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Ezital loved the tallsun nights. The blistering heat of the sun that dampened his coat with sweat disappeared over the horizon and turned the evening air pleasantly warm. The moonlight dappled the lush, green underbrush with silver light and the forest came alive with dancing fireflies and chirping crickets. Water was scarce in the streams and ponds, but there were plenty of other sources, even if he had resorted to eating berries once or twice.
More than anything, he hated the cold. The frozen seasons were the bane of his existence and tested his endurance and resolve every year. Two years ago, he'd gotten caught in a blizzard that had snow up to his chest in some areas. He'd mostly hidden in caves, only venturing out when his stomach ached too deeply to ignore. The year after that, he'd moved further south, but the endless rain was only a slight improvement. For months he felt completely drenched all the time. The first den he found to sleep in flooded within a week, and the second flooded not too long after that.
The snow was cold, but at least it was dry.
The downpour he found himself in now was comparable to that year, except that this storm would pass far more quickly and the warmth of tallsun would return with the dawn. He tried to keep that thought in his head as his mane plastered to his neck, his tail dragged through the thick mud, and his flanks trembled with a chill.
Brisa was like an embodiment of the moon before him, guiding him to safety. He glanced back at the filly to make sure she was doing better than he was, but before he could say anything to her, Brisa dropped back to walk beside him.
At least she looked like she was having fun. Perhaps she felt safer in her own territory. He tried to look slightly less miserable as she pushed at his shoulder and challenged him to race.
He snorted at her. "That would hardly be fair. I don't even know the way."
Still, he pushed himself into an uneven trot to keep her in sight. His whole body felt heavy with the weight of the rainfall. She finally halted after what seemed like forever, and grandly presented the falls to him.
He had to admit, it was rather impressive. The sheer scale of the cascading waterfalls gave him pause. Its crashing water would probably be deafening if he stood on the edges of those cliffs, if he were ever brave enough to do so. He laughed at himself. He'd turned down the World's Edge because of his fear of heights, where this place was mostly a series of smaller cliffs.
"It's beautiful," He assured Brisa. His ears perked up as she mentioned Ktulu. The idea of being a warrior appealed to him far more than healing. Perhaps it was time for him to learn to fight properly.
"Where would I find Ktulu? Should I introduce myself to the herd leaders?"
He was eager to get started now that he was here, but he didn't want to step on any toes by ignoring the established hierarchy. He frowned as he realized that Brisa and Vitani might be leaving him now. He felt almost a kinship with them both, despite only meeting them several hours ago.
"What do you two do around here?"
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