private Desert Journey 1 On 1

[Ochre_Dust 329]

Link to OOC: Here.

 

Characters:

Split - Owned by Fender.

Ochre Dust - Owned by Ochre_Dust

 

Ochre Dust sat watch at the border station. The air was thick and humid from a storm moving in from the north, but he had packed for the arid and dry conditions that would take up the majority of his journey. In the distance lay the Verdantspine mountains, and beyond that would be the Saddle Arabian desert where a new city with a burgeoning glass factory was starting up.

 

The job was simple in form but complex in carrying out. Accompany an architect hired by the crown to the city, and help with the construction of several new civic buildings. The construction couldn't be delayed, but a ship couldn't be sent by sea with the stormy weather that the season had brought in.

 

Ochre looked at the station of grey stone, offering a lone tower to watch over the foothills and tall grasses through which the only road in miles stretched and meandered across the landscape. The station itself was guarded by a half-dozen lonely souls when there weren't supplies being delivered.

 

He squinted out to the hills behind the station, keeping an eye our for the mare he was to guard. She apparently had a blonde coat and a brown mane. It would be fairly easy to spot in the fields of green grass, but he'd have to keep an eye out once they reached the arid desert on the other side of the mountains to make sure he didn't lose her in the sands.

Edited June 30, 2015 by Ochre_Dust

[Fender 1,283]

@@Ochre_Dust, 

 

Split had taken a wagon ride from a previous small town, of which she did not remember the name. Her saddlebags were tightly packed with the supplies needed to get through the dry, and at times unforgiving landscape of Saddle Arabia. For her usual great attention to detail, she was so overloaded with the size of the task at hoof that she forgot which pony she should look for at the border station. 

 

They'll just have to recognize me first, I guess. She sighed internally. The border station was just coming into view, and after another few moments, they arrived. She paid the wagon puller for his trouble, and stepped off of the ride, mentally preparing for her hooves to suffer a bit through the desert. She looked at several ponies in the area, but nothing struck her as familiar.

Edited June 30, 2015 by Fender

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

 

Seeing a wagon heading towards the station, Ochre waited patiently, going over the options for their first leg of the journey. The mountains hadn't received any heavy snows yet, so the pass would be fairly easy, but if that changed, some of the old abandoned diamond dog tunnels might prove to be the only viable route.

 

The wagon pulled up, and he spotted the mare Split. Blueprint cutie mark, and carrying a sizeable pack herself. Good, thought Ochre, she's got plenty of her own supplies. Rising up, Ochre walked to her as other ponies from the station filed out to unload supplies from the wagon, and adjusted his helmet.

 

"Split, I presume?" he asked, once he reached her.

[Fender 1,283]

@@Ochre_Dust, 

 

"That would be me, yes." She answered with a polite, yet neutral grin. The Earth Pony was thinner than most, which was odd, but Split didn't pay much thought to it. "And your name?" She figured it wouldn't hurt to get to know her guard.

 

OOC: (If ever I should make some post filler, please forgive me. Not always easy to construct an immensely detailed post for me.)

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

"Ochre Dust, Equestrian Engineer Corps." Ochre inclined his head, keeping a professional grin before looking to the sky. It was midday, they could likely make it to the heavier trees by the mountain before the storm arrived, and get a head start on their journey. "If it is alright with you, we can get an early start on the trip. Is there any of your equipment you need me to carry?"

[Fender 1,283]

@@Ochre_Dust,

 

"Nice to meet you." She said flatly. Contract work was nothing new to her, but having a guard was strange in it of itself. "I uh, I should be okay to carry all of my stuff. I can use telekinesis if ever my body should fail." She motioned a hoof to her horn, which made her feel a little stupid, given it was quite an obvious feature.

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

 

"Very well," said Ochre as he turned around to start down the trail. He was apparently with one of those unicorns, like her auntie had warned him about. Somepony who was convinced their unicorn magic would let them do anything. In training for the military, those sorts of unicorns quickly learned that a horn wasn't the tool for a rucksack march, but de facto genuine bodily endurance. "If you need help with the bags, it's no trouble at all."

 

Going through the rolling hills, Ochre called out behind him. "Have you ever had a job this far out of the way before?"

[Fender 1,283]

@@Ochre_Dust,

 

She confidently strode along, following a tad behind him. "Far? No. Not far. Nor have I done anything on this scale. It's a new experience." She stated plainly. She wasn't always keen to sharing information, but it was only the two of them, so she wasn't on as high of guard as usual.

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

 

"You must do impressive work for the crown to hire you. Any buildings in particular that you're proud of in your career?"

 

Ochre kept a swift pace, a smidgen below needing to break into a trot. Even so as he glanced behind him he saw the storm system from the north gradually catching up with them. Looking ahead, he saw that they were now another two hours walk from the heavier forests near the mountains, where there would be better shelter from the approaching wind and rain.

[Fender 1,283]

@@Ochre_Dust, 

 

"I'm proud of all of my works. Nothing too specific. No one ever asks for any artful types of buildings." She shrugged, "I make them artful." She said confidently, with a bit of pride mixed in there as well. "Any renovations you've seen to the Canterlot castles in the last year have been my works primarily."

 

"What about you, is escorting ponies your usual job? You said you were an engineer." She said, her smile now intending to portray curiosity. 

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

 

"I'm used to being out in the middle of nowhere, and I'm used to being with support personnel. I'd mostly work on making sure supply line infrastructure was running smoothly. I helped with the construction of a few bridges and dams in the north, near the Crystal Empire. After that I volunteered for this position. I joined the Equestrian guard so I could see the world, and help make it a little more accessible to other ponies."

 

Ochre's ears flicked back as the booming thunder of the distant storm rumbled across the landscape. He looked back, frowning at the darkening skies, and the sheets of rain falling onto the foothills, still at an appreciable distance. "Ms. Split, it would seem that the storm is speeding up. I suggest we do the same before we get caught without any sort of cover."

 

Ochre started into a trot, looking behind him to see if Split could keep pace.

[Fender 1,283]

@@Ochre_Dust, 

 

She had to admit to herself, he seemed like a nice stallion with good intentions, at least through his story. 

 

"Yes, it'd be great to beat the storm." She said plainly, as she matched his pace. She was no military mare, but she was actually in fairly good shape. She made her way around on hoof in various places all through her career, this should be no different. It was only mildly straining, but she was certain she could make due. Not to say she wouldn't be sweaty and tired by the end of their travels.

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

 

Continuing on, Ochre led the way. Within two hours, they had made it to the trees as he felt the first few drops of rain pelt his flanks. Leading the way deeper, he kept an eye out for a patch of ideal trees. Eventually finding a patch of evergreens, he led Split to there, before unloading his pack and retrieving an axe. "Stay here, I'll work on a lean-to."

 

Gripping the axe in his mouth, he felled two young trees and began stripping them of branches. On the trail the wind began to pick up, but the tree cover lessened it. With lumber gathered, Ochre set about setting them at an angle against the tree by which he had left the bags and Split, erecting a makeshift roof.

 

He looked at his handiwork, then to Split. "It's not much, but it beats freezing."

[Fender 1,283]

@@Ochre_Dust, 

 

Split merely tried to entertain herself and keep an eye out for anything either useful or dangerous while he worked. He was more trained in survival than she ever had been, so she let him do what he must. The idea of spending time in that shelter seemed somewhat frightening to her, but she made no mention. She figured he had to know what he was doing. "Certainly. Anything I can do?"

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

"Get in while I get out some rations and blankets," replied Ochre. He fished out some dry rations, mostly dried apples and oats, along with some waterskins, a tarp, and two blankets.  He draped the canvas on the lean-to, weaving it in with the branches to keep it from blowing into the wind, providing an extra barrier from the elements. One edge hung over the open end of the lean-to, providing a makeshift curtain door.

 

Looking up from his work, he peered over to Split. "If you'll excuse the curiosity, how did you get your cutie mark?"

[Fender 1,283]

@@Ochre_Dust,

 

She smiled to herself, the memory from long ago still seemingly fresh. "I took some art classes growing up. It was a way to get away from rough city life. It started with drawings, then I began crafting small structures out of random objects that I saw fit. And at some point along those lines, it just...came up. I was so consumed by my work, even back then, that I might have had mark for a few hours before I, or anypony else, noticed."

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

 

Ochre Dust smiled. "My family asked me to build another storage space for brick mortar. I kind of liked the procedure of it, the routine, but also having to plan for all the little things that can get in the way. I must have been in the basement to that place to myself for days. Then one night I head back to the house for a shower, and I finally notice them."

 

Ochre got in the tent himself, figuring Split wanted to be near the entrance given that they hadn't entered yet. "The place where you took art classes, was it in one of the cities? I was just about in the closest thing to being in the middle of nowhere myself. It was basically just the farm and all..." Ochre held a hoof to his chin, trying to recall something. "... Eighty-three members of my extended family?"

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

 

Ochre poked his head out of the lean-to, looking to the mare. "Miss Split? Are you going to be coming in? The storm's getting pretty intense and the last thing we need is for you to catch a cold standing out in the rain." Scooting to the side, Ochre made his best effort to give as much space as possible to be available to Split.

[Fender 1,283]

@@Ochre_Dust, 

 

She rolled her eyes, though it was in no manner of frustration. "Fair enough, I was only enjoying having a wet coat for a moment." She stepped into the shelter. "Where we're going is very dry, after all." The young mare made herself as comfortable as she could.

[Ochre_Dust 329]

@ @Fender

 

Ochre put himself between the opening and Split, further blocking the elements from his charge. "So, tell me, what was your life like growing up? Did you live near extended family? How were your parents?" He craned his neck, straightening out his coat and armor before focusing on Split.