The vastness and rolling void of the sands ebbed and twisted along with the dry, relentless whips of the wind. Time was lost in this endless desolates, as too were the withered creatures and bleached bones of the lives that could not escape the beating sun. It was in this heat, that one pony, one strong mare, ventured with her tan cloak flapped in the dusty wind. The trek was long, evident by the red burns that stretched up her exposed legs and the wobble that followed each of her steps. The sun grew more merciless at each passing second. Her own cloak growing heavy as her own sweat clung to the fabric and weighed her down. Even so, she had to persevere. If she could not escape to some sort of oasis and fill herself with water before night, her will would soon be lost and her life forfeit.
Each step she took cut away at her reserves—
“Why didn’t she wait until sunset if it was so hot?” Sweetie Belle interrupted while sitting politely at the foot of the princess along with her friends.
The princess held her story and looked down at the three crusaders. “In the sun deserts are extremely hot while in the moon light ‘tis the exact opposite…”
The mare continued her venture, knowing that her life would end quicker in the blistering cold of the desert’s night—
“I thought this was a trek, not a venture,” Scootaloo asked.
“Venture and trek are the same meaning…”
“Then why not just use trek for the whole story?” Luna gave Scootaloo an annoyed look, but sighed her compliance.
So… the mare continued her trek over the sand dunes in hopes that the next hill would bring the hope of water. But as she made it over roll after roll, hopes slowly turned to despair—
“Why is she in a desert?” Apple Bloom spoke up.
“It is Saddle Arabia. It is only deserts,” Luna did not want to sound short with the crusaders, but her tone was starting to betray her.
“Oh…” the three little fillies said in a chorus and gentle nods.
Luna felt a little at ease at such a humble sight, so her voice softened as she looked down at the girls. “May I continue?” a trio of nods replied her.
The sun had begun to dip behind the most distant horizon of sand before the young mare; dipping with it her heart and the thoughts of survival. Legs began to quiver under her heaving weight, and she collapsed atop one of the many mounding dunes. The wind began to dust over her legs with the shifting sands grain by grain. As the sun set and her vision began to fade, she felt the warm sand lulling her into—
“Does she have a name, your highness?” poking his head in, Sunshine Smiles voiced his question with the crusaders chiming in with interest.
At first Luna gave the guard a disgruntled snarl, but she retracted her anger and looked back to the fillies seated before her. She was failing to look dignified before the young ones. Her thoughts suddenly cleared up as she took in a soothing inhale before speaking. “This character does not require any name. Her purpose is merely to serve as a metaphysical—“
“Can we call her Sandra? ‘Cause she’s in a desert and stuff?” Scootaloo suggested.
“I see no reason why not. But this is not a story of—“ Luna was ignored as the girls cheered and gave a chorus of claps.
The princess was happy they were enjoying themselves, but had the feeling they were ignoring the point of the story. “Nevermore, may I continue now?” once more she was answered by angelic nods.
As the sun set and her vision—
“Sandra.”
--Sandra’s vision began to fade, she felt the warm sand lulling her into a deep, musty sleep.
The three crusaders listened intently to Luna’s story. A moment passed with Luna in complete silence, which began to worry the three fillies. “Uh… what next?” Apple Bloom worried.
The princess readied to tell them that, indeed, the story was over. However, that was before she looked at their faces. Tears welling up in one, a quivering lip from another. Luna braced down her pride and forced a smile. “Nay children, the story is not through.”
The sands slowly sprinkled over Sandra’s body as her will to fight on slowly diminished…
“No!” The Cutie Mark Crusaders collectively gasped.
“Come on Sandra! Yer’ better than sand!” the little farm pony scoffed with a fling of her little front legs.
However, in her moment of weakness--- uh… a… sand… pentawhal came out from the sand and scooped the limp mare off from the shifting terrain and into the dry sky.
“Sand pentawhal?”
“’Tis a narwhal with five tusks and that lives in the cool, lower sand beneath deserts,” Luna hurriedly concluded off the top of her head, swearing a little that she could hear her two guards snickering outside.
The great land beast splashed in and out of the purple twilight hued sands, carrying the defeated Sandra caressingly between its mighty tusks. Though the sun had glazed behind the sands, Sandra remained still with a shallow breath, signaling her still ample life. Hours passed with the beast carrying Sandra before it finally arrived at a massive span of crystal clear water.
“Thus Sandra and the pentawhal—“’
“Can we call it Murry?” Scootaloo spoke up again.
This time Luna only smiled and gave a soft chuckle. “I see no reason why not… Thus Sandra and Murry the pentawhal lived in peace at that oasis forever after.”
“The end?” her three filly listeners pressed with little leans inward.
“That is the end. Verily.” Luna was thusly sent back a little when the three fillies cheered and clapped as if they were an entire assembly of ponyfolk.
“That was amazing princess Luna!” Sweetie Belle admitted.
“Best story ah’ve heard in years… and ah’m just a lil’ filly,” Apple Bloom agreed.
“You got any more, princess?” Scootaloo pressed, instantly gaining support from her two partners.
“Well…” Luna thought a moment. She must have some story suitable for a young audience. But alas, all that came to mind were more and more bittersweet stories that would require her to pull another ending out from her mane. Without thinking she muttered her own thought aloud. “If only I had paid Star Swirl more heed when he told me his stories…”
At this Luna felt little eyes set on her. She turned to her small crowd and saw that the three crusaders were looking up at her anxiously. “Who’s Star Swirl?”
“An old friend of ours. Dearly departed tragically…” the princess breathed a small sigh of nostalgia, “he was wiser beyond any pony I knew. Even more so than me…”
“Tell us about him!” They all demanded hopefully.
“Thy lot does not wish to hear tales of my life, do you?” Luna laughed off the idea, but only saw that their collective looks of hope did not relent. “…Dost thou… want me to tell stories of mine own life?”
“Stories from a princess’s life?” Sweetie Belle scoffed at the idea, “who wouldn’t want to hear that?”
Sharing her past. It couldn’t be that hard she thought. But even so she gripped her umbrella with her dark toned magic and brought it to her side, still furled up. “If that is what thee wishes. However, allow us to venture elsewhere… A change in scenery will help the thought process.”
“We know just the place,” Apple Bloom assured the princess.
Without any hesitation, the Crusaders took Luna by her front legs and pulled her along outside of the clubhouse, invoking a small squeak from the young princess. Her two guards still standing guard at the door gave the princess a welcoming look as she passed by and opened her umbrella over her own head as light began to envelop her new terrain. “Will you be needing—“
“That’ll be all Sunshine Smiles,” Sweetie Belle dismissed the eye-patched guard as she and her friends led the princess down to the grassy floor bellow the tree and off towards Ponyville.
Instead of growing in concern, Sunshine Smiles’ lips curled into a dry smile before laughing. “Would seem we’ll be playing guard dog from behind brother…”
The two guards took to the bright blue sky, never once taking their eyes away from their charge and her ‘Cutie Mark Kidnappers’. If Luna did need them, she would summon for them. But until that time, they remained at a safe distance from the pack and just watched as their princess grew an unmistakable smile of enjoyment.