Drops of Fire

Chapter 8- "Surprises"

A billow of sand slapped Skywatcher square in the face, and she coughed, belly squirming with slight nausea as the grit dusted her tongue. She spread out her wings in attempt to stop herself from flying away into the great unknown from the gust.

Powerful winds had been blowing across the desert all morning, sending up clouds of sand all through the streets of Klugetown. A thin coat of a sand covered almost every object in sight.

"Sweet Celestia!" muttered Tide Breaker, shielding his hair with a hoof. "How often does this happen?"

Capper threw a hood over his head in a quick attempt to protect himself from the sandy wind. "Not very often," he replied, shaking sand off his long whiskers. "The wind usually isn't this bad."

Skywatcher's eyes stung from another sharp whip of sand. Luckily, Capper had been nice enough to lead them out of Klugetown at dawn through the safest route; where they would be safe from greedy sellers and bidders. She couldn't help but feel a pull of debt towards the smooth cat after all he had done for her and her friends. She remembered briefly how he even had cooked them a full breakfast buffet earlier that morning as the sun rose.

Celestia only knows where'd we be if he hadn't taken us in, Skywatcher reflected with a burst of gratitude. He's been so kind and generous. And even only though I only knew for a short time, I'm gonna miss him.

She shuddered despite to heat as she remembered her dream from the previous night. The appalling last sight of her brother's face kept surfacing the top of her brain, and the beaten image of her dead parents was like a predator on her heart; ready to attack and kill her sanity at any time. But it was just a dream right? It felt so vivid.....

"Ya'll be safe now." Capper's mew broke Skywatcher out of her deep memories. The tall brown was shifting his weight from one paw to the other. His slim green eyes were glossy with loss. "Make Umbra feel sorry that she decided to mess with Equestira now."

Phoenix adjusted Capper's red coat with her magic fondly. "Don't worry. We will."

Capper's whiskers drooped. "You might want to head up towards the taller buildings," Capper advised, pointing his tail towards the sky. "That way you can get out of here safely without anyone spotting you."

Skywatcher stepped forwards and touched her hoof to his shoulder. "Thank you," she said softly, ignoring another cruel slap of wind. "You've been so kind. How can we possibly repay you?"

"Send that ghastly unicorn on her way to Tartarus," Capper's voice was filled with warm amusement. "You don't have to repay me, little ponies. It was my pleasure." He paused and scratched his head. 

"I better get out of here. Bidders will be coming soon, and I want to get back home before the streets flock. It was nice having y'all, it really was. Be sure to stop by again before to long, ya hear?"

Capper waved a paw at the ponies before running off in the direction of his apartment. His long brown tail streamed out behind him like a brown river, and his coat whipped in the wind. And with that, the cat was gone as soon as he came.

"Do you think he'll he'll be alright?" Skywatcher's own voice took her by surprise.

Graphite flicked her ears as if trying to clear them from sand. "I'm sure Sky," the brown pegasus reassured passionately, her glasses caked with grit. "Now the sooner we get moving, the sooner we can get out of this sand!"

With Phoenix Feather in the lead, the ponies scrambled and flew over stands and booths to make it above a nearby apartment building. Skywatcher and Graphite had to help boost up Tide Breaker a few times since he was the only one in the group without wings, but he managed to keep up for the most part. After a few more moments of climbing and pushing, the group finally made it to the roof of the building. The wind was even more fierce from above, but there was less sand flying in their eyes. Skywatcher stared in awe as endless miles of sand stretched out in the distance like a beige sea. Great. We're gonna have to travel through that to get to the Badlands.