Mock Battles

sip on something sleepy
why not get a little overdose

he had been in the Valley all night, catching a little sleep as he stood by the outskirts of the Dark mythical kingdom. he couldn’t wait to get back to his precious Deserts, but he had slept there all the same, because then Gabreil couldn’t try to say that Kain was spending very little time in his prison. but the next thing for the dark bay to do was fight this mock battle. like Gabe said, at first it had been a challenge, but then Kain may have lost, and if he had, he would most likely not be allowed to return home during the three years that stretched ahead of him. so, they had decided to mock, because god knows that Kain could do with the practice, he had fought once, and that was another mock, against Wings. and, being an army horse, he needed to learn to battle, and also to gain some muscle and fitness. hopefully this fight would help with all three.

he quickens his pace, trotting to the mock battle field as the sun rises. as he moves, the fog swirls around his legs, clearing a path for him. he finds his way to the open stretch of land, eyes sharp as he searches for the chestnut. Kain realises that he is at a slight advantage; Gabreil’s bright coat made him an easy target, whilst his own, darker coat matched the tone of the shadows. he tosses his head as he halts, front legs square, standing as tall as he could (because he was so obviously the short one in this battle).

Kain sees the Hanoverian approach him, and his eyes widen slightly. he forces himself to keep calm, though, because if he panicked now, he could jeopardize the fight and even his life. well, perhaps not his life; this was only a mock, after all. but he could still get seriously injured if he let panic and pressure take over. so he took a few deep breaths while he was watching the chestnut canter towards him. Kain’s head moves as Gabe stops beside him, rearing up tall, and crashing down, aiming (Kain assumes) for his back. the panic rises again, but he manages to control it, realising that he really needed to do something – like, now – to cause himself as little pain as could be possible. the dark bay realises, immediately, that Gabreil has left his under belly open to attack; an unwise move, especially considering what it was Kain was about to attempt.

the small dark bay runs forward, and slightly to the left, meaning that Gabe would come down on the top of Kain’s right hind leg. assuming, of course, that Kain didn’t do anything else. but, that wasn’t the plan. as the chestnut’s fore legs come down, the bay’s back legs are flung up, colliding (hopefully) with Gabe’s underbelly. if his buck was successful, he could bruise, or even puncture an organ. but, he expected Gabe to move – in fact, he would be disappointed if the other stallion didn’t. since Gabe was on his hind legs, he would most likely have to twist in order to escape Kain’s flailing black legs. to twist, he would have to use either his hips or his hocks, which could cause a sprain, if Kain was lucky. this would cause quite a lot of pain, to say the least, which may mean that Gabe couldn’t move very well, or put much weight on his hind legs.

however, when Kain’s own hind legs touch the ground again, he winces slightly. in all the excitement of his counter attack (not really excitement, but it got the adrenaline pumping and his heart racing), he had forgotten that he had got hit. as Gabe was coming down again, one of his fore legs had collided with Kain’s body, just above the hock, and he could feel a slightly warm feeling trickling down his left leg. he knew, instinctively, that when he looked later, he would see a small cut, perhaps two and a half inches across. but, that wasn’t important now, it didn’t hurt too much, as long as he didn’t think about it. but he knows the second attack was coming, and that sick feeling of blind panic threatened to rise again, but he managed – again – to suppress it.

he turns his head, sees Gabe bucking into his hind quarters, and he moves, a quick spin on his fore legs. but he wasn’t quite quick enough; he sees it before he feels it. Kain had turned at least a foot, maybe more, but the chestnut was in such a place that meant Kain would have to move at least two feet, almost definitely more, to completely avoid his hind legs. a sharp shudder ran down the bay’s hind leg, and he gasped, kicking out unintentionally. now both his hind legs are hurting, but he knows that the battle is far from over, in fact it’s only just started. he wasn’t sure what, but he knew something had been bruised. no matter, he would deal with that later.

right now, Kain had one more attack (since he used his first one already). the ground was still damp, he thought it may have dried slightly, but that didn’t matter, he’s sure he would be alright to keep going. he thinks as he trots towards the chestnut stallion, and a plan starts to form in his mind. not a great plan, quite a clichéd one, to be honest, but it’s a plan all the same. he speeds up, going forward into a steady canter, and he circles Gabreil once, twice, preparing himself, attempting to ignore the pain in his back legs which was now trying to claw its way to his hind quarters. he knows that waiting much longer might cause him to doubt himself, and might tire him out, and might cause the dull ache to get worse. so, he pounces (in the way that only horses can).

he canters towards the Hanoverian’s left side, then, at the last minute, has a sudden change of plan. he swerves, so that he comes up beside the stallion, rather than into him. when his head is roughly in line with Gabe’s, perhaps slightly more forward, he plants his forelegs and bucks again. remembering that the bay is quite a lot smaller than the chestnut, he hopes that his aim is right, and that he’s going to hit Gabreil’s hind leg. Kain’s not tired – yet – and even though both his own hind legs are throbbing, he’s still got some power there. not much power, he’s all bones, no muscle, but power all the same.

if – and when – Gabreil moves, he has four main options. he could go forward, which would be unlikely, since it means that Kain’s buck would hit its target earlier. going backwards should still mean that Kain would hit, just slightly later. again, going left would be a stupid move, since the two stallions would still collide. finally, Gabe could move to the right. that would be the best option, to avoid pain, it would probably be the option that Kain himself would choose. however, given the positioning of the dark bay, and the aim of his back legs, Kain should – if he was lucky – still hit. but it wasn’t up to him any more; his part had been played. for the moment, anyway.

he trots away, keeping an eye on the stallion who was now going to try and cause Kain some more pain. he doesn’t want to stop moving, incase his hind legs stiffen up, so he keeps the trot slow and calm, and he’s waiting. come on Gabe. give it your best shot. because, god knows, he could do with the practice.

[ooc – so, erm, sorry this is so long >.< i got carried away haha. have fun with it <3]

k a i n
roäc and yvettes precious little accident
lieutenant of the dewdrop deserts