Daring Do trotted up the hill in front of her, not to eager to see what was on the other side. Almost every hill she had walked up since her departure from the train-tracks had been unnecessarily big and had nothing to see on the other side. But this hill was different, for once she made it to the top, she stood overlooking a quaint town in the distance.
Her eyes filled with tears. Finally, civilization. She could get some help, food, rest… and answers.
With a renewed energy and vigor, she trotted down to the town, recalling all the hardships she had faced on her way here.
Lost in the middle of nowhere is pretty bad, most ponies would agree to that. Lost in the middle of nowhere with no equipment, food, or memories was even worse.
Daring had not eaten in over three days, not taking into account the grazed grass that barely amounted to anything in her stomach. The thought of some food filling up her empty shrilling of a stomach was long overdue. Of course, the plains below her had provided her with tall grass to graze, but there’s a reason nopony did that nowadays. Grass did not have everything in nutrition, what she needed was some processed hay and leaves.
The flying had to be discontinued only a few hours into her flight. Her wings were just too sore to withstand the constant flapping, so she landed and continued on foot. No matter, she thought to herself. She had covered a considerable amount of ground already and the day before when she was escaping from the lab.
The vast plains eventually shifted to a more friendly environment. More trees, bushes, and even some animals. Still nothing that would suggest the path to other ponies, though. While it was tough and she felt sad and lonely, she knew that she needed to press on. The sad and mopey didn’t survive in the wilderness, only the strong and tough could.
Finally, after about a day of traveling, she had found something that she could only shriek with glee upon finding: a railroad track. Finally, a sign that she needed, a sign of civilization. Daring knew that either direction she picked, it would lead… well, somewhere.
That tiny hope was dashed to the pieces, however, when she found that the railroad was incomplete a couple of hours later. The direction she had picked lead to a broken off section of the tracks; in other words, it had lead to nowhere.
“Of course, just what I needed,” mumbled Daring, disheartened, to say the least, by the discovery. She put these sour feelings aside, however, as she headed out from the incomplete railroad towards a random direction.
But as it turned out, the direction she picked turned to be a good one, as the after a whole hour of traversing over hills, she had found civilization. Maybe I’ll will be okay, after all.
‘Welcome to Ponyville,’ a large sign greeted Daring Do as she approached one of the entrances to the town. A smile went up on her face as she took a look past the sign and into the array of buildings. Normal looking ponies that seemed to be the occupants of these buildings trotted in and out of them, each one having a peculiarly normal smile on their face. Ponies, actual living ponies, was all Daring needed to see in order to be happy at that point. She had found her salvation.
Don’t get too excited yet, Daring, she thought to herself as she began to make her way into Ponyville, You may be in civilization, but that doesn’t mean you’re home free yet. The surprisingly calm thought caused her to ponder her options.
First off, she needed two things: a meal and a place to stay. It had been a couple of days since she had eaten anything worthwhile, or more if she hadn’t eaten anything prior to her waking up in the underground base. Meanwhile, she hadn’t gotten a whole lot of rest, only sleeping about four hours a day in order to cover more ground.
After that… well, first she would focus on the food and drink, and after a good night’s sleep in some hotel, she would have a clear enough mind to figure out her next course of action.
So she made her way through town, looking down each street in search of a marketplace to buy some food. At the same time, she let her mind wander to her once again obvious predicament. It was going to be a tough trial ahead, she could tell. She would need to travel far and wide in order to reunite with anyone who had known her previously. That is, if there even was anypony who had known her previously…
No! I can’t think like that! There has to be some! There has to be…
And yet, even as she attempted to reassure herself, there was still something in the back of her head that bugged her. The green-coated pony back at the underground base had scoffed at the idea of her former life. He had seemed convinced that she would have a better life if she had stayed…
Once again, she tore the thought from her head. She had found herself doing that a lot during the past days. As reassuring thoughts once again dominated her brain, she found herself paying more attention to her surroundings.
Ponyville was a quiet town, by the looks of it. Simple dirt roads, simple houses, simple… well, everything. She eventually made her way to what seemed to be the center of town, where a large stone fountain sat spewing water. Many ponies walked about, chatting and laughing like everything was just fine and dandy. Daring had to admit, this was a nice town.
It wasn’t until she began to pass through the center of the circle that she began to notice something strange. Ponies around her would turn and stare at her, with an expression of surprise and confusion. At first, Daring thought the strange behaviour was due to her appearance. She was most likely filthy, as she hadn’t bathed in Celestia-knows-how-long. However, it was happening more and more as she passed through more roads and streets, and some even began to trail the amnestic pony from a distance with curious expressions on their faces.
Okay, now this is starting to get weird.
Finally, after what had seemed like an eternity, she had found the marketplace she was looking for. Stalls selling various goods and items were set up down a single, straight road. Thankfully, not a lot of ponies were shopping, which was good since Daring did not need any more attention than what she already had.
She spotted a stall open not to far from where she stood with various greens on it’s counters. Yes! Food! Excitedly, she trotted up to the stall and began eyeing certain vegetables that seemed fit for a good meal.
The pony running the shop, an older stallion with a light-brown coat and withered, white mane, saw the eager pony from behind the counter and approached her. Daring was thankful that his expression didn’t change like the others’ had.
“Why hello there, missy,” said the stallion in a forced cheery voice, “What can I get for you?”
“Hello, I’d like…” The hungry pegasus began pointing to the different veggies she had been eyeing earlier, with the stallion grabbing every one and placing it into a small bag he had grabbed from behind the counter. It all occurred without incident…
...Except for when the stallion asked her for five bits in return.
In fact, Daring was so surprised that she forgot how to raise her hoof for a second, otherwise it would have instantly flown towards her shocked face. How could I be so stupid?! I have no Faust-damn bits on me! I’m broke!
“W-well, heh heh, funny thing you should ask that,” she stammered, forcing a nervous laugh to try to seem cheery, “I kinda don’t have any bits on me right now. Is there any possible way that I can get these… without having to pay?” With the widest smile she could muster, she watched as the stallion’s eyebrows furrowed and his expression turned dark and grim. An unenthusiastic mood quickly turned into an aggressive one.
“Sorry Daring Do. No bits, no service,” he said, scowling as he put away the veggies. Daring Do bowed her head in shame, not really expecting anything less, and downtrodden by the idea of eating now crushed by her lack of money. She would have to go somewhere else in order to…
Wait, how does he know my name?
Before she could even begin to think of how that could happen, another voice sounded out behind her. “What seems to be the problem here?”
The surprised mare turned to find another pony standing behind her, a mare to be precise. From the looks of it, she was the country-type of gal, with a huge Stetson covering her straw-like mane. On the back of her fruity-orange coat lay a Cutie Mark with the symbols of three tiny apples.
The stallion behind Daring let out a small grunt, not sounding very pleased about the mare’s appearance. “That’s none of your business, Miss Applejack. I’m just doing my job.”
“Might your job involve refusing to serve hungry folks just looking for a bite to eat?” the cow-mare asked, raising her eyebrow with a hint of a sly smile leaking onto her face. Daring couldn’t help but smile at her witty sarcasm. The stallion, on the other hand, did not share her enthusiasm.
“Sorry missies. Not bits, no service. That’s just the way it works around here.”
“Well, if you’re a stubborn mule who can’t give from the kindness of his heart, that’s how it works,” Applejack mumbled just loud enough for only the three of them to hear. Even still, he simply shrugged and turned to another pony who had just approached his stall, knowing this would actually be worth his while.
The mare only sighed, shaking her head in disappointment before turning to Daring wearing an apologetic expression on her face. “Pardon the rude gentlecolt over there. Most folks ‘round here ain’t nothing like that, Ah promise.”
“It’s okay, I should’ve known that I wouldn’t be able to buy anything without any bits on hoof,” Daring stated as she forced a pained smile onto her face, “And how did you know I’m not from here?”
“Well, Ah reckon Ah know just about everypony that lives in this town, and if Ah couldn’t spot a newcomer, Ah’d be sure out of luck trying to find new business,” she said with a big grin, “Oh, where are mah mah manners? The name’s Applejack; Ah’m the local apple-farmer around these parts.” With an energetic motion, she thrust her hoof towards the mare in front of her. This momentarily startled Daring, but she quickly regained her composure.
“My name’s Daring Do,” she said calmly, extending her own hoof to meet the cow-mare’s, “Nice to meet you Apple-woah!”
Daring suddenly found herself being jostled up and down by Applejack’s vigorous hoof shake. “The pleasure’s all mine, Miss Daring.” She let go of the her hoof, giving the poor mare some time to regain her senses.
“Strange… Ah reckon I remember your name from somewhere. And so do all those folks over yonder, most likely.” She raised her hoof to point to a small crowd of excited onlookers carrying intense stares and smiles at the sight Daring Do. “You wouldn’t happen to be some sort of celebrity, would ya?”
It was here that Daring hesitated to answer. So far, everything had been going smoothly, but that was only due to her lack of socializing with others. What would ponies say if they knew of her little predicament? Would they help her, or would they pass her up in cold blood?
No! Stop thinking like that! You have to try and get others to help you! Her mind spoke out, Otherwise, you won’t be able to find out where you truly came from!
With her resolved steeled up, Daring Do cleared her throat and began to say, “Well, Miss Applejack, the truth is that I…”
However, her sentence was cut short when a random pony trotted up to the pair with an impossibly wide smile on her face. The abrupt appearance was startling, to say the least, and it put Daring Do a bit off guard.
“Hi there,” the random mare said, her tone dripping in enthusiasm.
“Um… hello?” Daring wasn’t so sure how to respond to such an awkward statement.
“Are you Daring Do?”
Wait… what?!
“Lyra, how do ya know this pony’s name?” Applejack asked, sensing Daring’s discomfort.
“How do you not, Applejack?” Another pony appeared right behind, almost out of nowhere, “Honestly, you think that Rainbow Dash would’ve told you before she…”
The voice was silenced by the first mare’s, Lyra, hoof, smothering any attempt at talking. “Don’t say that, Bon-Bon! You know that’s a sensitive issue!”
Who’s Rainbow Dash? That must be their friend or something. The confused mare stole a glance at the farm pony and saw her muzzle scrunched up and teeth bared; it was obvious she was becoming angry. Yet, when Daring saw her lime-colored eyes, she could swear that a hint of sorrow glazed about. What exactly happened to that pony to get Applejack all riled up?
“Anyways, we’re not here to talk about that,” the mare named Bon-Bon said, once again turning her head towards Daring, “We’re here to meet the one and only Daring Do!”
“Me too!” shouted another mare who had come up behind them.
“Me three!” yelled out a stallion, and many others began calling out to Daring Do. The amnestic pony could only shrink to the ground and cower as she was surrounded by the eager ponies gathering around her and drowned in the chorus of their calls.