[Chapter1-No Lands End] Stars and Dreams [PM for Invite]

[SeaSkies]

Sea Skies heard a pony whisper beside her and almost lept out her skin, turning she saw a purple pegasus in goggles and a leather jacket. "uhm, yes" she said folding and unfolding her wings nervously. The wars, the rebellion, the assasionation, all of it had ripped the gentle pegasus so far out of her beach environment that she found herself at a complete loss. Her family either with unknown whereabouts or gone, she had fled Hoofington and reached No Lands End in hope of real ecsape, but so far she had not dared put a hoof over the boundry. The fear she could be leving behind family, friends, the life she has known and loved, stepping over that line meant nothing would evr be the same again. This other pegasus, who ever he was, was the other other living creature, let alone pony, she had seen since she got here a week ago. She shook her head nervously suddenly aware of how ragged she looked. A month of sleeping in ditched and hiding in bushes had not been kind to her once soft white and turquoise mane. She glanced up at the Pegasus again " whats your name ?" her voice comming out in a stange croak from lack of any real use in ages.

[CrescentBlaze]

"Names arent the safest things to just through around these days, so i'll keep that to myself if its all the same to you. But if you must call me something you can call me Pro." He stretched his wings a bit. "How long have you been hiding around here? I could use a friend who knows the territory. Oh and uh what should i call you?"

[SeaSkies]

SeaSkies blinked, she hadn't thought of using an pseudonym "Pro" she said quietly to herself taking in the strangers appearance, he looked a lot stronger and a much better flyer. All in all, the name suited him, than her and a wave of self consciousness flooded over her. She stuggled to think of a name that would suit her, that sounded like she'd have the slightest change of survival. " Scout ?" she suggested weakly " i know about a mile or so radius about here, well every direction except the boarder. You picked one of the best places here." she said turning to do a scan of the area "Smoke in the sky over there" she said pointing with her hoof "means dragons are near by, it doesn't move enough to be a fire and the other way get boggy. If the mud-pits don't get you that fog would loose you for sure"

[SaucySpider]

As Runner came over the hill, trotting at a fairly decent pace, he noticed two pegasi having a conversation near an old abandoned town. "Hey guys!" he said as he approached them, " is there anything to drink around here i'm parched!" He had spent days trying to reach No Lands End, and his supplies had been running extremely low. The fact that he was even able to communicate amazed him.

[CrescentBlaze]

Crescent immediately went into survival mode as the boisterous pony called to them revealing their location to any nearby threats. He exploded into the air towards the light brown earth pony. keeping low to the ground he tackled him in under a second pinning him by his shoulders. Whispering fiercely crescent said "Are you stupid or something? are you Trying to get us all killed? you could have given away our position to anypony or anything that was looking for us. Talk! Who are you and what are you doing just trotting around in the open?!" Crescent was ticked at this pony's carelessness and had clearly blown his top, but then his impulsiveness had saved him in more that one occassion

[SeaSkies]

"Uhhh Pro?" SeaSkies asked quietly trying to calm down the purple pegasi. "It's ok, i've been here for a week, not seen another living soul, i think we're pretty isolated." She gently nudged at his shoulder with her hoof, hinting at him to get off the brown earth pony. "i've got some water in my pack, tastes a little funny, had to use a herb mix to sterilize it, can't be too sure with water these days".

[SaucySpider]

At that point Runner was slightly flustered with the large purple pegasus now looming overtop of him. "Uh hiya...Pro is it?" he said as the pegasus glared at him, "the names Runner, now would you mind not mounting me like some sort of circus animal?" He turned to the other pegasus standing some distance away, "sure i'd love some water, it doesn't matter to me what it tastes like just as long as it's drinkable"

[CrescentBlaze]

Crescent stepped off of the earth pony called Runner, he wondered if that was a pseudonym or if that was his actual name. He calmed himself,

"Sorry friend, didnt mean to hurt you if I did, flying for your life for days on end can do this to ya. Cant be too careful these days, and yeah you can call me Pro."

Crescent turned his attention back to Scout,

"Scout eh? nice to meet you. You say you havent seen anything else around for days. I was under the impression there was some sort of secret settlement around here. None of that? I was hoping to finally get some kind of food in me, I havent eaten in days."

His stomach growled as if on cue.

OOC: Crecent isnt that big, just lean and athletic, actually a bit slimmer than your average pegasi stallion despite his athleticism. He's strong but he excels more in agility and speed. also i think i forgot to mention he is carrying a sword. my bad.

[SeaSkies]

SeaSkies flipped her pack open "I have some food, berries, nuts a couple of apples. should fill us up for now " She pulled out the food and water from her bag and gave them to the other ponies. "Not seen any signs of a settlement" she said to Crescent, maybe it's further then i've been, i think the boarder of No Lands End is pretty broken up by a bunch of dangerous stuff. " she scanned the horizon to her right and left "anyway it might be dangerous trying to find a crowded area, i heard that Storm Dragon is targeting small villages to stop potential for an underground rebellion. Not to mention how much he's watching the cities" she sighed " no where is safe, not anymore"

[SaucySpider]

"You're telling me!" Runner said as he got up, "I'm from Fillydelphia and it's nearly impossible to even cross the street without being suspected of being a rebel and getting searched from head to hoof." He walked over towards the pony known as scout. "Well it looks like we've got the introductions out of the way, and considering there doesn't seem to be much around here i say we should head away from the border of No Lands End and more towards the center. At least there we have a possibility of finding some proper shelter and some more food." He hoped his guess was right and that there really was food and shelter to be had.

[SeaSkies]

"yeah" she agreed nervously, gulping. " i guess there's only one way to find out" she said staring out at the vast and seemingly endless horizon. She turned to her two new traveling companions " what do you two think ?"

[CrescentBlaze]

"I suppose that's not a bad idea, the farther in we go the less likely we are of running into those monstrous 'Guardians'. Plus If we make it to a settlements there will be security in the greater numbers."

Crescent realized that because there was this one earth pony that they would have to walk all the way there. He hated walking, preferring much rather to fly anywhere, though given the circumstance it might be best to keep a low profile and keep close to the ground. He finished his apple and buried the core to keep from leaving evidence anypony had been there.

"Scout you mentioned 'dangerous stuff' breaks up the border of no lands end, what kind of danger do you mean? Natural landscapes, wild animals, bandits? I couldnt imagine there would be any 'guardians' this far to the edge of Ole Stormy's territory."

[SaucySpider]

"Like i said before i'm all set to get going and away from this 'dangerous' border" "Hmm i wonder how fast these pegasi are, the one looks like he could fly as fast as a pro racer, while the other one, i'm not so sure about" Runner knew he could outrun almost any earth pony or unicorn, but could he run with pegasi, that would definitely be a feat worty of praise.

[SeaSkies]

" As far as i can tell there's at least a couple bogs around here, and " she pointed a hoof to a spiral of black smoke " I'm pretty sure that's a dragon, or maybe more, the smoke it too steady to be a wild fire and too thick to be a camp" Sea unfolded her wings flew into the air a couple of feet peering out at the horizon " If we're gonna head off from here I suggest north west the clouds are darkening enough to mean it'll rain soon, which means water, and possible plant life" she plopped back down onto all four hooves. Landing again made her realize just how petite she was compared to the other two, while her flying had improved since she left Hoofington she still wasn't amazing, the best she could be pretty fast now, but only for short distances.

[CrescentBlaze]

"well no sense just sitting around talking until we get caught. Lets go everypony."

Crescent took the lead, subconsciously asserting himself into an alpha role. He looked confidently out over the landscape, somewhere out there was some form of salvation for them, there had to be. He refused to believe he lived in a world with unsolvable problems or impossible tasks, to him with enough determination there were no such things. He spoke to the others as he walked

"We're going to need to work together if we're going to get through this all in one piece. So I think it would be best if we each shared our strengths. So I, for example, can fight rather well and I am a very skilled flier. What about you two?

[SaucySpider]

"Well my special talent is freerunning, which makes me very adaptable to any sort of environment. As a result i'm also faster than most other ponies who are stuck on their own four hooves. Also, I have some survival experience, my father used to take me out into the woods outside of city where we could learn to live off of the land. Those tricks should come in handy on our travels i'm sure" Runner smiled at them both eager to get on their journey.

[SeaSkies]

Seaskies thought for a minute "i'm pretty good with weather predicting and directions, I could navigate i guess ? I've also got a little skill in herbs and berries - what NOT to eat, what you can eat, and some basic medicines. I'm not the strongest flyer though, i never got taught really . . ." Skies felt happy with letting crescent take charge. "so" she said vaguely facing the horizon " I guess it's GO time ?"

[CrescentBlaze]

"Go time." He said affirmatively. "Well it seems we have a well balanced set of skills to work with."

He made his way over a sandy hill with the others and turned his attention fully on Runner, planning to make full use of his skills

"So Runner you have some survival experience. Any decent way to make a shelter in this landscape with what we have? Rain is great for drinking water but if we get drenched overnight we risk hypothermia, I imagine the evenings here are very cold."

[SaucySpider]

"Well first things first, we should scavenge what we can from the old abandoned town, there is sure to be plenty of firewood that is still usable. We can gather up some wood to build a temporary shelter that we can move with us. There is likely to be a well in town that the ponies who once lived here most likely used for water. We can use that to refill our canteens with water for the journey, that way even if it doesn't rain soon we still have water to drink. As for our shelter again, there should be some rope lying around this town. We can use that to reinforce the roof and walls." he turned to scout "hey since you seem to know this area well, is there any chance you could scavenge up some water to put in this?" He pulls out a medium sized metal cantine. Turning to pro, "you and me will gather supplies, you fly overhead and look for anything useful, and i'll check the ground. What do you guys say, shall we go get ourselves prepared?"

[CrescentBlaze]

"Alright, but we cant separate too far, if something happens where one of us gets hurt or finds trouble we need to be nearby. Stay within a 100 meter radius and sound off every now and then. If you dont let us know you're ok we'll come looking."

Crescent took off scanning the ghost town from the air trying to keep and eye on both of the other ponies as well. He spotted a small pile of thin broken sticks behind an out house, and some rope hanging from a wooden 2nd floor balcony. He also spotted the well, it was on the far side of town partially hidden from view.

"Runner! looks like we might have some workable wood over by the outhouse. Why dont you go check it out. I'm gonna go grab some rope. Scout it looks like the well is on the far side of town. Wait for me and Runner to sweep the town until we get closer and then fill the canteens. For now try to see if you can find any useful tools inside what's left of these buildings. Hammers and nails, or maybe things to make some sort of weapons for you two.

He swooped lower to get the rope and looped the 15 or so hooves of it onto his shoulder. He waited a moment for them make some progress.

[SaucySpider]

Runner ran toward the outhouse, and seeing the wood that Pro had pointed out, but there was something else there, something shiny. He dug out the object from the ground and found a small knife lying half exposed in the ground. It wasn't anything special but it would definitely help if there was a fight. He tied the knife around his right hind leg, where it would be in easy reach if anything happened. He proceeded to sling the wood over his back and was on his way towards the center of town where he decided they should meet, when he called out to Pro.

"Hey Pro, i got the wood, and a found a knife, i'll meet you in the center of town, and i'll check to see if there is anything useful in the square as well."

(OOC: Lol i'm just gonna rp like this with the colors, it seems easier and should help distinguish who's talking if we have to play NPCs)

[SeaSkies]

Skies took the canteen and flew off to the well, while she filled it she picked some more herbs that sterilized water and a few for mild injuries and illnesses. She trotted back to find where the boys had gotten to and saw them hard at work.

She flew up again and scanned for food. She found a nearby peach tree and pulled off a good few of the fruit, to her dismay alot of the fruit still on the branches was going bad. and she quickly drifted away.

[CrescentBlaze]

"Thats great Runner. Alright Scout sound off and meet us in the center of town."

Crescent alighted in an open area where the other two could easily find him. This place still made him nervous, that scout hadnt seen anything for day made him suspricious that the eerie silence of the ruins wasnt natural. There should have at least been bugs or something, buzzing around but the entire town was quieter than tomb. While he waited for Runner and Scout he surveyed the area again hoping to find some tools of any kind. he Found a heavy rock with one flat side that could work well as a make-shift mallet if properly applied. He had a thought.

"Anyone see any clothe around? We need a bag or a sling to carry or things.

[SaucySpider]

As he was approaching the town square, Runner noticed what was once a small clothing store on the main road, and considering Pro had asked if there was any cloth around he figured he might as well check it out. It took him almost 5 minutes, but at last he arrived in the back corner where all of the supplies had been, and he noticed on a shelf there were several packs that looked as though they could still be used. He took three and continued on his way towards the the center of town. When he arrived at his destination he called out to Pro and Scout.

"Hey stallions i have good news, i found packs for each of us. They should be able to carry the essentials and maybe a little extra."

[SeaSkies]

Scout glided back to Runner having finished picking a couple vegetables she found growing wild at random. "got enough food to keep us going for a while. If you found any cooking equipment like a camp stove i could make us a few pretty good meals" She flicked her tail nervously the sky is gonna be pretty clear for us, but there are clouds in the East, and at the rate they're moving I'd say we're gonna be in for some pretty fast winds tonight, no cloud cover for us, so it'll be cold too."