Starfox64x x Neoniie RP

[Starfox64x]

Vulpus breathed heavily as he trudged through the desert. a soft breeze blew past him, briefly releaving him of the heat. even though the gust of wind was arid and dry as the sand he walked on, it was better than nothing in the hot sun, "Oh Princess Celestia, please... Take the sun down for a while... at least until i find some shelter..." he mumbled to himself as he limped ahead. his prosthetic leg wasnt a problem, it was his real legs that were bothering him. growing weak and tired from lack of food, sore from the long walk he had endured so far. it was agonizing. "Please Princess? For me?" he called out a little louder. he looked up, and his eyes widened... he could swear he saw Princess Luna pushing the moon toward the sun to provide him shade. he chuckled softly to himself, "Luna! Of luna thank you... thank... huh?" he narrowed his eyes, seeing that the moon was nothing... and Luna was merely a bird or something, he honestly couldnt tell at the moment. "Thats it... i'm done... game over..." he felt his legs give way, letting his collapse onto the ground.

[Neoniie]

Mirage was doing lazy loop-de-loops in the air, patrolling the desert as she had been told to do. Until a more organized search and rescue team was set up for the sandy area, the weather patrol had volunteered to send some of their weatherponies to routinely look over the desert to ensure that it was clear of any lost ponies. However, she hadn't managed to find anypony yet and had decided to at least have a little fun while she looked.

As she was in the middle of the third loop, the sand-coloured pegasus spotted a distorted figure upon the airid and cracked ground below. She immediately transformed her loop into a downward dive that whipped the air around her into a vortex around her. Flapping her wings a few times, Mirage managed to get a better look at the figure below. She noticed that it was an earth pony below, but one of his legs had an odd discordant colouration from the rest of his body.

However, his appearance was not what the pegasus was interesting it. She touched down gracefully, with a light touch of hooves to sand. Nearly cantering forward, she looked down at the barely conscious earth pony. "I don't know if you can hear me, but I'm hear to help you," she said. Trotting behind him, she hooked her forelegs underneath his shoulders and began to lift. She needed to get him to some shelter and scanned the area for a suitable cave or such. Seeing an outcropping of rock across the horizon, Mirage got to an acceptable height with the earth pony in tow and flew off toward the shaded outcropping.

[Starfox64x]

"Luna?" he mumbled as a mysterious mare with wings lifted him up. it would be obvious to anyone that she was not the princess, but he was so out of it he couldnt tell. his lips were dry and cracking. he tried to lick him lips to moisten them, and although the glimmered a bit with saliva for a brief second of two, the dry air sucked it away immediately. he didnt resist the pony as she lifted him up, he would be too tired to resist anyway. he had no idea what was going on.

[Neoniie]

Mirage nearly didn't catch the words of the stallion as she flew them toward the shade. The words were whispered through cracked lips, making the pegasus wonder how long he had been trapped out in the desert. His words surprised the mare; she had never dreamed that she would be compared the the Princess of the Night and she would have been flattered, but it only contributed the Mirage's supposition of delirium.

After a few moments, the pair reached the rocky cliff face. One specific section of the rock jutted out farther than the others, creating an ideal protection from the scorching rays of the sun. Mirage deposited the earth pony lightly, following his descent with her hooves. Her wings picked up the sand around them, blowing it away from the earth below. As she lay down the pony, Mirage pulled out her first aid kit that was provided to each member of the desert patrol. She pulled out the pre-dampened cloth and placed it upon the pony's forehead.

Hoping that she was following the proper procedure, the pegasus also grabbed the water canteen she had been given and poured some water into the cap. "I know this might be difficult, but you need to drink this." She held the cap to his lips, waiting for some sign from the stallion before begining to pour out the liquid inside.

[Starfox64x]

Vulpus groaned, feeling the moistness on his head. he was still la bit out of it and didnt quite understand her offer. instead he slowly reached up and began to rub the moist towel across his face, before putting it to his mouth to chew on it, trying to force any liquid in the fabric out and into his mouth. His prosthetic leg became much more apparent now, a eggshell white plastic, with dirt and sand coating the hoof portion. he didnt seem to be inhibited by it though, it moved naturally and worked just as well as his real leg.

[Neoniie]

"Oh," Mirage said, perplexed by his curious action. "Alright, that works too." She poured some more water on the cloth, making it easier for the earth pony the extract the moisture from the fabric. She left the rest of the canteen near enough to the stallion that he could find it if necessary.

She did a quick sweep of the surrounding area, not wanting any form of dangerous wildlife to stumble across the two while the earth pony was in such a weakened state. After her patrol, the pegasus returned to the pony, noticing the eggshell coloured leg once again. Deciding to leave that question for when he was more in possesion of his faculties, she stayed by the pony in order to assist him as necessary.

[Starfox64x]

he moaned again, feeling more water coming from the fabric. after a moment he regained his sense enough to see the canteen. he slowly sat up and carefully drank from it, not wanting to lose a single drop. after he felt liek he had his fill, he noticed the pony near him, "You saved me didnt you?" his body still swayed a bit, still very weak, but at least he wasnt thirsty.

[Neoniie]

Relieved that the earth pony had regained his speech, Mirage answered quickly. "I did. My name is Mirage, weathermare and at the moment, desert patrol member. What was somepony like you doing out in the desert anyway? You don't look much like one of the desert ponies." She truly hated the desert, despite her talent for the weather of the harsh place. It was arid and dry and generally unpleasant. Mirage had to admire the fortitude of those who dared to live in the desert, however. But at the moment, such things were not her main concern.

[Starfox64x]

he let out a chuckle, "I was stupid, that's why i'm out here..." he told her, rubbing the rag across his face again, "I thought 'hey! maybe i can find my special talent out here! I bet that will work..." he shook his head, thinking it was a stupid idea looking back on it. he glanced down at his own flank, and from a first glance, it seemed like he was a blank flank... although there was a large crescent shaped mark that closely resembled his natural color...

[Neoniie]

A cutie mark? Mirage wondered what it could be that the stallion was trying to find a talent at, glancing down at his flank. She was surprised that a fully-grown pony had not discovered their talent yet. After a moment, she saw a curved shape on his coat. "But, isn't that crescent there your cutie mark? And what sort of talent involves the desert?" As she spoke, the pegasus realized the hypocrisy of her statement, as her own cutie mark was for desert weather. Nonetheless, she stuck to her question.

[Starfox64x]

"No, it's a scar i got after an accident..." he explained, stroking the mark, "They had to operate on my legs and they say it was left there after they patched me up..." he let out a sigh, looking back at her, "I dont know... i've been traveling around trying to fin my talent... and the desert was a place i hadnt gone to yet, so... Here i am, being stupid and walking into the desert unprepared... apparently forethought isn't my special talent, huh?"

[Neoniie]

Mirage couldn't help but chuckle quietly at the earth pony's last words, but she couldn't imagine getting in such a bad accident. The worst incident she had gotten herself into was a mishap on her arrival in Appleloosa where she'd sprained her wing. It had been more painful mentally than physically, as she hated being bound to the earth and not having the option to soar among the clouds.

"Well, you're lucky I found you. I almost flew right past you before,...um..." It was at that point that Mirage realized that she hadn't asked for the earth pony's name. She let the sentence hang, allowing the stallion time to answer.

[Starfox64x]

he blinked, a little unsure of why she was stalling her sentence. he was still not quite all there, his body still weakened by his walk... however he soon realized what she was waiting for, "Oh! I'm Vulpus... you said you were Mirage, right?" he asked, still trying to get his head back into reality. "I'm really glad you found me... i think at some point i had just... given up, but i'll be honest, i dont remember much..."

[Neoniie]

"Hmm, that's an interesting name," Mirage said, mostly to herself. "Yep, I'm Mirage. Nice to properly meet you." After a moment of consideration, she decided that it would be best to figure out Vulpus' path so that she could return him to his starting point. "Well, whatever you can remember may be helpful, I can't very well take you back to wherever you left from unless we can piece that together. That is, if you don't actually remember where it is. Not that I don't expect you to know..." She scratched the back of her head in slight embarrassment at her assumption.

[Starfox64x]

"Eh, it was a small town... kinda far away though... i was trying to find Apploosa after i found... whatever it was i was looking for.... but i have no idea where that is now..." he looked down, feeling more idiotic the more he talked... "How far is it to the nearest town? I just want to rest..."

[Neoniie]

"Um..." Mirage considered her mental maps of the desert and surrounding area, trying to determine the closest town. She decided on a small settlement in the Painted Pinto Desert. "Well, the closest town is called Dapple Dunes, if I'm right. Once you get some rest there, I can take you back to Appleloosa."

She allowed him to gather himself before starting on the trip. Mirage had never taken both herself and another pony over such a long distance, but she figured that there was a first time for everything. "We can go whenever you're ready."

[Starfox64x]

"I dont think i can walk much more... Could you carry me? I hate to ask that of you, but i can barely stand anymore..." he rubbed the back of his head, feeling awkward about asking for help.

[Neoniie]

"Of course. That was the plan," Mirage said, a bubbly laugh in her voice. She picked him up in the same manner as before, hooking her own forelegs underneath his and pulling him up. Since this was going to be a longer trip, she moved her grip to somewhere are his torso, making his weight evenly distributed between his front and back.

She maintain the hover for a few moments, getting the hang of keeping his weight. Once she had enough of a hang of the manoeuvering, she increased her altitude to a proper flight and took off toward Dapple Dunes.

[Starfox64x]

Vulpus carefully held on with all the strength he had left. he didnt want to fall. he carefully looked down, smiling, "It's been a long time since i've been this high." he commented as she flew with him.

[Neoniie]

Mirage smiled at the earth pony's words. Most of her day had been spent in silence with little to no contact with anypony else. Having somepony to talk to, even if that pony was probably slightly delirious and weakened from exhaustion, was a welcome addition. It was the ever-changing world around her that convinced the pegasus to be a pony of action rather than study. If one was so busy studying and learning, oppourtunity would slide by and become impossible to regain. It was only the pegasus' opinion, but she held by it.

Noting the tips of the wooden roofs of Dapple Dunes, the sandy mare quickened her pace. It would still be a short while before they arrived, so she decided to follow a thread of Vulpus' last statement. "You've been up this high before? Wow, for an earth pony, you must be good at jumping."

[Starfox64x]

he chuckled at her comment, and smiled at the sight of civilization in the distance, "Well yeah, i havent JUMPED quite this high before, although i used a tree to propel myself pretty high once... but i've been in a hot air balloon once or twice... and i've been to Cloudsdale too!" he seemed excited about talking about his interesting past. over the years he gathered many stories to tell.

[Neoniie]

"Woah, a hot air ballon? Pegasi don't have much use for them, clearly," Mirage said, flapping her wings quickly to illustrate her point. "I've always wanted to see one though. It's pretty fascinating, though I'm certainly not about to read endless textbooks on them." After a moment, she added, "Once you get rested, you'll have to tell me some of those stories of yours."

The houses in the distance had become surprisingly closer within the past few minutes and a young colt had even trotted out to meet them. He was a green earth pony, quite a contrast to the brown snads around him. "Mirage!" He bounced forward excitedly. "Who's the visitor?"

Mirage chuckled at the colt's enthusiasm. "You'll see soon enough. Now go fetch your mother." As the colt bounded off, she elaborated for Vulpus' sake. "That's Balloon Bright, son of the medic here. Nice colt, I met him on an earlier patrol of the Painted Pinto Desert."

[Starfox64x]

he nodded to her, assuring her he would tell her more stories once he was rested.

"Oh is he?" he asked when she introduced him, "That's nice... i dont know if i need a medic though, just some rest..." but if she insisted he wouldnt argue... he didnt like to argue wiht other ponies.

[Neoniie]

"Well, it's mostly just to make sure that rest is all you need. It's probably gonna be just a quick physical and then we can set you up with a room at the Palomino Inn." Mirage flew him inside the boarder of the town, setting him down gently on a well-used dirt path. Another pastel colour earth pony trotted out to meet them, this one a light pink-coated mare. She looked him up and down before addressing them.

"I ain't sure that he really needs mah help. Some water and a good conkin' 'round the head maybe, but I think ya just need ta let 'im rest." With that quick diagnosis, the mare returned to her home, leaving Mirage slightly baffled.

"Um...she really does mean well. Don't take all of that conking stuff too seriously." Mirage sounded a bit embarassed as she located the Palomino. She turned back to Vulpus, "Do you want some help?"

[Starfox64x]

(oh, and btw, if i ever say 'Sai' as his name, ignore me, just mixing names up...)

Vulpus allowed her to look him over, although he was impressed by her quick diagnosis, he was curious as to why she didnt mention his leg... for that matter, he didnt notice Mirage say anything yet either... "Heh, i dunno, looking back at it, i could probably use one..." he looked aorund the town, trying to spot the inn, "Uh, if you could lead me to the inn, that would be great... I really do appreciate all this help you're giving me... you're too kind..."