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 Posted: Fri Nov 01, 2013 11:37 pm
 Another exacting day of training caused Arabella’s muscles to cramp and a fresh cut on her hindquarters alerted her to the fact that she would likely end up with yet another scar. When she had first been brought to her great grandfather as a foal he had told her that her training would be merciless; if only she knew then what she knew now. Stretching one large wing toward the star pocked sky she observed the cut in the dim light provided by the moon. It wasn’t deep of course, which almost guaranteed that it would be a scar. Clicking through her teeth and shaking her head she relaxed her wing and started away from the thicket her great grandparents called home. She was certain she would be reprimanded in the morning for wandering, but she also knew that getting some air would do wonders for her normally foul attitude. Glancing quickly over her shoulder to be sure that the red haired stallion wasn’t standing behind her with that glare of his she took off at a stiff trot, intent on loosening her tight muscles and getting away faster at the same time.
She stopped upon reaching a singular tree standing in the center of a clearing comprised of tall grasses that tickled her knees. Inhaling deeply she allowed for the musky smelling breeze to infiltrate her lungs and send a sense of calm through her body. Her head lifted and her glowing red eyes gazed longingly up at the silvery moon above. If there was one trait she had gotten from both of her parents, it was their love and reverence for the moon. Something about it just called to her, though she knew not what. Her mother used to tell stories of how everything that ever happened to her occurred beneath the light of the moon. Her introduction to the family after hearing of her father’s abandonment, her meeting of a stallion who taught her she was not a monster, and meeting Arabella’s father. A girlish notion settled over Arabella as she stared up at the bright orb, a notion that perhaps something wondrous would happen to her as well. The breeze played with the black and white strands of her hair and a gentle smile spread over the normally tight line that made up her mouth.
Her father had once told her that her large wings were more powerful than those of a normal winged horse, aside from a pure Angeni that is, and that she was able to fly higher and farther than most. At the thought her wings that, until now, had been pinned to her sides began to unfurl. Each feather separated itself from the others until she had positioned them in the perfect posture for flight. “I wonder,” she mused aloud, “if I tried hard enough…Could I fly to the moon?” Though she knew it to be impossible just the image in her mind had her mood improving. Perhaps one day, it would be possible, if only she continued to work hard and improve herself.
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Posted: Tue Nov 05, 2013 1:01 pm
 The night had come early, at least, it is what the shadows told him from behind his eyelids. A dark gray cast shadow over everything, him, the ground, the trees, everything. Patricius had spent the day behind the trees mostly. The shade bringing comfort to his strained eye. In fact, in recent days his chest began to hurt after too long, if he stayed out in the sun longer than he should have. Nevermind that he liked the sun, the warmth that it provided. However, at the end of the day, if he stayed out in the warm rays too long his eye would begin to pulsate, to weep, and bitter blood from his useless eyes would begin anew. No doubt, his fur was now stained with the blood of his tears long past.
By a stroke of luck he discovered that if he traveled at night his eye didn’t hurt as much. In fact, compared to his time in the daylight hours, it was like he didn’t have any issues at all. As such he decided that traveling by moonlight would be best. Something he wouldn’t have learned had he stayed at him. So now, has he stood by a trickling stream next to his hooves that he stretched his muscles. Muscles riddled with the remnants of sleep. It took some time to get completely used to being nocturnal, and, in many ways, he still wasn’t completely used to it. But for now he had to make do. And that was that.
Little did he know that he wasn’t actually alone as he stood there, beginning to will his body to open the eye on his chest. That someone could happen to see the vivid red light from his sight. Some days it was easier than others and some days it would just refuse. It seemed to have a mind of its own. Or, at least he didn’t have full control over it yet. But once again, that would come with time. Time that Patricius hoped he would have. He didn’t dare try flying. It was hard and disorientating enough to walk when his center of balance knocked off the normal track. He had no idea what it would be like to try seeing while flying. His sister was the one who could fly for them both. She did when they were little and she did when they were young adults.
So now he was on his own, the glowing red of his chest eye seeping out from under his skin and fur. Nowhere near painful any longer, thank the gods. The blurry image of grass, stars, and brush coming into focus ever so slowly. Patricius was grateful that nobody was with him on this journey. He would just be a hindrance to them.
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Posted: Tue Nov 05, 2013 7:09 pm
The world around her was sprinkled in a luminescent silver dust save for a dim, red light that had recently begun to glow in the corner of her vision. At first she wrote it off as nothing more than a trick of the darkness until she detected movement accompanying it. As the realization that perhaps this light was attached to a living being dawned on her, the beating of her heart quickened and the acidic sensation of adrenaline began to course through her veins. Though she was not so quick to judge whether the presence was friend or foe, she shifted her posture so that she was in a more defensive stance. If there was one thing she had learned from her grandfather’s constant nagging, it was that being prepared for anything could never be deemed a fault. Her equally as red gaze remained fixed on the orb for a moment more before she raised her chin and called out in a strong feminine tenor. “Is someone there?!” Her voice echoed across the deserted clearing and she was suddenly struck with the notion that she had yet to think of the next step should she be met with a reply, as she was still uncertain as to whether or not the light was alive or not.
“I must inform you that, if you’re looking for an easy moonlit snack you have chanced upon the wrong mare.” She added in an even more gruff tone, emphasizing that she was not one to be trifled with or scared so easily. Squinting through black and white strands of her forelock that had gathered before her eyes she attempted to make out a figure, but as it remained shrouded in the darkness of the tree line she was unable to do so. Growing impatient she took a few short, tentative steps forward before again poising herself for a possible attack. Now more than ever she wished her legs glowed with the same fierce green flames as her mother’s, for she felt more unnerved than usual. The height of the light in contrast to the ground was throwing her off. If it was indeed something living, as she suspected it must be, it was something of the likes she had never seen before.
Sparring matches between her grandfather and herself flashed through her mind as she began playing out scenario after scenario. Unlike so many others who would simply turn tail and flee at the first sight of danger, she was taught to maintain her ground until the last possible moment. Replacing her bewildered expression with one of steely readiness she banished all thoughts of anxiety from her mind. Allowing herself to get all worked up before knowing the extent of the situation would only serve to make her a more vulnerable target. “Show yourself to me before I’m forced to take action!” She exclaimed, sounding more like the great knight Callan than she would have liked to admit.
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