Impulse was Megaera’s biggest failing at the moment; the young mare was to quick to jump into a fight, to face any challenge, real or imagined. The state of her wings was a testament to her immaturity; the tips had been burned away in the great pit of fire not far from here. She had been stupid. She had been reckless and arrogant and stupid, and now she was paying the price. Se had healed well from her dance in the fire, only a small pattern of scars remained on her front legs and around her black mouth, but she still felt like a cripple. Flight had meant everything to Megaera, it had been freedom and safety and strength, but her wings would not be whole again until her feathers molted in the spring. In the meantime, she was learning to do without.

She had come back to the caves breathless, leading her little sister Alina to the safety of the underground sanctuary. She’d found the girl not to far away, paralyzed with fear; they both had suffered from fire in the Heart’s territory. But Meg had managed to coax her along and they had rejoined their herd here. It was then that she had heard of the meeting called by Goucho, and had hurried farther into the caves to find where he had called the Warriors to meet.

She had found them in the room that was bright with little glowing flowers, but as she entered the cavern the ground beneath her trembled and the massive black stallion shouted for silence. Meg surveyed the collection of bodies as the giant continued to speak. Stallions dominated the gathering, all strong and brave, warriors truly. Even the two that she exceeded in height had things she did not. Her black and white sultan and the ornery-looking blue mare both had wings intact and the former a powerful warrior’s build. The intimidation that might have come was extinguished be that drive to prove herself; this mare was not one to back down from a fight.

Two more stallions spoke their desire to fight before the bay mare stepped forward and directed her first words at her leads: “I only just returned, I’ve retrieved our little Alina from just beyond Helovia’s Heart.” She turned now and threw her voice to all in the cavern. “There are some of the foul creatures lurking just beyond the sanctuary of these caves. They are foul things indeed, and they spread their sickness with a vicious drive. Any contact with them is a risk, even the slightest touch could be enough to catch this sickness and you’d be lucky if you got away with only a touch. It has decayed their minds as well as bodies, they seem driven to attack anyone and anything.”

megaera
someday we may see a woman king, sword in hand
swing at some evil and bleed