More and more, the seasons passed. As they did, we saw many things, and met many people. Our little herd of four had expanded, until it became a dozen, full of strong men and women. Whether it was variants or normal people, we accepted any centaur into our ranks as long as they were willing to coexist with each other.

Over the four years since I had met Dalin, we had brought in several more people to our mismatched herd. Among the first were Hyumahn and Drahman. While Hyumahn focuses mostly on his control over natural energies to aid us, Drahman ended up focusing on other matters. After we found that the two of them did not have a high talent for ki, they began working on their own goals. For Hyumahn, his path was obvious, but Drahman took more work. In the end, he gained the Power of the Bard, dedicating himself to recording our history.

After them, we encountered a lone pegasus flying through the skies. Unlike the brothers, she had not been banished from her herd. Rather, she had chosen to leave Try’s Hold on her own, wishing to see more of the plains. Yet when we found her, she was bleeding badly from an arrow lodged in her back that she could not tend to on her own. A passing herd had seen her in the skies and chosen to take action against her. When we found her, and saved her from bleeding out, she had thanked us, and introduced herself as Serena.

As she had grown up in the town, Serena had learned many skills that were not commonly taught to the wandering herds. Although she did not have the Powers of the Archer or Hunter, she instead had those of the Carpenter, Tailor, and Leatherworker. Thanks to her, we could finally take care of our shortage of hunting weapons, and she even helped us make some leather armors for our herd.

The next group we ended up meeting was actually a set of four normal centaurs, all originally from the same herd. However, like myself they disliked the growing friction between themselves and the variant centaurs, and voluntarily chose to leave their herd together. They all had a strong sense of justice, and when they saw our herd working together, they quickly asked if they could join us.

Among them were three men and a woman. The woman was named Dhalia, a rather tall beauty with black hair. While she did not have any impressive Powers of her own, she quickly adjusted to the Power of the Monk, and even managed to create her world ki. Unlike myself and Dalin, she was blessed by the wind. When she ran, her hooves carried her farther and faster, yet did not make a single sound.

From the men, the oldest was Jayce, and he had apparently paid a heavy price for leaving his herd. There was a thick scar along his chest, showing that he had almost been killed when the four of them had been attacked. However, by choosing to defend his family, he had gained the Power of the Berserker. The blessing of the Power immediately healed the fatal wound, and allowed him to unleash his rage against the monster that tried to attack them.

The next eldest was Karlin, and like Dhalia he did not have any impressive Powers of his own. His talent likewise lied in ki, though his blessing was that of the earth. When he ran, the ground itself cracked beneath his hooves.

Finally, the youngest of the four was Marlin. Marlin did not have a particular talent in any of the conventional Powers. Even training him in ki did not show much results. However, he had a charisma about him that allowed him to obtain a Power that I myself received roughly the same time, the Power of the Leader. It was unclear what exactly this Power did, although the name alone seemed like it would explain things.

After those four joined us, we spent several seasons before we encountered anyone else that wished to join the herd. Even when we asked Hyumahn to guide us, using the power of nature to lead us to the lone wandering variants, it showed little result. Most were either hostile towards normal centaurs, or distrusting of us on principle.

Eventually, however, we came across a small group which changed our view. Three variants that had been exiled from Try’s hold for trying to advocate peace with the normal people. From them, there was one pegasus, one unicorn, and one that I had never actually seen in person. According to Dalin, it was known as a qilin variant, with the lower body covered in scales rather than fur.

The qilin’s name was Namor, and he had been quite a powerful Mage within the city of Try’s Hold. Due to the rarity of the qilin variant, he had even been held in high regards. However, his views had eventually led to him being cast out of the city.

The same could be said for the unicorn, Malcon. He had the Power of the Priest, allowing him to speak directly with Tryval Himself. Yet, he kept insisting that Tryval wanted the variants and the normal people to live together. Thus, people declared him a False Priest, and he was cast out.

Finally there was the pegasus Liria. She had been granted the Power of the Guard, and was tasked with patrolling and defending the city. This is where we truly could tell how much the relationships had devolved. Liria’s crime was that she had been seen flying food to passing herds that had been going hungry. She had done nothing wrong, aside from feeding the unfortunate, yet that had been seen as a terrible crime.

It was when we heard that that I decided that things needed to change. Dalin had once mentioned a way to stop the fighting, to stabilize the relationship between the variants and the normal people. And now, it was time to begin.

We chose to act in the beginning of summer, when the weather would be least likely to interfere with our plans. Our goal was not a bloodless revolution, for we all knew that there would be fighting. Not just from one side, but a war on two fronts. We had to show everyone that we were stronger together than we were alone.

“Everyone, it’s time.” I said as I glanced to the others, all of whom were gathered around me. My gaze first went towards Malcon, who often stayed quiet in these meetings. “I would like you to seek His guidance. Ask Him to guide us to the worst offenders.”

Malcon nodded his head with a grim expression, closing his eyes and praying. However, it seemed like the prayer was not entirely necessary, for a scroll descended from the skies to land in front of me. Looking down with raised eyebrows, I discovered that this was no ordinary leather scroll, as it seemed to be a promise scroll. One that had been delivered directly from above.

At the same time, Malcon spoke in a confused voice. “He said… read it. That’s all.” Although Malcon himself had no idea what he was talking about due to having closed his eyes to focus, but the rest of us stared intently at the scroll in front of my hooves.

Bending down, I carefully picked it up, unfurling the scroll and reading it aloud. “In my name, you seek to unite those within my plains. In my honor, you wish to uphold the fellowship. In this quest, I can not aid you directly, but I can make you this promise.”

“Create a haven where all of my people can live freely. Let it be known among the herds and the Hold. Do this, and I shall bestow upon you the title of King. When the fellowship has been upheld, and the coming war stopped, I shall appear before the plains once more. By my name, I promise this, and by my power shall it be upheld.”

As I read the scroll, I could feel the tensions rising among the other eleven. None of us had heard of a King before, but we faintly knew what it meant. One who rules over others, as does the leader of Try’s Hold. More importantly, this was a promise scroll bestowed onto us directly from Tryval. We all knew that a promise scroll must be upheld if the conditions were fulfilled, regardless of what was promised.

Does this mean… Tryval really will appear before us? Gradually, our nerves were replaced with excitement. It had been countless years since Tryval walked the plains. None had properly seen his face ever since the establishment of Try’s Hold. But now, he had made a solemn vow to appear before us. More than that, he promised to bestow a title of leadership in front of everyone.

What does this mean? Naturally, people can discredit the words of a priest as false. A priest is still but a man. But, if it was Tryval that directly acted, who could possibly refuse that? Suddenly, it felt like our plans had take a major change. I couldn’t help but look around at the others as I rolled the scroll back up.

“So.. this changes things.” I said, clearing my throat slightly. We had been getting ready to go and attack the disbelieving herds to show our combined strength, yet suddenly this came in. “So… do we want to create this safe haven first, or spread the word?”

An awkward atmosphere fell over the group, before Dalin spoke up. “Why not divide our efforts.” He suggested, glancing around to gather opinions.

“Can we afford to split up like that, though?” Liria asked, concern in her voice. However, she did not look to Dalin, but rather at me. “If we separate, with one group building the haven, then the ones spreading the news would have lower combat power. With all twelve of us, we can easily defeat any herd, and could even make Try’s Hold show us respect. But, without all of us present, do we still have that ability?”

I thought about that for a while, but was interrupted by Serena, who shook her head. “That’s not quite true, Liria… As much as it saddens me to say, but not all of us have combat strength. Myself, Marlin, Drahman, and Malcon are not much use in a direct fight. If the four of us work on the haven, then the other eight can focus on the confrontation with the herds and the Hold.”

“Uhm, I should go with you as well.” Hyumahn spoke up shyly. Unlike the others, he had never fully adjusted to playing an active role in the herd. “I could probably help with building.”

Hearing that, Liria frowned, and then looked towards me again. “They can’t defend themselves… Will you have the strength needed if I join them?” I was not surprised by her decision, she was a guard after all. Defending the weak was why she chose to join us in the first place.

Still, I had to consider it. That would leave us with only myself, Dalin, Namor, Jayce, Karlin, and Dhalia. Out of the twelve of us in the herd, we were undoubtedly the strongest. In fact, Namor alone was incredibly powerful, as he had an innate control over fire and a powerful talent in magic.

“It should be okay.” Dalin said, nodding his head. “As long as Try’s Hold does not throw their entire force at us, the six of us should at least have the means to easily escape. As long as we deliver the message, we would have counted as fulfilling his request. After that, what we do is our own decision.”

Although the thought of retreating left a sour taste in my mouth, I could not help but agree. “Alright. But first, we should all go together to find where we shall put the haven. It can’t be too close to Try’s Hold, or else they might interfere with the construction. For the same reason, it can’t be too close to any wandering herds.” Everyone gathered around nodded at my words.

After that, we left to find a suitable new home. Somewhere that we could declare a safe place for everyone, regardless of whether they were variant or normal. This alone took us weeks, because we wanted a wide area with no hills, that way it could be a large city, one that would put Try’s Hold to shame.

However, we did eventually find such a place, guided by Hyumahn. As he consulted the elements, he found us a place far away from Try’s Hold. Even Liria had to fly high into the sky in order to see the city beyond the distant horizon, so there was little chance of them interfering with us.

As for a wandering herd disrupting the construction? That was still a risk, as it was hard to predict where the herds would travel. But between Liria and Hyumahn, they should be able to fight back any normal herds without too much trouble.

Looking about the area, I saw a flat landscape which reached almost to the horizon in every direction. This will definitely work. I thought to myself, before glancing over at the others. To my surprise, Hyumahn and Serena were already talking about how they could go about making the city itself, and how they could make it truly safe against outsiders.

Namor, seeing that, chuckled lightly. Shaking his head, he smiled towards me. “Looks like they have decided. Shall we set off for our task now?” He asked, an eager smile on his face.

However, I simply shook my head, looking up to the sky to see the sun beginning its descent. “We can leave tomorrow.” I answered, looking to the others. “For tonight, let us all spend one last night together. We do not know how long this task will take, so we should savor our friendship while we have the time.”

That night, the twelve of us hunted and cooked a Lightning Striker, commemorating the occasion and making me think back to the time when I had first met Dalin. Back then, he had to use all of his power to bring down one of these mighty birds. Yet now, the twelve of us could hunt it with ease. There were few predators among the plains that could really make us feel fear, especially when all of us worked together.

After the meal, we all got a good rest, side by side beneath the starry sky. At this moment, we all knew that we were truly a part of something greater than any one man. We were a herd, one which could do anything we set our minds to. A herd that had been recognized by the highest existence known to man, and given a great mission.

But we also knew that our mission had only begun. How could it be as easy as creating a town and spreading the news? For it to be considered a safe haven, we had to prove its worth. Before this was over, we all knew that our abilities would be tested. But, we also knew that we could see it through to the end.

In the morning, before we left, I called everyone together. Although many were still rejoicing from coming one step closer to completing this mission, they immediately calmed down when they saw my expression. “What is it, Ashur?” Drahman asked, stepping forward.

“I want to talk to everyone, before we go.” I began, taking a deep breath. Giving time for my words to sink in, I slowly spoke. “What we do now, we do for our people, not for ourselves. That said, all of you are my own herd.” I took a long moment to look at each of them, remembering the times we had spent together.

“I do not want to bury any of you by the time this is all over.” Their expressions hardened at my words, but I continued nonetheless. “We will complete this mission, but at the same time, we will do it without losing one of our own. I’ve put a lot of thought into this, so hear me out.”

“We are no ordinary herd. We are not related by blood or by origins, only by a common goal. We are a symbol that will show that our people can be united. That we can look upon each other without fear or hatred. But, what do they call us? Right now, they know us as nothing more than another herd.”

Drahman grinned slightly when he heard that, taking the chance to speak up. “You want to give our herd a name?”

I nodded my head. “I do. After all, once this is all over, we won’t be a wandering herd anymore. We will be the lords of a city. As such, I want us to have something to call ourselves. And, there was only one name that I thought of to be most fitting.”

“The Fellowship of the Hoof?”

“The Heart of Man?”

Drahman and Liria both chimed in name suggestions, but I shook my head. While they did make sense, they did not carry the same feeling as the name I had worked out. “The Round Stable. We can rest easy looking at each other as equals, despite how some are variants and some are not. We all have different strengths, yet we are all as one. So, I thought of this name to show our commitment to each other.”

A few of the others grinned when I mentioned the name, though they seemed to calm down when I explained. Dalin was the first to speak up, walking up and patting me on the shoulder with a genuine, warm smile. “It’s a great name, Ashur.” After that, he looked around to the others. “We are the Round Stable. A group that can stand together under any hardships.”

“We are the Round Stable.” One after another, the others all repeated this phrase, a soft smile tugging at their lips.

I could only nod my head happily, thankful that they accepted the name. “Well then… Farewell, for now. We will return after visiting Try’s Hold to check on things.” As I said that, I turned to leave, hearing several sets of hooves moving to follow me. We had a mission to complete.