"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
Kingdoms were in her blood, that was one thing she knew for sure. Born a princess to a kingdom that no longer existed, it was as if that part of her had all but disappeared. Perhaps there were still those alive that would remember it, remember her - but it was no longer important. She had changed, physically and mentally, from that far-off princess and she was also no longer a servant of the jungle as she had been once upon a time. She was simply herself, no affiliations, no ties, no agenda.
It was a strange feeling, but also somewhat liberating. But also slightly terrifying, like being very alone after such a long time of having constant company. Of course she wasn’t alone, not any longer. But she was not a part of the sisterhood, and that was terribly isolating. She does not speak of her troubles to her new companions, however; she does not want to be seen as any more strange than she already is with her hawk-like body.
But she knows Kingdoms, they make sense to her. And she knows she won’t be such an oddball here. If anything, she might be seen as an asset here - a tool to use for protection. That is what she is, honestly. Her body had been shaped by her previous occupation as a warrior into a battle machine. She has talons instead of hooves, hawk eyes for pinpoint precision, and powerful wings to take her enemies by surprise and outmaneuver them in aerial combat. But these days the warrior is only protecting a small herd, and so far there had been no enemies to battle; no wars to win.
And so she finds herself drawn to the Falls; the Kingdom under which her herd land is located. She has no ties to this kingdom (that she knows of) and so she feels a freedom to go here unlike the Jungle, Gates, Chamber or Valley where she has so many memories. She enters this land freely, unencumbered by such thoughts of family, war and misfortune. She feels her breath coming easy here, some light returning to her golden eyes. The autumn light falls gently on her bay hide and tawny feathers as she lets out a call to whoever might be nearby. She has no big goal in coming here, but it will be good to let her presence be known in case she is ever needed.
Aten, much like his older siblings, was a very rambunctious foal, loving every moment that his dam took him away from the safety of the herd to explore the territory once he was old enough. However, unlike his siblings, who had started to mature when they were weanlings, Aten had retained his very bold and happy personality, enjoying every moment that life had to offer at this point. His brother, Nerius, and sister, Eiria, had said that once he reached a certain age, it would be his job to either take over the herd, which would mean stealing it away from one of his siblings, or going out into the world to join a different kingdom or start a herd of his own.
But he wouldn't have to worry about that for a number of years, unless his sire, or half-brother, whoever was leading the herd at the time, decided to kick him out of the herd when he was a yearling. For right now though, Aten would just be the happy foal he was, much like his dam had been when she was his age.
On this bright day, despite the cold chills of autumn already flowing through the land, Aten kicked up his hind legs, letting out a neigh of joy as he bounded through the long grass blades. His dam, Anahi, was nearby grazing, her eyes every so often searching out the form of her son so she could keep an eye on him. Eiria would've joined them probably, but she was off in the kingdom doing who knows what, and Nerius was, so far as Aten knew, out practicing on his own for the day he would ask to become a warrior for the kingdom until he decided to leave.
Aten did think that being a warrior for the kingdom was pretty cool, but nothing he had to think about right now. He was still really young anyway; what could a foal his age do to a full-grown stallion or mare?
Not much, so the matter was shoved to the back of his mind for now. Instead, the colt skidded to a halt, rearing up as he noticed a small bird fly in front of him. The little creature hovered there for a moment, seeming to look straight at the colt before it flew off again. Aten, easily enticed, whinnied again and took off after the bird, bounding and bouncing through the grass.
Enjoying his play time with the bird, Aten raced on to catch up with the small animal, his ears perked and alert to everything around him. When he caught up with the bird, the small creature turned and looked at him again, as if it knew the colt wanted to play. Aten reared up again, kicking out his front legs in a playful fashion. Then, it was ruined.
A loud call sounded from nearby, a call that frightened the bird and startled Aten. The colt shivered a bit, wondering what stranger could be in their territory. He'd never heard that call before. It didn't sound like a member of the kingdom he lived in, at least, not from what he recalled. For a moment, Aten was torn between staying rooted to the spot where he was, racing back to his dam's side, or going to check out what had made the sound.
He definitely wasn't the brave explorer that his older sister and brother were, but he was curious enough, and as everyone knew, that could get you into trouble. Sadly, he was only a weanling, so Aten didn't see anything wrong with heading out to see who was here. As long as he stayed a fair distance away to give himself time to run, he should be okay, right?
The bay colt headed in the direction of the sound, somewhat losing his way in the process as he tried to recall the area where the sound had come from. It was somewhere he knew, but hadn't been to visit a lot. Still, he should know...
The place came to mind. Knowing what kind of environment it was, grassy but a bit slippery because of how much there was, the colt knew he had to be careful. He trotted on, getting closer and closer with each stride. When he reached the area of the territory where the stranger called out, the colt hid among the trees and bushes, peeking out from his cover to see who it was.
It was a mare, one taller than his mother and close to his sire in height. She had bay coloring, much like him, but also had a pair of wings adorning her back. The powerful, graceful tools of flight blended into her body easily, the feathers ruffling when a breeze brushed against them. She also seemed to have some sort of claws on her front hooves, but since Aten was standing behind her, he really couldn't tell.
Thinking back to her call, and noticing the slightly defeated sense her posture held, Aten felt a twinge of sadness for the mare. Was she here to look for someone? Something? He'd never seen her before, so what could she be here looking for?
His nice personality squashed any sense of curiosity and fear he had. Instead, the colt emerged from the trees and bush, looking at the mare with a bright smile on his face, "Hi. Are you lost? Is there someone here you're looking for?"
She does not like being alone and idle. It is not something she is used to and it leaves her with too much time to think about things. Like her past, with all of its tragedy. Or her present, with all of its confusion. Or her future, with all of its uncertainty. She is too old to be having new feelings and yet here she was, muddled in the middle of something she didn’t understand.
Perhaps if she had been a normal mare, the sight of a foal would awaken maternal feelings; something akin to happiness or joy. But all of her experiences surrounding “motherhood” were quite unpleasant. Her first year or so of life had been happy, she could not deny that - but they were overshadowed. And her own children, all long gone, had never known a mother’s love. Perhaps she was simply incapable of giving it.
But the boy that approaches her today is so obviously loved; he does not show fear and there is no pain or sorrow in his bright eyes. She wonders what life would be like to be so carefree. Her golden eyes watch his movements closely, as if it was all new to her (maybe it was to a degree). His words are gentle and curious and she finds her uneasiness softening. She smiles a little, the expression almost looking out of place on her feathered head. “No, I’m not lost. And I’m not looking for anyone in particular. I just came to make some friends.” She dips her head now, in greeting. “I’m Seraphina. I live south of here. Who are you?”
The mare actually talked to him! What great progress; Aten had been getting an anti-social vibe from this mare, but she had offered a response to his question. More than he could ask for really. He smiled up at the much taller horse, "I'm Aten. My mom lives up by the Cobblestone Creek with my dad and his herd. My sister and brother live with us too, but they're off doing their own jobs today, so I'm playing by myself. My mom's over nearby, says I'm not allowed to wander too far off. But I saw a pretty bird and I chased after it cause I wanted to make friends. And now I've made two new friends today!"
The foal bounded around some more before remembering he had another question or two, "You live down south? Did you come here all the way from the Jungle where the Amazons live? Or from the Deserts? My mom says that no one lives there anymore, and I think that's sad. The Deserts were beautiful from what I heard.
"Oh, my mom is probably still nearby. Do you want to meet her? Maybe she can be your friend too," Aten said, his ears going forward as he anxious awaited what the mare would say.
The hawk mare finds herself smiling despite herself during the colt’s rambling. She had never given much heed to the words of children as it was usually circumvent and half nonsense. And while the foal before he speaks (from what she can tell) is truth and not make-believe, his story is long-winded to be sure.
Her ears flick to attention, however, when he mentions the jungle. The now familiar sadness and confusion return at its mention. Would she ever call that land home again? Did she have the right? Did she want that? She gathers her thoughts and says simply “I live in Forest Frontiers with some friends. It’s near the Creek.”
But she doesn’t really want to think about that right now either. Too much going on in her head, she needs out. So she focuses on the colt’s words as they bubble forth from his little mouth. He speaks of the Deserts being empty and this piques her interest slightly for a moment, but she realizes that these things happen. Kingdoms come and go; form and reform. It was nothing new. He mentions his mother. The hawk mare shrugs a little and shifts her weight off of her back left leg. “Sure, if she isn’t busy.”
Aten hid a confused look; the Forest Frontiers? He knew of the place, at least what his dam had told him of it. From what Eiria said, she'd also been there a couple of times to check the place out, but that it hadn't been claimed by a herd stallion.
Had a herd moved in and Archam's didn't know? Aten told himself he had to inform his dam later in case she or the herd didn't know about it. Aten knew Archam didn't like a lot of stallions (his own sons and Kreios being the rare exceptions). He'd grown an even more immense hatred for them after one of his favorite mares was stolen by the stallion who'd lived in Forest Frontiers prior before heading out to the Volcanic Village.
Was this stallion just as rude? Hopefully not, for his sake; Aten had faith that his sire would do his best to protect his family and the rest of the herd, just as his dam Anahi told him soon after he'd been born.
When the mare mentioned that she would agree to see his mother, Aten whinnied with glee. He walked up to the mare and nudged her with his smaller muzzle, then trotted away a couple steps. He looked back, enticing her to follow.
"Come on then! My mom's grazing over here, along the creek!" he shouted before galloping down the small slope to where his dam was grazing.
It wasn't that long of a gallop (a number of strides down the hill, then into the trees some) before Aten spotted his dam, her beautiful champagne coat sticking out like the sun within the darkened forest of trees that lined the creek. He whinnied to get her attention, racing to her side and nuzzling her when he approached.
"Mother, I mad a new friend today! She said that she lives in the Forest Frontiers and that she wishes to meet you!" Aten babbled out, prancing around his dam, a happy look in his eyes.
Despite the never-ending fear for her children's wellbeing, Anahi had grown to be a good-natured, well-minded mare who wanted to let them grow up to be their own horse. Which is the main reason behind how she'd let Eiria head off to the Valley to see if she'd like to live there one day, and why Aten had been able to wander so far from her side. Nerius was being himself, heading out to wander the kingdom, decide if he wished to stay and train as a warrior, possibly challenging for the control of the Frontiers one day, or if he wished to move on as well, go out and explore the kingdom like Eiria.
Still, an ache existed within her heart that would never disappear. Every day, the mother horse still pined for her first foal, Sirana. The first foal she'd had after the stillborn. That foal had meant everything to her; she had been a sign of new beginnings, new hope for the future, before Archam had traded her away as part of the deal with Phaedrus. Anahi had long since dropped the grudge she held toward the stallion, for she still cared for him a great deal. They had four foals together after all. It wasn't like she could just develop a sudden immense hatred, even if he had waited so long to tell her of the deal.
Sirana was off in the Dale, with Phaedrus' herd, hopefully living a good life. Would she have carried a foal for the stallion this season? Probably not, but if she did, Anahi knew that the little one would grow up strong and powerful, just like it's mother and grandparents. She knew Sirana would be a good mother; she'd helped raise two of her younger siblings after all.
The champagne mare moved a bit closer to the creek, grazing on some of the grass that grew along the rocks. Though hard to reach at times, it was full of nutrients, constantly supplied by the water of the creek. It made this a good grazing spot, despite the slight rockiness the closer to the bank one got. Anahi was chewing on the delicious grass peacefully when she heard a familiar call; that of her youngest colt, Aten.
She lifted her head, her long golden mane falling down both sides of her neck. Her almond brown eyes searched for the bay colt, spotting him racing toward her. She finished chewing the mouthful of grass she had as the colt pranced around her, saying that he'd met a new friend and how she wished to meet Anahi.
What caught the mare off guard was that the stranger was from the Forest Frontiers. Anahi had heard a number of things about the stallion in that area; not well-liked by at least one of his mares, but then again, that rumor had been started a while back. Perhaps he'd convinced them otherwise? Then again, the mare that was here must've wanted to get away. For what reason, Anahi didn't know, but she would not pry.
So, instead, the mare, while keeping on guard, smiled at her son, "Well, that sounds quite nice. I'd like to meet this new friend of yours too," she said, eyes glowing as she watched her son prance around some more.
