[FIN] Losing Love (Tlocatl + Wyrsa)

[EchoLimaFoxtrot]

((Setting the scene))

Tlocatl curled up, his wings curled protectively around the mare snuggled up beside him. With a grin, he thought about everything that happened to bring him to the point he was at right now.

It was long ago that he had left his mother in the desert. His grown sons had moved on, at least Somnium had. Wolfbane was still around when he had left - something about the unicorn Hecate had caught his quiet son's eye for some reason. He traveled far, sticking mostly around the mountains where the land was harsher and life was a battle. The stallion felt that was exactly what he had needed. He needed to purge his past through hard labor and survival.

It had taken him months, but he had returned to his normal strong self. He was nothing but muscle and more muscle. There was not an ounce of fat on his lean body and he had never been as fit in his whole life. The only thing that still afflicted him was his wing where it had been injured by a certain skinwalker. On long flights, stiff flight manuevers, or just when he was cold for too long, it would cramp up and cause him pain. In one case, he could not even use it and had to make a rather hard landing which caused a broken rib and sprained ankle. It seemed the past would forever haunt him...

...until he found Edith. It was a beautiful day and he was hunting the goats that frequented the mountainside. Tlocatl had spotted one, and went in for the kill, only to have a flash of black and a hint of red sweep in and his goat was gone. Angry and frustrated, he had chased after the fiend to demand his goat, or at least a portion for his meal being stolen - and was in for the ride of his life.

Edith stood only a hair shorter than him with glistening black fur and wings. Her only marking was a splash of blood red on her back leg which looked liked something had poured blood up her leg. She was a purebred kalona, and her pelt -though speckled with scars from her hard life- was strong and healthy. Her horns were sharpened, as well as her hooves to aid in the harsh environment.

After that fateful meeting, Tlocatl was not impressed with the mare. However, they kept meeting, and then would intentionally hunt each other out. After so long, their connection grew and the stallion knew he was in love - a foreign feeling. She even let him nibble on her, and vice versa. It was no surprise when they had a healthy, strong baby girl. She was as strong as either of his sons and definately her mother's daughter with her wit and charm. Tlocatl was proud, and even more so because he could see something pure when he looked at his young filly (she was not tainted by inferior blood or the touch of the Curse).

Yes, life was going well. He was even on his way to find his mother. His only regret was that she was a grounded soquili, but Edith knew that already (and wanted to meet an Elder, which she never had). Both were so foreign a thought to him... that he would love anyone wholeheartedly and that he would actually bring her "home to meet mommy". His mother had moved on too, mating with that pathetic flutter of her's. Sanika had told him about it when they stopped at the teepee first, knowing full well he could not respond but would understand. It was strange returning there, which was mostly empty.

Their little girl was home, safe with Edith's parents during their journey. She was still too young for such a long journey, though she fought rather hard to gain permission to go with. It even took both her grandparents to keep her at bay to guarantee she wouldn't follow.

The sun was starting to fall down the sky. Twilight would be on them soon but they could still get more done. Tlocatl shifted, giving his dear one last nuzzle before going off to find them dinner. Sustenance was needed, and they hadn't eaten since they hunted in the desert - which was a joy for Edith as she had never seen the desert before.  

[mouselet]

Though she still preferred the cool darkness of the forest to the scorching heat of the desert, dusk found a black coyote slinking across the sands yet again. And again Wyrsa asked herself what she thought she would find. She could only check up on her sadistic son so many times, though the area was rife with the small creatures he'd tortured and left alive. At least that pathetic creature Tlocatl had called a mother wasn't around at the moment, thank the dark gods for small blessings.

Perhaps it was just because she was thinking of the stallion, but the coyote paused, scenting him suddenly. She shook her head to clear her nose. It couldn't be. He'd left soon after Somnium, months and months ago.

The scent remained. Slinking around in the lengthening shadows, Wyrsa followed her nose until she came upon him.

Him...and another mare. Yellow eyes narrowed. What was this? He had ventured far and now come back with another mare! The coyote noted disdainfully that this mare was a fullblooded kalona and her lip curled almost in a snarl. Trust Tlocatl to go after a mare with wings. Apparently her lesson about the needlessness of flight hadn't hit its mark too well. At least he still bore the scar of it. Perhaps she should...try again.

Silly stallion. How many times had she told him? He was hers, and hers alone. Even in days gone by she would not have tolerated a rival. Now, of course, she had the power to enforce that.

But, enough contemplation. A moment's concentration and her form shifted upwards, resolving into a Soquili mare with a black coyote pelt covering her back and head, standing where the coyote had been, behind and to the side of the pair.

"I see you've decided to replace me," the mare's voice was sweetly cruel. "That was a mistake."  

[EchoLimaFoxtrot]

Tlocatl had just gotten to his feet and about to turn to go hunting when a voice from only his nightmares spoke. For a moment he almost wanted to just ignore it - it didn't exist. But Tlocatl knew better. He had been free of her for so long, he figured it couldn't last.

Ever so slowly, he twisted his head around - ignoring the pain that crept to his shoulder where his scars tightened in anticipation. He caught sight of her and thought his heart would beat right out of his chest. He snarled, his need to protect the still-sleeping Edith (mares... he couldn't help but think) from this creature too great to make him flee (which he badly wanted to take to the air and just leave). "Replace you? Wyrsa... no one could replace your cold imprint on m.... this world." Tlocatl amended his words. "And the only mistake I ever made was allowing you come in to my life. But you are not a part of my life anymore."

"And she," he nodded down to the gorgeous figure nestled on the ground, "is everything you are not nor ever could be. Go back to the pitiful existence you call a life, and leave me be."

Tlocatl resisted the urge to walk away and leave Edith fully exposed. So instead he stared down at Wyrsa, forcing his muscles to stay still and not quiver in the outrageous terror he felt.  

[mouselet]

Yellow eyes tracked the stallion's every movement, noting the tightness of muscles as he spoke calmly. He was afraid of her - good.

But his honesty, as she silently finished "me" where he changed his words, that was nice. And if he thought she was no longer part of his life, well, he was greatly mistaken. Even if he didn't call the Kalona mare a replacement, she knew what the mare really was.

She had to admire his guts, in staying to defend his poor choice of paramour. But guts would never be enough.

"Tlocatl..." the name was spoken with a mix of chutzpah and sensuality and at one point it had convinced a half-breed Kalona stallion to love (even if he had never admitted it) a regular mare. "...I should be saying that to you, about her." The ghosts of the past were banished with the threat-filled words.

"I took your flight from you once, but you seem to have recovered from that. So this time I'll take something that means even more to you than the skies." A blur of darkness against the fading sky and Wyrsa now stood opposite where she'd been, and mere steps away from the sleeping mare.  

[EchoLimaFoxtrot]

Tlocatl took one step, which ended up causing his curly tail to snake across Edith's sleek form.

The mare squirmed with a smile but kept her eyes closed, "Mmmm, Tloc, that tickles...."

His heart screamed out at her words and complete ignorance of the situation, and only a twitch in his cheek alluded that the reacted to her words. The stallion froze his tail as best he could - following the thought: if you don't move maybe the scary monster won't see you. If only his tail hadn't brushed across his love, then she wouldn't have said anything and made him forget his words.

"Edith." He breathed sternly under his breath. He hated to give up her name, but it was the only way he could get through to her.

The mare's liquid eyes fluttered open, for she heard the tone in his voice. "What's wro-?" Edith paused, her eyes falling upon the obvious Skinwalker standing before her. "Who's this?" Having grown up so secluded, she had never seen anyone wear a pelt before. Why wear it? The fur was irritating anyways and stuck in your teeth.

"She's no one." Tlocatl snarled, not taking her eyes off Wyrsa for even a moment. "Just get up, we're leaving now." That's right, get in to the air and fly hard and far, where the cursed monster couldn't follow.

Edith would have shrugged if she was standing, so instead she followed the advice of her love, and got to her feet.  

[mouselet]

The yellow eyes narrowed in amusement as the would-be fearsome Kalona froze like a rabbit beneath the hawk's stoop. Predator and prey in this encounter had already been revealed and yet he still clung to hope. It was a worthless, soft emotion, hope. She knew abstractly that it had once meant a great deal to her, but that Wyrsa was long dead.

The Wyrsa that remained gave a cold laugh. "No one, am I? Just a ghost from your past, am I? You should know better than that, Tlocatl."

The Skinwalker lunged, almost too fast for the Kalona pair to see, covering the small distance between her position and the other mare. Wyrsa's fangs, still fairly small as compared to a Kalona's or a pure Skinwalker, sunk into the tender flesh just above where Edith's pointed tail met her body, anchoring her to the ground.  

[EchoLimaFoxtrot]

Tlocatl gave a half-smile, he actually smiled (well, mostly). "A ghost, no. A figment of my imagination is more like it." He didn't care, as usually happened around Wyrsa, he snapped and his demeanor went from cautious to simply not caring anymore. He always lost some form of control around the mare.

But perhaps, he should not provoke her.

Edith cried out in pain that registered before she saw the other mare move. And now, she could not get her feet. With her own snarl of rage, she was quick to act. She threw her weight in to her high quarters in an attempt to roll -yes, towards the pain and sink those razor teeth in deeper. But it was an effort to get away. Her wings she folded close. Edith even tried to twist backwards as well. Her goal was not to get to her feet anymore, but to dislodge the pelted mare.

Tlocatl, however, was less than useful. He jumped back, unable to join the fray from fear that his help would only hinder Edith in her own fight, but he did every once in awhile try to step on a furry tail.  

[mouselet]

It was a shame that her chief weapons in this form were her teeth, the Skinwalker mused, because it prevented her from further taunting the stallion. Then again, silence was power and she really didn't have much to say to his childish insults. Also the mare had started to react (belatedly, she might add) and Wyrsa needed to focus on keeping her grip.

The wingless mare's agility had been greatly increased by the addition of corpse powder to her body and so though it was somewhat difficult and more than a little painful, she grimly held on. The stupid mare just refused to admit that she had already lost, and Wyrsa was going to run out of patience if these pointless acrobatics continued.

She spared a thought to be pleased that Tlocatl was staying out of the physical confrontation - it was one less factor to keep track of, one less enemy to fight. And she had a special lesson in mind for him when she was finished with his would-be mate.  

[EchoLimaFoxtrot]

Edith continued to romp in the sand (most males would probably enjoy this show) to try and dislodge the skinwalker. Her mouth was not quite so occupied and she growled out her own insults and curses upon the other mare. Some were taunts, and probably not the best of choices. But, she refused to stay down quietly.

Finally, she voiced her own anger at the semi-placid stallion. "Tlocatl. It's. Time. To. Engage. Fight." She gasped. "Back."

Well, he didn't need any further invite, it was Edith's way of saying she wanted his help and if she got hurt in the cross-fires, that was okay as long as they won.

The stallion dove down, throwing his non-injured shoulder at the two mares to try and get them apart. Either way, he weighed more than they did.

Edith gasped with the force, but continued her writhing. She fought back with wing tips, slicing them back towards the mare; her hooves were all but useless; her tail curled around to try to distract; and finally, whenever she could, she would twist her head around to try to bite in her own accord.  

[mouselet]

Wyrsa's attention was mostly focused on maintaining her grip - it wasn't easy, a horse's mouth is not really made to bite something that big that long - when she heard Edith give orders to Tlocatl. Clearly it was time to change tactics since this wasn't entirely working and the Kalona mare wasn't getting the picture. And powerful Skinwalker or not, a mare was still smaller and lighter than a stallion and being rammed by Tloc would hurt.

The Skinwalker bit harder, forcing her jaws together. The pain was bearable compared to the turmoil of anger and hatred in her black, withered heart and nothing compared to what she would wreak on the pair of Kalona. The seconds were agonizingly long as the stallion picked up speed for his charge, the mare bucked even more wildly and Wyrsa's teeth moved ever closer together.

Finally...they met. Edith's tail fell to the grown, twitching a bit, and Wyrsa jumped back. Not far enough to avoid Tloc, but enough so that she didn't take the full brunt of his blow. She shook it off and bared her bloodstained teeth at the pair with an animalistic snarl.  

[EchoLimaFoxtrot]

Edith collapsed from the shear pain on having her tail ripped off. She couldn't even cry out. Her body shook and her eyes glazed over. Now matter how strong she was, she physically could not handle what just happened.

Tlocatl didn't know what had happened until he had already barreled past, only pausing long enough to stumble on Edith's limp leg - causing more damage as his hooves maneuvered between them. He didn't brake a limb for her, but he was pretty close.

Using the momentum, he pivoted on his hind quarters, and saw what had befallen his love. His eyes widened, and Tlocatl stood in his own shock.

With a roar, he turned to Wyrsa and strode towards her, passing by Edith so his form stood over her protectively. Even tailless, she was more beautiful to him at that moment than Wyrsa could ever be.

"What? What does this prove, Wyrsa?" He ranted. "You are still the same pathetic mare as before. Sure, your bite is a little stronger than before but you are still nothing! You cannot fly, and you hunt around instead of over. You will never be able to share the flight of courtship and you are forever cursed now. Edith is still more mare than you, even without a tail - which she will heal from because she is that strong. You are just a rabid dog and you are the only one who cannot see it. Go, before you continue to prove how worthless and pathetic you really are."

And with that, he did what he would have only done to Wyrsa and not the skinwalker. He turned his back on her and leaned down to inspect Edith and assess the damage. Yes, she would heal - just as he did.  

[mouselet]

Perhaps he thought that he could injure her with volume, since he should know by now that insults would matter little to a Skinwalker. She knew full well what she was, but she doubted that he would understand. She wasn't even certain that another Skinwalker could understand. She was still the person she had been before being cursed...merely refined. Honed. Bent in one particular direction to the exclusion of all else.

His ranting also gave her a chance to unobtrusively catch her breath. Taking on two Kalona at once was more than even she could do. Thank the dark gods she had evened the odds by sending the one into shock. But if Edith was still more mare than she...well, that could be fixed. A grin crept back across the Skinwalker's face and a fierce flame lit her yellow eyes. Yes indeed, she could fix that.

But before she could fix it, she needed Tloc out of her way. She would make his lesson painful and harsh, but it could wait.

With a Skinwalker's speed and power, Wyrsa charged Tloc in the same move he'd tried using to separate her from the other mare.  

[EchoLimaFoxtrot]

It was gutsy, that was for sure. But even more so, it was downright foolish of Tlocatl to turn his back on Wyrsa. No matter, he did it anyways. His concerns laid with Edith, not himself.

He didn't even have time to see her from the corner of his eye. Tlocatl knew his words meant little to her now, but it made him feel a little better. His nose was down, and nudging his beautiful mate on the shoulder. "Edith..." he mumbled, trying to break through her haze of pain. "...my love..." But his words seemed to be wasted - she was beyond him right now.

When the skinwalker collided with him, Tlocatl fell and rolled from the momentum. She may not be as big as him, but Wyrsa made up for it in sheer speed. His breath knocked from his lungs, the kalona wheezed and he cleared the stars from his eyes. Tlocatl struggled to his feet, but his mind could not figure out which way was up and which was down.  

[mouselet]

Love. That stupid emotion. It made idiots out of sensible creatures and weaklings out of the most powerful. It was why Skinwalkers were the most powerful of all, because they would never fall prey to such an idiotic emotion such as love. Wyrsa's lip curled in a sneer. She had once tried to convince herself she'd loved Tlocatl and had nearly succeeded, but her eyes had been opened the day the curse took her. She had never truly loved him, only admired his power. To the regular mare she'd been, a Kalona truly was powerful - strong, dark and able to fly.

But flight really was overrated. Perhaps she should take it from him again. Not right now, however. That was enough woolgathering and she would be able to take her time with him later. For now, she needed him quiet and out of the way.

The stallion was clealry dazed. Good, he wouldn't be able to put up much of a fight. Her head went down again and Wyrsa rammed a second time. She wondered if this type of attack was doing any serious damage. The wounds inflicted probably wouldn't break the surface of his skin...but she could be doing a great deal of damage inside. Was it possible to kill someone in this manner? It was an intriguing question, and one she would have to pursue.

Another day.  

[EchoLimaFoxtrot]

He must be getting weak. Those were the last thoughts he had as he fought to remain consciousness when he crashed to the ground near Edith. It never occurred to him that maybe Wyrsa was just stronger.

----

A strong stallion greeted her at the cave, his muzzle stained with the blood of his kill. She hated to have to rely on him, but her bloated belly would not allow her to fly as fast, or long. But in his eyes, he held only love for her, and that gave her strength.

Edith watch it all through her blurry pain-filled vision, though her mind sometimes escaped elsewhere. She saw her daring, rugged, strong, Tlocatl crash to the ground, and this time he did not get up.

Her mouth opened as she made a silent cry out to him. Her voice had escaped her long ago.

But her voice was fine. She growled a bit as the baby started to come. Her parents were there too, to share in this moment with her and Tlocatl. They were proud of their daughter, and the mate she chose. The first foal came - colorless and limp. With a sad shake of the head, her mother took it outside. It would not be put in a basket. Still births were common up here, usually only one foal survived - which helped the species in the mountains - only the strong lived.

She rolled her eyes and tried to focus on the skinwalker looming close behind. Her limbs refused to work, and her tail was gone so she could not switch it in defiance. Edith gathered her strength as best she could and gave the skinwalker a bloody sneer. For the moment, her mind was clear - the pain forced down.

"Now what, Cur?" Edith gurgled through her blood. She was certain death was coming, but she was Edith - a strong mountain kalona. Her dignity rested only with her. And she would not die a (total) weakling.