Author's Note

Part 1 of Scarlet's perspective. Huge thanks to Lawra for letting me use one of her characters and for contributing some ideas to this chapter.

Takes place about a month after Eclipse Family Vacation, in late December

Star Struck - Part 1

-=Part 1=-

The moonlit desert landscape zoomed past them as they drove towards the Phoenix airport. Silver and Scarlet sat in the back seat, Orion cuddled in between them and Marcus in the front. An adventurous-sounding melody played over the radio in the background, almost seeming to emphasize the journey that was about to take place.

“Okay so you’ve got everything you need right? We’re not forgetting anything?” Silver asked her for what seemed like the hundredth time.

Scarlet laughed and rolled her eyes, “Silver, I’m good. I don’t need to bring that much with me anyways, just the essentials for the trip.”

“Alright, alright, I just want to make sure you’ve got everything. This is kind of a big deal, after all.”

She smiled. “Look, I appreciate the concern, but I’m good. Crescent’s already got my notebook, and I’ve got all the books and notes I needed to bring over.”

The van pulled up towards the curb and came to a stop. “Alrighty, this is the end of the line,” Marcus cheerfully called back to the family.

Silver nodded towards him, “Thanks Marcus, go ahead and find a spot to park for a few. I’ll give you a call once we’re ready to go.”

He returned a quick nod, “Gotcha boss.”

The trio hopped out of the shuttle and Marcus pulled away while Silver walked Scarlet into the terminal and towards the airport’s security checkpoint, Orion happily trotting alongside the pair.

The trio stopped a short distance away and Scarlet turned towards Silver, hesitating for a moment, “So this is it. I’m actually going to go map out another world’s stars.”

Silver gave an excited nod, “Yep! You’re about to become an interdimensional traveler! How does it feel?”

She shrugged, “I mean, I’m a little nervous, but I think it’s exciting. It’s going to be weird being gone for so long, but this is like a once in a lifetime opportunity.”

“Well you never know, maybe you’ll impress them and they’ll let you come back again. This could really be the start of something big you know?”

Scarlet smiled, “Of course, I know it’s only for this one project but hey, never say never. If I was able to impress Crescent’s boss then maybe there’ll be more chances like this in the future.”

“Yeah, and hopefully we can come along next time too.” He added with a smile, pulling Orion close to him with a wing.

She looked down towards Orion, “And you’re going to be good for Silver, right?”

The purple colt nodded excitedly, pushing away from Silver to cuddle up closer to her.

“Good, I’m gonna miss you, little buddy, but I’m only going to be gone for a little while.”

Silver sighed, “It’s sure going to feel like so much longer, but I’m glad you have the chance to do this. Who knows when you’ll ever have the opportunity again?”

She pulled him into a hug, draping her wings around both him and Orion, “I know, don’t worry though, I’ll be home before you know it. Are you sure you’ll be able to manage everything on your own though?”

Silver nodded. “Yeah, it can’t be too bad, right? I mean, I’m just watching Orion, keeping an eye on the house, and keeping us fed. I think I can handle this for a month, what’s the worst that could happen?”

She smirked. “Oh, I can think of about a dozen things that could go wrong, but if you think you’ve got it, I'll take your word for it.”

He smiled, “Thanks Scarlet. You’re gonna have such a fun time, the least I could do is make sure you don’t need to worry about us while you’re gone.”

“Okay, well I really appreciate it.” She shifted her saddlebags into a comfortable place on her back and looked towards the security checkpoint, and then back towards Silver. “Oh, and one more thing, if any of the night pony mares try and make a pass at you while I’m gone, they better know that they’re going to regret it when I get back.”

He chuckled, “Oh believe me, they know better than to try and make a move on me when you’re gone.”

She nodded, “I know it’s redundant now, but it’s going to be an issue to watch out for when Orion’s older, especially given how much we already travel outside the Oasis as it is. That’s why this is so important to me.”

He paused and nodded, “You don’t need to stress about it, I’ll make sure that they get your message loud and clear. You go and enjoy yourself and let me worry about everything out here. It’s not every day that you get to just hop dimensions and go look at another universe’s stars after all, I’m kind of jealous to be honest.”

She glanced down to her gauntlet to check the time, and then back over towards the checkpoint. “Well I better get going,” She pulled the two in for one final hug and a kiss goodbye. “I’m going to really miss you two, but I’ll be back before you know it.” She paused, “Please please please promise me you won’t burn the house down Silver.”

Silver smiled, “I promise I won’t burn the house down. We’re gonna really miss you too, I can’t wait to hear all about your trip once you get back, now you go have fun!”

She smiled and walked towards the security checkpoint as Silver started to call Marcus. Scarlet glanced back at them one last time as she entered the line and felt a twinge of sadness that the two couldn’t come along. Orion had tried to run after her the second Silver looked away, and it only made that feeling of sadness spark up even stronger.

Orion probably had no idea where or why she was going and Scarlet could only hope that he wouldn’t give Silver too much trouble while she was gone. It would be a long month for all of them, and she would miss the two dearly, but she was excited for her trip and the exciting new adventure that lay ahead of her.

Scarlet had passed through the security checkpoint without any issue and had quietly found a cozy spot near the gate to relax in until it was time to board. Given the time, the flight was mostly empty, which was perfectly fine for her. It felt like it was just yesterday that she was flying to Michigan with her family, and now only a month later she was flying to go visit another world on her own. Technically she wouldn’t be alone for the entire journey, she would be meeting two other humans once she arrived in New York.

Currently Scarlet sat in the aisle seat of the pony section, listening to some peaceful music with her eyes closed. The trip so far had been relatively uneventful, with her resting this way through most of the flight. She had always liked to glance out the window occasionally, but the stallion that sat next to it had kept the shade closed, much to her disappointment. Scarlet shrugged at this thought and figured that she couldn’t really be that disappointed. If she had really had an issue with it she could have gone to one of the other empty seats. It wouldn’t be much longer until it was time to touch down, but she was more than ready to disembark. As much as she could tolerate long flights in these kinds of settings, she was ready to stretch out her wings and move around.

It wasn’t that she was completely uncomfortable, the extra space that the pony section offered was a nice perk, but flying in an airplane as a pony was still an odd feeling at times. At least she could get some much needed rest, she’d definitely need it. There was no real telling when she’d be able to make it back this way, but given that Silver wanted to bring her and Orion along on some of his trips going forward, she was sure they’d make it back over sooner or later.

A quiet chime sounded throughout the cabin as the flight attendant began an indifferent sounding announcement. “Ladies and Gentlemen, we are beginning our descent, please return your seats to the upright position and stow your tray tables. We’ll be touching down in a few minutes.”

Scarlet opened her eyes at the announcement, quickly stashing her headphones into her saddlebags. She peeked over towards the window, and shifted them into a more comfortable position.

The pegasus next to the window stirred and cleared his throat for what felt like the first time the entire flight, pulling her attention away from her thoughts. “So, this your first time in New York or do you live out here?”

She turned towards him, “Hm? Oh, just visiting. Haven’t been here in a while, at least not as a pony. My husband and I wanted to take a trip down here after we had our foal but we never found the time. I don’t really know when or if I’ll ever get back out here so I’m definitely going to take advantage of it while I have the chance.”

He smiled, “Well you’re in for a treat then, the city seems so much bigger as a pony. Lived here for a few years before ETS and I still feel like I’m rediscovering the city for the first time whenever I fly back in. Just a fair warning though, keep to the ground, the humans are a bit uptight about flying around the city.”

She raised an eyebrow, “Really? Why’s that?”

He shrugged, “They think we’re just going to fly into an engine intake or something, name’s Skipper by the way.”

She nodded, “Scarlet, Scarlet Eclipse.”

“So what do you do, Scarlet? Couldn’t help but notice your mark. You into stargazing or something?”

She nodded, “I’m an astronomer out in Arizona. Haven’t really had a chance to do much yet but we’ve been working on some prototype telescopes. I’m actually taking part in some cultural exchange in Equestria, can’t really say much about it, but they needed a few Earth based astronomers to help oversee a project.”

“Oh! I’m talking with a big shot?” He asked in mock excitement.

She shrugged, “I wouldn’t say that, I just happened to have a friend who put in a good word for me. I’m in charge of a small team back home, in a private city called the Oasis, not too far from Phoenix if you’ve ever been down that way. The astronomy stuff is only a small part of it, but I like to think it’s a pretty important one.”

Skipper looked on in interest, “Huh, well that’s not something I tend to think about. I can’t say that I’ve ever really been out that way, is the stargazing any good out there?”

“It’s amazing. We’ve designed the city so there’s as little light pollution as possible, really gives you an amazing view of the night sky. So are you into astronomy too or something?”

He shrugged, “I dabble from time to time, it’s kind of hard to get a good view of the stars, all the bright lights and whatnot, and well, I don’t really know what I’m doing half the time. I’m a fisherman by day so It’s kind of just a hobby for me, but nothing I’d say I’m any good at.”

Scarlet smiled, “Hey, a hobby is better than nothing, as long as you enjoy it then that’s all that matters. Keep at it, I’m sure you’ll get good at it if you just take some time and learn what works and what doesn’t.”

Skipper gave a quick nod, “I’ll have to remember that the next time I give it a go.” He paused for a few minutes and peered out the window, “Well, we’re about to touch down. It was a nice chat though, hope you enjoy the city.”

“Thanks,” She paused for a moment, “Skipper, was it?”

He nodded. “Yep, kind of a dorky name for a fishing boat captain, but that was my old nickname and it got its hooks in me.”

She let out a small laugh, “Thanks Skipper. If you’re ever in the Phoenix area, look me up, my husband Silver and I would love to give you a little tour of our observatory. If you’re seriously looking to get into astronomy it might at least be a cool thing to see.”

He nodded, “Can’t say I’ll ever get down there, but I’ll definitely think about that if I ever have the chance.”

She faced forward and prepared herself for landing, both nervous and excited at the adventure that lay ahead. The plane trembled slightly as it neared the runway, finally touching down and slowing to a taxiing speed.

The announcement chimed once again, “Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the Captain speaking, we’ll be pulling into the arrival gate shortly, until then we ask that you please remain seated with your seatbelt fastened until the seatbelt sign has been turned off. On behalf of myself and the rest of the crew, thank you for flying with us today, and welcome to New York.”

Skipper chuckled, “Freedom at last. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to flying this way as a pony, but it’s a necessary evil, I guess.”

“Mhmm, It’s definitely odd but at least we get the nice cushy seats in our own little section. I used to hate dealing with the cramped seats that the humans get.”

“Tell me about it, used to get the worst cramps in my neck,” He cracked his neck as if to emphasize his former discomfort, “anyways, you take care Scarlet, hope you enjoy our city.”

She nodded, “You too.”

Scarlet walked out towards the baggage check area, glancing around the area until she noticed a pair of humans that fit the description of the two she was supposed to be meeting, sitting off to the side of the carousel. As she took in the unfamiliar surroundings, a feeling of nervousness passed through her.

The momentary feeling of worry quickly passed, and seeing no real reason to hesitate, she slowly approached the pair. As she neared them the woman glanced over towards her and said something to the man that Scarlet couldn’t make out, before walking towards the luggage carousel.

With a cheerful smile on her face, Scarlet calmly trotted towards the remaining human, who returned a smile of his own. “I’m sorry, but are you the astronomers I’m supposed to meet up with?”

The human who she could only assume was Tyler nodded, “Let me guess, Scarlet?”

She relaxed a little and returned with a quick nod. “Yep, that’s me! Nice to finally meet you.”

Briefly glancing to the side, Scarlet noticed the woman walking back over from the carousel, carrying a couple small bags in tow. The human calmly turned towards Tyler, “This the pony we’re supposed to meet up with?”

Tyler nodded, “Yeah, perfect timing. Scarlet, this is Sarah; Sarah, Scarlet.”

Sarah set the bags on the ground next to her and extended a hand in greeting, “Pleased to meet you! We’ve heard a little bit about you, you’re running some observatory out in Arizona right?”

Scarlet met her greeting with her hoof and nodded, “Right. It’s nothing huge yet, but we’ve been working on a new prototype telescope. It’s not too different from anything you guys would be used to using, it’s mainly scaled down so it’s more comfortable for ponies to use, while still functioning the same as the others. I’ve also been studying some Equestrian astronomy books I was able to borrow from a good friend of mine, that’s been a fun challenge in itself.”

“Sounds fun, we’ve done some barebones research into Equestria’s stars, but we haven’t been able to get ahold of anything substantial on them. So are you guys having any luck with the prototypes?”

“Oh absolutely, it wasn’t as hard to scale them down as we thought it would be. The big project I’m really looking forward to is taking what we’ve done and expanding on it,” Scarlet excitedly explained.

Sarah leaned forward, “Like upgrading your tech? That’s kind of cool. Did you guys manage to get anywhere with that yet?”

Scarlet nodded enthusiastically, “Yeah actually, the advanced systems team back home was working on a new processor, it’s still a very early work in progress but I hope we’ll be able to upgrade our control computers with it. The other teams have been trying to downscale some of the existing tech so it doesn’t need to take up as much space as it does now, that’s still a bit of a work in progress.—”

Tyler cut in, “I hate to interrupt, but we should probably catch a cab over to the UN and talk about this more on the way there, I’d hate to be late and give off a bad first impression to whoever we wind up meeting on the other side.”

Scarlet and Sarah turned towards him and nodded in unison while Tyler reached down and grabbed his bag, waving the other two towards the exit. The two quickly followed him out and waited off to the side while he hailed a cab for them.

Tyler paid the cab driver and collected their bags from the back, pausing to make sure they were all set to go.

While the trio walked towards the imposing UN building Scarlet couldn’t help but marvel at how tall it and really every other building in the city appeared. She had visited large cities before as a human and had thought everything felt so big then, but her experience as a pony only served to make her feel even more out of place among the towering structures.

Sarah let out a few laughs as she took in Scarlet’s awestruck, almost bewildered expression, “So this your first time in the city?”

Scarlet blinked a few times, almost seeming to come out of some trance. She looked up towards Sarah and answered with a quick nod, “As a pony… is it that obvious?”

“Ehh… a little. The bewildered looks kind of give it away.” Tyler added with a smile.

“To be fair, this whole place just feels so different from the last time I was here, and that was so many years ago. It’s hard to really compare the two because both times I felt so… out of place, if that makes sense.”

Sarah shrugged, “Hey, can’t really blame you, but after today I think something like this is going to pale in comparison.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“What she means is that we’re about to become universal travelers. It’s not that’s just something that anyone’s able to easily do.” Tyler answered for her.

Scarlet nodded, “Right, that’s pretty much exactly what my husband said, and that’s a pretty good point. We should probably get to it instead of just standing around staring at a bunch of skyscrapers all day.”

Tyler nodded and pushed the door open, holding it for the other two as they stepped into the spacious lobby. Almost immediately, a pair of attendants approached them.

The first one, a larger man with a name tag that read Barney, who looked as if he was in his mid forties, stepped forward to greet them. “Hi, do you three have an appointment here?”

Tyler nodded, “Yeah, we’re taking part in a cultural exchange with Equestria. Part of their new astronomy program that was set up not too long ago.”

He nodded, looking down to the tablet he was carrying, “Alright, could I please have your names?”

“Tyler Anderson.” He turned towards Sarah with a smirk, earning an annoyed look from her, as if there was some inside joke that Scarlet wasn’t aware of.

Sarah gave a quick reply that seemed to carry an annoyed tone with it. “Sarah… Conners.”

Barney let out a snicker, “Off to go stop terminators in Equestria eh?”

She rolled her eyes, “Gee haven’t heard that one before… ”

He nodded, stifling a few more chuckles, “Mmmkay, and you?” He asked as he turned to look down at Scarlet.

“Scarlet Eclipse,” She replied with a cheerful grin.

He checked off a few items on his tablet and smiled. “Perfect, you’re all checked in, we’ll just verify your identities at the desk over there, and then Storm Comet can direct you over to the portal security checkpoint,” He finished, gesturing towards the pegasus at his side.

Storm comet gave a quick nod, waving them along with a wing. “We’ll stop through the security checkpoint on the way there, you’re aware of how this all works correct?”

Sarah cleared her throat, “Yep, we declare what we’re bringing, acknowledge what we can and can’t bring back, yadda yadda, you get the idea.”

He rolled his eyes, “Okay. Just making sure, a lot of travellers don’t have any idea what the actual rules are and wind up getting into all sorts of trouble. They wait months, maybe even longer to get a chance to go through the portal and then they don’t even bother to learn the rules.”

Tyler chuckled, “Trust me, you won’t have to worry about that with us, we’re professionals, not just some random tourists passing through.”

“That’s good to hear! If you don’t mind me asking, what do you guys all do?”

“Well Tyler and I were interns at the VLT installation down in Texas. It’s part of a big research project dealing with deep space astronomy. After college we were able to stay on and work with the team full time. Had some colleagues in the program that were able to get us in contact with the Equestrians, and well, here we are.” He said, gesturing towards himself and Sarah.

“And I’m the lead astronomer at a private research center in Arizona called the Oasis.” Scarlet added in.

A look of curiosity and interest spread across Storm Comet’s face. “That was that little desert city that got washed out by that freak storm right? What was the deal with that anyways?”

Scarlet raised an eyebrow and cocked her head to the side, “I’m actually kind of surprised you’ve heard of that, we worked really hard with some… friends, to make sure that that whole event was kept on the down low. It’s usually only been the weird oddballs that are into strange and unusual stuff that wind up asking about it, and to answer your question, it was a big misunderstanding between some weather ponies, but I’m afraid I can’t really get into any more detail with it.”

He chuckled, “Oh, I’m sure it was. I myself am a little strange and unusual, I love reading up on weird unexplained paranormal occurrences and a freak weather event kind of fits that bill perfectly. If anything big like that happens I usually find out about it one way or another.”

The warm smile returned to her face as she listened to Storm Comet explain everything. “Well it’s not exactly my kind of hobby, but that’s certainly better than having occult nutjobs show up unannounced on private land asking about whether aliens created the storm or not. Believe me, we’ve heard about every random question and conspiracy theory you could imagine.”

“I can imagine that’d be annoying.” He paused for a moment, “Anyways sorry to lead you off on a tangent like that, the checkpoint’s just ahead. I’ll be leaving you all there, if you have any questions one of the guards there will be able to answer them.”

Tyler smiled, “Thank you, Storm.”

He nodded. “Take care.”

The group stepped forward into the portal’s security checkpoint. The first thing that stood out to Scarlet was how different the checkpoint was to what she was imagining. Instead of the clinical checkpoint that you’d find in an airport, this checkpoint was a simple room with a few unicorns, crystal ponies, and human guards stationed around the portal. A standard bag scanner sat at the front of the room, but aside from that and the portal, the rest of the room was relatively empty.

One of the tall human guards approached the group and came to a stop, “Good afternoon, please set your bags on the conveyor and head over towards the unicorns, we’ll just need to perform a quick magical scan to make sure you don’t have anything that’s not allowed over.”

“Are we going to feel anything from it?” Sarah asked inquisitively.

The guard shook his head, “Maybe a slight tingle, but nothing really at all. The scan is non invasive and we’re just making sure that there’s no contraband being brought over.”

“Sounds fair enough.”

“Now, if you don’t mind me asking, what are you all bringing along?”

“Not a whole lot, just some clothes, books, and notes,” She said, gesturing towards herself and Tyler. “What about you Scarlet?”

Scarlet looked up as she set her small saddlebag onto the conveyor, “Just some notebooks and my gauntlet, it’s basically a phone mixed with a smartwatch, though it probably won’t work over there.”

“And you three are just going to be over there for one month, correct?”

Tyler nodded, “Yep, just a short research trip for now. Hopefully we’ll be able to stop by again sometime, though.”

“Okay, well you’re all clear to go. You’re aware of what you can and can’t bring back, right?”

Sarah nodded, “Mhmm, they included a list of prohibited items on those forms we had to sign before.”

The guard shrugged, “Alright, just making sure because they will be checking for them on the way back, as long as you’re clear on that we’re good. Enjoy your trip.”

Sarah smiled, “Thanks, we will.” She started towards the pair of unicorns that stood in the middle of the room, grabbing her bag as she walked by.

The larger of the two mages smiled, “Good afternoon miss, please set your bag to the side, this will only take a few moments.”

Without a moment’s delay, the two unicorns lit their horns and quickly enveloped Sarah in a magical aura that only lasted a few seconds.

A few moments passed before the aura faded, leaving Sarah standing there in confusion. “Was that it? It’s not some big complicated process?”

The shorter mage nodded, “Yep, you’re all clear to go.”

Sarah nodded, “Well thanks I guess, try not to work too hard okay?”

“Mhmm.” The mage rolled his eyes and turned towards Tyler, who was now just collecting his own bag. “You can leave the bag the for a moment, this won’t take long.”

“Hi. Scan away please.” He said as he stepped into place, letting the mages quickly envelop him in their magic.

Just like with Sarah before, Tyler was enveloped by the same magical aura that ended almost as quickly as it started. He stepped off to the side and gestured towards Scarlet. “You’re up.”

Scarlet stepped forward and before she even had a second to react, her vision was tinted a sparkling red that quickly faded. She blinked a few times and turned towards one of the mages, “That was it?”

The shorter mage nodded, “Yep. Like he said, it only takes a few seconds and you usually don’t feel a thing.”

“Huh, well I guess I was expecting more… maybe I’ve just been spending too much time around the mages back home.”

The mage shrugged, “Maybe, anyways you three are all clear to go. Portal’s just ahead, feel free to proceed as soon as you’re ready, though I’d suggest you not dawdle.” He finished, gesturing towards the portal that sat only a few feet away from the scanning area.

Tyler looked on at the portal like an excited child would, earning a laugh from Sarah as she took notice. He turned towards the two and smiled, “Welp, this is it! You wanna go first Scarlet or should we let Sarah lead the charge?”

“You’re letting me have the honor of going first? You’re not getting cold feet are you?” She teased.

Tyler smiled, “Alright, guess that answers it, see you on the other side, Sarah.”

Sarah smirked at him and stepped through the portal, vanishing into the strange gateway.

Tyler was next, stepping up and pausing for a moment. He turned towards Scarlet, “You ever get that weird feeling of anxiety when you’re faced with something you thought you’d never get to do?”

She nodded, “Right now actually.”

He gave a quick nod, “Right, glad I’m not alone.” He turned back towards the portal and stepped through without any further word.

Scarlet hesitated for a moment and then walked up towards the portal and took a breath. It was an odd feeling knowing that she’d literally be leaving the only world she had ever known, even if only for a month. As normal as this all seemed to be for ponies like Sapphire, Scarlet still couldn’t help but feel a little nervous. People just weren’t made to comprehend the idea of slipping between worlds she guessed.

Not wanting to delay any further, Scarlet stepped through the portal and felt an odd sense of excitement and unease come over her as she passed from one universe and into another. What surprised her most of all was how unremarkable the experience felt despite the unknown nature of it all hyping the experience up for her. It was as if she had simply walked through a door, though the reality was far more complicated than that.

Tyler looked around the crystalline room that the group found themselves in, “Well, that was…”

“Kind of unexpectedly normal?” Sarah finished.

“That’s what I was just thinking,” Scarlet answered as she looked around at the room, immediately noticing that everything was designed with ponies in mind first. Despite being set in the large crystal palace, it was clear that her two human travel companions were the odd ones out here. A smile came across her face as she took everything in.

“Hey Scarlet, you ready to go? They’re about to cast the translation spell for us.” Tyler asked, pulling her back to reality.

She blinked a few times and turned towards Tyler and giving him a quick nod.

“So are you able to speak it or something? I know you said you borrowed some Equestrian astronomy books from a good friend right?” Sarah asked in fascination.

Scarlet shook her head, “No actually. I can kind of work my way through written Equestrian, though I’m still a bit rough. I tried to figure out spoken, but it’s just so different from anything I’ve ever seen. Lots of little intricacies that were hard to figure out on my own and I didn’t want to bother him by asking even more questions than I was already asking.”

“Well, lucky for you, there’s a spell for that.” The trio looked towards the dark purple night pony who was slowly walking up towards them, “I would say that you three seem rather lost, though I can not imagine where it is that you might be found in the first place. The name’s Starry Skies; I will be your guide for this journey.”

Scarlet smiled, happy that another night pony was present, “Nice to meet you, Starry; so what’s this about a spell?”

One of the mages stepped forward, “It is a simple translation spell that will enable you to speak our language as if it was your own.”

“It’s just that easy?” Tyler asked in curiosity.

He nodded, “Yes. It will only take but a moment to cast, are you three ready?”

“Of course we are! I was a bit worried that we’d have to figure this out on our own and Scarlet’s the only one that’s actually read up on any of this,” Sarah added.

He chuckled and lit up his horn, quickly enveloping the three. A few moments later the magical aura faded, leaving the three to try out their new language.

Scarlet began to speak slowly in the strange new language that was Equestrian, finding that the melodic words came naturally to her without any real thought. It still took some practice to get a good feel for the language, the words and structure were so different compared to English. After a few minutes of trial and error, she found that she could begin to speak at a more natural pace, and then began to switch between the two, finding it almost strange that she could simply jump between either as if she had known Equestrian her entire life. While her new friends were talking back and forth and feeling out the language for themselves, she couldn’t help but wonder what Silver was up to, curious about how he’d handle the next month alone with Orion.

As the group followed Starry outside, Scarlet couldn’t help but gaze around at every detail around her, marvelling at how… right everything felt. While her two human companions were in awe of the crystal empire, looking all around at the strange crystalline buildings, she couldn’t help but be in awe of something else entirely. While it’s true that she was in another huge, almost alien city, this one felt entirely different from New York, strange architecture aside. The biggest thing that stood out most to her above all else in this case was that the city was built to scale for someone exactly like her.

From the large palace doors, to the high ceilings of the hallways, and even the size of the palace itself, everything seemed to feel “normal” to her. Even though everything was larger than what a standard pony building would be, it was clear that it was designed for ponies first, and for once she felt completely at home in a strange environment. That weird sense of being a fish out of water that she had felt in New York simply wasn’t here.

Starry waved them along, “I know this place must seem fantastical to you all, but we do have a train to catch and a long journey to take. There are plenty of other sights to marvel at, trust me.”

Scarlet nodded, “Right, sorry, guess this is just a weird experience for all of us.”

He smiled, “Do not worry, it is common to feel minor disorientation during transport, that will pass in time.”

Scarlet nodded and waved towards the other two, “Hey guys, Starry said we’re gonna miss our train if we don’t stop looking like a bunch of bewildered tourists.”

Tyler let out a small chuckle, “Well he’s not exactly wrong now is he, this whole place just feels so… weird, if that’s the right word. It’s like going to some miniature village.”

“Well we can all talk about how weird this might be after we have boarded.” Starry finished.

Sarah nodded, “Alright, well please lead the way, humble guide.”

Starry flashed a warm smile and gestured towards the train station in the distance, beckoning the group with a wing, “It would be my pleasure, now please, let’s continue onwards, the station isn’t far and there is so much more to see on the way to the outpost.”

With another nod the trio followed him along, still in awe of the strange buildings around them.

Starry approached the train station and paused for a moment, turning towards his guests with a smile, “Please wait here, I’ve arranged for our trip in advance, it will take but a moment to confirm that our accommodations are ready.”

Scarlet smiled, “Need us to do anything?”

He shook his head, “Not at this time, however, if the urge to explore your surroundings strikes, you are free to look around the station if you so desire, I only ask that you do not wander far, we will not be here long. I’ve arranged for us to travel in our own private car and it will minimize the wait it usually takes to board the train.”

“I’m assuming that Equestria relies on trains a lot more than we do back home? I mean, I know it’s not the same everywhere, but it’s kind of a lost art where I’m from. It’s almost kind of cool that we’re going to have the chance to ride on a real steam locomotive… they do run on steam right?” Tyler asked as he took a few glances at the train that had only recently pulled up. Ponies hadn’t started boarding yet, but a small crowd could be seen gathering within the station.

Starry nodded, “They do indeed run on steam, as for your other question, I am not as familiar with your terran transportation, though the trains are by far our most common form of transit, we simply do not have the other means that you do back on Earth.”

Sarah let out a chuckle, causing the others to turn towards her, “I never realized you were a train nut Tyler, have you been hiding your geeky hobbies from me or something?” She asked with a smirk.

A small grin began to spread across Tyler’s face, growing into a full on smile as he let out a few laughs, “You know, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t. Trains are just cool though! Especially when they’re authentically steam powered. Man we don’t have enough of those back home!”

Sarah rolled her eyes and laughed, “Alright, that’s fair enough. I’m not exactly one to speak when I talk your ear off about rockets and space shuttles for hours.”

Now that the two were immersed in their own conversation, Starry silently took his leave, content that the group wasn’t going to wander off and get into trouble, though keeping an eye on them as he went about his business with the conductor. Meanwhile Scarlet went about her own exploration, taking in the odd crystal architecture of the station, while also reflecting on how nice everything seemed to be here.

It was strange that she could feel so at home in an alien world after having only been there for a very brief time, but the odd feeling that she had felt in New York was simply gone. In its place was an almost child-like glee at the colorful surroundings she now found herself in.

The entire world had this feeling of happiness and cheer that everything seemed to convey on it’s own. It was as if the entire world was built without a dark and gritty reality in mind. Some might have seen it as strange that something could seem so perfect, perhaps even being creeped out by it, but Scarlet was already taking down mental note after mental note on how various aspects of the Oasis back home could be improved to make the place a little more cheerful.

The smooth clean lines, bright whites, polished chrome, and muted color accents found back in the Oasis certainly looked nice, but the brightly colored and irregularly designed buildings that she saw here just had their own personality and charm to them that conveyed a welcoming atmosphere far better than anything she had ever seen back on Earth.

A short distance away, Starry nodded at the conductor and slowly approached the trio again, clearing his throat to get their attention, “Ahem, our accommodations are all prepared, if you’d please follow me I will get us settled in. It’s going to be a long ride to the outpost and I would like to ensure that we’ll be as comfortable as possible during it.”

Sarah and Tyler paused in their own conversation and nodded, slowly walking towards the night pony. Scarlet followed along too, eager to see what the journey would have in store.

As they followed Starry, Scarlet was able to take a closer look at the locomotive. “You know, I’ve actually never ridden on a train before— at least a real one like this that is.”

“For real? Not even once?” Tyler asked in surprise.

Scarlet nodded, “I mean I’ve ridden ones in amusement parks before, but that’s about it. They were steam powered, but I wouldn’t call that actually riding on a train in the same sense as what we’re about to do now.”

“Well, you are certainly going to be in for a treat then,” Starry interjected, gesturing towards the open car in front of them, “Please step aboard and make yourselves comfortable, if the normal seats are too small there are more human-friendly accomodations available towards the rear of the car.”

Without further delay, the trio stepped in and quietly took their seats aboard the train. Starry followed them in and sat down towards the rear, where Tyler and Sarah were sitting, hunched over uncomfortably on one of the benches.

He eyed the two humans with concern and glanced over towards the section that had been designed with humans in mind, “Please, do not feel like you need to make yourselves uncomfortable, I know these aren’t the most ideal accommodations for you, but you’ll likely find the section further back to be far more comfortable than where you’re sitting now.”

The two shared an awkward glance and nodded, Tyler stepping up and moving towards the lower benches first. He crouched down to take a seat, almost stumbling over as he made himself as comfortable as he could, waving Sarah over and patting the seat adjacent to him.

“Come on travel buddy, it’s gonna be a long ride, you might as well be comfortable for it.”

She hesitated for a moment and then nodded, making her way over to the bench adjacent to Tyler, “I can’t argue with that.”

Scarlet took her own seat near Starry on the recently vacated bench and watched as the ponies outside began to file their way into the other train cars. A few relatively quiet moments passed before the lines diminished and the frozen Equestrian landscape began to slowly pass by outside. Soon enough they were speeding along, as comfortable as they could be in their cozy train car.

Scarlet turned over towards Starry, “Crescent said the astronomy was built to be like the ones back home, so does that mean we shouldn’t have to spend too much time adjusting to them?” She asked in curiosity.

Starry nodded, “Terran designed, Equestrian engineered. It is one of our larger research projects in recent years, though there is still much to do before we can formally begin mapping the stars.”

She nodded, “Ah. So do you think we’ll be able to start mapping them out while we’re here?”

“I would hope so, otherwise this whole trip would be for naught. We do have complete sets of star charts, some even dating back thousands of years to the earliest days of Princess Celestia and Luna’s reign, though we hope that this collaboration will allow us to have far more accurate maps of our universe’s celestial bodies. Perhaps someday we could even explore the limits of the starry void, much as your Terran astronomers have done.”

A big grin spread across her face, “So we’re gonna be some of the first researchers to get to do this?”

“You will be among the first to do this with our new telescope. There has been some preliminary work done up to now, but not with the new equipment.”

“Well I can’t wait, how long do you think it is until we get there?”

Starry glanced out the window, “Well we are not yet at Canterlot, so I would say that the outpost is still a long ways away, it will likely take us most of the day, so please feel free to relax and enjoy the ride. Equestria is a natural wonderland after all, I imagine that it is quite different to your Earth.”

“Yeah, you could say that again…” Scarlet shifted in her seat, finding the bench to be an oddly comfortable arrangement as she watched the landscape zip by. Earth transportation was still primarily designed for humans, though some places were finally starting to branch out into more pony friendly designs. She would have to remember to tell Silver about this when she got home, there wasn’t much for public transportation in the Oasis, but more comfortable seats would be a great addition if they ever expanded.

Sarah and Tyler sat in their own small section, comfortably chatting away with one another, no doubt resuming their conversation that they had put on hold earlier. The bench, while padded with comfortable cushions, was set lower to the floor of the train, which meant that their knees were almost touching their chins, but it also afforded them the chance to sit upright without having to awkwardly hunch over for most of the long journey. It was a double edged sword, but certainly better than the alternative.

Tyler craned his neck to look over to the crimson night pony, “How’re you doing Scarlet? You’ve kind of been zoning in and out when you haven’t been talking with Starry. Don’t tell me you’re getting homesick already are you?”

Scarlet shook her head, “Huh? Oh no, not homesick, not yet at least. I’m just kind of surprised more than anything I guess.” She stifled a few yawns. “I shouldn’t be, but everything just feels… so right, here. Like looking at you two it’s clear that for the first time in almost two years I’m not the odd one out. It’s just a nice change for once if that makes sense.”

Tyler nodded, “Well if you can’t tell, it seems like the tables have turned here. I can imagine that this is basically the opposite of how you felt back in New York right?”

She nodded, “If you mean feeling like the world’s not designed for you then yeah, it’s pretty much that. Are you guys sure you’re comfortable right now though? I don’t think Starry would fault you if you wanted to stretch out some more, I mean it’s not like there’s other ponies in this car to complain about it.”

The human shook her head, “No, but it’s better than hunching over awkwardly. To tell you the truth, we both figured that something like this might happen when we got here so it shouldn’t really come as a surprise to us. ‘Sides, it’s only going to be a couple train rides here and there right? Not like this’ll be a daily thing anyhow.” Sarah cut in before Tyler could even respond.

Starry looked on in worry, “I do apologize for the… less than ideal transportation situation. Trains are not really designed for anything larger than a pony here. You will have time to stretch before we get to the outpost, I assure you.”

Tyler nodded while trying to make himself a little more comfortable, “Thanks Starry. It’s not exactly the best situation for us, but we’ll get over it.”

“Yeah, we’ve dealt with worse back home I’m sure, this kind of reminds me of that glorified broom closet they called an office that we got stuck with, eh Tyler?” Sarah added in agreement.

Letting out a small yawn, Scarlet glanced out the window and squinted her eyes at the bright sun. “Say Starry, what time is it anyways?”

“About noon, why? Are you feeling tired? I know that Terran night ponies seldom roam about during the day like we do here, I couldn’t fault you if you were.”

She nodded, “Yeah. Not that I’m not enjoying our chat, but It’s getting a little hard to stay awake. You won’t mind if I take a nap for a few right?”

Starry shook his head, “Oh no, by all means please do. I will awaken you when we arrive.”

“OceanSide Outpost, End of the line!” shouted the conductor, pulling Scarlet from her sleep.

She looked around at her travel group, “Are we there yet?”

Starry nodded, standing up and gesturing towards the open door, “Indeed, the rail line ends here, I am afraid that there is not yet a line that takes us closer to the outpost. However, I have arranged for a chariot to carry us into Pelham and the outpost within. I believe you are already acquainted with Crescent Shadow, are you not Mrs. Eclipse?”

Scarlet nodded, “Yes, he’s a good friend, but Sarah and Tyler don’t know him. And please, just call me Scarlet, no need to be overly formal here.”

The aforementioned humans nodded in unison.

Starry straightened up in his seat, “Right… Miss… Scarlet. Crescent will guide us further in. Your two companions will have a chance to get acquainted with him on the ride over.”

Scarlet stood up and followed Starry to the door, waving towards the humans and watching as Tyler and Sarah eagerly followed as well. She couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy for the two, as they were probably relieved to finally have a chance to actually stretch out.

As they stepped out into the desert outpost she felt a little more at home. The view of the ocean off in the distance and the desert stretching into the other sparked a mix of nostalgia in her, bringing back memories of her trips to Michigan, Florida, and even the Oasis back home.

A short distance away from the station sat a large chariot and three ponies, one of which she immediately recognized as Crescent Shadow.

With a smile she trotted over towards him shouting out a cheerful greeting, “Hey Crescent! It’s great to see you again! What’s it been? Like a month?”

Crescent chuckled “Something like that.” he glanced towards the two humans who were now eagerly stretching their arms and legs out, “I’ll take it that your companions might not have had as pleasant of a ride as you did?”

Scarlet nodded, “You could say that, I slept through a lot of it so I missed out on some of the sights, but it’s just kind of cool to see how different everything is here. I didn’t realize how different a world designed solely for ponies would be.”

“It’s an odd feeling isn’t it? Going to Earth was sort of like the reverse of that for me, everything felt too large there. You’ll get used to it in time though.”

Sarah cleared her throat, “So uhh, Mr. Crescent, how far away is this outpost that you’re bringing us to?”

“Only a short chariot’s ride away, I promise that it won’t be as uncomfortable as the train ride was.”

Tyler nodded, “That’s a relief to hear. So shall we get going or do we have other plans here?”

“Yes, that would be a good idea, Crescent would you care to lead us onward?” Starry added.

He nodded and gestured towards the chariot, “Right this way.”

Two humans followed Scarlet and Crescent towards the strange looking chariot, unsure of how the experience would be for them. Thoughts of their awkward posture on the train came back, though given the open air design, they both figured that it at least wouldn’t be as bad as the train’s small human section.

Scarlet, Crescent, and Starry were already seated in the front by the time the two had caught up, leaving them a larger bench towards the back of the low riding chariot.

Tyler glanced down at the bench and hesitantly took a seat, as if he was expecting it to be any different than a simple chariot. He looked up towards Sarah who was eyeing it with curiosity, “Well it’s certainly better than the train.”

Sarah continued to eye it curiously, finally taking her own seat next to Tyler. “Yeah, feels a lot better. It doesn’t feel as cramped to me either which is nice.”

“It will only be a short ride, you two won’t have to worry about it for long.” Starry paused for a moment, “I couldn’t help but observe your hesitation and wide eyed looks, is this another new experience for you as well?”

Tyler nodded, “We don’t exactly have these in our neck of the woods, it’s been a long time since I’ve actually ridden on a horse drawn carriage and I guess we’re still adjusting to this place.”

“Yes, well please do let me know if there is anything we can do to accommodate you better. You are our special guests after all,” The night pony added with a smile.

Sarah smiled, “We will Starry, thanks for checking up on us, I really appreciate it.”

Starry Skies nodded as the chariot slowly pulled away from the station and started to gain altitude, causing the two humans to reflexively grab onto something as if they felt they would be thrown from the open air cart.

The sleek chariot flew over the desert, giving the group a picturesque view of the surrounding area and some of the lands beyond. The actual trip was far smoother than the three had expected it to be, and Scarlet was unsure of whether this was because of the guards’ own training, if the carriage had some unknown enchantment on it, or perhaps some other unknown variable that was beyond her earthly comprehension. As Scarlet glanced over to her frightened human companions she noticed the chariot began to subtly descend, though it was clear that their journey wasn’t fully over yet.

Scarlet squinted her eyes and gazed off into the distance, noticing a small outcropping of buildings that she could only assume was their final destination, as she turned her head, she noticed the large stone cliffs that had started to surround them, creating the vast valley that they were now passing through. She couldn't get a clear view of them, but something about them seemed… different than the others that had dotted the desert landscape during their journey so far. She couldn’t place exactly what was so different about them, but they definitely had an almost organic look to them.

Unsure of how to word her question, Scarlet tapped crescent’s shoulder and gestured towards the cliffs, “So what’s the deal with those? They don’t look like any of the others we’ve seen up to this point, and the formation hardly looks natural.”

Crescent returned a smile, “That is a good question indeed, and one that has an interesting answer.” He began to wave towards the towering mesas, “Welcome to Pelham, the Forest of Lost Giants.”

“Lost Giants? Why do you call it that?” Scarlet asked while looking around at the tall cliffs.

“Those mesa are actually the petrified remains of giant trees that once made up the forest here. The legend is that a large tribe of Earth ponies settled here when Equestria was first found. They thought this land was a paradise without limit and combined their strength to grow trees so large an entire city could be built into them. Their carelessness turned this entire area... from the West coast clear to the Eastern shore into a desert where nothing could grow as their trees blocked out the sun and consumed all the resources of the land.”

Tyler adjusted his glasses, “And let me guess, the land couldn’t support the giant trees and died off? Ruined the environment around it too?”

Crescent nodded, “When the land couldn’t support the forest, it faded into the desert we are now passing through, the Earth Ponies that created it fading into legend as well. It became inhospitable to most, but we have found a new life for this place. There are no ponies here, which gives this place the clearest night sky in almost all of Equestria, the perfect place to construct an observatory.”

“Remote and away from everything else… that’s smart.” Scarlet added

“I bet you don’t have to deal with the same kind of light pollution that we do on Earth,” Sarah added.

“You would be correct, but it’s still useful for our purposes. The remote nature of the valley helps keep ponies from snooping around the outpost, not that we don’t appreciate the company of course. This is an expensive, carefully calibrated piece of machinery that we’re talking about though, and the extra distractions wouldn’t really help with our ultimate goal. Plus it gives life to a corner of Equestria that most thought would be an inhospitable wasteland,” Crescent answered.

“I wish it was that easy back home,” Scarlet added

The pegasus raised an eyebrow, “You’ve dealt with something like this back home I presume?”

She nodded and shrugged, “Sort of. Sapphire’s storm brought a ton of life back into a desert that we thought wouldn’t ever flourish the way we wanted it to, but it gave it a much needed boost that our earth ponies were able to care for and maintain. Light pollution’s a tougher task to figure out though, we wound up building our observatory a little ways away from the rest of the Oasis because the lights back home would reduce visibility. We spent a lot of time and money trying to figure out how to light the area so it wouldn’t block out the view of the night sky.”

“It should be interesting to see how this compares to your setup back home then, Sapphire didn’t share much about your Oasis, and I don’t believe it came up in any of our conversation, forgive me if it did.”

Scarlet smiled, “I don’t think it did, at least not the talk about the observatory. I guess that just means we’ll have more to chat about between work.”

Tyler smiled, “Kinda sounds like it’s a win win for everyone then eh?”

Starry nodded, “It would appear so.”

“Sapphire, occasionally has a knack for forcing great change,” Crescent mused.

“So this place, I’m assuming that it’s going to be a bit different than the rest of Equestria then?” Sarah cut in.

Starry nodded again, “In a way, yes. It’s location and purpose has many advantages, one of which being the fact that we can easily house human researchers such as yourselves here without having to adapt our existing infrastructure to accommodate you. Ponies are naturally social creatures and introducing two strange and fascinating creatures into an area would likely earn a flurry of questions that would distract us from our mission here.”

“So I wasn’t just imagining the weird stares and whispers we heard back in the Crystal Empire then… good to know.” Sarah interjected.

Starry smiled, “It’s nothing to worry about, of course, you two are just intriguing is all. Don’t mind any stares you get, there haven’t been very many humans who have made the journey over this way, there’s still that flame of intrigue that is running strong in many ponies.”

“It’s honestly kind of fun, makes a couple of geeks feel like we’re celebrities or something.” Tyler added with a smile.

“You unfortunately won’t see much of that in the outpost I’m afraid, but I’m sure you’ll notice that if you three have the time to check out some of the Equestrian sights during your down time,” Crescent added in.

Scarlet cleared her throat, “So what’s the outpost even like?”

Starry smiled, “You’ll find out soon enough, it won’t be long until we arrive, it’s best not to spoil the experience prematurely, you will find that Pelham Outpost is rather different from the other locales in Equestria.”

Scarlet looked back towards the outpost with eager excitement building up within her. Starry didn’t exactly answer her question, but she was excited to have the chance to explore this strange exotic place nonetheless. They always said that the journey was better than the destination, but she wasn’t quite sure if that applied to this situation.

Their chariot pulled to the side of the unpaved path, kicking up another cloud of dust and coming to a stop a short distance away from the outpost’s adobe buildings.

Crescent turned towards the three guests and smiled, “Welcome my friends, to Pelham Outpost! It’s the heart of our operations out here.”

As a group, the three stood up and stepped out of the chariot, taking in their new surroundings. Sarah and Tyler immediately began to stretch their legs. Scarlet on the other hoof curiously looked around at the various buildings.

“You’re wondering what’s so different about this place, I presume?” Starry asked as he calmly approached her. There were a handful that were obviously designed with ponies in mind, but they were dwarfed by the buildings that varied in all sizes around them.

Scarlet turned her head towards him and nodded, “I really shouldn’t be. It’s obvious that this place is built with more than just ponies in mind. The others just look so… odd next to the smaller pony buildings.”

“You are not alone, and there is a reason for their irregular size, that goes beyond simply accommodating humans. This place was of course designed with them in mind, but also other creatures, though at the moment it’s only serving ponies and humans. However we had hoped to pull in and collaborate with some of Equestria’s other creatures. That is still our hope of course.”

Scarlet nodded, “So why the adobe buildings then? Isn’t this a new settlement?”

“Indeed it is, however, as I’m sure you are aware, building in an arid desert is easier said than done. This construction was simple and durable enough to support our activities here, and combined with a few simple enchantments it made for an adequate base of operations.”

Scarlet looked all around, “It’s a lot to take in, but I’m already digging it. So where do we even start? How do we make sense of this place?”

“It’s not as hard as you’d imagine, the outpost’s layout isn’t as confusing as it appears,” Crescent interjected as he trotted towards the pair, “Your two friends showed interest in settling into their living quarters here, so we’ll start there first. Please follow me,” He finished, gesturing with a wing.

Starry smiled, “There is your answer. If you will permit me, I have some business to attend to but I will reconvene with you three at dinner.”

“Of course, it’s been nice chatting with you today Starry, I’ll see you at dinner.” Scarlet said with a smile.

Starry returned a nod and trotted off towards one of the smaller buildings, leaving the three to follow Crescent Shadow. As they began to move along, Tyler cleared his throat.

The tall human paused for a moment and looked down towards Crescent, “So uh, Mr. Shadow, are we all staying in the same area or is it divided based on our species?”

Sarah looked over from Tyler to Crescent and nodded, “It’s a dumb question, we know, but we’re just curious considering that the three of us are all part of the same team. Makes it a little easier to stay on the same page and whatnot given that we don’t really have any other kind of communication here.”

“Don’t worry, it’s a perfectly reasonable question, if you’ll follow me I’ll show you it in person,” He began to walk towards a large adobe building, “The housing here is built so everyone can have a communal place to hang out and collaborate in. You three will share a villa on the first floor, if that answers your question.”

Tyler nodded, “That does, It’ll be like we’re back in college again, eh Sarah?” He joked, nudging the other human with his elbow.

“Sure will, just without the parties and stress.”

“No parties? C’mon where’s the fun in that?” he added with a smile.

Crescent smiled, “In case you were curious, the dining hall has a weekly activity night, every week before the last shift. It’s our way of getting ready to unwind for a couple of days before we resume our work. I’m sure you three have had similar experiences back on Earth.”

Scarlet tried to get a closer look at some of the buildings they were passing noting that not all of them had a clearly marked purpose. She turned back towards Crescent and nodded, “Yeah actually, we have a karaoke night back home in the Oasis every Friday, gives everyone something fun to do together before the weekend starts. In some cases it’s one of the only times that you’ll see day and night ponies hanging around together.”

“Given the nature of our work, you see a lot more of that here,” Crescent replied as he came to a stop. He turned towards the group and gestured towards the large building behind him, “This is the center of the outpost, if you ever get lost it’s easy enough to find your way back here. It’s the largest building here and should be visible from any part of the outpost.”

Sarah let out a yawn and looked longingly at the building, “Not that I don’t find this interesting, but would you two mind if Tyler and I got settled in? It’s been a long day and I guess I just didn’t realize how tired I was.”

“Me too, we’ve been up since dawn and I could go for a nap.” Tyler added in.

Crescent nodded, “Of course, before we head in, the dining hall is right over there,” He said, gesturing towards a large tent-like structure. He waited a few moments and then pushed the door open, holding it for the others as they filed in, “We’re building a new one into this building, but it won’t be done while you’re here I’m afraid. Dinner or breakfast is usually an hour after sunset, if you need a wakeup call feel free to ask one of the receptionists, they’ll be able to help you get everything sorted out.”

Sarah smiled, “Thanks, I can’t wait to see this place but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t struggling to stay awake at this point.”

Scarlet looked towards the two humans, “You guys didn’t sleep on the train?”

Tyler shook his head, “Was kind of hard to, to be honest. I got like 40 minutes of shut eye in before my neck started cramping up. It’ll be nice to sleep on an actual mattress… you do have human sized mattresses here right?”

Crescent waved them through the simple atrium and towards a small hallway on the edge of the room, “We do, don’t worry. You’re lucky and have one of the closer rooms, a couple of our engineers left not too long ago. They had other opportunities open up for them back in Canterlot that they accepted.

He reached a door at the end of the hallway and gently pushed it open, walking into the cozy, but spacious room. “This’ll be your home for the next month,” He gestured towards a trio of doors that were set at the side of the semicircular room, “The door on the left is the restroom, the other two are the sleeping quarters, I’ll let you three decide who gets which room, both have a set of bunks. Obviously you can see that this is the living area. There’s a closet off to the side if you need to store anything away, and if you’d prefer to dine alone in here there’s obviously the small kitchen.”

The two humans set their bags down on the floor and walked towards the two rooms. Tyler looked back towards Scarlet, “You care which room you get?”

Scarlet shook her head, “Nah, go ahead and take whichever one you want. I’m assuming you’ll bunk together?”

Sarah opened a door and nodded, “Yeah, we room together back home, it’s not too much of an inconvenience here.”

“Sounds like a plan, I’ll let you guys get settled in,” Scarlet paused for a moment, “you sure you don’t want me to just wait until you’re awake?”

Sarah shook her head, “Go ahead and take a look around, we’ll meet up with you at dinner. It’s obvious you’re itching to explore so no point in sitting around waiting for us to wake up.”

Scarlet nodded, “Well if you’re fine with that then I’ll see you guys later. Have a nice nap.”

“See ya Scarlet, have fun.” Tyler added with a yawn.

As the pair entered their room, Scarlet turned back towards Crescent, “So what’s next?”

“Well, if you would like, I can show you the Observatory itself.”

Scarlet’s eyes widened in glee, “I’d love to see it! Is it far?”

Crescent smiled, “Hardly, It’s just a short distance away.”

Scarlet began to word another question, but paused, figuring that she had pestered Crescent with more than enough questions already. With a nod she gestured towards the door with a wing, “After you.”

Crescent nodded and walked towards the villa door, pausing to close it behind them. “In case you’re wondering, doors are not usually locked here. I know it’s a strange concept on earth amongst humans, but there’s nothing to worry about here.”

“Good to know. I’m not sure how common it is outside of the Oasis, but we’re all pretty trusting there so it’s not as strange as you might think.”

“The observatory isn’t far.” He said as he led her down the hallway, through the lobby and back outside. Crescent waved towards a large circular building that they had passed earlier.

The two began to walk towards it, Scarlet excitedly following along like an excited foal. As they approached the large building Crescent stopped and pushed a set of large wooden doors open. The two stepped into a small circular hallway, passing by a green night pony and blue unicorn, who eyed Scarlet with intrigue. Crescent stepped forward, waving Scarlet along.

“Good evening you two, this is one of our exchange ponies, Scarlet Eclipse. Is she here yet?”

The gray night pony shook her head, “Not yet, took off to go check on something with Starry, said she’d be back in a moment. The telescope’s all set up in there though so feel free to get started.”

Crescent nodded, “Thank you Thunder. I’ll be back to talk about your work order in a few.”

She smiled, “Thanks boss!.”

Crescent stepped forward and opened another large set of wooden doors, leading Scarlet into a large circular room with an equally large telescope positioned at its center.

“This is the grand observatory.”

Scarlet looked around the room with an awestruck expression, earning a few laughs from Crescent. “This… this place is amazing! It’s so familiar yet so different— Please tell me I can use it?” She asked pleadingly.

Crescent smiled, “That’s why we’re here after all. So tell me, what is your favorite constellation?”

She thought about Orion, “Well that’s easy, that’d be Orion… I named my foal after it, but given that Equestria has no known counterpart…” She thought to herself for a few moments, “Ursa Major.”

Crescent nodded, “Ah, The Big Dipper as you call it on Earth, a good choice.” He calmly walked towards the large telescope, carefully making a few precise adjustments on the control computer. Pleased with his work he stepped to the side and gestured towards the telescope with a hoof. “Please, feel free to observe.”

Scarlet trotted forward, carefully stepping up to the telescope and giving the constellation a hesitant glance, letting out an excited sigh. “This is all really interesting, the stars here seem so much brighter than the ones back home. I could really get used to this you know…”

After a few minutes she stepped back and began to jot a few notes down into her well used notebook. Star charts and notes filed the delicate pages, a disorganized mess to any casual observer, but a carefully curated treasure trove of astronomical information to her. She began to sketch out the constellation in better detail, noting down the prominent stars that made up its form.

Scarlet approached the telescope again and focused the lens to get a better view of the constellation in question. “This is just so cool, it’s the same general formation as Earth’s but the stars are obviously entirely different! I don’t suppose that there’s proper names for them? And do you know if there’s any reason why they’re so similar, or is it just pure coincidence?”

The clip clop of hooves on the stone floor echoed through the observatory, interrupting Scarlet’s line of questioning. There was a brief pause followed by a warm voice speaking up from the side of the room. “Ah, Ursa Major, a good choice Crescent. A beautiful constellation is it not?”

Scarlet chuckled in reply, “Oh it’s beautiful alright, but words really don’t do them justice…” a moment of curiosity hit her as she turned towards the source of the voice, suddenly realizing who the new visitor was. With an excited squeal she yelled out a greeting. “Oh— oh my gosh you’re Princess Luna!” She excitedly shouted out, much to Crescent’s amusement.

The Princess let out a small laugh, “It is my pleasure to meet you, Scarlet Eclipse. Crescent says you are an astronomer from Earth, and he shared your notebook with me. An impressive collection of research for a pony who has never visited our world before and you should be very proud of what you’ve worked on. So tell me, what do you think of Equestria’s stars so far?”

She looked towards Crescent with wide eyes, “Your boss is Princess Luna?! I mean I knew you were bringing my notebook to the princess but I guess I didn’t even think that I’d ever have the chance to meet her!” Scarlet let out another happy cheer, quickly catching herself. “Sorry— this is all so overwhelming. I’ve never met anypony as big and important as you before, let alone be complimented!”

He laughed, “You’ll find that the leaders of Equestria are much more personable than those on Earth.”

She let out an excited squeal before composing herself and turning back towards the princess. “I.. I’m sorry about that,” she gestured towards her well worn notebook with a wing, “I’ve been studying your stars for a while now, and the fact that I get to finally see them for myself might be one of the most amazing things I’ve ever done. I mean I get to actually see another universe’s stars! No one before ETS could say that!”

Luna smiled, “I am very flattered that you hold us in such high regard I was not aware that there were ponies on Earth that shared an interest in Equestria’s stars. That is a part of why you were allowed to visit Equestria on such short notice.”

Scarlet took a moment to compose herself, “So Crescent mentioned that you had a project that you wanted to work on, what exactly was it?”

Luna gestured towards the ceiling of the observatory, which was painted with different stars and constellations. “I would like to make a more detailed star map. There are not as many astronomers that are experienced enough to take on this task, but Crescent has spoken very highly of you and recommended you for this. As you can see, we already have a star map made up, and indeed many astronomers have worked on their own, but none are as accurate as the star maps back on Earth, and we do not know if there are any other types of objects out there, beyond our grasp, like you see in your general catalogues. We would like to make a chart like the ones you would find there.”

Scarlet nodded, “Well that’s actually not too hard to do. Crescent mentioned that this was created to work kind of like the stuff we have back on Earth, right?”

“That is correct, it’s Equestrian built, but should function similar to your Earth telescopes.”

Scarlet smiled, “Perfect, that’s all I needed to know.” She paused for a moment, glancing back towards her notebook, “Princess Luna, I just have one question before we begin.”

Luna smiled, “Yes?”

“Well, it’s just, you have all of these professionals here, people and ponies that went to universities, took part in revolutionary programs, people in the industry, and then me. I’m just a hobbyist that started working on something small back home and Crescent knows this as well. Why did you choose me to help with this project?”

She nodded her head, “Often times one might feel that their contributions to something greater do not matter much. But do not sell yourself short, young Scarlet, your spirit and determination to learn more about our stars showed that you were a pony who would be a valuable member of this team.”

“But how does that really make me valuable? That I just want to learn about another world’s stars?”

“That you would put so much time and effort into learning about a universe that is entirely different from your own for no gain but your own. It is a passion that not many express, and even fewer would work as hard as you have done to get this far without the promise of reward. Even if your background is not as prestigious as your peers, it still does not make your love of the night sky any different from their own. Not every pony here needs to be a big name in their field, sometimes the humble stargazer is just as important as the best astronomer.”

Scarlet smiled, “Thank you Princess, I guess I just didn’t really think about that. It really puts a lot of things in perspective for me, though.”

“I am glad to hear this, now would you like to begin?”

Scarlet nodded, “I would love to.”

Scarlet trotted into the simple dining hall, a sort of permanent tent in the heart of the outpost. It was probably the only place where you’d find both night and day ponies interacting together on a regular basis. Compared to the rest of the staff in the outpost, there were only a small handful of night ponies that weren’t guards, but Scarlet was happy to at least see other ponies hanging out together, it gave her the sense that this place wasn’t strictly all work and no fun.

She walked over towards the counter, and glanced up at the menu. The food was the standard fare that she was expecting, but with some different dishes she was unfamiliar with thrown into the mix as well, like the baked tarantula that caused her to scowl.

The earth pony manning the counter cleared his throat, “Can I help you ma’am?”

Scarlet nodded, “Hi, I’ll just have the quesadilla I guess.”

“Anything to drink?”

She glanced over the drink list, not really seeing anything that stood out to her in particular. “Just a glass of water please.”

He nodded, “Alright, you can pick up your order over there,” He gestured towards the second counter.

Scarlet gave a quick nod, “Thanks.”

She walked over towards the second counter and picked up her tray, glancing around the cozy room and taking in the unfamiliar faces, almost feeling as if she had returned to high school again. She had already started to grow accustomed to the fact that the outpost was designed for a mix of creatures, but seeing the size of this tent really drove the idea home, even if it was still mostly ponies here.

As she continued to look around, she noticed Tyler, Sarah, and Starry sitting at one of the taller tables towards the edge of the tent. She excitedly trotted over to them and took a seat at the table, happy to see a few familiar faces again.

“So did you guys have a nice nap?”

Sarah nodded, “Yeah. It was nice to actually have some accommodation that was our size. Not to knock the train or anything, but well…”

“It wasn’t really all that comfortable. Efficient and awesome to see sure, but uncomfortable for us.” Tyler finished.

Scarlet smiled, “Well I’m glad you guys were comfortable after that. Have you had a chance to check out the observatory yet?”

Sarah shook her head, “Nope, we actually just woke up about 20 minutes ago. Seems like a lot of the ponies here are up at random hours, we still need to get a better feel for it, I’m sure it won’t be an issue for you though. So how’d the rest of the tour go?”

“It went pretty well, Crescent showed me the observatory and you’ll never believe who I got to meet.”

“Who?” Tyler asked.

A big grin spread across Scarlet’s face, “Princess Luna herself.”

Sarah’s eyes widened, “She’s here? I thought she’d be up in Canterlot all night.”

“The Princess has many duties that sometimes take her out of Canterlot. It is not uncommon for her to visit other areas such as this outpost.” Starry interjected.

Sarah nodded, “That must have been exciting to see at least. Did you happen to meet any other night ponies? I know you were wondering what the divide here would be.”

Scarlet shook her head, “None really, just a technician. I think Starry and I might be the only regular night ponies here, aside from her, the rest all seem to be guards.”

“There are a couple other astronomers and support staff here, but they are on leave right now, away visiting the Canterlot Caverns for a few days,” Starry interjected.

Scarlet raised an eyebrow, “Canterlot Caverns? What’s that?”

“Oh, I apologize, it is easy to forget that you are not from Equestria. There is a large cavern system situated under Canterlot, it has become a popular destination for night ponies and others that enjoy the night.”

“Would there be any chance I could see it?”

Starry nodded, “I believe there is a gap in the schedule next week while they run routine maintenance on the observatory. It would likely take a few days so there would be plenty of time for a brief visit.”

Scarlet smiled as she picked up her quesadilla and took a few bites, “Well count me in, that sounds amazing!”