was enjoying this. Pushing my heels gently into her ribs, I held on tight, as she started to trot around, following my lead. When I tugged the reins right, she turned right. When I tugged left, she turned left.
“Oh, the two of us are going to get along great,” I said, patting the side of her neck. Her mane felt like silk threads slipping through my fingers.
“Ready?” Kalon asked, and I narrowed my eyes at him.
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”
He smirked. “She likes you. That’s good. Race you to the Blood Arena?”
I remembered the general direction from yesterday, so I gave him a brief nod. “I hope Lightning can keep up,” I said.
“I named him Lightning for a reason.”
“What vanishes faster? Lightning or a midnight’s dream at dawn?” I shot back, pushing my heels and prompting Midnight to dart across the cobblestone plaza outside the palace.
I heard Kalon laugh as my Vision galloped on the wings of the ocean breeze. She was light and remarkably fast, I quickly realized. The whole city darted past us in smidges of gray and beige, of green and white. I had to use one hand to hold my hood on, but I only needed the other to grasp the reins, as I leaned forward and allowed Midnight to do the rest.
She seemed to know where we were going, but she did allow me to lead, taking sharp turns where needed. I heard gasps swishing past us from different bystanders. We must’ve looked like a flashing tornado, cutting through the streets and raising dust behind us.
The thundering of hooves soon joined us, as Kalon caught up with Lightning. I threw him a glance, noticing his broad smile. He was enjoying this more than anything. We dashed through the city, headed south between the buildings and square parks. We raced past the slow-moving carriages and hopped over the occasional loose cobblestones on the streets.
It didn’t matter that I was still in a dress, and that my shoes were anything but adequate for riding a horse. The wind brushed against my face, and I felt more alive than ever. My blood rushed, my muscles were hot and strained, and my soul felt intrinsically tied to Midnight’s, in a way. I could feel her joy, the thrill of running and caring for nothing but the wind and the sky and the ground and the world in between.
I was a whisper riding a Vision. A dream fluttering through the city. A thought. A mere blip in the fabric of the universe. And I felt perfect.
By the time the Blood Arena rose before us, I had an indelible grin on my face, knowing that Kalon and Lightning were a couple of yards behind. I wondered if he was doing it on purpose, since he’d already bragged that his Vision was the fastest. But something told me that this was all Midnight’s doing, as if I’d come along and pushed her to challenge herself. To run faster than the wind. Faster than Lightning. Faster than anything!
We came to a sudden and laughing halt outside the Blood Arena’s main entrance. My muscles hurt, but it was a delightful ache that I hoped would linger for a couple of hours, at least. My heart was full, my soul expanded. This kind of happiness was hard to come across, and I suspected that the experience was strictly related to riding a Vision. Just like their blood-drinking was out of this world because of the Rimians and the Naloreans, the Aeternae had added more spice and magic to their existence by breeding and raising these magnificent horses, whose souls touched their riders’. This was unique. I’d never felt this way before.
Kalon reached us a couple of seconds later, beaming like the sun. Lightning’s breath was ragged, much like Midnight’s, so he clearly must’ve put in all the effort he could’ve mustered for this race. One of the Blood Arena’s valets rushed to greet us in his dark red leather uniform.
“You looked like you were having a lot of fun,” Kalon said, getting off Lightning.
“And you looked like you were having a little trouble back there. I thought Lightning was the fastest Vision on this continent,” I replied with a satisfied smirk.
Kalon shrugged as I slipped off Midnight’s back and gave her a soft pat on the neck. She nuzzled my face, shuddering with delight. I’d made her as happy as she’d made me, it seemed, and I wasn’t sure what to make of this peculiar