There is nothing as tempting as a locked door. For many, locked doors represent mystery and wonder. It makes you want to know what's on the other side, why it's locked, who locked it? It makes you want to open it. Perhaps that's why Daring Dae was standing outside the door, staring intensely at the lock as if it would break under her gaze. Maybe that's why she wiggled it repeatedly and searched the few hoofsteps around her for an extra key. Maybe she just wanted to know what was on the other side of that locked door.
Or maybe she just forgot her keys.
"Ugh!" She exclaimed in exasperation, slamming her body against the door. It didn't budge and she rolled her eyes. This wasn't the first time she had done this, so she felt pretty dumb. She had more important things to worry about than her keys! Well, she did, but now she kind of wished she had worried about them a little more.
She flapped her wings to hover and used all four of her hooves to push on the door, but it just wouldn't open. Finally she grunted and backed up before flying headfirst into the door.
After all that pushing, she had loosened it a bit, and as her head connected with the wood, it fell off it's hinges and into the apartment. She hadn't expected to break the door down, but at least she was in. Oh, she'd of course have to pay for that, and she'd have to fix it sometime soon so random ponies didn't come running into her apartment (living in a big city was pretty dangerous considering all the bars and drunk ponies running around), but it was not a large price to pay considering the fact that otherwise she would have had to find some way back to her parents' house at 9 PM.
The apartment was dark. All the curtains were closed and the lights had a collection of dust on the top of them. However, it was most certainly not silent. There was the hum of the refrigerator, the pulsing music coming from the club across the street, the noise of fast taxis zipping past on the street below, the shouting from the next apartment over, and the most annoying sound, the ticking of the clock in the kitchen.
She lugged her suitcases in, throwing them in her bedroom and flying into the kitchen while she rubbed her head. She glanced over at the broken door and sighed. This apartment was really terrible. She liked the city and most of her friends lived here, but she wished she could live in a nicer building. Well, she had enough money to move, but it was technically her parents' money, and she hated leeching off of them, so she tried not to. Except when she went on vacations, because everypony needs a break now and then.
In fact, she had just returned from a vacation to Neigh Zealand. She had expected to get back at noon, but the plane was late, and she had expected to be able to catch a cab, but at night they were all taken so she had to walk home, and she had most certainly expected to have her keys when she finally arrived home.
Oh, today was just full of unexpected things, wasn't it?
She turned on a lamp and blew the dust away before grabbing a mug out of the cabinet and starting to make some coffee. She loved coffee. It was most certainly her favorite drink - it could keep you awake on long nights, it woke you up in the mornings, and it gave her a pounding headache. Well, she wasn't too fond of that part, but the pros outweighed the cons, so she continued to drink it.
It was probably not the brightest idea to drink coffee at 9 at night, but she still had to unpack, tidy up, get the mail, and fix that stupid door. As she waited for the coffee to finish, she floated into the living room and collapsed on the rickety couch. She was so tired and all she wanted to do was take a nap. There was so much to do, but a few minutes wouldn't hurt, right? At least until the coffee was finished.
An hour later, she woke up to the beeping of the coffee pot and drool hanging from the corner of her mouth. She jumped up and quickly wiped the drool away before flying quickly to the pot and taking it off. It smelled funny and looked thick, but she poured it into the mug anyway and drank it straight. It was bitter and cold and quite frankly disgusting, but when she was finished she felt more awake and just a little sick.
She put the cup in the sink and trotted to the door. She flew over it and picked it up from the outside, propping it up to make it look normal. It would be best to talk to the landlord now, because he would be half asleep and less angry. Her wings carried her down the hall and through the stairwell. When she reached the lobby, she landed and went up to the front desk where an unhappy stallion was sitting.
"Can I help you?" He asked in a monotone voice, staring at her blankly.
"Yes, I need to see-"
"Are you visiting?" He inquired, slouching in the swivel chair. Daring rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"No, I live-"
"I'll have to ask you to sign in." He said flatly, pushing a clipboard forward. Was this stallion even listening to her?
"Hey, are you even listening to me? I told you that I live here." She said angrily, and he blinked once before sighing.
"Can I help you?"
Daring restrained herself from flying across the counter and nodded carefully. "Yes. I need to see the landlord about a... an architectural problem. It's really important."
"The landlord asked to not be bothered tonight." The stallion informed her, standing up slowly and pushing the chair in. "If you'll excuse me..."
"Hey! Where are you going?" She asked, narrowing her eyes. "I need to see him!"
The stallion looked at her and tilted his head. In a mocking voice, he replied with, "Are you even listening to me?" His voice switched back to normal as he finished with, "I told you that he asked not to be bothered tonight."
"My door fell off! How am I supposed to sleep in an apartment with no door?" She stomped a hoof in frustration, flicking her tail.
"Well unless you sleep on the door, I think you'll manage." He said condescendingly before trotting into the back room. Daring was left alone in the lobby, staring blankly at the door he had disappeared behind and wishing that door was in her apartment doorway.
With a sigh, she grunted and trotted to the mailbox. She opened her box (there was no key, the apartment was too cheap for that) and grabbed the mail before starting back up the stairs. She had hoped to be staying in an empty apartment tonight, preferably one with a door, courtesy of the landlord. Instead she would be staying in her own dirty, doorless one.
Yes, it was certainly unexpected.
She moved the propped door out of the way, walked into her apartment, and then moved it back into place. She flew over to the table and sat down to start reading her mail.
Ah, yes, a rent bill, a water bill, a cable bill, electricity bill, a bill from the bar down the street, a reminder to pay back a student loan she took out (from her 2 years in college), and a letter from her parents. How sweet.
She threw the letter from her parents in the trash and began opening the bills. After she read them all, she noticed another one that had been stuck on the back of the student loan envelope. Curiosity filled her and she took it off, opening it and pulling out the paper that had been folded too many times. It was a tiny square, but by the time she finished unfolding it, it was a normal size.
The paper was worn and weathered and the writing was in cursive. Thankfully, it was still legible, so she began to read it.
Dear Daring Dae,
I'm sorry to write to you randomly. It was a period of time. I hope you remember me, it's Veiled Leaf, a friend of the Saddle Arabia.
Daring smiled at the familiar speech pattern. She could almost hear her old friend speaking. Veiled Leaf had been her best friend in Saddle Arabia. She had taken a year long vacation (she was very stressed out, you see) and had become good friends with the mare. She hadn't heard from her in a while, and although she was happy to hear from her, she was confused as to why she was suddenly getting a letter from her.
There is a problem here. Some criminals called 'Diamond Catchers' hiding in caves under our capital. I'm afraid that something bad is happening.
Daring's smile fell. Why was she getting this letter? There wasn't anything she could do to help. She was instantly worried about her friend and wanted to go get her and bring her here to Baltimare. She could be safe here with Daring.
Only villages knows it now. There are whispers about the theft of the king. He said he refuses to listen to us, and even if he did, he would not ask for help. He is very stubborn. He is old and it is the sounds of it, the criminals outnumber the guards. You are the only connection I have outside the Saddle Arabia. This may seem silly but it is very serious. King could be in danger. Please help us. Either get it to princess or come help us yourself. I hope you live up to your name.
As Daring finished the letter, she felt her heart racing. What was she going to do? She was just Daring Dae, a normal pegasus living in a big city. She didn't have any ideas about how to save other ponies or how to go on adventures. Sure, she went on vacations a lot, but there was never any danger behind it. But when she thought about it, it did sound kind of fun.
She left the letter on the table and walked slowly into the living room to stare out the window at all the lights of Baltimare. It was bright and dark all at the same time. She imagined Saddle Arabia, with all the sand and heat and dust. It was so different there. She had just returned from Neigh Zealand, too, and she wanted to rest for a while. She certainly didn't want to go out and save ponies. All those lives depending on her? No way.
But at the same time, Veiled Leaf was her friend. She needed her. She knew Princess Celestia was too busy with Equestria affairs to waste time on other countries who should be able to take care of themselves, and she also knew that she would probably regret it if she wasn't the one who got the glory for saving Saddle Arabia from dangerous bandits. She didn't know how to save them, but she knew it would be more exciting and a lot more fun than sitting in her apartment, deciding between the clean-up job at the Veggie Burger down the street and the foalsitting job at the Sunshine Daycare Center, drinking cold coffee and wondering why she had dropped out of college.
Her mind filled with adventure, she hurried into her bedroom to unpack and repack her suitcase (adding a few new things for her adventure, of course), grabbed the letter and was knocking over her front door and flying down the stairs and out the apartment building within minutes.
Well, this was certainly unexpected.
It turned out that trying to buy a plane ticket at 10:30 PM was not the easiest thing to do. Most of the secretaries just wanted to go home and let the night attendants take over, but they took over at 11, so this was the waiting period that seemed to take forever. Of course, these secretaries believed their shift was already over and they didn't want to do anything. No one in Baltimare ever wanted to do anything.
"I need to buy a one-way ticket to Saddle Arabia, please." Daring said after finally getting the attendant's attention.
"Saddle Arabia? Why would you want to go there?" The attendant wondered, levitating a drink and taking a sip.
"I'm going there to-"
"Why one way? Are you moving there? That's weird. Isn't it, like, really hot there?" She asked, drinking more.
"No, it's-"
"Won't you want more stuff? That's like, only 2 suitcases, and we didn't get a truck with furniture or anything in today. We don't get many ponies visiting there, certainly not one-way. If they do then they book in advance. I don't know if we have a flight straight there. What are you going there for?" The attendant said with curiosity, blinking.
"I'm going to see a friend."
"Well, in that case, shouldn't you want a two-way ticket? If you're coming back, I mean. Right?"
"I don't know how long I'll be there."
"Then you'll need more stuff, right?"
"No. Look, I just need a ticket to Saddle Arabia." Daring facehoofed and swished her tail in frustration.
"Are you sure you're not interested in some place like Mareami? Like, I know if I was trying to go somewhere I'd much rather be there than somewhere, like, a desert. Ditch the friend and go, girl. I think I could get you a discount if you-"
"Hey! Hello? Can you listen for once?" Daring shouted, and the mare straightened in surprise. "A one way ticket to Saddle Arabia. No questions asked."
The mare's eyes narrowed as she leaned forward, glancing around to make sure nopony else was listening. "Miss." She whispered hurriedly. "Are you trying to get away from something? Did you commit a crime? Because if you did-"
"I swear, I didn't do anything wrong. I'm trying to get to this friend to prevent bad things from happening. So please, please, please give me a ticket to Saddle Arabia, one way." Daring pleaded, rustling around in her saddle bag for some bits.
"Okay, okay." The mare rolled her eyes, starting to punch in some numbers on the computer. "I was just joking," she said, but Daring got the idea that she probably wasn't.
"150 bits."
"Are you serious?!" Daring exclaimed, her mouth dropping open.
"Yeah. Sorry sweetie, we don't get a lot of traffic from Baltimare to Saddle Arabia. Gotta charge extra." The mare smiled, continuing to type and print out a ticket.
"Whatever." Daring sighed, not wanting to argue any further. She got the money and tossed it on the counter. "When does the flight leave?"
"Tomorrow morning, 9 AM." The mare answered, then promptly stood and walked into the back room to get the ticket. She returned shortly, gathered the money, and then placed the ticket on the counter. "Don't miss it."
"Know of any nice hotels around here?" Daring Dae inquired, but the mare was already heading back into the break room to relax until her shift was over. With a sigh, Daring stuffed the ticket into her bag and trotted out of the airport and into the chilly night air. The lights of the city could be seen even though she was on the outskirts, and she could almost hear the nightlife going on. Out here, however, it was deserted, and the feathers on her wings ruffled to keep her warmer. She yawned, reminded again of how tired she was, and took off into the sky. There had to be a hotel around here somewhere for tourists to stay at.
As she flew along, she thought of the letter she'd received. Who were these so called 'Diamond Catchers'? And what did they want with the king? As far as she knew, he'd only ever been caring to the ponies of Saddle Arabia. He could be stubborn, but he was sweet and honest with everypony. Daring wondered how long the letter had taken to get to her, and if Veiled Leaf was even okay anymore. Something bad might have happened. Although if it had, she probably would have heard something about it, but maybe they were keeping it quiet.
Her mind was still racing when she landed at a motel just outside of the airport's lot. She walked through the doors and headed to the desk. A nice stallion was sitting in what looked to be a comfy chair and was quick to help her. He gave her the key to an empty room and charged her the right amount before directing her to the facilities and then to her room.
As she unpacked some necessities, she couldn't stop worrying about her friend, and how crazy this was! How could she be doing this? She was a normal pony. She had no experience in fighting or spying or anything like that. Well, she used to sneak around the house and eavesdrop as a filly, but she wasn't sure that counted. It never ended well anyway. How was she supposed to save a country?
She supposed that she knew, deep down, she wanted to save her friend and be famous for something other than her wealthy parents. She wanted adventure. Something more to her life than just living in a crappy, rundown apartment with a low-class job that she hated. She wanted her life to mean something more than what it did right then. This was a spur of the moment decision, and she wasn't entirely sure it was the right one. She was almost certain she'd regret it.
But Veiled Leaf needed her. She knew not many ponies liked the King there. He was sweet to his own ponies, but brutally honest to everyone. Other countries like Equestria saw him as ridiculous and hard to get along with. He was in it to save his own people, and didn't like to appear weak. He didn't help other countries, so Daring Dae knew they wouldn't receive help of their own. She had to try, at least. Do something for once.
She took a short shower, washing her mane with one of the tiny shampoo bottles. She stuffed the rest of them in her bag, intending to take them with her on her adventure: hygiene was important, after all. She brushed her teeth and her wet mane, staring at herself in the mirror. She had a feeling that after this trip, she would never be the same.
Her hooves felt heavy as she crawled into bed. It wasn't the comfiest, but the motel wasn't as bad as her apartment. The shower had been warm, the sheets were clean, and the floor was vacuumed. She didn't see a single piece of trash in her room. It was very neat and orderly, and compared to her own home, it was heaven. She knew it'd be hard to get up in the morning.
Setting the alarm on the clock for 7:30 AM, she yawned and dropped her head on the pillow. She had felt so tired before, but now her mind was racing again, and she couldn't fall asleep. Her eyelids were heavy, but no matter how much she closed them, her mind would not shut off. With a groan, she tossed and turned before huffing and staring up at the dark ceiling.
9 AM felt worlds away.
