"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
Taryn slowly dragged her legs through a patch of tall grass, taking her time to press each hoof into the soil and feel the ground compress beneath her. She had begun to circle the large open plains in this way. The center of the field was riddled with horses, but she approached none. Instead, she found worn paths that spanned outwards in different directions. She stuck her nose to the dirt of each one she passed. They were all the same to her, but each had the potential to lead her down a very different path. That wasn’t something she particularly cared to think about; her ears pinned to her neck at the thought. Headstrong as she was, she was determined to make her own path. She would walk to and from these fields a hundred times if that was what it took, but she would be hers and hers alone.
The soft noise of a nearby waterfall pulled Taryn from her thoughts. Her ears fell towards the noise and she continued her slow walk towards the water. As she approached, the water transitioned from a soft rumbling to a loud roar as the waters tumbled and crashed to the lake below. Taryn walked to the rocks that rose from the ground at the waterfall’s crest. She paused there and, just as she had done at the worn paths, stuck her nose to the rocks. This one was different. Her nostrils didn’t fill with dry summer air but with wet spring air. The air near the waterfall felt like the flowers had just awoken and water just broken from its winter shell. Further away from the falls, the air told another story. A more true story.
Drawn by the fantasy of the falls, Taryn planted her front hooves into the stream and paused. Mud gave way more than soil and coated her hooves in thick, cool muck. She decided to stay there, just for a while. She still needed to find a home, but knew she wouldn’t find one under the falls.
Here it comes with no warning; capsize, i'm first in the water
She wore a crown of power upon her head, and the weight of the kingdom upon her shoulders. It was a strange and unique feeling. One that gave her mixed emotions of both the new responsibility she accepted so willingly when offered to her. It was in her stomach, making her anxious, and in her heart, feeling joyful and excitement for it too. In spite of these feelings, she knew it was the right thing to do. it was the right place for her to be. Magnus would not have chosen her if he did not feel it either.
However, she cannot help but think, help but wonder what the future holds for her. Will it be grand? Will it be a complete disaster? Lucrezia wants more than anything to protect her home in Tephra and all those she has agreed to take responsibility of. This time it would not be the same when she took the crown—she would not flee.
She would fight tooth and nail for all of them and her home.
Lucrezia as of late has found herself wandering outside of Beqanna. Her thoughts often disarray her mind. Simply escaping her home for a couple of hours to meadow or field helps her ease her drifting mind. Thus, it was no different on this rather sunny summer day when she finds herself in the open wide field.
The mare allows her hooves to guide her, and maybe her sense for thirst also does too as she heads in the direction for the familiar waterfall that falls into the lake. She knows this field more than others might—she spent a great deal of her time here as a diplomat. Then again, her new position of power and responsibility did not change that.
She would always be a diplomat inside and out.
Lucrezia reaches the drinking hole at least. Instantly her head lowers and her muzzles grazes across the cool surface of water. The mare drinks for a moment, sipping as much as she can in that moment to quench her thirst.
When she is finished she lifts her head up and examines the scenery around her. Carefully, her nutmeg eyes lands on each of the horses that fill the open field on this summer day. However, her gaze quickly stays onto the black colored mare that stands not too far away from her. Lucrezia approaches the mare without a second thought.
“Hello,” she calls out when reaching the mare in a conversational distance. A smile gross across her amber champagne lips as she comes to a stop before the other horse. “Beautiful day is it not?” Her words are warm and friendly. Conversation has always come easily to her. “I’m Lucrezia,” she adds because a name to a face is always good to have but also proper when meeting others.
The cool water surrounding Taryn’s hooves let her close her eyes for a moment of relaxation. Before her mind could wander, she heard hooves approaching. Taryn’s eyes opened lazily and drifted in the direction of the approaching horse. She didn’t turn her neck, but watched from the corner of her eye.
The horse was curious, as were most here compared to Taryn. The black mare was physically boring, but she believed her mind made up the difference. In her few short years, she had played parts ranging from loyal follower to manipulative snake. Even then, she had never felt like she wasn’t being herself. Her true nature was of a dark one, but she excelled at being what her elders wanted her to be.
And what about you? She wondered as the golden horse splashed with white approached her. There were so many different kinds of horses in the world, it was impossible to make a generalization just from an appearance or even a homeland.
When the new mare greeted her, Taryn finally turned to face her. She seemed friendly enough with that smile, but Taryn was always cautious. The weather was a typical starting place for new meetings like this.
Taryn simply replied, ”Aye, it is.” Her voice was different from the others here. She was never sure why, perhaps it had come from her parents that she couldn’t remember anymore. She had been asked many times if she wasn’t from here, but she didn’t truly know the answer. The place she had come from didn’t have a name. It was littered with horses more plain and more aggressive than the ones she had encountered recently.
”Taryn,” she answered name for name. Up close, she noticed the mare was much smaller than herself. It helped her relax some, even though she knew height had little to do with anything. Taryn had been so busy over analyzing Lucrezia that she forgot she was here to find a new home. This mare could give her one if she was more trusting towards her.
She flopped her ears forward and tilted her head slightly to the left. Her voice was light and happy when she said, ”Where a' you from?”
Sinew knew the foal was overdue - long overdue, and she supposed it’d be as obstinate as the rest. It’s stubborn persistence to remain in her belly left her encumbered and cranky, and she had no idea why she decided to visit the field that day. But like the black mare unbeknownst to her, she heard the faint roar and crash of the waterfall and it sounded like wild discordant music to her ears. Okay, more or less the idea of soaking her swollen ankles in the water is what drew the small chestnut overo mare forth.
(Small might be an understatement - she’s only 14 hands high but she felt grotesquely huge in her midsection, like she carried twins or a large colt but she knew otherwise because mothers always know.)
She grunts; shoves others out of her way, or at least those less fortunate enough to scurry quickly out of her way as she barrels through their midst. None of them interest her, not really. They are too timid and temperate of nature - like mice and sheep, and she looks more for someone hotheaded and brash, or bold like herself. For a moment, she pauses - caught up in a memory, of the time she once stood here, shadowy and estranged from those that answered to their more natural herd instinct. She’d stood apart and he’d come to her, trying to wield his hand of fear and she’d squared herself up against it and just smiled slyly at him.
(Their kind don’t love much, but it had been the beginning of something and it is his get that sits stubborn and complacent in her belly.)
Sinew is so intent on cooling her heels that she barrels past the black mare and a very familiar champagne sabino mare. “Ahhh…” she says rather happily as she stands hock-deep in the water. She didn’t mind the lingering winter chill as the waterfall splashed noisily a few yards away, but she did roll a black eye back towards Lucrezia in acknowledgment before closing her eyes and lifting her face up towards the wavering light of the sun. “Lucrezia,” she says in a rather hospitable tone - must be the pregnancy that makes her more congenial than usual, though she can maintain a strong sense of diplomacy even when not at her king’s side.
An ear swiveled the black’s way as she picked up on the conversation; she made no apology for interrupting and decided to continue on with introductions since that’s apparently what she had interrupted in her haste to bask in the cold water. “I’m Sinew by the way, from Pangea.” By now, she has angled herself to face them and her black eyes seem to focus on a point somewhere between the two mares.
Here it comes with no warning; capsize, i'm first in the water
Indeed, the generalization based on another’s appearance was hard to decipher. Lucrezia from a young age had been shaped and groomed to play the role as well of a loyal follower and manipulative snake. Her father had been a master of manipulation and cunningness. She had picked up a thing or two in regards to what skills he imprinted onto her—or so what he would have liked her to have. However, she had turned out to be something completely different than he had planned for her.
Of course she would never forget their lessons, but cannot be more grateful for the skills it has given her from a step up in life. Her diplomatic skills had played one part in aiding her when it came to strangers, but overall she could only make assumptions of what another intended. Perhaps that is what always made her curious about others—she would enjoy prodding and poking through anyone’s thoughts if she could.
“Nice to meet you, Taryn,” Lucrezia gives a nod of her head and speaks in a polite manner. The mare hears the obviousness that Taryn is from another land. Most of those that lingered within the field were from another land or simply looking to go elsewhere in Beqanna. The field would always be the place for the homeless.
Her nostrils flare instantly at the familiar smell—earth and death mixed all into one. She does not like the smell one bit because she knows where it comes from. And she is already searching quickly for the source of it. The chestnut overo mare catches her attention, minding her own business, which she is thankful for. She, however, keeps an eye on the mare for just a moment and returns back to the taller black mare.
A moment that does not last that long.
Sinew quickly interrupts, addressing her personally out into the open. Her ears are quick to flicker in the direction of the chestnut overo. “Hello Sinew,” she greets. Always polite despite her personal feeling towards the place and horses Sinew associates with. And evidently, Sinew felt the need to also interrupt her conversation by allowing herself into the one she is having now with Taryn.
Lucrezia flares her nostrils, ever so softly at the annoyance of Sinew’s decision. However, she turns to look back to Taryn and answer the question she had asked earlier. “I am from Tephra.” She states. There is no need to give such a description yet, she supposes. “Are you looking for a place to stay or call home?” She asks, feeling out the black mare’s intentions before she proceeds forward.
Taryn barely gets out a, ”You too,” before another horse barrels past her to stand in the water. She lifted her neck an inch or two and tucked her chin towards her chest. It was half surprise and half irritation. Rude, the thought rattled through her brain while a smile tugged at the corner of her lips. There was a certain humor in the situation. Lucrezia seemed annoyed by their interruption which made Taryn hide her grin.
The new mare introduced herself as Sinew from Pangea and Lucrezia announced she was from Tephra. Names didn’t mean much to Taryn who was apparently unfamiliar with the land, but she could see the dislike between the two mares. She assumed the two lands they were from were very different. It was a good thing both had shown up, Taryn suddenly felt like she had real choice in where she would end up.
”I am looking for a new home, aye.” Home seemed like a rather strong word. Taryn didn’t care to be tied down anywhere, but she highly doubted that was something these two wanted to hear. She decided to push further and said, to no one in particular, ”What’s it like there?”
ooc] Sorry it's short, I tried to pump this out before class >:
Sinew hardly reeks of death; she doesn’t go bathing in pools of blood and pus as most would believe of the Pangeans. If anything, she smells like dried out leather and dust because Pangea is a desiccated wasteland. Then again, she has never cared for how she smells because it is always dusty and horsey in nature anyway.
(Nor does she associate with anyone but Pollock and their children. She tried once, but they all gave her a wide berth and she was okay with that.)
Because she is looking at some point between the two mares to begin with, she does not miss the flare of Lucrezia’s nostrils in annoyance and Sinew merely bares her teeth at the mare in a bald toothy grin. Let the mare be annoyed, the field is free to all and the black - Taryn, has not made her mind up yet to be a biddable little minion of Tephra just yet. Sinew almost gleaned a sliver of devilish merriment out of thwarting Lucrezia’s plans of an easy recruit and she took some miniscule measure of pleasure in being a thorn in the sabino’s side for the moment.
(She is well aware of the mare’s dislike of her association with Pangea, but still - they are diplomatic about it.)
Sinew directed her heavy black stare towards Taryn;
“Pangea is a wasteland, no lie. It is full of thieves and cutthroats, nightmares and night terrors, murderers and the like. There is no room for weak minds or weaker hearts, only the strong and the cunning thrive there. Pangea is barren but she is beautiful in that, in some ways.”
She tells only the truth;
Pangea was a hellhole and it found the worst in Beqanna’s horses, but above else - it asked nothing of them. It’s king might, she thought, but even he hadn’t asked much of them - only to do what they will, what they are good at.
“Quite simply, it is not for the faint of heart but she makes few to little demands of her people.”
04-16-2017, 02:15 PM (This post was last modified: 04-16-2017, 02:15 PM by Lucrezia.)
Here it comes with no warning; capsize, i'm first in the water
She does not care if her annoyance is seen by both of the other mares. Let it be known that she is not a fan of the land of Pangea. She has her own personal reasons, but she also had seen the way the Pangean king had greed for power and a mindset for what belonged to him no matter what. Lucrezia disliked that very much because she has seen and experienced those similar to the king destroy the very things she has called home and loved.
Lucrezia would not allow the world to burn around her. She would not see and find her home to sink and be flooded again.
Sinew is quick to answer to Taryn’s question about their two lands they call home. The answers is not a surprise to Lucrezia, even if the truth of the place is spilled out. It sounded a lot like the place she grew up during her childhood—the old Chamber and Valley lived on through Pangea, but the reformatted version of these two kingdoms held the newer beliefs when the world they live in now came into formation.
“A hellhole,” she offers in a humorous manner when Sinew has finished her piece.
Pangea had its own set of ideals and appeals just as Tephra did. Then again, there was likely some similarities but she does not care to compare her home with Pangea right now. Instead, she turns her attention fully onto Taryn. “Tephra is located just a little northeast from here. There is a small volcano there and its rather warm all year.” She pauses for a moment. “We are a strong group that supports one another and the land that we live in. Some would call us a family, but we are simply stronger together and our home has thrived off our values of loyalty and living in a place that simply does not have an individual mindset.”
“Of course, we are also safe haven and welcome anyone that wishes to live in a safe place too. We do not ask much either nor force you to not do anything you don’t want to do.” Tephra was not built upon demanding, but rather choices of individuals to support and protect their home and loved ones within it. Tephra came together when the new world was chaotic and everyone has lost their home. It was the very foundation of hope, and now it would continue to be so.
Bristol had heard her father talk about this new place, this Lake, and had immediately demanded a chance to go. The idea of a Kingdom just of foals a young horses sounded great – even though she is barely past weaning age, not yet six months old. Her father had smile and said she could certainly visit, but that he thought she was a little young to stay by herself. The bay filly had demanded a task to prove her readiness, and he had looked at her for a long time before agreeing that if she recruited someone to the Lake herself, perhaps she was old enough to stay there.
Of course, her efforts were greatly hampered by the fact that she isn’t allowed to go anywhere but Nerine and the Playground by herself, but then Brennen takes a trip to the Field, and so she tags along with great enthusiasm, buoyed even higher when she spots a young mare, older than herself but not old, talking to two mares not far from the young stallion her father has chosen to talk to. Half running, half flying on dark feathered wings, she bounds over to them and grins, waiting for a pause before she babbles her introduction excitedly.
“Hi! I’m Bristol, have you already introduced yourself? Sorry I’m late,” she glances at the mare with the pretty wings and at the paint before back to the girl, dark and tall and everything Bristol wants to be when she grows up. “I’m from Nerine, which is nice, but my dad is helping to start a place just for foals and young horses to be safe and learn everything they want to know before they are adults, and do training for whatever they want to be, and I was wondering if you wanted to go? It’s green and there’s this beautiful lake and I think you’d really like it.”
