My Little Pony: Nine Elements

Book 4

Written by Brandon Nell and Blake Hawkins

Chapter 4: Daring Don’t

Three days after the all-nighter at the Castle of the Two Sisters, Fluttershy was teaching some chicks to fly.

“Ready to try out what you've learned?” Fluttershy asked sweetly. The chicks chirped in confirmation. “Alright, here we go. I’ll be right there with you.” She gently flapped her wings to demonstrate the motions. The chicks flapped their little wings as well. They managed to get a little bit above their nest. “That’s good, keep going!” she said in a motivated voice. Suddenly, Rainbow started flying in circles.

“Four more months!” the athlete said. “Four more months!”

Fluttershy noticed Rainbow and called up to her. “Four more months of what, Rainbow?”

“Aren’t you excited?!” Rainbow asked.

“I might be if I knew what you were talking about,” Fluttershy answered.

“Oh, right, context,” Rainbow said. “The newest Daring Do book is coming out four months from today!”

“Oh,” Fluttershy said. “I see.”

“I’m so excited to see what kind of adventures she’ll be up against this time~!” Rainbow whooped, loop-de-looping in the air. “So, what amazing, incredible, awesome adventure do you think Daring Do will have in her next book, huh? Will she at long last stalk the Fortress of Talacon, only to be forced to contend with its dreaded and impenetrable arrow defense? And if so, could her skill, quick wits, and courage possibly carry the day? Or will her next adventure bring her face to face with the vast and horrible Ahuizotl himself?! Would she cower, turn tail and run? Or would she fly at him, full bore, knowing full well against all odds that the greatest challenge she ever faced was still surely no match for—”

“RAINBOW!” Fluttershy shouted, stopping Rainbow. “I know you’re excited for the book, but, the announcement only just came out. I don’t know what happens in the next book. I don’t even know what happened in the previous books. I’m not as into the series as you are, so, none of what you’ve been saying made any sense to me.*”

“Oh, right,” Rainbow said. “Sorry about that. I just got really excited. I’ve even been re-reading the previous books to get me back up to speed. Don’t worry, I’ve only been doing it when I was off the clock.”

“I understand,” Fluttershy said. “I need to help these chicks learn how to fly, but, we can chat more about this another time, okay?”

“Okay,” Rainbow said. “You know, I don’t think I’ve taught Sunset to fly yet.”

“She’s very insistent that she only takes those lessons where there’s no chance of any… body seeing her besides us,” Fluttershy said. “In her words. That makes it less likely for you-know-who to find out about her either directly or indirectly.”

“I still don’t get the everybody thing,” Rainbow said. “Why doesn’t she just use everypony like a normal pony. She’s not in that other world anymore.”

“I think it sounds alright,” Fluttershy responded. “And more inclusive in my opinion. After all, if we use everypony, we might be leaving Spike out, since he’s not a pony.**”

“Oh,” Rainbow said as she considered this. “Yeah. He’s been left out of too much already. Though, it’ll still take some getting used to.”

“It probably took her a while to get used to saying ‘everybody’ instead of ‘everypony,’” Fluttershy considered. “She’s still getting used to being back in the world she was born in again. We should try to be more respectful.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Rainbow said. “Thanks, Fluttershy.”

Four days later, Rainbow was excitedly making her way to the Golden Oak Library.

“Only three months and twenty-six days away,” she whispered excitedly to herself. “I’d love to chat with Twilight about story ideas.” She opened the door and, to her surprise, saw that the rest of her Ponyville friends, Sunset, Wallflower, and Phoebe were all inside and having a celebration.

“Hi, Rainbow,” Twilight said with a smile. “So glad you could join us.”

“What’s going on?” Rainbow asked.

“Sunset, Wallflower, and Phoebe decided to come visit,” Pinkie said. “So, I decided to throw a party to celebrate!”

“That sounds about right,” Rainbow smiled.

“I’m guessing Spike didn’t get to you when I sent the announcement yesterday,” Sunset said. “The others seemed to get it okay.”

“I tried,” Spike said. “But, she was too busy reading one of the Daring Do books for the twelfth time.”

“Yep, that sounds like Roxy, too,” Sunset replied.

“Rainbow told me recently that she’s been re-reading the books in preparation for the new book,” Fluttershy explained.

“Roxy fangirled over Daring Do books in the human world, too,” Sunset said. “And don’t get me started on her excitement over the movie adaptations.”

“Don’t worry,” Rainbow said as Rarity levitated a cupful of punch. “In three months and twenty-six days, I’ll be able to read the next book and enjoy it.” Rainbow started to sip.

“About that,” Twilight said. “My mom recently told me that they’re pushing the book release date another two months.”

Rainbow did a whole-on spit take and sputtered. “Two more months?!”

“To quote a certain rabbit mascot for a candy company,” Sunset said. “Take it easy.”

“Rabbit mascot?” Fluttershy asked, confused.

“There’s this candy company in the human world called Cadbury,” Sunset explained. “They had this mascot of a female rabbit who would see some male forest animals overworking themselves and she’d offer them a piece of milk chocolate with a caramel filling to help them relax, hence her using that slogan, ‘take it easy.’”***

Rainbow took a deep breath, trying to take the advice to heart. “Twilight,” she asked. “Did your mom say why this was the case?”

“All she told me was that A.K. Yearling wouldn’t be able to finish the book for another two months,” Twilight answered.

“Looks like this A.K. Yearling’s as reclusive as her human counterpart,” Sunset said.

Rainbow thought of this and considered. “Hey, Twilight,” she said. “You wouldn’t happen to know where she lives, do you?”

“My mom might,” Twilight answered. “Though, she hasn’t told me.”

“I think I know why,” Sunset said. “If she shared that kind of information, she’d essentially be doxxing her.”

“Doxxing?” Rarity asked. “I’m not familiar with the term, I’m afraid.”

“Doxxing,” Sunset explained. “Is when you search for and publish private or identifying information about a particular individual on the internet, typically with malicious intent. Since Equestria doesn’t have internet, it’s not proper doxxing.”

“My idea isn’t for malicious intent, though,” Rainbow said. “I want to know because it’s clear that the reason why A.K. Yearling’s book is delayed is because she needs help dealing with everyday nonsense. We could help clean her house, do her laundry, buy her groceries, cook her meals, anything like that.”

“This idea still raises some red flags,” Sunset said.

“She could always say no,” Rainbow said.

“It’s not just that,” Sunset said. “This could also be a violation of her privacy. And I can tell that this isn’t entirely wholesome on your part.”

“Sunset’s right, Rainbow,” Applejack said. “As a fan, ya got ta be respectul o’ her privacy. So, we’re just goin’ ta have ta be patient n’ not be all, ‘five months left, four months left, three months left, two-’”

“I get it, I get it!” Rainbow interrupted and sighed with defeat. “But, you all know that patience isn’t my strong suit.”

Sunset took a deep breath. “That’s apparent, Rainbow,” she said. “I don’t like it, but, with it being apparent you have at least partial helpful motivation, I’ll authorize Twilight to find a way to find out where A.K. Yearling lives.”

This brightened Rainbow up. “Yes!” she exclaimed, hugging Sunset suddenly. “Thank you, thank you, thank you! Trust me, nopo- uh, nobody, is going to regret this!”

“However,” Sunset said. “To make sure your fangirling is kept in check, you’re not to go alone and we will make sure that it happens on a day that the other Guardians aren’t occupied with their jobs.”

“Fair enough,” Rainbow said with a nod.

“But, not all of us are as big fans as Rainbow,” Rarity said.

“I understand,” Sunset said. “But, I highly doubt Twilight and myself alone will be enough to keep Rainbow in check. The rest of you have known Rainbow long enough to know how much of a handful she can be.****”

“That’s true,” Applejack said. “Ah’ll have mah rope with me, just in case.”

“Besides,” Sunset said. “In the event she ends up living in a somewhat dangerous place, this can be a safety in numbers thing.”*****

“That’s true,” Fluttershy admitted. “I could also bring some medical supplies.”

“That would be a good idea,” Sunset nodded. She then noticed Spike looking rather sad and alone. “And Spike can come as well if he wants.”

“Really?” Spike asked.

“Yeah,” Rainbow smiled. “Meeting A.K. Yearling and helping her would mean a lot to me. It would also mean a lot if you were there with us.”

“But, what if something happens to him?” Twilight asked.

“Twilight,” Sunset said. “I understand your concerns, but, you can’t keep babying him forever. You need to give him room to grow on his own. Besides, think of this as a good way to keep an eye on him.”

“And with all of us together,” Pinkie said. “There should be more than enough eyes to ensure that Spike is safe.”

Twilight considered all of this. “You’re right,” she conceded.

“For an extra insurance policy,” Sunset said. “You and the original six guardians can carry some Element Shards just in case. I’ll even make sure to keep my own Elements handy.”

“Excellent thinking, Sunset,” Rarity smiled.

“Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask,” Rainbow said. “How’d you find out what the Element of Empathy could do?”

“It was actually an accident if you can believe it,” Wallflower said. “Between when she became a phoenix alicorn and her birthday, when we were packing, she was wearing the Element of Empathy and we shared a congratulatory hug. As we started to ease up, I saw her eyes glowing pure white.”

“Wow,” Rainbow said in an impressed tone. “That’s some discovery.”

“And it was shortly after my birthday that I learned my other elements have powers, too,” Sunset said.

“What are they?” Fluttershy asked.

“Well,” Sunset said, levitating the band with the gem representing the Element of Humility onto her right upper leg. “Let’s just say that with the Element of Humility–” She then touched the gem with her left forehoof and seemed to disappear. “--hiding from Moonrise becomes a bit easier.”

They gasped with amazement.

“She disappeared!” Pinkie exclaimed. “Or, did she turn invisible?”

“You were right the second time,” Sunset’s voice said as she reappeared.

“That’s incredible,” Fluttershy gasped. “What does Redemption do?”

“That one, we’re still trying to figure out,” Sunset said as she rubbed the back of her head.

“That’s alright,” Fluttershy said gently.

“Though, we have some information to work with,” Sunset said before taking out her Item Box and taking out of it a shield shaped like half of the shell of a phoenix egg with golden metallic wings on either side carved into ornate lapping flames.

“Wow~!” they said, impressed by the shield.

“This was once half the shell of a freshly hatched phoenix egg,” Sunset said.

“It’s mighty impressive,” Applejack said. “How’d it get like that?”

“It was the–” Sunset began before remembering Spike was present. “--strangest thing.****** The three of us saw a phoenix egg hatch, a gentle breeze carried half of the shell that broke, it touched the Redemption gem, and one blinding light flash later, it’s this shield.”

“That’s really something,” Spike said.

“That happened as we were heading to the train station the day immediately after our all-nighter at the old castle,” Wallflower said.

“Wow,” Rainbow said with astonishment.

Two days later, Twilight managed to get A.K. Yearling’s address, which her mother had marked on a map with a clear path to follow..

“Thank you,” Twilight said gratefully.

Sunset studied the map carefully. “Looks like we’ll need that safety in numbers strategy after all. This path is close to a few goblin******* settlements.”

“Goblins?” Fluttershy asked nervously.

“They can be mischievous tricksters or brutal malefactors,” Sunset explained. “One goblin alone is more of a nuisance than a serious problem, but, here’s the rub: You’re not likely to see one on its own.”

“Oh, dear,” Rarity said worriedly.

“We’ll need to be careful,” Sunset said.

“Ah reckon we should all stand close together,” Applejack said. “Nopony- uh, sorry- nobody should wander off alone.”

The group followed the path on the map, with Pinkie leaving a trail of red paint as they went. They found themselves further from pony civilization.

“Sunset had a point about A.K. Yearling needing privacy,” Twilight said, looking around their surroundings. “I don’t think she would be in such a secluded part of Equestria if she didn’t want to be disturbed.”

“We’ve been lucky avoiding confrontations with goblin settlements thus far,” Sunset said. “But, according to this map, she lives a stone’s throw away from another.”

“You kind of have to wonder how she manages,” Pinkie noted. “As far as we know, she lives all alone and goblins come in big groups.”

“Well, I’ve read a bit about goblins,” Sunset said. “And encountered a few in the Everfree Forest. One thing I learned is that they’re smart enough to speak our language to a degree and have a crude social order, but, as you all saw from the settlements we passed on the way here, they’re not really master builders.”

“I see,” Fluttershy said.

“Goblins can be reasoned with and while they can be underhanded,” Sunset said. “They’re largely creatures of simple needs.”

“Maybe that’s why A. K. Yearling is doing well out here,” Pinkie smiled.

“Or, maybe she isn’t,” Rainbow said in alarm, pointing up ahead to a lonely little cottage that looked like it was ransacked.

“Ya think a gaggle o’ goblins did this?” Applejack asked.

“Unlikely,” Sunset said. “Also, a group of goblins is actually called a tribe.”

“I hope nothing bad happened to A.K. Yearling,” Twilight said worriedly.

“We better look into this,” Rainbow said.

They entered the cottage and found items thrown about across the floor. But, what caught them by surprise was the unconscious bodies of sickly bipedal creatures with skin in varying shades of green, long crooked noses, long pointy ears, and rather low-quality clothes. They’d seen them on the way there and immediately recognized them as goblins.

“Oh, the poor creatures!” Fluttershy gasped. She cradled one of the goblins in her front hooves gently. “They may be mischiefmakers, but, it doesn’t seem fair that they should be harmed like this.”

“I don’t think these goblins are responsible for this mess,” Sunset said.

“Well, if they aren’t,” Rarity ventured to guess. “Then, who was responsible? A.K. Yearling wouldn’t do this to her own home.”

“Whoever it was, it’s unlikely to be a solo act,” Sunset said. “As you can see, there’s ten unconscious goblins across the floor.”

“So?” Pinkie inquired.

“Goblins aren’t very strong individually,” Sunset said. “But, ten working together is enough to overpower any one pony acting alone.”

“What?!” Applejack exclaimed. “Even an earth pony as strong as me?!”

“Yes, Applejack,” Sunset said. “Even you.”********

“Hello?” asked an unfamiliar voice coming from the entrance. All turned to see the owner of the voice. It was what looked like an earth pony mare wearing a gray cloche hat, red-framed glasses, and a purple cloak with ornate white trimming. “What have you done to my house?! What did you do to my goblin security?!”

Rainbow gasped. “A.K. Yearling!” she squeed, but, Applejack helped to rein in her enthusiasm.

“Please forgive us,” Fluttershy explained. “We found your home like this. Same with the goblins.”

The mare went over to one of the unconscious goblins and tapped the side of its face, causing it to stir. “Gobby, what happened here?”

“Theys cames in, mistresses,” the goblin answered in a gravelly and decrepit voice.*********

“Please, Miss Yearling,” Applejack tried to explain. “We didn’t mean no harm. We just came ta-”

“Did they do this, Gobby?” Yearling asked, interrupting her.

Gobby studied them. “No,” he answered. “Stallionses dids this.”

“Stallions?” Wallflower asked.

A.K. Yearling began frantically searching for something. “Oh, where did I put that thing,” she asked herself.

“We’re awfully glad to see you’re alright,” Twilight said.

“Thank you,” Yearling said as she continued to search. “But, this isn’t the time to chat.” Finally, she found what she was looking for. It looked like a simple book. She twisted the rings on the spine, twisted the insignia on the front curve a quarter turn, and then the rings opened and the book opened on the opposite end of the spine, revealing a golden ring. “Ah, thank goodness. This is safe.” She then hid the ring behind her cloak.

“Anyway,” Rainbow said. “We came here because we really wanted to help you. I’m Rainbow Dash and I’m a fan of your Daring Do books, so, I wanted to make sure that you got the help that you needed.”

“You call yourself a fan,” A.K. Yearling said. “Yet you break into my home and attempt to pressure me into finishing my next book sooner? Let me tell you something. I deal with impatient fans every single day, but, they’re still more polite than you because they send letters instead of coming directly to me.”**********

Pinkie then looked at the entrance. “Guess those guys had the same idea.” They all looked where Pinkie pointed.

At the entrance, they saw various stallions and they did not look friendly.

“That’s thems, Misstresses!” Gobby said.

“Don’t worry, Gobby,” A.K. said gently. “I’ll take care of them and make them pay for hurting you and your siblings.” She then threw her cloak off at one henchpony, the hat at another, and her glasses at the third, revealing…

“A. K. Yearling is Daring Do?!” Twilight and Rainbow exclaimed together.

“Well, how about that?” Sunset said.

“Get out while you still can,” Daring said. “This’ll get messy.”

Reluctantly, they had to oblige. Most of them wanted to help, but, they couldn’t argue with Daring Do during this situation. Rainbow, however, insisted on staying by just in case. In a tussle over the ring, it ended up near a fourth stallion.

“Many thanks to your companion, Miss Do,” the stallion said in an accent that was hard to decipher.

“You’re behind my goblin security being knocked out, aren’t you?!” Daring accused.

“Of course,” said the stallion without a trace of shame. “They were the only ones standing between us and the artifact. I know that ten goblins could easily overpower any one pony acting alone. But, three ponies is enough to knock them out. Too bad you haven’t found a hobgoblin. Then, they might have stood a chance.”

“Then, I’ll have to stop you myself, Caballeron!” Daring snapped.

“Uh, can somebody explain what’s going on?” Pinkie asked. “Because I’m completely lost.”

“Sorry,” Spike said. “I’m afraid I can’t help much.”

“Dr. Caballeron,” Twilight explained in a whisper. “Is from book four, Daring Do and the Razor of Dreams. He wanted to partner up with Daring Do on adventures, but, she refused, knowing that he wanted to sell artifacts to the highest bidder.”

Daring Do got herself back up. “Let me guess,” she said. “Ahuizotl put you up to this, didn’t he?”

“That is correct,” Caballeron admitted. “I sell this to him, make a bundle, and retire from archeology in splendor.”

“Ahuizotl has no use for money, you short-sighted fool!” Daring said. “He’s just trying to lure you to your death!”

“Perhaps if you had partnered with me,” Dr. Caballeron snarked. “I would be taking your half-assed threats seriously. To the market, henchponies!” He and his minions left the cottage.

“Should we go in and help her?” Fluttershy asked the others in a whisper.

“Right,” Sunset said. “We’ll need to heal the goblins. You got the medical supplies, Fluttershy?”

“Mm-hmm,” Fluttershy nodded, taking them out of her saddlebag.

As Daring Do patched her injury from the fight, Sunset, Fluttershy, and Wallflower began tending to the unconscious goblins. Daring was surprised by Wallflower using plant magic.

“Whoa~” she said softly. “In all my years of exploring, I’ve never seen anything like this.”

“I’ll ignore any taunting you may give me while I help to heal you,” Wallflower said.

“Taunting?” Daring said. “That’s incredible.” She then noticed Spike. “A Bulk Buster whelp?”

“And my son,” Twilight said. “I hatched him from his egg.”

Daring then got another look at Twilight. “Hey, you’re Velvet’s daughter, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am,” Twilight said. “I’m Twilight Sparkle.”

“Velvet gave you the directions here, didn’t she?” Daring ventured to guess.

“Yes,” Twilight admitted. “I’m sorry.”

“You’re very lucky I have more important things to worry about right now or I would contact the royal guard to have you all arrested for trespassing,” Daring said.

“Miss Do,” Rainbow said. “If you’re going to punish anypony, punish me. It was my idea to find you. But, I want to make things right and I want to help you stop Dr. Caballeron.”

“I appreciate the offer,” Daring said. “But, I’ve been doing this kind of thing for years and I can manage alone.” She then made her way out.

“Do you suppose we should stay here until her goblin assistants are well?” Rarity offered. “And then we’ll make our way home?”

“We have to go with her and help,” Rainbow said.

“But, Rainbow,” Twilight said. “Daring Do said that she works alone.”

“How can we just sit by and do nothing?” Rainbow said. “We all know what’s at stake here! Ahuizotl has sought control of the Tenochtitlan Basin since book three!”

“True,” Twilight admitted. “But, in book four, she defeated Ahuizotl and secured control of the Amulet of Atonement, dispelling the dark magic of the Ketztwctl Empress and thus, protecting the basin with the Radiant Shield of Razdon!”

“But, the Radiant Shield of Razdon is vulnerable to the dark enchantment of the Rings of Scorchero!” Rainbow argued.

“But,” Twilight countered. “Are you forgetting that the Rings were scattered to the four corners of Tenochtitlan, thus rendering the dark enchantment powerless?”

“Only,” Rainbow said. “If you assume that the Rings have yet to be retrieved, and the ring Caballeron just stole isn't the last to completely restore the dark tower and its cruel hold on Tenochtitlan! Did you ever think of that?!”

All but Sunset looked confused about what was going on in the conversation.

“This makin’ a lick o’ sense ta y’all?” Applejack asked.

“Not to me,” Rarity said.

“I got lost halfway through the second sentence,” Spike put in.

“No,” Fluttershy said.

“Me neither,” Pinkie said.

“Sorry,” Wallflower said.

“I can kind of make sense of what they're saying,” Sunset said. “I've seen the Daring Do movies in the human world.”

“All things considered,” Pinkie said. “Rainbow does have a good point. At least I think she did.”

“Either way,” Sunset said. “I’m a little middle road about this.”

“We’ve got to help her, though,” Rainbow said with determination. “We’ve got to get the rings to a safe location before it’s too late!”

“Tell you what,” Sunset said. “I know a tactic in the human world used to settle two-way decisions.”

“What’s that?” Rainbow asked.

“It’s called a coin toss,” Sunset explained. She pulled out a silver bit. She then looked at both sides of the silver bit and realized that both sides looked the same. “Uh, hang on a sec.” She looked through her saddle bag and found an American quarter. “Ah, this’ll do. Now, here’s how it works. This coin has two sides. Heads.” She then levitated it to show the other side. “And tails. I know it doesn’t look like a tail, but, that’s what it’s called as opposed to heads. One of you calls heads or tails and the coin gets flipped. The winner is the one who's side is up when the coin lands.”***********

“Okay, heads!” Rainbow called.

“Okay,” Sunset said. “By process of elimination, Twilight chooses tails.” She gripped the quarter with her teeth and flipped it into the air. The coin landed on heads. “Well, that settles it. Sorry, Twilight.”

“That’s alright,” Twilight said. “But, since we’ll be in way over our heads, we will need a plan.”

“Twilight, be real, when has being in over our heads stopped us before?” Rainbow said. “I’m coming, Daring Do!” She then took off.

“Guess we better go after her after we take care of the goblins,” Spike said.

“Yous goes,” Gobby said. “Gobbys will takes cares ofs thises.”

“If you’re sure,” Spike said. “I guess we can’t argue.”

Meanwhile, with Rainbow, she was trying to find Daring Do’s trail. She spotted her limping.

“She’s hurt,” Rainbow said to herself. “Now I’ve really got to help her.” She started making a beeline for the adventurer. “Okay, take a deep breath, Rainbow. She’s a pony in need of help… and she’s your hero from your favorite book series~! Okay, calm down. It’s just another adventure with another pony. Nothing you haven’t been through before.” In her monologue, she was unprepared for the ambush that would befall her. “Okay, you got this. Cool your wings and- AH! Ow! Oof!”

Her attacker was none other than Daring Do, who finally got a good look at her.

“Oh, it’s just you,” Daring said, getting off of Rainbow. “Look, I already said I don’t have time to pander to your impatience.”

“I’m not here to tell you to hurry up with your book,” Rainbow said. “I’m here to help you with getting the rings before it falls into the creepy monkey hands of Ahuizotl.”

Daring sighed. "I don't have time for this. I'll say it once and only once. I. Work. Alone. Got it?!"

“But,” Rainbow objected. “Why won’t you let me team up with you just this once? I promise I won’t get in your way.”

The adventurer only shook her head. "They all say that. They all think they have what it takes to be a partner to me. But, in the end, they always end up getting hurt or worse. Others, like Caballeron, only care about themselves. In the end, trusting others only gets you into more trouble. And in my line of work I've come to learn a hard truth: Since you can't tell who you can trust, it's far better to trust nopony, not even yourself."

“Just because there are some that are hard to trust,” Rainbow argued. “Doesn’t mean that nopony can be trusted. Having others you can count on isn't always a bad thing.”

Daring didn’t believe this in the slightest, but, she could sense that she wouldn’t be winning any time soon. “You're not taking no for an answer, are you?"

“Nope,” Rainbow said. She then extended her hoof out to Daring Do. “So, what do you say? Do we do this together? I've read all your books, I know all your tricks. And not that I mean to brag, but, I've had a couple of life saving adventures myself. You need me.”

Daring let out a pained sigh. “Fine. But, I’m only agreeing to this because you’re making it abundantly clear that you won’t stop pestering me otherwise.”

"Yay!" Rainbow cheered and leaped into the air.

Daring quickly threw up a hoof. "But, only on one condition: You do as I say. I'm in charge and what I say goes. Is that going to be a problem?"

“Understood,” Rainbow nodded. “You’re the expert.”

Hours passed by uneventfully for the two pegasi and Rainbow’s friends hadn’t caught up to her yet.

At last, as night came and Luna's moon rose high into the sky, they came upon a small camp set up by Caballeron and his henchponies. "As I figured," Daring whispered. "It's a long way to the market, so, Caballeron and his stallions decided to stop for dinner." Daring then started to dig.

"Great, time for an ambush!" Rainbow declared as she put her hooves together. "I'm itching for action! Just say the word and I'll pounce!"

“No,” Daring said. “We’re playing this safe. We're doing things my way, remember?"

“Oh, right,” Rainbow said with a sweatdrop. “Sorry.” She saw Daring pick up some leaves from the ground, folding them into a beard before she put on her A.K. Yearling hat and a headband, pulling it down so her face was concealed. She then cautiously approached Dr. Caballeron and she disguised her voice.

“Excuse me,” she said in a gravelly voice. “I have been led to believe that you have in your possession an item of significant importance that might be for sale.” She placed a sack full of gold bits in front of her.

“Ah, well,” Dr. Caballeron said. “I did have another buyer lined up, but, he is not here, so, it sounds like we have a deal.” Before he could give Daring the ring, however, a monstrous roar was heard. Who should emerge but Ahuizotl himself?

“Caballeron~!” he exclaimed. "How dare you try to double cross me!"

Caballeron immediately tried to explain.

“W-well, you see,” Caballeron stammered. “You were not here and this customer happened by and-”

"Spare me the lies, Caballeron! You are too easily tricked!" Ahuizotl growled again. "Leave my sight at once, I won't let you mess this up for me!" Caballeron and his henchponies reluctantly obeyed and Ahuizotl saw through Daring Do's disguise in an instant. "So, we meet again, Daring Do."

“The pleasure is not likewise,” Daring snarked.

“Out of all the creatures I’ve lured to their deaths,” Ahuizotl said. “You are among the very few to escape every time. Naturally, I find this most irksome.”

“That’s too bad,” Daring said. “Because I’ll never end up dead because of you.”

“I’m so irked that I find it to not be worth the effort it expends trying to get you to die,” Ahuizotl said. “So, if you give me the ring, I will let you leave with your life.”

“You know I love you,” Daring said sarcastically. “But, you’ve got to propose before I get a ring involved with you.”

Ahuizotl snickered as he said with a grin, "Interesting, Daring Do. Because my little friends here have a proposal of their own." He snapped his paw-like tail and several cats surrounded him, all hissing and growling. "Get her! But, bring the ring to me!" he instructed.

The cats approached her menacingly. Rainbow watched from afar. It worried her to see Daring Do in trouble. She knew Daring Do got out of tough situations like that on a daily basis, but, before that day, she thought Daring Do was fictional. Knowing she was real made her more worried.

“Come on, Daring,” Rainbow whispered. “You got this… I hope.” She then noticed Daring’s pith helmet. “Hey, Daring, I got your pith helmet! Need me to toss it to you?!” However, her voice was louder than she intended.

“Well, what have we here?” Ahuizotl asked before grabbing Rainbow without warning. “A sidekick, perhaps, Miss Do? You must be growing soft in the head to put another foolish pony’s life in danger.”

“Let me go, you coward!” Rainbow shouted, getting Daring’s attention.

“What are you doing?!” Daring shouted, clearly annoyed, but, mostly horrified. “Let her go, Ahuizotl! It's me you want!"

"Ah, clearly you value this mare a lot. She must be important to you," Ahuizotl grinned. "I'll let her go, if you agree to give up the fight and turn the ring over to me!"

Daring sighed. “Fine,” she said. “But, take me instead and let her go.”

"Don't do it, Daring! You've got this! Show this clown who's boss!" Rainbow demanded of Daring.

“I am showing the clown who’s boss,” Daring said. “I’m showing that same clown why she should have listened to me.” She dropped the ring and stopped fighting.

Ahuizotl smiled. "Excellent! See what happens when you stop trying to fight me, Daring Do? We could've saved all this trouble, but, you had to play the hero. Oh well." He dropped Rainbow Dash and moved to quickly tie up Daring, dangling her in a rug with his tail paw.

A horrified Rainbow could only watch as Ahuizotl carried his prisoner away. "Daring! Don't panic, I'll... I'll come and rescue you!" she insisted even though the tone of her voice betrayed her intentions.

Daring simply called back, "Don't even bother, kid. Ahuizotl's won. Forget about me, save yourself since that's all you care about!" And soon, she and Ahuizotl were out of sight.

Daring’s words rang in Rainbow’s ears and tears welled in her eyes. Her voice cracked as she asked herself, “What have I done?”

It was morning when the others finally caught up with her.

“What the actual hell, Rainbow?!” Sunset said. It was clear that her patience had been spent, though, she made sure to cover Spike’s ear fronds so he couldn’t hear her swearing.************ “Going off half-cocked like that?!”

“You were right,” Rainbow weakly said, her voice still raspy. "I thought maybe I could show Daring Do how awesome it was to have a partner, how cool it can be to have others backing you up. But, I failed. Now, thanks to me, Daring Do has been captured by the evil Ahuizotl."

Sunset’s hard expression changed to a more sympathetic one after hearing the sadness in Rainbow’s voice. She placed the Element of Empathy on her head and placed a hoof on Rainbow’s shoulder, allowing her to see what happened before they all arrived.

“What happened before was an honest mistake,” Sunset said. “There were a lot of henchponies and one of Daring Do.”

“Whatever,” Rainbow said dismissively. “Let’s just go home and forget we ever came here.”

“We can’t do that!” Applejack said. “It looks like she needs our help now more’n ever!”

“My ‘attempts’ to help,” Rainbow said sadly. “Are the reason why she’s in trouble in the first place! Twilight was right. I should have stayed out of this. Daring Do was right, too. All I cared about was myself.”

“There’s more to this than meets the eye,” Twilight said before Sunset briefly stifled a snicker.

“Sunset,” Spike said. “There’s nothing funny about this.”

“I know,” Sunset said. “It’s just that her choice of words kind of gave me the impression she learned about Transformers.”

“We’ll have to discuss that another time,” Twilight said. “Even though Daring Do may not want anybody’s help, she might still need it anyway.”

“No,” Rainbow said. “She’s way better off without me.”

“That doesn’t sound like the Rainbow Dash that we love and care about,” Rarity said.

“Yeah,” Pinkie said. “Normally, you would help anybody at the drop of a hat! Or pith helmet, in this case.”

“I got hit with a reality check that I have no business being here,” Rainbow said.

“Okay, Rainbow,” Sunset said. “I didn’t want to do this, but, it looks like I’ll have to take a page from Roxy’s book. Stance up!” She changed into her humanoid form and delivered a strong sucker punch to the side of Rainbow’s face.*************

“Ow!” Rainbow interjected. “What was that for?!”

“Whenever I was wallowing in regret whenever I made a mistake or comparing myself to somebody else,” Sunset said. “Roxy would give me a punch to the face to remind me that doing those things isn’t helping anybody.”

Rainbow rubbed her face. “Boy, you clocked me good.”

“Daring Do thinks you’re just in this for your own gratification,” Sunset said. “This is your chance to redeem yourself in her eyes and prove her wrong.”

“Sunset’s right,” Twilight said. “You’ve put Daring Do so high up on a pedestal that you don’t even see your own self-worth anymore. She’s in that fortress and we’re here, and we wouldn’t be who we are if we didn’t go in after her. And neither would you. So are you with us?”

Rainbow took a second to digest the compelling words. She knew that Twilight and Sunset were right. So, with a newfound confidence, she stood up, wiping her tear-stained cheeks dry.

“Let’s do this,” Rainbow said. “And this time, we’re having a plan. Sunset, what do you have?”

Sunset asked the others to join her in a huddle and Sunset whispered her plan to them. Rainbow would scout ahead to study the situation and report back, then, all of them would enter the temple and while Rainbow helped Daring directly, the rest of them would act as decoys to keep the villains busy.**************

A short time later, Daring Do was bound to shackles. Below her was a pool of water filled with piranhas. Despite her situation, she insisted on being defiant.

“Surrender now, Ahuizotl!” Daring exclaimed. “Or I’ll be forced to take you down!”

Ahuizotl just laughed. “You are so cute that you think you are a threat in your situation. Now, if you will excuse me, I must not be late for my ring-placing ceremony!” He pulled a lever, causing more water to flow.

Daring knew that if the water rose too high, she could drown even with her pegasus lung capacity and more likely, be eaten by piranhas. So, she struggled to break herself free of the bonds. The shackles she was trapped in were connected to loose stone tiles. She manages to pull them out one by one. With one last effort, she managed to get the last tile out so that she’s freed. Before she plummeted into the water, Rainbow swept in and caught her.

“Gotcha!” Rainbow said. She struggled a bit from the weight of the stone tiles. With Daring adding her own wingpower, they made it to a ledge above the water. Once they were safe, Daring stomped and the stone tiles were shattered.

“I was in the middle of freeing myself,” Daring said. “But, thanks… for the assist.”

“You may also need this,” Rainbow said, giving Daring her pith helmet. Daring gratefully took it and placed it on her head.

“You may remember me saying that I work alone, don’t you?” Daring said.

“I do,” Rainbow said. “But, you’ll be lucky that I don’t work alone. Maybe sometimes it's better to do things on your own, but, other times you've got to be able to trust others to help you out. And this looks like one of them.”

Daring listened to Rainbow. She couldn’t explain it, but, she sensed something special in Rainbow. Maybe she isn’t as selfish as I thought she was. “I hope you have a good distraction for Ahuizotl.”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Rainbow said. “My friends have that covered.”

In a different fortress room, Ahuizotl and tribal stallions were performing the ring-placing ritual. Approaching the entrance were Rainbow’s friends. Sunset was holding the shield she showed the others before the journey began in one hand and one of Phoebe’s tail feathers in the other (the feather was held like a writing quill).

“Okay, now!” Sunset said.

“Drop the ring, Axel-” Applejack called, but, she fumbled trying to pronounce Ahuizotl’s name. “Whatever yer name is!”

“Ahuizotl,” Sunset enunciated.

“What she said,” Applejack said.

“Place the ring quickly!” Ahuizotl exclaimed.

Sunset dragged the quill across the air, leaving a trail of lines made of fire in its wake. These lines took the shape of archery arrows, which flew at the ground to create a smokescreen.*************** The tribal ponies covered their muzzles from the smoke while Pinkie managed to take one of the rings off of the ornamental stone pillar. After using it as a hula hoop, she tossed it to Applejack and jumped off before Ahuizotl could grab her.

“Stop them!” Ahulizotl ordered.

Sunset used her shield to block attacks from the tribal ponies’ spears. During the ruckus, Rainbow and Daring made their way in and made their way to the pillar.

“Help me get these rings off,” Daring said to Rainbow. Rainbow nodded. The two pegasi worked together to get the rings off, each one heavier than the last. “If we can remove the giant ring at the bottom, the whole fortress will collapse!”

“Was that your plan the whole time?” Rainbow asked.

“Yeah,” Daring admitted. “I had to find a way to get inside the fortress. I didn’t count on these rings being so heavy, though.”

Rainbow and Daring continued to work together. Though the largest ring was the heaviest, they knew they couldn’t stop no matter what.

Sunset spotted some of the tribal ponies approaching them with spears and quickly intercepted them. “Not today!” she said. However, her display of courage was cut short as one of the tribal ponies ran a spear through her heart. “Uh, oh…” In seconds, Sunset burst into flames and became a pile of ashes on the floor. Ahuizotl saw this and became rather amused.

“Looks like the fire elemental pony wasn’t so hot after all,” he laughed.

Suddenly, Sunset’s head emerged from the pile of ashes. “I heard that remark, Ahuizotl,” she said. “I’ll have you know I’m just getting started!”****************

“You could say she’s getting warmed up!” Pinkie called.

Ahuizotl was utterly baffled by the sight of Sunset climbing out of her ashes, as were the tribal ponies.

“This…” he said. “This is impossible! You couldn’t have survived that! You’d have to be a…”

Sunset spread her phoenix-like wings, which shone like lapping flames.

“A phoenix alicorn?” she asked.

Ahuizotl growled with frustration as Rainbow and Daring managed to get the last ring off of the pillar. Before they could get it to the top, the temple began to tremble.

“Everybody out!” Rainbow called. “This place is going down!”

“Everybody?” Daring asked.

“Don’t question it, just go!” Sunset shouted.

Rainbow and Daring, carrying the ring, flew out of an opening from the top of the fortress as it collapsed. Most of them managed to escape safely. Some had minor injuries from falling debris, but, would recover later on. Ahuizotl emerged from the rubble.

“Daring Do!” Ahuizotl called. “I will have my revenge!”

Later, Daring Do was looking over Sunset.

“A phoenix alicorn,” Daring said. “Never thought I’d actually see one.”

“This only recently happened,” Sunset said. “But, you’ll probably see more surprising things on your adventures. I don’t just mean a pony who helped you when you didn’t want it.”

Daring sighed. She knew that Sunset was right. So, she turned to Rainbow. “Thank you for all of your help,” Daring said humbly. “I couldn’t have done this without you or your friends. I’m sorry for being so hard on you before. So, I think I’ll include you in my next book. Though, I’ll change your names so the readers don’t start to ask you all questions.”

“Uh,” Sunset said. “Not to undermine your creativity, but, could you leave out any mention of me being a phoenix alicorn? There’s a certain pony out to get me and I don’t want to risk her finding out I’m a phoenix alicorn either by reading the book herself or learning it from one of her followers.”

“Sure thing,” Daring said. She then turned to Twilight. “And tell your mom I said thanks for not ratting me out.”

“I will,” Twilight said. “I’m guessing she had to be in the know so she wouldn’t get suspicious?”

Daring nodded with a wink. “Remember, this is top secret. You can’t tell anypony else.”

“We promise, Miss Do,” Fluttershy said. “Or, um, Miss Yearling.”

“Since we’re not in public,” Daring said. “You can use either name.”

“Something bugs me, though,” Sunset said. “Why do you basically write detailed accounts of your life and sell them to the public?”

“Well, I was born and raised in a wealthy, high-class family,” Daring said. “I found it too boring, so, I decided to use my family’s wealth to travel abroad under the alias of Daring Do. I didn’t always intend to be an author, only writing the stories in journals so I wouldn’t forget them. It wasn’t until about a decade ago when I met Twilight Velvet that she convinced me the stories were worth sharing. Unfortunately, my parents found out about my adventuring ways and didn’t really approve, so, they cut me off. While I do earn a good living by selling my stories, I found that it’s much more rewarding to share my stories.”*****************

“I trust you want us to keep this secret, too?” Spike said.

“Yes,” Daring said. “I’m trusting you with this information because you helped me out.”

“We’ll keep this secret,” Wallflower said truthfully.

“I better destroy this ring so it can never be abused again,” Daring said.

“Good idear,” Applejack said. “We all better get back home.”

When the group all returned to Ponyville the next day, Rainbow was ready to write her entry in the Friendship Journal.

“Rainbow,” Sunset said. “I think it’s best that for this entry, you leave out any mention of Daring Do and A.K. Yearling being one and the same. Just in case someone besides us reads the entry.”******************

“Don’t worry,” Rainbow said. “I know exactly what to write.” In the journal, she spoke aloud as she wrote. “Just had one of the coolest adventures with one of the coolest ponies. I came this close to blowing it because I got so wrapped up in how awesome she is that I nearly forgot about how awesome I am. But, thanks to my friends, I didn’t, because it gave me a chance to show her how important it is to put your trust in somebody else.”

Sunset reviewed the entry. “Very good, Rainbow,” she said.

“Uh, out of curiosity,” Rainbow said. “Do you think you could make one of those anthropomorpher things for me?”

“I plan on making one for each of you,” Sunset said. “Except for Spike. It’s nothing personal. It’s just that since he already walks on two legs anyway, there’d be no point.”

“Cool, thanks,” Rainbow smiled.

“Though, these things are tricky to make,” Sunset said. “It took me three weeks just to make one and the materials are a little hard to come by.”

“Fair enough,” Rainbow said.

Suddenly, Spike burped up a flame that materialized into a scroll.

“Huh?” Sunset said. “Was anybody expecting mail?”

Spike looked at the ribbon around the scroll. “It’s from grandma, mom.”

“I wasn’t expecting anything from my mom, but, thank you, Spike,” Twilight said as she politely took the scroll. She unraveled it and read it aloud. “Dear Twilight, I just got word from A.K. Yearling that the next Daring Do book will be on public bookstore shelves by the end of this month. She says that help she never expected got her inspired to finish it as soon as possible. Sincerely, Twilight Velvet.”

“Hey, that’s amazing,” Rainbow smiled.

One week before the month was through, Rainbow heard a knock at her door. She answered it to find a parcel pegasus.

“Package from A.K. Yearling,” he said.

“Thank you,” Rainbow said gratefully, giving the parcel pegasus a carrot as a tip for his efforts. After he left, she opened the package to reveal the new book: ‘Daring Do and the Rings of Scorchero.’ On the cover was Daring Do and a pegasus that resembled, but, was legally distinct from Rainbow herself. “Awesome!” As Rainbow read the book, she discovered the pseudonyms of herself and her friends. She was called ‘Firefly,’ Spike was named ‘Prickle,’ Applejack was called ‘Mint Julep,’ Fluttershy was called ‘Posey,’ Rarity was called ‘Sparkler,’ Pinkie was called ‘Rosy,’ Twilight was called ‘Starbeam,’ Sunset was called ‘Dusk,’ and Wallflower was called ‘Begonia.’ Phoebe was written as a falcon named ‘Flamewing.’ “Not bad,” she said to herself before she began reading.

End of chapter.

Author's Note

Here's the next chapter. Due to the main co-writer being unavailable until January 6th and the other co-writer being unlikely to be available at all, there won't be a new chapter in two weeks.

*Legit point.

**Another legit point.

***I defy you to guess this reference.

****This gives all of them a legit reason to go despite not being Daring Do fans.

*****Yet another legit reason for all to go.

******She was going to say damnedest, but, she stopped herself.

*******Let's face it, goblins would totally fit in in a fantasy world like Equestria.

********TATMR reference FTW.

*********Think Scott McNeil.

**********She's not wrong.

***********A clear demonstration of fairness.

************Sunset protecting Spike's innocence.

*************Be honest, Roxy would totally do that.

**************Tactical brilliance.

***************Personal headcanon.

****************Adaptational badassery FTW!

*****************Backstory by me.

******************FORESHADOWING!!!

If you liked this chapter, feel free to contact me via private messages if you'd like to help make future chapters.