Oh the Places You'll Go

“And when you're alone there's a very good chance

you'll meet things that scare you right out of your pants

There are some, down the road between hither and yon,

that can scare you so much you won't want to go on.”

-Dr. Seuss

She was sweating more now. The lava had risen a few more feet in the past few seconds and the small piece of rock she’d been sheltering on was looking more and more like a deathtrap. The bubbling molten stew already covered the floor and the original entrance she came in through was flooded.

Daring knew she only had moments to figure out a plan before she became barbecue. A second tunnel higher up on the wall was too far away to jump to and there was no way she could fly across with the weight of the Marellenium Medallion slung across her neck. She hadn't snuck past the mummy guards of Tzerneck and dodged through the Hall of Fifty Thousand Torments to be killed by natures molasses.

Think Daring, Think! This is not the time to be second guessing yourself girl. She scooted nervously as her mind raced, sweat cascading down her face as more and more rapidly the carpet became lava. “Aha!” She had it. Hefting her trusty whip she lashed out and caught one of the stone rafters that adorned the high temple ceiling. Tugging on her lifeline to make sure it was secure, she quickly leaned back and jumped.

The small space had left little in the way of gaining momentum so as she began to slow down at the lowest point of her swing Daring quickly unfurled her wings and beat the air furiously urging herself to push forward. She gritted her teeth as the lava continued to rise. “GAH!” the lava had risen high enough that the tip of her tail brushed against the molten substance causing her to cry out and instinctively shut her eyes. In her momentary lapse of control, she let go of the whip and her mind screamed in terror as she felt the coiled strip of leather fall out from her teeth.

“You’ve met with a terrible fate haven’t you…?”

Any ordinary pony would've been burnt to cinders, but as our astute reader can infer, she was by no means an ordinary pony.

Her eyes shot open again and thankfully she wasn't greeted by the sounds of angels and trumpets, but of the collapsing temple. Not the worst case scenario, but far from the best.  She would've let out a sigh of relief if she had the time; had she had the time at least as a chunk of ceiling impacted the space she was previously occupying. When you overstay your welcome it's best to run She chuckled to herself. At a full gallop she sped down the long narrow hallway her hoofs clanging against the polished stone. Like any good monster movie the lava gave chase, more out temple design rather than motive you see. She reached a near blinding speed and her legs carried her so fast she had to narrow her eyes to shield them from the rushing air. She hadn’t seen this tunnel on her way in so she had no idea where it would be taking her.

It didn’t make any sense to her in her head. The floor had cracked unleashing tides of magma before she even took the medallion. She’d seen it a thousand times, that the trap went off after grabbing the priceless artifact, not beforehand, that’s not how things were done. Everything about this temple was so generic she could have navigated it in her sleep. But then why had the lava been in the wrong order? Something wasn’t right. Blindly running through the tunnel she could scarcely figure out which way to go in the dark narrow passages illuminated by the onrushing tide behind her.

As she continued to run she saw streaks of light begin to stream from the sides of the wall to her left. Her breath caught in her throat for a second as she feared that at first the entire passage was immersed in lava, however the lump quickly passed as she realized the light wasn’t the same orange red color as the wave of death coming after her, no…it was daylight!

Daring Do shouted out in joy as she realized she had a way out. Digging her front hooves into the stone floor sliding while she did so she took in a sharp breath hoping her luck would hold out. Rearing up her hind legs and silently praying to Celestia she wall was thin enough to break. If not she would probably end up breaking both her hind legs, which in her circumstances would have been the opposite of helpful. Throwing caution to wind she bucked as hard as she could.

=======================================

Fate decided to have some fun with her that day.

Two things broke in that moment, the wall, and her wing.

As the walls of Jericho came tumbling down she never considered collateral damage. A brick fell from the top and crashed down on the delicate extremity smashing the bones inside with a sickening crunch. She screamed as she tumbled out of the corridor into the open air. Careening down the sloped ruins she smashed against the hard stone several times. Her cry bounced all about the jungle as the passage collapsed behind her blocking in the cascading lava.

Finally coming to land at the bottom the mare simply laid the. Daring choked on the dust as she tried to rise to her feet but an agonizing jolt tore through her torso and she screamed again her wing hung limply by her side. Falling to her feet, she was in far too much pain to try and walk again. Tears welled up in her eyes as she tried to drag herself forward. Even this simple task requested too much from her body. The cuts and burns scrapped roughly across the coarse dirt surrounding the temple and she grimaced.

Much like jumping from a burning plane without a parachute you had traded an immediate danger for an equally albeit slower one. Only hindsight would provide the means to know that.

She managed to pull herself under the shade of a tree where she curled up sobbing. Famous adventurer or not, getting your wing crushed by a rock was one of the most painful things a Pegasus could hope to never encounter. She was a brave courageous mare, but a broken wing could paralyze the best of their kind.

She didn't know how much time passed before her nerves stopped screaming.

Reaching down into her saddlebag she pulled her canteen out and shakily took a swig of water. The liquid soothed the ragged tissue of her throat and brought some relief to her sore aching body. The tears had finally stopped and she was only sniffling now. Pulling out several bandages from the pack and with a couple of sticks she fashioned a makeshift splint. Gingerly wrapping her wing she cried out several times as it felt the broken bones protest her handling. By the time she finished she was sweating and shaking all over.. With trembling hooves she pulled off the Marellenium Medallion and tucked it into the deepest recesses of the bag.

She needed to rest. The night was coming but she was too far tied to try and build a fire. Without anything else to ward of the approaching cold Daring pitifully clung to her pack. Pulling her helmet over face she tried to conserve as much heat as she could, it was going to be a miserable night. Pulling the bags against herself she positioned her body in a way that wouldn’t further injure her broken wing. Nestling into her makeshift bed she drifted to a fitful sleep.