[PRP] Echoes in the Void (Echo's Song x Dradneos) [[FIN]]

[tefla]

Pain. It was something that the mare felt with every step of her weary mind. It was not the pain that one would associate with injury but that of another kind just as debilitating. Heartache - pain of the heart. Call it what you would and Echo's Song could tell you all about it. The dark-coat of the mare sparkled briefly in the sudden flash of luminescence as the wind and rain buffeted her form. The answering crash of thunder did nothing to deter the mare from her wandering course.

She was alone. Her son had finally gained enough knowledge to seek out a life of his own and her daughter - well Echo didn't want to think about that. Delphina had left with her father, Tyzaeph. Perhaps it was the shock of the sudden separation but Echo grieved for the daughter she barely got to know. And now she was gone from her life.

Finally ceasing her forward motion Echo glanced about her surroundings before her body sank to the ground to wait out the storm. Her eyes closed as she let her consciousness sink into darkness.  

[tefla]

At first Echo was not sure what had disrupted her slumber. Maybe the storm was abating and she would be free to go on her way once again. Although where she would go was another question. As the mare thought this over she noted that the storm still raged on. How was it then that she seemed to be experiencing a bit of calmness?

It was then that the voice sounded from behind her and Echo's Song rose to all four hooves in a flurry. Her heart raced as she turned to face the speaker. A dark-coated stallion stood there and Echo shook her mane to flip some of the wet hair away from her line of vision. Who was this stallion and where had he come from?

"Little Mouse? Lost?"

Oh yes. Such eloquence. One couldn't fault Echo though. Sleep still had a tenuous grip on her mind. Her heartbeat continued to race at a slightly elevated beat as the mare watched the strange stallion. There was nothing familiar in his appearance and so she could not help but wonder why she had been singled out.  

[tefla]

Fully awake now, Echo's Song side-stepped nervously. The stallion had started circling her slowly like a wolf would circle a lost and doomed sheep. The urge to bolt and get the hell out of dodge was strong. Though spooked by this turn in fate Echo remained rooted in place. The stallion's voice filled the air and the mare mentally agreed that it hadn't been a smart move on her behalf to bed down where she had. Her only defense was that she believed no one else would be traveling in such conditions. Obviously she was wrong.

However fixated Echo was on his words she still continued to watch his movements. Inwardly the name he kept using to address her chafed. She was not a 'little mouse' nor would she ever be. His next action caught Echo off guard. All of a sudden the intensity of the moment seemed to dissipate as did the menacing aura of the stallion. Echo listened as Dradneos introduced himself and she inclined her head to the side in response.

"Greetings to you Dradneos. I thank you for your concern about my safety. I believe I must have been more tired than I though to not realize the possible outcome of my earlier decision."

The storm continued to rage around them as Echo briefly considered saying anything else. The silence grew before she cleared her mind and spoke again. Her voice barely rose above the storm but it would be loud enough for Dradneos.

"Since you gave me your name I guess it's only fair that you learn mine. I am Echo's Song."

Not 'little mouse,' she thought silently. With her name given Echo shook some of the moisture from her mane before considering what to do next. There was still an undercurrent of fear lacing her system that told her to just flee the area. No matter of thinking eased the sensation.  

[tefla]

To say that Echo's heart was starting to race all over again was an understatement. Dradneos's smile just didn't sit right with her and maybe something in the way he moved suggested that there was more danger present than she'd realized earlier. Her hooves pawed restlessly against the ground as she watched with him with wary eyes.

As the dark stallion spoke and called her "Little Mouse" again Echo's survival instinct came to life. Naive as she was the realization that she was alone and vulnerable went ripping through her mind with a vengeance. This wasn't how normal stallions treated mares - was it? The step that Dradneos took to move closer to her translated in her taking two steps back. The sky lit up with a brilliant flash of lightning as she moved backwards. Fear definitely dictated her movements now. She had turned into prey. The thunder that followed reverberated in the ground and through her hooves as she swung her body around - away from Dradneos. She did not run though. Indecision wracked her mind. Would it be smarter to run or not?  

[tefla]

[[ It's alright ]]

Echo's Song froze as Dradneos's voice drifted over her. The aura that exuded from the stallion had turned threatening once again and even though her hooves longed to carry her away to some relative form of safety - she could not move. What was going on? Was it the thinly veiled threat in his words that kept her rooted in place?

Nickering softly in alarm Echo took in Dradneos's slow approach. What did he want from her? As the stallion neared Echo broke the mental paralysis that seemed to hold her immobile. The mare reared once and flailed out with her front hooves. Maybe if she was lucky she would strike him.  

[tefla]

She had missed. Disbelief flashed through her mind before realization set in. Perhaps it was to be expected. The mare had never had to fight off anything so far in her life. Before Ty had left her she'd seen him as her protector. This was the first time that the mare had felt threatened over anything and had to rely on herself to fight of the threat. However, Dradneos merely stepped out of the range of her hooves and the mare felt gravity pull her back down.

As she returned to the ground Echo became aware of just how close Dradneos had managed to get to her. The feeling of the stallion's teeth nipping at her mane startled her and the sensation was unpleasant. An icy shiver traversed Echo's body as she lowered her gaze to stare at the ground in front of her. Right now she was outmatched. Her voice wavered slightly as she spoke.

"What do you want?"  

[tefla]

Echo's Song stood silently as Dradneos spoke. The rain still came pelting down on her body and while she could see what he was talking about right now she didn't present a pretty picture. Her mane was plastered along her neck with the weight of the moisture accumulated from the storm. Her eyes took in Drad's similar dampened mane before letting her gaze settle to stare into the stallion's eyes. What was there unsettled Echo. There was nothing but sincerity seen there.

The second part of Dradneos's speech left Echo with a strange feeling in her heart. With Tyzaeph there had been a whirlwind romance that left her with two children and a broken heart. Perhaps what Dradneos proposed would be an answer. There was still the threat that she could end up the same way with Dradneos. Something inside Echo stirred at the thought of having someone else she could rely on - at least for a little while. There was still uncertainty in her mind at the last words that came from the stallion about how appearances might be deceiving about how he'd treat her. That left a little bit of fear in Echo as she side-stepped away from Dradneos. She wasn't running - just giving herself a little bit of breathing room. The mare's mind was now torn. Obviously Dradneos represented danger ... but his words had brought something else into the mix. The feeling of being desired and wanted. Her words came from her heart.

"Thank you. I'm not sure if I like that last bit but I am flattered that you desire me enough to bear your children."

Echo's Song let the words die as she stared at the dark vista around her before stepping up to Dradneos's side. Lightning arced throughout the sky as the storm continued to rage around them. However it seemed as though a new storm was about to begin.