"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
04-19-2017, 10:17 PM (This post was last modified: 04-19-2017, 10:17 PM by Brennen.)
hold me in this wild, wild world 'cause in your warmth I forget how cold it can be
Black wings and a high-flying shadow were once common sights over two Kingdoms; his own, of course, the Tundra ever his usual haunt, but Brennen had been a common sight over the Dazzling Waterfalls as well. For many years he had kept his promise to Neraza, watching over her beloved Falls and many generations of her children living there, and he had come to love the little neutral Kingdom almost as much as he loved his own, and her children had occupied a special place in his heart alongside his own as well.
The Reckoning had stolen more than a home from Brennen, but his life’s purpose. His years spent serving the Tundra and his promise to Neraza, both gone in the blink of an eye, and the many years he spent drifting along in the Meadow and the Forest had reflected that fractured sense of purpose. Once mighty, once respected, he had been nothing more than a wanderer and an absent-minded guardian for several of his descendants for many seasons.
Taking up residence and service in Nerine had started to fill that gaping hole in his life, but it hadn’t been the same without the Falls to watch over as well. Today, flying over the Lake in preparation to land and seek out Amet and Iset, the bay warrior is overcome with a sense of déjà vu. Perhaps his ears are not assaulting with the sound of falling water, and the lake is not a waterfall, but it is beautiful in its own right (he’s not sure he’s ever seen such deep, clear water).
Folding his great wings, he drops to a graceful landing beside the water, casting an appreciative amber gaze over the view that is offered to him. Lowering his dished face he takes a deep drink of the cool water, humming appreciatively at the crisp, almost sweet taste of the fresh water. Though there is drinking water available in Nerine, he’s become used to finding a slight tang of salt in every drink, even far from the shore itself. Already, one of his blood-children is clambering to come here, to join in this ‘adventure’ as Bristol puts it, and Brennen knows he will eventually give in to her, but he thinks barely six months isn’t quite ready. Perhaps, he thinks as he looks around for the siblings, in the spring.
Stepping away from the lake, he gives a friendly call for the young leaders-in-residence.
hold me in this wild, wild world and in your heat I feel how cold it can get
BRENNEN
@[Amet]/@[Iset]
ooc; since Aeris/Nayl is away, I figure we can be super vague and say she approved since she agreed ooc and then figure out specifics when she's back
theres an old man sitting on a throne thats saying...
What was it about the horses here and their add ons? First it was Ryan and his color changing and cat shifting (which was pretty damn cool, now that she had gotten used to it), and then her own brother, Amet, with his new scales, and now here comes this big shot with the wings and the flying and all of the winged-flyingness.
She was watching the horse long before it landed; hunkered down in the brush like a cat ready to pounce at the slightest provocation. She could tell even from her skewed vantage point that the winged horse was large, much larger than her and roughly the same size as Him.
Impressively, the bay touched down from the bright autumn sky more gracefully than Iset had ever managed to take a step, and she didn’t have to switch between land and air. As soon as the stranger’s hooves touched the ground, his scent caught the breeze and Iset knew immediately that he was a stallion.
Yipee.
Her favorite.
The age old mask of defense slid over her young face, and the chestnut filly pinned her ears flat to her head. After all her fun and games with Amet in the lake, she was surprised at how quickly her old self had taken over and her need to protect herself had resurfaced.
The deep whinny the bay horse sounded off idn’t seem ominous, but after all if she had learned one thing in her short lifetime it was that looks can be deceiving. Deciding it would do her well to confront the problem (aka the stallion) rather than hide from it, Iset crept from the bushes, her ears still pulled back tightly. Pulling her chin up and shoulders back to make her look as tall as possible, she approached the newcomer. “Can I help you?” she bit out, attempting to show her irritation with a strange stallion in her home and trying to make herself appear older than her year in the same curt sentence.
if there's a light at the end, it's just the sun in your eyes
Amet has yet to feel comfortable with his new scales, so he opts to keep to the shadows of the cherry trees so that the sunlight will not glint upon his bronze and gold, and draw any unneeded or unwanted attention to himself. He thinks that, maybe, Iset has seen them (they have not spoken since she had stormed away from him and Ryan) but they've yet to meet face-to-face, and Amet is almost dreading the conversation. He's unsure that she will understand his decision to change so blatantly, but then again, his younger sister has surprised him more here in Beqanna than she ever had in the Dunes. She is coming of herself, nearly two now, and he is doing the same as he nears the birthday that will officially label him a stallion. They have both grown, albeit awkwardly, and Amet has tried to become more accepting of Iset's fiery attitude.
So when the silhouette of Brennen looms overhead, dark against a bright blue sky, Amet knows that it is time again to face his sister and the stallion who would, hopefully, assist them in growing the Lake family. The Akhal-Teke boy grits his blunt teeth nervously, moving from his favorite copse of trees and picking his way leisurely closer to the crystal clear lake, where he is sure Brennen is now waiting. The winged stallion's call is loud and sudden in the crisp air and, despite his nerves, Amet cannot help but smile to himself. There is something about Brennen that is comforting and warm, and the dragon-scaled colt can only hope that his sister will see the same attributes in the winged bay. She is, for good reason, less than a fan of the company of stallions.
Amet holds his breath as he steps from the trees and onto the shoreline, his amber eyes finding the pair self-consciously. The sun shines brightly, reflecting now on his scales where his metallic coat had once been. He nickers quietly and steps beside his chestnut sister (who has perfected her ability to intimidate), ears flicking forward to register her demanding inquiry. The colt, offering Brennen a sheepish grin, bobs his head to the stallion and to Iset before clearing his throat. "Iset, I'd like you to meet Brennen." He moves his bright eyes back to the stallion and shifts nervously, forcing himself to keep eye contact. "I hope you've come with good news," Amet offers almost meekly.
hold me in this wild, wild world 'cause in your warmth I forget how cold it can be
He hears the rustle of the bushes before he sees her, but swings his head around to look in her direction, taking in everything her body language tells him. Based on her slightly shiny appearance, he immediately supposes that this is Iset, the sister, and that she is particularly happy to see him. Someday she will outgrow him (since Brennen isn’t that tall; it’s his wings and his bearing that make him seem powerful), but for now she is just lanky and growing and the posturing is just that, and he turns black-tipped ears to catch her annoyed words.
He doesn’t respond in kind, instead he simply tilts his head, considering, and his expression stays calm and slightly curious. “You must be Iset,” the stallion responds instead, giving a little half-smile. “I’m here to speak to you and your brother.” It occurs to him that he hasn’t offered his name but Amet reaches them before he can rectify this, friendlier than his prickly sister, and introduces them. Brennen smiles again at Iset and then at Amet, glad to see the younger stallion still all in one piece, though the scales are new. He wonders with the sort of idle curiosity that often plagues him if it was some sort of latent thing that appeared because of their move to Beqanna or if the Fae had granted him a new thing.
“I do,” he agrees, giving a nod. “Nayl is interested in what you are doing here and willing to let me split my time, as long as I complete my duties in Nerine as well.” Which shouldn’t be hard. He doesn’t have that many responsibilities and while she is planning to increase the men’s duties, it’s not a ton of work and it’s not like he’ll ever get to be General of Nerine. “For now, she has no demands of you for an alliance and my freedom to be here except of course that you don’t take any sort of action against the Kingdom of Nerine. She wanted some time to think about, and then perhaps she would like to talk to all of us.”
He finds the black-and-white Queen a fascinating ruler, and they are starting to come to a friendly accord, a fair step above the wary circling and carefully uneasy alliance they had first formed when Djinni brought him to Nerine. Still, he has no illusions that she will not act to serve her main Kingdom first and foremost, and he will step carefully in working for both the Lake and Nerine, and he wants them to do so as well. “Nayl is a good Queen, and a reasonable mare overall,” he says, drawling the words in slow thoughtfulness. “And I do not believe she means you any harm, or I would never have agreed to any of this. But I would keep in mind that while she might protect the citizens of the Lake, or allow me to do so, she will always protect those who are actually citizens of Nerine first, and consider any of her proposals with that in mind.”
hold me in this wild, wild world and in your heat I feel how cold it can get
theres an old man sitting on a throne thats saying...
He was quite a spectacle to behold with his wings and his calm, stoic demeanor. His relaxed indifference to her aggressive and blunt greeting (if one could even call it that) relaxed her and made her more nervous at the same time; what kind of stallion let a filly disrespect him without retaliating? She didn’t know, and she didn't trust what didn't know.
His serene mask never wavers, and neither does Iset’s guarded one of mistrust as the stranger correctly identifies her, and tells her that he is here to speak with her and Amet. During their brief yet tense interaction, Iset continues to keep her lips closed tightly, pressing them so hard that the edges were fading from their warm chestnut to white.
Her brother quickly seeks the pair out and closes the distance between them, settling not far from her side. In their previous confrontations with Him in the Dunes, Iset had never searched for comfort in Amet, only Sakir. But Sakir wasn’t here, and the siblings were slowly learning to adjust and compensate, and between the two of them had begun unconsciously dividing up the roles he had played. Protector, sense of security, peacekeeper. Amet was turning into all of these things for Iset, and it was this that made her draw unknowingly closer to him, pressing her lean shoulder to his.
His nervous energy seeps from his skin to hers, and the filly’s frantic heartbeat speeds up along with his. According to the colt beside her (though she won’t be able to call him that for long, as he’s nearly three), this was Brennen. The Brennen. Though her ears remained flat against her head, Iset’s copper-brown eyes widened in curiosity and wonder at his information about the Nayl and Nerine. Her short tail swishes uncertainly and her eyes traveled between her brother and Brennen before narrowing, “And what, exactly, do you anticipate our needing protection from?” The filly questions before drawing herself up on long legs. “We’re quite capable of taking care of ourselves.”
The idea of relying on another stallion, especially so soon after their escape from the Dunes, to protect and dictate anything for them scared her more than anything.
...I should probably keep my pretty mouth shut
ooc: technically Iset is still in the field with Sakir and hasn't come back to the Lake yet, I just wanted to keep this thread rolling
if there's a light at the end, it's just the sun in your eyes
Iset leans her shoulder into his, an act that had been reserved strictly for Sakir up until this point, and Amet softens his tense muscles. A small smile finds the corners of his lips and, despite the fact that his sister's ears are still hidden within her mane, the young boy knows that Iset is trying to give Brennen a chance, and that on it's own gives him comfort.
Amber eyes watch the winged stallion, ears fluttering curiously at all of the new information. Nayl, the faceless Queen of Nerine, had agreed to their request, and would offer Brennen's protection to the Lake. He shifts in place, nervous and excited, though it's difficult to tell which is more prominent. He laughs quietly and tosses his narrow head towards the winged stallion. "We came to Beqanna to escape conflict," a small pause, "We wouldn't cause trouble for Nerine after the kindness you have shown us."
He leans more into his chestnut sister, hoping that she will soon feel more comfortable with Brennen around. It is truly the smartest course of action, to ally themselves with one of the strongest kingdoms in Beqanna (or so Illae had told him), when other, less friendly territories could spot their youth and inexperience, and take advantage of it.
Brennen's cautionary words, those pertaining to Nayl's allegiance, draw Amet's lips into a tight line but he nods his understanding. They had already asked a lot of the Queen by inviting Brennen to be their Protector and, while Iset was not quite sold on the idea, at least they are not a lonely pair of foals just waiting for the wolves to show.
'We're quite capable of taking care of ourselves,' Iset says in a clipped tone, and the bronze-scaled colt gives her a small snort. "We don't know who else is out there, Iset," he pauses and tries to keep his mind free of Him, "And Illae said that there were many unsafe places in Beqanna. I just want to be sure we are safe."
He thinks of something then, suddenly, and turns his amber gaze back to Brennen, "Iset and I will still be the decision makers for the Lake, right?" He wanted this to be their home and, while this was the most intelligent route, he did not want his sister to feel like they would be simply carrying out tasks assigned to them by some far-away Queen.
