[Salmon Run] Run, Run, Run As Fast As You Can...

He was excited about this racing festival. He hadn't gone head to head against someone other than his companions for quite a while, but thanks to his last race with his red-tailed hawk, Balian had not been paying attention to the ground as he should have and had stumbled across a rabbit warren. He still had a slight limp since his foot was nearly healed now, so he doubted he'd be beating whoever it was he'd be up against today. The injury had caused him to put any training he usually did on the backburner, so he wasn't up to par as he'd like (in his mind, anyway). Still, he was determined to do his best as he stepped up to the finish line with his opponent, and to his surprise, it was a blue wolf! He hadn't seen one that color since he first came to Boreas, and he was always quite fascinated by the things he saw. While his relationship with wolves was still strained, Balian still gave them a chance. After all, this was just racing. He wasn't fighting them, and even if he had to, he was sure he could handle it.

Ricin greeted him, and Balian returned it with a soft nicker. "Ready as I'll ever be," Crystalline hooves eagerly pawed the ground as he practically danced in place, feet itching to move. "Good luck!" And with that, the monkey on his back jumped off to wait just as the signal was given for them to go.

Balian started off a second late, but once he got going, there was no stopping him! The stallion raced along the river, keeping an eye on where the blue wolf was as they wound their way along the river headed towards the finish line. He hoped this wouldn't delay the healing of his sore leg, and if it did, he was sure he'd have to seek out a healer to help. A horse with a lame leg was a dead horse, and he had no intentions of going down anytime soon!

He shouted a loud neigh as he ran, feeling the wind comb through his mane and tail as his muscles worked to keep him going. Ears had turned forward and erect, listening to the drum of his hooves and the sound of the river rushing beside him as well as the drum of the wolf's paws. Above, his hawk soared over them to keep an eye on things and ensure all was clear for the duration of the race.

"Speech"