the Rift


A Leader's Ear [Kri]

Leander the LionHeart Posts: 184
Hidden Account
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.3 :: 8
Epona
#1
L E A N D E R

The gilded Warrior made his way across the snow spun expanse of the Oasis, as he so often did. The great Blood Tree loomed ahead of him, it's ancient presence a reminder of his entrance into the herd. Since then, the sands had become a comfort to his hooves, the scent of the lake calming to his often troubled head. It was amazing how quickly one could fall right into place, as if they were meant to be right where they were. Fate must have had some hand in guiding him here. A wistful belief, maybe, but one the tall brute had always believed.

White silt dusted in weaving tendrils along massive hooves as the charger moved onward through the terrain. For the moment, he was not on patrol, not trailing some wide-eyed newcomer in his wake or stumbling in from battle, ripe with wounds. He was driven by a different purpose now, and one that had been needing attention for some time. It was Kri he sought now, his leader, the authority of the herd. In the past, high figures had often been objects of scrutiny for the tawny stag. But Kri was different somehow, and not just for the novel fact that she was a sole female leader. The petite mare held some sense of strength and solidity that he could only dream of. It was as if she were cut from granite, stoic and hardened by the earth's shifting skin. Leander had only seen her briefly a few times, but the experiences had somehow been enough to endure his respect to her wholly. With searching golden orbs, he slowed his sandy frame into a halt. "Kri?" Tones rang out into the foliage, knowing the faithful leader could not be far off.


Kri the Resolute Posts: 243
Hidden Account
Mare :: Pegasus :: 14.3hh :: 10 Buff: NUMB
Boom Boom!
#2

 KRI the Resolute</style>
    My friends, I am only flesh and bone, but I won't let you die alone.</style>

I am only made of flesh and bone.

To some I would appear stoic, and I suppose they would not be entirely wrong in their judgment. There are the calmer tides of my personality which allow me a strong but firm act of nonchalance. In the recesses of my mind, there are few times that I get this prized sanctity, even when my features belie the rabble of my thoughts. Paranoia, it seems, had an ugly way of creeping into my head even during the quiet times. It had started back in Isilme, when the Cliffs had been entrusted into my care, though I had been little more than a soldier fighting for a place to stand in the herd. I was not used to bearing this weight of responsibility, and I found that it fit on my shoulders with a crushing sense of dread. Adalwulf, the stallion who had faced me during the first attempt to reclaim the land of the Pegasus, was a constant thread on my mind. Equine supremacy suited that warlord fine, but I was not about to bow to him.

Adalwulf was not the only looming figure, but a more immediate opponent, my own bastard son Cielo, would be the one to rise first. A clever wolf disguised in the skin of loyalty, he crept close to authority only to usurp my own when my own cruel detachment failed. Onni's presence in these lands should tell the story of my failure to be a heartless soul, but many did not know. Maybe I should have sacrificed my beloved daughter to save the Cliffs from their eventual destruction, but ultimately, in this new land, I could have no regrets, only the push of relief every time I saw her gentle, pale face.

These were reasons that I was not made of stone, but another more obvious reason would likely be the fiery temper that set me at odds with many. Mauja had tasted my fierce tongue, and Paladin had fallen victim to my tough scrutiny as well. I was passionate, and while unforgiving as stone, I found that I was more like the wind which could tear mountains down one grain of sand at a time, as long as I had enough determination to do so. Resolute, as my proudly worn title suggested, is what I truly was. There was perhaps no entity as stubborn as I in the whole of Helovia, and with this will I was determined to protect my family, those of the Throat.

It is upon sure wings that I do soar now, catching the almost uncertain call of my name in the air and clutching onto it, holding it still only to find its origin. My blue eyes scour down below, blonde mane whipping in a frenzy around my face and neck, until I spot the golden stallion down below, looking about curiously with his chocolate wings folded neatly on his back. I pull the wind abruptly, shifting my direction downward on steady wings, and pushing from behind to send me like an arrow to the ground. I cut the invisible strings for a moment, only to readjust them second before I collide with the red earth.

A buffet slows me so that I may stop gently upon the desert floor. It looks to be a miracle, but I know better.

"Hello Leander," I say steadily, walking toward him on sure feet. The earth was unfamiliar to me in comparison to the sky, but I found that you needed both the earth and the sky to be a successful warrior. Both arts were mastered so that I might be of better use in defending this home I loved with my heart and soul. "Is there something you needed?"
""


Leander the LionHeart Posts: 184
Hidden Account
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.3 :: 8
Epona
#3
L E A N D E R

Standing near the base of the relic tree, the stallion considered the array of questions that had been sweeping through his mind like the snows across the Throat. The battle of the Edge was foremost on his tormented head, above even Faelene, though the dark mare was tied into all his worries now. He'd seen the ex-King Mauja in the Threshold, blatantly trying to pull unwitting Unicorns into the remnants of his defeated band. They were holed up in the thick cold of the North wilds, apparently regrouping and healthy enough to seek recruits. The knowledge had left a bad taste in his mouth, ever fueling the hunger for another attack on the foolish brute that Faelene followed so dearly. Trouble was on the wind, Leander knew all to well. The racist Unicorns would not let one defeat prove their wrongs. No; the sick of mind were never so quick to take the right path.

Drawn from his musings, white lined orbs caught a flash of umber sheen in the skies. With her usual aura of steady assurance, his leader descended from the blue. She was a dart of muscle and flaxen silk as she flew to meet him on the cold ground. A beautiful mare, if you asked him, though to ever tell her would be a mistake. For she was a leader, and that power did not come without the massive strength of wit and body he knew she had. It had sparked curiousity that Kri took no mate, no one to share her heavy burden of responsibility and decision making. Only the whole of the members of the Throat, many of which were probably too preoccupied with their own goings on to think much about the solemn sultana. Jouncing thick cream locks, the charger dipped his head in a gesture of great respect. "Hello, Kri." He spoke with husky chords and a gently raising crown. "It is good to see you well after the battle." A smile of warmth found his lips, the victory of the endeavor not far from his thoughts. Taking a step closer to his petite ally, Leander continued. "I have not gotten the chance to speak much with you in my time here. Will you talk with me for a while?" He asked her with the understanding that someone in her position would often be too busy for light conversation. Hopefully the henna matriarch would have time enough to spare. After a patient pause, the golden draft decided to relay his recent findings. Kri might already have caught wind of Mauja and his horde's doings, but the matter was something that needed discussion. "I have some information that may be of importance. In my last patrol of the Threshold, I encountered Mauja. He was out trying to lure a new member into his group. They've taken refuge to the North, or so he said. It sounds like the ex-Edge Unicorns are regrouping there. I fear they may be planning retaliation against us and the Qian."


Kri the Resolute Posts: 243
Hidden Account
Mare :: Pegasus :: 14.3hh :: 10 Buff: NUMB
Boom Boom!
#4

 KRI the Resolute</style>
    My friends, I am only flesh and bone, but I won't let you die alone.</style>

"You as well, Leander," my voice says, almost automatically in response to the formalities of tongue. It was odd that the crown of Leadership had bent my skull to fit, arranging my personality to fit the demands I thought otherwise impossible by my brash nature. It is in the eyes of this stallion that I see respect reflected out toward me, standing before him as a ruler and not as a soldier. This is a hard lesson to take into the gut, to stomach. As much as I would demand respect, I often preferred to think of myself as an equal to my herdmates, at least on basic levels. Military should have told me sooner this was not possible.

When you are a leader, ultimately, you are left alone. Those who follow you support you, but only from behind. You are the only one standing in front, guiding the whole herd for better or worse into a path. Because of this trait, many look toward you with endless faith and trust, unbeknownst to many just how terrified the leader can be. The weight of the world rests upon your shoulders, and it is the duty of the leader to shield the others from such a crippling weight.

The weight, unfortunately, so unavoidable for me, staring straight back at me in the eyes of this stallion and the gentle words he spoke. Leander, who was not here to promise his service to the Qian, followed my pact toward war. The loyalty was something that could drag tears to my eyes and my breath from my lungs. It was an honesty that was pure yet strong, and admiration fills my heart even as the automatic responses of leadership isolate me further from this fellow soldier I would wish to see myself bonding more closely will. I did not wish for a disconnect between my family and I any longer.

Luck was smiling upon me, though, as Leander requested nothing but my company. A smile with rough edges appears on my gruff features, a rugged expression not fit for that of a lady. Whoever called me as such was frankly mistaken, as my foul tongue and brutish manners ruled me out of any sort of delicacy held by those of my gender. "Of course," I say, along with the grin, even as I fold my wings neatly toward my sides. I would not be needing to fly for a while.

I lend my ear toward the golden stallion, glancing out toward his ivory lined eyes as he spoke, a look of serious doubt tracing his features. Since the loss of Ophelia, it was quite obvious that I had no eyes and ears for the Throat, but Leander was thankfully picking up the slack the mare and her daft sister had left behind. My tail flicks sharply as I think of them, annoyance permeating my brain swiftly, only to be washed out again by a name that irritated me more. Mauja. I had felt sympathy for the hardened, stoic leader who fought so bravely against a combined force. Still, I knew from the start that our paths would cross violently, but perhaps my intuition that he was a sneaky bastard should have pointed the finger at me instead. Regardless, I absorb the rest of Leander's words, looking sightlessly toward the North as he mentions it, seeing nothing but the sea of crimson waves for miles, aside from a faint outline of the great forests that looked miniscule from where I stood.

"I do not believe Mauja will strike for the Throat first, if at all," I say calmly, reassuringly. "If anything, the Foothills being so close to his new seat of power may be the simplest target." Thinking of Paladin, I almost spit in the dust, but I refrain from doing so, keeping my face steady, afraid I would lose my head otherwise. "I do fear for our Qian brethren, for it does sound as if Frostheart's spirit has not been broken yet."
""


Leander the LionHeart Posts: 184
Hidden Account
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.3 :: 8
Epona
#5
L E A N D E R

Without hesitation, the russet leader seemed to take the offer of company well. He expected she'd turn him down, surely concerned with more important things. A grateful smile laced his lips, maybe curled with a touch of pride that he was getting to speak privately with Kri. But the joy soon gave way to all the thoughts and worries that plagued him. It often seemed as though Kri had to handle all the herd's problems on her own, for many of her followers were more than content to sit idly by. Frequently, he wondered how all of the other ranks were managing. The soldiers were undoubtedly a force to be reckoned with, as Mauja and his band had found out. But were the other levels of the Throat just as strong?

Kri's reassuring words did ease his fears, if only slightly, and he respected her thoughts well. Cream hair flounced about his crown, nodding in agreement to the leader's assessment. She brought up the name of the Foothills, a group he'd herd mentioned not so long ago. With the slightest trace of irritation falling into his expression, he recalled the buckskin colt from the Threshold. "I know little about the Foothills, though I met one of their soldiers in the Threshold the other day. Ricochet. He had only insults for the Throat." Gold eyes had hardened, glancing from the sands to the matriarch. "It took some resolve on my part not to teach him a lesson then and there. Are we on good terms with the Foothills, Kri?" Of course he knew better than to go about causing trouble with the other herds, but Leander was not going to let the young stallion's pride go unhindered. One day, he would teach the boy how to speak to his elders. But this was not the time nor place to linger on such things. The stoic lady Kri would certainly not be impressed with any angry outbursts from her warriors.

Weighing on the golden's mind throughout the budding conversation had been a piece of information. He'd been feebly telling himself that whatever he and Faelene had was not some dark secret. But with Faelene and the rest of Mauja's band now at obvious odds with the Throat, knowledge of their meetings had grown in importance. Silently, he vowed to keep the matter to himself unless knowledge of it was vital to the safety of the herd. Speaking of it without reason could be a powerful mistake.
"Mauja's group will probably not attack our herdlands. But they may try to attack us when we are out of the Throat and most vulnerable; our young and solitary members may be most at risk." Memories of his own youth shuddered through his mind, of a horned beast lashing at his own haunches when he was far to young to fight. A grimace flashed over his features, betraying the normally solid exterior.





Kri the Resolute Posts: 243
Hidden Account
Mare :: Pegasus :: 14.3hh :: 10 Buff: NUMB
Boom Boom!
#6

 KRI the Resolute</style>
    My friends, I am only flesh and bone, but I won't let you die alone.</style>

Interest floods my face as I note the irritation which grows in the golden expression of Leander's at the mention of the Foothills. I would have easily let him know of my own irritation with the herd, though it was not the herd so much as a black and white dun idiot with eyes spewing crimson. Paladin the Valiant, the usurper of the throne of Gossamer, attempting to call upon ties we had no set. There was effort taken to hold the snort in my chest as I thought back to our encounter, but now was not the time to let my temper flare in the face of retrospect. Now, the betrayer's children had emulated their father by abandoning the Throat. They say the apple does not fall far from the tree, but the bereft of Ophelia's services had still shocked me; Ktulu had always been uninterested in herd affairs.

Surprisingly, the source of irritation from the Foothills for Leander was not Paladin, but Ricochet. Skimming my memory, I seem to recall hearing of the stallion before, though I cannot place his face anywhere. Perhaps the brute was from Isilme or had some other relation. Perhaps, I had met him in another of my travels. The shaky film of my memory stutters and comes back blank, leaving me only to listen in on Leander's impressions of him. Giving him a glance as his question rattles from his tongue, I frown slightly. I certainly held no ill will for the Foothills, but hearing one of its members speaking lowly of our home certainly set my teeth on edge. "We have no been close since the overthrow of Gossamer the Benevolent," I respond neutrally. "I care not for the leader who replaced her and saw no reason to keep ties with them."

With a laugh, I give Leander another gritty look. "Had it been me, Leander, this Ricochet likely would have ended up with his ass in the dirt, but I have always been known to have a temper." A mischevious glimmer settles in my eyes before taking a more serious look, as the conversation turns back toward the impending threat of Mauja and his outcast band of followers. A wise stallion, this golden soldier, to think of the vulnerability of our members outside of the boundary of our lands.

This was an duty of herd leader I was entirely comfortable with. An army I could strategize and face, but the conniving sort of violence eluded me. How to keep my citizens safe from harm, out of the reach of brutish unicorns, was a mystery I did not know how to solve. "You are likely correct, Leander," I say with a sigh. "Unfortunately, I have no ideas on how to prevent this without limiting the freedom of those who live here." Maybe this soldier had already thought of the solution that seemed to escape me.
""


Leander the LionHeart Posts: 184
Hidden Account
Stallion :: Pegasus :: 17.3 :: 8
Epona
#7
L E A N D E R

Thankfully, the sultana didn't seem to think less of him for his anger towards Ricochet. Maybe she was even appreciative of it; he was a soldier after all. It was in his job to fight and kill. Still, he knew that starting problems with another herd would be a regret, especially with the Unicorns lurking to the North. Despite his apathy for the buckskin, Leander knew that the Throat's bonds with other herds would need to be strong. There would be chaos in the future.

Lined pools laid intently on the leader as she spoke of relations with the Foothills. The words disappointed him. Was the new neighboring lead really bad enough to require their ties to be cut? In the face of battle, one less ally could be enough to cause defeat. With a look of neutrality, the stallion spoke. "I understand. I do worry for their safety as well, though, for Mauja's group is much closer to their land. Maybe we could send a diplomat to speak with them? There may be some good in that herd, even if it does not come from their leader." He spoke with careful, hesitant words, not wanting to overstep his boundaries. He was addressing his matriarch, and there was no telling if she would be offended by the forwardness of his suggestions. His gold frame stood in a relaxed, somewhat submissive stance, and a soft smile still hung on his lips. "I could go speak to them, if you wish. I tend to have a way with words, and would be able to defend myself should they become hostile." Again he glanced at those azure eyes, wondering what she'd make of his proposal.

The lady's next words had his grin broadening. He was beginning to like her more and more, even if she was not the completely rigid, stoic creature he'd thought. "I would have done the same, but I feared it may cause conflict between us and the Foothills. Though I do plan to find him again, when teaching him respect will not cause any problems for the Throat." He responded, the shine in his own pools not so different from Kri's. Their talk soon sombered again, and it was too hard to keep a smile when thinking of Mauja's group. The knowledge that Faelene still lingered in it was just another worry on his mind. The flaxen lead agreed with his suspicions, though she seemed much more at a loss as to what to do about it than he was. "You could assemble the herd for a meeting, and warn everyone about the ex-Edge's possible whereabouts. You could also encourage the citizens to travel in pairs whenever going outside the Throat, for safety. They would be able to disregard the warning, but they would at least be more informed. Making sure the soldiers are aware of where a possible attack may come from may also be beneficial." His tone was again cautious, though unwavering. He half-expected Kri to become cross with all his advice, to assume him arrogant or overly confident. Although he meant his suggestions only for the good of the herd, speaking to a leader so freely was not something he was used to.






Forum Jump:


RPGfix Equi-venture