//------------------------------// // Scouting Party // Story: Land of Giant Ponies // by Hereward //------------------------------// Twilight's spare room was at odds with the overall layout of the library; it was a long narrow room that dog-legged a third of the way in and a window almost directly opposite the door. Originally it was for surplus storage, like when a delivery of books arrived but hadn't been catalogued, but Twilight had converted it into a private study area for her 'special projects'. Indeed its lack of use was highlighted by its rather spartan arrangement but a conspicuous lack of dust and suchlike showed Spike's dedication to keeping the whole place tidy. She set the pod down on the desk and obtained a quill and parchment from a small storage area left for the purposes of notetaking and set them off to her right, almost right on the edge. With that she then got some ink from under the desk and prepared to begin a possible thesis. She began to write: The Discovery and Analysis of Tiny Humans I, Twilight Sparkle, along with my friends Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash have discovered a most remarkable find in the orchards of Sweet Apple Acres. To wit a metallic sphere one apple in diameter with microscopic windows allowing Pinkie Pie and myself to observe the contents of the hollow object, which turn out to be humans. Scientific name: Simians Superstitiotus It is undoubtedly incredible as these humans are much smaller than those of legend; current estimate places them at just one clip tall. Twilight paused in her writing. Her gaze fell square on the sphere as she pondered about her next move. Options included finding a way to open it up and interact with the humans more directly or to observe their behaviour within the confined space. She knew further studies would have to be carried out before she could continue her thesis. --- James Benson had been pushing his way through the tall thick grass for a fair amount of time; already the isolation was taking its toll as he started and flinched at every anomalous sound. The strain of walking in an alien environment was really getting to him when, to his relief, he came upon what appeared to be a fresh water lake the size of Rutland Water, albeit with surroundings and topography that had more in common with a waterhole in the savannah. Eagerly and without any qualms over possible contagions he leapt forth and thrust his head into the water at the 'shore', drawing in a big gulp to quench the thirst that had been building to sore levels. Satisfied with his long drink, James lay back and looked up at the few clouds, which hovered over his location. He looked and looked and looked, yet against all his sensibilities they didn't move, disperse or change shape; even in apparent stillness clouds should still move in the high skies where the air never seems to stop. His mind struggled with the apparent lack of common sense in these skies but, in doing so, he failed to notice a great white mass approaching through the grass. --- "These readings," Dr Rabett remarked, "It's incredible. Not only are there no alien pathogens but there's no sign of high-risk pathogens that we're familiar with. Furthermore there're strong indications that there are zero toxic chemicals; even Earth's atmosphere contains tolerable levels of potentially toxic substances." "What do you make of it, Knowles?" Capt Hewlett asked. "Well," He answered, "Best guess would be that we're on some kinda Earth-like planet that resembles Earth without man, or where man hasn't industrialised." "So," Hewlett deduced, "If there's intelligent life it'll be pre-industrial." "Maybe even tribal, sir." Capt. Hewlett paused in thought for a while. "By all accounts we'll have to scout out the area and see if we can... negotiate or something with the natives if there are any. If all else fails we should be able to find essentials." With that he led the crew back into the cabin. "Ladies and gentlemen," He announced, "This is a situation. We have crash-landed on what our instruments indicate is an extra-solar planet with highly Earth-like conditions. The vessel can maintain reasonable electrical power by use of our solar panels but certain mechanisms will have to be compromised, including standard life-support. Fortunately we have detected no alien pathogens in the planet's atmosphere so we can breathe. In order for us to survive and to make attempts to get the Horus flight-worthy again we must all club together and arrange scouting parties to gather supplies." There was a stew of murmuring as the remaining passengers got to grips with the news. "Sir," Ms Pugh spoke up, "Maybe we'll be able to find the four who used the escape pods during our scouting." "Good point, Ms Pugh. In the meantime let us consider how best to assign everyone to what kind of scouting." --- Twilight reached a conclusion. She'd need some research material, which would mean asking Spike to bring some books, but she also did not wish to look away from the sphere as she wasn't sure if the humans had any way of getting out of their own accord. She got another piece of parchment and set it on the other side of the desk and began writing. Dear Princess Celestia, I write this letter to you with ambivelence regarding the subject matter. Earlier today Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack and I found a metal sphere the size of an apple at Sweet Apple Acres and, upon close examination, contains two humans who are approximately one clip tall. Though this may sound incredulous I am confident in assuring you that this is no joke! Discounting my friends who I've mentioned earlier in this letter, nopony else knows about this. Currently I have the sphere in my custody and the humans have not yet exited either of their own accord or by my own efforts. I will not open the object prior to any instruction that you may provide, but I won't hamper any effort of theirs to get out though they will remain in custody for now. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle. With that Twilight sealed the scroll and, with great care, levitated the pod and scroll as she made her way to the door, not wishing to leave the pod out of her sight. She opened the door by hoof and moved the scroll out. "Hey, Spike!" She called; it wasn't long before he put in an appearance. "Send this scroll to the Princess, please." A flash of green affirmed his response. "While you're out there could you get 'The Equestrian Almanac of World Mythology' and 'Neurobiology for Small Animals'?" --- Laura sat on the threshold of the hatchway to the pod, looking out into the jungle-esque expanse of grasses. She was getting rather bothered by the lack of any sign of civilisation, surely someone would've noticed the whole tumbling down. The conclusion she arrived at was that she was on an Earth-like world that was devoid of intelligent life; with that she swung herself back into the pod and began to salvage the meager supplies of food and water, packing them into a standard-issue shoulder bag. With James having gone off on his own there was plenty left for her. The drop to the ground was rough but not hazardous in any way. She circumnavigated the pod in search of any sign of habitation but could find none. A quick sideways glance at the Sun suggested it was early to mid-afternoon, but since it was likely that she was on an alien world she couldn't be totally sure. After having a quick bite and a drink she made the decision to head in the direction of the Sun, keeping her eyes down to avoid being blinded by the light; her aim was to only look all around once she was in shade before making any further decisions. --- "Okay," Capt. Hewlett decided, "Knowles, you keep command here with the doctor, Miss Marsh and her children. Ms. Pugh, you take Mr. Holland and scout away from the position of the Sun; I will take Ms. Cowling and Ms. New and scout towards the Sun. Remember to keep tabs on your compass bearing, that way we can determine the alignment of the planet's magnetic field when compared to ours and ensure that we can return to the ship effeciently." Breaking the news to the passengers wasn't all that effective though. Charles Holland was reluctant to wear the rucksack provided and Sheila Cowling was constantly trying to barter her way out of carrying more than she wanted; Jenny New did end up with a bit more than intended as a result but the Captain was helpful to her as Ms. Cowling's scamming nature did not fool the hardened space pilot. When the hatch opened they found themselves staring into woodland that held them in a state of awe; the trees were massive and towered so high that they couldn't hope to reach the lowest branch, furthermore they were so well-spaced and had so little undergrowth between them that it was like a delightful scene out of a fairy tale. The two scout parties lined themselves up with the opposing ends of the spacecraft, which had landed with the nose pointing to the South-East. To everyone's relief there was a freshwater lake only fifty yards or so North-East of the crash site and the doctor only took ten minutes to determine it as safe to drink, astonished at the blatant lack of pathogens. Captain Hewlett led the two women due South-South-West upon locating the Sun. They hadn't gone a quarter of a mile before they found themselves climbing over a giant tree root in the effort to maintain as direct a path as possible. As they hiked through the woods they found it hard to find anything worthwhile as there were no nuts, berries or fruits on the ground and the woodland was extensive enough that, even though it wasn't particularly dense, they could see nothing beyond it. Officer Diane Pugh led Charles North-North-East in reaction to the captain's choice of direction. While they had it easier on the muscles since there were no tree roots in their path they had to deviate more in order to bypass the lake but they were just as unlucky in finding food or anything of particular interest. "Don't worry," Will Knowles attempted to reassure the Marsh family, "They'll be back. We agreed that once the Sun's on the horizon they'll turn back regardless and they do have torches. With all the preparations what could possibly go wrong?" Need I say any more at this juncture?