Doubt has begun to overtake Fell as the rift between Bay and Cove widens, and tension thickens between the horses on the shore. He can understand the Tinuvel King’s reservations about meddling in Peak affairs and bringing a powerful enemy to the winter island’s shores, but Fell knows that the reason for Solomon’s wrath is something else.

Something to do with Kolfinna specifically.

The Bay stallion is not interested in the details of Solomon’s relationship with the Peak mare. It is the principle of this isolated problem: if Kohelet and Solomon have supposedly been turning the other way for Fell’s conquests, what makes Kolfinna special? What makes her more deserving of freedom than any other mare? Was he supposed to know that the silver Peak mare had some type of immunity?

It’s infuriating to the Marwari stallion, and the fact that he must keep this frustration to himself only amplifies it. Fell is under no illusions that he is a kind and peaceable leader; the Bay king is abrasive at best, volatile and combative at worst, but he treats his mares fairly. Each of the Bay residents is equally worthy of protection and comfort, and after the disastrous end to Svenja’s captivity, Fell is no longer keen on forcing those to stay who wished to leave. A herd is at its strongest when its members are not digging around the Bay for ways to escape, and though he could not communicate this to them, he trusts the herd dynamic to sort itself out in time and come to learn that he is not entirely inflexible.

Blue’s words had resonated with him before her departure. Fell had no intention of keeping Kolfinna captive, but Blue is correct, in his mind, about the laws of nature, despite her abrupt dismissal from the group. Fell sees no crime in following his instincts first, and working around them to build his life successfully; why else would such rules be written into the tapestry of every horse?

Fell assumes at this point that he may have permanently damaged what tenuous alliance (if one could even call it an alliance) he had with Solomon, and he has some thinking to do about whether or not he wanted to fix it. In the meantime, as soon as the gathering on the shore of his home disperses, Fell makes a beeline for where he had seen Blue disappear into the woods. He picks up a canter, frustrated energy finding movement to be its only outlet as he tracks the roan mare. As soon as he sees her white-slashed coat, the black stallion slows, announcing himself with a snort.

FELL

stallion. 16hh. black. marwari x. Rougaru x visurix.