Rainbow Dash and the Daring Do Double Dare Read online

  The Spirit Circle had to be nearby. Rainbow could feel it.

  She took off toward the castle, searching for any signs of life. A puff of the swirling red smoke was just ahead. “Aha! I see you!” Rainbow shouted in triumph, taking off and flying after it. It led her through a maze of winding corridors and staircases that she didn’t even know existed. Finally, she ran outside into a grassy clearing. The smoke joined a massive cloud of the same substance. It churned and spun like a slow, red tornado.

  “Rainbow Dash!” a voice cried out. “She’s here!”

  “Don’t worry about us!” cried another. “Close the entrance!”

  “Fluttershy? Twilight? Is that you?” Rainbow would recognize her friends’ voices anywhere. They sounded like they were in trouble, but where were they?

  “Finally Daring Dash has arrived!” a deep voice bellowed. “I wasn’t sure if you had survived.”

  A figure stepped forward but was still shrouded in red smoke. The dark outline heaved with laughter, and a shiver went up Rainbow Dash’s spine. It was the same laugh she had been hearing all along.

  “Show yourself, you… you… coward!” Rainbow squeaked.

  “Prepare yourself to be amazed!” the voice cackled. The red smoke parted and out stepped a massive zebra. “For you are graced by the presence of Braze!”

  He had blood-red eyes and an earring made of orange-and-yellow phoenix feathers. He had stripes, just like Zecora, only his weren’t black-and-white; they were red, orange, and yellow and looked like the flames of a raging fire. It was a bit intimidating.

  “I’m not afraid of you, Braze!” Rainbow Dash lied. She narrowed her eyes at him and adjusted her helmet. “Who are you and what have you done with my friends?!”

  Braze stepped forward and slowly walked to Rainbow. He looked down at her with a wicked smile. “I knew they would be useful in this endeavor. Open the door, or they’re mine forever!” He made a sweeping motion with his hoof to reveal Twilight, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie all tied together with a magical red fire-rope. They were all wearing pith helmets and shirts just like hers.

  Rainbow gasped and flew over to them. “What are you ponies doing here?!”

  “We’re sorry for following you, Rainbow,” Applejack said. “Honest. We just wanted to make sure you were safe!”

  “We tried to let you have your adventure…” Fluttershy added. “But…”

  “But then this big meanie zebra caught us and brought us here!” Pinkie Pie pouted, squirming around. Her mane was messier than usual, poking out of her helmet, and she had painted lines across her cheeks like a warrior. “And also, we’re all out of cupcakes.” Her stomach grumbled loudly. “Which is the worst part!”

  “This fire-rope is really frying my mane!” Rarity cried, touching her purple locks. “It’s awful!”

  “Don’t worry, guys! I’ll have you free in just a second,” Rainbow reached for the fiery rope, but it burned her hoof. “Ouch!”

  Braze laughed. “Did you really think I’d make it that easy? Come here, Daring Dash, this choice will be breezy!” The zebra waved his hoof, and Rainbow found herself being dragged toward him. He turned her around to face a large, freestanding stone door.

  It had all sorts of ancient pony carvings across it that seemed to tell a story. There was a Pegasus, who looked a lot like Rainbow Dash, soaring through the clouds with a striped trail behind her. The paint had long since worn off, but it could have been a rainbow. In the middle was a large U-shaped slot. Perfect for a horseshoe. The Half-Gilded Horseshoe. The key that could unleash a ton of scary spirits into Ponyville.

  She hated to admit it to herself, but Rainbow was actually nervous.

  “Hand over the horseshoe, Braze!” Rainbow demanded, trying to hide her shaky voice. “And release my friends! This is between you… and me!” She stood up a little taller and gritted her teeth. Nopony, or zebra, was going to mess with her friends.

  Braze nodded his head, his feather earring swishing back and forth. “Yes, dear Dash, you are what I need! It’s the only way for your friends to be freed. The spirits will only open the room for the one who can do a Sonic Rainboom.”

  He tossed the Half-Gilded Horseshoe into the air to show off. It twirled around just as it had in Zecora’s green flames. As it glistened and sparkled in the light, Rainbow noticed that the edge caught one of the fire-ropes, cutting it slightly. It was subtle, but it gave Rainbow an idea.

  “You want me to open the door to the Spirit Circle for you?” Rainbow asked, playing along. “And then you’ll untie your fire-rope and let my friends go?”

  Braze circled around her, little flames escaping from his hooves with each step. “Yes! Yes! Then I’ll disappear with my treasure, and you can leave at your leisure.” He smirked. Everything was falling into place perfectly.

  “Deal!” Rainbow nodded her agreement. A look of horror flashed across Twilight Sparkle’s face. Clearly, she thought it was a trick. But Rainbow had a plan.

  “Look at that! Aren’t you clever? Now insert the key and pull the lever!” Braze salivated, rubbing his hooves together greedily. He tossed Rainbow the Half-Gilded Horseshoe. The ponies all held their breath as Rainbow caught it. Was she really going to open the door? What about the spirits getting out?

  If only she could distract Braze somehow.…

  Rainbow gave a sly wink, and Pinkie Pie seemed to get the hint. “Hey, Mr. Braaaaaaze?” she chirped. “Do you have any snacks?! I’m sooo hungry!”

  Braze turned around and growled in rage. “I know nothing of your pony diet! Stop talking for once and just be quiet!”

  It had been just enough time for Rainbow to make the switch and slip the Half-Gilded Horseshoe into her saddlebag.

  “One haunted room full of treasure, coming right up!” Rainbow said, inserting a regular horseshoe, the gift from Rarity, into the slot. She reached her hooves onto the lever and slowly pulled down.

  CHAPTER 13

  The Dash to Safety

  “See? Guess you were wrong!” Rainbow shrugged as she pushed down on the lever again. “It doesn’t work.” Rainbow Dash’s plan was going even better than expected. Braze hadn’t noticed the horseshoe had been switched.

  “No! No! This cannot be!” Braze looked toward the sky and let out a deep, angry growl. “I have secured both the Pegasus and the key!”

  “Maybe you should just let us go and git along now, Braze,” Applejack shouted, struggling against the fire-rope. “Looks like you won’t be openin’ any spooky doors today.”

  “Give it up, Braze!” shouted Twilight. “The entrance is going to close any minute and you’ve got nothing.”

  “No!” Braze shouted, and began to pace back and forth. He started mumbling to himself, presumably in rhymes. It was the perfect time for Rainbow to make her move. She crept over to her friends, careful not to let Braze see what she was pulling out of her bag.…

  “The Half-Gilded Horseshoe!” Twilight exclaimed. “It’s been in your bag this whole time?”

  “What?!” Braze galloped over and stood between Rainbow and her friends. “I knew that you were being phony! Give it back now, you deceitful little pony!”

  Over Braze’s shoulder, Rainbow Dash could see that the door was starting to lower into the ground. She just had to buy a little more time and keep the Half-Gilded Horseshoe away from him until it was gone. Then, she would cut her friends free and they could escape!

  “I’ll never surrender it to you, Braze!” Rainbow shouted. “And in case you forgot—I am the fastest Pegasus around!” Rainbow shot up into the air just as Braze threw a fire-rope at her. It singed the bottom of her tail. Rainbow dived back toward her friends, hoping to cut the rope, but Braze was in the way. He reached out for the horseshoe and almost got it. It was too close.

  Rainbow was going to have to do this from afar.

  “Hey, Braze! Watch this!” Rainbow hollered. She held the horseshoe up and narrowed her eyes to aim. Then, she flung it like a boomerang—rig
ht at her Ponyville friends!

  Braze dived for it.

  The shoe flew through the air, landing perfectly out of Braze’s reach and exactly in position to slice through the fire-rope. It doubled back to Rainbow, as if it were under her control. She caught it with a smirk and blew the residual smoke off its surface. She put it safely away and gave her bag a pat. The girls broke free and cheered.

  “All right, Rainbow!” Pinkie Pie squealed, jumping up and down. “Wahoooo!”

  “You did it!” said Fluttershy.

  “Thank you, darling,” said Rarity, smoothing down her purple mane. It still looked perfect.

  “Now let’s get the hoof outta here,” said Rainbow. “This dude is creeping me out.” Braze was standing over the door, which had only a few inches left aboveground. He was shaking his head with a pained expression on his face. Finally, the door was sucked into the earth and disappeared. Now, there was just grass. He let out a sob.

  “You may have won this time, Daring Dash…” Braze pulled himself up. He looked over to Rainbow, his eyes aflame. “But I will be back to claim my stash! And when the door is back anew… I will not stop till I find you!”

  Braze cackled and vanished into a burst of flames.

  “And I’ll be ready for him,” said Rainbow. She wasn’t going to let some greedy zebra put her friends or her town in danger again. But maybe next time, she would agree to some help from the get-go. She smiled at her friends. “I mean—we’ll be ready for him.”

  “And so, with Braze defeated and the Half-Gilded Horseshoe secured…” said Twilight, quoting a famous line from the Daring Do books, “Ponyville was safe and sound once again, thanks to Daring Dash!”

  “… and her friends!” said Rainbow Dash proudly. “Thanks for being there, even when I said you shouldn’t be. Plus, I couldn’t have done it without those gifts! What was with that bookmark?”

  “It’s a placeholder,” Twilight blushed. “I enchanted it to help you find your place.”

  “And aren’t gator treats the best?” Pinkie Pie sighed. “Gummy just loves them.”

  Rainbow laughed. “You guys really saved my tail.”

  “It looks a little burned to me,” commented Rarity. She inspected where the fire-rope had fried it. “But a trip to Ponyville Day Spa will fix it right up.”

  “Anything but that!” said Rainbow Dash, shaking her head.

  “And you’re supposed to be the brave one?” Twilight joked.

  CHAPTER 14

  The Bravest Thing

  Miss Cheerilee’s classroom at the Ponyville Schoolhouse was packed with students from all over the school. The fillies and colts were all buzzing with excitement for today’s visitors. The local heroes, Daring Dash and her loyal friends, were going to talk to the class about their adventure in the Everfree Forest. All sorts of crazy rumors had been flying around about exactly what had happened out there, but today they were going to set the record straight.

  “My big sister Applejack was there when Daring Dash defeated the evil zebra, Braze!” Apple Bloom bragged to Diamond Tiara, who turned up her nose.

  “And so was mine!” said Rarity’s little sister, Sweetie Belle.

  “Well, I knew Rainbow Dash before she became Daring Dash!” offered Scootaloo, who was wearing her own mini Daring Dash costume.

  “All right, let’s calm down, my little ponies,” Cheerilee said, taking her place at the head of the room. “Let’s all give a warm welcome to… Daring Dash!”

  “Hey, kids!” Rainbow trotted in and gave a nervous wave to the students. Everypony’s hooves shot up into the air. They all had questions for the bravest Pegasus in Ponyville. But before Rainbow answered any of them, she had something important to say.

  “Remember, it may seem cool to be brave and daring—and it totally is awesome—but if there’s one thing I learned as Daring Dash, it’s that…”—Rainbow looked to Rarity, Applejack, Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy, and they smiled back—“… sometimes the bravest thing a pony can do is accept help from her friends, even when she doesn’t think she needs it!”

  Rainbow put on her pith helmet, and the students cheered. “Now who wants to hear a play-by-play of how I was wing-deep in quicksand and used a lasso to pull myself out?!”

  Read all the My Little Pony books

  by G. M. Berrow

  Pinkie Pie and the Rockin' Ponypalooza Party!

  Twilight Sparkle and The Crystal Heart Spell

  Equestria Girls: Through the Mirror

  Rainbow Dash and The Daring Do Double Dare

  Coming soon!

  Rarity and The Curious Case of Charity

  Applejack and The Honest-to-Goodness Switcheroo

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  CONTENTS

  Cover

  Title Page

  Welcome

  Dedication

  CHAPTER 1

  The Latest and Greatest

  CHAPTER 2

  Patience Is an Issue

  CHAPTER 3

  The Golden Oak Library Society

  CHAPTER 4

  The Double Dare

  CHAPTER 5

  The Daring Dash–Board

  CHAPTER 6

  Heating Up

  CHAPTER 7

  The Talk of the Town

  CHAPTER 8

  Well Suited

  CHAPTER 9

  Enter the Everfree

  CHAPTER 10

  In the Thick of It

  CHAPTER 11

  A Sinking Feeling

  CHAPTER 12

  Finding Your Place

  CHAPTER 13

  The Dash to Safety

  CHAPTER 14

  The Bravest Thing

  Copyright

  Copyright

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  HASBRO and its logo, MY LITTLE PONY and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro and are used with permission. © 2014 Hasbro. All rights reserved.

  Cover design by Steve Scott

  Cover art © 2014 Hasbro. All rights reserved.

  In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  Little, Brown and Company

  Hachette Book Group

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  First ebook edition: January 2014

  ISBN 978-0-316-23574-7

  E3