Is this the only map we have?” Fluttershy asked. She stared down at the scroll spread out on the table. It was a detailed map of the village, with every street and alley marked. There was The Aria and the square where she and Skystar had seen the octopuses perform. There were dozens of apartment buildings, two markets, and Seaquestria’s School for Stalwart Seaponies. Almost every lamppost and street sign was marked. But beyond the village, the map was mostly blank. There were two kelp forests and a Beezlebug field that Fluttershy had heard about, but not much else.
“This is the best map we’ve got.” Salt Air pointed to a blue X far out beyond the village. “This is where we think the Sand Dragon could be. Cerulean told us she was going to look beyond the kelp forest before she left.”
“There’s a tunnel somewhere close to this valley. We know that,” said Coral Rose, pointing to an area far beyond the city. “In the legend, the Sand Dragons bury themselves deep below the sand. Perhaps the tunnel is an old Sand Dragon burrow? It could be a good place to start.”
Fluttershy let out a deep breath. She knew it would be hard to negotiate with a mysterious mystical creature like a Sand Dragon, but she had no idea it would be just as hard to find it. They were leaving any minute, and they still had only a few clues about where they were headed.
“What about the Beezlebugs?” Fluttershy asked.
“Seaquestria is a young world,” Salt Air explained. “The Sand Dragons have been underwater for centuries, but we only left Mount Aris two moons ago. We’ve managed to do so much in that time, but there’s still so much we need to see and explore. We don’t know much about the rest of this world.”
“Nopony goes beyond the village, because we don’t have to,” Coral Rose explained. “But if Golden Fin and Cerulean can find the Sand Dragon’s lair, then we can, too.”
Just then they heard shouts and cries outside the castle. They bolted to the front windows, looking out at the castle gates below. A horde of Beezlebugs had overtaken the main square, darting into restaurants and every which way. Seaponies swam out of the way in disgust at the kingdom pests.
“What in Seaquestria are they all doing here?” Fluttershy asked.
“That’s a really good question!” Skystar replied. She pointed to The Seaweed Shoppe in the distance, where a group of Beezlebugs had started gathering. “Maybe they came for the soft serve?”
Salt Air held up her coral spear. It was twice the size of the others, with a hooked tip decorated with fish teeth. “We don’t have time to float around, talking about such petty matters!” she cried. “We have to go find Cerulean—now!”
It took only a few seconds for Salt Air to rally the rest of the guards. She grabbed a seaweed sack that was filled with food and supplies and threw it over her shoulder. Fluttershy wanted to tell her to be careful. If the Seaquestrians out in the square saw them all leaving in such a rush, carrying spears, they might be frightened. Widespread panic was the last thing they needed on top of a random Beezlebug infestation.
But Salt Air didn’t look as if she wanted to be questioned. She swam past Fluttershy and Skystar, straight out of the room. “Line up!” she called out, and the Seaponies fell into line behind her. “Tonight we will defend our kingdom!”
The Seaponies all cheered. Then Salt Air led them through the great hall toward the main gate. As soon as the doors opened, the villagers began to gather and watch. Fluttershy could hear the whispers rushing through the crowd like a wave. Where were the guards going?
“Is it a Sand Dragon?!” one Seapony yelled as they passed.
“Are we in danger?” another called out.
Fluttershy followed along behind the army, more nervous than she’d been all day. More villagers were showing up by the minute. Some leaned out of their windows as the brigade passed, lifting up their Seafoals to watch the curious sight. Others lined the street. Through it all, Salt Air swam out in front of the guards, stone-faced and determined.
“Please swim aside!” she called, raising her spear in the air. “This is none of your concern!”
“Have a lovely day!” Skystar added, to make it all sound a bit friendlier.
As they got closer to the edge of the village, Fluttershy stared out at the water beyond the buildings. It grew dark and murky once the lampposts disappeared. It was impossible to know what was out there. She kept going, though, following behind the rest of the guards.
Fluttershy looked right, then looked left. She could make out only a few Seaponies in front of her. Somewhere in the distance, she heard Skystar’s voice. “Fluttershy! Over here! Follow me!”
The only problem was, she couldn’t figure out where “over here” was. Every time she swam one way, she’d notice a Seapony going in the opposite direction. Skystar had been in front of her for a while, but now Fluttershy didn’t know where she’d gone. The sand and seaweed swirled all around them. It was impossible to tell where anypony was.
“Salt Air! Coral Rose!” Fluttershy called out into the deep. She waved her fin in front of her, trying to find her way through the water.
“Crystal Tide!” another Seapony called out. “Where are you? I can’t see anything through the sand!”
“Stay in line!” Salt Air’s voice said, but this time it was farther away.
Fluttershy spun around, trying to make out anypony in the dark. But now she couldn’t see a single guard. They’d been traveling through the water for less than an hour, and they were already completely lost in the middle of a sandstorm.
Then, far out in the darkness, Fluttershy spotted a long, glowing orange light. It made S shapes in the water, moving up and down in front of her.
“Help is here!” an unfamiliar voice called. “Follow this light over this way, yup, just like that! We’re gonna lead you away from the sandstorm!”
Fluttershy did exactly what they said. The glowing orange light kept moving farther away, and Fluttershy kept following after it. It went a little to the right, and so did she. Within minutes she could see about a dozen Seaponies in front of her. The sand and seaweed in the water were mostly gone.
As she kept swimming forward, the water got clearer and clearer. Skystar and Salt Air emerged from the storm, too. When she swam closer to the light, she could see it wasn’t a light at all, but some sort of orange eel floating next to a starfish with rainbow stripes.
“Is everypony out?” Salt Air said, glancing around at the group. “Is everypony safe?”
The rest of the Seaponies nodded. When they turned back, the storm was still swirling behind them. The water was a mess of sea plants and sand.
“The currents, you see—really bad currents,” the rainbow starfish explained. “Creatures get caught up in there for days. Really a bit of a problem, but not one I can solve, no sirree. That sandstorm has been raging for as long as I’ve lived out here, yes that’s right.”
Fluttershy studied the creature. He was shorter than most starfish she’d seen in the village, with huge eyes that never looked directly at them. His middle was round and plump, and he had long, colorful stripes down his entire body. They went from fiery red to a deep purple, just like the rainbow.
“Ummm…” Skystar said, glancing around. “I don’t mean to be rude, but who are you?”
“He’s the starfish who just saved your tails!” the orange eel said. She squiggled toward them in an S, moving closer. She had a small, angry face and a tuft of white hair on the front of her head. Her voice was three octaves higher than any Fluttershy had heard before.
“Do me a favor, Harry,” the eel said as she glided past Salt Air. “Next time you need me to save some creatures from the sandstorm, make sure they’re the type to say ‘thanks.’”
Then the eel shot out into the water, swimming fast in the opposite direction.
“Thank you!” Fluttershy called after her. But the eel was already far away, just a speck of light in the deep sea.
“I’m Harry, but I guess you already know that,” the starfish said. “Lived out here my whole life. You must be the Seaponies; I can tell by your pony faces and the fins and everything. I’ve heard about you, yes, definitely heard a lot about you.”
Seeing her chance, Fluttershy swam out in front of Salt Air to talk to the starfish. The last thing they needed was for Salt Air to scare Harry off, too.
“We’re on a quest to find our friend Cerulean,” she said. “She’s also a Seapony. Have you seen her?”
“Can’t say I have… but the crabs might know,” Harry replied. He thought about it for a second and echoed the statement. “Yes, find the crabs.”
“The crabs?” Fluttershy asked. She couldn’t help feeling a little excited at the prospect of meeting even more new creatures. “Who are they?”
“Chatty crabs, always yapping,” Harry said. “Yappity yap yap yap. Follow me.”
As Harry marched forward into the ocean, Fluttershy turned to see what the rest of the Seaponies thought. They all looked pleased that they’d found a creature who knew where they were and where they were going. Maybe Harry was a bit odd, but he had saved them. That counted for a lot.
They all followed. After a few minutes they came to a coral reef that was striped with the same rainbow pattern that covered Harry. Coral Rose swam beside Fluttershy. “None of this is on the map,” she said, holding it in her fins. “I’ll make sure I copy it down. The sandstorm was right here, and now I think we’re right here.” She pointed to two different places on the scroll.
They swam through the center of the reef, and the coral rose up on either side of them. Harry looked around and smiled. “Got some Seaponies here who are looking for the chatty crabs. Anyfish know where the chatty crabs have been hanging out, doing their yapping?”
He stared out at the coral. Fluttershy was confused. Was he talking to himself? Was he completely crazy? Who did he think would answer the question?
But suddenly a voice called out from the other side of the reef. “About fifty yards north! In the valley!”
Fluttershy watched as part of the coral moved, pointing them in the right direction. It took a minute for her eyes to adjust, but when she looked closely, she could see that the coral was covered with starfish just like Harry. They were all stuck to the sides of it, their bodies molded to the reef.
“You heard ’em,” Harry said, pointing one of his arms in the same direction. “The crabs are thataway! Just tell them where you’re going, and they’ll help you. But they may chat your ears off first, you know.”
Salt Air swam past, not bothering to say anything else to Harry. She waved the other Seaponies along behind her. They re-formed their line and started off. Fluttershy was the only one who turned back to Harry as they left.
“We won’t forget what you did for us,” she said. “Queen Novo will know that you and your friend are heroes.”
For the first time since they met, Harry looked directly at her. His eyes were big and watery, filled with rainbow tears. He smiled. “Just wanted to help out, you know, that’s me, like to help!”
“Well, you certainly did!” Fluttershy agreed, giving him a smile that could light up the whole ocean. As Fluttershy swam off to join the others, she marveled at the sight of the beautiful rainbow starfish retreating behind her. The ocean certainly had its own special magic. But some things, such as kindness and gratitude, meant the same thing everywhere. If only Salt Air could realize it, too.