Aornos

Aornos

Chapter 1~ In The Deep.

Dark mysterious waves lapped the white shores in a constant erosion, ripples on the surface signalled the movements of fish both big and small. A quiet forest surrounded the lake, almost as if protecting it from the outside world, shielding it from the troubles of the world. One could only fathom what lingered in the depths of those waves, what beings or wonders of great majesty hidden by the water, the lake was but a mere hint of the greater beauty of the sea.

Sea Storm had never seen the ocean, although he dreamt of it often. His father had been a sailor in the Equestrian Royal Navy, that's how he died, or at least that's why he had disappeared. Sea's mother never said that her husband was dead, only lost at sea, still a possibility of him returning. Sea Storm thought she was being a tad thick if she honestly thought that was possible, although it did also occur to him that she may only avoid saying his father was dead for his sake. Still thick, but nice, at least.

At that moment Sea Storm was wondering whom in Celestia's name made school days so long, he wanted names so he could hunt them down and throttle them in their sleep. The professor was rattling on about something that honestly Sea Storm either didn't care about or didn't find any use in, this happened often in school, Sea rarely found the lessons very useful. Mushy lectures on the importance of friendship or how to work with others, boring.

A prickling sensation spread across the back of Sea Storm's neck, his ears twitched and he shivered slightly. Someone was looking at him, he could always tell, he could feel their eyes from behind him. He had to look, as much as Sea wanted to stay completely still and not move lest he draw attention to himself and more people look at him. Curiosity beat anxiety this time, and Sea turned as subtly as he could around to see whom it was... Oh, he should've known, it was that cute filly again.

Sea didn't actually know her name, he never bothered to pay attention when her name was called during roll-call as he was too busy mentally preparing himself to do the same. He has taken to mentally referring to her as 'Red', as it seemed the most appropriate due to her light pink fur, red mane, and ruby eyes. Red was smiling at him as she often did, Sea Storm always wondered why she did that smile at him with her pretty mouth and cute freckles around her cheeks and nose. They had never spoken, they weren't friends (Sea Storm didn't have any) and yet there she was, smiling with sparkling eyes and a face that could light the darkest of places.

Sea Storm met it with his own queer look, why was she staring at him? And smiling, what was with the smiling? Was she mocking him? Laughing internally? Sea's mind raced with paranoid conclusions until the staring contest became unbearable and with a twitch and a blink, Sea faced the front again, trying with all his might to ignore Red's eyes on his back. He couldn't, so he reserved himself to waiting in agony for this school day to end.

'Tick-tock', he wanted to go, 'Tick-tock', the one place he could be himself, 'Tick-tock', the one place he could be free.

He didn't run when the bell rang, that would draw too much attention. He merely walked as fast he could within the definition of 'walk' and not so fast as to appear to be in too much of a hurry, it was a great skill to have when one wanted to avoid being noticed. Sea Storm slipped through the crowded halls filled with the eager youth, worming and dodging his way through like a well-coordinated servant until Sea Storm finally broke free into the outdoors. The crisp cool spring breeze of north-eastern Equestria greeted his nostrils and Sea took it all in, the air smelt of pine and just the faint touch of salt from the sea, that was only a couple hundred kilometers away.

Sea Storm was focused on a much closer target, however. He made his way left from the schoolhouse and onto the gravel trail that would lead him to his favourite place in the world.

He should have known that his progress would have been hindered, it always was. A brute by the name of Fire Blitz. This colt was as big as an average Stallion and built more like a bull than a pony, with thick forelegs and a large head, he was a year older than Sea Storm whom was fifteen at the time. Sea always wondered why he even bothered to intimidate him, clearly he was the better make specimen than Sea was, and if to add insult to injury, despite all appearances, Fire Blitz was not in fact stupid.

"Sea Storm," Fire greeted pleasantly, as if they were both simple gentlecolts meeting by chance.

"Fire Blitz," Sea Storm replied, he had to play along with this game lest words be replaced by angry hooves.

"Heading to the lake then, are we?" Fire continued.

"Yes, I am."

"And why is that?"

"Because I have no friends?"

"That's right, because you have no friends," Fire Blitz confirmed, a satisfied smile coming onto his lips. "And do you know why you have no friends?"

Sea tried to answer with the accepted response but he just couldn't, his word died as his throat clogged shut and his eyes stung with tears. It frustrated him that these taunts got to him, but they did, because they were true. No one talked to Sea Storm, nobody liked him, they avoided him like the plague. Sea Storm's world was that of glances, giggles behind shameless hooves, and adults whispering when they thought he wasn't listening. They whispered about his father, about how he was odd too, and that it was genetic, that Sea Storm was even more queer and should be taken somewhere to be helped. It always bothered Sea even though he pretended it didn't. Luckily this time Fire Blitz was too in the moment to notice his prey's deviation from the script.

"I'll tell you why, because you're a perverted, disabled, useless piece of garbage, and I bet your mother wishes she smothered you in her crib," Fire grinned viciously as tears broke out from Sea Storm's eyes against his will. "Isn't that right Sea Storm?"

"T-that's right," Sea sobbed.

"Good, you can go now," Fire said, obviously done with him for today.

"G-goodbye, F-fire Blitz..."

Sea Storm ran this time, no one to look at him but the trees. The forest consumed him and the only sound was the crunch of gravel under his hooves, his soft sobs mixed with heavy breaths, and a light sound of water breaking upon rock that Sea ran towards. He had to escape, he had to be free. There, that was where he could be himself, it was only a glimmer of the endless expanse of the ocean but it was still present. The untouched majesty of the deep, the mystery below those gentle waves, powerful enough to break stone, large enough to affect the weather above. The ocean called to him, called to its children, welcomed them into its cool embrace.

The thick bushes gave way to a small clearing, a rocky beach that Lake Aornos lapped gently against. Immediately a sense of calm washed over Sea Storm, like a cool shower of water, the tears ceased and his breath steadied. He took a deep breath of the moist air, closing his eyes briefly, he felt alive here. An energy buzzed within him, it filled his body and enhanced his senses dramatically. When Sea opened his eyes again the world was brighter, the colours more sharp and saturated, he could feel the water before him churning and flowing, he could feel it moving underneath the sand as the water worked it's way through the earth. Small currents moved in slow circles in the lake, mixing it like a large stewpot, life rode upon these currents, small minnows and larger catfish but that was only the surface. Larger things dwelled within Lake Aornos for it was very deep for a lake, within its dark eldritch waters life became strange and wondrous. Sea Storm could stand there forever just soaking in the beauty of this place.

He couldn't remain though, Sea's mother would come looking for him and be furious at his lateness. Reluctantly Sea pulled himself of of the pleasant stupor he was in and turned back to the trail, he could follow it around the lake all the way to his home and still remain on the edges of the water so that was a plus. Unfortunately for Sea this trail was very public and often used, the sound of crunching gravel from hoofsteps that were not his own, reached Sea Storm's sensitive ears. Two figures rounded the turn in the trail, an elderly couple, out for their evening walk. They would greet him, Sea's heart pounded in his chest, he could tell just by looking at them that these two seniors wouldn't simply walk by him. No, they would say hello, just being polite, and that terrified him.

Just say hello back, it's easy, one word and move on.

Closer, closer, crunch, crunch. Sea wanted to stare at the ground, but that would be impolite, he stared beyond the elderly couple as if they weren't there. Crunch. The stallion looked at him, a kindly smile came onto his lips, Sea's breath became shallow and his throat closed tight and dry. Crunch. Here it came. Crunch. He was opening his mouth. Crunch. Just keep calm. Crunch. I can't. Crunch.

"Hello," The stallion said in a friendly tone.

"Hello," Sea Storm croaked oddly.

His heart slowed as the couple walked past without incident, they gave neither a backwards glance nor a queer look to Sea which was an enormous relief. He released a great sigh and the fear seemed to wash away to the sound of the lake and Sea's own solitary hoofbeats. The rest of his way was uninterrupted to his many thanks, his house came into view through the forest that separated it from the lake. Besides the aforementioned lake, this house was the place he felt secure.

The house itself was nothing of special design nor form. Two floors, an off-white paint that peeled like dead skin off a blister, grimy windows looked like opaque and pointless pieces of glass. The entire building sagged as if defeated by its lot in life, the corners and crooks showed evidence of habitation by small animals, dry nests poked out like creatures of their own. The front door was airy cracked shuttered thing that creaked as Sea pushed it gently open, despite the decrepit condition of the house it still claimed Sea Storm to be there. He breathed in the salty air that clung to the walls and spike of the sea, it mixed and cultivated and danced with the other smells. Cinnamon, spices, roasting hay and the smell of flowers, these wafted through the house and cut right through the salty air. Mom was home.

She was in the kitchen, making dinner. A tired looking mare whom once was a great beauty, now her green eyes were tired and rimmed with dark circles, her brown mane was frayed and tied back in a messy bun, her beige coat bunched up in places. Still, Sea Storm always thought his mother commanded and energetic and homely presence that was warm and welcoming, a stance duality to the cool and calm that the Lake provided.

"Hey, mom," Sea said quietly, as much as he loved his mother, talking to her made him uncomfortable.

"Hey, sweetie," Solar Storm greeted. "How was your day?"

"Fine," Sea Storm splurged out the rehearsed response, he was already moving past his mother and towards his room.

The third sanctuary in the wasteland of Sea's life, although technically this one lay within another. Sea Storm entered and lay down on his bed, sighing in relief, outside his window he could see past the trees and to his lake. He rested and drifted off to the sound of waves and the distant smell of the water, a quiet calling to jump and embrace the cool world of the deep. At all times Sea Storm felt this calling, this desire, he felt like he belonged in the water, the land was harsh and unwelcoming but the water, the sea, that represented something bigger. An untapped and unknowable mystery that offered both life and death to those whom entered its domain, an endless world that is in both constant flux and endless unchangeability. It called to its children, with a cool soothing voice, it called them home, welcomed them.

Welcomed them home.