06-08-2017, 12:13 PM
Though Beqanna was a vast expanse of land, only able to be fully covered via a few days of travel, Sirana and Warrick didn't have as long of a journey as the champagne mare originally thought. Still, the several-mile journey did take a while, given that the two horses had settled into a comfortable walking pace and were in no hurry to hustle to the Tephra.
However, it did seem that Warrick was getting rather anxious, like he wanted to hurry, or at least be close to the Tephra's borders. It seemed as if something was calling him there, to his home. Sirana had felt that desire before, shortly after she'd been given away to Phaedrus' herd. While his home was nice, and the mares in his herd decent enough to get along with, a longing in Sirana's heart had tried to drag her back to the Falls kingdom, where she felt she belonged. With her mother, sister, and soon-to-be brothers, since Aten hadn't been born yet.
But now, even though she heard where her mother and sister lived, the champagne mare didn't feel the calling anymore; perhaps it was because her original home, the Falls, were gone, and now she didn't feel right anymore? Sylva wouldn't have felt like a home, even with her loved ones there? Sirana didn't know, and perhaps maybe one day, she would try to find out. But, for now, she wished to officially see the Tephra kingdom, and the wonders it held within.
Every so often, Sirana saw Warrick glancing back to make sure she was keeping up with him. The mare would offer a gentle smile each time, showing that she was doing just fine and could keep going until they reached the stallion's home. The handsome bay would then turn back and continue to lead the way, the majority of their trip conducted in complete silence.
A couple miles outside of Tephra's border, Sirana felt the temperature begin to increase in an... unnatural way, so to speak. It wasn't the dry heat of the summer sun she was feeling; it was more like hot rain, was the best way she could describe it. She'd never before experienced an environment like this, and struggled to remember the word her dam had given many ages ago when they came across something similar but different enough to the point that Sirana wouldn't have compared them.
She believed the word was... humid? Sounded about right. Though it wasn't extreme at first, as the two horses walked closer to Tephra's border, the mare could feel her skin starting to dampen as if someone had opened the sky and let out a drizzle of rain. The foliage they were also walking through was becoming quite thick as well, though this Sirana was more accustomed too. While she had lived in the Falls most of her life, near where Archam's herd had lived was a forest. It was small, but there was a great number of trees, thick and plentiful so Sirana had some experience navigating in this type of environment.
The heat, she supposed she could deal with. Unbelievably to her, it felt slightly more bearable than the dry summer sun she was so used to.
Warrick had stopped ahead of the mare, prompting Sirana to walk up and stand beside him to listen to anything he might have had to say. He simply informed her that they'd arrived, a quiet chuckle from the stallion as Sirana looked out in the distance.
A lot of the jungle foliage blocked most of her view, but part of the Tephra's landscape was tall enough that it could be seen through the tree tops. Sirana's eyes narrowed as she tried to figure out what the huge mountain was, for it didn't seem normal. Warrick spoke again, drawing her back to the present, saying something about a swim before he broke into a trot to get through the foliage.
While it was a bit difficult for Sirana to follow at the same pace, she managed easily enough that she didn't get tangled and tripped. By the time she made it out of the thicker foliage spots and to where the forest opened back up, Warrick was playing in one of two rivers that ran downhill beside one another.
Sirana stood stock-still for a moment, her body frozen in shock. Warrick was playing in a normal-looking river, but the one next to it was anything but. The color said it was something else entirely; the unnatural orange and yellow coloring reminded Sirana of the red-hot sun shining above the land of Beqanna with a blazing fury this time of the year. It stuck out clearly against the lush green grass, as opposed to the natural blue one that seemed perfectly at home here.
Warrick's eyes came up to meet the mare's golden brown ones, and Sirana found herself smiling despite. The mare meandered down to the crystal blue river where the young stallion was, taking note of where the heat was most intense on her body. Sirana dipped her muzzle into the water, until it was covering the bridge of her nose. Then, she lifted it back out and tucked her head in, proceeding to use her dampened muzzle to rub the water over her breast area. One side of her neck was much hotter than the other, but that was because her thick mane was covering it and trapping the heat. She dipped her muzzle again and used it to flick water onto her back this time before stepping into the cool water until it was up to her knees.
She lowered her head once more, only this time to take a nice, long, cool drink to soothe the dryness of her parched throat. When she glanced up without moving her head, she noticed a grin plastered on Warrick's face.
Suddenly feeling playful, the mare lifted one leg and brought it back down in the water with force, crafting a splash that went all over the bay-colored stallion. She let out a small laugh, trying to hide her grin, "That help you cool off some?" she asked innocently.
However, it did seem that Warrick was getting rather anxious, like he wanted to hurry, or at least be close to the Tephra's borders. It seemed as if something was calling him there, to his home. Sirana had felt that desire before, shortly after she'd been given away to Phaedrus' herd. While his home was nice, and the mares in his herd decent enough to get along with, a longing in Sirana's heart had tried to drag her back to the Falls kingdom, where she felt she belonged. With her mother, sister, and soon-to-be brothers, since Aten hadn't been born yet.
But now, even though she heard where her mother and sister lived, the champagne mare didn't feel the calling anymore; perhaps it was because her original home, the Falls, were gone, and now she didn't feel right anymore? Sylva wouldn't have felt like a home, even with her loved ones there? Sirana didn't know, and perhaps maybe one day, she would try to find out. But, for now, she wished to officially see the Tephra kingdom, and the wonders it held within.
Every so often, Sirana saw Warrick glancing back to make sure she was keeping up with him. The mare would offer a gentle smile each time, showing that she was doing just fine and could keep going until they reached the stallion's home. The handsome bay would then turn back and continue to lead the way, the majority of their trip conducted in complete silence.
A couple miles outside of Tephra's border, Sirana felt the temperature begin to increase in an... unnatural way, so to speak. It wasn't the dry heat of the summer sun she was feeling; it was more like hot rain, was the best way she could describe it. She'd never before experienced an environment like this, and struggled to remember the word her dam had given many ages ago when they came across something similar but different enough to the point that Sirana wouldn't have compared them.
She believed the word was... humid? Sounded about right. Though it wasn't extreme at first, as the two horses walked closer to Tephra's border, the mare could feel her skin starting to dampen as if someone had opened the sky and let out a drizzle of rain. The foliage they were also walking through was becoming quite thick as well, though this Sirana was more accustomed too. While she had lived in the Falls most of her life, near where Archam's herd had lived was a forest. It was small, but there was a great number of trees, thick and plentiful so Sirana had some experience navigating in this type of environment.
The heat, she supposed she could deal with. Unbelievably to her, it felt slightly more bearable than the dry summer sun she was so used to.
Warrick had stopped ahead of the mare, prompting Sirana to walk up and stand beside him to listen to anything he might have had to say. He simply informed her that they'd arrived, a quiet chuckle from the stallion as Sirana looked out in the distance.
A lot of the jungle foliage blocked most of her view, but part of the Tephra's landscape was tall enough that it could be seen through the tree tops. Sirana's eyes narrowed as she tried to figure out what the huge mountain was, for it didn't seem normal. Warrick spoke again, drawing her back to the present, saying something about a swim before he broke into a trot to get through the foliage.
While it was a bit difficult for Sirana to follow at the same pace, she managed easily enough that she didn't get tangled and tripped. By the time she made it out of the thicker foliage spots and to where the forest opened back up, Warrick was playing in one of two rivers that ran downhill beside one another.
Sirana stood stock-still for a moment, her body frozen in shock. Warrick was playing in a normal-looking river, but the one next to it was anything but. The color said it was something else entirely; the unnatural orange and yellow coloring reminded Sirana of the red-hot sun shining above the land of Beqanna with a blazing fury this time of the year. It stuck out clearly against the lush green grass, as opposed to the natural blue one that seemed perfectly at home here.
Warrick's eyes came up to meet the mare's golden brown ones, and Sirana found herself smiling despite. The mare meandered down to the crystal blue river where the young stallion was, taking note of where the heat was most intense on her body. Sirana dipped her muzzle into the water, until it was covering the bridge of her nose. Then, she lifted it back out and tucked her head in, proceeding to use her dampened muzzle to rub the water over her breast area. One side of her neck was much hotter than the other, but that was because her thick mane was covering it and trapping the heat. She dipped her muzzle again and used it to flick water onto her back this time before stepping into the cool water until it was up to her knees.
She lowered her head once more, only this time to take a nice, long, cool drink to soothe the dryness of her parched throat. When she glanced up without moving her head, she noticed a grin plastered on Warrick's face.
Suddenly feeling playful, the mare lifted one leg and brought it back down in the water with force, crafting a splash that went all over the bay-colored stallion. She let out a small laugh, trying to hide her grin, "That help you cool off some?" she asked innocently.