I do, and I would have still called it Nagarand... ~_~ It's how I pronounce it anyway.
Spread your wings.
- Thread starter Hiver
- Start date
Grey Rook
Genuine Nerd
- Location
- The Quantum Foam
Oh? What's your server, faction and class, if you don't mind me asking?
Meh, personally, I prononce it, Nah-Grande.
*A WILD BETA HAS APPEARED*
23
As it turned out, the stop over in in Telaar was both better and worse than I expected.
I was actually allowed into the small village/outpost which was kind of surprising.
Well, allowed in was a bit of a stretch. I wasn't allowed into the stables which I kind of understand. I was making Gar nervous and he was a gryphon used to me. Having a bunch of nervous mounts under the same roof as me was a recipe for disaster.
However, the central tower had a rather big balcony/landing pad built into the front with a area under it that was not really used.
That's where I was allowed to reside for our stay. Not that I didn't expect them to keep a rather close eye on me even if I have yet to actually see a guard.
I was however very thankful for the roof at the moment as it as pouring down like crazy.
Resting my head on my front-paws I sighed, staring out through the heavy rain. Well at least it could be worse. It could have started raining a couple of hours later and it would have caught us as we were about to leave.
Technically, we were in a bit of a hurry trying to catch those bandits, but nobody wanted to catch them enough to want to fly in this weather. I 'could' fly in almost any weather unless the winds was to strong or visibility was to low... but that didn't mean that I wanted too.
I fucking hate rain.
But the worst thing was that I was bored out of my horned skull. Yes, I could study, practice and read, but that's what I had been doing since I woke up six hours ago.
I gave a small stone a small poke with my claw, flicking it out into the rain.
Bored.
At least I managed to get the entire 'see magic' spell working that Targos used on me. It gave a kind of grey scale view of stuff in front of you while magic lit up like a neon sign. Quite pretty.
That kind of spell seemed to fit me perfectly. It was a pretty difficult one, but the high control/low power suited me like a glove.
...not that gloves could fit me now.
I frowned in thought as I looked out into the rain. Now if I could only get my claws on a small rodent so I could start working on my polymorph spell.
If I could manage a normal polymorph, I was something like eighty percent to being able to take mortal form.
Something moved in the heavy rain and I raised my head to look at the approaching form. At first I thought it was Venir beneath the umbrella(which surprised me for a second that those existed, but not like it's a difficult design to figure out), but it was quickly revealed when she got closer that it was the warlock.
"Hello Sheila." I said in greeting.
She smiled and shook her umbrella off, "Hey. We thought we should check in on you."
I nodded, "Thank you. I admit that I expected Venir, though."
Sheila shrugged, "She was about to, but I asked if she minded if I went instead."
That caused me to tilt my head in question.
She grinned, "I admit that it's not often you have the opportunity to talk to a dragon... but mostly, it's just refreshing to have somebody to talk magic with."
It was. Her tip with the illusions really did help. She was one of the friendlier members of her team along with Sparklight.
Venir not included, of course.
I nodded, "You are welcome to join me. I admit that things have been a bit... boring today. I think so some company would be enjoyable."
Laying my head back down I watched her walk over to kneel down next to me.
"How are your studies progressing?" she asked.
I tilted my head in thought, "...Well enough. I managed to learn the magical detection spell just today. I am still having trouble with high power spells though. My spell matrices collapse when I fail to keep control under the higher power levels. Several other things I wish to study, I am however unable to practice at this time."
She frowned and brushed her blonde hair from her face and behind her ear, "Such as?"
"Primarily enchanting and Polymorph. I require reagents and a rodent."
Sheila frowned and shifted position slightly, "Well, I can't help you with the rodent, Venir might be able to trap one for you though, but enchanting I can do. I carry a rather large supply in my pack."
I blinked at that and turned my head to look at her, "You are a enchanter?"
She nodded, "Didn't have much power as a mage so I went down the enchanting route before I turned to fel magic. What have you done so far?"
"I have enchanted a total of one pair of gloves." I said with a small sigh.
"Arcane dust then." She said with a nod and a smile, "I have a box of that in my pack. I'll go get it and we can get started."
"... Thank you... but why..." I started to ask.
The warlock shrugged as she stood up, brushing some sand from her white robes, "Because I really enjoy magic and like I said, you are the only one in the group that use it. The closest thing to a mage here is Shieldforest but what he does is not really magic, magic."
I slowly nodded, "Thank you."
She grinned, "Don't mention it."
AN// Many thanks to Cheap Orange Knofe for betaing this section.
Also, I am getting close to finishing writing this story. Just one or two more parts... not that you will reach that point for quite a while. Still, I believe my next story will be a continuation of http://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/threads/not-quite-shodan-st-si.4550/ so if you have yet to read it, you might want to catch up.
I was actually allowed into the small village/outpost which was kind of surprising.
Well, allowed in was a bit of a stretch. I wasn't allowed into the stables which I kind of understand. I was making Gar nervous and he was a gryphon used to me. Having a bunch of nervous mounts under the same roof as me was a recipe for disaster.
However, the central tower had a rather big balcony/landing pad built into the front with a area under it that was not really used.
That's where I was allowed to reside for our stay. Not that I didn't expect them to keep a rather close eye on me even if I have yet to actually see a guard.
I was however very thankful for the roof at the moment as it as pouring down like crazy.
Resting my head on my front-paws I sighed, staring out through the heavy rain. Well at least it could be worse. It could have started raining a couple of hours later and it would have caught us as we were about to leave.
Technically, we were in a bit of a hurry trying to catch those bandits, but nobody wanted to catch them enough to want to fly in this weather. I 'could' fly in almost any weather unless the winds was to strong or visibility was to low... but that didn't mean that I wanted too.
I fucking hate rain.
But the worst thing was that I was bored out of my horned skull. Yes, I could study, practice and read, but that's what I had been doing since I woke up six hours ago.
I gave a small stone a small poke with my claw, flicking it out into the rain.
Bored.
At least I managed to get the entire 'see magic' spell working that Targos used on me. It gave a kind of grey scale view of stuff in front of you while magic lit up like a neon sign. Quite pretty.
That kind of spell seemed to fit me perfectly. It was a pretty difficult one, but the high control/low power suited me like a glove.
...not that gloves could fit me now.
I frowned in thought as I looked out into the rain. Now if I could only get my claws on a small rodent so I could start working on my polymorph spell.
If I could manage a normal polymorph, I was something like eighty percent to being able to take mortal form.
Something moved in the heavy rain and I raised my head to look at the approaching form. At first I thought it was Venir beneath the umbrella(which surprised me for a second that those existed, but not like it's a difficult design to figure out), but it was quickly revealed when she got closer that it was the warlock.
"Hello Sheila." I said in greeting.
She smiled and shook her umbrella off, "Hey. We thought we should check in on you."
I nodded, "Thank you. I admit that I expected Venir, though."
Sheila shrugged, "She was about to, but I asked if she minded if I went instead."
That caused me to tilt my head in question.
She grinned, "I admit that it's not often you have the opportunity to talk to a dragon... but mostly, it's just refreshing to have somebody to talk magic with."
It was. Her tip with the illusions really did help. She was one of the friendlier members of her team along with Sparklight.
Venir not included, of course.
I nodded, "You are welcome to join me. I admit that things have been a bit... boring today. I think so some company would be enjoyable."
Laying my head back down I watched her walk over to kneel down next to me.
"How are your studies progressing?" she asked.
I tilted my head in thought, "...Well enough. I managed to learn the magical detection spell just today. I am still having trouble with high power spells though. My spell matrices collapse when I fail to keep control under the higher power levels. Several other things I wish to study, I am however unable to practice at this time."
She frowned and brushed her blonde hair from her face and behind her ear, "Such as?"
"Primarily enchanting and Polymorph. I require reagents and a rodent."
Sheila frowned and shifted position slightly, "Well, I can't help you with the rodent, Venir might be able to trap one for you though, but enchanting I can do. I carry a rather large supply in my pack."
I blinked at that and turned my head to look at her, "You are a enchanter?"
She nodded, "Didn't have much power as a mage so I went down the enchanting route before I turned to fel magic. What have you done so far?"
"I have enchanted a total of one pair of gloves." I said with a small sigh.
"Arcane dust then." She said with a nod and a smile, "I have a box of that in my pack. I'll go get it and we can get started."
"... Thank you... but why..." I started to ask.
The warlock shrugged as she stood up, brushing some sand from her white robes, "Because I really enjoy magic and like I said, you are the only one in the group that use it. The closest thing to a mage here is Shieldforest but what he does is not really magic, magic."
I slowly nodded, "Thank you."
She grinned, "Don't mention it."
AN// Many thanks to Cheap Orange Knofe for betaing this section.
Also, I am getting close to finishing writing this story. Just one or two more parts... not that you will reach that point for quite a while. Still, I believe my next story will be a continuation of http://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/threads/not-quite-shodan-st-si.4550/ so if you have yet to read it, you might want to catch up.
jwolfe_beta
Semi Genre-Savvy Overlord
- Location
- Canada
Sweet more chibi-Reaper/Geth/Blade-Wolf/ehatever body you decide to make in Star Trek.
24
I slowly beat my wings, gaining altitude.
Took a day, but the rain had cleared out, leaving the weather mostly blue skies with a smattering of clouds. The air after the rain was crisp and clear and rather nice to fly in, even if the lack of thermals kind of sucked when it came to gaining altitude.
We left Telaar early this morning with no more clue about who the bandits were so we were currently heading towards Halaa, a settlement in the middle of Nagarand.
If anyone knew, the locals there would. It was kind of a trading post at a crossroads so they should have heard something there.
After all, even bandits need to eat. When in doubt, follow the food.
Venir was relaxing against my back, resting her head against her arms which were draped over the back of my neck. Well, much more comfortable than sitting up into the airstream, that was for sure. Also, the proximity made it slightly easier to communicate.
Tiral the moth was clinging to my armor behind her. I was actually impressed that the giant insect was able to hold on.
"Cold?" I asked as I rested on my wings.
"No, I'm good." Venir answered. "No higher though."
"Got it." I said and leveled out, keeping the altitude. The rest of the group was more or less on the same level and to the left.
Luckily for everyone, Sparklight took my 'advice' and spent the downtime in Telaar fitting it with a pair of more or less functioning mufflers.
It was still loud, but it was loud as a car instead of a roaring jet engine. My and everyone elses ears thanked him for that.
Two more days of flight to Halaa. Two days of sunny skies.
I loved flying.
XXXXXXXXXX
I narrowed my eyes, peering into the distance. What was that?
"Venir, do you see something straight ahead? Two dots." I asked her, slowly beating my wings.
I felt her shift to sit up, looking into the distance. The sun had started to set to the left of us. It would be dark in a couple of hours.
"No... but your eyes are sharper." She said before she whistled loudly to get the attention of the rest of the group, motioning that we had spotted something.
Too far away to be a pair of birds. No, those were larger creatures. Possibly mounts with riders.
I glanced back at Venir who was looking over her shoulder at the rest of the group before she nodded and waved, turning back to me.
"We are landing!" She yelled over the wind. "Before we are spotted."
"Too late!" I answered. "If I could see them, they can most likely see us as well. There are more of us."
Besides, dragon eyesight or not, there were both spells and equipment that could give you equal or better vision.
Instead of going into a dive, I started to climb again.
"Atreus, we are supposed to be landing!"
"If they turn out to be hostile, landing is a horrible idea. Energy is life, Venir. Tell Tiral to jump off, he won't be able to hold on if things get dangerous." I answered as I kept my eyes locked on the slowly approaching dots in the sky. As I slowly circled up, I could see the rest of the group heading down for landing.
Our leader didn't look happy, but his gryphon was too low to catch me, especially in a climb.
Venir grimaced but nodded, quickly reaching into her pack and pulling out a coal stick to scribble a quick message on a piece of parchment before she rolled it up and handed it to Tiral. "Go to Marcus, Tiral. Stay there." she ordered him.
The Moth simply spread its wings, caught the airstream and flew off me.
"What's your plan?" She yelled over the wind as she laid down again, putting her arms around my neck.
"Gain altitude, figure out who they are." I said and squinted into the distance. Were those dragons?
Yes. Yes they were.
Purple dragons. They were just getting close enough that I could make out yellow fabric on their riders.
What?
Bandit riders... from the same group as before.
But why would they try to intercept us... and why with only two? It didn't make sense.
Yes, two dragons in the air could take on a group of people on normal mounts, especially if the riders were spellcasters... but why?
Why bother going after us? How did they even know that we were after them? And why bother trying to intercept us?
Maybe they weren't after us. It could just have been a coincidence.
No, they were changing course towards me.
Well, bollocks.
"I can see them now!" Venir yelled to me. "Any ideas yet?"
"Yeah. Nothing good... they are members of the group we are hunting. And they are riding dragons. How good is your crossbowmanship when mounted?" I asked, beating my wings harder.
Didn't think I could outrun them. The landscape was too flat for me to be able to hide. No, we would need to fight, but I couldn't drag them to the rest of the group.
Only one able to fight in the air other than me and Venir, but she and her carpet had landed by now. She would never reach the right altitude in time.
I needed more altitude.
Need more altitude.
Need more energy.
Energy is life.
AN// Many thanks to Grey Rook for betaing this section just in time.
Took a day, but the rain had cleared out, leaving the weather mostly blue skies with a smattering of clouds. The air after the rain was crisp and clear and rather nice to fly in, even if the lack of thermals kind of sucked when it came to gaining altitude.
We left Telaar early this morning with no more clue about who the bandits were so we were currently heading towards Halaa, a settlement in the middle of Nagarand.
If anyone knew, the locals there would. It was kind of a trading post at a crossroads so they should have heard something there.
After all, even bandits need to eat. When in doubt, follow the food.
Venir was relaxing against my back, resting her head against her arms which were draped over the back of my neck. Well, much more comfortable than sitting up into the airstream, that was for sure. Also, the proximity made it slightly easier to communicate.
Tiral the moth was clinging to my armor behind her. I was actually impressed that the giant insect was able to hold on.
"Cold?" I asked as I rested on my wings.
"No, I'm good." Venir answered. "No higher though."
"Got it." I said and leveled out, keeping the altitude. The rest of the group was more or less on the same level and to the left.
Luckily for everyone, Sparklight took my 'advice' and spent the downtime in Telaar fitting it with a pair of more or less functioning mufflers.
It was still loud, but it was loud as a car instead of a roaring jet engine. My and everyone elses ears thanked him for that.
Two more days of flight to Halaa. Two days of sunny skies.
I loved flying.
XXXXXXXXXX
I narrowed my eyes, peering into the distance. What was that?
"Venir, do you see something straight ahead? Two dots." I asked her, slowly beating my wings.
I felt her shift to sit up, looking into the distance. The sun had started to set to the left of us. It would be dark in a couple of hours.
"No... but your eyes are sharper." She said before she whistled loudly to get the attention of the rest of the group, motioning that we had spotted something.
Too far away to be a pair of birds. No, those were larger creatures. Possibly mounts with riders.
I glanced back at Venir who was looking over her shoulder at the rest of the group before she nodded and waved, turning back to me.
"We are landing!" She yelled over the wind. "Before we are spotted."
"Too late!" I answered. "If I could see them, they can most likely see us as well. There are more of us."
Besides, dragon eyesight or not, there were both spells and equipment that could give you equal or better vision.
Instead of going into a dive, I started to climb again.
"Atreus, we are supposed to be landing!"
"If they turn out to be hostile, landing is a horrible idea. Energy is life, Venir. Tell Tiral to jump off, he won't be able to hold on if things get dangerous." I answered as I kept my eyes locked on the slowly approaching dots in the sky. As I slowly circled up, I could see the rest of the group heading down for landing.
Our leader didn't look happy, but his gryphon was too low to catch me, especially in a climb.
Venir grimaced but nodded, quickly reaching into her pack and pulling out a coal stick to scribble a quick message on a piece of parchment before she rolled it up and handed it to Tiral. "Go to Marcus, Tiral. Stay there." she ordered him.
The Moth simply spread its wings, caught the airstream and flew off me.
"What's your plan?" She yelled over the wind as she laid down again, putting her arms around my neck.
"Gain altitude, figure out who they are." I said and squinted into the distance. Were those dragons?
Yes. Yes they were.
Purple dragons. They were just getting close enough that I could make out yellow fabric on their riders.
What?
Bandit riders... from the same group as before.
But why would they try to intercept us... and why with only two? It didn't make sense.
Yes, two dragons in the air could take on a group of people on normal mounts, especially if the riders were spellcasters... but why?
Why bother going after us? How did they even know that we were after them? And why bother trying to intercept us?
Maybe they weren't after us. It could just have been a coincidence.
No, they were changing course towards me.
Well, bollocks.
"I can see them now!" Venir yelled to me. "Any ideas yet?"
"Yeah. Nothing good... they are members of the group we are hunting. And they are riding dragons. How good is your crossbowmanship when mounted?" I asked, beating my wings harder.
Didn't think I could outrun them. The landscape was too flat for me to be able to hide. No, we would need to fight, but I couldn't drag them to the rest of the group.
Only one able to fight in the air other than me and Venir, but she and her carpet had landed by now. She would never reach the right altitude in time.
I needed more altitude.
Need more altitude.
Need more energy.
Energy is life.
AN// Many thanks to Grey Rook for betaing this section just in time.
Pensive Rumination
Praise me more?
- Location
- Australia
This makes so much more sense now that I've gone and read Not Quite A Shodan.
Sad to see Atreus go, but at least we get an aerial battle scene before the end.
Winged One
Not the Simurgh
- Location
- definitely the ground
- Pronouns
- They/Them/It
Yes, but black mana is good at trading one useful thing for another.
Grey Rook
Genuine Nerd
- Location
- The Quantum Foam
GreyRookd executing betaservice.exe
Please stand by.
25
"They are getting closer. Lead them away from the others." Venir said while pulling her crossbow.
"Working on it."
I beat my wings faster, shifting my course a bit, trying to extend the time to contact as I shifted my course directly west, keeping the approaching dragons in my field of vision.
Crap.
No, make that double crap. One on one it would be a fair fight.
I hate fair fights! There is a chance I might lose and I have had quite enough of that!
But this wasn't a fair fight.
It was the wrong kind of unfair fight. Which meant I would need to cheat like a bastard... but there was only so much cheating you could do in the open skies. Especially against two opponents.
This was so stupid. If the rest had stayed in the air, we could have outnumbered them, giving them more targets.
But no. Mr 'I know everything about air engagements from swinging a sword' wanted us on the ground. Because hitting things very hard made you qualified for that!
...Sure, My experience was limited to sims on the computer, but it was more than him.
Still, it was common fucking sense. You do not give air superiority to fucking dragons!
At least Sheila would have been useful with her spells.
But no. 'I hit things very hard', decided that landing was a great idea.
"They are getting closer!" Venir yelled and sat up in her saddle, bringing me out of my annoyed musings.
"That's the idea!" I answered, glancing at them as I banked again, making them follow behind me instead of trying to intercept.
That cloud. That might work. Worked before.
Feeling Venir moving around I glanced back as she removed her leg straps, leaving just the one around her waist before she span around in her saddle to face backwards, loading her crossbow.
Good thinking.
"When I say hang on, hang on!" I yelled back at her before focusing forward again.
I heard the 'twang' of her crossbow as she fired her first shot just before we entered the cloud.
"Atreus, I can't shoot in this!"
"Neither can they!" I responded and glanced back. Damn, they were closer than I thought, less than fifty meters.
No wonder Venir could shoot at them!
I slowed down to keep them in sight in the quickly thickening mist as I started to mold my first spell.
"They are getting closer!"
"That's the idea." I answered again, as readied the Blur spell. Just one more step to trigger it.
"Down!"
I quickly dipped a couple of meters lower, just in time for a fireball to flash past above my left wing through the cloud.
Damn. That was too close!
"Atreus!" Venir yelled, letting another crossbow bolt fly.
I bloody well know!
I went into a barrel roll to avoid another fireball flashing by and suddenly the mist started to lighten. Yes! Exactly what I was looking for.
"Hang on!" I ordered as I let the Blur spell activate, pulling up hard into a climb.
My speed quickly bled off into nothing and I winged over, looking down through the mist at the edge of the cloud.
They flashed out of the mist beneath me, heading straight along my previous flightpath.
I folded my wings and dropped, rolling to bring my paws under me as I dived at the one to the rear and right of the pair.
The rider barely had time to look up with a surprised look on her face before I smashed into the right wing of the dragon carrying her. The bone shattered, the flight skin ripping.
The impact almost knocked the air from my lungs, but it did cause the hurt enemy dragon to go into a unrecoverable spin towards the ground, it's broken wing fluttering uselessly in the wind.
I spread my wings, pulling up and to the right to avoid another fireball from the other rider.
I glanced back to see the last dragon bank around towards me.
"Venir! You okay!?"
"Yes! Just warn me next time!" She yelled back and sat up, loading her crossbow again to take another shot.
Banking to the side I was just barely able to avoid another fireball.
Could the same trick work twice? Unlikely. Besides, we were below the cloud layer now and they were right on my tail. Climbing now would get us killed.
Shit, shit, shit!
What do I do!? A single hit from that fireball would cripple me enough to make me a easy kill, especially if they keep aiming at my wings.
Scanning the ground and horizon I didn't see much. A couple of trees, a lake, a river in a narrow canyon.
River in a canyon.
That would have to work.
I half folded my wings, diving towards the ground and I half turned my head to see the other dragon do the same.
The troll riding the dragon brought his hands together and they lit up in flames before another fireball flew towards us.
I ducked out of the way as Venir fired another bolt from her crossbow.
It flew true, straight through the approaching fireball to hit the troll in the chest.
His mount didn't notice or didn't care.
I half spread my wings again, catching the wind and started to turn vertical energy into horizontal, "Hang on!" I yelled back to Venir as I started to really pull some Gs.
If I did this too fast, my wings would snap like toothpicks.
As it was, my wings screamed in pain as I spread them fully as I flashed into the canyon, the walls flying past ten meters or so from my wing tips.
"It's following!" Venir yelled as she sat back up, reloading her crossbow while I skimmed across the water of the river.
Good.
Okay...
Now what?
I quickly banked around a bend in the river only to see a sheer cliff a couple of hundred meters straight ahead.
...It worked in that movie.
But the question would be if I could actually pull it off.
I shifted my course slightly, my claws brushing the surface of the river as I split my attention, channeling my magic.
Careful.
Careful...
Not too fast, not too much power at once. Don't collapse the matrix.
My eyes half closed as we flew towards the rock wall, focusing on my magic.
"Atreus! Wall!" Venir yelled.
I know.
As my claws kicked up a spray of water behind us, I let the spell go, causing the spray of water to turn into a thick, localized mist, billowing and filling the end of the canyon and I pulled up hard, beating my screaming wings wings as I went vertical, my paws almost touching the solid rock wall.
There was a loud, heavy, meaty crash beneath us and I turned the climb into a half-loop rolling back upright again, looking down at the quickly dissipating mist.
I put as much power as I dared into it, but even then it would only last a couple of seconds. But it had been enough.
The dissipating mist revealed the bloody and broken body of a netherdrake.
Sorry, brother.
Now that the fighting was over, whatever passed for adrenaline in my system started to drain and... holy crap my wings hurt!
I stopped beating them, resting on the wing as I slowly started to glide down to a grass covered area next to the river.
There was no way I could stay in the air like this. I hurt all over.
AN// Many thanks to Grey Rook for posting this section.
"Working on it."
I beat my wings faster, shifting my course a bit, trying to extend the time to contact as I shifted my course directly west, keeping the approaching dragons in my field of vision.
Crap.
No, make that double crap. One on one it would be a fair fight.
I hate fair fights! There is a chance I might lose and I have had quite enough of that!
But this wasn't a fair fight.
It was the wrong kind of unfair fight. Which meant I would need to cheat like a bastard... but there was only so much cheating you could do in the open skies. Especially against two opponents.
This was so stupid. If the rest had stayed in the air, we could have outnumbered them, giving them more targets.
But no. Mr 'I know everything about air engagements from swinging a sword' wanted us on the ground. Because hitting things very hard made you qualified for that!
...Sure, My experience was limited to sims on the computer, but it was more than him.
Still, it was common fucking sense. You do not give air superiority to fucking dragons!
At least Sheila would have been useful with her spells.
But no. 'I hit things very hard', decided that landing was a great idea.
"They are getting closer!" Venir yelled and sat up in her saddle, bringing me out of my annoyed musings.
"That's the idea!" I answered, glancing at them as I banked again, making them follow behind me instead of trying to intercept.
That cloud. That might work. Worked before.
Feeling Venir moving around I glanced back as she removed her leg straps, leaving just the one around her waist before she span around in her saddle to face backwards, loading her crossbow.
Good thinking.
"When I say hang on, hang on!" I yelled back at her before focusing forward again.
I heard the 'twang' of her crossbow as she fired her first shot just before we entered the cloud.
"Atreus, I can't shoot in this!"
"Neither can they!" I responded and glanced back. Damn, they were closer than I thought, less than fifty meters.
No wonder Venir could shoot at them!
I slowed down to keep them in sight in the quickly thickening mist as I started to mold my first spell.
"They are getting closer!"
"That's the idea." I answered again, as readied the Blur spell. Just one more step to trigger it.
"Down!"
I quickly dipped a couple of meters lower, just in time for a fireball to flash past above my left wing through the cloud.
Damn. That was too close!
"Atreus!" Venir yelled, letting another crossbow bolt fly.
I bloody well know!
I went into a barrel roll to avoid another fireball flashing by and suddenly the mist started to lighten. Yes! Exactly what I was looking for.
"Hang on!" I ordered as I let the Blur spell activate, pulling up hard into a climb.
My speed quickly bled off into nothing and I winged over, looking down through the mist at the edge of the cloud.
They flashed out of the mist beneath me, heading straight along my previous flightpath.
I folded my wings and dropped, rolling to bring my paws under me as I dived at the one to the rear and right of the pair.
The rider barely had time to look up with a surprised look on her face before I smashed into the right wing of the dragon carrying her. The bone shattered, the flight skin ripping.
The impact almost knocked the air from my lungs, but it did cause the hurt enemy dragon to go into a unrecoverable spin towards the ground, it's broken wing fluttering uselessly in the wind.
I spread my wings, pulling up and to the right to avoid another fireball from the other rider.
I glanced back to see the last dragon bank around towards me.
"Venir! You okay!?"
"Yes! Just warn me next time!" She yelled back and sat up, loading her crossbow again to take another shot.
Banking to the side I was just barely able to avoid another fireball.
Could the same trick work twice? Unlikely. Besides, we were below the cloud layer now and they were right on my tail. Climbing now would get us killed.
Shit, shit, shit!
What do I do!? A single hit from that fireball would cripple me enough to make me a easy kill, especially if they keep aiming at my wings.
Scanning the ground and horizon I didn't see much. A couple of trees, a lake, a river in a narrow canyon.
River in a canyon.
That would have to work.
I half folded my wings, diving towards the ground and I half turned my head to see the other dragon do the same.
The troll riding the dragon brought his hands together and they lit up in flames before another fireball flew towards us.
I ducked out of the way as Venir fired another bolt from her crossbow.
It flew true, straight through the approaching fireball to hit the troll in the chest.
His mount didn't notice or didn't care.
I half spread my wings again, catching the wind and started to turn vertical energy into horizontal, "Hang on!" I yelled back to Venir as I started to really pull some Gs.
If I did this too fast, my wings would snap like toothpicks.
As it was, my wings screamed in pain as I spread them fully as I flashed into the canyon, the walls flying past ten meters or so from my wing tips.
"It's following!" Venir yelled as she sat back up, reloading her crossbow while I skimmed across the water of the river.
Good.
Okay...
Now what?
I quickly banked around a bend in the river only to see a sheer cliff a couple of hundred meters straight ahead.
...It worked in that movie.
But the question would be if I could actually pull it off.
I shifted my course slightly, my claws brushing the surface of the river as I split my attention, channeling my magic.
Careful.
Careful...
Not too fast, not too much power at once. Don't collapse the matrix.
My eyes half closed as we flew towards the rock wall, focusing on my magic.
"Atreus! Wall!" Venir yelled.
I know.
As my claws kicked up a spray of water behind us, I let the spell go, causing the spray of water to turn into a thick, localized mist, billowing and filling the end of the canyon and I pulled up hard, beating my screaming wings wings as I went vertical, my paws almost touching the solid rock wall.
There was a loud, heavy, meaty crash beneath us and I turned the climb into a half-loop rolling back upright again, looking down at the quickly dissipating mist.
I put as much power as I dared into it, but even then it would only last a couple of seconds. But it had been enough.
The dissipating mist revealed the bloody and broken body of a netherdrake.
Sorry, brother.
Now that the fighting was over, whatever passed for adrenaline in my system started to drain and... holy crap my wings hurt!
I stopped beating them, resting on the wing as I slowly started to glide down to a grass covered area next to the river.
There was no way I could stay in the air like this. I hurt all over.
AN// Many thanks to Grey Rook for posting this section.
RazorBlaxe
Just another transient being
- Location
- Earth
2 air kills Atreus! 3 more and you're a certified Ace!
From what I recall it takes shooting down 6 birds to be Ace.
Pensive Rumination
Praise me more?
- Location
- Australia
*braces for inevitable post concerning Vesca's rustled jimmies*
Also, did that bolt to the chest kill the troll? It was kind of implied, but I was under the impression that trolls were tougher then that? Unless Venir was packing some pretty lethal cross-bolts.
Also, did that bolt to the chest kill the troll? It was kind of implied, but I was under the impression that trolls were tougher then that? Unless Venir was packing some pretty lethal cross-bolts.
RazorBlaxe
Just another transient being
- Location
- Earth
Did a quick google to confirm, to be an Ace you need 5 or more kills. The very first dude to be called an Ace started with 5 kills. The local newspaper (French) used the term and it kinda expanded from there. Also, the Germans used Top Gun for their Aces so that's where the term Top Gun came from. Both meant the same thing: A pilot (or airmen crew, rear gunners count) have successfully and is confirmed to have downed 5 aircraft.
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
If the bolt didn't, I expect the fall would.
Pensive Rumination
Praise me more?
- Location
- Australia
When did the troll fall off? Or did you mean when the dragon rammed itself into a cliff face?
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
Getting a crossbow bolt in your chest would generally make staying on harder. Hiver wasn't paying attention, though, and either way the outcome is the same: Chunky troll salsa.
Mr. Mica
Capitalism cannot fix Global Warming.
- Location
- Earth
That is assuming mister Troll hit the ground, from what I understand of the place it is possible to fall in perpetuity.
