09-16-2018, 06:05 PM
It seemed the mare had quite a lot to say about each of Beqanna's kingdoms, evidenced by how she went on for quite a while when Aten inquired about his former home, among others. Several that she named, mainly Tephra and Sylva, he did not care much for, nor did he listen. Tephra had never held much of his interest to begin with, and Sylva had never felt like home ever since his sire died and his dam had fled in an effort to get away from the stallion who strode in to take over. From what he remembered among herd gossip before he disappeared into the Forest, that was also the last place his dam's old friend, Raxa, had been seen, before she vanished and hadn't been glimpsed since.
Ischia and Nerine, he'd heard were sister kingdoms before his disappearance, so that was not new. However, it did seem their ways have changed, so he listened intently. It seemed neither kingdom were no longer exclusive to stallions or mares respectfully, instead allowing both to harbor ranks in each residence even if it seemed preference was still preferred based on what Ilma said. She also stated Hyaline was allied with both kingdoms, something that made him feel a little better. If he were to join a kingdom now, he'd prefer one with an ally or two instead of joining one like Sylva and having every other horse in Beqanna chomping at his pasterns simply because of where he called home.
Loess, he also never paid much attention to, but it held his interest more than Tephra. Ilma stated it had also changed its ways, forming into a kingdom of mercenaries along with a few herds here and there. Aten briefly recalled his own herd life, before Beqanna's Reckoning, how the days had been peaceful as he played with the other foals, his dam, the lead mare, watching over them all whenever Archam was away.
But in the blink of an eye, it had all vanished... just like Taiga...
Aten's pastern burns once again started to itch, but he ignored the sensation. Ilma's tone started to darken when she described Sylva's system, including how a former Loess resident had risen in the ranks of his or her former kingdom and taken Sylva's throne. It also seemed Ilma didn't have high hopes for the darkened forest-dwelling kingdom to change it's ways, something Aten shared. His dam always taught him to have hope, but that was long before everything went to hell.
Aten also found himself wondering less and less if any of his family were still alive; his direct family, anyway. He knew his sire was deceased, but no word on his older siblings or dam. If he had any half-siblings out there, it'd be something short of a miracle if he ever ran into them. Not that he cared anymore; he didn't think of himself as much of a family stallion now that he didn't have one.
Ilma shook her head, the action telling Aten she needed a moment to clear her thoughts. It was a display he knew all too well, considering he'd done it a number of times during both his youth and bachelorhood. It was also a habit he'd tried to get rid of, since he didn't want any strangers to see him doing it too often and thinking something was wrong with him.
The mare apologized for the overload of information, to which Aten gave his head a light shake, thoughts of trying to kick the habit going out his ears as he spoke up, "It's all right, no harm. There have been a lot of changes it seems, so it would only make sense that you have a lot to say.
"And, judging by your tone, you are about as fond of Sylva as much as I am," he stated, his own tone slipping into the darkness before he remembered he needed to remain calm. Or else... well, he didn't have any sort of special ability like other horses here, but he could be quite rude and callous when his temper was flared.
"Does Loess have no allies that would try to speak with Sylva's current throne holder to see if he or she has plans to change the kingdom? Even if Loess is currently a home full of trained mercenaries, no one's heart can be so dark as to completely ignore their teachings and where they came from simply for power. Has there been no word on it's direction that you suspect it will be no different from it's past?"
@[Ilma]
Ischia and Nerine, he'd heard were sister kingdoms before his disappearance, so that was not new. However, it did seem their ways have changed, so he listened intently. It seemed neither kingdom were no longer exclusive to stallions or mares respectfully, instead allowing both to harbor ranks in each residence even if it seemed preference was still preferred based on what Ilma said. She also stated Hyaline was allied with both kingdoms, something that made him feel a little better. If he were to join a kingdom now, he'd prefer one with an ally or two instead of joining one like Sylva and having every other horse in Beqanna chomping at his pasterns simply because of where he called home.
Loess, he also never paid much attention to, but it held his interest more than Tephra. Ilma stated it had also changed its ways, forming into a kingdom of mercenaries along with a few herds here and there. Aten briefly recalled his own herd life, before Beqanna's Reckoning, how the days had been peaceful as he played with the other foals, his dam, the lead mare, watching over them all whenever Archam was away.
But in the blink of an eye, it had all vanished... just like Taiga...
Aten's pastern burns once again started to itch, but he ignored the sensation. Ilma's tone started to darken when she described Sylva's system, including how a former Loess resident had risen in the ranks of his or her former kingdom and taken Sylva's throne. It also seemed Ilma didn't have high hopes for the darkened forest-dwelling kingdom to change it's ways, something Aten shared. His dam always taught him to have hope, but that was long before everything went to hell.
Aten also found himself wondering less and less if any of his family were still alive; his direct family, anyway. He knew his sire was deceased, but no word on his older siblings or dam. If he had any half-siblings out there, it'd be something short of a miracle if he ever ran into them. Not that he cared anymore; he didn't think of himself as much of a family stallion now that he didn't have one.
Ilma shook her head, the action telling Aten she needed a moment to clear her thoughts. It was a display he knew all too well, considering he'd done it a number of times during both his youth and bachelorhood. It was also a habit he'd tried to get rid of, since he didn't want any strangers to see him doing it too often and thinking something was wrong with him.
The mare apologized for the overload of information, to which Aten gave his head a light shake, thoughts of trying to kick the habit going out his ears as he spoke up, "It's all right, no harm. There have been a lot of changes it seems, so it would only make sense that you have a lot to say.
"And, judging by your tone, you are about as fond of Sylva as much as I am," he stated, his own tone slipping into the darkness before he remembered he needed to remain calm. Or else... well, he didn't have any sort of special ability like other horses here, but he could be quite rude and callous when his temper was flared.
"Does Loess have no allies that would try to speak with Sylva's current throne holder to see if he or she has plans to change the kingdom? Even if Loess is currently a home full of trained mercenaries, no one's heart can be so dark as to completely ignore their teachings and where they came from simply for power. Has there been no word on it's direction that you suspect it will be no different from it's past?"
@[Ilma]