01-30-2018, 05:53 PM
Down, down, down, he went. Down was all there was anymore. It was quiet and calm, with water swirling about him. Twisting him this way and that. The howling winds above had driven him here, swept him away. A cut on his leg, where he'd stumbled against something sharp, maybe coral? The water was not where it used to be, the shoreline suddenly rearranged, reorganized. The trees had formed an unlikely barrier, guiding him back from where he had used to call home. And that wind... it screamed. Driving rain had spattered against his pelt, soaking him in moments. All at once, he did not know the sand from the sea, so high had it risen. Slipping, slipping... and sliding into the water. Salt burned his eyes and coated his tongue. Filled his ears, muffled the wind's voice. There was no one to see him slip beneath the waves.
But now it was quiet. He was cold, and felt wisps of mane float past his face. The burly stallion knew he was under water, with no way to tell him which way to go to come out again. He could not see the weak light shimmering above him, cut through with whips of lightening. He could kick out, drive himself this way and that, but without some sort of guide, he'd very likely only be pushing himself deeper. Clear memory struck him. "I'll never let you drown, Hod." Her voice whispered again. His chest ached with the thought. He hadn't seen her in weeks, and perhaps that had something to do with his carelessness. He'd been distracted, isolated. And now he was surely going to drown. An icy claw of panic gripped his throat, making him thrash out with powerful limbs. A current pulled him along, dragging his spasming body with it. Air was running out. A deep ache gripped his chest, and the reality struck him. He was going to die. He was going to die, and perhaps his bloated body would wash up on a beach in a few days, maybe not. He hoped it wouldn't be Nyxa who found him. He hoped Bragi was alive, and that he'd someday forgive his brother for never seeking him. He wanted desperately to breath.
A hard bump to his hip surprised him. Was that land? Reaching down with his feet met with only more water. Sparks flew before his eyes, unconsciousness threatening heavily now. Just one breath, and he could sleep... Another hard bump, this one to his shoulder. Smooth skin brushing against his belly, pushing up against it. Against all odds, had Nyxa come to save him? His oxygen deprived brain suggested, before another caress revealed that whatever was pushing him was far broader than any horse he knew of. A shark? A whale? Sparks danced before him, resolving into a smooth spangled shape. It twisted and arced, a comet of white one a black background. Surely, this was death, coming to pull him home. The great white form came closer and closer, until there was nothing but bright whiteness. There was nothing.
There was pain. Sharp and insistent, his shoulder bore some jagged injury. His mouth was cottony and dry, tasting of sand and brine. And it hurt, all along the jaw. Realizing he had not died after all, he sucked in a greedy lungful of air, relishing it, and the likely temporary pause in the rainfall. For a long minute, he just lay there. The ache in his should was beginning to fade, though the scrape on his leg still hurt. His head felt heavy, and he wanted nothing more than to sleep for an age. But a sense of self preservation kicked in, driving him to his feet. The ache in his shoulder returned, fiercer than before. He was alive, but he needed to be seen to. And he needed shelter, soon. Exhausted after his ordeal, and not totally certain where he was now, the sopping stallion began working away from the sound of water, hoping to find a cave he could shelter in until the weather improved.
OOC: So! Using the monsoon event to bestow on Hod his Orca mimicry. He almost drowned, an Orca Shaman found him and brought him to shore, leaving a tooth in his shoulder, which was the gift that is giving him mimicry. Right now his sharp teeth are growing in, he still doesn't know about the echolocation or expanded lung capacity. Feel free to interact!
But now it was quiet. He was cold, and felt wisps of mane float past his face. The burly stallion knew he was under water, with no way to tell him which way to go to come out again. He could not see the weak light shimmering above him, cut through with whips of lightening. He could kick out, drive himself this way and that, but without some sort of guide, he'd very likely only be pushing himself deeper. Clear memory struck him. "I'll never let you drown, Hod." Her voice whispered again. His chest ached with the thought. He hadn't seen her in weeks, and perhaps that had something to do with his carelessness. He'd been distracted, isolated. And now he was surely going to drown. An icy claw of panic gripped his throat, making him thrash out with powerful limbs. A current pulled him along, dragging his spasming body with it. Air was running out. A deep ache gripped his chest, and the reality struck him. He was going to die. He was going to die, and perhaps his bloated body would wash up on a beach in a few days, maybe not. He hoped it wouldn't be Nyxa who found him. He hoped Bragi was alive, and that he'd someday forgive his brother for never seeking him. He wanted desperately to breath.
A hard bump to his hip surprised him. Was that land? Reaching down with his feet met with only more water. Sparks flew before his eyes, unconsciousness threatening heavily now. Just one breath, and he could sleep... Another hard bump, this one to his shoulder. Smooth skin brushing against his belly, pushing up against it. Against all odds, had Nyxa come to save him? His oxygen deprived brain suggested, before another caress revealed that whatever was pushing him was far broader than any horse he knew of. A shark? A whale? Sparks danced before him, resolving into a smooth spangled shape. It twisted and arced, a comet of white one a black background. Surely, this was death, coming to pull him home. The great white form came closer and closer, until there was nothing but bright whiteness. There was nothing.
There was pain. Sharp and insistent, his shoulder bore some jagged injury. His mouth was cottony and dry, tasting of sand and brine. And it hurt, all along the jaw. Realizing he had not died after all, he sucked in a greedy lungful of air, relishing it, and the likely temporary pause in the rainfall. For a long minute, he just lay there. The ache in his should was beginning to fade, though the scrape on his leg still hurt. His head felt heavy, and he wanted nothing more than to sleep for an age. But a sense of self preservation kicked in, driving him to his feet. The ache in his shoulder returned, fiercer than before. He was alive, but he needed to be seen to. And he needed shelter, soon. Exhausted after his ordeal, and not totally certain where he was now, the sopping stallion began working away from the sound of water, hoping to find a cave he could shelter in until the weather improved.
OOC: So! Using the monsoon event to bestow on Hod his Orca mimicry. He almost drowned, an Orca Shaman found him and brought him to shore, leaving a tooth in his shoulder, which was the gift that is giving him mimicry. Right now his sharp teeth are growing in, he still doesn't know about the echolocation or expanded lung capacity. Feel free to interact!