Born Free

Chapter 22

Thunder's POV

A sharp, and piercing whinny erupts through the night as I sleep, and I wake with a jump. No moon, no light, just darkness clouds over the arena roof. Another weak whinny echoes through my ears beside me, and I look over the fence. Aurora lays splayed against the sand, rubbing her neck into the ground in pain. My heart throbs against my ribs, vibrating every one. I push up hard against the fence and it finally gives from under my weight, sending me stumbling into her pen. I turn to where she lies, lowering my head to her's.

" Aurora, what's wrong?!" I ask quickly, concern laced throughout my voice. 

" I-It's the foal... I think it's stuck..." Her voice fades as she grunts, her beautiful eyes glazed with pain. My long mane brushes against her jaw, and she shuts her eyes tightly. Oh, what pain she must be in.

I look up from her trembling body and search the arena for a human. None, as I expected. I spin around on my back hooves and press my chest against the gate, neighing out loudly. A second goes by before I let out another shrieking scream. No answer, only distant sounds of some more wild horses. I push harder, knowing that eventually it will collapse under all my weight. I lean completely onto it, the  small chain that holds the gate closed snaps. I fall to my knees and stumble back up, looking back at Aurora. She strains another push, only worsening her pain. I spin around and speed ahead in a full on gallop. I watch my steps as I approach the fence. Collecting all my power in my hind legs, I jump. Soaring over the wall of a fence, I almost clip my back hooves on it as I land back on the sand. I proceed in a trot down the path, the sand slowly turning to concrete.

I stop in the middle of the barn, letting out a low and shaky whinny. A stumbling sound crashes from a stall ahead and Nick pops out, eyes wide with shock. I whinny and paw at the hard floor, stopping before my hoof starts to throb. He stretches his arms out, a calming gesture, and starts to walk towards a halter hanging on a hook. I shake my head and rear up weakly. I turn and prance away, stopping at the arena door frame and gaze back at him. He drops the blanket that was hanging on his shoulders and jogs after me. I enter the arena and back myself against the fence, getting as far away from him as possible. He looks into the arena and a loud gasp escapes his mouth. He stutters on his words as he tries to make sense of this situation. He turns around and bolts away, hopefully to get the other band of humans. I stick my head over the fence and find the lock, lipping it's cold metal handle. And as it's metallic taste sets in, it clicks. Rushed and scared, I push it open with my nose.

Aurora's screaming neigh bursts through the arena, and I lunge forwards to the pen where she lays.

" I-I got help." I say, trying to hear through the heartbeat pounding in my ears.

" How?" She manages to get out. Her whole body relaxes, but then tenses up faster than before.

" Nick... He's getting the other humans." I press my nose to hers, inhaling her earthy scent.

" No! Not anymore humans." She squeals with a kick of her tail. Running footsteps echo through the barn isle and a group of humans show up. I see her eyes flash over to them and she paws at the sand with her front hoof.

" They will help, and without them, you will die. This foal of ours, it will not move without the help of those men." I say, gesturing over to the four men and Nick. They slowly walk up towards the pen. I pick myself up in a small rear and stand guard beside Aurora. Nick grabs the halter hanging up on my pen and slowly walks up to my shoulder. I paw the air, warning him to not make any sudden moves. He reaches out and touches my neck, slipping the halter over my face. I only let him lead me because I have been able to trust him the past couple of months. He has fed me, and I even let him groom me a couple of times before they started riding me. But he hasn't whipped me, kicked me or hurt me in any way, that's why I trust him. He ties me up to the fence outside of where Aurora lies.

She barely picks her head up enough to see me, but when she does, pain glazes over her eyes and she drops her head back down. The men rush in and Nick stays next to me, even though he knows I am dangerous.

It seems like forever until the men's voices seem to soften, all their harsh and rough words have been thrown through the arena many times. But as time passes, Aurora seems to relax more. Nick has grabbed a grooming box and is running a soft brush over my legs. I turn my gaze away from Aurora to watch Nick carefully brush over my back legs, which are dusty from staying outside. The men's voices suddenly raise, and loud slapping noises erupt through my ears. Out of my relaxed state, I whip my head around to see them hitting her neck with an open hand. I lunge at the fence, squealing in anger. Nick gets knocked back just in time before I kick out swiftly. He scrambles to his feet and holds my nose tightly, restricting my head movement.

" Easy, boy. They're not hurting her, I wouldn't let that happen." He hushes me. He pats my neck as I relax more.

" It just feels like this." He continues to pat me and as I turn my gaze back to Aurora, she is licking a newborn foal. My heart stops in my chest, and I feel my legs start to shake. The dark and spindly legged foal blinks it's eyes, looking at the world around it. It's large blaze falls from the middle of it's forehead to the tip of its nose. Speckles dot its body and its damp coat is a dark bay colour.

" It's a colt, I tell ya!" One of the men calls to the others. They cheer and get up, leaving Aurora and our colt alone. Nick skips by and leaves the arena, shutting the gate behind him and the others. As soon as they're out of sight, I pull and lean against my lead rope, and as I nearly sit like a dog, it snaps. It catches me off guard and I tumble to my back and thump onto my right side. I scramble back up and walk towards Aurora, who stands like a post to help our little one up. I walk up to her with a nuzzle, nickering deeply. She nickers back, a light and high one. I look down at him and he stares back with a hint of fear radiating off him. I lick his fluffy forelock and nudge his side that lays against the sand, urging him to get up.

" Now don't be too rough with him." Aurora softly says. Her laboured breathing starts to slow just as the foal wobbles up to his legs. Now dry, his coat is a roan, specked by white, but his head is a reddish bay colour. A bay roan like me. I stand proudly near the gate, watching for any sign of humans.

" Skyfire..." Aurora mutters to herself brightly.

" For his name?" I ask, watching him turn and nurse.

" Yeah, don't you think?" Her eyes meet with mine and they seem to sparkle. And I know, she really loves that name.

" Yes. Yes, I do." I nicker, nuzzling her nose gently.

Authors Note
Hey! So, I finally updated and I'm sorry if it's a little boring:( And I thought; hey, how about I do this chapter in Thunder's Point Of View?! So here it is and I really hope you like it:)
-Acacia