{ khimaira development stories }

[demonthief.]

stories to be submitted to the [Khimaira Friesians - Development Game
please don't post.

[demonthief.]

Rain poured off King's muscular shoulder blades, the proud horse's head lowered with a grumpy look fixed on his face. It was supposed to be a simple ride to pick up some supplies and King, the mighty stallion, would carry them in his saddlebags without complaint. His light emerald eyes looked up at the dark sky and shook out his damp mane, hanging tightly to his neck. "It was supposed to be sunny," he grumbled, shifting his feet and further darkening his white legs in the wet dirt. Then it struck. BOOM. A loud clap of thunder shook the earth around him as a thin, jagged light raced across the sky. King stood up, ears pricked, nostrils flaring and eyes locked onto the sky. His heart pounded in his chest, so much so that the stallion felt like it might burst out of his chest. The proud and mighty stallion, now absolutely terrified. As lighting lit up the sky a second time, King tugged on his reins, the worn leather tightening on the post and shaking as King struggled.Another boom of thunder seemed to shake the trees around him and his eyes widened. With a frightened whinny and with a final hard, frantic tug he felt the sweet release from his tether. Rearing up, he just saw his rider appear out of the shop door before galloping into the darkness. King wished he could say he had a clue to where he was running that day but in all honestly, it was fear that drove him.

His powerful legs pounded against the soft ground as he ran, the thunder just loud enough over the sound of his heartbeat drumming in his ears. King's mouth was dry and his breath came out in ragged puffs as his lungs burned with each breath. A high fence appeared in the darkness and King headed towards it. Holding his breath, he leaped over it, his back legs flicking high into the air as he cleared it. The burn from his lungs and body began to become unbearable so the stallion came to a slow stop, head lowered and taking deep breaths as it continued to rain. He felt like he has been running for hours when in reality it was only a couple of minutes. The thunder had stopped but the rain continued to pour. Shaking out his mane and lifting his head, he squinted his eyes as there was a tall, equine figure in the darkness and King drew himself up to try to regain some composure. "King?" the voice broke through the noise of the rain and the horse walked closer. "Odysseus? What," he cleared his dry throat, "What are you doing here?" King asked as the stallion stopped a few steps in front of him, his champagne colour bright in the darkness. Od was soaked but he had a wide smile on his face and a sparkle in his eyes. The champagne stallion's wet tail flickered behind him as he answered his friend's question. "I adore rain, so I was out here enjoying it," he began, eyes watching the heavy droplets fall from the sky but his smile faded when he saw the leaves and sticks that cluttered his friend's mane.

"Mate, what happened to you?" he asked, concern in his eyes, taking a step forward. King's ears pinned back and he opened and closed his mouth, unable to find the words to hide his embarrassment. He liked to pretend he had no faults but truly he had many but did his best from hide it from others. Odysseus smiled gently and trotted to stand beside his friend, bumping his rump to bring King back to the present. "Come on, let's go home". On their way back to the stables, they chatted, Od being careful not address the thunder and lightning that had moved further across the sky. They crossed the field and trotted through the gate that Odysseus had previously opened. "Let's get you out of the rain", Odysseus spoke up and looked around to find something to stand under to shelter themselves from the rain. The stables door were closed, so they stood under a large tree and waited for King's rider to return.

[demonthief.]

Josiah knew this day would come, the older stallion standing tall in the dying evening sun, but perhaps not from a challenger so young. Especially not one of his own sons. To be a Frosted Horn was difficult, especially as a male; to the eyes of the tribe you were useless other than to sire offspring and then would be cast aside when the time came. Not Josiah. The bay stallion fought hard to earn his place as the lead stallion, scars still present on his coat to this day. Bi coloured eyes locked onto the lighter stallion, Matthias, who threw his head and snorted loudly. No words needed to be exchanged, the old male had grown familiar to the signs. Josiah tossed his own head, the sun rays catching the water droplets on his magnificent horns firmly stuck to his skull. Other herd members gathered around, creating almost a circular fighting ring around them. The stallions walked towards each other, heads held high. "Some would say that you are a bit young to challenge me," Josiah teased at his youngest offspring, born only a couple of seasons ago. Matthias' gave him his trademarked grin, his eyes, a mirror image of his father's briefly looked at the others around them." You know how I love to prove other's wrong." There was sharp tone to his voice but also a hint of humour as the two continued to banter. Josiah snorted, stepping to the side and begin a small walk around his son, who promptly followed suit, " Do I have any chance of you going easy on your old sire?" he chuckled, slowing his pace slightly. His son didn't bother to retort, knowing his sire was toying with him. The older stallion was in his prime, strong as he had ever been and after holding the position of lead stallion for 7 years, Josiah had won many challenges from cocky stallions, young and old. Matthias had little desire to take on the leadership of their herd but he has always had the flare for the dramatic.

Josiah stopped, pawing at the soft ground and Matthias halted, lowering and then throwing his head back in a dramatic fashion, his father rolling his eyes. Clearing his throat Matthias sobered his expression and walked forward, the stallions briefly toughed noses before dashing backwards. Their hooves kicked up dirt as they reared and charged at each other with a high pitched whinny. There was a solid 'thud' with the impact of their bodies, shoulders knocking into each other before the two danced backwards. Matthias was breathing heavily, his sides heaving but his eyes bright with determination and a small grin on his face. Josiah's side ached a little at the impact but mirrored his son's fiery determination and dashed forward, spinning to kick out with his hind legs. Matthias gasped, rearing and stumbling backwards out of the way of the hooves, snorting before striking out feebly with his front hoof. Josiah landed heavily and sidestepped with his eyes locked to his opponent, throwing his head wildly, his dark mane fanned out in the air. Josiah's ears pinned to his head as he tried to regain his breath as his son did the same. While this was an official challenge to his position, Josiah wouldn't hurt his son if he could help it, while a young stallion stood in front of him, all he could see was a thin, wobbly colt on their first trot around the pasture. Matthias danced forward and reared with a snort, Josiah doing the same and the two swung their front hooves at each other, snapping at each other's manes before returning all four feet to the earth with a 'thud'. None of their strikes had hit their mark, it obvious that both stallions were avoiding causing too much harm to the other.

The two stallions looked at each other, both breathing heavily. Matthias snapped his open mouth shut and walked up to his father, who simply raised his head. "Tough fight old man, but I've decided that the title 'lead stallion' doesn't suit me much," Matthias said between huffs, casting his father a weary smile before Josiah gave him a playful nip on the ear. "You could of told me that sooner," Josiah grumbled before turning around, flicking his tail in his son's face and slowly made his way down to the river, muscles a little tense. Matthias grinned and trotted after him, "Were you worried that I was going to win?" he playfully asked when he reached Josiah, who laughed out loud and giving his son a tender smile.

[demonthief.]

Estelle took a deep breath, her small filly body slipping through the gap in the gate that she had watched her sire's rider leave open this morning. Her short, fluffy tail swayed excitingly behind her as she looked at the small pasture she had escaped from before racing forward. She could hardly contain her excitement, holding her muzzle shut to stop herself from whinnying. She felt as if her heart would explode from the happiness, her tiny hooves galloping across the soft ground with speed her sires would be proud of. Estelle leaped into the air, kicking out her back legs before landing, somewhat heavily, on the ground before continuing to make her way to the pine woods that surrounded her home. "I can't believe it! This is just…," she shrilled when she disappeared into the forest's shadows, "I can't believe I did this!" Estelle came to a slow stop, her chest heaving heavily and her muzzle opening, to greedily take in the fresh, cool air. The wide smile on her muzzle, disappeared for a moment, thinking about what her parents would say but she shook her head and walked slowly forward. Foals were often told about the stories of these woods, that an ancient horse, abandoned by their riders was cursed to walk the land until it could find another to take its place. Estelle was no fool, she knew there was no such thing and was determined to prove the other foals that it was just a story made up to keep the foals from having great adventures. "And I'm going to prove them wrong," she said to herself in a determined tone and trotted forward with tall, prancing steps. "Besides, " she spoke out loud to herself, "I won't stay out too long, I will be back before the sun is gone. With my parents on a trail ride, I practically have all day," Estelle beamed, her rich, purple eyes wandering from the roots of the tree up to the canopy above. The tree leaves were a deep green and Estelle thought they looked lovely, much better close up than gazing at them from behind a high fence.

Clearing her throat, Estelle stopped gawking at the trees and focused on her footing. The ground slopped up slowly, the soft grass becoming coarse and then turning to hard stone. The filly frowned in concentration but continued with a determined look on her face as the incline sharpened. The forest wasn't as big as she had imagined, the small patch of forest opening to a large rocky outcrop the cracked to form a large ravine. It'll be fine, the filly thought to herself before daintily jumping onto a rock to continue her journey upwards a gentle slope made a large boulders and rocks. Estelle was now breathing heavily, leaping up to one rock to another, trying to reach the flat surface on the top where a large tree was happily growing. Her dark brown ears flattened on her head as she tentatively placed a hoof on the next rock to lift herself up but stumbled backwards as the rock gave way. "Goodness!" the filly gasped, her thin legs trembled on the rock she had re-balanced herself on. The large rock rolled to the ground below her and after swallowing a lump in her throat, Estelle found another ledge and soon was standing beside the tree. "Clumsy my hoof, I made it up here all by myself without a scratch!" Estelle said with a smile, gazing at the view. All the foals made fun of her because of her clumsiness but she had proved them wrong! The sun had dipped lower into the sky and Estelle sighed, "I guess I better get…" she began before the sounds of rolling stones behind her made her pause and slowly turn around. Something was blending in the shadows and it took her brain longer than what she would have liked to recognise what it was. A puma. Their silver eyes locked onto hers before snarling. The filly whinnied loudly in response, it echoing off the stones as she turned to the ledge to begin making her decent.

Stones tumbled around her as Estelle scrambled down the ledge, her head spinning around to watch the puma reach the spot she had just been and begin their own decent, much more gracefully than her own. Estelle heart thumped in her chest and after shutting her open muzzle shut, Estelle focused on climbing down. She reached out with her front hooves to grasp the rock below her but slipped. The filly squealed as she fell, bumping her shoulder on a boulder on her way down. Lucky she wasn't too far from the bottom. The wind was knocked out of her lungs and Estelle lay on the ground for a few moments, peering up at the mountain lion who leapt towards her. The mare squeaked and quickly got to her feet, racing across the hard ground as fast as her little legs could carry her. She didn't need to turn around, she could hear the feline's steps behind her, urging her to race faster. "Dad!" she called out in vain, sharply turning around a tree and galloping forward, her lungs burning with the effort. Everything hurt, her shoulder, her legs and her head. If I wasn't so stupid, the filly thought to herself as she weaved between trees, not willing to look back at her pursuer. Her frantic purple eyes saw the familiar structure of a fence and while it wasn’t home, she was willing to take any miracle at this point. Calling out for help would only waste breath she needed for running, so Estelle stayed on her path and wriggled through the gap in the high fence to run into the shelter.

Her whole body trembled as she cowered in the corner, her purple eyes wide and fixed to the opening of the shelter. A slender shadow began to appear in the doorway and all Estelle could do was close her eyes tight, curling into a ball as tears fell down her face; but suddenly there was a scuffle and a feline squeal. Estelle got to her feet and wandered slowly over to the entrance to peer into the paddock. Her mouth dropped open at the sight. A rather chunky stallion with stunning paint markings was sitting on the predator in a rather awkward manner, but it kept the feline in its spot, it hissing and spitting something horrible. He spoke to it softly before getting up, moving himself to stand between Estelle and the lion who took no time racing out of the paddock. With a determined snort he watched the animal leave before turning around to talk to Estelle who stayed frozen at the shelter entrance. "It's alright, you're safe little one," his voice was soft and gentle and Estelle ear flattened on her skull before moving closer to the stallion. "Now," he said, lowering his head in a friendly manner, "What is your name?". The little filly cleared her throat, tears still falling down her cheeks. "It's Es…Estelle" she stuttered and looked up at the stallion, sniffing. "Well my little lady, you certainly had a wild adventure but I say that that's enough for one day, don't you?" Estelle gave a slow nod and shuffled over to stand close to the stallion, his warmth a comfort to the trembling filly. The stallion gave her a gentle nuzzle on the top of her head and stood with her, calming her down and chatting to her all afternoon until his riders noticed the new member in the paddock. Soon her parent's riders were there and they took her home after the filly gave a big thank you to the stallion who saved her. The filly never went to the ridge again but often her adventures would take her to the neighbouring farm to visit her good friend, Atrab.

[demonthief.]

The two fillies' giggles bounced off the tall trees as they raced across the soft grass, their mothers watching them from the top of the hill, grazing with sweet smiles. "Come on! Faster," the darker of the two fillies, Zira shouted to her friend, Oriana. The younger filly stumbled, her head lowering towards the ground as she fought to regain her footing and to stop herself from going head over heels. Zira slowed slightly and playfully nudged her friend's shoulder when Oriana got back on her feet. "You alright?" Zira asked and Oriana simply nodded with a soft smile on her face. The pair slowed as they neared a winding river. Autumn had tightened its grip on the earth, the pines still adoring their characteristic deep green leaves while the scattered maples were now stunning colours of deep reds and oranges. The air had the Autumn chill as well, Oriana shivering as a soft but cold gust of wind whipped around them, Zira, however was unaffected and splashed into the river. "Zira!" Oriana called, rushing to the water's edge with a worried look on her face. Zira spun around and trotted to the edge, hooves still in the water and bopped her nose against her friend's, watching as the worried look fade. "Look, I know that we are met to stay in sight of our mothers," Zira started, "but, the river isn't deep and we need to have some fun before it freezes," she said in a diplomatic tone as she danced backwards, water splashing with each step. Oriana swallowed and turned her head to where her mother was, now just a distant white spot. Her purple eyes moved over to look at the slowly running river and tentatively stepped into the water before recoiling at the temperature. Zira, who was thoroughly soaked at this point, rolled her eyes and trotted out of the water to step behind her mate. With an hard shove, she pushed Oriana who gave a breathless gasp and stumbled to get her footing on the uneven bottom, giving Zira an almost venomous look. Zira gave her friend an innocent smile before jumping in after her and lowering her head to the water's surface to take a quick drink.


The fillies played in the water for some time, the sun now high in the sky and giving a contrast to the cold air. Both fillies were rather wet, manes plastered to their necks and short tails flickering water with every sway. Zira reared before jumping back on solid ground, stumbling a little but a smile on her face that wasn't going away any time soon. Oriana followed, a little breathless from all the playing and after a gaze at their herd, walked to a patch of sun to lay down. Zira followed and lay down beside her, resting her head on her friend's shoulders, eyes wandering over the environment around them. Oriana's purple eyes had just fluttered shut when her friend's voice caused them to open again. "I don't think we have explored that cave.." Oriana rested her head against soft grass for a moment before getting to her feet, following her friend whose unmeasurable energy was evident, light filly however was exhausted. Her slow steps meant she quickly fell behind and soon the claw marked Zira had disappeared. "Zira?" Oriana called, ears pricked up and trotted through the open mouth of the cave. Darkness enveloped her and the little foal's ears pinned to her head and her tail swished nervously behind her as she stuck to the side of the cave. "Zira? Where are you?" her soft voice echoed off the walls. There was a light in the distance and the foal was drawn to it, her steps quickening, her eyes nervously scanning the darkness. Walking around a sharp corner, the filly's mouth opened wide at the sight before her.

The cave opened to an unbelievable space, rocky steps bordering a large pool of water and beyond that, a little island with a tall maple growing in a pool of sunlight coming from an opening at the top of the carven. Oriana walked slowly forward, as if in a trace, towards the water's edge to peer at the murky water. The sound of disturbed rocks caused the filly to let out a squeak and dance backwards, head spinning to find the source. The panic turned to relief as she spotted Zira climbing along the rocky border, acting as a bridge to get to the island. "Isn't this brilliant?," Zira cried, her red eyes bright with wonder as she looked at her friend who gave a solid nod. Oriana moved to stay close to her friend, head lowered to sniff the ground and wondered how a place like this existed. With a huff, Oriana reached up to begin to the scale the slight but rocky incline to follow Zira. Rocks rolled away from her hooves but she managed to get to the top. "What about Mum?" she pondered out loud, worried about how long they had had been away from their herd but Zira was quick to reassure her friend. "We'll be back before you know it." Zira jumped, landing heavily on the 'island' and waited for her friend. "Promise?" Oriana's sweet voice asked and Zira nodded, a small smile on Oriana's face and she continued forward. Clenching her jaw in concentration, Oriana moved slowly forward over the rocky 'bridge'. Suddenly some of the more unstable rocks shifted from under her hooves and with a panicked whinny, Oriana fell into the deep, murky water. "Ori!" Zira screamed and watched as her friend disappeared under the water and scrabbled to get back onto the bridge, calling her name over and over.

All Oriana could see was darkness, her legs kicking to bring herself to the back to the surface. Her legs felt something, it wasn't a rock or dirt but whatever it was, it was rising beneath her and soon Oriana had broken the water surface with the unknown thing keeping her afloat. The filly coughed and spluttered, her eyes staring at her friend whose attention was drawn to something else. Oriana looked down and saw the thing that was keeping her afloat, a horse with weird, fin-like growths on their body. Oriana eyes grew wide, hoping whatever had saved her, had indeed saved her and not just 'caught' her. "Are you alright?" the voice was masculine and sounded worried. Oriana started to slowly nod but burst out into tears. The stallion ears flattened on his head for a moment, not wanting to make the little foal cry. "Oh, don't worry, I.. I have you," he stuttered softly as he turned his body towards to the opening to the carven. "Come on, let's get you to some solid ground," he said after clearing his throat and with ease swam towards the shore with Zira racing to greet them. Zira's eyes remained on her friend and stood anxiously at the edge of the water but stumbled back a couple of paces as the tall stallion slowly revealed his tall figure from the dark water. He lay down in the shallows and spoke to Oriana softly as she edged off him, still sniffing. Zira practically tackled her friend and nuzzled her, resting her head on Oriana's shoulder as Oriana embraced her back, the two trembling.

The stallion watched the two with a small smile and let them have their moment before speaking up in a stern tone. "Now you two, what are you doing in here alone? It is dangerous in here, the water is very deep and what would have happened if I wasn't here?" Oriana shyly hid behind Zira who stood tall. "It was my fault, I made Oriana come with me. " she said softly. The stallion sighed as he stood up in the shallows, "Yes, well, just remember to think about your actions before you do them, especially when you bring someone else with you," the strange stallion replied, tilting his head towards Oriana who was sticking like glue to her friend. The stallion turned his head towards the carven entrance and sighed, "I would take you back to your parents, however," the male looked at his hooves, gently splashing the water he stood in. Oriana peered from behind her friend, quietly asking a question, "Why?". The stallion pulled back, almost as if he was offended by the question but after a few moments of silence, he answered in a slow, clear voice. "I'm a hippocampus and for me to step out of water is rather, uncomfortable". As he finished, he looked at the two trembling foals with a frown. Oriana looked at the stallion and noticed that the thin fins seemed to cover his body. She had to stop herself from touching them. The stallion pushed past them with a grunt of "follow me", and the foals were quick to follow.

Oriana shivered from the cold that seemed to grip her bones but was determined not to lose sight of the chestnut stallion. She tilted her head at the strange way the stallion was walking. It was almost as if he never had walked on solid ground before, his knees locking and shuddering and a look on his face that looked like he was in pain. Her light ears pinned to her head and she shared a glance with Zira before they both picked up speed to stay close to the stallion. Sunlight flooded over them and Oriana smiled, Zira giving a happy whinny and trotting past the other to and began to roll on the soft grass. The stallion walked past Zira and straight into the river, giving an unmistakable sigh of relief. Oriana looked over at the hill where their herd was grazing and her ears dropped when she couldn't see them. She galloped over to Zira and gave her a poke with her hoof, throwing a panicked look towards her friend and then to the hill. Zira got up and looked at the hill, her own face dropping. "It's… okay. They wouldn't leave without us," she said in a shaky voice and peered at the stallion who was looking at them curiously before looking at the hill he had watched them both stare at. "Zira! Oriana! Darlings!?" a pair of voices called out and both filly's mothers appeared from behind the trees, running up to their respective foals. Scolding and holding the close. Oriana turned to thank their savour but he was already travelling down the flowing river, turning back to give the foal a small smile before continuing on his way.