Daylight finally swelled above the horizon and like an impatient child she grinned gainfully toward us asking for permission to grace our skin, to keep us warm. The morning had stretched her weary limbs in order to lift the sun and I was more than delighted to be able to witness it once again as a member of the Edge. However, I was mostly changed by the company of one unexpected friend and confidante, Murdock. Though the sights and the sounds had all been things that I’d missed of this place, it was moments like these that had really begun to tug on my heartstrings. It was the assurance I found in their company that pushed my resolve and consequently my lousy pride. As my words droned away into the thinning mist, the dark stallion with the blushing wings filed the silence with his own song. However, I hadn’t expected such kindness from a nearly complete stranger. Family and duty tied us together, forced us to mingle, and yet ultimately it was down to each individual to link the ever-growing chain. Perhaps we had become just another bond in this sequence of life, but this was a bond that I was most willing to nurture.

Slowly, an appreciative smile turned the corners of my black mouth upward; of course Murdock was as wise as he was dignified. I hadn’t expected him to offer a hand when I stood before him reaching desperately for understanding. Instead, he took me in stride in his easy way, making me feel comforted despite my pathetic moment of strife. “You might just be right my friend. It’s been a while since I’ve heard something so true.” Though I still felt mildly bereft, I was content to let my mind wander to the sea as her curious laughter as she lapped away at the shores below. As it appeared, both Murdock and I took that very moment to roam and think over our lives as any male should since we often carried the many burdens of our family and our lovers and our friends. We hefted the weight of turmoil and happiness and rage, all the while still managing to perform what was expected of us as our classes required.

When the inky stallion finally broke our joint reverie, I couldn’t help but swallow a large lump that had formed upon hearing his war-tainted background. He stood before me a calm and easygoing man, a good listener, a seemingly great friend, and last but not least, he possessed the tame personality of some meager youth. Yet, the tale he wove was so sinister, so dark and deep that I instantly regretted sharing my own self-induced treachery. When he paused to take a breath and perhaps recall the images he’d probably painted within his own mind many time, I frowned slightly. He was in fact a member of the group that had defeated the Foothills and yet… he was now here in the World’s Edge. What had happened to them after the invasion? Was I even around at that time to know?

However, as he went on, I grew more and more undecided. Murdock claimed to seek a new beginning here with our family and yet, as he stated, he had settled for less. But how could that be? I knew that the ranking system was rigid, but with his history and participation in –now what was it called? The Grey?- yes, the Grey… how had he fallen so far? Perhaps we both shared secrets beyond what we cared to mention here and I could not press him for more answers, but I did have to know one thing about this mysterious warrior. “Why settle? Why come here to hide your talent when it is clear that it is meant to shine? Don’t think me judgmental because we all have our reasons, but I am curious to know why such an experienced fighter like you would not work to regain what you left behind. I suppose we share that incentive, or more so a meagerness that keeps us from wanting much more than we have, but… We should not be ashamed to want Murdock. You could be a captain my friend, so what stops you?”

Heavily, I shift toward him at the shoulders. I wanted to see the many things he dreamt of as they passed along the path behind his eyes. There was a lightness about him that inspired me and awakened a sense of confidence in me that I’d thought lost before now. I didn’t need his secrets as much as I needed to know why he kept them. So much potential and with so little outlet… How many others maintained secrets that kept them from their dreams?

Thor