The young spotted female gave a warm smile to Nysa saying, "Thank you for understanding. I didn't mean any harm at all." The yearling had a certain bounce in her step. Then she heard the sound of Atolos, it was time to move.

"See, now you won't have to worry about getting into trouble. Now I have to go find my mother before she starts worrying about me."
The young creature picked up the pace in her step. She then noticed dark looming clouds. Had the heavens granted their wishes and opened up the floodgates? She inspected the clouds more, no they were too dirty. Was that...dust? She had heard Áine talk about those dust storms before and how dangerous and deadly they could be.

Flattening her ears in fright at the quickly approaching storm, "MOTHER!" She shouted, quickly trying to find her mother, but the young filly couldn't seem to make her out in the crowd. What was going on? Why was everything going so poorly? First the drought, then the deaths, and now this? Talk about bad luck.

"Nysa..." she murmured. She had foolishly left the mare alone, and was trying to focus on herself and now she was facing that incoming dust storm alone.

Mare | • | 5 Years | • | Lone Mare | • | Mentions

Kage

Soleil could only look idly around as an eerie silence followed after she was done speaking in her nervous ramble. What else was the mare supposed to do? Slowly walk away or something? She knew she could be rude, but that was just plain disappointing and quite disrespecting to whoever this was that she was talking to. In the ghostly pale colored mare's opinion, it was so much easier just getting angry at absolutely everything and everyone no matter who they were. But then again, she was tired, and hot, and sweaty, desperate for some water, and a bit angry at the world with her temper easily able to boil over despite her lighter colored coat and she was honestly fed up with mostly everything that had happened to her so far. Life apparently hated everyone in this miles wide area, had the more local horses inside of this once grand and emerald colored area angered some unknown water god or something? Had a foal insulted some storm clouds and they just got so offended they just decided to drift away? Soleil was so going to punt that foal into the hecking stratosphere. I mean, it wasn't like she wasn't also angry whenever someone would insult her, but to punish everyone for the words of a child was low even for some random storm clouds. Screw them. Maybe if someone sneezed hard enough magical water would appear. Now wouldn't that be the sight to see? She would very much live to see that moment actually, it was rather entertaining to imagine

Though she was snapped out of her thoughts as she suddenly heard the beautiful, but shorter black mare speak after a drawing silence that seemed almost like decades with how long it stretched out. Listening with a small flick of one of her ears that had, like the other, been previously laying somewhat flat against her head and now was perked up and attentive she nodded when she finally introduced herself as Kage. "Well then it's nice to meet you Kage." Soleil smiled a small bit before it just as easily fell once again and she directed her attention to where she gestured with her head down to a pit where she previously had not noticed the amount of water just laying there, however small it was. She was tempted, very tempted, to just dip her head down that moment and drink it all without a thought but at the mention of Kage asking her if she wanted to fight her for the liquid made her pause. Did she want to fight? She slightly scowled in her thoughts, frowning slightly as she flicked her tail behind her much similar to how Kage was before finally sighing. "I mean- if you're looking for a fight I can hold my own against you." Soleil finally committed, tilting her head in question towards the other to see if she was truly looking to fight against her for some water. She, personally, had nothing against the thought. It would be entertaining, and she was sure she would be able to hold her own decently against the other but also knew not to underestimate another.

Perhaps what she lacked in size she made up for in her strength or some other attribute? She didn't dwell on that thought for long, as something quickly caught her attention. She didn't even get a chance to reply as suddenly winds picked up behind her suddenly and Soleil whipped herself quickly around to see what had caused such a thing. It has been blisteringly hot mere seconds ago, and barely, if any winds had been blowing at all before so why the sudden warm gust? Dread creeped up in her heart as she watched what was before her come closer rapidly. In the distance of the similarly barren landscape was what looked like a giant cloud, almost looking exactly the same as a storm cloud bringing some cool and wonderful rain, if not for the coloration. It wasn't exactly the clouds that had stirred her heart, but rather the coloration of them. A dim, dusty brown color, not the same pale cream as the land below, no, this was a light brown in color. Dust storm. And a severe one. Tensing immediately at the sight and sucking in a very sharp breath she made a thought to start booking it as fast away from the thing as she could before remembering the mare before her and pausing

Kano

Stallion|Five years|Bachelor|Mentions:Morrigan

Morrigan? He let that marinate in his thoughts for a moment. Peacock? This time his inward voice had grown sharper, as if confused, but interested all the same. What made her think of that. This one was more of a statement than a question, his intent stare bouncing swiftly between her face and his aching wound. But it would linger on the small bite for a short duration, casting a small, disgusted grimace along his slender snout. How could she suggest such a thing..Fecal matter..Dried grass stalks would do. Of course if he could, stamping his bitten leg in water would have been his first choice but, well, the hindrance was obvious.

Speaking of hinders..Kano would begin to recall her previous words, running over every single detail while vanquishing the crafty smirk that would attempt to stretch his maw from time to time. It would be rather questionable if this mare had seen it, for she’d probably grow suspicious. And he wouldn’t blame her. There would be absolutely nothing innocent about the expression after all. It's not something one should wear after being called a peacock. He would be amused, maybe his gaze would even twinkle with mirth, but he was yet to give a reaction.

The stallion adopted a gruntled look, perking his head while his eyes reconnected with her own. He almost whispered a thanks, but he kept his mouth closed, well, not for long at least. “You’ve piqued my interest. Morrigan” He stated, gaze delicately dancing about her physique like a caress. But the glowing ponds of light had seemed to darken, thickening the air with a sort of flickering tenebrosity. Kano raised his vision higher, then even above that. He only stopped once he saw dangerous looking clouds flooding the nearby sky, a dusky brown in hue. Those things certainly weren’t holding any water

He’d quickly jerk his gaze towards the festered herd, and although he was just as startled by the emerging weather, he took up a spark of delectation in his eye, jowls slowly spreading in sinister a grin. With what the little Phoenix had shared with him, he knew that the lead had recently lost his partner. She had spoken of ‘Her fathers herd’ and then the loss of her mother. So not only that, but she seemed to be their daughter as well. So she was special. And now, with this...unpleasant storm progressing on them all, the drove would grow more vulnerable than it ever was before.

“You see that?” Kano returned his gaze to the sky. “That's my cue to leave.” The once content atmosphere was now foaming with tension, audible cries from the distressed horses ahead causing his tail to a slight twitch. He’d emit a sharp sigh, shaking out his coat while his ears flinched to a flatten, the weightier breeze steadily increasing the seed of concern that began to bloom inside of his stomach. “I wish we could have spoken longer--” So I could finally ask you… “But this is where we depart. Please don’t miss me too terribly.”

The chestnut stallion turned with grace, light, but still speedful steps compacted in each hoof. He didn’t rush off immediately, but possessed rather a smooth, careful trot across the sturdy floor. He knew he’d be seeing her again, all of them again later on. Maybe he’d make another entrance after the violent tempest settled, hopefully it would be soon. Although Kano had a knack for surviving, no one was invincible

"Do not fret about Naga," was all he said, voice taking on an ever so slight tint of care. Atolos was one of the rare few to see some kind of emotion on his face, hear something beyond stone in his voice. The greyed out stallion may not have been his blood-related brother, but he had become something closer than a brother over the years. Atolos meant more to him than any of his biological brothers ever did.

Anil knew that the change in mood was not directed at him, and so he offered nothing in response to the Lead Stallion's sentence. He was right, it would not bode well for the herd if they did not find water soon. They'd lost many of their members, and they were only set to lose more if they continued such a dehydrated lifestyle. He turned his head, just slightly, to look at the mountains in the east, following his friend's gaze. Heading east, such a change in direction, could very well bring their demise, but it could also be the thing to save them. Having seen nothing but dust ahead, he had no argument against heading towards the mountains.

"Yes, Atolos," he said when he was told to round up the herd, pausing just before turning, and, feather-lightly, ran his nose over his friends shoulder. He didn't wait another moment before turning away, taking long, even strides around the outskirts of the herd. In the distance, he spotted Nysa, Macha and Morrigan away from the herd. And, in fact, a stallion next to Morrigan that did not belong to their herd.

The goliath stallion snorted, changing direction and heading directly for the pair. On his way there, he saw the stallion turn and leave, and he turned a harsh stare towards Morrigan. "Head back to the herd, your father is moving us." He stated, transitioning his glare back towards the bachelor. He would have to keep an eye out for the bay stallion, and inform Atolos. "And if you see that stallion again, make sure to tell your father or I, Morrigan."

Anil turned away and headed towards Macha and Nysa, the next closest creatures that had strayed away from the herd. Macha was an appaloosa yearling that was his daughter, and someone that he was not impressed to see so far from the herd. They were closer than they had been, but his daughter knew the rules, and she knew them well. He'd made sure of it.

A sudden darkening of the sky grabbed his attention, and the stallion slowed his pace. Were they... rainclouds? No, no, they were too large, too fast, too brown to be storm clouds. His brain ran through the options, and he, very quickly, landed on one: dust storm. A dust storm was not entirely unexpected, but it wasn't something they could really handle right now.

The brute lifted the front half of his body off of the ground, using the added height to project his voice even further: "Back to the herd!" His voice, as always, was low and booming, but it carried a different note of finality in it, that this was the order to be followed above all orders. As soon as he landed, the goliath set off towards his daughter at a swift trot, slowing only when he neared her side, panic flaring at her cry for her mother, Cadhla.

"Stay with me," he said, voice dropping, soft in tone, almost gentle. He stepped ever closer, a rare moment of contact where he pressed his chest against her shoulder and neck, telling her where he was, forever giving her that placement of him, even when their vision undoubtedly dropped. "Do not panic, Macha," he said, craning his head higher to try and locate Atolos amongst the herd. The stallion was still at the front, trying to get them to move. No, they shouldn't move in these conditions. "I am here," he continued, sentence slow and broken up, baritone vocals leaving his mouth slowly.

Like a fool, he had gone away from the herd in search for a dried rose. He did it to prove a point. To win against Asenath. Her words had left him speechless and in shock. He had lost against her, and Rastus wished for a rematch, or at least to get in her good graces. She made him seem small, nugatory, meaningless. The stallion wasn't, and he wished for Asenath to see that. Thus, he had sauntered away after their conversation, determined to find a rose to show her that he understood. He would make it clear that he wasn't stupid, and that he wasn't blind.

Such a fool he was.

While he had managed to find a dried rose, it's petals ugly and brown and stem withered due to lack of water, he was now facing large clouds swirling right near him. Dead flower in his mouth, Rastus stood and watched, studying the clouds. Could it be rain? No, there was no lightening, and the clouds were all wonky and.. Moving. There was a cloud moving in the distance.

A pang of fear struck Rastus in the chest. He knew fairly well what this was, and it was no good thing. He had learned from his father. Eyes flickering on the brown dust cloud, he felt his heart begin to hammer in his chest as it raced towards him. Gyrating, the stallion began to run, to warn the herd to stay together. Large hooves galloping on the ground, he raced forwards, dropping the rose in the process. He dared not turn around and get it.

Galloping, Rastus ran with all of his might. Only when he reached the outskirts of the herd did he raise his voice. "Dust storm!" His voice thundered loudly in attempt to draw everyones attention. They needed to take cover. To huddle with one another until it passed. To do something rather than stand around. Head raised, his eyes glanced around, searching for Atolos, but his eyes landed upon his father, Anil, instead. Good enough. Moving towards him at a quickened pace, he halted, tone lowering and out of breath. "It's coming, and quickly. It was perhaps a mile or two in front of me," he breathed, "and it's a thick one." Glancing behind him, Rastus eyed the area where he had run from.

He would have stayed with his father, if his eyes had not landed on Asenath alone.

Glancing to his father, he offered a nod before turning once more, making his way to the mare he had spoken to earlier. His steps were quickened and messy, as if he were between a walk and run. Rastus was no longer fun and full of cheerfulness, but serious. It was clear on his face, the way his eyes read no amusement or happiness. The stallion had paused in front of Asenath, eyeing her. Pity he had dropped her rose. "We need to head back to the herd. In the meantime, stay close to me. What's that saying.. Strength come in numbers?" He hoped that she didn't think that he was there to save her. Rastus knew well that she could protect herself, but two was better than one. There was also no more joking tone in his voice. All had been abolished once danger threatened the herd.

"I saw it, and it doesn't look good." Feeling the need to update Asenath on the situation, he glanced behind him once more to see where the dust storm was. It was going to approach soon, so silently, Rastus moved to the side of Asenath. His body was larger and he was taller. If it came, and if they didn't make it to others, he would act like a shield for Asenath. Just call me your knight in shining armour, he wanted to say, but it wasn't the time nor the place.

Besides, it would be difficult enough navigating through the storm without a black eye.

Sena

Mare || 1.5 years || Yearling || M: Lorcan

[ind.] Asenath, Atolos

Sena let her gaze travel around the herd, eyes landing on various horses and seeing who was talking with who. A light breeze whisked around the yearling, it was hot and the humidity in the air didn’t help either, it grew stronger and blew her mane out of her face, it was surprising but Sena thought nothing of it. She turned to face Lorcan, who seemed amused at her comment about his sister, and as he spoke of her some sort of pride could be detected in his voice. He leaned in to tell her the next part, and Sena took a step towards him. "She acts all tough, but I know she's a softie at times,"

“Asenath? A softie?” she teased, “Who would have thought?”

At the mention of the coyotes, Lorcan seemed confident that the herd would know how to better protect everyone because of the foal they had lost. It was enough to put whatever worries she had at ease, of course, the herd would be fine. Who wouldn’t be more alert now, and know how to better deal with the situation if it ever came back up. Lorcan gave her a nudge and motioned to Atolos, "It looks like he's preparing to move. Which direction do you think he chose? Maybe to follow the river? The mountains? Maybe neither?" he spoke. The thought of moving again excited Sena, maybe today they could find water! “Maybe he chose the river, there could be something downstream that’s worth checking out? But the mountains would also be exciting to go to, and there might be something there…” It must be difficult to make the call on where to go next, Sena wouldn’t know what to do if she was in the lead stallion’s hooves. All she could do was trust the older horses to make the right call.

Lorcan’s eyes seemed to appear dream-like as he told her the first thing he would do if they ever found the place with endless meadows and rivers. Her eyes brightened at the thought of running through the grass and crossing cold streams, “Well, the first thing I would do is take the largest drink of water I could possibly have. Then I would run, exploring a place like that would be so interesting,” Sena sighed contentedly at the thought. If only a place like that existed. When the bay yearling mention waiting to approach Atolos, Lorcan had nodded before asking her to walk with him. “Of course,” she agreed, Sena wouldn’t mind accompanying her friend over to his father.

When Lorcan spoke of how he was, Sena didn’t quite expect him to be mad at his mother, but then again, they all grieved differently. For her, it had mostly been upsetting, and she too hated that she had no control over it. She had planned to live out a large portion of her life with her mother, her only family in the herd, but those hopes had been ripped away once she had died. At least Sena knew that her mother fought her hardest to stay with her, but with Sunna, it didn’t seem to Lorcan that she had fought long enough. She just stood there listening to him get it off his chest, "That's all. I'm just.. Mad.” he finished.

“And that’s fine, it’s okay to be mad, we all grieve differently,” she spoke, Sena wasn’t going to try to convince him with meaningless words that it would be alright, because it wasn’t, and it wouldn’t be for a while. Lorcan had been close with his mother and she doubted he would just forget her and move on quickly, she sure hadn’t and even though her mother had passed away a month ago, she was still getting over it. “And time only helps if you know when to let go, it’s been a while since my mother died and I have still not gotten over her because all I can do is think of her, and how I should have noticed her condition sooner. If I cant figure out how to get over her death, then putting time behind it won’t help since it would always stick with me. Though that doesn’t mean you forget her entirely.” Sena had done her best to explain how she had felt about her experiences, but she didn’t know if she had worded it right to get her point across.

At the mention of leaving Lorcan asked her to walk with him, Sena nodded and moved to walk with him when she spotted large clouds rolling in. At first, she was excited, maybe there was rain on the way and the herd wouldn’t have to travel as far to find their new home. But the yearling narrowed her eyes to get a better look at the storm, the clouds looked dusty and low to the ground and as they grew closer she started to panic. The winds picked up again and grew strong, then the sand on the ground started to bounce, leaping off the ground, “Lorcan…” she mumbled, stamping her hoof nervously she glanced back at the storm. The clouds were inching along the ground, consuming everything in their path, Sena watched as rotting trees, small bushes, and the dried river bed were covered in the clouds. Her limbs screamed for her to run as it drew closer, she was frozen with fear, she had never seen anything like it.

Sherwin - Stallion - Bachelor - Mentions: Open

Sherwin had been standing there for a shot while, something caught his eye, the sky darkening. He turned to get a better look. At first glance, it looked like clouds, rain clouds; storm clouds. But now that he was actually focused more on it, he found some differences. The clouds looked brown, dusty, and lower to the ground than normal; and were heading toward his direction far too quickly. The realization of what he was looking at suddenly hit, making his heartbeats quicken; and dread to build. A dust storm. And it certaintly didn't look like it was going to be a mild one, no, thick dark clouds of dust; at that speed. His ears flattened as he backed up a few paces, an instinctive response, but he knew he couldn't avoid something like this.

All he could really do is hope that the swiftly approaching storm wouldn't be his death. It was one of those things where you hoped for the best. His instincts told him to run, but he knew that even the swiftest animal wouldn't be able to outrun the storm. An animal could get lost in a dust storm like this one, could get killed or injured. The blindness that this kind of storm gave, was dangerous.

He had approached his father, stopping to stand a few meters away from him and awaiting orders. The young stallion faced Sena, responding back to her earlier words revolving around which direction the herd was to head off to. "Downstream would be a good choice," he agreed, not truly having much of a say in the matter. It was up to the adults to decide. Lorcan simply hoped that they would pick the right path.

"And time only helps if you know when to let go.."

Those words spoken earlier had made Lorcan think, even up to this moment. He wasn't ready to let go of his mother's death, not yet. It wasn't long ago, and he needed more time to accept that it had happened, and that he had no control over it.. But Lorcan also didn't like how nobody spoke of her. Well, not as often anyways. It was as if she had been erased from existence, as if murmuring Sunna's name would somehow cause destruction of chaos.

Glancing at Sena, he felt a pang of guilt hit his chest. Morbid as it was, he was rather.. grateful that they had both lost an important figure in their lives. It made things easier. Lorcan admitted that it was selfish thought to have, but it helped. "Even if you noticed her condition, there wasn't anything that could have been done to help her." He wasn't sure if that was what Sena wanted to hear, but that mindset helped sometimes. Despite what happened, there was nothing that anybody could have done to assist the horses that passed.

Huffing, he shrugged, opening his mouth to reply to Sena's other words before he paused, mouth hanging open. In the distance, he espied large clouds. "Is it rain?" He asked her, taking a step forwards and narrowing his eyes. Blinking, he broke out into a wide grin. "It looks like storm clouds! Sena, we're going to have water!" Turning to his friend, he trotted around her once, practically breaking out into a dance, that is, until he noticed her eyes narrow. Ears flickering, his movements stopped as he sided next to her, his own eyes moving back onto the clouds. It was then when Lorcan's smile slowly faded.

Those were no normal clouds. The colour was off, and they were low. Something was.. wrong. Head snapping to the sky, the yearling looked around just as the wind had picked up. He glanced at Sena, noticing strands of her hair being picked up in the strong breeze before his attention turned to Rastus approaching in the distance. He was hollering about a.. A storm?

"Dust storm." Repeating the stallion's words, his eyes flickered from the cloud, to Sena, then back to the cloud. All at once, his thoughts began to scream at him. Should they run? Should they seek shelter? Should they huddle together? Blinking, Lorcan seemed to be frozen in place, unsure of which option to go for. "Just.. We need to stay together," was all he said to Sena, his eyes plastered on the storm approaching. What were they to do? Where would they go?

Stepping closer to Sena and practically leaning into her, he snapped his gaze away from the storm, eyes widening in horror as he looked around. It was then when he saw Atolos.

"Father?"

There were several questions in that mere word spoken alone. Lorcan was asking what they should do. He was seeking guidance. His eyes pleaded as he waited for an answer. Amidst the fear he felt, there was also pride at having said a single word to his father.