Threestrikes stood next to Galaxy, his eyes alight with crimson flame as he watched the darkening sky in anticipation. Too long had he been idle in Talia's halls. In reality, he hadn't been with them long, not nearly as long as the rest, but it felt like decades. He felt so sedentary; his life had become an endless flurry of games of tag, preening mares, and headstrong youngsters. He desperately wanted to feel the call of battle, to feel useful once more. Being a warrior wasn't simply an occupation, or duty; it was his calling. It was most of what he was, and he had felt like he had lost a part of himself by not embracing that part of what made him so decidedly whole. 

​

There was so much of his past that he missed, although Talia was helping him regain that. He missed his family, specifically his brother. He missed his younger, fiercer self. But for once he wasn't lamenting over what was lost. He was finding rediscovering himself after the pain of losing his original bonded. He knew he would be able to reunite with his brother again. That alone gave him strength.

​

And then something about Galaxy and Shimmer had changed, and he had felt the Rogues call to him, much as they called to the Elementals. Galaxy gathered his warriors and Elementals around him like a cloak, and the air felt heavy with anticipation and foreboding. It thrilled him to his coare, and he could feel his blood sing. Even now, while they stood on the hill watching the sky, it felt as if the world had held its breath. 

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The clouds swirled in angry masses, and the stars were completely obscured. Threestrikes tipped his blood red horns skyward, testing the air. He could almost smell the ozone, and that moist earthy smell of impending rain. But there was more to it than that. There was this wildness to the air, like a caged animal was waiting to break through. Perhaps that was what it was... 

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"Soon enough, my friend," Galaxy said, with only the briefest of glances in Threestrikes' direction. "The wards won't hold for long, and then we'll need all of your strength."

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Threestrikes nodded. Idle conversation wasn't his strong suit, but Galaxy never seemed to mind, which was always an extra point in Threestrikes' books. 

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"Time to prepare," Galaxy added, before turning his back on the warrior to return to the valley.

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Threestrikes cast one last forlorn glance at the swirling mass of chaos in the sky and followed his leader home.