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 Posted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 3:33 pm
Note:
Herein shall lay the continuous roleplay between Huroggmeten's Sadiki and Apotropaics' Kazan.
Please do not post without permission from either Apo or myself.
This roleplay will span the years, from when Kazan is but a foal to when he is all grown up.
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Posted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 3:38 pm
She was once a wild mare. She galloped across the land with a care-free heart; every Soquili she encountered seemed to be good and pure. She radiated statuesque perfection; a living embodiment of desire. She was beauty and grace, her mane comprised of swirling tendrils of lavender silk flowing free. Intelligent and clever, she was always challenging those about her to stretch the confines of their mind and see the world's wonders in a new light, to consider the plight of others and to lend a helping hoof to even those who would seem on first glance to be unworthy of such consideration. Her ravishing lavender eyes used to shine with fierce pride and dignity tempered only by her good spirit and charm. Now they were dull, lifeless. Now those swirling tendrils of lavender silk that sparkled and shone like a new Summer's day hung limp by her side. Now... she was a wraith, existing...alive... but not truly living.
Her heart had shattered on that day. She had loved too easily, been too taken by the crimson stallion's charm. How was she to know that his heart was for another, one against whom she could not hope to compete?
She was beautiful, too, and kind. She was intelligent; she was graceful; she was funny and light-hearted. And she was his friend, a childhood playmate who had grown into a charming and elegant mare. They were in love... they knew more about each other than one could ever hope. They had laughed together, cried together, before Sadiki had ever left her home.
She stood no chance.
... and, worse, it was her actions that had brought them together. If she... If she...
Her mind went blank. She stared off into the distance, ignoring the world around her. She stood, alone.
If she...
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 6:21 pm
Kazan wheeled and turned, galloping across the sandy shore. His mane and tail streamed out behind him like a war-banner, tussled by the wind and sent flying in every direction. Eyes the color of brimstone sparkled with laughter, breaking through the stoic mask the little colt had taken to wearing. Ah, what fun!
He had escaped from the watchful eye of his mother for the time-being, alone for what felt like the first time in years. He had evaded the impish taunts of his brother and the insistent whine of his sister. He was even free from his mother's frenzied oversight! With luck, it would be some time before any of them noticed he was gone.
A thunderbolt cracked through the sky, splitting the stormy clouds in twain and rendering the night sky alight with fire.
Kazan jumped, all four feet flying wide as the startled foal's eyes darted about him with frenzied panic. His little chest heaved, nostrils flared, his heart beating wildly within his diminutive rib-cage.
Realization hit, and his breathing slowed. Oh, it was just lightning... right... haha... I knew that. He peered about sheepishly, hoping that no one had seen his momentary alarm. Satisfied that no one had seen this lapse in manly persuasion, he strutted forwards a few steps, casting a snide look at the sky and scoffing at its impunity. Try to scare me, will you? Well, it didn't, so-
A second thunderbolt lit the sky, this one louder than the first. For the count of ten, the beach was lit as well as if the sun had chosen to rise on a cloudless day.
He saw a lone figure standing in the surf, staring out at the storm as if it hadn't a care in the world. Waves crashed all about it, obscuring the strange vision with salty spray. He squinted, trying to discern whether the forlorn shade was male or female.
His thin little voice pipped up over the storm. "HEY- Are you alright? What're you doing there? HEY? Can you here me? Why are you standing there- is everything all right?"
He galloped forwards, knobbly knees jouncing about as the beach was plunged once more into darkness. He waded out into the surf, blind, calling out to the mysterious figure. "HEY?! Can you here me?"
"HEY?!"
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 6:34 pm
"HEY-"
A faint echo of the child's words sounded in her mind, scattering her thoughts and the remnants of memories. The wind picked up, and the words were drowned out... The memories returned.
She had brought him back from the edge of self-destruction. She had helped him to fight against his other half, to suppress those malicious tendencies that were inherited as the curse of the Kalona blood running through his veins. She had rescued him from despair- She had saved him from himself.
The crimson stallion had smiled, and offered her a lavender rose. He placed it gently in her forelock, where it would best complement the luster of her radiant eyes. He had coaxed out of her a smile, a laugh, a murmured reply... his charm had instantly bewitched her. She was in love.
The rose had shriveled and died, its petals fading to a tawny beige, bruised and wilted, a grim parody of the splendor it once was.
He had attacked his childhood friend in a moment of frenzied panic, unable to save her from his grandmother's cruel games. Her blood, shed on his account, had propelled him into a self-destructing spiral. He couldn't look at her. He couldn't speak her name. He fled into the wilderness, seeking a life of solitude as penance for what he had done.
Sadiki had gone after him. She had traveled into a dangerous land, a land full of such malign rancor that the very earth beneath her hooves had seemed to ooze with baleful poison. Her warm heart and kind words had soothed the vicious beast that he had become, her constant presence a reminder that all the good in the world was not lost to him.
And still he fled.
He traveled deeper and deeper into himself, retreating, shutting down until all that was left was cruelty and anger.
And still she fought.
She sacrificed everything to bring him back, paying no heed to her own safety as she chased after him. She refused to give up. She refused to quit.
Her persistence payed off. The crimson stallion did not become one of the many blood-thirsty savages that roamed the land in search of prey, rather returned to his former gentlemanly ways. He coaxed from her a smile, a laugh, a murmured response. He was himself again.
And then he return to her.
If only... If only...
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 6:43 pm
Kazan waded further into the surf, still calling out to the lone figure. "HEY- Are you ignoring me? Are you deaf? HEY-" The water was up to his chest now.
A third flash of lightning revealed her gender to him... and more. She was beautiful- like the forlorn princesses in the stories his mother would whisper to him at night, waiting for their prince to whisk them away from their sorrow and show them a better way to live their life. Her mane was plastered to her neck, so tirelessly had the rain poured down upon her shivering form, but that only served to heighten her radiance. Wow! Kaen will never believe this...
He stumbled and fell, his front hooves slipping on the silty sand. He plunged forward, into the raging sea, his head pulled under by a fierce current. He couldn't regain his balance- he flailed, desperate, seeking a foothold- anything, anything to stop this madness!
He couldn't breathe. He couldn't breathe!
Water rushed into his lungs as another monstrous wave crashed over him, thrusting his thrashing form backwards. Before he could regain his balance, the sea rushed out again, and he was swept away once more.
HELP! HELP! MOMMY!! MOMMYYYYY! KAEN! KITTEN! HELP!! He tried to scream, but his words came out as bubbles.
HELP!
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 6:54 pm
Sadiki heaved a sigh and flicked the water from her brow before returning once more to her lifeless pose.
The crimson stallion and his childhood friend had made up. She did not blame him for her injuries- she never had. They flew together again. They smiled. They laughed. They talked about this and that, their flirtatious growing ever more quaint. He grew brave. He revealed his feelings to her, and she to him. They were in love... No, they had always been in love. It had just taken them this long to realize it.
Sadiki had been searching for her family. After so long apart, after so many long months spent tending to her self-destructing and self-loathing love, she longed to hear her brother's voice again. To see her parents, so happy together.
She stumbled across the two love-birds as they splashed through the surf, playing tag. He would give chase, touch her gently, teasingly, and then it was her turn- and she would pursue him, peals of laughter trailing along behind her. Her belly bulged in new pregnancy...
Sadiki blinked, confused. The battering came again.
Her thoughts scattered once more as she peered down, the past fleeing as she was thrust into the present by the new barrage. 'Twas not sand or sea that battered against her trembling legs...
The body of a colt jolted against her, thrust into her again and again by the tireless sea. She gasped, becoming once more the benevolent mare she had once been, and lunged towards him, seizing his neck in mouth and fighting her way towards the shore.
You will not die! Not this day!
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 7:02 pm
Kazan flailed helplessly, fighting to stay awake. His lungs felt as though they were filled to the brim with water... and they were.
Oh, why did I run? Mother... brother... sister... I miss you! Why did I leave? Regrets bombarded the poor waif as he was beaten again and again against some unyielding form.
He pictured his mother's caring smile, peering over at him as she asked why he was trying to stuff two apples in his mouth at the same time. He imagined his brother's smirk when he told her that he wanted to be a squirrel when he grew up, that his tail would puff up as his cheeks bulged and he would be able to scamper through the trees! He remembered his mother's laughter, his sister's incredulity. He would have cried, had he not completely engulfed by the salty sea.
Will I ever see you again?
As the mare pushed against him, herding him towards the sandy shore, he managed but a single relieved though before darkness claimed him.
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 7:08 pm
With a great surge of effort, she rolled his body beyond the surfline, up onto (somewhat less soaked) sand.
She trotted out and circled around him, eyes wide with panic. "Colt? Colt! Speak to me- You're all right now. Sadiki has you now." She nosed at his chest, seeking to revive him from his slumber, and groaned aloud when she felt the water sloshing about inside his limp form.
She had been in such a situation before... what had the two-legged done? She searched her mind frantically, trying to recall that which was hidden beneath so much pain.
Ah! She pressed hard against his abdomen, forcing the water up and out of his lungs. She blew into his mouth, then leaned forwards to press against him chest once more.
"Come on little one... breathe! Breathe!"
She repeated the process, fighting to resist the surge of self-pity and remorse as her bitter memories sought entry.
"Come on little one... breathe!"
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 7:15 pm
Kazan's eyes burst open.
He blanched and paled as the water forced its way out of his lungs, bile mixing with the sea-water that burst forth from his mouth like a gyre. He gagged and coughed, turning his head to the side in order to avoid drowning in the ceaseless spew.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, it stopped.
His ragged breathing slowed as he peered upwards at his savior, standing above him like some stalwart Valkyrie. Adoration shone in his brimstone eyes as he murmured his thanks, awestruck by the heroic mare. It didn't even occur to him that she was the reason he had gotten into that mess, that if he hadn't spotted her in a flash of lightning and waded out to see who that mysterious figure standing in the surf was, he'd still be (mostly) dry.
"Thank you..." He struggled to his feet. It took him a few times, but he managed to stand. He peered sheepishly upwards, hoping that she didn't think him a fool for almost drowning himself.
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 7:29 pm
She smiled, the slightest upward curvature of lips that had long been turned downwards in sorrow. "Thank heavens..." she gazed lovingly at the foal, sincerely thankful that her efforts had not been in vain. "Whatever possessed you to...?"
She trailed off. As quickly as it had come, her former persona was engulfed by the ceaseless tide of her woebegone past. She turned, expressionless, and waded back into the surf, staring off into nothingness once more.
The couple had turned, seeing Sadiki standing there. The guilty look they shared, reminiscent of a pair of mischevious foals who had been caught sneaking into the two-legged's teepee in search of sugar-cubes and other treats, was all the proof she needed. She turned, expressionless, and made her way across the plains. She didn't look back. It was all she could do to keep her tears at bay.
Before she got out of sight, the crimson stallion started after her. He caught up to the galloping mare easily, great strides of his powerful wings covering the distance easily. He explained, telling her of his love, his true love, and the children they would raise. He spoke to her like a good friend, confiding in her his relief that she had not been frightened away by his revelation, even going so far as to describe her every perfection. He was oblivious to the pain written on the ebony mare's features, the wretched heartbreak etched in her furrowed brows. He did not even notice the tears that fell free from her lavender eyes.
She had been an acquaintance, nothing more. She did not matter to him. He couldn't even see her pain, couldn't even hear her pleas to stop as he smothered her with his love-sick proclamations. Had his kind words, the lavender rose, his charm, been only practice for when he would reveal his feelings to his childhood friend turned lover? Lost in his anxiety, had he even known that it was her who fought to save him from that spiraling crevice of self-destruction? When he had complemented her beauty, her grace, her charm, had he been thinking of her? Or had he seen her in Sadiki's every move, drawn to that which resembled his precious Love?
It had been too much for her. Too much.
She became a wraith.
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 7:32 pm
Kazan frowned, staring off after her. "Hey... where're you going?" He made to follow her, then thought better of it, remembering what happened last time. He shivered, grimacing at the very thought of going through that again.
His mother's face flashed before his eyes.
He turned, and started making his way back towards the family cave. His steps grew quicker as he thought of seeing his family again, his heart soaring as he imagined himself again in their loving embrace.
He paused and looked back, peering once more at her retreating figure, at the way her mane lay plastered against her neck, at the way she didn't seem to move even amidst the tumultuous waves.
"... thank you."
He turned back towards home, and galloped off towards the promise of love.
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 7:39 pm
Sadiki didn't even notice.
She had not wished to intrude upon their union. She knew that even if that crimson stallion didn't notice, or didn't even care, the way she lingered in the shadows, shattered self esteem preventing her from even smiling any longer, she would. And she would try to distance herself from him, because that was just the kind of damned selfless mare she was. And his disinterest in her would turn to outright hatred, for making the mother of his children shy and distant around him.
So she left.
She traveled to the place they had met. She had made her way down to the sandy shore, wishing she had never met that crimson stallion who had stolen her heart away. Wishing, dreaming, pleading...
And here she remained. Forevermore.
If only...
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 7:46 pm
-THE NEXT DAY.- Kazan trotted towards the familiar beach, head held high. The sun beating down on his young shoulders only urged him onwards. Would his savior still be there, standing in the surf? Had he missed her? Would he ever see her again?
He spotted her form in the distance, and sped up his pace, careful not to drop his precious cargo.
He slowed to a halt some few paces off, ears perked forwards expectantly. He placed his bundle carefully on the ground, licking his dry lips (the cloth had soaked up most of his saliva on the trip down) and called out to her. No wind obscured his words now.
"HEY- Miss! I've brought you some apples! You like apples, don't you? Everybody does! Mom said it would be a nice thank-you gift, after she was done crying and all, and i'm really sorry for leaving you so suddenly but it didn't seem like you were listening and I thought that maybe you wouldn't mind if I went to see my family on account of not listening and-" he stopped, remembering not to babble. "Anyway.... Do you like apples?"
He smiled crookedly, gazing hopefully at his stalwart Valkyrie. "Do you?"
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 7:55 pm
The thin voice broke through her tumultuous thoughts. Her ears flickered; she dimly registered the words.
Food? What need have I of sustenance? I am no one. No one. I am nothing. I am what reminds those near me of what they love, nothing more. I am a shadow of perfection. A parody of glamor. Why should I not fade away 'till I am naught but a whisper on the wind, my bones bleached by the nondiscriminatory sun?
She didn't speak those thoughts aloud. The child would not have understood.
No adrenaline coursed through her veins now. She turned and looked back at him, joints stiff and sore, muscles weak and trembling from her endless sentry. Her form was coated in a thin layer of salt that had turned into a crackling shelf as the sun caused all the water to evaporate. Her eyes were dull, her voice cracked and dry.
"No thankyou. I am not hungry."
Her stomach growled, betraying her lie. She waited for his condemning words, for the accusatory tone. What did it matter now?
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Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2008 7:59 pm
Kazan frowned, puzzled by the mare's disinterest. Everyone loved apples.
When her stomach growled, he quirked one brow quizzically and frowned. "Well... alright then..." he trailed off, staring at her as though she was a puzzle in need of solving. Thinking that perhaps she was simply embarrassed to eat before others, like Brother, he smiled mischievously and nodded understandingly. "Alright then! Sorry for bothering you, miss!"
He turned and trotted back up the path, pleased that he had figured out that little mystery so rapidly. With a single satisfied glance over his shoulder, he trotted back up the winding path.
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