Surly legs carried the colt south. Further and further and further, until trees began to thin and the soil turned from hard-packed earth to loose, pale sand. His onyx hooves sank into the grey mud that marked the shift from soil to salt flats, and a scowl flashed across his handsome, juvenile features.

Of course Kia would go on an adventure without him and find an exciting new equine to meet. He left and found only desolate, empty mud. Black rimmed ears tilt back, bright eyes glaring at the sucking earth as he slogged through it. A sheen of sweat coated him in the blaring, constant sunlight, darkening his now-sleek coat and slicking it to his dark skin. At least a few breezes, even if they were heated by the sun-warmed shallow water, blew over his hot skin to give some kind of relief.

Regardless, the colt had started in a sour temper that, now, had turned outright foul. Finally reaching the end of the mud and crossing over the edge into the mirror-like sandy flats, he stopped to slosh his muddied legs in the crystalline, warm waters. The grey mud slipped away, once again revealing the shining, black coat beneath.

A whisper of wings drew his attention from his legs and to the skies, snapping his head to peer upward. Bright eyes squint into the glare, seeing only a dark silhouette against the sun. The colt snorted and —whoosh— a could of ash rushed into the heavens, chasing the shape.

He was surprised to find that the ashen clouds had taken shape; they were formed in likeness to his companion. His ears swiveled backwards while his eyes remained skybound, watching his magic snare the flying thing, its wings suddenly ceasing to flap as it began to fall from the sky. He heard the splashes that marked the approach of his cub; he head been relieved when she had finally given up her annoyed yowls when they first had begun walking through the mud.

SPLASH.

The creature hit the earth solidly, falling from too great height for water to soften the blow. Slowly approaching the ash-shrouded creature, the dark princeling realized that it was a bird, a large one. Webbed feet were dark, while its white neck was crooked at a grotesque angle. Its long beak was slightly askew, the fall breaking its hinges and causing it to not align properly. And a fish half-heartedly flopped in the expansive pouch of the broken beak.

Seeing the haphazard wings and the open, unseeing eyes, the colt let his magic blow to dust with the warm breeze. This bird was dead, and would remain still. His head dropped, nostrils flaring to take in the strange, fishy and salty scent of this dead thing.

Behind him, a highpitched, eerie laugh sounded as the hyena pup splashed forward. Finally, food.