†

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A lively whinny rings out over the air. Temblor opens his eyes and turns his pale head in the direction of the caller, his dark gaze settling on the form of a small family. 'Small' only in the sense that there were three of them, a mother and her two children, both of whom appeared to outclass their dam in height despite their youth. Tension tightens his gut. Send them away, he thinks, but she does not. The three of them approach, mother duck leading her chicks, and he draws in a low, steadying breath as he turns to meet them.

The mare leads the way. She is white, blanketed in cream, the pattern of her coat mimicked by the colt at her hip. His upper half is far darker than his dam, and the blue of the eyes peeking out of his white face are opaque, marbled in the unique way of the blind. A pity, Temblor thinks, uttering a low whicker of greeting as they crest the hill, though it seems the boy is not unduly hindered by his lack of sight. "Hello," he replies, reaching out to exchange scents with Oswin and drawing in her warm femininity with soft, slow breaths. His eyes pass briefly over her daughter, noting the filly wears the family white upon her back and not her belly. He wonders if their father is somewhere on that mountain after all.

The Peak mare's introduction reclaims his attention, though it is difficult not to feel the intensity of the children's gazes. Temblor does his best to tune them out. His ears twitch in surprise at the title attached to Oswin's name— and yet, is it so strange for a sisterhood to have a leader, when it is not uncommon to find a similar role within the brotherhood of a bachelor band? "I am Temblor," he replies. "I lead Paradise, over on Atlantis. Curiosity has brought me here, Oswin— I must confess I've never come across anything quite like this before, a herd of only mares..." He's puzzled, still trying to solve the mystery when he has a fount of information standing right in front of him, waiting to be tapped. "Can you tell me more about it?"

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TEMBLOR
& swallows you whole