His solitary journey was both long and short. Through the tress the painted stallion walked, hesitance marring every step. Honey-brown eyes continued to look for the sound of the voice, the nearly God-like baritone that had rumbled throughout the dark shadows of the Deep Forest. His nostrils were wide, inhaling the scents offered by his home, the musky scent of vegetation clear on the breeze. The thick, ebony strands of Apollo’s mane whipped to and fro as the breeze picked up, a strange burst of energy that caused his hide to prick and shiver. There was something unnatural about the wind, yet it was far from a threatening kind of malevolence…

“Who’s there?” He called again, moving one leg in front of the other, seeming to move as if in a daze. Was this a dream? No, it couldn’t be, for he had just awoken from a dream… A dream within a dream? Surely not. Following the trail that was so obviously created for him to follow, Apollo swallowed thickly, pausing in his steps and turning his neck to glance back at the way he had come. Surely this wasn’t a trap…? No, no, definitely not, for it just didn’t feel like whatever it was meant to harm him. Twisting his head around to face in front of him, the unicorn stag inhaled deeply once more and continued along the journey, tail swishing slightly as he moved.

What could be out there? What could be calling for him, summoning him? Had he done something wrong?

It wasn’t long before the stag came to a clearing, with a giant oak as its centerpiece. It had obviously been here for a long time, and as he ventured closer to it, mindful of the pool of water that had collected at its base, Apollo couldn’t help but gaze up into the arching branches of its canopy. It was beautiful, as far as trees could go, but there was something more… Grand, about this certain tree, something unexplainable yet magnificent. It was as if the energy that he could feel pulsing throughout the forest was centered upon this place, this pool of reverence… Then, before his very eyes, the pool began to glow, then churn, the crystal clear waters combined with the beautiful gems resting at the pool’s bottom creating a beautiful cataclysm of colors and shades. Simply due to the strangeness of the situation, Apollo took a step back, surprised as the water suddenly shot upwards into the sky. Never in all his years had he seen something like this… And that was coming from the stallion who had seen the Kraken, and lived to tell about it.

Apollo’s honeyed orbs took in the strangest thing, then, watching with pure awe as a creature formed, taking the body of a white stag. This… Was this who had summoned him? Who was it? Reverence leaked from every fiber of the creature’s ethereal body, and the overo barely resisted the urge to bow. Or, should he? He watched as it moved, tongue tied and silent, kneeling down to dig it’s magnificent horns into the earth below, marring the earth with respect. The fissures it created began to glow as well, and frantically Apollo tried to wrap his mind around just what he was seeing. This was all so strange, so complex, yet… So beautiful and humbling.

Then, it spoke. Or, they spoke, for when the deep syllables left the white-stag’s lips, many voices seemed to reverberate off of the trees around him. Apollo looked from the stag to the fissures of the ground, unsure. Could he deny this creature? No, of course not, for this being was much greater than he…

“Your Grace,” Apollo began, his voice trembling only slightly, though not in fear, “I don’t know what I’ve done to be rewarded, but…” He trailed off, uncertain. What could he say? With a slight shake of his head, the stallion ventured forward, albeit hesitantly. His steps were light, and as the white-stag commanded, the unicorn knelt down before the glowing fissures of the earth. “… Thank you, and I accept whatever you wish to bestow upon me with a grateful heart.”

I can never fight for myself, but, for others, I can kill."