As she swam, the water stung her eyes. The salt ran across her face and stained her black skin, dulling the colour of her coat and staining her a salted, pale black. Even as the sea whipped at her face and burned her eyes, she continued onwards, preferring the chill of the ocean and the sting of the salt to the dryness of the land she had been sequestered on.

The seas here were calm, and she took that as a blessing from her deep sea god, relishing the current that tugged lightly at her feet and pushed her towards one of the closer islands in this little string. Meeting the coast line, her hooves found the purchase of wet sand under the water, and she hesitated, unsure of leaving the ocean behind her. Yet, over the stink of the sea, she can smell others- mares and stallions, children and adults, and she is reminded of her plan. With a heavy sigh, she pulls herself out of the water and stands on the beach, dripping.

What she found, surprised her. The climate was much more welcoming than that of the peak, and the air was a little warmer and a little more humid. It was less familiar than the staunch, green forests of the island she had come from. Here there were strange trees, unlike anything she had ever seen before. Staring up at them, she narrows her eyes and folds back her ears, breathing deep and trying to put her finger on the smell of, what she assumed was, the herd that lived here. After taking a few moments to become a little more familiar with her surroundings, she starts forwards.

It had taken some time, but she seemed to have filled out a little more. No longer did her skin shiver at the cool air that ran over her wet skin, and while her ribs were still easily visible, she did not look like a walking skeleton. Leviathan’s quickly returning strength is what gave her the courage to press onwards, ears still slicked back against her dark, wet hair.