Daring Do and the Golden Scootaloo

Fancy Pants looked up from his desk as his visitor entered his office. "Ah! So glad you could come, Ms. Daring. Please! Take a seat."

Daring Do remained standing, tapping a finger on her pith helmet, as if the adventure lay just outside his door and he was keeping her from it with every boring pleasantry. She was already suited up in her green explorer's outfit and thick hiking boots.

When Fancy Pants subtly motioned to the chair in front of his desk once more, she spoke. "You said this wasn't going to take long. You needed this job done fast, right?"

Fancy Pants nodded slowly. "Of course." He stood up and turned to face the large world map behind him, regal and extravagant as everything else in his office, including himself. "You'll be heading here." He pointed to a speck in the southern hemisphere. "A small island thought to be of no historical interest until an ornate temple was recently discovered among the underbrush."

"Right," Daring replied. "And what am I looking for, again?"

"The golden scootaloo," Fancy said with a solemn air. "An artifact thus far seen only in ancient texts, but of great value and significance. To get it back to civilization would mean the world to me."

Daring frowned, raising an eyebrow. "I've never heard of a… scootaloo, golden or otherwise."

"My assistant will have some reference material with her so you know what you're looking for." Fancy sat down at his desk once more. "I hope I'm not making a mistake. It's been many years since I've spoken to someone who requested the payment before the job was completed, but I've been assured you've never failed. "

Daring shook her head. "Never."

Fancy nodded once more. "Glad to hear it." He motioned towards the door. "My assistant is already waiting at the airfield. I'll make sure they have the plane ready to leave."

Daring turned to leave. "And who am I meeting?" she called over her shoulder.

"Fleur de Lis," said the woman, pink hair flowing down to the shoulders of her long coat. "But do call me Fleur." She shook Daring's hand with confidence, a warm smile brightening her face.

"Nice to meet you." Daring cocked her head and looked at the woman behind Fleur; short, styled blond hair, and one eye looking in a very different direction from the other. "And this is…?"

"Derpy Hooves. My assistant," Fleur replied.

"An assistant to an assistant, huh?"

"Oh, for—Did he call me that again…?" Fleur sighed. "I am Mr. Pants' operational manager and surveying expert. He's never been good with titles. Our company is composed of him and seventy-six assistants if you were to listen to him."

"Yeah, that's great. What I was getting at is the growing amount of tagalongs I need to protect," Daring said sternly.

"Hey, we can take care of ourselves!" Derpy said, stepping forward. "We've taken like a ton of wilderness survival courses, and—and this isn't our first trip into dangerous jungles looking for treasure, you know!"

Daring crossed her arms. "Then why do you need me?"

"W-well…" Derpy stammered. "I mean, we haven't found any treasure… but that's still a lot of running around with in places with tigers and bugs and pointy stuff!"

"At any rate," Fleur said with a stifled groan, "we know how to take care of ourselves, and you won't have to worry about us. Don't spare a second thought for our safety; focus on finding the golden scootaloo. We'll be behind you at every step."

There was a long pause as Daring ran her eyes up and down her 'companions,' hoping to see them squirm. Derpy did; Fleur did not. "Alright," Daring said. "Then let's get going." She moved for the plane, propellers already spinning.

Fleur followed at her side, Derpy running up behind them. "We'll be flying to an aircraft carrier we have stationed near the island, at which point we'll go by helicopter," Fleur said.

"An aircraft carrier?" Daring said. "This company just loves living in excess, huh?"

"There's…" Fleur paused. "It's likely nothing relevant, but there's another group searching for the golden scootaloo as well. Nearly as well-funded, and potentially dangerous. Mr. Pants is simply taking precautions."

Daring stopped and turned to Fleur. "And you didn't think about bringing that up earlier?"

"The chances of them getting involved are minimal. We don't think they even know about the temple, let alone that it might house such a valuable artifact." Fleur gave Daring an unflinching gaze. "Are you saying we need to abandon the mission?"

"Why would we?" Daring moved for the plane once more, smirking. "I'm finally getting interested."

Machete in hand, Daring hacked her way through the hanging vines, clearing a path for the two behind her. "On the off-chance you two hear something before I do, let me know. I have a personal policy of trying to head off crazy ambush scenarios."

Fleur followed in Daring's footsteps, with Derpy a bit farther behind. Both of them carried large packs on their back, while Daring remained free of baggage. Derpy looked up at the canopy as she walked. "Ooh! The sun looks really pretty right th—Appth!" She stumbled face-first into a vine.

Daring laughed. "And that's why I told you to keep on my six! I'm making a path here—It's up to you to follow it." She demonstrated her point with a few more hefty swings.

"I see you're growing more chipper," Fleur said, panting. "You certainly seem to enjoy the rush of adventure."

Sweat poured down all three of them. Daring stopped for a moment, resting her blade against a tree. "Wouldn't be in this business if I didn't," she said, unbuttoning her safari shirt. "Exploring new places, getting into trouble, and getting paid for it? I'm livin' the dream." Her shirt open, only bare tanned skin beneath, she placed one hand on her hip and turned to Fleur. "Need a break?"

Fleur chuckled as the gentle wind ruffled the two halves of Daring's shirt. "I suppose I should let you know, Ms. Daring, that I was quite thorough in my research. I know how you tend to get when the 'rush of adventure' grabs you."

"Wh—" Daring did her best to put on an indignant air. "When you're in the jungle, the need for ventilation beats out modesty. The more airflow, the better. I'd recommend you do the same before you suffocate." She motioned towards Fleur's shirt, only the top two buttons undone.

"I'm comfortable as I am," Fleur said. "I'll allow you your little exhibitionist tendencies as long as the golden scootaloo ends up safely in our care."

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," Daring said, her facade fracturing as a grin formed. She stretched her arms above her head, grabbing one elbow, her shirt raising up and fully exposing one of her breasts. "Just making sure I'm healthy and safe in this dangerous land!"

"Mm." Fleur stole the briefest of glances at Daring's dark nipple. "I wouldn't have agreed to this if I wasn't prepared, but don't expect me to engage with… this. Let's keep moving."

Daring picked up her machete. "Yeah, I saw that. You love it. Might as well come clean." Her smile weakened as she turned and continued into the jungle.

Fleur stepped back in line. "You can remain confident that the only one enjoying your antics is you, Ms. Daring."

Derpy followed behind, a grin stretching from ear to ear.

"Hold up…" Daring said. The sun was almost below the horizon. "I see it. Assuming there aren't some other temples around here you haven't told me about."

Some distance in front of the group lay a grand stone entrance to a path that quickly went down beneath the earth. Derpy and Fleur flanked Daring, catching their breath.

"That's not too bad, right? It's pretty small." Derpy said. "Oh, wait. Shoot, it goes underground! Do we know how big it is?"

"We spotted what we believe to be another section of the temple… quite a distance from here," Fleur said. "We believe it to be a fairly immense structure. It will not be a simple matter once we get inside."

"Then we'll make camp," Daring said. "We need to be rested before we wander into trap-infested halls."

Fleur frowned. "We don't have any intel on… 'traps'."

"Trust me. I've been doing this long enough." Daring kept her eyes on the temple. "Hey, Derpy, think you can find some fuel for a fire? Bark, thin twigs, any dead leaves you can find…"

Derpy's head was cocked, peering sidelong into the opening in Daring's shirt. "...Whuh-huh-right! Yeah, firewood. I can do that!" Daring smirked as Derpy dropped her pack and jogged off, surveying the ground.

Fleur set her pack down as well. "I hope this is the right decision. If that other group is around, then that's all the more time for them to catch up and get involved.

"Well, you said they wouldn't be relevant. I'm counting on that. But it wouldn't matter either way if we just walked in and got taken out by random spears because we missed a good night's sleep." She picked up both packs and made her way to the largest clearing she could find in the area. "We'll get a fire going, have ourselves a meal, and get to sleep. I'll take first watch."

"First wa—" Fleur stopped herself. "...Yes. That is for the best, I suppose."

"Gotta stay alert if there's bad guys around." Daring dug through Derpy's pack. "Alright, we got beans, beans, or beans. Take your pick."

The sun dipped out of view just in time for its light to be replaced by a small but healthy fire. After a mediocre cooked meal, three sleeping bags were laid out, and Derpy and Fleur took to them happily as the fire slowly burned out.

Daring stayed awake, sitting down against a tree, her shirt falling open and baring her whole chest. Her boots and socks were placed near the fire. She stared at the temple absent-mindedly.

She wasn't used to her compatriots getting a bead on her so quickly. Yeah, she tended to get a little salacious when the adventure was in full swing, but it usually just lightened the mood and took everyone's mind off the stress. Sometimes it led to a fun romp as soon as the sun went down, which was all the better.

To get shot down on the first move was a bit more alien to her. But she wasn't going to press it.

Still—her 'antics' weren't simply something she played up for their own sake. Being miles from civilization and with danger lurking around every corner was a thrill she fell in love with years ago, and she aimed to recapture it as much as she could. Here, with an ancient structure containing untold mysteries ready to be explored, along with a vague threat of peril that could rear its head at any moment… her heartbeat soared.

Before she gave it conscious thought, one hand unbuttoned her shorts and slid down inside. The nightlife was her only companion as she began to stroke herself, legs bending slightly. Her favorite moment of the day—releasing the build-up that came from being right in the thick of things yet again.

She stole a glance towards the two occupied sleeping bags behind her. Neither moved. Daring grabbed one of her own breasts and moaned softly.

She couldn't help but think back to Fleur… her breasts only just held back by her tight safari shirt. Daring knew it was a long shot to suggest that she allow some more ventilation, but she still found it a shame that it didn't work. It wouldn't have been the first time.

Daring's thoughts strayed to a more ideal outcome, with Fleur unbuttoning her shirt at Daring's request… sliding it off entirely, breasts glistening with sweat… walking towards Daring, groping herself softly… running a hand along Daring's breast, stroking her nipple…

Her toes curled in the dirt as her imagination got away from her. She drove two fingers inside herself as a naked, imaginary Fleur grinded up against her. "Mmm… hahh…!" She tried to quiet her moans, but was unsuccessful.

One leg spasmed, her heel shuffling around dead leaves as it dragged along the ground. She sped her hand up, feeling herself grow closer to climax. Her other hand traveled across her bare chest.

"Mmmm—" She bit her lip as she came, relegating her noises to a deep intake of breath. Her legs straightened out, and her chest pushed even further out of her shirt. She held her pose for a few moments as the trembling stopped, then relaxed against the tree, letting her hands fall to her side. She caught her breath, smiling, gazing at the temple entrance.

Her head cleared, and she thought more properly on what she had just fantasized about. She flushed a touch. Well, alright. I should probably admit to myself that I don't just get off to adventure. Having ridiculously attractive co-workers probably plays a part.

She listened to the breathing of her companions, noticing one had grown significantly quicker in the past few minutes. Hmm. Sounds like someone's awake after all, and... liked what they heard? She wiped her hand in the dirt and stood up, cocking an eyebrow. Gonna guess it was Derpy, then. She seems to be a fan.

She removed her shirt entirely, laying it by the fire, along with her shorts, leaving her in just her underwear. She rustled through Fleur's pack and retrieved the thin tank top Fleur was carrying for her and slipped it on, completing her sleeping outfit.

Smirking softly, she moved to Derpy's sleeping bag. "Hey," she whispered, gently clasping Derpy's shoulder. "Your turn for watch."

Derpy slowly roused from what was clearly a deep sleep, to Daring's surprise. "Mmnn… oh, my turn to watch for bad guys?" She rubbed her eyes. "Right. I'm on it. Don't worry about a thing. Heck, I can watch two places at once. 'Cause I've got the, you know… the..." she trailed off, blinking. "I'm a lot funnier when I'm more awake."

Daring frowned slightly as Derpy wandered off. She looked to the remaining sleeping bag, hearing only a normal breathing pattern.

"Derpy! Stop! Oh crap—" A spear shot out of the wall next to Daring, inches from her skin and shredding a piece of her open shirt.

Derpy continued to sprint over the tiles lining the floor, producing various clicks which heralded various pointy objects. "Help help help help help help help!"

Fleur stood still at the entrance to the room, watching the chaos unfold with wide eyes. "...Hmm."

Derpy made it to the end and dived onto the safe, solid stone floor. "I made it! I made it!" She looked back. "Um, how are you doing?"

A veritable fence of extended spears lay in front of Daring, one suspending her hat in the air. "Honestly? Pretty good, considering." She placed her hat back on her head and walked forward slowly. "As I was saying, we should be safe if we walk on the tiles that are more worn—More foot traffic from the people who knew the pattern." She stepped on a tile with four lines, then on one with a crosshatch pattern, ducking underneath spears to progress. "I'm sure these designs mean something, but, eh. This is easier."

Fleur nervously examined the floor in front of her. She began to step forward tepidly, placing her foot only on the tiles with designs difficult to make out.

A few harrowing minutes later, and all three were safe. Fleur breathed out and unscrewed her flask of water. Daring looked at her and Derpy, who was also enjoying a break. "Alright. You guys having fun? I'm having fun. Wait—" She did a double-take, turning back to Derpy. "A muffin? You have a limited amount of space in your pack for important life-giving rations, and that's what you brought?"

Derpy, inches from taking a bite of a bulging blueberry muffin, put away her wide smile and looked up at Daring. "Um… yeah."

"Man, that muffin's huge. You could have stuck four energy bars in there and gotten way more calories for the space."

Derpy looked longingly at her muffin. "But…" She looked at Daring and held it aloft another inch. "...muffin."

Daring blinked. She turned to Fleur, who turned away with a shrug, taking another swig of water.

Daring looked down at her shirt, holding up a side torn so badly as to hardly cover anything. She let it fall and shrugged. "Alright, we've been in here a good long while. If we're going to find anything, we'll find it soon."

"I must say—I hope so," Fleur said, screwing her flask closed. "I'm more interested in ancient historical relics than most, but even I have to wonder if anything could be worth this danger."

They proceeded down the path. Cracks in the ceiling both provided ample natural light and allowed the growth of the jungle to seep in. Daring followed the twists and turns, pushing through the hanging leaves, and, in the very next room, found something glittering underneath a shaft of light.

"I… I think that's it," Daring said.

"...I take back what I said," Fleur said breathlessly, moving slowly into the room. "This was worth everything."

There, atop a stone base, sat the golden scootaloo. An elegant sculpting of a pony resting on its hindquarters with rich, beautiful rubies for eyes. From every angle, the light from above reflected off it exquisitely.

"They say this holds remarkable power," Fleur said reverently. "They say it responds to sacrifice. It protects those who endanger themselves in place of others."

"They say a lot of sparkly things hold remarkable power, but remember that the people making these things are usually trying to start a cult. They want everyone to think it's some amazing, magical thing. It's usually just... sparkly." Daring approached it carefully. "Hand me the sack," she said to Fleur without averting her gaze from the prize. Fleur reached into her pack and retrieved the burlap sack they brought for this purpose.

Daring's eyes fell to a circular imprint in the stone around the relic. "Damn it." She looked around the room, seeing numerous bits of stone that could be hiding any number of things. "A weight sensor. This is gonna trigger something."

Derpy stepped back. "T-trigger what?"

"Mm… could be a few things. The room might fill up with sand, a giant boulder could roll out of the wall, or we'll get shot at by a hundred poison darts." She held the sack with one hand as the other hovered above the relic, fingers flexing back and forth. "Get ready. It looks like there's another exit to this room if we need it," she said, motioning to a second doorway that lay in the opposite direction from where they entered.

Fleur choked. "That's it!? The typical follow-up to 'we're likely going to die' is some sort of alternate plan, not 'get ready'!"

"Should have shopped around if you were wanting something different," Daring muttered, only half paying attention.

With a flick of her wrist, she pulled the golden scootaloo off of its altar and stuffed it in the sack. The circle surrounding it raised just slightly, emitting a loud click. Fleur and Derpy's eyes darted around the room. It was quiet for a moment.

With a loud crash, a ramp slammed to the floor behind them. A rumble began, growing louder and louder, and in the darkness above, the group began to make out the shape of a large rounded boulder hurtling towards them.

"Yeah. That's a classic. Alright, c'mon!" Daring began to sprint towards the only remaining exit. Fleur and Derpy followed, arms flailing to and fro in panic.

This hallway was much straighter than the last, though cracked in places. Daring vaulted over them with ease. Derpy tripped and stumbled, but managed to roll forward and get back to her feet in a flash. "I don't like this I don't like this I don't like this!" she cried. Behind them, the boulder shattered the golden scootaloo's stone base without slowing down.

In front of them lay a pit lined with spikes; on the other side, long stairs leading up, covered with overgrowth. Daring soared over the pit, then turned and waved the others over. "C'mon! You have to jump!"

"I had gathered that much thank you!" Fleur exclaimed. Without breaking stride, she leapt in the air—but just a touch too early. She slammed into the edge of the pit, quickly clutching onto what vines she could reach.

Daring stepped forward quickly, dropping the sack behind her and reaching down. "Fleur! Take my—Woah!" Derpy vaulted over the pit and slammed into Daring, knocking them both over.

Fleur frantically pulled at the vines, only succeeding in snapping off leaves. She looked back at the boulder quickly closing in. "No no no, please—Please help—"

Daring shoved Derpy off of her, then rolled over towards Fleur. Without getting up, she clumsily gripped Fleur's arm, along with the back of her shirt, and pulled with all her might as she rolled back. Fleur was tossed onto the ground just as the boulder slammed into the edge with an ear-splitting racket, sending shards of rock up as it settled in the pit.

The trio laid on their sides, breathing heavily.

"S… sorry about the… jumping into you," Derpy said, staring at the ceiling, panting heavily. "Probably… probably hurt you more than it hurt me."

Daring began to rise to her feet. She groaned, a hand going to the small of her back. "Glad I could help…"

A hand reached down to her. She accepted it, and was pulled to her feet by Fleur.

They looked at each other for a moment before Fleur spoke. "...Thank you, Ms. Daring."

Daring brushed the dust off her breasts and stomach, then cleared her eyes. "That's what I'm here for, right?" She gave a cocky smile.

Fleur nodded, then bent down and picked up the sack, cradling it in her arms. She turned and looked up the stairs, seeing a bright light at the top. "Is that… outside?"

Derpy got up slowly. "...We picked the wrong side to go in, didn't we?" She ruffled her hair, dust flying out.

"Couldn't have known," Daring said. "We've got it now, anyway. Let's just get out and get back to the helicopter."

The group stumbled up the stairs slowly, emitting groans every few steps. Fleur beamed through the pain as she clutched the golden scootaloo tight.

A low-pitched noise became more and more audible as they climbed. Derpy's eyes widened. "What is that? Please don't say 'another boulder,' because I'm not okay with that at all."

Daring frowned. "Some kind of… engine, or motor? Propellers?"

Fleur slowed her walk. "...Oh no."

As they crested the top of the stairs, the sound grew to its peak as a great zeppelin appeared in the sky, twin engines idling as it hovered in place. Another step, and so too did men come into view— dressed in black with matching helmets and assault rifles, only a few paces in front of them, approaching the stairs.

Their eyes met, and the men immediately raised their weapons. "Halt!" shouted the lead.

Daring gritted her teeth and raised her hands, and Derpy followed suit with a fearful expression. Fleur clutched the sack tighter. "No, no no no no…"

"Well, what do we have here?" came a voice from the behind the men. A blond man, demonstrated by his uniform to be of a higher rank, stepped forward. With him came a woman with shining blue hair, a devious smirk, and a cape completing her uniform. She carried a weapon as well, while the man only held his hands behind his back.

"Blueblood…" Fleur breathed.

"Prince Blueblood, if you would," said the man, irritated. His gaze fell on the sack, and his expression brightened. "Ah! And here I was afraid we'd have to brave the depths of this temple ourselves. You have my gratitude!"

"You're not a prince," Fleur growled. "You aren't owed a thing."

Blueblood's expression tightened once more. "Opinions differ," he said bitterly. He stepped forward, hand outstretched. "Hand it over."

Fleur's expression twisted in despair. Daring stepped towards Blueblood. "Don't you touch her—"

The men behind Blueblood aimed down the sights at Daring, and the blue-haired woman grabbed her arm. "Ah, ah, ah… Keep still like a good little girl. There's no reason this can't be a pleasant experience for everyone." Her eyes trailed down to Daring's breasts, nipples poking out through tattered fabric.

Fleur tepidly handed the sack to Blueblood, who snatched it from her roughly. He opened the pack and pulled out the golden scootaloo, letting it sit in his hand. "...Magnificent."

Daring yanked her arm out of the thus-far-nameless woman's grip. She hardly reacted, smiling, eyes gazing at Daring's chest. She brushed aside half of Daring's shirt. "Yes, no reason at all…" Daring studied her face, noticing it flush.

"Come!" Blueblood said, transfixed by the relic. "Let's get back to the airship. Trixie, escort our new prisoners to their lodgings."

"With pleasure," the blue-haired woman said. She released Daring's shirt, letting her finger brush against Daring's nipple as she turned around. "Follow me, girls. The Great and Villainous Trixie will make sure you're very well cared for." She strutted off in the direction of the zeppelin.

"What are we going to do?" Fleur whispered frantically to Daring. "We can't let them take it. It'll be lost forever—They—they can't do this! They can't!" Her eyes welled up in frustration.

Daring was watching Trixie walk away, rhythmically moving her hips as she walked. "I'm not worried. Just stay safe, and I'll come get you."

"You're going to escape? Just like that?" Derpy said. "I don't think that lady's going to let you out of her sight…"

Daring nodded. "I'm counting on it."