Ghost Horse-Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron

Chapter 11-Stranger Stallion

The time spent with Alaska and her herd was slow and painful for Desert. All she had been since arriving was stubborn and grumpy, whereas Eagle had been welcomed with open arms into the herd. It was tough to get the white stallion alone, as he was the only one there with that coat colour. But when she finally did, he didn't seem the same, much more bigheaded. "Eagle. Get your head straight, we need to go. I can't stay here any longer."

"Why?" He asked in a relaxed tone, swishing his tail and dropping his head to snatch some of the grass. The herd here was far from responsible. They chased rabbits like dogs, had no rules, and were the most laid back horses they had ever seen. "I love it here!"

"Well I don't, and you agreed you would take me home, you swore you would. So you have to. No matter how long ago. So pack up that stupid behaviour and let's, GO!" The paint whinnied, flattening her ears and stamping her hooves, chocolate brown eyes ablaze. Eagle stepped back and pricked his ears. Her yelling snapped him out of his trance.

"I'm sorry, Desert, I really am, for all this behaviour and not paying attention, not taking you home. I swear, we'll leave in the morning, before the others are awake. Sorry." Eagle replied calmly, lowering his head slightly in shame.

"Good. Thank you." She snorted back, turning to pace beside the river. Eagle sighed softly. Had he lost her as a friend? Surely not. She wasn't like that...

Morning rolled around slowly. The two horses were up and ready to leave before the birds sang their morning song. Taking one last drink at the riverside, Eagle took the lead, striding confidently through the trees. However, he wasn't paying enough attention to notice the handsome black stallion before them, bumping into him. "Oh, sorry." The white stallion looked up and took a step back. This stallion was jet black, no markings, no nothing, no feathers on his hocks, sleek black coat, eyes narrowed... He looked past Eagle to Desert, meeting her eye.

"Excuse me, but we really are in a hurry." Desert retorted after a moment or two of staring back into the stranger's eyes. He didn't look like a stranger, though. She felt she had known him her whole life!

"Apologies, but you look... Almost familiar. My mistake, carry on." He replied quietly, eyes still trained on the young mare. Desert shifted uncomfortably and nudged Eagle forward, edging past the stallion as he watched her. She broke the gaze abruptly and walking strongly away, eager to get away from the strange black horse. The mare turned to look back at him, surprised to find he was gone. But that wasn't stopping her, not by a long shot.

"Come on, Desert, hurry up." Eagle nickered in a low tone, glancing to where they had left the herd. "We need to leave, now." He added, standing up tall and turning his vision to the horizon, waiting impatiently as his gaze alternated with the filly and the way to her homeland.

"Okay, calm down, I'm coming!" She snorted back, ears pinned against her head grumpily. The multi-coloured filly trotted after him, her hooves making a quiet thrumming sound against the hardened ground, scraping occasionally at the dry grass. Since being taken away from her family and friends, Desert had grown in different ways; experience, knowledge, height, age, becoming wiser and more selfless as their journey had taken place. Instead of a slightly pampered leader's daughter, the horse that walked beside Eagle was smart, independent, and in no need of another. She walked with her head high, tail swishing, eyes bright and ears pricked on alert. Eagle glanced beside him at her. He felt a warmth grow inside of him at the sight of the confident mare, letting him forget her earlier grumpiness and little snappy remarks as they travelled. Before he let himself get carried away, the white stallion picked up his pace. It felt like they had travelled the world together. But, in every story there has to be a problem. A big one. And this one, was the fact the two had stumbled across the ocean. And the place they needed to get to was still far on the other side.

"Well now what do we do? If you're even thinking about making me cross that water, then you must be cra-" Desert began, pacing the waters edge.

"Hold your horses, there. A ship. Cargo ship. Hopefully it goes around where we want it. They come in and out of this harbour place, collecting fruits and vegetables to sell to their people. It's a little way North on the coast, but we can get there before it leaves. Every week or so, when the sun is at its peek. From what I can tell, we have just under an hour to get there. Feel up for a little race?" Eagle grinned, facing towards the harbour.

"When am I not?!" Desert replied enthusiastically, not minding he had cut her off. Counting down from three, both set off at an alarming rate, breakneck speed, and seemed to soar over the sand, golden grains flying up behind them like in a fairytale. Tails of both brown and white merged, hoofbeats syncing with each others. Slowly, the harbour appears on the horizon, and sure enough, people of different sizes were hauling things on board a massive cargo ship, not seeming to notice the two horses hiding in the shadows of the spread out trees.

"So what's the plan?" Desert whispered, keeping her eyes trained on the ship and any entrance.

"You any good at jumping?" Eagle asked without answering her question.

"Course I am. Seen these legs?" She replied cockily, prancing around.

"Well, then listen closely. When the men get on board the ship, it will take a maximum of three minutes to get it going again. In this time, you have to, and I repeat, have to, leap over the side at the back where it's lowest, then, somewhere around there will be a lever. Try your best to push it in the opposite direction which will then open the back like it is now. Then I'll get on and we can shut the back before the ship leaves, otherwise it will sink. Understood?" Eagle explained quickly, watching to see any sign of the last boxes.

"Just one question, what are levers?"

"It's this stick thing with a rubbery bobble on the end. Push it away from you to open the back. Sometimes levers can be stiff though, so make sure to push with all your might. I guess we can just stay around here, get our energy up for now. We'll hear shouting when they begin to leave." The white horse added calmly, glancing up, jumping, and snatching an apple from the tree above them. He bit into it, letting the sweet juice roll off the fruit and dampen the sandy grass. They were perched on a small hill not too far from the humans, spying and waiting for their cue.