She snapped awake, making a strangled gasp for air. The dream was already fading even as her confused mind fought to recall details, as though somehow it refused to be made solid. Only passing images remained. A glorious palace that was pristine marble in one moment, and iridescent crystal in the next. There was a rainbow with six ponies standing at the heart of each colour. And two beings, one of radiant light, the other lustrous shadows.
There was more of the dream she was certain, more images, yet despite her struggle they remained tantalisingly just out of reach. The harder she stretched out for them, the further away they seemed to be.
Without warning a stabbing pain suddenly erupted through her temples, exploding like a cruel volcano, leaving her gasping and reeling in shock. She collapsed backwards unable to hold herself upright as her head span, stars of agony dancing in her vision.
Shortly it passed, receding to a dull throb behind her eyes that faded with each passing moment, leaving her groaning and helplessly weak. The relief of its passing was like a splash of cold water, cooling and soothing her aching head and body. The dream was gone now. Only those fleeting, blurred images remained, though what they meant was a mystery to her.
Realising she find no answers to those questions soon, she abandoned those efforts and instead choose to focus on the moment and take stock of her situation.
Firstly, she observed her own body. Aside from the pain and dizziness that even now settled, her head felt tolerable, though the rest of her ached fiercely. Her wings had become a tangled mess of feathers during her trek across the desert, but tenderly stretching one out she discovered they appeared to have been carefully groomed. A shooting pain in her back caused her to wince and retract the wing again, reminding her just how much punishment and exhaustion the desert had inflicted on her. At the same time, she found she had been bandaged, having suffered numerous cuts that suddenly felt very sore now she noticed them.
She also noted that for the first times in days her lips felt moist. During her trek through the desert, terrible dehydration had seen them become crisp and parched. She had also suffered badly with sunburn, which would explain the ointment residue she could feel in her coat, easing yet another suffering.
Clearly somepony, or creature, had taken it upon themselves to take her in and treat her.
Confirming she was indeed alive and doing remarkably well considering, she moved on to inspect her surroundings, seeking some clue as to who her saviour was and why they had shown such… charity. It was a dark room, sparsely furnished and blessedly cool after the extremes of the desert. What furniture did inhabit the room was crudely formed metal for the most part, though she was laying on a simple wooden frame bed with a straw stuffed pallet mattress, which felt surprisingly comfy after her ordeal. In the corner was a neatly made bed roll, barely illuminated by streams of sunlight seeping through cloth curtains that separated the room from the outside world. Through them she could hear the muted sounds of a distant crowd.
That meant civilisation, and that could only be a good thing. Where there were ponies, there was information, ponies she could talk to. She’d finally figure out where she was, how she got here, and what she was going to do next.
The door creaked open on squeaky iron hinges and a pony stepped in, an angelic white unicorn with a stylish and immaculately coiled violet mane and tail. She wore a loose jacket, that despite the rough fabric, still managed to look fabulous and neat. Her flank presented three diamonds in a triangle.
“Good morning, I see you’re awake.” She said cheerfully, strolling over to the bedside levitating a jug of water in her magic beside her. She poured a cup and offered it. “Here you go, some fresh water. Don’t drink too much at first, just sip it slowly. You’ve been badly dehydrated and you’ll give yourself cramps if you do.”
She gratefully accepted it, struggling to sit up while her own aura stuttered slightly around the cup, still exhausted.
“Here, let me help you.” The pearl unicorn said, gently using her own magic to ease her into a sitting position where she could more easily drink. The water was tepid, and simply the most refreshing thing she had ever tasted. Her parched throat felt instantly better, and she had to fight the temptation to gulp the rest down as fast as she could.
“Thank you.” She croaked to her pearl friend, smiling weakly, hoping it conveyed the heartfelt gratitude she felt for saving her life.
“You’re most welcome.” She sing-songed back with a chirpy and beautiful voice. A moment later found her busy examining her bed ridden patient, checking sunburns and cuts, and inspecting her eyes. “How are you feeling?”
“Much better, thank you. I’m afraid don’t even know your name.”
“Good heavens, where are my manners?” The unicorn rolled her eyes with a charming smile. “My name is Charity, and I’m with the Engineers.”
“Very nice to meet you Charity.” She felt slightly confused, none the wiser as to who the Engineers were but hoped she didn’t let it show.
“And what’s your name?” Charity prompted. “And whatever were you doing in the depths of the Scorched Ocean?”
She paused, trying to search her memory. The dull throbbing slowly returned.
“I… I don’t know… I woke up there one morning… I was… somewhere else…” The memories became fuzzier and more indistinct the harder she tried to recall them, and she winced again as the pain sharpened.
“No, no, no.” Charity told her, rushing back to her side when she saw her pain and laying her down again. “just relax, lay back and don’t think about it. Oh, deary me,” she sighed, as she saw her patient begin to relax again, “you’re new, aren’t you?”
“New?”
“New, as in ‘you’re new here’. It’s a term we use for ponies we find like yourself. You woke up and don’t recall anything before that. No memories or identity at all.” It was a statement, not a question, and she sounded a little sad as she spoke, as though it were an unfortunate story she’d heard too many times before.
“I have flashes, half remembered dreams and feelings, but…” She shook her head, she didn’t have the strength to try remembering again. “Where is here anyway?”
Charity seemed relieved for the chance to change the subject.
“Ah, well here is Freemarket, it’s sort of a neutral space in the middle of The Vales where all the different tribes and settlements can come to trade and meet without fear of everypony shooting at each other.” Her cheerful smile faltered slightly. “At least, they usually do, things can get rather out of hoof from time to time…”
“Wait, tribes?”
Charity paused and seemed to ponder how best to explain.
“It’s probably best if I just show you, when you’re feeling up to a little walk around the bazaar of course. Nearly everypony and creature comes through Freemarket eventually. But perhaps we’ll do that in a day or two, when you’ve rested further. For now, we need to find a name for you. Can’t simply call you ‘hey, purple’ and it’s actually rather difficult to keep talking around the subject if you would believe.”
A name? Her identity. She had no idea what her name was. During the arduous trek across the desert that very nearly claimed her life, the question of who she was had never been far from her mind.
“If I may volunteer an opinion?” Charity interrupted, “most ponies who aren’t given a name look to their cutie marks. Yours is quite unique, it appears to be a sparkling star. How would you feel about… Sparkle?”
Sparkle? Something deep within her resonated the moment Charity said it. She didn’t know what it was, nor could she have explained it if she’d tried, but it felt right.
“Sparkle.” She repeated it to herself, feeling that same sense of rightness return and smiling broadly when it did. It was the most certain she could remember feeling, even if her memory was only a few tortured days old. “Yes, Sparkle. I am Sparkle.”