When the Ashes Hit the Ground

Rixen Rise and rise again until lambs become lions; The lights danced across the dark sky, each color slowly fading into one another. The frosty winter air bit my skin, and my neck was aching from tilting my head back to see the auroras, but I could care less. The lights were beautiful, swaying and changing and illuminating the world. Blazing in the silent sky, the aurora lights were perhaps the greatest show on this earth. Their glow, their shine, everything about them was just ...breathtaking. This new place in the Rift, whatever it was called, was an icy tundra that stretched on and on and on, racing endlessly into the horizon. Unlike the sky, there was no longer any color on the land beneath my hooves, only white, a giant blank page. As I moved, my hooves scrawled on the canvas, and who knew what words they left behind. Though not visible to the naked eye, perhaps precious flower and grass seeds slept beneath the thick blanket, waiting for the long dark winter pass. Or, maybe this place was a perpetual winterland. I would not doubt the possibility of such a thing in the Rift, but it would be quite a while before I found the answer.  Here, there is nothing to hold the mind, no comfort, no familiar thing save for the snow. These things are not obvious unless one searched for me. Knowing that there was soil beneath me and a brilliant sun in the sky above is enough to encourage me forward, eager to see what this unknown land had to offer. Breaking into a run across the flat expanse, I felt the wind in my mane, the warmth of my body warding off the brittle air. There was not any place in the Rift like this (that I'd seen before). Except for Halyven, which I’d certainly always regard as a perfect treasure in all its decaying glory.  I ran, hooves kissing the land. Perhaps a little while ago it would have been necessary to conserve my energy, carefully choosing where to distribute it. I would have balked at idea of running so far and fast with no danger pursuing me. But now I relished the prospect. It was as if these hooves were made to travel fast and light, like an eagle soaring across an indigo sky. Breathing steady, heart strong, I didn’t know where he was nor did I know where I was heading. I had no idea what time it was and he had no clue what day. And so my body carried me swiftly forward. Not stopping for anything. Not stopping for anything but a strange shape on the horizon, appearing small at first, so small that I might've missed the sight. But as I moved toward it, it became clear that the creature was a horse. I slowed, breathing heavily, trying to see who he was from my position a safe distance away. He did not look familiar, dark, sable body starkly contrasting with the white that surrounded him. He was ordinary, save for two sizeable horns protruded from either side of his head like spears.  "Hello!" I called out to the stranger, voice cracking a little from my parched throat. Not wanting to alarm him, my approach was slow enough and while my head was low, a soft grunt escaped my lips in some queer attempt to ease him of my presence. Still, my shoulders felt tense as I drew closer and even as my body language was friendly, I knew my eyes were searching for some fort of threat in him that I wasn’t sure I’d even find. Hopefully I wouldn't. "TALK HERE"

image

@Zubari
I do not believe we have met before, but welcome back! :)