Indy the Righteous
It was still a new experience for the dark stallion, leading a herd. Or, at least, helping to lead one. Gossamer had taken to it more than he had. The only thing he had ever desired in his entire life was just a peaceful, easy existence. For the most part his life had been peaceful, but easy it was not. Raising foals was harder than he had ever thought it would be. As much as he loved his children he was glad they were all grown and having foals of their own. He had the pleasure of spending time with his grandfoals, but he could pass them back to their parents when he was tired.
Indy sighed as he moved toward the northern edges of the Foothills. He was on edge and had been for a while. Helovia was too peaceful, and while he liked it it made him nervous. His parents had always called it the calm before the storm. Whatever storm was coming he wanted no part of and he wanted the herd to be no part of it, either. He, however, was not the military chief, nor did he desire to be. He felt that he knew Smoke well enough to believe that she would get involved with whatever was coming.
The sun dipped below the mountain peek and the shadow began to stretch across the field toward him. The stallion stopped as the shadow covered his dark hide and, already, he could feel the heat of the day beginning to fade. His long tail flicked against his legs and he lowered his head to snatch a mouthful of grass.
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| Deceased |
| Stallion :: Unicorn :: 16.3 hh :: 15 Years Buff: DANCE |
| Tamme |
From the dawn of time, to the end of days I will have to run, awayI want to feel the pain, and the bitter taste Of the blood on my lips, again
Paladin found himself pacing the borders more often than not. Even when he was a leader of the Tides, battle always found him. Now, the entire world seemed to be stagnant, except for the south which had been mired in a war that he held no stake in. His eagerness for battle burned deep in his blood from his birth, in how he was raised. Paladin's family filled his heart, but he needed blood. Violence.
The wicked sun began to sink below the horizon, and the stallion shook his white and crimson mane, trying to cool off his black form. He was unused to the heat. Even on the sands of the Tides, a breeze would carry soft crisp air through his mane, cooling his body. The ocean was always cool and wonderful to the touch. In the middle of summer, even their river and falls seemed to be warm.
Perhaps the heat was also attributing to his more violent mood. Perhaps the power of fire coursing through his blood called him to action for the sun god. Either way, he found it nearly impossible to stop his hooves from moving for very long. Paladin saw a dark figure haloed in orange light, and he recognized the form to be Soleil's father. He liked the elder stallion; he was intelligent, calm and rational.
With a friendly nicker to alert the elder stallion of his presence, the Valiant jogged up to his side, crimson eyes glancing over. "The days are long," Paladin murmured, exhaling some of the tension he had been holding. "We are not going to be at peace for long. I am going to try and secure myself as Smoke's equal, a chief of the military."
ABOVE ALL ELSE, EQUALITY
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Indy the Righteous
The only sign that Indy had heard the other stallion's approach was the rotation of his ears. He did not look, but rather watched the mountain tops. The were outlined in gold from the setting sun. The gold began to fade to a dark orange. Night would descend swiftly upon them, which he was thankful for. The heat of the day made them seem longer than usual and beyond miserable. The cool nights seemed so short in comparison. It all added to the uneasiness that stirred within him and he hated it.
Paladin came to stand next to him and Indy listened as the other stallion spoke. A simple nod of his head was given in agreement. "Indeed they are long." Too long. His black coat wasn't meant for such heat. Paladin spoke again, which caused Indy to finally turn his head to look at the younger stallion. He spoke as if he knew what was on his mind. This, however, he was accustomed to and had been for a long time. With Gossamer's magic she always knew his thoughts. He never had to voice them, which had added to his silence and increased it over the years.
A slight shift of facial features was his response to Paladin becoming Military Chief. He knew his mate well enough to believe that she desired both pairs of chief and chieftess to be mates. He could be wrong. Unlike her he never knew for certain what his better half was thinking. "I believe you would do well as a chief of the military should Smoke choose you." He said, his gaze going back to the mountain range. "You possess strength, cunning, compassion, intelligence." He was quiet for a while before speaking again. "I don't know how you did it. Leading the Tides, raising a family, keeping my daughter safe and happy. She speaks very highly of you." Oh yes, he had heard plenty about Paladin from his daughter. Still, he withheld his judgement.
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| Deceased |
| Stallion :: Unicorn :: 16.3 hh :: 15 Years Buff: DANCE |
| Tamme |
From the dawn of time, to the end of days I will have to run, awayI want to feel the pain, and the bitter taste Of the blood on my lips, again
Paladin sighed softly as Indy agreed that the days were long. The sunset seemed to cast the sky in bright red, and his crimson eyes took it in with awe. It made him miss his Tides even more. When the dark stallion whom Paladin respected looked at him and shifted his features in response to the stallion's interest in being a military chief, Paladin raised a brow. Then he replied that Smoke would have to choose, and he furrowed his brows and cast his gaze back to the horizon. Were they to be mates?
The crimson and black stallion felt his gut clench. He would never disgrace Soleil in that way, and Paladin opened his mouth to right his wrong before Indy began to speak once more. When he made mention of his ruling of the Tides, Paladin did not take the comment as a compliment. Instead, he looked down at his hooves. "Ultimately, I failed them," he replied. "I promised that I would protect the Tides, but it was impossible. Not... everyone escaped with their lives."
A smile curled his lips. "Soleil is the only reason I fled here. The thought of not having the rest of my life to spend with her... and my family was darker than death." He spoke honestly. Paladin shook his white and crimson mane lightly. "I feel out of place here, like I do not belong. The selfish part of my thinks that it is because I am not a leader, but I know that to be incorrect. Even if I were naught but a drop in that sea, I would choose the Tides." I want to go back.
ABOVE ALL ELSE, EQUALITY
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Indy watched his daughter's mate as he looked down at his hooves and seemed to sulk rather than accept the compliment for what it was meant to be. He listened silently to Paladin as he said that he had failed his herd. Indy sighed and looked back at the mountain range. Some just beat themselves up far too much. "You cannot save everyone." He said to the black dun next to him. "You could not keep hold of your Tides, but how do you defeat the undead? There is no way to kill them." He turned his head to Paladin again. "Some might not have made it out alive but a majority of them did. You should take pride in knowing that you fought as long as you could to protect them. Dying would not have saved them anymore than your living would have." He hoped his words would have some kind of an affect on Paladin and make him stop feeling so guilty about not being able to save everyone. It was just an impossible task.
Paladin's next admittance drew a smile from Indy. "I am glad that my daughter has someone that loves her as much as you do. I only hope that my Enna can find someone who cares about her the way you do Soleil." Indy's smile faded as Paladin admitted that he felt out of place in Helovia. The mention of not being in a leadership position drew a sigh from the big stallion. In the end it all came down to missing the Tides. "Homesickness fades with time." He spoke from experience. It had taken a long while for him to forget about his home before Islime, but he had done it and he was confident that Paladin could forget about the Tides in time.
sxc.hu, Sooty-Bunnie, AlaskaStock, and ilovearies
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