Generations-Chapter 13
Generations-Chapter 13It was late afternoon the following day when Sweetsong and Waterfire glimpsed a patch on the otherwise flat horizon. As they drew nearer to it, it appeared green and both ponies started to get their hopes up.
They had been following the railroad tracks for almost two days with no sign of life and no landmarks. Often, the tracks were completely covered with sand and the only way they knew they were still on the right path was the feel of the tracks beneath their feet. They were very careful not to veer from the tracks even in the slightest; without them, they would have no reference of where they were. They even slept on the tracks at night, which was extremely uncomfortable, but necessary. It would be far too easy to get lost out here, and they both decided they'd rather be safe than sorry.
The constant wind changed the landscape around them as they watched. A hill of sand would form, and within minutes would blow away to reveal the dry crusted rock beneath. The sun beat down from above, and heat rose from the ground below them, slowing them down. Neither pony was used to heat of that sort, but what truly surprised them both was the extreme cold at night.
As soon as the sun had gone down, the temperature dropped dramatically and the two huddled together under Waterfire's cloak throughout the night. Because of the chill, and the uncomfortable tracks, neither had slept well, if at all. They were both relieved when the sun rose once again to warm them, but in the scorching afternoon, the lack of sleep was starting to catch up with them.
Around noon, they stopped and shaded themselves under Waterfire's cloak. They still had some water left, but were unsure of how long it would last. The two decided to continue east until sunset that evening. If they hadn't found the oasis, or at least some form of shelter, they would turn back. Though both ponies loved the adventure, they were already exhausted, and well-aware that if they went too far they could get stranded.
So in the late afternoon, just as the two were starting to think about turning back, the green on the horizon was a welcome sight. Sweetsong and Waterfire prayed it wasn't a mirage, and they were overjoyed when the image didn't recede, but actually started to grow to reveal trees and grass. They had found the oasis! Suddenly their strength returned and they ran at a full gallop towards it.
As they reached the first row of palm trees, they were completely out of breath and collapsed in a heap on each other, laughing deliriously. They sat under the palm for almost an hour, finishing off the last of the food and water. They leaned back against the tree and cuddled in each other's arms, watching the sunset. It was the most beautiful sunset either had seen. The multicolored glow brought the desert alive with brilliant sparkles. No wonder the place had been so aptly named.
At length, Waterfire finally spoke, "We should probably try and build a fire so we don't freeze like last night."
"Yes, I'm sure we can find some wood around here, not like out in the middle of nowhere." But neither pony moved. They were both so content and exhausted, it was difficult to even think about getting up. They sat for a full fifteen minutes.
"Do you want to gather up some wood, or build the pit" Waterfire encouraged.
"Either one is fine." They sat still. Presently, the cool night air descended upon them, and they both grudgingly rose to build the fire.
Sweetsong and Waterfire rose late in the morning, refreshed and invigorated after a deep night's sleep. They started off into the brush to try to find a water source. It only took them about half an hour to find a small trickle of a stream. They drank the cool crisp water, and then followed it. After a while, it led to a small lake.
To their left was a twenty foot cliff jutting out of the water. Waterfire led the way along the shore to climb the rock formation. From the top, they had a splendid view of the oasis. It was only a couple miles in each direction before it gave way again to the harsh desert; they were close to the middle right now. They looked down at the lake below them. It was crystal clear straight to the bottom. The part just below the cliff was rather deep, the only place where you couldn't see the bottom, but then it shallowed out around them to extend to the trees on the shore.
"That must be the spring right below these rocks," Waterfire pondered. "To think this little lake makes all the life here possible." He turned to Sweetsong to get her opinion, but just then a flash of purple and pink whizzed past him as she ran off the cliff, did a flip in the air, and landed with a huge splash in the water.
"Sweetsong!" He looked over the edge into the darkness and saw nothing but bubbles. "Very funny Sweetsong," he added in a warning voice, but his fear got the better of him. "Sweetsong?" he called one more time in a very worried voice before he dove off the cliff himself after her.
When he surfaced, he looked around anxiously. Suddenly, a large splash and lots of giggles came from the rocks behind him. There was a small hollow that she had been hiding in. Waterfire looked at her angrily. "That's not funny," he said very seriously as he swam over to her. Her laughter subsided as she realized that she must have really ticked him off. Next thing she knew he dunked her and swam away!
They played and laughed for quite some time in the water before either of them noticed the blue pony standing on the cliff over them. "Who are you?" he bellowed.
Sweetsong and Waterfire looked up at the same time and each had the feeling of 'uh-oh, we're in trouble'.
"Come out of that water, at once!" The blue pony yelled at them again. Sweetsong and Waterfire swam over to the edge and tried their best to climb out, slipping and sliding on the banks. The blue pony walked down the cliff and met them at the edge, making no offer to help them. When they were finally back on land, he looked them both up and down, dripping wet, and asked again, "Who are you?"
"My name's Waterfire and this is Sweetsong. We come fro..."
"And what do you think you're doing swimming in our drinking water?" The blue pony interrupted. The two ponies noticed a sparkly quality to his coat as he turned his head to each of them.
"We're very sorry, we just..."
"Follow me!" the blue pony ordered, and walked off into the brush. Sweetsong and Waterfire looked at each other and started to follow him; they had no other choice. They hung their heads low and they walked and huddled together, still shivering from their damp coats. Each wondered what was going to happen to them.
After a short walk, they approached a clearing. There was a circle of houses made out of what appeared to be bamboo, and other materials available in the oasis. The blue pony walked them to the center of the circle of houses. They must have attracted quite a bit of attention, because several ponies emerged from the houses slowly and curiously. Waterfire and Sweetsong soon had a crowd around them, and they huddled close together, both for fear and cold.
"These two outsiders," the blue pony bellowed, "Have deliberately contaminated our drinking water." Several of the ponies in the crowd looked at each other in confusion and worry. What kind of pollutants were in their water? The blue pony noticed the concerned faces and went on, "They were caught swimming in the water hole!" His voice went very high pitched with indignation as he said the last.
A white pony with pink hair rolled her eyes and stepped forward. "Oh Starbeam, get over it." There was a grumbling amongst the crowd and a general feeling of "he got us all riled up over this?" The white pony stepped between Starbeam and the two outsiders. She had the same sparkly quality to her coat, and it danced and dazzled in the sun. She smiled and shook hooves with each of them. "Hi, I'm Desert Rose, and this is Starbeam. I'm sorry you haven't had a proper greeting so far," she glowered at Starbeam, "But I'd like to welcome you to Sparkle Desert." Sweetsong and Waterfire breathed a sigh of relief and introduced themselves, trying not to let their teeth chatter. "Oh, you two must be freezing! Merriweather, get them each a towel please." A yellow pony nodded and ran into one of the houses, returning a few minutes later with two towels.
When they had fully dried off and felt better, Sweetsong and Waterfire introduced themselves and explained where they were each from and how they had gotten there. The crowd was much smaller now, as most of the ponies had dispersed. But the ones who were left seemed very friendly and curious to learn more about the newcomers. Everyone was surprised to learn about the old railroad tracks; apparently no one from this town had ever followed them either or knew where they led.
Desert Rose introduced them to some of the ponies. She explained that she was the chairpony of the town council. "The others on the council are Forsythia," a bright pink pony stepped forward and shook hooves with them, "And Starbeam, whom you've already met." She looked around her; Starbeam was nowhere to be found. "He's probably at home getting an earful from Denim Blue," Desert Rose mumbled to herself. Upon seeing their confusion, she explained that Starbeam's wife definitely wore the pants in the family, and because of that Starbeam was somewhat overzealous at his job. It wasn't that he was power hungry, he just wanted the feeling that he had power over something. "Don't worry about him though," Desert Rose went on, "He's not angry at you personally, and he'll get over it in a day or two."
Desert Rose showed them around the town with Forsythia close behind adding comments every now and then. It was very small, really more of a village than a full town. The Sparkle Ponies lived mostly off the land, as they had for generations.
"But we've seen from old photographs that our ancestors looked a little bit different from us." Forsythia added, "They appear to have sparkles all over, rather than just the hips and face. And their sparkles appeared brighter, due to the clear skin, or so it's been said."
As they talked, a white pony with blue hair came up to them. "I'd like to extend an apology on behalf of my husband," she said.
"Sweetsong and Waterfire, this is Denim Blue, Starbeam's wife." Desert Rose introduced them. They nodded, understanding now. Though she was very polite, she just had an air about her of being in charge. She invited them to lunch at her house, and they both accepted, for they were getting hungry.
During lunch, Starbeam said very little, though at least he didn't seem hostile anymore. Sweetsong and Waterfire actually started to feel a little sorry for him, because they could see what a hold Denim Blue had over him.
After lunch, they met Desert Rose in the square with a purple pony. She introduced Desert Blossom as her husband. "We talked it over, and we'd love to have the two of you stay with us as our guests as long as you're in town," Desert Rose smiled and Desert Blossom just nodded.
"Thank you, that's very kind of you," Sweetsong accepted for both of them.
"Come on. I'll show you to the house and get you settled comfortably." Sweetsong and Waterfire followed them to their doorstep.