the Rift


[OPEN] return.

Eribor Posts: N/A
Unregistered
:: :: ::
#1
So yeah. I went back.

Before you judge me, give me a second to explain. My last visit was brief, at best, an experience tainted by women and war, and when at last the whole place fell into some abysmal dark, I didn't hesitate in bidding it farewell. There was nothing to tie me to that place, no siren song pulling at my heart. Onni had been pretty, Andromeda kind, and in another life I may have lingered by their sides, paying sweet nothings for the pleasure of their company, waiting for the promise of stolen kisses and the chance to make them laugh... but I digress. My overall experience with mares in Helovia had been altogether too oppressive and unpleasant. Even the women could not recommend this place.

So why, you might ask, did I return? That depends. At the time I told myself it was for an opportunity to rest, that I simply needed a familiar pit stop as I continued my aimless, endless travel. Two days, I lied, is all I would spend; rest upon the outskirts, maybe look in on the Desert, and then, once I had regained my strength, depart without a second thought. There was no reason why I shouldn't. Nothing tied me to any place, least of all Helovia, land of mares and for all I knew, nobody else. My home lay not across those borders. I did not look for family there.

So I stated as I crossed the forest, opting to fly above rather than subject myself to the open meat market I had encountered before. The shift into Helovian airspace was subtle but clear, a shift in the air around my wings, a savory burn inside my nostrils. It felt like others, smelled of strangers, and I relished the pleasing novelty of it after my unknown months in solitude. Thoughtlessly, I pulled the sturdy wings tighter around my sides, letting gravity and the wind play at war over my stocky body before spreading out into a sudden glide, inches away from the roof of pine. It was a momentary memory, a lapse into who I used to be, and though nobody was there to see my silliness, I suddenly felt ashamed.

The rest of the flight was uneventful.

The wind pushed me north, and I let it, not yet ready to venture to the south. The desert held the only two souls I actually knew in Helovia, and to be frank I wasn't sure what I feared most, their recognition or their rejection. Indifference was far more appealing to me, the promise of strangers who (ideally) couldn't care less, but (again, ideally) would not send me away a tempting notion. Besides, I was tired, and the in the advent of autumn daylight was growing brief. In the lingering hours between the sun truly set I therefore made my descent, circling lazily over a crystal clear pool in the midst of the mountains before thumping indelicately onto welcoming ground. The grass beneath my hooves felt like an old friend's caress, taking some of the weight off my steps as I lumbered toward the pond. Of course I had no idea where I was, but it seemed like a nice enough place. It reminded me a little - only a little - of home.

Had I known that the Earth God resided there, that the deities of my people patronized this land, well... ignorance is bliss, or so they say. I drank in my ignorance and felt ice down my throat, and in that moment I for once felt more or less content.



"Sed interdum rutrum urna, sed pellentesque sapien tempor in."

out of the ashes, we rise again
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Ascended Helovian

Midas the Gallant Posts: 1,164
Deceased
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 14.3 hh :: Immortal :: Soul is 7 (FF) Buff: HUNTER
Fina :: Common Zephyr :: Phoenix & Wakiya & Neve :: Common Zephyr :: Arctic Angel
#2
Midas
Raw iron slithered from the ground, thin strings being pulled from the core. These cords broke into scabs that resembled shattered slat. During the better part of the afternoon I’d been practicing my newfound skill – grinding away idle time by collecting various flakes from parts of our valley. The earth seemed full of iron, it was plentiful and sang to my soul more vibrantly than others. Thus making it the easiest to collect and harness. I didn’t craft anything of note, instead, this body simply pulled the metallic scales from the soil and gathered them in a little pile.

Hours later a sufficient stock had been collected, all that remained was the carrying. Gently, as a mother alligator might haul her newborn offspring into the river, I coached the flecks skyward. Strained by the effort it took, but also satisfied with what fruit said energy produced. They twirled around, spinning in a circle before my eyes which claimed total control. There were wet patches beneath the shallow points of my body and small beads of sweat pooling between my narrowed brows.

I carried them, those rotating flakes to my hollow. A grand tree, old and bent from years of life. The shadowy canopy came like a dark cover, with one penetrating dagger I dug a shallow hole and deposited my stock. After lightly covering the pocket with fallen leaves and various other debris I retreated from the oak and turned round. Feathers spread, pinions extending to catch the breeze – cooling and offering a moments relief.

It was almost twilight. Honeyed gaze turned to the fire child who was watching from a nearby limb. Her aqua eyes half lidded from a day of sleep, “Finished?” she murmured, stretching beak apart to yawn away dozy remnants. “Aye,” I stretched muzzle toward heaven, extending my neck until spine gave a satisfying ‘pop’, crown shook, spreading patched tendrils across my shoulder. “Ready to go?”

She chortled, stretching fiery plumes.

Moments later we were airborne and starting our evening patrol. Upon approaching the border I caught sight of a stranger down below. “Hail!” I called, circling deeper to get a better look. At this height it was impossible to exchange scents. Wings pitched inward, curling tighter against barrel – forelegs extended to absorb the shock of my landing. Not moments later I was standing near the same bank he stood, feathers settling back against their sheath, nostrils flaring to acknowledge his status within my herd.

A wanderer. “Welcome,” a gentle grin emerged, softening contours and worry lines, “May I inquire for what purpose stirs ye to cross into Hidden Falls?”
Birds have fallen from the sky
Their wings ache to fly
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