Wind Temple's Lift
Gently swaying to the movement of her sleep, Daring Do began to wake up for another day in the jungle. Though she wasn't committed to the idea; the sun, the birds, and even her stomach was nagging her to get up and moving.
She started rocking and pinned a hoof to the floor. Daring dragged the rest of her body off the comfy hammock she slept in, it wasn't often that she could sleep in a giant leaf.
The groggy mare paced herself forward before she began to stretch out her muscles through a series of aerobics, hearing the cracking of her joints as she did.
"Eh he hee."
Although, that wasn't the only thing she heard.
Daring twisted her joints and saw that a pink beret wearing chimpanzee stroking her ponytail with a hairbrush was approaching her, "Hey Dixie. Looks like you're an early bird too. The boys asleep?"
The kong nodded.
"Well that just means we get first call on the food around here." Viewing the surrounding area, the girls searched for anything edible. There were plenty to choose from, but none of them seemed appealing enough to eat. Daring scanned over the green jungle, getting hungrier by the minute, and eventually saw a hint of red up in the trees. She squinted her eyes to see that it was a fruit she hasn't seen since she was just a little filly. "A Heart Fruit!"
The two girls stared at the high hanging fruit from the jungle floor. Three hundred, four hundred feet perhaps; it would be quite a test for the two of them. "I'll race you for it." Daring challenged the chimp with a flap of her wings, "I'll even give you a head start."
Dixie spun on a foot and started to climb up a tree. It was steady pacing, but the chimp was making decent progress by using her arms to hook around a branch and her legs to push her up.
The mare noted how high she has gotten and close she was to the fruit, "Now should be a go-"
*CRICK*
A branch that Dixie landed on suddenly broke and she began falling to the ground.
Daring acted with haste and positioned herself to catch the kong. "DON'T WORRY! I GOTCHA! I....got.....cha...." Her voice trailed off at the baffling sight.
Dixie was gently floating down through the air. She was spinning, using her body as a center point and her hair as a propeller.
"She's like a helicopter seed falling to the ground." The pony couldn't believe, "How is she able to do that?"
The kong continued her descent and landed softly on the mare's back, barely feeling any weight to the landing.
"You guys never cease to surprise me," she said in astonishment at how chimp defied the air; which made her consider something, "Say, how about you show me where I can find the wind temple."
Dixie jumped off her back, giving a straight face at the pony.
"C'mon, you gotta know what wind is." She whistled while moving her hooves to imply the sound of the breeze.
The chimp brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, thinking of such a place.
"Things like this," said the pegasus and flapped her wings to send a gust at the kong, expressing the feeling it left.
".........EH!" she spoke up, nodding at a place that could fit the description.
"You know of one!" Her wings spread out wide at the excitement, "Could you show me?"
"Eh eh hee he." Dixie pointed up.
The mare looked up and saw that the heart fruit was still hanging in the tree. "Right," spoke an embarrassed Daring, forgetting the calls of her stomach at the excitement, "after breakfast."
Treating it like a cushion, Dixie rode on Daring Do's backpack as they soar through the air; pointing the pegasus towards the next temple. Over the trees they flew, easily avoiding any obstacle, until they halted at a limestone cliff. The edge was covered with ferns draping down for any adventurer to climb up the cliff with. Flying up the precipice, the girls reached the top in a matter of minutes to discover a large flat summit. It was barren of trees, but not of ferns; even some orchids were growing as well.
Dixie jumped off and scampered across the summit; allowing time for Daring to admire the scenery. The breeze of the wind ruffled her fur and swayed the sunbathing flowers to the morning light.
"Eeeh eeh he." the kong called the pony over.
Approaching the chimp, Daring saw the kong pointing towards a giant hole that hummed a low key sound. She felt a strong wind hitting her the moment she tried to look inside, revealing a deep pit cavern. It looked kind of unnatural to her, like it was dug out by somecreature; not of recent at least, judging by the growing moss around the hole's walls
The mare looked confused, "So the temple is down here?"
Dixie nodded while she blew a pink bubble.
*POP*
"Weird. For a temple dedicated to wind, I was expecting for a more wide and open ar- Wait! Where did you get gum?"
Dixie stuck a hand into her beret pulled out a pack containing several sticks of the chewy substance.
"That's not what I..." the golden pegasus sighed, "nevermind. Let's go."
With the chimp jumping onto her back and a hop of her own, Daring dove into the wind tunnel as if it was water.
Being the pegasus that she was, handling harsh winds was hardly considered a challenge for her. She lined herself up with the gale, making as much wind resistance as possible; the only main resistant that held them back were her mane, tail, and Dixie's hair. The kong clenched tighter on Daring's backpack while the pony kept a hoof on her rattling helmet. The light behind them was fading, but a green tone was glowing further ahead for them as a guide. The focal point soon became a broad vision when Daring entered a solutional cavern that was formed naturally by the dissolving of minerals.
Swooping in, the pegasus landed on the rigid floor of a green lit room. Behind them, the wind continued from a second wind tunnel in the ground; but Dixie jumped off Daring's back and pulled her in the opposite direction by the mare's foreleg.
Daring was stumbling at keeping an even pace with the chimp; but that didn't stop her from noticing the light sources of the room, brightly tinted lime illuminating quartz crystals.
Batches of the shining minerals were everywhere; the walls, the ceiling, all shining a faint glow from their planted spots. The pony slipped out of the kong's grip when a comparison came to mind, "The way they stick out around here kinda makes them look like plants ready to be mined out. ............that might not be a bad idea." she said with an optimistic tone in her voice.
Finding a decent one that seemed breakable, she spun around and gave the mineral a mighty kick; causing two decent sized pieces to crack off. Daring scooped them up with her wing to analyze the long narrow crystals, "These could be used as torches if I'm ever short on a light source."
"Eeh eeeh he." Daring stuffed them into her backpack and headed over to Dixie's call.
When she arrived, she was greeted by a kong pointing to a unique scene, a scene that could best be described as an underground Japonies garden. It was a compact area that didn't have trees or bushes, but had moss growing on the wall around them. A walkway leading them across the room, passing a tiny pond on their left and an unlit Granodiorite stone lantern on the right. The path led towards two kremling statues, each holding up a spear; having them cross one another over the passage that led to a series of stairs leading down deeper into the shrine. They could hear the howling wind echo throughout the cavern in a harmonic tone as they walked closer and under a stone archway that loomed over the path. Daring laid her hoof on a column that held up the arch and let it skim across while she gazed about the room. The mare could smell the fresh scent of floral from the moss and felt the smooth flat surface pillar in her hoof. She suddenly felt some engravings on the column that felt like a pattern to her; and upon inspecting, it was an inscription.
Wind, the experience of life.
Many paths are to be unravel, but the breeze calls only one to travel.
What lies ahead holds nothing but mystery, gaining knowledge over the course of your history.
Be wary of the brother you choose, for your journey you could quickly lose.
The pony tapped her hoof, "The 'brother' part is an obvious reference to the wind gods, Zephos and Cyclos. While one was more friendly and helped to push you along, the other was constantly pushing you back and caused nothing but mischief. They often confront each other and start to form swirling tornadoes to express their rivalry; but just like brothers, they forgive each other and overcome their differences by working together."
Daring paused for a moment, considering something that she wasn't quite used to. ".........say," she rubbed the back of her neck, uncertain if she should even be asking this question, ".....would you.......like.......to come along?"
"I would love that, Miss Do."
Her senses heighten by the unsuspecting response. She didn't have time to react when she felt something grab her tail and whipped her backwards. Daring bounced on the floor and the moment she planted a forehoof to push her up, a gray furred paw pinned it down while an orange black-striped paw got the other. All of this happened so fast, she never saw it coming; and from the growling and hissing that she heard from them, it became all to clear that these natural predators were felines.
"But I think you should stay here."
Her attention focused on the voice that caught her off guard. She saw a persian blue creature with gold accessories such as bracelets, a necklace, and even an ear ring on him. She exchanged glares with black pupils on the olive colored eyes of the elongated dog-like face before her. His arms pushed him higher than his legs did, giving him a strong posture for his presence. And scanning down his back, a long tail curled around a struggling Dixie; muffled by a hand at the end of the creature's tail
"Ahuizotl." Daring spoke with distaste.
He was a face that was never welcomed to be seen. Always seen with his feline followers, he's caused nothing but trouble for Daring Do by putting her in tight situations and life threatening moments. Despite the blunders he's used to, his ferocious wrath is the major thing she always had to be concerned about; for it was both his strongest asset and his greatest weakness.
"Why are you here?"
"You and I know the answer to that, Miss Do. No matter how far you run, no matter how well you hide, I WILL have my revenge."
"Are you still mad about that incident at Avalon Island?"
He snorted, "I could've had any wish granted, but YOU, you had to wish it out of existence."
"You were going to wish for an era of darkness!"
"THE POWER STONE SHOULD'VE BEEN MINE!!!" he gritted his fangs at her, grinding them at the thought of losing such a wish granting artifact. "So I've hunted you down to this island to claim vengeance. Once I found your wanted posters all over port, I knew you had to be hiding somewhere in the jungle; the only place where you wouldn't have to worry about being caught. Spotting a gold pegasus and pink clothed monkey amongst the light blue sky was an easy enough target to follow." Ahuizotl told all this while he swung Dixie around by the hair like a chain connected to a pocket watch.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!"
"And you were able to climb up a mountain in a matter of minutes." she said, sounding very doubtful of the authenticity of the tale.
"Have you met my servants? They're cats, they've been known to be good climbers." Ahuizotl tossed a dizzy chimp at Daring and showed the fist at the end of his tail. "It also doesn't hurt to have an extra hand."
He looked over to his followers, "Chain them up."
With swift efforts and implied threats of claw scratches, the girls were wrapped tightly around one of the columns by steel links. They sat on opposite sides from each other with Dixie kicking her feet and Daring shuffling, trying to adjust to the contents in her backpack laying along her spine. The mare looked at the lock that bound them, then viewed the Aztec beast; currently reading the description on the pillar.
"So what are you plotting this time?" nagged the pony.
"This time?" Ahuizotl asked, "This time I'm planning to rid of you once and for all."
"You always say that, but it always fails. What makes you think it'll work this time."
"Because, Daring Do, I..." he paused in mid-thought, looking surprised at his own words. The fiend glared at the mare for unexplained reasons.
"......what?" Daring tried aggravating him further, "Can't think up an excuse? Or is one of your subordinates holding your tongue?" She was always good at getting Ahuizotl to go into a banter of rageful hatred, however...
"..........Mitsy, watch them. The rest of you, come!"
An eyebrow raised on Daring's face as Ahuizotl went into the temple with his cats. She watched each of them pass by; the tiger, the cheetah, the lynx, and the panther, leaving the white fluffy house cat, Mitsy, alone with the two adventurers.
But the appearance of one more cat passing by caught the mare's attention. It seemed normal at first with the whiskers, claws and even having a big black nose; but unlike the rest of the other felines, this one was walking on two legs. Not only that, it was also blue; but the greatest astonishment about this cat, was that it had seven tails.
"That cat...." Daring thought as she followed the strange mammal with her gaze. The cat noticed the attention it was getting and slowed down to stare at the golden pegasus with a confused look. It scratched the back of it's head, sending bits of its fur flying.
"Come, Nina!" Ahuizotl commanded, to which the cat followed posthaste and continued with the others into the temple.
"That cat wasn't part of his gang before."
Minutes past for the two chained adventurers, minding their time their own way. Dixie was shaking all about; pulling, pushing, and screeching for freedom. Daring Do on the other hand was analyzing the situation and was more preoccupied with a puzzling matter.
"Ahuizotl seemed a bit odd in our conversation. As long as I've known him, he's always been the gloatful type. Laughing at his victories, proclaiming his plans out loud; and yet.... he was avoiding them. He might be trying to learn from his mistakes, but it also seems a bit clumsy as well. In fact, he usually puts me in a deathtrap after he catches me. But this..."
The pegasus looked over at the fluffy cat, hearing subtle growls coming from her.
Daring already had a plan for escaping the chains that binds her and Dixie, but it would take a decent amount of effort to get it done. It would take a minute or two to execute it successfully, and with Mitsy watching so intensely, it would require a distraction. She darted her eyes at the chimp, assuming that her struggling might be the cause of the cat's tension.
"Dixie, relax." The mare whispered to the kong, "When you're dealing with bozos like these, you have to keep a certain atmosphere about yourself. Act tough, yet also in control; kinda like a poker game. It gets on their nerves and they'll lose their cool if we make it seem like we have something over them. We'll just be showing how helpless we are if we keep struggling or start screeching like a.... well...... like a chimpanzee."
Dixie gave a huff and settled down pouting; chewing on her gum with utter frustration.
Daring's eyes glazed over to Mitsy, who started to groom herself. She watched the feline, noting that she kept looking over at them every few seconds. The pegasus groaned, "That committed fuzzball. With her peering over here so much, she'll undoubtedly see us trying to escape. We need something for her to focus on instead."
*POP*
The sound of Dixie chewing on her gum kept making Daring's ear twitch. To the pony, the sound of the sticky gum felt like it was deafening everything around her. Yet she kept pondering for a distraction while she watched Mitsy clean her bountiful fluffy fur.
"..............." A mischievous grin crept onto her face at the devilish idea. "Okay Dixie," she turned her head to hide her mouth from the cat, "I got a plan..."
The kong listened with periodic nods at what she was told.
"....then we'll chase after Ahuizotl. Got it?"
"Eh he."
"Okay." Daring cleared her throat for her first move, ".....................EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKK! A MOUSE!"
The outburst piqued Mitsy's interest.
"Getitgetitgetitgetit!!!" Daring said, kicking the floor and wiggled about.
Mitsy jerked her head for the little rodent.
"Not there." Daring tilted her head, "There!"
The cat stood up, scanning the area that the pony pointed to.
"Did you see? It went behind that crystal."
Mitsy scurried towards the shiny mineral.
"No, you just missed it. It headed to the pond."
She hurdled to the body of water.
"What are you doing!? It ran right past ya!!!"
She skidded and ran back.
"AH! ITβS COMING THIS WAY!!!!"
The cat charged towards the enchained girls and began circling them.
*phoop*
Mitsy twerked her head around in search for the non-existing mouse that Daring led her to believe.
"It must've gotten away." the mare stated.
With a low growl, the cat returned back to her spot and got back to her grooming.
Daring and Dixie share a glance at each other, knowing what's about to happen.
As Mitsy continued with her licking, her nose bopped into something sticky. It was a pink something that looked wet and chewed up. She leaned back, uncertain on this foreign invader... a wad of chewing gum.
The cat tried to shake off this cohesive object, but it was stuck to the many hairs of her fur. She kept pawing at it, yet her efforts only made it worse as it got her paw sticky as well and wouldn't let her go.
Mitsy went into a frenzy at trying to remove the gum, "She's distracted, now's the time to act." Daring took a deep breath, pressed up against her backpack, and began to wiggle about. She sank lower to the ground as the leather fabric of the pack rolled her along. Lifting her chin, her head shimmied under the chains and before she knew it, she was free again.
With the sudden absence of the pony, the chains became much looser and Dixie had no trouble slipping right out.
"Come on," Daring issued, "we gotta catch up!" With Ahuizotl already having a head start, the pony-kong duo charged into the temple, leaving Mitsy stuck to the cavern walls in gum. Daring was determined to catch up to the blue lowlife and getting the next key before he does. But when she skidded into the first room, she realized that it would be more troublesome than she thought.
The two adventurers found themselves in a decently large room that held a giant illuminating crystal in the center. Along the walls, thirty-two hallways were ready to be taken for any who dared to venture in. The two girls spun around looking at where they should go, hearing the sound of the wind echoing the chamber.
"So many paths," Daring spoke with unclarity. She looked over to Dixie, "Which way should we go?"
The chimp began pointing at each passage, "Eehe eehe hehee he..."
"No no, we can't just guess this." The mare tapped her forehead.
Dixie in the meantime got out another stick of gum, tossing the wrapper aside.
"...........'many paths'.....'but the breeze calls only one to travel'.........I believe that is what the inscription said. So let's go to where we can hear the wind is coming from."
Staying silent, the girls honed their hearing.
"...................I'm having some trouble pinpointing it." Daring informed to which Dixie nodded in agreement. The sound of wind vibrating within the room's wall was causing nothing but trouble at locating the source. Daring rotated her ears and settled on one specific hallway, "There. That's where the wind is coming from." Without so much as a second thought, Dixie marched towards the hall that the mare suggested. Despite Daring having some doubt in her choice, she followed the adventurous chimp.
The sound of the wind was echoing through the corridor, getting louder with each step the girls took. However, the mare and kong were too absorbed at the sight of the hall they traversed through. It was covered in Granodiorite, just like the entrance, but the illuminating crystals could be found here embedded in the walls. They looked like flakes ranging from small to large, all glowing a hint of green within the darken passage for them to see. It felt as if they were traveling across a sea of stars.
Daring admired the architect, "The Kremlings certainly know how to make things look..."
"Eh hee?"
"I was thinking more of... 'mystical', actually."
The girls arrived at a split in the halls. The path they were on was merging towards a hallway blocked off by pillars, appearing as if they were bars to a jail-cell. They peeked around the corner to the other path, and at that very moment, their heads were suddenly fighting the wind current that blew at them down a long hall.
Daring and Dix pulled back, "Looks like we'll have to push against the wind in order to continue. Are you up for it?"
The chimp popped another bubble and got low to the ground on all fours; starting to crawl across the floor into the gale.
Daring followed fashion and used her wing help to form as little resistance as possible. Her helmet rattled while she pursued forward, determined to get through this as the wind grazed across her feathers. She pushed herself one leg at a time, keeping her other three firmly planted to the floor. The wind was a challenge, but she was making decent progress.
Dixie however, was struggling. Her ponytail was whipping about, she placed pressure on her hand and feet, but she was starting to slide back.
"Heee........he..........HEEEEEE!!!" the kong cried as she was tumbling backwards.
The grip of the wind slammed her into Daring and rolled her around the mare. The kong grabbed onto the pony's hind leg for support. Daring felt each action of the chimp's, sliding her back some at the sudden added weight. The pony got her bearings again and marched forward with little trouble added. Dixie used the pegasus as a shield against the wind and was able to walk a lot more easily now behind her.
The wind was getting rougher the farther they went down the wind tunnel. Daring squinted her eyes up ahead; she saw another barred hallway, and another split path that was available.
They were almost there and pressed onward. The girls pushed, pulled, and struggled to move forward. The wind was getting stronger, but when they finally reached the open passage at the split, they felt a heavy weight lifted off from them.
Daring tossed her mane, "There, made it through in one piece."
The chimp looked unamused at the mare with her hair a complete mess.
The girls continued down the hall with Dixie riding on Daring's back, stroking her ponytail with her fingers to get it back in order.
"Those were some pretty tough winds," the mare tried to make small talk with the kong. "You were practically plucked off the ground."
"Eeh he hehe heeh."
"Well you are pretty light," the pony noted on her passenger's weight, ".....actually, that would also explain how you were able to slow your fall by using your hair earlier. I wouldn't have ever guessed."
"Eh eh he hee?" Dixie flapped her arms and acted out gliding.
"Well... yeah, I can glide through the air in a slow and calm pace too, but I really rely on using both my wings to keep balance. You're light enough that you only need one airfoil, your hair. Pegasi, on the other hoof, are a bit too heavy to stay in the air with just one; that's why we have a second airfoil to balance things out." She opened her wings to get her point across better. "I need at least two wings, otherwise I'll sink like... a....... what!?"
They entered another room with a confused look on their face. They were in a circular dome room with a crystal in the center and had 32 hallway passages; it was the exact same room they started in.
Daring looked around at the familiar setting, "We couldn't have gone in a circle." She suddenly felt something crinkly push her underhoof, lifting the limb up revealed a crumpled wrapper to a gum pack. "We did go in a circle! I could've sworn that was the right one." Tapping her chin, the golden mare tried again to listen for the wind. The sound seemed to be resonating even more than last time, adding to her frustration. ".....arg, I don't know." The adventurous pony saw Dixie staring at her with patience, "How about you? Do you know where we should go?"
The chimp looked amongst the doors and wrapped a lock of hair around a finger. "Eh heeeeeeeeeeeee........ eh heh!" she pointed a finger at one of the tunnels.
"That one?" Daring confirmed with a shrug afterwards. "What do we have to lose?" They continued their journey down the hall next to each other. "So out of the three of you kongs," Daring said to break the silence, "I take it that you're the more sensible one of the group"
"Eh eehe." Dixie said, sounding exasperated. "Eh heehe eh eh hee, hehe heh, 'Oh ho hoo oh.' eh hee he heh, 'Ha ha aaahah.' eh hee eh, 'Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeh hehe.'"
The mare couldn't make out one word from that statement. However, "They do seem like a bit of a hoofful, we might as well consider ourselves as babysitters for those two." Daring had no problem understanding. The tone in her voice, the impersonations of the guys, the length of how long she stayed on a word. She was subconsciously picking up on these antics and expressions.
"Boys." the mare snorted.
"Eh he, heeh." the chimp agreed.
*GIIIRR*
The girls froze the moment they heard a sound that sounded like the grinding of stones. Suddenly, a bronze blade swooped down from the ceiling towards them.
The two girls distanced themselves from each other as the blade slashed right between the two of them. Daring laid flat on the wall, holding in her breath as it passed mere inches from her.
The weapon went back into the ceiling's opening on the other side, making another grinding sound as the gap closed.
The girls relaxed with a mighty sigh in unison. Daring peered at the condition of the chimp, she was laying flat on the wall not much different from her own posture. "Is she mimicking me," she pondered, "or do we think a lot alike?" The mare leaned back on that thought.
*GIIIRR*
The sound of gravel scraping against itself surprised her again, but instead of avoiding a blade, she suddenly felt herself sliding backwards. Daring flapped her legs from the surprise in the sudden shift but ultimately fell to the ground.
The chimp hopped over to the mare as she got up, understanding that the grinding of the sound was in fact the wall rotating. She patted herself down while viewing the new hallway she stumbled onto. "A secret passage?" the pony was astounded by the discovery, "I don't come across these very often in temples."
"Ehhe?"
"Yeah, temples tend to want to test your prowess and wouldn't open up paths for you so easily. ....however.... it does seem to follow the theme of this temple."
"Eh?"
"The experience of life," Daring viewed the hidden path while recalling the inscription, "this could be considered a shortcut for us....."
The mare's silence concerned the kong. She waved a hand in her face and eventually broke her out the trance with a tiny spook.
*POP*
Daring snapped her gaze at Dixie, watching her curl her bubble gum back into her mouth. The pony shook her head, "We shouldn't take it unless we know for curtain it can be trusted. For all we know, it could lead us into some even deadlier traps." "Let's get back to the hall we were taking."
Dixie didn't seem to mind and continued to scamper back to the other corridor.
"We may be risking an opportunity here, but this information of there being secret passages in this place could be useful later."
"Oh, come on!" Daring cried out at finding themselves in the same room as they were before a third time.
Daring sat on the hard stone floor and planted her hooves over her eyes. She rubbed them from the distasteful sight of the room. The pony swept her hooves across her face; growling in pure frustration as she ruffled her mane. She settled them over her ears, deafening the obnoxious wind that reverberated around them. "It's practically yelling at us to follow it," she laid out the situation to the kong, "but we'll be running in circles at this pace."
Dixie sat from across the mare, brushing strands of hair behind her ear.
"Okay, let's review. The inscription said, 'the breeze calls only one to travel, right?"
"Hee eh."
"Right. Which leads us to assume that we need to follow the sound of the wind in order to progress, right?"
"Hee eh."
"Right. But when we take those paths, we return back here with no progress whatsoever, right?"
"Hee eh."
"Right. So..... what are we not seeing here? What are we doing wrong?" Daring tapped her forehead for an answer, "If we don't think this through, it could mean certain doom. I mean the last one nearly sliced off our pony tails."
"Eeeh he he hee eh?" Dix pointed a thumb behind herself.
"Same word, different examples. One is my tail and the other is your hai......." Daring noticed something that struck her out of the argument. Her eyes were completely transfixed on the chimp before her.
Dixie tilted her head, causing a couple strands of hair to slide off her ear and gently flow to the breeze. The mare looked at the many halls to choose from, all of them have the sound of wind calling them closer; but the strands of hairs are only flowing towards one direction.
"..........many paths.............but the breeze calls only one to travel!!!" it became all clear to her.
"The sound of the wind isn't what we should be focused on," Daring bit a feather from her wing and winced as she plucked it. She spat it out and watched it gently fly, "It's the flow of the breeze!"
The girls watched the feather dance through the air as it bopped its way across the room and followed it into one of the hallways. It started as a calm stroll at first, then the wind started to pick up. The mare and kong began jogging to catch up, hearing the sound of the breeze getting louder. They turn it into a sprint as the feather begins to violently shake about in the air. They ran all out at it, paying no attention to what was around them until they suddenly had to support themselves to the corners of a room entrance.
They've walked into a wide, tall chamber covered in thick moss everywhere. There were plenty of halls on the surface as well as tunnels up along the walls that entered this place. Nothing much could be stated about the place thanks to the main attraction that drew in the most attention, as well as everything around it. In the center of the room, grabbing everything it could get a hold of, was a raging tornado.
The girls tightened their gaze at the vortex. Dirt was helping to give it a form, but the contents of what it held was unclear. There were crumbled columns, jagged boulders, and the one thing they did not expect; cats.
Daring shook her head, "Ahuizotl, you blunderhead. Don't tell me you activated a magic trap on yourself."
They watched the cheetah of the group kicking and pawing through the air as if it was trying to run, viewed the panther scratching at whatever it could latch onto, and saw the lynx stretch its forelegs out to its side as if it was trying to glide.
"Though I wouldn't put it past any of your lackeys."
At that moment, the sight of Ahuizotl flying by came into view; spinning about as he tried to grab anything that was grounded with his right hand. His left however, had something that caught the mare's attention. A fang-shaped emerald emitting a bright shamrock glow, was in the grip of the Aztec beast.
"THERE!" Daring yelled to the kong over the howling wind, "THAT'S WHAT WE'RE AFTER." She slid her pith helmet into her backpack, and just as she was about to request Dixie to get on her back, she saw that the chimp was putting pressure on the ground with her arms.
The twister was trying to pull the kong in.
"She'd only be fighting to stay on me if she hitched a ride," Daring considered. "STAY HERE. I'LL BE BACK TO GET YA." Daring yelled before she flew into the rotating column of air.
A tornado can be perilous for anycreature to fly through, including a pegasus, and Daring was no exception. Her ears were flapping as she made quick glances at the Aztec beast before returning at what she was flying at. Pushing aside an airborne statue head, scampering up a floating column, and accidentally got spotted by the panther of Ahuizotl's group. The wind silenced the feline's battle cry, yet she still paid close attention to the giant cat and swiftly avoided their claws.
After the near hit, Daring shot her head up ahead and saw a giant boulder that she was about to collide with. Her body quickly took over her mind and she placed a hoof on the rigid surface to fall into a roll. Daring spun along the rock and suddenly felt herself get entangled in something. She glanced at the blue furry ropes that held her and struggled to get loose, but she couldn't break free, not until the ropes suddenly whipped her out.
The pegasus got her bearings and noticed herself covered in blue fur. She looked back and saw the tangled ropes were in fact the tails to that bizarre looking blue cat from earlier. The cat was clinging on the boulder desperately within the tornado. Daring noticed the swift scratches it made, causing some fur to shed. The pony's eyes widened and looked at the blue fur that covered her body.
"ππβπ!!!"
She shook her body, but the shed fur wouldn't come off. It was a little irritating, but more important things need to be attended to.
Daring turned her attentions back up ahead towards Ahuizotl and flew in his direction. His backside was facing her and he's kicking the air to try and swim his way out of the tornado by grabbing a small cliff approaching on the right. With his left hand holding the jewel, he extended his arm but couldn't reach the rock formation; so he got ready for when it came around again.
The pegasus seized the opportunity and she approached his blind side on the left. Ahuizotl extended out his right arm, giving it another attempt at grabbing the small cliff that was approaching. With his attention only on the edge, he stretched as far as he could... but just missed it. He watched it pass by and then spotted Daring Do at the corner of his eye.
Ahuizotl growled, baring his fangs at the mare and she pulled herself back as he swung his elbow at her. With her presence known, the Aztec beast moved the gem to the hand on his tail and spread out his arms to guard Daring from taking it. She flew ahead of the wind and in front of Ahuizotl. Daring charged as he pulled back a right fist. She quickly expanded her wings to catch the wind, pulling her back from the beast's punch. Closing her wings, she drove a hoof into Ahuizotl's face. Daring lept for the shamrock glowing key, but Ahuizotl grabbed her tail and whipped her away.
It was clear that the air was her home field advantage, but with his brute strength being used defensively, it was something that Daring was going to have trouble with.
Back on the ground, Dixie was bopping about as she watched the fight above. She was getting excited, exaggerating with punches as if she was there helping and coaching Daring on. "Eh eeeh, eh he heee, eeh heee eeeh."
"SNAAAARRRLL!!!"
The voice alarmed the kong of imminent threat. She twirled around, witnessing an unexpecting sight. Digging their claws into the thick moss on the walls, Ahuizotl's cats were climbing their way across the plant. They snarled and growled at the chimp as they crawled to the frame of the hall.
Dixie backed up from the felines when they reached the floor. The five cats threatened her with hisses while they slowly approached. She kept an eye on all of them while she steadily distanced herself.
And then she felt something pulling her ponytail.
Her feet were sliding on the ground and she felt her entire body pulling herself back. She was lifted off the ground when and began screeching as she was being pulled into the powerful grip of the tornado.
Daring was having trouble no matter how she tried to attack. Upwind, downwind, overhead, under-head; no matter how she tried to swoop in, Ahuizotl always twisted his body to face the pegasus. It didn't help that she also had to watch out for the flying debris; both flying about, or thrown at her.
She barely dodged a clay pot cast by the Aztec creature. Daring peered over her shoulder at him, considering how to outsmart him, when her eyes caught onto something pink. It was Dixie, spinning helplessly like the victim to the twister that she was. The kong waved her arms at the pony for help, her cries were too deafened by the sound of the wind.
The mare darted her eyes to the villain holding the key in his tail that floated between them, then back at the chimp. "....time to see how much we think alike."
Daring jerked her head while she turned towards Ahuizotl, hoping it would translate to Dixie, and dove at the blue beast. He pulled back a right and extended out his left arm to block her. He kept his pose, anticipating the same trick as before; but instead, she continued and pushed him by kicking off his guarding arm. It didn't faze him, it didn't even hurt him, it just pushed him. Daring pulled back, causing Ahuizotl to lower his defense to the bizarre tactic.
He suddenly felt a tug at his tail and saw a chimp flying over him holding a jewel fang. He looked over at his tail and saw that it was missing the emerald key.
Dixie wagged the crystal at him, "Eh hee." thanking him for the shiny stone as she was caught by Daring.
The girls flew off, leaving a roaring Ahuizotl to grab on a cliff on the wall.
With Dixie holding on tight on the pony's back, Daring flew towards the hall they came from. She slows to a halt at the presence of Ahuizotl's cats blocking the path. The mare looked at all the other tunnels to choose and dashed down one of them.
Dixie brushed the shedded blue fur off the pony's backpack before placing the fang inside, while Daring focused only on getting out. The sound of her hoofstep echoed through the passage.
"SEIZE THEM!!!!" she could hear Ahuizotl yell in a thundering tone. A pounding of paws was heard behind them and a four way path was coming up ahead. Daring took the right one without a second thought. Her main objective now was to shake these guys off her trail.
The path turned and curled and another split was up ahead. This time she took the left path and slid to a halt when she saw the tiger of the group sprinting in her direction. He belted at the moment their eyes met and lept at her for a pounce. Daring inadvertently kicked backwards and avoided being flattened by the large cat, but she felt little hands climb on top of her head and saw Dixie leaping forward to stomp on the tiger's head. The pegasus flew over the feline with the kong grabbing her tail as she did to climb her way onto the pony's back again.
Daring continued down the hall and heard the tiger roaring for reinforcement. She saw another split up ahead, but that cry for assistance was enough to gain the attention of three faces to peek around the corner up ahead; the seven-tails, panther, and Ahuizotl.
The mare skimmed on the floor as they walked towards her. The sounds of mewing were heard behind them and a quick glance showed that the cheetah, lynx, and tiger. Surrounded on both sides, she was scrambling on what to do. Daring wound herself up as she stared at the fiends ahead, and Dixie spun on the mare's back to face the ones that were behind her. They didn't have the faintest clue on how to escape this one unscathed. Daring saw the seven-tails scratching their fur again, reminding her of the shedded blue fur on herself.
The pony whipped her foreleg to shake off some of it from the irritation it was giving her.
Ahuizotl chuckled at his assured victory, "Make this easy on all of us, Daring Do."
The mare tightened her muscles, feeling the sweat-drops slide down her face at this inescapable plight.
"Give us the jewel."
She glared at him, suddenly seeing a small blue hair that she shook off gently floating past her gaze.
"Do it quick."
She watched it fly on the breeze of the wind and squeezed its way through the cracks on the wall to her right.
"And I might not have to scar that cutie mark of yours."
She swerved her eyes back at him, "................", and then she rammed herself on the right wall to push the rotating surface into another hall.
Daring immediately ran down the new corridor, feeling and hearing the sound of wind from up ahead. Dixie frantically held on as she rode backwards, unprepared for the action the pony took. The kong witnessed Ahuizotl and his cats entering the hall, looking dumbfounded at the girls.
The Aztec beast grunted before making a roar that could rival a lion's and rockets towards them, leaving his subjects in his dust.
"Eh eh." spoke Dixie in a tone that sounded like she said, 'uh oh'. She patted the mare's rear to go faster, but she seemed to be slowing down instead.
Daring was having a fight against the wind up ahead. It was another wind tunnel that blew upwards into a hole in the ceiling a dozen of yards ahead of them, but the wind bouncing around the edge of the roof's hole was keeping her back. Daring began beating her wing to push herself forward, struggling to keep up a constant speed.
Ahuizotl was being hit by the wind as well, but it didn't stop his pursuit. He gripped the floor and was pulling himself closer to them faster than they were getting away.
The mare's tail was flailing in the wind in front of him. Ahuizotl stretched out to grab the strands of her chromatic gray hair, and it slipped right through his fingers as Dixie pulled the pony's tail closer to her.
"Al.....most....." Daring gritted as she started to feel a change in wind pressure, Her forehooves were starting to feel as if they were being pushed up. "HANG ON," Daring yelled at Dixie over the wind and the pony quickly twisted her body to slide around the ceiling edge and into the hole.
The tunnel was smooth sailing for the two of them, excluding a dozen or so jagged crystals hanging around the walls. Daring had no trouble avoiding these minerals, "You doing okay back there?"
"Eeh hee," Dixie said, still holding on tight as she rode backwards, "Eh he heehe eh-EEEEEEEEH!!!!!"
Daring took a quick glance back and saw the thing she was screeching about was slingshotting himself closer to them, Ahuizotl.
The pegasus bolted upwards as the blue villain was getting closer. He nabbed an embedded crystal with his right hand and flung himself further. He latched onto a mineral with his left hand and shot himself higher. He gripped a rock with his tail hand and launched himself farther.
Daring flapped harder and stayed focused on what was ahead. She suddenly saw a green lit solutional cavern pass her by as she went into another tunnel. She knew where she was and began flapping her wings like a hummingbird. The Aztec creature was getting closer, the kong was wobbling about, and the mare could see sunlight up ahead.
Daring explodes out of the tunnel with Dixie, and with Ahuizotl only a second away.
With the sight of freedom, threat, and seizing only moments away, the sense of tachypsychia was felt amongst the three of them. With all of the muscles he could stretch, Ahuizotl extended his arm out to the fullest at Daring's hind leg. He clenched his fist.
And caught her.
The hold she felt suddenly made the mare feel as if her heart jumped up to her throat. Daring could feel herself being dragged down by the extra weight.
Being the only one ignored; Dixie took matters into her hands. She tilted her head back and whipped her hair at the back of Ahuizotl's hand. He flinched at the stinging sensation and lost his hold on the pony; leading him to fall to the ground and allowing the two of them to escape.
The Aztec beast pushed himself up and glared at the girls flying off, "WE'RE NOT FINISHED YET DARING DO!!! I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE YET!!!!!!"
Now that they've escaped, Dixie waved him goodbye, but Daring wasn't paying any attention to his bellows anymore. She was concerned on other issues.
"With Ahuizotl now in the game, things just got more troubling, as now there is two competitions I have to worry about."
She looked back, seeing the glowing key peeking out of her backpack.
"Just what do these keys unlock anyway? If Ahuizotl is after them, then it can't be very good for everypony. And the faster I get whatever he's after, the better off we'll all be."
Daring looked up at the sun, "It's a little but before noon, there's still plenty of time left for today."
She wobbled her jaw back and forth in thought.
"Perhaps a night excavation is in order."
Cranky's Corner
Magic
You wanna be in the big leagues of making stories? Well I got one word for you that many people resort to when they're stuck on what to say, 'magic'. Hardly any thought into believing something is because of that little word. Someone complains, reply with 'magic' and their argument is invalid.
But where's the logic behind that word? Doesn't anyone put any thought behind it? Even magic has some truth behind it, so why not explain how it works from time to time. Like those horns, why does having a horn automatically makes you able to control magic? I mean a horn is basically just a bone, yet it's never explained in the show. Just say that a horn is connected to the core of a pony's being and you're done.
I'm honestly surprised that they never said the word 'Mana' yet. That's what it is right? But I recall that Twilight once said that some wings she made for that glamour pony was made from, 'Gossamer and Morning Dew' . So what, did she do some alchemy along with the spell to make them or what? In fact, I'm sure Hasbro could borrow some inspiration from that one company with the card games, they even have game called 'Magic' they could use to help explain some things.
I often like to think that everything produces magic in that world and can exchange with one another on a molecular level, but that leaves me questioning how that one fella took over Equestria. You know, the centaur with that sell out color scheme of red and black, 'Terry' I think. How can it be stolen? Can't they just produce more magic after a good nap?
As you can see, magic is too confusing for anyone to understand perfectly, but that doesn't mean we can at least try to put some effort into it. Like okay, magic on the fundamental scale is a flow of spiritual energy....that has the.....the ability.....bility to......
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..............
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Typo?
9215371
I swear that this site has some programming issues. Thanks for pointing that out.
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You welcome.