The Bigger Pony

by Kiernan

Chapter the Second: Stability

Vines hung from the fronds overhead, drooping down over the ground. It was shady and breezy, but still warm. The ground was covered in grass, which was fine at first, but as they proceeded into the thicker stuff, they found that it was very good at hiding the rocks that they kept kicking.

"It's not half bad," nodded Rainbow, prompting Rarity to look at her with incredulity. "Well, I'm not saying I want to build a summer home here, but the trees are quite lovely."

Rarity shook her head and proceeded further into the brush. "Come on, we don't have all day."

"I'm just saying, there are worse places to be stranded."

They continued through the trees, Rarity making it very clear that she needed a fresh hooficure with every step. "It really is unfortunate that you can't use your wing," she huffed. "It would be all manner of convenient if you could fly up there and scout the whole place in one fell swoop."

"It's broken, Rarity. It won't heal faster just because it's convenient. I mean, it sure would be convenient if you could make use of your horn."

"Well, I can't," scoffed Rarity. "And the sooner we accept that, the better off we shall be."

"You certainly won't hear any arguments from me."

"At any rate, how does one navigate such a place as this? There're rocks everywhere, the grass hides everything, and we still haven't found anything to drink. What I wouldn't give for a tall glass of Applejack's signature cider right about now. Oh, how delectab--"

"Quiet!"

Rarity froze for a moment. "Did you hear something?" she whispered.

"No," answered Rainbow, walking ahead. "I just want you to be quiet." She also didn't want to think about the cider right now, as that would only make her thirstier.

"Well, that's just plain rude!"

"Look, we need water. We're in agreement on that fact. If there is running water somewhere in this thicket, we'll probably hear it before we see it, what with all of these ferns blocking our view."

"Actually, they're shrubs," corrected Rarity.

"They can be a maze of fine linens for all I care," answered Rainbow. "I can't see through them, you can't see through them, and if there is water running nearby, there will be some sort of trickle that we can hear, but you have to stop blathering on abo--"

"Quiet!" commanded Rarity.

"I'm just trying to say that we need to keep an ear out fo--"

"Hush, already, I hear something!"

They stopped, and what was heard was a tiny splash, just a bit to the east. Rainbow began pushing aside the shrubs, slipping through them and gingerly trying to keep them from touching her wing. Rarity followed behind, and after a few moments, Rainbow's hoof sank a few centimetres into gloop.

"Ugh!" sneered Rarity. "That's a repulsive sight!"

"It's mud," said Rainbow after giving it a sniff. "Clay, more specifically. Very little sand mixed in with this particular hoofful."

She grabbed a stick and pushed aside a few branches. Immediately, they gave way to a clearing that seemed to be mostly flat, with a shallow pool of mud. It had to be shallow, as several plants were growing all throughout. On the far side was a large stone cairn, out of which burbled a steady stream of crystal-clear water.

"Well, we found the water," huffed Rarity, "but there's no way to reach it. How are we supposed to make it all the way over there?"

Rather than answer, Rainbow just started walking through the mud. She knew it wasn't all that deep, so the worst-case scenario was that something was living in it. Considering that this was an island, and a rather small one, at that, whatever was living in the water had to be either something that was here from the moment the island was formed, or had to be capable of living in both freshwater and saltwater. At worst, she imagined that there was a new breed of leech. Even so, it was a necessary risk. There were no other sources of fresh water that she knew of, meaning that if she did not brave these waters, she would dry up. Between possible bites and definite dehydration, the choice was pretty simple.

Reaching the cairn and sinking no lower than knee-deep into the water, she pressed her lips against the rock and drew some of the water into her mouth to taste it. If it was full of chemicals, she would find out right away. Her walk had stirred up the mire and caused a rather obnoxious stink as the bacteria sitting on the bottom were churned to the surface behind her, so she couldn't possibly smell if anything was wrong.

"I'm pretty sure it's safe!" called Rainbow back to Rarity. "It doesn't taste salty, or like Sulphur or anything like that! I think we can drink this!"

"Are you sure?!" called Rarity back. "It smells pretty bad over here! There might be something in it you couldn't taste!"

"Do you want to see if they have a public drinking fountain somewhere?!" chided Rainbow. "If you think it'll do something to your mane, we can keep looking!"

"Oh, ha, ha!" sneered Rarity. "I'm just saying, there's a good chance we'd be ingesting some kind of bacteria! We really should filter it, to make sure it's safe!"

"Filter it through what?!"

Rarity shook her head. "Is there a way to access it without heading through the muck, at least?! I don't want to have to wash up several times a day just because I needed something to drink!"

Rainbow looked around. While she was less upset about being dirty, she didn't really like the idea of something lurking in the water, waiting to attack her when she least expected it. At the same time, she knew that walking through the muck had only stirred things up and caused the stench. If there was a way to avoid it, that would be preferable.

"I don't see one," she said finally, "but I'm pretty sure this rise in water is recent; the grasses just below the surface look like they were drowned out and haven't had the time to rot away! Something must be blocking its way out! If we find out what, we might be able to lower the water level! Let's walk the edge of the pond and see if we can find it!"