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 Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 8:21 am
 A thick dark fog hung in the air this morning, coating the land in a sickly brown haze. To outsiders it was a sickening if not frightening sight, but to She-Ra it was welcoming. This was her home, as wretched as it seemed to some she did not know any different. The lush green meadows and tree filled forests that lay beyond her Master's territory were ugly to her. Yet, even as beautiful as the fog was to her, today it also bore an ominous message. It almost made the golden haired mare shiver. This bad feeling did not sit well with her and she knew partially what it was about. Pirata had asked her to meet here and there was a reason behind it. Recently her mentor had fallen pregnant with the help of some mutant stallion in the swamp. The result had been two baskets. It had disgusted She-Ra. How many times had they spoken at length about how useless foals were? How all the weak blooded Soquili seemed to do was breed and spawn more weak blood? And yet Pirata had gone out and done exactly that.
Giving her head a shake She-Ra glanced out into the thick fog. The brown mist cut off most of the world. She could not see if Pirata was coming, so she would need to rely on hearing more than anything else this day. Certainly Pirata would have at least picked a strong blooded stallion to sire her foals. Of that she was certain. Yet even that did not make the situation any less unpleasant. Foals were weak, not matter how strong their parents were, it was their nature to be weak. What had Pirata been thinking? She-Ra would never voice any of these concerns or anger to Pirata or her Master, she was too well trained and disciplined for that, but here alone with only her thoughts to dwell on she could mentally complain to herself.
Letting out a slight snort She-Ra took a deep breath. The dank air she sucked in was filled with the smells of rotten corpses, mud, mossy wood and wet fur. A pleasant aroma at least to her, it was enough to help calm her down a bit. Soon Pirata should be here and then she would see just what her mentor wished of her.
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Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 8:45 am
  Pirata made her way through the fog at her typical pace - and not being the type to rush here and there unless it was necessary or needed that pace was more then slow enough for the green foal who followed along behind her to keep up. She was quite pleased with how her side of the bargain with Boi'tata had played out - the colt behind her though perhaps not the brightest of foals was strong and possessed some unique traits that Pirata saw great potential for in battle.
All he needed was a bit of seasoning, and that of course was something she would see to today. The spiders on her back drummed their feet, clearly feeling the anticipation coming from their mistress and Pirata paused for a moment to murmur a few soothing words to the little beasts before starting off again.
She-ra no doubt would not be pleased with the turn of events which was about to take place - but pleasing She-ra was not something Pirata held as any sort of necessity, as long as the golden mare did as she was told then Pirata was content. You didn't have to like something to follow through with it and while she was aware that the mare would likely see the birth of Pirata's foals as a blight against her earlier teachings Pirata was not concerned with that either - when there was a lack of strong new fighters then sometimes you had to bite the bark and make some of your own. As long as you bred for strength - which she had then the spider ridden mare saw no problems with it.
Reaching the agreed upon meeting grounds Pirata could spot through the fog the waitng form of She-ra. Good - Pirata did so hate to wait on others. "She -ra" She greeted the golden mare as she arrived. "It is good to see you have arrived on time" Not that the golden mare was ever late - but it didn't hurt to keep driving home the message of punctuality.
Turning her head the blue mare focused on the smallish form which should be behind her - and was pleased to see that he was. "And you kept up as well.. good" She remarked before turning her attention back to the golden mare. It was a hard trip for a foal to make - and uncomfortable as well given the damp wet weather - but Agave knew better then to complain, or to lag behind his mothers thankfully slow pace. Those sort of weaknesses were something the colt had learned early on not to acknowledge, and while those lessons had not been pleasant...they had stuck.
He had no idea where they were heading but he knew better then to question Pirata on that either - his mother was not one to suffer such questions with very much patience. In fact he had swiftly learned that the only thing she seemed to have patience with were her spiders. In a way the colt was almost glad for that - it meant that he could often go about unnoticed and thusly unbothered but as with all foals another part of him always yearned for the affection or at least the praise of his mother which was sparse and hard to come by.
His ears pricked when they reached another mare and his mother spoke to her, clearly this was their destination though he wasn't sure why he needed to be here for an apparent meeting between his mother and her student - he would have much rather stayed home under the care of his nanny the brown mare who often looked after him. "Yes ma'am" Was his only remark when spoken too and when th attention turned back to the golden mare, Agave found his thoughts wandering again while he glanced around the area.
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Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 9:06 am
The sound of footfalls on the damp ground brought She-Ra out of her thoughts and she turned to see Pirata's form come through the fog. Dipping her head in a greeting She-Ra's eyes turned to look towards the owner of the second set of hoofs. A foal. With that first glance She-Ra could see the colts back was covered in spikes, something that could prove to be an asset in a fight. He had multiple eyes like his mothers that glowed as well. A few spikes also adorned his legs. With her split second inspection done of the foal She-Ra's gaze returned to Pirata. "Punctuality is the key to success." She had learned as a young foal, perhaps a bit younger than the colt before her, that being on time meant one had the advantage in things and in the cases of lessons with her Master and sometimes Pirata it also meant there was no sound lashing for being late. There were still beating every now and then from Master when he simply felt like it, but that was the way of a purewalker.
Stepping forward She-Ra now moved to get a closer inspection of the foal. His green pelt and swirled pattern told her some of what the father was like. When she got close to him her teeth snapped at his neck, not close enough to bite him but more to test his reflexes and to see if he would shy away. Whatever Pirata had in mind for this meeting, She-Ra wanted to at least see if her mentors efforts had been worth it. Though still small She-Ra could see the potential of the foal to grow quite large. He had decent muscle tone for someone of his age. Looping around behind him she made sure to walk close, to her body touched his tail, again looking for any and all reactions to it.
Coming up along his other side she snorted heavily and then moved away, stopping to stand in front of Pirata once more. She had her opinions of the colt, yet unless asked she would not share them. Instead of saying anything the golden haired mare simply waited for her instructions. She knew Pirata would ask something of her, why else would she request to meet here.
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Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2012 9:34 am
Pirata felt no need to comment on the golden mares response, it was one of those responses that was simply expected and did not need acknowledgment. She also remained quiet while the mare inspected the colt behind her - Pirata had kept her foal to herself for a good bit of time and this was the first time She-ra had come across the boy, the better for Pirata to instill in him loyalty to herself rather then whatever loyalty he might garner for his future mentor. The time had come however for his training to begin in earnest and as such this meeting had been called.
"Satisfied?" She asked the mare when it looked as though the inspection was completed. In truth Pirata was not expecting much from the golden mares comments - indeed while she rarely minced her words her thoughts upon foals were well known. Pirata thought this amusing as it was likely to be the same reaction she had had upon being given She-ra to raise and mold. That had turned out rather well as far as she could see and Pirata was sure that She-ra's teaching of Agave would turn out just as well - the golden mare needed practice not in fighting for which she was already highly trained..but in simply dealing with minions beneath her..and Agave would not only benefit from the mares attentions but act as a decent sort of leaping point for the golden mare to move on to other, older soldiers that she would need to lead.
A test..everything was always a test and Agave's eyes narrowed as the strange mare approached him, focusing on her with his multi faceted eyes as she approached. His ears pinned as she snapped at him and he quickly pulled his head back and away from her - he didn't run..but he wasn't about to sit around and be gnawed on either just because this mare wanted to see if he would shy away...and he was sure that was what she was attempting to do. Showing such weakness would only get him further ill treatment he had learned and so he stood his ground and watched her with wary eyes as she circled about - on guard should she decide to snap at him again. All she did however was bump against his tail - a touch that he ignored - before moving her attentions back to his mother.
Relaxing slightly Agave found himself a touch more interested in the adults and their conversation - mostly because it now revolved around him and the young colt knew to pay attention to such things, not out of vanity..but because one could never tell what was going to happen to them and it was crucial to pick up as much information as possible. Besides..he sort of wanted to hear what this strange mare had to say about him.
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Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 9:11 am
Brows raised slightly at Pirata's simple question. Satisfied? That was hardly the right term to use. The was a blood damned foal standing there, he could grow into a great warrior with the right training, but foals were weak and too a lot of time and work to amount to anything, and more often than not they proved to be worthless even as adults. Still, she did have an answer. "You know my standing on foals." They had spend countless hours if not days discussing that very subject during her time with the spider mare. They had spoken of their weaknesses, how the lesser breeds tended to do nothing but breed in order to swell their numbers of weak blood. It had been an angering and frustrating time when Pirata had first announced that she would be bringing her own foals into the world, but now She-Ra could see it had not been a total waste. "However, he seems to have some advantageous features. Those spikes on his back would make him nearly impenetrable to attacks, only a fool would want to go up against that, and very few would be able to do so without severe injuries." Lowering head head she looked at the foal once more, her face was neutral.
"He appears to be of good stock, should grow to a fairly decent size. His eyes will be a disadvantage at night, giving away his position. But perhaps it will also drawn in the curious, which will leave them prone to an attack." It was about as approving as she could get giving the situation. However there was obviously some details left unsaid both on her behalf and Pirata's. She-Ra doubted that Pirata had brought the foal out here simply to be judged by her, there was more to this so much more, so She-Ra fell silent once more awaiting Pirata's next move. Though honestly the golden haired mare had some inkling of what this was about and she did not particularly like it, yet it had it's advantages as well.
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Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 10:27 am
"True" Pirata replied, they were after all thoughts that she had so carefully molded into the other mares brain as she grew "And yet I took the chance to raise you from a foal and see how well that turned out. While it is better to find worthy fighters for your cause sometimes one needs to procure them in more old fashioned ways" And this way Pirata could ensure that the colt truly was hers in every way possible. Brainwash him much as she had done to the mare before her. "It will be good practice for you - you will have to learn how to train others if you wish to be a leader of your masters forces" She further pointed out to the golden mare. Not that She'ra would argue...she knew better then to do something that foolish.
"His father was a mutant, perhaps not as bright as me or yourself but the colt is to be brawn for our forces..not brains and so that will not matter overly much"
Agave remained silent as the two mares discussed him like he wasn't even there - of course he was used to such treatment now, it had been the way his mother had treated him since he was born for the most part - and while he knew that he had a brother out there somewhere Agave could hardly recall him other then to recall his mother choosing to take him and leave the other in the care of their father.
The colt often wondered just what it had been that had given him such a fate and in the back of his mind often fantasied about how much different his life might have been if he had been the one left with his father instead. Despite his desire to remain still and silent he couldn't help but pin his ears back slightly when his mother implied he might be a bit stupid - Agave did not think he was, sure he might not grasp concepts quite as quickly as some of the others..but he was a foal, that was to be expected right?
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Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 1:29 pm
She-Ra stood silent for a few moments taking this all in. Pirata's little experiment in motherhood had been a success as far as she could tell, however there was still a lot for the foal to live up to and he could still yet become a disappointment or a failure. It was also true that Pirata had successfully trained her to become the soldier that she was today, why without Pirata's constantly guidance and mentoring She-Ra likely would have ended up as a snack for her Master long ago. And it would have been better to recruit already trained fighters, in the end those fighters would have started out in a much similar position as this colt standing before her. Of course the most important detail was what Pirata said next, that she would be overseeing the boys training. This was the opportunity she was hoping for, even if it meant dealing with a possibly worthless colt. If she did well at this then her Master would have no reason to not give her soldiers to command.
"He shall excel under my tutelage." She-Ra announced, of this she was certain. Even if it took extreme measures this colt would be shaped much in the way she herself had been. He would be the perfect soldier, especially thanks to his apparent lacking smarts. Sometimes the best soldiers were the ones who were all brawn and little to no brains. Her attention turned to the colt once more. He had double mutant parents, advantageous features for fighting, and with her teaching him then he would become great. But she would make certain he would never be better than she was. "What is your name whelp?" In all the focus on Pirata and their discussions the colts name had not yet been given, of course a detail such as that didn't matter until it was actually needed, and now that she was being given her first student she would need to at least know what he was called.
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Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 1:40 pm
"As I expected he would" Pirata told the other mare with a confident nod of her head. Just as she was confident that the colt would excel in his own way once he started his training - thus far the green beast had yet to disappoint her and that in itself was a good indication - Pirata being the overly critical creature that she was. The spider's themselves even seemed pleased with the declaration, drumming their feet upon her back in an almost soothing crescendo.
"I shall leave him with you then" She told She-ra and without any further glance at the colt - who really was little more then a future and as yet unproven soldier as far as she was concerned Pirata turned and made her way back the way she had come, pausing only once to say over her shoulder"When you are finished with him for the day he can be returned to my slave for the night" before heading off again.
Agave watched as his mother left, saying that he would be returned to Supreme when this strange new mare was finished with him for the day - that at least would be something to look forward too. His mother did not like the brown mare she called Slave but Agave did - of anyone she was one most prone to seeming to actually care, at least a little bit although she was understandably hesitant to let it show while others were around.
"Agave Noctis" He told the mare when she asked for his name - though he wasn't sure that she actually care all that much, to be honest he was somewhat surprised that she hadn't just decided to call him 'hey you' the entire time. Perhaps she wouldn't be quite as bad as he thought she might be.
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