It Begins: Daring Do's Prologue

Daring awoke to the sound of shuffling beside her. The human was struggling against something. The mare looked down to see ropes had been tied around them both. Rather tightly too, if I might add.

Daring began to shuffle around. She too tried against the ropes, but to no avail. They would not budge. A few moments of struggling later and both she and the human hung their heads down low.

“I knew this was a bad idea from the beginning”, he said to nopony in particular.

Daring absorbed what he said and thought for a moment. 'Thinking like that will get us both killed.... I know!', she finished her thought as she looked to the man sitting beside her.

“Don't be like that! We still have a chance of escaping”, she began with a fierce determination in her voice, “You just have to be patient. Things will turn out.”

The man looked up to see Daring Do looking right at him with a fiery stare, but she expression quickly dropped as another human came behind him and placed a knife to his throat.

“Yeah... patience”, he managed to choke out.

'Oh no! W-what do I do!', she thought to herself. 'Uhh...'

“Leave him alone!”, she shouted. The human smiled and Daring tilted her head slightly before gasping at the sensation of a knife being pressed up to her neck. 'Uh oh', was all she could think of.

/BANG/

Daring Do sighed over her large mug of apple cider. It was late evening and the bar was beginning to become quite the busy place. Daring sighed once more and took a large gulp of the warm liquid. She let the contents slowly pass over her tongue as she absorbed the taste before swallowing. She then roughly placed the mug on the counter before speaking, “Give me another round”, she said to nopony in particular.

“I think you've had enough miss”, the bartender said with a raised brow. Daring just shook her head. Perhaps she has had enough for tonight.

She looked up to face the bartender and smiled, “Thanks. I didn't know when I'd stop”, she said with half lidded eyes, “Uhh...”

The bartender rolled his eyes and gestured to the door. “You know you gotta pay me back someday”, he began, “And I hope it's soon.”

Daring Do nodded, got out from the seat, and exited the bar.

It was dark now. Daring looked up to see the moon rising overhead. She could always rely on the light of moon at night to guide her. She smiled, but it quickly dissipated as she began walking down the empty street.

“-ou. If I ever get my hands on a golden apple, I would buy me-self a house!”, came a voice from the window above her. Apple? No, wait. Golden apple? Daring Do stopped in her tracks and listened intently. It wasn't her first time hearing the myth of the golden apple tree, but she had always been curious as to it's existence.

“I know whure it is”, came the voice again. Whoever it was, they sounded quite drunk. “I'm telling you! It's in Saddle Arabia! I saw eet with mah own two eyes!”

Saddle Arabia. Daring Do had been there many times, but had never heard any of the local ponies speaking about it. She began to ponder whether she should continue to listen, but another voice chimed in. This one feminine and having a professional quality to it.

“Saddle Arabia. I was there just last year. None of the locals spoke of such a thing.”, the mare spoke. Daring could hear her walking around. “You claim to have seen it, but where is the evidence? Why do I not see a golden apple in your hooves?”, she said, sounding angry.

“Uhh... well, you see...”, he began, “I couldn't get close to it. There were many traps and I'm not... I'm... I'm not skilled enough to hip hop through all them.”

There was a sudden flash of light from the window. It startled Daring and she fell back onto her flank, but she continued to listen intently.

“It would appear you are telling the truth. My spell sees no lies coming from you. Very well, I will be off. Thank you for your time.”, she said as another flash of light illuminated the small window which was followed by silence.

Daring Do felt herself smiling wide. The Golden Apple Tree was real! Without realizing, she was already at her apartment doorstep and opening the door. 'I have to make preparations for Saddle Arabia', she excitedly thought to herself as she entered the house and shut the door behind her with a kick of her hind leg. 'Preparations... right! I'll be needing to pack medium light for this venture', she thought as she began to frantically gather supplies. She continued with her thoughts, 'Golden Apple Tree! I can only imagine how the fruit itself must taste. Ohmygosh!', she ended the thought with a small squee in her bathroom mirror. She no longer felt the hazing effects of the cider. It was replaced with vigor and purpose. Daring Do hadn't had any luck finding any information for a new crusade out into the unknown. Money had been falling short as it usually does for treasure hunters. She was desperate for any sort of adventure that would wield a great deal of money. Daring Do wasn't in the adventuring business for fame or glory. Like any tomb raider before her, Daring Do was in it for the excitement, rush, and eventually money. She now had her chance. The Golden Apple Tree planted firmly in her mind, Daring left the bathroom and began to pack for the long trip ahead of her. She knew it would be dangerous and that she wasn't the only one pursuing this legendary tree of golden fruit and she was prepared to fight for it, if necessary.

Daring awoke to the sounds of birds chirping. Sunlight poured in through her living room window. She yawned, stood, and began her daily stretches. Today was the day she would be leaving for Saddle Arabia. To say she was excited would be an understatement. Daring gave her saddle bags a once over before sliding them onto her back, then carefully moving her wings through the holes on both sides.

Daring Do was ready and nothing was going to stop her from getting that tree.