“Leonard is a lovely name!” Mulan gleed, staring at the stallion in wonder. “Oh, wow! This is amazing. Ever since you appeared in that beam of light, I knew there was something special about you. But is it true? You’re the brother of a demigod? Like an actual demigod?”

‘Well, not by blood, but we-’

“So this supposed demigod brother of yours, Radahn, is the General of a military force called the Redmanes, correct?” Rain Shine inquires with a raised eyebrow, stopping the stallion’s inner thoughts and gaining his attention.

The crimson-haired stallion nods, having no need to write anything down on the scroll so far. The scroll also possessed properties to translate Equish into Qinese, so although he could see it in Equish, Rain Shine and Mulan saw what was written in their own language. A feat Sandy was sure to praise the Peak Village leader for.

“And this force currently resides in the Lands Between?” Rain Shine continued her questioning, and Leonard nodded. “I...see.”

She would initially call him a liar were it not for the still-active effects of a particular potion. Still, he has ties to a demigod. A demigod, like Sun Wukong and Oolong. Of course, she would have her reservations on that claim.

Even so, Wukong Divulgance is absolute, but she’ll surely dig for more information later.

“So tell me, Leonard,” she changed the subject, “how are things with the ponies progressing as of late? Considering their…history, I’m surprised that a saddle arabian like yourself could make it that far on Equus.”

Leonard became puzzled by the term Equus as he looked over to Mulan and Sandy for further clarification.

“You seem confused by that name,” Sandy said, realizing the look on his face. “You know, Equus? The central continent in-between, therefore its namesake, the Lands Between?”

The stallion shook his head again. He then plucks the quill from the ink bottle and jots down his thoughts on the scroll before pushing it out for everyone else to see, setting the quill down again.

Is that someplace in Farum Azula, home of the beast folk?

Sandy, Mulan, and Rain share a look before collectively looking back to the stallion.

“Farum Azula?” Mulan asked, puzzled as she brought a cloven hoof to her chin in thought. “Huh. I never heard of that when I last visited those lands countless years ago during my travels to Savanna.”

“Hold up, hold up, beast folk?” Sandy asked with some humor. “I strongly doubt that the ponies would allow beast races to live there. Hay, they’re too busy hating each other, let alone allowing non-ponies among them. And if there are non-ponies, well, let’s just say that they’re not exactly there by choice.”

Mulan sighed in sadness. “I’m afraid that slavery is something many nations exercise, not just the ponies of Equus.” A sense of shame made itself known on her face. “Even we kirin were—are no better.”

The trio of kirin’s ears folds flat against their heads in unison.

“Y-yeah…” Sandy began with a hoof resting on the back of her neck awkwardly. “Look, Leonard, just know that the kirin here in Peak Village aren’t like that anymore. I am the walking sperm of a saddle arabian, after all. But…well…” She clicked her tongue.

“The fact remains that we’ve done so in the past,” Rain Shine continued from where Sandy left off. “Almost everykirin here, save for those like Sandy, who was born after Mulan changed us, have partak-”

Mulan suddenly interjects with bitter laughter, “Oh, yeah, I’m such a grand pillar of righteousness, aren’t I?”

“Mulan-”

“No, Rainy,” the leader of Peak Village asserts aggressively, slamming a hoof on the table. “I’m just a walking pile of hypocrisy. I… Oh, Buddha…” She buries her face remorsefully in her hooves.

“How could I’ve been so stupid…”

Silence takes hold as Leonard looks between each kirin.

‘Well… This is, uh, awkward.’ He did not expect their conversation to go in this direction.

An idea forms as he tries to change the obviously touchy subject. It wasn’t exactly an alien concept to him. After all, slavery was indeed present in the Lands Between, many of which were quite barbaric.

The stallion picks up the quill and goes to work.

I have so many questions, but I should start by asking if you have some place for me to stay for now. I’m sorry if this is a lot of trouble.

“I understand,” Rain Shine answered after reading. “Mulan and I had planned to show you to your residence after we give you the cure for the Stream of Silence. That is, we’re hoping It’ll-”

“Actually, Rainy,” Mulan gloomily interjects, gaining everyone’s attention. “Would you mind taking care of all that for me? I…I need to return home for now…”

Rain Shine looked upon their leader somberly, nodding after a moment’s pause. “Of course, Mulan. Please, take as much time as you need.”

“Thank you.” Mulan slips out of her seat, cloven hooves clopping against the stone foundation of Sandy’s workshop. “I’m glad to have you here, Leonard,” she said as she turned to him. “We’ll discuss this demigod brother of yours at full length later. I’m sorry, but I-I really need to go for now.”

The dark-gray kirin turned away without another word, sorrow radiating from her form as even other bypassing kirin were unsure whether to ask for her well-being or simply allow this to pass over.

Leonard, Rain Shine, and Sandy observed the complete departure in silence, which was then broken by a long, somber sigh from Rain Shine.

“It still haunts her to this day.”

Leonard turns his attention to her with an expression that asks, ‘What?’

“The thing about Qina is that it’s not just inhabited by kirin,” Sandy takes the initiative, gaining Leonard’s attention as Rain Shine’s hesitation got the better of her. “There’s a lot of other races here, too. Tigers, leopards, rhinos, pigs, monkeys—like Sun Wukong, and many more. But there’s one that Mulan has…history with.”

Given the conversation and Mulan’s reaction, and from what he’s seen in the Lands Between, Leonard was starting to draw upon a conclusion.

‘No way… D-did she…’ That couldn’t be. He could see Rain Shine doing that—sorry, Rain—but Mulan?

“The pandas,” Sandy pointed out as if she were reading his mind. “No one’s ever seen a panda in Buddha knows how long. Though...I suppose that's to be expected when you earn a title like ‘Vanquisher of Yin and Yang.’”

Mulan bursts into her home with explosive sobs, slamming the door shut behind her with her magical grasp as she runs through several circular doorways. She casts aside a thin layered red curtain held up on a ten-ringed metal track, enters the unveiled room, and closes the curtain behind her.

She barely reached her brown/white canopy bed as she dug her face into the green sheets while her hindquarters hung to the floor. The kirin’s mournful screams were muffled, but the recollection of those events plagued her—memories she was foolish to think she could ever bury.

‘Why are you doing this to us…?’ An elderly panda asked as he tearfully looked up and reached out to her.

“I’m sorry,” she said while slightly lifting her head, tears strolling down her face. “I’m so sorry…”

‘Silence, panda. You and your wretched kind shall pay for what you’ve done.’

“No…”

‘But we…haven’t done anything to-’ She recalled how her blade cut through his throat like a hot knife through tofu. But worse of all…she relished watching the life drain from his eyes.

“No, no, no…”

‘Blood for blood, panda.’ She spat on his corpse. Sweet Buddha, she desecrated an innocent’s corpse…

But what came next in the memory as she finally shifted her gaze to the rest of the panda village’s burning structures and fleeing residents, many of whom’s lifeless corpses littered the ground and bathed it in their blood, would be her greatest regret.

On that day, she gave her troops of old a terrible order, which led to an unimaginable sin she’d carry for the rest of her life.

Genocide.

‘Get them all! Wipe this panda scourge clean off the map! The children of Yin and Yang shall pay in blood for what they’ve taken from me!’

“NO! I DIDN’T KNOW!” She cried out as she lifted herself up from the bedsheets. She breathed heavily, regret and shame present in every breath as she brought her forelimbs to her head.

“I’m sorry…” It was all she could say as she slowly curled up into a ball of shame and continued to do so until she fell unconscious.

“I’m sorry… I’m s-sorry… I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”

Radahn hovers in place and meditates at the water’s edge now that he has shelter, food, water, and direction—the last being thanks to his phoenix friend, Philomena.

Despite it being the early transition into noon, he saw fit to head out first thing tomorrow morning to a place called Istanbull, due west of his current location, which was one of the few oases in this desert he now knew to be called Saddle Arabia.

As a horse caretaker, he found great humor in that. But that had him thinking…when he returns to Castle Redmane and reclaims his old form, maybe he should rename the historical and precious beach of the Redmanes in Leonard’s honor? It would also serve as a comical reminder of him being turned into a horse as well.

Then again, given what was revealed by the phoenix, ‘horse’ wasn’t entirely accurate for his current circumstances.

He saw no issue in telling the pheonix about his past during their talks together, not to mention the truth of how he could fly, similar to what Philomena called pegasi, which are equines with wings. Apparently, there were others, too. Some with horns, called unicorns; those who lacked both, designated earth ponies, and one unique individual that the phoenix spoke highly of who was essentially a fusion of all three.

Selene Sol Invictus. An alicorn. A Goddess of the Sun and Moon. And she, along with the others, are all of a race called ponies. However, it is where they originated from and supposedly still inhabit that got his utmost attention: the Lands Between.

Maybe his hunch from before was correct… These ponies must be from Farum Azula; there can be no other explanation.

He was one of these ponies, too, now. Earth pony, to be precise, but one that’s much larger than average for all three types, even surpassing the alicorn, Selene. In fact, the phoenix called him a freak of nature in that regard, although he’s certain she meant it playfully.

Speaking of larger equines, he also learned that the horses that inhabit these parts are called saddle arabians, hence the desert continent’s name. So there was that, too.

Alas, his companion had to take her leave as she was in the process of migration. By his estimate, he’d say that was roughly two hours ago, give or take.

And so here he was, reflectively meditating in peaceful silence, save for the frequent buzzing of insects, the hot winds causing the greenery around him to dance, and the shifting of distant sands.

His ears suddenly twitched as he began to pick up something, breaking him out of his meditation as he lowered himself to the ground. Yes, judging by these sounds, there was no mistaking it.

He was going to have some company very soon.

Next Chapter: Chapter 10~ Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 28 Minutes