//------------------------------// // Evergreen vs. Lunar Glint - Winner: Evergreen (by Vote) // Story: OC Slamjam - Round One // by OC Slamjam //------------------------------// The Stargazer and the Ranger - by Evergreen's Author There was writing in the stars. He simply had to transcribe it. The evening had come swift and cool, the sun shading the sky a deep and fiery red as it dipped toward the horizon. For miles around, the mountains shone orange, the pine trees deep and black against the pale glow. There were no clouds out tonight, and the wind was still; this was his best opportunity yet. Lunar Glint was not a pegasus to miss an opportunity. Not when the Canterlot Astronomers’ Guild had given him a research position, not when he’d been given the tools and funding to man his own expedition to the northern Unicorn Range, not when he was finally given the chance to prove his theories about the power of the stars were true. He double checked his instruments. The precision telescope was level and firmly stationed on the rock shelf; the weather wheel was charged and ready to take account of the atmospherics; the thaumometer was ready to listen in on the glowing spots far above. Everything was in place, and for the foreseeable future, he could foresee no problems. “Well, hallo there, neighbor!” Ah, right. The Ranger. How could he forget her? Tilting his head upward and adjusting his glasses, Glint saw a familiar silhouette occupying a familiar space in the sky. It had four legs, a pine-green coat, wings, and most importantly, a uniform as red as the surrounding sky. He took a deep breath, like a ship captain about to face a storm. “Evening, Sergeant,” he called. Sergeant Evergreen fluttered down to him, her hooves squishing into the moss growing from the rock. She straightened her tan campaign hat and gave him a professionally-friendly grin. “Evenin’ Mr. Glint. How’s the wilderness treatin’ ya?” “Same as yesterday. And the day before.” “Yah, good to hear. Just thought I’d check in before the sun went down.” “Much appreciated, thanks.” He turned back to his instruments, even though there was no need to triple-check. “It’s going to be a good night for stargazing,” she said, looking up. “That it is.”   The last of the sun's glow finally fled the heavens, painting the entire night sky in a deep blue hue. And then the stars were out in force. Countless spots of light shone against the tapestry, a few hazy clouds of stardust visible in the upper reaches of the sky.   Quickly, he settled his telescope's eyepiece around his right eye, and began his scan. Starting with Polaris, he swept it down, looking for the hazy cloud he'd seen so long ago. The patch of stardust he knew to contain his destiny. Just a little further—there! The viewfinder settled perfectly on the glowing haze; with a few adjustments, he focused in on the individual stars which made it up.   Why were there so many little spots in this one section of sky? There had to be some significance to it. He looked at them closely, trying to spot any patterns or something else to hint at their purpose. There had to be a reason for a blotch of stars to inhabit this particular patch of sky. Astounding. He turned back, looking back at the cloud. It was still flashing with the same steady beat. The same pattern. This was incredible! Now he just had to decipher what the stars were trying to say.   He turned back to the thaumometer, and frowned. It was beating more intensely, now. Each spike was higher, and they came more rapidly. It was beating like his heart after a marathon flight. Turning back to look at his telescope, he found the stars were still blinking as they had been. Was his instrument malfunctioning? “Hm,” he said, more to himself than anything. “Eh?” said Evergreen. “Oh, it’s nothing, it’s just… Something’s going awry with my instrument.” He tapped the thing with a hoof. It didn't seem to affect it at all. There was some sort of interference in the air—that had to be it. Was it the moon, perhaps? He turned, looking at the huge glowing disk above him, uttering a silent curse to it. All this effort was going to go to waste thanks to its meddling. “Maybe it's not malfunctioning,” she said. “What does this thing pick up, exactly?”   “It's calibrated to pick up astral energies. Unless there's been a sudden change in the night sky, there shouldn't be any issue.” She suddenly went very still. “Wait, so you’re telling me this thing picks up star magic?” “Yeah, what of it?” “Is it possible it’s picking up something from the ground?” “I suppose. But unless something's bouncing the magic from above, I don't see how—”   She held up a hoof, a sudden fire in her eyes. “We hafta go. Now.”   “What?” He frowned. “Why?”   “Ursa Major.”   “What? No. We've been looking at Capricornus this whole time.”   “No, I mean—”   She cut off as the trees below parted like a wave around a rock. A very large rock. A very large, very mobile rock. One with saber teeth, glowing purple fur, and a rather miffed look in its yellow eyes.   “What in the name of—”   “Ursa Major! Hit the skies!”   “Wait, but what about the equipment?!”   “Forget it and move it, ya hoser!” Grabbing him under the foreleg, she hoisted him into the air; it took him a moment to remember to flap his own wings. As the pair soared up, he heard the beast roar, and the sound of something scraping on rock. Looking back, he saw the thing hauling itself up the cliff face like it was stepping up a set of stairs, its claws and nose sweeping through his campsite in a single motion. “Wh-what’s it doing?!” “It didn’t like your scent, boyo. That’s the problem with camping in one spot. Some critters don’t like anypony moving in on their territory. Ursas are one a’ dose.” He could hear the instruments break with a sound like shattering glass. He grimaced. “All that work, all for nothing.” Her face twisted in a sympathetic frown. “Well, ya still got your notes, don’tcha?” The beast loosed another roar, into which came the sounds of fluttering and shredding paper. Her frown disappeared, replaced by remorse. “I’m sorry I said anything.” “Thanks for the sympathy,” he said, sighing. “I know it’s no real help, but as my great-grandpa always used to say, ‘If you’re looking back at the things you missed, you won’t see what hit ya.’ There’ll be other nights and other chances, eh?” He pondered that for a moment, his gaze still drifting toward his ruined campsite. He looked back up at the stars; their twinkling lights surrounding him. They had something to tell him. But perhaps he’d transcribe them another day. Observation - by Lunar Glint's Author Evergreen touched down in the small clearing and fluttered her wings before folding them smartly against her side. “We'll have to walk from here.” “We can’t fly there?” asked Lunar Glint, landing beside her, though slightly less gracefully. “Where we’re going has a thick canopy, and it’d tear our wings off if we tried to land there,” she replied, gesturing upwards. Glint nodded, peering around at the forest. This forest was nowhere near as deadly as the infamous Everfree, but he still suppressed a shudder. He readjusted the scarf around his neck and laid it flat; even though it was officially spring, the evenings still weren’t warm enough to go without one. She glanced up at the disappearing sun for a moment before looking down at compass she procured from a pocked. “It’s this way,” she said, stepping forward. “Right behind you,” said Glint, jogging until he was next to her. He matched her pace. “I really do appreciate this, you know.” She smiled out of the corner of her mouth. “Just doing my job.” “Just doing your job? Do you know how many favors I called in to even find a pony who might have possibly seen a Duskvine, remembered where it was, and bothered to take me there?” She chuckled. “It’s nothing. I’ll take any excuse to be outdoors.” “Really?” Glint picked up his forehoof and frowned at the offending mud that was already caking his hooves. “It grows on you. We should keep moving if we want to be there by nightfall, though.” She nodded her head to the side and totted between a pair of thick trees. He sighed and continued after her, once again jogging to catch up. “So what is it that you do, exactly, that makes you want to see a Duskvine?” asked Evergreen, ducking under seemingly nothing. A second later, Glint ran face-first through a spiderweb. “I’m a scientist,” he said, violently spitting out parts of the web. “I usually look at the night sky and observe plenty of spectacular phenomenon in the depths of space, but I figured it would be an interesting change of pace to see the effects that the heavens have right here in Equestria.” He wiped his face with his wing, finally clearing the web. “After a colleague of mine showed me the recent discovery of Duskvines, I decided to, ah, I suppose you know the rest.” “Having fun?” she chuckled. “Sure.” Glint flapped his wing, unsuccessfully attempting to remove the web, then folded it back against his side. “Though, to be honest, I’m not sure I see the appeal yet. How did you get hooked?” “Eh—” she shrugged “—just liked it, I suppose.” Glint nodded, letting the silence grow. He followed her for about half an hour, noting how quickly the forest darkened. The little amount of fauna he saw earlier was disappearing quickly, and he could hear the insects of the night singing to each other. She stopped in a small clearing with a single rock and looked around. A tiny hole in the canopy showed a deep-blue sky. “We aren’t lost, are we?” She shook her head, the shadow under the brim of her hat casting her in almost complete darkness. “We’re here. We actually made better time than I thought.” “Should I take that as a compliment?” he asked. Her teeth flashed once in the gloom. “Yes.” “If we are waiting, mind if I sit?” Glint asked, pointing to the rock. She shook her head. “Not at all.” He sat on the conveniently sized rock and sighed happily; his sigh turned into a frown when he saw that Evergreen was still standing. “Do you want to join me?” he asked, sliding over. “I’m okay, but thanks.” She leaned up against a tree. “There’s plenty of room, you know.” “Well . . .” “You’ve probably already been on your hooves for hours today.” Glint patted the rock. “I insist.” She rolled her eyes. “Easy there, I’m coming.” Evergreen trotted up next to him and eyed the rock for a second then turned and sat down slowly. He gave her as much room as possible, but they still ended up uncomfortably close, pressed wing to wing. She raised her eyebrow. “Plenty of room?” “. . . Sufficient room?” He scratched his head when she raised her eyebrow higher. “Hmm, you’re right. I doubt Princess Celestia would even be able to fit one cheek.” She let out a short bark of laughter. “Lunar—” “Glint, please. I never did like the way Lunar rolls off the tongue.” “Glint,” she said, shaking her head, “that was wrong.” He grinned. “Maybe a little. You laughed, though.” She smirked. “I wouldn't say that.” “I won't tell if you don't,” he said. “Tell about what?” she asked, winking. “I didn’t hear anything.” Glint chuckled. “Me neither.” He glanced around. “It’s getting pretty dark out. Are you sure this is where you saw it?” “Mmm-hmm,” she hummed. “I only caught a glimpse from a distance, but I know it was right here. After what you’ve told me, it makes sense that I haven’t seen it since then. After the first night, I always came during the day or really late.” She shivered, unconsciously sliding closer, as an unexpected gust of cool wind blew through the clearing. “I’m looking forward to seeing it up close.” “Me too. I hope that—” “Shh,” Evergreen said, pointing to the base of the tree in front of them. A matte black tip poked out of the soil. The stem waited, testing the air, before more of the vine slid out. It curved upward, slowly circling the base of the tree, as it sprouted small silver leaves every few inches. The tip bloomed, revealing a dainty iridescent flower. Higher and higher it went, wrapping itself tightly around the tree, until the flower breached the forest canopy and left their sight. The pair held their breath as light flowed down the plant, illuminating each of the leaves in turn. The plant glimmered in the black, seeming to coat the tree in stars. Glint gave a low whistle. “I’ve never seen anything like that before,” whispered Evergreen. “Astonishing,” he said. His notebook lay forgotten in his saddlebag. They sat, side by side, until moments later when the leaves went out, one by one, plunging the forest into complete darkness. As quickly as it came, it left, retreating down the tree and into the soil once more, but neither Glint nor Evergreen moved, content. Eventually, they stirred, the cool wind reaching a temperature that caused them to shiver simultaneously. He stood up, saying, “We should probably go now.” She nodded and joined him. “I can hardly see my hoof in front of my face, though.” She slid a long, thin rod out of a pocket and tapped it off the ground. After a few seconds, it glowed with a warm light, illuminating her face. “Follow me.” She tucked the light into the brim of her hat and set off the way the came, Glint in tow. The cold black forest did nothing to ease Glint, and he found himself inching closer and closer to Evergreen and her light. Nonetheless, each time he broke a twig underhoof, his breath caught, and he looked around, wishing that he was with a larger group, but the feeling quickly subsided when he saw Evergreen’s head constantly scanning the forest. Far, far too long later, they reached the area where they had landed, and Glint sighed in relief. “I want to thank you once again for taking me out here tonight, Evergreen.” Evergreen nodded, smiling. “My pleasure, Glint.” “Do, uh, you think we could do this again sometime? I never did take any notes.” He grinned sheepishly. “. . . How about tomorrow?” she asked. “I don’t have anything else going on.” “That . . . sounds great.” He smiled. He held his hoof low, offering his hoof to shake, but she raised hers high, offering a hoof bump. They quickly switched, each trying to mirror the other, but in doing so, failing miserably. Mentally shrugging, they reached forward, meeting at an awkward hoofshake that ended with a limp bump. She chuckled as he facehoof. “Until tomorrow,” he said. She nodded and waved as he jumped into the air and flew out of the forest. As he soared above the sea of green on his way back to his house, he couldn’t help but remember the pleasant feeling of her wing against his as they talked.