A lonely life

The black mare led its master down a vacant street. Ruts formed by cartwheels during the almost continuous three weeks of rain had hardened making it hard to travel. The steed picked its way carefully over the ruts, Its black coat looked brown as it was covered in a mixture of dried blood, dirt, and sweat.

The Aegis had been on the road for a month without so much as stopping at a waystation. The horse lived off of the grass that could be found in the forest and its master lived off of whatever Caesar the dog, or more accurately, "the beast" brought back. Sometimes it was deer or elk but other times rabbits and foxes or coyotes.

The street felt, in the absence of any life walking it, comforting. A sickly mutt was the first living thing besides birds he had seen since entering the town. It hobbled as best it could across the road with an equally diseased rabbit between its red and spotted jaws.

The mare knew its master had been to this city before and knew that he liked the stable boy more than most. The stablehand loved his job and made sure every horse got a quality washing and cleaning. The boy although very young took his job seriously and did not discriminate on the poor or rich.

A strong arm reached forward and it's master's hand patted the mare at the base of the neck. The steeds master leaned forward and spoke in a somewhat hoarse but comforting voice, "the stable boy will give you a good cleaning and some food. Then you can finally rest."

The horse felt as the weight was shifted to one side, the leather saddle straps strained for a moment then no more. Another pat on the neck. The horse snorted. Two blood-soaked burlap sacks that hung from behind the saddle were removed. The master himself, smelling of many types of blood, guts, and other abhorrent smells that accompanied a month without bathing grunted as he walked away with a burlap sack in each hand.

His black hair hung in a disorganized mess just past his shoulders and a well-grown beard looked not better. And even with all that, the Aegis still had not the look of a poor helpless beggar but that of a rugged and strong warrior.

His menacing presence was not something he had practiced or learned. It was something that had gradually taken shape from both the ability to live an extraordinarily long time and with that all the sins of such a long life. His eyes, black as the night had seen tens of thousands of men, women, and children die, his kills had to have entered the hundreds. He had observed plagues and starvation as they ravaged the land. He had seen the aftermath of dragons burning a village to the ground. He had walked the battlefields where tens of thousands lay dead and dying. He had stood on top of walls as siege engines battered and shook the cities. He had also been on the opposite side.

The Aegis had some elvish blood in him, blood from the Vamriin Elves a highland and noble type. He was over two hundred but looked in human years much younger. He didn't even know how old he was, his parents had never wanted to tell him for he was born a bastard child.

A young boy with dirt smeared on his face and the odor of horses seeping from his clothes ran up to the mare and spoke with much passion, "oh you majestic animal!" The boy then quickly stuck his feet together and performed a frightful bow, "Lord Quinn you were gone a long time! Your mare has not had a good wash in a few weeks I'd wager! I will have to fix that right up!"

"Hmmm," Quinn replied with a nod, then grabbed 5 coins, four more than usual. The boy although he did not know his name took good care of his animals. Quinn placed the five coins on a post and left as the boy spoke.

"When you return your mare will be well-rested and fed!"

The horse looked at the small blonde boy who was wearing some type of cloak that was just a piece of rough fabric with unevenly cut out holes for the head and arms and cut off at the knees. The mare allowed the lad to pet its head then lead it into the stable. The boy took warm water and began to wash the mud and blood from its black coat.