Star Stable: A Lost Legend (Re-Write)

Chapter Four: Race to the Golden Apple

A few days after Astra and Eclipse have bonded with each other, she caught wind of a race in Goldenhills Valley. The racer who managed to snatch the golden apple from the tree on top of the Scarecrow Hill. Astra has been training Eclipse and exploring Jorvik for two months.
It's a very early morning was still dark and foggy, and the prospect of rain loomed like a vague threat in the chilly air. The recently awoken rider yawned as she left her campsite behind her on horseback and hurried onward towards the beginning of the race.
It was a long and grueling ride through increasingly rocky terrain. She had to stop several times to drink water and check her horse's hooves for any stones. She didn't speak much as she rode through the wrought iron gates into Goldenhills Valley in the afternoon. The air seemed to become colder as the fall colors of the leaves became increasingly intense. The trees' leaves glittered in bright shades of yellow and red.
"Hmm." Astra looked around and watched as a fox scampered away from them in the forest. "It's beautiful here."
The horse's body was steaming and the steam rose up into the leaves, which burned vivid gold and red everywhere around them. The scents of autumn — cold, crisp air, leaves, and woodfires — blended with the sweet, heady scent of horse. Astra shivered, grateful for the warmth from her horse. She was moving slower. The reason was because that they had the feeling they shouldn't be in the area. It grew colder and colder with every minute that passed. Goldenhills Valley is an extremely unique place to be at. Within the iron gates, the leaves continued to burn in gold and flame colors long after the first snow had covered the rest of the island. Farther inland towards the immense ridge, there's rumors that scarecrows came to life while shadow witches scared away all life and light.
It wasn't long till she have arrived to Cape West Fishing Village. At the center the town, the people had started to head back towards their homes, the grownups had gotten back from work and the children had started playing on the gardens or sidewalks. Sea gulls had started to cooing and flying off to find their nests. Astra was watching it all from Eclipse and smiled as she quietly listened to the rhythm of the village.
She walked into the middle of the town square and started admiring the beauty in her hometown. A few feet away, little kids played tag in the center of town. At a nearby café, half of a dozen of people sipped coffee and having dinner in the shade of the roofs. The only pedestrians were a few families enjoying the late, slightly chilly evening.
The square itself was wooden, edged with other houses. In the center stood a grand and beautiful statue of a reared horse sparkled in the sunlight in the rich shade of gold. The statue had been set up above a water fountain in the center of the town, it represents the heroic steed of the past and its rider is unknown.
Astra started looking around, with wary curiosity, before she continued walking by herself. She yawned and stretched out her long, graceful legs. The morning air had started to make her feel energetic. Astra looked around and smiled when she saw the townsfolk had started to finishing up their jobs.
She saw a few people were dressed in everything from dirty shirts to richest suits. Their styles ranged from the severe suits of men to the colorful dresses of women of Cape West Fishing Village. Four drivers with cars jostled each other to get closest to the richest passengers with the most luggage. A few porters with stooped backs took remarkable quick steps under the heavy burdens of trunks and bags.
Farther inland, the girl could see stands of stands displaying fruits, meats, fish, clothes, paints, and so on. The girl fed off the noise and the calming, but slightly anxious energy of the town as the girl made her way through the winding streets.
A cheerful old woman nodded in her direction as she passed by, wishing her a good evening. She saw a milkmaid was placing her basket of milk into a small milk truck. A young man was making a vase made of clay. A young woman was holding a bouquet of lovely flowers in her hands and started fixing the flowers for the sales. She saw a few riders rushed past towards different roads towards the mall or deeper into the seaside village. She was extra careful as a few playful children accidentally wandered in the way and were soon pulled out of the way by their family. But she raised her head proudly with dignity in the sunlight when she caught a few kids whispering, eyeing her eagerly.
Astra soon rode across the wooden bridge towards the island of the Goldenleaf Stables. It has colorful leaves falling from the trees around the stables. She could smell the fresh scent of the sea from the clear waters and see grassy slopes outside of the stables. She noticed that there's one paddock with some riders on different kinds of horses. There's also a horse selling stables, but there's a small paddock behind the stables and has a pair of horses.
It's both simple and beautiful in her eyes, she could sense most of the horses' presences within the stables and the paddocks. As she walked closer, Astra could see a glimpse of the main area has a massive, red and white stables with a pair of trailers by the stables. She saw a red and white inn a little away from the stables. She also saw about three racetracks for a riding club probably. There's a shop that sells riding gear, clothes, food, and drinks that lines up towards the riding club's arena.
She soon found a paddock full of excited riders and eager horses, being watched by a young woman from the top of a wooden box. Astra recognizes her as Liliana, one of the head stablehands of Goldenleaf Stables. She has warm green eyes and dark brown hair that's tied into a ponytail with a flowery headband. She's wearing a green jacket with flower-like crests underneath it is a red shirt with red-orange buttons, and dark brown boots for her riding skills and her adventurous spirit. Amelia rode Eclipse through the crowd, trying to ignore the excited chatter amongst them and stood in front of Liliana.
"Oh, hello." Liliana smiled at them warmly. "You must be Astra Hammond." She offered a fist to Eclipse, who sniffed her warily. "And you must be Eclipse. Are you entering the Golden Apple Race?" When Astra nodded, Liliana smiled at her warmly and showed her a papered clipboard. "Sign here and you'll take part of the race." Astra signed the paper with Liliana's pen and return it to her. "Have a good race kid."
Astra nodded as she rode to the starting line and gotten Eclipse as well as making sure her horse is ready for the race. Astra mounted Eclipse again, but she kissed Eclipse's velvety muzzle and met her eyes. "Win or lose. I love you, Eclipse." The mare whinnied softly and nuzzled her cheek.
The apple, the only one that grew on the tall, knotty tree atop of Scarecrow Hill. Only one grew each year. Everyone in Jorvik had heard of it, but a few believed that it really existed. Now she and the other riders are going to make a race out of it. Astra read about the golden apple in some old book of legends and fairy tales without suspecting that it was magical.
"People say there is a magical apple," Astra listened to Ginny's explanation. "It's an old tradition to arrange a race to see who could reach the apple first. To many people it is a game. For others it is deadly serious."
"How is a race to an apple serious?" asked Astra incredulously.
"You got me." Ginny shrugged, but she smirked when she saw one of the Bobcat Girls nearby. "Now, if you excuse me. I'm going to tease some friends of mine." Ginny rode away from Astra to rile up the Bobcat Girls.
A moment later, Liliana pulled out a microphone. "The race will start in five minutes! Riders and horses get in position of the starting line!"
Astra mounted Eclipse before heading towards the starting line. She watched as different riders on horsebacks lined up on both sides and behind her.
"On your mark! Get set! And... (A horn was blown) GO!!!" At that, everyone broke into a gallop towards the port and everyone there cheered as the riders rode up towards the golden valley.
The woods zoomed past Astra as she rode. The wind whipped against her cheeks as she galloped wildly onward.
The horses' hooves thundered against the earth as they galloped through the woods. Astra's eyes teared up from the force of the wind as she and the riders raced along.
Astra took a cross-country position and pushed forward. She felt Eclipse jumped over a big tree root. Her breathing was rapid and rhythmic.
All of the sudden, some boulders were sent rolling downhill, heading straight towards them. Many of the riders rode out of the way of the boulders and the boulders stopped a fair distance away from them.
Astra heard hoofbeats behind her again. The some of the riders had managed to calm down their horses and were now riding at a fierce pace towards Astra, who urged her horse on.
Every time each of the riders splashed through a waterway and galloped onto narrower trails, they came closer to Scarecrow Hill, closer to the apple. On the horizon, Astra could make out a narrow stone bridge, but there's a gap in the center.
Astra and Eclipse successfully jumped over the broken bridge. It was a small, but dramatic jump that made Astra feel startled and amazed. As she kept going through the thinning woods that opened up to a clearing. She looked over her shoulder and saw a small number of riders have managed to gain the courage to jump the gap before she continued hunt.
Astra could see Scarecrow Hill beyond the clearing. The black, gnarly branches toward her in a ghostly greeting.
But she soon heard another horse galloping across from her and saw a regal white Jorvik Warmblood mare with a rider, galloping gracefully a few feet away from her and Eclipse. The rider is a girl around Astra's age and she came out of the shadows to reveal herself in the sunlight. The rider has braided dark brown hair flowing behind her slightly in the wind and her emerald green eyes shone with excitement. Her skin is in the shade of golden-brown and her skin has light freckles. She's a black riding vest with a white shirt underneath and a silver amulet with a blue sapphire in the center, blue riding jeans, and dark brown riding boots.
Astra felt her breath caught in her throat when she saw the rider. She recognized the rider. The rider is a living legend. It was none other than Emily Wisedawn and her mare, Angel. Astra heard of Emily's courage and kindness. Some had even said that she must be descended by the goddess of Aideen herself. Many have claimed that there was no closer bond than Emily and Angel's relationship with each other.
"Look out!" cried out Emily.
Astra looked over her shoulder and cried out in shock when she saw a fallen tree rolling down towards her. At the same time, a flash of lightning had hit the rolling tree, making the tree explode from the lightning.
She looked at Emily with a grateful smile. She wasn't sure what happened, but she has a strong feeling that Emily was responsible for saving Astra's life.
"Thanks Emily." She nodded with a radiant smile and the white mare seemed happy to see them.
As Astra and Emily both raced through the usually locked iron gates Scarecrow Hill, Astra tried to keep her nerves in check as she looked around the deserted and spooky hill. Astra could hear the faint whistling of the wind as it lifted the scarecrows that hung all over the enormous tree. They looked like they were flying. The black sheets of cloths were fluttering desolately back and forth over the wooden poles.
But both, Astra and Emily raced to the top of the hill. Though, at the end of the race, Astra and Eclipse have both won the race surprisingly. The bright sunlight soon gleamed on something shiny on one of the gnarled branches. She glanced up, curious. The rising morning sun barely broke through the dark clouds and made everything sparkle. Astra gave a grim, but determined smile when she saw a single, solitary apple, gleaming in its golden glory. It was towering way up near the top, hanging from the biggest, knottiest branch. The faint sunlight shone down on the apple.
Astra took a deep, inward breath and reached out towards the apple. She knew both greatness and the consequences of picking the Golden Apple, but she's willing to risk her life for her family and friends. Eclipse moved underneath the branch to help her rider to pick the glowing apple. She plucked the apple with a hesitant, slightly trembling hand.
But she felt a cold wind, that made Astra's courage replaced with fear and sent a chill down her spine.
She looked over her shoulder and saw about a dozen of shadowy witches flying overhead on broom sticks. Emily glared at the witches with slight anger as she and her mare stood in front of Astra and Eclipse. She could see their dark, soulless eyes and they were all glaring at the glowing golden apple like a pack of hungry wolves, even after Astra had put it away in her satchel. Hungry wolves makes wolves angry and the anger makes them hungry.
A collective shudder ran through her. The woods felt even colder now. The wind whipped against her cheeks as she galloped wildly onward. The barely dodged the sleeping potions that had been thrown by the Shadow Witches overhead.
Their horses' hooves thundered against the dirt, pebbles, and pine needles. Astra's eyes teared up from the force of the wind as she raced along.
Astra took a cross-country position and pushed forward. Their horses galloped even faster than before. Their breaths was rapid and rhythmic. Every time they splashed through a puddle or followed a narrower trail, they were getting farther away from Scarecrow Hill and the Shadow Witches. The witches' life force was within the Scarecrow Hill, the witches will eventually fade away from the sunlight. 
"Keep going!" Emily made Angel go into a mid-stop to hold back the Shadow Witches. She held up her amulet and a silvery-blue light shone brightly, causing the Shadow Witches to fall back.
But Astra knew that Emily's magic won't hold the Shadow Witches for long. She has to save Emily and Angelsong. Astra spun Eclipse around and something strange happened. Astra stayed on Eclipse and held up her hand up to stop the Shadow Witches. The moment Astra raised her hand, she felt a burst of energy and a blast flash covered them both. For a second, a soft blue light flickered before Astra's eyes.
"Thanks Astra." The two girls watched as the Shadow Witches started to disappear. "Lets get going."
She could see the narrow stone bridges up ahead. She tightened her grip as Eclipse jumped across the first broken bridge, but the second broken bridge's has a bigger break in the center of the bridge. She looked towards the golden fields as Eclipse had taken another flying leap over the second broken bridge. It was a huge and dramatic jump which almost made the bottom drop out of her stomach and her limbs tingled with electricity. Astra heard Emily's voice praising Angel, knowing that she has managed to jump over both of the bridges.
They both looked over their shoulders, the sky was back to its regular blue color and the Shadow Witches were gone.