xx.Castle In the Sand

[[esperanza]]

Right before dawn. The sun wasn't up yet, the navy clouds were just beginning to be highlighted with a pale orange glow, and above, a few stars still glittered. A flat land of endless sagebrush and tall sagurou cacti began to step out of the veil of night. It was, in fact, a beautiful, unwelcoming sight. The frenzied scurryings of scorpions, lizards, and snakes warned most sane beings to stay away, yet it had a deadly allure.

Not that she could see it.

The mostly white foal stood out, stark against the red toned shades of the desert, only the top of her disappeared. She stood still as a statue, only her rusty ears flicking around.

She could hear it. The warning rattle of a diamondback, not too far away. The scrape of its skin against the packed sand. It was coming closer.

All of a sudden, the filly wheeled around and crushed the snakes head under her young hooves. It moved no more. She bent her head down, pink nostrils flaring as she took in its scent. It was a pity that snakes had to die. They had such a lovely smell about them: sugary, sweet, poisonous. But it was instinct to kill them, and the foal had learned early in life that it was best to trust her instincts.

Snorting at the dead snake in disdain, the foal pranced off a few paces, stumbling on a rock. Rocks weren't so nice. They didn't have the warm obvious scent that living organisms did. She didn't like rocks. Kicking her hindlegs out, she sent the rock tumbling back a few yards. She tilted her head as she listened to the satisfying sound.

Most little girls are princesses, did you know that? Even the most tomboyish ones dream of being royalty with a sword. This filly was no exception.

And this desert that she could not see was her castle.

[[R].ebel]

I've mastered the art of
Deceiving you now.

There is no escape for you child. Your fate is sealed.


A shadow of the night, dark pelt blending so perfectly with the hollows of the twilight, following the smaller form. Stalking. Plotting. Preparing. Greedy crimson eyes bled through the darkness, cutting through the cool early morning air with an even colder gaze. The king of these lands, following his princess... His little puppet, princess... Playing. Imagining. Doing the things foals where best at. A father would look lovingly and humoursly at his daughters' playful antics, but this father was not like those weak fools. He followed in silence, remembering to stay downwind of her, as all except for her sight outweighed many other mustangs, having such acute senses of smell and hearing. Blank eyes floated, watching. Waiting. Death came near. A snake, head crushed, fresh blood clotting with the sand. The overwhelming pleasure of that smell intoxicated him, the stallion standing with eyes close as he allowed the scent to splash pains of dreadful memories through his mind. Such pleasure...

Thwump!

The black stallion opened his crimson eyes, looking down to the noise by his feet. A rock. Looking up, there she stood, looking without seeing. The scent of blood faded from his mind, drifting through his body with a final satisfying shudder. Focusing on the foal, a unsettling gaze fell over him, still and cold. Ears pricked to a coyote's yip in the distance, as if calling for the sun to come, but the stallion cursed it in his mind, cursed the sun to stay put and never bring light to this land. Let the darkness rule as it rightfully should... Finally, the stallion moved, stepping just behind his daughter, knowing his massive bulk could easily overpower such a small thing... but there were bigger plains than death for her... In what would sound like a father's voice, Demon put on a play for his daughter.

"Why, my Fala, what are you doing out here alone?"

The best thing about having a daughter who was blind, was that Demon could speak to her without ever having to show any emotion on his face... She would never be able to see the evil in his eyes that he was so fully aware of... and loved.

[megami]

Roscuro galloped in, slowing down as he reached Demon.

"Hello Demon. Having a nice day with your daughter?" He snorted.

He smelled the dead snake. A weird smell drifted from the corpse of the serpent. He looked at the playful little filly.

'Joyous little foal' he thought.

[[esperanza]]

Death, now that had a funny smell, and so did blood. She turned around as the scent rose into her nostrils, staining the surrounding air. And mingled with the smell of death was...

"Why, my Fala, what are you doing out here alone?"

The filly turned completely around to face her father, more for the benefit of her ears and nostrils than her useless eyes. She held back a snort of frustration: why didn't she hear him coming?

"I couldn't sleep, Father, so I went out to play," she answered him, honestly enough, in a voice like honey.

Footfalls; a stallion was approaching at a gallop, now he was slowing. The filly recognized the scent and the voice.

"Hello Demon. Having a nice day with your daughter?"

"Rosuro," she said, not quite able to pronounce his name right. It wasn't a question or an answer or even a command; just a statement. She knew that horse and

that horse was named Roscuro.[/color][/size]

[megami]

Roscuro's eyes passed over the two. Time seemed to stand still for a few moments, leaving only the three left in this world. Reality slammed the door in his face and Roscuro woke up from a moment of silence. He snorts and trots to a nearby dead tree to examine it.

[[R].ebel]

I couldn't sleep, Father, so I went out to play

Typical. When a foal wasn't doing something, even if it was sleeping, they had to find something to do. Demon couldn't help but wonder from time to time if it was worth keeping her around... but then his plans would prove themselves far more worthy and he would over look the price of being a father, and he used that term quite loosely. Before he could speak forth a response, his ears pricked to the sound of galloping hooves and the dark stallion turned his head to see another of his band approaching. Roscuro. Another puppet amidst his plan. It was a wonderous scheme coming together quite nicely, and eventually all of it would pay off. The Darksun... Demon would have to make a meeting with them soon. The Cimarron herd would have to suffer for supporting his rivals...

Hello Demon. Having a nice day with your daughter?

A little too informal for the lead stallion, but Demon would play nice for now. He listened to his daughter try to pronounce the members name, not getting it quite right. The black stallion did not answer Roscuro's question right away, taking a moment to look to the horizon, dreading the coming of the sun.

"Indeed."

The stallion walked by his daughter, his dark essence seeming to float through the night air. Demon stopped atop a dune, the sand shifting beneath his hooves. He watched the area for a moment, picking out a small coyote moving stealthfully through the small shrubs and cacti, trying to make its way towards the scent of the dead rattler. A scavenger feeding off the dead. Red hued eyes shifted to his daughter and the stallion brayed quietly for her.

"Come here, Fala."

It was time for a lesson...

[[esperanza]]

She was bored easily. The white filly kicked her heels up and pranced back to the dead snake, sniffing it again. When the sun came up, it would touch its dead body, and in the heat, it would smell far worse. The snake was dead; she couldn't play with it anymore. Fala frowned. She strained her neck to lift her head up further, soaking in all that she could.

Soon the sun's topmost edge would be beginning to break against the jagged horizon. She knew day was coming, because it was always very cold before day came. Shivering, the filly trotted after Roscuro, wondering what had captured his attention. She sniffed, flaring her nostrils. She couldn't quite put a name to the smell; it was dull, diluted. More death, though. She stepped foreward, ears alert, until her nose bumped into the tall pillar, causing her to step back in surprise. A tree, that's what it was. A dead tree.

Coyote. She suddenly became aware of its stench and wheeled around to face the canine. It was heading toward the dead rattler. Fala decided that the dog wouldn't hurt her, if all it wanted was a dead snake. She ignored it.

"Come here, Fala."

Her father's voice, and it was coming from higher up this time. Fala turned around, pinpointing the location of the sound, and started trotting toward it. She almost slipped once as she climbed up the dune, but kept going foreward. It didn't bother her. She stopped beside him. "What is it, father?"

[[R].ebel]

What is it, father?

Soon joined by his spawn, Demon kept his eyes over the vast wasteland. His mind was slowly and delicately processing how he was to gain his sweet, satisfying revenge on those who had dared crossed his path and defied him. Not only that, the untamed mind of the rogue was starting to crave the need for a larger audience... a larger group of disciples to worship and behold him. Deciet and lies where to paint his path to vicotory, and it would start with his daughter. But the question was, who was he to bring down first? Demon would have to think his plans through thoroughly in order to figure the order in which he was to play this out. But for now, he would simply play role as a father, and lie like the dirty dog he was.

"How I wish you could see the place you live in, Fala. It has a beauty in its own way. But even beautiful things can be deadly..." Demon referred to his daughter; how she could be his tool for a deadly game with 'Mother', but of course he hid it with a lace of tasteful deciet. "It's a shame that traitorous mother of yours could not see your beauty. She was the blind one, Fala. You are the one that can truely see. Tell me, my dear, what is it that you see when you think of the future?"

Demon did not set his hopes high for a 'right' answer, as she was just a yearling. He had much time to mold her mind into what it should be and how it would best accomodate to his needs. In silence he waited, the sky just starting to shift from its blackened night sky to a warming orange glow.

[[esperanza]]

"How I wish you could see the place you live in, Fala. It has a beauty in its own way. But even beautiful things can be deadly..."

The filly tilted her head, not quite understanding. What was beauty, and what did it mean to be beautiful? She stretched her nose out to her father's shoulder, nuzzling him, breathing in his scent that she had memorized and anylizing it. A small tremor of fear ran down her spine. Her father was dangerous. She wanted to be dangerous, too.

"It's a shame that traitorous mother of yours could not see your beauty. She was the blind one, Fala. You are the one that can truely see. Tell me, my dear, what is it that you see when you think of the future?"

Red ears fell flat at the mention of mother. Fala didn't remember much of her dam, but she did remember that her mother had a lot of fear and sorrow, and fear was the opposite of power. Strange, how mother and father were opposites. She didn't know what sorrow was. Or did she?

The filly tossed her head and stamped an angry hoof. Mother was not like father, mother had left, and that made her angry.

Fala stretched her head toward the sun's increasing warmth, enjoying the heat it threw onto her face. The concepts of light and dark were lost on her. There was no difference between night and day; there was just warm and cold. To be honest, she liked warm better.

The future, now that was a strange thing to think about. She didn't know how to answer father.

"I want to be powerful, like you," she said finally, with a timid smile, hoping father would be pleased.

[[R].ebel]

Blood red eyes darted to the source of the one who laid a touch upon his shoulder, a dreadful gaze of evil flowing through those red pools. One might would wonder how his daughter would perceive him if she could see the true evil of his essence. He knew her, though. He knew she knew of his abilities as a powerful leader, and there was no doubt in Demon's mind that the longer she stayed with him, the more like him she'd become.

I want to be powerful, like you

A sickly smile came across his maw as the black stallion looked back over the land. What an answer! So young and yet already showing promising signs of a future, of course Demon knew the threats of what she said as well. The growing need of power demanded that eventually the student would need to surpass the master. Demon had not yet worked out all the kinks, but before the time came of her lust for power, Demon would have to do something. He could not lose his power and he would not as long as he was still alive. With a dark chuckle, he responded with nothing more than a worthless lie that he would let fill her mind.


"In time, Fala, you will be the most powerful mare to live."

[[esperanza]]

In between her answer and her father's response, the filly entertained herself with nipping at a fly that had landed on her flank. She turned her head, ears flat, and bit at it until it flew away. The day was indeed getting warmer, and soon it would be bitterly hot. She knew this; it was the rhythm she was used to.

Ears perked up to the dark chuckle, and she couldn't help but shiver a bit in fear. Her father's laugh was a dark one, and although it was the only kind of laughter she had ever heard before, it set off some kind of hidden instinct.

"In time, Fala, you will be the most powerful mare to live."

A sparkle of excitement lit up her milky unseeing eyes, but at the same time she snorted to herself. If she was going to be powerful, she had to get rid of whatever it was that was making her feel fear at her father's laugh. The powerful could not be fearful.

"You really think so?" she asked with typical childish wonder, putting aside her previous thoughts.

[[R].ebel]

You really think so?

Demon was silent for a moment, looking at his daughter with a rather distant look. The black stallion allowed the silence to remain, feeling the warmth of the sun start to rise as the day started to begin. Then, Demon spoke a rare thing: the truth.

"Yes, Fala. If you are anything like your father, you'll grow to be quite powerful indeed... But in order to have more power, my daughter, we need to have more help."

Demon was already thinking of Alasdi. He didn't know the stallion personally, but he had a feeling Demon could get use out of the Darksun if he could work out some kind of agreement with the leader. He was itching to call this meeting soon.

"I believe you and I will go on a little field trip, Fala... when the sun sets tonight. What do you think of that?"

[[esperanza]]

It was like a lightswitch had turned on. The sun rose fully above the mesas and mountains on the horizon, and the landscape was transformed into one of gold with long, deep purple shadows. Instantly the temperature began to rise. Fala felt the warmth; it was seeping through her body, warming her.

"Yes, Fala. If you are anything like your father, you'll grow to be quite powerful indeed..."

The rest of whatever Demon was saying didn't register in her brain, for she was too caught up in the excitement of his affirmation. She reared back, kicking at the sky, towards the sun. When she was done with that, she kicked her hind legs up, and then finished with a toss of her head.

"I believe you and I will go on a little field trip, Fala... when the sun sets tonight. What do you think of that?"

This day just kept getting better and better, she thought as she tilted her head at her father. A field trip? An adventure! "Where are we going? Are the others coming with us?"

[/color][/center][/size]

[[R].ebel]

Demon watched with mild interest as Fala danced around, playing like a filly would. She didn't seem to be very interested in him yet, but that came to expected with a foal. Besides, hearing him speak would only condition her mind, virtually rendering her brain washed.

Where are we going? Are the others coming with us?

The black stallion sneered slightly at her ever-persistant questions, once again having to put up with the child, but the good for him outweighed the bad he had to go through. Starting for a walk down the sand bluff they were standing on, Demon answered her over his shoulder.

"We will be heading to the Darksun for a visit. I have some matters to take care of... but it will just be a trip between the two of us. A father, daughter... thing."

The evil brute wasn't good when it came to expressing any kind of emotional words. "Thing" was the best he could come up with, but his mind was too focused right now to put much emphasis on words. He needed to think on how he was to approach Alasdi and what to say to him.

[[esperanza]]

When her father's voice came again, it was lower. He was walking down the dune. Fala tilted her head to one side. The Darksun? Where was that? She had heard the name whispered among the band, but it seemed unimportant.

Still, she couldn't help but feel excited. Come sunset, her father had said...but that was too long to wait. She rushed after her father, rather awkwardly on her long legs. "Can't we go now?"