Suspicious M I N D S (CLOSED)

[Velnias]

Jessica and Redfora and Oraan

1 month ago

My mouth was set in a determined line. My lips were parched from having walked so far without water, but it didn’t really bother me that much. I didn’t even have a drop of sweat falling off my thin summer coat, patched white and light golden brown. I was lucky not to have thick hair but instead a thin mane and long tail of silken-fine hair for which to shade my eyes and swat the flies with, which seemed to grow more pesky and large when you were out in the desert. I was lucky not to have been black-coated; my white skin reflected the sun, rather than absorbed it. All of these tiny, fine details made a difference in how easy or difficult it had been to teach myself to withhold such pressing needs as water or a constant source of food. But of course, I was always calm, always had my body under my precise control. I’d practiced it so well. Mother said I was her best student yet.

With my elegant face turned away from the hot, harsh wind, I stepped lively and with each hoof step my soles sank about two inches into the sand. Everywhere around me was just flat, desolate land. It seemed as though in the faraway distance on the horizon line, there were mountains. Tall, cloud-capped, with the seemingly alluring promise of running water, or a spring. But with light feet I reasoned with myself, that it was likely only a mirage, no more and no less. But I wasn’t all that dehydrated, in fact, I was rather light-hearted. So, actually, I wouldn’t be hallucinating. It must be real. A small smile broke out on my face to acknowledge this and I had to keep myself calm. I began to trot, and was careful to keep my body temperature from heating up, trying not to be too ecstatic. With every step, the mountains seemed to draw nearer and nearer.

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Time swirled round my eyes like millions of infinite stars, like I was gazing up into space, or not like I was looking at it, but like I was in the center of it. All the same, though I was nauseated beyond any fiber of leftover strength in my body, any thread of something that felt like it could hold me together, I could still feel the warm presence beside me. Every muscle in my body strained to resist the few seconds it always took, traveling from place to place, time to time, the sheer moments of incredible force that seemed to compress my body all into a single molecule, setting my nerves on fire… And then it was gone. A rush of cold air, like someone had opened a door. Darkness, and a light. I realized I could open my eyes.

We’ve landed—
In a canyon someplace—
It doesn’t look like anything I’ve ever seen!
A pause. Look here…at this I’m standing on.

The red roan-colored mare was looking at me with surprise in her eyes, but her face was surprisingly tranquil. I looked down where her hooves rested on dark rock, the floor of the canyon built out of the same slick, black stuff that rose at least twenty feet on either side of us. The wind whistled above us, and roared down through the canyon as if enraged its peace had been disturbed during the cool night. The rock was spattered with some kind of dark, dry substance. I muttered something under my breath, and a soft glow emitted from my grey coat. I gave Redfora a surprised look, with a mild shrug. Light. We always ended up with some different kind of power, every time we jumped in a wormhole to Travel. So we always had to experiment which powers we’d have while we were in whatever time of place we’d dropped off in.

I peered closer to the stuff all over the rocks ground. The light cast a glow on the floor of the rock bed, giving the substance a dark reddish hue. Blood, I heard her mutter. I nodded. We must have traveled years ahead of time; when we’d picked up last it was in this same place but there wasn’t any blood. I furrowed my bow, wondered why, of all places… It was then than Red and I looked up at the same time. There was a clatter of rocks at the end of the valley. I gave her a firm look and swished my tail curiously. I dimmed the luminous glow of my coat, my eyes readjusting to the dim evening. Picking up a jog, I went to investigate. I nearly bumped into another horse coming straight for me. I started and skittered backward a few steps, blowing a snort through my nostrils. ”Wha—“” I spoke aloud in confusion for the first time since Red and I had landed. The young mare was pretty but I had no idea what she was doing all the way out in the desert! She wasn’t even Arabian, a fine breed of some kind, but it seemed too far-fetched anyone could have walked this deep into the desert…how was she here?

The pretty mare looked up at me, shaking her head. Her coat was a silky white and brown patchwork coat, and her eyes ere a soft brown. ”Pardon,” she began, with an innocent look in her eyes. ”I didn’t mean—I just tripped—“ But her face changed when she saw Redfora walking up beside me to join us. Redfora dipped her head respectfuly enough, but the mare al of a sudden seemed wary of us bot now. ”Greetings,” she said to the strange mare which caused her to look at he both of us in a stranger way still. ”I…am sorry,” she said, which was more meant for bumping into me than to the both of us. I could tell Redfora was trying to read her, and I sensed the mare knew it, too. She blinked, saying nothing, and suddenly a calmer expression came across her face. My eyes flicked rather uncomfortably to Redfora, who looked at me with a blank face, but he eyes betrayed confusion. The mare must have blocked her out somehow, I reasoned. We stood there in a moment of uncomfortable silence, which left the mare looking back and forth between us, her gaze lingering on me to study my face with an odd intensity. The silence was hanging at the brink of shattering, but no one dared break it. There was a conflict passing between us- no one wanted to give away their names. ”Jessica,” she said, her voice steel-cold, but not menacing. In her mind, the chestnut-paint mare was thinking, Regrettably, a trade for a trade. Judging, it’s the only way to get them to cave… She watched us. Redfora finally seemed as though she relaxed, but her eyes were trained steadily on Jessica. Her words made me blink, they were blatantly unexpected. ”Our names aren’t important.”

I felt Jessica’s eyes cut into mine and I nearly withered from her gaze, but stood firm. No doubt she’d be even more suspicious now, and from the looks of this mare she wasn’t one to forget. I also believed she was dangerous. Just the way she held her poise, the way she held her head proudly high, lifted her tail, shifted on her petite hooves, and locked on us with that ominous stare of hers. ”We’ve…traveled a long way to come here and we’re only passing through.” Redfora’s words held a finality to hem. Calmly she stepped around Jessica and I fell into step beside her. We knew our way out of the canyon and as we walked away, though our hooves were tired and our eyes heavy, I felt her gaze burning into my back particularly. I felt as though we’d intruded into someone’s home only to be caught red-handed stealing. One we were safely out of the canyon, having left the mare behind, I nodded to the mountains lying in the near distance. The moon rose near the top of their peaks. Where to? We need to gain our bearings. I spoke in mind-speech again to Redfora. She followed my eyes to the mountains and we began our trek onwards in their general direction. Anywhere, Redfora mind-spoke to me, I just wanted to get us out of there. I had a prickling feeling she was referring more to the situation with the mare than the canyon itself. We walked on in silence. Then Redfora uttered a word, Earth, and we looked behind us at our hoof prints left in the sand. One by one as we walked, Redfora was covering our tracks. It proved how suspicious she was on the mare, not to say that I wasn’t just as wary of her as she.

OOC - setting the stage... bold without quotes is Oraan, italics without quotes is Redfora.