*~Cheyenne's POV~*
I opened my eyes. I wasn't sure what I was but I could feel my hands, feet, arms and legs but no fingers and toes. I felt rather heavy, also.
I raised my head up and looked around. I was lying by a river. But when I looked at my body, something just didn't look right... I had four hooves, a tail and a horses body. There was something seriously wrong with this picture.
I stood up, wobbling on my new legs. My eyes adjusted to the bright green scenery and sunlight reflecting off the ripples of the water. I walked over to the water and looked at my reflection. My coat was a gray and white pattern. My mane and tail was white and a perfectly shaped black star between my eyes.
I bowed my head and started drinking the cool, crisp water as it raced by.
"There one is!" A boy said. "Huh?" I questioned looking up. I could talk. I wasn't sure if anyone could hear me or not but I could hear myself.
They rode up closer on their horses, ropes in hand. "Wait a minute." I said. "Don't worry, sweetie. We're not going to hurt you." The boy with blond hair said moving closer. I backed up slowly as they moved closer. My back hooves hit the water and I knew I couldn't back up much more.
They slung their ropes and they landed around my neck. "No! I'm not going with you!" I protested firmly pulling against their grip. "Don't worry. We're taking you where there's more like you." The man said. "I don't wanna go with you! I wanna go home!" I replied pulling on their ropes more. They urged their horses onward. I reared and fought as they tried to pull me.
*~Normal POV~*
The more Cheyenne fought, the more tired she got. Finally, she gave up and walked with them, instead of against them.
The miles stretched on and so did the hours.
Finally, they reached what looked like a camp. A boot camp no less. She didn't like the looks of it, either.
They lead her in the gates. Horses marched by and the sound of cracking whips filled the air. She searched the herd of horses as they marched on. "Help me!" She cried out. No one answered.
"Stop the line-up!" A man yelled. The horses stopped instantly. As the dust settled, she seen a black stallion with a man on his back about a football field away from them.
The man urged him to gallop over to them. As they approached, she seen a scar on the stallions eye. She was shocked at how odd it looked. It was shaped almost like a lightning bolt.
"You've brought back a beautiful creature this time." The man praised the men who was holding the ropes around her neck. "You're my two best hunters." He said looking her in the eyes. "I don't want to be here!" She said. The black stallion snorted. She chomped her teeth at him angrily. He pawed his left front foot at her.
She tossed her head and started pulling against the ropes. "Let me go! I don't belong here!" She said fighting as they tried to pull her back. The black stallion reared up and let out a powerful, echoing neigh.
She stopped and looked at him. "Let me tell you something, missy," he started sternly. "You're going to be here and you're going to like it! You're going to obey what you are instructed and you will learn who you are and where your place is. The time to start, is now." He finished firmly. Cheyenne snorted at him annoyed. "I don't know what happened to me, but this is not my home. This is not who I am and I ''will'' go home." She argued. He stomped his foot again. "This is your home, now." He said harshly. She laid my ears back at him.
"Put her in the barn. She's going to be a fighter." The man on his back said. He pulled the reins and he and the stallion galloped off. The boy and man holding her started towards a large barn.
They pulled her to the barn against her will. She would've put up a fight but was too tired to fight anymore.
A man met them at the doors of the barn. He took one of the ropes and the other man removed the other rope from her neck.
"Watch 'er now. She's a fighter." He said. The man nodded, turned and started walking in the barn. She followed calmly for she was tired.
He lead her into a stall and took the rope off her neck. He patted her shoulder. His hair slightly hanging in his eye. Cheyenne looked sadly at him. Wishing this nightmare would end before it even started.
"What's wrong?" He asked. "It's not like you can hear me. Why should I tell you? You're just like them." She said. "Actually, I can hear you and so can they. And I'm not like them." He replied. Her ears perked up and she looked at him hopeful. "Anyone can hear you and the others." He added. "You can?" She asked snapping my head up. "Yes. Now tell me, what's your name?" He questioned. "Cheyenne. My name is Cheyenne." She stated. "Nice to meet you, Cheyenne. I'm Trevor." He replied. "Nice to meet you, too, Trevor." She said.
"When can I go home? I have a life and it's not here. I don't belong here." She stated to her new found friend. "I'm sorry, Cheyenne but this is your home now. This is your life now. You can't change that." He replied. She didn't reply. Her head dropped slightly and tears formed in her eyes.
He walked over and placed his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. Not all of us are mean but not all of us are sweet, either." He stated. She rested her head against the stall wall. "Trevor!" Someone called."Sorry that I have to leave. I'll see you later." He said and walked out. Shutting the stall door and locking it.
She could hear voices talking to each other but none of them were close by. She was exhausted from the trip and had nothing better to do but sleep. She laid down on the stall floor and went to sleep.
As Cheyenne slept uneasily, a woman slipped into her stall. She watched Cheyenne's large body twitch as if she were having nightmares. She held clothes for Cheyenne to put on when she awoke.
When she woke up, she was still in the stall but could feel her fingers and toes. She sat up to find that she was clothe-less. "Here." Said a sweet, calm female voice from the stall door. She backed against the wall, pulled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her knees.
The woman walked closer. "I promise I'm not going to hurt you. Put these on." She said placing clothes on the ground in front of Cheyenne. "Can- can I have some privacy?" Cheyenne asked nervously. "Of course, dear." She said turning around. Cheyenne stood up and put the clothes on.
"You can turn around now. I'm clothed." Cheyenne said. The woman turned around and faced Cheyenne . "What is your name?" She asked nicely. "I'm Cheyenne. Cheyenne Rivers." Cheyenne stated stated. "I'm Taylor." She replied sweetly. "What am I doing here?" Cheyenne asked. "That question will be answered in a few minutes." She stated. "I'm scared." Cheyenne said. "There's no reason to be scared. As long as I'm around, you'll be safe and unharmed." She replied.
She reached her hand towards Cheyenne to touch her shoulder but she backed away a little. Taylor let her hand fall easily to her side. "No reason to be scared, Cheyenne. You'll meet plenty of people here your age. By the way, how old are you?" She asked. "17. I'll be 18 in 6 months." Cheyenne stated. "Yes. Quite a few here your age." Taylor
"Taylor, we're going to be late." A girl said from the stall door. Taylor motioned for Cheyenne to follow her. Cheyenne took a few nervous steps towards Taylor and the girl with blue eyes and slightly blond hair.
"Cheyenne, this is CJ, CJ, this is Cheyenne." Taylor said pointing to the girl. "Hey." CJ smiled. "Hi." Cheyenne replied with a forced but nervous smile.
"Come, come. We're going to be late." Taylor said motioning for Cheyenne to come with them. Cheyenne was unsure if she should move from the safety of the stall but she knew she was in for a long a grueling ride and hiding wasn't going to help any.
They walked out into a field where a crowd was gathered not far from them. A boy turned around and looked at them as they approached. "Jack!" Taylor greeted as he jogged over to them.
"I see we have a new addition to the herd." Jack said looking Cheyenne over with a slight smile. Cheyenne was afraid. She knew no one here, had no way of contacting help. She was afraid for her life.
"Yes. Cheyenne, this is Jack. Jack this is Cheyenne." Taylor introduced. He held out his hand, offering a welcoming shake. Cheyenne glanced at his hand then back at him. She wasn't sure what to do. Jack continued to hold his hand out. Showing no disappointment as Cheyenne examined him.
Slowly and easily, Cheyenne took Jack's hand. He shook her hand slowly and gently. Sensing here fear. "She's still a little shy and confused." Taylor stated to Jack. "I understand," he started. "I was the same way when I first came here. You'll have plenty of friends, Cheyenne." Jack added.
Cheyenne heard a noise she wasn't quite used to. A loud, echoing neigh breaking through the air. Her attention quickly turned to the apparent stage not far from them. Her gaze fell upon the black stallion as he danced around the stage riderless. He stopped in the middle of the stage, reared, tossed his hand and landed gently back on his front hooves.
Amazed by the sight, Cheyenne slowly drifted from her current pack and over to the gathered crowd as the stallion pawed his left front foot. Gray smoke burst around him like a sudden storm. Colorful sparks floating in the smoke. Cheyenne was amazed by such sight.
As the smoke faded, a boy with short black hair stood where the stallion had once. When he turned to face Cheyenne, she seen the same exact scar on the boys eye that had shown on the stallions eye. Obviously the boy was the black stallion.
Cheyenne didn't know what was worse, a mean boy or a mean stallion. Either way, he was bigger, faster and more trained than her. Therefore, he could do some serious damage to her if he wanted to.
A stern look settled on the boy's face as he looked out over the crowd. Then he found Cheyenne's gaze. His expression softened a little as they stared in each others eyes for a moment. Cheyenne's thoughts raced. Maybe he wouldn't be so bad after all. But she still wanted to go home.
As Cheyenne stared in the boy's eyes, she felt fear. For the first time in a long time, she actually felt afraid of someone. Something that was uncommon for her.
A man walked up and the boy turned to him. "How many?" He asked. "21 including her." The man answered nodding towards Cheyenne. The boy glanced over his shoulder at her with a smirk.
"She's a fighter. I expect great things from her." The man whispered. A sound came from the boy's chest. "I hope so. If nothing else, she'll make a good show prospect." The boy replied.
Jack walked up beside Cheyenne. "Who is?" She asked Jack. "That's Taylor's husband, general Gray and his "assistant" Cade." Jack answered.
The boy, whose name was Cade, walked around the stage-like thing, looked out across the crowd and then glanced at Cheyenne. He took a deep breath. "Now that I have your attention," he started. Everyone turned to look at him and everything got quiet as he spoke. A smile painted softly on Taylor's face as she stood beside Cheyenne.
"We have 21 new guests and I'm going to introduce you to them all starting with..." He trailed off looking at Cheyenne. "Ah-ha! You!" He said pointing to Cheyenne. Taylor nudged Cheyenne in her side, urging her to go on.
Cade held his hand down for Cheyenne to take to help her up. Cheyenne looked at his hand curiously then looked at Taylor. "Go on." Taylor said softly. Cheyenne took his hand and her pulled her up. A smile tugging at him lips.
"What's your name, Love?" He asked Cheyenne sweetly. Cheyenne looked around nervously. "Cheyenne." She answered quietly. "Say that again, doll. Say it where everyone else can hear you, too. Not just me." He said softly. Cheyenne searched her surroundings. Sounds creeping in her ears made her leery.
"My name is Cheyenne." She said a bit louder. Cade placed his hand on her shoulder, turned her towards the crowd and draped his arm over her shoulder. Cheyenne felt uncomfortable with Cade touching her, so she moved away.
"Say 'hi' to Cheyenne, everyone." He said. "Hi, Cheyenne." Everyone said together. She flashed the a nervous but forced smile. She looked at the crowd of people nervously. Wolves in the distance howled and owls hooted in the nearby trees.
"You can go now." Cade stated to Cheyenne. Cheyenne turned and hurried away from the attention. She walked back to her original place. She looked over to see Trevor leaning on a fence post. His hat hanging crookedly on his head. His hair hanging in strands in his face. A smirk painted gently on his lips.
"As some of you are wondering, and some of you already know, I'm going to explain what we're ''all'' doing here." Cade stated. Cheyenne made her way over to Trevor. She was fond of Trevor and his mysterious ways. He was nice and welcomed her better than anyone else had earlier.
"If you'll listen, he's going to explain why you're hear." Trevor stated pointing to Cade. Cheyenne glanced at Cade but quickly looked back at Trevor. "I don't care why I'm here. All I know is, I'm here forever. It doesn't matter." Cheyenne replied. Trevor nodded. Cade was explaining everything in the background but Cheyenne paid him no attention.
"Where can I go to get away from here? I swear I won't run away. I just want away from everyone to process all of this." Cheyenne said. Trevor pointed to a small "pig-trail" that traveled deeply into the woods. "Follow that trail and you won't get lost. But don't take no other way. Go straight." He stated. She nodded.
Cheyenne started following the trail into the darkness. Cade noticed and glanced in her direction as she disappeared. "What is she doing?" He mumbled to himself. He motioned for Jack to come over. Jack trotted over. "Follow her. Don't let her get away." Cade instructed to Jack. Jack nodded and went off to follow Cheyenne.
*~Cheyenne's POV~*
I walked down the trail. Limbs and twigs catching and pulling my hair as I walked. I could see little spots of moonlight every few feet. I followed Trevor's advice and staid straight with the winding trail.
I could hear animals in the distance making noises, howling, hooting and whatever else noise they made. I was afraid but I just wanted away from everyone. I wanted to be alone. Not locked up in a barn.
I had a feeling someone was following me but I didn't care. As long as I could get away from the crowd, I would be happy.
*~Normal POV~*
Cheyenne reached a grassy place by the river. A giant apple tree stood by the water. The moonlight sparkling like diamonds on the water. Cheyenne found this a nice, peaceful place to get her head straight.
Little did she know Jack was following her. He stood behind a tree watching Cheyenne carefully. He felt as if he was invading her space but her knew he was instructed to follow her. He wanted to follow her. He wanted to learn more about this shy girl that was thrown into their world of war. He wanted to know more about the girl who wanted out.
Cheyenne sat on the ground under the apple tree. She pulled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her knees and started crying. Pain wrenched her heart. She missed her friends, her life, her parents, her family. Everything in her life. Everything that had been snatched away from her all of a sudden and she didn't know what to do.
Jack wanted to help Cheyenne and comfort her but he didn't know how she would react to him following her. Maybe she wouldn't be as mad if she knew it was under order? Then again, Cheyenne wanted her peace. She came here for a reason. She wanted to be alone.
Cheyenne tried to muffle her sobs and screams by covering her mouth with her hand but to anyone with sensitive hearing, they could hear her. Jack felt sorry for her. He couldn't imagine the pain she was going through but her cries explained a lot.
Cheyenne rested on the cool, damp ground. Curled in a fetal position. She clenched a handful of grass in her hand as pain struck her heart again as the memory of everything she loved flashed through her mind. Finally, she cried herself to sleep. Jack watching over her carefully.
"What are you doing?" Trevor asked Jack as he approached. Jack jumped. He wasn't aware that anyone was near. "Cade told me to follow her. I can't leave her. She's asleep." Jack answered. "This girl should be sent home. She has no reason to be here. There's a deep pain in her because of this. Us ripping her from everything she's ever known. It's not fair to her." Trevor stated. Jack's eyes wandered back to Cheyenne.
"I know. But you know Cade and the General. They're never fair. You know that." Jack replied. "I know but we have to find a way to get her away from here. She needs to be home. She doesn't belong here." Trevor said. They both watched Cheyenne carefully. Tears glistened on her face from the moons bright light.
"We have no right to hold her hostage like this." Jack finally said after a long moment of silence. "We'll think of something to get her home. She deserves to be home. Not here." Trevor replied. More silence filled the air as they thought. Watching Cheyenne so she wouldn't get attacked by anything.