The Gate Guardian - Star-opening

[Aveilthé]

Undomë glided expertly through the air. It felt great to feel the
premature fall air upon his skin, and to breath warmer air. High
above in the ozone atmosphere, it was always so frigid, but
not unbearable for him. He can't complain too much. It did feel
odd to feel the pressure decreasing dramatically in this
atmosphere. He wasn't too used to it.

His eyes scanned all the pin-sized trees rushing slowly beneath
him, yet he was not really concentrating upon the grounds. It was
a good time for a break, to just be down here again, but it
simply wasn't too interesting. Undomë was not a lover of the
mundane, but moreso the fantastic, and the powerful.

The Áre-horse's body was lightly drenched in water. He had just
dived many thousands of feet from the sky, or particularly, the
ozone layer where he flies days on end, tirelessly, to guard the
Gates and to deliver whatever messages the people of Ebernúm
wanted him to send. He hasn't slept for over two months, but
oddly enough, there was not a single trace of fatigue in his
eyes, or the way he carried himself as he flew.

The wind whipped his thick, wavy black mane about his burnished
face and heaving, bulking neck. He was a magnificent creature,
for he was an Áre, a horse from the Sky. He possessed
a lustrous organic-looking horn, made out of ebonite, that curved
over his head and ending in an unearthly twist with a very
sharp tip. The pupils of his eyes reflected light of which color
shone, thus, whenever a colorful light shone upon them, they
would hold that same color. The same held true for his coat.
The glossy light emanating from his fine hairs reflected that of
blue, due to the solitairy moon in the star-spangled heavens;
that, shone blue. Since it was the single lightsource at the moment,
that is what his the light on his glossy black coat shone.

He was a good twenty-three hands or so, a tall creature for an
Áre, but in his case he was somewhat smaller-than-average
than a regular Áre. Áre's usually stood up to twenty-five. But
height was never a huge concern for Undomë; he never really
cared at all for this form or heights. It was all because of what
has happened so many years ago that he is in this wretched
horse form, back in the age where war was upon the earth,
and... well, he bottled up his secrets ever since.

Gigantic wings flittered some, the better to keep him gliding still.
He had not yet found a destination point to land, but perhaps
he may not just want to. There may have been a good reason,
too. For about a few yards behind him, buzzed hundreds
of excited winged Sky-imps, all chattering like mad. They were
streaking straight for Undomë, their spiky teeth gnashing
together, and their ugly bat-like wings rustling like Autumn
leaves twisting in a heavy gale.

Undomë's long ears swiveled behind him, and heard the
familiar rustling. A withering snort emitted from his enlarged
nostrils.

"Woe to you irritating things!" he growled in a deep voice,
shaking his magnificent head and twisting sharply in the air
to face them. He zigged through the air straight at the
fluttering, naked imps, his ebonite horn pointed straight upon
them.

Clouds instantly began to form, perhaps at Undomë's whim.
They were darkening and thickening quick, and soon,
a rumble was heard, steadily resounding into louder and
heavier calls that was obviously thunder. Lightning soon
struck all over the many clouds. Those that struck earth where
close by to Undomë. With a toss of head, he'd call to a flash
of lightning that instantly struck his ebonite horn, which glowed
white for a moment, then begun to sizzle.

The imps that noticed this, started to become worried. They
knew the kind of power that their long-time foe beheld, and
what he could borne from his power would hurt them... really
badly.

With a bright sizzle, his horn issued a twisting lightning bolt
that soon walloped three of the imps with a terrible zap.
They fell, crispy-black, to earth below. The others, now terrified
that Undomë was charged up, began to disperse, but where
too confused to fly back to where they came from.

"Stupid, stupid!" Undomë said, gritting his teeth together, but
watching with amusement all the same.

[/color][/size]

[Felypsa]

Rebirth. It was a curious thing. Was it granted to everyone? Or were only a few select mortals given the chance to roam the world for a second time? And if so…why was she here?

She was still not quite used to this form. She had been two other creatures in her past life, before she died of old age and weariness. She thought she was done. It seemed the gods (or whoever was in charge) still had something left for her. She still had some kind of role to play.

She’d hardly been cold in her grave when she emerged a squalling infant to an extremely happy family. As she gradually grew older, from childhood to adolescence, she would be besieged with dreams from her former life. And not long ago, she finally had it confirmed that she was a mortal reborn, and the dreams she had were memories of what she had once been. It was strange, because those memories and instincts gave her a tendency to act differently. She was often given strange looks among her kind, who frowned upon any difference. Everyone was a conformist in her society. If anyone even slightly leaned towards the abnormal, they were quickly put back in their place.

Her species was granted with a mystical understanding of the stars. That made her wonder, since her name was so…strangely appropriate. She knew it was the same name her former self had been graced with. And she liked the name. Her fellow beings liked the name. It was pretty, but not only that, it was meaningful, significant. The elder of the tribe predicted a great future for her and promised she was on the path to enlightenment. She wasn’t so sure.

She wandered through the forest that was her home, the forest that was outside the city of Ebernúm. She had once lived in a forest, in her former life. But her life today was different from that other life. She’d been a wolf, one of those unintelligent and unenlightened beasts that preyed upon her friends. They would prey upon her kind too, if her species weren’t so smart and talented at marksmanship. Though she knew she had been an intelligent, even a wise wolf, the ones in this particular forest were not of the same kind she had once been. Many of them fell to her fellows’ arrows when they tried to attack her tribe.

A sudden zap of electricity caught her attention. Confused, she walked through the trees, taking an arrow out of her quiver just in case. What she saw surprised her. A few imps scattered away, obviously because of the lightning that had been fired at them. But the source of that attack was a creature she had never seen before. It resembled a horse with one magnificent horn in the middle of his forehead. She was amazed, for creatures like this only existed in the legendary tales the elders shared around the nightly fires.

She stepped forward, well aware of their similarities. She was a centaur, with the head and torso of a human girl. She had white hair, though she was not old. Her body and hindquarters were that of a beautiful white horse, complete with pure white tail. She’d been a white wolf in her former life, too. And her eyes she knew to be the same color as that other her. They seemed pink at a first glance, but a closer look revealed them to be made up of all colors of the aurora: green, blue, violet, crimson.

She did not put her arrow away. She simply looked at the legendary creature curiously, warily. “Greetings,” she said uncertainly. “I mean no threat if you mean none.”

[Aveilthé]

The clouds started to shrink away, more out of lack of use; Undomë
did not need to call upon another bolt of lightning to emphasize
his point to those wretched imps to leave him be. They were
pesky critters, and always annoyed him in the ozone. All the
little ugly winged imps finally slowed, then proceeded to fly in
formation back to the starry heavens. A few were shaking their
tiny little clawed fists at Undomë.

"They'll return," Undomë whispered, as he nose-dived to the
earth. A graceful landing was given once he thrusted forth his
ebonite hooves, which plunged into the deep, grassy meadow.
A swish of his tail was given, then he folded his wings.

"Not much has changed." He looked around the landscape,
somewhat bored with the topography. Undomë has traveled
the world numerous of times, and was always tired of it.

Once he took one look at the grassy, hilly distance, a voice behind
him made him start some. After he ruffled his wings and galloped
forward a bit, he cantered back, shaking his head. What he saw
was a girl riding a headless horse. No, wait a moment... the
creature itself was part human and part horse. A centaur.
He recollected studying such an elusive species back in the day,
when he was an apprentice of the Court. He observed her
features warily, but noticed that he was not the only one wary.

'This girl must have come after that small lightshow,' he thought.
'It is only natural. She was simply curious, for she is a creature
of the forest, and to see thunder might mean fire. Perhaps
she is protective and wanted to make sure her forest wouldn't
be kindled...'

He wouldn't speak for a moment, only because he returned a
thoughtful glance.

"And same to you, child," he began, swiveling his ears to the front.
"If I were to threaten you, that would have been divulged long
before." His voice was deep and pleasant. He fought hard to
keep his annoyance obscured; he did not plan to have company
tonight. Since he was in a good mood now, he'd give the
centaur a chance to prove to him that she is worthy of his company.

[/color][/size]

[Felypsa]

The centaur had not yet put away her arrow, though she was clearly relaxed. This mighty creature—a horse, yet not (she struggled to remember their proper name from the lore the elders shared)—could probably easily kill her or at least severely wound her. His voice was deep, his words intelligent, and she knew he was not likely to attack her like he had the irksome imps. She was about to return her arrow when she heard a rustling behind her companion. She saw an imp trying to sneak up behind him, and with one fluid motion, she notched the arrow and let it fly. It whistled past the other creature’s ear, probably close enough for him to hear it, and struck the imp, killing it cleanly. All this had not yet transpired when the centaur had yet another arrow in her bow, aiming it around her. But no more imps came.

“These aggravating things,” she said. “I have not seen so many congregated in one spot before. Thick as mosquitoes, and a hundred times worse.” Briefly she felt remorse for the one dead imp; but it was washed away by some hardened resolve, some practicality that she was unaccustomed to. Is this part of the being I had been before? she asked herself. I have been taught by my society to grieve every life that passes, to honor their spirit as it passes to the realm of the stars, but there is some kind of prescience that allows me to hunt and kill efficiently and rationally. Both creatures I had been before were predators, who had to hunt and kill in order to survive. Is that where this predator instinct comes from? This happened sometimes. She was young; her human portions indicated she was about twenty years old in human terms, but on occasion she felt the burden of the wisdom of old age.

“You, sir,” she said, addressing Undomë, “are the very stuff of legends. I have lived in this forest all my life, and have never encountered you. Nor have I heard of anyone of my tribe encountering you. I’m afraid that leads me to curiosity, and so I must inquire as to your…” She searched her superior centaur vocabulary for the proper word, and ended, somewhat lamely, with “your purpose. But first,” she added, remembering her manners, “since I interrupted you, I’ll introduce myself. My name is StarMyst of the Skyshadow Tribe.” She bent her forelegs and dipped her human head, the effect being something like a bow.

[Aveilthé]

A fierce nicker escaped his parted teeth once the arrow flew
close past his ears; he ruffled his feathers and danced to the
side some. "You are too full of surprises," he murmered, his
heart racing. "You can give this old man a heart attack."

If an individual paid enough attention to this statement, they might
realize the oddity of these words. In that little event, he was
not thinking of what he was saying.

With his glittering blue-shone eyes, he'd look upon her bow and
collection of arrows. He silently reflected about them, and how
the girl saved his skin by the attacking imp, which he'd turn his
head, and look upon. He then looked back to the girl again and
was preparing a whole statement about saving her remorse,
and not allow it to convey to creatures like this one, but he
found not a tear in her eye. After a moment, he felt that the kindest
thing to do was to give her his thanks.

"Thank you kindly," said he. "Indeed they are very galling, hateful
creatures. They never confine themselves; instead, they prefer to
indulge eachother by hassling my fellows and I, as well as
finding new ways to evade me, and try crossing the paths through
the Gates. It is illegal for them to cross it, for they are potentially
dangerous..." He paused here. It was not particularly gratifying to
be talking about what he does for a living, especially talking about
creatures he hated most.

The Áre then considered the centaur's words about him being
'things of legend'. "You are no different than I," he said simply.
"We are both creatures that normal beings would strive to touch,
hold, be, and use... for personal enslavement. Thus I give
you a warning, that if ever a normal creature says that they
will be your friend, it could very well be a lie, for they are
deceitful and jealous." Another pause. "At least, most are." He
would let his ears fall loosely in an agreeable manner.

"Have you not heard of me...?" He'd let these words fall after a
while. "Perhaps not, as our species is controlled and used.
We are not born free. At least, I was, at the very beginning. Alas,
I am an Áre, creature of the Sky, and there are two others like me.
There are more, but they are in solitairy confinement, away from
greedy eyes. My fellows are a controlled breed. Intelligent,
magical, and wondrous in every way, but confined. And
you may call me Undomë. Starmyst, it is a pleasure to know a
centaur, particularly one so curious and helpful. Now if I
ever see you again, perhaps in peril, I will return the favour."

Suddenly, from across the distance, ringing yells, whistling, and
whoops can be heard. Undomë lifted his head high and lifted
his wings some.

"Into the woods, Starmyst, quick, or you will be in greater peril
than you'll ever imagine. Whether you are capable to handle
a dangerous situation or not, I say... Run!"

Without further ado, Undomë galloped like the wind into the
safety of the forest. He was clever - to take flight would be
even more dangerous, unless the situation called for it.

[/color][/size]

[glady]

A flash of white is basically all anyone really sees. Something pure white, something that only existed in legends and folklore. A legendary creature of huge status.

That was what Kirya was. A legendary creature of magnificent proportions. Any human would have given their life up to see her, just once. A unicorn. But not just any unicorn. She had wings, wings that were of a light purple, and quite large. She had the ability to fly, which was rare of creatures of her kind.

She gazed out over the lake, atop a hill, immersed in her own thoughts. She became aware of some skirmish happening somewhere in the forest nearby the city. She was naturally curious, and wary as well.

She unfolded her wings and took flight into the warm air. She hovered for a minute, getting her bearings, and then flew toward where she heard the skirmish.

She landed expertly nearby, hardly making a sound, and made her way to the noises. Her blue eyes scanned the scene in front of her. It was not a skirmish, but rather some other creatures engaged in a conversation. A centaur and an Áre. All around, the ground was parched, like something of magnificent power had tried to take it away.

She pawed the ground and broke through the brush to make her way over to them. She was not very shy, but she was wary. She knew of creatures who wanted to capture her, mainly humans, and she also knew of power hungry creatures as well, who lived to take advantage of others. She had powers, she could feel that she did, but she did not know what they all were yet, nor was she good at controlling the ones she had found out so far. She was good at flight though, and very excellent at evading enemies when she needed to.

Kirya bowed her head as she approached. "Greetings," She said swiftly, her voice loud and clear. She glanced at the both of them, and thought of her former life as a wolf. She had been a white wolf as well, in a relatively small pack. The pack had broken up because the humans built a city on their lands, and she wound up being alone and packless. She had been killed by a cougar in a brutal fight, one that caused rift between the cougars and the wolves, far far away from these lands.

But here she was now, living her life as a unicorn, one of the most sought after creatures in folklore history. Maybe there was a greater purpose for her existance. Perhaps there was something she did not have the chance to do as a wolf that she could do as a unicorn now. Unfortunately, she did not know what it was, as most creatures did not know the purpose to their lives are. [/size]

[Felypsa]

Starmyst’s marvelously colored eyes lit up when Undomë revealed what kind of creature he was, for immediately information flowed into her mind. “Oh yes!…the miraculous Aré. Forgive me, Undomë, for my momentary memory lapse.” She would have said more, grimacing on the topic Undomë raised, of their being wanted creatures. But before she could reply, they were interrupted by a new arrival.

Starmyst studied this creature—legendary like herself and Undomë—and wondered why so many of them were congregating in this one spot. She wanted to be rude. Centaurs could be snappish when confronted by something they did not like, and the past Starmyst had also been somewhat short with certain people. But there was nothing about this being—an alicorn, a winged unicorn, if she recalled the name correctly—that showed any disrespect. So Starmyst returned politeness for politeness. “Greetings to you as well,” was all she said. She might have introduced herself, but there was yet another interruption—this time a strange-sounding commotion in the distance. Immediately Undomë’s spoke out harshly, urging her to safety. She did not hesitate, for she was never one to run into the face of danger. Replacing her arrow into her quiver and slinging her bow over her shoulder, she galloped after her new companion into the thicket.

She had confessed to being curious before, and now that curiosity was going berserk in her mind. What was going on? Why was such a powerful creature as the Aré afraid enough to beat a hasty retreat? Those sounds they had heard only a split second before Undomë barked out his order were alarming, but Starmyst didn’t think they had sounded too threatening. But she did not ask these questions now. She merely followed the older creature deeper into the woods.

Starmyst was not sure if the alicorn had followed them. Surely, with such strong wings, the creature would have flown away to safety. Starmyst sometimes missed her wings, for she had had them as a wolf and, later, as an eagle. Oh, to be an eagle again, whose very purpose was to fly and scale the limitless skies! But Starmyst did not dare daydream about her former days now. Was it her imagination, or were those awful screeches and shouts getting closer?

[Aveilthé]

Undomë, though with difficulty, cantered over fallen trees and
around the erect ones. He was not a creature of the wood.
When that blasted alicorn greeted them in the wrong time,
Undomë gruffly growled at her, but enough for her ears only.
"Get in the wood and shut your mouth," he snapped, "or you will
doom us all with your loudness!"

He then slowed to a halt, annoyed that his giant hooves rustled
the leaves. In a time of flight, it would be a bit more difficult to
get out of the trees. Oh, maybe it was not such a good idea
after all, but now that he's here, he'd have to make use out of
the forest, and force it to be in his advantage.

"Starmyst," he called, "those are Wranglers. They hunt for creatures
like you and I, and that loud-mouthed alicorn over there. Their
purpose is to capture us, and sell us for huge amounts of money,
or perhaps keep us as slaves. Besides those irksome Sky-imps,
these people are much worse, and much more dangerous.
They have always sought out for me because our kind is elusive
like I have said... and I try to remain elusive, but they have
obviously seen that thunderbolt and knew right away that it was
me. I will try my best to make them not see you, for they will not
hesitate and try to take you as well. They are extremely
dangerous, as aforementioned; they possess machinery that can
take us... in their own way..."

Indeed the ringing shouts and whistles became louder. They were
all men, all of whom were riding atop normal horses - except, these
supposedly 'normal' horses seem to be made out of metal.
They were machine horses. There were mostly humans upon them.

"Stay quiet," Undomë spoke in deep, low tones. "If we are quiet
and still, they may not find us."

[/color][/size]

[Felypsa]

Starmyst looked ahead of her, expecting to see Undomë in front of her, but to her surprise she thought she heard him behind her. She looked behind and found it was true. She was surprised, but it was actually because she had lived in the forest all her life—all of both of her lives, actually. Navigating through it was second nature, not something she thought about. But she slowed her pace to end up back with Undomë, thinking that he lagging for some strategic reason. She had lost sight of the alicorn, and hoped that the other creature had the sense to get to a safe place.

She listened intently as the Aré explained the Wranglers’ existence, but acknowledged the clarification only with a nod and a grimace. She had heard of people like the Wranglers, but never knew what they were called. It didn’t matter their labels, they were detestable all the same. When she was a very young centaur, one male centaur of her tribe was captured by dirty humans. The only way he escaped captivity was by drowning himself in a nearby river. Another centaur had been tracking the humans in hopes to save his friend, but witnessed the grim spectacle instead. Grieving, the centaur fished the bloated body of his friend out of the river and brought it back to the tribe. It was a grave story, one that the elders often repeated to reinforce to the headstrong youth the value of caution, especially around humans.

Starmyst made not a sound as she waited beside Undomë, listening to the human cacophony. She hardly breathed, but she did not close her eyes; she kept them wide open. At times like this she greatly missed her superior wolven nose and ears, as well as her fantastic eagle vision and hearing. Her eyes were sharper than a human’s or a horse’s, but her hearing was average. She could have used heightened senses in a situation like this.

She thought she caught a glimpse of humans atop strange-looking horses through the thick brush. Her muscles tensed and she automatically moved closer to Undomë; there was some safety in numbers, after all. She waited with bated breath, hoping against hope that they would go away…go away and leave them alone…

[Aveilthé]

Undomë nodded his bearded muzzle for a moment, as if he were
trying to make the Wrangles to turn back and leave. He felt an
urge to say something important to Starmyst, but now was not
the time to speak, let alone move. He now held himself completely
still, his ears quivering as if unsure weather to lie back in defiance,
or stay erect so he could listen to the sound of their movements.

His coat, now shining a mixture of sapphire-blue and deep royal
purple, gleamed as the moon shone from it. Though Undomë was
hidden into deep foliage with Starmyst, the one disadvantage
was that his coat shone out - but no more than Starmyst's
pale coat that stood out like the white moon, and fleshy
complexion.

All was silent. The winged horse held his breath.

The Áre's mind began working furiously for a plan. Any plan would
do, as long as it would work. He shifted his eyes to the centaur.
She looked human enough. Perhaps if he asked her to conceal
her horselike body, she could be a human and give other humans
a direction where he and herself would have gone. But before he
could divulge this plan, there was a ringing shout, and suddenly
the humans plunged themselves into the woods, now on foot.
One has seen them! Perhaps he scouted into the woods and
with his technological cunning sight, spotted the two.

"We've lingered too long, Starmyst. Run, as fast as your legs can
take you! To fight would simply put you at greater risk, and
something worse than death! Because it is my fault for putting
you in this mess, I will defend you til death if I must!"

It was never like Undomë to fight for someone else, but he had
a strong conscience, and since he knew her well enough for
an acquantance, he felt the need that her safety was much greater
than his own. She was something special.

Undomë, who had unruffled his wings, tried to take off into flight
as he galloped through the forest, albeit slowly. The main obstacles
were the fallen logs, many rocks that blunted his ebonite hooves;
the twigs that scratched at his coat; tugged his main and tail;
and, the many thick trees that he was too slow to dodge. The
trees were too thick for him to just fly through. Smaller birds would
have the advantage.

His mind wandered to the bright alicorn they've met moments
before. Alas, she was on her own; bless her soul.

[/color][/size]

[Felypsa]

How long they waited, Starmyst did not know. She had lost track of time while staying alert for any sound of the vile Wranglers. She placed a hand to her beating heart and counted the fast pulses. She tried to calm down enough to slow her heartbeat. It was actually a good thing that Undomë did not ask her to play a human. She would have definitely stood out: a girl with no clothes was certainly an eye-opening sight. Centaurs, unlike humans, had no reason to cover themselves. It was perfectly natural to walk around naked. This was not a problem for her horse-like hindquarters, but for her human torso…her bare bosom might attract unwanted attention.

Not that Starmyst thought about this. She had never worn clothes in any of her lives or forms; not as a wolf nor as an eagle. Besides, to acquire such coverings would require that centaurs kill other creatures for their natural coats. If it did get cold, some centaurs might sew together soft leaves to wear, but in weather such as this, they went as they were born.

Starmyst’s fingers twitched, wanting to fit an arrow to her bowstring. She felt so defenseless without one. But she couldn’t take the chance. She had to lay low. All that rationalization quickly became obsolete when Undomë yelled at her to run. She didn’t wait to be told twice. The white centaur turned and bolted deeper into the forest. In the back of her mind, she aimed for the river that flowed through the forest. If she could just get to it…and ford it…she could hopefully leave those humans behind in the dust.

She wanted desperately to fire an arrow or five back where she came from. But if she did that, she’d risk hitting Undomë, something she did not want to do. It was fight or flight now. In lieu of the one, she had to do the other. She fled as quickly as her feet could carry her. No use trying to slow her heartbeat now. It was hammering wildly against her ribs.

She lost sight and sound of Undomë in her half-mad flight. The river, she thought, I have to get to the river…hopefully Undomë will make it there too…Suddenly, through a thicket of trees, she caught a glimpse of a ribbon of silver. Oh, her salvation! She had nearly reached the river. But would she be too late…?

[Aveilthé]

The Áre ran, pounding his hard hooves upon the ground, trying his
best to avoid branches and stone. It was very difficult. As
aforementioned, he was not a creature of the wood. Only of the
skies, where he had the best advantage.

"This is the reason why I never leave the skies. I am a fool!" he
growled to himself, resenting the fact that he left for a moment just
to visit land, to be chased by Sky-imps, then pursued by blasted
humans! And now he put an intelligent woodland dweller at great risk,
but she had the advantage. Glossy feathers were torn from his
wings as he wedged himself between two large trees. He winced,
and tightened his wings to his body. He looked to the sky, where
the canopies remained thick with thick, intertwining branches and
leaves, that would certainly tear up his frame.

An idea suddenly occured. Turning around, Undomë took in a
deep breath. He rose his head, and as if he were about to sneeze,
he'd give a toss of his nose and part his teeth, to which a powerful
wind blew with the potency of two gigantic tornados. With this
wind, it knocked the humans from their feet, thus thrashing them
wildly into the air, knocking a few on their heads with other trees.
Many others found their footing and held on to whipping branches.
Leaves were swirling in all directions like a flurry of snow. As
the humans rose up and swore angrily, the found that their target
dissapeared.

Undomë laughed throatily as he caught sight of the centaur girl
ahead.

[/color][/size]

[Felypsa]

In the last instant, Starmyst made the final push, and burst through the trees. The beautiful silver river sparkled in the moonlight before her. There was no bridge in sight, and the river seemed to go very deep, but that didn’t stop this particular centaur. She half-closed her eyes and summoned her internal talent. Centaurs looked down upon anything that bent the laws of nature, but Starmyst knew her secret power had carried over from her previous life. She spent much of this new life modifying that power so that it would be as subtle as possible.

The instant her first hoof touched the river, a spray of mist whirled up around her. Wherever she touched water, it hissed and became fog, surrounding her with a thick barrier of the stuff. And under this concealment, Starmyst proceeded to run across the river’s surface. She was temporarily as light and insubstantial as the mist that covered her, and so was able to move across the surface of the water with ease. It took her a while, but she eventually made it safely to the other side of the river.

Once her hooves touched land, the fog vanished, and she was her normal, substantial centaur self. She was blessed with an affinity for water and air, which allowed her to manipulate them sometimes. No one in her centaur tribe—not even her parents—knew about this. She didn’t intend to tell anyone either, lest she become alienated and cast out. But it was certainly useful, especially in situations like this.

Now that Starmyst was safe on the other side, she whirled around, and with one smooth motion strung her bow and fitted an arrow to it. She saw Undomë back there, but no humans. Still, she did not relax her grip. Her eyes were narrowed, seeking any of the foul Wranglers. If any emerged, she would shoot them, and with her superior aim, she would most likely kill them. This was not a creature to mess with, legendary or no. And stupid humans had to learn that the hard way.

[Aveilthé]

The great winged horse picked up his pace, seeing an elevated
ridge. Nostrils flared, scenting the river. He knew what to do at
this point now. Disregarding the branches tearing at his wings,
he'd start spreading his wings. Open air was about to embrace
the horse's face. With that, he took a great leap and rose to
the sky. Wings were spread out before him, and flapping hard
as he gained speed--

"AAAAAAGH!"

A long lariat appeared out of nowhere, singing through the air like
a whip. It latched itself around the poor Áre's neck, which knocked
the wind out of him, and thrusted him back into the woods.
Upon hitting the ground, the impact of his fall caused a tree
to be torn into half. Humans swarmed around the horse, kicking
and hitting him with whips and sticks. They backed away, and
there lay Undomë, in a pitiful state. His legs were bound together,
his muzzle clasped shut by rope, and his wings tied together also,
bedraggled and shabby. Undomë was enraged, his eyes glittering
with fire, and his body writhing, and his vocals pounding in his
throat as he released a viscous scream like a banshee.

The men were whooping and clapping eachother on the back,
a few covering their ears from the scream issuing from the horse's
lips. One man kicked the Áre's mouth, making the poor horse
cry in rage and pain. One of the men punched the human that
kicked the horse, and told him, "Kick him any more, and this
creature will no longer be worthy of a trophy!"

The Áre tried getting up, but the men forced him down, and were
attempting to drag him through the forest. They found this to
be quite difficult, as this was a terrible place to catch this Áre, and
Undomë's size and weight was no exception. They had their way
though, as they were experienced and smart Wranglers. Then, one
of the men were speaking to another.

"What of the centaur?"

"Centaur, what centaur?"

"The centaur across the river!"

"Oh my--"

"What a beautiful centaur!"

"Let's get it!"

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[Felypsa]

To Starmyst’s utmost horror, the Wranglers caught up with the Áre and did such terrible things to him. She winced when Undomë let out an awful screech that pierced her heart and rattled her bones. So dreadful was it that she froze for a moment, though the arrow was ready to be fired; she froze, and in that single moment, she was spotted.

At the words “Let’s get it!”, Starmyst finally snapped back to reality. She glared at the vile men and fired the arrow directly at the one who had kicked Undomë. Without waiting to see if it hit its mark, she fired another at the man who had pointed to her. And another and another at a couple random men who stood apart from Undomë. Her aim was true, but if the men moved in time, they would be able to avoid the fatal shot.

Meanwhile, her mind was racing fast, trying to think of a way to save Undomë. She was too far away to help him, but if she crossed the river again, she would put herself at risk. She had some time—the men would try to preserve Undomë as carefully as possible, and the Áre was heavy enough that it would take them some time to move him. She thought of the remaining arrows in her quiver—there weren’t many. Only a fool would spend all her arrows in one battle. So inevitably, unless the men broke ranks and retreated separately into the forest, Starmyst would have to cross the river if she expected to help Undomë.

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