The young mare had been walking for days in a land with no light. It was dark and a bit frigid, such a foreign place for someone like her. Raised by and cared for by two legs, her life was once lavish and simple. Her father had been painfully right, it takes a miniscule thing to change one's life forever. She remembered his face and her mothers too, how sweet and how loving they both had been. They saw her off with her close companions as they boarded the steel ship that would carry them half way across the world. Everything had gone splendid until the storm hit, it was calm below deck, but her and every other animal aboard new much better. When the ship clashed with a large rock, and shook viciously, the stalls flew open. She took her chance along with six others and fled. Making her way up the steep ramp to the highest level on the ship. There she stood staring into the darkest part of the storm, winds raging and water droplets greedily swallowing her vision. It was all too much for her, yet she knew she must take the lead in order to save the few friends that had the ability to escape. She counted to three and took a running start, her ivory form taking flight over the dull, rusted railing. After came one then two. Three more would follow and one would stay behind. Though she never knew who it was and hoped to never find out. It would be too painful for her to register the face and the name of any of her friends. From that moment she remembered nothing, nothing but waves, nothing but flashing light, nothing but nothing.

Vervain cringed, a tear slipping from the corner of her right eye. It was too much to remember, it ailed her to recall the previous day. She moved slowly through the darkened woods, trees and various species of foliage thickly surrounding her. It was very difficult for her to navigate through this strange place, especially after hitting her head so hard. She couldn't remember the swim or how she even found this place. It was unreal that she survived, in her mind she should be dead right about now, that or terribly injured. She couldn't tell whether it was day or night here, the moon constantly showed its face, the pale light illuminating not much of anything. Shaking her head she pushed forward, stumbling over something every so often. It took her what seemed like hours to reach the edge of the forest, but when she did she wasn't amused. It was a vast empty valley, no one seemed to be present. She stood bewildered and lost, firghtened by the absence of two legs and her own species.

Where on earth was she?

The ivory femme stood stock still. Her oceanic orbs peering across the open plains before her. It beautiful, this place she had fortunately stumbled upon. However, on a more serious note it seemed as though the daylight hadn't touched the lands in centuries. That was her point of view at the moment. It was quite unnerving for her. Having just arrived here with little to no light to navigate by and barely a soul to converse with, let alone lay eyes on. The mare's elegant form drifted away from her original position, auds turning in every imaginable direction. She was very cautious yet, as always, curiousty told her to move from beneath the shadowed safety of the canopy of trees above her. She stepped out of the thicketed forest and into the moonlight, her coat giving off a slight gleam due to its white hue. The mare seemed to glow as she made her way slowly through the darkened valley, rolling hills hiding much more than she herself could see or imagine.

For someone like her, just old enough to rightfully be called a mare, it was difficult to be on her own. The loss of her companions and the fear of never seeing the ones she loved were glued to the front of her brain, almost haunting her. She hadn't slept for hours, hours that had been spent looking for her friends and some close relatives. There seemed to be no sign of two leg activity in this strange world. It was quite the change for a mare like herself, coming from a home filled with men and women. She somewhat missed the touch of their bare skin, the brush of a bristled tool to clean her pearl-like coat. Yet, in a strange way, she relished in the thought of being free from so much structure. It was something new and to her, a world untouched by her kind. Something that could make her...a whole new her.

Large, expressive eyes scanned her environment once more, trying to take in as much as the lighting of the area would allow. Something moved out of the corner of her left eye, it seemed to be her size. Possibly larger. At first her features glowed with excitement, imagining that it might have been a ship mate, but knowing that she had ended up in such a foreign land made her wonder. It could be a predator, her father had told her of those. Large, pointed canines and a knack for catching hoofed mammals off guard. She cringed. Within seconds her body language changed from open and excited to frightened and defensive. If it came down to it she would fight, that was one of the few good traits she inherited from her father. Though she was small and graceful in appearance, she packed quite a punch. Quickly she devised an escape route if things got ugly, to the left the valley seemed to open up onto a smaller path, she would take that and try her best to weave through the treeline until she reached safety. She was prepared to defend herself, even if she was slightly impared at the moment.

Auds pinned to her cranium as she snorted loudly, alerting the predator or equine that was approaching that she wasn't too fond of their choice of approach. Just as she was about to speak a voice rang out from the darkness. She cocked her head, confused. It was a male for sure, though he seemed friendly, unlike what her original thoughts were. The pearl-colored mare moved forward a bit, faltering on her last step. Cautious but curious, she inched forward again. She tried desperately to see through the thick sheet of black that stood before her, like a divider in a room it wouldn't allow her vision to pierce through it. Frustrated she pawed heavily at the earth beneath her, tearing up a small pile of vegetation. When she caught the voice again she just had to answer back. A sweet, honey coated voice cooed to the seemingly far away stranger. "I am fine...no I am not...I am lost."

The youthful mare awaited a response, and within seconds she had recieved a name and was already being questioned. A warm smile spread across her face. He was a strange but seemed to have her best interest in mind. The trusting side of her would no doubt be the death of her someday. It was too easy for her to trust others, though soon she hoped for herself it would change. Quietly she debated whether or not to reveal her true identity, it may harm her in the long run if she lied. The decision was made, she would be honest and save her hide from harm, this time around. "My name? My name is Vervain. Who, exactly, are you Apollo? If I may ask as well."

Vervain could only hope to find a comforting friend before she went mad. The thought of being alone like this, forever, it killed her.