eternal vengeance

ACTUALLY STARTED WRITING OCTOBER 29, 2012
ETERNAL PHANTOM AND KRYSTAL YHATE
VENTURA AND AMBER BLACK

It was hard to believe that the two black fillies were unrelated. They both exhibited this deadly silent temper that filled the air around them with menace. And each, in their own way, believed in their own greatness. Ventura, the younger filly, was by Impressario, out of Rising Fury, and packed a powerful bite. Her eyes roved around the track alertly, and each hoofstep was placed with deliberate care into the loamy dirt. Her muscles rippled as she stalked along, and her aura of menace was only heightened by the other black filly alongside her. Eternal Phantom. Winner of this year's Kentucky Derby, tying with Paradise Island in the Coaching Club Americans Oaks. She was perhaps the only filly of her age group to have faced Paradise Island and not been defeated by her. She was indeed a step above and Krystal couldn't wipe the smirk off of her face. Phantie had more than proven her class and it was obvious, to Krystal at least, that they were the equal of the Triple Tiara winner. She'd had easy competition up to that point and had very nearly lost to Phantie. At best, she had tied. Phantie had faced the tough competition. There was no doubt they'd be facing off with that pair again.

Ven and Phantie exchanged glares as they were simultaneously ridden onto the dirt track. The moment Phantie stepped onto the dirt her stride collected and became nothing less than efficient. That was what Phantie was like nowadays - an efficient predator, sent out to stalk down her prey. Ventura had yet to develop the same level of analytic intelligence, though she was approaching the level with unerring speed. Ven was the barn's Triple Tiara hopeful for next year. Unlike Phantie, Ven would be facing the females in her age group, vying for the Tiara. Had Phantie been a human, she would have mocked Ven for such a decision, but Amber felt no shame in aiming for the Tiara. Ven had been bred for that. She would shine there. The Tiara wasn't for weak competition; it was just for the female three year olds, nothing more. The strength of the competition was not dictated by the races they went to. The Tiara, after all, was by no means an easy series to win - unless the winner clearly overshadowed her competition, as Paradise Island had.

The two black thoroughbreds were sent forward at a graceful trot, and then a canter. The air was crackling already between the two. Ven was tossing her head, threatening at every moment to buck or bolt, her eyes glaring disobediently in the morning mist. She was exhibiting her mother's temperament today and that was never good for Amber. She would have to be extra careful today. Meanwhile, Phantie was behaving in a similarly intimidating manner, but Krystal had long since perfected the relationship she had with the filly and they glided under sinuous control down the stretch and around the first turn. Phantie was entirely focused now as they rounded the turn, while Ven, showing her juvenile tendencies, took a little bit to fight Amber for dominance. Krystal didn't hide her smirk as they went around the turn and found Ven lagging slightly behind as she fought.

Amber's face was frowning as she worked to subject Ven to her desires. These juvenile tantrums would hopefully be worked out of the filly by the end of the year, at the very least before Tiara season. She could handle it, but it took away from their level of cooperation and, therefore, from the speed they could attain in a race. It was necessary to perfect this soon or face the consequences. But they had time. Not everything had to be perfect from the start. After all, Amber had been in this business for years. She would not have gotten far if she hadn't learned something along the way. Grinning, she attempted to project some of her positive attitude onto Ven. The black filly seemed to recoil from it, snorting disdainfully, and Amber had to restrain herself from snorting right back at the filly's attitude.

To work two fillies of this caliber out with each other would attract a lot of eyes. Now, attracting attention was never too much of a bad thing, and Amber had seen Witch Creek do it all the time. She slyly smirked at the thought. But people already knew Phantie was good. They just didn't know the extent of Ven's capabilities. And she'd rather surprise the racing world with the full extent of Ven's talent in a race rather than in a random workout. Amber thought that Phantie was just the horse to bring out some talent. The two were just so similar that, to Amber, it was impossible that they wouldn't be each other's greatest challenger, at least for now. She grinned at the thought. So, they were simply galloping a mile and blowing out two furlongs together. A good fast workout with a little bit of base sprinkled in. It was all they would need. Ven was going for two minor stakes races in the next month while Phantie was going for the Queen's Plate and then the Independance Cup. Phantie's schedule and ambitions would remain full and all of SOPS was excited to see what would happen.

The two black fillies cantered the full mile and then were asked to pick up the gallop. Phantie instantly picked it up, tossing her head once before settling into the high cruising speed she used for front running. An interesting choice, one she would take when feeling high spirited. Krystal sat chilly on her back, awaiting the full blowout. Ven took the spot on her outside and seemed comfortable. The older horse's experience did not daunt the juvenile and she was ready to challenge the black for all she was worth. Thus the positions remained, and then all of the sudden the two fillies were asked to let it out for the quarter. The dirt was blazed as Ven suddenly picked it up and tried her hardest to show Phantie who was boss. Phantie simply snorted once and doubled her speed, briefly leaving Ven in the dust. But then the juvenile black rebroke and suddenly she was coming up alongside, surprising both of the riders who rode still in their irons and let their horses run it out.

The two riders stood in the irons and slowed their fillies down after the blowout, looks of awe and excitement on their faces. If what they had felt was any indication of talent...there was plenty of exciting things to come in the upcoming seasons.