Pilot
Amy had always loved horse racing.
The amazing sport of relying on a trusty steed to take you around a course.
Speed, stamina, and spirit. The three elements that a horse needs to be the best. Some are better than others, and her father had proven once more that skill always beat luck.
But his skill eventually lost to a different luck. Wyatt Evans lost his battle with cancer 5 years ago at the age of 43.
Amy never fully recovered from that. "Why?" Was the question she always asked. "Why did it have to be him?"
Her mother didn't do so well either, but she was able to cope with it and eventually move on.
Wyatt's horse, a brown thoroughbred, fell into a depression after his death but came out of it after meeting a wild mare. The two horses now live at her grandfather's ranch.
Speaking of, they were now approaching the wooden mansion her grandfather owned.
"Hey, you doing alright?" Her mom, Sarah, asked.
Amy kept her gaze at the window. "Yeah, I guess..."
"You should be proud. You're 17 and already graduated college, that's amazing." Sarah said.
Amy glanced at her before returning her gaze to the window.
A small drizzle was starting to fall in the northwestern section of Ireland. Small raindrops splattered her window as the car came to a stop in front of the mansion.
Amy finally felt at home here. Her grandfather lived on the ranch here and while she did like spending time with him, there was only one person here she wanted to see.
She opened the passenger door of her mom's truck and stepped out into the damp air. A raindrop hit her on the head and Amy pulled her hood up.
Sarah walked up the stairs of the mansion's porch and looked back at Amy as she joined her mother. "You ready?"
Amy nodded. "Yeah, I'm ready."
Sarah knocked on the door three times and stepped back.
A minute passed.
Then another.
Then another...
Sarah groaned and went to kick the door. She pushed her boot forward just as the door opened and barely managed to stop in time.
Bryson, the boy Amy had known since forever, took a step back from the crazy lady with a boot. "Ah! Mrs. Sarah, please calm down!"
Sarah stumbled forward as she set down her foot and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Heh, sorry. Nice to see you again Bryson." She said, patting him on the shoulder before heading inside.
Then, Bryson noticed Amy, and his face lit up like the sun reflecting off of gold.
"Ames!" He exclaimed, picking her up by her waist and spun her around, which was quite remarkable, since he wasn't that strong.
"God, Bryson, put me down!" Amy said. Bryson carefully set her down but couldn't wipe the smile off of his face. "I can't believe I missed you." She said.
Bryson nudged her shoulder. "You missed me?"
"Maybe a little. But you better have missed me." Amy said. "It would be quite rude for my best friend to not have suffered the same as I did."
Bryson smiled. "Of course. But I know how much you love to torment me with your reckless racing."
Amy rolled her eyes but couldn't help the little smile on her face. "I haven't ridden a horse in forever."
"Thunderhoof is outside on the ranch." Bryson said.
"I don't think I could ride him after everything." Amy said as she followed him into the mansion.
One thing about Bryson, he didn't have a family. He had been just a child when he turned up at her grandfather's door one day, covered in dirt.
And, Amy's grandfather, being the good samaritan he was, tried turning him into the child protective services. They denied, saying they didn't want to take him either. So, young Bryson began working on the ranch and became Amy's best friend when they met a year later.
Amy had slowly fallen in love with him over the years. And don't get her wrong, Bryson was sharp and intelligent but he was hopelessly oblivious.
Bryson opened the back door of the giant house and stepped outside onto the porch. "So, how was college?"
"It was fine." Amy said, then looked around the ranch. "Hey, where's grandfather?"
"He's at the Navan racecourse." Bryson said. "I was going to go watch the race, do you want to come with?"
Amy turned back to face him and leaned against a pole. "I'll think about it."
Bryson nodded. "Okay, I have to go meet up with him but I'll see you there."
Amy gave him a thumbs-up and watched him go back inside. "I should probably go see the horses..." She said, turning back to the ranch.
Amy stopped as she caught something looking at her from the trees beyond the ranch. "What.. is that..."
A black animal was striding through the forest slowly, like a ghost. A long trail of black hair trailed behind it, almost touching the floor.
Amy watched as it turned it's head toward her.
It was a horse. Raven black, with sharp blue eyes that gave her an unread message.
Anyone else would think the horse was a devil, but Amy found herself walking toward it slowly.
The horse, which Amy was able to identify as a Morgan, stared her down as she approached it.
Amy stopped 10 feet away from it. She and the black horse stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity.
It's eyes were like a blue inferno, it's mane darker than a cloudy night. It's breath could only be described as sophisticated with a tinge of raw wild power.
"What..." Amy whispered, not quite understanding if she was hallucinating or not.
The Morgan snorted and swished it's tail.
Amy risked a step closer and the Morgan reared it's front legs upward, turning around in a flash and dashing off, leaving a trail of dust in it's place. Amy stared at the trees in disbelief as the dust cleared.
The horse had disappeared, with no trace of where it had gone.
