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Description

    Ryder wove in and out of trees, slowly making his way through a small forest. He had decided to scout ahead of the herd, leaving Hansel in charge while he was away. The brown and white stallion had proven that he was quite capable and was growing more confident by the day. Ryder was comfortable leaving his mares alone under Hansel’s watch for short periods of time. He knew that Hansel would do anything in his power to keep the mares safe, especially since one of them carried his foal and another was his twin sister.

    Lost in thought, Ryder wasn’t really paying attention to his surroundings. That proved to be a mistake when he heard a furious squeal followed by thundering hooves. Jerking his head towards the sound, he saw a mare charging towards him, ears pinned back. He had just enough time to see that she was a beautiful smokey black color with white markings before she slid to a stop in front of him, rearing up and pawing at the air. The mare crashed back down, snorting aggressively, ears pinned to her skull, teeth bared. Normally he would have tried to start a conversation with such a beautiful mare, but it seemed that something had made her angry.

    "Move along bachelor! We have a stallion and we won't let you steal us from him!" the beautiful mare snarled, stamping her hooves threateningly.

    Still stunned, Ryder finally tried to take in his surroundings as he floundered, trying to respond. Looking beyond the mare, he saw a large herd in the distance. From where he stood, he could see lots of mares, many of them with foals. As he looked, he saw the mares gathering the foals close to their sides, shooting nervous glances his way as they did. It seemed he had carelessly wandered into another herd's territory. That explained why the mare was so upset at least.

    A sharp pain in his shoulder brought Ryder's attention back to the mare in front of him. She had reached forward and bitten him. Looking at her, a bit shocked, she had a furious expression on her face.

    "I said MOVE ALONG! Now get going before I smash your face in," the mare snapped.

    “I think there’s been some mistake. I’m not a bachelor and I’m not here to steal any of you. I was just scouting ahead and–” Ryder tried to explain, but was interrupted by the mare.

    “Save it! I know you bachelors will try anything to get a mare. Now, this is your last chance to get moving!” the mare took a threatening step forward as she spoke.

    Bewildered at the mare’s aggression, Ryder took a step back, stammering, “I really don’t want to steal any of you! I have my own mares to take care of! Really, I’m just passing through!”

    “I warned you!” the mare growled right before she struck.

    The smokey black mare lunged forward and seized Ryder by the neck, sinking her teeth on either side of his mane. Roaring in pain, Ryder struck out at her, doing his best to make her let go. A blow to the chest finally made the mare release him. In pain, Ryder snorted and tossed his head. Now he was angry. He hadn’t done anything to warrant an attack. Normally, he would have just walked away, but it looked like this mare was looking for an excuse to fight. And she didn’t look like she would let him walk away without a few bruises at least.

    Arching his neck to appear bigger, Ryder pawed at the ground. The mare paused for a moment and that’s all Ryder needed. Throwing his body into hers, he used his larger size to his advantage. The mare stumbled, having lost her footing for a moment. Ryder reached over and bit down hard. He heard the mare squeal in pain and felt her kicking at his feet. Letting go, he sent a return kick of his own towards her flank, but didn’t land a solid blow.

    The two fought, trading blows back and forth. One would kick and the other would send a bite. Sometimes both would rear up, biting at the other’s ears, cheeks, and neck. Neither was willing to back down at this point. Panting, Ryder had to admit that the mare was good, really good. In fact, she reminded him of Titiana, his lead mare’s second in command. Titiana never backed down from a fight and could fight as well as any stallion. The fact that this mare reminded him of Titiana most likely wasn’t a good thing. It meant that she probably wasn’t going to stop any time soon.

    It was pure luck that stopped the fight. The mare slipped on a loose rock, losing her footing for just a moment. A moment was all Ryder needed. He shoved the mare hard, knocking her on her side. Grabbing her neck ridge, he wrestled her down. Squealing, she kicked her legs, but couldn’t find any purchase. Angry, she laid there, huffing and puffing, glaring at Ryder out of the corner of her eye. Once he was sure that she wasn’t going to suddenly kick him again, Ryder let go cautiously.

    Taking a step back, the stallion said a bit gruffly, “Now, like I was trying to say before you attacked me, I’m not here to steal anyone. I’m just passing through, trying to make sure it’s safe for my own mares to come this way. I was expecting maybe predators or maybe a rogue bachelor or two. Not a mare trying to attack me!”

    Still laying on her side, the mare asked suspiciously, “Are you sure that you aren’t here to steal anyone?”

    Exasperated, Ryder said, “NO! I have plenty of my own mares to take care of! The only mares I’m interested in right now are my own!”

    Slowly, the mare got to her feet, Ryder backing up as she did. He didn’t feel like going for round two with this mare. Shaking herself off, the mare glared at Ryder. Rolling his eyes, Ryder turned to leave. He didn’t have time to waste on mares that were determined to find him a villain.

    As he walked away, he heard the mare mumble, “Sorry. Got carried away.”

    Looking over his shoulder, he saw a large red stallion galloping towards them. Smirking a little, he called to the mare, “Explain that to your stallion. Looks like he’s heading this way.”

    Ryder saw the mare look towards the rest of her herd and heard her curse. Chuckling, Ryder kept going. He’ll let her stallion deal with her. He felt confident that nothing too serious would happen to the mare, especially since she was so loyal to her stallion. Ryder was just happy to leave in one piece. Wincing in a bit of pain, he continued walking, even as he heard the sound of the stallion talking to the mare. He needed to return to his own herd.

Stallion ID: #75-2 Ryder
In response to: CV Tournament

Story features: (3) Ryder, Hansel, Titiana
Word Count: 1167

Items Used: Peanut Wood, Watermelon

Companion Animals: Cedar - HP
Collab: Yes with herd #82 DaSassy

Rolls: Feathers

Stallion: Ajax (#82)

In response to: CV Tournament - Round One - Juniper vs Ryder

Art features(2): Juniper, Ryder

Items Used: P.Wood + Pumpkin

Companion Animals:
Caring – Theodore the Cat (Healthy Foals) N/A
Helping – Pudge the Cat (Extra Feathers)
Healing – Monster the Cat (Heals Injuries) NOT USING
Protecting – Sassy the Dog (Reduces Injuries) NOT USING
Nursing – Angel the Dove (Heals Sickness) NOT USING
Foaling – Jeremy the Stork (Bonus From Foaling) N/A

Collab: Yes - SassySaber #75

Rolls: Feathers

Other notes:
PPJ:
Ajax: Estraya, Fancy, Isabelle, Juniper, Cheyenne, Yuki, Trissa, Nizana, Joi, Faina, Hawk (None available)
Finn: Everyone

Artist Notes:
Woo! First round of the fight and it turns into the battle of the Sassy! Juniper showing her protective side - though maybe she should have asked questions first before going on the attack...

Refs: Link

Art/Writing (c) DaSassy

Description

    Ryder wove in and out of trees, slowly making his way through a small forest. He had decided to scout ahead of the herd, leaving Hansel in charge while he was away. The brown and white stallion had proven that he was quite capable and was growing more confident by the day. Ryder was comfortable leaving his mares alone under Hansel’s watch for short periods of time. He knew that Hansel would do anything in his power to keep the mares safe, especially since one of them carried his foal and another was his twin sister.

    Lost in thought, Ryder wasn’t really paying attention to his surroundings. That proved to be a mistake when he heard a furious squeal followed by thundering hooves. Jerking his head towards the sound, he saw a mare charging towards him, ears pinned back. He had just enough time to see that she was a beautiful smokey black color with white markings before she slid to a stop in front of him, rearing up and pawing at the air. The mare crashed back down, snorting aggressively, ears pinned to her skull, teeth bared. Normally he would have tried to start a conversation with such a beautiful mare, but it seemed that something had made her angry.

    "Move along bachelor! We have a stallion and we won't let you steal us from him!" the beautiful mare snarled, stamping her hooves threateningly.

    Still stunned, Ryder finally tried to take in his surroundings as he floundered, trying to respond. Looking beyond the mare, he saw a large herd in the distance. From where he stood, he could see lots of mares, many of them with foals. As he looked, he saw the mares gathering the foals close to their sides, shooting nervous glances his way as they did. It seemed he had carelessly wandered into another herd's territory. That explained why the mare was so upset at least.

    A sharp pain in his shoulder brought Ryder's attention back to the mare in front of him. She had reached forward and bitten him. Looking at her, a bit shocked, she had a furious expression on her face.

    "I said MOVE ALONG! Now get going before I smash your face in," the mare snapped.

    “I think there’s been some mistake. I’m not a bachelor and I’m not here to steal any of you. I was just scouting ahead and–” Ryder tried to explain, but was interrupted by the mare.

    “Save it! I know you bachelors will try anything to get a mare. Now, this is your last chance to get moving!” the mare took a threatening step forward as she spoke.

    Bewildered at the mare’s aggression, Ryder took a step back, stammering, “I really don’t want to steal any of you! I have my own mares to take care of! Really, I’m just passing through!”

    “I warned you!” the mare growled right before she struck.

    The smokey black mare lunged forward and seized Ryder by the neck, sinking her teeth on either side of his mane. Roaring in pain, Ryder struck out at her, doing his best to make her let go. A blow to the chest finally made the mare release him. In pain, Ryder snorted and tossed his head. Now he was angry. He hadn’t done anything to warrant an attack. Normally, he would have just walked away, but it looked like this mare was looking for an excuse to fight. And she didn’t look like she would let him walk away without a few bruises at least.

    Arching his neck to appear bigger, Ryder pawed at the ground. The mare paused for a moment and that’s all Ryder needed. Throwing his body into hers, he used his larger size to his advantage. The mare stumbled, having lost her footing for a moment. Ryder reached over and bit down hard. He heard the mare squeal in pain and felt her kicking at his feet. Letting go, he sent a return kick of his own towards her flank, but didn’t land a solid blow.

    The two fought, trading blows back and forth. One would kick and the other would send a bite. Sometimes both would rear up, biting at the other’s ears, cheeks, and neck. Neither was willing to back down at this point. Panting, Ryder had to admit that the mare was good, really good. In fact, she reminded him of Titiana, his lead mare’s second in command. Titiana never backed down from a fight and could fight as well as any stallion. The fact that this mare reminded him of Titiana most likely wasn’t a good thing. It meant that she probably wasn’t going to stop any time soon.

    It was pure luck that stopped the fight. The mare slipped on a loose rock, losing her footing for just a moment. A moment was all Ryder needed. He shoved the mare hard, knocking her on her side. Grabbing her neck ridge, he wrestled her down. Squealing, she kicked her legs, but couldn’t find any purchase. Angry, she laid there, huffing and puffing, glaring at Ryder out of the corner of her eye. Once he was sure that she wasn’t going to suddenly kick him again, Ryder let go cautiously.

    Taking a step back, the stallion said a bit gruffly, “Now, like I was trying to say before you attacked me, I’m not here to steal anyone. I’m just passing through, trying to make sure it’s safe for my own mares to come this way. I was expecting maybe predators or maybe a rogue bachelor or two. Not a mare trying to attack me!”

    Still laying on her side, the mare asked suspiciously, “Are you sure that you aren’t here to steal anyone?”

    Exasperated, Ryder said, “NO! I have plenty of my own mares to take care of! The only mares I’m interested in right now are my own!”

    Slowly, the mare got to her feet, Ryder backing up as she did. He didn’t feel like going for round two with this mare. Shaking herself off, the mare glared at Ryder. Rolling his eyes, Ryder turned to leave. He didn’t have time to waste on mares that were determined to find him a villain.

    As he walked away, he heard the mare mumble, “Sorry. Got carried away.”

    Looking over his shoulder, he saw a large red stallion galloping towards them. Smirking a little, he called to the mare, “Explain that to your stallion. Looks like he’s heading this way.”

    Ryder saw the mare look towards the rest of her herd and heard her curse. Chuckling, Ryder kept going. He’ll let her stallion deal with her. He felt confident that nothing too serious would happen to the mare, especially since she was so loyal to her stallion. Ryder was just happy to leave in one piece. Wincing in a bit of pain, he continued walking, even as he heard the sound of the stallion talking to the mare. He needed to return to his own herd.

Stallion ID: #75-2 Ryder
In response to: CV Tournament

Story features: (3) Ryder, Hansel, Titiana
Word Count: 1167

Items Used: Peanut Wood, Watermelon

Companion Animals: Cedar - HP
Collab: Yes with herd #82 DaSassy

Rolls: Feathers

Stallion: Ajax (#82)

In response to: CV Tournament - Round One - Juniper vs Ryder

Art features(2): Juniper, Ryder

Items Used: P.Wood + Pumpkin

Companion Animals:
Caring – Theodore the Cat (Healthy Foals) N/A
Helping – Pudge the Cat (Extra Feathers)
Healing – Monster the Cat (Heals Injuries) NOT USING
Protecting – Sassy the Dog (Reduces Injuries) NOT USING
Nursing – Angel the Dove (Heals Sickness) NOT USING
Foaling – Jeremy the Stork (Bonus From Foaling) N/A

Collab: Yes - SassySaber #75

Rolls: Feathers

Other notes:
PPJ:
Ajax: Estraya, Fancy, Isabelle, Juniper, Cheyenne, Yuki, Trissa, Nizana, Joi, Faina, Hawk (None available)
Finn: Everyone

Artist Notes:
Woo! First round of the fight and it turns into the battle of the Sassy! Juniper showing her protective side - though maybe she should have asked questions first before going on the attack...

Refs: Link

Art/Writing (c) DaSassy