"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
kreios don't you tame your demons, but always keep them on a leash
Autmn has set the Fallls ablaze, and I never tire of looking at it. I have not lived in a place with seasons enough to grow weary of the sight, even knowing that soon winter will wither the red and yellow leaves from the trees. The morning sun shines brightly through the leaves, melting the early frost. The breath from my nose emerges as a white cloud, but I know that the day will warm rapidly.
Best to find Jedi before it is hot, I decide, I set out through the Falls to locate the bay and white stallion.
I need to teach him the borders of the kingdom, I know, and to learn what his skills are in battle – and elsewhere. There are too few members in our tiny kingdom to waste the skills of anyone. My own have been honed from birth for a life serving a kingdom, and I learned diplomacy and battle before I had even left my mother’s side. I was not good at them then, of course, but I was building the foundation. It took a magician to encourage me to speak, and a family to get me to fight. Now I am proud of my prowess in battle and ability to talk my way out of difficult situations.
“Jedi!” I call when I see a flash of white color in the distance, wondering if perhaps it is the other stallion.
The bay and white stallion was nibbling on the morning grass. The seasons were changing and snow would soon cover the ground. It would be harder to find a meal once the snow fell. The sun was not as warm as it used to be cooling the earths touch as a result. The stallion lifted his head as he heard what sounded like Kreios call his name.
He scanned the horizon until his eyes layed on Kreios, he gave a whinny and began to trot over to the king. When he reached Kreios he gave a dip of his head "Good morning Kreios, how are you doing?" the stag spoke wondering what Kreios had in mind for today.
kreios don't you tame your demons, but always keep them on a leash
The flash of white I had seen is Jedi after all (I had assumed so, but there was always the possibility that it was Neraza, back again), and I whinny a greeting across the field.
“Morning Jedi,” I reply with a friendly smile, glad to see that the other male was already up this early in the morning. Patrolling is a fulltime job, and while I’ve never complained at the task, it would be untrue to say that I am not exceedingly grateful for another with which to share the burden.
“I’m doing well,” I reply honestly, “I was getting ready for a morning patrol, and thought you might like to come along so I can show you the borders?” The kingdom is small, but it had taken me the better part of a year until I could say that I knew it well. Texas had taught me of the kingdom, and now I suppose that it is my turn to teach the next horse. Perhaps in time there will be enough of us that we can share the burden; I can only hope.
The stag scanned over Kreios, he was one of the tallest horses he has seen. He was an intimidating view to behold. Although Jedi was not the tallest or the bulkiest, he could hold his own. He chose the warrior caste and was more than excited to protect the kingdom. He wanted to earn his stay, his protection, his new family. He would do all he could to protect the Falls from danger.
Kreios brought up a patrol and Jedi thought it was a great idea "yes, of course Id love to." he spoke with excitement, he will finally learn the border of the lands and what his tasks will be exactly. He was sure that patrolling every day by yourself had to be a handful, but with Jedi there to help the king would have time to himself and less stress to protect the kingdom. Jedi gave a small prance and moved forward about ten steps ready to learn his Caste staring intently at Kreios.
kreios don't you tame your demons, but always keep them on a leash
Jedi seems eager to learn, and I smile. It is good to have someone enthusiastic about learning – I know that I was not so eager when I was first learning the edges of my childhood home. “Very well,” I say, “Let’s start!”. I step forward, ready to begin a trip ‘round the kingdom. I walk as I talk, keeping pace with the other stallion.
“Our kingdom begins at the waterfall, which is itself a meeting point of two rivers – flowing south from the Tundra, and east from the Chamber.” I gesture in the direction of the distant kingdoms, wondering as I do so when it will be time to travel up those rivers and engage in political discussions with the leaders of the kingdoms. Shaking away the thought, I continue. “The river that flows from the Falls makes up our southern border. The herd land of Cobblestone Creek run along the opposite bank, and south of that is the Forest Frontier.” There are other herd lands, I know, but they have been abandoned for any number of reasons. Horses no longer dwell on the Wildflower Plateau, or on the edges of the Crystal Cascade.
“Where the river forks in the east, that is our western border. There is no defined northern border between ourselves and the Tundra, so if you find yourself getting cold, consider yourself at the northern border.” I smile at that; I’ve been a bit chilly on more than one occasion, but sightings of the Brotherhood are few and far between – they stay inside the protection of their snow wall.
We’ve made good progress as I’ve talked, and have followed a narrow trail the entire way. It wraps around the entire kingdom, and has been worn deep by the passage of thousands of hooves. The Falls was not always so small as it is now, after all. Our army is so small, just the two of us, and the thought reminds of the other half of our tasks.
“What sort of battle experience do you have, Jedi? What were you up to before you came to the Falls?” for all I know he is a native of Beqanna and has served in the army of another kingdom. Or perhaps he is a wanderer from the land outside this country.
The stallion was excited to begin learning about his new job in the kindom. He felt important and desired, all he wanted was to help protect his home. He traveled along side Kreios as he began telling him about his job, soaking in all the details. His eyes scanned the area looking for any intruders or suspicious activity. He listened as Kreios spoke about the chambers and the tundra kingdoms, taking in there scent trying to memorize it in case he ran into a kingdom horse other than his own.
Jedi stopped walking as the king asked him of his past, he shuddered in agony thinking about it. All the blood....the lives lost..as a foal Jedis herd was attacked by a group of loners. It was a malicious attack and blood was shed, his own mother had died that day. He was lucky to have made it out alive along with a few other horses. Jedi was only a yearling at the time and had no chance against the full grown stags. He wondered what the lands looked like now, did anyone live there? Was there a purpose to there attacks, other than the pure idea of blood shed. He shook the thoughts out of his head and snapped back to reality. "I traveled alone for a few years. I have gotten into a few fights in my time, most of them were about the same size as me" he explained, he was not as much a fighter rather than a peace keeper, but Jedi knew the kingdom hurt for warriors and he was more than capable of fighting. "I have rarely lost, I think it is because I am willing to give my life to win a battle" truthfully the stag did not fear death, he would die to protect his pride, and now, his kingdom. "The kingdom seems pretty peaceful, has there ever been a serious attack on the kingdom?" Jedi was curious to the history of the kingdom, Ygritte spoke of a war that was going on and the Falls stayed neutral. Was it because there warriors lacked in numbers, or because the other kingdoms are purely stronger?
kreios don't you tame your demons, but always keep them on a leash
We had been doing well, I think, two stallions patrolling the lands that they will protect. I can tell that my question about the past had been a poorly chosen one though, and I hope that the misstep on my part does’nt jepordize the relationship between the two of us. It is always good for a king and his men to be friendly,and living in a kingdom comprised primarily of women (while enjoyable) is at times stressful. I have been looking forward to having another stallion in the kingdom.
I falter, nearly saying “No, it’s alright, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to”, but it seems as though Jedi is stealing himself to say it, and so I do not. I do not interrupt, even though whatever the overo is remembering is clearly painful. I simply wait, a frown of concern marring my pale face.
Jedi finaly says that he travelled alone, and I get the feeling that whatever tragedy he was remembering had happened before those years. That I will never delve into again – I know when a horse has been pushed too far – but I am grateful to hear what he does share with me. I’m pleased that he has some experience, and that is obvious in my smile and nod. “A good quality to have,” I tell him truthfully, “Though Ygritte and I will do our best to ensure that no one is ever asked to give their lives for the Falls.” I too, am willing to die to protect who and what I love, but there are almost always other ways, things that can be solved with diplomacy and negotiation rather than bloodshed.
He asks about the history of the kingdom, and while I know what Texas has told me, I am not as familiar with this land’s history as I am with the stories of the kingdoms in which I was raised. “not in recent memory,” I say, not in my lifetime, or even those of my parent’s. “The kingdom has been invaded a handful of times – by the Dale and by the Amazons most recently – but they were trying to revive the kingdom rather than conquer it.”
Jedi listened to Kreios speak about the history of the Falls, no major attacks, that was good; but it could also mean one in the future. The thoughts of his childhood was shooting in his mind and his body shuttered at the image. He pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind, trying to forever lock them away as he has done for many years. Kreios kept his feelings to himself for the most part and he wondered what life was like for him before being king. Was Kreios born royal? Or did he work his way up to get were he was. Although the stag wondered his past it was none of his business and he would not press for information.
The stag gave a nod of his head "Thats good that the Falls hasnt been in a major war" he truly meant it. "Kreios, what is your favorite part of being the king?" the stag truly loved his position at the Falls, being a warrior was very rewarding. He wondered if Kreios chose his position, and if he loved it. Of course it is a hard task to be the king of any kingdom, but if you love it it should all be worth it. Jedi was trying hard to become one of the kingdoms best warriors and he was ready to learn all tasks at hand. If a war was ever to come to the Falls Jedi would be at the front of the line ready to defend.
kreios don't you tame your demons, but always keep them on a leash
“Not in my lifetime,” I agree. There were time before, of course, but though I am no young foal, they were far before my time. Not before Texas’, I think, but the former king was an old creature, blessed with immortality and a penchant for returning to the Falls.
Though I can see that something bothers Jedi, I do not feel it is my place to pry. Being in touch with one’s emotions was not considered a strength in my family, and while I do hope that whatever Jedi is dealing with passes, I do not know how to even begin to offer to help. Some horses do not like to speak of the past.
When the bay and white stallions asks what my favorite part of being king is, I take a while to answer. We have made our way around almost the entire kingdom during our conversation, but I want to think on my answer, to be able to give Jedi the truest response.
“Being able to protect the kingdom,” I finally reply. “That is my favorite part. Knowing that Texas – the old king – trusted Ygritte and I to look after the lands and the residents.” Since childhood, my desire to protect others has been strong. I was not protected – at least not from the taunts of my brother and the dislike of my father – and that stirred within a sense of responsibility that was uncharacteristic. It had made me want to become a herd stallion rather than simply a kingdom member.
“I wasn’t raised here, but I grew to love the place.” It is a good kingdom, I think, and growing every day. We’ve nearly returned to our starting point in the broad meadow – a successful patrol.
“Well,” I say with a small smile, “That’s the border.” That portion of the kingdom introduction is over, now I suppose it’s time for the other half of the responsibilities of a kingdom horse. “You’ve got some battle experience already, so I don’t think we need to mock if you don’t want to, but if you’d like to, I’m always up for the exercise.”
Jedi listened as Kreios spoke about the kingdom, he could tell his words were true and that he truly loved the Falls. He was curious to his horses past, every equine had history that they probably didnt want to share. Unless they were born in these lands they are probably running from something, life keeps moving even if you are not ready to. "words of a wise king" Jedi chuckled appreciative that this stag was a positive and truthful one.
They continued to walk, stopping as Kreios began to talk about the border, they had already finished there walk around the border, it took a few hours, the suns position had adjusted in the sky. It would not take all day to walk the border, but something that should be handled with care. The stag looked as Kreios spoke about doing a mock battle, he looked him over, not that Jedi was nervous, but he wasnt to keen on fighting this powerful stag. He gave an emotionless look, attempting to hide his slight nerves "only if you want to" Jedi has battled before, with bigger horses as well, but battling his King did not sound to exciting to him.
