Chapter 443. A Father and Some Stupid Horses: Horses are Jerks. (3/4)

“Ran, get out of the way!” Dawn called out anxiously.

It seemed to be trying to intimidate and scare me off. I didn’t cower back when confronted by its body towering over me. I treated it as if it still had all its legs on the ground, but I did stop my advances. I held my ground, looked up at Moonlight seriously, and prepared to sidestep out of its way if he charged forward or swung his hoof down on me.

Thankfully, things didn’t escalate, Moonlight’s front hoofs lowered back to the ground and it settled down on its own. He didn’t charge me and continued to watch my every movement carefully.

Was he testing me? To see if I’d flinch and run away?

Aren’t horses a bit too smart?

I took another step toward him and closed the distance to his side.

So far, so good.

Dawn breathed out a sigh of relief when I reached her.

“Let’s just stop here… Moonlight’s too dangerous for a newbie to try and ride.”

I grabbed the reins and shook my head.

“I’ve already come this far, why go back now? What’s one more failure worth to me at this point?“

“It could be worth your life,” Dawn retorted.

“Look, I get you’re worried and all, but there’s no way I can just leave with my tail tucked between my legs in front of my girlfriend who’s watching intently.”

“Walking away with your life intact is worth more than some stupid pride. It doesn’t make you less of a man to run away from a dangerous situation.”

I nodded as I spoke, “I completely agree with that sentiment… but... there are some things where you just have to suck it up and do whether you want to or not. This is just one of those things for me.”

“Why? That makes no sense.” She gripped my arm to try and stop me.

My shoulder slackened when I opened my mouth, “Because... you’ll miss out on living your life if you’re always choosing the safer, more stable path forward. Sometimes... you’ve got to really suffer... if you want to truly feel alive. I’ve learned that lesson the hard way.” Caught off guard by my words, Dawn’s grip on my arm unconsciously loosened.

Taking advantage of that gap, I raised one leg up, put it in the stirrup, and pulled myself up onto Moonlight's back all in one go.

This time I was quick enough to hunker down on the saddle. Moonlight reared for the second time letting out a loud roar. He tried to throw me off, but I glued my body down to his and desperately held on like my life depended on it.

When he realized I wasn’t budging, he lunged forward, kicking his legs back, bucking his rear end up in the air. I rose up a bit off his back but quickly clamped down on his sides with my legs.

“Moonlight, stop!”

A sudden burst of acceleration assaulted my body as a powerful gust of wind blew into my face. My eyes instinctively shut on their own. That single instant of darkness where I couldn’t see where I was going was mortifying. 

Fearful of the unknown to come, I cracked my eyes back open. My body was low and the first thing I saw was a blur of green beside a solid black. The black was the horse’s mane and the green was naturally the grass below to the side of the horse’s muscular body.

I rotated my head and saw a field of green and gold whizzing by. When I looked to my rear I saw Dawn and Rosa far behind in the distance on their horses. Dawn appeared quite anxious as she desperately chased after Moonlight on Bella. Rosa on the other hand seemed pretty calm. She didn’t look worried at all. She only ever really worried when she thought I was seriously hurt. If it was something minor like a little fall, she typically didn’t react much.

My gaze returned to the front and I sat up a bit more to get a better view of the terrain. I slowly adapted to the gusting winds whizzing by my sides and was able to keep my eyes open so long as I kept my head tilted down a bit. The helmet I had on was a pretty good windbreaker.

My field of vision expanded and my heart sped up significantly. I gradually succumbed to an overwhelming sense of freedom. One that you couldn’t experience when in a city and driving restricted to a road.

This horse could go where cars and vehicles could not take me. The places where there were no roads. The places I’d have to travel on my own two feet, but far faster than they ever could.

Moonlight’s gallant figure was the embodiment of majesty and freedom. A return to one’s roots. One that had been forgotten with the advancements of technology.

Who would ride a horse somewhere if they had a car or plane? No one would. But by sacrificing that, we’d restricted ourselves to the paths already paved out for us. 

Cars bound to roads with predetermined destinations.

Planes bound by air space restrictions and jurisdictions. 

There were countless restrictions one had to follow. Roads and airspace had many rules and regulations. What you were allowed to and not allowed to do. Where you could or could not drive to or fly.

You couldn’t truly go wherever you pleased. You were only ever given a false notion of freedom. Certainly, you could travel to places a horse could never take you, but the same could be said in reverse. There were places a horse could take you where you’d never be able to traverse by car or plane.

In modern times the idea of traveling by horse for those raised in cities would simply be laughed at or mocked. When your horse gets tired what then? A horse would be slower too. They’d be unreliable. They could even refuse to cooperate. You didn’t have those issues with mechanical vehicles though.

But there was something you lost through that mechanization process. 

The connection you felt with another creature.

That feeling of cooperation.

Companionship.

Thankfulness. 

Appreciation.

Respect.

Trust.

All the things that make one feel human, your humanity.

What did you get back by forsaking all of this? The coldness of metal and convenience. A meaningless relationship with something that felt nothing for you. A one-sided relationship between you and something nonliving and unfeeling.

Civilization had advanced immensely. So much progress had been made, but in the process, we’d forsaken far too much in the name of efficiency.

I was slowly engulfed by a sense of loneliness and melancholy.

While I rode in silence and breathed in the natural scent in the air, a single teardrop leaked out from the corner of my right eye. It slid to the side of my face until it inevitably separated and was blown away, absorbed in the dust Moonlight kicked up to our rear. I wasn’t crying, it only formed as a result of the occasional gusts of wind that blew into my eye.

I gradually came out of my drunken state of stupor as the distinct crisp sounds of galloping hooves on the ground grew more pronounced. When I glanced behind me I only now realized I couldn’t see Dawn or Rosa. Moonlight was seriously way too fast compared to the other horses.

I should… really turn around and head back. Moonlight had been mindlessly traveling in a straight line the entire time without direction and going wherever his hooves led him.

Only now when I thought to turn around did I realize something very important I’d overlooked.

I… had no idea how to get him to turn around or stop. With how fast Moonlight took off, Dawn hadn’t had the chance to provide me with any instructions.

I have to think. What do they do in movies?

They whip the reins to get the horse to pick up speed, right?

Then to turn they’d pull the reins to the side they want to turn. Logically that made sense.

If I recall correctly, to stop, they’d pull the reins back a bit.

Then, first things first, I’ve got to turn around.

I slowly tugged on the left rein ever so slightly since I didn’t know how much force was required.

As I increased the pull on the left rein Moonlight took a sharper turn to the left. When Moonlight made a full 180-degree turn, I eased up, and Moonlight straightened out on his own. We headed straight back in the direction we came from. After a short while, Rosa and Dawn appeared in the distance.

I felt extremely relieved to see them. Being alone with Moonlight was nerve-wracking.