Daring Do and the Lost Kingdom of Basha

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..."