"How could a place as dull as all of this be given a name like 'The Plains of Lore?' It makes it sound exciting, but all I see is brown sand and blue sky!" Twilight muttered as she looked out of the window of their cab. Indeed, the Plains of Lore lived up to no expectations, unless you wanted the most barren place on earth. The landscape had turned into a desert as they had driven out of Equestria's borders, with rolling sand dunes providing an endless, waterless beach. Occasionally, she would spot a large cactus that had managed to root itself into firmer ground, but there were no other signs of life.
"Are you kidding?" Pennington was also looking out of the window, but held a glossy shine of daydreaming. "The Plains of Lore were the inspiration for the stories of the Arabian Knights! Some of the greatest stories of all time, passed down by word of mouth for generations before they were ever written down or published!" He grabbed Twilight by the shoulders and pointed out and past the driver and into the rolling sea of and dunes. "Imagine! Just over that dune, there could be a huge, glimmering palace of ivory-colored marvel, trimmed in gold! A foreign bazaar, filled with strange foods and stranger ponies! Perhaps one of those dunes holds a buried chest, filled with a sultan's lost treasure! Or, if we're lucky, a magic lamp with a genie inside, eager to grant us our hearts' desires!" He let her go again, returning to his window and his daydreaming. "Who knows, Twilight? We could be walking right into our own legend and not even know it!"
Twilight tried not to be put off by the sudden invasion of her personal space, and found that her skepticism faded in the face of Pennington's imagination. He's certainly a dreamer... She thought to herself as she returned to watching the land pass by. And he CERTAINLY knows how to put a positive spin on things...
"Still, Pennington, how are we supposed to cross the plains with only the supplies that you brought? You said yourself that there were only enough for one pony!"
"We'll have to double-time it!" Pennington closed his eyes tiredly. "Cross it in half of the time. We'll travel by night, it's the only safe way to travel in the desert at a fast pace... It's a shame, really. I had hoped to take in the sights." He shook his head.
"Uh, I'm not an owl, Penny!" Twilight groaned, taking the opportunity to try out a nickname.
"Don't call me that." The unicorn's tone was sharp and annoyed, distracting Twilight for a moment.
"What? Penny?" Twilight grinned. "Why not, Penny?"
"It's the smallest denomination of money, casually tossed aside from everypony. Essentially worthless." Pennington glared at her. "Not to mention, it's a girl's name, Sparky..." He gave her a devious grin.
"I prefer to be addressed by my first name..." Twilight muttered, returning his glare. I'm going to remember that... Penny. Just in case he gets on my nerves again.
"We're here!" The driver called. "This is as far as I can take you!" Pennington jumped out of the car, quickly taking his bags out after him. Twilight was a bit more hesitant to leave the car, lingering with her arms folded across her chest.
"Are you sure that it's too late to catch the train?" She asked, knowing the answer in advance.
"Lady, by the time I got you back into town, you would be too late to catch the sunset, let alone the train..." He shook his head. "If Pick Pocket and his gang hadn't been harassing me, too, you would be walking. The whole town owes you for that, but we can all only do so much..."
"This is more than enough!" Pennington chimed, opening the door on Twilight's side of the car. "You're truly kind for bringing us so far out here! It's actually enough to help cut out about half a day more of walking than I expected!"
"Yay, we're measuring how long we're going to be in the desert in days..." Twilight grumbled as she climbed out of the car, feeling woefully unprepared. I still can't believe that I let myself dragged into this! I could go back to the hotel, but... I don't want to feel like I just LET him go to the changelings without any kind of help if something went wrong! Twilight had put a lot of thought into what to do on the ride, and had finally reached the conclusion that, if she couldn't keep Pennington away from his crazy quest, then she would have to make sure that he made it out alive. As the cab turned back around, Twilight could already feel her body heating up from the sun. Suddenly, a dark-colored coat isn't a good thing to have... When she looked back at Pennington, he had already tied a bright red bandanna around his head, and was offering one to her.
"To keep the sweat out of your eyes..." He motioned towards his own bandanna, tied around his head like a red line of paint. It was hardly what Rarity would call a fashion statement, but it was practical, a fact that Twilight could appreciate. "Well, if we're going to be travelling at night, does that mean that we should try to rest, now?"
"You just sat around in a car for hours, we've rested!" Pennington quipped as he examined a small compass. "We won't be able to sleep until after we've traveled through the night for the first time. Otherwise, you won't be tired enough to sleep during the day." He quickly rolled up his map and tucked it into his saddlebag. He nodded his head to their left and then began walking. "This way! The sun will be at our backs until it sets. That ought to get us going in the right direction!"
"Wait, you mean, we're going to walk all day and all night?" She shook her head as the two of them began walking. "That's crazy! I feel like I'm already baking in the sun!"
"That's why I changed our route to visit every oasis that is anywhere close, we're going to get dehydrated quickly." Twilight felt a swell of indignation rise up in her as he rolled his eyes. "Twilight, if you're going to follow me around, you need to stop back seat driving."
"Back seat driving? I'd just like to know how we're going to survive!" Twilight tried to bite back on her temper, gritting her teeth to stop herself from making... less productive statements.
"You just leave that to me, Twilight!" Pennington tried to give her a reassuring smile, but it only came across as overconfident. "I've been in tougher situations than a planned trip to the desert." He began trotting his way up a sand dune, leaving Twilight fuming as she struggled to keep up.
Pennington was right, in the end. The two of them reached the first oasis as night fell, and Twilight was able to take a much-needed rest from hours of running up and down sand dunes. Pennington lead the way as the two of them wove their way between dozens of different tents, all belonging to different ponies, but all made of the same material: brown canvas.
The oasis itself, looking like a tiny lake in the middle of the ocean of sand, was rimmed by tall palm trees. Twilight immediately ran forward when they had broken free of the ring of tents, rushing to the water's edge. Her mouth felt completely devoid of moisture, and the rough surface of her dry tongue had been rubbing against the inside of her mouth for hours. She leaned down, foregoing any kind of cup, and drank from the pool in long gulps, the cool liquid racing down her throat and quenching her thirst.
Pennington smiled at the sight, amused by her inexperience and desperation for a drink. Granted, their trek through the afternoon and into the evening was the most liquid-stealing part of their trip, and he was sure that he had become lighter by about a couple pints over the course of the day. He calmly walked up to the water's edge and pulled Twilight back. "Twi, this isn't drinking water... This is the reservoir that everypony takes from." He pointed at the tents around them. "And not just for drinking..."
Twilight felt a swell of panic rise up from her stomach (perhaps accompanied by some of its contents) as the thought of the other things that ponies could have been using the water for. "I- I think I'm going to be sick..." She expected Pennington to laugh, just as he always did when she displayed her inexperience. To her surprise, the stallion put an arm around her shoulders and gently guided her away from the water's edge.
"Well, don't do it there... That water isn't supposed to be disturbed for any purpose. Don't worry, there isn't anything bad in it, other purposes have to draw water and take it somewhere they won't pollute it." He gave her shoulder a reassuring rub. "Don't worry, I did the same thing on my first trip to the desert."
"Y-you did?" Twilight found it hard to imagine the normally level-headed stallion making a mad dash for the water's edge, as desperate for water as she had been. The image just didn't fit with the overconfident stallion.
"Yep, except that I drank right after somepony else had decided to take a swim, which isn't allowed. I got sick for a few days after that. They've gotten a lot stricter since then..." He laughed, this time at himself. "I was fortunate enough to have friends here to help me recover..." He guided her towards a small brick building, filled with the chatter of ponies. "I'm sure you'll be fine, Twilight. They keep the reservoir vary clean now, just in case ponies make the same mistake as we both did." As they walked through the doorway, Twilight discovered that the building was, in fact, a bar. To her surprise, though, not a single pony had anything but glasses of crystal-clear water.
"Pennington, how are we going to pay for water? I thought that you only had the two hundred bits that you gave me, and I still need that for the train..." Twilight looked around as Pennington guided them to two stools, helping her up and letting her lean on the bar.
"In the desert, survival trumps profit." Pennington smiled. "Some things may cost money, but all of the tribes around here agreed that any water can and must be shared. It's really quite stunning, that they could put aside their differences like that." He waved to the bartender. "Two tall ones for a couple of thirsty travelers?"
"Coming right up!" Within moments, the bartender, a gruff-looking pony with a thick beard, had arrived with two large glasses of water. "Where you two headed?"
Twilight was about to speak up, but Pennington beat her to it. "We're headed East... Looking for changelings." When Twilight looked over at him, his entire demeanor had changed. His shoulders were relaxed, and he let his head fall down towards his drink and leaned heavily on one arm against the bar, as if he were exhausted. His voice sounded weary from travel, as if he had been in the desert for a week, rather than an afternoon. All in all, he wore the mantle of an experienced traveler who had been away from home for a long time.
"They come through here once in a while, but not that often. They like to keep to themselves, that bunch." The bartender stroked his beard. "But you'd do well to stay away from them..."
"Well, I'm no mysterious mare, so I don't plan on 'doing well,' but thanks for the advice." He gave the bartender a small smile, breaking character for only a moment. "Tell me, from where does the moon rise in these parts?"
"The moon rises in the East." The bartender replied hastily as he brought back the drink. "Just like it does wherever you come from. You're still on the same planet..."
Pennington's expression quickly fell again, as if the reply had disappointed him. "Thank you. Just needed to double-check my bearings..."
He and Twilight quickly finished a few more glasses of water, then replenished the sacks of water that Pennington had brought for them. Soon after, they left the bar. The moment that they were back out the doors, Pennington once again regained his composure, shoulders straight and head held high.
After being around Shining Armor for so many years, I didn't recognize... His posture is like a soldier's! Twilight thought as she watched the change. Not quite a soldier's posture, but that of a pony who knows to be ready for anything...
"Well, let's get moving!" Pennington pulled out his compass, examining it closely. It was at this point that Twilight noticed that he wasn't even looking at the moon for guidance, but relying totally on his compass.
"Wait, you're not using the moon?"
"For what?"
"Keeping your bearings!" Twilight pointed up at the rising white orb in the sky. "That way's East!"
"Hmm... East-by-Northeast, actually, considering the time of year. Come now, Twilight, I thought that you had studied astronomy!" Pennington began walking along the edge of the lake, moving in the same direction that Twilight had been pointing.
"But- But!" Twilight stumbled to catch up to him, hastily reminding herself that Pennington had planned to walk through the night, rather than travel during the day. "If you knew, why did you ask the bartender?"
"Just testing a theory..." Pennington muttered as he pulled out his map. "It's of little consequence, I was wrong, anyway..."
"A theory, about what?"
"You'll find out if it rings true next time..." Pennington muttered. "Don't worry yourself about it, Twilight..."
Remembering Pennington's habit of keeping secrets, Twilight rolled her eyes, knowing that she wouldn't get the answer out of him willingly. And starting a fight in the middle of the desert isn't worth it...
After the moon had reached its apex in the sky, Twilight began to enter what she considered another level of tiredness. The aching in her legs had been reduced to a cold numbness, a consequence of the desert growing first cool, then cold, as the heat from the sun finally seeped away. Even her seemingly tireless guide was beginning to yawn regularly. Twilight's hooves began to drag in the sand as time passed, and she soon felt as though her entire body were made of lead, making it an effort to even walk in the moonlight. The moon had begun to dip low in the sky when Pennington called out that it was time to make camp.
"Finally... I thought that the sun would be up before you stopped..." Twilight muttered, dropping her bags into the sand out of exhaustion. In less than a second, she had rolled onto her back and closed her eyes, ready to sleep, in spite of the chill in both the air and in the sand.
"Well, it wouldn't be the first all-nighter I've pulled..." Pennington chuckled as he pulled a couple of blankets out of on of Twilight's bags. He draped one over Twilight's body, providing some warmth, and then placed one on his own back as he laid down on his stomach about a yard away. "But you'll have to get used to this. It will be this way for the next three days, or so..."
"Wonderful..." Twilight mumbled, already half-asleep. Her inhibitions fell as she grew closer to sleep, and the question that had been buried in her mind finally rose to the surface. "Pennington, were you a soldier?"
"No, I'm just used to fighting for what I want..." Pennington mumbled in return, placing his chin on his hooves. "Just like Daring Do..."
"You look like you could be one..." Twilight muttered again, turning to face his voice, though her eyes were still shut. "Strong, well-built, you hold yourself as if you were expecting an attack at all times..." She didn't hear his response, slipping into a deep sleep.