Start of an Adventure

Perhaps it shouldn’t have been surprising, when Nox found himself looking down at a pink and purple colt, still shaky and unsteady on his too-long legs, for this colt was his. And despite his ties to Candentia, the older two of his triplets living there, he found his heart longing for adventure. Adventure that he couldn’t embark on with Luxaeterna, his twin brother, nor any of his triplets. Adventure that would have to happen with his youngest foal.

His gaze travelled down, from the foal’s tiny face and bright eyes to his fluffy pink tail. The foal’s coat was like if dawn had been split apart, exposing the night sky behind it.

“Your name will be Baroque,” the stallion whispered into the colt’s ear. And the colt blinked his eyes in return, gazing up at his father.

He stayed with the foal in Candentia for a few weeks, as he prepared for the journey. A journey he hoped would take them to all six regions, perhaps they would even stop by and visit other lands.

In those few weeks, Baroque grew stronger and steadier on his legs, sometimes chasing after the older colts and fillies. It wasn’t any surprise that he had been born with magic of his own; perhaps less than Sonnet and Minuet, but it was still magic.

Noxaeterna himself spent those few weeks with Sonnet and Minuet, relishing the time he could spend with them, before parting ways. They were rooted deeply in Candentia, with family, friends, and a life there. Sonnet and Minuet couldn’t leave Candentia to travel with him, even if he could see the pleading in their eyes as they asked if he would be there to watch them joust next week. He, despite everything, could not say the same about himself. He was born to travel, to roam, in the same way that Lux was perfectly at home in Candentia, helping consolidate whatever knowledge and artifacts Noxaeterna sent to the library.

And then, after Noxaeterna had said goodbye to his foals, Luxaeterna and his dam, Radiance, they left, Baroque and himself. They stepped through the fairy rings, and landed somewhere in the vast quirlicorn lands. He had told the fairies to drop them somewhere random, but safe for a foal. Perhaps for now, they’d stick to less adventurous and hazardous routes, but once Baroque learned to gallop without fear, Nox knew he had much he’d show this foal of his.

“Father,” Baroque called, his coat sparkling against the blue sky, his ears swiveling and eyes looking back with curiosity, “Where are we headed?”

Noxaeterna’s eyes met his son’s, and he smiled. “Wherever you want. We can travel to the plateaus where the grass bows down to the wind, or the sandy desert where mirages dance under the sun.”

“I want to see everything!” Baroque whinnied in reply, a broad smile spreading across his muzzle as he looked at the wide horizon.

Perhaps it wasn’t surprising that this foal of his was born to be an adventurer. Because he was also an adventurer, ready to explore every river and forest that the land had to offer.

“Then, we’ll see everything.”