11. The Sandstorm
Discord was an enthusiastic teacher. He showed the storm creatures how to make the bricks step by step, and then walked them through how to lay them to make a sturdy wall. He had them practice making smaller walls, and once they got it, he sorted them into teams to begin rebuilding their houses.
They were happy to get to work, and Tempest walked among them to make sure they were getting along. Occasionally they would fight over their tools, argue about a particular layout, but then Tempest would encourage them to talk it out and find compromise.
They often were able to, and got back to their task with no further argument.
Discord watched them work proudly. “I may not understand why they want to do all this themselves, but I can appreciate their hard work.”
“They believe work you do yourself means more than work done by someone else. They will accept gifts but mostly of luxury items. Things like money, food, or whatever are usually not accepted without them trying to do something in return.” Tempest grabbed a pail of water and began making bricks.
“I see. Very odd.” Discord got down on his knees to help her.
Curly was going from house to house to offer her assistance, and Grubber busied himself with bringing water from the town well.
“Do you think we could build our own well?” Tempest asked.
“We should be able to. It’ll be more convenient than having to walk all the way over to the town well,” Curly said.
“Can we install plumbing?” Discord wondered.
“The Klugetown plumbing system is difficult to link into, and we’d have to order a lot of pipes, but that can be a project for further down the road,” Curly replied.
They worked until lunch, at which point they took a break to eat. Most of the storm creatures elected to go to the town hall, and Curly provided them with sandwiches.
Discord took the first couple he saw without preference, but Tempest stopped to examine them.
“Oh, these are tuna,” Curly said apologetically, setting the tray aside.
“I can eat tuna,” Tempest started, but Curly waved it off.
“No, I made some for you. You equines like plants, right? Here, I made you dandelion sandwiches.” Curly passed them over.
Tempest knew that most ponies liked dandelions, but she found them somewhat bland. Still, it was better than tuna. She thanked her and accepted the sandwiches, and went outside with Discord, overlooking the village as she ate.
“Dandelion, huh?” Discord asked.
“Yeah.” Tempest prodded the top piece of bread up, examining the ingredients. “Yep, just grass and dandelions. This could use some dressing.”
“What kind?”
Tempest considered the taste of what she’s already eaten. “Vinaigrette.”
“Here.” Discord poofed up a bottle and handed it to her.
She chuckled as she opened it. “I can always count on you.”
He smiled and finished off his own sandwiches, while Tempest used magic to hover hers in front of her and apply the dressing.
Once she was satisfied, she gave the bottle to Discord to vanish, and sat down to finish eating.
He sat next to her, watching the sky. “You know, this place may be hot, and dusty, but I like it. There’s an interesting community here and it requires a different way of living than Equestria.”
“Yeah, it’s got its own charm,” Tempest said. “I do like having easy access to water, though.”
“Definitely. I might start to miss the color green, though. The fields of flowers, and crops.” Discord hummed. “Applejack’s apple trees.”
“The fields around Fluttershy’s cottage.”
“Oh, absolutely. Her home is beautiful.” Discord sighed, and held out his hand, a photograph appearing in it. He gazed at it, and Tempest saw that it was picture of him and Fluttershy. “Is it silly if I miss her already?”
“It’s not silly at all,” Tempest assured him. “She’s your friend, it’s perfectly normal to miss her.”
“I suppose so. I miss her, and the rest of my friends. Big Mac, Spike, Twilight… who would have thought I’d ever grow so attached to anyone. Certainly not me, like only five years ago.”
“Heh, I know how that feels.” Tempest swallowed the last of her sandwich. The dressing had made it taste better but she was still kinda hungry. She was already looking forward to dinner with Capper. “Well, wanna get back to it?”
“Absolutely.”
They got back to work. They slowly became coated with sand and mud over the course of the day, as the Sun beat down on them and they sweated, and the wind began picking up, swirling dust and sand all around.
They were helping the storm creatures install drapes in their windows when the amount of sand in the air became almost suffocating, the wind howling around them.
“Sandstorm!” Curly shouted, sprinting down the road. “Everyone get inside, it's a sandstorm!”
Tempest turned her eyes toward the north, as what looked like a wall of sand barreled toward them. She ran, and called out to Discord only to find him already jumping into the town hall. Tempest slid in after him, and held the door open a crack, watching to make sure everyone else got inside. Grubber leaped in, panting and wiping himself off.
“Whew, that came on fast,” he commented.
Tempest squinted, trying to locate Curly despite how the area was becoming more and more clouded. A few moments later, she emerged from the sand and pushed her way in. “Door, closed!” She slammed the door behind her.
Not a moment too soon. They were buffeted by the storm, which shook the entire building. There was an eerie roaring sound, and they quickly covered up all the windows the best they could. Then there was nothing to do but retreat to a room without any outside walls and wait.
“Sounds pretty rough out there,” Tempest said. “Is everyone okay?”
“Yeah, everyone got inside.” Curly wiped her eyes off. “These storms are vicious, but luckily they're rare. We just gotta wait it out. We got a lot of work done anyway. Thank you for helping us. Everyone is in a much better mood. And I think once we're settled, I'm going to talk to Verko about the quarry idea, and also get some of my guys set up at the airship docks, just so we can start making money.”
“Sounds good.”
The storm raged on for hours. With nothing to do, Tempest stretched out on the floor, and Discord laid down next to her, summoning a book to read. She curiously looked over.
“What are you reading?” she asked.
“Hairy Trotter and the Enchanter's Jewel,” Discord replied. “It's rather amusing to reread from time to time, there's like seven in the series.”
“Ah.” Tempest yawned. She moved over a little, pressing her side to Discord's. He didn't seem to mind. “What's it about?”
“This orphan unicorn finds out his parents were great magic users and he goes to a special school for magic, while the guy who killed his parents actually isn't dead like everyone thought, he's still out there and is trying to regain enough strength to return to a physical body. And there's friendship, and adventure, and all sorts of fun things.” Discord hummed as he turned the page. “The bad guy is actually my favorite character. I definitely understand his lust for power.”
“Heh, maybe I should read it sometime.” Tempest glanced at the page, but Discord was rather far into the story so she didn't know what was happening.
“You might enjoy it.” Discord leaned against her, continuing to read.
Tempest was left to her thoughts. She listened to the storm outside, and eventually Grubber sat next to her, and they discussed the progress they've made so far.
But finally the storm abated, and Tempest climbed to her feet.
“You might as well keep waiting,” Curly said. “The sand wyrms are going to be searching for fresh meat for the next hour.”
“I want to see one,” Tempest replied, walking over to a window. She brushed the curtain aside and saw that it was covered with sand. They really needed to put some glass in. She looked outside, but nothing was out there. The sand piled high around the buildings, and she loathed the thought of having to go dig everything out.
She cautiously opened the door and stepped out. She remained on the steps, ears perked for any suspicious noises.
Discord joined her. “You think the sand wyrms came out this far?”
“They sometimes do, from what I've heard. Think we could look for some?”
Discord smiled and offered her his hand. She took it, and he started flying, pulling her along with him. She jerked slightly, then realized his magic made her weightless, and eagerly kicked her legs as she followed him.
They surveyed the area. There was nothing of interest, and no one was outside. Discord flew around, before deciding to stop at the northern road and keep watch. He let go of Tempest, but his magic kept her floating next to him.
“You think the wyrms will come here?” she asked.
“They could. Lots of food here.” Discord flapped his wings and kept flying, and Tempest found that by moving her hooves and willing herself to move forward, she could float too. She stayed behind him as they circled the town. There were many cliffs, and they didn't anticipate any wyrms in such a dangerous area. They focused their attention on the north, and finally spotted a wyrm.
It only had its head out of the sand, shaking a skull back and forth. It didn't belong to a pony luckily, and it looked old.
“There, get your fill,” Discord said.
Tempest floated down to look at it. The wyrm looked like a dragon, with armored jaws and no eyes. It had thick brown scales with vaguely noticeable black patterns. It tossed the skull up and opened its mouth, and she saw that it had three jaws that opened wide, displaying sharp teeth. Then it was snapping up the skull, crunching on it before diving back into the sand.
“They're ugly,” Tempest said.
“Oh yeah, definitely.”
They watched as a few more of the creatures briefly surfaced, sniffing toward the town, before going back under.
A few residents started glancing outside, but weren't leaving their houses just yet. Tempest wondered how long they would have to wait. Then she saw a horned creature leave his house and start strolling down the street. She stared at him, as other citizens shouted at him to get back inside, but he waved them off, saying that the road was packed down enough that the wyrms wouldn't be able to get through.
“That's just dirt down there,” Discord said. “Sure, plenty of people have walked through and stamped it down, but there's no rock, no stone... it's not safe.”
“We need to stop him,” Tempest decided.
They started down, but before they were even halfway, a sand wyrm erupted out of the ground and slammed its head into the creature, knocking him flying. It dug down and came back up, opening its mouth in preparation to catch him.
Tempest broke free of Discord's magic and hit the ground, running and blasting it with magic. It jerked away, and the resident landed safely.
“Get back inside!” Tempest yelled at him. He turned white and nodded, running back toward his house. The wyrm started to follow, and Tempest shouted at it, stamping her hooves. It stopped, turning to her. Then it dove, and she saw the ground rise slightly as it moved just under the surface.
She waited until it was almost to her, before jumping straight up. It erupted from the sand, mouth stretching wide open as it tried to grab her. She angled herself down and used a fire spell, filling the sand wyrm's maw with scalding flames.
It screamed and immediately turned away, burying itself into the sand once more. She touched down, and after waiting, realized that it wasn't coming back. She smiled and looked at Discord, who was waiting just above her, eyes wide. Then he relaxed, clapping for her. “Bravo! You scared it off!”
She wiped her hoof off against her chest fur. “Yeah, it was nothing.”
There was cheering from the residents around her, and she blushed as they leaned out of doors and windows to clap.
Discord clapped politely for her too, then said, “Not to ruin the fun but we should probably get back inside before another one shows up. Or at least get off the ground.”
Tempest gave the ground an uncertain look. “Right, yeah.” She looked up at him. “Could you do that levitation thing on me again?”
“Certainly, but you are a unicorn, are you not? You can levitate yourself.”
“Oh, yeah I have seen that done, but I don't know if I can do it.”
Discord laughed. “Of course you can. Just use your magic as if you were picking up another object, and instead direct it to yourself. If Starlight Glimmer can do it, so can you.”
“Starlight has had a lot more time to refine her magic, without her horn being broken for most of it,” Tempest said.
“But that doesn't matter! Power doesn't come from a horn, your power comes from within.” Discord gently touched over her heart. “Now, give it a try.”
Tempest took a breath, and used her magic. It wrapped around her, and she remembered when she first tried teleportation and she had been thrown through the air. She was strong enough to lift herself. She just had to control it this time.
She lifted. Slowly her hooves left the ground, and Discord hovered up too, though stayed level with her. “If you fall, do you mind if I catch you?”
She smiled, glad he was asking permission to touch her now. “That'll be fine. I don't want to break a leg out here.”
But she didn't fall, finding that this was easier than she thought. Why didn't all unicorns do this? Unless it really was difficult, and she was just talented enough to pull it off with little effort. That was a reassuring thought.
“You look like you got it,” Discord said, once they were over most of the buildings. “Come on, let's go back.”
Tempest followed him. It was weird floating through the air without moving any of her limbs. She almost wanted to start running, but of course that would be pointless. Might be fun, though.
“It'd be cool to have wings,” she mused, watching Discord's flap as he flew next to her.
“Well hey, create some powerful new magic and save Equestria or something, and Celestia might just give you some wings,” Discord replied. “Seriously, she gave a horn to Cadance like twenty years ago, and then wings to Twilight a few years ago, she's handing out alicorn magic like candy!”
“Me, an alicorn,” Tempest said, picturing it. “Now that would be something. I wonder what I would have done to earn it.”
“Haha, who knows? Let me think, Cadance inspired love and cooperation among the ponies who raised her, ultimately using her magic to defeat a sorceress and turn her to good, and Celestia recognized her as a leader and made her an alicorn. Twilight finished a powerful spell that not even Star Swirl the Bearded could complete, while also saving her friends from a terrible fate, and Celestia recognized that she truly did embody the magic of friendship.” Discord said the last part very sarcastically. “Bleh. But you know, that's important to ponies, so. Here are some wings, you're a princess now. So, I'm sure you could do something like that.”
“It's fun to think about, but I don't want to actually be a princess,” Tempest replied. “There's way too much responsibility that comes with that. Running a small army of hundreds? That's fine. Having an entire kingdom of thousands of ponies, and countless other creatures that now live here, coming to me for advice? Please, no.”
“Oh yes, there are a lot of royal duties you have to keep track of. I hear Twilight complaining about them all the time. She's settled into her role as a princess but it still isn't easy.”
“Yeah.” Tempest touched down at the town hall and went inside, releasing her magic. Weight returned to her body and she almost stumbled, but recovered quickly. “So, how does the alicorn transformation spell work?”
“It takes very powerful magic,” Discord replied. “And it's some kind of harmony magic at that so I can't do it myself. At least, not the way the princesses can. See, I can mess with reality. I can definitely take the wings off a pegasus and slap them onto a unicorn's back. But that doesn't make them an alicorn. That just makes them a unicorn with somepony's wings. They don't get all the magic that comes with being an alicorn, and also Celestia would probably slap me for my efforts. I can also just make wings for someone, or a horn, or both depending on their species. But they're still not truly an alicorn. You have to be given that magic by a princess.” Discord stroked his beard. “Or be born to an alicorn, I suppose, since Flurry Heart is considered one.”
“Ah. Just wondering.” Tempest looked around the entrance hall and didn't see anyone. “Well, let's find Curly and Grubber and see if it's safe to get back to work.”
They headed into the next room.
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and a lot that you woul probably have not to do.
Because of some stories and maybe the show I don't know anymore, I started to believe they do much more than they would need to do, it was like "princess celestia I can't open my glass with mayonnaise please help me".
I won't say anything about the theory, but I like it because it makes me curious if you have something like the opposite planned for Tempest, not exactly an Alicorn, but something like an Anti-alicorn because Discord.
I can't wait for their romance to start, mostly because I want to see many reactions of their friends and whatever character and I want to see them acting their relationship out. I mean some chapters with them dating and stuff like that, not just the kiss but I guess you where planning to do something like that.
8851022
I don't fully know what all the princesses do but with Twilight specifically I imagine she has a lot on her plate these days, what with running a school AND probably still dealing with friendship problems. "Princess of Friendship" probably gets a lot of people coming to her with their problems and she's too nice to run them off. :')
And ye, with the romance, I don't wanna spoil things but I think I have a good plan for it.
8851053
Well with her hobbies and everything she takes way to seriously, yes she would have much to do I believe, I even thought that her friend can probably hardly manage their own life with working in the school and doing their own thing.
I could nearly image a story with Fluttershys animals dying or something like that because she maybe feeds them more rarely and they maybe can't feed themself anymore, stuff like that which is most likely not that much possible, but if you want a dark story or something, I could image this being a possible scenario.
I'm a bit tired so forgive me if that reasoning looked rather weak.
Well I won't argue about it in this story, but I hope that not every story shows her as a whorkoholic in the future. I don't need Twilight and the others being to busy to do hardly anything because of what happens in the show.
Yep like I said, they probably do much more than they would need to do to look like a good ruler.
I don't know to much about kings and stuff like that, but I always imaged they can probably have more freetime and stuff like that than Celesestia (at least in most stories) wants us to believe.
okay, I just dislike it if that happens in the last five chapters or near the end of a story so that we don't see much anymore.
I Can't wait for any possible akward situations, I just like to let my imagination run wild right now, since she is with Discord.
I even had to think about a scene about how they maybe find out about it.
I have probably suggested three or four things so far, but I imaged if it would be funny if they run in on them cuddling or whatever, just something that would probably at least Twilight weird out
I’m hoping that we find out the idiot who nearly got eaten is named Last Words. He’s pretty famous around Kludgetown.
8852702
Yeah that was a dumb move to walk around outside with tremors around.
8978488
Listen he had Very Important Business to get to :V