//------------------------------// // S4 E4: Daring Don't (What If?) (Bonus Chapter) // Story: My Little Pony Friendship is Magic What If?: Volume 9 // by SuperPinkBrony12 //------------------------------// Fluttershy was taking advantage of a beautiful, peaceful day to teach some baby birds how to fly. Since their parents had gone off to fetch food, the pegasus with a lovely yellow coat had volunteered to do it. She had set up a small chart explaining how flight was achieved and was now in the process of trying to coax the baby birds out of their nest. Unfortunately, Rainbow Dash decided that this was the perfect time to fly past. And she seemed to be even more excited than usual as she was heard exclaiming to herself! "Four more months, four more months, just four more months!" Then she turned to face Fluttershy. "I bet you're excited, huh? Tell me you're excited!" "Oh, my. I, uh, I could be excited. I don't really know. I wasn't really think—" Fluttershy commented in bewilderment, she was at a complete loss as to what her friend was talking about. Fortunately, she needn't have bothered. Rainbow was all too happy to fill Fluttershy in on her train of thought. "Come on, you gotta be excited! Everypony who's anypony is excited! It's something we look forward to all year round!" Fluttershy still didn't quite understand what was being discussed. "Oh, well, I guess maybe I'm a little kinda sort of excited. I think." Rainbow took that as a sign of confirmation. "Ha! See?! I thought so! I knew you'd be excited!" "Yeah," Fluttershy began, before realizing she still had no clue. "So, um, why am I excited, again?" Rainbow's light purple eyes lit up like stars in the night sky! "I'll tell you why! Because the next Daring Do book is coming out exactly four months from today! That's how exciting it is! So what amazing, incredible, awesome adventure do you think Daring Do will have in her next book, huh, Fluttershy?" The animal loving pegasus mare simply replied. "I don't know, I don't really follow exciting stuff like that. But I'm glad you're excited about it." The cyan coated speedster beamed. "Oh, just thinking about Daring Do's adventures has me all warm and tingly inside!" She began to imagine what kind of crazy, death defying adventures Daring Do might get into in the next book. And as such as she wasn't paying attention to anything else. "Will Daring Do 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 against such odds?" She paused briefly in her thinking. "Ooh, or will her next adventure bring her face to face with the vast and horrible Ahuizotl himself?! Her arch nemesis?!" Rainbow imagined Ahuizotl letting out a roar before she continued fantasizing about Daring Do. "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—" But Rainbow's thoughts were suddenly interrupted as Fluttershy shouted! "Look out!" Alas, Fluttershy's warning came too late for Rainbow Dash to hear, or to react to what her friend was trying to warn her about. The brash speedster crashed right into the bird's nest, as the baby birds circled around her while her head spun. Fluttershy commented with concern. "Oh, I'm not so sure she's gonna last another four months at this rate..." But she needn't have worried, Rainbow Dash wasn't going to have to wait that long for the next Daring Do book. An unexpected development was going to speed up the book's deadline in a way that even Rainbow would've never imagined. A few days later, Rainbow Dash was still thinking nonstop about the Daring Do books, and when the next one was scheduled to come out. She was in such an excited state that nothing else really mattered to her, even as she was dropping by the Golden Oak Library to chat with Twilight (the only other pony who shared her love of Daring Do). "Heya, Twilight! Aren't you excited that—" Rainbow began as she entered the library. To the pegasus' surprise she was greeted by the sound of Pinkie Pie blowing a party horn, and party music blaring from a record player. Not to mention the sight of all her friends gathered in the library and wearing party hats. Twilight smiled as she turned to greet Rainbow Dash. "Ah, Rainbow Dash, good. So glad you've finally made it! I was wondering when you'd show up." "Uh, what's everypony doing here? Did I miss something?" Rainbow questioned. "Nope," Pinkie Pie happily replied. "We're having a holiday party!" The brash pegasus questioned further. "And what holiday would today be, exactly?" Pinkie Pie stopped briefly and explained. "National Random Holiday Party Day! Woo-hoo! Come on, join the fun!" Rarity trotted over, a glass of punch held in her magic. "Don't worry, Rainbow Dash. I've never heard of it either, but the punch is simply divine." "Yeah," Pinkie declared. "You might even say the secret ingredient is," She whispered quite loudly into Rainbow's ear. "A secret!" Then she squeed with delight. The cyan coated mare was puzzled, she'd never heard anything about any of this before. "And why am I the last pony to find out about this? Did nopony think to invite me?" Applejack frowned as she trotted over. "It ain't like that, sugarcube. I came by your place to invite you personally, but it seems you were a speck too busy reading the last Daring Do book again, for the twelfth time." Rainbow blushed and quickly defended herself by saying. "Yeah, well that's because in only three months and twenty six more days, I'll be able to read the next one. I wanna be all caught up by then." But Twilight brought up some bad news. "Oh, haven't you heard, Rainbow Dash? The release of the next book got pushed back another two months. It was in all the papers." Upon hearing that, Rainbow spat out her punch in shock! "What?! Two more months?! Are you kidding me?! I've been waiting so long already! I don't think I can take another two months! I'll never make it!" Fluttershy spoke up. "I can personally vouch for that, I'm afraid." Rainbow flew closer to Twilight, hoping for more information. "Uh, did they give a reason?" Twilight shook her head. "The publisher just said author A.K. Yearling won't be able to finish the book for another two months. I actually found out first because my mom actually serves as Yearling's publisher. A.K. figured it takes a writer to know a writer. Plus, my mom's got lots of contacts in Canterlot, she knows all the best publishing companies." "I can't believe it, you knew something like that before I did!" Rainbow growled. "I'm the series' biggest fan!" The young alicorn scoffed at the suggestion. "I'm just as big a fan as you! In fact, I'm the one who first introduced you to the books, remember?" Rainbow blushed and nodded her head in realization, Twilight then went on speaking. "A.K. Yearling just might be my favorite author of all time. I know everything about her. Where she grew up, where she studied literature, where she wrote the first Daring Do book..." "Even where she lives?" The brash pegasus inquired. Twilight shook her head again. "Actually, no, but if I contact my mom I think she could provide a location. Why does that matter?" Rainbow stomped her hoof down as she explained her argument. "Don't you get it? The new book is obviously delayed because A.K. needs help dealing with whatever everyday nonsense is distracting her from spending her every living breathing second writing! So I– I mean, fans like me, can get to read the new book ASAP! Think about it! We could help her with her laundry, buy her groceries, cooking her meals, whatever! Now, who wouldn't appreciate that?" Twilight wasn't so convinced. "I don't know about that. I think what A.K. would want most is respect for her privacy." The brash speedster simply added. "She can always say no." "I... guess that's true," Twilight considered and sighed. "I suppose I'll write to my mom and see if she can give A.K.'s address. But no promises, A.K. tends to be a very reclusive author from what I hear." "If it's all the same to you, sugarcube, I think the rest of us will take a pass on that adventure," Applejack commented. "We ain't as big a fans of Daring Do as you and Rainbow Dash are." "Not to mention that some of us have rather important business projects to tend to, and we simply can't drop them for what may well be a wild goose chase." Rarity added. Fluttershy also added. "Besides, somepony will need to house sit for you while you're away, and make sure Spike behaves himself." "Yeah, gotta make sure he doesn't burn the house down or something." Pinkie Pie teased. From upstairs came the reply. "I set the curtains on fire one time!" Thanks to her mom, Twilight was indeed able to obtain the address of A.K. Yearling. It was for a rather worn down old shack in the middle of a dense forest where only the faintest rays of sunlight seeped through. "You see what I mean? Why would she live in this remote part of Equestria except to keep folks from intruding on her privacy?" Twilight commented as she and Rainbow Dash approached the location. As the two drew closer they could see that the shack appeared rather beaten up and tarnished, as if there had been an attack there not too long ago. "Wait! Oh no. What happened? Somepony really trashed the place!" "Or it could just be that A.K.'s a real slob," Rainbow commented as they trotted inside. "Maybe that's why she pushed the book back? So she could clean up? You'd be surprised how easy it is to forget to do basic household chores." Twilight shook her head. "This doesn't look natural, not at all. I think somepony else has already been here and made a mess of the place. What if something terrible happened to A.K. Yearling?!" Rainbow gasped in shock, putting her hooves to her face! "I know! There might be no more books!" When Twilight glared at her she quickly added. "Uh... But, of course, I'd be worried about her, too. Heh." Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice called out to the two ponies. "What are you doing here? What have you done to my house?" Both mares spun around to look, and they saw a mare with a light gold coat. They couldn't tell if she was a pegasus, unicorn, or an earth pony though, because she wore a reddish-purple robe that covered her body, a large gray hat with a light brown bow, and moderate rose eyes hidden behind a pair of thick, red glasses. Her mane seemed to be almost black. In short, she almost looked like Daring Do herself. "Uh... A... K-K... Yearling...?" Rainbow remarked as she morphed her face into a most unusual expression. "Yes, that's me," A.K. Yearling remarked. "But as you can clearly see I'm not in the mood for guests, go away!" Twilight quickly protested. "We didn't do this to your house if that's what you're thinking, A.K. We thought something awful might have happened to you." A.K. just grumbled. "Well I'm perfectly fine, thank you for caring. Now get out, and don't tell anypony about this!" Rainbow Dash retorted. "But we came all the way out here to find you, A.K. Yearling. I've just gotta say how much Twilight and I really love your books..." A nervous laugh escaped her lips. A.K. paid no attention, she was too busy inspecting a think, binded book that she had brought with her. She jammed her hoof into the horseshoe mark, undoing the binders and pulling out a golden ring as she breathed a sigh of relief. "It's safe, thank goodness." "Great!" Rainbow declared. "So you can put that... whatever it is away, and then maybe we could talk about helping you move your next Daring Do book along, Miss Yearling. Chop chop!" The author only grumbled. "Didn't you read the papers? I'm busy at the moment! I don't have time to be writing books!" "But A.K.-" Rainbow began to plead. A.K. grumbled. "I said leave me alone, both of you! I appreciate the concern, but my life is none of your business!" Twilight proceeded to pull Rainbow Dash outside with her magic as she told A.K. Yearling. "That's fine, we were just leaving anyway. Seems you've got everything under control." Once outside, Rainbow Dash immediately grumbled. "Twilight, why did you do that?! Can't you see A.K. needs help? Her place is a mess!" Twilight simply growled. "A.K. Yearling has made it pretty clear that she wants to be left alone. We need to respect her wishes! Don't you remember the Gabby Gums incident and how everypony in town made a big deal about it? If A.K. doesn't want to see anypony, that's her business and not ours. We can't just upend her life like that." However, Rainbow's attention was draw to the roof of the house. "Uh, maybe you oughta be telling it to those guys, Twilight?" She suggested. The alicorn spun around and nearly gasped when she saw a trio of stallions go inside through a window! "Oh no, those guys look nasty! What are they doing here?!" "I don't know, but we'd better warn A.K. before it's too late!" Rainbow vowed. Meanwhile, inside her worn down cottage, A.K. Yearling was looking at her reflection in a mirror. It also alerted her to the presence of three rather bulky stallions, all three of which looked rather unhappy. A.K. spun around to face them. "Can I help you with something, boys?" "You know what we're here for, Miss Yearling!" One of the stallions growled. "Hoof it over!" A.K. smirked. "Oh, so that's how it's gonna be, huh? Well okay. Just remember, you asked for this," She proceeded to remove her glasses and toss away both her hat and her robe. In the blink of an eye, she sported a pith helmet. And a few other features about her now stood out: Her mane and tail had several shades of dark and medium gray, she had wings, and her cutie mark was a compass rose. There was only one pony who fit all that criteria. Twilight and Rainbow Dash could hardly believe their eyes! "A.K. Yearling is Daring Do!" They said together, as Daring Do prepared for a fight. Daring backed away from the mirror, clutching the golden ring from earlier in her teeth as the stallions tried to corner her. Meanwhile, Twilight and Rainbow Dash could only watch with amazement. Any notion of joining in hadn't yet crossed their minds. "Wow! A.K. Yearling and Daring Do are one and the same! Who'd have guessed?!" Twilight commented with delight. " My mind is officially blown!" Rainbow simply ribbed Twilight with a hoof. "Aw, come on, Twilight! I knew it all along. It was so obvious." Twilight and Rainbow proceeded to watch with amazement as Daring Do fended off her attackers with the greatest of ease, even tossing the ring into her fireplace when they tried to snatch it away from her! She quickly pulled it out with a lasso and knocked over a liquid that cooled the ring back down, as if she'd done it all before. Eventually though, Daring seemed to slip and stumble, as if she'd misjudged her next move! Rainbow cried out in horror! "Daring Do!" The unexpected cry caught the adventurer by surprise, and that moment of confusion was all it took for the ring to be knocked out of her possession and into the waiting hooves of an earth pony stallion that had managed to slip in during the scuffle. The stallion had a brownish gray coat, a very dark gray mane and tail, grayish green eyes, and a cutie mark depicting a gold skull with a red jewel in its right eye. He wore a light brown jacket with a red and white polka doted tie, and had a noticeable five o'clock shadow around his muzzle. The stallion simply picked up the ring and twirled it around. "Many thanks, Daring Do," He declared with a smile. "As you've probably surmised, our earlier search for this treasure was... unsuccessful. So kind of you to find it for us." Daring grunted, trying to break free of the hold of the stallion's henchponies. "Give it back, Caballeron!" "That's Doctor Caballeron to you, Miss. Do!" Doctor Caballeron bitterly corrected. Twilight was frightened, but that didn't stop her from reciting what she knew about Caballeron (though until now she'd assumed that he too was fictional). "Book four: Daring Do and the Razor of Dreams. He wanted to partner with Daring Do on her adventures, but she refused. I can't believe it! The real Daring Do and the real Caballeron!" Meanwhile, Daring was arguing with Caballeron. "So let me guess: Ahuizotl has put you up to this, huh, Caballeron? You're stealing the ring to give to him so that his hold on the Fortress of Talacon will be good for eight centuries as foretold by prophecy! I never thought you could stoop so low!" Doctor Caballeron snapped back. "Close, but... not quite. I'm simply going to sell the ring to him, make a quick bundle, and retire from archaeology in splendor. You really shouldn't have snubbed my offer, I told you I could be a valueable ally, but you turned me away." "Because you only cared about the money, not about protecting the ancient civilizations and their treasures!" Daring growled. "Don't be a fool, Caballeron! You know what that ring will do if Ahuizotl gets his paws on it! You're dooming the whole valley to eight centuries of unrelenting heat! Even Princess Celestia won't be able to stop that!" Doctor Caballeron simply laughed. "You worry too much, Daring Do. That's not my problem now is it?" He gave a whistle. "Come, my fellow stallions! To market! We must hurry!" He and his henchponies soon departed, passing right by Twilight and Rainbow Dash without even noticing them. It was only after the fact that the two mares outside realized they should probably go in and make sure Daring Do wasn't hurt. Indeed Daring wasn't. She slowly stumbled to her hooves, and despite a groan she was able to stand without trouble. "Are you alright, Daring?" Twilight asked the pegasus. "Does anything hurt?" Daring growled and gritted her teeth. "I'm just fine, a little soreness in the wings but I'll manage. No thanks to the likes of you." She narrowed her eyes at Rainbow Dash. Rainbow quickly defended. "I was only trying to help, Daring. You could stand to not be such a grouch all the time." "I appreciate the sentiment, but this isn't some game! This is real!" Daring retorted. "I'm Daring Do, I don't need help! I can handle my problems on my own, thank you very much. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a certain doctor to chase after before he gets away." She quickly departed her shack, leaving Twilight and Rainbow alone to discuss what had happened. "She's in over her head, we've gotta help her! That's what we do!" Dash insisted. Twilight shook her head. "You heard what Daring says, she prefers to solve things on her own. It's best if we leave her to it, for all we know we lead Caballeron right to her." "We can't help that, we had no way to know he was looking for Daring Do," Rainbow protested. "And how can we stand by at a time like this? You know what's at stake here! Ahuizotl has sought control of the Tenochtitlan Basin since book three!" Twilight nodded her head. "True, but in book four, Daring 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!" Rainbow shook her head. "But the Radiant Shield of Razdon is vulnerable to the dark enchantment of the Rings of Scorchero!" Twilight argued back. "Are you forgetting that the Rings were scattered to the four corners of Tenochtitlan, thus rendering the dark enchantment powerless?" Rainbow protested. "Only if you assume that the rings have yet to be retrieved, and that the ring Caballeron just stole isn't the last one needed to completely restore the dark tower and its cruel hold on Tenochtitlan! Did you ever think of that, Twilight?!" The young alicorn gulped hard. "W-well, no, actually I hadn't. But that's still a very big if." "Sounds like it's a reality from the way Daring was talking earlier!" Rainbow declared. "I'm not gonna sit around and let Ahuizotl win! We gotta help Daring Do retrieve the ring for safekeeping before it's too late!" Twilight sighed. "Well, okay, but it sounds like we're in way, way, way over our heads. We're going to need a plan!" "You come up with one then, and I'll scout ahead and look for Daring!" Rainbow declared. "Now's the time for action! Hold on, Daring Do, I'm coming!" Twilight groaned as she watched her friend take off into the distance. "That's not an actual plan!" Under her breath she muttered. "And not all of us can fly like you, you know." Rainbow Dash was soon high in the sky, looking for any trace of either Doctor Caballeron or Daring Do. After a great deal of searching, she found Daring by herself in a section of the forest. Rainbow swooped closer, ready to join the adventurer! "Here I come, Daring Do! Ready to join an adventure with the greatest, bravest, coolest, most incredible hero I could ever–" But before she could land, Rainbow halted in mid-air and tried to collect her thoughts. She was starting to lose sight of what was important because of the excitement of working with Daring Do. "Okay, maybe I just need a sec... Just another adventure. No big deal. I can handle this," Then she smacked herself. "Come on, get a grip! Play it cool! You can do this. Although... the idea of doing it alongside Daring Do... Wow! Maybe I could get my picture taken with her afterward, or maybe an autograph, or-" She smacked herself again. "There you go again, letting your thoughts get the better of you. She's just a pony like any other pony. A pony who stops entire armies of bad guys with nothing more than her bare hooves, and an attitude, and—!" Another smack stopped Rainbow's train of thought. "Ow... That's starting to hurt. Gotta stop doing that." Meanwhile, Daring Do was walking by herself and did not seem to be aware of Rainbow's presence, that is until she heard a shout and found herself face to face with the pegasus who looked so much like her. "Oh, it's just you. What do you want?" "Please, let me help you, just this once," Rainbow desperately pleaded. "I am suuuuuch a huge fan." And she gave a nervous chuckle. Daring sighed. "I don't have time for this. I'll say it once and only once. I. Work. Alone. Got it?!" Rainbow whimpered, crawling over to Daring Do. "But why won't you let me team up with you? I promise I won't get in the 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, they 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 no one, not even yourself." The cyan coated speedster protested. "So you had a few bad experiences, who hasn't? Just because you can't trust some doesn't mean no one can be trusted. Having others you can count on isn't always a bad thing." Daring wasn't convinced in the slightest, but she also sensed something that she was absolutely fearing. "You're not taking no for an answer, are you?" "Nope, I'm sticking with you whether you like it or not," Rainbow Dash pleaded. "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 long, painful sigh. "Alright, fine, if it'll get you off my back!" "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 gonna be a problem?" "No, I'm used to taking orders. After all, I trained at the Wonderbolts Academy, and even Captain Spitfire said she was impressed." Rainbow Dash commented. "I'm sure that's very interesting, but I don't really care about that. Now come on, I've wasted enough time here," Daring grumbled. "And remember what I told you." Hours passed uneventfully for the two pegasi, and Twilight did not catch up to them at any point. Rainbow worried briefly about that, before assuming her friend was simply following their hoofsteps a ways back. 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, Caballeron and his men decided to stop for dinner." "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!" Daring Do shook her head. "No, we're going to play this safe. We're doing things my way, remember?" "Oh, right," Rainbow realized. "But what are you gonna do?" Her question was soon answered as she saw Daring pick up some leafs from the ground, folding them into a beard before she put on her A.K. Yearling hat and a head band, pulling it down so her face was concealed. Rainbow grinned with excitement. "Oh, I see. You're gonna ambush them like in book four at the Horavian caves! Or maybe, that neat trick you did in book three, where you swoop in and knock three guys down with one swing! Or maybe- " Daring moved to silence Rainbow. "Just stay here, this won't take long," She produced a sack of bits before trotting forward in her disguise, plopping them down in front of Caballeron without looking at him. "Excuse me, good sir," She spoke in an exaggerated voice. "I have been led to believe that you have in your possession an item of significant importance that might be... for sale. I don't suppose you'd be willing to part with it? I can meet any price." Caballeron eyed the sack of bits. The gold coins were sorely tempting him. "W-well..." He began, unable to take his mind off of the bits. "I... did have another potential buyer lined up, but... he's not here at the moment. And I always say 'My policy is: First come, first serve'." But all of a sudden the ground began to shake and the trees started to sway! And then, who should emerge from some of the nearby trees but the mighty Ahuizotl himself?! "Caballeron, you fool!" He growled at the top of his lungs. "How dare you try to double cross me!" Caballeron screamed and whimpered. "A... a thousand apologies, your badness. I didn't think you'd get here so soon." "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." "For the last time, Ahuizotl! You're never getting your paws on the ring!" Daring Do vowed as she grit her teeth. Ahuizotl just laughed. "Oh, but I always get what I want in the end, Daring Do. You're the only pony in my sights now, and this time you won't escape!" Then he crept closer to her as he pleaded. "The ring, Daring Do! Give it to me, now!" Daring Do leapt backwards, fully shedding her disguise as she kept the ring around her neck. With a teasing smirk she replied. "Now Ahuizotl, you know I love you. But I'm afraid I can't give you the ring until I've properly proposed." 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. Daring narrowed her eyes and grit her teeth. "Bring it, Ahuizotl! You're going down!" "It's your funeral, Daring Do." Ahuizotl replied as he sicked his army of cats on her. Rainbow reluctantly watched as Daring Do tussled with the various cats Ahuizotl had brought forth. She would've jumped right into the fray already if not for Daring's insistence that Rainbow stay out of sight. "Come on, Daring, you've got this!" Rainbow Dash nervously commented, observing the scuffle from a safe distance. A series of punches, kicks, growls, and even a scream or two could be heard as the fighting raged on. Suddenly, the cyan coated mare noticed something that Daring didn't seem to be aware of due to the scuffle. It was the adventurer's famous pith helmet, which had apparently been knocked loose. "Daring Do! I've got your hat! You want me to toss it? Daring Do! Daring Do!" She shouted, a bit too loudly. The shouting drew the attention of Ahuizotl, who decided to turn his attention to what he assumed was Daring Do's new partner. Without warning he lunged at Rainbow and snatched her up, holding her with his tail! "Oh Daring Do, look who I have!" He taunted, holding his captive up for Daring to see. Rainbow growled and groaned, kicking about. "Coward, put me down! I could totally take you in a fair fight!" Daring was horrified! "Rainbow Dash?! 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!" "Don't do it, Daring! You've got this! Show this clown who's boss!" Rainbow demanded of Daring. But Daring dropped the ring and stopped fighting. "You've got me, Ahuizotl. You can have the ring, just don't hurt Rainbow Dash!" 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. Distraught, Rainbow Dash looked down at the ground in shame. "What have I done?!" She thought out loud. "Of all the times to mess up, it had to be now." It was morning when Twilight finally reached Rainbow Dash's location, panting up to the pegasus with every last breath she had. "There you are," She declared, pausing to catch her breath. "I've been trying to find you for ages! Quick, where's Daring Do?! What happened?! Are you hurt?!" "Just in here," Rainbow motioned to her heart. "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." Twilight let out a gasp and struggled to regain her composure. "Rainbow, I'm sure that whatever you did was an honest mistake." "No, Twilight, Daring Do made it perfectly clear from the start. She didn't want my help and she didn't need my help," Rainbow weakly muttered. "All I ever did was get in the way. You were right all along, we should've never come here. Let's just go home and wait for Daring Do to free herself. I'm sure she's got it all under control somehow." "Have you lost your mind?! Just yesterday you were all but begging to help her, even before you knew Daring Do and A.K. Yearling were the same!" Twilight protested. "But don't you see, trying to help was what got me into this mess in the first place," Rainbow whimpered. "If I'd just stayed in Ponyville and minded my own business, the ring would be safe, Daring Do would've prevailed, and her secret wouldn't have gotten out." Twilight shook her head. "There's way more going on here than meets the eye, Rainbow Dash. There always is in every Daring Do book, and it's not over 'til it's over. But we can't turn our backs on her now, not when she needs our help the most!" Rainbow wasn't convinced for a second. "I appreciate what you're trying to do, Twilight, I really do. But you can't cheer me up. Daring Do doesn't need or want my help. My hero's far better off without a partner like me around to hold her back." At that, Twilight pulled Rainbow close with her magic so that the two were snout to snout. "Come on, Rainbow Dash, you've gotta pull yourself together! This isn't you! Where's the Rainbow Dash who would help anypony at the drop of a hat? Where's the Rainbow Dash who would rush off to adventure at the first sign of trouble? Where's the Rainbow Dash who never let anything rattle her?" The cyan coated pegasus weakly replied. "She's out here, in the middle of nowhere, where she's got no business being. She should be at home. And you should too, Twilight." Twilight sighed again. "Look, it's fine to look up to Daring Do, Rainbow Dash. But can't you see? You've put her so high up on a pedestal, you can't even see your own worth anymore!" "No offense, Twi, but that sounds a lot like you and Princess Celestia. It's no secret you look up to her more than anypony else." Rainbow commented. The young alicorn tried not to blush. "Okay, you're right about that. I do admire Princess Celestia a lot. I've been trying to work on it. Which is why I can't stand to see one of my friends fall into the same trap. Whatever happened before I got here, it's in the past. Daring Do's in that fortress, and we're out here," She firmly declared. "We wouldn't be who we are if we didn't go in after her! And neither would you! But this time, we're going to come up with a plan." Rainbow paused, deep in thought. And while she was looking she could've sworn she saw the sun's rays catch Daring's pith helmet just right, causing a rainbow reflection in her eyes. She couldn't explain why, but suddenly she knew what she had to do. "You're right, Twilight! Daring Do is in danger, and we're going to save her no matter what it takes! Because that's what we do!" "I knew you'd see it my way." Twilight smiled. Ahuizotl had chained Daring Do to a wall in a deep chamber of the temple, preventing her from flying. Beneath her was a small pool of water, and Ahuizotl rested off to the left side with a pull chain nearby. "It's the end of the line for you, Daring Do!" He taunted. Daring groaned, trying to fight back against the confines of her prison. "Surrender now, Ahuizotl, or I'll be forced to take you down! You'll be sorry!" Ahuizotl simply laughed. "Oh, Daring Do, I shall so miss your jokes and laughter. But now I must leave to commence the ring-placing ceremony to unleash eight hundred years of unrelenting, sweltering heat!" He proceeded to pull the chain. "Goodbye, Daring Do!" Water began to rapidly fill up the pool below, the water level rising fast. Daring Do groaned. "I can get out of that, you know." Ahuizotl only snickered in reply. "I'm sure you can, but by the time you do it will be too late to stop me. Besides, if the water doesn't get you, those piranhas well." And then he departed as it was possible to see some piranhas leaping out of the water for a brief moment. Not long after Ahuizotl's departure, Daring Do was able to pull out the stones holding the chains to her hooves. They weighed her down though, which made flying difficult. Fortunately, Rainbow Dash quickly swooped in and carried Daring to safety! "I gotcha!" She exclaimed, before groaning. "Hey, you can flap too, y'know! You're not exactly a paperweight!" The two pegasi quickly landed in the safety of a nearby tunnel within the temple. Daring looked across to Rainbow Dash. "What are you doing here? I didn't need your help, you know." "Yes, you made that crystal clear," Rainbow commented. "But I wasn't gonna take any chances. Besides, I just figured you might need this." She slid over Daring's pith helmet while Daring Do was busy smashing the stones that bound her hooves captive. The adventurer eyed the pith helmet and seemed to have an annoyed look on her face. "Have I mentioned yet that I work alone? How many times do I have to repeat myself?" "And how many times do you need to hear that you're lucky I don't work alone?" Rainbow retorted. "Maybe sometimes it's better do things on your own, but other times you've got be able to trust others to help you out. And this looks like one of them." Daring sighed. "Fine, I guess you can help me. I just hope you've got a good distraction for Ahuizotl while we slip the rings off the stand." Rainbow snickered. "Don't worry, Twilight's got that covered. Ahuizotl's no match for her quick wit and brains. He's never met an egghead before." And indeed, Twilight was giving Ahuizotl and the ponies he was working with a run for their money. She repeatedly kept the ring out of his paws, teleporting as needed to avoid his clutches. Ahuizotl was growing steadily more frustrated. "You're making me angry, puny pony!" "That's the idea!" Twilight taunted. "I gotta say, Ahuizotl. Meeting you up close and personal, you're nowhere near as threatening as the books make you out to be." "Books?! What books?!" Ahuizotl growled. Twilight only laughed and winked. "I'm not telling if you don't know. You really should though." Then she teleported again. Ahuizotl gritted his teeth. "Where did she go?! Curse that pony!" Ahuizotl worried so much about this that he failed to notice as Rainbow Dash and Daring Do were lifting the heavy rings off the stand one by one. Daring Do was explaining everything. "If we can remove that giant ring at the bottom, the whole fortress will collapse!" "Wait, you mean you planned to be captured?!" Rainbow questioned in surprise. Daring confessed. "Well, I had to find a way to bring down the fortress from the inside, and Ahuizotl's arrival gave me the opportunity I needed. I couldn't risk you sabotaging it." "You didn't have to be nearly that convincing, Daring. A simple wink would've sufficed." Rainbow complained. Daring tried to apologize. "Hey, in my defense, I'm new to this whole partner thing. But you know, maybe it's not as bad as I thought. I guess maybe you just need somepony on your level, somepony who knows you properly and knows what you need most." "Glad to hear you're seeing it my way, Daring! Now come on, let's get that last ring removed!" Rainbow declared. But by now several of Ahuizotl's ponies had taken notice. They were poking and proading at the two pegasi with their spears! "Hey, you can flap too, y'know!" Daring shouted at Rainbow as they strained and struggled. At last, the heavy ring rose all the way to the top, and tumbled off. The temple began to shake and rumble! "Twilight! Run! This place is goin' down!" Rainbow called to Twilight. Twilight didn't need to be told twice. The entire temple ended up collapsing not long after Twilight, Rainbow, and Daring had all made it to safety. But when the rubble cleared Ahuizotl poked his head up from the remaints of the temple and declared. "You haven't seen the last of me, Daring Do! You will rue the day you crossed paths with the great Ahuizotl!" "Heard it all before, Ahuizotl!" Daring taunted and flew away, shattering the ring for good measure. "There, that should put an end to Ahuizotl's plans for this valley," She turned to Rainbow Dash. "I never could've accomplished this without your help, Rainbow Dash. Thanks a bunch." "Just doing my job, Daring." Rainbow blushed. Daring pulled something out from her hat. "Well still, I think I owe you something. I treated you horribly even though you were just trying to help me," She hoofed over a small trinket. "A little souvenir from one of my earliest adventures. Speaking of which, I've got a book to write!" "Uh, about that," Twilight commented. "How exactly are you going to work around the fact that Rainbow and I were a part of it? Ponies are gonna know, and they're gonna start asking questions." Daring winked. "I'll change some names, wouldn't be the first time I've had to do that," And to Twilight she added. "Be sure to tell your mom thanks for not ratting me out." "Wait, my mom knew about your secret identity the whole time?!" Twilight gasped in surprise. Daring nodded as she admitted. "Kind of had to have her in the know so she wouldn't get suspicious when stuff like this came up. But remember, this is top secret. No one else can know about this." And then she flew away. When Twilight and Rainbow Dash returned to Ponyville the next day, Rainbow immediately took the friendship journal she and her friends had started keeping per Twilight's request. And the entry Rainbow wrote went a little something like this: Just had the coolest adventure with the coolest pony ever. Came this close to blowing it though because I got so wrapped up in how awesome she was, and so I almost forgot about how awesome I was. Good thing I didn't, 'cause it gave me a chance to show her how important it is to put your trust in somepony else. Plus, I taught her that sometimes it's not always a bad thing to put your trust in others. Just have to make sure they're the kind you can trust to back you up. Shortly after she'd finished writing the entry, there came a knock at the door. A mail delivery pony arrived, clad in a blue uniform. "Package from a Miss A.K. Yearling." He declared. Rainbow eagerly grabbed the aforementioned package, she knew what it was! "Sweet, the new Daring Do book a week before anypony else gets it!" She ripped open the package and her eyes were greeted by the cover of the book, which depicted Daring Do facing down the tower, with a pony looking suspiciously similar to Rainbow Dash standing besides her. Rainbow smiled. Unknown to the pegasus, the trinket Daring had given her admitted a rainbow glow for a brief moment.