Vermilion jolted awake from a nightmare where he and Hazelnut were drowning in a vast ocean, only to find the abundance of water present in the real world, as well. When he opened his eyes the brown pony was standing over him, outlined by the scorching sun high in the sky. He was holding a drenched mess of greenish-yellow pulp over Vermilion's face. "Good, you're alive. I was worried for a moment," Hazelnut said with relief.

"Yeah, barely." Vermilion coughed once and pushed himself weakly into a sitting position. Hazelnut reached down to offer him the wet glob of plant-stuff, and he gingerly took it. "What's this?" he croaked.

"It's the insides of one of those cacti we can't seem to avoid. I got desperate and carved one open. Apparently they're full of water," Hazelnut replied. He sat down and reached behind him, where Vermilion could see a cut of the prickly plant sitting in the dirt. Vermilion also noticed the multitude of spines that were stuck in his forelegs, presumably from when he wrestled with one of the cacti.

Vermilion eyed the sticky glob in his hoof. "And you're sure it's not poisonous?" he asked. He knew there was a way to test for this sort of thing, but he couldn't remember. The heat made his head feel like it was swimming through mud.

Hazelnut shrugged and squeezed some of the cactus innards over his head, drenching the breathable white cloak that was swathed around him with the questionably pure water. "No, but we'll die if we don't take the risk. The supply cache is still another fifty kilometers out, and neither of us could make it that far in our condition."

It still didn't seem quite safe to Vermilion, but he knew Hazelnut was right; they would die long before ever reaching water either way. He shrugged and squeezed the cactus guts out into his mouth, hoping to Celestia that the two of them weren't poisoning themselves. Despite having a rather bitter taste, it was surprisingly refreshing and it made Vermilion feel better almost instantly. He let it sit in his mouth for a few moments before swallowing, savoring the relief it brought his dry, cracked tongue. It didn't immediately dissolve his tongue or cause his mouth to swell up, so that added a little to his confidence.

Hazelnut walked over to a nearby cactus and carved off another large section with his knife, getting even more of the spines stuck in his legs. The two of them sat together for a long while and recovered from the heat. Vermilion refilled their water bottles with the cactus water so they would have enough to make it to the supply cache, and once the sun had begun to sink in the sky, the two ponies set out across the desert again.

The sun had set long before Vermilion and Hazelnut reached the supply cache. One of Strana's moons was high overhead, while the other had just begun inching across the sky. Vermilion had spotted it first; a large orange box with the symbol of the Ghost Bears painted on it set out against the dark sky. He had only felt relief that strong three other times in his life; when Chartreuse woke up after nearly freezing to death, when he saved Sundance from Bittersweet, and when the Wolves and Ghost Bears showed up during their last battle.

"Thank Celestia, I'm so glad we managed to stay on course through all of that," Hazelnut said as he flopped down on the ground in front of the box and leaned his back against it.

Vermilion nodded in agreement and sat down not far from him, observing the supply cache. It was a little larger than a pony; two could probably squish into it if they needed. In addition to the large Ghost Bear symbol that took up the entire front of it, there was a smaller one painted on every other side. When he looked closer, he could also see a small number pad on his side, with a small inscription above it. He inched closer to the cache and squinted at the writing.

"0613... is it a code?" Vermilion wondered. He reached up and tapped the numbers into the keypad, which beeped quietly with each press.

"What was that?" Hazelnut asked just as the entire front of the supply cache folded into the top with a light hiss. This was followed by a dull thud and a muffled "Ow."

Vermilion peeked his head around the edge of the box to see Hazelnut lying on the inside, rubbing the back of his head in pain. "Sorry. I probably should have guessed that would open it," he said apologetically.

"You're fine, don't worry," Hazelnut grunted as he pushed himself to his hooves and looked around the interior of the cache. There was what appeared to be a large water tank situated against the back wall, with a number of small packets stacked in front of it. From the labels Vermilion could read most of them were food, though a few others held miscellaneous supplies.

Hazelnut grabbed a package from the top of the pile and peered at it. He shrugged and tossed it to Vermilion before pulling his packs off and selecting another few. "Let's re-stock now so we can head out first thing in the morning," he said as he replaced the trash in his bags with unopened food packets.

Vermilion nodded and moved over to the pile, sliding his own packs onto the floor. He refilled his water bottles with clean water and stuffed half of the packets into his packs but stopped when he got to the last one. It was a large white tarp, which seemed like an odd item to receive.

"What do you think we're supposed to do with these?" Vermilion asked.

Hazelnut shrugged as he slid his own tarp into his packs and closed them. "I don't know. Maybe we could make a tent with them or something? I guess we could sleep during the day and travel at night if we use these. That way we wouldn't have to walk with the heat and the sun constantly beating down on us," he said after a moment.

Vermilion frowned. "That's... actually a really good idea. So should we keep going tonight?"

Hazelnut shook his head. "No, we can't keep going for much longer. Let's just rest for now and sleep in the morning."

"Alright." Vermilion placed his packs inside the supply cache and walked back outside. He sat down on the sand and leaned back against the metal wall, sighing internally with relief as he relaxed his aching muscles. The temperature had dropped sharply once the sun went down, and it already felt like it was around fifteen degrees Celsius. By the time morning came it would be noticeably cold, but it certainly beat the scorching temperatures during the day.

As Vermilion sat for a while and thought to himself, he realized something after a few minutes. The code for opening the supply cache, 0613, was an odd choice. If he wasn't thinking too far into things, 06 had been the hangar number back on Dike, and 13 was the numerical designation for his Timber Wolf. "Is it just a coincidence, or did they set that number on purpose?" Vermilion wondered. "Not that it means much either way."

Vermilion snorted quietly to himself as he thought of his 'Mech. "Lucky number thirteen." He shifted uncomfortably in his position and glanced up at the moons. It wasn't that he was superstitious, but he'd still never admit to anypony that it sent chills down his spine every time he saw the number painted on the right foot of his Timber Wolf. "I hope they change it to something else once I'm a Ghost Bear. I can't help but feel like my luck is running out."

---

The howling of wind brought Vermilion back from the edge of slumber. He shook his head sleepily and pulled himself out of his shelter; a tall rock that he had draped his tarp over and weighted down to hold it in place. Over the last night of travel the ground had transitioned from sand to gravel to large slates of rock, some of which protruded far into the air.

It was even windier outside, and Vermilion had to shield his eyes from the sand that was blowing into his face. "Damn it, is it another sandstorm?" he thought as he squinted out at the distance. The sun had just begun creeping across the horizon ahead of him, but nothing was coming from that direction. When he turned to his left, however, he stifled a gasp at the massive wall of sand that was bearing down on them. In their four months in the desert and countless sandstorms they had experienced none of them had been this bad. It was so tall it almost looked like the storm reached all the way up to the clouds, and even from this far away it was difficult to keep his balance from the force of the gale.

Vermilion reached behind him to grab the goggles he had gotten from one of their earlier supply caches, folded his tarp and placed it in his bag so it wouldn't blow away, then went around to the other side of the rock where Hazelnut's shelter was. "Hey, this one looks really bad," he shouted over the wind as Hazelnut came into view. The brown pony had already taken down his own tarp and was fixing his goggles over his eyes.

"Yeah, I noticed. Do you want to wait it out in that cave we saw earlier? I don't know if anything's living in there, but it might be worth the risk," Hazelnut said as he fixed his packs to his flank and stood up.

Vermilion scratched the side of his neck and glanced back at the sandstorm. For all he knew the storm could last for days, considering the size of it. They wouldn't be able to travel in it, which meant they'd have to lie in the sand for Celestia knows how long to keep from being blown away by the wind. That wasn't a very attractive idea. He sighed and turned back to Hazelnut. "Sure. It beats sitting out here."

Hazelnut lead the way to a nearby large hole in the ground that slanted down into the darkness. They hadn't explored it for fear of rattlesnakes and other dangerous animals, but it was an incredibly tempting shelter in the face of the storm. The two of them crept through the gaping hole into the cave, and Vermilion ducked as he walked past the opposite ledge. The cave was too short for them to stand fully while inside, but it at least reached far enough to provide shelter from the wind, and the sand that would soon follow.

"Hey, I think the cave goes deeper," Hazelnut said from up ahead. "Want to keep going?"

"Does it get any taller?" Vermilion asked.

Hazelnut reached a hoof through a crack in the wall barely wide enough for a pony to squeeze through, and nodded. "I think so. It feels like the ceiling slants upwards."

"Then let's go a little farther." Sand had begun blowing into the cave, and Vermilion preferred to stay out of it if at all possible.

Hazelnut nodded again and disappeared through the narrow opening. Vermilion followed shortly afterward, pulling himself out into what he thought was a large space. It was hard to tell from the dim light spilling through the opening, but it seemed like there was more than enough room inside for the two of them to sit comfortably. It even looked like the space might continue farther back, but the long shadows made it difficult to tell.

Hazelnut grunted as he sat down on the rocky floor and leaned against the wall. He took his goggles off and pushed back the head coverings. "Better get comfortable. We're gonna be here a while," he said.

Vermilion sat down opposite Hazelnut and removed his own goggles. Very little of the sand managed to reach this far in the cave, and it was noticeably cooler inside. Vermilion rested his head against the wall behind him and sighed. He hated sandstorms. They seemed like they lasted forever, and sand always got everywhere; in his nose, in his mouth, even in his ears no matter how hard he tried to keep it out. At least they'd be able to stay relatively clean in here.

"So... I feel like the answer is fairly obvious, but you're Carnelian's brother, right?" Hazelnut asked after a moment, trying to make small talk while they had nothing else to do.

Vermilion flinched. Even now, he still didn't like talking about his dead brother. It brought back too many memories and regrets. "Yeah. Did you know him?"

"Not personally, but he and Slate became fairly good friends. He was a lot like you, I've heard."

Vermilion frowned. "Like me? How? He was better in every way."

Hazelnut shook his head. "Not from what I saw and heard. You're both incredibly loyal, protective of those close to you, your morals are strong, and you're no slouch at combat, either."

Vermilion shifted uncomfortably on the hard floor. Was Hazelnut right? Vermilion had spent his entire life believing he was inferior to Carnelian in everything he did, so it was kind of difficult to accept what he was saying. "Maybe we were similar, but that doesn't mean I'm as good of a pony as he was."

A blur of bright green and wine red flashed through Vermilion's mind. His hooves reflexively clenched at the bloody memory, and he sighed and forced his body to relax. The memory of protecting Sundance from Bittersweet wasn't the pure image it should have been; every time it replayed in his head, all he could think about was the power he had over another pony. He'd loved beating Bittersweet senseless. Saving his friend was just a bonus. "I'll never be as good of a pony as he was," he said quietly, almost in a whisper.

"You don't need to be. You are who you are, and anypony who tells you to be somepony you're not is an idiot and shouldn't be listened to."

"Even myself?" Vermilion asked wryly.

"Especially yourself. Stop being an idiot. The only pony you can compare yourself to is the past version of you. As long as you're bettering yourself, that's all that matters," Hazelnut said with a small nod to himself.

"Thanks for the advice?" Vermilion said, not really sure how to take what Hazelnut had said. It almost seemed as much of an insult as it was advice. He got the feeling the main reason they were having this conversation was that the older pony wanted to be more of a mentor than he had been in the past. Vermilion caught himself wondering if Hazelnut actually cared, and felt guilty immediately afterward.

Hazelnut nodded again. "It was supposed to be advice. I'm just kind of repeating stuff other ponies have told me over the years, like 'you are your own worst critic.' You may not think you're a good pony, but others will see you as kind, honest, and generous."

"I guess, but how do I know how others actually see me? They could just be lying, and I'd never know if I was actually good or not," Vermilion said.

Something small sailed through the air and bounced off of Vermilion's nose. He flinched back and shook his head, wrinkling his nose to clear the light pain. Whatever it was must have come from Hazelnut, since he wasn't close enough to the opening in the wall for it to have come from the storm that was raging outside. "Is that all you do? Assume the worst in everypony, including yourself, and think that you're worth nothing? Should we take a look at everything you've done since becoming a cadet?" Without waiting for an answer, Hazelnut cleared his throat and continued on.

"You risked your life to save Chartreuse during a blizzard on Dike, got injured protecting Sundance from an attacker, attempted to sacrifice yourself in order to save Chartreuse again during our last battle, and you checked in on Sundance and Mint more often than anypony else while we were in the Ghost Bear infirmary. And that's just all of the things I know about. I'm sure there are even more times like those that you probably haven't even realized were significant. Even as a Commander, I never put my own life on the line that many times to protect anypony else. Do you still think you're worthless?" Hazelnut concluded impatiently.

Vermilion sighed and dragged his hind legs into his chest, then rested his chin on them. "I don't know. Knowing what I've done doesn't change how I feel."

Hazelnut ran a hoof across his face and glanced out at the sandstorm for a moment. "Well, I tried to help, but it doesn't matter if you don't listen. Let me know when you want my help," he said with a hint of annoyance in his voice. He leaned over so that he was lying face-up on the ground, staring at the ceiling, and was silent.

Vermilion blinked at the brown pony and drew his hind legs in closer to his chest. He kind of wished Hazelnut hadn't brought up when he tried to save Chartreuse the second time. It was entirely his fault she had died. He shouldn't have told her to go behind the DropShips… no, that was the right call. What he should have done was gone with her. Mist's Summoner had been sturdy enough to handle any stray weapon fire, so he wouldn't have been in any danger. Vermilion had been too caught up in his unobtainable dream of being a chivalrous, noble pony that he hadn't stopped to worry about any possible dangers.

Vermilion glanced over at Hazelnut, who was still glowering slightly. He was right; Vermilion hadn't really listened to anything he had said, either. It was kind of similar to his poor decision that killed Chartreuse. He was so absorbed in his own views of himself and who he wanted to be that he hadn't actually paid any attention to what his friend was saying. "I guess if I do want to be the kind of pony others look up to, I should start now," he thought to himself. After taking a moment to collect his thoughts, he opened his mouth again.

"Chartreuse died because of me," he said. Hazelnut's head jerked to the side as if he were surprised Vermilion had decided to speak up again. "I shouldn't have let her go back to the DropShip alone. How can I be the pony I want to be if I can't even protect the ones close to me?"

Hazelnut sighed and pushed himself back into a sitting position. "That's what you've been beating yourself up over all this time? Her death wasn't your fault. Sending her back to the DropShip alone would have been the right decision had our opponents been literally anypony but Clan Draconequus. I or Obsidian likely would have made the same call, forgetting we were fighting dishonorable opponents. It doesn't mean you're incapable of protecting the ponies you love. Your immediate reaction to protect her is proof of that."

Vermilion frowned to himself. Was that true? Had he really been carrying the guilt of her death with him when it wasn't his burden? "It wasn't my fault. I didn't kill Chartreuse," he thought with relief. The calmness following this realization very nearly caused Vermilion to tear up, and he blinked his eyes rapidly to prevent this.

The guilt Vermilion had felt wasn't the only thing that had been bothering him, though. He originally wasn't going to tell Hazelnut about this, but something about the peacefulness he now felt made him change his mind. "There's one other thing. That day when I saved Sundance from Bittersweet, when I beat him senseless, I felt..." He noticed his hooves had reflexively clenched up again, and he had to take a deep breath and remove the stress from them. "It was enjoyable. In that moment, I loved the power I had over him. I don't like feeling like that. It's wrong."

Hazelnut was silent for a long moment. He scratched the bridge of his nose with one hoof then glanced out at the raging sandstorm. It felt like a long time before he replied. "That's not really an unusual feeling," Hazelnut said at last, turning back to Vermilion. "The first time most ponies experience power like that, it changes them. It's addicting." He chuckled wryly and shook his head. "I probably wouldn't have ever become a Commander if it weren't for that feeling. It's been one of the things motivating me all this time. Or, at least something similar to that.

"Feeling that doesn't make you an evil pony. Dwelling on that thought and craving power, wanting to hold the life of another pony between your hooves, now that would. Then you'd be like Bittersweet. The fact that you realize it's a harmful emotion and you feel bad about it is a good thing, isn't it?"

"Is he right? I guess I don't exactly know what emotions other ponies feel, but it still doesn't seem like a very noble thing," Vermilion thought to himself. Something must have changed in his facial expression because Hazelnut continued on.

"Or, if you want more proof that you're not terrible, think back to what I said earlier. Wanting to protect others while not expecting reimbursement proves that you're good on the inside. Don't you think so? I certainly do," Hazelnut said.

Vermilion frowned slightly to himself and nodded. "That does make sense." When he took a metaphorical step back and looked at everything Hazelnut had said, he definitely agreed with the older pony. It was still a little hard to fit into how he viewed and valued himself as a pony, but he thought he could work towards changing that. And if, as Hazelnut had said, he continued to recognize how bad the corrupting feeling of power was, then he could keep from becoming somepony like Bittersweet.

Hazelnut yawned suddenly and stretched his forelegs out to either side. "Well, I don't know about you, but I think it's about time I got some sleep. Now that the excitement of waking up to a sandstorm is over, I could really use a rest. You keep thinking about what we talked about, okay?" Vermilion nodded, and Hazelnut laid back down on the ground. "See you around sunset." With that, he closed his eyes and, within minutes, fell asleep.

The ground felt uncharacteristically comfortable as Vermilion laid down on it. The rock floor was actually quite hard, however, so he didn't think the comfort had anything to do with how he felt physically. "Wow, I actually feel... great," he thought. "I guess there might actually be some worth to me, after all. I need to remember to thank Hazelnut."

Exhaustion quickly overtook Vermilion's mind. He was in a deep sleep before he even realized it, dreaming dreams that were tranquil and untroubled for the first time in as long as he could remember.

---

A sharp gust of wind that carried with it no shortage of grit caused Vermilion to flinch. It had been wishful thinking for him to hope the sandstorm would be gone by the time he woke up. This one didn't seem to have any intention of going away; if anything, it had picked up in intensity.

Hazelnut sighed and looked up from the remnants of his breakfast. The two of them had woken up about an hour ago, and it was quite boring with nothing to do. "How long do you think this is gonna last? I don't want to sit in a cave for a week with nothing to do," he said. "The storms we've already been through lasted two days at most, but they weren't nearly as bad as this one."

Vermilion shrugged. "A few more days, maybe? I don't know anything about sandstorms."

"Me neither." Hazelnut shoved the waste from his breakfast into his packs and stood up, stretching his tired muscles. He looked as bored as Vermilion felt. "Want to explore the rest of the cave?" he asked unexpectedly.

Vermilion raised an eyebrow at him. "Is it safe?"

"Probably not, but it's better than sitting here and doing nothing," Hazelnut replied with a grin. "Besides, the storm is getting worse. I'm kind of tired of getting pelted by it."

"Me too." Vermilion sighed and ran a hoof through his mane, dislodging a shower of sand that had gotten blown into it. "Sure. Let's go."

The two of them stood up and slung their packs across their flanks. Vermilion glanced out at the dim light of the setting sun, barely visible through the cloud of dust. Their cave would be pitch black soon. While they'd always had the light of the moons to travel by, in here their options for a light source weren't quite as illuminating.

Hazelnut pulled a flashlight our of his pack; an item they received from an earlier supply cache. The one they had gotten was bright, but it only illuminated a fairly small area. "Well, let's see what happens," he said optimistically as he clicked the flashlight on and stuck it firmly between his teeth. He walked to the back of their cave, where it turned so suddenly it almost looked like there wasn't an opening at all. Hazelnut led the way through, and Vermilion followed cautiously.

Past the bend, it transitioned rapidly from a weathered, smooth-walled cave to a rough tunnel that was difficult to walk on. Pointy bits of sandstone poked out at Vermilion, and he had to be careful to not scrape his face as he squeezed past the sharp outcroppings.

The tunnel led on for a long distance, widening and shortening randomly as it went. At one point they walked out into a large cave that had entrances to countless other tunnels and crevices lining the walls, and they had to mark the floor in front of the one they left using a knife. After picking another tunnel at random, they continued on.

After what felt like half a night of exploring to Vermilion, but was probably only an hour or two, Hazelnut suddenly stopped and motioned for Vermilion to do the same. "Wait. Do you see that?" Hazelnut asked.

Vermilion stretched his neck to peer past Hazelnut down the dark tunnel. At first he wasn't sure what the older pony was talking about, but when he looked closer, there was a faint glint in the far distance. Vermilion frowned, and he exchanged a glance with Hazelnut.

Hazelnut raised his eyebrows and glanced back towards the shiny object. "Wanna check it out?"

"Sure. We've got nothing better to do," Vermilion replied. Hazelnut nodded, and he led the way towards whatever waited for them at the end of the tunnel.

Vermilion wasn't sure what it was, but he felt an oddly harrowing sensation crawl its way up his spine. He shivered and glanced behind him, but there was nothing there. What was that, and why did it feel so wrong? He pulled the cloak tighter around himself and turned back to face forward. "It was probably nothing," he thought, trying to calm himself. The odd prickling sensation persisted, but he pushed it to the back of his mind and tried to ignore it.

Hazelnut stopped at the end of the tunnel and gasped as he peered out into what looked like a hundred mirrors reflecting the light of his flashlight back at them. "Woah..."

"What is it?" Vermilion asked as he stepped up beside Hazelnut. He stopped suddenly and sucked in a breath when he saw what the brown pony had reacted to, however.

Illuminated by the light of Hazelnut's flashlight was a cavern of crystals, some as tall as buildings. The space was massive, and Vermilion thought at least two large 'Mech hangars could fit inside of it. Crystals made up the floor, the walls, and the ceiling, in addition to the ones that grew without any visible purpose.

Hazelnut tapped at one of the nearby crystals with one hoof and let out a quiet sigh. "It's just quartz, so don't get too excited. We're not suddenly rich." He glanced around the cavern and scratched his nose. "I will admit it's pretty, though."

Vermilion nodded in agreement and stepped out into the cavern, in front of Hazelnut. Every single spire of quartz caught the light of the flashlight, illuminating the entire space in blinding white light. It was the most beautiful place he had ever seen.

A sharp gasp behind Vermilion caught his attention. He was about to turn around, but the grim tone of Hazelnut's voice turned his blood to ice and made him stop. "Stop. Don't move a single muscle."

"What? What's wrong?" Vermilion asked, scared into remaining still. He felt his heart immediately start hammering in his chest, and it set his teeth on edge. The prickling feeling from earlier had become stronger, and it was now residing on the back of his neck. "What in the name of Rainbow Dash has him so scared?"

"There's a scorpion on your neck. I think it's a deathstalker," Hazelnut said quietly.

Vermilion involuntarily shuddered at hearing the name. He didn't know the first thing about arachnids, especially desert ones, but it didn't take an expert to realize something with the name "deathstalker" wasn't a friendly species of animal. "What do I do?"

"Just... stay still. I'll get it off. It'll be easier if you don't move," Hazelnut said as he took a step toward Vermilion.

Vermilion's head snapped around despite the danger, and he locked eyes with Hazelnut, who flinched back and motioned wildly for him to stop moving. "I'm not letting you do that. What if it stings you instead?"

"Stop moving! You're gonna spook it!" Hazelnut hissed. He let out a sigh and inched closer to Vermilion. "Bad things, but it might not be lethal to a pony. Might. It looks just like a deathstalker, but for all I know this could be an offshoot that developed stronger venom. They're native to Terra, not Strana, so whatever scientist brought it over might have mutated the species."

"Then I'm really not letting you touch it. I'm not putting you in danger," Vermilion said as he lifted a leg to take another step into the cavern.

"Too late," Hazelnut said as he suddenly lashed out, faster than Vermilion could react and pull away. He felt a hoof brush his neck, saw the scorpion fly out into the cavern of quartz...

And then Vermilion heard the most bloodcurdling scream he'd ever experienced.

Next Chapter: Chapter 9 Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 57 Minutes