Awaken, Leonard.

You have been changed, albeit slightly, in ways I’m sure you will come to appreciate. Although I must warn you, you might find your newfound capabilities to be quite…enlightening.

There was that strange voice again, both male and female in tone. And every word echoed as if many voices spoke in unison. This caused Leonard to shift in his slumber, ears folded against his head.

He had to wonder…who is that?

Wonder…

This…this experience, these thoughts. Wh-what is this?

“Jiù wǒmen suǒ zhī, tā kěnéng shì Wūlóng shǒuxià de jiāndié”

Leonard’s ears shot up and twitched in response to a feminine voice, sweet yet strong like that of several female members of the Redmanes, although he couldn’t understand the language.

Wait, how… What is- how is he doing this?

“Nǐ zài zuò jiǎshè, Yǔliàng.”

Another voice spoke up, also female and noticeably higher-pitched compared to the last. But Leonard was too preoccupied with his new-found grasp of the world to notice if anything more was said as he slowly opened his eyes.

He lifted a forehoof and stared at it while innumerable thoughts flooded his mind. This… This is…

Amazing. He could now think on a scale far more extensive than ever. Granted, he wasn’t stupid, not at all. But this…

This was… He just couldn’t find the right words.

Words. Words. He could now understand them far better than ever before. Well, aside from whatever strange language those two females spoke. Or would the correct term be mares? Question for later, he humored.

It was time to meet the source of these two voices. However, his instincts abruptly flared caution, and Leonard only now noticed the- What kind of wood is that? He’d never seen it before, but whatever it was, it surrounded him as if he were trapped in a cage.

Oh.

“Wǒmen bùnéng zài zhèlǐ cūxīn dàyì, Mùlán. Zhǐ xūyào yī gè shīwù, wǒmen zài zhèlǐ jiànzào de yīqiè dū jiàng bèi chèxiāo.”

“Nǐ yǐwéi wǒ bù zhīdào mǎ, Yǔliàng?”

Leonard urgently lifts himself onto his hooves but bangs his head against the roof of the ‘strange wood’—which he now knows was as hard as a brick wall—made cage. But in doing so, and while he tends to the resulting bump with pained features and gritted teeth, he had gained the full attention of the now-shocked duo standing just outside his containment.

His eyes shot wide open, stunned by what he saw beyond the gaps of his cage. By the glory of Radahn, he’d never seen anything like them. The shape of their admittedly alluring forms was similar to his own—so mares must be the proper term then—yet they also had traits of a lion and a dragon. They even have horns protruding backward on their head and cloven hooves.

Those scales going down the middle of their face and across their back are remarkable. Sadly, the taller one seems angry…and she wields a spear-like weapon. How is she even holding it like that? Leonard pondered. But, most concerning of all, she’s now pointing it at him. And she most definitely must know how to use it, given the armor she wore, all unmistakable signs of a warrior.

Alright then.

“Dào wǒ hòumiàn qù, Mùlán!” The taller one steps defensively in front of her smaller companion, Leonard shifting his gaze to focus on that amber gray-coated wielder of his imminent death.

He did have to admire her moderate opal and grayish turquoise lion’s mane, which looked like the traveling and swirling waves he’d often see crashing against Castle Redmane. Unfortunately, he then met her narrowed amaranth eyes and regretted it.

Those eyes made him feel like he was mere prey for this lion-dragon-mare. And the dark-red horn with two red upside-down V-shaped stripes didn’t help at all.

“Yǔ ā! Bié zhème cūlǔ!” The smaller lion-dragon-mare peeked out from behind the larger one’s left hindleg and slapped it repeatedly with a forehoof. Did…did she just scold the larger one? Leonard wasn’t sure, but it did resemble what Queen Rennala would do to Radahn in their younger days.

An explosion of realization suddenly overtakes him, and the horse’s head lowers somberly. Where is his demigod brother and caretaker, who mastered powerful sorceries so that they could continue to ride him into battle? Where was the honorable Starscourge who defended the Lands Between with those same powers from forces beyond comprehension?

[CLUNK CLUNK]

Something taps against Leonard’s cell, pulling him out of his thoughts as his eyes travel to the small lion-dragon-mare, whose forelimb is still raised. Now that she was this close, Leonard could make out a dark-green mane and tail, a dark-gray coat, black scales, and a cherry red horn with two purple upside-down V-shaped stripes.

“Wǒ cāi nǐ bùhuì shuō qínhuà bā?”

He couldn’t understand what she was saying, much to his disappointment. If only they could speak English.

Hang on…could he speak? He nodded in determination, breathed deeply, parted his muzzle, and…whinnied.

By the might of the Redmanes…he felt so embarrassed, his cheeks taking on a shade of red. As for the lion-dragon-mares, they were utterly taken aback by the action, eyes wide open as the smaller one’s muzzle dropped.

“Nǐ shì pǐ mǎ?!” She cried out as the larger one recollected herself, hardening her features.

The smaller one seemed lost in thought, and Leonard grew increasingly nervous as the larger one stood there menacingly. Then, after several awkward moments passed by, the smaller one—he hated to label them both like that, but what other choice was there—suddenly smiled vibrantly.

“Wǒ yǒu gè zhǔyì!” She roared before saying something else to the taller one in a quieter tone. She then turns around and runs away, disappearing beyond a circular doorframe.

Please, for the love of Queen Rennala, don’t leave him here with the tall one who radiates murder!

And so, here Leonard remains, trapped in a cage and fidgeting as he’s alone with a murderous lion-dragon-mare. All that’s missing is the ability for her to breathe fire, and she’d officially be considered something that was birthed from the volcano of the Lands Between.

To hopefully alleviate his nervousness and keep his mind off of the fact that the murder mare over there was watching him, Leonard turns his head to take in his surroundings. Everything was made out of wood, the furniture, the support beams, everything.

Decorative plants, including large mushrooms, grow out from the walls while others hang from the ceiling in pottery. Unlit torches are also mounted onto the walls, but an alighted candle on a nearby table fills the air with a sweet aroma, Leonard flaring his nostrils before turning his gaze toward it.

He saw sunlight creeping through a window just above the table with the candle, so he at least had some means of telling the time of day. Not accurately, of course, but it was better than nothing.

His ears perked up as a strange sound was coming from the direction of the murderous one. He hesitantly turns to look at her and… Forget breathing fire; she could levitate things?! Is this a type of gravity magic?!

Leonard stared in awe as the stripes on her horn glowed blue, which, in turn, had conjured an energy field of the same color all around her weapon. She stepped closer to the cage, her weapon floating at her side, similar to what Radahn would do with his prowess.

She stood inches away from the cage silently, eyes examining every bit of his form. Maybe…maybe he could communicate using what he already knows?

He snorts while nodding his head and tapping a foreleg.

She raises an eyebrow.

Alright. Not what he wanted, but it’s something. Snorting was a positive thing for horses, so he could only hope she’d understand his intentions.

He lowered himself onto his stomach, waved his tail, and neighed.

She tilts her head, “Nǐ shì gè qíguài de rén…” she said.

Yeah… The Steed of the great General Radahn was starting to get the impression that he was weird in her eyes. He had to admit, though…up close like this, beautiful doesn’t even begin to describe her.

Scary…but beautiful.

Leonard’s ears suddenly picked up the sounds of approaching hooves. Then, the smaller lion-dragon-mare trots into the room with two different flasks, one blue and the other purple, with strange labels, floating within a magical green field.

He didn’t precisely study at Raya Lucaria, but thanks to his time spent with Radahn, he’d recognize something as simple as a flask anywhere. Granted, everyone had a different name for it, like ‘potion,’ but flask became the general term used in the Lands Between.

The lion-dragon-mares exchanged more foreign words, going back and forth before finally nodding and turning toward his direction in unison. The smaller one lifts the blue flask, pops off the cork with her prowess, and floats it through the bars and closer to him.

“Qǐng hē zhè gè.”

He didn’t need to know what she said to understand the gesture. Still, his ears folded against his head as he eyed the flask with suspicion, which didn’t go unnoticed by the small one and caused the beautifully dangerous one to roll her eyes.

The small one pulls the flask away from Leonard and out of the cage before floating it close to her muzzle. She gestures at it and shakes her head before sticking out her tongue playfully, tilting it and allowing a drop of the contained substance within to fall onto her tongue. Her tongue retreats back into her mouth, and she licks her lips in satisfaction.

She smiled at him, floating the flask through the cage and offering it to him once more. Seemingly convinced, Leonard curiously observed the flask before biting onto the top/lip, lifting his head, and chugging down its contents. All while the magical field of the smaller lion-dragon-mare never left the flask.

The now-empty flask floats before him. Blueberry flavored. Delicious.

“Can you understand us now?” Leonard’s ears twitched as he immediately shot his gaze toward the small one and blinked twice. “I hope I was able to brew it correctly.”

Leonard’s muzzle dropped. He- he could understand her! Yes!

“Mulan,” the tall, dangerous, and beautiful one began, “are you sure this is wise?”

“It’ll be fine, Rain Shine,” Mulan assured. “Now then,” she starts as her eyes meet Leonard’s, “please allow us to introduce ourselves properly. My name is Hua Mulan, but just Mulan will suffice. And this lovely yet overprotective kirin to my right is Rain Shine.”

Leonard tilts his head. Kirin? He’d never heard of a kirin before, but at least he had something much more appropriate than ‘little one’ or ‘taller one.’ Though, to be fair, those names are accurate.

Rain Shine narrowed her eyes, “Greetings,” she said monotonously.

Mulan sighed, “Please forgive her. She means well, but if you’ll forgive me for saying this, she isn’t completely wrong, either. Tell me, does the name Oolong have any effect on you?”

Leonard shook his head.

“I see. I must say, you’re quite a distance away from Saddle Arabia, my good stallion.”

“He could be lying to us,” Rain Shine asserts with a growl. “Who’s to say that Oolong didn’t send him here as a spy? He could put everykirin else in the village in great danger. We need to take appropriate measures here, Mulan.”

“I know, Rainy. I’m getting to that.” Mulan clears her throat. “First thing’s first; we noticed that you, uhm, neigh and whiny a lot. I know that saddle arabians resemble the ancient horse more than anycreature else, even more than ponies, but surely you are capable of at least some speech, right?”

Leonard shakes his head again. This was…strange. He could think and speak in his mind, odd as that sounds, but couldn’t outwardly voice them.

But what got his attention was how Mulan said ‘Ponies’ and ‘Saddle Arabians.’ Weren’t they basically the same if what she said was to be believed? And this is coming from an actual horse.

Wait…she said ‘Ancient Horse.’ What…what does that even-

“Are you possibly speech disabled?”

The stallion shakes his head. He never could speak. The very idea of doing that was just...impossible! Well, until recently, that is.

Just what in the world happened after he and Radahn got caught up in that strange crystal when the old masked one cast that strange sorcery? Did that peculiar voice he heard earlier have anything to do with it? He couldn’t sa-

[KPLUNGK]

Leonard jolts in shock, breathing shakily.

“Don’t you dare ignore her, saddle arabian!” Rain Shine roars out, having slammed her weapon against the cage. “I do not trust you, and blatantly ignoring our leader doesn’t help you, either. So pay attention.”

“Rain Shine!” Mulan scolds. “I. Will. Handle. This. Or did you forget what I have right here?” Mulan lifts the purple flask in her magical grasp and quickly shakes it. “I know you mean well, but please try to calm down.”

Rain Shine held her fearsome stare on Leonard. Radahn’s grace, he’d like nothing more than to get out of her sight. But the scary one then takes a calming breath, which he was eternally grateful for.

“Forgive me, Mulan. I…” she sighs sadly, looking at the smaller kirin. “I lost my composure there… It’s just…we’ve lost so many loved ones already. It’s been…difficult.”

“I know, Rainy,” Mulan responds as she comfortably pats the larger kirin. “I know.”

Rain Shine turns back to Leonard, stares at him, and lets out a low growl. “Prove yourself to us, stranger.” She points a hoof at the purple flask held by Mulan, “If you would like a chance to show your innocence, then drink this concoction, too.”

Leonard lifts himself off the floor and steps closer to the bars. He sets himself down, although he is starting to get hungry. Well, at least the flask, or potion, quenched his thirst. So there’s that.

He meets Rain Shine’s eyes and nods, earning a pleasant smile from Mulan.

“Very well,” Rain Shine began. “As you probably know by now, the potion you drank before allows you to understand Qinese as we do—a Translation Potion, if you will. No, I’m not going to explain to you how it’s made.

The one Mulan has there is called Wukong Divulgence, one of the most potent Truth Potions in the world.”

Mulan grinned. “I might have connections to the Monkey King, who I managed to get a lock of hair from. And I might've learned alchemy from a zebra friend when I visited Savanna long ago, a vast and great nation to the far west.” She was coy about it, looking over a forehoof.

Meanwhile, Leonard just wanted to know one thing, which may or may not also cover some of what was just said: what?

Rain Shine chuckles, “Indeed. So then, saddle arabian, I could go on and on, but I trust you get the gist of it?”

He understood that much. He drinks the potion, no doubt followed by answering some questions, and they might let him go, maybe even give him some food. Well, that’s an easy one.

He snorts while nodding, prompting Mulan to float the potion into the cell and set it down as Rain Shine watches stoically. It was impressive how she could change her expression in such a way. One second, she’s an angered menace. The next, that.

“The potion’s effects only last for a minute, so we must make haste once you drink it.”

Leonard unhesitantly drinks the potion, but unlike the last one, this one has a strange and undescribable taste that nearly makes him want to gag. Even so, he forced it down his throat. And once he did that, he felt…strange. Almost like he ate some bad hay.

Satisfied, Rain Shine looks over to Mulan and nods with a serious expression. Mulan breathes to steel her nerves, turning her gaze to Leonard.

“Please don’t let me be wrong about you.” She muttered with a sad face, but it was still loud enough for Rain Shine and Leonard to overhear. She looked directly into the caged stallion’s eyes as silence took hold.

Then, she breaks it.

“I have several questions to ask you, like how you arrived in that beam of light last night or who you are. But before any of that, there’s one of the utmost importance.” Mulan’s features harden, “Are you here to bring about danger to us in any way, shape, or form?”

Leonard’s body began to glow with a golden aura. It felt…warm, yet there was a haunting chill that gave him a hint of what would happen if he lied. But he had nothing to hide, and he answered with pride.

He shakes his head with a pleasant smile. A confident NO, in gesture. The golden aura surrounding his body became more vibrant until it suddenly vanished.

He was admittedly confused. Did-did it work?

However, Leonard would soon have his answer as both kirin sighed happily, and Rain Shine smiled at him for the first time since he’s met her.

“I’m glad to know that I was wrong about you, saddle arabian.”

“And I’m glad that I was right,” Mulan said. “As usual.” She smirked.

“Oh really?” Rain Shine retorts playfully and with a raised eyebrow. “Don’t give me that. You had your doubts, and you know it.”

“Details, details,” Mulan dismissed before firing up the stripes on her horn. “Now, my saddle arabian friend, let’s get you out of that cage, shall we?”

Leonard practically glows at this, nodding rapidly while wiggling his ears. But to his absolute shock, the cage didn’t open as he initially thought it would. The strange wood that made it retracts into the floor and ceiling; whatever happened to the good old key that unlocks the door shtick?

"Pretty impressive, huh?" Mulan asked. "Manipulating bamboo isn't easy, let me tell you. Very stubborn stuff."

Huh. So that was bamboo. Nice. Regardless, he was free now, stretching all of his legs and cracking several joints before standing at full stature. And when he did that, he heard Mulan let out a gasp.

“Wow…” she said, looking up at him wide-eyed. “Buddha, help me; you’re just as tall as Rain Shine! And…if I’m being honest?” She lifts a hoof, fans herself, and half-lids her eyes, “Nice.”

“Buddha, preserve me,” Rain Shine said while fighting the urge to facehoof.

Leonard neigh-chuckled. He might be scrawny, but he was always blessed in the height department. But as he takes a moment to look himself over, Mulan staring at him dreamily without his knowledge, which earns her a nudge from a deadpanning Rain Shine, his being scrawny was no longer an accurate statement.

In fact, he was a lean-built stallion now. What’s more? He could feel something burning deep inside of him, and it made him feel...amazing. Confident. At least when Rain Shine, the murder kirin, wasn't glaring at him, that is.

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