and I discovered that my castles stand
upon pillars of salt and pillars of sand
Most residents of the Falls aren’t particularly prone to galloping though the kingdom, so the sound of quick hooves causes the bay stallion to turn away from his idle grazing and toward the soruce of the sound.
It’s a mare that he’s never seen before, but if her wincing is anything to judge by she’s probably here for some injury. If her kingdom doesn’t have a say in running the Falls she’s out of luck per the wishes of the king and queen, but Texas moves toward her regardless to see what it is she wants. The news of an attack on the Gates causes even the hard-to-ruffle bay stallion to raise a brow, but since as far as he knows the kingdom is unoccupied, he can’t bring himself to care overmuch. A few injured probably means the entire kingdom though, and Texas glances over his shoulder in hopes that either Shatter Me or Tiberios will appear. Texas isn’t at all inclined to give up the water when its not in his own interest, and since to do so would be against the express wishes of the monarchs, he’d rather have them be the ones to share the hard truth.
But they do not appear, and the blue roan mare is asking to take back water to the Gates, having heard from Chezter that they are magical. The mention of the stallion that had tried to woo Eld is surprising, since he’d thought the chestnut long gone, but his expression doesn’t change.
“King Tiberios and Queen Shatter Me have made the decisions to only share the healing water with those kingdoms we are allied with. We have no alliance with the Gates, and even if we did, how exactly do you plan to carry water back to your kingdom?” That their Mother Tree – their magical entity like the Waterfall is thiers – is surprising. The attack must have been fierce, or perhaps the Gates was simply weak and susceptible.
texas
