Adventure of tempestra 1

Tempestra arrives above the eastern plains, her stained-glass wings catching the dawn. Beneath her, a broad nesting ground spreads between ocher cliffs and wind-bent grass.

Two adult dragons spiral over the nests, dark bodies twisting through the air as they claw and snap at one another. Their wing membranes show ragged tears, but neither yields.

Along the cliffs, the nesting elders watch in silence: immense, weathered dragons of rust, ivory, and slate, their horns silhouetted against the sun.

Then one contender breaks from the spiral. He is a powerful bronze male with a hooked left horn and a pale scar crossing his muzzle, flying hard toward Tempestra.

The second dragon, long-bodied with a narrow, angular head, follows close behind, a lean black female with silver-edged wings and a furious, echoing roar. Below, the elders shift along the cliffs.

The bronze dragon, broad-chested with a blunt, scale-plated face, climbs toward her altitude, pursued across the open sky. The nesting ground falls away beneath them, and every watching eye turns to Tempestra.

Tempestra folds one stained-glass wing and drops through the gap, then spreads all four wings across the bronze male's path and the black female's pursuit.

Her storm-dark body holds between them. The bronze dragon checks his climb, while the black female veers wide, silver-edged wings beating hard against the dawn.

Below, the elders rise along the cliffs. The oldest ivory dragon lifts her head and gives a single thunderous call, silencing the nesting ground.

A clear corridor opens above the nests as the two rivals separate. The elders' acknowledgment grants Tempestra the right to be heard before the entire gathering.

Tempestra wheels sharply toward the black female, stained-glass wings flashing as her storm-dark body cuts across the open corridor. She bares her teeth and holds the dragoness's gaze.

The black female banks into a wide circle instead of retreating. Silver-edged wings carve the dawn, keeping distance while her furious roar rolls over the cliffs.

Tempestra darts across the corridor, all four stained-glass wings snapping wide. Her talons seize the black female's shoulders, and their momentum twists both dragons through the bright morning air.

With a powerful roll, Tempestra flips her rival beneath her, then releases and hurls the lean dragoness backward across the open sky. Silver-edged wings flare to arrest the fall.

The black female steadies herself several body lengths away, wings beating hard. She does not flee; instead, she circles back, lower now, watching Tempestra's talons.

Tempestra inhales, drawing the dawn wind deep into her storm-dark chest. She exhales, and a jagged bolt leaps from her jaws into the black female's chest.

The strike lands squarely. Thunder rolls over the nesting ground as the black dragoness convulses midair, her silver-edged wings faltering before she catches herself.

Lightning crawls back along Tempestra's horns, scorching the broken lower horn and singeing the nearest facial plume. The cost leaves her breath ragged, but the blow has clearly been witnessed.

Tempestra lunges through the charged air and clamps her jaws around the black female's shoulder. The rival's wings beat wildly as Tempestra shakes her grip loose.

With a wrench of her neck and a hard sweep of all four wings, Tempestra throws the dragoness down onto the grass beside the nesting ground. Dust erupts around the impact.

The cost comes immediately: a torn feather plume catches in the black female's scales and rips free, leaving Tempestra's nearest wing aching and uneven in the wind.

The black female rises onto her forelimbs, shaken but conscious, silver-edged wings spread defensively. The elders' thunderous call rolls across the cliffs.

The words carry over the dusty nesting ground. Black-wing remains unconscious beneath her spread silver-edged wings, unable to answer, while the elders listen from the cliffs.

A fresh gust catches Tempestra's uneven plume and tugs painfully at the damaged wing. Loose feathers scatter across the grass, marking the cost of her victory.

The bronze male rises from the grass, hooked horn bright in the dawn, and climbs toward the open corridor as the elders clear the nesting sky.

Tempestra holds her position in the open corridor, wings spread against the dawn. The invitation carries clearly to the cliffs and the rising the bronze male male.

He slows above her, hooked horn glinting. Beneath them, the elders remain silent, granting his answer the weight of witnessed custom.

A sharper gust twists Tempestra's damaged plume against her wing, tearing loose another feather and leaving a hot, stinging ache through the joint.

Lightning crackles through Tempestra's feathers and horns, blue-white arcs leaping across her storm-dark scales. The charge brightens the open corridor and rolls a warning through the dawn.

The bronze male folds his wings and dives, hooked horn aimed aside rather than at her flesh. He pulls into a sweeping climb beneath Tempestra, testing her balance and command of the air.

Dust spirals below as the bronze dragon surges upward. His broad wings drive a turbulent crosswind through Tempestra's damaged plume, while the watching elders track every angle of their ascent.

Tempestra yields to the crosswind instead of resisting it, banking hard as the bronze male surges beneath her. The gale catches her four wings and carries her cleanly beyond his hooked horn.

His charge cuts through empty air. Tempestra rolls with the turbulence and emerges above and behind him, victorious in the exchange, but the wind tears another long feather from her damaged plume.

The bronze male spreads his broad wings and brakes sharply, struggling to regain his line. Below, dust whirls over the nests while the elders follow Tempestra's superior position.

Tempestra's damaged wing aches with every beat, and loose feathers spiral below her. Yet the bronze male now climbs beneath her shadow, forced to answer her next advantage.

Tempestra folds her four wings and dives beneath the bronze male male's climbing shadow. Her talons close around his tail, and she sweeps upward with the wind.

The bronze male dragon's wings flare in surprise as Tempestra uses his momentum against him, hurling his broad body high above the corridor. His hooked horn flashes harmlessly past her.

He twists at the peak and catches the upper current, but his formation is broken. The elders' call rolls out as they mark Tempestra's decisive control of the exchange.

Tempestra flips through the bronze male's upper current and catches both forelimbs. She pulls him sharply earthward, folding over him as their combined weight drops toward the corridor.

They strike the grass in a thunderous burst of dust. Tempestra lands atop him and pins his broad shoulders beneath her talons, but the impact jolts her damaged wing and tears another plume feather free.

The bronze male tests the pin once, claws scraping for leverage, then stills beneath her. Dust settles across his hooked horn while the elders thunder approval from the cliffs.

Tempestra lifts her talons from the bronze male's shoulders and steps back across the dusty corridor, leaving him room to rise and answer.

The bronze male surges upright, beats his broad wings once, and drives forward with a sweeping shoulder feint before twisting his hooked horn toward her flank.

Tempestra turns to meet him, but the barely timed maneuver clips her damaged wing. Pain jolts through the joint, and three more fragile feathers tear loose into the dust.

Tempestra springs onto the bronze male's head, her talons finding purchase atop his scale-plated crown. She pushes off at once, launching herself into the high air.

Her stained-glass wings snap open above him, catching the rising current. The bronze male stumbles beneath her and twists sharply, his hooked horn sweeping through empty space.

Tempestra climbs beyond his reach, lightning flickering across her horns and storm-dark scales. Below, dust drifts from the corridor while the elders track her renewed advantage.

Tempestra inhales deeply, drawing the charged dawn into her storm-dark chest. She holds the breath for a heartbeat above the bronze male's climbing path.

The lightning erupts from her jaws as a massive blue-white bolt, but her damaged wing shudders in the crosswind and twists her aim.

The bolt tears past the bronze male's back instead of striking squarely, scorching the air beside his hooked horn before crashing into the earth below.

Thunder detonates across the nesting ground. The blast throws dust upward in a blinding column, while the bronze male dives through the turbulence rather than pursuing her height.

The bronze male dives through the boiling dust cloud, but the failed bolt has scorched the air around him and disrupted his climb. He emerges lower, wings beating unevenly.

He banks hard beneath Tempestra, using the dust column as cover. His broad silhouette vanishes, then reappears on her injured side, hooked horn angled toward the weakened wing.

The bronze male surges upward from below, not toward her body but toward the damaged wing's trailing edge. The turbulent air catches Tempestra's loose feathers and pulls them earthward.

Tempestra inhales until her storm-dark chest strains, holding the charged breath for one taut heartbeat. Then she releases it, and a massive blue-white bolt spears toward the bronze male’s back.

The crosswind catches her damaged wing at the instant of discharge. The bolt skews across his scales, scorching a bright line beside his spine rather than striking squarely, and thunder throws both dragons apart.

The bronze male drops hard, one wing faltering as lightning crawls over his back. He cannot climb cleanly now, and his exposed underside flashes into view beneath Tempestra.

Tempestra lets her wounded wing sag and drops her guard, presenting the opening he sought. The bronze male surges upward, hooked horn angling toward her exposed side.

At the last instant, Tempestra folds beneath his approach and twists through the gap. Her talons rake across his raised wing joint, knocking his attack wide and breaking his climb.

The bronze male tumbles through the lower air, his broad wings beating out of rhythm. Tempestra follows, stained-glass wings flashing as she keeps herself above his failing line.

He catches himself over the grass, but one wing hangs badly and dust streams from his scales. The elders thunder as his advantage vanishes.

The bronze male dives beneath Tempestra's shadow and clamps his jaws around her tail. He pulls hard, dragging her toward the grass as his injured wing beats for balance.

Her hind claws gouge furrows through the earth when he slams her down, broad weight pressing across her shoulders and pinning her damaged wing beneath her.

Tempestra twists with the pull instead of fighting it head-on. She hooks one hind claw against his foreleg and drives all four wings downward, lightning cracking through her strained feathers.

The bronze dragon's grip slips as the thunder jolts his jaw. Tempestra wrenches her tail free, rolls from beneath his chest, and surges upright beyond his pin.

The escape costs her dearly: several tail plumes tear loose, and the bruised base of her tail throbs with every movement. Dust clings to her storm-dark scales.

Tempestra stands amid the furrows, dust sliding from her scales. Her bruised tail base throbs, and the last words leave her breath rough, but she does not retreat.

The bronze male steadies himself on three limbs, his injured wing held close. Bloodless scorch marks brighten his back, while his hooked horn remains leveled toward her.

Across the nesting ground, the unconscious black female remains beneath her silver-edged wings. Every elder turns toward Tempestra, waiting for the decision her costly victory has earned.

Tempestra bows her head before him. The motion pulls sharply through her bruised tail base, and her hind legs momentarily tremble in the furrows.

The bronze male lowers his hooked horn and dips his broad head in return. His injured wing remains tight against his side, and fresh dust clings to his scorched back.

The elders answer with a deep rolling call. Around the nesting ground, dragons begin clearing space, while the bronze male keeps his gaze on Tempestra and waits for her next direction.