"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
01-16-2020, 11:17 PM (This post was last modified: 01-22-2020, 12:51 AM by Meyer.)
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He is not sure what happened to him before he woke up. It was right before winter - the ground was cold and hard, the grass brown and tasteless, hardly nourishing. It was night, the moon and stars obscured by the clouds. He can still feel the thundering of his lonely, uncertain heart. The hollow, aching sense of loss that set him gasping for air. It was not just that he was alone - it was that he knew with every certainty that there was something, someone, there before. Sometimes, if he closes his eyes and concentrates hard, he can nearly focus in on the shadows of the memories he knows have to be there …
Straightening his neck with the frustrated sigh of the sleepless, the lithe yearling unfolds and stretches, leaving the protection of the cave he had inhabited for the duration of winter. The sky has already begun to lighten, though the sun will not be up for some time yet. He moves south first, toward the rugged, blood-soaked lands he had explored only once. The paths are familiar, though now they are boggy in some places. The Field had been frequented by few others through the cold months, an attribute that had kept Meyer in place. When it had become apparent that he would only find strangers in the faces that he did see, he had taken to avoiding the others altogether, but it has proven more difficult since the season changed.
A mile or so south, he swings east and then turns back north. No one has ever followed him but he cannot remember the last time he did not feel like he was being watched. He scoffs, muscles warm beneath his shedding coat. Someone would have to care about him to care about where he went. The soft ground sucks and pulls at his hooves, splashing and coating his sides and underbelly as he jogs back toward the main Field. If he can make it back to the lake before dawn, he can have a drink and a swim.
There are too many of them. His light amber eyes flick from one to the other, some just as plain as he, others dark or brightly ostentatious. Sweat-streaked and mud-caked, he hovers on the forest fringes, long legs shifting underneath him. Discomfort and indecision curl in his belly, his short tail worrying his hindquarters. He cannot stay on his own forever, but the idea of living in society is a daunting one …
Residents of Taiga who were familiar with the golden-coated colt knew very well the bubbly personality he showed on a daily basis when he was in a good mood. He always found something bright and happy about each season, whether it was the fun sensation of kicking up the snow to see how much he could get in the air, galloping through Taiga's redwoods and listening to the crunch of leaves beneath his hooves that littered the ground, or, in a case like today, racing everywhere as fast as he could while celebrating the return of spring to the land.
And with that, the opportunity to once again venture out of the kingdom. Only this time, it was even better, for neither of his parents had said it was required that they accompany him. Now a two-year-old and growing fast, Kalil had expressed his desire to venture out of Taiga come springtime to his sire and dam. He had been out of the kingdom in seasons past, but either his sire or dam had accompanied him for safety reasons, so they had said. Yes, compared to a lot of horses here, Kalil was still young, but he was starting to grow tall like his sire, his body was developing well, and, adding butter to the bread, he technically wasn't alone since he had Amica with him, as always.
The marbled cat, having already been her full size when she and Kalil first met, still remained his constant companion except in very rare cases, most of them being when she went off to hunt her next meal. Kalil would sometimes go after her, wondering how a predator like her hunted, but never found it the most exciting of experiences, especially since he couldn't imagine what about blood and meat seemed so appetizing.
Of course, why would he? His species wasn't built for it.
With Kalil's increasing size, Amica found it much easier to sit on his withers and back, the space now able to accommodate her sitting rather than standing and trying to balance while the colt was galloping. She was also used to the motions of his body when he was racing across the land, so even standing now didn't present difficulty. And at least now she wouldn't have to run alongside him like when he was still a newborn. Never again would she try to hitch a ride on another horse unless it was Aten. Even a cat like her could understand he didn't mind other species since he seemed to have a similar partnership with that raptor.
On the first day of spring, Kalil had spent all his time racing through Taiga's lands, showing Ruth some spots that were much more beautiful now that the snow melted, along with going to the river and smashing some of the remaining ice with his hooves. The colt's legs thundered over the ground now, much like his sire, Kalil's stature greatly resembling Aten when he was the same age. No doubt the colt would grow to look just as handsome and well-put together, the main things retained from his dam being the darkening markings on his legs and the darker streaks in his mane that were slowly turning so dark they could be black.
When he had his fill, Kalil immediately sought out his parents to let them know his next step. With the add on that Amica would accompany him, before his parents could request that, Aten and Lethia wished their colt well and sent him off, with the promise that he would return within three sun's time. Deciding to agree, since it seemed reasonable, Kalil left early morning so that he would be near the field before nightfall. Lowering the front half of his body by folding his front legs, Amica jumped on the colt's back and hung on as he took off for the Field, weaving in and out of the trees that formed the large line of Taiga's border.
The pair passed time on their journey with pleasant conversation, along with telling stories and describing their lives and species, what they didn't know yet at least. Kalil learned that there were other marbled cats that lived in Beqanna, but they were more solitary, which explained why he had only seen one or two near Taiga besides Amica. He envied the feline for her ability to traverse Taiga's redwoods as easily as a squirrel, attributing it to her small size, weight, and very long tail.
Meanwhile, if anything, Amica envied Kalil for his speed, since she quite enjoyed the wind in her face while running with the colt.
On their first night of travel, the pair settled among a small cluster of trees for shelter, though the pleasant weather didn't speak of an oncoming storm. Being a mostly nocturnal creature, Amica watched for danger while Kalil slept, though his species' own short patterns meant the pair could switch off so they both got some rest. Upon morning's arrival, Kalil grazed while Amica hunted so she could satisfy her belly for the remainder of their trip.
When they reached the Field early the next morning, Kalil almost couldn't contain himself. Amica kneaded one of her paws against his withers, reminding him he should at least try to maintain some control. However, her words fell on deaf ears, so to speak, as the colt crow-hopped and gave a small buck before takin off at an easy lope through the tall Field grass.
Purring with affection at the colt's infectious energy, she glanced all around, grateful that Kalil's height helped her see over the grass. Clusters of horses littered the Field here and there, the majority of them, mostly with wide bellies, grazing on the fresh food. From Kalil's explanations, the ones who looked like they'd swallowed a boulder were close to delivering their little ones. Amica's own instincts turned at that, for she herself was capable of doing the same but she had not yet found a mate of her own.
The marbled cat's train of thought was lost as Kalil continued on, jumping over a small stray tree trunk that lay hidden in the grass. Only through sheer instinct was Amica able to hang on, her claws digging into the colt's skin to do so. If Kalil was bothered, he didn't show it, but nevertheless Amica gently kneaded her paws on the shallow wounds as a show of apology.
At some point in their travel, Amica's keen eyes spotted something off in the distance. Without alerting the colt, and wanting to investigate, the marbled cat jumped off his back and became lost in the grass. Mumbling through their shared minds that she was going to investigate, Kalil said he'd at least stay nearby so they could reach each other if needed. The feline barely registered that as she got closer to the animal she'd spotted.
Nearly invisible among the grass unless one knew to look for her spots, the feline's eyes were focused on the new horse, as she now identified it. It appeared to be younger than Kalil, despite being tall itself, and had a much different coat color. If she had to compare it to something, this horse had coloring similar to Lilliana, just with a much darker mane and tail. It also had a small marking on it's forehead, along with some light hair around it's lower legs.
Amica didn't know much about reading expressions of other horses, but something about this one hit different with her. Reaching out to the golden colt, she informed him of what she saw, feeling the vibrations in the ground as Kalil got closer when he headed in their direction.
Stopping next to the marbled cat so she was somewhat hidden by his legs, Kalil, having slowed down to avoid startling the other young colt, tilted his head curiously before he spoke, "Hey there, you all right? You seem pretty exhausted. Did you just finish a long journey?"
