i come into this world so wild and free; taru

A cool autumnal wind skittered low to the earth, tugging at what remained of the declining grass and sending the maiden gold-brown leaves into dancing updrafts. Salki exhaled, noting neutrally that the air expelled from her nostrils no longer formed visible clouds. Temperatures had fallen considerably in recent weeks up on Croal Mountains, which she had wound her way into along rarely traversed craggy non-routes.

Cold alone wouldn’t have driven Salki down from the mountains. Although she had been born a second-generation foreigner in this diverse land, the steppe was in her blood. Salki had a body built for harsh weather – small, stocky, strong, with a thick, dark coat which had already begun to grow through in anticipation of the oncoming winter.

No – Salki didn’t run from cold. But she did run towards novelty, always.

The huge expanse of twinkling water stretched unendingly across the flats, ceasing only to give way to the gentle green slopes behind it. Trickling towards it were a thousand brooks and streams, hugged by squelching mud and reedy marshes. For Salki, who had been using snow to hydrate for the last few weeks, every glittering surface was inviting. She paused to drink from the nearest running stream before plunging forward through the mud to towards the lake, unconcerned by the flecks of brown speckling her black coat from all sides. Some of the reeds were as tall as she was. Distracted momentarily, Salki redirected her route so she could go through them, nudging her way through with her nose outstretched and her ears pricked forward.

The reeds halted a brief distance from the lake’s edge. Salki poked her head through but paused immediately, curiously and warily regarding the large, scaly creature sunning itself by the water’s edge. It had a long, thick tail which tapered to a tip and a huge, open mouth with sharp teeth studded along the gums. Salki had no idea what it was, how fast it could move, or whether it ate 12hh Mongolian Horses for lunch. It certainly looked like it was capable.

So, since reversing her steps was not in her nature, she just… stood there. A mass of reeds with a small horse’s head poking out the front, very still and just a little stuck. (Although she’d never admit it.)