Orhan

The desert was quiet today.

Orhan would have liked to think that it was his herd that was being especially elusive - for instance, Indira was off on an adventure and he had no idea where she was - but in truth, he knew he was the culprit. Where normally he would have fretted over his daughter's whereabouts and searched high and low for her by now, Orhan instead found himself at the pounding waves of the shore, at the very edge of his home, staring out across the ocean.

He felt numb today, like a visitor in his own body. And at the forefront of his thoughts was his son Koray, who was somewhere out there, across the waves. This knowledge had slowly sunk into him over the past few months, infecting him like a poison, testing his threshold of sanity more with each passing day that his son did not return. Now, not even the desire to spend time with his loved ones could have pulled him away.

It seemed no matter how happy he was, his demons would always follow him.

Despite his numbness, his thoughts were frantic. Koray could not possibly have held a grudge this long, could he? Something must have happened, Orhan thought. Something must have stopped his son from coming home. And Orhan would be damned if he let one more of this loved ones slip out of his life as easily as so many others had. Why had it taken him this long to realize how hopeless and stupid it was, sitting here in the desert and waiting for his wishes to be granted, trusting that everything would turn out the way he wanted it to?

The stallion experienced a sudden moment of clarity. The salt of the sea was strong in his nostrils, the breeze cooling against his body. He inhaled deeply and clenched his jaw, his heart resolute, then stepped into the tides. He would find his son, and bring him home.

Before he could take three full strides one of his hooves caught on a hidden rock, twisting his ankle out from underneath him. Orhan stumbled forward and crashed face-first into the waves. Water choked his nostrils and made his eyes burn. In a panic, he flailed his legs desperately in an effort to right himself, but the tides were strong today. He had barely managed get his head above the waves and suck in a single breath before they dragged him further out to sea, where his hooves could no longer touch the bottom.