Into a New World

Chapter One

The Capture

The herd was safe for now and Spirit could rest. He began to lower himself onto the ground when he heard something… something all too familiar. He perked his ears, humans! He immediately jumped to his feet but when the sound did not come again settled down again. This time he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Rain pricked her ears to make sure everything was safe when a black horse bolted past the herd. Sampson! Rain jumped up and whinnied at the top of her lungs. Spirit jolted awake only to see the entire herd bolting away as fast as their legs could carry him. The young buckskin stallion jumped to his feet and spun around to see… humans! Humans are taking over my herd! Well you can't have them, he screamed at them. He reared and galloped directly at a human riding chestnut Arab. The Arab leaped out of the way and threw off his rider but another horse took his place. One rider roped his neck. No! I will not cower! He flung his head to the right. "Hey!" the human shouted as the ropes were ripped from his hands. The other horses were shooting past Spirit and pushing his herd toward a dead end. Spirit took his eyes off his opponents and tried to bolt toward the herd only to find that one of the humans had roped his leg. Spirit screamed and thrashed as more and more ropes tied him. Suddenly Spirit found himself on his side being lofted into a big trailer watching his herd be captured one by one. As noises faded around him and his vision went dim he called to Rain. Blackness then wrapped around him.

Rain wailed as Sampson, Storm, and Grayscale fell to the humans. Rain was trying her best to fight back the humans. When she heard Spirit whinny she whipped her head around and lost her balance. Unable to recover, the humans roped her and shot something at her. She found her legs buckling under, her vision blurring, and her hearing fading. Before she blacked out she screamed to the herd, keep fighting!

Spirit woke up lying down on green grass, am I back home? No, that can't be right; the grass back home is not this green. The memory of what happened all came flooding back. Rain! Spirit jumped up onto his hooves. He scanned the area around him. He was hemmed in by a fence, not a big one but enough to keep him from jumping it. The grass was fresh and green, almost too green. He trotted up to the fence and scanned the ground beyond his pen. Outside there was an old barn. The barn seemed to emanate strangeness. Spirit turned to see a beautiful but foreign horse throwing herself against her fence. Hey! Excuse me, but do you know where they took my herd?

No, but I do know that they took my herd also. They took my herd into that barn. They never came out, she replied.

How long have you been here?

I'm the human's horse now. I've been here for ever since I was a filly. Sometime I hope to return to the place where I belong.

I need to get into that barn, perhaps my herd is in there also, Spirit contemplated, thank you! The horse nodded and continued to try to break the gate. Spirit saw that the fence was low enough to jump if he got a running start. One, two, three, Spirit galloped as fast as his hooves would carry him and sailed over the brown wood. His front hooves slammed down hard and Spirit stumbled. He landed on his side and whinnied in pain, seeing his mistake he jumped up to his feet and tried to run. Too late, the human had heard him and jumped onto a brown horse. The horse automatically bolted toward the buckskin but Spirit was faster and galloped around the corner into the barn. He slowed o a stop once he reached the entrance.

The humans must be holding other horses in there; why else would they never come out? Spirit snorted as he walked into the building. He shivered as the musty air washed over him. Yuck, Spirit made a face at how dirty the place was.

I know, Spirit whipped around to see a paint horse with a red hand print on his side. I'd get out of here if I were you. Once you come in most horses never come out.

My friends, my mate, and my entire herd came in here, Spirit protested, I can't just leave them!

The stallion snorted, keep walking if you want to go where they are.

Where exactly did they go?

I don't know. Some say- the stallion's words were whipped away by whistling wind as Spirit suddenly fell into nothingness. Spirit looked up to see the barn's light fading. The light soon disappeared and blackness replaced it. The wind rushed past him and Spirit began to feel like the falling would never end. Just when Spirit decided it was no use scrabbling for a hold on anything the blackness began to ebb away and be replaced with a new, blue light. The last thing he recalled before hitting the ground was that a new world was forming.

I want to say thanks to MovieGirl44 who, when she has time, will adopt and continue this story. For those of you excited for the next chapter.