Violet and Tigerbright strategized over dinner. The mare had already packed for her scheduled field trip but had to rethink her plans under the new circumstances. The chakat, on the other hand, had been caught relatively unprepared.

“I’ve had my camping gear packed away for years. I’m going to have to check it over and add anything else that you think we might be able to use.”

“Not to mention food supplies,” Violet replied with a mouth half full of delicious fish.

“At least some of the stores are still open thanks to the nocturnal species. We can go there straight after dinner and pick up most of what we need.”

“Fresh or preserved? I’ve got a stasis box for the former. It’s only a small one meant for a single person and it might be too full if I add yours.”

Tigerbright nodded. “I have a camping fridge, but its Supastor battery will need recharging if it has to run for more than a couple of days.”

“How portable is it?”

“Not practical for hiking. It’s meant for leaving at the campsite while I went bushwalking.”

“How did you intend to charge it then?”

“From my air shuttle.” At the unicorn’s blank look, Tigerbright explained, “One of the perks of the job is that I have a personal air shuttle that can take me anywhere on this island within half an hour. However, since this is the only township on Emu Island, I’ve only needed to use it twice so far. Anyway, it has a charging port in it.”

Violet frowned in thought. “One of the staff at my office was supposed to drop me off at the survey site and pick me up later. However, it might be more practical in light of my new assignment to use your vehicle. Then we can relocate at a moment’s notice as the need occurs.”

“That makes sense, and I could not only bring the camping fridge but also a few other pieces of equipment that might come in handy.”

“What’s the shuttle’s range?”

“Depending on usage, about five hours. To put that in perspective, I can circumnavigate the island in under an hour.”

“Great! Okay, we’ll do that. I’ll let them know the change in plans when I go into the office tomorrow. I’ll download all the data they have on the ley lines and the rest of the original geological surveys. There were several made when they were checking this island for suitability, even if they were just cursory. I only have copies of the two near my survey site loaded into my datapad.”

“While you’re doing that, I’ll fetch the shuttle from the spaceport hanger where it’s stored. That reminds me – I need to make a call.” Tigerbright took out hir comm from hir waist pouch and dialed a number. It was swiftly answered. “Hi, Paul. Still at the office? … Good. Could you get one of the port staff to give my shuttle a quick service? I’ll be taking it out into the field with me tomorrow morning and I need it ready to go. … Okay, thanks.”

The chakat put away hir comm. “I’ll bring it around to my home and we can load up our gear there. We can bring your stuff over from the apartment tonight and you can stay in one of my spare rooms so we don’t waste any time in the morning.”

Violet was a little surprised but nodded. “That’s a good idea. Besides, I don’t know if there’s anywhere suitable for landing a shuttle at my place.”

Tigerbright chuckled. “Oh, I could, but I’d earn a bunch of dirty looks from the manager and residents.” Then she quieted down and bit hir lip, looking indecisive before she spoke again. “Violet, why don’t you bring everything of yours over? We could be on this assignment for a while and it would be convenient. And… well… I’d like the company.”

The unicorn stared at hir, eyes wide, mouth agape. “You want me to move in with you?”

“Yes. You can have any spare room you like to set up how you want. It’s not as if I need them all. I just would like to have you around more often.”

Violet slowly smiled. “To tell you the truth, I haven’t been thrilled about living by myself either. We were a pretty close family and none of my siblings moved out until they got married or joined a herd. It suited both us and our parents to stay home until then.”

“Right up until they drove you nuts about finding a stallion.”

“Exactly. Otherwise, I would still be living there, I suppose. And I might never have come to Chakona and met you. I’ve missed having a family to come home to though.”

“Well, I’m not family, but would a best friend do?”

The unicorn giggled. “Yes, that will do nicely. I accept your offer, Tiger.”

“Awesome! So what’s next?”

“Dessert,” Violet declared, picking up her empty plate in her magic and heading for the counter.

Tigerbright grinned. “I like the way you think.”

After dinner, Tigerbright took Violet to Midnight’s Gourmet Emporium. Midnight was the chattiest thestral Violet had ever met, happily bouncing around her shop while describing the various raw and prepared foods. The pair settled on a dozen freeze-dried packets, four packages of snacks that resembled rice cakes, and two trays of something called Everything Burritos that the chakat swore by. Only after Tigerbright completed their purchase did Violet notice the sign declaring “We Only Use The Finest Insect Protein” and the fishing bait sat on the “Juicy Snack” shelf.

The duo went back to Violet’s apartment next to gather up her belongings. It did not take long because the mare had unpacked almost nothing to personalize her temporary quarters yet, nor had she purchased much to supplement what she had brought from Equus. Tigerbright had no trouble carrying the field equipment while Violet took her personal luggage.

The unicorn chose a room on the second floor that faced the beach. It opened up to a wide balcony that it shared with the room next door – Tigerbright’s unsurprisingly. Who wouldn’t want such a beautiful scenic view right outside their bedroom window, with the susurrating waves adding a pleasant background sound?

Tigerbright deposited Violet’s belongings on the floor in front of the bed. “I’ll dig out the camping fridge and make sure it’s fully charged, then I’ll whip up some coffee while you unpack.”

“Sounds good.” The mare opened the first of her suitcases and pulled out a beloved body pillow. She looked at the huge bed that was big enough to give three large chakats plenty of space and giggled. “Don’t get lost,” she told it as she placed it at the head of the bed with a stack of normal pillows. Her clothing was next to be put away in the wardrobe which was still two-thirds empty when she was done. Toiletries went into the en suite bathroom which had a spa bath as well as a roomy shower. She was considering what to do with some knickknacks when the chakat’s voice came up to her.

“Coffee’s ready!”

Violet trotted downstairs where she found Tigerbright placing two steaming mugs on the coffee table in front of the taur-sized sofa.

“How’s everything? Need anything else?” shi asked before bounding up onto the couch and making hirself comfortable. Shi picked up one of the mugs and took a sip.

“Are you kidding? It’s positively luxurious!” To the chakat’s pleased surprise, Violet also climbed up onto the sofa to cuddle up close to hir before picking up the remaining mug in her magic. She smiled at Tigerbright’s expression and giggled. “I think we both wanted this.”

The chakat put an arm around the mare’s barrel and said, “Yes, we did.”

The pair sipped their coffee in companionable silence, their empathic senses warmed with the feeling of the happiness that had been growing since they had first met. Half an hour later, they reluctantly parted to go to bed. They both needed a good night’s sleep before they headed off early in the morning.

Violet surprised Tigerbright by preparing breakfast before the chakat woke up. Pleading excitement for making her wake early, she figured she would make herself useful as the new roomie. She even cleaned up afterward while Tigerbright took a PTV to the spaceport to pick up hir air shuttle. Violet hauled her equipment outside ready for pickup, as well some of her partner’s gear such as the camp fridge which they had loaded up with food that needed to be kept chilled. Room temperature items were put into the unicorn’s stasis box.

When Tigerbright returned with the shuttle, she quickly appreciated why it had been impractical to land it at the apartments. Not only was it large, but it was also a lot noisier than a PTV. The chakat had to apologize to one neighbor for waking them up early. When they finished packing, Violet used Tigerbright’s video comm to call into the office rather than going in person. After informing Shady Glen about the change in plans with the chakat there to back her up, she requested and was supplied with the extra data she required. Then the duo locked up and departed.

“Okay, what’s our destination, boss?” Tigerbright asked as shi took them out over the bay to avoid causing more of a disturbance in town.

Violet smiled at the appellation. “As you pointed out last night, we know next to nothing about the phenomenon, so I’m going to stick with my original plans. I was intending to set up a few experiments at my survey site, so might as well harvest two trees with one buck and do both jobs.” She held up a datapad in her aura. “Here are the coordinates of the site.”

The chakat glanced at them and set them into the flight computer. Shi then let the autopilot take over control and leaned against the swiveling backrest that supported hir upper torso. “We should be there in thirteen minutes at normal cruising speed.”

“Great.” The mare paused and then said, “Mind if I ask why you’re wearing a T-shirt?”

Tigerbright raised an eyebrow. “No. Why are you curious about it?”

“Well, aside from when you are hiking or at work, you’re normally nude. What’s up with that?”

The chakat chuckled. “Nothing mysterious about it. After all, you’ve also seen me wearing an apron when I cook. The fact is that my boobs are a bit sensitive, in particular, my nipples. I hate getting them scratched by branches while hiking, so I usually wear at least a T-shirt or jacket, depending on the circumstances.”

Violet grinned. “Yes, I can see that they’re rather prominent and vulnerable.”

“Be glad you don’t have that problem with your udders! Anyway, I could ask the same of you – why are you wearing that vest? Surely you don’t feel the need to be in uniform while out in the field?”

“Simple. Pockets!” She extracted a couple of items from said pockets to show to the chakat. “Handy little things like these I keep there for convenience rather than digging into my saddlebags. I don’t need them for a short hike which is why I wasn’t wearing this when I first met you, but it’s part of my standard gear when out in the field.”

“That makes sense. Are those what I think they are?” Tigerbright’s attention was on several blue crystalline objects that were held in Violet’s telekinesis.

“If you think they are sapphires, then yes, they are.”

“What are you doing with a small fortune in precious gems in your pocket?”

“These trivial things? I buy them by the bagful for use in magic spells. I have several emeralds too. They’re only a few bits each.”

“Are we talking about the same bits that you use in the shops in town? Because I know the exchange rate into Fedcreds, and while I’m no expert in gems, I’d value them at far more than a few bits.”

Violet giggled. “Yeah, I was told that I wasn’t allowed to take them off Emu Island. Something about crashing the market. You see, gemstones like these are not rare on Equus. Dragons even eat them as part of their diet, they’re so common. If you want bigger ones, you’d either have to buy them from a miner or a rock farmer.”

“A… rock… farmer,” Tigerbright repeated in a dubious tone.

“Yes, or at least one that specializes in growing gemstones.”

“You’re pulling my leg.”

Violet gave hir a puzzled look. “I’m what?”

“You’re kidding me. You don’t grow sapphires on a farm.”

“You do if you want a lot at a cheap price. Or big, high-quality fancy ones.”

“Okay, explain that to me.”

“Rock farmers are all earth ponies whose special talent lies with using magic to form and grow mineral deposits. Gemstones are just one particular type of mineral.”

“Can they grow any type of gemstone?”

“As long as the raw elements are available, yes, although some take more work than others. For example, it cost me a week’s pay to buy this.” The mare fished out a vivid pink oval-shaped gemstone about five centimeters at its longest dimension. Light and dark areas danced inside the faceted gem as the mare held it closer for the chakat’s inspection. “Its carbon lattice structure is uniquely suited to some specialized spells.”

Tigerbright’s eyes bulged. “Is that… a flawless pink diamond?”

“Of course it’s flawless. Why would I pay that much for a defective gemstone?”

“Violet, you could buy a huge mansion, hire a staff, and retire in luxury for life on the value of something like that!”

The mare’s eyebrows rose in surprise. She looked for signs of deception with both her eyes and her empathic sense but realized that the chakat was quite serious. She looked again at her amazing gem and said, “No wonder they were so keen on pointing out the penalty for taking these out of Equian territory.”

“Why did they even let you bring them here?”

“Because they’re common magic tools back on Equus. Those mana beacons that were damaged have large gemstones in their core. Many common magic implements use them. How come you don’t know this?”

“Because I can’t work magic, perhaps?” Tigerbright replied sarcastically.

“Oh. Right. Sorry. I suppose if you don’t use them, you don’t necessarily learn about them.”

“Exactly. Got any more fabulously valuable rocks in there?”

“Just a few medium-size rubies. And before you ask, they’re relatively cheap. I’ll show you what the different gems can do in the hooves of a well-trained unicorn when we get to our destination.”

“I’ll be looking forward to that. By the way, what exactly do you want me to do for you? Besides being your chauffeur, I mean.”

“You can save me a lot of time and effort setting up the campsite and cooking meals.”

Tigerbright blinked for a moment and then gave the mare a flat look. “Is that all?”

Violet grinned at her dismayed friend. “I didn’t expect you to volunteer when I said I wanted an assistant. Those are usually trainees who come along to gain field experience under a professional. However, those chores aren’t the only things I’d like you to do. You can help me with my work and I’ll show you how I use magic to accomplish my tasks. And most of all, you can keep me company. That’s the one thing that I dislike about the job – solo field trips can be a bit lonely.”

The chakat brightened. “That I can manage.”

“I’m counting on it.”

Tigerbright glanced at the navigator. “Just a couple more minutes to our destination.”

“I’d better put these away.” Violet safely replaced the gemstones before turning her attention to the territory they were passing over. Trees had given way to low scrub and grasses.

“Looks pretty arid,” Tigerbright commented.

“This area is in a bit of a rain shadow from those ranges,” the mare replied, pointing toward the offending mountains they had passed over. “You’re not likely to have to worry too much about tree branches but it might get a bit cool at night at this elevation. Your T-shirt might still be handy to keep your nipples from getting chilly,” she said with a smirk.

The chakat poked hir tongue out at the cheeky unicorn.

It was not long before the navigator indicated that they had reached their destination. Tigerbright carefully set the shuttle down on a broad patch of grass next to a small creek that was relatively free from bushes and had no obvious rocks. Violet hopped out and did a quick appraisal of the landing site before nodding to her companion. “All good.”

The chakat shut down the shuttle and climbed out. Shi looked around the area and pointed to an area that was flat and grassy. “I’ll set up our tent there.” Shi then examined the nearby shrubs before declaring, “These are quite woody and dry. I think I can make a decent fire with this.”

Violet smiled as she hauled out her equipment. “Food always tastes better prepared over a proper campfire instead of a portable cooker in my opinion.”

“Yeah, and it’s better for making damper too.”

“What’s damper?”

“A very simple camp-style bread. It’s been ages since I’ve had an excuse to make it. We’ll have it with our dinner tonight.”

“Sounds good,” the unicorn replied. “You’ll have to teach me the recipe.”

“Sure. It’s quick and easy to make.” The chakat came back, grabbed the tent, and began setting it up.

Violet continued unpacking and arranging their gear. She paused after a while to look at the nearly ready tent. “I thought you said that was suitable for two adult chakats. Looks a bit small to me.”

Tigerbright grinned. “You forget that chakats like to snuggle. It’ll fit us both nicely.”

The mare smirked. “And it’s totally not an excuse to get cozy with me?”

“Oh, perish the thought!” the chakat replied with a giggle.

Violet snorted as she choked back a laugh. “Looks like I’ll have to set up my smaller tent to shelter our food and equipment then. While it isn’t likely to rain, it doesn’t hurt to be prepared.”

“You need to leave the food in the shuttle. We don’t want to attract animals.”

“Do you know of anything we should be looking out for while we’re working?”

“Fortunately, this island doesn’t have much in the way of predators. About the only critters that I’d consider dangerous are lizard-like creatures we’ve called nibblers. They were named that because they are prepared to take nibbles out of anything, even chakats ten times their size. They were cleared out of the area around New Horizon but there are still plenty just about everywhere else on the island except the colder places. Anyway, while there are snakes and other normal hazards that won’t bother experienced people like us, I’m more concerned about scavengers that will brave our presence to steal anything edible.”

“That won’t be a problem,” Violet assured hir. “I’ll show you why.” She picked up a short rod with a wire cup on one end and a spike on the other. Her magic extended the rod to triple its collapsed length and she thrust the shaft firmly into the ground between the shuttle and the tent. Then she extracted the pink diamond and set it in the wire basket before closing her eyes and murmuring something that the chakat could not make out. The jewel flashed and a translucent pink dome about thirty meters in diameter appeared to surround them.

Tigerbright blinked in surprise before walking up to have a closer look. “Some kind of force field?” shi guessed.

“Yep.”

“Is it safe to touch?”

“Go ahead.”

The chakat reached out and found the softly shimmering wall of magical energy to be utterly unyielding. “Very impressive.”

“Want to see a cool trick?” Violet asked. Without waiting for an answer, the unicorn walked past Tigerbright and through the wall without stirring a hair in her mane.

“How’d you do that?” the chakat demanded, hir hands on hir hips and giving the mare a miffed look.

“It’s designed to block all animal life except any that it is specifically tuned to.” She walked back towards the gemstone. “Come here and I’ll add you to the matrix.”

“What do I need to do?”

“Just put a finger on it. Go on – it won’t bite,” Violet added with a smirk.

Tigerbright did as instructed. The unicorn’s magic glowed for a moment before she declared it done.

“Okay – try it now.” The unicorn inclined her head toward the barrier.

The chakat barely hesitated as shi reached the pink barrier but, as promised, it no longer blocked hir. “That is a cool trick.”

The mare nodded. “It was enchanted with a spell designed by Prince Shining Armor, the Alicorn of Protection. It’s virtually foolproof. Also expensive. Worth it though. Back on Equus, there are all kinds of dangerous monsters that you don’t want to worry about while asleep in your tent at night.” Her horn glowed again and the dome disappeared.

“Why did you turn it off?” Tigerbright asked.

“I didn’t. The pink glow is there to ensure that its size and placement is correct and everything is within its boundary. After it’s set up, I normally turn the visible glow off because it’s distracting.”

“Easy to forget that it’s there at all.”

“True. Just remember that if anything is already within the dome, it won’t be able to do anything about that.”

“What about some animal burrowing in then?”

“It’s actually a sphere centered on the diamond so a burrowing creature won’t get through that way either. However, if it’s already here below ground, it’s trapped inside with us. Don’t worry though – I scanned the area underground first. We’re clear, barring some insects.”

“You won’t have to worry about any blood-suckers. The native life doesn’t like the taste of our alien blood,” Tigerbright assured the mare. “Anyway, I’ll keep setting up the campsite; you concentrate on the reason we’re here.”

Violet unpacked what she needed and began assembling some small devices. She was almost done when the chakat wandered over to get a better look.

“What are those for?”

“They detect and measure mana flow. I plan to use the ley lines to map out the flow from various sites all over the island and determine if there’s either a source or destination point for it all. Aerial mapping is useless because the network of ley lines is too dense and strong to distinguish the finer details. That’s why localized readings are of greater value.”

Tigerbright nodded. “I see. How does that tie in with your geology specialty though?”

“Ley lines don’t just occur randomly. There are all kinds of factors that affect their size, placement, and orientation. For example, those factors include mineral composition, strata, and crystal veins. Above ground, watercourses have a great effect, as does the vegetation. Living things produce mana, so a jungle might produce a lot more than a desert, but the density will alter the flow into the ley lines. It’s quite a complex system. But it’s also a great help to me because I can determine with a fair degree of accuracy whether certain minerals are present due to behavior of the ley lines.”

“So, you could locate something like, let’s say, gold?”

“That’s one of the easier elements to detect. While gold occurs in many kinds of deposits, vein quartz is common. If the ley line indicates its presence, then I can dig in that area and uncover it. A trained geologist can tell a lot from the behavior of ley lines if they are able to detect them. As a unicorn, I can use that spell I showed you when we first met to make them visible. Earth ponies can use their innate abilities to sense them in a different way. Pegasi would probably have to rely almost entirely on instruments. Not that I know of any that are geologists.”

“Magic seems to be a great boon to science,” Tigerbright said thoughtfully.

Violet shrugged. “To us, magic is a part of science. It’s also just another tool. I still take rock samples for analysis, especially for the trickier elements and minerals to detect.”

“So, is this site significant then?”

The mare chuckled. “Not really. It could turn out to be, but it just happens to be the place I was being sent to survey, and I might as well start here as anywhere else. Without any more data, one place is no more significant than another in terms of our assignment.”

“Okay. Are you ready to start then?”

“Just about. I only have to pack all this into my saddlebags. What about you?”

Tigerbright smiled. “Oh, I had my gear packed and ready before we even left town. Because we’ll be returning here, my load is light, so is there anything else you want me to carry?”

Violet gave the chakat some of her field instruments to add to hir backpack before donning her saddlebags. “I think we’re as ready as we’ll ever be. Let’s go.”

“After you, boss.”

The day’s activity consisted of hiking back and forth over the designated survey area. Occasionally, Violet would alter course in light of what the ley lines showed her. Several times, she set up her instruments to make more detailed readings. Tigerbright listened curiously as the mare explained how she used the enchanted sapphires to detect and measure the local geology. Much of the magic theory went over hir head, but it was still fascinating.

In between the stops, the two chatted about many unrelated subjects. Violet described how she studied hard to qualify for the entrance exam for Celestia’s school and her parents’ delight at her success. Tigerbright told the mare about hir interest in working with non-Terran races which had led hir to a government career and hir eventual posting at Emu Island. They talked about their home lives and their interests other than their careers. Naturally, hiking and camping came back up and they told each other about the various places they had visited and the sights they had seen.

“I think I’d like to visit Equus someday and see some of those places for myself,” the chakat commented.

“They’re certainly worth revisiting. I’d gladly show you around.”

“I’ll hold you to that!”

Violet smiled. “Not a problem.”

They returned to the campsite as the sun was setting, a satisfying day’s work accomplished.

Tigerbright said, “You can concentrate on collating your data. I’ll get a fire started and prepare our meals.”

“You were going to show me how you make damper.”

“Yes, but I need to have a good fire going to get a bed of hot coals before I’m ready for that.”

It did not take long for the chakat to gather a large amount of suitable firewood. Picking a good spot where the breeze would blow the smoke away from the campsite, shi cleared it of anything flammable, constructed a fire ring from rocks, and built the fire. Once shi had it blazing well, shi washed hir hands in the clean water of the creek and brought out the food supplies and cooking implements. Placing them on the collapsible table, the chakat then fetched water. Shi filled a camping jug first and then a simple steel pot which shi hung on a rod over the fire to bring to the boil. Shi brought over a heavy cast iron pot with a lid and embedded it into the fire. Next, shi selected the ingredients for the night’s meal. When Tigerbright was satisfied that everything was ready, shi called out to hir friend.

“I’m going to start making the damper now.”

Violet replied, “Just two secs while I close up this file.” Before long, the mare joined the chakat at the table. “Okay – how do we do this?”

Tigerbright pointed to the ingredients. “The most basic damper consists of just plain flour, salt, and water. We’re not going to settle for that though. We have self-raising flour and butter for this recipe.” Shi picked up an enameled tin cup. “First, measure three cups of the flour into this bowl.”

The unicorn deftly did as shi was asked.

“Next – a pinch of salt,” the chakat said.

Violet gave hir a flat look. “And how exactly am I supposed to measure ‘a pinch’?”

Tigerbright smiled innocently. “Like this!” Shi put words into action.

The unicorn rolled her eyes. “Smartypants!”

“I’m surprised you know that term. Anyway, butter comes next – about eighty grams.” Shi cut off a portion from a chilled block that shi had taken from the cooler. “Cut that into small cubes so that we can mix it into the flour.”

“Couldn’t we just melt it and pour it in?”

“We could, but the result is better this way.”

“Okay.” Violet eschewed a knife and diced the butter with her telekinesis.

“Neat,” conceded the chakat. Shi dumped the butter into the bowl. “We then rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. You could probably do this with less mess, but I’ll do it this time.” Shi spent a couple of minutes on that task. “Alright. Now we add about three-quarters of a cup of water.”

The unicorn dipped the cup into the pot of water and poured a bit out to get the desired amount. “Is that good?”

“Looks about right. Put it in.” Tigerbright carefully folded it in until the water was completely taken up. Then shi scattered some flour onto the plastic surface of the table before placing the dough on it. “Now, we knead the dough for a minute or two until it’s smooth.”

When that task was completed, the chakat shaped the dough into a disc about eighteen centimeters wide which shi dusted with some more flour. “Lastly, use a knife to lightly score the top into eight sections. It’s not necessary but makes for a better result.” Shi demonstrated the first score.

“Like this?” Violet asked, doing the remaining scores with her telekinesis.

“Show off,” Tigerbright said with a smile. “Take the lid off the camp oven for me, please.” Shi pointed at the cast iron pot.

Violet lifted the lid with her magic and Tigerbright placed the dough inside. The mare then replaced the lid. The chakat scraped some of the burning coals around the pot and added some more fuel to the fire. “There! It will be ready in about thirty minutes. Time to make a cup of tea and get the rest of the food started. The billy is already boiling.”

The unicorn lifted an eyebrow. “What’s a billy?”

“That simple steel pot hanging over the fire is a type of billy. Yeah, it’s another Aussie slang term.”

“Okay. Go wash your hands while I make the tea,” Violet instructed.

Tigerbright waggled hir floury hands in the mare’s direction. “Worried you might get some in your coat?” shi asked with a grin.

In response, Violet’s horn lit up and hoisted the chakat off the ground, propelling hir toward the creek. “Try that and you’ll get a bath instead,” she warned.

The chakat’s timing was excellent and their food smelled delicious when it was time to open up the camp oven to check on the damper.

“Looks perfect,” shi declared. “Want to fetch it out?”

The mare did so and placed it on a plate. Tigerbright gingerly turned it over and tapped the base. It gave a hollow sound. “Yep, it’s done. We’ll let it cool while we serve up the rest of the food.”

Five minutes later, they feasted on delicious warm bread with their meal of hummus veggie wraps and yogurt with dried berries. The chakat declared their first camp cookout to be a roaring success.

Tigerbright cleared up everything after dinner to allow Violet to finish her work. Then they relaxed around the dying fire as dusk faded. The chakat had brought out some cocoa to make hot chocolate which they sipped while chatting. Eventually, the darkened skies revealed a glorious starscape.

“I can’t get over how many stars you can see here,” Violet said, gazing raptly at the sight.

“Yeah. Unlike Equus, Chakona doesn’t reside inside a bubble within a nebula. You can see even more stars here away from the light pollution in town.”

“I could watch it all night, but I suppose we’d better go to bed. We can get an early start tomorrow.”

Tigerbright hauled hirself onto hir paws. “I’ll get our bedroll ready.”

“I suspect we’ll have heavy dew in the morning, so we’d better pack away our stuff in the other tent first,” Violet declared.

“Good idea,” Tigerbright replied, picking up an equipment bag. “Could you bring over a lantern? It’s gotten too dark to see well in the tent.”

The mare grinned and lit up the tip of her horn instead.

“Or you could do that,” the chakat chuckled.

Abruptly, the gentle glow exploded with the intense brilliance of a magnesium flare. Both of them cried out in shock. Violet struggled to shut it off as Tigerbright flung an arm over hir abused eyes. Several seconds later, the glare stopped as suddenly as it began.

“What the hell was that?” demanded the chakat. “I’ve got spots before the spots in my vision. I’m half blind.”

“It was another surge!” the unicorn explained. “It was so strong, I couldn’t terminate the illumination spell. Wait! What’s the time?”

“Don’t ask me – I can’t read anything until my eyes recover.”

“I’m going to guess that it’s close to the same time as last night’s surge. If it is, we’ve got another data point. Hopefully, my instruments picked up and recorded some useful data too. Honestly, I only half-expected the surges to happen this far away from the settlement. If it keeps repeating each night at this time, it’s going to make my job a hundred times easier.”

“Just be sure you’re not using your magic then. Use the bloody lantern next time.”

“Sorry, Tiger. Hold still for a moment.” Her horn lit up and the glow of her magic settled around the chakat’s eyes. After a few seconds, she stopped. “How’s that?”

Tigerbright blinked for a moment then smiled. “I’m back to normal. What did you do?”

“Basic healing spell to accelerate your retinas’ recovery.”

“Great. Now, go ahead and record this event while I finish packing up.”

Violet frowned. “Do you think we should call up and ask what’s happened in town?”

Tigerbright shook hir head. “At the moment, there will be the same confusion as last night. If we wait until morning, there will probably be a report on the event ready for us. Besides, there’s not much we can do tonight anyway.”

“That makes sense.”

They both finished their tasks. The chakat hung the lantern on a hook in the tent, then turned around to back into it and settle down on the sleeping pad. Violet then did the same, snuggling up close to the chakat in the confined quarters.

“Tell me honestly – do you have a bigger tent than this?” the unicorn asked.

“I do. Want me to bring it next time?”

“No, I think this one is perfect.”

“I thought so too. Goodnight, Violet.” The chakat gave the mare a hug.

“Sleep well, Tiger,” the unicorn replied with a nuzzle. Her horn lit up and the lantern turned off. Then there was nothing left but the soft glow of the stars and two small moons left to illuminate the two intimate friends as they cuddled together to share their warmth.

# # # # # # #

Author's Note

The thot plickens!

More importantly, what will they cook up next time?

Map update:

Art by Foxenawolf.