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BookeCypher

Muffin
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About BookeCypher

  • Birthday 1991-05-22

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  • Gender
    Not Telling
  • Location
    Tall Tale
  • Personal Motto
    Sciencia Est Pontentia
  • Interests
    Anime, Science Fiction, Writing, Fantasy, video games.

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Muffin

Muffin (2/23)

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  1. Chapter Two ----- “So, what the hay are you looking for again?” Daring sighed as she turned to face her brother. The light tan pegasus simply stared at his older sister, a short strand of smoke gray mane falling out of place as he adjusted his glasses. Daring let out a sigh - she knew that he wasn’t actually interested in what it was she was looking for. He was more worried on whether or not it was going to put her in the middle of danger again. Daring loved her little brother dearly, but sometimes his worrying could become a little irksome. “The Sapphire Stone” Daring replied before turning back to the bookcase and climbing up a stepladder before stopping near a top shelf and pulling out a worn-looking volume. She grimaced as she climbed back down with the book daintily held in her teeth. Books never did taste very good, but she was unfortunately not a unicorn. She stepped off the step stool and back onto the antique rug of her office. As head of the department of Equinology, Daring had been given a slightly roomier office then some of the other professors at Royal Canterlot University. In her case, she thought it was a little too much. One long stretch of wall was covered with floor to ceiling bookcases. Which, considering that her office had high enough ceilings that she could use it for flight stretches - and, in fact, had one a couple of rainy days - meant that those were some very tall bookcase indeed. The opposite wall was a series of equally massive floor to ceiling windows that looked out onto the university’s main square, where ponies bustled to and from classes and lectures. Some of them chatting with fellow students while others franticly rushed to some building or another, reams of paper billowing out behind them like a contrail. Others simply walked through with their noses buried in books and only occasionally running into another pony or a lamp post. Daring crossed the office toward her desk, backed against a narrower third wall unadorned by windows or bookcases. Instead, the wall was covered in various framed photos and diplomas while a low set of shelves were covered in knickknacks and various reminders of some of Daring’s adventures. Above all of that hung a massive portrait of a very stern looking pony, her hair pulled back into a severe bun as she glowered at the entire room. She was apparently a former librarian at the University, and had once used the office herself. Opposite the desk, at the other end of the office that was an unnecessarily long walk considering it was an office for one pony - though Daring harbored suspicions it was, in fact, a converted library wing from the buildings early days - was the door to her office. In all, it was a grand old room and far too much for Daring’s taste. She did like the rug though. She set the book on the aged wooden desk - another piece that had come with the room - and flipped it open to a page somewhere mid-book. The page showed a sketch, obviously of an older piece of stone work. The sketch shows some sort of temple scene, with half a dozen ponies arrayed around an altar in the center. Sitting on top of the altar was a strange statue of a two-headed Anubis, with what looked like a large cut stone fitted in its center. “Supposedly, it was the centerpiece for worship by one of the Hayan city-states during the pre-classical and classical eras.” Daring explained as she trotted around to the other side of her desk. “Nopony has ever been able to figure out why. All the literature to date has been very vague about it. All we know for sure is that they were worshiping the stone and not the statue.” “Okay,” Darrin said as he studied the illustration. “So, why are you looking for this thing now? If ponies have been searching for it as long as you make it sound they have, what makes you think you can track it down now?” Daring grinned. “Word just came in from a dig site down south. They found some ruins that actually mention the temple itself.” Daring’s eyes lit up. “We’ve had stories, hearsay up until this point - all the stories about the temple have never been confirmed it as real or not, beyond circumstantial evidence that suggested that they were rooted in some level of truth. But this is the first time the temple has actually been tied to an actual location!” Darrin raised an eyebrow. “And where would this be?” “An island off the southern Hayan coast,” Daring replied, “First explored by Sir Far Flung in around 638.” Daring was hopeful about what she might find. If nopony had been to the island in nearly 300 years then chances were good that the temple was still undisturbed. Darring seemed unimpressed. “I take it you have a map of this island?” “Yeah,” Daring replied by reaching around to her saddlebags that were hanging from her chair and pulling out a worn and aged looking roll of paper. “Took me three hours in the Campus library to track this down.” Darrin blinked in surprise as Daring stowed the map away again. “That long? Couldn’t you have got one of the pages to help?” Daring gave a shrug as she started rummaging through her desk, pulling out various tools - brushes, spy glasses, a set of metal tools she used to chip dirt of artifacts, and the like. “The only one on call was Herpy, and with his track record it would have taken us five hours.” Darrin rolled his eyes as Daring started transferring the various items she had collected into her saddlebags. “So you plan on just flying down to this island, waltzing into some temple and grabbing this sapphire thing?” “Not exactly,” Daring said, stepping over to one of the nearby bookcases and pulling out another book and tossing it over to her saddlebags. She grinned as it landed perfectly inside. “I’ll have to stop by the dig site first and take a look at the ruins they found for myself. After that, probably a couple weeks of fly overs as I try to map the island.” “How long do you plan to be gone, exactly?” “Two months, most likely” Daring replied as she checked over her saddlebags “Three at the most.” After a moment, Darrin began to grin. “I am not going to be able to give up on this, am I?” “Not a chance” Daring replied, grinning. “Come on, Darrin. Why are you so worried?” “I’m your brother, I’m supposed to worry.” Darrin said with a shrug. “I just want you to be careful, okay?” “The University requires I follow the Equestrian Treaty for the protection of antiquities.” Daring said as she closed her saddlebags. “I am required, by law, to be careful.” Darrin raised an eye brow. “You mean like that time with the Squid beak clipper?” Daring winced at that. “I thought we agreed to never bring that up again. The Squid Beak Clipper Caper was a complete fluke - There was no way I could have predicted any of that at all.” “And that is exactly my point.” Darrin said as he stepped over to his older sister, resting one hoof on her shoulder. “Every time you go on one of these...adventures, I’m worried you won’t come back.” “Come on, Darrin” Daring tried to reassure her brother with a smile. “What’s the worst that could happen?” “You don’t come back!” Darrin repeated, backing away from his sister as he started to pace slightly. “I know, I know - you do this for a living. But I can’t help but worry.” This time it was Daring who rested a hoof on Darrin’s shoulder. “And I don’t blame you. But you know me - I can’t not do this. It’s part of me.” Darrin glanced briefly at his sister’s compass cutie mark. “Quite literally, as the case may be.” He sighed. “Guess the least I can do is lend you a hand getting ready then.” “Great!” Daring replied. She trotted back over to her desk, waving her hoof at one of the bookcases as she went. “Could you grab my notes on Hayan script? You remember where they are I hope.” “Got it,” Darrin said before making his way over to one of the massive bookcases before pulling a book out at seemingly random. Daring’s personal library was not organized in any known system of archival organization, but he had been around it and Daring long enough to have a good idea of where anything was in the sea of books. He deposited the book onto Daring’s waiting desk before pausing at the book from earlier. It was still flipped open to the page with the illustration, but what had caught Darrin’s attention was the other page. It showed the stone - now separate from the statue - in the middle of what looked like a massive hour glass. Two ribbons of some sort twisted into funnel shapes out of each end while motes of something fell into the stone waiting at the middle. “What is this supposed to be?” Daring paused in her preparations to take a look at the page in question. “Not sure. Part of why I want to find the stone.” “What do you mean?” “Well, we know that they worshiped the stone.” Daring explained. “What we don’t know is why. There are theories, of course. Some suggest that the stone is carved from a fallen meteorite. Others theorize that it’s some sort of power supply. One theory suggests that they used it to talk to their god. But with the lack of information about the stone, nopony has ever been able to get even circumstantial evidence for any sort of theory. The theories are little more than ponies trying to answer why an entire city-state would worship a rock.” “Maybe it was just a really nice rock.” Darrin suggested, which made Daring chuckle. “Maybe - it’s as valid a theory as any others.” Daring said. “But that just means we need more information. And finding this temple - finding this stone - will give us that information. It will tell us something we don’t know right now. One more piece of knowledge recovered from the ravages of time.” “And the fact that it’s some sort of giant jewel has absolutely nothing to do with it?” Darrin asked. “It’s not about fortune or glory, it’s about finding knowledge. Most ponies aren’t that impressed by most things you dig up at an archeology site. It’s just bits of old pottery - A bunch of broken dishes. Ponies wonder how those could be of any value, let alone worth the effort of digging up half a field in the middle of nowhere over the course of a month and a half. But those little pieces of pottery are a connection to a world that’s gone. They’re the last echoes of ponies that have long since come and gone. It shows us where we’ve come from and tells us about who and what we are. It lets us know more about are selves. I don’t know about you, but I think that is pretty valuable, don’t you think so?” Darrin stared at his sister for a moment before starting to chuckle. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard somepony speak so highly of pottery before.” “Hey,” Daring said “Pottery happens to be very important. It’s what let ponies stop having to constantly gather…” Darrin cut her off with a raised hoof. “Preaching to the choir, sister.” He replied. “So, what else do you need to grab?” “Just a few more things from my classroom,” Daring said, trotting over to the office door. “Pretty sure I left my hat in there anyway.” She pointed at her currently hat free head with one hoof as if to emphasize the point. “You remember the last time I went on a trip without my hat, don’t you?” Darrin nodded as they pair stepped into the hallway. “The Squid Beak Clipper Caper.” He replied. “We were just talking about this. I don’t think anypony is going to forget about that little incident any time soon.” The hallway outside her office was bustling with dozens of ponies speeding off to and from classes as well as a small handful of non-ponies. Royal Canterlot University had one of the largest exchange student programs in Equestria, and as a result the hallways bustled with llamas, elk, and even the occasional buffalo or wildebeest along with the more common griffons. There were even a few diamond dogs in the mix, easily spotted by the way the tended to tower over the more numerous quadrupeds. Daring failed to suppress a small shutter. “I really wish ponies would forget about that. It was only the one time. Is it really that notable?” She sidestepped a female student who was in the middle of toppling over as she glanced back at Darrin. Darrin stared back with a grin as he extended a hoof to stabilize the falling student, saving the mare and her enormous stack of papers from a messy spill. “Considering it was you at the center of the whole thing? Yes, it is.” Daring let out a sigh as the pair continued down the hallway. It wasn’t a long walk to her classroom. One advantage of the office was it made hopping between it and her class easy. Some professors had to make do with offices in other buildings. The door to the classroom opened onto the front of the room, a desk positioned front and center with a full wall chalk board behind it. In front of it several rows of seating for students were arrayed, each row higher than the rest. Daring immediately went over to her desk and started digging through it. Darrin took a moment to study the diagram on the chalk board - what appeared to be a temple layout from the pre-discordian era - before turning back to Daring. “So, what exactly makes this stone so impressive anyway? It can’t be that it’s just because you don’t know anything about it.” Daring’s head popped out of where it was buried inside one of the drawers, still hatless, to look at her brother. “The Hayan civilization was divided into several city-states. While they all shared a lot of their beliefs and culture they also had a lot of differences. Some were renowned as craftsman. Others were better known for their food or agriculture. Others had great mastery of magic. But one was different - the Achi. “Throughout the Hayan records we have found have been numerous references to the city-state of Achi. They were supposedly grand craftsman and fierce warriors that supposedly possessed divine powers. When Far Flung first reached the lands, they told him that the Achi were often given special consideration in meetings between the city-states.” “And why would they get special treatment?” Darrin asked. “Were they a major power or something?” “Quite the opposite, actually,” Daring replied. Her voice echoed oddly from somewhere inside the drawer her head was still hidden in - how could she even fit it in there, anyway? “All the records we’ve ever found that mention the Achi report that their territory never extended beyond the one island off the coast. Naturally, Far Flung had gone looking for the island to try and figure out what was there that gave them such clout in their relations with the neighbors.” “Let me guess,” Darring said. “He found the stone.” “Actually no,” Daring said. “He never even found the temple. All he found were scattered ruins. Something had destroyed the Achi, or what he thought was the Achi. There was never any other evidence to link the island to the story of the Achi except the story Far Flung had heard - until they uncovered the relief at that dig site. Even Far Flung had admitted that he thought that it was likely that he hadn’t found the Achi. Surprisingly modest for an explorer of that age.” “Yeah, you would think that he would have been all over claiming that sort of thing.” Darrin said. “I mean, it was an entire civilization.” “Yeah, but he couldn’t find any proof. What he - aha!” Daring’s head finally emerged, her usual pith helmet now in its proper place on her head. “Anyway, like I was saying, what he found didn’t match up with the stories.” “I still don’t get that - what sort of stories were these, anyway?” Darrin asked. Daring adjusted her hat before she continued to speak. “The stories usually described the Achi as being very wealthy. I mean very, very wealthy. There were stories about entire buildings covered in semi-precious stones and sculpted gems. Some of the stories claimed that the wealth was a gift from their god in exchange for fulfilling some sort of duty. Most of the stories don’t even bother trying to explain it. Far Flung thought that the island they were on was the location of a massive gem deposit. He theorized that the Achi used the wealth from such a gem deposit to buy mercenaries or just plain bribe their neighbors into compliance. But he never found the gem deposit, so he dismissed the expedition as a failure.” “And do you think he was right?” Darring asked as he watched his siter start digging through the other drawers in a much more logical manner. “Well, yes and no.” Daring replied. “I think he was right that the Achi had some sort of leverage on their neighbors, but I don’t think it was via bribery or tributes. None of the stories mention the Achi using their wealth like that. They do mention that they were very wealthy, and they mention that they had some sort of power - like what their warriors were supposed to possess. But they are never mentioned in connection with each other. The stories talk about how they had all this wealth, and anypony who attacked them was fended off by these warriors with strange powers. It’s less like either of those were the source of their power and more like those were byproducts of whatever power it was. That whatever power, or blessing, or mandate or what have you they possessed, it made sure they were safe and prosperous. The same stories talk about how they worshiped the Sapphire Stone.” “You think the two are connected, somehow?” Darrin asked as he started to get an idea of the direction his sister’s thoughts were going. “I think that it’s a good place to start.” Daring closed the drawer. “There has to be some reason why they worshiped a big shiny rock.” “Beyond it being a big, shiny rock.” Darrin added. “I really think you should consider that theory - There’s plenty of support for it down on jeweler’s street.” Daring let out a small chuckle as Darrin continued. “So you think the stone is magic or something?” “Probably not,” Daring said as she opened yet another drawer, this one containing a dizzying assortment of parchments. “The most likely reason is that it was one of the better gems they had found. The stories suggest that the Achi were extremely skilled with magic, and any high quality gem would invaluable to them for magic applications. The Stone is likely one of the finest - if not the finest - gem that the Achi had. It probably served a sort of crown jewel or royal scepter - a representation of their ruler.” “So no magic rock?” Darrin asked. “No magic rock.” Daring replied as she started to throw scrolls onto the desktop, which elicited a sigh from her brother. “Darn. Would have been a better story.” Darrin eyed one of the scrolls that unrolled as Daring had added it to the growing pile. It was a map of the Hayan coastline, with several islands visible on it. “So, you have a map and a destination. Any idea for transportation?” “Coco should be able to set me up a flight.” Daring replied. “Otherwise, I know I can always count on you to pull something together.” “I aim to please.” Darrin said, a pleased grin crossing his face. “And you have yet to disappoint.” Daring answered. Her brother didn’t go out with her into the field very often - almost never, in fact - due to his class obligations, but it was always more than willing to help her out in any way he could when Daring needed it. It was something that Daring appreciated dearly. “So, do you have any idea where Coco even is at this time of year?” Darrin asked. Daring paused for a moment before answering unsteadily. “Uh…She should be in Hoofington right now, if she’s following last year’s schedule…Well, at the very least she should be near Hoofington.” Darrin sighed. “So you have no idea where she is, do you?” Not that he blamed her. Coco’s movement patterns were so oddly erratic that a pony could probably use them as an encryption technique. He was fairly certain one pony down in the mathematics department was trying to do just that. “Not even the slightest,” Daring replied. She looked at Darrin somewhat sheepishly. “Do you think you could…?” Darrin waved a hoof at her. “I’m on it. Just give me a few days and a chance to call my contacts. At least one should have a bead on where she is at the moment. I can also ask them about where you’re going. Wouldn’t want you to walk into a trap, now would we?” Daring raised an eyebrow at that. “When have I ever…” “Squid Beak Clipper Caper.” Darrin replied. “That was only the one time!” Daring retorted before letting out a sigh. “I wish ponies would just forget about it…” “Like I said,” Darrin replied with a grin. “Never going to happen, sister . Anything else you need?” “I should be able to take care of getting to…wherever Coco is using normal means of transportation.” Daring replied. By ‘normal’ she meant something other than the sort of ‘I-owe-you one’ charter arrangements that usually came from the travel arrangements that Darrin set up for her. As unconventional and sometimes questionable they ended up being sometimes, there were many places that the normal Equestrian transportation network just did not serve. The remote jungle of the Hayan region was among them. “So just that information for now Darrin. I should be able to handle the rest.” “Any plans on what you’re going to do if run into trouble?” Darrin asked. He knew how Daring’s expeditions went usually. First its ‘ooooh’ and ‘aaah’ but they had an alarming tendency to devolve into running and screaming and fighting and quite a bit of escaping by the skin of the teeth. Needless to say, he was expecting her to run into trouble this time too. “Who says I’m going to run into trouble?” Darin gave him a reassuring grin, but Darrin just gave her a flat stare. Daring sighed. “I’ll be fine. I can handle a little trouble. Give me some credit.” “You should bring some back-up along.” Darrin said. “Coco perhaps, or one of the ponies working at that dig site you mentioned. Some of them would probably give their right hoof to go find an ancient temple with you.” Daring shook her head. “I can’t do that. It would be too dangerous for them. On a trip like this one mistake can be a disaster. I work alone.” Darrin raised an eyebrow. “So it’s safer for you to go alone. Into a mostly uncharted jungle. Without backup.” “Don’t say it like that,” Daring replied, waving a hoof at him. “I am a professional. This is what I do. Most of the ponies at that dig site have never done field work. Some of them probably have never even been outside Equestria proper before. You can’t just bring somepony like that on a trip like this. It only causes more harm than good.” “So it’s alright to risk your own neck?” Darrin asked, a hint of fire edging into his voice. “Better to gamble with your own life then somepony else’s.” Daring said. “That’s what dad always said. I can’t just ask them to risk so much just so I can feel a little safer - especially because I wouldn’t feel safer anyway.” “You could at least have Coco come along with you.” Darrin suggested. “She’s helped you on trips before and I’m sure she’d be willing to help you out.” Daring simply shook her head. “I can’t go and call up my friends and ask them to drop everything just because I feel like poking my nose into something in the middle of nowhere. I’m not going to inconvenience my friends like that.” “But they would say yes!” Darrin replied. “None of them would turn you down. You know that.” “That’s why I can’t ask.” Daring said as she piled the odds and ends she had gathered into a spare bag. “If I ask them, they will say yes no matter what that means to their own plans. This isn’t something they need to worry about.” Daring loved her friends, but sometimes they were just a little too kind. And like she had told Darrin, this wasn’t that big of a deal anyway, just a little trip down south. Darrin grumbled something under his breath. He had gotten into this argument - with some minor variations - several times before; enough times to know that he wasn’t going to be able to change her mind about going alone this time either. Daring was the type of pony who didn’t like making other ponies have to deal with her problems even as she tried to help her friends deal with their own issues. Darrin was never quite sure if he found the whole thing oddly noble or annoyingly hypocritical. Granted, she had improved quite a bit over the years. She was always willing to except his help, for the most part, and knew to ask for help when she was in over her head. She was also a much better judge of when, exactly, she ended up in over her head then she once was. None of that really made Darrin sleep any easier when his sister went on one of her trips. Darrin sighed. “Promise you’ll be careful?” He asked as his sister headed toward the door. Daring simply turned to her brother and smiled. “Of course I’ll be careful - when am I not?”
  2. Starlight Over Detrot - a gritty Noir-style story set 60 years after the return of Princess Luna and by far one of the greatest things I've ever read. A mix of action, humor, and plenty of darker elements with a plot that wouldn't be out of Place in a Dresden Files book and a over-arching plot that's still unfolding after 500k+ words. Don't let its length scare you - It is entirely, unquestionably worth the read. Book Of Days is probably my favorite example of world-building in the fandom, and its footnotes are hilarious Diary of A Pliant Tyrant is an awesome one-shot and I love how it shows Discord dealing with life post-reformation
  3. hmm... I like CelestiaxDiscord, and SpikexSweetie Belle. SoarinXRainbow Dash works for me, and CheerileeXBig Mac. For BG ponies I like VinylxTavi and LyraXBonBon. My Personal Crack Pairing is Button MashxSilver Spoon, which comes from a Fan Fiction idea I had thats basically the manga 'The World God Only Knows' but with ponies. But I'm not hugely attached to any of them - The only thing I can't really stand is pairings that make NO sense. Even then, if you can make it make sense...but thats just my two bits.
  4. Well, my Motto is 'Sciencia est Potentia' since everyone should have a pretensious latin motto As for a Catch Phrase... most likely 'gimme a minute' - which kind of functions similarly to the phrase 'I can fix this'. I might not be able to deal with whatever it is *NOW* but I will momentarily!
  5. 'The Quest for the Sapphire Stone' is a Novel-Length version of the first Daring Do Novel. It is the first in a series of sixteen or so planned novels heavily inspired by This Page An Up-to-date version is currently on FIMfiction Here - The chapter listing here should catch up soon enough. Thank you for your time, and enjoy! ---INDEX--- -------------- Chapter 1 Daring Do trekked through the tropical jungle, the wet heat sapped her energy and slowed her every step. If only she could escape this oppressive atmosphere and fly up into the cool blue sky. But her crash landing in the jungle had injured her wing and she was grounded for a few days. Few days... it might as well be a few months, or a few years! The mosquitoes buzzed loudly. The macaws cried from the high trees. Yet all of these distracting noises were not enough to cover the sound of the predators following her every step. The tan pegasus’ ears pivoted about, twitching as they tried to track the soft footfalls of her would-be stalkers as she pulled herself over another fallen tree. “You’re going to have to do better than that if you want to catch me.” She said, grinning as she finally got a feel for where they all were as she brushed a grey-scaled lock of her mane back under her trusty pith helmet. Whoever - or whatever - they were, they were spread out in a rough semi-circle in front of her, slowly advancing on her current position as they drew closer to the downed plane. Any other pony might have walked right into the trap. Daring Do wasn’t any other pony. “Good, but not good enough!” chirped, her confidence leaking into her voice as she brushed off of her olivine vest and turned to slip further into the Hayan jungle and leave her pursuers in her metaphorical dust. Which was when she found herself suddenly snout-to-snout with a very large, and very angry, black-and-orange striped tiger. “Okay, better than I thought.” Daring admitted as she and the tiger stared at each other for a moment. Dark pink eyes stared into their yellow feline counterpart’s until the Tiger let out a thundering roar, likely meant to inform the rest of his compatriots of his find as much as it was meant to leave the archaeologist in stunned terror at the prospect of suddenly being eaten. The tiger was likely of the opinion that it worked too well, as Daring was quickly ducking as the massive pair of feline jaws snapped shut where her head had been a moment ago. Tumbling back, she found herself galloping through the forest in the opposite direction from the striped feline before she could even realize what she was doing. It was only when she found herself drawing to a sudden stop that she thought the big cat might have actually thought this whole thing out. The Tiger slinked around to join its friends, completing the formation before her. The tiger slowly crouched, its body a massive spring ready to launch its mass after the hapless pony at the slightest provocation. Next to it, a black panther flexed its claws, slit pupils boring into her as it calmly waited for a chance to strike. A cheetah was hanging back slightly from the rest, and Daring got the impression that it found this whole situation amusing. The Lynx bared its fangs, letting out an angry hiss as it flexed and seemed to fidget, seemingly anxious to have a chance to finally tear into Daring. At the end, seemingly out of place, was a single small, fluffy white house cat that mewled nervously, eyes darting from Daring back to its friends, apparently trying to decide which ones it was more terrified of. It was certainly a strange ensemble to come across in the middle of the Hayan jungle. Daring wasn’t as surprised as she thought she’d be - it was just shaping up to be one of those days. Suppressing her urge to simply turn tail and run, she flashed them a self-confident grin she only mostly felt before she charged the line of angry felines. The quintet was caught off-guard by the sudden charge as Daring made a bee-line for the house cat. The small white kitten’s eyes widened in terror before curling into a ball, any impulse to run out of the way smashed to pieces as it simply braced itself for whatever was about to hit it. Daring leapt over the cowering feline and continued onward into the jungle, four of the felines in hot pursuit. The near constant buzz of the rainforest echoed in her ears along with the pounding of her pulse and the steady rhythm of her breathing. The soft forest floor of fallen and decaying leaves crackled with every hoof fall as she bounded over and around trees both fallen and standing. Behind her, the angry snarls of her pursuers let her know just how close they still were. Overhead, a troop of monkeys paused in there bickering over a jungle fruit to watch the unfolding spectacle pass under their perch. The Lynx was now out in front, slowly but surely gaining ground on Daring, drawing to within paw’s reach of her. The over-eager cat lashed out with its claws, making Daring add a little more zip to her step as she felt the razor-sharp claws pass within a hair-breath of her compass cutie-mark. “Way to close!” Daring said, heart hammering in her chest as the sudden burst of adrenaline helped her put a little distance between herself and the Lynx, which simply snarled in indignation at losing his chance. “Better luck next time, pal!” Daring said over her shoulder. Truth be told, she probably shouldn’t be mocking them, but sometimes she couldn’t help herself. It wasn’t like any of this was actually new to her anyway. This only seemed to enrage the cat’s further as they stepped up their efforts to take down the taunting pegasus, but to no avail as the terrain finally started to let Daring open a proper lead before leaping over another fallen tree, the cat’s following moments after. Back up above, the troop of monkeys turned to each other, shrugged, and returned to their squabble over the fruit. On the forest floor, Daring continued to dodge through the jungle, the snarl of cats chasing her hoofsteps. She spied a chasm quickly approaching, and on reflex tried to spread her wings. Big mistake. A jolt of pain shot through her right wing, and Daring gave out a choked cry of pain as her vision swam for a moment. Her hooves stumbled as they spasmed, the jolt of pain causing her whole body to seemingly flinch as what felt like a dozen hot knives stabbed into her right wing joint. Her hooves flew out from under her as she tumbled, skidding across the ground until coming to a slow halt at the precipice of the chasm. Daring shook her head quickly, trying to clear it of the stars that had started to fill her vision. She was facing in the opposite direction now, the felines quickly closing the gap now that their target was no longer moving. She didn’t have time to start running again - not without delaying them. Still reeling from the attempt to fly, she shakily rose to her hooves, taking a deep breath as the Tiger closed the distance. The striped cat leapt at Daring Do as she closed her eyes and slowly exhaled. Her front hooves drew curving arcs in the soft loam of the forest floor as she shifted her weight onto them completely, hindlegs rising completely off the ground as her whole form twisted, turning a full 180 degrees. Her hindlegs pulled back as she spun, A pair of kicks chambered as her half-spin stopped, leaving her rear hooves pointed square at the tiger who was now in a descending arc. The tiger had just enough time to realize what was about to happen before both hooves shot out at him, slamming with stone-shattering force into his chin. The big cat went flying back; arcing over his comrades who skidded to a stop at the sudden defeat of what Daring could only assume was their leader. Daring slowly opened her eyes and turned to face the remaining cats. The house cat was absent, but the other three were still there, staring dumbfounded at the small pony that had sent a predator several times her size tail over teakettle. Daring gave them a small grin. “Come on - I haven’t got all day.” All three scowled at that, but the Lynx was the first off the starting blocks. It covered the intervening distance in three strides before leaping at Daring, its left claw swinging through the air like a bizarre left hook. Daring ducked the telegraphed claw swipe, once again spinning on her hooves as she swept the Lynx’s legs out from under it. It was at that moment the Cheetah quite literally leapt into fray, its entire body acting as a spotted yellow projectile as it barreled into Daring. The pair of them tumbled over the edge into the chasm. For a brief moment the pair tumbled through the air, hooves meeting claws as Daring tried to prevent the cat from tearing her to shreds, before she extended her left wing. She couldn’t fly with just one wing, let alone while she had the oversized fur ball clinging to her, but it was more than enough to give her some control. With a quick flick of the extended wing, she twisted them over, positioning the snarling cat on the bottom a split second before they crashed into the chasm floor. Daring stumbled to her hooves, seeing stars for the second time in less than ten minutes. Her head was so scrambled at this point that she almost missed the low growl from behind her. The whistle of claws through air was her only warning and Daring reacted on reflex, dropping so fast the her hat hung in the air for a split second as the massive black paw swung through the space where her head had just been before. Already crouched, Daring retaliated with another kick from her hind legs, her hooves making contact with their second feline skull of the day. There was a yowl followed shortly by a dull thud as the black cat came to a crash landing. Daring’s breathing was coming in in ragged gasps now, reminding her that while her wing was the largest injury she had endured from the crash. Her tan coat was now caked with mud and dirt as well as a few small speckles of red from several small cuts. Her vest was torn in at least three places and at this rate probably wasn’t going to survive long enough to get back to a tailor. At least her pith helmet was still in good shape. She was pulled out of her self-assessment when she heard stones shifting somewhere above her head. She looked up to see the tiger slowly climbing down the chasm, apparently still feeling that last kick. A quick look around her confirmed that several of the other cats were also starting to slowly recover from their own injuries. Well, she had wanted to delay them, and from the looks of things it would take a few minutes for them to regroup. If she was going to run, now was the time. “If you’ll all excuse me….” Daring managed between heavy breaths before she turned and headed further down the chasm. Her hoof falls echoed off the stone, turning her into what sounded like a one-mare stampede. Overhead, what little light reached down into the chasm was mottled by the canopy of vines and leaves that hung far overhead. Every rock and tree and bush cast long shadows that left her path as patchwork of light and darkness. Lizards basked in the narrow beams of sunlight until they skittered away into crevices and holes to hide from the passing pony. Exotic birds watched the outsider pass with only mild interest, taking her as no threat to them in their lofty perches and quickly dismissing her. The occasional small mammal peeked out from the holes they hid in - as much from the sun as from predators - to wearily watch her trot pass, none of them bold enough to do more than peek out of their holes at the passing mare. Daring finally began to slow down as the chasm widened before her, before finally coming to a stop as she stepped back into the full light of the jungle. Before her was a waterfall, its thunderous roar dampened by the foliage that pressed in around it. A shallow pool spread out from it, shored with smooth grey stones around its edge as the mist hanging in the air cooled the entire clearing. To one side, between the chasm and the fall, a single stream flowed, disappearing over a short fall before snaking deeper into the jungle. She took in the sight, for a moment simply enjoying the scenery until something about the falls caught her eye. Daring slowly made where way around the pool until she was right next to the falls. It was hard to tell, but she was certain that there was something back there. Curiosity getting the better of her, she plunged through the falls. Sure enough, on the other side was a small cavern. It was well hidden - only really visible by the slight change of light behind the falls - but there none the less. Finally finding an opportunity to catch her breath, Daring collapsed onto the cave floor as all of her exertion finally caught up with her. The stone around her was slick with condensation from the billowing mist of the waterfall that gave it a strange sheen under the filtered light that managed to leak through the cascading waters. Daring flexed her limbs gingerly - first her forelegs, then the hind ones - checking herself to make sure her break-neck pace hadn’t broken anything. She let out a sigh of relief as she determined that, cuts and bruises aside, she was in one piece. Well, except for the busted wing. But that had been broken already, so it didn’t count. It was only now that Daring finally took a moment to take a better look at the cave she was taking shelter in. It was a shallow cave, the back wall visible even in the dimmed waterfall-filtered light. Vines and plant roots crisscrossed the ceiling, hanging from it like organic stalactites. Water ran down the sides of the cave, the steady stream of condensed moisture over the decades and centuries carving curving, twisting lines across the rock face. The curving lines drew her gaze across the surface as she found her eyes following the carved gouges as they crossed the rock, drawing out what almost looked like… Daring’s eyes widened as she realized what they actually were. She clamored back onto her hooves as she trotted over to the wall. Sure enough, the lines were not the result of slow erosion - At least, not entirely. The water had eaten away at the carvings, but there was still enough left for what it is to be apparent. It had once been an elaborate relief, but the ravages of age and water had worn away most of the details. There was still enough detail to date it to the pre-classical Hayan period, which matched with the script that bordered the whole piece as well as accompanied several of the designs. Daring was certain that the information written in the pictographs would have been useful, but with all of her notes lost in the crash she had little hope of deciphering the script at the moment. Luckily, the illustrations were much easier to figure out. The relief looked like a stylized map of the jungle basin. On the left most edge was some sort of massive stone edifice, a single slash bisecting it. Daring was willing to bet her bottom bit that it was supposed to be the chasm she and her feline friends had tumbled into. A little further to the right was the worn image of a pool of water, ripples crossing its surface, emanating from the waterfall emptying into it. Flowing from the pool and further to the right was a stylized ribbon of a stream, undulating like a snake as it flowed through jungle before terminating at yet another chasm. The design continued to the right, the map compressing to the top as it went as the bottom became dominated by a second set of images, some sort of battle or cataclysm - the effigy was too worn to tell for sure. And there, at the far right, sitting inside the image of a temple, was a two-headed statue of an Anubis and nestled inside was the multi-faced shape of a gem. “Whoa.” Daring whispered to herself, eyes wide as she stared at the map. It was patently ridiculous. The whole concept of a treasure map was bunk. They simply didn’t exist. On the rare occasion that the intrepid archaeologist found themselves with the chance for field work, it was usually several long weeks slowly digging holes across a grid to finds a few pieces of pottery. If you were lucky, you might uncover a piece of jewelry; or better yet, a piece of writing. You never, ever, found something that basically said ‘treasure is this way’. Obviously, nobody had told that to the Hayan’s. She conceded it was possible that it was some sort of route marker - something designed to tell those traveling to the temple which way to go, embellished with additional iconography so as to double as a shrine of worship for those… A growl from somewhere outside the waterfall reminded Daring that now probably was not a good time to get absorbed in her work. Daring skirted toward the edge of the falls, peering past the curtain of water to look out onto the pool beyond. The quintet of cats had returned, the fluffy white house cat having caught up with them and was now shaking at the edge of the pool, jumping at every little ripple of water that lapped to close for the little feline’s comfort. The Tiger nearby gave the white fur ball a disdainful stare before turning to the others and growling something at them the Daring couldn’t understand. The other cats seemed to however, as they spread out and started sweeping through the clearing. Claws swiped through bushes as they began working their way closer to the waterfall - and Daring. “Darn it.” She cursed as she watched the panther slowly pad its way around one edge toward her little alcove. As quickly and as quietly as she could, she scooted across the small cavern, peering around the opposite edge of the falls in hopes of seeing an escape route. Daring cursed again when she saw the cheetah looping around the other side of the pool. Well, so much for that escape route. Daring took a quick stock of her situation. She was cornered inside a cave, with no escape routes, and enemies on every side. Still not the worst situation she had ever found herself in. It was getting there though. Thinking fast as the cats drew closer, she started to try and think of her next move. Several ideas were considered and dismissed in rapid succession until one idea took root and failed to go away. It was, without a doubt, a bad plan. Unlike the others, however, it actually had a slim chance of working. The sound of shifting pebbles brought her impromptu strategy session to a close. She was out of time. Daring quickly made her way to the back of the cave before turning to face towards its front. Now, the only thing in between her and escape was five angry felines and a whole lot of water. “Really need a better plan next time, Daring.” She said to herself as she braced her hind legs. Any second now… The moment came as soon as the Panther’s head came out from around the edge of the cave. Daring kicked off the back wall and charged toward the front of the cave. The cheetah had just made it into the cave as both he and his panther companion were sideswiped by a speeding pegasus. All three crashed into the waterfall. The two cats, however, did not have the advantage in forward momentum from a running start. Daring burst out the front of the falls as droplets of water scattered off in her wake. Behind her, the two cats found themselves tumbling into the churning water at the base of the falls while Daring landed in the fetlock deep shallows with a splash that sent small waves crashing upon the smooth stones of the pool’s edge. Another leap sent her arcing over the white housecat and straight to the stunned tiger. Daring rolled with the impact, quickly getting back to her hooves and continuing off into the jungle without missing a beat while the striped feline went sprawling as its prey once again slipped through its grasp. “Better luck next time!” Daring said, flashing them a smug smirk as she barreled into the jungle once again. She might have managed to escape, but it was a temporary one as soon the cats were once again on her tail. The jungle passed by in a blur of greens and reds, the squawk of birds overhead mingling with the growls of the cats behind her. She dodged around the corpse of a fallen giant that had once likely been one of the greatest trees in this part of the jungle. Now it only served to block her path. Daring bit back another curse as she sharply turned left. Normally she would just fly over the accursed thing, but with her wing busted it just wasn’t an option. The worst part was that her injuries were starting to catch up with her. Her hind legs were still numb from that tussle in the chasm - those cats had denser skulls then she thought. All four of her legs were aching from the dashing through the jungle and a thousand cuts and bruises were starting to make themselves known in a most unpleasant way. Even her wing was starting to throb, whatever endorphins that had been dulling the pain starting to wear off as what was likely a compound fracture began to make itself known. Her lungs were burning from the exertion. Her hooves ached from every jagged stone and errant branch that had speared into them. But Daring pushed through the pain, and focused on the path ahead. She couldn’t stop. She had to keep running, no matter how much her body protested. No matter how much pain she was in, she knew that if she stopped, she was in for much worse. The massive tree corpse terminated in a twisting mass of roots as thick as her head, the ground torn asunder when it had fallen ages ago, leaving a massive, worn crater where the towering tree had been anchored to the earth. Now, the space was little more than a dank sinkhole. A carpet of vines and ferns covered the ground around it, blossoms of red and blue flowers speckling the green carpet with color. With the former king of the groove slain, the canopy had opened up to the sky above, sunlight allowed to stream in and pour across the forest floor for the first time in a long while. The sunlight spurred the growth of new seedlings, each one with trunks thinner than the fallen king’s branches, all of them growing in pockets and bunches around the edges of the clearing. The fresh foliage muffled the sounds of the forest beyond, plunging the clearing into a serene quasi-silence, only the soft chirping of birds filling the air. The heat and humidity of the Hayan jungle hung over the clearing like a heavy blanket, an almost smothering, suffocating layer that weighed down on Daring like a massive stone weight. It was a moment of eerie calm in what had been a frantic day. The Tiger came at her from the right. The distraction of the lush scenery paired with the distracting aches and pains from the day had left her dangerously unaware of her surroundings. The only thing that had saved her had been the big cats own over eagerness. In its rush to finally capture his prey, he had inadvertently lost the element of surprise. The sudden crack of a snapping branch had sent Daring’s ears swiveling toward the source of the sound, primal fight-or-flight instincts taking over. Her eyes widened as her head turned to catch up with her ears movement, finally letting her catch sight of her would-be attacker. Eons-old reflex’s kicked in as Daring reeled back, the tiger’s claws passing within inches of Daring’s neck, their faces passing so close that she could feel its breath rake across her face, its pungent smell filling her nostrils. Daring had barely rolled back onto her hooves when the tiger’s second attack came. Having given up on a stealthy approach, the striped feline had instead opted for a simple straight on assault. Daring barely had time to bring up a hoof before the massive paw came at her. Hoof met paw as Daring countered, her hoof coming down on the paw and sending it off course, claws slicing through air instead of her torso. A second follow-up attack came quickly after the first, the second part of a one-two strike. Daring simply dodged this one instead, letting the big cat’s momentum throw it off balance as it over extended itself. The tiger tried to regain its balance as Daring spun and reared back before delivering a punishing blow into the tiger’s side. The tiger folded like a cheap suit, letting out a yowl of pain before crumpling into a pile of black and orange fur. Her next two opponents arrived just as her first went down. The Cheetah and the Lynx gave their fallen leader barely a second glance, barreling straight at Daring. It was a blinding blitz of flashing claws and Daring’s already strained body was pushed to its limit. But she couldn’t keep it up. Even as she dodged a upper slice from the Cheetah, she felt a crushing blow slam into her front legs as a punishing back paw from the Lynx causing her purchase to fail as her joints screamed in agony. She didn’t even have time to try and determine what was going to happen next. She had to react on instinct. She rolled to the side again, idly wondering just how much of this trip she was going to spend rolling around in the dirt as overhead two-pawed strike from the cheetah crashed into where she had been moments before. She had gambled with her life, but it had paid off. A splint second later and she would have been a goner. She couldn’t take the two of them on at the same time. She needed to split them up – unless… Another feather-brained scheme began to form. Daring rolled to the right as she dodged another swipe from the Lynx. They had split up at least somewhat now, but that just meant she had to worry about attacks from multiple angles. She dodged another attack from the cheetah before ducking a leaping tackle from Lynx. All three of them took a brief pause as they tried to regain their bearings. Daring was in between the two felines, both of them grinning at her with self-satisfied smirks. Daring returned it with a self-assured grin of her own. She had them right where she wanted them. She spun and made to charge at the Lynx, who replied in kind by leaping at her, thinking to intercept her mid-leap. Daring instead tucked into a roll, the Lynx flying over her head as she rolled back onto her hooves, both of the cats now behind her - and in the direct line of her hind legs. In what was quickly becoming a recurring pattern, Daring launched a kick and sent the Lynx flying. Unlike the last time, however, Daring had a landing spot for him in mind. The Lynx careened backwards, crashing straight into the unsuspecting cheetah behind him, who had just enough time to register that the incoming projectile was in fact his partner before they collided. The Lynx’s momentum carried both of them backward, tumbling over old roots and vines - and straight toward the sinkhole. Both of them yowled in surprise as they flew over the edge of the pit, vainly reaching out to grab onto something to halt their fall, but to no avail. Gravity asserted itself as the tangled pair fell into the inky abyss. There was a moment of silence as the yowls echo died out before a loud, heavy splash as the cats found out just how much mud was in the bottom of that pit. Daring allowed herself a chuckle, but it was cut off with a wince as a bolt of pain shot through her rear hooves. The once dull throbbing in them had intensified, and too much pressure just made it worse. The fighting was starting to catch up with her, and she still had at least one feline to go. As if summoned by the thought, the black panther stalked out of the jungle. The panther smirked at Daring, as if sensing her weakness. Unlike the other cats, this one didn’t just charge in. It slinked around in a slow circle, watching Daring the way a hungry bird might watch a particularly amusing worm. Daring matched it move for move, keeping the cat on the opposite side of the clearing, neither taking their eyes off the other. Daring tried to hide the limp that was starting to slip into her gait, but she couldn’t suppress it entirely. This only seemed to make the panther’s grin widen as his pace increased. The panther was every inch a predator toying with its food, and Daring was his toy. She just needed one last plan. Luckily, one decided to stumble into the clearing right then. The small white housecat tumbled out of a nearby bush, so engrossed in trying to remove the myriad of twigs that now littered its coat that the flighty feline didn’t even notice that it stumbled out right next to the pegasus. The cat started as Daring stretched out her good wing and slid it under the white fur ball. “Hey,” she said, turning to the panther, “catch.” And with that she gave her wing a flick that sent the small creature flying through the air, a frightened cry the only thing the housecat could manage before crashing straight into the panther, hitting it square in the face. The panther flailed about as the smaller cat simply landed on the ground in a little ball of fluff, letting out quiet mewling cries. It had not had a good day so far. A small smile had started to cross Daring’s face when she noticed that the lynx and the cheetah were starting to pull themselves out of the sinkhole. Both were dripping with mode, and neither looked very happy at the moment. “Heh, heh - bye!” Daring turned tail and bolted into the forest once again, with the cats once again following in pursuit. The sounds of the chase mingled with the sounds of the jungle as they tore through the overgrowth, birds and other things sent scattering as the chase tore past their roosts - or, in some cases, through them. Daring dodged around towering pillars of aged wooden monoliths, ducking under their twisting roots that twisted into abstract cathedrals and archways. Vines snaked across the ground, threatening to steal her already precarious balance. A single misstep would mean an immobilizing injury. Then she would have no escape. She ducked into a fallen tree, its rotted corpse so massive that the hollowed giant more resembled a tunnel then a log. The damp wooden walls curved up around her and met above her head, her hat not even grazing the ceiling. Her hoof falls sent up clouds of decayed wood, each particle glinting in the few rays of sunlight that streamed through holes that marked where massive branches had once been anchored. Behind her she could hear the sounds of sharpened, predatory claws tearing gouges in the wood as they charged down the wooden tunnel behind her. Her ears pivoted as they caught something above them as well, the faint sound of paws dashing across the roof above them. They cats were trying to catch her off guard when she exited the massive tree carcass. A quick glance around her told Daring that any openings had long sense past. The only way out now was forward. So forward it was. Daring put an extra burst of speed into her steps as the exit drew closer. Just a step from the edge, she leapt, throwing herself into the open air ahead of her. She could hear a snarl above her as she felt a set of claws slice through the air uncomfortably close to her back. In a heartbeat though she was clear and back on terra firma, dodging through the tree’s again. The cats, however, were closing in. She needed a new plan. She racked her brain for an idea before she recalled the relief in the cavern. The relief had shown several landmarks leading to the temple, but it had also contained several other, less obvious details. One in particular stood out in Daring’s mind at the moment, however. Hoping that the map was at least somewhat accurate, Daring adjusted her course slightly to the left. The cat’s behind her followed suit, dead set on catching her - and slowly getting ever closer. She hoped it was close. She tore through the forest as, slowly, the trees began to thin ever so slightly. Up ahead the sunlight started to seem ever so slightly brighter. Daring grinned. Once again, her bet had paid off. She made a mental note to hit the casino after this whole trip was over just to see if her luck held out. Daring didn’t even break her stride as she broke clear of the tree line. A moment later the Cats did the same thing. They blinked in the sudden burst of sunlight, their vision clearing just in time to see Daring leap into the air. It was then they noticed that they were still careening toward yet another chasm. The cats managed to draw themselves short of the edge just in the nick of time as Daring wrapped her hooves around a hanging vine and let out a sigh of relief. The chasm had, sure enough, been exactly where the map had said it would be. Daring counted herself lucky and gave a small thanks to whatever ancient crafts pony had been so detail oriented. Her momentum swung her across the gorge, letting her drop safely on the other side and finally out of reach of her pursuers. “So long, fellas!” Daring gave them a jaunty wave. “Better luck next time!” The Tiger gave out an infuriated roar, after a moment resorting to simply throwing random bits of jungle detritus in Daring’s direction. Daring simply gave another chuckle as she continued to taunt them. This only enraged the felines even further. Sometimes they just made this too easy. Daring gave them one final mocking salute before trotting into the jungle again, this time at a much more sedate pace. From the looks of that gorge, it was going to take them quite a while to find a way around or across it. By that point, she planned on having put as much distance as she could between her and those cats. For now, however, Daring simply wanted to find somewhere to rest. A few minutes of walking through the woods finally lead her to what was best described as a small wooden cave. The tree’s roots had grown in a tangled mass over and around some ancient rock, leaving a well sheltered alcove inside. With a relieved sigh, Daring slipped inside, finally giving her hooves a well-deserved break. As she began to rummage through her pockets and her hat, she thought to herself idly - how the hay did I end up out here, anyway?
  6. TVtropes has an entire fake Daring Do Series page over on their site (Warning - TVtropes will eat your time faster then Anything else in this dimension or the next) You can check it out here I'm also defictionalizing all the books (based on aforementioned TVtropes page) - yes, all 16 or so books - into full-length (50k+ words) novels. I might be slightly insane. Why? Because Daring Do is an awesome character, and the setting they've built over at TVtropes is just as awesome. So yeah - Sign me up.
  7. First official act on this forum (outside the new guy section) - joining this club. I regret nothing. how about some content? And YourEnigma can't be posted Enough: And some pics!
  8. Greetings fillies and Gentlecolts - and other assorted creatures. Took me a surprisingly long time versus how long I've been in the fandom (about 2 years now?) to find a forum - but here I am. I'm a writer with a couple small stories done and a whole lot more planned. Hopefully I'll be around for a while! Shameless FIMfiction self-promotion!
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