Chapter 1:
The Quest Begins
Her hooves pounded against the ground rhythmically as she darted through the market. She veered left, then right, dodging oblivious stall owners who merely saw a flash of beige and green as she passed by.
“There she is! Over there!”
Daring glanced over her shoulder. Two large stallions had spotted her and were now charging towards her, knocking hapless ponies by the wayside and tipping over more than a few vegetable carts.
She smirked. Losing them would be a cinch.
As she reached a particularly clear stretch of street, she unfurled her wings and gave a powerful thrust, lifting herself into the air in one fluid motion, much to the surprise of the two ponies chasing her.
Flying ever higher, she shot a mirthful look back at her pursuers. With a tip of her hat, she said, “Sorry I had to cut and run, guys. Nothing personal.” They shouted something back at her, but she was already too far away to hear them.
She reached into her side pouch and produced a brilliant ruby rounded into the shape of a snake eating its own tail. Waving it tauntingly, she said, “Thanks for the gift though. I’ll be sure to take good care of it.” She placed it back into her pouch and secured it shut. With a quick salute, she took off. “I'll catch you guys later!”
Daring snickered to herself as she tore across the sky. Suckers. They should’ve known that two earth ponies, no matter how big they were, would never be able to catch her. She gave her wings a firm push. With these babies, she could outrun anyone and anything. She was practically home-fr—
Blackness consumed her as she suddenly crashed headlong into something big. The impact sent her reeling into a wall. She landed in a heap on the ground, shaking her head to clear the dizziness.
As her eyesight started to come back into focus, she saw a shadowy figure approach her. It bent down, rummaged through her side pouch, and removed the ruby snake.
Daring reached out and tried to stop the thief, but her limbs felt like they were filled with lead, and her vision was filled with impassable clouds.
The stranger’s voice reached her ears, muffled though it was, and she squinted, trying to focus on the thief.
“Ah, Ouroboros,” it said, the ‘s’ drawn out into a long hiss. “I thank you for retrieving it for me, Ms. Do. I would’ve been hard-pressed to find it myself.”
Daring felt her world closing in around her as her vision blackened. She tried to fight against it, but to no avail. The last thing she saw was the figure turning its back on her and disappearing into the fog.
“Until next time, Ms. Do,” it said, its voice trailing off into nothingness.
Bright lights flooded her vision without warning as she heard someone enter the room.
“Daring? Have you fallen asleep at your desk again?”
With lightning fast reflexes, Daring woke from her stupor at the intruder’s voice and proceeded to tumble out of her chair in the most heroic fashion possible. Landing face first in a pile of balled-up paper, she let out a low groan.
Mumbling something about not being startled, Daring spit a wad of paper out before pulling herself to her hooves. “Who’s there? Thieves? Are you here to rob me?”
Muffled sniggering, followed by quick cough to cover up, announced the intruder’s presence.
Even in the dim light, Daring recognized him immediately.
He was a slightly pudgy stallion of somewhat short stature. His beady little eyes, partially obscured by his fat cheeks, beamed warmly at her. Short legs, stuffed into a disheveled dinner jacket, poked out from beneath his sizable belly, looking rather uncomfortable. He wore a squat, black, bowler hat with a hole near the front where his horn poked out. Perched precariously upon the bridge of his snout were a pair of round glasses that seemed to ready to fall at any moment.
“Oh, it’s just you, Boxley. So you are here to rob me... lovely.” Daring let out a sigh then bent down and began gathering up all the scraps of paper and tossing them into a nearby bin.
The old stallion scoffed. “Rob you, my dear? When have I ever robbed you?”
Alley-ooping a ball over her back and into the bin, she said, “Only every time you show up in the middle of the night like this.” She glanced over her shoulder at him, shooting him a questioning look. “How do you even get in here?”
His horn flashed with white light, removing his hat and placing it on the rack beside him. “I hardly see how that’s relevant, Ms. Do.”
“No, I guess it isn’t.” She turned around as she tossed the last ball of paper into the trash. Giving her wings a stretch, she let out a long, drawn out, yawn. “So, what is it this time, Mr. Boxley? Another priceless gem hidden in a jungle temple, or more lost scrolls lying in the middle of the Saddle-Arabian desert?” She took a step forward. “Look, I love adventuring as much as the next girl, well”—she let out a chuckle—“probably more than the next girl, but I need something to make it worth my while, sir.”
She walked over to the bookshelf lining her wall and pulled a heavy, leather-bound, book off, blowing away the dust. She showed him the cover. “Remember this?”
The leather had cracked with age, but the title was still mostly legible, sans its original gold filigree though. It read, Legend of the Sapphire Stone.
He started to answer, but Daring cut him off. “It took me months of searching to find that stone. Months! I mean, I can’t say that I didn’t enjoy it”—she shrugged—“but I would’ve liked some compensation for my time, anything really. Heck, even just the exhibits being dedicated in my name would’ve been fine.” Daring gave a dismissive wave of her hoof. “Look, it’s not that I’m ungrateful. Really, I love what I do, but, y’know, I’ve got bills to pay and stuff. You think it’s cheap traveling all over the world searching for rare and mysterious artifacts? The train tickets alone have nearly bankrupted me.” She replaced the book on the shelf and turned back to Boxley. "I'm not greedy, but I'm not rich either. I can't keep doing this without getting paid."
Mr. Boxley let her finish before calmly walking over to a small end table and pouring himself a drink from a small hip flask he kept in his jacket. He sat down in a large velvet chair and took a sip from his glass.
“Now, Ms. Do, you must understand. I may deal in 'rare and mysterious', as you put it, artifacts, but it is not for profit. I am not some two-bit black market trader who sells his wares to the highest bidder behind the local train stop every night.” He took another drink. “These artifacts should be available for everypony to see, not just the likes of you and I.”
“Yeah, I mean, I get that and all, but—”
“So, some sacrifices must be made.” He set his glass down and motioned for Daring to sit in the chair opposite him. “My dear, look, I know what I’m asking of you is more than any should ask, but ask it I must,” he said as she sat down. His eyes narrowed, now barely visible beneath the rolls of his cheeks. “Know that I would not ask you to do this if it weren't absolutely necessary." He paused for dramatic effect, then took a deep breath. "I’ve come here tonight to ask you to hunt down... the Crystal Chalice.”
Daring’s eyes widened. “Whoa, whoa, whoa.” She held up a hoof and put another to her forehead. “Look, sir, send me to find ancient Saddle-Arabian jewels, and I’m your mare. Want me to find the Tome of the Undying in the jungles of Zebrica? Sure, I can do that too.” She splayed her forehooves out in an apologetic shrug. “But, ask me to find the Crystal Chalice, the cup that Sombra himself drank from, and that’s asking too much. I mean, even I have my limits.”
Mr. Boxley cocked his head to the side. “I’m sorry, my dear. I was under the impression that you were the best of the best.”
Daring nodded quickly. “Well, sure, yeah.”
“A treasure hunter without equal?”
“That’s what ‘best’ means.”
“Without peer?”
Daring sighed. “Yes, yes, I’m the best and all that, but still...”
“Still?”
She leaned back into her seat, letting her body go limp. “This is the Crystal Chalice we’re talking about here. This ain’t your mother’s coffee mug. This thing is an honest-to-goodness legend, a bona fide fairy tale. We don’t even know if it exists, let alone where to find it.”
Mr. Boxley’s lips curled into a chubby smile. He leaned forward, placing his right hoof on Daring’s lap, patting it. “Ah, but that is where you are wrong, my dear.”
The train rocked back and forth melodically, churning out massive steam clouds as it sped along the track. And in a window, near the rear of the train, Daring Do sat pouring over an ancient piece of parchment, a frown on her face and a furrow in her brow.
Ancient Equestrian symbols danced an incomprehensible waltz in front of Daring. She watched each word flow into the next, completely ignorant of what they were trying to tell her. She stared harder at the yellowed paper, hoping that simply by willing it to surrender its secrets, it would acquiesce. Unfortunately, she had no such luck.
Grumbling something under her breath, she folded the paper up carefully and placed it into the chest pocket of her vest. She took her lucky pith helmet, newly repaired from her last adventure, off and placed it in the empty seat beside her, glancing at the person occupying the other side of their coach.
He looked up, noticing her looking at him. He was scrawny little unicorn without much in the way of muscle, and, from what she could tell, he was fresh out of a college. Exactly what she needed for this trip, babysitting duty. But, as Boxley had told her, he was the only chance she had of deciphering those symbols, so, she supposed, perhaps he wouldn’t be entirely useless.
“Now then, Ms. Do, as I’ve told you, the Royal Canterlot University’s archeology department will be sponsoring this little expedition, and as such, they expect to know that their investment pays off. So, in order to do that, they’ll be sending an escort along with you to keep an eye on you, and other such nonsense. Personally, I find the whole thing rather silly, seeing as you’ve more than proven yourself capable of such undertakings, but, alas, you know how these college-types can be.”
Yes, she did know how they can be. They were a pain in her flank.
"But, should you return with the Chalice in your possession, then the Archaeological Society has offered to donate a large sum of money to the museum, and, in addition, promised to pay you quite handsomely for your trouble. You and I both know that this should be no problem for you, but the board of directors seems to disagree. Just take care of the lad and bring him back safely. Most of all, be careful, don't take unnecessary risks, and everything will work out swimmingly."
Right, unnecessary risks, she would never do that.
“Umm, excuse me, Ms. Do?” he said timidly, pushing up his glasses as they threatened to slide off his snout. “I was hoping we could talk about this whole, uhh... thing that we’re doing. I’ve never really, y’know, done this sort of ‘adventurey’ stuff before.”
Sweet goddess of the Sun, have mercy and kill me now, she thought. Daring stretched out her wings, more showing them off than anything, before answering. “Look, kid...” She wondered how best to break the news to him that there was no way in hell she was letting him follow her around, regardless of what anybody might have to say about that. “All right, I know you’re just doin’ what you’re told, but I hate to tell ya, you ain’t comin’ with me, not a chance.”
It was like she had punched him in the gut. “Ms. Do?” His face contorted in confusion, and his eyes sagged. “I—I’m sorry,” he apologized. “Was it something I said?”
He looked so hurt, Daring almost felt sorry for him. “Hey, hey, no, it’s not that,” she said, patting him awkwardly on the shoulder. “It’s just, I like to work alone is all. I haven’t needed a partner so far, and certainly don’t need one now.”
He looked crestfallen. “Oh, I see...”
Daring bit her lip. She pulled out the parchment quickly and unfolded it in front of him. “Well, I mean, it’s not like you can’t help at all,” she said hurriedly, sure that he was going to break down and cry at any moment. “Look.” She ran a hoof over the symbols. “I can’t read any of this. Gimme a scroll written in Griffon script, or a tome marked with Dragon fire, and I’ll translate it for you like that"—she snapped—" But, ancient Equestrian on the other hand... well, not so much. Heh, guess I must've skipped that day of anthropology.”
He smiled, then his eyes glazed over as he examined the writing. For a few moments, he read in silence. His brow furrowed, his eyes narrowed, and after some time, he looked up, shaking his head.
“I don’t know,” he confessed. “This is some kind of weird offshoot of Ancient Equestria, like a sub-language or something.” He scratched his head as he peered at the paper again. “A lot of the words are similar, but a lot of it doesn’t make sense the way it’s translated. Like, take this for example,” he said, pointing at a symbol that looked like a pair of intertwined hearts. “This literally translates as ‘friendship’, but it doesn’t fit with what’s around it.” He mumbled something about 'friendship's shadow', but Daring didn't hear him.
She eyed him suspiciously. “What do you mean, it doesn’t ‘fit’?”
“Well, it, uhh,” he struggled to find the right words. “It just doesn’t make sense in the context of the sentence. I think it may actually have a different meaning, but I don’t know what that would be.”
“Hmm,” Daring hummed, scratching her chin. “Do you think you might be able to figure it out if you had enough time?”
He nodded tentatively. “Sure, I guess.”
Daring smiled. “Good! Well then, it’s a long way to the Crystal Empire, so you’ll have plenty of time to work on it. Once we get there, you and I’ll be going separate ways.”
“But—”
“But nothing.” Daring cut him off with a wave of her hoof. “I don’t have time to babysit you while I search for a legendary cup that may not even exist, despite what Boxley says. So, when we arrive at the Crystal Empire you can go on your merry way and explore the city, or whatever. It doesn’t matter to me, so long as you don’t tell my sponsors.”
“And what if I decide to tell them that you left me behind when you were explicitly told not to?”
“If that’s what you want to do, then by all means, you’re free to do it. Although,” she said, giving him a sly grin, “you’ll have a hard time getting back to Canterlot once this train leaves the Crystal Empire.”
His eyes narrowed. “Why is that?”
Her grin widened to a toothy smile. “Let’s just say that the Friendship Express doesn’t exactly make many trips to the Crystal Empire this time of year. We were lucky to be able to catch this one when we did.” She smirked. “It’s a long, cold walk back to Canterlot. I hope you brought your scarf.”
He slumped into his seat, defeated. “Fine, but they’ll hear about this when we get back.”
“No, they won’t,” Daring replied confidently. She grabbed her pith helmet and placed atop her head as she layed down on the bench. She pulled it down to cover her eyes, saying, “Because I’ll tell them something different. And who do you think they’ll believe? The mare who brought them their treasure, the mare they entrusted to find said treasure, or some kid fresh outta college?” She laughed derisively. “Heh, it’ll be a cold day in hell when you can outfox me, kid.”
He fell silent, his eyes cast downwards. “All right, fine, you win, Ms.D—”
He was cut off as an explosion rocked the train, sending Daring careening off the bench and into his lap. Her helmet, flung from her head, rattled to the ground as the sounds of screaming filled the air.
Still dazed, Daring shook her head to clear her mind. “What was that?” she asked groggily.
He was about to answer that he had no idea what had happened when the door flung open, revealing a pair of burly griffons in stark gray military attire, each holding what appeared to be mechanical crossbows. Before Daring could even get one word out, a third griffon entered.
She was tall, thin, and sleek. Every bit of her body accented those features, from her razor-sharp beak, to her hawk-like eyes, all the way down to the way her talons curved menacingly beneath her officer’s uniform.
Her breast was adorned with a litany of medals and accolades, each one polished to a fine sheen, and she carried a whip at her side, dragon-leather from the looks of it.
Seeing Daring in the position she was in, the griffon let out a throaty laugh. “Pardon me,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Am I... interrupting?”
Daring looked up and saw the griffon leader’s piercing glare, her feathers all preened to perfection and wicked grin across her face. She sighed, slumping back into the kid's lap.
“Crap...”
