My Little Pony: Talismans are Magic

Chapter 4:  Snake Charming

Twilight started to get the hang of finding the talismans with the help of her trusted friends.  In addition, she was also getting better at defending herself from the Dark Hoof.  This time she was accompanied with timid but very kind friend Fluttershy, who could charm any animal with her power of kindness.  They had been traveling through the small forest that would eventually lead them to Neighagra Falls.  “So why exactly did you need me to come with you again?”  Fluttershy asked.  “Because you're the best when it comes to interacting with animals, and I need a pony that can communicate with the temple guardian, who happens to be a giant serpent.”  Twilight answered while she continued to push branches and bushes out of the way with her magic.  “ME, talk to a big snake!?”  Fluttershy gulped.  “Princess Celestia believes that you are the only one that can convince the guardian to let us have the Snake talisman.”  said Twilight.  “And besides, you already have experience with snakes back at your cottage.”  “That's true.”  Fluttershy said.  “But they're innocent snakes that I've raised since they were born.  I've never seen a big green scary one before.”  “You've talked down a fire breathing red dragon, so I'm sure this will be a piece of cake.”  said Twilight, trying her best to motivate her shy friend.  “I guess so...”  Fluttershy quietly said to herself.  Eventually, the pair got to the river which was connected to a gigantic and powerful waterfall.  “There it is, Neighagra Falls.”  Twilight said with admiration of the site.  “If I remember correctly, the entrance somewhere behind the waterfall rapids.”  They were able to see the outline of a circle in the center of the waterfall, which indicated where they would need to enter.  To make things easier, there was also a cliff edge starting at ground level that was wide enough for them to walk up together.  It even lead all the way to the waterfall entrance.  “Let's get inside before anyone sees us.”  Twilight insisted.

Twilight and Fluttershy managed to get inside the cave, but things weren't as they anticipated. “Hmm, not quite what I was expecting.”  Twilight said.  “Me neither.  Didn't Princess Celestia say that this was supposed to be a temple?”  Fluttershy asked.  “That is true, but from the way things look in here, this appears to be just an ordinary tunnel.”  Twilight and Fluttershy explored deeper in to the cave, which seemed to be only inhabited by rats. When they got to a dead end, Fluttershy saw an image on the wall. “Twilight, look!” she pointed out.  Twilight looked up where her friend was pointing to, and sure enough there was what they though was the Snake talisman.  “Hold on a sec, something's not right.”  Twilight observed.  Twilight attempted to use her levitation magic to pull the talisman out of the wall.  To her disappointment, it was actually a small painting of the talisman; not the real deal.  “Darn it, it's not the real talisman.”  Twilight said, feeling bummed.  “So you're looking for it to, aren't you?” a mare's voice asked from behind.  “Yes we-” Twilight stopped herself from saying anything else when she realized they weren't alone.  When Twilight and Fluttershy turned around, they were confronted by a pegasus pony wearing a pith helmet over her gray and black mane.  “Wait a sec, she looks kind of familiar.”  Fluttershy said.  “Oh my gosh, it's Daring Do!”  Twilight squeaked like a fan girl.  “I thought you were just a fictional character, but Rainbow Dash and I are your biggest fans!  Can I please have your autograph!?!”  Since Daring Do was on her own agenda to get something she wanted, the adventurer was in no mood to talk about her fan base or her adventure novels.  Daring Do was also known for her serious demeanor and her lone wolf personality, and this situation was no different.  “Save the the chit chat for later, I need to get the snake talisman as soon as I can.”  Daring Do said.  “Wait, how do you know about the talismans?”  Twilight urgently asked.   “I overheard my opposition talking about it.  I don't have any real interest in this talisman thing, but the reason I'm after it is to prevent someone else from getting it.”  Daring Do explained.  “And who would this other one be?”  Twilight asked, raising one eyebrow.  “My arch-nemesis Ahuizotl.”  Daring Do continued.  “He's convinced that the talisman will make him more powerful.  Too bad for him, he thinks it's in the jungle domain that he dwells in.”  “Oh thank goodness we won't be seeing him.”  Fluttershy said with relief.

“Then it's settled, let's look for the talisman!”  Twilight declared.  When Twilight turned around, she unexpectedly walked face first into what felt like another pony.  When Twilight looked up, she was staring in to the eyes of her nemesis, Tohru.  “The talisman!”  the big brute demanded.   “We don't have it, honest!”  Twilight said.  “I do not believe you!”  Tohru sneered, as his nostrils flared and his eyes narrowed.  “We'll be taking over from her.”  Finn said as he, Ratso, and Chow came walking in to the area.  The enforcers, except for Tohru, were dressed up in safari attire, which made them seem less threatening at first glance.  “You know these guys?”  Daring Do asked.  “Well, Twilight does, but I haven't met them before.”  said Fluttershy.  “Just tell us where the talisman is and we'll take it easy on all you.”  Chow said in a patronizing tone.  “Yeah right.”  Daring Do snapped back.  “You're not getting anything from here!”  “Then I guess we'll have to settle things the hard way.” said Finn.  “Get ready girls, it's time to fight!”  Twilight declared.  The battle royale was on; Daring Do against Finn and Chow, Fluttershy against Ratso, and Twilight against Tohru.  Finn ran towards Daring Do, who then threw her pith helmet at the enforcer's legs, tripping him.  Chow followed up and leaped for an attack, but Daring Do was prepared and back kicked Chow, launching him on top of Finn. Ratso chased after Fluttershy as she constantly kept trying to flee from him. Not looking carefully enough, Ratso crashed face first in to a stalagmite as tall as himself.  “Oh my, I hope he's alright.”  Fluttershy said, feeling a tad bit sorry for him. With full force, Tohru thrusted his back legs at Twilight, who barely managed to dodge the attack.  Tohru's force struck a big solid stalagmite, which caused a chain reaction to his body making him shake and tremble.  The loud noise also woke up a swarm of bats that were sleeping inside a crevice.  Angry and flustered, the bats flew in the direction of the cave entrance.  The Dark Hoof except for Tohru made a run for it.  Instead of fleeing from the scene, Twilight, Fluttershy, and Daring Do ducked down and stayed low on the ground.  As for Tohru, he stood his ground, showing no fear as the bats flew past him.  Finn, Ratso, and Chow jumped at the same time off the edge of the cave entrance and fell about 30 feet down in to the river.  Tohru came walking out of the cave, with a cluster of bats covering his entire body.  He shook off the bats and continued down the narrow pathway, feeling angry that their mission had been thwarted.

“Wow, glad that's over.”  Twilight said with relief.  The three ponies stood back up and brushed the dirt off from their coats.   Although the two friends were feeling cheerful, Daring Do did not even break a smile.  “What a bunch of low life cowards!  They're all the same; each and every one of them!”  Daring Do sneered.  'Whoah, what's the big deal Daring Do?”  Twilight asked; surprised that one of her favorite novel characters would be so hostile.  “Why would you say such harsh things?”  asked Fluttershy as she felt very intimidated by Daring Do's derogatory opinion.  “ I can read them like a book; I know first hand because of the enemies I've made in my adventures.”  Daring Do openly answered.   “They're greedy and could care less about donating to a museum or sharing what they find.   The only thing that matters to them is money and power.”  “You don't really know that about them.”  Twilight argued.  “Because a stronger force is influencing those guys to find the talismans at all costs.”  “Honestly, they might be very nice deep down inside if they weren't after the talismans.”  Fluttershy said with more confidence in her belief.  “Even the big one in their group seems very troubled.”  “I agree, Fluttershy.”  Twilight complimented.  “It's obvious they're working for the demon that the princess told us about, so there's hope for them to change when this is all over.  “I don't exactly catch everything you're saying, but fine, we're all entitled to our beliefs.”  Daring Do said.  “I won't stop you from what you're here for.  The talisman's all yours.  I'm going now; goodbye.”  With that, the explorer walked out of the cave without looking back.  “I feel sorry for her.”  Fluttershy grieved.  “She shouldn't isolate herself like that.  Don't you think we should-”  “We have to keep looking for the talisman, Fluttershy.”  Twilight cut in.    “I'm sorry, but it's the only way.”  “Right...” Fluttershy quietly acknowledged.

Daring Do continued down the rocky pathway leading back down to the river bank, but she still had a lot in the back of her mind.  The things that Twilight and Flutteshy said were stuck in her head, and it was conflicting with her natural state of mind.  “I have to admit, they do seem much friendlier than the average pony.”  Daring Do thought to herself.  “But what difference does it make anyway, I work alone.”  As Daring Do got closer to the forest, she heard a bit of commotion behind some bushes.  “Something's amidst.  I'd better scope things out.”  she insisted.  Daring Do hid behind an enormous willow tree and listened  to the Dark Hoof as they sat around a fire.  “You'd think that annoying Sparkle would've already had the talisman for us to take from her.”  said Chow.  “Yeah, especially since she always seems to be one step ahead of us.”  Ratso complained.  “I'm tired of getting washed up, no pun intended.”  “Hold on guys, I think the boss is buzzin' in.”  Finn said.  He opened his saddlebag and pulled out a white vibrating orb.  In the orb itself the face of Trixie appeared .  “How are things coming along, Finn?”  Trixie interrogated.  “Oh you know, we're doin' a pretty super job, great and powerful T!”  Finn lied.  “Funny, it appears you idiots had to go swimming to get the snake talisman, judging by your wet clothes!”  Trixie fired back.  “Come on, Trix, if it wasn't for- hey!”  Tohru picked up the orb from Finn's hooves and spoke to Trixie himself.  “Rest assured, master.  We will find the talisman before sunset by any means necessary.”  Tohru promised.  Before Tohru continued his conversation, he stood on all fours and back kicked the willow Daring Do was hiding behind.  Fortunately for her sake, the kick did not blow Daring Do's cover.  “And I will break Twilight Sparkle!” Tohru sweared.  Seeing Tohru's desire for revenge was not a pleasant feeling, and Daring Do got a small adrenaline rush from the tremendous force of Tohru striking the tree.  She could not resist the urge to go back to Twilight and Fluttershy to give a fair warning.  Although Daring Do didn't consider herself a friend to random strangers, she did not want to see good ponies get hurt.  “I can't let those two get into trouble.”  Daring though to herself.  “I'm going back!”

Twilight and Fluttershy continued their search in the cave, but the heroes did not make any further progress.  They were going in circles and sometimes kept looking in spots they already scoped.  “I just don't get it.  Princesss Celestia's locator spell said the Snake talisman would be in this waterfall cave.”  Twilight said.  “I know, but we've looked every inch of this place.”  said Fluttershy.  “At this rate we'll never find it.  If only we had-” “Mind if I lend a hoof?”  a voice said.  “Daring Do!?”  Twilight and Fluttershy said at the same time.  Daring Do was standing at the entrance looking at the two helpless ponies with a small polite smile.  “Honestly, I can't just let you two struggle like this for one measly talisman.”  Daring Do joked.  “But what made you come back, if you don't mind me asking?”  Fluttershy inquired.  “The words that came from both of you really got under my skin.  That's something that rarely happens to me.”  Daring Do confessed.  “But in order to look deep, sometimes you have to think outside the cave.”  Twilight's eyes perked open when the adventurer spoke those cryptic words.  Daring Do firmly pressed her hoof on a flat rock.  A crack in the cave wall opened up wide, and revealed a stone door with a painting of a green snake attempting to bite its own tail.  “Over there.”  Daring Do pointed out.  Twilight noticed a panel to the right and pushed it, allowing the door to slowly sink into the ground.  “Follow me, we've got a talisman to hunt for.”  Daring Do enthusiastically said.

The trio walked through a hall with murals of snake imagery  before they got to a round room with a big circle etched in the ground.  “That looks like a secret entrance in the ground.”  Twilight examined.  “The temple guardian obviously needs a large room to accompany his large size.”  The The ceiling was also very high up that it looked like the room was at least 50 feet tall.  “That probably goes all the way up to the top of the waterfall.”  Daring Do ascertained.  “So the temple does exist after all.” Twilight said.  “To think there would be so many thick vines in here.”  “Actually Twilight, I don't think they're vines.”  Fluttershy corrected.  After listening closely, the group heard quiet hissing noises, and then looked up around the room.  On top of pillars and other wall edges were green snakes.  “Why... why did it have to be snakes.”  Daring Do muttered spitefully to herself.”  “Because thisss is our home, foolish mortal.” a serpentine voice spoke back.  “Who said that!?!” Daring Do demanded.  The stone emblem in the ground open up, and then a gigantic green snake came slithering out of the ground.  The hole closed once the snake got out completely.  The guardian was so gigantic that he could swallow a pony just like a regular snake could swallow a mouse.  “I am the temple guardian of thisss hidden domain, and I already know why you're here.”  the giant snake said.  “You ssseek the Sssnake talisman that has been protected by me for many years.”  “Yes your honor, we have been on a quest for all twelve talismans to stop a great evil from coming in to this world.”  Twilight answered.  “That is a fine reason to gather them all, but I'm afraid I can't jussst hand mine over that easily.”  the guardian replied.  “One of you will have to be proved worthy to claim sssuch an ancient power.”  Twilight looked over to Fluttershy, who already looked nervous.  “It's up to you, Fluttershy.  I know you can do it!”  Twilight motivated.  “However, should either of you two interfere or attempt to assist the challenger, you all will faccce sssevere consssequenccces.”  the snake warned.  “I'm ready!”  Fluttershy nodded.  Twilight and Daring Do stepped over to the wall so that they wouldn't get too close to the action.

“Let us begin!”  the guardian declared.  The snake vanished suddenly which Fluttershy was not expecting at all.  “He's using the power of the snake talisman.”  Twilight thought to herself.  “I wish I could help but I'm forbidden to.”  The pink maned pony thought of one way to put the reptile in his place, but she knew that she would have to act at the right moment.  Fluttershy's ears twitched as she listened to the movements of the snake's body slithering on the ground and around the walls and pillars.  Sometimes she could even see specs of dirt and debris vibrate, which gave her clues to which direction he might come from.  “Now die!”  the invisible snake shouted with fangs bared in his open mouth. Right at the very moment the guardian went for the attack, Fluttershy pivoted to her right and flared her eyes which gave off her trademarked move, The Stare.  The giant snake instantly materialized back and froze in fear as soon as he become visible again.  Daring Do and Twilight could not believe what they were witnessing.  “No way!  She won!”  Daring Do said.  “I don't understand.” the snake thought to himself, in bewilderment as he stayed locked in position.  “I could easily devour her right now, but... those eyes... they make me feel numb and powerless!”  The snake relaxed and took a deep breath, and then Fluttershy yielded her stare.   “Well done, noble pony.  I can sssee now that you have a very powerful bond to animals and nature. You have proven yourssself worthy of claiming the power of invisibility.”  The guardian opened his mouth again to reveal the Snake talisman underneath his tongue.  Fluttershy walked up and reached her hoof inside to take the talisman.  “May the power ssserve you well.”  said the temple guardian as he slithered back in to his hole.  The stone symbol in the ground closed completely.

“You did it, Fluttershy, you actually did it!”  Twilight applauded to her friend.  The group walked back through the hall and back outside the temple door.  They knew they were almost out because the loud noise of the waterfall could easily be heard.  As they were about to pass through the open crack, something came to Daring Do's mind.  “I remember now.” said Daring Do “The other reason I came to back was to warn you about the- oof!.”  From the corner, Ratso's hoof punched Daring Do in the cheek knocking her out cold to the ground.  Chow ran over to check her pockets and saddlebag.  “No talisman.”  said Chow as he ran back to his allies leaving the knocked out Daring Do on the ground.  “Fluttershy! Watch out!” Twilight screamed.  “Oof!”  Tohru approached from behind and slammed his hooves down on Twilight's back, knocking her out, and then picked up the unconscious pony. Fluttershy looked in horror as the assailants made quick work of her friends.  “Looks like the hard work is done for us.”  Finn teased.  “So be a good pony and just hand over the talisman.”  “Never!”  Fluttershy retorted.  “Put them down right now!”  “Oh look guys, a pinked haired pegasus is telling us what to do.”  Ratso laughed.  “Yeah, she might break my sunglasses if she gets angry.”  Chow teased.  As the enforcers continued to mock Fluttershy's innocent demeanor, her eyes began to twitch and her breathing started to get heavier.  She still had the talisman in her saddlebag, and did not hesitate to get it out.  “She's got the talisman!”  Tohru said, still holding Twilight.  “I'll handle this!”  Chow insisted.  “You... big... MEANIES!!!”  Fluttershy yelled.  “NOBODY HURTS MY FRIENDS!”

The anger from Fluttershy triggered the power of the Snake talisman, causing her to disappear. “What the-” said Chow.  Immediately, the invisible Fluttershy leaped at Chow and drop kicked him in to the wall.  “Find her!”  Tohru commanded.  Finn and Ratso ran to where Chow got beaten up and tried their hardest to find the invisible pegasus.  Fluttershy quickly got behind the two, and back kicked both of the thugs off the cave edge and sent them falling down the waterfall.  “Grrr!”  Tohru growled as he kept trying to strike Fluttershy, which made him look stupid as he kept missing.  Fluttershy grabbed Tohru's overalls and used all her strength and adrenaline to hurl the giant stallion down the same direction as the other Dark Hoof enforcers.  “Wooooaaahhhhh!”  Tohru screamed as he fell down the long drop.  A loud splash was heard when he landed in the river.   In the cave, Chow got back on all fours but realized he was outmuscled.  “I'm outta here.  Guys wait up!”  Chow cried out as he scurried off and out of sight from the cave.

Twilight and Daring Do slowly gained consciousness when all the enforcers were gone.  “Ow... my head.” Daring Do moaned.  “Hold on, where's Fluttershy?”  Twilight said feeling very worried.  “I'm right here.”  Fluttershy replied.  She became visible again and put the talisman back in her bag.  “Ha!  I bet you gave those goons the biggest butt whooping they've ever had, didn't ya?”  Daring Do joked.  Fluttershy tapped her hooves and blushed.  “Well, something like that.” she said with a modest voice.

“Come on, let's get out of this damp cave.”  Twilight insisted.  The group finally got out of the waterfall, and back to the river bank.  “I gotta say, this has been one of my best adventures yet!”  Daring Do stated.  “I'm just very glad you could help us out in there.  We should do more adventures like this again sometime.”  said Twilight.  “I hope you can visit us in Ponyville.”  Fluttershy invited.  “Well, it's time for us to go separate ways.  I know we'll cross paths again, Twilight and Fluttershy.  I wish the best of luck to you in your quest for the talismans.”  Daring Do said as she crouched down, flapped her wings, and launched herself in to the air. Twilight and Fluttershy waved to Daring Do as she flew towards the sunset and then disappeared in the horizon.  “I think it's time we get back home.”  Twilight said.  “Whaddya say, pal?”  “Yay.”  said Fluttershy with her innocent smile.

End of Chapter 4