There was nothing right about invading the Hidden Falls. It felt more like a dirty secret that I couldn’t keep, one that only boiled my sinner’s blood. For that… was what I’d become. I’d lost myself to the selfish greed of Kahlua and Kaj, both blood thirsty mongrels looking to savage the Falls if only for minor discomforts. Yet, it was neither here nor there… This was my family and I would follow their orders. I would dismantle an entire herd at whim. I would terrorize them, because my King and Queen desired such measures. However, I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t force myself to hurt those who had lost so much before… After all, I had witnessed the invasion of the Grey and I could still remember what it had done to the former Foothills. Were we now no better than the band of misfits come together to take and steal precious moments from oblivious foes?

The sun was at our backs as we approached and the unsettling feeling of dishonor had begun to claim my heart. It was not in my nature to move so frivolously against the grain, but duty was a thing not to be ignored and further respected. ARCHIBALD had come to me knowing that I would serve him and I had pleased him in following him to the Falls... However, I hadn’t expected him to allow me the opportunity to flank him and THRNADUIL (disguised as MIDAS) as trusted guide… Again my soul was twisting with the agony of morality, of what was considered right and wrong. I prayed this would be over quickly.

The hazy rays of an evening sun welcomed us beyond foreign borders and with AARON, ALYSANNE, LAKOTA, and CICERON at my heels, I moved in behind ARCHIBALD toward his left. I had been lucky enough to receive assistance from RESPLENDENCE and Valiance in keeping the long tendrils of both my mane and tail from hindering me in battle. The red dragon had spent a great deal of time working through the knots, in order to braid and thread the long hair, and now that I was faced with war, I was definitely grateful for their help. Yet, there was still something vile about this, something cruel and uninviting about our deception…


However, I didn’t have long to pander the notion, not with KAHLUA acknowledging their arrival and ARCHIBALD summoning GHOST to the warfront. Everything was lost on me from there, because the commotion and the noise and the bitter clashing of flesh upon flesh became the only thing I could concentrate on. Beneath me the ground began to tremble with the force of ARCHIBALD’S war stomp and I was thrown off balance like any other animal in its wake. However, it caused me to glance back at my followers, taking note of their position before exacting my own attack. AARON, CICERON, and LAKOTA were all experienced with battle, but ALYSANNE appeared quite bereft by the sudden chaos. “Aly! Stay close, I would have you unharmed!” I bellowed while gesturing for her to follow just behind.

Somehow, that was all I’d needed to move forward alongside AARON, though I surpassed him in our descent into the Falls… I had a much larger prize to claim than he, a target yet untouched by our forces. All around me, Basin and Edge members alike flooded in from the sun, but my eyes had become callous and cold with only one concept in mind… fight. I had left Sabine tucked away in a quiet tree outside of the Falls to ensure her safety and I only hoped that she would remain there until I was through. The battle had only begun and I had only just donned my war paint.

My muscles began to roll and push beneath my skin as I charged toward the colored victim of my choice (BELLONA). It was a slow charge given my size, but a powerful one nonetheless. An unbroken cry sounded from my chest, an alert to my opponent, because I was not so barbaric as to take her unaware. From the left side of the Falls where the trees stood tall, I drew closer to my target, aiming to ram my shoulder into BELLONA’S left side. I was a great deal taller than she and heftier as well. I was hoping that the impact would throw her off balance if not fell her completely. I had wanted to connect at her shoulder, but I feared that her large wings would deflect such an attack and so I aimed toward her stomach. If the attack stuck like I hoped, then maybe BELLONA would also be rendered breathless. Besides, I didn’t want the multicolored mare to make an attempt on ALYSANNE. I had to protect my family… always.

Word Count |800 (per Microsoft Word)

| Follows ARCHIBALD, KAHLUA, and THRANDUIL (disguised as MIDAS) into the HIDDEN FALLS at ARCHIBALD’s LEFT

| THOR is flanked by AARON, ALYSANNE, LAKOTA, and CICERON

| From the LEFT, THOR targets BELLONA and charges her LEFT side with his shoulder -- aiming to hopefully throw her off balance, make her fall, or knock the wind out of her