09-27-2018, 09:20 AM
It was a place she'd heard many tales about, but had a hard time believing. Until she was tempted to see it for herself. She figured it's location was true since she hadn't seen it on the mainland, but looking at it now, in the distance, she almost couldn't believe she was trying this. Well, at least she wouldn't have to wait for the sandbar to appear, thanks to the wings on her back.
Making the decision to visit this place had not been an easy one, mostly because of what had happened last time she'd paid a visit to an allied kingdom of Nerine. The mare who'd greeted her had been somewhat insulted that Nalia hadn't shown up with a potential recruit to offer them, but in the filly's defense, she had not known anybody there. What kind of recruiter would she be if she showed up with a new horse to a kingdom where she did not officially know any of it's residents?
Hopefully the members of this kingdom would be a bit more understanding.
Nalia set off for the island string early in the morning, flying to the coast line down past Hyaline and near the River to take a break so it wouldn't be a straight shot flight. Had she gone from her own home to the island kingdom, it would've taken a lot more time, and way more of her energy. She didn't want to risk passing out as soon as her hooves touched the ground upon her arrival. That wouldn't look very good would it?
So, once she felt somewhat ready to tackle this, the filly opened her wings and took to the sky, flying over the ocean in the direction of the island kingdom. The distance was much shorter, but still a decent flight, something that allowed Nalia to have some fun on her journey. She would fly low to the water a couple of times, lowering one of her hooves to drag it through the ocean and kick up a spray of water that tickled her wings and flanks. Other times, she would fly high over the ocean, then dive down toward the water, pulling up at the last second to kick up the water in a display while performing a flip or two. It was an easy way for her to amuse herself, performing tricks like this, and it made the time pass quickly by the time her destination finally came into sight.
In the near distance, the island kingdom glistened like an emerald against the ocean's blue color, it's luscious environment promising to make this quite an experience. The filly's wings unfurled further so she could glide over the ocean, lowering her body so she was within a few feet of touching the water with her hooves as she got closer and closer to the island. She didn't exactly know where the border would've started or ended, since this kingdom was a unique case to Beqanna, so she would just give it her best guess. Now she just hoped she wouldn't mess this up in any way.
When she got within touching distance of the sand, the filly flapped her wings to slow down, her hooves landing on the ground with a soft thud and some sand kicking up from the impact. Flapping her wings to get rid of the water that accumulated there, giving her head and neck a shake from the long flight, the filly took in a deep breath, noting how, even Nerine being surrounded on most sides by the ocean, the scent here seemed completely different.
Her eyes drifted up to the trees that stood between her and the kingdom's heart, quickly becoming mesmerized by the beautiful flora that grew here. She figured she hadn't seen the best of it yet, but it didn't matter, she was blown away by it all the same. Walking forward with a calm gait, the filly continued to look around curiously, wondering what the names were for these plants since she had never seen any like them before.
The trees near where she landed weren't incredibly thick, so it was easy for the filly to get to the other side and see what lay there. When she emerged, her eyes went wide again, her mouth dropping open in a surprised gasp. Stretching out in front of her was a small water pool, not like the ocean she guessed since the life here needed fresh stuff to drink. A multitude of birds were also in the area, talking to each other among the trees in their own unique language. Nalia had seen birds before, but just like the trees, never before had she seen anything like this. In addition to their uniquely different way of speaking, the volume their voices took, their wings were a multitude of beautiful, bright colors, making her wonder how they survived on the mainland if they looked this way before they migrated here.
Feeling a sudden pressure on her croup, Nalia turned her head, seeing that a small bird with red and blue colored feathers had landed there, preening it's feathers and stretching it's wings out before turning it's curious gaze to look at the filly. Without moving her body, Nalia stretched out her neck to try and catch the bird's scent, flaring her nostrils when the creature let out a squawk and spread it's wings. Laughing at the display, Nalia spread out her own wings a little to try and startle the creature, something that kinda worked when the bird's eyes went wide at seeing she had wings too. With another squawk, the bird flapped it's wings and flew to one of the nearby trees, causing Nalia to laugh before she refocused her thoughts.
She didn't want to traverse too deep into the kingdom without letting someone know she was here, but at the same time, she didn't want to just wait here. Problem was, what if she called out and someone who was a bit more on the defensive side came to meet her? Would she get the chance to explain why she was here? Wait, why was she worrying so much about this? She didn't even know who lived here yet. She had names and some descriptions, but not really in depth personalities. Should she worry so much about that then?
Shrugging her shoulders, the filly started walking around the pool, taking it slow so that she wouldn't get toward the kingdom's heart too fast. She wanted to wait and give it a little time before she either called out or proceeded on her own. As she walked, to busy herself, she started looking at the plants and wildlife again, still astounded by all that lived here.
"Wow..." she muttered aloud, "So this is Ischia..."
Making the decision to visit this place had not been an easy one, mostly because of what had happened last time she'd paid a visit to an allied kingdom of Nerine. The mare who'd greeted her had been somewhat insulted that Nalia hadn't shown up with a potential recruit to offer them, but in the filly's defense, she had not known anybody there. What kind of recruiter would she be if she showed up with a new horse to a kingdom where she did not officially know any of it's residents?
Hopefully the members of this kingdom would be a bit more understanding.
Nalia set off for the island string early in the morning, flying to the coast line down past Hyaline and near the River to take a break so it wouldn't be a straight shot flight. Had she gone from her own home to the island kingdom, it would've taken a lot more time, and way more of her energy. She didn't want to risk passing out as soon as her hooves touched the ground upon her arrival. That wouldn't look very good would it?
So, once she felt somewhat ready to tackle this, the filly opened her wings and took to the sky, flying over the ocean in the direction of the island kingdom. The distance was much shorter, but still a decent flight, something that allowed Nalia to have some fun on her journey. She would fly low to the water a couple of times, lowering one of her hooves to drag it through the ocean and kick up a spray of water that tickled her wings and flanks. Other times, she would fly high over the ocean, then dive down toward the water, pulling up at the last second to kick up the water in a display while performing a flip or two. It was an easy way for her to amuse herself, performing tricks like this, and it made the time pass quickly by the time her destination finally came into sight.
In the near distance, the island kingdom glistened like an emerald against the ocean's blue color, it's luscious environment promising to make this quite an experience. The filly's wings unfurled further so she could glide over the ocean, lowering her body so she was within a few feet of touching the water with her hooves as she got closer and closer to the island. She didn't exactly know where the border would've started or ended, since this kingdom was a unique case to Beqanna, so she would just give it her best guess. Now she just hoped she wouldn't mess this up in any way.
When she got within touching distance of the sand, the filly flapped her wings to slow down, her hooves landing on the ground with a soft thud and some sand kicking up from the impact. Flapping her wings to get rid of the water that accumulated there, giving her head and neck a shake from the long flight, the filly took in a deep breath, noting how, even Nerine being surrounded on most sides by the ocean, the scent here seemed completely different.
Her eyes drifted up to the trees that stood between her and the kingdom's heart, quickly becoming mesmerized by the beautiful flora that grew here. She figured she hadn't seen the best of it yet, but it didn't matter, she was blown away by it all the same. Walking forward with a calm gait, the filly continued to look around curiously, wondering what the names were for these plants since she had never seen any like them before.
The trees near where she landed weren't incredibly thick, so it was easy for the filly to get to the other side and see what lay there. When she emerged, her eyes went wide again, her mouth dropping open in a surprised gasp. Stretching out in front of her was a small water pool, not like the ocean she guessed since the life here needed fresh stuff to drink. A multitude of birds were also in the area, talking to each other among the trees in their own unique language. Nalia had seen birds before, but just like the trees, never before had she seen anything like this. In addition to their uniquely different way of speaking, the volume their voices took, their wings were a multitude of beautiful, bright colors, making her wonder how they survived on the mainland if they looked this way before they migrated here.
Feeling a sudden pressure on her croup, Nalia turned her head, seeing that a small bird with red and blue colored feathers had landed there, preening it's feathers and stretching it's wings out before turning it's curious gaze to look at the filly. Without moving her body, Nalia stretched out her neck to try and catch the bird's scent, flaring her nostrils when the creature let out a squawk and spread it's wings. Laughing at the display, Nalia spread out her own wings a little to try and startle the creature, something that kinda worked when the bird's eyes went wide at seeing she had wings too. With another squawk, the bird flapped it's wings and flew to one of the nearby trees, causing Nalia to laugh before she refocused her thoughts.
She didn't want to traverse too deep into the kingdom without letting someone know she was here, but at the same time, she didn't want to just wait here. Problem was, what if she called out and someone who was a bit more on the defensive side came to meet her? Would she get the chance to explain why she was here? Wait, why was she worrying so much about this? She didn't even know who lived here yet. She had names and some descriptions, but not really in depth personalities. Should she worry so much about that then?
Shrugging her shoulders, the filly started walking around the pool, taking it slow so that she wouldn't get toward the kingdom's heart too fast. She wanted to wait and give it a little time before she either called out or proceeded on her own. As she walked, to busy herself, she started looking at the plants and wildlife again, still astounded by all that lived here.
"Wow..." she muttered aloud, "So this is Ischia..."