He had not found himself alone for long, for as it had always been on these islands, the arrival of foreign man in another's territory always brought the stallion running along their beach, hooves beating the ground as they prepared themselves for war.

There would be no war between them. Not today. The only battle taking place on the frosty beach of Tinuvel was the mental fight Asche was struggling with - his instincts telling him to flee, forget this place, his heart yearning to know what had become of his once beloved Cove. The vanner man who appeared before him would be a threat, his size somewhat of a deterrent for any who may have arrived here with aggressive intentions - though Asche was taller, the capped man was lanky, remnants of his adolescence awkwardly hanging from parts of his frame in what some may consider to be endearing reminders of his inexperience. Silently he dipped his head to the resident, a mark of respect, and straightening his posture again he looked the man directly in the eyes with an expression that showed some sort of neutrality. "Greetings. My name is Asche - I used to be from this island," he admitted, though kept his expression guarded. Now of all times was not the a suitable moment to let his formal demeanour crack. "I simply wished to visit my old home - I now live on Atlantis - but as I was swimming over, I could not seem to find a familiar landmark."

For a moment his mismatched gaze wandered along the skyline the island painted, the chilly breeze lifting the hairs around the nape of his neck and resting them back down again as the residual shiver ran down his spine. "Do you happen to know anything about the Cove?"

Had his territory suffered the same fate as the rumoured island of Cimmaron, swallowed up by the sea, all who lived there fleeing in terror? Or had it just grown quiet, dead changed by a lack of life - a lack of life Asche had committed it too when he fled? That guilt would be a burden he would not bare. Or, perhaps, he had just been away for so long that the shores that once were his home seemed alien and in reality the Cove lived on - without him.