i'm on the wrong side of heaven, and the righteous side of hell
Purgatory was just another name for hell.
Here, nothing mattered to him but staying alive. He had never given his own mortality much thought (he had never had a reason to, given his heart was linked to his kingdom). But here? Here he could almost taste death on the air. Here he could see it woven in the smoke and fog. Here, death was common place. Death would be written on their skins like the scrawling on the seals if they did not persevere. He refused to let that happen.
He knew that stepping onto the stone was the right thing to do. It felt cool on the bottom of his hoof, almost like standing on the soft moss of the deepest forest in the Chamber. The coolness spread up through his leg before spreading all through out his battered and torn body. The lesions on his chest closed (though they still ached), the wounds on his flanks finally ran dry. He was tired and sore but the seal had been like aloe to a burn, and he spared himself a small moment to close his eyes and be thankful. Such moments were a rarity here, so he would certainly take any reprieve that he could get. The others stood near him, panting and equally worn-looking- but they were alive, all of them. When he opened his eyes he looked down and was startled to see the seal had disappeared. Surely not… he mused to himself, thinking about the soothing feel of it beneath his foot. He knew without a shadow of a doubt that the seal had been there and was now gone. There was only one explanation; the seal had entered him through the sole of his foot.
Before he had much time to reveal in the strangeness of it all, the world split apart again. The sky clashed and he felt something rumbling across the earth. It was like thunder but more powerful, more vicious. Greens and grays flashed across the sky like lightening, albeit unlike any lightening he had ever seen before. Through the clashing of the worlds he heard Conquest’s scream of fury, and it was enough that he screwed his face up in displeasure. But it was soon lost to the wind, and where there should have been silence was the same chaos there had been before. Three horses disappeared into it like dust on the wind, the Amazonian queen included. Warship found himself with little sympathy to spare; after all, she had tried to help the rotten bastard. One thing he did notice through amidst the chaos was the lamb; had he not been looking though, he would have missed it. Silently it stepped into the melee, and before he could shout a warning to his comrades, its cloven hoof had touched yet another seal.
This time he was more prepared for the explosion, but it still nearly brought him to his knees. Conquests vile laughter was drowned by the blast, and more a moment his ears rang painfully. As the ringing began to settle there was a new laughter, deeper in some ways than Conquests but equally as vicious-sounding. Through the ashes and raining shrapnel he saw it; saw them. New beasts and old beasts alike charged forward, led by something that mimicked the shape of a horse but was clearly spat from hell.
“WAR!”
He heard it like a scream in his head. He knew that voice all too well. It was a throaty growl that came from the deepest part of the chest, a promise of the battle that was to come. It was not unlike his own voice, and the thought made him uncomfortable. But there was no time to dwell on the notion; he had to gather the seal and hopefully keep himself and the others alive. He snarled towards War, his eyes flashing like they had never done before. If the bastard wanted war, he would take it to him. “RUN! THE SEALS!” he shouted, his voice aimed mostly at Weaver. With a roar of fury he leapt forward, his eyes only for the fire-eyed War. But his minions were not to be denied. A grotesque-looking hellhound sprang from the ranks, its slobbering jaws agape and aimed for Warships throat. He dodged and reared, a roar of fury to rival Wars leaving his throat. His hooves were aimed for the spine of the beast but he wasn’t picky; any blow from a stallion his size was likely to cripple. He was pleased to feel the snap that meant his blow had landed home; but the hellhound wasn’t done. It snapped its jaws closed around his leg, causing a snarl of pain to bubble from his mouth. Quickly he lashed out with his free leg, and he thought he felt the beasts skull crack. He hoped, at least. In any case the hellhound and let go and he hobbled away, alive but bleeding. War was just ahead and around his feet were fragments of the seal. That was what Warship needed, so that is where he went.
His movements were hampered by the hellhounds bite but thankfully he was no stranger to pain. It didn’t hurt any worse than the snake bite had, though it did hinder his movements more. Weaver had been lost in the chaos and he knew a pang for her well-being. She was a smart kid, surely she would be alright. In any case he couldn’t watch for her just now, but hopefully he could gather her a piece of the seal. All around him creatures snarled and fought but his eyes were only for War, who stared back at him with those depthless red eyes. “You’ve known war, boy…” said a voice in his head. It was clear that War could read his heart, read the stories of scars traced on his skin. “Join me…” growled the voice as the red eyes flashed and a wicked grin split the tattered lips. Warship did not answer immediately, but felt a fury building him unlike anything he had ever felt before. “NO!” he screamed before charging forward.
His chest met Wars with the force of a speeding truck; enough to wind him, enough to make him gasp. War staggered back, his grin changing to an ugly grimace in the blink of an eye. When he staggered he stepped off of the fragments of stone, and Warship dove for them; but he wasn’t quick enough. Quick as a flash War had grabbed him by the withers, his sharp teeth sinking through the flesh to meet the bone beneath. Warship screamed and writhed, though he knew he would ultimately do more damage to himself by doing so. He had to get free, had to get the teeth dislodged from his flesh. In desperation he struck out with a front leg, his hoof meeting Wars rear cannon bone with crushing force. War screamed around his mouthful of flesh but let go, giving Warship time to scramble forward. Hopefully War would be occupied by something else, and for the moment that seemed to be the case. Turning as quickly as he dared, scanning the chaos for the spotted princess. “WEAVERR!” he shouted, desperate to see her black and white form. There was no time to wait though, for at his feet lay two shards of the broken seal. Panting, bleeding, scared and exhausted he stepped onto one piece, leaving the other piece half covered with dirt and debris in the hopes no one would see it and Weaver could claim it and the safety it offered.
warship
* Warship was bitten on the leg (fetlock area) by a hellhound on his way to War and the shards. He encountered War, charged him, and War sank his teeth into Warships withers. Warship is currently standing on a shard, with another beside him covered in dirt. He is saving it for Weaver but you can feel free to try and steal it. Use Warship however you'd like, so long as he isn't mortally wounded!