Part One - Midday to Nightfall
Mystic of the Celestial Storms eyed
Mystic of the Hallowed Earth with mild disbelief. After all, they came from noble lineage, related to the very first Song of the Rainbow twice over, as well as the third Song of the Rainbow. Noble-bred Samanayrs did not snort with disgust. Nor did they raise their voices at elder brothers, never mind twin brothers.
Of course, that was exactly what she did. Her brother was being a pompous git, and she intended to tell him exactly what she thought of him, right now, no holds barred. The normally quiet mare exploded at her brother.
“
What in the world do you mean, that I need to find myself a proper stallion with a good lineage? How, by all the gods, do you get to decide what I must and must not do? I have a brain of my own, as well as my own magic, thank you very much, and I will decide what I will and will not do. Not you, you –“
Hallowed Earth broke in; his deep voice cutting off his sister’s rant, overruling whatever she had been about to say, “
I get to decide for you, because our parents are not here. I am the elder of us. Therefore, I have that right.” He regarded his furious sister calmly, not revealing any emotions that were brewing inside him. “
You are being unreasonable, and overly emotional. In the morning, we will begin looking for a stallion for you. Mares are not meant to wander, let alone on their own. You know the Great God’s wisdom on that subject. Now, we will continue onto that forest ahead of us, and find shelter for the night. Come.”
With that, he turned, and walked on, heading towards the forest ahead of them. His sister would follow, he knew, and come morning would be her reasonable self again. He knew that beyond the forest was the fabled Rainbow Hotsprings, where the current Song of the Rainbow held court. There he would be able to find his sister a stallion, preferably one with at least one mare already. An earth mystic like himself would be best, solid and unmoving. No air mystics, he mused to himself, they were far too flighty for him. Fire mystics had too much of a temper. No, a nice, solid, dependable earth mystic was just the thing his sister needed. Or even one of those mystical Kirins. The current Rainbow Song stallion was said to be one, and more were slowly making themselves known.
Unbeknownst to the stallion, as he calmly walked away towards the forest, lost in his own musings, his sister was not following quietly, as he commanded. Oh no, she was glaring daggers at him, and storm clouds were slowly starting to form overhead. A pissed off water mystic was nothing to be laughed at. Their parents, especially their mother, had told them stories about the gods, mystics, and all the other samanayr species. Her brother had been fascinated with the stories of earth mystics, and creation stories. He had quickly formed the opinion that earth mystics were superior to all others, and were therefore the voices of the gods. Celestial Storms, however, had been captivated by stories of different species working together, and how the world was kept in balance. Her brother’s intolerance for those he deemed lesser than himself, including their parents, had caused her to leave their birthsong, and head out to find her own place in the world. She had left with her parents’ blessings, and had enjoyed a week of relative solitude and peacefulness. Until her brother had found her. It had been three weeks of him preaching at her, and she was fed up with him.
But causing a storm at this moment would not do her any good. No, saving the storm for later would be much, much better. Reigning in her temper for the moment, she followed her brother, keeping enough distance between them that she would be able to ignore any sermons he might decide to deliver, but close enough that he thought she was obeying him and doing as he said. Instead, she plotted, noting features of the land, and the mountains that grew up beyond the forest. It was a good thing that her brother’s magic dealt with growing plants, and not dirt and stone. She’d be able to hid in the mountains from him, and live her own life. Find her own mate, instead of one that her brother deemed “suitable”.
Soon after reaching the forest, they found a clearing her brother deemed acceptable, although not perfect. Of course not. Nothing was ever perfect enough for him, Mystic of the Celestial Storms complained to herself in her head. Had she spoken out at all, even under her breath, her brother would demand to know what she was talking about. Food was gathered in silence, and dinner eaten. Soon after, she informed her brother that she was heading to the nearby steam for a drink of water, ignoring his huffing and orders that she return immediately after she had drunk her fill. Once there, she put her plan into motion.
A gentle rain started to fall as the sun slipped behind the trees, encouraged by the water mystic. Her brother immediately dove for the shelter he had made her help build. Unbeknownst to him, water was also seeping up from the ground, slowly, slowly turning the ground underneath into mud. He would wake up wet, and covered in mud. Watching from the trees, she shook her head, “
You always hated getting wet, didn’t you? Good luck staying dry tonight.” With that, she turned, and headed back to the river. Rain would confuse the plants, making it difficult for her brother to track her by them, but it wouldn’t be impossible. With that in mind, she took to the stream.
It burbled cheerfully around her ankles, sometimes rising as high as her knees, but never touching her belly. Occasionally she had to scramble over large rocks, sandbars, or even revert back to the grass on the side of the stream, as she had to once to climb around a waterfall. Periodically, she would send her magic out into the clouds above, boosting their capacity for rain, and increasing the amount that fell, especially over the clearing her brother was sheltering in. By now he would have discovered the holes left in the roof, and the leaves that she had bent to direct the water right into the spot he had decided to sleep in. Even better, he would have used his magic to direct the plants in the area to weave themselves into a “proper” shelter for him, thereby forcing himself to stay in the area in order to keep his shelter secure. With his magic based on plants, and not soil and rock, he wouldn’t realize that the earth under him was slowly turning to morass, not until he went to go looking for her. He might even get stuck in it!
Night fell, just as she reached an island in the middle of the stream. About to settle down for the night underneath the large bush that occupied most of the island, she heard a bark, and then another bark, from the bank right behind her. Spinning around, she placed her back against the bush, and attempted to stare down the Oquiesa, feeling the hair on the back of her neck stand up. Her water magic might be able to give the creature a bath, or make a temporary wall of water in-between them, but that wouldn’t stop it for long. Taking a deep breath, she started to gather her magic, preparing to defend herself, and abandoning the magic that had encouraged and nurtured the storm above.
A voice stopped her, calling out. It sounded exasperated, and the oquiesa on the bank turned towards the voice, tail waving madly. It barked again, and a mare soon popped into view. As soon as she saw the oquiesa, she started scolding, “
Honestly Pyro, I told you not to run off into the woods! What has gotten into you, hmm? What in the world made you run off like that?” Mystic stared, open-mouthed as this mare continued to talk to the creature. It had dropped into a lying down pose when the mare had appeared, and was now on its back, tongue hanging out as the mare ruffled its belly fur.
Shutting her mouth with an almost audible snap, she cleared her throat. “
I believe your friend there was coming after me,” she spoke up, causing the mare’s head to snap around, and stare at her. The silent stare-down went on for a few moments, until the oquiesa rolled over, and proceeded to give a long, wet, slurpy lick to the side of the mare’s face. The squeal from the mare caused the oquiesa to jump backwards and drop its forequarters onto the ground, tongue lolling out of its mouth. Shaking her head, the mare glared at her companion, “
Sit. Stay put, and no moving, understand?”
With that, she jumped into the water, and proceeded to splash over to the astonished Mystic. “
Sorry about that! I’m Ember of the Whispered Flame, and that goofball over there is my pet oquiesa, Pyro. My mom’s oquiesa found him for me when I was a foal.” She grinned at that, clearly enjoying the shock on Mystic’s face, and waiting for her response. With a brief shake of her head, she recalled herself to the present, and her manners. “
I am Mystic of the Celestial Storms. I apologize for intruding onto your song’s territory. I –“
“
Oh, no worries!” Ember interrupted. “
My parents enjoy having visitors, we get a fair number from those traveling to and from the Hotsprings!” she giggled then, “
Usually they come in through the front though, and not through the back! Come on, I’ll show you the way to the main hotspring! It’ll be a much more comfortable place to spend the night!”
Mystic wasn’t given much choice in the matter after that, as Ember led her through the woods, chattering cheerfully about the hotsprings, her family, and her pet, Pyro. She learned that Ember had been on her way back from the Hotsprings, having competed in a haunted race there the other day, and had run well enough to come in third! She showed Mystic the hairclip she had won. “
And foals that I have will be born with the perennial trait, only it will be a pumpkin stem instead of a flower, “she giggled. “
I’m not sure that I’m all that ready to settle down yet, but when I do, it’ll be with a stallion that knows how to have fun! No fuddy-duddies for me!” A bit more thoughtful, she added, “
They’ll also have to get along with Pyro, too. I wouldn’t give him up for anything!”
In this manner, they continued on the worn path through the woods, Ember chattering away, and Pyro chasing squirrels among the trees. Mystic had to keep corralling her thoughts back to the present, instead of letting them run away with her. One thought stayed in her mind, of what her brother would think of the company she was keeping. He wouldn’t believe that she was walking through the woods in the company of an oquiesa, and thus wouldn’t believe the plants when they told him that she came this way. It was perfect.
