It didn't take Irrydae long to figure out why she felt so empty, as if everything inside was carved out and her body was an empty, lifeless, walking shell. It felt like she had just lost her mother, again. The darkness shrouded her, constricted her as she squinted through it, all senses on high alert while her mind was numb. Her muscles twitched warily as she walked slowly, hooves stumbling blindly across the terrain. It didn't help that her mind was so numb that she wasn't paying attention to where she was going.

Irrydae would pass an occasional glowing tree, but the oddly colored light threw off weird hues and shadows. She was not used to it. The stretches of darkness were the worst, though she couldn't pull herself out of the numb zombie state her mind was trapped in. Irrydae's mind clinged to the images of the Gods disappearing. Would they return? This couldn't possibly be the end- why would the Gods disappear and the mortals remain? If anything, Irrydae assumed it would be the opposite. That eased her mind to the tiniest degree, but not enough to make a change of how she felt.

With a sharp crack and stabbing pain in her front left canon, golden orbs snapped down to see the faint outline of a rock. A warm sensation seeped over her leg, drips running down her hoof. A harsh exhalation escaped her as she placed her leg down. Irrydae walked tenderly, eyes stinging as tears formed in the back of her eyes.

Irrydae did not know where she had ended up, her crown raising high as her eyes peered into the darkness, a new edge to her worry as the wind stopped abruptly. Nares quivered as hooves are placed lightly in the snow, a light crunch echoing through the loosely scattered trees. The small, soft leaves tickled her skin as she walked through a wall made by the draping branches. The wind returned to normal, and she slipped back into her reverie, tail dragging limply on the snow, wings tucked in loosely against her ribcage to shelter from the cold temperature just made colder because of the absence of the sun.

My stars. They're gone. A sharp intake fills her long as her golden orbs stare at the ebony trendils of black sky through the trees. Her knees buckle and collapse under her, pressing against the frozen ground, stark white snow (not that you'd be able to see the clean, sleek snow) stained pink from the blood that was slowing it's path out of her. A small smile filled her lips, the cold felt good against the throbbing wound. Her head spun wildly as she fought consciousness, everything from todays events finally crashing down upon her frail shoulders.

Irrydae's bodice shook slightly, mind struggling against the blackness that dotted her vision. She still had her front legs kneeled upon the ground, and the fae roughly shoving herself up from the ground and stumbling for a few steps, pelt brushing against the rough bark of a tree.

And suddenly, something was very slippery.

Instinctively, Irrydae threw her crown back, hair flying wildly while the the whites of her eyes flashed and her wings snapped out from her sides to aid her in balance. It was all a lost cause, though. Her injured leg burned and protested against her as she wheeled back, frantically fighting against the ice that covered the lake. Time slowed, golden eyes focusing on every detail as her body fell, the air rushing from her lungs as she slammed into the ice. Her throat was ragged as she tried to refill her lungs with air. Then, the cracking started.

Irrydae plummeted into the colder than cold water, every open airway clogging with water in the sudden change of events. Her eyes opened, the darkness was even worse under here. And she was literally suffocating. Her mind slow and groggy, finally clicked and she lurched up, water draining from her nose and ears and mouth as a cough escaped her. The relief was sweet, the feel of air entering her lungs after so much time without it. Her leg screamed at her and she slowly dragged herself out, onto the snow. A low whimper echoed through her vocal cords, body shaking fiercely in tremors as the cold bit at her skin. She angled her leg on an even stretch of snow, pressing the wound to it as it slowly numbed. One benefit, right? A bitter laugh escaped her throat as she lay on the ground, freezing her ass off.

The darkness, it was nice. No one would find her like this, no one would walk by and see her as if the sun or stars were still here, providing light and warmth. Maybe I will die, maybe this is the end. There was no fear in the star studded mare, only a eager welcoming in her hard gold eyes.

[ ooc ; NO IDEA WHERE THAT CAME FROM, muse was gone and bam it's back! Yay! Though I probably won't be able to make a reply this long again, hahaha. Anyone is free to join, she's kinda beat up and went in a direction I did not see at all... she just writes herself :x ]

Black sky; was it endless night, or a curse that has been cast over this new land? How should I know? I've been here for a few days, approximately any how. The enormous leap in light change from home to here was completely throwing my body off, making me sleepy randomly through out the day due to not even knowing when I really should be sleeping and when I should not. Lethargy had set in once I started toward my new home at the swamps that were nearly devoured by dead trees. I followed a witty golden mare with bright red hair named Eris; she had quite the tongue, and I enjoyed it.

The snow fall here was rather irritating due to the large amount of frozen layers that covered everything. It even smelled so different here, everything smelled... cold. Back home it was always warm and muggy, making it hard for a lot of our warriors to keep weight during training. Well.. my old home, and their warriors. My father would be proud to know I had such heart ache at the thought of home. Cruel bastard, but how I missed seeing him every day, and it had only been about two weeks since I left my beloved herd.

I moved aimlessly through the darkness, on a solo adventure through this new land, Helovia. My long, stringy tail wisped across the ground, collecting small amounts of snow along with it that latched onto the fibers of my hair. Ears rotated around seeking any certain sounds, buffed out conversation, or the forewarning of a predator's call. Instead I caught muffled whines.. and the faint sound of, cracking? A squeal followed closely behind a sharp snapping sound, causing my body to jolt at the sound. Thoughts and images of what could be going on surged through my brain, driving me to find the source of the sound.

Dark hooves dug at the powdery earth, propelling me forward toward the sound. Weaving and bobbing between and around a few obstacles slowed me down, but I wanted to badly to see what was happening. Water, it smelled so cold, why was it not frozen? The cracking! It was the layer of ice over the water, it had to be. Purple gaze flicked back and forth in search of the action, only to find a body laying not too far away from the icy cage. My body geared back to a walk from a canter, all interest flying away as I found the winged mare sitting in silence on the bank.

Calmly, I approached the now visibly soaked female, my eyes pulling back and forth from the hole in the thin layer of ice back to the mare. "Now," I paused my sentence, stopping just before the mare and dropping my long face down to blow my hot breath toward her undoubtedly freezing muzzle. "Why would you walk on something as unstable as that?" I lifted my head back up, staring down at the trembling female with emotionless eyes.

"Speak." Walk walk

Andromeda was a relatively young mare at six years, roughly the equivalent of a woman in her early twenties. By all means, she had lived a somewhat sheltered life, fearing little but always being aware of what-ifs and what may be stalking here as she rested under the silken silver stars. She was at peace throughout her life, never fretting nor worrying, her brow very rarely knotted; and she loved it, the sweet freedom that came with it, the it being unburdened by societal conventions.

When the darkness had eaten the sun, swallowed the sky, and tore down the wallpaper of clouds, moon, and stars, she had been struck by a panic that ran deep in her heart. At the time, Andromeda had been gliding above the world, coasting along the half-build foundations of the metal wall, patrolling for outsiders or those who looked rather peculiar, out of sorts among the herd. Andromeda had a loyal heart, which was perhaps her only source of pride and achievement, as well as the trust and faith Kri had in her. Lately- before the blackout, that is- she had taken to flying around Helovia, but with the darkness, she had gotten lost.

Entirely and irrevocably.

For many hours the only sounds disturbing the terrifying, impenetrable, seeping, hideous blackness that did not relent nor expose the stars were the beats of her wings, a whisper of feathers. Winds had swept her far away from the hot, dusty place she both hated and loved with a passion, and so, lost, she soared above the world, fearful of landing, scared by the thought of seeing what monsters now crawled and crept and slithered. Yet her wings grew heavier and heavier, and her lungs seemed a little more crappy, and so she came closer and closer to the ground, until she came stumbling downwards, unable to see where the pitted earth was beneath her feet.

She wanted to be in the red dust, dry-throat home of the dragon.

The snow was the sort of dry powder, the one that if melted would develop into a slippery ice, but the temperature was so cold, so frozen on her skin, that it was unlikely it would ever happen, especially with the Sun God missing. Perhaps they had deserted them. But why? Had the children of the gods- not the demi-gods, but the collective natives of Helovia- done something to disappoint them terribly?

A vaguely familiar scent drifted, hardly detectable among the stench of decay of rotting grasses and dead flowers; a scent that conjured images of a heavy rain and falling, with nobody to help her up. The Sergeant was not one to hold a grudge, but nevertheless... leaving someone to drown didn't stand out as a trademark of being a very kind individual.

Cautiously, Andromeda followed it, wing-tips nearly dragging on the ground, exhausted and somewhat irritated.

Her legs trembled as she moved, and she halted, nostrils expanding as the frigid air burned her lungs. All she wanted was to return home, and yet the stench of wet horse- reminding her strongly of the night in the rain long ago- implored her to move forward, to offer her help with her little knowledge of healing, perhaps just provide a shoulder to lean on. Taking the high road. Once, twice, she stumbled, yet she did not fall to her knees.

Voices.

Unable to register the content, the mare who had been flying for more than several days nearly collapsed, yet somehow she managed to stay standing upright. "This is ironic," she sighed deeply, with the sigh of a mare well-practiced at sighs. "Andromeda- are you alright, mare-of-the-rain?" Her nostrils flared, taking in the scent of another. Hardly able to bring herself to care, she tipped her head in the direction of the other, forgetting the stranger probably was unable to see her star-splashed shape in the darkness.

Irrydae had been wrong. Death did not come, though she wanted it to. Her limbs started to freeze as the temperature remained the same, golden eyes solid instead of molten as they typically were. How much time had passed? A few minutes? An hour? Days? Her mind, as it so often did now, drifted to Evers. She wished he was here now, with her. Maybe, she wouldn't be so surly if he was. Her heart sputtered quickly in her chest, before, just as quickly as it had beat against her chest, it returned to a normal, dull thud. A brittle snort sprouted from her nares as she exhaled, eyes straining to see the cloud of smoke before her strained vision.

Irrydae was not even alert and aware - as she should have been. 'Now, why would you walk on something as unstable as that?' Her skin prickles against the hot breath blown on my maw. Eyes flash, ears pinning quickly. Her body, though, stays stock still. Every limb feels frozen and solid, stuck in it's current position. Irry should have shot up like a bullet, but slowly she calms herself down, hardened orbs staring at the unicorn. "As if it was intentional." Irrydae mutters sarcastically, voice sounding rough and unusual in her throat.

Irry says no more, and neither does the stranger. Purple nares quiver delicately as her eyes dance from the mare and away. What was she doing here? Why.. no how did she find her? This time, Irrydae is alert and aware as another mare stumbles towards them. Her breathing grows louder slightly, the scent ringing a familiar bell in the back of her head, yet unrecognizable. Brow furrows in frustration, the wheels in her mind creaking and spinning extremely slow as she tries to place it. 'Andromeda- are you alright, mare-of-the-rain?' Golden pools flash brightly, that's it! A shudder rolls through her sodden bodice as she remembers the fateful night way back when (hah, though it wasn't really that long ago, just felt like it.) The horrible storm, where she had encountered 'other' and ended up falling in a river. Right. Fun.

I should stand. The thought rolls around her cranium, as if she was tasting it lightly, tossing it from side to side in her mouth, yet it is dismissed as the slightest movement of her muscles sends shooting pains through her. It felt as if someone was impaling her with a thousand small icepicks, and Irry stifles the low groan that slips through clenched teeth. A long breath shakily exits Irrydae as she grows still again, eyes flashing between the two mares. She was definitely alert now, looking for any signs that might tell her one or both of them meant her harm. Would she get up and fight back, or lay there and let it happen? The thought of standing, of moving her muscles sends another tiny shudder through her body. "I wish I could say I was." Irrydae answers to the other star mare finally, her tone less sarcastic than before, but it was still there, and she knew they both could tell.

Eyes lock on the unicorn, who stands over her with bored, emotionless eyes and it takes everything for Irrydae not to hurl her thoughts towards the mare. If she couldn't be so bothered, why was she even here? Her teeth grind slightly as she drags her irritated eyes over to the faintly familiar pegasus, who looks disheveled and as tired as Irrydae. Her face softens as she looks at the grey and white mare, sympathy crossing her eyes briefly as her mind drifts to their first, unlucky encounter.


[ ooc ; woot woot 75th post! ]

It was dark. And cold. Alleo could have dealt with the darkness easily, but coupled with the cold he found a new kind of hatred for it that almost bordered his hatred for snow. Oh, and there was definitely snow, too. The stuff continued to crunch under his hooves and form little balls of ice that made his feet ache and his temper irritable. The stallion wanted nothing more than to be able to breathe fire and melt every bit of snow that was before him so that he would step on solid ground and light his way at the same time, but according to what he'd heard only the gods here could grant something like that and they had disappeared. Go figure. His first couple of weeks in a new home and everything went to hell. His sisters sure could pick wonderful places to live, he thought with sarcasm.

The stallion rolled his bi-colored eyes and continued to walk, ears rotating atop his head as he listened for anything and everything. Occasionally he would pause and shove his muzzle into the air and breathe deeply, sorting out whatever scents were floating around on the invisible breeze. There were sounds and scents. Voices that he didn't recognize and a few scents that were unrecognized as well, but there was one that he did. Even though he'd been living in the Foothills for a short time there was no mistaking the scent of someone that lived there.

Curious about the happenings that seemed to be going on, Alleo pressed forward, following the dim light of the lamp trees, but mostly trusting his instincts and his ears to get to where he was going. Upon arriving he noted the presence of three mares, two pegasus and one unicorn. He came to a standstill and watched them all for a few short moments, before approaching closer. His gaze lingered on the unicorn before traveling to the mare who bore the scent of their shared home. His head tilted as he noted her wet coat and he remembered the splash he had heard earlier. It was far too cold to take a swim or even a tumble into water and not have a way to warm up.

Without a word, Alleo sidled closer to his herd mate until their sides were nearly touching, silently offering whatever body heat he could to warm her. Had he wings he might have stretched them over her to offer her more warmth, but he did not so he couldn't. The pale stallion cleared his throat before addressing the mares all at once. "Good evening, ladies." He dipped his bare head then turned his gaze toward Irrydae. "I am Alleo, Warrior of the Foothills. I don't believe we've met before tonight, but it is a pleasure to meet another who calls the Foothills home."