01-22-2020, 01:15 AM
He thought it was done; oh how foolish could he be? He should have known better; nothing like this is every done that easy. Aten stood there in pain for a moment, his wounds bleeding and leaving a trail down his skin as his blood fell to the ground. His newly formed horn was sore from it’s use in stabbing Archam’s chest, but it wasn’t much compared to the rest.
And then, in the blink of an eye, literally, it was gone. One moment, he was in great pain, the next, it was as if the fight never happened. He knew magic was a strange thing, but he hadn’t experienced anything like this before. The only thing wrong was the darkness that surrounded him. It was a void, empty, endless, and if not for his shock at the pain disappearing, Aten would’ve begun swinging his limbs violently in an effort to find the ground again.
The Plain reappeared beneath his hooves, and for a moment, Aten thought everything was now at peace. But then another horse appeared from between the pillars, and this one, well… he had no words, much less a thought process going through his brain.
The horse that appeared between the pillars was… him. A perfect mirror copy of the golden stallion, minus the new horn on his head. Same flowing mane, same golden color, same rock-solid hooves… and, as he was about to find out, like Archam… the same gifts.
Aten and his copy hardly exchanged a glance before the copy allowed the gifts he possessed, Aten’s gifts, to take over, his coat hardening like a diamond and shifting into dragon scales. His hooves turned into the familiar four-clawed paws, and his mouth and nostrils began billowing steam as his chest cavity’s temperature increased.
Aten swore under his breath… how many of these fights would he have to go through? How many of his own demons would he have to keep facing before he finally surrendered to the knowledge that he would possibly never get over them? Whoever was behind this whole mess had a twisted sense of humor, that was for sure.
Little did he know that this could potentially be a test, but he wasn’t concerned about that.
The golden copy let out a bellow that was between a rage-filled whinny and a pained growl, no doubt from the beast stirring in his blood, before charging at the real one. Aten reared up and met it in the middle, lashing out with his front hooves, his bachelor’s nature coming out strong. His tender flesh was no match for the claws his copy sported however, screaming in pain as he felt them tear through his skin and the muscle and tissue underneath.
One claw caught him on the junction between his elbow and breast bone, getting stuck for a few moments and taking a big portion of skin and muscle with it. The golden stallion’s cry was loud enough to shatter glass, blood gushing from the wound and spilling down his chest before hitting the ground and turning it a dark burgundy. In response, Aten’s teeth met the copy’s crest, gripping as hard as he could so that when the copy fell away from Aten’s body, leverage would take over and the copy’s skin would break too.
That plan worked, for Aten’s mouth suddenly became filled with blood, spitting it out with disgust and cringing at the metallic taste on his tongue. He faced the copy, and decided to take charge this time, galloping toward him with the intent on lashing out with his teeth.
The two stallions danced around each other like feuding bachelors over a filly, hooves, teeth, and claws attacking skin without hesitation. So much blood was on the ground, and indistinguishable from each other’s, one might question why neither stallion was dead. Aten’s body ached, and he knew he had to do something.
There was only one thing though…
Letting out a breath, Aten charged again, the copy rising on it’s hind legs to meet him. Aten’s horn was in position, and, much like last time, he stabbed the copy in it’s chest. At that moment, however, it’s claws came down and stabbed Aten’s eyes, the golden stallion seeing white for a moment before everything went dark.
He tried to stay standing, but his body had enough… he went down, slowly, hearing a thump as the copy did the same…
Darkness… could be a welcoming friend…
And then, in the blink of an eye, literally, it was gone. One moment, he was in great pain, the next, it was as if the fight never happened. He knew magic was a strange thing, but he hadn’t experienced anything like this before. The only thing wrong was the darkness that surrounded him. It was a void, empty, endless, and if not for his shock at the pain disappearing, Aten would’ve begun swinging his limbs violently in an effort to find the ground again.
The Plain reappeared beneath his hooves, and for a moment, Aten thought everything was now at peace. But then another horse appeared from between the pillars, and this one, well… he had no words, much less a thought process going through his brain.
The horse that appeared between the pillars was… him. A perfect mirror copy of the golden stallion, minus the new horn on his head. Same flowing mane, same golden color, same rock-solid hooves… and, as he was about to find out, like Archam… the same gifts.
Aten and his copy hardly exchanged a glance before the copy allowed the gifts he possessed, Aten’s gifts, to take over, his coat hardening like a diamond and shifting into dragon scales. His hooves turned into the familiar four-clawed paws, and his mouth and nostrils began billowing steam as his chest cavity’s temperature increased.
Aten swore under his breath… how many of these fights would he have to go through? How many of his own demons would he have to keep facing before he finally surrendered to the knowledge that he would possibly never get over them? Whoever was behind this whole mess had a twisted sense of humor, that was for sure.
Little did he know that this could potentially be a test, but he wasn’t concerned about that.
The golden copy let out a bellow that was between a rage-filled whinny and a pained growl, no doubt from the beast stirring in his blood, before charging at the real one. Aten reared up and met it in the middle, lashing out with his front hooves, his bachelor’s nature coming out strong. His tender flesh was no match for the claws his copy sported however, screaming in pain as he felt them tear through his skin and the muscle and tissue underneath.
One claw caught him on the junction between his elbow and breast bone, getting stuck for a few moments and taking a big portion of skin and muscle with it. The golden stallion’s cry was loud enough to shatter glass, blood gushing from the wound and spilling down his chest before hitting the ground and turning it a dark burgundy. In response, Aten’s teeth met the copy’s crest, gripping as hard as he could so that when the copy fell away from Aten’s body, leverage would take over and the copy’s skin would break too.
That plan worked, for Aten’s mouth suddenly became filled with blood, spitting it out with disgust and cringing at the metallic taste on his tongue. He faced the copy, and decided to take charge this time, galloping toward him with the intent on lashing out with his teeth.
The two stallions danced around each other like feuding bachelors over a filly, hooves, teeth, and claws attacking skin without hesitation. So much blood was on the ground, and indistinguishable from each other’s, one might question why neither stallion was dead. Aten’s body ached, and he knew he had to do something.
There was only one thing though…
Letting out a breath, Aten charged again, the copy rising on it’s hind legs to meet him. Aten’s horn was in position, and, much like last time, he stabbed the copy in it’s chest. At that moment, however, it’s claws came down and stabbed Aten’s eyes, the golden stallion seeing white for a moment before everything went dark.
He tried to stay standing, but his body had enough… he went down, slowly, hearing a thump as the copy did the same…
Darkness… could be a welcoming friend…