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Storms and Stables

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Storms and Stables

Marrah stood out in the rain with the hood of her raincoat pulled up and over lavender eyes. She stared down at the nearly invisible mud, given this was well passed 10 o'clock at night. Tremor had insisted they go out to the stables, though insisted Marrah should wait behind by the bike. Hearing that they were taking the motorcycle out in this weather was enough for her to protest, though given the French man's persistence; she finally caved and went along.

The pale-faced neon-eyed punk was a fairly predictable fellow, in that Marrah had come to find he could be a push over if something fell under the category of personal preference or interest. But when something was important, when something wasn't so much a desire but a definite need, he stood his ground. From everything that was said before leaving, Marrah was fairly certain this had to be an important outing.

Though her last guess would have been they'd end up at the horse stables. It was a place Tremor had dragged her to for the last few months. Neither owned a horse there, but the owner trusted Tremor and let him borrow from about three that were there. Strangely, she had never actually seen him ride a horse, rather it was always Marrah being straddled up and shown the ropes. He insisted, in fragmented English, that it was a skill all important in their field of supernatural lawmen. And yet, given their urban territory, she still hadn't seen the usefulness of being an equestrian.

Marrah's watch beeped and she checked the time. It had been about 15 minutes, the time Tremor said to wait before following him into the stables. Why the exact reason for the delay, she could not get out of him. But with everything that had happen between them, from vampire-chasing to monster turtle slaying, she could only assume he was not about to stab her to death. At least not in the near future.

So she carefully un-leaned from the bike; successfully avoiding the nightmare of tipping it unto the muddy earth. Long lanky legs carried her forward and under the protection of the stable's roof. It was fairly warm inside and darken to a point that she thought of pulling out a flashlight. Luckily one or two sources of illumination existed, left on by the owner or Tremor.

They were all asleep in their stalls, not a single horse woken by her presence or that of the Frenchie. Why, exactly, were they here? She wondered. The three that were available to them lived in a row to the left. All of them asleep, undisturbed in the rainy night. She kept walking, glancing towards each stable and the horse that resided there. She could not see, but knew she was about to hit the back of the stables soon.

What was so compelling? The thought caused Marrah to start to worry. Gears turned within her mind, becoming doubtful, fearful.  She wondered now… Had this been all a trap--- she froze. Her body and the surroundings seemed brighter, as something lit up the area in the far back.
It wasn't by much, but in such low-light the increase seemed dramatic. It wasn't so much a candle flicker or the consistent nature of an electric bulb so much as a… glow.

She stared at its source with wide eyes and true, absolute disbelief. For everything they had seen together, for everything that had already blown her mind and sense of reality, this… This was the single image that solidified and epitomized everything.

Marrah approached the last stall. It had always been empty, save for a large steamer trunk. Tremor had often taken to sit upon it and read the newspaper while Marrah practiced. A window, pulled shut for the moment, normally lie open. It provided a perfect view of the track, so he could still keep an eye on her.

She had always thought that maybe Tremor once owned a horse, that given his ancient age it had died some time ago. Maybe he was nostalgic, maybe he wanted to, but could never bare to replace the former. Maybe that's why he taught her to ride, Marrah thought, to share a passion and to live through her. But now, in one singular image, it was crystal clear. There was a reason she had been dragged her time after time with no explanation. It was for this moment.

Marrah reached out and gently placed her palm alongside the light, the glow white muzzle of a beast she had never seen before. It snorted as she stroked the side of it's face gently. Her hand began to jitter from nerves as her hand then left the white cheek to reach up and touch the very tip of… It's electric-yellow horn. Spiraled, 2 and a half, no, maybe three feet long. It emitted the same unearthly glow as the rest of the animal's form.

She stared. It was solid, physical, actual, like the cheek. Like the rest of it must be. Marrah noticed it looking straight at her, she met it's gaze. They knew each other, he knew her, though she couldn't believe it was true. The same electric yellow, the enduring, pleading look; "Tremor…" was all the otherwise fearless warrior could muster. It pulled away from her hand, to push open it's unlocked stall door.

The glowing steed had been equipped properly, saddle, reins and everything securely placed. It was larger than many of the other horses, more akin to the mass of a draft horse, with the elegant shape of the thoroughbred. Its mane was zebra-like in how it stood straight up, it's tail cut short and tied up into a black-ribbon stump. There wasn't a sound from its hooves as it moved for the open stable door. It's head pointing straight ahead and bowed slightly as reins dangled freely below its mouth.

Marrah followed the vision quietly, eyeing the creature up and down with sheer amazement.
This was Tremor. Her partner, her mentor. He had never been human, she knew, but what he was, exactly… It had never been evident enough to her. But then again, she couldn't remember deeply pondering the matter either. No one, except for Claud and Ted, were human. She had not seen any of the dragons' true forms. She had not seen Elsa, even, who really had no need to hide herself. It was just always something Marrah took for granite; Tremor never said what he was, she never asked.

He stood out in the rain now, looking back at her with calm, steady eyes. She stood some feet behind, still under the cover of the stable.

"What do you want me to do?" she asked in soft uncertainty.  He stared back, the reins still dangling. Marrah blinked and realized what he wanted. Taking one step forward, he rumbled with a disapproving snort.

She paused again and thought. Suddenly there was no way to directly communicate with him, he was a horse. An animal; which is what he really had always been. Disregarding everything supernatural about his form, Marrah could understand now his downfalls… How he lacked a certain understanding, how disinterested he was at times, how he didn't seem to know or even wrap his head around things. She had learned to cover for him, to help bridge his deficits, as he provided the experience and knowledge she lacked. Even as their conversations where often simple and uncomplicated, she had never faced a situation where they couldn't talk.

And here it was. But also, here she was; a competent horse rider. She had spent many weekends here, when it was not raining. She had spent time with the animals she rode and those that just happen to live there. She had grown accustom to many of their behaviors, most of their body language. It was simple, Marrah thought then, he's just one of them. So what did he want?
She stared at how the rain never seemed to dampen his mane… She took off her coat and threw it onto a nearby hook.

Stepping out into the mud, feet sinking in with every step, she came beside the white glow. A hand grabbing hold of the saddle, a foot into one stirrup, she groaned at the higher than usual distance she had to lift herself. Once on board, Marrah realized she could not feel the rain dripping anymore. She had become rather dry near instantly.

He stepped forward, beginning to build momentum just as Marrah had secured herself aboard the beast. Her first instinct was to pull back, to tell him to steady and slow down, yet she found herself unsure of what to do. Was she in charge? Was he? In this moment of confusion, as Tremor turned them down a path into the woods beyond, Marrah came to a mental compromise; She'll trust him, let him lead; for now.
He was still a horse; she had to remind herself, a smart horse but still something not quite as cognitively capable as a human. He could make a mistake, he could misstep, as their speed increased as the surroundings blurred at either side.

Fairy tales hadn't done him justice.

Marrah hung on, trying to keep her body close to his, afraid of the tree branches looming overhead as their speed meant she couldn't dodge individual ones.

Unicorns were a motif in little girl's pink princess bedrooms. Adorn with lacey bits and bows, shown laying their heads across maiden's laps. They didn't suggest this, this mass of power, a creature of strength and speed.

Marrah could only imagine how heavy his heart beat with each hoof throwing their weight into the earth, propelling them forward into the night and through the daggers of chilled rain. She could feel the rain drops hit her face, but she could not perceive the sting of the cold water. She felt warm, like an electric blanket enveloped her.

The steed blazed on uphill, the slope steady and not slowing him. The force of the wind hitting them made Marrah wonder if she might need goggles in the future. Still, where they were heading remained unsaid, unknown.  All the dragon blood knew was that it felt right. Whatever unease she had felt towards the stable horses wasn't present, it needn't be.  There was something she had always sensed about him, from the bar and on; a protective nature. A guardian at heart, surely he---

Marrah's eyes widen, seeing ahead the clearing and the lights far below and in the distance. They were headed for a cliff. She made the connection immediately; they had always driven under it to reach the stables.
It had never occurred to her that it was accessible through the woods, though she had never gone through the forested area before.

Pulling back on the reins, she yelled; "Woah!" it was harder, his neck felt infinitely stronger, barely noticing the pull of her arms. "Woah, Tremor!" She called again, pulling as much as she could, with the strength she had been told to never use, or risk injuring the horse.  It caused the stallion to cry out with a sharp squeal, though Marrah realized it was too late as he had just leapt with her off the cliff edge.

Body gently floated up from the saddle, from the unicorn, for a half moment. Her eyes widen, her heart stopped. Why Tremor?! She wanted to scream, but there was too little time as she saw a bright light shoot forth from the storm clouds. White-knuckling the reins, she lapsed.

They were struck by lightning, in mid-air. They were dead. Or so Marrah convinced herself. Tremor had led them off a cliff and the strike of pure energy had killed them. Or, perhaps, they were knocked out and falling to their soon-to-be-deaths.

But then nothing happened. The wind continued to pass by her, from straight-on. She opened her eyes… And knew absolutely not what to say.

His snorts of air were visible in the ridged air like a steam engine, trailing a stream passed his face and behind them. They were air-borne, in-flight. To either side Marrah took to stare at… Wings; bright, electric-yellow wings. They were not physically attached to him, existing a foot away from either shoulder. Yet they flapped in time to gain speed and spread out to be still once catching a wind current.

She found herself unable to think for a time, watching as he turned with a few dashing kicks of his legs to work in tune with a shift in wing angle. They flew with surprising ease through the storm as Marrah's adrenaline crash finally hit.

She found herself too shocked, too startled, too tired now to panic. With a tender intent, she padded the side of Tremor's neck and smiled with the peace one could find in the chaos of the stormy sky.
The peace found in your most childish dreams come true.

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©2011 Amy E. Erwin, please do not claim it as your own. Please don't rip it off.
In the Modern Fantasy sub-project I have on the far back burner, most of all the mythical creatures populating the world now a days live their lives under the disguise of being merely human. Marrah, a young woman strangely immune to illusionary spells, has been recruited to work for a sort of M.I.B. for the supernatural. She can tell when something isn't quite human, but even she isn't ready for the reveal that is about to take place.
Her 'cop partner' or fellow knight, Tremor, feels its time to share his secret with her, a secret even long-time buddy Claud hasn't been let in on.

Other Images of Tremor and Marrah;


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©2011 Amy E. Erwin, please contact me if you wish to use this image / text piece. Please do not claim it as your own. Please don't rip it off.
© 2011 - 2024 Amybunbun
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