You nod once before moving on to the others. Etzli is next. You can’t help shaking your eyes when you see it. It’s a protective rebirth. Armored shoulders and neck. It’s such a conservative choice. You thought the girl might break loose in time for the real Races. Make a bold move for once, but clearly you were wrong about that. She’s after second place, again.

Revel’s got a true burner of a horse. Built for sprinting and little else. He’s tested you on a few of the shorter courses. No one gets off the line quite like him, but the Races are almost always four or five legs. You’ll never fear a man who doesn’t know how to finish.

Imelda Beru doesn’t disappoint. Her first rebirth is one you’ve never heard of before. The placard calls it “Changing Skies.” The description is just as enigmatic: “Allows the horse to defy gravity.” It sounds cool, but you’re also thinking it just means the horse can jump high? You look around long enough to find Imelda roaming through the other horses. Most of the group cycles quickly past, memorizing details, but Imelda almost looks like she’s touring a museum. You shake your head again. Poor girl doesn’t stand a chance.

Bravos’s horse draws your eye next. Its coat has darkened to a midnight purple that verges on black. Razor-sharp spikes rise from each shoulder. You can’t help smiling. Bravos is such a brawler. His first instinct has always been to lower a shoulder, hit someone hard, and trust that he’ll be the one standing when the dust settles. You’re pleased to see that he’s taken your advice, though. This horse combination isn’t just a bruiser. It’s a hunting horse. Designed to follow a trail—even your trail. It’s actually perfect.

Beyond his phoenix, you find the horses that belong to the only two relatives in the Races—Thyma and Capri. The siblings have disappointed on the amateur circuit. Capri was heralded for years as a riding prodigy. He snuck into an amateur event when he was seven years old and was leading the first two legs until his mother figured out where he was. The officials pulled him from that race, but not before his face was made famous on the Chats. Like you, he entered the amateur circuit with a crown already half on his head. The only difference is that you’ve worked hard to make sure yours still fits.

Thyma is his violent half sister. She just finished serving a one-year suspension after breaking the contact laws on the amateur circuit. You remember the race well. It was one of your fastest times, overshadowed by the fact that she’d shoved some unfortunate soul off a cliff.