A call came, and we were quick to answer. What we had not been expecting was for the owner of said call to have come from a turtle, speaking word of a race. My brows furrowed deeply over bister eyes as I took in the scene before me; a turtle, erecting a race, a line of bright dandelions creating a clear starting line, and several others gathering who had come before me. For a few moments I pondered sitting out and watching the debauchery, as my body and joints had seen much better days and I certainly wasn't built to race... But what would be the fun in sitting out, and who said I must win?
Even if I had opted to sit out, I wasn't sure Suli would have allowed me to do so, as I could feel the dragoness begging to go and practically bouncing upon my head in excitement. So with a deep breath I made my way to the clearly marked start, and as the command came to go, I surged forward, leavings flying clods of dirt in my wake.
Racing had never been and never would be my forte', considering my bulk, but I had always enjoyed the friendly races and obstacle courses set up by Bran and his many friends in Vallhea. We would race about the mountains, scaling steep inclines, leaping over ditches and streams, fallen trees, or even Bran's own friends when they were feeling particularly brave.
But this would be different, I knew, because Helovia was a place of magic and unfairness. There were several I recognized and knew, such as Kahlua and Lace, Brisa and Dragomir, and a buckskin mare I recalled from the celebration of the Edge and our patron Goddess. The rest are strangers to me, but for the most part, it seemed this would be a relatively friendly race.
Suli had taken to the skies above me, breathing a joyous, hot flame into the air which billowed and parted as she cut through it. My focus was on the path before me, however, and it was a good thing it was; roots came up from the ground, sprouting and reaching for my feet, threatening to send me crashing to the ground. Ears pressed back in concentration as I leapt over them, landing safely back upon the ground, only for more to come snaking out of the ground and trip me in my landing. I stumble, legs working quickly to regain my balance and speed faltering, but only a second later I was on the move again, deciding it best to keep in the middle of the pack for now if I were able.
Another obstacle comes before us in the form of two trees, but they are much easier to dodge than the roots. Shifting my weight to one side, I pass them by, albeit closely, and power forward with eyes wide, ever searching for what was to come next, which seemed to be a hoop that guided us along the right path, which I leapt through easily.
Suli seemed to have her own plans, and with a mischievous, toothy grin, the dragoness stooped from her place above me and went about snapping at the ears of our opponents, going once for the striped boy and then for Dragomir, though the latter is done much more playfully and without harm.
"Speak."
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[O] :: Equine Cross Country Race ::
HP: 66.5
