08-19-2019, 03:44 PM
If there was one bright side to all the traveling the golden stallion found himself doing outside of his home kingdom, it was that his senses and stamina were rising to unprecedented levels. He spent most of his time walking, finding no need to trot or canter since he was in no hurry for there were no specific horses out here he was in search of. But all the walking he did do helped in keeping his body, his muscles, fit and ready, whether it was time to fight or flee for his life.
But he never felt the need for either in the Forest. It was his home for years, even if he now lived in Taiga. Their forests were different, but his instincts were sharp. The stallion was fine tuned for life in such a concealed and close proximity environment, rather than the open fielded meadows that his species had evolved to adapt to.
He still enjoyed a good gallop through the open fields to really test his speed, but where he felt most at home... was where he could blend into the shadows.
And on this day, he did not realize at first that another equine was doing the same. In his quest to find potential Taiga recruits, Aten made his way to the Forest that day to see if any, like himself, had chosen seclusion until they were ready to start anew. Turul had decided to accompany him that day, the gyrfalcon flying overhead the majority of the time to keep an eye in the sky.
At one point, however, the raptor, spotting a meal, had made a dive for the ground and spread his wings to soar through the trees to give himself a better chance of succeeding in his hunt. Unlike a smaller version of his species, Turul's kind preferred hunting so that their bodies were in line with the ground, rather than making a dive-bomb and killing by sheer force of impact. Instead, Turul's talons were poised in front of his body for the blow, his eyes trained on the branch where he had spotted his meal.
The large bird of prey made such little noise that, even with the squirrel's acute senses, he was never seen coming. Turul had chosen a fine creature for his next hunt, for, like the raptor, this animal was considered the largest of his species as well. A male red fox squirrel, busy finding food to store away for the winter, had made his home within a large oak tree that grew in the Forest. Although sizable for his age, the squirrel was still young and had not yet achieved his full growth. If he were his full size, and had Turul not been a Gyrfalcon, the hunt might be questioned, for a full grown fox squirrel could grow bigger than the raptor hunting him.
But in this case, the hunt was over before it started. Turul's wings were bent slightly to allow him swift movement through the trees, and, in the blink of an eye, a small cry of pain could be heard as the raptor made his kill.
The fox squirrel was firmly gripped in Turul's claws as the bird of prey carried him back toward the golden stallion. Aten's eyes found the falcon circling above him through the trees, easily spotting the red carrion in the raptor's talons. His gait slowed for only a moment as he took the sight in before continuing on, knowing his friend would follow.
However, what he did not take into account was something he could not have known. For another equine concealed in the shadows was on the hunt for blood. Aten could not see the filly's reptilian eyes for he did not think she could have hidden herself so well, his nostrils filled with the smell of the dew-covered forest floor and the bark of the trees as some of them began to decay under autumn's cold hooves. The fox squirrel's blood fell on the ground as the falcon and horse traversed the forest together, the stallion's senses trained but his pace and heart calm and steady, for he knew being in a panic might only draw what he was trying to avoid.
@[Skaide]
But he never felt the need for either in the Forest. It was his home for years, even if he now lived in Taiga. Their forests were different, but his instincts were sharp. The stallion was fine tuned for life in such a concealed and close proximity environment, rather than the open fielded meadows that his species had evolved to adapt to.
He still enjoyed a good gallop through the open fields to really test his speed, but where he felt most at home... was where he could blend into the shadows.
And on this day, he did not realize at first that another equine was doing the same. In his quest to find potential Taiga recruits, Aten made his way to the Forest that day to see if any, like himself, had chosen seclusion until they were ready to start anew. Turul had decided to accompany him that day, the gyrfalcon flying overhead the majority of the time to keep an eye in the sky.
At one point, however, the raptor, spotting a meal, had made a dive for the ground and spread his wings to soar through the trees to give himself a better chance of succeeding in his hunt. Unlike a smaller version of his species, Turul's kind preferred hunting so that their bodies were in line with the ground, rather than making a dive-bomb and killing by sheer force of impact. Instead, Turul's talons were poised in front of his body for the blow, his eyes trained on the branch where he had spotted his meal.
The large bird of prey made such little noise that, even with the squirrel's acute senses, he was never seen coming. Turul had chosen a fine creature for his next hunt, for, like the raptor, this animal was considered the largest of his species as well. A male red fox squirrel, busy finding food to store away for the winter, had made his home within a large oak tree that grew in the Forest. Although sizable for his age, the squirrel was still young and had not yet achieved his full growth. If he were his full size, and had Turul not been a Gyrfalcon, the hunt might be questioned, for a full grown fox squirrel could grow bigger than the raptor hunting him.
But in this case, the hunt was over before it started. Turul's wings were bent slightly to allow him swift movement through the trees, and, in the blink of an eye, a small cry of pain could be heard as the raptor made his kill.
The fox squirrel was firmly gripped in Turul's claws as the bird of prey carried him back toward the golden stallion. Aten's eyes found the falcon circling above him through the trees, easily spotting the red carrion in the raptor's talons. His gait slowed for only a moment as he took the sight in before continuing on, knowing his friend would follow.
However, what he did not take into account was something he could not have known. For another equine concealed in the shadows was on the hunt for blood. Aten could not see the filly's reptilian eyes for he did not think she could have hidden herself so well, his nostrils filled with the smell of the dew-covered forest floor and the bark of the trees as some of them began to decay under autumn's cold hooves. The fox squirrel's blood fell on the ground as the falcon and horse traversed the forest together, the stallion's senses trained but his pace and heart calm and steady, for he knew being in a panic might only draw what he was trying to avoid.
@[Skaide]