The Moon was high in the sky, though her face was not full, rather a mere sliver of existence. The heat was oppressive, the days long – in fact, night-time had become a mere few hours, and this displeased the mare. Though she seemed to be feeling the heat a bit less than some – a lucky consequence of the Light elemental magic her cloak enabled – it still bothered her that even in the ‘cool’ of the night, she was unable to get away from the humidity and lingering effects of the long days. Even the night felt incomplete, it felt lighter, as if the Sun only just ducked beneath a translucent blanket for a handful of hours. The obsidian maiden longed for the darkest hours to return, and she wondered what had caused such a harsh season. Her thoughts drifted to the falling of the Order – and suddenly another idea formed, one that suggested perhaps that was the cause of these conditions, conditions that could very well evolve into a dry and deadly drought. We will survive. The golden queen chirped, having been dozing in the tree above the mare, but stirred when the idea of a jealous tantrum being the trigger point for such happenings floated across their link. Of course we will, my dear. But what of the little ones, the ones less able? Raven façade looked up at the golden statuesque figurine in the tree. It was a new sensation, this wanting to care for others, normally the mare was concerned only with herself and her dragon, but upon deciding that Helovia would be the place she resided forever more, and making such friends that she had grown to indeed love very dearly, she had discovered a compassionate streak within her.

The mare sighed, looking forlornly at the tall timbers around her. This Deep Forest was so much like her birth realm, though smaller – too small to host a herd permanently – she felt immediately comfortable within the dark canopy’s leafy grasp. Despite the heat, and the worries that plagued her, she found herself humming. As the words formed in her cranium, her dragon stirred also, continuing with the soothing melody, while Mirage’s honey-warm and accented voice dared to break free from her usually indifferent lips. They sung, together, walking a twisted and tight path with ease, somehow always seeming to know whereabouts they were.


"My life goes on in endless song
above earth's lamentations,
I hear the real, though far-off hymn
that hails a new creation.
Through all the tumult and the strife
I hear it's music ringing,
It sounds an echo in my soul.
How can I keep from singing?"


It was an eerie, slow, almost haunting melody. It spoke so much about her, especially her contentedness with the friendships she had formed. It hinted of the beginnings of something grand, something near to her heart; The Qian. In the group she had gathered, she had found herself willing to stand and take responsibility for what she believed in, to gather those around her who shared in those beliefs. She did not expect any to fight for her, though she knew her siblings, at the very least, would. And fighting would be necessary, she doubted her cry for wanting a home for herself and her group would come with ease – especially since she longed to lead a herd, in a herd land. But Mirage was a diplomat, and only when diplomacy failed would she take the next appropriate steps. But it was as the song wrote; it was a part of her soul and her soul longed for a realm to call her home. Only a home where others would look to her for guidance, others would trust her to lead.

A home where she could be herself.

"While though the tempest loudly roars,
I hear the truth, it liveth.
And though the darkness 'round me close,
songs in the night it giveth.
No storm can shake my inmost calm,
while to that rock I'm clinging.
Since love is lord of heaven and earth
how can I keep from singing?
When tyrants tremble in their fear
and hear their death knell ringing,
when friends rejoice both far and near
how can I keep from singing?
In prison cell and dungeon vile
our thoughts to them are winging,
when friends by shame are undefiled
how can I keep from singing?"


Continuing onwards, the melodic sounds never stopped. Through the added timbre of the trees, her song may have sounded akin to that of sirens singing of the sea – like the sirens, she was in her element, the dark wooded lands were a comfort to her soul, she could not contain the song. Akaith made deep, humming and singsong sounds, attuned to her bonded’s own vocal capabilities, and like everything else in life, they complimented each other comfortably.

[ Song is ‘How can I keep from singing’ by Enya ]

The thrum of the forest seemed to orchestrate her musical mood, the steady beat and swaying melody reflected in the leaning timbers and undulating limbs. The deep addition of another’s hum was welcomed, and a smile curved her lips, the mare rarely hid her true emotions to this stallion now. Openly, she was pleased to feel his approach, the darkness of the night and forest making it hard to see him just yet. The movements of his footsteps behind her triggered a demure glance to be thrown over her shoulder, her fellow dragon-marked friend’s presence was one that, despite knowing the potential danger his draconic side represented, she loved. Even now, her heart set a new beat for a song, though it was still slow and swaying. She finished crafting the lyrics of the last hymn, and then closed her mouth, and her voice hummed behind shut velvet lips, introducing a similar, yet different, melody.

“Where are you this moment?
only in my dreams.”

Still her elegant frame walked, though she chose a path a bit more accommodating for her larger friend. Akaith was flitting amongst the canopy above, but in a quizzical change of mind that dragons are prone to, the golden one darted down and alighted gently upon the stallion’s back. The draconic chorus she hummed and sung never halted, and with affection she played with the brute’s thick charcoal mane, using her dextrous claws to restore some semblance of order to the haphazard strands around the spikes that ran along his backline.

“You're missing, but you're always
a heartbeat from me.”

Here the maiden turned and halted, speaking the words directly to him, golden pools seeking out his own, piercing his draconic stare with her enigmatic presence. The tumult of emotions swelled within her at that moment, and for the first time in a long time, the mare hesitated, only for a second, questioning whether she was making the right decision – wondering whether he would take it simply as a pleasant song, or as a proclamation of what laid within the belle?

“I'm lost now without you,
I don't know where you are.”

The song was about lovers separated by time, distance and even death. It was about the lover left behind seeking out her partner, yearning, wanting to be with him. Suddenly it struck Mirage, and she could not contain what it was she so longed to express.

“If I could be close beside you,
If I could be where you are,
if I could reach out and touch you,
and bring you back home.
Is there a way I can find you?
Is there a sign I should know?
Is there a road I could follow?
to bring you back home to me.”

Though the song finished, her voice softened, and she continued humming the last line, tearing her eyes away from the stallion at last, having exposed herself to the core before him. Akaith, why did you not stop me? The dragon was still humming with her bonded, but easily replied in their shared, telepathic language. The divine Goddess spoke it herself; you are a dragon Mirage. And so is he. A shiver racked the mare’s body, and her eyes peered out into the distant darkness, wondering what would become of her, and her emotion riddled self now. The weight of Akaith’s speech was not lost on her; truly, deep down, she knew it was meant to be.

But would he?

The mere seconds that passed between the cessation of her song and Vikram’s reaction felt like centuries. It was as if Mirage could feel the heartbeat of every living thing around her. The rhythm of a moth beating its wings. The rustle of a bird shifting its position in its nest. The footsteps of an ant as it walks along the loam of the forest. Her breathes were laborious, long, the beat of the muscle behind her breastbone entered a small arrhythmia, it quickened, it slowed – frankly it didn’t know what to do. Nervous, she identified the emotion, as if giving it a name would help her defeat it. Anxious, she thought again, and her tail slashed itself against raven flanks, in attempts to abolish the futile feelings. You are afraid! Akaith exclaimed within her cranium. The singing had ended, now only the relative silence of the forest remained. Of course I am. Do you even realise what just happened? Irritably the mare mentally barked back at her dragon, who was still happily sitting atop the stallion’s withers. As Vikram took a step toward the mare, the golden queen lifted herself from his back, and with a couple of easy beats of her wings, landed upon Mirage’s back briefly. You need not fear, I am here. But Akaith was a cunning creature, just as her bonded was devious, and with a smug, cheeky emotion evident in their bond, the queenly one darted off into the trees.

And then he touched her.

Slightly distracted that she was, Mirage froze, if that was even possible for one who was not moving very much already. Every muscle in her body seemed to enter a tetanic contraction, and for a tenth of a second, the illusionary cloak might have blurred the edges of her appearance. But it didn’t want to stay up, it was as if she was arguing with her own magic. The magic was a reflex for her, and her reflexes refused to let her hide from him. Suddenly the focus she had upon everything around her blurred, and only the dragon stallion was present, and her, the dragon bonded and learned one. He had touched her upon the metallic marking that wisped down her nape, the marking that symbolised something within her, something that his presence had made more palpable, more noticeable. The mare closed her eyes, and concentrated on his touch, his warm, living, loving touch, and she sighed, having apparently forgotten how to breathe.

The warmth of Vikram spread over her then, like a wildfire creeping over a forest, she allowed herself to accept him, his love, his presence, everything that touch represented. Her bodice didn’t shirk away from him, but rather it yearned for him, it longed to be held within his embrace, to be stroked and comforted and loved. Gilded gaze looked to him now, a smile glinting behind those knowing, affectionate eyes, and tilting the smooth curvature of her lips. Leaning into his muzzle, she found it not enough to satisfy her need of his closeness, she crept closer to him, wanting not to touch him fleetingly as in previous encounters, but instead feel him. Placing her own muzzle upon his thick, masculine nape, she stroked him, before burying her tiara along the tight muscles, pressing her eyes closed against him, breathing him in, soaking him up. Tears dared to squeeze through her shut eyelids, though they were not tears of sadness, but sheer happiness.

“Impossible to deny it now.” Accented tones whispered into his bulk, and she knew Akaith would hear her. The dragon radiated smugness and satisfaction from somewhere in the canopy, as if this was all her doing. And who knows, maybe it was.

Beneath his touch, she seemed to melt. It was as if they were truly made for each other, so comfortably did her slim figure fit beneath his neck, so easily did his crown hold her near. The vibrations that rumbled soothed her more, the familiar sound of a content dragon did not seem unusual to her, so used to having only a dragon for company that she was. Akaith trilled a colourful chorus of her own now, far more upbeat and exciting than the previous slow and steady melody of the songs that were sung before. The golden one flew low down to them, not swoopingly, but simply to show her happiness of their finally realising and embracing what had laid between them for some time, at least in her eyes. Then the dragon was off, away from the scene entirely, off to feed the growing clutch of eggs within her, or perhaps to scout out more potential nesting areas – either way, she would keep herself busy and allow the equines some time together. As it was, Akaith was always-present anyway, through the mare with golden eyes.

His voice uttered a query, and the raven maiden wanted immediately to deny it, yet she knew that something as precious as this love may get mixed reactions. To those she trusted, she could not hide it, especially from those who knew her well enough to read her without her even speaking – her siblings may react harshly, or unpredictably at first, but the mare knew them just as well too, and knew that they would respect her wishes and choice in a life mate, eventually. The thought of her other dear friend, the gilded steed Torasin, caused some worry, but she could not deny the truth to him either. Her love for him was as real as her love for Vikram, and for her siblings, but now she recognised, it was a different kind of love. Her emotions had shifted a bit since the other stallion’s mate, Brooke, had returned, and Mirage wanted only for his happiness. She refused to be the cause of tension between the pair, though she longed to shake Brooke and ensure the mare would stop blindly cause him pain. And so she had stepped back, and allowed them to make the decisions for themselves. Though she would never understand Torasin’s capability to love the difficult mare, she would not think herself to have such an influence over him to sway his mind in a way that she might prefer; no, love was something for the individual to discover and recognise for themselves.

“As with anything dear to me, I hold it close always, and hidden, and only reveal to those I trust and love.” Warm voice replied to the one she held dear, honest and sincere. “My siblings will know as soon as I see them next, without my even speaking. They probably knew before we did.” Wry tones informed him. The connection she had with her siblings was intimate, they didn’t need magic to communicate without words. Each was an expert at reading the others, even when Mirage held her façade of stony indifference, they knew what was going on within her. As she thought about their mutual friend, Torasin, the little shadow lifted her tiara from Vikram’s nape, though was still leaning her shoulder against his broad chest. “You must know that I love him too.” She didn’t think Vikram would have to guess who she was talking about. A small sigh rolled through her lips as she considered her words, and her feelings. “But it’s a different love, one that prevents me from ever hurting him; though I fear some hurt may eventuate in the future. I… don’t know how to express it.” It was not often the mare was unable to explain exactly what she needed to.

“Vikram, I feel like our souls walk the same path, our hearts beat as one. When I am with you, little else matters, and when I am not with you, only the memory of your presence sustains me.” Was it the same for Torasin? The mare considered it, and while it was a little similar, it was again, a different kind of feeling. “He is a friend I do not wish to lose.” It was difficult for her. For some time now she had consciously held both stallions to the same regard, but it seemed that her subconscious (along with Akaith), had successfully nudged her regard for Vikram to escalate to the next level. Suddenly she lanced out at him with flashing teeth, aiming to bite his nape and tug on strands of his mane at the same time. “Do you see what you have done to me?” Amusement curved her lips into a coy grin once more. “Only when I am with you does my tongue run away from me.” Longing to hear his deep voice breach the silence that fell, her ears pressed forward, and her muzzle leaned against him, willing the stallion of few words to reveal what thoughts whirled through his cranium to her.

The laughter that rumbled from his deep chest seemed to purr along to the tune of Mirage’s own soul. The completeness she felt with him seemed to only become more obvious with each passing moment; she wondered how she was so blind, so ignorant to it before. He spoke of her being able to read his mind, and she considered it. It was not that she could see his thoughts, or even that Akaith might be able to, it was more that they thought in similar patterns, interpreted the world around them in analogous ways, and came to the same conclusions often. However, she decided that she loved to hear his laughter, and would aspire to hear it as often as he would allow. Raven tiara nodded at his words, it was true, she would only ever speak to another soul the way she spoke to him if she felt secure that her words would not venture outside of that conversation. He spoke of how he followed her, how even after Akaith’s flame had singed his forelock that fateful day in the Threshold, he was her willing servant, he looked at her as he might look upon a queen. He choice of words piqued her curiosity, but she paid them little heed, happy to simply be swept up by their general meaning.

“My siblings and I have been through a lot together.” The beginnings of her speech hinted at the revelation of a history to come, should his ears be willing. “We were born of a fiery stallion, tamed by a shadowy mare, in a realm where moonlight was eternal; no Sun ever rose. But the Path of the Moon was unstable, and collapsed in on itself – as a family we travelled, a band held together by love and other forces unknown. Upon the passing of my first year, my parents laid down in an eternal embrace.” It had been a little while since she had thought of them, and nostalgia entered her voice, as she continued on. “We travelled more, until a yearning for our moonlit realm became overwhelming; we had to see what was left. And so we returned, and the lands prospered for some time with our aid. But something continued to tug at me, pulling me away, far away. My siblings may have lingered there for a time, but I wandered, unable to ignore the pressing need to enter the lands of Isilme.” A small smile curved her lips, wry and devious as always. “I believe it was Akaith calling to me in Isilme. We remained for a while, as vagabonds, wanderers.” Here she rolled a shoulder in a small shrug, before her tones spoke slightly softer, with a sad undercurrent. “And then the Gods shook the earth and we fled. I am led to believe that those lands rose again, but I could not bear to return. Instead I found my siblings once more, and we continued on with our wandering ways.”

The mare hadn’t meant to bore him with her life’s journey, but she hoped that it might reveal a little understanding of the connection she felt with her siblings. She carried on with her speech, her accented tones taking on an affectionate tone. “As I would die for them, they too would for me.” Pressing her velvet muzzle against his bulk yet again, she meant to include him in her statement. “Protectiveness is but one of their traits. There is no doubt they are dangerous, but they would know better than to cause damage to their sister through harming the one who owns my heart.” At the same time, her brothers may just see how far they could push the dragon-steed in order to get a violent reaction out of him. They did enjoy bloodshed, after all. “Besides,” Another shrug, this time the mare pulled her shadowy form away from him, a coy grin upon her mouth, her nape arched in a display of all things elegant and refined. “They will have the respect the new WingLeader of the Qian.” Surely it was a fitting title for her mated partner, one that was equal to her in rank and power, one that would require a strong creature of heart and mind to succeed. Though she wondered how he would react, she didn’t hesitate in launching her cloak over her bodice once more, disappearing into a haze of shimmering confusion in the low moonlight before him. Dancing a few steps away and peering around a thick tree trunk, the apparition dropped again, and her warm smile invited him nearer to her, svelte ears inviting any vocalisations he might have to add.

The affluent acceptance of his rank warmed her already overwhelmingly heated heart, his eager yearning to always follow her, love her, guard her made all the more evident. Devotion and love were strong ties they shared for each other; their heartstrings were forever intertwined by the powerful emotions. Mirage was a fortunate mare, she knew this, she knew that her upbringing had been the best possible; a loving and faithful family, who stood by her still, and her bond with Akaith –there were few times that the mare could have been accused of being lonely. But though they were few, the sting of loneliness still smarted, she was simply better at avoiding it now; she was better at providing company for others and thus alleviating the solitude that haunted her. She did not pity her mate, but rather, understood the harsh reality that a life lived without a constant comrade was.

Unable to keep her form far from him any longer, she found her shadowy self back in his embrace almost instantly, the steps taken from there back to him swift and fleet. “With my heart in your possession you needn’t ever feel deprived of such bonds again.” Earnestly her speech was made, and from somewhere far away, Akaith’s vibrant call echoed through the trees. Lissom flutes tilted atop her slender tiara, capturing the tones in their concave cavities, her lips curling affectionately at the meaning of the descant. “She always calls you a bronze, you know.” Though she might have been smaller than those he was brought up with, Akaith had surely proven that she was indeed a very real dragon, and Mirage had hopes and suspicions that Vikram held the queen’s opinion in reasonable esteem.

“Were you close to any of your kin?” Quietly she asked, the first time since their first meeting that she had breached the subject of his past. She knew he was born from an egg, that his mother possessed magic which allowed her to take the shape of an equine; this she knew, and nothing more. The mare had longed to hear more of him, just as she longed for knowledge of everything, and everyone, always. Her mind was always thirsty for the addictive substance; the most powerful substance in existence after all was an education. Once, her reasons for wanting to know more about him were entirely selfish – now, things had flipped, and she longed to know more about him simply because she cared about him, she longed to know as much about him so that she might know how to ensure his happiness forevermore.