In the Beginning [Birthing, Levi]

[Levi]

She doesn't seem to notice him - the towering stallion on fire - and he knows that something is wrong. She is in pain, so much so she seems nearly blinded by it. He reaches to comfort her and she snaps at him, but he blames the situation not her. The pain draws her away from him, and this time when she looks to him with something close to hatred (or uncaring?) in her eyes, he turns his back to leave her in peace. 

The dark stallion paces the perimeter of the small clearing, ears pricked and listening for any sign of danger. He glances to her every so often as she labors, but most the time his mismatched eyes remain cast out int the dense forest, scanning for any predators which could be drawn to the scent of birth.

Another glance back to Kolera informs him that the foal has been born, and his sentry duties are immediately forgotten as he rushes to her side. The little creature is terrifyingly still as its mother cleans it, and the only sound Levi can hear is his heart hammering in his ears. 

His son comes to life in a sudden explosion of movement, and the dark beast doesn't care that the damn tree in dying, only relief floods him as Kolera's dismayed cry fills the air. His son is alive. 

But he is not allowed to feel joy for long. Kolera collapses into her bed of soiled nettles, and he forgets their child for the briefest of seconds. Helpless, he presses his muzzle to her brow, lifting her damp forelock away from her eyes. "Kolera," he grimaces, "Kolera get up." But a when he sees the blood, too much blood, he knows that all his powers are worthless here.

There is only one who can help them. 

"I need to go get Amore," he speaks the words as soon as he realizes they are true, not sure if she can hear him or not. 

He had to go to Tephra, and quickly...But there was no chance he was leaving his son in the dark forest with an unconscious mother. Cautiously, delicately, Levi traces his muzzle behind her ear, only taking a moment for parting words which he hopes will not be his last to her. "Hold on, Kolera, I'll be back with help as soon as I can."

Herding the child he presses through the trees towards Tephra. The spring foliage is dense and their progress is slow - too slow. It doesn't take long before he knows that Kolera doesn't have a chance if he escorts the colt all the way back to the island... even if they could get that far before sundown there would still be the channel to cross. 

"Alright, change of plans," he says as he extends his broad head out to catch the un-named colt as he gets his little hoves tangled in a root. "Come here, under this sapling. Yes, good. Now just crawl back there into that dark place way back there." The colt obeys, maybe he senses the intensity in his father's voice, or maybe he thinks they are playing a fun game - Levi doesn't have time to figure it out- he's just glad the child is cooperating. "Now you stay right there until I call for you. It's going to be a while, but don't leave... and don't kill the plants, they are keeping you hidden."

He leaves the child, taking careful notice of the exact location.

On his own, it doesn't take long before he reaches the volcanic island - but he doesn't stop there. "Amore!"He calls, masking the panic as simple urgency. He finds her with their son, and he takes a precious moment to greet the colt. 

"We need to go now," he says in a whisper to the child's mother. He is afraid that if he admits to her exactly why she is needed she will hesitate,  he has no idea how much Amore knows of his on-again-off-again relationship with Kolera. She complies and as they reach the edges of Tephra he begins to explain what is going on.

"Kolera is in the forest," he begins, "she needs your help, she is losing a lot of blood. She was in labor and then something went wrong..." he watches her face as they canter, trying to gauge if she will put all the pieces together. The circumstances certainly pointed to one obvious fact. 

He shows her the way to Kolera, it was a place he knew well and found easily. There is nothing else he can do now, and he remains back to let Amore and Kolera have the space they need. His body is spent, and his legs tremble but still, he pushes on - returning to the place where he had left his second son.

Levi

so scream you, out from behind the bitter ache.