It was still dark.

Ashamin watched over the Aurora Basin like one of the Sentinels, his black eyes narrowed and his long, adorned tail erect and straight. With all of the trouble at the border as of late, he felt it his unofficial duty to take advantage of the position of his cave and watch for intruders. Such stalwart loyalty was marred, of course, by Rikyn's earlier supposition.

The haruspex could not forget the chill that had travelled down his spine upon hearing such a young boy declare his right to the world. And what was worse, he had implicated Ashamin in the sin of pride. He had called them a we.

Though it was none of Rikyns' business to know Ashamin's heritage, the paint almost wished then it had been branded upon him more clearly. If the awkward tangle of his horn was not enough, some sort of sign on his chest or hide would have made the matter clear. Ashamin was not like Rikyn. He was not like many of the unicorns living here, apparently. He wasn't pure. He claimed no right.

But Rikyn did. And for that, the Haruspex had decided a spar was in order. Perhaps it was foolish, but the wise one wondered if an instance on the battlefield could settle the matter. It was playing the other buck's game more than anything else.

Rikyn was a beast of pride, one believing in a sort of preordained and rapturous superiority. Ashamin was a humble questioner. One of them was going to prove themselves, and Ashamin was willing to step into the younger one's playing field to do so. If he lost, then perhaps he would reconsider. If he won, perhaps Rikyn would.

Either way, the haruspex felt in his breast that there was a score to settle. His sarong, hung on the wall by the opening, blew Eastward in the faint breeze. There was no show of this, today. This sort of honor wasn't a game.

Lochan watched from the threshold of the cave, standing beside the scorpion and looking out with bright, white eyes. Though he feared for his bonded, he understood, too, the urgency. Though he longed to aid Ashamin in his plight, he understood his own limitations. Perhaps he understood the circumstances better than the Haruspex himself, who stood stalwart, steady, and prepared with his hooves planted firmly at the edge of the cave's stone, on the precipice of an unsteady proving grounds.

Soon, the haruspex hoped, Rikyn would arrive.

""

WC: 421
PC: 0/3, 0/1
Timeline: 1 Week Between
Setting: Early Birdsong morning, just before sunrise (which may occur during the course of the spar.) Just outside the Haruspex's Cave. The Sentinels can be seen in the distance. As a result of the thaw from Frostfall's end, the thawed ground is slippery and muddy; there are some stray patches of ice leftover from Frostfall, mostly at the bottom of puddles.
Summary: Ashamin waits for Rikyn, just outside the entrance to his cave. He is wearing his tesla coil but not his sarong. Lochan is watching from the cave.
Notes: Sorry this is crappy and a day late, Bunnie. I plan to reply to their other thread today if I have the power in my head.

ASHAMIN