The General and his Steed

“Haha!” Radahn boisterously exploded from some recent triumph; head held up high as he trekked through the desert sands, the sun's rays bathing him with all its scorching glory. Fortunately, when you’re a master of gravity like him, all it takes is some creativity to alleviate that issue.

“This isn’t so bad. Bit of a learning curve at first, but I’m starting to get the hang of this ‘horse walking.’”

Horse walking… The name was still a work in progress. Then again, it’s something he never thought he’d ever have to deal with, let alone entertain the thought of actually practicing. And yet, here he was. Still, as the saying goes, ‘When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.’

The stallion grinned. Hah! He had his own version of that saying. ‘When life gives you lemons? Don’t make lemonade. Make life take the lemons back! Challenge it like he challenged the stars and best life’s obstacles in a crushing defeat!’

It makes the saying far better this way. Ahahaha-! Oh, he’s falling again.

“Oomph.” The stallion groans in annoyance as the demigod-turned-horse, with a noticeably smaller muzzle compared to what he was familiar with, fell to the warm sands as his hindlegs got caught on one another.

“Right then…”

He gets back up again and, using gravity magic, releases a small pulse of purple energy from his body, throwing off all traces of sand stuck in his fur. “Minor setback.” He lowers his neck and lifts his right foreleg, glaring back at his hind legs. “You two are breaking formation. Get it together!”

The stallion raises his head and puffs out his chest. “Alright. Forward!” He steps forth, “One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four.”

As Radahn continued his march through the desert, he thought about several things along the way, but he wouldn’t let them plague his mind. At least he didn’t allow them to distract him from the here and now.

His current objective was to find food and water, get out of this desert, and search for civilization. Then again, that last one could solve everything. Of course, this is also assuming said civilization was, well, civil. Knowing his luck, he’d likely find bandits or something else of the sort.

Heh. Bring it on, then.

Unfortunately, he then allowed a grim thought to rise from the depths of his mind, and worry began to consume his form and grow on his face. Dammit.

He was no longer holding the stars in place… By his mother’s grace, that could only mean that the horrors he kept at bay were now free to run rampant across the Lands Between. And, if left unchecked…the whole world.

On that note, was it just dumb luck that he hasn’t seen any of those abominations falling from the stars yet? Is it possible that someone else has taken over the responsibility? The Golden Order, perhaps?

In any case, this… He needs to get back as soon as possible. And Leonard! Where in the world is Leonard?!

Radahn then inhales deeply to regain his composure, but in doing so, his eyes shoot wide open as he catches a whiff of… Yes, there’s no mistaking it. Despite the initial shock of his sense of smell having been honed, likely due to his now equine nature, the possibility of discovering an oasis overcame that curiosity.

Among the many scents the stallion picked up, he made out a peach aroma mixed with moss. Moss was something he definitely recognized due to Castle Redmane’s coastal location, and peaches were often present in the castle’s dining room. But both indicate one thing: a water source.

If those weren’t clear signs of a desert oasis, then he doesn’t know what is.

He grins contentedly before slowly hovering into the air via gravity manipulation, his mane and tail whipping in the forming winds. Once he reached a favorable height, he began to search his surroundings, looking over the desert with seemingly no end or limit until…

His eyes widened, “Aha!” He licks his lips, “There you are.” The equine jolts forward with an outstretched forelimb and soars through the air like the meteors he’d summon in battle.

After just shy of two minutes of flight time, Radahn sets himself down at the edge of the oasis. He immediately approached, trampling over the sizable desert paradise's blades of grass that practically outlined its borders with numerous cacti spaced out like guards at their posts.

He takes in the lush greenery while progressing through them and under the spires of peach trees that reach for the sky. There were even some nut trees, too. Some of which he recognized as almonds and pistachios. But it was what dwelled within the epicenter of this oasis that was its lifeblood.

Radahn nods in satisfaction as he now stands before clear waters reflecting the sun's glory, causing twinkles and shines on the water’s surface. His tail reflexively whipped away some flies that seemed to have been attracted to his presence as he observed a single dragonfly hovering over the water source.

This place would do nicely. Food, water, shelter, it was all available to-

[FWOOM]

The stallion jumped in surprise as something swooped down from one of the nearby peach trees with incredible speed, carrying off the dragonfly in the process. His eyes followed the strange assailant as they set themself down on a branch of another tree of the nut-bearing variety.

He tilts his head inquisitively. It was a…bird. But this one was unlike any other he had ever seen before. If he were to use one word to describe it, it would be majestic. Shining red feathers were clearly its dominant coloration, with a golden yellow at the edges of its wings, neck, crown, and an alluring long twin tail that danced and waved like two serpents.

The bird throws its head back to swallow its latest catch before shuffling its feathers and concealing its head beneath its right wing, seemingly pecking at its base. The avian then rests its golden eyes on Radahn, both looking at one another with equal interest.

He chuckled. “Such a majestic creature,” he compliments before looking away and going for a…drink.

Ah, yes… He’d have to drink like a horse.

Meh. Whatever, he disregards with a shrug. However, he wasn’t going to do that ‘tongue thing’ Leonard, other horses, and all manner of quadrupeds would do while drinking. Instead, the stallion plunged his entire muzzle into the water, taking greedy gulps as the cool liquid traveled down his throat.

“Ahhhhh!” He exclaimed in satisfaction as he lifted his head up high. “That hit the spot.” He then surveyed his surroundings, looking up at the nut and fruit-bearing trees in his vicinity before lowering his gaze to bushels and ferns.

“Hmmm. Maybe I could weave together a basket to take some food with me and a bucket to store some water.” He began to look himself over, “Given my new anatomy, I doubt I'll be consuming meat anytime soon. That’s unfortunate. Still, that will be the first thing on the menu once I return home and get my glorious body back! Hahah!”

The strange yet majestic bird suddenly chirped, causing Radahn to cut his laughter short and turn his eyes toward it.

“Fear not, strange yet majestic bird!” He called out to it as if expecting it to respond. “I, General Radahn, would never eat nor harm one such as you.”

The bird cocked its head, blinking its golden eyes before, and much to Radahn’s shock, closing them as a pleasant ‘smile’ is formed with its beak.

Radahn simply stared at the avian with a look of awe and curiosity. “Did you just… C-can you understand me?”

The bird nods, prompting the stallion’s eyes to shoot even wider than they already were. His mind began to race. For goodness sake, he was talking to a bird! Interacting with Leonard was one thing; horses can be pretty intelligent, but a bird? There’s a considerable difference between them and a leap in logic he clearly had missed.

Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. “I don’t suppose you could help me? Avian who is majestic and mysterious. You’re clearly a type of bird, but I’ve never seen one such as yourself. Do you…have a name? Furthermore, what kind of bird are you?”

The bird rests a wing feather beneath its beak in thought. By the might of the Redmanes, this bird was even more impressive than he initially thought. It then squawked as if it had just gotten an idea. At least, it seemed that way, judging by its gestures, actions, and emotional range.

The avian hops off the branch, glides down to him with marvelously outstretched wings, and lands beside him. It then does something that takes him aback as it stretches out one of its wings, causing words made entirely of orange flames to form in the air.

Radahn watched with fascination as he allowed the bird to finish. After a short time, the bird seemed to complete its work as it folded its wing and lets the equine look upon the fiery message.

My name is Philomena. I’m a phoenix. I also saw you flying and wish to know how you did that