Explore Cottonwoodvalley

The sun hit Kaiserion's eyes, reflecting off a freshly laid layer of snow. The young stallion's ears swiveled rapidly as he looked around and inhaled the winter air. The frosty breeze stung his nostrils and cooled his lungs. Kai had been running for what felt like days, searching for his mother's herd. Around a week ago, the herd had a run-in with poachers and had scattered across the valley. Kai had watched as his mother's sister fell into frozen lake and vanished beneath its surface. He had watched another mare be snagged around the neck with a rope, to be dragged away by two strange creatures sitting on a pair of spotted horses. The horses who escaped had fled in every direction, amid a flurry of screams and hoofbeats. Kaiserion lost his mother in the fray, and feared for her fate. Days later, Kaiserion had spent the last of his energy on his restless wandering. He had barely slept or eaten since the attack and he was exhausted. The soft snow seemed inviting so

Really, he knew better. He really did. He had no excuses, no alibis. His mother had made sure to drill any sort of things out of him, and make it clear she would not endure such nonsense. And that would exactly be what she would call it. Nonsense. Foolishness. It probably was, to be honest. Just because he had grown up in their solitary lifestyle didn't mean he knew how to handle himself if a sticky situation arose, even if his mother had been firm on telling him how to handle such. Learning by ear was far different than learning by experience. Haakon knew that, and yet, he trekked still onward with his little expedition, the earnest sounds of birds almost beckoning him forward. It was early morning, and the little leopard appaloosa colt had snuck away while his mother still slept. He didn't mean to deceive his mother. He knew she would not be pleased with his act of defiance, but he just had to do this. Since he could wobble upon his legs, his mother had shunned him from other horses

The time has come, the time that the small group of mares were looking forward to. The time that Molly, the beautiful Red Dun mare, specifically, was excited for. After all, she had been wanting a foal for quite some time, but she seemed to have low fertility. The group of mares went to a safe area and before long, a few foals were born within the group. Molly struggled a bit, as it seemed the foal was stuck. Trussy, the herbalist of the herd, came with the group of mares and helped the best she could. Once it came to light that Molly was having issues, Trussy made her way over to assist to the best of her abilities. Soon enough a beautiful healthy little Red Dun Roan Tovero foal was born. Molly was relieved to know the babe was healthy and alive. "Congratulations Molly, you gave birth to a little colt!" Trussy said gently wrapping her neck around Molly's neck. "Thank you Trus, I wouldn't have been able to do this without you.

Beowulf observed the ranch for several minutes before he moved on. As tempted as he was to get a closer look at the horses in the pasture, he was not willing to take such a huge risk. His weary limbs protested as he walked and his coat was uncomfortably damp. Every inch of the sky above was covered by clouds, but blissfully the rain seemed to have stopped for the time being. Eventually the ranch disappeared from sight. The valley was quiet. All he could hear was the sound of his hooves against the grass and the distant calls of birds. He found a copse of trees, and after a brief inspection, deemed it a worthy place to settle for the night. He eased his body into the soft grass and scattered leaves and let the gentle swaying of the tree branches lull him to sleep. Beowulf slept for longer than he intended. When he opened his eyes a few hours later, sunlight shone dimly through the branches above him. He got to his hooves and shook out his mane. He rocked back on his haunches