Post by S u N f r O s T ~ on Feb 2, 2015 19:32:58 GMT -5
PALISADES PIRATE AND HENNA TURATH
INCOGNITO AND KYLIE SILVERSTAR
ADRASTEIA AND MEREDITH MAHON
Controlled, mysterious grace. Quietly dominant aura. The power lurking beneath the black coat promising victory. Kylie Silverstar saw it all and was awed. This was yet another horse that had chosen her - Incognito, son of True Enough and The Devil's Touch, the stable's shining Triple Crown prospect in years to come, finally hitting the track for his first start. Nero moved through the world like a ghost, barely acknowledging the rider on his back, barely acknowledging the press around the track, the horses working out. The dirt hit his hooves and yet he moved on expressionlessly, emotionlessly. He was stone cold dead to the world, aware yet not aware, a horse poised at the veil between this world and...something else. Kylie became the aware part of this partnership, scanning the track, cataloguing what she saw and dreaming of the future as she did so. She knew this was a horse with an uncanny talent not matched by any of his yearmates - the talent to go unnoticed until it was too late, the trap was sprung and the black tidal wave of Nero's speed swallowed the world. Perhaps the trackgoers today would bear witness to that in Nero's prep workout for his first start, but they certainly wouldn't see all of what made Nero the special horse he was. That would be revealed in time through races.
They were shortly met on the track by two others. Henna Turath pondered the future as she rode in on her mount. Palisades Pirate, slinking under the wire of most people for classic season, was poised to make some noise in the Red Mile series later on in the season. The winner of three graded stakes and participant in many more was a talented racehorse distinguished by his love of running. No horse seemed to love running more than Pyrite did. He didn't radiate absolute brilliance, but his love and willingness to please put together made him a competitive racehorse. Good enough to not be underestimated, in Henna's opinion. She just had to get Pyrite out there more, make it so the press couldn't ignore the talent of her colt for long. Pyrite had everything going for him. As a three year old he had filled out, matured, and carried an air of professionalism and experience that had before been more absent. Henna felt like the colt had grown faster as well and was eager to show the world just what they were dealing with now.
The lithe chestnut Adrasteia was the next to show up on the track. The filly was not for the faint of heart, strictly speaking...and Meredith Mahon was anything but that. She loved Taia's strong nature and unerring determination. It gave them a bright future, because as a pair they just clicked. Meredith was a strong natured woman herself. Today, Taia was expressing one thing - the willingness to run. She pulled at the reigns impatiently, accelerated without asking on the track. Meredith hung on for the ride, a crazy grin plastered on her face. Taia perked up as her stablemates tracked alongside her. Pyrite took the inside and Nero hovered just behind like an encroaching mist, both there and not there. The trio cantered and circled for five minutes...and then in the blink of an eye, the workout began.
Pyrite sprang for the lead, energy pouring out of him, but Taia's acceleration proved to be slightly faster. Meredith felt her eyebrows rising into her hairline out of surprise - she had not expected that. Pyrite accompanied the domineering filly on the lead gamely. Last season, he had learned how to fight. Taia was almost contemptuous of the other horse, but Meredith was wary. Pyrite had experience, age and maturity on them...it would not be good to underestimate his abilities. Nero ghosted behind them, just out of reach of the lead. Kylie hunkered down and settled into the wait. Nero would move when it was time to, and in doing so would blow the race wide open. She only had to wait for the perfect moment.
The leading pair whittled away the furlongs. They snapped through the quarter in twenty four, then the half in a shade under forty eight. The pace was increasing, but nobody's position had changed. Pyrite perhaps had more left than Taia at this point, as Taia was putting all the speed on the front and Pyrite was only matching her, but Nero's speed was yet to be tapped. Kylie hung on as they passed the three quarters pole, leaned down...and then Nero became a prominent factor in the race. He ghosted up on the outside like a phantom, snatching the lead from the dueling pair and simply going away. The move was so quick, so surprising, that he left the two horses behind him reeling. Pyrite was the first to recover, drawing on his year of experience to explode in pursuit of the juvenile. He caught up to him easily, plowing past - Nero was not quite attuned to the fact that once you got going, you couldn't stop. But he rebroke just as Taia came bounding up alongside, and for now the two juveniles duked it out as Pyrite skipped across the wire an easy three in front. The pair came in strong regardless, no match for the older horse just yet but a match for each other.
Meredith and Kylie exchanged shark-like grins, promises to face off again in each of their eyes. And Henna was beaming proudly aboard Pyrite, who had never moved and won so easily in a workout before. His maturity and new speed was showing, and it was time to go to the races and prove just how fast and much better they were as three year olds. Time to put their names in the headlines...and their juvenile workmates could very well join them there if they ran like they worked.
