I've just passed under the second golden arch. Looking behind me, I'm pleased to see that I'm still in the lead. No one has passed me yet when I'm not lookin', to my great surprise. I see Oxy, not too far behind me, and some sort of amorphous shape that is even closer. Well.. I'm not sure what that shit is but I don't want to be anywhere near it. I think that I might see the dappled unicorn somewhere behind me, but with the steam pockets and dim, dusty lighting it's hard to tell. As for the two-horned female.. Well, I can't see her at all. I can only assume she's somewhere behind the grey one. I turn my head back around to the road (or lack thereof) in front of me, lest I stumble and fall on my face.

I haven't lost my breath just yet, but my body is complaining. It's cursing at me, berating me for trying to make it do something it hasn't done in ages. As my hooves beat the ground in a steady four-beat rhythm, I think back. When was the last time I actually ran anywhere? Thinking.... Thinking.... What about that.. Nope, no that was trotting. I don't even trot all that much. What kind of hurry do we all need to be in? The world isn't going anywhere. If it's worth having it'll stay there until you get there. Maybe that's not the most perfect philosophy, but it's worked for me thus far. Until now. Now I need to actually run for something! I'm not completely opposed to the concept, but my body is. Well it can go fuck itself.

Where I hit rock my hooves make loud cracks against the volcanic rock, and where I manage to hit patches of dirty there's a soft thud instead. My legs are getting sore, and I am focusing hard on keeping my breathing steady. Don't need to pass out from lack of oxygen. And that's actually more of a real concern, now that I think about it. The air is clogged with smoke and steam from the caves, and it's probably harder to get the pure oxygen that the body needs. Well, damn. Just gotta work that little bit harder then.

I extend my legs and find a stride longer than I realized I could do. Huh.. maybe I was born to be a racehorse! .... HA. I'm not brilliant but I'm smarter than that. My ears flap back and forth in the wind and I see another arch coming up ahead. Just as I'm about to pass through I hear a gurgle of some strange sort come from the earth. Uh oh, I know what that means, based off my previous experience. Sure enough, I see magma bubble up from the earth, about a foot and a half from the ground. I don't have enough time to traction to dodge to the side and not tumble over... I grunt loudly as I try to pick myself up and leap from the ground. If I were the jumping type, you might say I was soaring. But being the type of horse I am, it probably looks more like an awkward, endearing little hop. Surprising myself, I land on the other side unscathed, and pass through the arch, moving slightly slower as I recover myself. Hey.. I didn't know I could do that. My muscles groan at me. Maybe I should save jumping for the big thoroughbreds and warmbloods.... And perhaps this running, racing thing, too. I'm a strength guy, not a fast guy.

Love 'em in all shapes and sizes.

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"Words words words."
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