lantairvlea | More on the gather

Kallon and Shermal galloped past Sray to block the gap. Between the jack and other trolas he pulled up abruptly. Shermal sat on her haunches in a half-rear in response. He brandished the pole and shouted at the trola. The animal lowered its head. Sray felt the temperature drop around the trola, a warning as it focused on Kallon and his horse.

“Kallon!” Sray shouted, finally firmly back in her seat and urging her mare to catch up, pole forgotten.

Shermal pawed the ground, anxious to move again, but holding position. The trola lowered his head. The bony ridges weren’t sharp, but a two ton trola battering ram behind them could kill. Kallon sat back and raised the pole. Shermal gathered her haunches and launched forward. Kallon swung the pole in a wide arc and with it pushed heat back at the trola.
The animal let out a loud, grunting snort of surprise, slid a couple feet on the freshly ice-slick grass, and abruptly turned back towards the holding pens.

Sray exhaled in relief to see the animal trotting away, his head still half-cocked towards Kallon, wary, but not willing to press for a fight if Kallon didn’t insist on it. She wasn’t going to be much help pole-less so she turned back to find it, glancing up to check their progress towards the holding pen and then galloping to catch up.

The trola jack entered the wide funnel of fencing as she came up beside Kallon. A pair of barren jills were also well on their way to the holding pens. Kallon and Sray halted to guard the broad entry as other riders pushed the trola deeper into the maze of holding pen fencing.

Kallon nodded towards Sray. “Maybe you should have stayed home the way you’re riding. At least you got your pole back.”

She tapped his foot with her pole. “You’re lucky no one but the trola and I were close enough to feel what you did.”

“Would you rather I let him get away?”

“I’d rather you not get run over by a trola or do something that makes people wonder how you managed to get an angry trola to stop in its tracks with just a stick and pony.”

“I did one better than stop him.” He tapped her pole back. “Keep a hold of your stick and stay on yours and I won’t have to. Also, they all had their backs to us.”

Sray shook her head. It wasn’t as if she had never pushed a little heat at a trola herself. “Just keep your senses clear. We don't know if the arsonists would actually try something while we're out here.”

“They won’t like what happens if they do.” His lip twitched, but didn’t quite curl.

The last day of the gather Sray and co were dismissed after the last trola was secured behind the final gate. The trolas are pretty happy to graze within fencing so long as they don’t run out of food. If there’s adequate food and water they’re not overly concerned about the restriction so long as it doesn’t go on too long.

Sray was riding alone back towards the wagon. Kallon was helping a little longer around the corrals and Kayrin went to send off Ientel and Forentel with some food. Iel said she didn’t have to fuss over them, they’d be at the relay by the next day, but didn’t refuse the food.

She looked behind her. Tos was trotting up on [description or name] horse. She stopped and allowed him to catch up.

“Another gather come and gone, and with that the new year will dawn.

“How does it feel on the cusp of twenty-two?”

“You should know, you’ve been here already.”

“I suppose so,” he said.