the Rift


[OPEN] Nobody puts baby in the sand

Esinakh Posts: 48
Outcast atk: 4.5 | def: 7 | dam: 6.5
Mare :: Hybrid :: 15.2hh :: 2 HP: 66.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Sachi :: Plain Rougarou :: Water & Flame smitty
#1
esinakh
Quivering.

Everything about her was quivering. From her legs, to her nostrils; from her lips to her wingtips. She was coated. Coated in this gritty, white dirt. It wasn’t dirt though. No, it was different.

Worse.

This fine, alabaster gravel had started just by puckering around her small, dark hooves. That had been worrisome, but she routinely washed her hooves multiple (read: five) times per day. There was streams and a large lake at home, and she didn’t often stray far from it.

Until today.

Today, when she had finally succumbed to the need of submerging her body in the vast body of water that beckoned her high atop the sea cliffs. She was too young, too small, and not brave enough (unlike brother) to trust her wings, yet. What if she fell? She’d be smothered by earth and twigs and filth.

So her trek to the ocean had begun, after stepping into the now-paltry streams of Tallsun; dipping her limbs and washing up to her knobby, barred knees. Care was taken, as always, with her right forelimb. It had gleamed white when she left the flowing water. Concern had begun to rise in her as the streams shrank daily. What happened if they were gone? The lake was fine, but it was so still. It didn’t allow for the clean feeling of rushing water. Maybe the ocean, in it’s ever-undulating beauty, would give her that?

So she found herself on the beach. Quivering.

Quivering because the sand that had baited her with mere kisses on her hooves now coated her body. It stuck in the grey clay that had sprung to her back the moment she left the Edge due to trepidation of being out, alone. The sand was in the grains of her feathers, stark white pinpoints of bright agony against her dark plumage and skin.

She bleated once, but it was cut off as her too-large, white eyes roved, panicked, across her hopelessly sandy body. “Rak!” a futile cry for her brother (her savior), as her forelimbs thrashed twice, sending more sand to stick to her sweaty, clay-covered body.

Open to anyone! She's having a lil meltdown over the sand.
@Arakh will prob join when Snow comes off absent :D <3

Please tag Esinakh.

Arakh Posts: 77
Dragon's Throat Stallion atk: 5 | def: 8 | dam: 7
Stallion :: Hybrid :: 17'2hh :: 2 HP: 66.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Snow
#2


Her voice is like a beacon, calling his name, summoning him. The bull-calf's gangly legs carry him across the ground with as much pace as he can possibly muster, his strides long but still uncertain as he gets to know the limbs that bear his weight. His wings flutter behind him, because at the moment he lacks the muscle strength to keep them closely tucked against his sides - the wing-arms aren't strong enough, so the wind billowing behind him from his gallop pulls them out and makes them wave in the air like tattered strings of feathers. He has had flying lessons, yes, but he does not yet trust his wings enough to use them regularly. His feet, however...his feet, he can trust. His feet haven't failed him yet.

Grass turns to sand, and the colt's stride slows as the pulling, straining sand wears on his muscles. Panting and blowing from his run (stamina is not currently a thing that he possesses), the colt looks around for his sister. "Esi?" he asks cautiously, his ears flopping back against his head as he looks warily around. Then he sees her; a mess of clay and sweat, filthy and quivering, and his heart calls out to her.

Others would look upon the dirty filly and think...what is she panicking about? It's only a bit of sand. But not Arakh.

He understands. He knows that she would probably rather be suffering unbearable pain than be dirty, and although his infantile brain can't grasp why this is, he knows that he sympathises.

He moves closer, carefully folding his windblown wings against his sides. "Rak here now. Esi safe." The colt's muzzle extends to touch its velvety tip to his sister's sweaty, clay-covered hide, then he takes a few steps further towards the lapping greatness of the ocean. The sea's sheer size frightens him, and his instincts tell him not to go anywhere near it, but it is clean and wet and the only means he can think of to get his sister clean. "Esi come into big-water with Rak? Big-water clean. Get rid of bad sand." He offers her a gummy grin as he steps further into the lapping waves, so they tickle against his sparrow's knees.

ARAKH THE REAVER


@Esinakh

[ ARAKH ]

Esinakh Posts: 48
Outcast atk: 4.5 | def: 7 | dam: 6.5
Mare :: Hybrid :: 15.2hh :: 2 HP: 66.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Sachi :: Plain Rougarou :: Water & Flame smitty
#3
arakh and esinakh
“Esi?” His voice breaks through the overwhelming roar of panic in her small, young mind. It is a faint sound amid the tumultuous fear that barraged her head—but, still, it is a sound of safety. Her pale, wide eyes leave the mess of welling clay and sticking sand that is her skin, instead probing the sandy wasteland that has become her personal hell.

And suddenly he is there, his soft muzzle touching her filthy, digusting, hateful side. Her quivering skin visibly spasms as his velveteen nose makes contact with the sand that layers her body, head twitching as her neck jerks at the feeling. Were it anyone else, the filly would have imploded, a small ball of terrified, helpless energy.

But, it was Rak, her brother-calf. She mewled quietly, the sound only partially making out of her panic-constricted throat. Her wide, white eyes pinned his bright blue ones, not even glancing at his comforting grin, as she freezes. And then, in a spastic motion, she shoves her horn-nubbed head into his shoulder. She recoiled slightly as her gritty face hit his sweat—but then she pushed her eyes further into his shoulder. So much stouter and bigger than her, the colt was her protector, her savior.

In this arrangement, she blindly followed Arakh’s small steps into the lapping waves. She trembled with each step, clay welling from her spine and now dripping from her slender, tiny sides. It plops on the sand, welling in grit-coated balls as the tide took one droplet out to sea. But Esi did not see this, she only saw the black, warm, wet coat of brother. Of safety.

The moment the salty water touched her skin a soft sigh gusted out of her mouth and onto her brother. “Thank Rak,” the whispered words were barely audible as they slipped out of her terrorized throat. Unwillingly, she untucked her head from the asylum of his neck and shoulder, eyes closing against the vision of her dirty body, as she slipped further into the rushing waves.

Further, further she walked, only opening her pale eyes when the water hit the bottom of her wings. She dipped beneath the waves for a moment, head and all, before breaching the surface again in sputter of air and salt. Her eyes turned back to Rak, still wide and slightly panicked, but mostly calm now. “Why Rak here?” Her voice was still small in the wake of her fright. But at least now, with most of the sand and clay washed by the relentless waves, she was clean. “Esi thought she come alone,” though she had not met her father since her fateful birth, the strange filly had begun to mimic her brother’s speech pattern rather than her mother’s.
in a world of chaos
you are my calm
image

@Arakh

Please tag Esinakh.

Arakh Posts: 77
Dragon's Throat Stallion atk: 5 | def: 8 | dam: 7
Stallion :: Hybrid :: 17'2hh :: 2 HP: 66.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Snow
#4


She spasms as he touches her, and he gives a small sad snort. He hates seeing his sister like this. If it was another creature who was upsetting her so much, then Arakh would simply be able to beat them up to protect her - but how can he protect her from herself? From the impulses and thoughts that run rampant within her mind? All he can do is try to sympathise, and do what he can to make sure she knows he is there for her. Always.

Her face presses into his shoulder and the colt's head automatically swings around to embrace her, hold her tightly against his strong warmth. As he leads her towards the water, he can feel her quivering against his side, and his little heart goes out to her. He wishes he understood why she is like this, so he could make it better. But as close as they are, he is not privy to the wicked thoughts and feelings inside her head. He wishes he was, more than he wishes for anything in the world, but he isn't. He just has to use his own instincts and emotions to guide him, and they are not always reliable.

The waves embrace them and Esi slips from his side, although he is sure to keep close. The salt water stings the plethora of cuts on his fetlocks and knees from his numerous failed flights into the ground, but when the initial painful tingle fades away, he finds only relief.

Esi dips beneath the water, but Arakh resists the temptation; he doesn't entirely trust the crashing waves and sucking foam. There is The Unknown beneath the splashing seaspray, and he does not want to be devoured by its depths. At her words, the colt gives a small, calm smile and a whicker of reassurance. "Rak always here when Esi need help. Rak never let sister-calf get hurt or worried...and if Rak ever get sad, Rak know that Esi here for him too." It is the simplistic knowledge of youth, the utter convinction that they will be together forever, that nothing will ever splinter the cast-iron bond between them. "Does Esi feel better now?"

ARAKH THE REAVER


@Esinakh

[ ARAKH ]

Esinakh Posts: 48
Outcast atk: 4.5 | def: 7 | dam: 6.5
Mare :: Hybrid :: 15.2hh :: 2 HP: 66.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Sachi :: Plain Rougarou :: Water & Flame smitty
#5
arakh and esinakh
”Rak always here.”

Her brother’s words sank into her chest, an anchor in the tumultuous sea her mind always seemed to be adrift in. Always the thread of the storm on the horizon; the tsunami-like wave of fear that would crash over her and wipe away any trace of herself. That she would, again, be drowning in the red blackness that had nearly silenced her young mind before it began.

So she shifted closer to him, small legs stamping somewhat frantically a few times to rid herself of the seafoam that clung to her water-darkened legs. “Yes, Esi better,” and it was true; her trembled had nearly stopped; only a quake raked her form every once in a while.

Her white eyes left Rak’s bright blues for a moment, looking down at her now shiny, ocean-slicked body. “Look, all same color!” Her exclamation was happy as she lifted a wing to show that the water’s wetness had darkened the varying shades of grey into a monotone black. Her milk teeth gleamed in a smile at Arakh. Though her shoulders twitched once as she felt a single bead of clay well to the surface there, a repercussion of her happiness at being one, even hue.

She turned her attention to the trail of grey, clay pebbles that marked their walk into the water. Fearful uncertainly flashed into her eyes at the thought of walking back home (to safety), “Esi wish she could fly. Like Rak.” Her voice was small again, pale pale eyes turning to the clay in the sand once again. Except, this time, one larger clump began to twitch and move.

Her ears, one white-rimmed, flicked forward, eyes growing wide. It twitched again, surface trembling as the sand began to be pushed out of its center and onto its surface. Her voice failed her as she watched, though her body gravitated close to Rak’s, her stare not leaving the moving clay ball. What was happening?
in a world of chaos
you are my calm
image

@Arakh maybe she can discover her magic and craft them some crude bull figurines?

Please tag Esinakh.

Arakh Posts: 77
Dragon's Throat Stallion atk: 5 | def: 8 | dam: 7
Stallion :: Hybrid :: 17'2hh :: 2 HP: 66.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Snow
#6


Esi better. They're the best words he can possibly here, and he gives a small, happy snort. When Esinakh is better, so is he. When she is sad, so is he. It is as though they are joined; as though he is an empath, thriving off her thoughts and feelings.

He wouldn't have it any other way.

He sidles close to her to get a better look as she joyously declares that she's the same colour. "Perfect," he says affirmatively, even though he thinks she is perfect all the time. His warm smile fades slightly, however, as she looks at the way they must return in order to get home; it will not be easy for her to tread through the filth again. If only his wings were strong enough to let him carry them both! Alas, they struggle to carry him, fledgling as they are.

"Rak not fly very good," he says humbly. It is true, however. He can glide for short periods, but his wing-arms aren't yet strong enough to give him control over the air. It will be a good few months before he is big enough to engage in true, powered flight, although his small taster so far has told him that it's going to be awesome when it happens. "When we bigger, though, Rak teach Esi to fly. Rak and Esi can fly right up to the fluffy clouds and sit on them - they white and clean." He grins at her, revelling in the childish notion of soaring up the clouds. He has no reason to believe that they can't - to him, his wings mean anything is possible.

The calf is taken aback as the sand suddenly begins to move. Automatically, Arakh tries to step in front of his sister in order to protect her from whatever demon is erupting from the depths of the beach, and he flares his wings to try and look big and intimidating. Like Ave. It is a ball of clay, moving as though sentient, and Arakh desperately hunts for its source. But there is nobody else on the beach - they are alone. He can't even summon up any reassuring words for his sister; his attention is fully focused on the clay ball, his ravenous interest piqued despite himself.

ARAKH


@Esinakh omg yes that would be amazeballs!

[ ARAKH ]

Esinakh Posts: 48
Outcast atk: 4.5 | def: 7 | dam: 6.5
Mare :: Hybrid :: 15.2hh :: 2 HP: 66.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Sachi :: Plain Rougarou :: Water & Flame smitty
#7
arakh and esinakh
Her white eyes widen at the thought of learning to fly—even if Rak was her teacher. He was safe, but flying… But then he speaks of sitting on clean, white clouds and the immediate refusal melts from her face. “Clean?” her hopeful, interested voice parrots the word. It was clear that, to Esi, the idea of sitting on a clean cloud alongside brother-calf was her idea of absolute nirvana.

But she isn’t left long to dwell on her personal ideal of heaven, as another ball of clay beings to coalesce with droplets, shaking and vibrating as sand is pushed out of it’s innards and to its surface. Unknown to the little calf, her absolute happiness at the thought of her and Rak on clouds together has channeled into the clay that was so acutely tied to her emotions.

And then Rak is there stepping in front of her and keeping her safe from the very clay that threatens to smother her every day along her back. His wings flare, blocking the clay from her view, though she does not mind. She has seen enough filth for a lifetime (despite the brevity of hers thus far). “What it doing, Rak?” Her loud whisper sounded from her relative safety behind his wings.

…but the strange thing was that Esi already knew what the clay was doing. Somehow, the imprinted vision of her and Rak on clouds moulded in to clay in her mind—much to her distress. Now the dirt was in her mind? She shifted behind brother-calf as the two clay balls rose out of the sand, now fully formed and still. They were in the rough shapes of two grey calves, though the pale sand had shifted on one to coat the horns while on the other it had moved to vaguely imitate Esi’s white markings.

She snorted in relief as the strange, clay-sludge in her mind left. “They calves?” Her question sounded, again, from behind Arakh’s wings, knowing what the clay was without even seeing it. “Now Esi always have Rak,” her voice was beginning to fade as exhaustion hit her young mind, hard, “And Rak have Esi.” And then she leaned heavily against her brother-calf.
in a world of chaos
you are my calm
image

@Arakh
Esi crafted 2 small clay calf figurines! One has white sand over the horns (imitating Rak) and the other has white markings like Esi!
I think Rak could take the Esi look-alike & Esi take the Rak look-alike?

Please tag Esinakh.

Arakh Posts: 77
Dragon's Throat Stallion atk: 5 | def: 8 | dam: 7
Stallion :: Hybrid :: 17'2hh :: 2 HP: 66.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Snow
#8


He nods. "Yes, clean." After all, few things look as clean as the shiny white clouds in the skies above, and he's sure his sister will love to sit upon their fluffy masses.

His attention is soon drawn back to the balls of clay at their feet. He snorts nervously, pawing the dirt with one large hoof, before daring to lean down and sniff the oddly-coloured ball. How is it happening, he wonders? She asks what he thinks it's doing, and he shakes his bull-horned head in confusion. "Rak not know. Maybe....maybe we should get Mai? Mai might know." After all, with the blind faith of a child, Arakh believes his mother is the oracle on everything. Surely she will know what this odd clay ball is doing.

The balls rise from the ground and hover, and Arakh's icy gaze lingers suspiciously on them. He shuffles subtly aside again to try and protect his sister with his wings, but even as he does so, the clay seems to take shape. It suddenly dawns on him, and he looks between Esinakh and the dirt she seems to be controlling. "Is Esi making clay do that?" he questions. Leaning closer to the clay balls, he can see that they've formed into the crude approximations of calves. One is splashed with Esi's white markings, the other has pale horns reminiscent of Arakh's bull ones.

A slow smile spreads across his face. His sister has made them! She leans against him, seemingly exhausted by her exertions, but the two calves stand perfectly crafted in front of them. "They perfect. Thanks, Esi." He cautiously sniffs the clay, hoping it's dry enough for him to pick up the figurine of his sister and tuck it in his mane. He thinks he will try and obtain some rope for it so he can string it round his neck, in order to ensure she's always close to his beating heart.

He looks at her proudly. "Esi has magic. Like Ave and Mai." The boy has often wondered if he has magic too, but he's never yet had the opportunity to find out.

ARAKH


@Esinakh SORRY I SUCK I DIDN'T EVEN SEE YOU'D REPLIED TO THIS 8C

But yeah that sounds awesome! So cute omg

[ ARAKH ]


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