A loud coughing filled the air, breaking the peace that had filled it. The source, a steel-blue unicorn, pushed himself off the damp sand and looked around. The last thing he remembered was the ship he was one getting caught in a wild storm. He looked around to see that he had washed up along with slivers of wood as long as he was tall. A closer look around told him that he was alone, as there weren't even any hoofprints to indicate any other survivors had woken up and left him.
He stood up and winced as he put too much weight on his right foreleg. He limped around for a while, trying to find any of the other ponies that had been on board with him. After close to a hour, he had given up hope and come to the conclusion that he was all alone, wherever he was.
He sat on the beach, not caring for how long he was there. He was alone, everypony he knew was dead, and he would die alone here. Eventually, he found that he was thirsty, and decided that if he was going to spend the rest of his life out in the middle of nowhere he should at least explore his new home.
He pushed through the trees, leaves getting caught in his steel-grey mane, sticks scratching his sides. Before long, he was in a clearing. He looked around and, despite his inexperience with nature, noticed that it looked as though the area had been deliberately cleared. There was also the matter of the strange metal box in the middle.
It was the colour of polished brass, and just as bright. It was only four feet across on each side, and twice as high. One on side, the side he was facing, was a great door. Warily, he approached it, not sure what to make of it. He put a hoof on the door and pushed it, watching as it swung open on well-greased hinges.
He gazed into the inky blackness within. What was this thing? He slowly stuck his head in, his horn glowing, and saw a set of stairs that led underground. Who would make something like this, here, in the middle of nowhere? And where could it possibly go?
After staring inside for what felt like an eternity, he decided that with nothing to lose going down was his only option. He took a step in, not realizing this simple action had alerted others to his presence.
