Daring Do and the Race to the King's Treasure

by neilthenerd

Chapter 3

With a painful thud, Daring Do hit the floor. Even for her steel nerves, being nearly suffocated in a small, dark bag was difficult to handle. She thrashed about, trying to escape.

She heard a murmur from all around her. A distinct, nasal voice came from somewhere above. “Don’t tell me, let me guess. You found another one of those delicious rats?”

“No, master. It is pony.”

“Well, it makes little difference,” the ‘master’ said. “Any pony stupid enough to enter my sewers is no better than a maggot, let alone a rodent. Call my chef in here. I’m thinking that slow-roasting this little morsel alive will be very entertaining, not to mention quite tasty.”

“If you so much as lay a finger on me, you’re done for,” Daring Do snarled.

“Is that so?” the master chuckled. “Well, then. I guess I’ll have to use my hind legs.” A vicious kick sent her tumbling. When she landed, one of the briefcases dug into her lower back, and it was all she could do to keep from screaming in pain.

Gasping for air, Daring Do gritted her teeth. “I’m warning you. I have a document signed by the chief of police. It says that if I don’t make it out of here, he is going to hunt you down and personally take you into custody. There’s plenty they can charge you with, regardless of whether I live or die. So you’d better watch yourself.”

“The pony is prepared. I like it. Release her.”

Daring Do heard the top of the bag being untied, and was summarily dumped on the floor, her briefcases landing on top of her. Pushing one of them off her nose, she stood and quickly judged her surroundings. A cave lit only by two fires. A large stone chair. Grotesque hounds in a large circle around her. A stench even worse than the rest of the sewers.

A wizened, nearly hairless mutt stepped forward. “I am Old Scruff, master of the Warpaws, and your host for this evening’s dinner party.” Behind a small pair of round spectacles, his beady green eyes almost twinkled. “You must have some heck of a reason to go to all this trouble of getting captured. Care to enlighten me?”

“All I need is a little help. In return, I offer these.”

She unlatched the briefcases and opened them with a flourish. Inside, hundreds of rare gemstones sparkled, refracting the firelight into glimmering rainbows.

Old Scruff ran a paw through the stash, letting gems rain down between his fingers. “You certainly know how to get my attention. What ‘help’ could a old hound like me give someone like you?”

“As I’m sure you’re aware, the Iron Wings are trying to force their way into King Leonidas’ trove. It’s my duty to put that treasure where it belongs: a museum. But, I can’t get past their soldiers at the main entrance. There’s only one way I can get to the prize first. I have to go around them.”

The master looked quizzical. “How?”

“Simple. You and your friends are miners, correct?”

His chest swelled with pride. “The best and the fastest in the world.”

“Right. I need you to dig me a way into that cave, immediately.”

Old Scruff pondered this. “So, what’s to stop me from just taking these gems for myself, and letting you dig your own blasted tunnel?”

“These are just a down payment.” Daring Do smiled. “There’s a dozen times as much waiting for you, all yours if you help me.”

He was quite literally salivating over the prospect.

“But it’s not just that,” Daring Do continued. “As I understand it, the Iron Wings are your enemies. Wouldn’t it be just great if they got to the end of their search to find that the treasure was already gone?”

The old dog grinned toothlessly. “You’ve got a point there.” He rubbed his paws together in delight.

He seemed a little bit too eager, actually. Daring Do shot him down. “Don’t even think about taking the bounty for yourself. If my math is right, the tunnel should take me to somewhere in the middle of the cave. It’s filled with traps that only a seasoned professional - like myself - could keep from setting off. Unless you want to become mincemeat, you’ll leave the treasure hunting to me.”

His gaze darkened. “You drive a hard bargain, pony.” He reached out a gnarled paw for a shake. “But one that I simply can’t refuse.”

* * *

After giving precise instructions on where and how the tunnel was to be excavated, Daring Do rushed back up the surface. There was one more piece of the puzzle that she had to fit into place. Back in her hotel room, she dialed the royal palace in Canterlot. Soon, the operator connected her to her target.

“Hello? Yes, it’s Daring Do. Remember that favor you owe me? Well. It’s time.”

Comments

[TheCyberneticAlicorn]

Very nice, as a fan of the Diamond dogs from the show, i appreciate the use of their species. And of course Daring Do is always awesome

[TheRainbowDash]

This just keeps getting better and better. Well done chapter again. (Chapter Rating: 10/10)

[neilthenerd]

673815 Just wait till you see who she asked to come help her ... I can't wait to get into the character dynamics.

[neilthenerd]

674201 Thanks! It makes me happy that you guys like it so much.

[SkyWalker]

Daring Corleone makes offers you can't refuse

[neilthenerd]

675288 You caught the reference!

I was hoping that somepony would get it.

It just seemed fitting to make the mob boss have to accept an "offer he can't refuse."

[SkyWalker]

675539 first thing I thought of when I read that

[neilthenerd]

675873

[InarJollyhound]

Hmmm I wonder who Daring owes a favor too.
(Inar lines up the suspects only to hear them all blame Tom)

[Final_Scratch]

You write one fanfic and it's already more popular than anything I've done. Damn it Neil. *Flips Table*

Seriously though, good job. It's well written and has an interesting concept. Well freaking done.

[boardgamebrony]

I'm liking this story! It's pretty quick, though. I'd like to see you take your time with the scenes. Savor them. Make the interactions less like fast food and more like fine cuisine. They're fun, but the more I care about the characters, the more I'll invest in them. It's moving a bit too fast right now, in my opinion. But the setup is good and the possibilities are exciting!

[ironkid1234]

great story please update

[Novel Lots]

It's great. I can't wait for the next chapters