Dust

Author's Note:

Written while hearing October, by Tchaikovsky.

Several things made me write this story, mainly that all stories about War!Equestria seem to be about EVIL GRIMDARK or FEELSY LOVE, so I wanted to make something more simple, that focused more in one of the most vital of things in a war-- hope. Hope of the kind you have to make and defend yourself, but hope nonetheless.

Her breathing was shallow.

Wind blew across the landscape, the only sound other than her panting.

She knew it was wasteful to pant, but did it nonetheless. Her mask kept dust from entering her mouth, but it also accumulated warm humidity against her face. Humidity that would get cold in a minute at best, lowering her body heat.

Heat and clean water. Two things she was wasting.

But it was alright, wasn't it? Hadn't she earned the right to be a little wasteful?

The questions sounded childish to her.

The door of the shack opened behind her.

"Diane?" Someone called for her. "Something wrong?"

"Crabs," she said, her voice hoarse. "Just a few crystal crabs."

The mare paused for a moment, holding the door open, "You sound thirsty"

"And?"

Another pause, "I still have some of my water ration..."

She considered refusing the offer, but a slight headache was making itself known already.

"Fine," She nodded "How much?"

"Half the bott--" Started the mare.

"No, how much for the water." She would've turned to face her, but her legs felt too weak to do anything but standing still.

"What? Girl, you saved my life." The mare sounded baffled.

"I was in lookout duty," Her legs felt strong enough for it now, and she turned to her new partner, who had arrived less than an hour ago. "How..." She trailed off.

That mane.

"I already told you, you saved my life." Insisted the rainbow-maned mare "If you feel so strongly about it you can owe me a favor, deal?"

Diane nodded without realizing, eyes wide behind her lenses. Another gale of wind hit them.

"Tartarus, I forgot my mask again," She winced, trying to clean the wretched dust from her eyes. "You coming in or what?" She called, holding the door open.

Diane nodded again and, after an instant, reacted and walked inside the shack.

It was sparsely furnished, what few things a soldier needed-- a single lamp in the ceiling, a radio, bunks, a rations locker, and a bathroom. The walls were of steel, sealed from the exterior, and a thin layer of recycled cloth some past soldier had hung from the walls acted as insulation.

All of it barely registered in her mind, automatism filling in. That mane. She remembered seeing colors like those, an expanding ring...

Rainbow Dash. That was what the mare was called.

"Here," Dash gave her a half-filled water canteen, trying to blink the dust off her eyes.

Diane held it, feeling too weak to move further. Border guard was cruel job to take on, its soldiers easily the most ill-equipped of the army, and these days medical attention was poor even for Royals. Not many medicinal herbs grew in the continent anymore.

Her glance passed to the pegasus again, whose eyes were already reddening in irritation.

She grabbed Dash gently by her withers and prodded her to sit besides the bed, then sat herself.

"Huh?" She asked, trying to focus her eyes in Diane.

"Shh," Diane had already been wasteful, so she'd have to stay silent for what remained of it.

Clearly unconvinced, Dash nodded. Diane took a corner of one of her blankets and started the slow, tortuous process of cleaning her hoof of any remain of the ashen dust without water.

It took half an hour, but by the end of it her hoof was sparkling. Rainbow's eyes were starting to visibly inflame by then.

Diane took the canteen in her uncleaned hoof and held Rainbow's head under her arm, doing so gently to not scare her.

"What are you...?"

"Shh," she dripped some water in her clean hoof -allowing herself a thirsty look- and poured it, little by little, in the pegasus' eyes.

"Is that..." She tried to blink, but she held her eyelids open with a gentle, yet firm hold. Every single drop fell in the precise place to clean her eyes, cleaning the dust from her eyes. "Alright, that's cool," She blinked again, "But it was only a little dust, no biggy"

Diane blinked in surprise at her, and walked to the map that hung from the wall besides the radio. She pointed at her heart, then at a specific point of the map.

"Huh?"

Diane pointed again, her movements slow and patient. Her muscles already ached, and if she wanted to be functional by the morning she'd need to be careful.

"I-- Ooooh," Her eyes opened in realization, already returning from the red sheen the dust had given them. "That's where you come from?"

Diane nodded, then walked to Rainbow and pointed at her heart.

"I don't get the charade--"

"Shh," Diane turned and took a dictionary from her bed. She tapped several words in it.

"'Little' 'Water' 'Talking' 'Wastes' 'Humidity'" Tapped Diane.

"Girl, we have water for weeks"

"'Emergencies'"

"I guess? But--"

Growing annoyed, she tapped several words in order, "'Supplies' 'Always' 'Late' 'Can't' 'Waste' 'Anything'"

Unconvinced, Dash nodded silently. Diane pointed at her heart again.

"Cl--" She shut her mouth closed and pointed at Cloudsdale in the map.

Well, it did explain her ignorance.

She pointed at her eyes, at some dust in a corner, at the door -Wind could be heard in the other side-, circled her hoof around the inner Equestria in the map, and tapped another word:

"'Annoying'"

Dash nodded in understanding.

She did the same again, only around the lands closer to the Crystal Empire, which included her home and the post they were in. This time, she tapped:

"'Blindness' 'Cancer' 'Death'"

Dash chuckled, either thinking or wanting it to be a joke.

Diane's gaze remained serious. She tapped the dictionary again.

"'Blindness' 'Cancer' 'Death'"

"Really?" Tension was creeping into her voice.

Diane nodded.

"And--" Diane offered her the dictionary. After a moment's doubt, she grabbed it. "'Supplies' 'How' 'Late'" " "Hm?"

She tapped a calendar under the map in several days. Two weeks.

Dash gulped. Diane took the dictionary:

"'Normal'"

She tapped the calendar again, a month and a half, then the dictionary:

"'Worst' 'Case'" She closed the dictionary, making a loud tap.

Dash gulped again. They were in silence for a moment, the lamp's light shifting intensity and wind howling outside.

Diane opened the dictionary again:

"'How' 'New'" A resume on the mare hadn't ever arrived, for whatever reason.

"My..." Dash paused, clearly afraid "My first day"

Diane took a moment to consider her answers.

"I'll keep you safe," Her throat hurt, but dictionaries only took one so far. She tapped hers and Dash' badges, which only had an outline of an horizon with 'Border Guard' written below, "It's what we do"

After a pause, Dash nodded, a faint -if nervous- smile in her lips.

"I'll have to keep you safe too, then," she said. "Deal?"

"Deal," Nodded Diane.

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