The Ridge….

The very sight of the island weighs heavily on her heart. Where once, it had been the greatest source of her happiness, now it is shrouded in mystery. The stallion that had come for her was not entirely unfamiliar. She had seen him in the Lagoon once or twice, but never dared to approach him. He appeared broody and ill contented and thus far, her experience in the Lagoon had not entirely been unpleasant. Though she was never allowed to leave, for the most part, Psychedelic left her alone to do as she pleased. On occasion, the boy Peyote and his coyote companion would appear (usually covered in mud or debris) and taunt her into a game of chase or a race through the dried reeds. Yet none of them ever bothered to remind her that she was a captive, even if a captive was what she was.

As her slender legs touch down onto the familiar sands of the Ridge, the feeling of utter aloneness wraps itself tightly around her like a noose around her throat. The last time she had been here… Charby had stood, broken and mismatched eyes filled with the same sadness that mirrored in her own, watching as she was herded away. Charybdis…. The thought of the alabaster woman causes her heart to ache. Like a child, she longs to cry out, to beg for the mare to return so that she could curl against the warmth of her breast and feel the comforting sounds of her steady heartbeat. Charby had become more a mother to her than Vanya ever was. She was strong, fearless, proud and wise. She was everything that Rivka hoped she might someday become.

But gazing up and down the vast rocky cliffs, there is no sign of her idol. Small muzzle lifts now as she inhales a deep breath and finds only the scent of the Lagoon stallion that had battled Psychedelic. The thought of his imposing figure causes her to shudder her skin, despite the warm breeze. Why? Why had he freed her? Why had he brought her back here to face the ghosts of her past? Atlantis was nothing but a painful memory to her now, an island of shadow that steals away everything she has ever held precious. Father, mother (well, she really didnt expect mother to come back anyway), and now Charybdis. Why here? What could she possibly offer him anyway.

With a half-hearted sigh, she draws herself further from the reach of the ocean tide. She pauses, giving her black and white skin a quick shake to rid as much of the salty ocean water as she possibly could, and then tilts back her head. The whinny that escapes her lips is not the same excited voice that might have slid free a year ago or even the year before that. She was tired, exhausted really, and lost in a world as familiar to her as the back of her hooves. Reluctantly, she waits, seeking the comforting shade of a nearby palm tree to avoid the heat of the sun. No doubt it would not be long before the broody lagoon stallion appeared to collect his prize, unless the jungle had already devoured him too…..