the Rift


[OPEN] Old Hands [Paladin]

Smoke the Wild Rose Posts: 128
Hidden Account
Mare :: Equine :: 15.2 hh :: 10 Buff: SWIFT
Zaffre :: Common Blue Dragon :: Fire Breath Kachie
#1
So much could happen in a short amount of time. Good things, bad things. They all added up to make life eventful long after a soul thought they could settle into a form of semi-retirement. At what point did she begin to think of herself as old? It was something new, born of seeing her children grown and building relationships of their own. Built upon the years and years of sorrows experienced, deaths known. But even as she'd watched friends and loved ones die or disappear, she'd brought new life into the world and made new friends. A never-ending cycle, one that could grow wearisome if one let it become so. A tempting pit of self-pity and apathy that she'd walked the line of a time or two.

But never for too long. The simple joys of life were forever refreshed within her mind, interjected there by her soul-mate and his never-ending delight with life. Like this morning, crisp and clear and cold, an usual thing in these misty cathedrals of old, old pines. She walked their pathways, trailing after the dual-toned dragon that flittered and fluttered ahead of her, tracing a path away from the cliffs and closer to the inland borders.

Through the tree branches she could glimpse pale blue skies, though the sun was still low enough on the distant horizon that all was in darkness below. A few hours more and the sun would cast its dim warmth over the land and awaken the mists to envelop all. In the meanwhile, she meant to enjoy the clarity.

At last the blue had led her to his clearing of choice, dusted with a powder of snow from the previous night's light storm. It had rained, just a few miles to the west, but here it was just far enough inland that the browned grasses were sugar-coated with frosty white. It was temporary, for by the time the mists rose from the earth this trace of snow would melt away. Perhaps a few more weeks and it would be cold enough that drifts of snow would linger in the shelter of the trees. She knew that elsewhere the snow was deep, but that was elsewhere and now she was here.

Stepping from the trees, she took childish pleasure in the crunch of ice-crystals beneath her hooves, her gait gaining a bouncy quality as she picked up her pace. Tail flagged and head bent, she indulged in a little bit of frolic and play, trotting the circumference of the clearing with one or two bucks and leaps. Infrequent laughter escaped her as her blue dragon dove and whirled about her, singing a quite joyous tune to celebrate the morn and her break from solemnity.

At last they settled, coming to a halt in the center of a ring of trampled grass marked with semi-circular imprints upon their frosty coating, their pattern betraying the few moments of lightheartedness that had come prior to this more sedate one. Dark head bent to lip at old grass, nose wrinkling at the cold. Before she could bend a leg to paw the frost away, a plume of fire was expelled above a tract of grass, instantly melting away the frost and lending a few patches of grass a temporary new springiness in the wake of the heat. Chuckling, she stepped over to nuzzle the petite and lean dragon sitting coiled on the grass in silent thanks before settling down for a little bit of breakfast.

Paladin the Valiant Posts: 153
Deceased
Stallion :: Unicorn :: 16.3 hh :: 15 Years Buff: DANCE
Tamme
#2


PALADIN
The sound of iron shocks is stuck in my head


Paladin's older habits still had not died. He rested his body against a tree, back to the cliff-sides that provided a barricade. As he slept, he had one ear turned to the left and the other forward, aware of all sounds around him, and a crimson eye would crack open at the faintest creak of a branch, leaden with snow or chirp of a bird. The stallion felt the sun rise on that morning, heating his back, and he shifted his weight from the tree and shook off the snow that had fallen on him during the night. He felt out of his own body, out of place, almost. The dreams of the Tides were getting stronger and harder to shake, as if he could close his eyes and the crash of waves would greet him....

A sigh of white moved past his lips, and he pushed his body through the minor ache and pains of age into a brisk trot, starting his routine of checking the borders. Paladin's figure had not lost any of its defined muscularity, but patches of silver hairs were getting more visible. He had not been easy on his body, having been born into war and continued with that trend for most of his life. Now it seemed that it was rebelling against him, conspiring to make him a sedentary louse for eternity.

He had also managed to grow quite a distinctive beard. The hairs were long and mostly black except near his chin where a small patch of white skin made the hairs turn white as well. Interwoven were also long tendrils of gray, and he mused that he truly was falling apart. The sound of a laugh caught him off guard at this early hour of morning, and he furrowed his brows, altering his course ever so slightly to an only lightly dusted clearing.

The last being he ever thought he would see dancing with a flagged tail in the snow would be Smoke, ever the stoic and rather disinterested mare he can come to know her by. Confused and somewhat jealous, he stood for a moment and watched from the shadows. How had she been able to retain her soul after such loss? He remembered the way he used to dance on the Tides, with Valhalla and Soleil ages ago. Now his soul seemed to be lead in his hooves, and he turned his head to look over his back for a moment, not sure he should be watching Smoke in this moment.

The stallion cleared his throat and then also lowered his head to eat, not even realizing that he had been hungry. He had grown numb, even to his body's needs. Paladin did not know what to say. He and Smoke had never been close, had never truly been friends, but he would not judge this new kindness with such scrutiny. The black dun could use a friend who understood his loss.




Smoke the Wild Rose Posts: 128
Hidden Account
Mare :: Equine :: 15.2 hh :: 10 Buff: SWIFT
Zaffre :: Common Blue Dragon :: Fire Breath Kachie
#3
There was a certain quality of silence that lingered in the air over the bonded pair of mare and dragon. Not even the crunch and rip of shorn grass disturbed it, nor the soft sigh of wind through the trees. Neither were aware that their joyful moment had been observed, that precious stolen few heartbeats of laughter and play.

But then a polite cough echoed from the trees, bringing two pairs of eyes to bear upon the black dun who lingered there, disguising his awkward discomfort in a mirroring of behavior. A white-edged ear flickered curiously, wondering what all he'd seen, as the grulla mare continued to chew the mouthful of grass she held. A silent debate swirled in her mind, deciding, before she ambled a few steps closer, swallowing as she did so. "Morning, Paladin. Did the night treat you well?"

Beside her in the grass, Zaffre hopped closer, arching absurdly into the air to clear a frost-tipped tuft of grass that grew higher than its neighbors. There was an aura of utter confidence about the little blue, certain that he had nothing to be concerned about while he scuffled about the Wild Rose's hooves in a vain search for bugs to snack on.

Hellena Posts: 64
World's Edge Seer
Mare :: Unicorn :: 15.2 hh :: 26 Buff: NOVICE
Whit
#4
Hellena
Age was a curious notion. I seemed to be preserved, not like a fossil, but rather, my prime seemed to have extended, improved even, as the years went on. The blood of my veins was ancient blood, derived from a long line of royalty, of unicorns who lived for centuries; by their standards, I was still a filly, on the cusp of earning respect from my elders. It was forever curious for me to observe the way those around me seemed to age with acceleration; the young always wanting to grow larger and older in order to be stronger and better, the old always yearning to be young, always reflecting on the times they had been through, never looking forward to the times still left ahead of them like they used to when they could still see themselves as young. All of them were young to me, all of them foolish and sometimes idiotic, some of them proving their worth even in the mere decade they might have lived. In their eyes, I was the epitome of an aged, wizened old hag, and yet in myself, I knew I had much life yet to live.

The rhythm of dance seemed to vibrate through the mists, the joyous steps stirring a restless energy amidst the foggy confines of my little abode. Svelte soldiers stood to attention atop my poll, my tail swung from side to side, smoothly sweeping the mists into a beat that my legs were soon following. Bowing my horn deeply, then lifting it up in a great arc, I sliced through the veil of mist and damp, and emerged from my camp with a flurry of slender limbs and silken tresses waving in my momentum. It did not matter that the journey took me several minutes, that the dancing was complete by the time I arrived in the clearing, that conversation had already started; I merely felt as if my presence was warranted here, and when that feeling struck, I was to be in attendance. A light snort filtered through my nostrils as I came to a smooth stop, the cadence of my limbs altering to a controlled walk, my nape stretching out before me as I greeted the grulla equine and her dragon, and the black dun unicorn with a customary tilt of my horn.

"Hail, Valiant and Wild Rose." I speak softly, yet loud enough to be heard without difficulty, my words gentle yet purposeful; I do not believe in wasting breath on useless chitter, and so I halt my breath there, allowing the others to fill the void with their own thoughts and words, instead of my own. It was bound to be an interesting conversation, to be sure.
in rumor we find truth and in life we find lies, death offers only a temporary respite.
credits

Paladin the Valiant Posts: 153
Deceased
Stallion :: Unicorn :: 16.3 hh :: 15 Years Buff: DANCE
Tamme
#5


PALADIN
The sound of iron shocks is stuck in my head


Why did she not start at his short announcement of his presence? He thought that she would be embarrassed that he had caught her in frivolity, but he supposed that mares were allowed more leniency in that area. A single step not taken with purpose was punished, and those memories still served to drive him today. The yelling and beatings formed rather solid habits, so unless he was courting someone (which he had not done in years), his actions were not without an end goal.

Some might find this sad, how such a powerful and passionate being had been reduced into a machine.

When the mare approached, asking about his evening, the warrior frowned ever so slightly. "As well as I have ever slept, I suppose," he replied, not having much thought about sleep as anything but a necessary function. The fact that he was plagued by nightmares now made this function a little... well... dysfunctional, but could he really complain? He was a alive, for the most part, and floating through life.

The movement of the dragon caught his eyes, and the stallion visibly stiffened, his crimson eyes tracking the beast like a predator. He could still feel the strange way his skin stretched now along his left side since Gossamer's blue had burned off his crest and a fairly intense chunk of his face that went through his eyes. At least with his mane cropped like his brothers', he did not have to worry about it getting in the way.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked, returning conversation as he struggled to tear his gaze from the dragon. He finally did, but that was almost a moot effort since his eyes did not rest on Smoke's for very long.

She seemed to barely make any noise, like the mists themselves. When she paused in their group, he was unsettled that she had come so close without alerting his warrior's senses. Paladin dipped his head respectfully to her, having seen her once before at the herd meeting and recognizing that she was close to Mirage. If he had to guess, she was the Seer here.

Though he was not at all seeking a mate, still having unresolved tensions with Soleil, Paladin could not help but be inspired by her beauty. It amused him that he had a penchant for white mares, but she was the first of his own kind that had ever truly caught his attention. Still, he was polite and did not stare long, and he shifted his weight a little, feeling the winds catch in his thick, silvery beard. "Greetings to you as well," he replied. "Though I do not know your name..."

Where was that dragon? Paladin sound the creature with his ears, always trying to know where the predatory beast was... just in case. He trusted Smoke, but these scaly demons seemed to have minds of their own.




Smoke the Wild Rose Posts: 128
Hidden Account
Mare :: Equine :: 15.2 hh :: 10 Buff: SWIFT
Zaffre :: Common Blue Dragon :: Fire Breath Kachie
#6
Ah, there was some discomfort in the Valiant in the wake of her simple question, mere small-talk meant to fill the void. Had they never simply chatted before? No, she supposed they hadn't. They had lived in different herds, respected one another's reputations, and ended up clashing through general misunderstandings the first time they'd spent prolonged time in the same herd. It was an oddity of the times that brought them bumping back together time and again. And really, had anyone ever really spent the time to discuss the weather and the previous night with the Valiant, fierce leader of the Tides? Perhaps Soleil had, Smoke supposed, but those two had drifted apart after a time. She was certain that she could come up with a clever observation about relationship dynamics if she lingered over that thought, but that served no purpose.

Though she smiled to herself at his awkward answering to her question, she let the moment go. Not so much a few heartbeats later when she caught the black dun going rigid at the sight of Zaffre. "He won't bite, you know. When someone isn't picking a fight, he's quite sweet." There was small laughter in her voice as she reassured the mighty fighter that he hadn't a reason to be afraid of the tiny blue dragon. Perhaps once he might have, for she quite clearly remembered the day he'd quite thoroughly gotten on her bad side. But not today, and certainly not anytime in the near future.

A smile was offered him as he made an attempt to return the smalltalk and not focus on the frolicking dragon. "I slept alright." A simple exchange of niceties, but anything further was then interrupted by an unexpected addition.

Dark eyes followed Paladin's, to fall upon the pale figure of the Edge's Seer. White-edged ears quirked outward in mild surprise, invoking a brief, wordless exchange between mare and dragon. It ended on a small snort of laughter when her inquiry brought the equilvalant of a disinterested mental shrug. She belonged here, why did he have to put up an alert for her approach? "Good morning, Hellena. A rare treat to see the Seer leaving her deep mists for something other than the leader's call." A simple observation, made with a simple but warm smile.

Hellena Posts: 64
World's Edge Seer
Mare :: Unicorn :: 15.2 hh :: 26 Buff: NOVICE
Whit
#7
Hellena
There was some amusement found within me as I gauged the reactions of my brethren on my arrival. I had noticed that some were more willing to simply accept my presence in these lands as a given - I was a part of them, and they me, there would be a cold breeze running through the Sun God's fiery mane before I was parted from them, at least in rank. I knew very little, in retrospect, of my fellows - honestly, I had not taken an interest in them, for they were not of these lands like me - though I did now see the unending lessons that I could potentially learn from them. My years were greater than theirs combined, but where I had spent my life devoted to the Moon Goddess - a life I certainly did not regret - they had spent their lives travelling, at the very least, from their homelands to here - perhaps further. I did not know, I had no way of knowing, unless I asked them to give the information directly from their own lips.

I nodded as the Wild Rose introduced me, looking at her properly for the first time, without the distractions of a herd gathering, or having her attentions taken away by a healer's duty. The scars that littered her hide told a story of their own - she may be a healer, but she was also a fighter, a survivor - stubborn and determined (much like myself). It was with a small smile that I noted the dragon in the air above us had not raised an alarm to my approach, though I could hardly know the reason for certain, I could wager a guess that it was simply because he understood - I simply was. "There is life to be lived away from one's studies." I replied to the healer with equally warm tones, my smile courteous and honest, my horn tilting as I broadened the curvature of my nape in a nod.

"Although, it would be nice to know more about my herdmates." Here my violet gaze shifted, seeking out the crimson pools of the stallion of my own species, smiling warmly under his observation - ignorant to the thoughts of attraction that might exist. I had thought of taking a mate only a few times in my past, and all of them would only ever be my own horned species - my bloodline was precious, ancient, and I doubt anything but a fellow unicorn could sustain it to produce a live foal - but that I could be looking at such a specimen did not even cross my mind. It wasn't Spring, after all, but the middle of FrostFall. Perhaps in time I would think differently, though I could not be sure just how differently. "Though before I begin my inquisition," I say with a wry grin upon my lips, amusement behind my eyes, as I turn between the two sets of eyes before me. "If there anything you would like to know about the Edge?"

It was a genuine offer - I knew all there was to know about the Edge, being born from the very mists themselves - and not one I made lightly to all who resided here. But the Wild Rose and the Valiant had earned their reputations amongst the land, reputations that I had observed from my mist homes to be well earned indeed, and so I could grant them this exchange of knowledge with a genuine heart.
in rumor we find truth and in life we find lies, death offers only a temporary respite.
credits


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