Post by S u N f r O s t ~ on Apr 8, 2015 17:54:22 GMT -5
PANDORA AND KYLIE SILVERSTAR
DEVIL'S FLAIR AND VALENCIA ANDREWS
TRINITY AND CHRISTOPHER BLACK
PREPS FOR KENTUCKY OPEN AND DEBUTANTE STAKES
Everybody employed at Stride Of Perfection Stables was aware of the dream. It was impossible to be employed here without knowing it. What dream was that? The Turf Triple Crown dream...the impossible mountain. And after years campaigning horses not quite ready for the trials of the Turf Triple Crown, SOPS was finally sending postward two horses that were entirely ready to take it on. Not only that, they were sending a wildcard of a filly into the Turf Triple Tiara. It was the strongest group of turf three year olds Stride Of Perfection had had since...since Infinite Warcry, and that was stretching it due to Amber's mental state at the time. Wildly Natural had come closest in recent memory. She had won the Kentucky Open and Preakness Champion Stakes in Year Nine. Before her, in Year Eight, Foolish Lad had won the Kentucky Open and Belmont Turf Classic. Sillenia had managed the Kentucky Open in Year Ten - she had been their most recent Open winner, and after her the three year streak had been lost. Their last winner in the Preakness Champion had been Infini in Year Twelve. As for the Belmont Turf Classic...Foolish Lad was as far back as it went.
Recent success in the Turf Triple Crown had been stiflingly bad and had hurt the heart of SOPS. All they had now was the Breeders Cup Turf - they had lost that only three times in the past ten years. So Amber held her head high and blazed confidence as she went to the track to watch her horses work. She felt the expectant hum rise in volume as she approached the railing. Everybody had been waiting for the Stride Of Perfection trio to work out. The competition had already put their works in for the most part - blinding speed, beautiful motion, all heart. But Amber Black knew she had all of that in spades with her group. They would be making their way to the track shortly. She leaned against the rail, greeting any onlooker with a small and secretive smile, attention always on the track. Krystal Yhate glided up behind her. Her oldest friend understood the dream, thirsted for it just as much as she did. They exchanged glances full of meaning and hope, nods of encouragement, and then back to the track their attention went.
Valencia Andrews knew the game of racing. She had been an apprentice jockey for years, she had ridden in the upper echelons of racing, she had won a Breeders Cup race or two. But even among the high quality mounts she rode, Devil's Flair was special. The chestnut son of Augusto had a temperament that sang of war, sang of conflict that ended in victory. He glowed like a red-hot flame in the early morning sunlight, muscles flexing smoothly as he prowled out onto the turf track. His eyes took everything in, catalogued it, searching for a horse to bully. This was a ruthless horse, infamous for pushing the leaders to their last breath, pacing them out beyond what they could handle. He controlled the pace of a race, not his competition. And any race Devil's Flair ran it was a fast one. Valencia couldn't wait to show the world what she had on Open day. He was coming in off of a win, sharp as tack. And people today were probably expecting him to flash some of his infamous speed. The smirk on her face could have swallowed the world. Oh yes, the onlookers would get some sort of show if she could manage it.
Amber's young cousin felt as though he was walking the plank. Oh, he loved his dear filly to bits and could speak to the ends of the Earth about how talented and special she was...but this was his first year as an apprentice jockey, and he was riding in the Turf Triple Tiara. Terror could not quite cut exactly what he was feeling now, but just underneath it flowed a current of determination. He didn't want to fail his filly or Amber either. They had a turf reputation to reclaim. Trinity was a firebomb over the turf. The normally shy filly came alive. She could move as though there was a motor purring at the back end. She was by no means an easy horse to ride, but once she got going there was no going back. Christopher Black and Trinity were a package deal. Two wins on the season, and going into the Debutante off of a win, made them sharp as tack. Perhaps the world's most talented underdog would get her shot at immortal stardom at last.
It was perhaps not the first two whom the onlookers were looking for. It was probably Pandora, seventeen solid hands of racing machine, whom they searched for. The filly emerged from the barn, Kylie not yet mounted up, and already received stares. Kylie swallowed, mounted up, and the hush descended over the crowd. This was Pandora, daughter of Impressario and Wildly Natural, and her talent knew no limits. Her reputation knew no limits. Her potential knew no limits. The most royally bred filly in SOPS history strode to the turf track as though floating on air. There was a grace to her movement eclipsed by the wild power of Devil's Flair and the shy beauty of Trinity. She looked as though she did not belong to this plane. In her first start over the dirt, Pandora had knocked out Sun King. She'd taken down Take Flight twice. She was the most versatile racehorse in terms of distance, surface and racing tactics, a most deadly foe. And she had so many vendettas to settle. Her sire Impressario had sired last year's Kentucky Open and Preakness Champion Stakes winner Dare To Impress. Her dam Wildly Natural had won the Kentucky Open and Preakness Champion Stakes. It was practically a matter of family honor that Pandora succeed in the Turf Triple Crown. The dreams weighed on her shoulders, yet still Pan floated to the track as though light as air.
Tears pricked Amber's eyes as she watched Pan join her stablemates. She had ridden both of Pan's parents. The filly moved with her mother's heedless grace yet looked the spitting image of her sire. And a young apprentice jockey sat in the irons, not Amber. It had been one of the toughest things to overcome in her career, realizing the filly she had only dreamed of worked better with someone else. Her gaze switched to Devil's Flair, noting with approval the energy and aggression, the fires of war alight. There was a colt ready to run the competition out and then sprint away as though he'd only just started. And last of all was Trinity, the slim bay filly seemingly insubstantial as she weaved a path over the turf, all a woman could want in a horse, her young cousin in the irons. It was almost too much to see these three and realize that she was seeing the future and the past all rolled up into one. Krystal Yhate laid a hand on her shoulder then, eyes flicking to Amber's before returning to the three. Her message was clear, and Amber nodded. She called out to her riders a single command - Let them run.
It was to be, then. The three riders knew what the limits would be. They lined up, endless jogging turning into patient cantering, morphing into a sudden gallop as though entering the first step of a dance. Pandora stormed into the lead, getting the clear running room she always desired in her races, big horse moving so quickly it seemed impossible. Kylie settled smoothly, letting her hands do the talking. Devil's Flair drew to their inside, settled smoothly and let his presence serve as all the pressuring needed. Pan was long since used to her workmate. Kylie and Valencia exchanged twin glances, just let their horses run. Trinity ate the dirt of the duo from behind, but was comfortably situated regardless. She had grown up a lot, flashing serious speed in her workouts when asked. The key was to know when to ask.
The show was about to begin. Four furlongs flitted up, five, and then it happened. Devil's Flair dashed up the rail, flitting through the small gap as was his specialty, iron practically scraping the paint as he went on by. But Pandora knew what to do. This was her job. The filly powered up after him like shot out of a cannon, easily keeping pace as they dueled. Speed flashed, but it was not just to be out of the two of them. Trinity bore down on them now, suddenly intent on the hunt, and she overcame both of them in a ferociously determined move that swept her to the front in the stretch. Had she faced lesser horses, this might have been enough to win. As it was, the duo came right back, ending the workout dead even at the wire. Speed, stamina, heart - all of it showed.
It was time for the first step towards achieving the dream to be completed.
