The stone guardian kept his sword raised, waiting for the challenger to answer the riddle. Daring Do smirked and lifted her hat, confident on her answer.

“The greatest gift is not the one received but the one given.”

Daring smirked once more when the guard moved, cracking a joke about how corny the answer was. Her eyes widened when upon looking at the magnificent treasure kept on the Cave of Wonderful Treats but decided not to touch any of the shining gems and instead hovered over one particular stone.

“Don't worry, grumpy-face, as tempting as all this treasure is, I´m only here for one thing...the missing Element of Generosity.”

Daring placed the gem on her saddlebag and left the cave which, following tradition, immediately vanished into the tick sands. Daring was ready to make her way back to the palace of Saddle Arabia when she was approached by a very distinctive gang of bandits.

“Well well, if it isn't Calf-i-Baba and his gang of thieves. How many were you again, about forty?”

“Thank you for finding the missing treasure for us, effendi,” the bulky ox, leader of the gang of tall arabian horses, said.

“Sure, why try to solve the riddles when you can just wait for me to do the first work for you?”

“Glad you understand, Now, hand it over!”

“Just for once, I wish someone will just ask nicely,” Daring said and adjusted her hat.

Her opponents were numerous, taller and sturdier than her, but she didn't cared. Making a big leap, Daring spread her wings and got ready for a fight against one ox and his gang of over for-

*****

A. K. Yearling managed to catch the inkwell before it crashed over her story. Adjusting her glasses, she came out of her cabin, looking very angry.

“Could you please steer this damn bathtub with a little more care? I´m trying to write a story here!” she yelled the zeppelin captain.

“My apologies, Mrs. Yearling, but a storm just appeared out of nowhere in front of us!” the old stallion apologized.

Yearling took a look at the brewing storm and then took something out of her pocket, seemed to be a compass, although it glowed in a rainbow pattern.

“Guess it fits the Element of Loyalty…”

“Did you said something, Mrs. Yearling?”

“I´m going down, captain. Make sure my baggage makes it to Manehattan.”

Before the captain could protest, Yearling had already taken her saddlebags and stuffed only the necessary equipments. She smiled when looking at the picture she took with a special fan on a book signing, and thought she'll be very upset about not being told about this mission. Tough luck, Yearling thought but one lesson in life it´s learning to trust an expert during an emergency.

When she lef the cabin she bumped into a Royal Guard and she tossed him a scroll.

“Take this to Princess Celestia, stat!” she told the confused guard. “It´s the latest chapter of Daring Do and the Missing Gemstones. Trust me, she´ll like to know right away that Daring Do already has two of the missing stones,” she said, winking at him.

Yearling smiled when the dizzy guard left the ship and then jumped right down. Once she hit the ground and make sure the ship was taking flight away from her, Yearling got rid of her usual bookish attire and put on her exploration suit. She looked at the storm and adjusted her hat, remembering the promise she made the Princess of recovering the Elements soon before the Tree wither again.

She had a few questions about it of her own and was sure Rainbow and her friends will like to know why they were kept out of the loop on this, but right now Daring had a job to do. First recover the elements, then finish the story. That´s how she had always worked.

Smiling she took flight into the storm, ready for another adventure.