It was the light that drew them closer. A dim, red glow that had nothing to do with the star strewn heavens that arched endlessly above, and that almost drowned out the gentle glow of the cosmic lights. It had piqued their curiosity for several nights now, and it felt natural to make it among the first of their destinations as they explored this new land. Lace had made it a point to listen carefully to what Mirage had had to say about this place, but even though she seemed to be a mare of her words he still wanted to have a look around on his own, to feel the earth below his hooves and see with his own eyes. For once he had ignored the protests of his companion and simply walked away, leaving her to decide whether to follow or to stay with the shadow mares Gold. He hadn't had to wait long, though it was a grumpy Fajira that caught up with him after about half an hour. Even now she still complained about it; her bright voice resounded within his mind as he walked over the scorched earth, curiously studying the red light up ahead.

Wanted to play mooorrre! We should go back, try to find her again. The golden one, the proud queen! Fourlegs shouldn't be so stubborn, should listen better to me. Say, lets go see them now? The White that perched on his back wasn't so much persuading as she was nagging at him. Normally he might have complied with her just to stop the never ending stream of complaints, but Lace wasn't in the mood to give in right now.

Not interested, so stop complaining. With a disregarding snort the silver stallion picked up the pace in a sudden jerk that made the small dragon fall over his croup and had to take to the wings to avoid falling to the ground. He laughed at her as he fell into a sharp canter and ducked under a playful attack aimed at his ears; after in turn failing to tug at her tail with large teeth, the grullo once more faced up ahead. The closer they came to the light, the warmer it became. It was as if the very ground beneath his hooves were emitting heat, and soon he found himself forced to tread carefully, zigzagging between small streams of glowing water; only it was too hot to be water. At one time his hooves had almost made contact with it, and he could still feel the scent of something burning. He had never seen anything like it before. It was fascinating.

The outcast was tempted to stop and explore further, but a silent warning from the White made him look up from the searing hot flows and peer ahead through the darkness. Someone was standing there, so close to the source of the light that all he could make out was a silhouette of a horse, tall and proud and emitting a sensation that Lace wasn't too familiar with. Very few could awaken the feeling of awe within him, but this one... Simply by standing there this figure managed to draw his entire attention.

Without thinking the silvery stallion walked closer, crossed the veins of liquid fire as surefooted as a goat on a cliff. Fajira cooed at him with worry in her voice, and when he didn't reply she came flying and landed on his whithers, the small paws tangling into his mane for comfort and support. She was uneasy, and so was he once he finally managed to come closer to the dazzling creature. There was still plenty of room left between them when he stopped, eyes widening at the sight he beheld; wings and horns together, not to mention the sheen of the coat and the pure, awe-inspiring, terrifying beauty. He didn't have words for the feelings that stirred within, and didn't dare to speak in fear of disturbing this contemplating force of nature in the shape of a horse. Had he come too close? Yet he couldn't bring himself to leave. Silently he remained standing to the side of the God, simple breathing and waiting with the little dragon pressed tightly against his flesh.. For what, he did not know.

Earth God & Moon Goddess A rumble in the earth, and wind tearing and raking through the thin blades of grass signals the approach of the other two deities, one traveling on impossibly fast hooves while the other soared above silently on lavender wings. The sun had set on the long season of Tallsun, and now in its wake, Orangemoon had returned power to the other two deities. It was time for them to take action, to make their brother answer for his crimes. Solid black hooves meet the earth gently, despite the speed at which they carried the behemoth of a God. The bay comes to a deft halt, standing before his slender, beautiful brother, worry overriding the anger that sat in his normally peaceful green eyes. "What have you done to yourself, brother Sun?" he asks, a fatherly tone of voice making him seem like a parent lightly chiding a small child. Yet, this one had only just been inferior to the strength of their heated brother. Cloven hooves of silver moonlight land with ultimate grace upon the heart's rim, her body stepping gently away from the flames which clawed out in the night sky in response to her brother. " You have been little more than a headache," she chimes in quietly, albeit a touch bitter. " Letting your temper take your head again." An amused smiles peels across her features, trying to close the gap that had formed in her heart for her sibling at the burning of her lands. How the Earthen King had managed to stay so calm at the sight of the Foothills boiling was unknown to her. "We cannot let you go freely like this," the Earth God says, his face taking on a tired sadness as he views his beloved brother. "You know there must be punishment for the anguish you have caused the mortals to face." Steel glinted from behind a veil of kindness and understanding. Whether or not the Earth wanted to forgive him was not in question, but it was the only way to ensure the mortals would feel comfortable again. " We are banishing you from the Veins, brother," the Moon says quietly. " You may not return until the end of Winter. Those who seek you shall go unanswered, until have learned your lesson well."

Somehow he had clearly stumbled into a meeting where he had no place. The arrival of two more awe-inspiring beings made the stallion realize that the golden, fiery horse in front of him was more than just a stunning and powerful hybrid; they were clearly not regular mortals, none of them. Wide-eyed he listened to the conversation, intensively wishing for some miracle that could bring him away from the place where he stood, hooves nailed into the ground and unable to move a muscle. It was nothing that held him there but his own reflexes, instincts that whispered to him about painful things should he interrupt the powerful beings or in any way displease them.

His mind struggled to find something else to focus on, something that wasn't as staggering as the thought of witnessing this meeting of gods - for they have to be gods, nothing else would fit to describe them with. He struggled to remember what Mirage had told him about the gods, about the place one could go to.. But it had been to the south of the land, right, close to the coast? This place was clearly inland, and so he couldn't have walked into a place where he had no business...

Well, apparently he had managed with that anyway.

Lace forced himself to move. Slowly, trying desperately not to make a sound, the silver-coated stallion began to back away from the immortals. He didn't wish to be there, he had no interest in what they were talking about. Banishment? Sun God? The thought of a creature of fire and light being trapped in a land where the winter would be both long and cold sent a feeling of sympathy through his mind, but as he had no idea why the punishment was being handed out he couldn't speak for the silent god of flame. Perhaps it was for the best, Lace wasn't sure if he would be able to find his voice anyway. Fajira was in the same seat, clambered on to his back with sharp talons piercing his skin as a result; he didn't protest. His mind was clinging to hers in the same way, dazed and upset by a situation he wasn't prepared to handle.

The tension of the situation made him careless. His rear hoof scraped over a rock near the edge of the smoldering pit and knocked it over. The sound as it rolled down the outside of the Heart was not loud, but in the grulla's ears it could as well have been an earthquake. He caught his breath and held it, carefully turning his gaze to the immortals. Had they been disturbed? Was it time to run for his life?

I'll never see any side of heaven I'll walk for miles through a blazin' hell The golden coat shifted as the god turned to face his siblings, liquid glance cast at the strange, mortal stallion for the briefest of moments. His brother's voice grated against his ears with all the chiding and worry of a parent over another child. Hah! He did not need to be parented; he needed his brother and sister, and the two seemed hell bent on pushing him out and regulating him to the monotonous task of making sure the sun rose daily. The Sun God refused to answer. Instead, he let his ears fall flat against his skull when his sister appeared, her bitter tone and sarcastic smile a perfect definition of her true, cruel personality. She was a manipulative bitch, and he hated her for that. Their words rung through his mind, and he felt fear for the first time in a very long time. Unable to return to his shrine? Everything he kept was there, hidden and tucked away so carefully. Would he wither away without access to the heavens? "This land is ours," he said quietly and with an unnatural calm. "I created this place.". Liquid, golden eyes watched as the fire churned in the hole, beautiful flashes of fire brightening the night sky. "You have no right to determine my fate as a god, but I accept your punishment. The winter will be particularly bitter without me, but I suppose you care not for the mortals where the weather is concerned. - only where my fire is concerned. Touching." Then, the God of the Sun leveled his gaze on the stallion standing there with his little dragon. "Do you feel that this is fair, newcomer? Or shall I show you what this situation truly entails..." he said, voice deepening to an angry growl. With an expression of vehemency, he stomped a single, cloven hoof and a cloud of flame engulfed the stallion. Where it would hit would depend on how he would try and escape the heat. "Stop." He commanded, and his command had to be obeyed. "Watch." The burns of the stallion began to clear and heal, the power of light also having the ability to knit together tissues. Golden marks replaced the pain and the raw skin. "All those who suffer are rewarded." He turned back to his brother and sister, walking toward them boldly. "I know one who will be thrilled to see that I have been removed from my station, and I cannot wait until his return..." he hummed, a knowing smile on his lips. "If you need me, you know where to find me." The God of the Sun tossed fire from his mane before heading north to the Frostbreath Steppe.

Lace froze as the eyes of the God was turned to him. He felt sweat beading on the gray neck, from fear of what might come and from the heat that permeated the air. He breathed in, eyes widening as he was addressed. Was he supposed to answer that? Without knowing the situation, unable to hear all sides of the matter, how would he be able to judge? How could he judge, when the one receiving the punishment was so much greater than himself?

His mind registered the words exchanged between the immortals and saved them to think about later. Registering was also the expressions of the father of Light, ever changing but decidedly souring. A sense of alarm spread through him and sent Fajira into the air, her white form rising moments before he himself could react to the burst of temper, the blazing ball of fire that was hurled towards him.

The stallion reacted instinctively and spun around, protecting his face and eyes from the scorching heat by rearing and tucking it down beneath the front legs. A scream teared from his throat as fire licked the skin of his back, burning away ever single strand of hair from whithers to crop and whipping the sides and the shoulders, the flanks, singing the tail... The skin peeled away, flesh boiled and seethed, blistering and charring under the touch of the God's flames. It was a pain like none he had ever felt before, and it seemed as though he had become trapped in an endless torrent of torment. Screaming, screaming until there was no air left within the lungs and tears vaporized before they could leave the eyes.

Then the fire was gone and he wanted to run. Stop. Somehow his legs had become frozen in place though, capable only of bringing him down to the earth. Watch. Trembling, aching, Lace turned around to face the God once more. Amber eyes met with ones of flaring light, unable to comprehend the reasoning of this strange creature. Why did he take out his anger on others, who didn't know the reason for his wrath? It was like a child lashing out against another for not getting his way, blaming others for his own mistakes. Was it simply malice, aggression he was unable to retain? Sure the god ruling over the sun itself would have a hot temper, but didn't he know self restraint?

Even more incomprehensible did the Immortal become when Lace felt the burning sensation subside from the back. He blinked and hesitantly turned the head, reluctant to view the charred mess that was his back. Only, there was no charred skin, no oozing liquids. Instead he saw fresh skin grow in over pink flesh, scar tissue forming only to be erased. He gasped, trembling and awed by the sight of magic - the touch of it that was so unfamiliar to him. Never had he been subjected to it in such a personal manner. The stallion felt humbled, grateful, frightened by the power of the magnificent immortal. He barely even reflected over the golden strands that grew in over the skin, only noticed the different color without thinking more upon it. If there was a deeper significance to the marking it went beyond his comprehension.

Overwhelmed, the now gold-marked grulla almost couldn't take it anymore. He was glad when the attention of the Sun God returned to his siblings, happy to still be alive. The pain was but a memory, yet still so vivid in his mind that the taste lingered on the tongue. Had he done this to others as well? Burned them, marked them, spread terror with anger and hard words? Yet for some reason Lace didn't feel angry towards the blazing god. Confused, startled, sorry for being in the wrong place, yes. But hateful? No. He could understand why the other gods were upset, why something had to be done. But was there no other way? He felt once more how compassion for the golden stallion rose, clenching the throat. Wanting to speak, say something if favor of the being that had made him scream from pain... Lace, Lace, what is wrong with you? It was just... It didn't feel fair, for some reason.

[ Could I bring Cassi here? Even though it's a bit late. >.> ]

[ the thread is over D: ]