wondering what Rainbow would do to get out of this situation. Big Mac stepped in front of Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow began jerking her head around in her bag, and finally managed to release her muzzle. She now stood tall, her nostrils flaring at Big Mac.

"Uh oh," he murmured, and Rainbow Dash head-butted him, sending Big Mac lying on his back, the metal object a yard away from him.

"Big Mac... you okay?" Somepony asked, but it was clear the Big Mac wasn't good.

"Hey," One mafia pony said to another. "Round up some volunteers to take this mare to the... uh, stables."

"Not the stables." Trixie spoke up.

"Ma'am?"

"The corral." Trixie said, eyeing Rainbow Dash. "It's time to break this pony."

Rainbow Dash found herself inside a ring built out of a wooden fence. Mafia ponies lined up on the outside of the ring, resting their front hooves on the rim of the fence. Their eyes intently watched Rainbow, and murmurs were passed through the crowd. Rainbow was uncomfortable inside the harness and ropes around her head and the saddle on her back. It was clear as daylight that someone was going to ride her.

Trixie's horn began to glow, and the wooden door to a large box in the ring opened up. Out crawled a nasty-looking diamond dog, it's eyes darting around the ring till they found Rainbow Dash. With a creepy smile, the diamond dog walked forward, and Rainbow stepped back. This continued till Rainbow's hindquarters were pressed up against the wooden fence. The diamond dog quickly hopped onto Rainbow's back and grabbed hold of the reins.

Rainbow groaned menacingly, then began bucking the air and jumping wildly, trying to shake the dog off her back. Dust from the ground flew up into the air as her hooves pounded the ground. The diamond dog let out a few "whoa"s before with one final buck, Rainbow sent the dog soaring out of the ring.

From the outside of the ring, Trixie inhaled and exhaled deeply.

"Okay, next dog's turn!" a mafia pony enthusiastically said.

The next thing Rainbow Dash knew, a stronger looking dog was on her back, steadily holding the reins in his grasp. Rainbow could see the interest in some of the prisoner ponies' eyes, and she looked back at the diamond dog on her bag, her expression indicating that this dog wouldn't get to ride her either. The dog widened it's eyes in fear right before Rainbow began bucking. She lashed around like a bull, and it wasn't too long before the dog fell to the dirty floor. As the dog got to it's paws, Rainbow glared at it. With the flare of her nostrils, she charged. The dog screeched, then leaped out of the ring to safety.

Trixie's eyes were narrowed, and they flicked to the laughing prisoner ponies. At the very sight of Trixie's venomous gaze, the ponies stopped laughing, and composed themselves.

The very second the next diamond dog hopped onto Rainbow's back, Rainbow took advantage of the fact that the dog wasn't entirely set upon the saddle. Rainbow jumped high into the air, sending the dog even higher, then finally, the dog  knocked into a mafia pony who was leaning against the wooden fence. The two tumbled down to the dirty ground.

The other diamond dogs were handled the same. Rainbow bucked left and right, up and down, to and fro. None of the dogs managed to stay on her back for more than ten seconds flat.

As Rainbow shoved the last dog off her back, she began to dart up to the face of a curious mafia pony. Upon seeing Rainbow's charge, the pony screamed and backed away. Rainbow's eyes looked to another pony across the ring, and she performed the same maneuver. The pony fell onto it's rump in surprise. Finally, Rainbow charged straight towards Trixie's stern face. Rainbow stopped charging as soon as her face was no more than an inch away from Trixie's. Trixie's purple eyes seemed calm, but there was a small flame in the look somewhere.

Without looking away, Trixie called over a mafia pony. "Applejack,"

An orange pony with a blonde mane and a light brown hat came trotting over. "Yes, Trixie?"

"Tie this mare to the Post. No food or water... three days."

"Yes ma'am."

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The sun's violent rays seemed to sizzle on Rainbow's coat. Sweet Celestia, what kind of torment is this? she thought miserably. All was quiet throughout the day. Nothing happened- if anything, ponies just looked over to Rainbow Dash for a heartbeat or two, then moved on. Rainbow Dash spent her spare time tugging away at the rope that bound her to a tall, wooden post. Dash tried everything she could, but it was useless.

Prisoner ponies sorrowfully watched Rainbow Dash's efforts to free herself. Rainbow kept trying, but now, the heat was getting to her, and the thirst in her throat and hunger in her belly only made the situation worse.

As Princess Luna's moon rose in the night sky, Rainbow Dash raised her head to stare at the brightest star. Her heart galloped to the skies that night, back to Ponyville where she belonged. Rainbow longed to see the friendly faces of her pony friends... she wondered if they missed her as much as she missed them. Not to mention, if all went as swimmingly as it already had, Rainbow would miss the Wonderbolts audition. Rainbow Dash sighed and lowered her head back to the ground in sorrow.

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Rainbow Dash licked her lips, but there was a sticky absence of saliva. At the sound of trickling water, Rainbow raised her head. Her eyes quickly caught Trixie using her unicorn magic to drink out of a water bottle underneath a shady wooden roof. Rainbow watched the water trickle down Trixie's chin. Dash caught her tongue sticking out, wishing it could catch those fallen droplets. Trixie caught Rainbow's eyes on her, but she did nothing. Rainbow drew her ears back in resent, but still longed for the water.

"We caught a hostile!"

Rainbow's gaze darted towards the wooden entrance of the base. Two mafia ponies were dragging a bright pink pony with crazy magenta hair into the area. "Come on, guys! We're all friends here!" the pink pony exclaimed, tugging away at the mafia ponies' ropes.

"Bring her back this way!"

When the mafia ponies brought the pony to Trixie, the mafias through her down to the ground, and the pink pony let out a grunt. The small laughter of mafia ponies filled the air.

"Well, what do we have here?" Trixie casually asked.

"We caught her by the supply wagon, ma'am." a mafia pony said, grabbing the pink pony's head with her hooves and raising the pony's head so Trixie could see her face.

The pony began growling and roaring as if she were a manticore. "Rawr! Raaalgh!" she exclaimed, sticking her tongue out, but her high pitched voice just killed it.

"Ah, one of those wild ponies. Not as tall as the Manehattan, not as fine-featured as the Canterlot ponies. Take her away, gentleponies."

"You heard her. Take her to the stockades," a mafia colt said.

"Not the stockades," Trixie said, her gaze meeting Rainbow Dash's. "The Post. No food or water."

The pink pony struggled as the mafias dragged her to a post. She took a look at Rainbow Dash just as she passed by. "Come on!" a mafia pony urged, then pressed the pony on. "Who ya lookin' at, pony?" The mafia pony shoved the pink one's head and began pushing.

The mafias tied the pony's hooves down to the wooden fence just outside of Rainbow Dash's post. The mafia ponies chuckled and left the pink pony to be.

The pink pony turned her head around to look at Rainbow Dash, and smiled. "Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie. What's your name?"

Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Rainbow Dash," she muttered.

"Hi, Rainbow Dash! I'm Pinkie Pie- whoops! I already said that!" Pinkie Pie giggled. "Wow, it's really sunny. I wonder why there are no clouds. Do the pegasi here just not like clouds? Do they like the sun or something? I don't get it. Hey, are there any pegasi around here- you, know besides you? Hey! Why aren't you flying away? Is your wing broken or something?"

Rainbow Dash turned away from the pony as Pinkie Pie rambled on.

"Oh, okay! You don't wanna talk now. That's fine, we'll talk later!"

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Rainbow slowly tugged away at her rope as the sky turned to a purplish blue for dawn. She was interrupted from her tugging as she heard what was thought to be a wolf's howl. The arooooo echoed throughout the air, and Rainbow was suddenly alert.

Pinkie Pie began making owl sounds in response to the howl. "Who-hoo, hoo. Whohoo!"

Aroooooo!

"Who-hooo! Hooo!" Suddenly, Pinkie Pie's tail began to twitch. "Twitchy tail! Twitchy tail!" she softly exclaimed.

At first, Rainbow Dash thought Pinkie Pie was just being mental, when out from the sky shot a knife that landed itself just three hooves away from Pinkie Pie. Pinkie smiled and used her hind hooves to drag the blade towards her body. She's going to cut her ropes! Rainbow thought.

Suddenly, the sound of a trumpet filled the air. Rainbow and Pinkie both looked up to see a pony playing a trumpet to wake up the entire base. Pinkie Pie quickly slid the knife behind her back and into her tied front hooves.

Mafia ponies filed out of their homes and formed a block in front of Trixie. As one orange pony began making reports on the latest information on railroads and wild ponies, Trixie stared at Rainbow Dash. "Applejack," she said. "How long has it been?"

"Ma'am?"

"The pegasus. How long has she been tied?"

"Three... days, ma'am."

"Good. Fetch our finest diamond dog."

Rainbow Dash thrashed and kicked and ran and jumped, but this strong diamond dog did not fall off. This had gone on for thirty seconds. After all this bucking, Rainbow Dash ran to the sides of the ring and began slamming her body against the wooden wall, trying to crush the dog's legs and get him off. She did this two more times, but nothing changed. Now, Rainbow Dash dropped on her back, pressing all her body weight on top of the dog, but when she got back up, he was still there, holding the reins tightly. She thrashed around a few more times, but it was totally hopeless. This dog was not coming off. Had Rainbow been... broken?

Prisoner ponies stared. Mafia ponies stared. Pinkie Pie gaped.

Trixie stepped inside the ring and trotted beside Rainbow Dash. "You see, gentleponies, any pony can be broken." She prodded Rainbow Dash in the side. "Move along," she said softly, and Rainbow slowly began to walk around the perimeter of the ring. "There were those in Manehattan who said wild ponies couldn't be tamed," Trixie began her speech to the crowd, "a hostile pink pony will never submit to providence." Trixie glared at Pinkie Pie. "And it is that manner of thinking that would say this pony could never be broken."

Rainbow Dash glanced up at the prisoner ponies in their stables as Trixie continued. "Discipline, time, and patience are the three key ideas." The prisoner ponies sighed and looked away. Rainbow Dash stopped and stomped a hoof. Sometimes a pony's got to do what a pony's got to do, and this was one of those times.

Rainbow Dash grabbed the diamond dog's reins with her teeth and yanked them out of the dog's grasp. The dog wobbled on Rainbow's back before Rainbow slung him off. Seizing the element of surprise, Rainbow Dash trotted towards Trixie, swept under her belly, and sent the blue unicorn flying out of the ring with a scream.

Pinkie Pie grinned widely and looked back at Rainbow Dash, seeing the spirited pony strong once more.

"Get off of Trixie!" Trixie exclaimed in third-person to the mafia ponies who were attending her.

Silence filled the base until cheers of delight exploded from the prisoner ponies in their stables. All their cheering reminded Rainbow Dash of her victorious deed she had done back in Ponyville, but this moment seemed much more important.

"Secure that pony!" Trixie exclaimed, but didn't hesitate to use her unicorn magic to lift up a rifle. Trixie leveled the rifle in front of Rainbow's face.

Pinkie Pie quickly cut her ropes and leaped onto Trixie, pushing her to the dusty ground. Pinkie Pie quickly got to her hooves and used her teeth to grab the one single rope tied around Dash's neck.

Rainbow and Pinkie began trotting through the base, when Rainbow leaped into the stables. She trotted past the prisoner ponies, her target sighted: the wooden door of the stables that kept them prisoners. Through twists and turns by the ponies of the stables, Rainbow darted straight into the door with such a force that broke the lock. All the ponies within the stables began flooding out, gushing for the entrance to the base which was just up ahead. What really caught Pinkie and Rainbow's eyes were that the big wooden doors to the whole base were closing. Rainbow and Pinkie picked up the pace and trotted right in front of the colt who was blocking the entrance. It was none other than Big Mac, a purple eye and some casts around his limbs. Rainbow smiled, and Big Mac widened his eyes.

With one final buck, Rainbow sent Big Mac skidding out of the doorway.

Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie jumped over Big Macintosh's limp body, followed by all the freed ponies. Rainbow and Pinkie trotted straight forward, not looking back at the horrible base.

Pinkie Pie let out a loud and obnoxious arooooo. Rainbow rolled her eyes and kept running alongside the pink earth pony.

Rainbow looked off to the side and saw another pony trotting in the same direction as Rainbow Dash. She began trotting closer and closer to Rainbow Dash, and Rainbow was able to make out features. The mare's hair was a royal purple and her coat was a snow white color. Her eyes were a sparkling blue. Her eyelashes were bold and her eyeshadow was a light blue. There was a white feather with a black tip in her pulled back hair. Rainbow noticed the magnificence of the hair; it was curled and long. She was the most beautiful thing Rainbow had ever seen. Rainbow was enchanted by this pony and just stared at her while Pinkie began trotting closer to the mysterious mare.

Both Pinkie Pie and the mare trotted in front of Rainbow, forcing the pegasus to halt. The white unicorn smiled softly at Rainbow before two other ponies caught up and secured Rainbow Dash with ropes. "I can't believe it! One minute I'm free, and the next, more ropes!" Rainbow said out loud.

"Don't worry, darling," the beautiful mare said. "There is nothing to fear." her voice was soothing, but Rainbow was still irritated.

"Not cool," Rainbow muttered.