i'll use you as a warning sign - zhenga

[Ivar]

I V A R i'll use you as a makeshift gauge of how much to give and how much to take The call echoes behind him and Ivar grins. He bucks out as he runs, laughing freely as he races across the open meadow. The trail here is wide and smooth, worn flat by thousands of hooves. The piebald stallion feels the wind tugging at the heavy cords of his dark mane, and he shakes his tangled forelock from his mane in order to see the path better. Zhenga is catching up to him quickly, but he does not alter his ground-eating stride, not even when she pulls ahead of him with a taunt. The desire to (catch her) is strong, but instead he keeps his pace. The view from back here isn’t terrible, he thinks with a wry smirk. The Meadow disappears into a grey and gold blur as they run, and when Ivar finally draws up, he’s not even sure who had won the race. He is laughing though, and bumps Zhenga’s shoulder companionably with his own as he offers her a warm smile. Ahead of them, the Mountain looms tall and dark. They will skirt it to the north, cross the lake in the shallows where it meets the river, and follow the line of the mountains until they reach Loess. The path is no longer unfamiliar, but it will take many more journeys before the black and white stallion will be able to say that he truly knows it. By the time they arrive at the edge of the hilly kingdom, the sun is all but set. A few dying streaks of orange emerge from the mountains to their left, but the open skies to the east are a deep and navy blue. Blue like Heda’s wings, Ivar thinks with a private smile, not blue like the Taigan sea. The stars will emerge soon, he knows. They are Loess’ true claim to majesty, or so thinks Ivar. Nerine has its soaring cliffs, Tephra its volcano, Sylva its autumn trees. The sky here stretches for an eternity; on a clear night Ivar can see every constellation that the wildcat had ever told him about. “Well…” he says, looking out at the shadowy hills ahead of them. The timing of their arrival could have been better; one dark kingdom looks much the same as any other. “Maybe we’ll save the tour for the morning? You’ll actually be able to see what I’m showing you then.” kelpie mimicry | dragon scales | tactile hypnosis