Ever since she had returned, Murdock had felt a constant desire to travel north, some magnetic force pulling at his very bones and drawing him toward the mountains and snow. For far too long he had remained in the Edge, casually adjusting himself to his duties within a herd once more and becoming accustomed to his new way of life. He had felt reluctant to leave his new home for fear he would be missed or tempted to remain upon the icy steppe, pinned down by icy gales of wind and a heart that had a mind of its own.

However, he could resist his desires no more and so at the break of dawn, took one last look at the dark sea beyond the cliffs and lifted himself up into the air, up into the sky that he called home and followed a familiar route northbound. Forests and fields drifted by beneath him as he soared deeper into the grip of Frostfall, the air dense and cold beneath his outspread wings and carrying him along the strong winds with ease. A storm had just swept eastward across the steppe, but in its wake was a beautiful and clear morning, only the bitter wind serving as a reminder of the front that had passed during the preceding days.

Before long, he was descending toward the dark shoreline and the jagged foothills that lined the northern edge of the land, warm sunlight washing over him as he slipped through the air and landed softly in the deep powder. The steppe was such a large piece of land and every time he returned he wondered just how he would find what he sought among the mountains and many miles of rolling terrain. However, he always seemed to find her. Sooner or later he would stumble upon the right path and she would appear upon the horizon, a dark and shrouded figure waiting for his arrival.

He set out along the shoreline, the sea whispering encouragement to his left as the wind whistled along the mountainsides to his right. How he had missed this place, how he had missed her and everything about this land. The Edge had kept him for far too long, pinned to his responsibilities and the desire to rebuild the reputation he once had. However, he had not allowed himself time for a vacation or two within the past seasons and now finally he was following a winding trail of hoof prints north, drawing closer to the mountains as the sun rose higher and evening loomed on the edge of the world. He did not have to walk far, though, before he spotted a lone figure in the distance, her identity confirmed by the thorned crown upon her head.

“Chernobyl!” He called out with excitement bursting from his voice, his pace quickening as he leapt over wayward rocks and windswept brambles toward where she stood in the snow. Her sleek coat was dusted with snow, ice clinging to her hair as if she had been buried in a snow bank, but she looked well. A broad grin split across his features as he arrived at her side, his hooves sliding in the deep snow as he came to a halt. “I am sorry it has been so long…how have you been?” He stepped closer, reaching out toward her cheek to tenderly touch her face, to remind himself that she was truly here and not just some craft of his imagination.

"talk talk talk"