"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
if there's a light at the end, it's just the sun in your eyes
He gathers them near the lake, the lucid heart of their sanctuary home.
Amet has lived here since its birth, has called it his home and resting place for the four years that it has been in existence. He loves every part of it ─ from the crystalline water basin to the craggy peaks, the red maples and his own wisteria tree. It has grown and flourished just as he has. Gone is the frightened boy who'd abandoned his siblings. Gone are the nightmares of Him. The Dunes of the dragon king's youth have been long forgotten.
He is Hyaline through and through.
Their numbers have varied over the years, but never has Amet been on his own. He has fallen in love here. He has been terrified here. He has learned happiness here. Not only because of the land, but because of those who have walked across its borders. He watches with warm golden eyes as those who still remain within its boundaries come before him, heeding his call. They've all proven their kinds heart to him in some way or another ─ he had searched for the goodness in them when offering them sanctuary in Hyaline, not for what they could do for him. But in their own ways, they had done things for him anyway.
"I am so grateful for the trust that you have all placed in me for the last four years," he says to them strongly, amber eyes roving their faces with care and affection. There are some, like Molotov, who have been here since before the attack, and who had continued to place their trust in him after it. And there are newer faces, like Keeper's, who have already made an impression with their compassion and drive.
"Hyaline needs a young mind, a mind that dreams. I am proud of the time that I have spent at the helm of this great territory. And I am proud of each and every choice, mistake or not, that I have made in that time. I have two more choices that I would like to share with you now: first, please congratulate Keeper as your new Educator of Diplomacy. And secondly...
Today, my friends, I ask that you trust me for just a little bit longer as I name Solace the new Caretaker of Hyaline."
(yes, I am alone) but then again, I always was. as far back as I can tell.
Everything he had known, and everything he had loved had gone away.
Time moved forward effortlessly, without fanfare and without any consideration as to whom it affected – or how. But with each fleeting season (frigid, unforgiving winter to blistering, scorching summer), the emptiness that had once started as a small seedling had become a gaping black hole, threatening to consume the hollowness of his chest with each feeble beat of his heart. His mother, his father, his brother – all of them had abandoned him; seeing him as lesser somehow, he is certain. Each suffered from delusions of grandeur, and he wanted no part. He did not yearn for destruction, nor for bloodshed, as such longing seemed to linger within their own soiled, bitter veins. He cared little for power, and it had made him seem weak. Pathetic.
Less than.
Never enough.
The hollowness never faded, but in time, the ache did – buried somewhere deep within, hidden behind unwavering stoicism, evident even as his gilded legs carry him to the call that echoed freely throughout the land. It does not take him long to find the source, though there had been little doubt in his mind as to whom it was - Amet, the caretaker (the dragon King) of Hyaline. The one who allowed him to stay, who accepted him as he was for who he was, even when his mother – when his brother could not. There was little left for him in the world, so what little he could give, he gave all to Hyaline.
When Amet utters the name of his successor, pale, youthful and spry (not unlike himself – he, too, is young, with the lines of his masculine features finally shaking away its boyish charm), he is in awe – but unblinking, his face hardly flinching. His gaze searches the soft and feminine jawline of Solace, and the kindness in her eyes – soulful. A dreamer, Amet said, and he can see it in the gleam hidden between pupil and iris. Quietly, his head is lowered, while the golden flecks of his hazel eyes search hers, forcing a smile to his dark emerald lips.
”Corvus. I am here to serve Hyaline, and thus, I am here to serve you, Queen Solace.”
Whatever doubt threatened to surface within his mind was swallowed whole.
His trust had been placed in Amet, and thus, his trust would be placed in Solace.
Come what may.
I think maybe it's because you were never really real to begin with. (I just made you up to hurt myself)
Spring had finally arrived and with it Solace's third birthday. Her winter coat has already shed, leaving behind the sleek gold and cream pelt of a young, healthy mare in her prime. Hints of the girl still cling to some of Solace's mannerisms, but for the most part, she carries herself with a dignity which is beyond her years.
The daughter of Tangerine and Warrick stands among the gathered crowd, many of the horses around her she has met, but there are still unknown faces which she takes note to seek out soon. The perfumed spring air tousling the strands on her tri-colored mane, and with a sideways glance, her blue eyes search for her palomino twin. Amet begins to speak she returns her attention to Hyaline's leader, her pulse quickening. As he mentions Keeper, Solace looks to the other woman with an encouraging nod if their eyes should meet.
And secondly...
Despite the warmth of the spring sunshine, Solace's skin feels cool and a chill flutters through her chest as she anticipates her teacher's next statement. With a deep breath, she steadies herself, instinctually glancing at the cloudless sky, and into the invisible thermals. She knew her father should be in Tephra now, but when she felt uneasy she often found herself looking for his broad, dark wings in the sky. The golden King's voice brings her gaze back to earth, and she meets his kind eyes with her own.
... I name Solace the new Caretaker of Hyaline.
With a steady stride, she takes several steps forward - bringing herself to face Amet. Her mouth is dry, but the smile that softens her features is genuine. She focuses on the face of her trusted friend, and with a clear and steady voice Solace addresses him - and through him, them all.
"As Caretaker, I will serve Hyaline - the sanctuary you have created - and none other"
Her pale form then turns to stand alongside Amet so she can better see the faces which watch her with varied emotions. A voice rises from the crowd and her alabaster face turns to the buckskin stallion who had spoken. His words threaten to shake her, even though he intended the opposite effect, their sincerity re-affirm the seriousness of her new role.
"Corvus," the name is new to her, but the intensity of her gaze does not falter. "I will seek to be worthy of your service." She holds his hazel gaze a moment longer before looking out across the gathered horses. "I will seek to earn your trust in the years to come."
The cherry trees intermingle with the wisterias in their full bloom, brilliant and bold colors of pink and reds and purples igniting the evergreen backdrop of the mountains with an explosion of color. Cherry blossoms float lazily on the current of wind that spirals down towards the lake, spinning and twirling like a soft pink snow. The wind of spring is sweet as it cascades through Hyaline, rippling the surface of the lake like crinkled glass. Beneath the crystal waters silver fish dart through the stillness, their lips breaching the surface to grab at the few cherry blossoms that have fallen there.
Svedka (once boy and now nearly man) meanders through Hyaline, unfamiliar with the land but exuding confidence as he moves to join them, his bright gaze planted firmly on his sister. He’s found that the landscape intrigues him, especially the pristine lake with its clear, never ending depths.
He knows that his presence here will surprise her - coming when called, participating in the shift of power from one to another. A small smile graces the pale ivory of his lips, his brilliant blue gaze following hers as she glances to the skies, knowing that her heart hoped that father would be floating through the breeze, a watchful eye and a calming source for his sweet sister. Svedka, however, is glad to search the empty blue skies.
His curiosity propels him into the group, drawing up beside a young buckskin. Amet is the center, his golden scales glittering handsomely in the springtime sun - he wonders if the scaled-king would recognize him in the midst of the other residents, an ivory and pale gold clad stallion with streaks of indigo in the stark white of his mane and tail. Behind his ear a single feather twirls gently in the wind, a gift bestowed on him at his birth and that has locked itself into his very being. He gives Amet a slight nod of his head, blue-tinged forelock cascading into his vision.
The young palomino listens intently to the scaled stallion of the golden sun - a dreamer, a young mind. There are unfamiliar faces around him, and one he is given a name (Keeper, a gentle looking mare with a wild, robust look about her that intrigues him) but he only watches Solace. A single ear flips to the deep golden stallion beside him, tinged with the evergreen color of the mountains that surround them. “Queen Solace”. His eyes flicker to Solace, warmth welling up in his chest as pride overflows. Svedka has never been one to understand or to revel in a title, but in this moment he watches with an endearing smile as his gentle sister beams beneath it, wearing it proudly and gracefully. As if agreeing with Corvus, the pale golden stallion dips his head to his sister, a silent congratulation.
The strength in her voice surprises him, regal and dignified as she addresses the residents of her new reign, a stunning smirk on the angles of his youthful face. She has made a name for herself - she has done all she has said she will do, and her brother could not be more proud of the tri-colored mare.
“My loyalty to you will be as unwavering as the stars, Solace.”
Keeper hangs out beneath a red maple tree.
She discovered it in the midst of Fall when all the leaves had changed and littered the ground beneath the tree. Now it begins to flourish, renewed since the snows have gone and here, she finds some miniscule measure of peace in between her sojourns to the common lands. Keeper is gone so much that she misses just lazing beneath the red maple or beside the blue lake that is the crown jewel of the land.
She is taking one such moment to herself, trying not to look at the claw marks scratched into the trunk of the red maple from a bear’s claws when she hears the call of the scaled King. It is not often that he beckons for them to gather so she assumes this must be a rather momentous occasion. He sounds as if he is near the lake, and Keeper is not quick to go there but not slow either - she just takes a little bit of time to get from her tree to the lake. Time enough to leave her wondering what Amet could be gathering them for and the expression on her face is one of open curiosity.
The curiosity becomes concern the moment Amet speaks to them. More so, from the way his eyes seek each and every one of them out, showing the care and affection therein. Her heart seizes in her breast when his eyes finds hers because he is continuing to talk of how he’s grateful for their trust and proud of the the things that he’s - they’ve all - done. It sounds like he is leaving them and she’s just started to know him, despite her blind trust in him from the moment they met beside this same lake almost a year ago.
She has lost track of time and the concept of it from all her travels and what the bear takes from her each time she changes into it. Keeper never even told him of the quest or how she became something else thereafter and thinks of all the missed opportunities for them to walk beneath the wisteria or around the lakeshore. Is thinking too much that she misses what he says about her and can only respond with a stunned look and an a mouth that drops open in surprise.
The wild little pony that she is could hardly have ever imagined this! It’s not a grand leap in rank but it is something and she thinks she hardly is deserving of considering she’s not always successful in her field attempts but she tries to be friendly enough to all. Trying her best seems to be the most successful thing she’s managed to do since coming here and she is slow to recover from her shock, starting by closing her mouth into a grateful smile and a respectful dip of her head to him because he is making one more announcement --
One that is as momentous as she had initially believed this gathering of them to be. Solace is the caretaker. Amet is stepping down. For a moment, she looks wildly amongst those gathered - a buckskin stallion, Solace herself, and someone that bears a strong resemblance to Solace to make Keeper think he is a sibling of some kind, and then back to the once-King. She mouths a “thank you” to him before squaring her little self up and casting her gaze back to Solace with whom she has shared a walk beside the lakeshore with and her secret of the bear within. Keeper did not question his choice; not with what she had come to know of the equally little mare who was quick to offer well, solace, as her namesake was.
There is an encouraging nod from Solace and a quick smile back from Keeper as she faces the new Queen. “I shall do my best to serve you and whatever you need of me, you have but to ask it.” Keeper is a bit solemn in her pledge to Solace but there is a warm glint in her eyes that promises of time later for girl talk and giggles about their newfound positions within the kingdom.
Those that have gathered thus far, make their pledges to her - the buckskin, the palomino overo that resembles the Queen and looks as intriguing to her as she does to him (though Keeper doesn’t know that, but that feather twirling behind his ear and the indigo hair streaking through his mane… are rather distracting, making her wonder what stories he has to tell), and herself. It is enough for now, a small start, though more lurk in the woods and beneath the mountains that hem Hyaline in. She wonders if they will come, if they will accept Solace as their Queen and even though Keeper is not a fighter, she thinks the bear in her would love to claw their faces off if they contested Amet’s final decision and act as their King.
not knowing how deep the woods are and lightless
ooc: keeper is a goofball! this post was poo. love you all! <3
