I know that this isn't my best work, and there are probably better things on FIMfiction, but I tried my best and that's what counts, right?

Anyway, on with the story!


Chapter 1:

In what could count as a stereotypical, old-fashioned style saloon, where stallion and mares in Stetsons and cowboy boots, sat around tables as the soft piano tune played in the background. Idle chatter filled the saloon, taking sips of apple cider whenever they could. It was almost…absolute.

Though in one, secluded corner of the saloon, away from all the other ponies, sat a lone mare; a Pegasus, to be accurate. Her arylide yellow wings pressed loosely against her sides as she had her forelegs resting on the table. An adventurer's hat atop her mane, tilted forward to keep her eyes and face hidden in shadows.

The sound of old rusted hinges going, the mare slowly turned her head to the side to see who had arrived through the saloon doors. It was a griffon; his head and neck feathers a dark shade of grey, while the rest of his fur and feathers were a darker shade of grey, making it look almost black in colour.

Though he did stand out from the stallions and mares in the rest of saloon, and he did get some questionable glances from the ponies, the griffon ignored them; he brushed past them, heading towards the solitary mare in the corner of the place.

The mare didn't look up until she saw from under her hat that the griffon was sitting opposite her; only then, did she tilt her hat forward. This revealed raspberry red eyes, the front of a six-shaded grey mane.

"So, what you got for me, Sharp Beak?" asked Daring Do, moving the small glass of cider to one side of her as she asked the griffon.

The griffon, letting a slight smirk form on his beak, said, "I think I've found you something you might be quite interesting, Daring," in his light Stalliongradian accent. He slowly reached under the table and, with a light thud, put a large, leather-covered book landing on the table; followed by a few scraps of loose, old-looking paper landed on the cover.

Daring Do tiled her hat back slightly, tilting her head to one side as she slowly moved a hoof to open the front cover of the book. But Sharp Beak put a sharpened talon on the book, moving it back so that it was closer to him.

"Ah, ah, ah. Payment," said Sharp Beak, holding out his other talon extended over the table and making a gesture, that simply said, 'Hand it over.'

Daring Do glared at the male griffon with an annoyed glare, but slowly reached a hoof under the table and put a pouch on the table in front of her. She pushed it over to Sharp Beak, the top coming loose and a few golden bits slipping onto the table.

Sharp Beak allowed a smirk to form as he quickly took the pouch, spilling its contents onto the table and counted, making sure that he was being given the right payment. As he did this, Daring Do moved the book over so it sat in front of her, and she carefully opened the front cover and a few pages.

Daring Do carefully turned page after page, pausing for a few seconds to read pages that Sharp Beak had folded for her to look at. Finally, she came across one page that Sharp Beak had marked with a slip of paper that read, 'IMPORTANT'.

"The Eye of…of…What? What does that say? How'd you pronounce that?" asked Daring Do, putting her hoof lightly under the part she was trying to read as she looked up at her griffon contact.

"It's pronounced 'Bashtaar'; it's an old Stalliongrad word, meaning 'Puzzle'," said Sharp Beak, before gesturing to the book again and said, "Read on," as he counted the last of the bits.

Daring Do turns back to look at the book, and lowly read the paragraph under her breath;

'The Eye of Bashtaar was a relic, thought to be lost during the forming of the Equestrian Nation, which is said to have mysterious, yet powerful, properties.'

'Little is known about the Eye of Bashtaar; rumours say that it is a prison of sorts. Thought to hol-'

"Where's the rest of it?" asked Daring Do, lifting the page up; revealing that the last third of the page she was reading was missing.

Sharp Beak shrugged slightly, saying, "That was how I recovered it; nothing has been lost since I found it," as he pushed the golden bits into the pouch once more and putting it to one side of him.

Daring Do glared at the griffon, though she had to admit to herself; this mystery had caught her attention. And this one seemed to be more challenging than the others she had, but that just made her want to find it all the more. Despite not having all the information she could have wanted, Daring Do knew she had to find it before anypony else got wind of this.

She put a few loose bits on the table where the small glass she had bought, and got to her hooves; closing the book and putting it, along with the other bits of loose paper, into a satchel at her side. "I'm gonna get going," Daring Do muttered to the griffon, tilting her hat forward in anticipation for the sunlight.

"I'll be looking forward to see you returning with the Eye, Daring," said Sharp Beak, a glass of cider arriving for him and a he tipped the mare.

Without another word, Daring Do headed towards the saloon doors and walked out, trying not to attract any attention. But despite this, a couple of stallions on a nearby table tilted their Stetsons back and watched Daring Do leave. They all nodded slightly to one another, as though signalling, before getting to their hooves and headed out of the door again.