//------------------------------//
// Attaistown 
// Story: Rainbow's Lonesome Road 
// by Centurion Pike-Wall 
//------------------------------//

(One day after 'dogs')

Void rounded the crest of the dune, hoping that she would finally catch sight of Attaistown. It had been a day since the Diamond dogs attempted to attack her. She hadn't been too torn up about it, seeing as how they attacked her. Her only problem was that when the dog she had let live tackled her, the last of her bread had been smashed. And since the leader only had meat on him, she had almost no food left. She was also officially out of water, meaning unless she found a spring or oasis of something, she was a goner. She was already quite thirsty, and contemplating ways she could collect her sweat to drink, when her prayers were answered.

Over the dune she was on, was it; Attaistown. It was a collective of rundown wooden and stone houses, a few larger buildings that looked in better shape (likely businesses), and a large wood building that seemed to be the town hall. The whole thing was surrounded by a wall of thick wood, and had armed guards patrolling it. But most importantly, Void caught a glimpse of trees and water behind the town hall; an oasis! Void rubbed her eyes, checking to see if she was hallucinating or if it was a mirage. When she confirmed she wasn't, she nearly jumped for joy, before running down the dune.

As she ran down, the guards seemed to take note of her presence. When she was nearing the gate, it opened up and one of the guards came out. It was a griffin, wearing a leather breastplate and cloth headscarf, a short spear in his talons. He held up his other talon, signalling her to stop. He then lowered the bandanna part of the headscarf, showing her his chipped beak. He said in a vaguely griffinstonian accent, "Halt. State your name and business in Attaistown."

Seeing no reason to lie, she told him the truth. "Names Void Streak, and I'm just looking for work. That and something to drink." The guard seemed to relax, bringing his spear to a neutral position. He even cracked a smile.

"Sorry. Just doin' my job. Don't want a raider gettin' in to open up the gate in the middle of the night. Well, their are two places you can get a drink. The oasis, and the 'Stalwart Pike', the local inn. The oasis is free, but you'll only get water. The Pike though, there you'll get some more stuff. A nice stiff brew, some good music. Also a good place to look for a job. Lots of patrons are willin' to pay ya to move rocks or other s*** like that. Point is, you know my opinion." By this point the two of them had gotten inside the town, and had the gate close behind them. The griffin looked back at a ladder leading up to the wall, then looked back at Void. "Alright, then. You have a good one. And stay out of trouble. I'd hate to have to put you in a cell."

When he left, Void looked out at the town. She stood in a semi-circle square like area. Market stalls lined the edge, the goods being sold ranging from food and canteens to weapons and armor. She even saw one selling fireworks. Creatures walked to and fro across the square, once more quite varied. Ponies and griffins, cows and mules, even a small dragon.  There were three paths out of the square; one leading straight, one slanted off to the right, and the final the left. Seeing how the town hall was at the very end of the central path, she walked up that way. While a tavern sounded nice, she decided to focus on important things first. Water, in the long run if she had to leave, would be more valuable than a cider. Plus it was free, and who was she to say no to that?

Along the way there, she took in more of the town. Most of the houses were made wood and crude mud bricks. They reminded Void of the workers shack back at the farm, only larger and better made. Most were made of mud brick, with a few being made from wood. They weren't like the houses of ponyville; these were crude, and more clearly made for warm weather. One of two of them had a overhang, revealing them to be small businesses. Void spotted a tanner, blacksmith, weaver, and a few others she couldn't identify. Eventually, she reached the town hall.

It was much larger (obviously) then all of the other houses. However, it still didn't strike the former equestrian as a town hall. The one back in ponyville was much bigger, and made of stone. This one was made of wood, mud brick, and a few pieces of Sheet metal. It did have glass windows, a luxury none of the other houses seemed to have. On the side of the building, was a small pathway with a sign above it that said, Oasis entrance. Free water. Taking that was where to go, she went down that way.

When she got there, she was confronted by a guard, this one a grayish earth pony in a similar uniform to the griffin at the gate. He held up a hoof, signalling for her to stop. He said, "Hold it. No weapons allowed in the oasis. Put them in the box," gesturing to a large box on a table next to him. Inside was a saber, a bow and arrows, a pair of small axes, and a bunch of knives. Not seeing a reason to fight him about it, she unhitched her knife and put it in, followed by her spear. Once he seemed her clear, she walked past him, into the oasis.

After she made her way past the passage, she ended up in a large open room. It was indeed like the showings of Oasis's in story books. Palm trees, a small clear lake, tall grass, the whole nine yards. Several guards stood at various points throughout the oasis, watching a group of creatures filling up various containers. If she had to guess, she would guess that the group was who the weapons belonged to. She went down toward the lake, eager to get her fill.

The guards didn't stop her, but simply seemed to keep and eye on her. She knelt down by the waters edge, and just how thirsty she was hit her. Her throat felt like someone had shoved a bag of sand down it. She first filled up her canteen a little bit, then downed all of it in one go. While it had no taste, as water generally does, it felt better then any sugary treat that pinkie could cook up. She then filled up her canteen all the way until it was nearly overflowing. 

After re-corking it and getting up to leave, she thought of what she would do next. She had a nice sum of Money from looting the diamond dog, so she could probably afford to find some place to get a proper sleep. However, if she wanted to stay for any length of time, she would need to find some work. Remembering just what the guard at the gate, she decided to look for this 'Stalwart Pike' she had been told about.

She looked over at one of the guards; A bipedal lizard-like creature. It reminded her of a dragon, but had no wings and a large bony crest. She asked, "Hey. Do you know where I can find the 'Stalwart Pike'?"

He grunted and said, "Sure. Go back to the entrence, then take the left path. You'll find it at the end of the path." As she thanked him and turned to leave, he added, "Oh, one more thing. Tell the innkeeper that one Full Tankard has left town. He'll want to know that. Have a nice day. Or at least as nice as it can get in this roasting Hellhole." He whispered that last part, but it was still loud enough for her to hear. Armed with this information, she left the Oasis. On her way out, she grabbed her weapons, and headed down back toward the square. Unbeknownst to her, however, was a Certain pony, a hornless unicorn, was also watching her. And she had friends.