Discovering the Waterfront [open]

[chemicalantics]

Cyxzin

The sea was beautiful, as it always has been, always will be. Cyxzin, the smallish blood bay paint walked slowly parallel to the waves; where the sea disappeared into sand. His hooves splashed by the soft foam and the warm sun shined water. He stared closer toward the water to avoid looking at the bones of horses, which varied in their appearances. They ranged from pure white to dappled red, ancient to fresh. It disgusted him to his core, it did not help that the smell of salt and water barely masked the scent of carrion and death. It scared him, that he may also become a set of bones on a shore. He slipped into a quiet trance as he continued to stare at the waves and the foam. But this trance was soon broken by the sound of bones crunching under hoof; causing him to look down and retract in horror.  He let out a startled whinny,near rearing away. It was a set of foal bones, and he had broken it's ribs. It was still red with bits of blood and flesh that had not yet been picked away by carrion birds, it had not been washed away yet either. It couldn't have been much older than a few months old, his heart suddenly began to ache, what had happened to this young creature that caused it's fire being extinguished so soon. He let out a loud breath and stepped over the set of bones. He looked about noticing that an adult set was close by of the same level of decay, at least child and parent died together. He continued onward, taking solace in the shiny water that offered a constant noise to the eerie silence. He imagined that maybe a long time ago that the beautiful place had been filed with sound; sounds such as the play of foals, of mares gossiping and stallions conversing, sounds of life. But now it was all silence on all sides, save for the breaking of the waves. The thought then struck him as he slowed into a halt, that world would continue on when all was gone. Even if all life was gone, the noise of water would outlast the bleak eternity of silence. He lowered his head, shaking out a pure black mane, then settling down. He let the water wash at his knees, soft sand under his belly. Foam spotted at his black legs as he watched the sea, like it held answers. 

"I can't believe it's all gone"

[Dawn]

Death, it seemed, had been greedy in the land of Imbros as of late. In the normal course of life, equines are born and they die in equal measure, and the population is sustained. But never at a rate that could not be replenished. Never in such rapacious quantities that it diminishes almost the entire equine society. The world was littered with the bones of the dead, and the living were fearful of going down the same road. There were so few left alive after the ravages of the plague. Radian was used to aloneness, but even she could feel it sometimes, the hollow emptiness that came from knowing she was among the last of her kind. The young demigod had never been one for company, but it saddened her to watch what remained of her species dwindle away. She spent her days straying wherever her fancy took her, for why worry about boundaries now when so few equines remained to claim land? Most of her childhood was spent within the boundaries of Valerian Hills. Like a good little girl, she remained for the better part of two years, even after the collapse of Shakespeare's sovereignty. The sight of her mother's corpse was enough to convince the buttery child that it was time to go. She and Aisling never got along, but it still shook her to the core to see her dam lying dead beneath a tree, the ribcage that housed her not long ago pecked clean by crows. Her mother did not die with dignity; deep furrows lay around her body, evidence of hallucinations where her hooves paddled desperately at the ground. She smelled of sickness, even beneath the overwhelming stench of decay. For a few days, Radian could not stop thinking about it - she couldn't even look in the direction of where her mother's body lay. Not long after, the two-year-old made a decision to leave Valerian Hills, and she struck out on her own in the world.

It was a great learning curve for the unusually-marked filly. She had basic social skills, but knew little of how to use them. Aisling and a mare named Kalice were the only equines she'd ever really interacted with. Strangers commented on her markings, and seemed to relax in her presence. Young Radian couldn't know that she exuded warmth like a miniature sun, and that her voice was sweet music to listen to. She couldn't know that the ability to sense the thoughts of others was not normal. Multiple interactions with many equines taught her that she was different, just as Aisling had always told her. And often she used her uncanny abilities for selfish gain, allowing her to fall in favor with several equines. Stallions in particular were willing to fight for her, and she enjoyed how it felt to be wanted for the first time in her life. Her natural humility was overshadowed by a need for love and acceptance, and she did everything she could think of to gain it. Naturally, it led her into some very dangerous situations. Some things happened that Radian was not proud of, for she didn't always keep company with the best of characters. There were those who sought to own her, and others who simply desired her dead; and despite her fluency with equine emotions, it can be hard to know what thoughts were going through one's brain. The palomino quickly learnt to be restrained, and she grew wary of her own abilities. For the good of herself and of others, she thought it wisest to remain apart. Herd life was never going to happen for her; she was too independent and too flighty to allow herself to be tethered to one place. It scared her that she had such an effect on other equines - it had to be some kind of curse. A darker creature might run with it and use it to manipulate their way to the top, but Radian never wanted to wield power. All she wanted was to be loved and accepted, but her teenage rebellion years proved to her that she was beneath such lofty standards. She was undeserving of a place in life, doomed to forever tiptoe the fringes of society. She accepted her lot, and made peace with it as best she could.

Her hooves sunk deep into the wet sand, the surf tugging playfully at her fetlocks. The two front ones were the same light palomino as the rest of her, and the fetlocks that followed were bi-colored; the right one emblazoned with a white sock, and the other entombed in black. Three dark lines lay just beneath each elbow, similar to the primitive stripes that are characteristic of duns. A very unusual marking was situated halfway down the length of her neck, hidden most of the time by her golden mane. A dark sunburst, too perfect to be natural, too vivid to be a birthmark. For the moment, it was highly visible thanks to the rambunctious wind that blew her mane about, rebelliously shaping it into styles that would make punks proud. The mare paused and raised her head as a new scent came to her on the salty breeze. Her startlingly golden eyes picked out the figure of a lone equine further out in the water, silhouetted against the monochrome grey of the sky and the sea. Radian hesitated and took a few uncertain steps sideways, towards land, not sure if the stranger had noticed her presence. He may have heard her splashing through the surf, but then, that could easily be blamed on the waves, right? Curiosity was the deciding factor that drew her back into the water. Slowly she approached, the water rising up to claim her skin inch by inch. She adopted an angular ingression so that he would see her out of his peripheral vision, for she didn't want to startle him and invite hostility. Her feminine ears came forward to catch the words he muttered on the breeze, for her she supposed, since by now he should know that she was here.

Pausing a good two metres from the slightly smaller stallion, Radian allowed herself a momentary invasion of his privacy as she reached out to sense his feelings, wanting to know if there lay any hidden animosity towards her uninvited presence. She didn't fear him, but she would really rather flee an awkward situation than stand and talk her way out of it. It took her all of a second to ascertain that she had nothing to fear thus far. He would not have noticed her introspection of his current emotions, it wasn't something that could really be sensed. Now that she knew he did not intend any trouble, she sent him a gentle smile, her voice like warm honey as she spoke reassurance. "Not all is lost. I, and many more, still remain." She held the male's gaze to gauge his reaction, but out of her peripheral vision, the young mare noted a change in the texture of water. A great swell of ocean was coming towards them, rolling effortlessly onwards, and Radian knew it was only a matter of time before it would break over them. It wasn't impossibly large, but it would at least drench them completely, and she for one knew that she had no desire to be spitting salt water. Stepping backwards and pivoting around so that she was facing the shore, Radian snuck a sideways glance at the pinto stallion. "Shall we?" she offered, looking back at the incoming wave with obvious distaste.