The last time Abraham had made his way into the Hidden Falls looking for his sister, he had stumbled upon something he truly did not want to see. Unfortunately, he stumbled upon the same damn thing a second time--except, somehow, this time was worse. Way worse.

The emotions coming from the large demi-goddess swirled in the air, making it thick and hard to breathe. Cold eyes looked on with knowing behind them. Abraham understood to a degree the sorrow that fueled Isopia's uncharacteristic outburst of anguish. The leviathan watched his father stand his ground, sobs racking his monstrous body as he stood above the dead body of his mother. He would never forget that scene. Abraham knew grief, if not from himself than from the others in his life.

Could the beast feel grief himself? Sorrow? Hopelessness?

He was not sure. He knew he could feel anger, offense, rage. Those emotions, however, were nothing compared to the unexplainable feeling the loss of a child brought--and to have lost that child over again, a second time, was nothing the behemoth could fathom.

He was at a loss, watching Isopia display her broken heart. He wanted to leave. Perched in the tree above him his dragons pulled to him, trying to get his tree-like limbs to move and for his body to turn away the way he had come. He did try to leave, but as he lifted a hind leg to begin his exit backwards, the woman's head shot up and her eyes landed straight on him. Abraham froze, unsure of what to expect from her. Would she let him leave, as he had done when the snow covered the earth and he saw the child's first burial? Would she chase him off, biting at his heels? He waited for a moment, a breath, a mere second before the decision was clear in his mind: Abraham would not come out of his scene without battle scars.

The grieving tribrid sent herself flying at him, and Abraham knew what he had to do. He was not a man to turn and run away from a fight, from any threat. Even as the sorrowful mother galloped at him with anger, the hybrid was prepared and ready to meet her head on. This was not their first fight, and Abraham knew this battle would be arduous and strenuous. Isopia was taller now, stronger, faster than she had been at the Flats in their first duel. Abraham, too, was older, wiser, stronger. Whether this growth was enough to bring him to victory today was unknown. The biting question was: did Abraham want to win? Of course, the surface of his heart and mind screamed that Abraham would always fight to be the victor--as he had with this woman before--but something deeper inside of him, some semblance of the understanding of the grief displayed before him, whispered that he merely needed to be her punching bag today.

Snorting, Abraham lowered his head and braced himself for impact. His twin, twisting horns pointed for the charging Isopia, and his dual colored eyes watched her body. He had been taught the art of battle well, and even as he stood on the defensive side of the line, he knew to prepare himself for an assault. His muscles tightened and a light bulb brightened at the slightest shift of Isopia's weight. Left, he thought to himself, shoulders coming forward and haunches tucking. Isopia was just an inch taller than him, the difference hardly noticeable despite the massive wings sprouting from her shoulders. Despite it, Abraham knew he was stronger than the woman. This upperhand in strength did not come without a handicap, however, and it was displayed as Isopia closed the distance between them much faster than Abraham himself could. With his plan placed firmly in his mind, he shot forward at the last second. His body turned slightly to bring his left shoulder forward, making Isopia's intended target clear to her. This target was not naked however, it was covered with his bone armor. Her assault was volatile; her horns raked down the left side of his neck, leaving two long wounds. Blood flowed from them and his twin dragons screamed with the pain Abraham would not let himself admit. Turning his neck would be hell for the remainder of his battle, however long it would be, and he knew that. Blood stained his dark hide as he turned his head in an attempt to bite at her own neck, pain stinging and screaming from his new wounds.

Spikes aimed for Isopia's charging left shoulder, and as she made impact against him Abraham grunted, shifting backward some in the dirt from the force of her impact.  


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