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 Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2009 6:33 pm
 There had been a sizable storm a few nights ago, and the debris it had left behind didn't just include the usual wood and glass. A mare had been deposited on the shores with something less than grace, and though she was a bit battered, she had survived. That was more than she could say for the rest of her companions, two-leggers or otherwise. In truth, she had no clue where they had gone. There were no bodies, at least, and not much of the wood from the ship had washed to shore. Maybe they had made it out alive. Maybe they hadn't. All Alvilda knew was that she had survived, and that she would try and remain her until her ship came back.
The ship had been running trade of a rather dubious nature back between small, Caribbean islands and the lands Alvilda currently resided in, trading horses and other goods to the people. Alvilda had been on several such runs, becoming accustomed to the life style of a freebooter. She had a fine, Barb style build with an exotic coloration, and if she had gone a bit native, well... That's how it went. They had hoped to fetch a higher bidder for her, but each time, it had not happened. Alvilda hadn't cared- she had gotten to stay on board the ship and see the world through tiny portholes, or rare moments when she was brought onboard the chaos of the deck.
She didn't look quite so noble now. There was salt encrusting her fur, and though she had found a freshwater stream and nibbled a bit of grass, she still looked like she missed a few meals. Her mane was entangled with the usual bits and bobs, coupled with pieces of seaweed that she couldn't seem to extract. The stream hadn't been deep enough to wash away the grime, and if she went too far inland, the mare feared that she would miss her ship returning. Logically, she knew it was destroyed, but it was a difficult fact to accept, and she stubbornly clung on to vain hopes.
Eventually, Alvilda tore her gaze from the sea and nosed the sand wistfully, poking at a seashell and trying to lower her head enough to hear the sea inside. The big ocean was right there, but the idea of a perfect, contained little body of water appealed to her. It seemed ordered in a life that had been far from it, and right now, Alvilda could use order. She was lost and rather vulnerable, and not feeling at all herself.
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Posted: Wed Jun 10, 2009 9:31 am
 Ethan trotted along the sandy shore, a wide grin across his muzzle as he reveled in the surge of surf over his ankles and the soft, yielding sand under his hooves. He was brimming with excitement and curiousity as he cantered down the strip of the beach. Since he and Cricket had crossed that stretch of rocky, smelly dead land it was like they had emerged on the other side in a brand new world. Ethan was filled with optimism. He and Cricket had traveled much further than he ever imagined possible in search for his mysterious father. And while they had yet to encounter anyone who had even heard of the stallion, somehow, coming into this new range of land seemed... promising. He could just feel it.
Their trip had been streneous - and the fertile grasses and wide, sweeping water that greeted them on the other side of the blighted land had been the ideal place to recouperate. And that was just what Cricket was doing at the moment. But Ethan couldn't make himself sit still. He was still eager, curious to what he might find in the viscinity. So he was letting Cricket rest before they moved on, and went to further investigate the wide stretch of water. Was this the ocean? Or a massive lake? The water was salty, and unpalatable - reminding him of stories his mother had told him of her journey to these lands. He couldn't see the other side, and the shore seemed to stretch on forever in each direction. Faaar off in the distance along one way he could see verdant mountains.
It was the distance that his eyes were focused on as he trotted along the shore, breating in the moist air. He was looking forward to continuing their journey towards those peaks, lost in thought. So much so that he almost missed the equine shape that stood on the sandy shore.
Awkwardly, he slowed his pace, the sand kicking up and causing him to stumble as he came to a bit too quick of a stop. His ears canted forward curiously as his nostrils flared, trying to pick up her scent. But all of the salty, briny smell seemed indistinguishable from the mare, her coat matted and crusted with salt. Her mane and tail were long and dark, baubles and feathers and bits of wood tangled into it - Ethan wasn't sure if it was deliberate or not, but it seemed to be a varied, interesting collection.
"Hullo..?" Ethan called out to her cautiously, his skinny tail swishing behind him.
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Posted: Wed Jun 10, 2009 10:52 am
Alvilda jerked her head up at the sound of a voice. It was in a language she spoke, luckily, though her accent would show through. The voice was male too. She scanned the warm sands before spotting the one who had spoke. There was something intimidating about his appearance, but it was not enough to frighten Alvilda. She was more cautious about his gender- clearly a stallion.
But at this point, could she afford to be picky? Alvilda just felt bone weary and lonely, to the point where she would not begrudge this strange soquili his gender. She would be hesitant and keep her guard up, but the outright hostility wasn't there. She just couldn't muster the strength to summon it.
"Where am I?" Alvilda tried not to sound as miserable as she felt. Weakness... Well, weakness was not tolerable. Her time aboard the ship had taught her that. Those that demonstrated weakness were dropped off the ship, wherever it had happened to be. And sharks tended to follow the ship, knowing that there was always pickings thrown overboard. It was difficult not to demonstrate weakness when she was bone weary on the inside, but she mustered enough to throw her head up proudly and stiffen her body slightly.
Again Alvilda spoke in her accented voice. "I crashed here a few days ago. I don't know where I am or where everyone else is." She didn't offer her name, and she didn't ask his. Names would imply that she was willing to be on friendly terms, and she was not entirely sure of that yet. Stallions couldn't be trusted. No one could be. But if he could help her, perhaps she might soften her attitude somewhat.
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Posted: Wed Jun 10, 2009 6:34 pm
Ethan tried on what he hoped was a welcoming smile. While a stallion, Ethan was hardly the biggest male. His shoulders were slender and his coat was short, which didn't do much to make his slender build any bigger looking.
Ethan's curious eyes continued to investigate the mare. She hadn't run immediately, or attacked. That was a good sign. Like it or not, Ethan had had to come to terms that there seemed to be at least an even chance that his Kalona blood would terrify a new soquili. Maybe that was a good sign of things to come in this new... place!
Although, his excitement was reigned in by her first question. An ear flicked back as disappointment crossed his face. "Ah... I hate t'admit it, but I really don't know where... here is either. I jus' got here." He looked around, up at the unfamiliar mountains and out over the sea.
"I came from that'a-way." He nodded back over his shoulder. "An I don' reccomend goin' that way. I was lucky to have made it through!" He paused, and then his mind seemed to catch up to pace. "Wait... you crashed? Crashed on what?" His ears canted forward again, sensing a story of adventure.
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Posted: Sat Jun 13, 2009 11:07 am
Oh, fantastic. This stallion had no clue where they were either. Still,
Alvilda was having a hard time feeling bitter and throwing hatred towards him. It didn't mean her entire attitude about stallions was changing- just this particular one. His entire behavior reminded her of a youngling, and while Alvilda was certainly not the motherly type, it almost made her smile. She would keep on the alert, but he looked more interested in stories than in somehow betraying her or attacking her.
"On a ship." It didn't occur to Alvilda that Ethan might not know what on earth a ship was. It was such a part of her life that she couldn't imagine others not understanding immediately.
"There was a storm. I was to be a prize." Alvilda stuck her head up defiantly, nostrils flaring slightly as she dared Ethan to contradict she would be worth that. "I would be worth much. I don't enjoy being a commodity, but at least I had agreed to this." Alvilda didn't volunteer her back story at that. It wasn't worth telling, at least now. The point was, she had agreed that she was worth the gold, and if those she was sold to were cruel, well... Escape was easy. She had done it before.
"The ship dashed against the rocks and I was spilled out. I can see some boards, but I think the rest made it out. I don't know where they all are. There were many two leggers, and some more like us. They weren't as fine as I, but they were my companions. They may have drowned." Alvilda said that last statement flatly, finally acknowledging the fact. Life aboard the ship had included plenty of death, and it would be foolish not to acknowledge it.
"What lies the way you came?" She was somewhat curious to know what dangers she would face should she ever decide to leave the beach.
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 12:05 pm
"A ship!" Ethan breathed in, a sparkle in his eye. "Really? I've... never actually seen one, but mah mum came here on a ship! All the way from Ireland! Ethan had no idea how far Ireland was from where they were other than the description his mother had given him - over two months on the ship, she had said. And all the stories of how diffiuclt the journey was.
Curiousity filled him. "Where did you come from? How long were you on the ship? And what were you going to be a prize for?" Despite the fact the mare was crusted with salt, her long mane and tail mussed and tangled, he imagined that she must have been a fine specimin if she were cleaned up. And she didn't have the.. 'deformities' that the young stallion had.
Her words seemed to catch up with him, and his ears lay back. "I'm... sorry about your friends. Tha... must be horrible. Maybe they're out there... somewhere."
He looked back over his shoulder. "About a mile or so that way.. there's this narrow passage throught the mountains. But instead'a fertile valley... it's all... dead. The land is cracked, the water foul and hot. And the rocks were slippery, the ground shakey." He shook his head. "You don't want to go through there.
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 5:57 pm
Alvilda had never been to Ireland, but she knew vaguely where it was. It was further from her, and not nearly as warm and nice. But it was closer to where they were... sort of. Who knew, really? She had spent many more weeks aboard the ship than just the voyage over, and her sense of time was distorted as a result. Days had easily melded together, especially those she had been stuck below decks, not seeing the sun. It was impossible to keep track of the time on days like those.
Alvilda found herself warming up to talking. It just felt good to exercise her voice. And she /liked/ telling tales- the taller, the better. Her own story didn't leave room for much embellishment, but perhaps there were a few corners she could make neater and grander.
"I come from Portugal, where it's always warm and it's always nice. It is by the country of Spain. Have you heard of it? Spain is very big and very grand, but Portugal is more refined." In Alvilda's opinion, of course. She was biased towards her home, even if she had left in unhappy circumstances. That, and, well... She had never actually been to Spain. But she had heard stories, which was good enough for her to form a firm opinion that Portugal was by far the superior country.
"I must have been on board a ship for six moonturns." Probably an exaggeration- Alvilda wasn't sure. "I would have stayed on much longer, if I had had a choice. I liked it. When I first landed here, I couldn't stand- it all swayed for too long, and I did not enjoy it." Alvilda spoke proudly and fiercely, as if begging Ethan to point out that doubtless the two leggers would have eventually kicked her off. There was no space aboard a busy pirate ship for a full grown soquili to stick around for very long. A profit was what they aimed for, and they couldn't understand the pleas Alvilda may have given.
"Then where is there to go from here?" Alvilda changed the subject abruptly. She couldn't stay at this beach forever, waiting for companions to rise from Davey Jones's locker. But she couldn't go the way of the dead valley either. It didn't sound pleasant.
"There is to be something beyond here that's better. Where were you going?" Alvilda wasn't going to travel with Ethan- no, not enough trust for that yet. But he must have some idea where his hooves were taking him.
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Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 9:10 am
"Portugal?" He inquired. He'd never heard of such a place, but then Ethan was well aware of the fact that there were a lot of places in the wide world that he didn't know about. And for all the walking that he had done since he had set off looking for his father, he was fairly certain that Ireland was even furhter away, and probably in the complete opposite direction. "I'm afraid I haven't hearda it, or Spain. My mum told me a lot about Ireland, but not much else. I don't think she'd ever been nowhere but there and here. And I've only been here. Well, here and where I was born and the places in between. But I've never been on a ship. But Portugal really sounds like a nice place. Maybe I'll get ta visit it some day." He said with a lop-sided smile, finally taking a breath between words.
"Six Moonturns." Ethan said in respected awe. He had no reason to doubt her words. Growing up quite sheltered, he had taken his mother's word for just about everything. "Mum said that she was on hers for two or three... and it was a hard trip... some soquili died on the trip, two-legs, too. Mum said that her mate didn't make it through the trip." An ear flicked back.
He rolled his skinny shoulders as he looked over to the mountains. "I dunno really. I'm not going back the way I came, and I can't cross the ocean on foot. SO I guess maybe that way to the mountains. I'm looking for my Sire."
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Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 7:39 pm
Alvilda couldn't help but feel impressed at how many words Ethan could fit in before breathing. It was hard not to fall into a role of trusting him and liking him- he was like a colt, looking at the world for the first time. Still, she couldn't let her guard down.
"I've been to Portugal, and some islands in the ocean, and on the ship... and here. Here is by far the least impressive." Alvilda gave a disdainful sniff, to make it clear that she was not impressed with these foreign lands so far. "It is more cold and unpleasant here. The water isn't as nice. There isn't as much water in the air." Alvilda wasn't entirely sure how to explain humidity, but she did the best she could.
But Alvilda found time to reform the harsh facade she wanted to keep up. "People died aboard our ship as well. Other soquili, and two-leggers. It was the weak that died. Survival shows that you are worth it. The strong are the only ones who deserve to make it." Alvilda had a high opinion of her own strength, and she took a moment to pose rather dramatically (without realizing it).
"There are no ships here you can take? I do not think Ireland is a place you can walk to..." Alvilda was pretty sure it was closer to where she was, and there was certainly no way to walk to Portugal. "You could sneak aboard, I suppose. You don't look like you'd make a right prize." Despite being perfectly friendly, Alvilda could see where others would be intimidated by Ethan. "Where did your horns come from anyway? No one had horns such as that at my home."
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Posted: Fri Jun 19, 2009 5:15 pm
Ethan looked around. "Well... ye said ye just got here, right?" Ethan rolled his shoulders. "There's a lot more to Here than just the beach." He said defensively. "There are tall mountains, grassy fields, wide rushin' rivers and thick forests..." He trailed off. "An' I haven't even been everywhere yet. Not by a longshot."
"Maybe you'll find somewhere here that suits yer tastes better." He offered helpfully. "That is if your friends don't find ya first."
He looked a little awkward when she spoke of strength. "Mum spoke real well of Sean. I heard he got sick on the trip over, and I don't think that the two-leggers had a lot of food to spare. I don't think that it means he was weak." He felt bad thinking ill of someone his mother loved. Even if he had never met the stallion.
Ethan shrugged with a shake of his head. "I've never seen a ship personally. But I know mum didn't stay with her two-leggers after they got here. I grew up in a valley, and I'd never seen the sea before today. Maybe there are ships... I just haven't seen them. I hear that they're huuge. Made of trees." He spoke of it with a hint of wonder. The image his mind conjured was probably a far cry from the reality of the ships that Alvilda and his mother knew.
Ethan looked a little self-conscious. While her reaction was much better than many soquili he'd encountered, he'd become much more self-aware of his deformities. "I think my horns came from my sire. I've never met him before, though. That's kinda why I'm looking for him. I don't suppose you ever saw or heard of a Dyson Graves, huh? Not if ya just got here." He gave her a sheepish smile.
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Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 10:16 am
Alvilda was extremely doubtful that she would learn to like these lands, and once she set her mind in a direction, it was difficult to budge it. No, she did not like it here, and she would not like it as much as the tropical islands or the creaking ship. What was there here for her anyway? Her friends were likely dead, leaving her a stranger in a strange land, effectively stranded until she found a way to escape.
For all that Alvilda was a rather vicious and sometimes cruel creature, she felt almost guilty when she saw Ethan's face as he spoke of his mother's mate. But it was the truth. The strong would survive aboard a ship- or so her mindset went. It took a great deal of fortitude to live under the conditions that a ship imposed, and live beneath the decks for weeks or months at a time, rarely seeing sunlight, drinking stale water and chewing on the wood to take hunger away. It produced a stronger soquili though- one lean, but able to go just a little bit longer. If it hardened the mind too... Well, Alvilda was brilliant testament to that.
"Some ships are big. Many aren't. The one I came on was good sized, but by no means considered the largest. It was built more for speed, to overtake other ships. When it did, there would be a battle. I could hear it from where I was below decks. There would be great booms of thunder, even though it was not stormy outside. Two-leggers would cry out as they fell. It set my blood to boiling, but there was no room for one such as me on deck." Ah, so the bloodthirsty young mare had never truly fought in a battle, unless it was with one of her own kind. She still had some notions of what happened, and that men died, but truth told, Alvilda had lived comparatively little of the corsair life style she had adopted as her mode of living. She was not ignorant of it though, and at least she could proudly describe what she heard, and saw afterwords, as men were dragged below decks. Sometimes they did not come back up. Sometimes they would get better, but be lacking a limb, or an eye.
The name was unfamiliar to Alvilda. "No, I have not heard of him." She examined Ethan a little closer though, before giving a crooked grin- the first true smile she had held since coming to these lands. "You would look a fright to any who didn't have my nerves. You would fit well aboard the ship. Probably be a mascot of some sort, which isn't a bad place to be." Boastful and vain of Alvilda, but she meant kindly, which was a first. One stallion was not like the others- so what? It did not mean the rest would be any kinder.
"If ye do not know where he is, then why seek him out? It seems a mindless exercise. And he's likely not half as kind as you, if he gave you those horns and that foot."
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Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 9:34 am
"I didn't figure." Ethan sighed. "Being ya just got here anyway. It prolly would'a been a bad sign if ye had heard of him."
He cocked his head, glancing down at his strange hoof and back to the water-battered mare. "Ya think so? I've yet to find a good reason for the way I look aside from putting off a lot of new soquili that I meet." Ethan never really had any desire to frighten others - but to be celebrated for his differences... that certainly would be nice.
He thought for a moment. He'd asked himself the very question more than once on this trip from home that had ended up being a lot more difficult than the young stallion would have predicted. "He's my sire.." He said simply. "Did you know your dam and sire?" He asked Alvilda. "I mean... they make ya who you are. Most foals know their dams and sires... I just want ta know mine. He... may not be kind. I'm kinda worried that might be the case. But I'm not gonna just give up before I find 'im."
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Posted: Sat Jun 27, 2009 8:12 pm
"I thought I knew my dam and sire. But they sold me in the worst possible way, without my consent. So while you can say I have physically met them, I never truly met them." Alvilda's voice went harsh again. She had nothing but hatred for her own parents, and thus had trouble understanding Ethan's need to meet his own da- especially if he was as bad as Alvilda thought he might have been. Nothing good could come of that. But it was Ethan's decision in the end, and Alvilda didn't much care what came of it. She wouldn't find out, though she might be bitterly curious.
"Why would the new soquili be put off? Does everyone here have a heart so soft that they wilt like soft flowers in the face of something different?" Already scornful of the new lands, Alvilda was happy to latch onto a reason to hate the inhabitants as well. Ethan might prove to be an exception yet, but she would likely have to meet him again, and have him prove that he would not break her fragile trust.
Snorting once more, Alvilda pawed at the sand once or twice. "It does sound like a grand adventure though." She was wistful at that- crashing here had resolved her mind to never going on adventures again, and forever spending her time on these landlocked shores, eyes gazing wistfully out over the waves. She wouldn't want to travel so far inland, and she didn't have a particular goal, but beggars really couldn't be choosers. Once she established herself more here, perhaps Alvilda would seek out some more excitement in life. There had to be more to this land than cold waters and strange inhabitants.
"I wish you luck with your journey. I hope your father is not a disappointment for you." Alvilda didn't have much hope in that, but she didn't feel like breaking down Ethan's spirits. He was just too much like a child in some respects, so that he wormed some aspect of himself into even that hard heart.
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Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 4:26 am
Ethan's eyes widened. "Yer mum and da sold ya?" He blinked, shaking his head, the idea absolutely incomprehensible to him. "But why?" He took a breath, "I'm sorry." He sympathized. He loved his mother very much, and it certainly gave him perspective. While he wanted desperately, despite his apprehensions about what kind of stallion he would be, to find his father. But at least he had had a mother that loved him and didn't sell him. Ethan still felt kind of bad about leaving home and setting off into the world alone - but he didn't regret it. He'd seen so much. And sure, not all of it was good. But it was an experience.
Ethan shrugged a bit self-consciously. "Apparently... there's stories here about demon soquili." Ethan's ear flicked back nervously, not liking to be the one to propegate this story. "I'd never heard o'em till I left my mum, but apparently a lotta others have. I... I dun' know if they're just stories to scare foals or .. well... I seem ta share some thing in common with the stories - an' I know what yer probably gonna say about my Sire..." He continued quickly. "An... maybe I don' really have anything to argue it with, cept I don' wanna just go by a story about a whole mess a soquili without judgin' fer myself first."
"I hope that you're able to have adventures still, too, Alvilda." He smiled genuinely. "An... I hope that this place isn't as bad as ya fear it might be. Maybe you'll find some'a your friends washed ashore as well." His tail gave a small dog-like wag.
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