“...And so, Daring Do looked over the ruins of what was once Canterlot. The small company of her brave and unfortunate allies trailed behind. They walked towards the wreckage, salvaging for goods along the beaten and broken paths. Ahuizotl had won.”
Rainbow Dash closed the book and placed it on the massive stack of the other “Daring Do” novels. She was stunned. The ending of that book was everything she could’ve hoped for! She reached over, grasping for the next book in the series. She reached for a hoof-full of air. The Pegasus looked down to the horrific realization that there were no more books in her formerly massive pile. There had been three earlier! Had she finished them already!? There was no way that’s how the series ended...Right!? She momentarily had a horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach...What if that WAS the end of the Daring Do series?! What would she do then!?
Rainbow Dash flew out of her bed and shook her head a few times. She checked the mirror and realized that she looked terrible. Her mane was matted down and messy. It came with staying up all night reading Daring Do, of course, so she didn’t spend much time trying to make herself look nice. She figured it’d look natural after she had flown to the library, as it usually did after flight. She didn’t plan on fussing over it.
The pegasus hovered through her cloud-home in the sky, humming a bit to herself. She thought of breakfast, but...Daring Do felt more important. I mean, she was tough enough to wait it out ‘til Lunch. So what if her stomach was grumbling for a little? She could handle it.
She walked to the edge of her “porch,” looking down the precipice onto the hard, unforgiving ground below. She grinned as she spread her wings wide and jumped. Straight off of her home, nose-first, right towards the ground. She picked up speed quickly, tears were streaming from her eyes as she was about to hi-
Safe. She had spread her wings directly before colliding with the ground. She glided close to the ground momentarily before re-ascending into the sky, making way for the Library. The wind felt wonderful, blowing through her mane. This was honestly what she lived for. Every morning she woke up in a sleepy old town with nothing to do but fly; free and content. She relished every minute of it, feeling like it would last forever. What was going to happen? She was one of the Elements of Harmony, there wasn’t much any ol’ villain could do against her. She felt invincible.
She arrived at the Library sooner than she had expected. It wasn’t a problem, she just needed to get the next book! She flew in circles around the giant tree-house a few times before slowing her speed and landing close to the entrance. There was smoke coming from the chimney, so somepony was here. She knocked on the door a few times.
“Hey, Twilight. You there?”
She briefly heard Twilight speaking. A bit loudly, at that. She heard another voice, too, one she didn’t recognize. She put her ear up to the door, not really minding that she was eavesdropping.
“I’m just saying, Twilight. Don’t you think there could be at least some validity to it!?”
It was a Male voice. Rainbow had never heard it before in her life. It was moderately high in its tone, almost like that of an older colt. It sounded kind of funny, she thought. Rasp and obviously aggravated.
“No, I think you’re just rushing to way too many conclusions, Lelth.”
Twilight seemed pretty aggravated, and who was this “Lelth” guy? He sounded like a dweeb. Then again, he was one of Twilight’s friends, she assumed.
“Twilight, you admitted yourself that there was undeniable proof. You told me at the last meeting that you thought it was possible!”
This Lelth guy seemed pretty mad. Rainbow almost thought she should leave, but brushed the thought rather quickly. This was way too interesting, and besides, Daring Do was important. Far more important than some argument.
“I admitted that your theory was interesting! I never said there was any validity to it, and you know the other members agree with me!”
Twilight was losing her temper, maybe it was time to go...On the other hand...
“What do you mean members? Aside from you, me, and the one weird mare from Canterlot, nopony comes to your stupid meetings! I’ll see you tonight, alright? You have company, anyways. Make sure she comes tonight, if she can.”
Rainbow Dash chuckled. This colt burned Twilight pretty good. Maybe he wasn’t such a dweeb after all. Wait, did he say something about compan-
Her thoughts were interrupted when the door opened, slamming her in the face. Her world spun for awhile and her head was pounding in protest. She opened her eyes to see a grey pegasus.Her world was still swimming, but she could make him out decently. He was a bit smaller then her, and his mane was blue with gray highlights. It was short and didn’t cover much of his face, and his tail had the same color pattern. The Tail was rather bushy compared to his mane, but nothing too extravagant. His dark blue eyes looked up to hers and narrowed. His fur was a dark gray, similar to the highlight in his mane.
“Rainbow Dash.”
He smiled brightly, his mood changed quickly. Rainbow just smiled at him, unaware as to what to think. He had been bickering with Twilight but a moment ago, and here he was smiling brightly at her, not a care in the world.
“Umm, yeah?”
He shrugged and left, heading towards the park. Was that all he had to say? Rainbow sighed and stepped in the Library.
“Hey, Twilight. I need the next Daring Do books, now.”
Twilight was dabbing her forehead with a towel and talking to Spike. The little Dragon assistant was writing on a piece of paper frantically, as Twilight babbled on incessantly.
“Twilight.”
Ignored.
“Hey, Twilight!”
Rainbow flew in front of the Unicorn.
“TWILIGHT!!”
The purple unicorn yelled and jumped back. She shook her head and glared at Rainbow Dash.
“Care to give a pony a warning before you do that?”
Dash rolled her eyes, not wanting to drag on the conversation. She needed the books, now. Her eyes glanced towards the shelf where the books were held. It looked nearly empty. Her eyes skimmed over to the table where Spike was writing, and she noticed there were a lot of Daring Do books sprawled open over it. There were doodles on them! Drawing on the books!? She didn’t care, she needed the next ones.
“Twilight, I need the next Daring Do books, like, now.”
Twilight blinked a few times.
“I...Gave you the last three yesterday, Rainbow Dash.”
Was Twilight joking? That was no way to end the book! Anypony could see that just by looking at it! Rainbow felt a sinking in the pit of her stomach. How was THAT the end!? That wasn’t the proper way to end the book! Daring lost, Ahuizotl won! How was that the proper ending for Daring Do, adventurer extraordinare!?
“B-b-b-but...”
Twilight shook her head and sighed.
“You finished them, already, didn’t you?...”
Rainbow nodded.
“How was THAT the ending!?”
Twilight shrugged a bit, looking through the books and making notes throughout them. She was the one writing in the books? Why!? Her head was still swimming with thoughts. She couldn’t grasp her mind around it. It was almost like Daring had been a long friend, someone who would be there no matter what...Now...It was over, and in such a bad way!
“You’d be surprised what some people think that ending means. There are actually conspiracy theories about it. Did you know tha- Y’know, maybe you should come to the meeting tonight.”
The cyan pegasus blinked a few times.
“The what now?”
Twilight sighed.
“I am the leader of a Daring Do fanclub. That little colt you met just earlier was the charming Lelth Skysender, ‘Adventurer Extraordinaire.’”
The pegasus sighed. She wanted to know, but...The topic was obviously something touchy for the Unicorn. Twilight had laced the last sentence with subtle sarcasm, obviously trying to mock the small pegasus’ self-given title.
When it doubt, flight is always the answer. Rainbow Dash was flying through the sky at top speed. She had been for hours. She was mulling over thoughts through her head. Thoughts about Daring Do, Ahuizotl, and the future of the story. What about the Sapphire Statue? Why didn’t it come to play in the end? The Gryphons Goblet? Why didn’t they use the Hydra’s Skull!? That would’ve worked instantly! So many things she could’ve done, and Daring was way too smart to not use them! But the fact that the series ended with Daring Do losing, and Equestria becoming a wasteland, just didn’t seem right! There was no way Equestria could become a wasteland, that just doesn’t sound right!
Rainbow looked towards the setting sun and sighed. The crimson streaks painting the remainder of bluish purple sky created quite the scenic picture. It was becoming quite chilled. Dash looked behind her as she noticed a coming storm. The lightning flashes were very apparent, and a low rumble was heard seconds later. The pegasus thought maybe she should go to the Library quickly before the storm got bad.
She flew at a rather high speed towards the Library. Rain began to patter on her head quickly. The storm was going to beat her there, but she’d flown through storms before and this wouldn’t be much different. The lightning rumbled through the sky, and the rain drummed against her sleek body as she glided seamlessly through the wind. It wasn’t much of a problem for her, she was used to this kind of dare-devil act most would deem foolish.
She saw the iconic Library lights beneath her and went in quickly for a landing. She found herself skidding once she hit the ground, landing bluntly into a puddle of mud. She stood up and tried to shake it off. What she didn’t get immediately, the rain quickly washed away. She knocked on the door to the Library.
“Twilight, let me in. It’s freezing out here.”
The door opened and Twilight smiled at Rainbow Dash. She moved her head, motioning for the pegasus to come inside.
“We were waiting on you to start.”
“We?”
Dash’s question was quickly answered when she saw two other ponies in the room. One was the one from earlier, that weird little colt, Lelth. The other she could’ve sworn she recognized. A gray mare with a dark black mane. Her face wore a calm expression. Her eyes were a light purple, and her eyes were focusing on a book before her. She was an Earth Pony.
Rainbow waved at the two. No response. The colt rolled his eyes and sighed while the mare didn’t even look up from her book. Rainbow Dash felt incredibly awkward. Twilight pointed towards a seating area. Dash and the purple unicorn seated themselves.
“Now that you’re here, we can finally start. Lelth, do us the honors.”
The colt nodded and stood up, facing the sitting area where the rest were. Lelth was looking directly at Rainbow very...Strangely. His eyes had narrowed and he looked as if he was examining every inch of her.
“What I’m about to say never leaves this room.”
Rainbow looked around nervously. Twilight looked at Lelth, eyes narrowing. The unknown mare looked up from her book with a glazed, bored look on her eyes. All three gave Lelth their full-attention. Spike was strangely absent from this meeting, but Dash didn’t think too much into it.
“The four of us have all finished the Daring Do books. I hope we can all agree that the ending was unsatisfactory.”
A round of nodding went through the room.
“I have a theory as to why, though. I have reason to believe that the entire Daring Do series is not just a tale meant to entertain, but a warning.”
Rainbow lifted a brow. The gray mare shook her head and returned to her book, and Twilight smiled smugly, almost like she wanted Lelth to look the fool.
“Don’t get me wrong, I know how crazy it sounds. It sounds ridiculous still, but consider it...There are twelve books in the Daring Do series, all revolving around Daring, Ahuizotl, and their various cohorts. Daring Do’s allies, and Ahuizotl’s minions. The first ten books focused among different objects.
“The Sapphire Stone, The Gryphon’s Goblet, The Draconequus’ Talisman, The Dragons Tome, The Hydra’s Skull, The Eye of the Manticore, The Crown of the Changelings, Starswirl the Bearded’s Cape, The Parasprite’s Coin, and the Princess’ Crown.
“The last of the two books primarily focused upon Daring Do’s slow defeat to Ahuizotl. Up to that point, she had managed to get the items before him. There was no explanation for why she did so, either. It was simply assumed that Ahuizotl wanted them for foul uses and Daring was trying to stop him.
“Early on in book eleven, it’s revealed that Ahuizotl is planning the end of Equestria. He was attempting to create a ‘better’ world by eliminating pony kind. Ahuizotl manages to formulate a convoluted plan which gets the better of Daring. She then loses the relics to him, and he goes about implementing his plan. As all of you are probably aware...He succeeds in the end. What a way to end the story.”
A bit of an awkward pause went through the room.
“I do believe that the book is a prophecy for the end of Equestria as we know it.”
“And on what grounds do you place these theories?”
The gray mare had spoken up. Her voice was regal, similar to those from Canterlot.
“If you would allow me to finish, I’d get to that.”
The gray mare rolled her eyes and returned her attention to the book before her.
“As I was saying...We can relate two of the items mentioned to real-life ponies. Starswirl the Bearded’s Cape, obviously, and the Princess’ Crown. The Princess in the story is a fictitious figure, but can be assumed to be a representation of Princess Celestia. The two share their personalities and their ideas. Even the way they rule their land is similar. I have no doubt in my mind that Princess Zeltheria is a representation of Princess Celestia.”
“But Zeltheria acted hostile toward Daring in the book. I think you and I are well aware that Princess Celestia wouldn’t harm any living being.”
Twilight interrupted, seeming somewhat cross. Rainbow Dash knew Princess Celestia. There was no way Celestia would hurt any living creature out there. She was almost as kind as Fluttershy, honestly. But...She did have a bit of a temper and definitely the power to do whatever she wanted.
“Twilight, please bare with me.”
Twilight growled angrily at Lelth. She was obviously not amused with the theory being laid out.
“That still leaves us with eight objects unaccounted for, and I know the location of the first one.”
“Umm, what?”
Dash had to speak up when Lelth said that. It...Didn’t make sense. The fact that one would think Daring Do is a prophecy? She loved the books, oh so much, but thinking it was some vision? Wasn’t it just taking it too far? Someone just enjoyed the books a little too much? That seemed to be a bit more reasonable.
“Well then tell us, who do you think the representation of Daring and Ahuizotl are?”
Lelth grinned.
“We are, silly! WE are Daring Do, WE have to find the artifacts, and WE have to prevent ‘Ahuizotl’ from getting them. But...I’m, umm, still not sure who Ahuizotl is for us yet.”
The gray mare laughed.
“There’s no validity to this theory, dear, why don’t you just give up?”
She laughed snidely. Dash glared in her direction. Lelth spoke up, unphased.
“I’ve SEEN the Temple of the Sapphire Stone, y’know.”
There was an awkward pause. The gray mare spoke up.
“And where, pray tell, do you believe it is?”
“The Southern Rainforests. I was down there on some business awhile ago and encountered a temple. The description fit perfectly, as did the surroundings. I even found the very path where the jungle chase scene would’ve taken place. Would’ve being the keyword, considering it didn’t. We need to return the spot where I found the Temple, enter, and retrieve the Sapphire Stone.”
“And the other relics?”
Twilight was obviously a bit enthused hearing about a temple which could hold the Sapphire Stone. It was a rather enticing thought. Dash pondered on it.
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it! The Southern Forests aren’t that far, maybe a days walk.”
Walk. The word brought a shiver to Rainbow Dash. The rest of the group wasn’t suited for far travel by flight. She would have to walk through forests. She supposed it must’ve been in the nature of the Daring Do stories, then.
“Well, I do believe we’re going on a trek then to prove you wrong, Lelth.”
Twilight smiled brightly after her comment.
“I do hope this forest isn’t as filthy as was described. By the way,I am Octavia, Rainbow Dash. Twilight told me all about you, and it’s an honor to meet one of the Elements of Harmony. I am a musician from Canterlot and head of the ‘Daring Do Fanclub’ of the city. Twilight requested my presence for this meeting, due to its nature. Why she brought you, I’ll never know.”
The Earth Pony got up out of her seat and went towards the door.
“Town Square early tomorrow morning and we’re off. I’m expected in Canterlot by the end of the week, let’s not screw that up for me.”
And with that she was out the door. Rainbow sneered towards the door and mocked her voice.
“Just who does she think she is?!”
Twilight sighed and shook her head.
“She’s nice once you get to know her, trust me. And she said a good time anyways, so pack your bags and we’ll all meet in the Square tomorrow.”
Lelth, Rainbow and Twilight all parted ways there. Rainbow left the Library and took flight, going to pack her saddlebags for tomorrow’s journey to the Temple of the Sapphire Stone.
(End of Chapter One. You find the Author at:
brony-for-life.Tumblr.com or
"Damarisin" on Skype and/or Steam)
