Blood Falls
You don't make haste to Halyven, though something in you wants to flee to the city of white—to swoop among the broken towers, hide in the shadows, nothing but you and the sun and the sky and the stone. You feel like, for every success had in restoring Hope, there's been some strange blow to your soul. While you were always a bit apart as a child—too mellow and responsible—you've never sought isolation.
But here, in this place.. you frown as you fly north, heading towards the place where you previously could not cross. You don't want to be bitter and lonely, but somehow, you feel that way; like everyone else has found a friend, but you. And at the same time, you scold yourself for it. K'yarie and Roscorro had both been friends to you, and now that Taivas is back...
You close your eyes, and let the rain-wet air touch your face. No point in worrying.
You don't fly blind for long, but when you open your eyes, you're rather surprised by what you find. Red mountains loom on the horizon, the scent of cold and iron wafting down from them, a chilly, creeping change in the air—and what's more surprising is that you find a slashed vein of red, a torrential flood pouring from somewhere further up and roaring down over a precipice. It crashes somewhere far below, a raging river of blood-colored water, and lodged in it are some sky-blue crystals. Strong, snapping teeth, disembodied as far as you can tell, split the waters, but they do nothing.
Close to the banks a gathering has formed, and you recognize most of them. There's Roscorro, Rixen, Kiada, Aurelia, and Taivas, as well as the sleek mute stranger, a sickly-looking child (worry), and a compact mare with wings on her head. You've seen her at the gatherings, but you've never properly met her. She's poised just over the edge of the roaring river, and you question the sanity of it. Can't she see that it might surge at any time, and knock her off her feet?
Maybe she's not used to rivers. You are, after all, not used to snow.
You fold your wings and drop, flaring them at the last moment and gliding above the uneven, rocky ground. Flapping them a few times you halt the last of the momentum, touching down lightly and folding them to your sides. In silence you stare at the river, realizing that you have no idea what to do. It just feels wrong, all of it.
But here, in this place.. you frown as you fly north, heading towards the place where you previously could not cross. You don't want to be bitter and lonely, but somehow, you feel that way; like everyone else has found a friend, but you. And at the same time, you scold yourself for it. K'yarie and Roscorro had both been friends to you, and now that Taivas is back...
You close your eyes, and let the rain-wet air touch your face. No point in worrying.
You don't fly blind for long, but when you open your eyes, you're rather surprised by what you find. Red mountains loom on the horizon, the scent of cold and iron wafting down from them, a chilly, creeping change in the air—and what's more surprising is that you find a slashed vein of red, a torrential flood pouring from somewhere further up and roaring down over a precipice. It crashes somewhere far below, a raging river of blood-colored water, and lodged in it are some sky-blue crystals. Strong, snapping teeth, disembodied as far as you can tell, split the waters, but they do nothing.
Close to the banks a gathering has formed, and you recognize most of them. There's Roscorro, Rixen, Kiada, Aurelia, and Taivas, as well as the sleek mute stranger, a sickly-looking child (worry), and a compact mare with wings on her head. You've seen her at the gatherings, but you've never properly met her. She's poised just over the edge of the roaring river, and you question the sanity of it. Can't she see that it might surge at any time, and knock her off her feet?
Maybe she's not used to rivers. You are, after all, not used to snow.
You fold your wings and drop, flaring them at the last moment and gliding above the uneven, rocky ground. Flapping them a few times you halt the last of the momentum, touching down lightly and folding them to your sides. In silence you stare at the river, realizing that you have no idea what to do. It just feels wrong, all of it.
