the

Mother of Companions

The Mother of Companions could often be found wandering along the beaches of Helovia. Her favorite was the island paradise of the Dragon's Throat, naturally, but for a woman that adored the ocean and its many facets, any beach was better than none. That it happened to be raining seemed of little consequence to her. Perhaps it was the nature of desert folk to celebrate the heavenly water, but it had never been something that set her in a dour mood, even if it made flight difficult. That was why she was walking.

Her hooves gently scored the loam as she moved, well versed on the duplicitous nature of such terrain. Nature was hardly a friend to anyone though, and sand was something you could never entirely come to trust. The rain promised to stiffen it up, with time.

Kygo, the parrot currently nestled under the blanket of Ampere's disheveled mane, felt quite differently about rain. The limitation of flight was a greater hindrance to him, and though he enjoyed a nice warm bath now and again, he liked to be prepared for getting wet. Caught out in travel like this, stranded on the open shore, and the little bird was nearly beside himself. So when a challenging call rang out and Ampere gave pause to listen, he instantly squawked his dismay from his hairy nest.
"NO!" Kygo shouted through their bond, the phrase pulsing with a vibrantly red wrath.
One of Ampere's ears flicked back, the other still attuned to the source of the summons. "Why not?" she demanded, a bit smug at the bird's pitiful displeasure over water.
"Wet," Kygo snapped, as if it was obvious. "Wet. Walk. No. No! NO!"
Kygo's answer shifted into a wail of dismay as Ampere began trotting down the beach. The parrot jostled to and fro in his alcove of mane. His feet gripped tighter around the black threads, and his beady eyes widened as he watched the world between clumps of hair. If he wasn't so worried with holding on he'd half a mind to bite her.

Ampere arrived upon the scene in short order, but pulled up short as she found the 'arena' empty of a foe. Tense with alertness and slick with rain on her topside, Ampere's eyes stabbed through the darkness with expectant caution. Sharp bone spires protruded from the leather necklace that settled at the edges of her withers and the beginning of her chest's swell. She had depressed its enchanted button en route, but now that she stood alone in the echo of a call, she felt the need to also withdraw the shield from her back.

"Nobody," Kygo chirped across their bond with relief.
"Shush," she bade, not as sure they were alone. An iron piece was drawn from between her wings with fingers unseen, her magic at work to guide the collapsed shield down and against her left shoulder, her right side facing the sea. Metal blossomed like war's flower as the device opened up fully, glinting with a sterling beauty under the wet moonlight. It curved protectively against her body, heavy as she held it up with will and wizardry.

Upon her head Ampere's ears spun in all directions, her gaze continuing to probe with a sweeping, unrelenting motion. Abruptly Ampere blew out a loud and derisive snort, a display of her own bravado and challenge. Her nostrils flared wide as she drew in an audible, deep breath. "Smells like a trap," her thoughts hissed.

Someone had called.
Someone must be here.
Someone was.

Although horses rely heavily on sight, they are not without other senses. As her ears spun they listened, and the rain sounded a bit off in one area, like it was hitting a different surface. As her lungs drew in a breath her nose caught the scents, the moisture heightening some, like damp horse hair.

Ampere paused, staring directly at what should be Toulouse's position as her other senses closed in; her gaze narrowed. Utilizing the energy lost in the ground, Ampere yanked it up in its raw state. Blue sparks popped and sizzled all around her. She shaped them into three coyotes, outlines shuddering as an electric line would randomly arc out wildly. Silently they snarled, the hiss of energy their only noise as they charged towards the supposed hiding spot.

The blue light was nearly fluorescent on the sheen of her wet hide and metal. She was as charged as the lightning in the clouds, her muscles alive with electricity that whipped violently through her. With baited breath she waited for the response: an empty assault to make her a fool, a direct hit to make her a victor, or moment's delay to make her a target.

---

A: 1/3
D: 0/1
W: 798/800

I've been trying to fix my pride
But that shit's broken