Remnant Standard Bearer of the Free Komstad(Company) Hussars "The black (and damned) Komstad", a unit once made of debters, political prisoners and petty criminals, who where frequently given drugs to make them fearless in battle, and ordered into a suicidal charge near the end of a campaign for their former king, they mutinied and only 20 of the 180 on the muster roll escaped.
Am currently toying with the idea rider and mount are semi linked together/have an incessantly strong bond, and that to become a cavalryman you must undergo a ritual and/or surgery that involves the removal of your own tail to commune with the creature, and to making riding easier as well.
The Darker fur is the true fur of the mount, but Helician culture often puts virtue in orange fur dye, and is seen as a mark of station and wealth, cavalrymen however, when given the option/means, will dye their mounts first before themselves.

Komstad- shorted Command Standard, 150-400 strong unit with a Standard/Banner