The Cutie Alchemist

by Visharo


Daring Do

Daring: venturesomely bold in action or thought

Do: to bring to pass

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Starswirl opened his eyes. For good this time. He felt refreshed and renewed. He felt amazing. He slowly got up, checking everything and was pleasantly surprised that nothing felt off. Then a memory surfaced, that strange pony...was it a pony? He blinked and realized that he felt this great because of her. He made his way outside but then stopped. He looked back and saw the sleeping forms of Celestia and Cadance. Shining too was asleep, hugging Cadance. They didn't look very different, sweaty, pale, and restless. Starswirl's heart ached. He made his way outside was immediately tackled by a dark blue pony.

"Ah, Luna."

"Swirly!" Her face was completely wet with tears, her usual cool demeanour was completely washed away with anguish. "I thoug...thought you w...were gonna leave me too!"

Starswirl said nothing and hugged her tightly. He looked past the sobbing young mare and saw Fizzlepop playing with Sunset, who kept on glancing at him with a relieved smile. He smiled too. To the left, Stygian was gazing at the sky with with book. The mere fact that his friend, the word came effortlessly, was doing normal activities warmed his heart. To his right, Granny Smith was talking with the strange black and white pony, Zecora, wasn't it? Both were looking at him as well, the green mare was trying to hide a wide smile while the other mare looked at him with a curious expression.

After a while, Starswirl patted Luna on the back and pushed her away slightly. Thankfully, she understood what he meant and made her way to Fizzlepop and Sunset. He got up and brushed himself off and walked towards the two mares.

"Starswirl." Granny made an attempt to nod respectfully. Starswirl grinned at her failure before turning his attention elsewhere.

"Zecora, was it? I must thank you. May I ask how you cured me?" He was eternally grateful but he wasn't worried about himself. She must have sensed that too.

"You are most welcome, Starswirl the Bearded. An answer to your question lies in an orchid." Zecora said with an almost ethereal kind of way, similar to Rain Shine. She spoke with knowledge beyond his own and it both intrigued him and frustrated him.

"An orchid? What is that?" Granny too shared his confused expression. "And can it cure my daughters as well?"

The last sentence seemed to intrigue Zecora. "Neigh, the cure to love drain is beyond the power of this flower. Your magic sickness was easy, to cure love drain requires a whole different power. Your daughters, as you say, need the nectar of a coveted relic. To get there, one must brave through traps and scenarios most psychedelic." Somehow, Starswirl knew exactly what she was talking about.

"Whatever it takes. Can you take me there?" He was desperate, he knew it, she knew it. "This world means nothing if they die. I cannot allow it, no matter what Harmony dictates!"

"Fret not, for Harmony does not wish for their demise. To keep them healthy and strong would be most wise. And yes, I shall guide to the whereabouts of the healing antique. The journey will take a considerable time as it's located on a high peak. It would be best for us to leave with haste. If we wait too long, you might find your daughters' lives erased."

Starswirl went pale and turned slowly to his partner in crime, his backbone, his equal. Granny nodded solemnly and a invisible conversation passed between them. Starswirl nodded and she smiled sadly. He stepped forward and surprised her with a hug, after a while, she hugged back. Without another word, he turned and went after Zecora who was already far ahead. He didn't look back because he knew if he did, he would not be able to begin his journey.

***

The two of them traveled for a couple of sunrises and in that time, he learned many things. Zecora wasn't a pony at all, but a zebra. A species mainly found in hot grasslands, among many other exotic creatures. Her stories of the Hunt sparked a curiosity he hadn't felt in a while. Despite Zecora's unnatural speech patterns and cultural habits, Starswirl felt at ease around her. She was at ease with the world and Harmony deemed her correct.

She traveled at quite the speed, much faster than Starswirl was used to and by the end of the sun's life, he was gasping for air and sweat dripping all over. Zecora however, seemed unfazed by everything. While he would recover, she would make camp, as she calls it. Logs, bedding, and a fireplace. It was cozy and expertly done, everything about it fascinated Starswirl to no end. He made a promise to himself that he would one day visit the lands of the Zebra and other mystical creatures.

"Starswirl." It was the fourth sunrise and the terrain was looking quite different, with different trees and vegetation. "You are the first of your kind, is this not so?"

"Yes. How I came to be, I do not know. I was then to walk this world for countless moons and sunrises before Celestia came into my life." The last part he said with such wistfulness. How simple life was then. Just him and his daughters. There was no snow, no villains, no valley to build up. But things never last forever.

"From your tone, I suspect the rest of your story is filled with woe." Starswirl blinked. Did he hear correctly or did he perhaps hear a tone change in that last sentence.

"Not all. There were happy times, many of them. I would not trade anything for the life I lived previously. These ponies are my life now, my family, and I would give anything for them." He spoke with such convictions, Zecora visibly shuddered.

"You best be careful of what you say, your dedication might be too costly of a pay." Zecora warned. There it was again. Starswirl now understood that she too knew of what he was going through. A history of pain and anguish, stemming from friends and family.

The two fell silent after that and focused merely on walking. The terrain was getting more rough and more uphill. Boulders were seen frequently and some even had to be bypassed to continue their walk. And before he knew it, they were at the top of a very impressive view.

The landscape beneath him was very different from the valley or even his home in the mountains. From the pine forest they exited, according to the zebra, they were now entering the terrain called the badlands, also named by Zecora. Everything was rocky, sandy, and dusty. Foliage was sparse and few between, intimidating mountains, and other curious rock formations. It was beautiful in it's own right, but no less frightening. He never ventured this far before, he only stayed close to plains and forests in all his wanderings.

He took a calming breath and then another. He saw that Zecora was already picking her way down the cliffside and saw that she didn't seem perturbed at all. He tried to calm himself as best as he could and then took a step. That was when he noticed a light coming from his pack. He called for Zecora and opened his pack and sure enough, the Chalice was the source.

He took it out carefully and placed it on a flat rock and watched. The color of the liquid was a curious tan color and the picture it depicted once it was full was a circular object, compass was the word that came to mind. Zecora came back up the slope and watched as well from a distance, her eyes wide and mouth hanging. It was pleasing to Starswirl that he finally got a reaction from the collected mare.

A few seconds later, a pegasus popped into existence.

"Ah, the fresh smell of adventure! Hi, I'm Daring Do, and you are?" The pegasus had the same tan coat, a gray scale mane, a strange vest and hat as well. She also wore a cocky, upbeat expression, like she knew that the world was hers for the taking. Starswirl wasn't sure what to make out of her.

"My name is Starswirl the Bearded. My travelling companion is Zecora the zebra." He greeted formally.

"That's awesome! I've heard about zebras and their amazing stories, how many do you have?" Daring zipped forwards, her wings buzzing at incredible speeds.

"Perhaps another time, Daring. From here, I see you know your bearing?" Zecora was pointing at the compass on Daring's flank. Starswirl was very curious, he had never seen a pony come out with a picture already, this was news indeed.

"Of course! I adventure, it would be really lame if I got lost while adventuring. Imagine that!" She burst out laughing.

"Indeed, it would be most humorous. If possible, could we enlist your help since the ways are numerous. We seek an ancient temple in these badlands. It has been a while since I've been, perhaps it's lost within the sands." Zecora said with such humility yet with commanding grace, it awed Starswirl.

"I can't think of anything better to do, so let's do it! I'm great at finding ancient temples and ruins, you could almost say I was born for it!" She laughed boisterously and took off, but this time at a moderate speed. The two land creatures kept pace.

***

The journey seemed to be going much smoother with Daring Do in the air. She seemed to lead them through the easier paths, even went through the effort of checking up ahead if the path was clear of rubble or vegetation. However, the temperature in the badlands was much warmer, resulting in the three of them in sorry states.

"Guys! I think I see it!" Daring exclaimed excitedly on the third sunrise since leaving the shaded forest. Her wings were beating really sluggishly yet she seemed to fly gracefully in the air. Starswirl looked ahead and squinted through the heat to see what she was pointing at and his eyes widened at the sight of a stone structure. Zecora also seemed to straighten up at the sight of the temple and her gait increased.

The sun traveled quite a distance in the sky when the three of them finally scaled the mountain. The temple was impressive at close quarters, it resembled a triangle somewhat and reached upwards. The sides were smooth except for the middle which indicated steps that led upwards. They were on all four sides and at the top looked as if it was a hut made out of stone. The three of them traveled upwards and were surprised to see a hallway leading downwards in a spiral.

"Into the depths?" Daring asked in giddy excitement. Her eyes betrayed nothing as she glanced hopefully between the two.

"into the depths." Starswirl concluded followed by a squee.