Daring Do and the Lost Kingdom of Basha

Chapters

A Day at the Office
Into the Darkness
Tranquil Beauty
From the Shadows
Survival of the Fittest
Voodoo Vibes
Into the Light
Lesson Learned

A Day at the Office

Prologue:

A Day at the Office

It was like any other Saturday afternoon: Daring Do was leaning back in her chair waiting for Steel Hoof to charge through the door and yap on about some crazy artifact he found, but it normally turned out to be fake. She did enjoy spending time in her office at the museum, it was calming. Something Daring liked more than the office, was flying. Daring Do was a great flyer, and she could do the most amazing tricks! Just last week, the museum opened up a new exhibit exclusively for artifacts that she found. To celebrate the occasion, Daring pulled off a triple back-flip and left a streak of tan color behind her. She soared as high as the museum ceiling, and then dove down, pulling up at the last second so she wouldn't hit the tour group that came to see the unveiling of the new exhibit. She landed and stood proudly as the group tackled her with questions about how she could pull of tricks like that in such an enclosed space as a museum! Daring Do always used her trademark response to questions like that, "It's a trade secret." That was the answer she always gave to the press and anypony else who wanted to know something that she didn't want to tell them.

It was just then that the clock struck three, normally Steel was here by now, but Daring didn't care, it just gave her time to sit back and relax. Just then, Steel came bursting through the door, with a grin on his face. Just when she was about to let her guard down too! The grey stallion always burst through like that, his black hooves let him! Since the day he was born, his black hooves have always been harder than Steel, and he could bust through nearly anything like that, the only problem was Daring wasn't sure how many more times Steel Hoof could bust in like that without knocking the door off its hinges. Daring's assistant ran up to her, and brushed his black mane out of his face. Daring giggled, as always, when she saw his cutie mark, considering it suited his name perfectly, it was a steel hoof after all!

"Daring Do! Daring Do! You'll never guess what I found!" Steel Hoof exclaimed

"Another petrified dog that belonged to some ancient pharoah?" Daring sarcastically stated

"No! Look!" Steel pulled out a map, it was a map of ancient egypt.

"Steel we have, like, a hundred of these, we don't need anymore! But at least what you found was legit this time!"

"What? No no, not the map, what is marked on the map!" Steel pointed towards a strange emblem near some catacombs that Daring once explored

"That's probably some ancient text to let you know that there are catacombs there! I've been there, that's all there is!"

"The guy I got this from told me that this is the location of a tomb! It was for some minor pharaoh, and his treasures could very well still be there!"

"Steel, I'm not looking into this, if you want to lead your own expedition then that's up to you. I've been there and I know for a fact that there's nothing there! If you can prove me wrong, then maybe I'll tag along, but for now, I'm not looking into it!"

Steel stood there, he was fully expecting Daring to jump on the opportunity of a tomb, considering she hadn't been adventuring in a while now. The last expedition she went on was the one where she busted her wing going after that Sapphire stone, then she had to take it to the temple of Ra and solve all those puzzles and stuff, and ended up traveling halfway across the world and back just to end up with some stupid coin that had a strangely shaped hole in the middle of it. The Egyptian text on the walls of the place she got it from said it had to do something with the Egyptian pharaoh Basha. Steel spent the next week looking up things about Basha in hopes of continuing the quest, but Daring wasn't really into it. Steel just shook his head, and walked out of the office. He planned on proving his mentor wrong.

"Hey Dr. Fossil!" Steel greeted Daring's dad

"Oh, hello Steel! How goes the archaeologist business?" Dr. Fossil said, turning around to face his visitor.

Dr. Fossil had an office in the museum too, and Steel knew it brought great joy to Daring to know she was working side by side with her dad. Dr. Fossil looked just like Daring Do, except his mane was completely black, and he was a unicorn. It was funny how things worked that way, not that Daring's dad was a unicorn, but that the three of them showed society that it didn't matter what race of pony you were, you could all work together! Steel was an earth pony, Daring was a pegasus, Fossil was a Unicorn, it was a glorious combination of the three races! Many have said the only reason Steel sticks around is because he has a secret crush on Daring, which is partly true, he also loves adventuring and smashing anything he can get his hooves on. These talents have proven useful to Daring, as she has been able to completely bypass certain parts of tombs just by asking Steel to bash in a wall.

Steel turned his attention to what Dr. Fossil was working on, "What are you doing over there Dr. Fossil?" Steel said, completely ignoring the doctor's question.

As Steel approached Fossil's workbench, Fossil replied, "Just dusting off my latest discoveries!"

Steel took a look at what Dr. Fossil was working on, just some old bones and artifacts, minor objects. Steel turned his attention back to Dr. Fossil, "Well I need your help with something."

"Oh, and what might that be?"

"I found this map," Steel said, pulling out the map, "Daring thinks it's trash, but I think it leads to treasure!"

Dr. Fossil took the map and carefully examined it.

After a few seconds of listening to the different ways Dr. Fossil could hum, Steel spoke up, "What do you think about it?"

"Well, it's quite possible that it could lead to something. No matter how small it is, a good archaeologist always investigates everything!"

"That's what I thought! Could you help me round up some guys for an expedition?"

"I'll send out word immediately!"

"Thanks Doc! You're the best!" Steel said, as he rushed out the door

Soon enough, Steel had his own crew headed for Egypt. Well, fine, it was Daring's crew. Dr. Fossil told Daring she needed to get out and adventure again, and after some arguing, she agreed to take part in the expedition. That was a couple days ago now, and they were already close to Egypt. Daring would have taken to the air, as she normally did, but she was bringing Steel with her this time, so they traveled by train. The train's whistle blew smoke and the conductor came over the intercom.

"Attention passengers, we are arriving at Diamond station in Luxor, Egypt. The train will come back here tomorrow by 2:30 in the afternoon. Thank you for traveling with the Pony Express."

"Luxor? Isn't that a mile away from where we want to go?" Daring asked Steel

Steel looked at his map, "Yeah, but it's the closest city there is to it. Plus, a mile hike isn't so bad!"

"Yeah but still, that's desert we're talking about. A mile hike into the desert is the equivalant of a ten mile hike up a mountain!"

"Get over it Daring! It's way better than wasting away in that office of yours!"

"Let's just get this over with..." Daring complained, as she got up to get off the train.

The town of Luxor wasn't amazing, but it wasn't just some town. Daring always liked to visit Luxor, she liked the sand running through her hair from the nearby deserts, and it gave her outfit some usefulness. Daring had on her trademark safari getup except she had a scarf covering her face from the wind. Steel was dressed in a similar fashion, Daring always wondered why the stallion had to dress like she did. Daring always joked that if she wore a girdle to go adventuring in, then Steel would too. Here they were, good old fashioned Luxor, a mile from where they wanted to be. Daring suggested they get a camel ride, and Steel agreed, so they headed for the Camel vendors on the outskirts of town.

The Luxor traders were very grumpy today, Daring had dealt with mean traders but these guys were a hoot. They wanted twenty bits to rent a camel for an hour! They didn't bring that kind of money with them, especially for the amout of camels they needed. They had to think on their feet, and made a distraction. A cantaloupe vendor across the street 'accidentally' spilled his fruit. The camels jumped on the opportunity to eat it, and those that didn't got to come with Daring and Steel while the owners of the shops tried to sort things out. The rest of the crew stayed behind to help with the distraction. Now, they were right where the map said this thing was, and there was nothing but sand.

"Great, what did I tell you?" Daring yelled at Steel

"So what? At least I was looking to adventure!" Steel came back

"You are so stupid sometimes! I swear!" Daring said, turning her camel around

Steel remained in a silent fury as he turned his camel around. As he did so, the two of them heard a solid clop! sound come from one of the camel's hooves. Daring and Steel looked at each other in shock, and Steel got a big grin on his face. They jumped down, and rubbed their hooves across the sand at the source of the sound, Steel was the one who found the source of the noise.

"Daring! Over here!" Steel exclaimed excitedly

"What is it?" Daring asked, now with a sense of excitement in her voice too

"I'm not sure," Steel said, digging away at the mysterious object, "I think it's the top of a doorway!"

Daring began digging along side Steel, together, they uncovered an ancient looking wooden door in a matter of seconds. They stood in awe, until Steel abruptly stepped forward and tried to open it. It wouldn't budge, and there didn't seem to be a handle anywhere, just a strange shape protruding from the door.

"Wait, I've seen this symbol before." Daring said

"Really? Where?" Steel asked

Daring didn't respond, she just reached down her shirt and pulled out her necklace. It was the coin she recently acquired tied to a piece of string. She ripped it off the string, and sure enough the shape in the center of the coin fit over the protrusion from the door exactly. She stepped back as the door swung open, revealing an ancient staircase that looked like it had not been used in the past hundred or so years.

"You were saying?" Steel asked with a huge grin on his face

"Fine, I was wrong." Daring admitted

"Sorry? I didn't quite catch that." Steel teased

Daring punched him in the arm and replied, "Good, I didn't want you to. It looks like we have an old fashioned tomb on our hooves!"

"You ready for this?" Steel asked. Daring hadn't seen adventure in a week or so, normally she went adventuring every other day.

"I was born ready!" Daring replied

Together, they climbed into the stairwell, and started descending.

Into the Darkness

Chapter I:

Into the Darkness

Daring Do and Steel Hoof descended down into the tomb. The stairwell was dark and moist, and old burned out torches lined the walls. When things first got dark, Steel lit one of the torches and held it in front of them. Daring could barely make out each step, as the blinding light in front of her prevented her from seeing too far. After about thirty minutes of climbing down steps, Steel was the first to break the silence.

"How much further, do you think?" Steel asked

"It can't be too far, tombs aren't normally this deep to begin with." Daring replied

"How do you know this is a tomb?"

"I can tell by the style of the staircase, it symbolizes one's journey to the underworld."

"I thought that was bad when you went to hell?"

"No you numbskull, that's Christianity. The Egyptians believed that the afterlife existed in the underworld, and when you got there it would be decided whether you faced eternal torment or eternal happiness."

"Well, what if they had a bad pharaoh?"

"Then they would really make the stairwell long, so he could face his eternal torment sooner." Daring giggled

"Well if you ask me it seems like this guy must have been a real douche bag to be buried this deep!" Steel snorted

"Well maybe-" Daring was cut off by a flank to her face. She walked right into Steel after he walked into the door, they fell to the stairs in heaping mess. When they finally gathered themselves and stood up, Daring said, "Who does that? The stairs lead straight to another door? There's no entry hallway or anything? Strange design, I don't trust it..."

"Only one way to find out!" Steel said, dropping the torch and rushing the door

"No, Steel wait!" Daring shouted, but it was too late. Steel bashed the door in, and light entered the stairwell. At first, Daring didn't understand what torch could stay lit for a hundred and some years, but then she peeked in and saw where the light came from. Daring had never seen anything like it, there was a huge open space, almost as large as Cloudsdale itself! A giant cave! Egyptian houses and structures lined the walls, and formed a bowl-like shape to a courtyard in the center. Daring could see the cave went on far beyond her vision, as the other end of the cave had a bright light coming from it. What startled Daring was what could be making that light? The sun? No, they were too far underground! Daring couldn't understand, until she read the plaque in front of her.

"Daring? What kind of tomb is this?" Steel Hoof asked

Daring sat silent, her mouth agape at what she just read

"Daring? Daring Do?" Steel walked up to Daring

"I...I don't believe it..." Daring mumbled

"Yoo hoo, Equestria to Daring Do?"

"STEEL!" Daring yelled, grabbing Steel Hoof and shaking him, "YOU DIDN'T FIND A TOMB!"

"I didn't?" Steel said, confused

"NO!" Daring gestured towards the city below them, "YOU FOUND THE LOST CITY OF BASHA!"

"Uh, don't you mean Atlantis?"

Daring face-hoofed, "No you moron! Ba-sha!" Daring sounded out for him, like he was three

"Who?"

"Ugh, the Egyptian pharaoh who led an entire underground city?"

"Oh yeah! Bashoo or whatever! I read up about him! I can't really remember anything about him, it kinda went in one eye and came out...uh, my other eye?"

Daring facehooved at Steel's sad attempt to make a pun, "You read up about him for a whole week, how do you forget this sort of information?"

"I dunno? Just...fill me in on what I need to know."

"Fine, but as we walk, I've been searching for this place most of my life, and I want to see it before my luck catches up with me, and something bad happens!"

Steel nodded, understanding Daring now wanted to adventure again, and he trudged alongside her, holding the torch again. The light from the other end of the city was bright, but since it was on the other side of the city, it only lit up everything from one angle, making large and dark shadows reach across everything. Daring found a pace and Steel matched it, gesturing for her to speak. Daring took in a breath and started explaining about Basha and his great city.

"Basha was a pharaoh who led a very prosperous land." Daring began to tell the story, "He loved his subjects, and listened to what they had to say. He ran his territory almost like a democracy, he allowed votes on certain things he couldn't decide, and allowed public complaints. Because he cared so much for his subjects, everypony loved him."

"Well how did he move his city underground?" Steel interrupted

"I was getting to that!" Daring snapped, "Anyway, Basha knew his subjects loved him, and he loved his subjects. Then, one day, a sandstorm came in and swept across his land. Because Basha was so lenient, there weren't enough workers to make sturdy structures for the large influx of people to his land. Basha was blamed for the incident, and he promised he would beg for an answer from the gods."

"But I thought the gods only brought plights to the land, not blessings. Isn't that why they did sacrifices?"

"Yes, I think you're correct, but in any case he asked the gods for help. The altar to which he prayed, burst into flames, and the voices of the gods spoke to Basha directly."

"Wow." Steel commented

"They told him, that a great cavern lied beneath his city, and, for a great price, they would relocate the city into the cavern."

"What was the 'great price'?"

"The gods asked for Basha to protect a simple item, a staff."

"What? That hardly sounds like a challenging task!"

"This was no ordinary staff, this was the staff of the gods themselves, this staff was a symbol of the god's power, and therefore it must be guarded. If the staff fell into the wrong hands, then it could bring great destruction across the land! But, there was one catch, Basha couldn't use the staff either! He made a chamber for it, that was locked and guarded at all times."

"Well what went wrong?"

"Basha's people were hungry, they couldn't grow crops underground! Basha's people were tired of not being able to see sunlight! Basha's people were tired of Basha! Most of his subjects left the city, and only those who were truly loyal to Basha stayed behind. Alongside Basha, they guarded the staff with their lives. On one fateful day, Basha decided he would get his people back by force, and went after the staff of the gods in an attempt to use the staff to bring them back! He was cut off by his own guards, who were conflicted: obey Basha, or obey the gods? The guards eventually chose the gods, and locked Basha up. When Basha was old and dying, the guards let him out to see his city once more. Some say he never made it, and died when the guards came for him. Some say he made it to his city, and what he saw ended his life! Some say that he broke free of the guards grasp, and locked himself in with the staff of the gods! Nobody really knows how the story quite ends, but one thing is for certain. Somewhere in this city, is an ancient safe with a priceless staff in it, and most likely, tons of valuables!"

"So that's what our new objective is? Find this 'Staff of the Gods' and get the hell out?"

"So far, yes..." Daring stated proudly

"Well where is this safe?"

"My guess," Daring pointed towards the light, "That-a-way!"

For the longest time, Daring thought the most amazing thing she'd ever see was her amazing collection of fossils at the museum. Then she went and experienced her own tomb, and then traveled the world, going on adventures! After all Daring had been through, she never thought she would see this city. Each time they passed a torch, she asked Steel to light it. When he asked why, she said, "It's a trade secret!" Steel would just shake his head and move on. Daring kept asking him to light the torches so she could see the city in all its glory! Even though a torch or two went out behind them, they were making a trail, and Daring planned to light up at least half of the place. After a lifetime of walking, Daring finally told Steel to put out the light. They were close enough now to the light source that there weren't really anymore shadows.

Daring looked at her partner, and she suddenly realized what he really looked like. She normally just saw this grey, young, stallion who liked to rough around and go on adventures. Now, that she was looking at him in this flattering light, she could see his features better. He was sweating from the humidity down here, and his rippling muscles looked strong enough to rip a house in half. For a moment, she felt an attraction to her partner, but the she snapped out of it and focused back on the task at hand. She didn't have time to fantasize, she was the adventurer Daring Do after all! Then she began to wonder what made these thoughts cross her mind, they never had before.

She looked over the hill top (if that's what you want to call it) and saw a whole new section of city below them. This section looked very similar to the last, except it was lit up a lot better. Vines reached around the edges of the city block below, and birds could even be heard chirping! Daring was never more anxious in her entire life, she picked up the pace and walked ahead, Steel adjusted to keep up.

Little did they know, that they weren't alone. Something in the shadows was lurking about, watching their every move. It would wait for the perfect time to strike, and when it did, it wouldn't end well for the heroes. The worst part was, there were more than one, there was an entire group. Daring and Steel were completely unaware to the danger surrounding them, but they would have to face it soon enough...

Tranquil Beauty

Chapter II:

Tranquil Beauty

Daring Do and Steel Hoof trudged on, the light growing brighter with each step the took towards it. The city was magnificent, Daring Do had truly never seen anything so amazing. A city that was completely underground! It was astounding! Daring thought of how much money she could make, having people pay to visit the city. She even pondered if she could bring the city back to its former glory. If this place was inhabitable once, why can't it be again? Daring Do looked at her partner, the same feeling she had earlier washed over her. She stared at him, as he trudged beside her. He was squinting, trying to see past the light, which was good because things would get awkward quickly if he spotted her staring at him. His muscles reflected light from the beads of sweat running down them. His sleek mane was cut short so it wouldn't get in his way, his tail was almost completely gone, just a small six inch stub of hair protruded from his hindquarters.

Daring Do caught herself gawking over the stallion beside her. What had happened? She had never looked at him like this before, why did she start now? Maybe something was in the air down here, maybe she was going into heat, maybe she was losing her mind! Whatever it was, Daring didn't let it get to her, she focused on proceeding forward, and placing one hoof in front of the other. She returned her attention to the city they were walking through, it was truly magnificent. The design looked more like that of an Aztec city, which greatly surprised Daring, as the Aztecs were far beyond the Egyptians when it came to technology and design. She could make out the vines growing out of plant pots where beautiful flowers must have once grown. This city 'block' had the same design as the last one, it was bowl shaped with a courtyard in the center. Many of the buildings lined the walls of the cave, and the walkways traveled along the middle of the curve of the bowl. Every few yards, a staircase ran up the side of the bowl, and down into the center, allowing people to get to houses on different levels. Daring wasn't sure what they would find deeper into the city, it could just be these two blocks, but she doubted it. What was strange was that Basha had the entrance to his great city lead right into a city district. Daring figured that the entrance would be grand, and be lined with flowers and have a giant door. Daring kept thinking about Basha's design flaws and eventually Steel Hoof stopped her from walking any further, he put his hoof out to stop Daring in her tracks, but before she could argue, Steel put the hoof to her mouth. There was a moment of silence, as the small noise of some pebbles rolling behind them startled her.

"Did you hear that?" Steel asked

"The pebbles? Yeah, what of it?" Daring stated, confused at the sudden stop

"How old is this place?"

"Probably a few thousand years?"

"Don't you think all of the loose sediment would have settled down here by now?"

Daring was surprised at his observation, she didn't even think about that. Now considering what Steel was getting at, she asked him, "Do you think we're not the only ones down here?"

"I'm not sure, it could be just from us walking through," Steel peeked over his shoulder, into the darkness behind them, then turned back, "but my gut is telling me otherwise. Just try not to let your guard down."

Daring nodded, and they continued on.

The light was almost close enough that they could see through it, whatever was behind it, must have been a pretty big deal! The blinding light was clearing now, and Daring was starting to make out the outlines of buildings. Steel rushed ahead and all Daring could hear him say was, "Holy crap! Daring you've gotta see this!"

Daring Do rushed forward, eager to see what awaited her on the other side of this wall of light. She thought the city was amazing, but she hadn't even seen all of it. When Daring passed through the blinding light, she found herself overlooking all of the city of Basha. The cave opened up into a great underground bubble, with many little side tunnels that must have led to different sections of the city. The bubble was tall enough to easily reach Cloudsdale, if it was on the surface. Light streamed in through the cave ceiling, by way of little flames that burned bright enough to light the floor that was miles beneath them. In front of Daring, the ground dropped off, and a spiral staircase led down to the city floor. They were at least fifteen stories up, and had a lot of climbing to do to get to the ground. Beside the first steps of the stairwell, sat another plaque. It was made of bronze and the writing on it was Egyptian. Daring approached the plaque and read it out loud.

"This is the Kingdom of Basha. If you are reading this, then that means you are trespassing. The Kingdom of Basha no longer allows outsiders, and only those loyal to Basha himself may enter. You have been warned, leave this place or die."

"Sounds pretty legit." Steel commented sarcastically

"What that means is that this place will be booby trap city!" Daring continued

"Don't you mean Kingdom?" Steel joked, pointing at the plaque

"Ha ha," Daring mused, "Either way, we shouldn't just run through this place, there could be traps at any corner. Heck, even this stairwell could be trapped!"

"If I had to booby trap a Kingdom, then I'd start with the entrances, so that makes sense."

Daring turned to face Steel, "Well I'll fly down and- LOOK OUT!"

A black figure pounced on Steel Hoof, tackling him to the ground. Daring pulled out her whip, but a hand grabbed her hoof in mid swing. She turned to see who stopped her, as the blue, furry hand lifted her up into the air. It was none other than Ahuizotl! The blue fiend held Daring Do with the hand on his tail, dangling her in the air. He grinned and let out an evil laugh.

"Daring Do," He mused, "How great it is to see you again!"

Daring Do spat in the villian's face, "Screw you Ahuizotl!"

Ahuizotl snarled

"You know this guy?" Steel asked, fighting off a monster that looked like a black version of Ahuizotl

"Hardly! He's been interfering with a lot of my adventures!" Daring responded

The black Ahuizotl tackled Steel to the ground, and growled at him. This creature looked like Ahuizotl, but acted much more feral, more like a panther. Ahuizotl interrupted, "It's nice to see the family reunion is going well but we really must be parting ways Mrs. Do!" Ahuizotl grabbed both of Daring's wings and painfully broke them.

"AAAH!" Daring screamed in pain, tears forming in her eyes

"DARING!" Steel screamed, still pinned by the beast

Ahuizotl hovered Daring Do over the edge, shaking her as a threat to drop her. Ahuizotl got a strange look in his eye, then said, "Daring my darilng, I'm sure you'll find some way to survive this, just like you always do! So when you reach the bottom, just be warned that my friend here has a pack, and they're very hungry! Even if you do splat, they will gladly come down and clean up the mess either way. But for now Daring Do, ta-ta!" Ahuizotl let go of Daring's foreleg

"DARING!" Steel struggled against the beast and broke free, diving after Daring Do over the side of the cliff. Ahuizotl looked at his black colored minion.

"Well look at that! We got two birds with one stone! HAHAHAHAHA!" Ahuizotl said to his dark counterpart.

More of the black figures appeared from the light behind him, and growled as if asking for a command.

"Now, go make sure they're dead! And if they're not, find them and KILL THEM!"

The black creatures barked in agreement, and charged down the great spiral staircase.

Ahuizotl monologued, "It's only a matter of time now! Soon the Staff of the Gods will rightfully be mine! HAHAHAHA!"

Steel fell through the air, not exactly sure how he planned on saving Daring Do. He pointed his body straight and caught the mare in one foreleg. He reached for her whip with the other and grabbed the weapon. He swung it around and snapped it to the railing on the stairwell. The whip snapped straight, as it wrapped around a rung on the railing. The whip pulled them towards the staircase, slamming them into the side. Steel nearly lost his grip, but when he regained his focus, he pulled them over the railing. He retracted the rope, and gave it to Daring, who was crying in fear. Steel moved to comfort his mentor, who surprised him by tackling him with a hug.

"You," she paused to sniff, "You saved my life!" she sobbed into him

"It was no biggie Daring, you would have done the same for me." Steel calmingly replied

She gathered herself and removed her face from his chest, she sniffed and stood proud, her confidence regained, "Okay...Okay, how far are we from the bottom?" Daring asked, walking towards the ledge, flinching as she brushed her limp wings with her rear legs.

"Daring, are you sure you don't want to wrap those up first? You don't want to cause anymore damage than what's already been done!" Steel stated

Ignoring him, Daring fought through the pain and walked to the ledge, what she saw nearly made her throw up. She looked over the edge and the ground was not even a few feet below them. She was seconds away from splattering on the ground like a tomato! Daring heard roars from above her, she looked up and could see the black creatures scaling the staircase towards them. Daring started rushing down the staircase, "We need to move!" she commanded Steel, "NOW!"

Daring fought back tears as she ran through the city, partially because of how beautiful it was, but also because her wings were in great pain. Steel found a good hiding spot in an abandoned building, and they secluded themselves in it. It didn't take long to realize this was a storage building, as many old weapons and armor lined the walls. Steel shut the door behind them, as the monsters ran past, searching for the adventurers. When the growls and roars subsided, Steel sighed and walked away from the door.

"I think we're safe, for now." Steel whispered, "Who was that guy?"

"Ahuizotl," Daring responded, as she pulled bandages from her bag, "he's an ancient being who is bent on controlling the world and putting it in his image."

"Why would he want that?" Steel asked, as he approached Daring to help

"Because he thinks that he is the worlds rightful ruler, as he is the last half-god creature in all of Equestria." She replied, gesturing for him to stop

"Wow, so basically he's insane?"

"That pretty much sums it up." She answered, fumbling with the bandages, and causing herself further pain

"Here, let me help you." Steel stated

"No, I've got this, it's just a broken wing, I just need to wrap it in a stint." She snapped, pushing the stallion away

"Well you need to set the bone back in the right position, unless you want your wings to heal at a ninety degree angle." he said, gesturing towards the limp wings on Daring's back

"Fine, you can help..." She said with remorse

Steel wasted no time, and quickly grabbed her wing with both hooves, "This is gonna hurt, brace yourself." he warned.

Daring clenched her eyes as Steel prepared to snap the wing back into place. She let out a small scream when he popped the wing back where it needed to be, and tears ran down her face. It pained the stallion to see Daring in such pain, but it was better than leaving it be. He carefully placed a wooden stint on both sides of her wing and wrapped it in bandages, locking it in place. Daring dried the tears from her eyes and brushed a few off of her face. She looked at Steel, and Steel gave her a grave look as he gestured towards the other wing. She sighed and clenched her eyes shut again. Steel reached for the wing and popped it in place. The mare screamed again, and the tears returned to her vision. Afraid the beasts would hear her, Steel gave Daring a sugar cube for her to chew on. He repeated the process with this wing, and then carefully gave the mare a hug, being sure to place his forehooves around her neck instead of her wings. She simply whimpered in pain, as Steel began humming a slow song. They stood like this until her sobs of pain subsided. Steel had a crush on Daring, but he had never felt like this around her before. He felt like it was his duty to protect her, and his attraction to her had strangely grown since they arrived at this place.

He let go of the adventurer and began tearing the rotting wood from the weapons off of the walls. He made a small pile and went to light it. It wasn't dark yet, but it soon would be, as the light was dimming. The room seem ventilated enough so that the smoke wouldn't cause any problems, so he held his match to the wood and it burst into a small flame, just bright enough to light the room. Now, they could see the intricate designs on the walls, and the scenes they depicted. Daring sat down next to Steel as they looked up and tried to make meaning out of the Egyptian artwork around them.

"What does that say?" Steel asked, pointing to some Egyptian text

"It says: There is honor in glory." Daring replied

"What does that mean?"

"This was probably a place where gladiators came to arm themselves before combat in an arena. That saying is normally put in rooms like this, to remind the gladiators why they are fighting, for honor and glory."

"So gladiators got ready for battles in here?"

"It's a strong possibility, yes."

"Huh, well that would explain the picture above it."

Daring looked at the picture above the text, it was a pony stabbing a sword through another pony. The picture seemed a little intimidating, but it didn't really phase Daring, she'd seen way worse. The fire died, and the room became dark again.

"Well so much for a fire for warmth." Steel said

Daring's feelings began to overrun her mind again, and Daring had a mildly devious idea, "We could use each other for warmth."

"What?" Steel questioned. Daring wasn't sure, but even in the dark she swore she could see him blushing

"Yeah, like this." Daring snuggled up next to the stallion, and got cozy

"Oh, uh, I guess that'll work." Steel's face was bright red now, but he snuggled up beside the mare and got comfortable as well.

Howls could be heard in the distance, which reminded them that they were not alone out here. Daring pushed herself closer to Steel, and tried to ignore it. Then Daring realized what she was doing, but instead of turning away and pushing the thoughts out of her head, she knew that her life could very well reach an end in this underground land, so she accepted them. It had seemed Daring was right, something was in the air, but it wasn't a toxin: It was love. Daring wasn't sure what to think of this, how could she be in love with her partner? Either way, when- err, uh- if she made it out of here, she'd be sure to tell him of her feelings in the most professional way. For now, she set the feelings aside and closed her eyes, trying to ignore the fact that a pack of feral Ahuizotl's were on the hunt for them.

Daring had dreams that night, she dreamed that she was in the Kingdom of Basha, when it was thriving with life. Everything was so beautiful and perfect. Statues of Ahuizotl lined the streets and vendors were selling fruits. She approached one particular vendor that caught her eye, and then she realized she had somepony walking beside her. Steel was standing beside her, closer to her than usual. The vendor faced them and asked, "What would you like today Mr. and Mrs. Hoof?"

In dreamland, Daring didn't really notice she said that, as if it was a normal statement. Daring responded, what she said didn't make any sense, but she was dreaming so it didn't have to, "I'll have one Guakamon fruit please!"

The vendor reached into his pocket, and pulled out a small coin, it looked exactly like the one Daring had got in her previous adventures. "Here you are, the key to your next step!" the vendor said, as if this was normal. This coin had a different shape in the middle, but it didn't make a difference when she was in her dream. She took the coin, as if it was the strange and non-existing fruit she asked for, and went on her way after hanging it around her neck on a string that magically appeared on it. Daring walked away from the stand, when one of the statues started to move. It shook and everypony ran away, even Steel. The statue broke, and revealed a real Ahuizotl, except it was one of the feral ones! The monster pounced Daring, knocking her to the ground. It reached for her wings with its tail, and grabbed one. Daring saw the beast pull hard, dislocating her wing.

Daring snapped out of sleep, letting out a small scream. She quickly looked around, and found that the only thing with her was Steel, who was already up.

"What's wrong?" Steel asked

Daring looked out the window, light shown through it. It was already morning? It felt like she fell asleep ten seconds ago! Well so much for a good night's sleep, "Just...just a bad dream is all." Daring replied, trying to stretch her wings as carefully as possible

"Hey, didn't you leave that in the lock on the entrance?" Steel asked, pointing to Daring's neck

"Huh?" Daring questioned, looking at her neck. Sure enough, the coin from her dream was dangling around her neck. Was the dream real? No, it couldn't have been. Something strange was going on, and Daring planned to get to the bottom of it.

"Well whatever, I got some food for us to eat and then we should head out of here!" Steel stated

"What? No way!" Daring argued, "I think we need to stay!"

"What? Are you crazy? A pack of monsters is out there hunting for us! If we stay then we'll get ripped to shreds!" Steel exclaimed

"Yeah, but Ahuizotl is after the staff! If he gets his hands on it, then you can kiss the world goodbye!" Daring responded

"Ugh, you make a point. Fine, but the moment something else goes horribly wrong, so long as I'm still alive, then I'm headed back out, whether you're with me or not!"

"Aw c'mon Steel," Daring whined, giving him her puppy eyes, "I really want to go on this adventure! Please stay?"

Steel sat there for a moment, pondering his next words carefully. Finally, he sighed and said, "I'll help you find this stupid staff, but on one condition!"

"What's the condition?"

"I get to have the credit for finding the staff when we bring it back!"

"What!?"

"That's my condition! Take it or leave it!"

Now it was Daring's turn to carefully think about her word choice. After some consideration, Daring spat in her hoof and said, "Deal!"

Steel spat in his hoof and shook hers. The two ate a quick breakfast, and lightly tread out into the abandoned streets. It was even more beautiful in the morning light. Daring wondered how Basha got those lights to work that way, to simulate daytime. She didn't have time to think about that now, her gut was telling her she needed to go to the arena. She didn't know why, but she felt like something important was there, so she told Steel that's where they were headed.

"How do know that we need to go there?" Steel asked

Daring looked at the coin around her neck, and she stuffed it down her shirt. She looked back at Steel and simply replied, "It's a trade secret."

From the Shadows

Chapter III:

From the Shadows

Daring Do and Steel Hoof made their way through the city, looking for any sign of an arena. All they found were pony skeletons, spears, shields, and armor laying about. Daring Do didn't understand, what could have killed these ponies? It was quite obvious the ponies who died here must have died in some form of a struggle. Daring contemplated their positions, and what was left of their facial expressions, trying to determine how they died. She thought about what could have come down here to kill these ponies, and why? Steel noticed that Daring was staring at the skeletons, and turned her head towards his.

"Daring, don't start thinking about death! We've come this far and I don't want you going crazy on me now!" Steel worried

"I was just wondering, don't you notice how these skeletons are positioned?" Daring replied

"What do you mean?"

"Well think for a second," She said as she stopped walking and approached one of the skeletons, "who dies in a position like that, unless they're being attacked?"

Steel Hoof looked at the remains. Daring had a point, the body did appear to be in the fetal position. Steel walked up to the form and got a better look. There must have been an attack, now he saw what Daring was talking about. But he still wondered, "I thought Basha and his people stayed down here and guarded the staff? You never said they were actually invaded!"

"That's just the thing Steel, they weren't!" Daring exclaimed. Daring needed to further examine the corpse, look for battle scars on the bones. She reached for the skull and lifted it up. Suddenly, Daring heard a chink underneath the ground. Before Steel could react, Daring tackled him to the ground, knocking them at least a yard away from the body. Steel was about to argue, when Daring put her hoof over his mouth and pointed towards the remains. Steel nearly swallowed Daring's hoof at the sight of what she pointed to. Huge spikes protruded from the ground, surrounding the skeleton. The skull hung loosely on one of the spikes, then fell off after some precarious wobbling. Booby trapped bodies? Something strange was going on here, and Daring didn't like it, not one bit. After a few seconds of silence, and the fact that Daring nearly died twice in one adventure sinking in, Daring decided there was no more time to fool around. Daring got up and helped Steel up.

"We need to quit goofing off, and find this arena ASAP." Daring sternly remarked

"That sound's like a good idea to me! What's the plan captian?" Steel asked

Daring would have flown up and found out where the arena was, but her broken wings prevented it, you suck Ahuizotl. Daring looked around, and found a particularly tall structure, "We'll climb that and make a quick map from up there. We can use that to navigate our way through this portion of the city." Daring noted

"And just how do you plan to get up there? You can't exactly fly up there." Steel added

"Well, I'll just take the stairs."

"The stairs that lead to the roof?"

Steel had a point, Egyptians didn't have reason to go on rooftops, and when they did then they used ladders. The stairs would take them to the top floor, but not to the roof. Daring started walking towards the building, "I guess we'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it."

Steel sighed and caught up with his mentor. He loved the way she handled things in such a carefree nature, it made her seem...sassy...and Steel liked it. He caught himself before he let his mind start to fantasize about things, but what happened last night, when Daring snuggled up to him, made him come back to those thoughts. Did Daring have feelings for Steel? She had never shown them before, and Steel felt an even stronger connection between them ever since they came down here. It was almost as if somebody was slowly casting some sort of love spell on them. Whatever the case, Steel pushed the thoughts from his mind and kept an eye out for danger. Those beasts were still out there looking for them, and the two adventurers had no defense against them. This was the first time Steel met this Ahuizotl character, but he could tell that he was no good from the start. He was your typical average everyday villain, with a touch of insanity.

Daring Do and Steel reached the building, and Steel stepped forward, "Ladies first!" he said, trying to push the door open. The door was stuck, and he was about to bash it in, when Daring suddenly stopped him, grabbed the handle, and pulled the door open. Daring grinned at Steel, who turned bright red and glared in return. Daring stepped inside, and Steel followed closely. The building was dark, and the air inside was moist. It wasn't humid, it felt like the air had microscopic rivers flowing through it, and it formed a sort of breeze. The floor was moldy and covered in dirt and sand. A counter sat up against the back wall, and tables and chairs littered the floor. A stairwell went upstairs behind the counter and Daring proceeded towards it. She climbed up the Stairs to find the next floor was an exact mirror of the first one. She walked to the other flight of stairs and went up, Steel wasn't far behind. The next few floors must have been different facilities, but Daring just waltzed through on her way to the top. When she finally reached the top floor, she started wondering how she was going to get on the roof. The top floor was a master bedroom, which must have been where the owners of the building slept. The bed was still made, but the sheets and pillows were damp and moldy. Dressers lined the walls, the drawers were missing and the wood was rotten. There were no windows in this room, but two unlit torches hung from both sides of the bed. Daring still didn't understand how the lights on the ceiling worked, and why they couldn't be put in here too, but she didn't care, she had to get to the roof. Steel caught up and lit one of the torches with an immense amount effort, since the wood was so damp. Now that they had light, Daring got an idea.

"Steel, do you thing we could take some tables and chairs from downstairs and make a way up to the ceiling?" Daring pondered out loud

"It's a possibility, but how do you plan on getting through the ceiling?" Steel responded

"I figured you could just bust a hole for me to climb through, this structure is mostly made of a clay mix so it shouldn't be too hard."

"Well alright, I'll grab some stuff and you pile up those dressers." Steel commanded

"Roger dodger." Daring said as she knocked over one of the dressers and began sliding it to the center of the room. When she got it there, she did the same with the other one, making a sort of platform. Steel came up with a table, and placed it on top of that, which was plenty high enough to reach the ceiling. Steel climbed up on the structure, which wobbled due to the rotting wood. Steel took as much of a stable stance as he could, and bucked the ceiling as hard as he could with his hind legs. The roof gave way easily, and Steel climbed up on top. Daring Do soon followed up, and pulled out her sketch pad.

"Okay, so you're just gonna draw the city now?" Steel asked

"No you dunderhead. I'm looking for the- There it is!" Daring exclaimed, pointing at an arena not far from them.

"Okay, so you're gonna draw that instead?"

"No, just the streets. We only need to know how to get there, not what the buildings look like." Daring stated as she began to draw the grid of the city streets, labeling the arena and the building they were currently on.

"Alright, well while we're up here, maybe we should map out as much as we can see?"

"Good idea Steel, then we can know where to go if we have to head somewhere else." Daring began drawing the rest of the grid around them, and noted important looking buildings. When she finished, she put her pad away and motioned for Steel to climb down. He jumped down the wobbly structure with ease, but Daring didn't have such luck. When Daring Do put her weight on the collaboration of rotting wood, it finally gave way. Daring crashed to the floor, landing on her right wing. Daring screamed in pain, and seconds later, wished she didn't. Right after her scream, roars could be heard from the surrounding buildings, and growls weren't that far away. Daring didn't have time to apologize, as Steel helped her up and started rushing down the stairs. Steel and Daring burst out of the building, and made a mad dash for anywhere else but there. Daring pulled out her pad mid-sprint and looked at it to see where they needed to go.

"This way!" She said, trying not to speak too loudly so they would not be heard. Daring made a left turn, followed by a right down an alleyway. The two rushed as fast as they could, not caring if the beasts were following them or not. Daring and Steel made it to the arena entrance, and rushed inside. The doors that once stood proud were now dilapidated and in pieces on the floor, symbolizing that something came through them. Daring was regretting making the decision to come here, and quickly led Steel around into the area where gladiators prepared for battle. She shut what was left of the door to the room they just entered, and they huddled up in the corner opposite the door. The growls and roars eventually subsided, and all that could be heard was Daring and Steel trying to catch their breath. After a few moments of catching their breath, the two finally realized they were holding one another, and awkwardly separated.

"Damn, these guys are relentless..." Daring whispered, still afraid the monsters could hear her

"Just try not to scream again. They're everywhere, and they're always listening." Steel whispered as well

"It wasn't my fault! I fell on my wing! I hope it didn't mess it up to bad..." Daring complained

"I didn't say it was your fault," Steel said, approaching Daring to check the wing, "you fell on your wing and it hurt, you couldn't have known that vocalizing your pain would have brought those monsters after us. What matters now is that you're safe."

"Uh, don't you mean we're safe?" Daring asked

Steel didn't understand, but then he realized what he had said. His face turned red and all he could manage to say was, "Yeah..." as he went to work checking her wing.

Daring looked around the room, there was a door (surprisingly well kept) that led to the main arena battlegrounds. All around them, old armor and weapons hung from the walls, and the feint light coming through the window lit the room well enough so she could make out the same pictures on the walls that were in the building they slept in. When Steel finished checking the wing, Daring craned her neck to let out a few pops and continued to pop the rest of her joints.

"That's disgusting." Steel noted

Normally, Daring would have just giggled and tried to make the pops louder, but for some reason, disgusting the stallion seemed like an awful idea right now. She stopped, and Steel gave a surprised look, he fully expected her to finish popping every joint until Steel was nearly to the point of throwing up. She walked towards the door to the arena, like nothing was out of the ordinary. She pushed the door open very cautiously, and peeked outside. There were no signs of the monsters, just an empty colosseum. What caught Daring's eye was a strange looking figure, out in the center of the combat field. The dust and humidity in the air prevented her from properly seeing the being in the center of the arena. Daring pulled her head back in.

"I think that somepony's out there!" she whispered to Steel

"What? It's probably just one of those monster things!" Steel whispered back

"No no, it's too small. I think it's a pony!"

"Lemme see!" Steel barged past Daring and peeked out the door

"See it?" Daring asked

"Yeah I see."

"Do you think it's another pony?"

Steel pulled his head back in the doorway, with a huge grin on his face. "Well," he said, "only one way to find out!" With that, Steel charged through the door and approached the figure at a fairly brisk pace. He wasn't running, but he wasn't walking either.

"Shit, Steel!" Daring murmured to herself, "Why you gotta be such an idiot?" Daring chased after him. That numbskull was finding any reason he could just to say that line, Daring figured he wanted it to be his catch phrase. When Daring caught up to Steel, the figure was looking right at them, it was a zebra! Daring and Steel walked up to the zebra, who had on ancient Egyptian robes. The zebra remained silent, as Steel and Daring approached. The zebra got up, and started trotting towards Daring and Steel, to meet them halfway. When they reached each other, Steel was the first to speak.

"Hey there! You're not planning on killing us are you?" Steel asked the zebra

Daring just facehooved

The zebra looked at Daring, and the zebra's expression turned to realization. The zebra bowed down before Daring, as if she was royalty, without saying a word.

Daring gave Steel a confused look, and approached the zebra. "Uh, hello? Who are you?"

Without getting back up, the zebra simply said, "That matters not, you are the chosen one."

"The what now?" Daring said, startled at what she heard

"The chosen one? Maybe she was chosen to be the world's biggest loser!" Steel joked

Daring punched him in the arm, and faced the zebra. "I think you have me mistaken for somepony else. We're being hunted by some creatures and we need help. How long have you been down here?"

The zebra finally came up from her bow, and said, "No, I am certain of this: you are the chosen one. Come, I shall explain everything to you over a cup of herbal tea." Without warning, the zebra turned and started walking towards the arena exit.

Daring looked at Steel, who just shrugged. Where did this zebra plan on taking them? Well, Daring hated to admit it, but there was only one way to find out.

The strange zebra led them through the city, as though he had traveled it many times before. Daring wasn't a racist, but she didn't really trust zebras. Every zebra she had met always wanted to cook her up in some stew and eat her. Daring never understood how one pony could eat another pony and still sleep at night. Steel wasn't liking the trip either, he had a few bad encounters involving zebras before as well. They both could tell the zebra knew they didn't trust him, so the black and white creature made sure to tread lightly, and not make any sudden movements. Eventually, the zebra led them to a smaller building, that appeared to be much better kept than the buildings around it. They entered and candles lit the only room, illuminating the Egyptian artifacts on the walls. Everything was well kept, and a speck of dust was hard to come by. In the back of the room sat a complete pharaoh's outfit. Daring was astounded at it's condition, and instantly dropped her guard to go look at it. Steel wasn't so keen to make himself vulnerable to their unknown 'ally'. Then, the zebra sat down in a chair, and motioned for them to sit across from him. Steel sat down and Daring pried her vision from the artifacts to sit next to him.

"So," the zebra said, pouring a cup of tea, "you must be wondering who I am?"

"Yes, and how have you been able to live down here?" Daring answered, as she took the cup of tea that was offered to her. She held the cup, but had no intent on drinking it, it could be poisoned.

"Well, I'm shocked that you don't know who I am! Allow me to explain myself." the zebra responded

"Yes, please." Steel snarked

"My name is Bota, I was Basha's senior advisor."

"What?" Daring Do was now utterly confused

"Basha has been dead for centuries! How could you have survived that long?" Steel asked

"Don't believe me? Who do you think preserved his outfit?" Bota said, gesturing towards the pharaoh's getup

"That's impossible, nopony could live for that long!" Daring exclaimed

"Yes, but Basha meddled with the gods. When he betrayed his duties of guarding the staff, the gods designated me to live on and protect it." Bota replied

"So what, the gods gave you eternal life?" Steel asked

"Not exactly," Bota answered, "They gave me eternal purpose."

"Huh?" now it was Steel's turn to be confused

"It means the gods granted his soul passage to the good portion of the underworld, but kept his physical form on this plane to do their bidding." Daring explained, "It was very rarely heard of in Egyptian times, and only occurred to those the gods saw as pure."

"So, you're a zombie?" Steel asked

"In a sense, yes. But don't worry, instead of eating flesh, I simply guard this land."

"All by yourself?" Steel continued as Daring took a sip of her drink. Steel started to wonder why he didn't get one.

"Yes, and the gods left me in the hands of a very capable fighting force known as the guardians. Those are the ones you have hunting you."

"Well then call them off! They nearly killed us!"

"I'm afraid they have been corrupted. The guardians were children of a creature known as Ahuizotl. Apparently he returned, and the guardians are taking orders from him instead of me."

"Yeah, we sort of had an encounter with him."

"He is a vile creature, and the only thing powerful enough to stop him is the Staff of the Gods."

"Speaking of that, how do we find it? We don't have any intent of using it for wrongdoings or anything like that, we're just here to keep Ahuizotl from getting it."

"In time, in time. Do not be alerted, but the herbs I placed in your friends cup are starting to take effect. Do not fear, they are not lethal."

"What?" Steel asked, as he turned to face Daring, who hadn't involved herself in the conversation for a while now. Daring was fast asleep, and Steel jumped up to Bota. "What did you do?!" He barked

"Do not worry, she is in a deep sleep. She will need to face her challenges, and the only way to do so is by sleeping."

"What are you talking about!" Steel yelled, grabbing the zebra by his collar

"Haven't you noticed young stallion? Ever since you got here, haven't you been feeling a strange connection with your friend here?"

How did he know about that? Steel let go of Bota and sat back down, totally baffled.

"Your friend is the chosen one, you and her are destined to open the room to the Staff of the Gods and free it from its prison."

"Well what about my feelings? Why did they come about?"

"Well, not many people know this, but Basha had a special woman he cared for. She was a peasant, so their love remained hidden. Since Basha had the duty of guarding the staff of the gods, Hathor, the goddess of love and joy, decided to personally see over their relationship, and keep it hidden. This is where the story gets mixed up: When Basha ran for the staff of the gods, he was going to attempt to speak to Hathor. The guards misunderstood Basha's intent, and locked him up. Ever since then, Hathor has had a strong influence over this land, and I wouldn't be surprised if she was trying to make you two connect!"

"What? Why us?"

"It could be for a number of reasons: Maybe she likes bringing love to the world, maybe she believes somepony as important as the chosen one deserves a right to love, maybe she misses having a love affair to watch over. The gods can be very unclear in their purpose."

"Well, does that mean Daring is having the same thoughts?"

"I'm sorry? Is that her name?"

"Oh, yeah, we didn't introduce ourselves. I'm Steel Hoof and this is Daring Do, we're explorers who work for a museum."

"Oh, how humble. Now, about your question: I honestly couldn't tell you, it's a possibility."

Steel took this as a 'maybe' and pressed on, "Now, why did you put her to sleep?"

"The god's influence is very subtle. They were able to inform me of your presence in the city by way of dreams."

"Dreams?"

"Yes, the gods send messages through dreams. It could be of things to come, or an event that is occurring somewhere else. On rare occasion, the gods can send objects through dreams, to those who need them most. Normally the items are small, but contribute in big ways. As a matter of fact, I'd say that necklace your friend is wearing is the result of such an event."

"What? This coin?"

"Coin? That is no coin, that is a key. It will most likely allow you access to the grand palace, which has long since been locked up."

"Okay okay, but again, why is Daring asleep?"

"So the gods can put her through her trials. Daring will face many trials in her dreams, and if she fails them, then her soul will be ripped from her body."

"What? Why would you do that?"

"She has to, she is the chosen one."

Steel didn't quite understand, so he reached over and shook Daring, she was unconscious. He cursed and faced the zebra, "Can I help her? Is there anything I can do?"

"There is one thing."

"What?"

"Rest. You cannot assist your friend in her trials, but you can rest well and be prepared for a perilous journey when you wake up."

"What? No! I need to help her now!"

The zebra flicked a cloud of purple dust in Steel's face. Steel tried to get up and retaliate, but he suddenly became very woozy. He collapsed back into the chair and fell asleep. He had so many questions left: Why would Hathor meddle in his love affairs? Where was the Grand Palace and the Staff of the Gods? How did Bota know that Daring was the chosen one? What role did Steel play in all of this? Well Steel thought to himself, as his brain shut down, Only one way to find out!

Survival of the Fittest

Chapter IV:

Survival of the Fittest

Steel didn't know where the heck he was. He got up, and found himself on a cloud. I must be dreaming he thought, there was no other logical explanation. Steel decided to test this thought, and tried to smack himself hard on the flank, only to find that he had no hooves. Now that he looked, he had no body either! For all he knew, he was just a floating head! He looked around, and found he was on (or rather hovering above) a cloud. He advanced to the edge of the cloud and looked below him, and saw the city of Cloudsdale. Though some things were different: The buildings were all made of marble, and the streets were empty. Steel flew (or glided or whatever) to the city, and began walking down the main road. He was amazed he could walk on clouds, but then he remembered he wasn't exactly walking, it just felt like he was, it was very hard to explain. He wandered through the streets, until he found himself overlooking the stadium where the Wonderbolts performed, which was in marble like the rest of the flying city. Thoughts raced through Steel's brain, How is marble on clouds? Where is my body? Am I dreaming? He tried to push the questions out of his head for now, and walked into the stadium.

Steel made his way into the center of the open stadium, which had no floor. Daring had told him about this stadium before, this was where they held the young flyers competition, and that strange rainbow pony had her hair styled like Daring's. Daring wanted to give the pony an autograph but after some freak accident she decided it best to just leave her alone.

Steel flew to the center of the stadium, and looked up in the rafters. He wasn't exactly sure what he was looking for, his gut was telling him he needed to look though. He guessed that some of Daring's instinct must have rubbed off on him as he mindlessly looked around. He was about to leave when the curtains behind the platform for the princesses moved. It was a small booth but Steel figured that there had to be something important in there, yet he didn't know how he knew this. He flew up to the booth and pushed the curtains aside. He found himself looking upon a large throne room, where everything was decked in bronze, marble, and granite. The room was formed like a cathedral, with a high ceiling and pillars along the sides, each pillar had a bronze top and bottom piece and was made of marble. The walls were marble as well but the main walkway was lined with granite. The steps and pedestal for the throne were granite and bronze, every other step was lined with a bronze corner. Murals of lovers danced across the ceilings, and the stain-glass windows depicted lovers and smiling ponies. Steel thought that it was impossible that all of this could fit in that small booth. He turned around to look at the curtains behind him and found they had been replaced with solid marble. He didn't question this, as he had enough questions on his mind, and proceeded down towards the throne.

There was a pony on the throne, but the pony was a statue. It was a lovely mare, one with smooth physical features and a sweet smile that just made a tear want to come to Steel's eye, but he didn't have an eye at the moment. Suddenly, when Steel was about a yard away from the throne, a bright light formed around the statue. The ground trembled, and the statue shook, Steel was sure it was about to blow up. Instead of violently exploding, the statue simply turned to flesh, and a pink mare with a crimson mane sat before him. She wore an Egyptian headdress made of gold, and an outfit similar to the one Basha supposedly wore covered her body. Steel stood motionless as the mare gazed at him with her emerald eyes, and motioned for him to step forward. Steel would have stayed back, but he felt welcome in this mare's presence, like it was impossible for her to do him any harm. He stepped right up to the mare, took her hoof, and kissed it gingerly.

"Quite the gentleman," She giggled to Steel's surprise, "You will make a fine mate for your friend."

Steel, not even realizing what he was doing, quickly put down the mare's hoof, "Who are you? What is this place?"

"You mean you haven't figured it out yet?"

"No...no...you...y-you're...Hathor?"

"The one and only!" Hathor joked

"But...is this real?" Steel finally asked

"Of course not, I'm here to give you an offer." Hathor replied, still jokingly

"You're here? Wait, don't you mean I'm here? I was the one who walked in here!"

"No no silly filly, this is your dream."

"It seems that zebra was right then, the gods communicate through dreams."

"You must be speaking of Bota, he knows much more about the gods than he lets on. That is not what I am here to discuss though, I am here to discuss your feelings for the one you love." she grew mildly serious

"Hey! I don't love her! I just- uh...it's complicated!"

"Do not deny it young stallion, she has had these same feelings, and has accepted them."

"Daring? Daring...in love? *With me?*** You must be joking."

"I kid you not, her feelings for you are undeniable, and you must admit yours to her."

"Why? Why would you intervene like this, and not just let us work it out?"

"I am the goddess of happiness and love, it is my job to spread it through the world. My influence is not as strong anymore, haven't you noticed? More and more ponies are divorced nowadays, and less and less turn to love and happiness. Few places allow my influence. As a matter of fact, there is a small town called Ponyville, that lives in happiness because of one couple that runs a bakery. Their love has allowed my influence to spread to the town in which they reside, keeping the citizens happy. The Cakes, I believe is their name? But anyway, that is one of the places where my influence is strong. As you can see, I jump on any opportunity that presents itself."

"So you spread love and happiness, great. Now can you let me out of this dream? Now that I know Daring feels the same, I have nothing to fear."

"Not so fast Steel, this information did not come free."

"What? But you just told me the information! You didn't even give me a chance to turn it down!"

"Can you honestly say you would not have wanted to know how Daring felt about you?"

Dang, she got him on that one, "Fine, what do I have to do."

"It is simple, you must assist Daring in completing her trials."

"That's it? But wait, didn't Bota say I wasn't allowed to do that?"

"Ah, you pay attention. There is one catch, Daring cannot know it's you that is helping her!"

"Fine, and if I can't do it?"

"You will not wake up!" Her face became deathly serious, "And if Daring cannot complete her challenges, then she will not wake up! You will both be doomed to an eternal slumber!"

Steel wanted to argue, but he thought better of it, as the goddess's eyes seemed like they resembled doom at the moment. He slowly nodded his head (at least it felt like it), and felt a strong magic envelop him (or whatever he was at the moment). His surroundings became distorted, and melted away as if they were just an oil painting that had seen too much heat. The distorted images flew towards Steel, but instead of slamming into him, they became his arms, legs, body, and anything else he needed to be identified as a pony. Steel was now alone, and surrounded by white nothingness. He had one goal, find Daring.

Steel started advancing, and the world formed around him. He was now in a small town, he looked at the sign, it read: Ponyville. Isn't that the town Hathor was talking about? Steel wandered, but he didn't have time, as he heard Daring's voice from behind him, and he quickly hid behind the sign.

"Now where am I?" Daring said to herself, "Ponyville, population: Ponies. Well no duh, let's see what's so special about this place."

Daring walked straight past Steel, except she looked completely different. Daring was now a cyan color, and her mane was turned into rainbows. Steel didn't find it very attractive, but he knew it was Daring nonetheless, so he decided to keep up with her. Steel quickly hid himself behind the other side of the sign and waited until Daring got to town before he moved. He quickly dashed up and hid himself around the corner of the first building,

Steel followed Daring to a cottage in the outskirts of town, where he watched her hopelessly try to tame some animals.

This must be one of her trials, Steel thought, maybe if I can slip some tranquilizers in there, then Daring can put the animals to sleep and contain them that way.

Just then, a rustling came from behind Steel, and he quickly hid himself in a bush. A purple unicorn walked by and approached the cottage with a yellow Pegasus with a pink mane. The unicorn must have been a princess of some sort, because she had a tiara on her head.

A loud bang came from the door and the purple mare spoke up, "Rainbow Dash!"

"I'm in here!" Daring screamed, "Help! I'm trapped!"

The two visitors bashed inside, and Steel could clearly see Daring was tied up in a couldron, as animals, small and large, danced around her holding silverware.

"Hurry Twilight! Can't you do some sort of spell to get her out?" The yellow mare asked

"No! Fluttershy, you're the only one who can help!" the unicorn responded, "Rainbow Dash needs you!"

The yellow mare nodded and proceeded inside. This Pegasus seemed far too timid to control the crazed animals inside, and why were they calling her 'Rainbow Dash'? Whatever the case was, Steel had to act quickly. He rushed to the back of the house, and came in through the back door. He found a medicine cabinet and quickly rummaged through it. He found some sort of spray bottle labeled 'calming agent'. I wonder if it works? Steel thought to himself, Only one way to find out! Steel reached a hoof through the nearby doorway, which lead into the room where the event was taking place. He gave the bottle a few sprays and then quickly retreated his hoof back into the doorway. He heard the animals calming down, as the yellow mare began to convince herself that she was the one calming them.

"Goodness!" The Pegasus's soft voice flowed from the door, "It's like I can understand them! I-I feel strange, like this is what I'm meant to do! Like this is who I am! My destiny!"

A bright light flashed from under the door, and things grew silent for a second. After some discussings about a cutie mark and friendship, the two mares began singing about...a true, true friend? Well whatever the case was, they dragged Daring off and Steel had to follow them, as they left to help somepony named Rarity.

They were singing the whole way there, Steel gagged the entire trip. Steel didn't really understand why they had to sing, but Daring didn't really seem to mind. When we arrived at Ponyville, the town was in chaos. The sky was covered in...a checkerboard? Well whatever the case was, Daring flew up to the sky and approached the clouds. It seemed Daring had to break up the clouds. Steel knew Daring wasn't much of a cloud kicker, so he quickly searched around. A nearby unicorn was shivering underneath somepony's front porch. He approached the brown unicorn and decided to ask him for help.

"Excuse me sir?" Steel asked

"Yeah? What do you want?" The unicorn rudely remarked

"How would you like to get out of this weather?"

"Just how do you suppose I do that?"

"Cast a spell to break up those clouds!"

"Hah! That's a good one! That stupid mare will just put them back in this fancy checkerboard pattern!"

"Not if you break them up to make it seem like that Pegasus is doing it!" Steel pointed towards Daring

"Why would that make any difference?"

"Because...uh..." uh oh, Steel hadn't thought this through well enough, but then it hit him, "Because if you do then that Pegasus will feel so proud, that she'll send word to Celestia, who will make the Wonderbolts come to Ponyville to be your new weather team!"

"Why would she do that?"

"Uh, that's Celestia's granddaughter! Can't you see the uncanny resemblance in her rainbow mane?"

"Hmm, you do make a point, they do look similar. Fine, I'll do it, but this better change things around here!" The unicorn said, getting up. He made his way to a clearing, and started tearing apart the clouds, making it seem like Daring was doing it. At one point, the unicorn even turned the clouds into a miniature tornado, trying to make sure that Daring was convinced. Daring came back down and met with the purple unicorn.

"There!" the brown unicorn said, his grey mane matted with sweat, "Things better be different now!" then he trotted away.

Steel looked at Daring, who was glowing now, strange. The purple unicorn slapped a necklace on Daring, whose eyes grew big and wide. Steel could see an image of the real Daring Do floating out of Rainbow Dash's body as the process occurred. Oh! Steel thought, I see! The gods put Daring in place of this Pegasus, I guess in an attempt to teach her about...a true true friend? Whatever it was, Steel could feel himself being sucked away as well. That was the first trial, and Steel didn't find it too hard. If he was lucky, the rest of the trials would be just as easy. Too bad he wasn't lucky.

Steel found himself inside a control room, he was surrounded by flashing lights and loud buzzers. The room was small, and cold, the walls were grey steel and there was one window. Through the window, Steel could see Daring Do, making her way into the room. Daring had a strait jacket on, and she was shoved into the room by two ponies. Daring fell to the cold steel floor of the room, which didn't look much different from Steel's except that there weren't any controls. Daring got up and looked around, as if she was completely unaware of the window to Steel's room. Daring looked around, with a panicked look on her face. I hate to see her like this, I should try to calm her down and let her know everything is alright Steel thought. Daing started running about the room, as if she was avoiding something. This window must be one way, Steel thought, Maybe one of these controls will allow me to interact with Daring? Steel reached for a microphone, and pushed a button labeled 'intercom.' Steel was afraid to say Daring's name, in case she was supposed to be somepony else in this world, just like she was in the last. Steel looked around, and found a bronze plate above the window that said 'subject 26.'

"Subject 26?" Steel said into the intercom

Daring instantly stopped running around, and looked to the speaker in the opposite corner of the room. She simply stared at it, as if it was her whole life.

"Subject 26?" Steel repeated

"Y-yes?" Daring replied, very quietly. Steel could hear Daring through a speaker on the desk, and he could tell his own voice was much deeper over the intercom. Daring had no idea who was talking to her.

"Subject 26, why are you here?" Steel asked, hoping Daring would know

Suddenly Daring turned frantic, looking around as if somepony was staring at her. She regained her attention and spoke quietly, "Him."

"I'm afraid I don't understand."

"He's after me! He wants to get me! But nopony else believes he's even there! Am I crazy? Or is everypony else just blind?"

"Who? Who is after you?"

"HIM!" Daring said, pointing towards the opposite corner of the room, "HE'S IN HERE! HELP ME! HELP ME!" Daring began scratching at the walls, as if she could tear them down with enough effort.

"Da- I mean, Subject 26, you are the only pony in there. There is nopony coming after you, and you must realize this." Daring had completely lost it. Whatever sort of test this was, Steel wasn't sure how to even go about helping Daring.

"HE'S GETTING CLOSER! DO SOMETHING!"

"THERE'S NOPONY THERE!" Steel yelled out of anger for lack of better things to do.

"PLEASE!" Daring kicked out with her hind legs, and a solid smack! could be heard. At first, Steel just assumed she kicked the wall, until the window generated a loud bang! as though something had slammed into it.

"What the-?"

A blur formed in the middle of the room, making a feint figure. There wasn't a pony in there with her, it was some sort of invisible monster! Steel frantically searched for some sort of solution, hoping that the answer wasn't too far away. There was a big red button labeled 'SLEEPING GAS' with a big tear drop on it. Steel slammed the button, in hopes of putting the monster to sleep. Steel dawned a gas mask from the corner of the room, and bashed his way through the window, while carrying another. The monster turned and looked at Steel, or at least that's what it seemed like. Without hesitating, Steel slammed the creature to the ground, and threw the gas mask to Daring. Daring couldn't see Steel's face under the gas mask, so he was safe from her finding out. Daring put the gas mask on, as the monster slowly calmed down.

"You weren't crazy! There was a monster! Why'd they put you in here?" Steel asked, when the beast calmed down

"I'm not sure! I-" Daring was cut off, as she melted away, into the rest of the room. Steel watched the room melt in a similar fashion from when he left Hathor. The room shot up into the white sky, and Steel was alone again. The gas mask had disappeared at some point, and Steel was left to wander forward in hopes of the next challenge. Instead of a trial, a golden pony with a bright white mane materialized in front of him. This pony was about as big as Celestia, and wore the clothes of a pharaoh.

"You are loyal to your friend." The stallion said to Steel, in a voice deeper than the Grand Canyon.

"Who are you? Where is this place?" Steel asked

"I am the god of the unknown and things yet to be found. My name is Corpsus, and this is my realm."

"And what exactly is 'your realm'?"

"There are many names for it, but most identify it as 'the plane'."

"The plane?"

"Yes, it is a land where most ponies travel into when they have dreams. It is a land that is easily molded and can form anything the mind can imagine. Go on, try to make a book appear in front of you."

"How?"

"Just think of one! Any book will do!"

"Okay, I'll try." Steel pictured the only book he had ever read, and waited for it to appear in front of him.

"No no, that won't do. Picture the book appearing in front of you!"

Steel did what the god asked, and sure enough, the book appeared. Corpsus picked up the book, and a flustered look came across his face as he read the title. Steel, knowing what the book was, blushed in embarrassment.

"Fifty Shades of Hay?" the god asked

"It's the only book I've ever read! Ponies use the internet to do research nowadays!" Steel defended

The god gave a hearty laugh, and looked back at Steel, tossing the book to the side as it disappeared with a pop!, "Well, now that this little Q&A is over, how about we talk about the task at hand?"

"Yeah, what's going on here?"

"Well, your friend, Ms. Do is it? She is going through some trials right now and is currently unavailable!" The god laughed again.

"What? But Hathor said I could help her!"

"Hathy said that? Oh well lookout everypony, things just got serious!" The god threw his forehooves up in the air and laughed as he made a stupid face.

"What was up with that last test? What was that supposed to teach her?"

"Isn't it obvious? That test wasn't for her, it was for you!"

"Huh?"

"The first test was for Daring to learn about friendship, and how a friend can rely on a true friend to help them! When she learned that, then it was your turn to learn it! You helped Daring out of that situation, you were lucky gas masks were involved, otherwise she would have known it was you!" Corpsus laughed again

"So, what now?"

"Now, it's time for the final test! A test of physical mettle!"

"What are you getting at?"

"Steel, you must fight!"

"Fight you? Fine, let's go!" Steel started bobbing like a wrestler

"Not me, young Stallion."

Steel stopped fast in his tracks, "What? Then who?"

"Her!" Corpsus said, pointing behind Steel

Steel turned to look, and as he did the world formed around him. Armor formed on his body, completely covering it. A sword and shield materialized in his hooves, and he found himself in an arena, but not just any arena, it was the arena from Basha's kingdom! The arena was much better kept, and the air was clear. The rafters were lined with ponies, some wearing filthy clothes, and others dressed in clean, white, robes with leaves in their hair. On the opposite side of the field, stood a lone Pegasus, Daring Do. She had on a leather tunic with a spear in her hooves.

"Oh for the love of Celestia, don't make me do this." Steel murmured under his helmet

"Too late Steel!" Corpsus's voice rang in Steel's head, "You fell for the oldest trick in the book!"

"What trick is that?"

"Made ya look!"

"You no good, backstabbing, prissy little idiot!"

"There's no need for such harsh words, even though I am at least two of those things! By the way, whoever wins this battle, gets to wake up, and she's still not allowed to know it's you!" Corpsus's laugh rang in Steel's head as his voice faded away

The ponies in the stands began cheering louder, and horns sounded off. Daring rushed towards Steel, full speed, pointing the spear directly at him. Steel held up his shield, and attempted to block the attack. The spear bounced harmlessly off the shield, and Steel thought he was in the clear. Steel went to try and bash Daring with the shield, but she was too quick. Daring had put the spear in one hoof, and landed the other right in Steel's gut. Even with armor on, the blunt force made him want to barf. Daring pulled her hoof back, and went to jab again with the spear. Steel barely raised his sword, and knocked the spearhead away. I have to figure out a way to get us both out of this, I don't wanna hurt her! Steel thought. Daring recovered, and charged again. Steel swung his sword at the spear with all of his force, and knocked the spear from her hooves. Daring took the opportunity, and swung her hoof at the blunt side of Steel's sword, knocking it from his hooves. Before Daring could land another punch, Steel bashed her with the shield, knocking her off her balance, and onto the ground. Steel dropped the shield, and picked up the sword. He jumped over to Daring, and planted one hoof on her chest. He put the sword up to her neck, waiting for an idea to appear in his mind. He sat there, wondering what to do next.

"Finish it," Daring murmured, "You won, finish it!"

Daring must have been brainwashed into believing she was this gladiator, or that she was the ponies before her. Steel looked at the face of the mare beneath him, his closest friend. His heart beat rapidly, and his brain buzzed with ideas, but only one ended with Daring being okay. He contemplated his choice, and he realized that Hathor was right. Steel's feelings weren't the result of some crush, Steel...Steel loved her. Steel removed the metal weapon from Daring's throat, and stepped off of her chest, helping her up.

"What? I don't understand?" Daring questioned

"Well then, allow me to explain." Steel responded.

"What are you doing Steel?" Corpsus's voice rang again

"The right thing..." Steel responded out loud. Steel removed his helmet, and threw it to the ground. Everypony in the audience gasped, especially Daring.

"Steel? What? How?" Daring asked, as if snapping out of a trance

"Daring, you're going through these trials for these gods and one of them asked me to fight you. If I killed you then I woke up, if you killed me then you woke up."

"Steel, are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Steel handed his weapon to Daring, "You're this 'chosen one', you need to make it. I'm just you're sidekick, so I'm obsolete."

"Steel, don't ask me to do this."

"Daring, I don't care what happens to me, I'm asking you to do this! Please Daring, nothing matters to me, so long as you're okay."

"Steel..."

"Do it Daring!"

Daring sat motionless, tears forming in her eyes. She paused and finally found how to work her mouth again, "Steel, you've been a true, true friend."

"Shut up before you make me gag." Steel joked, tears forming in his eyes as well.

"But, what if I can't make it through this city alone?" Daring asked, worry filling her eyes

"I know you, you can Daring Do it!" Steel joked again

"Quit joking! You're making this harder!" Daring yelled, trying to hold the tears back, but utterly failing

"Just do it Daring, I'll be with you."

Tears streamed down hers and Steel's face, the two sat there, facing each other, crying. Daring was crying because her closest friend was sacrificing himself for her, and Steel was crying because Daring was crying. The crowd threw fruit and rocks, but it didn't faze the two adventurers one bit.

"G-g-g-g-goodbye...S-s-s-steel..." Daring whispered.

Steel could see the blade enter him, but along with it, Daring's lips met his. The two held a passionate kiss, as Steel floated in and out of consciousness. The crowd, rude and relentless, threw food and rocks in protest. The two held their kiss, until Steel finally left consciousness.

Voodoo Vibes

Chapter V:

Voodoo Vibes

Steel awoke to find himself back in 'the plane'. The stadium was gone, the crowd was gone, his armor was gone, and...Daring was gone. Steel could only imagine the pain she must be going through right now, and tears began to form in his eyes. Before he could cry, a familiar pony materialized in front of him.

"Well well well, looks like somepony just couldn't keep from breaking the rules...tisk tisk tisk." Corpsus teased

"Shut up Corpsus!" Steel yelled at the god, "You're just a jerk who enjoys watching others suffer!"

"My boy, there is nothing enjoyable about others suffering, that is why I am here."

"Why? So you can trick me into doing something else?"

"No, I'm here to offer you an escape."

"Why would you do that? What do you possibly have to gain from doing that?"

"That's just it my dear boy, I have no idea."

"What? That doesn't make any sense."

"I am the god of the unknown and unseen, which means I can see the future, because nopony else has seen it. Although there are some parts of the future that I cannot see, because of one time travelling pony in a phone booth, but that is beside the fact. For some reason, I have no idea what will happen if you escape your slumber, and I am dying to find out!"

"So, you're helping me to sate your curiosity?"

"That, and well...Hathor."

"What does she have to do with this?"

"Since I meddled in her affairs, I have to grant her one wish. Her wish was to let you go free of your own accord, so I'm giving you a challenge."

"It's never easy...is it?"

"You catch on fast," the god chuckled, as he turned around, "nothing is ever easy."

"What's the challenge?"

"In time, but first a question. Tell me, Steel, have you ever wanted to be a unicorn?" The god pondered

"No, no not really. I think I'm fine just the way I am. Magic would be nice but I think the horn would get in the way of my destructive nature."

"Not ever? Not even once, have you ever yearned to be a unicorn?" The god asked again

"There was this one time where I wanted to get into this club, but it was unicorns only. So, I guess I did at that time, yes. Why, is this going somewhere?"

"It is actually. How would you like it, if I made you a unicorn?"

"You can do that?"

"I can as a matter of fact. That and much more! I could make you an Alicorn if you wanted!"

"Really? Wait, what's the catch?"

The god gave a long and hearty laugh, "You crack me up! You know, for an earth pony, you're not as dumb as you look!"

"Hey! If you're gonna insult me, don't do it by insulting my race!"

"Now now, I was only teasing. That's the beauty of it though! There is no catch! I send you back and voilah! You are a unicorn when you awake!"

Steel thought that this had to be too good to be true, so he decided to decline the offer.

"I'm afraid to hear that! Really I am, I was hoping you would accept. Why did you turn me down?" the god asked in response

"Because I'm no fool, and I know that there would be some sort of catch. Besides, if I went back as a unicorn, then Daring might not like me as much."

Another voice joined in, "That's all I needed to hear." Another pony materialized beside Corpsus, who now had an angry look on his face. The pony who joined us was none other than Hathor!

"Dang it! Why does love have to be the most powerful of elements!" Corpsus cursed as he disappeared

"What? I'm afraid I don't follow." Steel asked

"It's simple, your love for Daring is too much for Corpsus to contain, so he has to release you! That was the challenge, to prove your love for Daring!" Hathor stated

"Really? Don't make me gag!" Steel said, once again

Hathor laughed, "Oh you boys, always with your masculinity!" Hathor began to radiate some sort of energy, and Steel could feel himself lifting up. Steel's body parts were ripped away from him, in an excruciatingly painful manner. At some point, Hathor had disappeared, and Steel was left to be torn apart. Steel's limbs were ripped from him, and blood was sent everywhere. Steel screamed in agony, as he was torn apart limb by limb. His head came off of his shoulders, but he was still somehow alive. The limbs lied on the ground beneath his head, as tears ran from Steel's eyes, and fell to the ground from his floating head. The limbs started to distort themselves, and Steel wondered how he was still alive. The blood ran along the ground, and the body parts stretched all the way across the floor beneath him. The reached as far as the eye could see, making a grey grass beneath him. Then the ground wrapped up around Steel, in a giant sphere and caved in on his bodiless head.

Steel woke up, as if from a horrible nightmare. He was still in Bota's house, except he was on the floor, and his chest was soaking wet. Steel sat up and looked around. Daring and Bota were nowhere to be found. Steel quickly checked to make sure he wasn't dreaming, he had his body, and a slap on the flank ensured him this was real. After seeing a huge hole in the wall, Steel instantly realized something was wrong. Steel rushed out the door, to find the street was covered in blood. A large puddle of blood sat in the intersection in front of Bota's home, and body parts littered the ground. Steel quickly ran over, praying to Hathor that it wasn't Daring's remains. He quickly discovered that these were the remains of a zebra...Bota. Steel barely knew the ancient zebra, and felt awful for treating him so horribly, even though he was a zombie. Steel quickly said a prayer, and looked around for any sign of Daring Do. She was nowhere to be found, and Steel was just about to give up hope when a voice whispered to him from behind.

"Steel Hoof..." it said

Steel swung around, to find a ghostly form of Bota was facing him. Steel about jumped out of his skin at the tangled mess that was Bota's stomach. Bota was a shade of blue, and translucent, Steel could see right through him. Bota's stomach was ripped open, and his insides hung out like a meat locker.

"Holy mother of Celestia!" Steel said, completely alarmed. Steel had seen weirder things that day, so he thought better than to question it.

"Do not fear Steel, I am Bota, just not in the physical form of whence you knew." He gestured towards the mess in the road.

"So, you're Bota's soul?"

"No no, I am the 'zombie' Bota that you knew. The staff is still in its hiding place, so my eternal purpose is not yet served. As a result, I was given a ghostly form to guard the staff."

"Wow, that bites. What happened to you?" Steel pointed towards his disgusting insides

"This is what I looked like when I died. You see, Steel, we were attacked by the guardians."

"What!? Oh my gosh, how did they find you?"

"When Daring awoke from her slumber, she instantly tried to wake you up. She couldn't do it and began crying over you."

That would explain Steel's soaked chest.

Bota continued, "In a fit of sadness, she screamed several times, attracting the attention of the nearby guardians."

"Where is Daring now?"

"Ahuizotl has her, he took her to the safe for the Staff of the Gods. He plans on using her to open it."

"What! We need to get there! Now!"

"Not so fast Steel, how do you intend on saving her?"

Dang, maybe Steel wasn't as smart as he thought, "I don't know, but I know she needs my help!" Steel exclaimed

"Steel, Daring is the only one capable of opening that vault. Ahuizotl will not kill her, he needs her. You are expendable, so you must have a method of defending yourself."

"How do I stand up against an army of Ahuizotl's?" Steel asked

"Shouldn't that be obvious? The power of love!"

Steel gagged, "Seriously?"

"Okay I admit it does sound a little, girly. Maybe you should have some sort of physical defense?"

Steel looked at Bota's home, a hole was in the wall, revealing the answer to Steel and Bota's dilemma.

"I think I have an idea..." Steel said

Ahuizotl gave his classic evil villain laugh, "Daring Do, do you really think that you can stand up to all of these creatures, and myself?"

Daring was surrounded by all of the guardians, her back was pinned against the safe that supposedly contained the staff. The door was huge, probably bigger than the building she climbed to make a map of the city. Daring Do felt the inscriptions of the door against her back, she didn't dare read them, in case she could somehow open this door.

"Just open the door and you'll be free to go!" Ahuizotl said

"Screw you Ahuizotl!" Daring spat at the monster again

Ahuizotl growled, and grabbed Daring by her tail. He lifted her up in a painful manner, making her tail feel like it was going to rip her entire flank off. Ahuizotl laughed as he bounced Daring a few times like this, worsening the pain.

"All you have to do is open the door and I'll stop!" Ahuizotl laughed

Daring closed her eyes against the pain, and tried to put her mind elsewhere. The only other place her mind wanted to go was to Steel, which was more painful than what she was dealing with at the present. Ahuizotl stopped bouncing Daring, and punched her in her wing.

"AAAAAAH!" Daring screamed in pain

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I hurt you?" Ahuizotl joked

Before Daring Do could throw another curse his way, Ahuizotl punched Daring again in the same wing. Daring screamed in agony, and Ahuizotl continued his onslaught. After so much pain and misery, Daring finally succumbed.

"FINE, FINE! I'LL OPEN THE DOOR!" Daring yelled

"That's good to hear, I was afraid I'd have to break your arms too!" Ahuizotl joked

The blue fiend set Daring Down, and the group gave her some space. Daring wasn't exactly sure how to open the door, so she started reading the text along the bottom.

"Your journey here, has now begun. We welcome you, the chosen one. Fur of gold, and eyes of red; We wish you luck, and take your dread." Daring read out loud

"You can read that?" Ahuizotl asked, "What language is it?"

"I'm not sure, I can just read it." Daring responded with distaste

Suddenly, the ground began to shake, and the giant door started to slide out of its fittings. Daring thought the door would fall over, but something simply slid the door to the side. It felt like the entire cavern was about to cave in, from the immense force of the doors opening. Daring felt a hand grab her around her neck, and lift her up into the air.

"Well, you have served your purpose. Thank you for all the help Daring, I really appreciated it!" Ahuizotl joked, as he strangled the adventurer

"I command you to stop!" a voice called out from the distance

Ahuizotl loosened his grip on Daring's neck, "WHO DARES COMMAND THE GREAT AHUIZOTL!"

"I dare!" called out Steel, dressed in Basha's pharaoh garb, "The great, and powerful, ruler of this land, Basha!"

Ahuizotl laughed and slapped his knee, "You? You a great and powerful ruler? That's a good one! Get him boys!" Ahuizotl turned to command his dark counterparts, but he found they were all bowing down.

"Hmm, checkmate." Bota's ghost joked

"What? But how? This isn't the real Basha! This stallion's a fraud!" Ahuizotl yelled to the beasts

"Unhand the chosen one, this instant!" Steel called out, remaining in character

"Never!" Ahuizotl yelled, as he began to choke Daring again. As he did, the guardians got up and faced Ahuizotl, as they began to growl. "What? Are you serious?" Ahuizotl yelled at the monsters, who were now advancing on him, "FINE!" he yelled, as he released his grip on Daring.

"Leave this place! Leave, and never return!" Steel called out

"Make me!" Ahuizotl laughed, then he realized that Steel planned on doing just that. The guardians started pouncing on Ahuizotl, and he quickly knocked them off and began to flee. The pack of guardians were hot on his trail, as he made his way to the exit. When the last of the monsters were out of sight, Steel took off the headdress and the robes.

"STEEL!" Daring called out, rushing up to embrace the stallion in a great big hug. She kissed him again, as passionate as they had before. They finally released lips, gasping for air.

Steel laughed, "Yeah, I missed you too!"

Bota interrupted, "This reunion is nice and all, but why don't we get what we came here for?"

To Steel's surprise, Daring didn't seem too fazed that Bota's ghost was in front of her, with his guts hanging out. Then again, Steel guessed that Daring had seen Bota actually get ripped apart, so it must not have been that startling to her.

"Good idea Bota." Daring agreed as she left Steel's embrace. Daring ran through the cloud of dust and sand in between the doors, and out of sight.

Bota laughed, "Well look at this, you've turned a hardcore adventurer into a damsel in distress. Well isn't that a love story if I've ever heard one!"

"Shut up!" Steel joked

"Do you know what's on the other side of that door, Steel?" Bota asked

"Well," Steel said, readying his new catchphrase, "Only one way to find out!" he said, charging in after Daring.

Bota simply shook his head and followed the stallion. He quietly murmured, "I could have just told you..."

Into the Light

Chapter VI:

Into the Light

Daring Do had seen a lot that day. She had her mind tricked into thinking she was somepony else, she had seen a zebra get ripped apart by feral beasts, and she had the god of love make her fall head over hoof for Steel. She thought she'd seen enough to last her a lifetime, but this room was magnificent. Daring stared down a long hallway, as tall as the door that hid it. It was wide and tall enough for an elephant to easily pass through. The walls were made of gold, and images were drawn on the wall with bronze. The entire hallway was about as long as a football field, and shined like it was freshly polished all the way to the end. At the end of the tunnel, was a bright light, and Daring couldn't see through it. At some point, Steel and Bota had joined her in the hallway, and stared at it as awestruck as she was.

Steel started to take a step forward, but Daring reached out and stopped him. "Are you nuts?" Daring asked him

"Maybe a little?" Steel replied sarcastically

"You nim-rod, this entire hallway is probably booby trapped!"

"Okay well, then lets try and find a way through it!"

"No, if anypony's gonna go through here, it's gonna be me! I had to deal with you dying once, don't make me go through that again!" Daring said, with worry filling her eyes

Steel simply looked at her and nodded, understandingly. Bota crept up in between them and threw in some information, "There is a way to get past all of the traps, but it will not be easy."

"How?" Daring asked

"Do you see the tiles on the floor?" Bota pointed to the ground

"Yeah, what of them?"

"Some tiles have another matching one. If both tiles are pressed at the same time, then the trap remains unsprung."

"And what if they aren't pressed a the same time?" Steel asked

"Then let's just say that I hope you're wearing some form of identification, because your bodies will be unrecognizable."

"Our bodies?" Daring questioned

"Yes, you must both partake in this journey." Bota answered, "The tiles are too far apart for one pony to press both."

"Well, it seems like I'm helping you whether you want me to or not." Steel said to Daring, with a grin

"Fine, which tiles have counterbalances?" Daring asked Bota

"I do not know, that is for you two to discover." Bota responded

"Greeaat..." Daring moaned

Darin quickly eyed the floor, looking for any matching tiles. There weren't any in sight, at least none that Daring could see. This was impossible, they would be here all year if they kept up like this. There had to be some sort of answer key, like a map that Daring could use to navigate the tiles. Then she noticed something.

"Hey, hold on a minute. I'll be right back." Daring told the others. She ran back outside the door and looked at the symbols that she somehow read. She jotted them down on her pad and went back inside.

"What are those?" Steel asked, pointing to the drawings on Daring's sketch pad

"I think this is our answer key." Daring replied

Bota just remained silent and watched, kinda creepily.

Daring carefully examined the first symbol, and looked to see if it was on the floor. Sure enough, the symbol was over to her left, and she quickly found another to her right. She pointed to the tile on the right for Steel to step on, and she went to hers. She gave Steel a nod, and then they jumped onto the tiles. Daring could feel some weight shift around underneath her, but it settled as the tile stopped moving. She looked over to Steel, who just had the same experience. The stallion simply gave her a devious grin, and waited for the next command. Daring looked at the next symbol, it was shaped like a bone.

"Do you see a bone over there?" Daring asked out

"Yeah, I see it." Steel replied

Daring searched for one on her side, and she unfortunately found it. The tile she needed to get to was a good distance away. She would have to leap to reach it. If she had her wings then she could fly to it, but they were bound up at the moment, in a great amount of pain from Ahuizotl's punches. She gathered her courage, and nodded to Steel. They jumped off the tile in almost perfect harmony, almost. Daring left her tile a little late, she felt it sink beneath her as her hooves left the ground. As she jumped she turned around to see the tile falling underneath her. She landed on the tile with the bone, and turned to see giant spikes protruding from the hole that was made. Spikes formed where Steel was previously standing as well.

"Holy horse crap!" Steel yelled, "I could have died!"

Daring just laughed, "Well at least you didn't right?"

Steel just gave her a sneer, and Bota floated in between them, "Ah! Progress!" Bota said

"Be quiet! You're lucky, you get to float on by!" Steel snickered

"While that may be true, I had to be torn apart to get this way." Bota replied seriously

"Oh...right..." Steel felt stupid now

"Let's keep going." Daring interjected

It seemed like they were at it forever, jumping from tile to tile, having a few near misses. Bota threw a few jokes their way, trying to keep morale up. Finally, Daring was only a leap away from the next room, and Steel was ready to jump.

"Ready?" Steel asked her

"Go!" Daring yelled

Steel and Daring jumped off of the last tile, and landed on the other side of the hallway. As they did, the platform they landed on slid down, and gears began turning beneath them. Daring feared the worst, but they remained safe. She turned as she heard a big unsettling sound behind her. She saw that all of the tiles had fallen beneath the earth, and the hallway was filled with spikes.

"Well, I guess we're not getting out that way!" Steel exclaimed

"Maybe there's another way out?" Daring implied

"Don't get your hopes up..." Bota said

The group advanced into the wall of light, walking into a brightly lit room. When their eyes finally adjusted, they found the room they were in was like the previous hallway. The room was made of gold and bronze inscriptions lined the walls. A pedestal sat in the middle, and on it a golden staff. It was a simple staff, a golden rod with a gold claw on the end off it, and in the claw was a single ruby orb.

"That's it? I thought it would look a little more fancy..." Steel noted

"Fanciness does not coincide with power." Bota added

The three walked up to the staff, and Steel was about to take it when Daring stopped him.

"Have you learned nothing?" Daring asked him

"What?"

"This is probably booby trapped as well!"

"Oh, good point..." Steel felt more stupid now

Bota approached them, "No no, there is no booby trap for this one."

"Are you certain?" Daring asked

"Positive, but when you take the staff, I will no longer be here to help you along." Bota replied

"What? Why? Where are you going?" Steel asked

"My eternal purpose was to guard the staff, when you take it then it will be your responsibility, and I will fade from existence." Bota answered

"You mean like go to the underworld?" Steel asked

"Not exactly..." Daring said

"You see Steel, I am a tool of the god's bidding. I exist to serve them and no more. When my eternal purpose is served, I will merely fade from existence until I am needed again."

"What?" Steel exclaimed, "That's totally unfair! You shouldn't have to live, or rather not live, like that!"

"It's quite alright Steel," Bota explained, "I am designed to enjoy serving the gods."

"So...you're happy doing this?" Steel asked

"Quite! I must say though, I will miss you both. If I wasn't a 'zombie ghost' then I would hug you both right now."

"Wow, I'm almost tempted to say 'aww' in response to that." Steel joked

"You just did you dunderhead..." Daring noted

"This is why I will miss you!" Bota laughed

A small silence fell over the small group and Daring sighed. "It was nice knowing ya, Bota. I hope our paths cross again in your next eternal purpose." Daring said, now turning serious

"It was nice meeting you too, Daring Do." Bota replied

Daring nodded, and walked up to the staff. Steel kept his distance, he didn't want to intervene, just in case the only pony allowed near that thing was Daring. Daring slowly and cautiously lifted the staff from its pedestal. She turned to see Bota was gone, and Steel sighed. They sat in silence, Daring staring at the staff, and Steel was staring at where Bota used to float. There was no way this was the end, this was too easy, too anticlimactic. Then again, Daring had forgotten about the spikes blocking their only way out. She began to contemplate a plan as Steel approached her. Steel sat down beside her, as if waiting for something to happen, then again, so was Daring. Things didn't add up, getting to the staff just seemed too easy.

Daring was corrected, when the entire room began to rumble. The hallway disappeared as the room sank downwards. It was as if the entire room was sliding down a shaft. The room suddenly stopped moving, but the shaking got more violent. Pieces of rock flew from the walls, and Daring could feel her teeth chattering to the vibrations. Steel had gotten up and was trying to keep his balance. Without warning, Daring was hit with g-forces as the room shot upward. Her and Steel were slammed into the ground as the room rocketed towards the surface. After a few seconds of being squashed to the ground, the room hit something that sounded solid, and sand flooded into the room. The hole in the wall where the hallway used to be tilted upwards, letting in sunlight. Daring pulled herself out of the sand, and quickly helped Steel out as well. She ran for the staff and the two exited the room in the beating sun of the desert. They looked behind them to find the room sinking beneath the sand, sealing the room underground. They looked around, and tried to get their bearings, when they realized that they could see the entrance to the kingdom from where they were. It was a mile away, they could see it from the top of the sand hill they were on. That meant they were two miles from town, and a good walk that was.

"Wow. Just...wow." Steel whispered

"What just happened?" Daring asked

"Well, we were deep underground. Maybe it was a heat vent?" Steel suggested

"Something tells me Bota was involved in that..." Daring commented

"Whatever the case is...WE DID IT!" Steel exclaimed

Daring didn't even realize it at first, but Steel was right. Daring had searched most of her life for the Lost Kingdom of Basha, and now she had just explored it and retrieved the staff of the gods from it! Although, that wasn't the only thing that happened on this trip...

Steel felt like he was high, he had just done what every archaeologist's assistant dreamed they could do: prove their mentor wrong, and find an artifact on their own! Steel turned around to rub it in Daring's face, only to be greeted with a tackle and a passionate kiss. Steel was taken off guard, but he joined in on it nonetheless. The kiss lasted a lifetime, and their tongues formed an intricate dance. After some time, the two finally separated and gasped for air. Steel stared into his new lover's eyes, and then he decided they should probably get going. The two got up and began the long journey back to town.

"I don't know about you, but I'm starving!" Steel commented, while they walked

"Well we can get a bite to eat when we get back to town." Daring replied

"That is, permitting the camel traders don't spot us!" Steel remembered.

Daring laughed, "Yeah, and we need to gather up the crew. I can't wait to tell dad how I-"

"Ahem..."

"Oh...right. How we-"

"AHEM!"

"Fiiine...How you found the Lost Kingdom of Basha!"

"And?"

"How you found the Staff of the Gods..."

"And?"

"And what?"

"That we're going steady!"

The two laughed and spent the rest of the walk in silence. A lot had happened in the past few days. Daring not only had a new found care for her partner, but also a new found respect. If it wasn't for him and his relentless badgering, even after Daring put the idea down, they would have never had this adventure. But now...now was Daring's least favorite part of any adventure...clean up. They had to find the crew, get new train passes, and get home without getting sued by the camel traders. Daring knew, that so long as she had Steel by her side, that they would make it through though.

Lesson Learned

Epilogue:

Lesson Learned

So, now the story has reached its end. Daring Do found her long lost city, which turned out to be an underground kingdom. They tried to send an excavation team after any other artifacts, but when they got there, then entire tunnel entrance had collapsed. After some investigation, they discovered that when they shot out of the Kingdom on that heat vent, they caused the entire kingdom to collapse! The place was buried and now any artifacts that were there are long gone. It wasn't a complete loss though. Daring had gotten the Staff of the Gods, and even though she didn't know what it did, she placed it on display in the museum. Thanks to Steel's bright idea, they also had Basha's pharaoh garb, which made a huge attraction in Daring's exhibit. Daring loved the new artifacts that she added to her museum, but she got one thing that none of them could compare to: Steel's affection.

After this whole event was over, Daring really hit it off with Steel, and they went out almost every day. Daring gave Steel more freedom after that, because if it weren't for him, then none of this would have ever happened. Thank's to Steel's medical know-how, Daring's wings quickly healed and she was back at full strength after a few weeks. Although everything had ended well, Daring still had a few things nagging at the back of her mind: What happened to Ahuizotl and the Guardians? What did this staff do? Where would their next adventure be? It seemed all Daring could do now was wait.

Steel had an eventful week as well. He got to prove Daring wrong about the location of the kingdom, and he got credit for all the stuff they got from it. Steel didn't mind that his artifacts were in Daring's exhibit, just so long as they had his name in big letters on the bronze plate in front of them. Pretty soon, people started asking Steel for his autograph, instead of Daring Do. It took some doing, but Steel finally got into a new routine of the day: Wake up and get ready, open up the museum, sign autographs, get lunch, sign some more autographs and perform some maintenance on the exhibits, and the best part, go on a date with Daring. He never thought he would be actually going on dates with his ex-mentor. Oh yeah, Daring stopped tutoring him, she said he had enough experience under his belt to do his own excavations and adventures. The two still went adventuring together, but Steel went on his own sometimes too. The coolest part was now Steel had an apprentice of his own. He had some trouble with the colt, but Daring helped him get by, and Steel and his apprentice had lots of adventures together. Steel still wasn't sure what the staff of the gods did, or whatever happened to that Ahuizotl guy, but he didn't really care about that right now, everything had turned out perfect.

Dr. Fossil never did stop hearing about the life changing adventure. How Steel saved Daring so many times and how Daring was the chosen one, and something about a zombie ghost? Whatever the case was, Dr. Fossil was happy to see his daughter so happy. He always liked Steel, and always hoped that his daughter would see what a great stallion he was. They were practically made for each other, both of them were rough and tough adventurers, but that's also what scared Dr. Fossil. He was afraid that their adventurous nature would take them...well...behind closed doors. Daring was an adult now but Fossil didn't like the idea any less. Times would change and he would get over it, she wasn't the little filly that he raised anymore, and he had to remember that. She was a grown mare that could make her own decisions. Dr. Fossil was a little skeptical about putting the staff of the gods on display, but Daring suggested they put it in a locked case with three inch thick, bulletproof, plexi-glass. The added security made Fossil feel good enough to agree, and he was happy to put the pharaoh's suit on display. They were in the process of making replicas for both artifacts, but for now those would have to do. Fossil was proud of his daughter, and he was thankful Steel was keeping her active and happy.

As for the gods and Bota? Bota was erased from existence until he was needed to serve another eternal purpose. To Bota, when he would be needed again, it would seem as if there was no lapse of time at all, even if thousands of years had passed. Hathor was able to spread her influence through Steel and Daring, which allowed happiness to flow through the town of Manehattan. Corpsus was content just wreaking havoc in his realm, and tried not to meddle in Earthly affairs. Things settled down and went back to normal, and life was lived normally once again.

As usual, Ahuizotl lost. It always seemed no matter what he did, Daring always beat him. Then again, she was the hero, and the hero always wins. After he got chased out of the kingdom by...well...himself? He went on to try and locate other artifacts relating to the staff. He knew its power, and he didn't plan on letting Daring Do use it. The staff required some things in order to work properly, so Ahuizotl set out to get those things. He would take the staff and use it to conquer the world! He was so close! He couldn't let Daring take it from him again! This time...Ahuizotl had a plan...