We had recovered enough people who were in good shape that they began taking over the recovery operations, so, as night fell, I finally had a chance to sit down and recuperate. Out back, behind the makeshift medical facility, which was actually a large broken part of our ship, was a small, shining lake and stream. All the fires had been put out, and all the people had been found and rescued in that area, so I began heading that way to sit by the water.
I got farther and farther from the sights and smells of the building, meandering along, enjoying the crisp, cool breeze. The moon began rising over the hill side, and I was greeted with a beautiful sight. The tiny little crystal fragments from our ship, scattered throughout the valley, all began reflecting the moonlight. They looked like little stars all over the ground and in the trees. It was difficult to discern where the ground ended and the sky began.
I made it to the lake’s edge, water lapping at the bank. The water was crystal clear and quite cool. I put my hooves into the water and began to rest for a bit. After a few minutes I moved up from the water and leaned against a large tree. It didn’t take long for me to fall asleep. I began to dream, first about home, then our ship, and then I began to dream about birds. These weren’t just any little bird though, these were big birds, too big to fly, walking around.
Suddenly I realized I wasn’t dreaming, there really were giant birds walking around. They also had antlers on their heads. I had never seen a bird with antlers, but who was I to judge, I’ve got horns and hooves. It was all fine, I just sat on the bank of the lake watching the birds, which I later found out are Owlkin, walking around, eating, and tending to fires. It was fine, that is, right up until one that was behind my tree came around and attacked.