"BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!" Thwack. Damn that alarm. I hate waking up early, but my Father would have my hide if I was late. I swore I would do my best, and make him proud; And Celestia be damned if I won't do just that. Getting up, I walk over to the bathroom. The lights automatically illuminate the room in a soft white, and the smart glass wall activates, showing my reflection; my bright green bed head, gold groggy eyes, and blue-purple ragged coat. I showered last night so instead I go straight to brushing my teeth and mane.
A noise from my bedside table disturbs my brushing. Walking over, I see my mom on the ID. Pressing the green Icon, I answer, and a tiny hologram of my mom's head appears over the comm.
"Yes, mom?"
"Oh good, my little mare is awake." She said with a hint of humor in her voice. "Your father wants to speak to you before you head to the airfield sweetie. In the meantime, I've had breakfast prepared. Come down soon, before it gets cold." she explains.
"Of course, mom. I'll be there. See you in a bit." I said with a smile, before disconnecting the call. Going back into the bathroom, I finish up my brushing, and proceed to put on my attire. I'm no fan of the choker style collars, but it's not my call. With my fancy shirt all buttoned, I throw on my coat, and my hoof boots. Just as I'm about to leave, one of the maids, a Pegasus, steps in.
"Oh! Your Ladyship! I apologize. I didn't see you there!" She stammers, with a quick bow.
"It's alright Dusty. No harm, no foul. And please, you know my name. You know I hate that titles rot." I smile. Once she stands back up, she has a sheepish smile.
"Sorry, Mi- I mean, Nova. I was actually just doing my rounds in the routine house cleaning. But she is waiting for you in the dining hall. I would suggest making haste. Lady Stellar can be patient, but that only goes so far." Dusty says, calmly explaining.
"Thanks Dusty. See ya around." I smile as I leave her to her work. The walk down to the dining hall was relatively quiet, with the occasional 'Good morning ma'am' from the staff. I gave each one a bow of my head and a simple 'Good morning'. The morning light shone in through the windows, illuminating the hallways and stairwell as I descended in a soft orange light. I decide to stop and look out, parting the curtains.
This planet is... beautiful. I don't know why the Bluebloods had such a hard time here. Looking out, I see the two stars that this planet orbits; a binary star system. The holo-books describe them as a pair of main sequence stars. One, a high gravity Red Dwarf, and the other, an Orange Dwarf. Looking further up, I see the rings that surround this planet. This world, our world, is named Beryl. Not very creative if you ask me, but I didn't discover this planet. Much like Equis, it's covered in ocean. Probably about 85% is ocean, where Equis is 75%, with two large continents. This is more like one continent, with an archipelago surrounding it.
Continuing on my way, a wonderful scent hits my nose. Elder flower pancakes. I may be a mare now, but I can't get over my foalhood addiction to those. Sitting down at my seat, next to my mom, she finishes pouring a glass of mango juice.
"Good morning sweetie." She chirps happily. "Glad to see you up at a reasonable hour again."
"I would hardly call dawn 'reasonable', but I am trying to change." I said as I pour some syrup on my pancakes. As I slice off a piece, my mom continues.
"Glad to hear it. I know you hate my lectures on how we are to be better than the other Noble houses originally from Canterlot. Sparkle and Fancy families notwithstanding." she explains. "And those other four are who?" She challenges. Swallowing my pancake, I answer.
"The Novellus, The Upper Crust, The Gilded, and the Bluebloods." I admit, I may have added a hint of venom in those names. They were notorious for all kinds of problems not just in Canterlot, but all of Equestria. Everything from sky high taxes, to fraud scams, and even some small wars. Celestia and Luna tried their best, now even Twilight is having trouble keeping them in line. I don't know how but those names seemed to sour my pancakes.
"Good. Ever since we ponies took to the stars, they've become an even bigger pain in the flank. Not just for us, but for everyone. Anyway, neither here nor there. So, finish your breakfast and go see your father. He's out at the tide pools." Looking down, I was about halfway through my pancakes. So I continued to eat, in relative peace.
~~~~***~~~~
I may be a mare, but I love those pancakes. I really wish the house keepers would let me see that recipe. I walked outside, headed for my father. The ocean blew in a cool breeze, making my coat sway away from me, and messing up my swept back mane. The tide pools we an easy twenty minute trot away, and before long, I saw my father, Stellar Wing poking his grey hoof gently at local sea life. His Ocean blue eyes focused on the small fish, his long golden mane draped over his face.
"You wanted to see me father?" I ask as calmly as I could.
"Ah, my dear Nova. I was beginning to wonder if you had even woken up on time." He chuckled. I don't know how, but dad's smile could reassure even the most pessimistic doom-sayers. "I know your growing up hon. I also hear you've been clocking up time in the Ornithopter sim. Think you're ready?"
"I'll do my best dad." I said with a smile. His hoof gently meets my chin, and from there, I swear his ruby eyes stared right through me.
"You have doubts." He says plainly. "Tell me what troubles you."
"I... I'm afraid of failing you... That... that I wont be the mare you want me to be." I have no idea how dad does that... "I... what if I'm not?" a small smile graced his face.
"You were always the mare I wanted you to be. Walk with me." he states, turning towards the beach. Of course I follow him without a second thought. "What brings these doubts out?"
"Well... Until we came here, to Beryl, I... was... barely better than an Upper Crust. I barely passed school, flaunted my bits like a foal with a new toy..." I honestly could have gone on for hours describing myself.
"And what made you want to change?" My father asks gently.
"I... went to a party, thrown by one of the Bluebloods." I started, remembering back those years. "I had fun... at first. Until Duke Midas Blueblood brought out some... I don't know what, but everypony began to put it in their drinks, on their food, or even snort it." I felt a cold chill go up my back, despite my coat. "I didn't want to partake, but... the duke blew some in my face... and... I... had a bad trip" Not quite a lie, but not true either. "It was after that when I told you I wanted in the guard."
"And instead I whipped you into shape myself?"
"With mom's help of course." I add playfully. that got a chuckle out of him.
"Yes, with your mother's help. What I'm saying is, if you had chosen to be a guard, you'd probably be relegated to guarding those very ponies... And we both know you wouldn't want that." Father explained, calmly. "Now, as per you failing me; You've never failed me, and you were always what I've always wanted most." He said as he held me in a hug. "Now, Show me how my daughter flies!" he laughed as he took of galloping towards the sky port. With a laugh, I followed quickly after.
~~~~***~~~~
Our gallop turned into a simple canter not to far away from the beach. The sounds of ponies trotting in formation up and down the runway, reminds me of Equis. I find myself getting a little homesick, honestly.
"I gotta go get in my flight suit, father." I say breaking off towards the barracks.
"Of course. Be on your way." He says back. I didn't need to see the smile on his face. I quickly made my way to my locker, and placed my formal uniform inside. The jumpsuit was a little awkward to put on and wear, but with practice it got easier. Before too long, I had it on, my helmet on my head, with the flight visor flipped up so I could see without too much obstruction.
"Ready?" My father asked.
"Yessir. Ready for flight." I say with a salute.
"Then lets find your bird."
"031249, AKA, Wyvern." I say as I spot it right out. Stepping up the rear ramp of the dragonfly shaped Ornithopter, I see my survival pack already strapped into place. I then go about making sure everything is in working order. From the wings, to the fuel level, all the way down to the temperature and consistency of the oil.
"NOVA! GET YOUR TAIL OUT HERE!" Oh bugger... my commander... quickly dropping what I was doing, I dash out the back and greet her with a stiff salute.
"Yes Ma'am?" She casually passes me a manilla folder.
"Your orders. Your to fly several miles out to sea in a routine patrol route. You should be back by the end of the day, and you'll be in constant contact. Nothing to worry about kid." She briefed. Her face, stern. But only for a moment. "First real flight. You nervous?" She asks with a smile.
"Only a little, ma'am." I answer with a light blush.
"I'd have called you a liar if you said no. Now get on the bird. You have a patrol to fly. I assume you ran maintenance check?"
"Yes ma'am. All set and ready to fly." I salute, before turning and entering the cockpit. Flipping my visor down, and starting the ornithopter, I see the grey of the metal become vibrant as the micro-cameras on the outside display on the inside(like our adaptive camo). I also see the heads up display light up the visor. Everything is displayed, from my fuel level, to oil temp, it even recognizes me as the pilot, displaying my name and rank. 'Lance Corporal Nova Dust'. "Tower this is Wyvern, ready for liftoff." I say into the comm in the helmet. I standby for the reply that comes almost instantly later. Looking down out the cockpit, I see another pony, a Pegsus waving his wings in the code telling me to start the wings.
Flipping the switches, I hear the gentle mechanical movements of the six wings begin to unfold, and slowly start to flap up and down. Reminding myself that they are supposed to move out of sync with each other, I take a breath to calm myself. They begin to move faster and faster until the become a constant buzzing noise.
"This is Tower, Wyvern. Your clear for liftoff." I hear my father's voice on the comm. I can also hear a hint of pride in there.
"Tower, this is Wyvern, lifting off." I say as I move the control yoke. I feel the 'thopter slowly lift as the weight is taken away from the landing skids. Flipping two more switches, the rear cockpit entry closes, and the landing skids fold up to the underside of the fuselage.
"Fly steady Wyvern. Tower Out." I hear for the last time. Turning the ornithopter to my designated heading of 241, I take off to the south. Looking up I see clear weather as far as the eye can see, and the jungle of the mainland beneath quickly moving past. Reaching to my left, I tap a few times on a holoscreen, and my personal playlist starts playing. starting with some classic Songbird Serenade, from my granmare's time. It's dated and old stuff now, but it's still catchy.
Before too long I'm flying over the marine layer than lines the coast. Off in the distance, I see the archipelago's edge. Our geographic study finds that half of them were formed by volcanic activity, and some of the larger islands might still be active, where the others were more tectonic. The Bluebloods who were here before, didn't find any evidence of native intelligence. I've personally been of the opinion that they didn't tell the crown everything, or what they were really doing, but that's neither here nor there.
My flight became pretty dull after the first hour. Sure, I would take pictures every now and then when I saw something particularly beautiful, but beyond that, it was near unending blue in every direction. Looking higher up, Beryl's rings shone in the twin stars light. It truly was beautiful here. Truly, if the Bluebloods hadn't been here, it could be said this place was untouched by pony hooves. Again though, neither here nor there.
~~~~***~~~~
"This is Wyvern, routine comms check?" This would be my third check-in on this flight. we do this routinely on patrols.
"Copy that, Wyvern. Status?" I heard from my earpiece.
"All clear, no troubles." I respond, calmly. Strangely though, I hear static.
"Hold zzzzt, Wy-zzzzzt"
"Say again command? I did not copy that."
"zzzt Wy-zzzzt. Zzzzt you co-zzzt"
"Command? I do not copy!"
"Zzzzt-Vern! Storm inco-zzzzt! Zzzzzzt Out of there!"
Just then, my console readouts begin flaring to life. A massive storm had just... appeared around me. Be it divine, or just dumb luck I was in the eye. Looking out of the cockpit, what used to be endless blue with little puffs of white had become eerily dark grey, slowly swirling to my left. Flashes of lightning began to line the walls of the storm. Well... shoot... turning to my navigational computer, I run a course projection for the safest and fastest way out of the storm.
The data returns as a left, but is having trouble detecting landmasses... Double shoot... Comms down, strange storm appearing around me, only sign of land is a small coastal inlet, and my compass is now out of whack!
I'm shaken out of my near panic into total panic as a massive bolt of lightning strikes my 'thopter. Now my left wings are refusing to function, and its really thrown my electrical system out of whack. The left side of my cockpit screen is fried, with dark grey where the electricity fried the camera feeds, looking almost exactly like electrical arcs.
"Okay, okay Nova. Don't panic, uh... Ah!" I swear I'm trying to reassure myself! Locking the right wings in place, rather than buzz wildly out of control in a downward spiral into the sea, I have turned my ornithopter into a six winged glider, and aim for the island. Hopefully the lightning didn't fry the emergency beacon.
The rain is beginning to pound on my bird, and the wind is doing it's best to put me in the drink, but I dont let it stop me. I'm wrestling with all my power(and being an earth pony that's alot) with the stick. I begin watching as the small islet I was aiming for, slowly grows into a dark silhouette of a large island with a single large mountain near the middle. Well... this is going to get interesting. Looking down to my altimeter, I'm loosing altitude fast. I quickly face right and pull a stiff lever. My approach feels like it's slowing down... Good. That means my air brakes still work.
Those trees are getting awful close... I try to aim for the beach, but another draft of wind ends up blowing me off course and 'WHACK!' My ornithopter suddenly jerked hard left as my left wings collided with a tree, shearing them right off. Now my cockpit is facing the dirt and I'm in free fall.
"Ah Horse-apples..." Was all I could say before suddenly blacking out, and loosing consciousness.
Author's Note
Well lemme know what ya think. I know I have other fics I need to finish but hopefully this can help get those creative thoughts flowing. Writer's block is such a pain.
"Where did that bird go?!" The screen operator screamed as he began to panic, running around the holographic display over the large table in the middle of the room. "Come on, come on! Okay, Last reported location at... here!" he barked as he placed a marker between five small holographic islands. "Storm comes out of nowhere, just forms around Wyvern, then contact lost..."
"With whom?" A new voice, from Noble Stellar Wing no less!
"AHHH!" The poor unicorn screamed, nearly jumping out of his fur.
"Calm down please. Now, what is your name?" Stellar reassured.
"It's uh... Comet, sir; My friends call me Hawkeye though." He whimpered, his voice cracking a little.
"Okay then, Hawkeye. Tell me what's wrong." Stellar's wing draped over the young stallion, urging him to settle his nerves.
"Okay so... we've... lost contact with one of our Ornithopters. 'Thopter Wyvern, specifically... My.. commanding officer demanded I not tell you and just find it..." Young Comet stammered out, rushing back over to the holographic display map.
"And you haven't sent out a rescue team yet?" Stellar asked patiently.
"We can't sir. It was lost in a freak storm around these islands." Hawkeye explained, pointing to the half dozen island chain. "If we send more 'Thopters, they'll go into the sea, and Luna knows what kind of creatures live in that sea. We have to wait for it to pass."
"Buck... that could take days..." Stellar grumbled.
"Sir, whoever was in that bird can handle themselves. I want them back too, whoever they are; But I have confidence in their skills."
"I hope your right Hawkeye. For my daughter's sake." Stellar said patiently, before turning around and leaving.
"Oh... well... Buck..." was all the pony could say.
~~~~***~~~~
"Ugh... my head..." I grumble as I regain consciousness. Buck me, my first solo flight and I crash land on an alien island, on an alien planet, in a freak storm... talk about bad bucking luck... Twitching my ears around, I can still hear the storm pounding away outside... probably best to stay put in here and wait it out. Unstrapping myself from the seat, I find I'm actually upside down, as I fall and land on my head... on the roof of my cockpit... ow. Looking around, I turned the headlamp in my helmet on.
"Okay... interior damage is minimal. Some stuff scattered around, could be worse." I say to myself. Going around, I gather up my personals, as well as my survival bag. I'm a pilot, not a technician, so repairing this thing is out of the question. Even then it would require a hangar and a massive set of tools... I doubt I'll be able to do that with alien palm trees and coconuts. It was then I notice something off... taking a few whiffs of air in my nose, I'm getting the subtle hint of fuel...
Looking up, I can't seem to find the leak. Oh wait, that's the floor... So instead I look down. Yup... fuel leak... buck... I can't stay here after all. I make my way to the rear of my ornithopter, and lift the switch to manually open the cockpit. As it opens, it gets only partially open before jamming. I can suddenly hear the storm quite loudly now. The pounding rain, rapid lightning strikes, and very heavy winds.
A loud pop above me gets my attention. Horse-apples... The fuel was in the roof, and the electrical was in the belly.. and now she and I are inverted... something in the electrical is messed up and some wires seem to have gotten crossed... I'm sure you can guess what happens next. Yup; Sparks begin arcing. grabbing my two bags, I make my way to the rear entry way as quickly as I can. I got my bags out easily enough, but the gap... not exactly big enough for me. The sparks behind me are getting more and more frequent. I'm left with no choice but to ditch my helmet and try to squeeze my flank out.
I get about halfway out, and my mane is instantly soaked. Just barely over the winds, I hear a whoof, and suddenly my backside feels warmer.
"C'mon, c'mon!" I growl, trying to find purchase with my rear hooves. Finally I manage to get my hooves on something and force my body through the remaining gap just as the fire engulfed the entire cabin. Grabbing my bags, I make my way into the jungle, managing to find temporary shelter under a small rock outcropping, can't be more than a hundred meters from the wreck. I don't think I can get my portable stove to ignite, but I can munch on a granola bar for now.
Well... that wasn't that thrilling. Reaching into my bag, I pull out an enchanted survival blanket, and wrap myself up. Nothing to do now but wait. Might as well catch up on the sleep I've been missing out on...
~~~~***~~~~
When I woke, I find that the storm has passed, and it's a wonderfully sunny day. Okay, not gonna question that. Crawling out of my little rocky cave, I see the burned out husk of my poor ornithopter... burned to a crisp... I don't know who's going to kill me first... Dad, or my Commander? At this point it's stay alive.
Okay... Priorities... Opening my bags, I start digging around, looking for anything that can help me out of this situation. Ok, enchanted blanket, rations, water purifier, jet lighter, fire starter cubes, backup jumpsuit, portable stove, solar powered drones, and... Peanut butter? Why peanut butter? Wait, drones! Pulling out a matching tablet, I set the three drones on the ground and program them to fly a four kilometer triangle around the beach.
The drones hummed to life and then took off on their respective routes. The data collection may take a while, so I start gathering dried wood, and start making a fire. Survival school always did say to not wander too far away from camp, so I check to see if I can send a distress... Signal... Of course I can't, I left the Celestia damned beacon in the ornithopter, and it's destroyed... Figures.
"Beep! Beep! Beep!" Huh. Wonder what the drones found. Wait... Signal lost? With all three of them? What in Luna's plot...? Looking at my tablet, I start going through the footage. Each drone showed similar feeds. Two flew along the beach, for about a kilometer before, it looked like something attacked them. The third, the one I sent into the jungle, apparently only made it about a quarter of a kilometer before... Something grabbed it... I need to find that drone.
Following the drone's programed route, it took only twenty minutes through the dense vegetation before I found it's smashed remains. Picking it up, it was bone dry, so nothing bit down on it... The local aerial fauna is too small to cause this level of damage. Looking back at the tablet, I watch the last few frames in as slow a frame rate as possible. The last five seconds were...
The video shows the drone flying through the trees, before a reddish brown blob shot past the camera. Then, in the next frame, what appeared to be a hand swatted the drone to the ground before what looked like a stone hammer smashed it. That was when the signal stopped. That's... haunting.
" I guess I'm not alone on this island..." I say to myself... Turning around, I haul my flank back to my beach shelter.
Ok... Back on my beach and.... What in Celestia's flank?! P-paw prints!? My gear is scattered all over the place, my camp, if you can call it that, is totally trashed. My rations are gone, my purifier is destroyed, my peanut butter is missing... Who or what could have done this?
A soft thump behind me forces my heart to skip a beat and my fur to stand on end. I try to turn as fast as I can only for my eyes and nose to get covered in a green powder. My eyes slam shut as if dirt had been thrown in, which was kinda true, and all I could smell was... Wait... I know this smell... My thoughts begin to slow as my body starts to sway.
Back in Canterlot... That party... At the Blueblood's. Last thing I saw was that reddish brown form standing over me. Then everything went black. Ah...sleepy time.
Author's Note
As usual, constructive criticism is welcome.
I don't know how long it was until I came too. About an hour... maybe more... but damn I had the worst headache now... I just remember checking the drone stuff, galloped back to camp, only to find it ransacked, and the cherry on top, I get some kind of powdered drug blown into my face. How great... Lucky me...
"Ugh..." That was about all I could grumble before I opened my eyes. Great... I'm hog tied to a large stick and they carrying me back to... where ever they came from. Looking... around I end up getting a look at my captors. Huh... they remind me of the Abyssinians back home... only more... dog like. The one in front, leading the party is a dark brown colored character. Their mane is easily jet black, and crudely braided, going down to the small of his back. Their tail was also interesting. It seemed muscular, colored in the same dark brown, but ended in a lionen tuft, the same color as it's mane.
The one who blew the dust at me, a reddish brown fellow, seemed to be in the front of the stick they were carrying me on. A similar build, for sure. Same bipedal stance on what appeared to be digitigrade paws, same tufted tail, though this one seemed fire red. This one's mane was also cut short, again, really crudely. As if they used a stone knife to cut it. It also appeared to have some style to it as it was shorter in the back and longer around their bangs.
The one behind me, appeared to be a female, as she had large mamaries on her chest, similar to the Minotaurs of Equis. Her build was a little lankier than the two, what I assumed to be males that I just saw in front. Definitely shorter, but no less as strong. Her mane was a very light tan, almost like a white sandy beach. Her coat just a little darker. Her tail also seemed shorter, a fluffier. Easily half the length of the other tails. They all also appeared to be wearing leather hides to cover their... uhem... unmentionables.
She seemed to take notice of my observations as she stopped and dropped her end of the stick. It wasn't a soft landing as I hit the ground with a firm 'ooof' and next thing I know, I've got spears in my face, and about four of them shouting in a strange language.
"Fy Twei! Mara-shü sei!" She shouted, her spear booping my nose. Of course I fear for my life so I do everything I can to seem as non threatening as possible. Curl up into a small ball, but don't remove eye contact. After less than a minute of this, the red male seems to intervene.
"Kärae, frümet!" he barked, grabbing her spear. Interesting; They roll their Rs. Sounds similar to some languages back home. "Ny graüm yë, ky? Gry shümé krum, ky? Ge'nah. Korüm." He says. After a moment of though between them all, they stop pointing their spears at me, and we resume where we left off, and I'm carried like some prize back to their camp.
~~~~***~~~~
"Okay, the storm has cleared, I want half a dozen 'Thopters searching around the pegasus archipelago. One of our 'thopters went down near there. This is search and rescue. Plain and simple." The noble Pegasus said authoritatively. "We are Nebula house, and we do not leave our own behind. Everypony is to keep in contact, and say so if you spot something that isn't natural. Move out!"
"Yessir!" The six assembled ponies barked before galloping off to their respective ornithopters, and within minutes, the airfield was literally buzzing with the rapid up and down motion of ornithopter wings.
"Bring my daughter home." Stellar said quietly to himself.
~~~~***~~~~
I was dropped unceremoniously in the middle of what seemed to be their main camp. Many of these beings began running about, some I saw grabbed their weapons, and readied themselves for a fight. I watched as the females seemed to escort the young to the tent farthest from me. I wont lie, those little ones looked so cute, but... that panic... that was not a look that belonged on a young one's face.
My attention was immediately turned to an elder looking being, he seemed to be the one in charge. The leader, or chief if I remember the Buffalo tribal hierarchy right. To his right was another elder looking being, only he seemed to be covered in painted on runes... he must be the tribal shaman. He certainly seemed the least pleased to see me. I did my best to seem as respectful as possible, despite my legs still being tied together and to a long stick.
"Bora-kü, sé na." The chief demanded. The red male knelt down and pulled out his stone knife, only to halt as the shaman also spoke up.
"Né! Vatem, hyu mon sé assü! Jé vi nö comërn! Bora-" Okay... clearly this guy had a differing opinion about me, as he was pointing angerly and even shouting at the chief, who stood there stoically before cutting him off.
"Grë, para né trü." That was all I could catch before the red one with the knife got my attention.
"Pony? You mean harm?" He asked quietly. I was genuinely shocked that he spoke Equish. Broken Equish, but Equish nonetheless.
"No. No threat. Peace" I say as quietly back. He seemed to hesitate. "I will make an oath if I can." I add.
"On blood?" He asks.
"On blood." He seemed to relax, and cut me loose. After which, he cut his paw, and passed me the stone knife. With only a little hesitation to steel my still rattled nerves, I jab the tip of the knife into the frog of my hoof. "I swear on my blood and honor, that I, and my people, will do your people no harm, in any shape." I say as I hold up my bloody right fore hoof. He promptly grabs it with his bloody right paw, and accepts my oath.
"Vatem?" Red speak up, interrupting the squabble between the chief and the shaman. "Héra nö vacém dï mére." He explained, holding up his bloody paw. Neither seemed pleased by this, but the shaman seemed livid. he them proceeded to rant and rave at Red, I can only assume he's going on and on about how stupid he was and how I and my kind shouldn't be trusted. The chief however, motioned for me to go to him. I do so without a thought, and give a respectful bow.
He indicates that he wants to look at my cut hoof, so I lift it up for him to see. He takes my hoof firmly, and examines it. He seemed pleased, as he let my hoof go.
"Grë, renaüt. Dï möra shen mi Bära-kü." He said to the shaman.
"Lëa... Gerü ba keft." He grumbled. The entire camp seemed... torn. Some shrugged and went back to their business, others seemed to look at me with a fire in their eyes. Okay... seems like they don't really like us ponies.
"Pony, come." Red states calmly before leading me away to one tent in particular. Seems to be his. "Father say you are mine... to.. see." So he's my warden... Can't say I blame them.
"Were other ponies- wait, father?" I... guess I should have seen that coming. "You're the chief's son?"
"Yes. Father say your mine to see. Spirit not happy. Spirit think you evil." He explained. If what I'm thinking is true, then they have every right and reason to be mad and fearful.
"Then I shall make your job easy and stay close to you." I say as I plant my rump on the floor. Though... I can't help but wonder how long before more ornithopters are flying overhead searching for me... I almost fear for that reaction. "However, I must insist we stay close to the beach." That got a confused look out of him.
"The... beach? What is beach?" he asks, confused.
"Where the sea meets the land." I explain. Seems some two way language lessons are in order later.
"AH!" he barks. "Lë khärt! Why?"
"My father will come looking for me. I do not want my family to... bring fear here." I explain as calmly as I can.
He seems to ponder this, carefully, before reluctantly agreeing.
"M'kärtö." he says before opening the tent flap, allowing me out. I slowly walk out with a slight limp because of the slice in my hoof but I try not to let it show that it's bothering me too much. He followed, and nodded for me to follow him. Looking back, we see the tribe shaman glaring a death glare at me. The bushes seemed to envelop us as we head towards the beach where they found me.
Author's Note
Writing an alien language is such a pain... but I felt best starting with germanic for my base, or foundation. The two dots over certain letters, such as the Es and As, are called 'Umlauts"(oom-lao), and they make the long sound. Or as I was taught, pretend there is an 'e' behind the letter in question. Such as ä would make the ae sound and so on.
