The Balinor Chronicles II: Souls of Fire
Chapter Eleven: Of Mattias Infanger and His Mount Jarmeth, or, The Origins of the Pale Rider
In the time following the deaths of Cyrus and Andromeda, fierce competition for their former position took place. In the end, no winner resulted – instead, a variety of war lord – generals took their place. Although there were many powerful and better known partnerships, perhaps the strangest combination of Shadow and Rider was that of Mattias Infanger and the unicorn Jarmeth.
If you would recall, all Celestials are born colorless. It was a sorry by product of involving the misuse of watching pools and the antics of certain stubborn and foolish princes, and the only other sign of its passing is the Curse of the Wayward Prince. But the state of colorlessness lasts hardly any time at all (to a Celestial), and so life moves on with a splendid array of color.
Now, Shadows, they are a different breed altogether. They are not born colorless – more a faded raggedy gray – for those who live in the lee of Deep Magic still feel its effects. And this state of grayness also lasts hardly any time (even for a Shadow), and the deep, dark, solid shadow coat grows in – whose brilliance is in turn soon covered by soot and ash from the Valley.
Jarmeth – Jarmeth was a special case. He was born colorless. This was, granted, exceedingly rare, but Shadows were descended from Celestials after all, and it is also known – even if not well understood – that inheritance from sire and dam to colt can play wonky tricks on men. And all gestured to Jarmeth's red eyes –surely a sign of a "true" Shadow. But as Jarmeth grew from colt to yearling – far longer than normal – Jarmeth's coat remained white. Granted, it was often marred by the traditional soot and ash, but it was still noticeable. Cover a piece of paper with dirt and you can still see the black letter; cover a unicorn with dirt and you can see that it is not black at all.
Jarmeth was still young (in a tricky transition state from colt to stallion, known only as double-yearling) when Mattias Infanger arrived. Infanger was also young – having been just old enough to enlist in the Balinorn army, he killed the wrong person, and did as most wrongdoers did – flee to the Valley of Fear. Having already been trained to fight and kill by the Balinorians, the Riders found they needed to do little more than give him a Shadow to create a soldier. Indeed, having been forced to leave everything he had behind, life had turned Infanger into something that was truly dangerous – a man with no reason to live. Such men are more dangerous then, for example, those with lots of reasons – for the simple reason that men with lots of reasons want to be around to be able to enjoy said reasons.
There is a saying that opposites attract. This is not true. If opposites did indeed attract, more Celestials would mate with Shadows, and more arch-enemies and heroes would be having affairs. As it is, likes attract.
The two outcasts of the Valley found each other. And they found each other more then suiting.
When Infanger managed to scrounge up enough clean water to do so, he washed the grime off of the white Shadow. The arduous task completed, Infanger saddled and bridled Jarmeth (by this time, Shadows permitted the use of bits, but only in battle, when four eyes on the look out for danger are most useful, and a line of communication is necessary), and the pair rode off into battle.
And what battles they were. There were conquests against the ice men, raids on Balinor, skirmishes in Deridia, clashes with Sorcerers. What victories they were.
And before each and every battle, Infanger would get a bucket of clean water and wash any dirt off of Jarmeth. Then the two would ride into the fray, and their enemies couldn't help but stare at the white Shadow. So it was that they were remembered – and the sheer psychological effect, combined with Infanger's unorthodox tactics and strategy, crafted victories out of defeat, routs out of utter chaos.
And so this Rider, this man and his unicorn, this demon and his white mount, were the most feared generals in any battle in Terra. His blade alone could spell doom for an army – and often they did. But more often than not Infanger did not command. He choose to ride alone, and so it became a common sight on the battlefield to observe a stern-impassive faced man turn an entire regiment to ribbons using only a sword and a pale coloured unicorn. In time, this Shadow Rider became known solely as the Pale Rider.
Even after he died – for all legends die – he was known as the Pale Rider, and is rumoured to stalk his old battlegrounds, but this time as Death himself.