Common

I had grown used to the droning of the insects in the swamp I now called home, and had learned to tune them out most days. Today, however, the very sound of their endless hum was burrowing into my subconcious and driving me mad. I could feel the vibration of the sound in my bloodstream, through my hooves, my ears, my skin. It was inescapable and it drove me from the muddy shallows in which I'd been lounging and out into the Meadow.

The open-air offered only a modicum of relief. Something still hummed beneath my skin and made my whole body feel flush with the need for some sort of release. I had not found myself a mare of my own, although I hadn't really been searching either. Mostly, I'd just been focusing on earning the right to have one beneath Garmr, and to prove myself so that when election season came next summer, I would be qualified to stand up alongside the black stallion and earn my place.

That thought spawned another, and then I found my hooves orienting toward the Commons at a steady jog, my dark tail flagged out behind me as I went. Many of the mares were already being courted by other stallions, and I passed over them. I knew that I wanted one of my own, in time, but I lacked any desire to have to guard one from my brothers while autumn still raged across the islands. My own appetites were hard to control, let alone that of my brothers.

Eventually, the blue stallion caught my eye and I did not hesitate to pick up a lope in his direction to quickly close the distance between us. I wasn't sure if the Peak was still busy doing their whole "imprison the men" routine, but I didn't want to chance having to deal with them today. Their politics didn't make sense to me, but I had accepted that I didn't have to understand them to try and work around them. Garmr was already doing what he could to garner freedom for our imprisoned brothers, and I trusted that he would be able to make it happen.

"Hello." I said, somewhat abruptly as I dropped to a halt near the man. I had a few hands on him, but he had a fear years on me and so I didn't immediately try my hand at forcing him to the Lagoon, although I was pretty sure that a physical altercation of some kind might scratch the maddening itch I was feeling. Something, something, more flies with honey or whatever. "I'm Khyber, an associate of the Lagoon." I waited half a beat to see if there was any recognition on his face before offering what I had really come here to say. "We need more strong men like you. What's your name?"

Stallion - Young Adult - 15.2 - Brown Overo