> Daring Do and the Shadow of Grogar > by flutterfan2501 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > The Call > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- It was a normal day for A.K. Yearling, who was sitting in her cottage, working on her next story. So far, she had come across writer’s cramp, having a hard time coming up with the next story in her series of Daring Do books. After her last publication, she had a hard time thinking of inspirations. “Man, coming up with stories really takes it out of a mare…” she muttered as she took a swig of apple cider, and looked at her storyboard. So far, she had nothing, except another encounter with Ahuizotl. Then again, that character has been so overused, but her fans seem to enjoy Daring Do’s antics against the ancient beast with a hand for a tail, and wanted to plunge the world into his rule, along with his tribe. Then again, if they knew he existed, then they might have second thoughts. Yearling recounted the times that she had thwarted Ahuizotl many times as Daring Do herself. She especially remembered her last exploit with Rainbow Dash and her friends, saving the world yet again from Ahuizotl’s clutches. She sighed at the memory, wishing something just as adventurous and as thrilling would happen yet again. Just then, a letter appeared seemingly out of nowhere, snapping her out of her remembrance of bliss. She looked at it confused at first, having never received this kind of letter in the way that it has. She opened it and began to read the letter. As she read the letter, her eyes began to dilate, her mind racing for the possibilities of the authenticity of the letter. So far, it seemed real, that Ponyville needs help. “I…I can’t…” she said, lowering the letter, her ears bent back. Her mind started asking questions, and she planned on getting answers. Setting the letter onto her desk, she whipped her normal hat and cloak off, revealing her camo wear. Taking off her glasses and putting on an explorer’s cap onto her head finished the transformation. A.K. Yearling was no more. Now, she is Daring Do. Getting her whip and setting it on her suit, she ran out the door for Ponyville. So now, her house laid empty, with the letter being its only inhabitant. It laid open, as if waiting for someone to read. The letter read, “Dear A.K. Yearling, We are writing to you for an important matter concerning someone you are very familiar with. As you know, we defeated Ahuizotl at the Fortress of Talicon a while ago. Well, it seems that he is at it again from an anonymous source you will meet when you come to Ponyville. This is of the urgent matter. We know that you would be capable to undergo this task yet again, considering all the accomplishments that you have done in the past. We await your arrival. Sincerely yours, Princess Twilight Sparkle and the Elements of Harmony” /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ She flew straight into Ponyville, looking around for Twilight and her friends. One of the few things that she had seen suddenly was a giant castle jolting out of the ground, made purely of crystals. Daring looked up at the castle with an surprised look, her expert eyes letting her imagination come up with different explanations of what kind of castle it is, where it came from, and how it functions. She went up to the castle, and came across Rainbow Dash, waiting on a cloud for her. “Hey, Dash! Long time, no see, huh?” Hearing her name being called out, Rainbow Dash looked towards the source of the voice, and suddenly lightened up as she saw her hero. “Daring Do!” Rainbow Dash yelled as she flew down and hugged her idol. “Alright, easy there, tiger…” Daring said as she hugged Rainbow Dash back. “…Now, what’s the situation?” “Oh…That…”Rainbow Dash said as she released her hug. “I think it would be better if you came into the castle to understand…” Rainbow Dash then turned towards the castle, gestured for Daring Do to follow. Daring obliged Rainbow Dash, following her into the castle. As they went deeper into the castle, Daring Do looked at the design and look of the interior, which surprised her even more. Then they reached what looked a throne room. Daring Do looked around the room, and was taken aback by the design of the room. As she reached the center, she saw a purple alicorn sitting on one of the thrones, with an all too recognizable earth pony sitting in front of her. “Daring Do! It’s good that you could make it!” Twilight Sparkle said, as the earth pony turned around and looked at Daring Do. As Daring Do saw the earth ponies’ face, her face scrunched up in anger, and she instantly got into a fighting stance. “Caballeron!! Just what are you doing here?! To steal something from this castle?!” She yelled, showing her distaste of his presence. “It’s Dr. Caballeron, if you don’t mind, Ms. Do…” the earth pony said, as he slightly smirked at Daring Do’s actions. “Even though taking something of value from this castle might sound beneficial to me, I have no intentions to steal anything at the time being, especially from a princess. I have some standards…” Dr. Caballeron said, maneuvering so that he was facing both Daring Do and Twilight Sparkle. “You? Having standards? That’s a shocker…” Daring said in a sarcastic tone, not believing any word that came out of the stallion’s mouth. “I never thought that you had any…” “Funny…” Caballeron said, reading the sarcasm in Daring Do’s voice. “I could say the same about you…” “You little…” Daring Do started, anger towards him growing, until Twilight got between them both. “Dr. Caballeron, Daring Do, please, this is no time for fighting…” Twilight said, looking between the two with concerning eyes. “Let’s not argue when we greet each other…” “Of course…” Caballeron said, straitening his suit. “The real reason as to why I’m here…” he looked at Daring Do before continuing, “…is a matter concerning Ahuizotl.” “What a big surprise!” Daring Do sarcastically said, looking at Caballeron with a skeptical look. “When does it ever not concern him…?” She looked at Caballeron, waiting for him to make a snide comeback, but none came. Instead, he cleared his throat and continued. “I have reason to believe that he has become more ruthless than we have thought…” “How so…?” asked Daring Do, her skepticism rising more and more. “Ahuizotl has started the search for the Tomb of Grogar, and intends to use any artifacts he finds in there to take over Equestria.” After Caballeron said this, the room went silent. Daring Do and Twilight had their eyes dilated, ears bent back as they realize what Caballeron had said. “…The T-Tomb of…” Daring Do started, but was interrupted by Twilight, who finished the question with a fear filled voice. “…Grogar…?” “Yes, and from what I have seen from your reactions, you realize who Grogar is, do you not?” Caballeron asked, with a serious look within his voice and on his face. “W-who w-wouldn’t…?” Daring asked in a rhetorical question. “It’s been said that he’s the ancient leader of the Kingdom of Tambelon…” Twilight said, remembering a book she read on the history of ancient villains. “He was sent to the Shadow World five hundred years ago for ruling with an iron hoof, but then he escaped, then he captured almost all the unicorns to have them open an portal to the Shadow World, and have all the inhabitants of Equestria sent there, and it would have worked if it wasn’t for Princess Celestia and Luna.” “Exactly, and from what I know, when he was sent to the Shadow World, his followers made a tomb as a resting place for his rule, placing anything of power or value to their king in there, in the off chance that he returns. If Ahuizotl gets a hold of one of these items, especially if it has powerful magic to it…” Caballeron purposely trailed off to see if any of the two ponies in front of him can put the pieces together. “…Then that means Equestria is through!!” Daring Do realized, as her mind raced with many questions. Why would Ahuizotl do this, what would he get out of it, how is he going to do this? She couldn’t come up with any answers, so the thought of the most logical thing to do. “When is Ahuizotl going to search for the Tomb of Grogar…?” Daring Do asked, which surprised both Twilight and Caballeron. “Two days from now. Why do you ask?” Caballeron asked, looking at Daring Do with a confused look. “Well, it seems that I’m going to do what I’m always good at…thwarting Ahuizotl and saving the day, yet again…” Daring Do said, a slight smirk spreading across her lips. “So does that mean you’ll do it…?” asked Twilight, starting to get giddy at the thought of Daring Do going on another adventure. “Hey, if it involves Ahuizotl, then I’m all in! Besides, it’s good to go out and get the creative juices flowing…” Daring Do said, giving Twilight a wink. “I’ve had the worst case of writer’s cramp for a while now…” “Good…” Caballeron said, getting a map out of his suit pocket. “This is the area of which Ahuizotl will start searching for the tomb. His research had led him to this location, which has the highest probability of the tomb being there. You must get there before he does and secure it.” Caballeron handed the map over to Daring Do, to which she accepted it. “You know, apart from being a greedy stallion that used to work for Ahuizotl, I somehow knew that you’d be a good guy someday.” Daring Do complimented, to which Caballeron scoffed at her. “Oh, please, I’m not doing this for the sake of being good…I’m mainly doing this so Equestria isn’t destroyed.” Caballeron said, glaring at Daring Do with a look of what seemed to be mutual understanding. “Daring Do, I believe you should leave and get ready for the next two days.” Twilight said, to which Daring Do nodded, winked at Rainbow Dash, and flew out the window. “Do you think she’ll be ok?” Twilight asked to Caballeron, who simply answered her with an assuring tone. “I know Daring Do. She can handle this…” Rainbow Dash on the other hand, simply said this... “This…is going to be…SO AWESOME!” /)^3^(\ > The Usual Antics > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Daring Do sat patiently, waiting for Ahuizotl and his tribe to appear at the place of what was believed to be the Tomb of Grogar. Waiting patiently, her tail twitching in anticipation. “Alright, you Biological mistake…” she mumbled, staring the area down as if it was full of snakes, chimeras, and minotaurs, “…Time to show yourself…” she waited patiently, staring down at the area. It has already been two days, which meant that Ahuizotl would start his search today, at this exact same spot. Which did not take long. As she watched, ponies of Ahuizotl’s tribe started to walk into the clearing, securing that no one that was unneeded to their tribe’s leader’s plans was there. As they secured the area, the leader of the tribe himself appeared, followed by his ‘pets’, a tiger, a panther, a cheetah, a lynx, and a small, fluffy house cat, which he uses more as an actual pet than a bodyguard, like the other cats. “There you are…” said Daring Do as she watched the event unfold. The Tribe-ponies stood at attention, waiting for their leader’s orders. “Alright, listen up!” Ahuizotl shouted, getting everypony’s attention. “We have searched far and wide for this famed ‘Tomb of Grogar’!” he said, his tail wagging either which way, the hand on it clenched into a fist. “And I’ll be Windigo bait if we don’t find it here! This has gone on far enough! We have narrowed our search for the Tomb to this location!” Ahuizotl gestured with his hands to the area of which they were already in. “Now, we will search for the Tomb of Grogar, we will find it, and we will rule over Equestria!!” he yelled, to which he was awarded with applause from his followers. Daring Do, on the other hand, just rolled her eyes. “Great, I should’ve expected him to do this sort of thing…” she whispered to herself, as she snuck along the area, her wings keeping her afloat. She silently followed the map that Caballeron had given her, to give her some heading to where the Tomb lied. She thought of the many things that she could do with those artifacts, giving them to Princess Celestia for safe keeping, sending the less dangerous artifacts to the Museum of Equestrian History, and some other things, like keeping some of them as souvenirs of this adventure. Daring Do suddenly came across a giant door in a big dirt hill. “So, this must be the Tomb…” she said, looking the door up and down. So far, it seemed like it had no way of opening, except for it having a key hole. She looked at the key hole carefully. “Hmmm…from what it looks like, it seems ancient…” she said while examining it. She then looked around the clearing for any signs of how to open it. So far, there were none. She then suddenly heard rustling within the brush. Not wanting to be seen, she jumped into brush to her right. /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\ Walking through the brush of the dense jungle, Ahuizotl kept his eyes clear and open for anything unusual. His cats followed, looking around as well, keeping their well-trained eyes opened. Ahuizotl was also followed by one of his advisors, by the name of Izel. “Tell me, Izel, How long have we been searching for this Tomb…?” asked Ahuizotl, his tail twitching with anticipation as he looked around. “As far as I can remember, maybe for about a few months, now…why do you ask, master…?” Izel asked, confused at this sudden question. “This might seem like it could be the end of our search, but it seems like the goal is still so far away…” Ahuizotl explained, feeling what seemed to be butterflies in his stomach. “…Could it be, Lord Ahuizotl, that you fear the outcome of this journey…?” Izel asked, feeling concern for his leader. “It all depends on the outcome…” Ahuizotl stated, hoping that his advisor wasn’t going to say what he thought he was going to say. “Why, you being defeated by-” Izel started, but was interrupted by Ahuizotl’s tail hand covering his snout. “Do…not…say her name…” Ahuizotl growled at him, showing distaste at even the mere mention of his most hated enemy’s name. “Of course…forgive me, master…I keep forgetting to watch my tongue when it comes to her name…” Izel said, as he lightly removed Ahuizotl’s hand from his muzzle. “But apart from that fact, she might try to thwart you again…” “I know that…” Ahuizotl mumbled loudly, that even Izel was able to hear it. “But I have one thing that she doesn’t have…” exclaiming this, he placed his hand onto his chest. “And what might that be, Lord Ahuizotl…?” Izel asked, curious as to what his master implied. “Hold that thought…” Ahuizotl said as they reached a clearing. As they looked on, Izel noticed a large door within a big hill. “We’re here…” as he said this, Ahuizotl’s mouth stretched into a victorious grin. “What is this thing?” asked Izel as Ahuizotl walked over to the door. “The end of our quest…” said Ahuizotl, as he gave Izel a horn. “Signal the others, we got some tomb raiding to do…” he reached through his chest fur and produced a key on a string that seemed ancient. “Is that…?” Izel started, to which Ahuizotl answered with a grin. “Yes…the key to the tomb…” Ahuizotl stated, snapping the makeshift necklace off of his neck, walking towards the door. Just then, an loud crack was heard, followed by something suddenly hitting his hand, making him drop the key. “Agh! What in--?!” Ahuizotl exclaimed as he held his hand to comfort the pain. As it hit the ground, something, or someone, flew by him, grabbing the key, and fleeing to the trees. “Sorry, Ahuizotl, but you know how this story always goes!” a voice said, making Ahuizotl and Izel look up towards the voice. Standing on one of the branches, holding the key from the string, was none other than his most hated enemy. “Daring Do!!” Ahuizotl yelled, shaking his fist at her. Izel, on the other hand, started to blow the horn that was given to him by Ahuizotl. “Good luck trying to get that door open!” Daring Do said, winking at Ahuizotl before flying off. Growling, Ahuizotl turned to Izel. “Tell the tribesmen to keep this place secure!! I’ll go after the key!!” he yelled, which Izel approved, nodding his head. Ahuizotl then jumped into the trees, and with his front legs, began the trek to catch up with Daring Do. > The Chase > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Flying through the trees, chuckling to herself, Daring Do gloated to herself as to how she caught Ahuizotl off guard. “Ha! That look on his face when he saw me! Priceless!” she said, keeping a tight hold onto the key she snatched from him. “DARING DO!!” She looked behind her to see Ahuizotl actually coming after her, swinging through the trees with all three of his hands; his two front legs, as well as his hand on his tail. “GIVE BACK THAT KEY, YOU INSUFFERABLE EQUINE!!” “You’ve got to be kidding me…!” Daring Do said, giving out an exasperated sigh at Ahuizotl’s berserker state. “You’re coming after me? You usually give up at this point!” “I WILL NOT REST UNTIL WHATEVER’S IN THAT TOMB IS MINE!!” He yelled out at the top of his lungs, swinging after her, with rage in his eyes. “And that’s my cue to leave!” concern for her own wellbeing, she started to quicken her pace of flight. It helped for a bit, for it opened the gap between her and Ahuizotl. But that lasted only for a moment, for he started to catch up to her, his eyes showing unrelenting anger. “I WILL NOT LET YOU RUIN SO MANY MONTHS OF SEARCHING!! I WILL GO INTO THE TOMB OF GROGAR, AND I WILL RULE WITH WHAT I HAVE FOUND!!” Ahuizotl yelled after her, catching up to her, matching her pace. Daring Do realized that there might be no way to get away from him, but still stall for time. “You’re too slooow!” She yelled, looking behind her to look at Ahuizotl, who surprisingly had a smirk upon his mug. ‘Why is he…?’ she thought, just as a branch almost caught her head, causing her to duck late. “WHOAH!” she exclaimed, quickly looking in front of her. She saw that the tree branches got harder to maneuver through, and the branches also got a bit thicker. “Ah, geez!” she muttered, doing her best to maneuver through the branches. Surprisingly, Ahuizotl was keeping up with, and was actually catching up to her. Daring Do was actually worrying if whether or not she’ll get through this ordeal. “GETTING A BIT COCKY, AREN’T WE, MISS DO?!” she heard from behind her, but she didn’t dare steal a glance, lest her head be bashed against an branch, or her wing snags onto a branch, causing it to either sprain or break. She looked down to the ground, then back to the route she was already taking, thinking about what to do. “…oh, for the love of Celestia…!” she shouted out loud, as she descended to the ground and to continue her run. Ahuizotl saw this, and jumped down as well, landing on all four of his feet. Daring Do saw this, and started to run. “WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU’RE GOING, MISS DO?!” Ahuizotl yelled, chasing after her. Daring Do looked at her surroundings and saw nothing but the trunks of the trees around her. ‘This could be to my advantage.’ She thought, as she started to weave through the trees, making it hard for Ahuizotl to track her. “STOP MOVING!!” Ahuizotl yelled, feverishly trying to follow her through the trees, but failing miserably. Daring Do looked back at this, and chuckled at his attempts to follow her. “Better luck next time, Ahuizotl!” she said as she started off. Then as she spread her wings, a white ball of fluff attaches itself to her face and starts to claw at her face. Daring Do yelled out in pain as the claws of the creature made scratches on her snout and face. As she tried to get the small house cat off of her face, her wings flapped desperately and started to lift her up. She started to bash against different tree trunks, while she wrestled with the small feline. She then backed into a tree really hard, which made her whack her head against the trunk. She slunk to the jungle brush, unconscious from the blow she took from the tree. Ahuizotl walked up to the equine as the small feline detached itself from her face. “Good job, pet.” He said, petting the small pet. He then picked up the unconscious mare, taking the key from her hoof. “I’ll be taking that, Miss Do…and I think I’ll bring you along as well, so that you can see your defeat for the first time…” he suddenly heard an mew coming from underneath him. He looked to see his small house pet. Smiling, he picked up the cat, and settled her on his back, along with Daring Do. The cat nestled herself on the back of the mare that laid unconscious on her master’s back, and snoozed off. “Heh…this almost seems too adorable…ALMOST…” he said, starting his way back to the big doors. "This went into my favor in the end…it seems the gods are smiling on me today."