Canaan

Mauja moves only limply when I nudge his neck, still showing the barest of bare signs of life. My action to take the white owl from the water seems to have helped spur a little action. I'm feeling at a loss - there's little to nothing that I can do to help except provide moral support. And I'm not a very good choice for that. The spotted pegasus... Al...Alysanne? The memory comes to me from the basin containing so many vague ideas and thoughts. Yes... queen of the World's Edge, another herd. Alysanne sends her companion (Hemlock?) to go find help. Yes, healing help would be a good idea. Though of course it hadn't occurred to me that there may be equine healers. Not sure who I thought it would be instead....

She went to the water and got the other feathered friend out of the water. Soon it appeared to be another owl, though of a different sort than the white one I had pulled out. I glance down and see the white owl start to open its eyes, and my excitement at its awakening leads me to start to speak. Except that as I look up to announce this exciting change, I see something I had very much not expected.

Not just a dragon-like horse. No, the golden pegasus had become an actual dragon. I gulped and almost pissed myself. Not that I would EVER ADMIT THAT. I felt a pang in my chest as my heart tried to compensate for the blood coursing through me as my gut prepared the fight-or-flight response. Hnnnnnnnng!! I thought I was prepared but NOT for that. I watched, frozen to the spot, as the dragon rolled and shoved Mauja from the murky waters onto the solid ground. The dragon is nearly as disgusting as I and Mauja after her efforts, and if I had the wherewithal to speak I would have applauded her.

Hoofbeats in the swamp, noisy as the mud sucks and slurps around them, distract me from the shiny golden scales. A unicorn appears out of background and upon her arrival simply says "Hemlock found me". This must be the healer that Alysanne had sent for. The bay mare begins to sing - beautiful notes that bring peace to my soul in a way that I haven't felt for ages. They can't unlock the part of me hidden deep inside, but they soften everything surrounding it. The Songbird. Of course... her singing makes it click.

I nudge the owl softly, but find my way back to Mauja's side. He looks terrible: gaunt, underfed, coat ragged and scraped up. He's slimy like the seaweed from the ocean and I wonder how long he's been there. How long could he have been there any survived? More mysteries. I walk to the water and take a mouthful, then spit it toward the stallion's side, hoping to help remove some of the mud and slime from the spotted pelt. I'm pretty worthless when it comes to this, and my ears have begun to droop against my skull as a result of my self-pitying. But then a noise comes from Mauja's muzzle and I gasp audibly. All he said was 'ouch' but... He's alive - he spoke! His eyes opened! Joy split my cracked lips into a grin. I glanced at the mares and.. dragon.. glee lighting up my visage.

screams of the innocent