Post by S u N f r O s T ~ on May 3, 2014 21:21:48 GMT -5
BATTLE WINGS AND KRYSTAL YHATE
TRINITY AND AMBER BLACK
AQUATIC ADDICTION AND VALENCIA ANDREWS
BATTLE'S WORKOUT FOR THE ACORN STAKES
Valencia was frowning slightly as she led the bay son of Shiver Me Timbers and GS Addicted To Love out of the stabling barn at the Wire. Theo was well mannered as always, but with the addition of Valencia to his back had definitely grown more fiery. He tossed his head now, a rare spurt of spirited rebellion before settling right back down into Valencia's commanding hands. Valencia barely paid attention as she let Theo work the kinks out of his body. She was too busy wondering what her boss was on. Amber Black had been bar none crazy ever since the Lecomte Stakes two weeks ago. Crazy in a good way, but crazy none-the-less. It confounded Valencia to no end why Amber had been laughing so hard when Battle Wings had lost for the first time in five months. It just hadn't made any sense!
She's crazier than me Theo. I never thought that would happen she muttered, shaking her head. Theo whinnied, stretched out his legs some more and then took off at a canter with her aboard. They were soon on the dirt track, and now Theo really did stretch out. He calmly began to track his way around the track. Theo was never a horse that had truly had his time to shine. He was the underdog sprinter of his division. He was tough and good, but he wasn't brilliant. This was his final season on the track and Valencia intended to go out with a bang. He deserved nothing less. Valencia nodded, then was jerked out of her thoughts by a sudden hush at the track rail. She smirked widely. Guess the lady herself has arrived she muttered, turning Theo and sending him that way.
Battle Wings indeed had arrived. Battle boasted impeccable breeding, a fantastic record and the strength of a thousand horses - but what really showed right now was how pissed off the filly was. At seventeen hands and change, Battle was intimidating enough. Now it was like hellfire was shooting from her eyes, which glared coldly at anything that dared to look at her. Battle had not taken defeat in the Lecomte Stakes to In Front very well. Her gallops since then had become better than good - they had become monstrous. There was nothing holding a candle to her. The Tiara competition would have their hands full. Krystal knew that she already did. Battle had been brilliant this season, and every sign pointed to a highly successful Triple Tiara campaign. God only knows we've had a good Triple Tiara campaign in the cards for sometime muttered Krystal. SOPS had never had a strong Triple Tiara candidate before. Battle Wings was the only one.
Battle spied her stablemate out on the track and instantly zoned in. With deadly steps, she trotted her way straight to Valencia, who looked at the filly with admiration and respect before switching her gaze to Krystal. Krystal was light as a feather in the saddle. She looked ready to go, gazing around with seasoned professionalism. She nodded to Valencia, who proceeded to stare steadily at her. Krystal sighed, and actually gave Valencia her attention. Yeah, Amber's crazy. Yeah, I have no idea why she was laughing so crazily at the end of the Lecomte. Yeah, she's coming out here on a horse...Trinity I think. What else is new? Our boss is crazy. Valencia snorted. I've never seen her laugh at a loss before.
Oh, you guys just don't understand! called Amber. The two turned to see the boss trotting over on none other than Trinity. The juvenile filly and Amber were therapeutic for each other, but they had not been succeeding. A one month break was in the cards, during which Amber would get to figure out why she and Trinity scored in some races then miserably failed in the next. It would be a learning experience, that was for sure. Valencia raised one eyebrow. Don't understand? Please explain. Amber laughed - actually, it was more like a cackle. We'll run the workout and then you'll see! Five furlong gallop, three furlongs racing. It won't try these horses too much - they're well conditioned. Trin could use the wake up call. The riders nodded.
Amber steered Trin right to the rail and considered her options. Trinity was shy with a weakness for treats. She was a filly that had to be ridden tactically in order to keep her focus. Needless to say, it had proven to be a real challenge for Amber. She was still trying to learn the filly after six starts together. Sometimes things clicked - that was when they won. More often than not, things did not, and they came in last. Hard work was in order, and she would get that against the hottest mare in the barn and the rising underdog. Amber considered the Triple Tiara for Battle. She was their strongest candidate ever, and she was ridden by Krystal Yhate, who always seemed to click with the temperamental fillies and mares over classic dirt. It was a winning combination.
There was a lot of competitive flair as the horses made their way around the track. Battle aggressively took the lead, shutting out her competition with fiery steps and barely muted aggression. The usually expressionless filly was being unusually expressive today. Theo merely shrugged and took a spot two lengths off, letting Battle have her prowl on the front end. Trinity shadowed Theo, Amber carefully keeping the bay filly focused as they thundered around the turn. The horses were moving well, and then the three furlong stretch hit...and the race was blown wide open.
Battle Wings was undeniable. She was on the bit, strong and dominant as she narrowed her eyes, gritted her teeth and plunged forward. She widened her lead even as older Theo responded and Trinity attempted to stay with them both. Battle was schooling them. The filly had gotten to love winning, and to not win led to nothing but wanton destruction on her part. The filly was not taking no for an answer. She blew away, and Theo accelerated and could not catch her. One furlong from the end, Theo hit his sprinters' gear and began to narrow the gap, leaving Trinity behind, but it was too late to catch the runaway Battle Wings. She was just too on form to be contested today.
The horses blew past the wire and slowed, Krystal shaking her head in mute shock. She swiveled her mount around to find Amber, and found the boss there on Trinity. Amber was cackling in her head, but outwardly there was only a wide, beaming smile. You see? One loss is all it took to transform Battle from a monster to a demon. There's no touching her Krystal. Has she ever been this on form for you before? Still in shock but now beginning to smile, Krystal shook her head, but her face lit up as the possibilities opened up before her once more. Geez Amber. You really understand the horses as well as the game, don't you? Amber just grinned. Undoubtedly. Cool her out, take good care of her and groom her well for the Acorn. She'll do great Krystal. You know what she's like.
Krystal grinned more broadly now. Indeed I do... She let the rest of her sentence trail off, but everybody knew she was thinking of the winners' circle for the Acorn. Ventura had gotten them there last year for a leg; maybe Battle Wings would get them there for every leg. It would all come down to race day!
