Story art for my character Rookan! She's an Aigippus, an original (open) species by me.

It was a wild, grey landscape, and the rain was pounding away on it. It had been raining for days now, weeks, even. At first, the rain had been a welcome guest - the water bodies in the area were running low, and the taste of mud in them was starting to become overwhelming. In fact, it had become hard to remember the taste of anything but mud. Or sand, as the grass in these lands had become less and less dense over time. A good shower was all it would need to regrow - and man, did it get one. But too much of anything was never good, and this was the case here, too.
A young Aigippus peeked its head out of the forests at the edge, and began to walk towards the stream of water dividing the grasslands. Its fur was soaked, and it probably had been for a while now. Dry places were scarce, and even so, the air was filled with moisture even when rain was not directly pouring all over you. The small equine did not appear too thrilled about this, but what could it do. Not much to do about it until these clouds would ease up a little. The animal made its way to the stream, the place where it would usually find a drink. The water may be higher now, but it is bound to be drinkable anyway, right? The Aigippus had almost reached the water's edge, when soaked ground gave way under its hooves. With a startled scream, the equine backed down immediately, managing to balance its body just enough for it to not fall into the torrent. It could swim, sure, but this water did not allow for swimming, all you could do was keep yourself afloat and hope you would strand somewhere safe...
Slightly trembling from this new danger, the Aigippus positioned itself firmly on four legs, looked at the stream indecisively, then ran away. That drink could be found elsewhere in the familar area. Maybe a puddle would do for now.