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// Day 1 
// Story: The Field Journal of U-Mos: Notes on Equestria 
// by Brony Tom 
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	Day 1
Footnote: In the event that the reader is unfamiliar with myself and my kind, I have provided notes for a brief description, which shall be denoted by (?)

I awoke with naught but a soft buzzing in my head that day.  I heard the chirping of birds and the sigh of the wind through the trees; I supposed I must be in Torvus Bog (1).  When I arose to examine my surroundings, however, I was at a loss, for the foliage and atmosphere were nothing like that of my home.
A closer inspection revealed vibrant and healthy green leaves.  The bark on the trees around me was flaky and brown in color.  I breathed in, and the air was almost intoxicating in the sweetness of it; this was most certainly not my homeworld (2).
The sound of running water came from nearby, so I decided to investigate it.  I rose to my feet, remaining crouched somewhat so as to avoid sticking out too much (3).  The brush offered little resistance to my long strides, and before long I arrived at a small river.  The water here flowed just quickly enough to avoid being stagnant, as evidenced by the debris lazily floating along the surface.
I glanced around, searching for any signs of life, or if I was fortunate, perhaps even signs of civilization.  The ground was muddy enough that I was able to spy a set of tracks on the opposite bank of the river.  I hovered over the waters and alighted on the other side, kneeling down for a better look at the footprints.
The depressions in the mud were rather small compared to my own track size, barely half as long as mine were.  The tracks, I observed, were rounded and smooth, most likely made by a hooved creature, and the depth of the indent was slight compared to the width and length of it.  Whatever had left it was much lighter than one might expect for a creature of its size.
I looked to the sky, hoping to discern the approximate time until this world’s sun would set.  Based on the sun’s current position relative to the horizon, as well as the soft orange light that was beginning to creep over the forest, I found it reasonable to assume that I had perhaps two hours at most until dark.
With that in mind, I decided that it would behoove me to follow the tracks left here, in the hopes of finding a civilization that I could share company with.  Mind you, this was not out of fear for my own safety, but rather out of a desire to reduce the amount of risk of anything forcing me into a combat situation that I would rather avoid, at least until I could gather more information on my current location.
As the tracks continued further and further away from the river, I had to rely more and more on visual clues other than the actual hoofprints in the ground.  It was difficult at first, as I was unfamiliar with the plant life that grew here, but with patience I was able to discern some telltale signs of passage.  I continued on in this manner for perhaps thirty minutes before I heard the sounds of something moving in the distance ahead of me.
Perhaps this was the creature who had been leaving the tracks?  I strained my senses to get a better look at the being, only vaguely able to make out a quadrupedal form from this distance.  Not satisfied, I cast my mind’s eye towards the creature, hoping to get a feel for its level of intelligence, if any (4).  
Initially, my mental probing was met with silence, but I soon discovered a strong presence where I knew the creature to be.  Their mind was well-fortified, allowing me no access to even the most basic of surface thoughts or emotions.  I must admit my surprise that the first living being I should encounter in this strange place would be one so intelligent.
I decided that politeness would be the appropriate method to approach this person.  I sent my mind’s eye to gently make contact with the other’s consciousness, much like one would knock on the door of a stranger’s house.  Immediately I felt and saw the quadruped stiffen and look up in alarm and suspicion, and I surmised that it must be concerned of the presence of a predator.
To keep things from spiralling out of control, I called out to the creature.
“Peace, friend, I mean you no harm.”
The quadruped turned to face in my direction, and I could see its head swiveling about, searching for me.  An interesting fact, I thought, that I would be able to see farther in the dim light of the forest than a creature native to it.  Nevertheless, I put my scientific ponderings aside and stepped forward slowly, keeping my hands up in a placating gesture.
After a moment, the being’s gaze locked onto me, and I saw it crouch into a low stance, which I assumed was a defensive one.  I once again called out to it.
“I assure you, I come in peace.”
As far as I could tell, the quadruped had no visible reaction to my words.  I wondered if it could understand what I was saying; as soon as the thought occurred to me, a feeling in my gut told me that it must be true for this case.  I once again brushed against its mind with my own, and I broadcast to it an image of myself and it sitting peacefully together and conversing.
That certainly got a reaction out of it.  The creature stood back to its normal height and began cantering quickly towards me.  As it closed the distance between us, I was able to make out more details about its physical form.  It bore a pattern of stripes across its body, alternating between black and white.  In truth, it reminded me of a creature I’d once seen in an image given to me by a human I used to know (5).
I remained still, keeping my hands raised so as to be clear in my non-hostile intentions.  The being, which I will henceforth refer to as a zebra, finally stopped when it was within one or two paces of me.  By the way it carried itself and the distinct roundness of parts of its body, I felt safe in assuming that this particular zebra was female.  It, or rather she, scanned me up and down several times; I could only assume she was looking for any possible threats.  
When she was done, she lifted one of her front legs towards me and pulled it back towards herself.  I touched her mind to glean what she might mean by it, and was rewarded with a mental image of her leading me to a small hut.  I conveyed my gratitude to her, and the zebra nodded her head in return.
As we walked through the forest, I allowed my curiosity to overtake me.  How could such a creature exist?  It was so similar to the human zebra, and yet far different.  Even then, my mind regarded the foliage; it reminded me of the flora that was found on a human world.  Had I landed on a human colony?  If so, why couldn’t this one comprehend my speech?  The humans had been quick to try and make friends with my people, so the language barrier shouldn’t be a problem for a human world.  Perhaps this one simply didn’t have a translator module.
It was dark by the time we arrived at the zebra’s hut, so the first thing I did upon our arrival was to conjure a few light spheres that I sent to hover around the clearing in which we stood.  The zebra seemed shocked at that, and I could sense a brief flash of uncertainty from her mind.   I wondered if she was unfamiliar with energy manipulation; it would be one of the only reasons I could think of that might cause her to react in such a way to my light spheres.
Regardless, she seemed to compose herself quickly enough, and opened a small door in the side of the hut.  She went inside, then turned and repeated her gesture from earlier, indicating she wanted me to follow her inside.  I crouched down, but even at my shortest I was too tall to squeeze through the door.  My hostess seemed to notice this, as she held one of her hooves to her chin in thought.
It was my turn to hide my surprise at the sheer flexibility of her front limbs; she seemed to be able to bend it in almost a full circle of motion.  Later, when I had the time, I would have to study the bone and muscle structure of this curious species.
Seeing as my zebra guide was at a loss for what to do about my size, I sent her a mental image of myself resting comfortably in a tree and pointed to the edge of the clearing.  She paused for a moment, but eventually nodded in understanding.  With that, I stood up and looked around for a suitable tree to spend the night in.  Once I found a good candidate, I fluttered my wings and hovered up to a comfortable little crook in one of the branches.
I settled against the thick trunk of the tree and allowed myself to sink into a restful state, though I made sure to keep my mind’s eye attentive for any hostile presences (6).

Thus ends Day 1