For all is not always fair
in love and war..</style>

So this is what failure felt like. I had never felt it before. The demons were disgusted, I could tell by the melancholy song they had starting wailing within my cranium. Losing wasn’t meant to be in my vocabulary, let alone something that actually happened to me. Sure, the fight had technically been victorious, but only because that bastard horned brute had scuttled off into the darkness. But if he hadn’t have taken the cowards way out then there was no way I would have come out with the crown upon my head.

How on earth was I meant to bring myself back to Seeles side now? I was meant to come back to a hero’s welcome, so that the bitch would finally take me seriously. Now I would be lucky if she even took pity on me. I had to fight the urge to gag at the idea of crawling back and asking for pity or even forgiveness. I wasn’t one who required either, I was meant to be undefeated.

All of a sudden, a wave of grief and guilt came crashing and tumbling over me as it brought back the memory of the only other defeat I had ever known. The one that had cost me everything, the one that had seen me here, following orders from a jumped up bull headed wench, had I no self -respect left?

Some little voice in the back of my head whispered ”You have nothing left. Nothing at all. And then, out of nowhere my vision blacked out and the sadness crept in, flashing before me all the memories that I held dearest. Even when the demons had a hold of me, they still meant something.

I sank to my knees, sobbing and screeching as the pain of losing my darling Isi hit me like it happened only yesterday. My heart was pounding and my brain was racing, my nerves were firing so fast I was shuddering on the floor like I was having a nervous breakdown. If I'm honest, it probably was one of sorts. I had been kept drugged, in my own subconscious, and seeing the light of day again was a lot to take in.

Somehow, failure had awoken my soul, sensing weakness from the demons and it had decided to make a break for it. I was back in control again, which only served to make me feel my pain more keenly. The throbbing from the gouge in my chest only served as a catalyst for my grief, it made me feel alive.

Demons crashed around my dial, raging that they had lost their hold on my consciousness, even for a second. Every minute I held control made me stronger, and harder for them to overcome. The adrenaline surged through my life blood. I was determined to hold onto myself this time; I wouldn’t relinquish my soul to them again.

I pulled myself up from the ground, gave myself a good shake, blinked away at the tears that had settled at the edges of my pools and looked about my surroundings. I had managed to wander past my supposed new home in the marsh, and into the deep forest. Moonlight was the only thing illuminating the dense thicket of pine trees, giving it an eerie glow. It creeped me out a little, and I didn’t want to stay put for too long.

A snap of a twig behind me caused me to spin round, primed to fight, for even I didn’t have flight in my genetics. Harks pricked, ivories bared, banner swishing and pools flashing. I was determined that my fresh start wasn’t going to be cut so drastically short. My heart rate slowed and my breathing calmed as all I saw was a rabbit sitting startled in the undergrowth in front of me. It would seem that my time away from my own body had turned me a little paranoid.

I snorted at the bunny and chuckled as I watched it dart out of my eyesight. I decided to follow its lead and push on out of there, senses still heightened, watching out for friend or foe..

Think Think Think
"Speak Speak Speak"
Fugue State
Tagged: @[Eris], Open!
Count: 692
Notes: This was unexpected...

For all is not always fair
in love and war..</style>

Frantically, I pushed my pistons on and forward in the direction of the exit to this Halloween dreamland. I was still struggling to hold onto my consciousness, and the demons were doing their best to drive me over the edge. They were trying to stuff me back under again, their blood filled screams ensured that my cranium was pounding in my ears and felt like it was fit to burst. I couldn’t let them win again, I had to ignore it. I couldn’t give in to the pain.

My icy blues were still trying to readjust to seeing the light, rather than the shadows the demons had covered them with. It was like someone was spring cleaning, pulling the cobwebs away. The improvement in my vision was drastic, and yet I hadn’t even realised it was poor. I blinked a few times, and as I grew steadier on my hooves I broke into a sedate trot through the undergrowth. I was still a little wobbly, and the headache wasn’t doing my balance any good.

The quicker I could get away from this demon playground; I could gain full control over myself again. It would seem they would always be strongest in areas that held a kinship with them, those that were dark and dingy. Those where demons had trodden before and would no doubt again. Mine would remain quashed deep in my subconscious, the way they had done to me, for as long as I had anything to do with it.

As I turned a corner, my nostrils picked up the notes of another, the musky, heavy scent of a stag in close proximity. I slowed myself down and tried to assess the situation. I kept moving, and as I moved from the shadows, I saw him. Obsidian covered skeleton, with two antlers proceeding from his dial. Yet another crowned one, was there any of us common equines around in this place? All I had met so far were this mythical beings.

Something within him stirred up the ghouls once more, and yet his rumbling lyrics mentioned that he meant no harm. Mistrusting him still, but not having a choice seeing as he was blocking my exit, I decided to respond;

“Hello to you, Torleik. I am Arlo. What brings you to these depths of darkness? Especially when the sun has yet to rise for many weeks? Don’t you know what lurks with the denseness of the pines?”

Considering I had just been lurking myself in those very trees, I dreaded to think what else was out there. But then again, this brute clearly had darkness residing in him, so perhaps this place suited him much more than it did me, the real me.

Think Think Think
"Speak Speak Speak"
Fugue State
Tagged: @[Eris], @[Torliek], Open!
Count: 453
Notes: This was unexpected...

Where had she left them? The golden queen stopped by yet another tree and inspected the roots. Where was her new stones? The ones that needed to decorate for crown? The last thing she wanted to do was go for yet another swim. The crown made of dragon bones rested gently on her brow, blue opals glistened from within the twisted bones. The blood red stones would have gone so nicely with her faming red hair. Each stone would have represented the bloody life that she'd drained from her opponents. Giving up on finding the missing stones, the goddess of discord turned and pranced away from the trees as if the stones didn't actually matter. But they did matter a lot, if she found someone else wearing her stones, the golden dun would kill them. Smiling happily the mare wondered through the dark forest, soon she would have to return to The Marsh where her ever growing family resided. Only in the marsh did she ever feel truly safe. Her own opal orbs looked around the forest, wondering if her family would feel safer within the deep forest rather than the marsh. Ideally they needed a land that was already occupied by a herd, however getting this land would be oh so tricky. So many things a leader had to think about. Such thoughts cleared her head, normality setting in.

Her imagined crown disappeared.

Was that voices she heard ahead? Or maybe it was just her mind playing tricks on her. She doubted that though...the poison was the only thing that played fake voices in her head. There had to be others near by. How fantastic. It wasn't everyday that Eris found herself in a stable state of mind, if anything she enjoyed her blood crazed mind more than her normal one. The other frame of mind made life so much more fun! Then again, in this state she was able to appreciate the beauty that life held. Moving swiftly, the leader began to make her way over to the voices. From the sound of it there was only two of them having a meeting, one of them sounded quite put out. She could be wrong, but Eris believed that this voice was familiar. Where had she heard it? No too sure the mare made her way through some trees and then heard the question from the voice that she did not know. The current speaker was a black horned stag, this was not the one she knew. The stag didn't seem to be an immediate threat though. Turning Eris studied the white stallion, now this was the one that she knew. He was apart of her family, he had fought in the throat with her. Arlo her memory kicked into action.

Her timing was almost comical. Shrugging out of the trees, as if in answer to the dark stag's question, the Goddess passed the unknown an evil smile."Many things. Crazy, bloodthirsty, chaos causing mares for a start." Giggling Eris turned her blue eyes to Arlo, her charge, her brother. One of many that she wanted to protect. "How have you been Arlo?" Concern filled her tones, eyes studied his body. Why hadn't he returned to Seele and herself after the battle? Why did he now cower out in between the pines? So many questions burned through her mind, blinking once she turned to the black stallion. "You may call me Eris." Names were a dangerous game. "What should I call you?" Not being rude the golden mare fell into a silence, glancing between each of the males. Eris was not one to fell threatened. In fact she actually quite like being the only mare at the moment. It made the game of life so much more...interesting.

" "
630 words.
@[Arlo] @[Torleik]

For all is not always fair
in love and war..</style>

Ah, another who was fond of the dark, of the perpetual night that this place had been thrown into. I may have conquered my demons, for now at least, but it didn’t mean I wanted sunshine and rainbows. The moonlight suited me down to the ground. It would seem that many of whom I had met so far in this nightfall had a liking for the shadowy inked sky. Though, I had to admit daylight would make it a hell of a lot easier for me to control those who rattled away beneath my surface. The abhorrent ones fed on the darkness, and shrunk away from the light.

I chuckled as the bearded one coiled himself, preparing to fight or flee when I mentioned those who lurked within the flora behind us. A wise decision, one should always be on their guard within this thicket. He orbs drank me in, curious to find out what I had meant. As he met my icy blues he held my gaze, trying to see what lurked beneath, to see if there were any traces of the repugnant ones who lurked within my very being. I tried my best to hide them, but something about him spoke to them, and had set them off again. I imagined my pools acted as a window, showing them swirling around. I shook my dial, and grumbled ’Stop it!’ without realising I had spoken aloud.

Just as I opened my maw to speak, to tell him was loitering within the pines, the heady notes of a familiar vixen entered my nostrils. I couldn’t quite place the perfume to a face, but I knew this wench who was about to slither from the shadows. She was to provide an explanation, to show the obsidian one that you could never trust those that lurked in this forest.

As she came into focus, I realised who had entered into our presence. The redheaded doe that stood before us, grinning as if possessed was Eris, the other who commanded me, the one who stood next to Seele. I dipped my dial in recognition of this fact and wondered how this encounter would unfold, for I had yet to officially meet this vixen. She was clearly intent on making an impression on speared one in front of us, whether it was meant to be good or bad had yet to be seen.

Unfortunately for me, it was now time to face up to my commander. She wanted answers as to why I had yet to return to their side since the invasion. Perhaps she would be more forgiving than the bitch, Seele, which would be to my advantage. Though, I still hated the fact I needed forgiveness at all, I still couldn’t believe I had been so close to being defeated by that mechanical coward, Ulrik. The reminder of the humiliation only served to make the gash upon my chest start to throb again, and I winced slightly.

“Greetings Eris, it is nice to finally meet your acquaintance. I have been in good health; I just wanted a chance to collect my thoughts after the battle against Ulrik. I wanted my account to be clear and concise to be able to provide you with a coherent briefing of what conspired. I am sorry I have not returned sooner.”

The concern that coated her lyrics made me a little hopeful that the return to the marsh wouldn’t be quite as excruciating I had been imagining.

I returned my attention to the crowned one, for he had captured my interest. There had been a spark of camaraderie between the both of us, or at least it had seemed so. I awaited as to how he would react to the slightly eccentric entrance of the ginger one..

Think Think Think
"Speak Speak Speak"
Fugue State
Tagged: @[Torleik] @[Eris]
Count: 633
Notes: Poor Torleik! He thought he only had to deal with one crazy xD