Entry for Snjorrir Special Challenges: A Dark Past of SFR's Warhammer

A blood red moon rose into the night. It gazed below on a sea of chaos. What had once been a successful military camp now law in ruins. Fire licked the boots of the dark figures running amid the wreckage. Bodies lay in pieces and piles, slowing the movement of those still living. It wasn't supposed to happen this way. This was a stealth mission, a recon. Now people were dying. And it was all the stallion's fault.
They'd come in silently and begun removing horses. Most remembered the rebels from their stint as recruit soldiers. They went easily, a few balking at the thought of leaving their stalls so late but none the less moving. None of the rebels knew of the new horses. Etiros, the Angel. The hulking stallion was stabled in the back. No other horse was stabled near him. He'd have been missed completely if one of the mares hadn't spooked as she'd been led past.
A pair of dark eyes peered out at the pair. The rebel called to his companions and they quickly made their way to the stall. Three slipped inside, rope over their shoulders. A halter dangled from one's arm. They moved to both sides of the stallion and one stayed up front. Etiros watched them with little interest, head bowed as if he was resting. The rebel unit shared a glance at the strange behavior, but figured he might have been sedated earlier. A few of the horses had herbs slipped into their feed earlier, by an insider, to help keep them calm as they were removed.
How wrong they were. As a drow moved to halter the great stallion, Etiros jerked his head forward and bit his fingers. A scream filled the stall and Etiros went wild. Hooves sunk into flesh and teeth found their way to bone. He dove forward, crashing through the poor wooden excuse for a door and into the main part of the make-shift stables. He reared again and brought his heavy hooves down onto the packed dirt. The horses outside whimpered in fear and all shifted away from the raging stallion. People ran to catch him, only to be driven away with fierce effectiveness.
A cry went up from the rest of camp and soldiers poured into the stable yard. Most were still drowsy from the potion slipped into their evening meal and sluggish with their weapons. One of the most powerful army units had been reduced to fumbling drunkards. The sounds of metal hitting flesh joined the screams of horses as the yard descended to madness. At some point a lantern fell over, quickly setting the dry hay alight. Horses and men alike panicked as the flames spread.
In the center of the fray stood the stallion. His coat gleamed in the fire-light. His stripes merged together with the tongues of fire around him. Silently he watched his handiwork. Both sides lay dead under his bloody hooves, yet no one paid him any attention. He would strike now.
Etiros trotted swiftly deeper into the fighting, pausing every once and again to watch scenes of battle. There was a sick satisfaction in watching his once proud team-mates fall under their own masters hands. The army would rather them dead than be in the hands of the rebels. His own rider would as well. And that is why he would find him. Etiros found the older drow engaged with a much younger opponent. From the swift movements and lithe figure he put her as a female. She stood no chance against Iltian. Iltian was a cruel man, bred from the same heat of battle as Etiros and shaped with hard, brash strokes. He would kill her slowly and enjoy it. His horse was the same.
Iltian looked up to see his horse and something flashed across his eyes. Even in the din and smoke Etiros recognized it. Fear. Iltian knew what was to happen. The stallion surged forward, knocking the woman aside as he attacked Iltian. His hooves crashed down and again, pummeling the man beneath. There was no sound. The rebel sat a few feet away, frozen in terror as she watched the spectacle before her.
Finally, Etiros stopped. His side was lathered in sweat and his eyes gleamed in the devilish light. A smile stretched across his muzzle as he looked at the mess that had served as his master. He died as he lived: bloody and violent. The stallion swiveled his head to look at the young woman sitting nearby. She couldn't be much older than a girl. A ratty shirt had been slipped over her chain mail and a short saber was gripped in her hands. She watched Etiros uneasily, ready to dash at any moment. He walked closer.
There was no need now. He had done what he came to do. This woman was nothing to him. There was no fight here. Etiros muscles spasmed and he sank to his knees. His breathe came in short bursts. The golden head dipped lower until he lay sprawled across the ground. Blood and bone coated him, but it didn't matter. He had brought death as he'd promised so long ago.

It would be many hours before people would know that he had in fact been given the sedative like the other horses. He'd been given the most. Throughout the massacre the stallion had fought its effects just to go after his owner. His wrath was so great it scared them. Who would ever be able to tame such a dangerous horse. A few suggested killing him out of mercy, he wasn't safe to be around. It was the woman who saved him. She patted his neck kindly and told them of a place she'd visited. A place where the stallion could be trained, a place he could learn kindness. It was back on Earth. Etiros would go with the rest of the horses and begin his new life away from the cruelness of his drow masters.

Sorry, had to skip forward a bit in Eti's story because this is due in a few days. Eti is my bby and I wanted to share his story along with all the other poor horses taken from army. I'm also planning one for my three girls and Xafi, but theirs' will not be nearly this complicated (probably more like a sticker or something to be honest). None of their backstories are gonna be as big and drawn out as Eti's so no point really.

Now, I have no idea what is up with all the paintings. I just am in the mood to color and have messy sketches. Don't judge me, I do what I want. This one is kinda sorta sketchy because I liked how it looked rough and detailing it too much took away from how wild it looked.

Art and Character (c) me
Ref Used used from here