Chapter 2

A discovery

There was an old desert saying that you could burn your eyes by steering at the sand then by looking at the sun itself, so powerful was the penetrating glare reflected from those endless wastes. Despite the glare, life could and did exist. One thing made it possible: the reintroduction of water.

However, the water was only magically accessible and by a water crystal only. These crystals can generate a steady, indefinite supply of water, to areas that don't have easy access to it. The places that put these water crystals to use were known as water farms. Near the town of sand dunes, the only town for a hundred miles, one of this water farms operated.

In the middle of an inhospitable flat a figure whose concern was fixing a broken antenna, worked. The figure was a pony, although black strips overlaid on his red coat, his black and white mane sweaty and filled with sand. A screwdriver and light bulb cutie mark was visible under a thin layer of sand.

Wind walker was swearing softly, with a screwdriver he was trying to pry open a flap, which have gave access to the wiring but it refused to open. From time to time he resorted to some unsubtle pounding with his hooves. Neither method worked very well. Wind was sure that the antenna was mocking him, laughing at his struggle. He wiped the sweat from his brow and leaned back for a moment. A light breeze tugged at his shaggy hair as he regarded the device. "No point in staying angry at you", he said to the machine.

Wind considered his predicament, gazed at the machine, and then inclined his head to study the sky. No sign of a cloud, and he knew there never would be. There wasn't a cloud factory to produce them. He was about to try once again when a small pop and an intense gleam of light caught his attention. Quickly he slipped his screwdriver back in his utility belt and took out the carefully cleaned set of binoculars and focused where he heard the sound and saw the gleam.

For a long time he stared, wishing all the while that he had something more powerful instead of these binoculars. He stared in to the desert but couldn't find the source of the sound and light. Disappointed he clipped the binoculars back onto his belt, and turned back to the antenna.

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The sun was egging its way towards the east turning the sky gold, russet, and flaming red-orange as it came ever closer to the land.

Wind was now walking back, the antenna fixed. In the distances he saw the small domes that indicated the presence of home. As he got nearer a figure stood looking toward him from the doorway of the largest dome. The figure was a slightly overweight brown unicorn who wore an air of grim, semi-perpetual exhaustion, sandblasted into his face by too many years of arguing with a hostile environment. His grey hair was frozen in tangled twists like gypsum helictites yet under that he still looked kind. Dust frosted his face, body and the water drop cutie mark. The body, if not the spirit, was still powerful.

"Hello uncle washer" wind called out.

"Hello wind" uncle washer called back "did you get the antenna working?"

"Yes, sand had got into the relay system" wind said walking up the door uncle washer was standing in. "how are the water crystals?"

"Poor, there're producing half the usual rate"

"Is that wind?" a voice called.

Turning away from the conversation, Wind walked over to the near edge of the subterranean courtyard and peered down. A stout blue earth pony with a cutie mark of a singing sparrow was busy working among decorative plants. She looked up at him. "Hello did get it working."

Wind nodded then thinking back he asked "aunt Sing more did you two see or hear any unusual?"

Both ponies shook their heads "why?" his uncle asked.

Wing shrugged "I thought … nothing, must have been my imagination."

With that Wind and his uncle walked down into the courtyard. Aunt Sing more had walked into the kitchen "dinner will be ready in a few minutes" she said.

Wind perked up at this. "Exhalant I can start finish working on the …"

"Ah, don't you have your chores to finish as well," his uncle warned him sternly. "I don't mind you wasting time on that ship, but only after you've finished your chores. Now hop to it."

Wind slouched off to finish his chores knowing better than to argue with his uncle.

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Later that day Wind was in the garage, sat inside a small flyer which looked like it hadn't flown for years. The bits which hadn't been replaced were slightly rusty and needed a good polish. Wind was working on the battered ships radio as he did so he talked to it. "I can't wait to get you fixed" he said placing a wire in the proper place "just imagine the adventures new lands, new people and colours other than yellow." He switched the power on and the radio hummed into life. "There you go" he said to the ship "now we can communicate to other ponies" he put his tools down and got out of the flyer happy with his work.

Then he heard two beeps he turned around to see where it was coming from. The two beeps came again, and he discovered it was coming from the radio he had just fixed. He looked at the radio and at the frequency it read unknown. It must have tuned in accidently Wind thought. Whatever the signal was it was strong, if Wind had to guess, maybe one or two miles away.

Wind took a portable radio tried to tune it to the same frequency with a few try's the two beeps came back. Then Wind got a compass turned facing all directions. It was a miniscule change but Winds ears was able to tell. It got quieter when facing northwest but louder facing southeast. Wind got excited tasting adventure. He ran from the garage and upside. He stood on a small ridge which formed the highest point close by the homestead, which gave Wind a panoramic view of the surrounding desert. Bringing out the binoculars, he scanned South East at the rapidly darkening horizon for something anything out the ordinary.

The binoculars finally came down, and, "too dark" Wind commented to himself. Wind turned and studiously examined the wall of black advancing toward him.

A shout rose from the homestead below. "Wind, are you finished? I'm turning down the power for the night."

"Yep!" Wind responded. "I'll be down in a few minutes, Uncle Washer!" He might be bored out of his mind but he wasn't stupid enough to go out at night. He took one last look at the vanished horizon as he descended back into the garage.

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"Wind … Wind walker!" Washer glanced from side to side, loosening his neck muscles. "Where could that colt be?" he wondered aloud at the lack of response. There was no sign of movement in the homestead, and he had already checked above.

"Wind!" he yelled again. Wind, Wind, Wind … the name echoed teasingly back at him from the homestead walls. Starting to get worried he turned and walked back into the kitchen, where Sing more was preparing breakfast.

"Have you seen Wind this morning?" he asked as softly. She glanced briefly at him, and then returned to her cooking. "Yes. He said he was going on and adventure, so he left early so that he could do his chores when he came back."

"Ho dear?" Washer frowned worriedly. "The last time he went on an adventure, he brought back that desert scorpion egg. Did he take a communicator?"

"Well to be fair to him back then, he didn't know what one looked like and yes I made sure of it."

"Well," Washer mused, uncomfortable with that knowledge, "he'd better get back by midday or there'll be hell to pay."

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Wind with the portable radio in hoof was walking in the direction of what he thought was the origin of the beeping. Every now and then the two beeps would come but each time louder than the last indicating he was on the right path. Stopping he took out his binoculars from is saddle bag and had a look hoping to find the origin of the beeps. Then in the distance a shape came in to view. "That's it," Wind declared to himself with mixed excitement and satisfaction. He switched of the radio and galloped the rest of the way and reached it in seconds.

The pod was half-buried and now forming the backbone of a dune slightly higher than its neighbour's. Looks recent he thought I wander if this is the thing I heard and saw earlier. Wind tried to open the door to no avail. "Hello, anypony inside?" he called in, no response. So he tried the door again but put his full effort in to it and then the door gave way with a powerful crack, and the recoil sent Wind tumbling head over heels.

Cursing he got to his hooves and shook the sand out of his mane, - then realizing the door was actually open he looked inside. Nothing and nopony, feeling disappointed that his trip may have been for nothing he took a step inside. This move seemed to activate something for a hologram had appeared in front of him it was no bigger than a foul. The image was pony shaped but black and white and the details of the pony where blurred as if this was purposely done or the recording equipment was broken. Wind was so excited now that he discovered he was out of breath—because he had forgotten to breathe.

The image flickered and jiggled unsteadily, as if the recording had been made and installed with haste. Then the figure spoke in a mare's voice "hello," it said, "If you are not the pony in question then please deliver this device…" a gem dropped out of a compartment "to a pony named Rarity it is vital…" Wind picked up the gem and looked at it as the hologram continued "and if you do, ask her how many apples dose truth have? Please deliver this" it implored. Then with a burst of static it dissolved.

Wind put the gem in his bag and sat perfectly still for a long moment. Then he jumped around on the sand shouting "yes, yes, yes! Thank celesta I have a mission!" Stopping suddenly as he went thoughtful "Now who is Rarity?" Wind recited to himself. His expression then brightened again. "Say … I wonder if old Rara avis would know. She is supposed to live out in this general direction, even though nobody knows exactly where." He looked all around trying to find any sign of life.

Unfortunately life found him as three sand coloured masses effortlessly erupted from the ground spewing sand in all directions. What now stood in front of Wind were three enormous scorpions, tails high above them, there stings ready, there pincers snapping threateningly. The scorpions let out a hungry sounding grunt as they moved towards him. Wind was cornered the pod behind him and the scorpions left, right and center. The scorpion on the left shot one of its pincers forwards. Wind jumped back dogging the blow and found himself against the pod. In a gesture more instinctive than calculated he jumped for the open door. As he was about to land his back hoof was grabbed making him lose balance. His head smacked on the hard floor of the pod knocking him out. The last thing he saw where the pincers grabbing for him.