35 Frost, Year 122
[Closed]
Glade was coming.
Time continued to pass, and Glade was coming. Despite everything, her training with multiple teachers, new skills, new friends, new responsibilities, and new projects, Hilana still found a way to carve out time for something that was very near and dear to her heart. Well, someone.
Hayima'el.
She had gotten her racing saddle made for him by a Vastian saddlemaker in the Forum in Ash, and he had been amused by the request at the time. Later, however, he was a bit shocked at the size of the piebald bull for which she was getting the camel made. But he had measured him for the saddle, albeit on a ladder, while Hilana had held his head. A few more appointments for fitting and further shaping had been well worth it. The crafted seat worked like a dream, and it brought a thrill to her that she hadn't realized how much she had missed until she was back in the (racing) saddle. It wasn’t quite the same as the ones that her maternal family had produced, but it was as close a representation as one could have made beyond that. He had been surprised when Hilana had insisted that no runeforging or magic could go into it; the derby rules were particular and the Vastiana could take no chances of her custom-made saddle failing or falling apart on the track when the negation wards were applied to keep the riders mundane and, well, honest. That was how the derby worked, as strange as it was in a kingdom enamoured of magic. But since it had its roots in nomadic tradition...
But late Ash, however, had produced a problem. The ever-present shadowspawn made racing practice nigh impossible. There was no way she could ask someone to try with her. Raithen had his own life and obligations and while he could keep up with Hayima'el full out, she didn't want to pester him when he was around for it. Besides, her own schedule was difficult enough to coordinate with someone else. While her Elementalism was progressing enough that as long as she kept her head on a swivel, she could set the creatures on fire and they would be gone before they could reach her while flames consumed them. But that still took time and effort, while she wanted to focus on her camel. She didn’t have others with her that she could use to help train him, and that meant that she needed to be able to put her attention on him. That left her with one more option, and she had been thrilled with how it worked so far.
The Mask of Midnight's Mother.
She hadn't entirely expected it to work, but when she considered how much success she had had with it in the cities, and keeping in mind Daemon's words about hiding one's self... well, it only made sense to try. Worst case scenario, the monsters saw through it and she had to defend herself. But the forays were successful, provided Hayima'el stayed close to her. She was back to gathering on her own once again, leaving the city to make her own trips, and now... practicing racing. The Vastiana wondered if these creatures were something that Domina Varvara could have foreseen, and fully believed that She did - Mama Midnight knew things, after all. But with it on, she and Hayima'el left the outskirts of the Capital, going a little distance beyond the last of the houses. This gave them more room to work with. Had things been different, she likely would have asked others to join her, because having the company of other camels and riders would only help get Hayima'el acclimated to the conditions of racing. She had been able to do that with Sakima, but Hilana was disinclined to tell anyone about the Mask, lest it draw attention she was not prepared to entertain.
Her hair had been wound up into a bun and pinned, her long skirts traded for skintight leggings that were strictly for the purposes of racing. When she stepped onto the track for the derby, she wouldn't be in her impossibly full skirts then, either. Sandals had been exchanged for soft leather boots that went halfway up her calves, though she still wore one of her halter-like shirts. Had any of her friends seen her, they would have been shocked. There were none of her usual vivid colours at all, except for the ribbons woven into her bun that had been essentially used to sew it into place for the speed and exercise that she was about to put herself and her big boy through.
This saddle was far different than her usual. Where her day-to-day saddle was padded and designed to rest on Hayima'el's hump, supported with blankets and cushions, built up to make it comfortable for distance for both camel and rider, the racing saddle wasn't much meant to be sat on. Not in the race. If she did, then she was going to have his large hump in her face. She sat on it while they were getting to the starting line, but once he took off, she would be balanced in the stirrups. Just like she was now. This was all about balance. That was the name of the game as Hilana clicked her tongue. "On," she urged him, flicking the reins and pushing her heels back in the stirrups. There were straps holding the saddle in place around the hump that circled the big bull’s body that she could grab if she had to - there were a few emergency handholds there. But Hilana didn’t want to need them. She gave the behemoth under her his cue, and Hayima'el took off. "On!" She encouraged him again, giving him his head as the camel went from his walk to a full on gallop.
This, Hilana had to explain to others that were unfamiliar with the big humped beasts of burden, was one of the primary differences between camel and horse. The anatomical differences were obvious enough, but the trick was getting used to the motions. Horses, when they ran, usually had all four feet off of the ground, chewing up distance. A camel alternated between side to side, and their heads were up much higher. When she blitzed around a track on a horse, the gait was truthfully smoother, they usually extended their necks and Hilana was positioned much closer to their heads with a safer, more secure seat that was rather flat. She could knead the muscular neck of the galloping beast, asking for speed... where with a camel, one couldn't do that. She was seated over Hayima’el’s haunches behind that hump hump, and that made for a difficult perch. His hump, too, was arguably bigger than most of those that were going to be in the race. Hilana exercised him often, but even she had to admit he had a lot more stall time than those she expected would also be running. That was undeniable; she was like as not to see old familiar faces and new ones from the different tribes at the derby.
The rocking gait under her left her balanced carefully in the stirrups, holding his reins in both hands as her heels pressed in again, asking him for yet more speed. Repeated practices meant he had gotten better at the slower starts, because she had to get him going and quickly. She was confident in his ability for distance, but slow starts in the shorter heats and sprints... She couldn't risk a slow start, not with some of those smaller camels, and then if he fell behind, she would have to fight her way to the front. It was smarter, and more ideal, to break at the front and stay up there. She was likely to only have one more shot at running him with a group before the derby when Asher and his transport team came back. That was valuable experience that he was missing, and that she couldn't emulate. Not anymore. "On, Hayima'el!" Hilana had to maintain that speed that he was at to keep building his stamina. Others might be smaller and faster at the start, but he could chew up the distance with those long legs of his. That same build had made his sire successful on the track and in the Sands, and it had been why Hilana had chosen him for Sakima to father her first calf. But she had had to race then to prove Sakima's worth, because the big beige bull's owners were picky. No amount of money could just buy the cover, they had their reputations on the line too. She'd understood that. That was why the only way to get him had been to win the last derby she had entered, racing against her father's wishes, but it had been worth it. Because now she had his progeny, his future, to work with too.
And if he won... she would be able to be very picky with what cows Hayima'el covered, too.
Part II
[Closed]
Glade was coming.
Time continued to pass, and Glade was coming. Despite everything, her training with multiple teachers, new skills, new friends, new responsibilities, and new projects, Hilana still found a way to carve out time for something that was very near and dear to her heart. Well, someone.
Hayima'el.
She had gotten her racing saddle made for him by a Vastian saddlemaker in the Forum in Ash, and he had been amused by the request at the time. Later, however, he was a bit shocked at the size of the piebald bull for which she was getting the camel made. But he had measured him for the saddle, albeit on a ladder, while Hilana had held his head. A few more appointments for fitting and further shaping had been well worth it. The crafted seat worked like a dream, and it brought a thrill to her that she hadn't realized how much she had missed until she was back in the (racing) saddle. It wasn’t quite the same as the ones that her maternal family had produced, but it was as close a representation as one could have made beyond that. He had been surprised when Hilana had insisted that no runeforging or magic could go into it; the derby rules were particular and the Vastiana could take no chances of her custom-made saddle failing or falling apart on the track when the negation wards were applied to keep the riders mundane and, well, honest. That was how the derby worked, as strange as it was in a kingdom enamoured of magic. But since it had its roots in nomadic tradition...
But late Ash, however, had produced a problem. The ever-present shadowspawn made racing practice nigh impossible. There was no way she could ask someone to try with her. Raithen had his own life and obligations and while he could keep up with Hayima'el full out, she didn't want to pester him when he was around for it. Besides, her own schedule was difficult enough to coordinate with someone else. While her Elementalism was progressing enough that as long as she kept her head on a swivel, she could set the creatures on fire and they would be gone before they could reach her while flames consumed them. But that still took time and effort, while she wanted to focus on her camel. She didn’t have others with her that she could use to help train him, and that meant that she needed to be able to put her attention on him. That left her with one more option, and she had been thrilled with how it worked so far.
The Mask of Midnight's Mother.
She hadn't entirely expected it to work, but when she considered how much success she had had with it in the cities, and keeping in mind Daemon's words about hiding one's self... well, it only made sense to try. Worst case scenario, the monsters saw through it and she had to defend herself. But the forays were successful, provided Hayima'el stayed close to her. She was back to gathering on her own once again, leaving the city to make her own trips, and now... practicing racing. The Vastiana wondered if these creatures were something that Domina Varvara could have foreseen, and fully believed that She did - Mama Midnight knew things, after all. But with it on, she and Hayima'el left the outskirts of the Capital, going a little distance beyond the last of the houses. This gave them more room to work with. Had things been different, she likely would have asked others to join her, because having the company of other camels and riders would only help get Hayima'el acclimated to the conditions of racing. She had been able to do that with Sakima, but Hilana was disinclined to tell anyone about the Mask, lest it draw attention she was not prepared to entertain.
Her hair had been wound up into a bun and pinned, her long skirts traded for skintight leggings that were strictly for the purposes of racing. When she stepped onto the track for the derby, she wouldn't be in her impossibly full skirts then, either. Sandals had been exchanged for soft leather boots that went halfway up her calves, though she still wore one of her halter-like shirts. Had any of her friends seen her, they would have been shocked. There were none of her usual vivid colours at all, except for the ribbons woven into her bun that had been essentially used to sew it into place for the speed and exercise that she was about to put herself and her big boy through.
This saddle was far different than her usual. Where her day-to-day saddle was padded and designed to rest on Hayima'el's hump, supported with blankets and cushions, built up to make it comfortable for distance for both camel and rider, the racing saddle wasn't much meant to be sat on. Not in the race. If she did, then she was going to have his large hump in her face. She sat on it while they were getting to the starting line, but once he took off, she would be balanced in the stirrups. Just like she was now. This was all about balance. That was the name of the game as Hilana clicked her tongue. "On," she urged him, flicking the reins and pushing her heels back in the stirrups. There were straps holding the saddle in place around the hump that circled the big bull’s body that she could grab if she had to - there were a few emergency handholds there. But Hilana didn’t want to need them. She gave the behemoth under her his cue, and Hayima'el took off. "On!" She encouraged him again, giving him his head as the camel went from his walk to a full on gallop.
This, Hilana had to explain to others that were unfamiliar with the big humped beasts of burden, was one of the primary differences between camel and horse. The anatomical differences were obvious enough, but the trick was getting used to the motions. Horses, when they ran, usually had all four feet off of the ground, chewing up distance. A camel alternated between side to side, and their heads were up much higher. When she blitzed around a track on a horse, the gait was truthfully smoother, they usually extended their necks and Hilana was positioned much closer to their heads with a safer, more secure seat that was rather flat. She could knead the muscular neck of the galloping beast, asking for speed... where with a camel, one couldn't do that. She was seated over Hayima’el’s haunches behind that hump hump, and that made for a difficult perch. His hump, too, was arguably bigger than most of those that were going to be in the race. Hilana exercised him often, but even she had to admit he had a lot more stall time than those she expected would also be running. That was undeniable; she was like as not to see old familiar faces and new ones from the different tribes at the derby.
The rocking gait under her left her balanced carefully in the stirrups, holding his reins in both hands as her heels pressed in again, asking him for yet more speed. Repeated practices meant he had gotten better at the slower starts, because she had to get him going and quickly. She was confident in his ability for distance, but slow starts in the shorter heats and sprints... She couldn't risk a slow start, not with some of those smaller camels, and then if he fell behind, she would have to fight her way to the front. It was smarter, and more ideal, to break at the front and stay up there. She was likely to only have one more shot at running him with a group before the derby when Asher and his transport team came back. That was valuable experience that he was missing, and that she couldn't emulate. Not anymore. "On, Hayima'el!" Hilana had to maintain that speed that he was at to keep building his stamina. Others might be smaller and faster at the start, but he could chew up the distance with those long legs of his. That same build had made his sire successful on the track and in the Sands, and it had been why Hilana had chosen him for Sakima to father her first calf. But she had had to race then to prove Sakima's worth, because the big beige bull's owners were picky. No amount of money could just buy the cover, they had their reputations on the line too. She'd understood that. That was why the only way to get him had been to win the last derby she had entered, racing against her father's wishes, but it had been worth it. Because now she had his progeny, his future, to work with too.
And if he won... she would be able to be very picky with what cows Hayima'el covered, too.
Part II