part one

[PLEASE remember, this is a serious rp, that means long, descriptive posts! I don't want stupid little dragons that think they are da'bomb and invincible and snarl and hiss at everything. Act like your persona, don't be a sissy! Dragons may be as smart as us, but they are animals in a sense, and animals HAVE OPEN SEX. Dragons do not mate for life, they choose to...]

[Also keep in mind, that there is violence between clans, but most of the children have their own opinions rather then the opinions of the parents. Try to pull the defiant teenager act.]



                  He was so close. Raelina took a delicate whiff of the air, her hackles raising as she caught his scent. He had just made a kill too, which made her fade to the wind for just a moment, then faded back to her real self as her tail twitched. She had been watching Varun for a long time, a silent obsession of hers that she would not admit to anyone, especially not to her parents. A breeze that was Raelina wafted through the treetops, scattering the birds that nested there.

                  Varun gripped the beast's ribcage with his massive claws and cracked it open, splintering the bone and tearing the meat. Devouring the heart first, he fed on the entrails, grunting and snorting as he tore the kill apart. Varun couldn't hear anything over the sound of his own feeding, but he felt the breeze strike his wings, and caught a familiar scent as he lifted his head to the direction of the wind. Nostrils flaring, he gathered up the carcass and listened, watching.

Raelina circled wide around him as the wind and stopped, hovering to one side as she watched him eagerly, then hesitated when she could see he sensed something was wrong. I should leave... She thought to herself, flinging the breeze this way and that before letting it go still.

Sniffing loudly, Varun turned to his side and stopped, eyes narrowing. It's not the wind that interests me. It's your scent. Suddenly he whirled around to the other side, raking his claws through the air and lunging forward, wings fullspread.

Yelping as she became solid, his palm caught her around the chest and she was thrown to the ground with Varun on top. Raelina let out a whimper and went limp, letter her head lawl to one side and her eyes focused on nothing, "I've been caught..." She whispered softly, almost inaudibly.

Shifting his weight to his arm, Varun crushed Raelina slowly into the mud. He leaned in closer, nostrils inches from her throat, inhaled deeply, then let out a low growl.

Raelina turned her head to face him and growled in return, not as fierce but it was there and whipped her tail around. The other dragon could easily feel the long and vicious poisoned talon tapping against his own throat.

Again, his eyes narrowed, and he gave one last crushing shove downward before backing off and lifting his chin, standing over the smaller dragon, looking down his blunt snout at her. It was brutish a show of pride and power, but he knew he'd essentially lost the fight.

She squirmed before using the air to get to her paws, shaking mud from her. Raelina looked pitiful compared to him and she shook in nervousness, constantly glancing this way and that as she tried desperately to think of something. She flung the rest of the mud off her water resistant fur and whined softly, not wanting to leave but not wanting to fight either. It was an obvious show of her feelings... but finally she let her image fade to the wind and fled to the skies above him.

Varun looked to the sky, eyes following where he imagined she might have flown. He spread his great black wings, flapped them twice, then folded them back around his body. His skyward glare softened, and he sighed quietly.

Her scent continued to linger and some of his kill, just scraps really, disappeared and a tree near him shuddered. Several birds complained about this annoyance but quieted. It was obvious Raelina was not a fighter and only was used to defending herself, and being such a frail thing she preferred to just take what she needed from other dragon's kills without them noticing. She didn't need as much as other dragons did.

Turning to the noise in the trees, Varun caught the scent again. He tilted his head to the side, looked back up to the sky where he thought she was, then back to the large carcass in the mud. Varun shook his head slowly as her scent drifted through his nostrils again, and laughed. He moved to the dead animal, spread his wings over it, and dug the tips into the mud, sealing off the air in a bubble around it, then smirked. She'd struck his interest with her little rogue tactics, now he wanted to play with her.

She became solid to eat the strips of bloody flesh and licked her lips, looking to Varun with confusion in her eyes. Raelina was still hungry and she saw no other way of getting more food... then approaching him. Leaping into the air, Rael swam through it around him then landed, whining softly and crawling forward on her belly a little ways.

Raising his eyebrows, he again looked down his snout at her. This time, however he laughed. "Oh, now you beg for it?" Smiling, he unfolded his wings, and nodded toward the dead animal. Varun watched her carefully, studying her. Something about her defiance in the midst of her awkward charm was disarming.

"I was just watching..." Raelina whispered, her ears lowered nervously, like I always do... she added in her mind, before inching forward again. Her blue eyes kept flickering to him as she slowly gripped some of the flesh with her teeth and ripped violently, pulling off some more scraps and retreated back away from him.

Varun remained silent. He'd only seen dragons of the air clan on very rare occasions, and never one up this close before.

Feeling his eyes on her made Rael even more nervous as her body began to shake again, not to mention her tail started twitching uncontrollably. Raelina swallowed a last bite, her stomach full and bucked up the courage to bring her head around and meet his stare, one ear cocked up to create a perfect expression of "What?" She wilted under his gaze, letting out a barely audible whimper, He's probably wondering why I always follow him...

On the contrary, Varun had no idea she watched him almost obsessively. He simply assumed all air dragons carried the distinct scent she had and dismissed it as having been many of her clan that he smelled on the winds. Instead, he watched her, wondering how she made it this far alone. She must be alone. Why else would she be scavenging?

That was when she froze, her ears both facing forward as another smell rode in on the breeze and Raelina trembled and made to dash away when a slightly larger dragon appeared, same color as Rael but more weaponized with armor all over his skeleton frame. He grabbed her by the neck, stopping her from running away and swung her around viciously, drawing blood as he slammed her to the ground, Raelina mewling in pain and terror. The older dragon was a warrior through and through, even his wings were razor sharp as he glared down at her with angry brown eyes. "What have I told you daughter," The dragon hissed condescendingly, "You must kill your own kills, no more of this relying on others you weakling! I cannot believe I have fathered such a gutless lizard..." It was then that Raelina's father noticed Varun and bristled in suspicion, "Who are you?"

Varun took the same pose he had before, eyes narrowed, and gave a long defiant pause before saying shortly, "Varun, water clan."

Raelina lay on her belly, blood dripping from her neck as she shivered in pain, her tail curled around her body and her head bowed in humility and her father took Varun's act of defiance as hesitation, "Raeverin, from the great air clan, don't you ever, ever let my daughter share your kill again. I'm trying to make her understand how to be a real dragon instead of the gutless whelp she is!" Raelina took this mental bashing silently, even when her father casually kicked her over with his hind foot.

The water dragon remained silent, holding eye contact with the adult dragon, his glare never breaking.

"I'd rather you not tolerate her presence either water lizard, or else you might find the entire air clan against you." Her father hissed and then lifted off, and was gone, though his scent lingered for a few minutes before it had completely dissipated. Raelina's scent wasn't as heavy, and smelled better then her father's did.

Varun snorted, blowing the smell from his nostrils, and without turning to Rael simply said, "My clan was right all along about your kind."

Raelina let out a faint sob and clambered to her feet, using her tail as a fifth leg, "Not all..." She said softly, her tongue snaking out to lick at her neck, not being able to reach all of the cuts her father inflicted.

"It's sad how they think they rule from on high," He continued, "When the plain and simple truth is that they were banished from the earth and exiled to the outer edges of this world." He turned to her, with a pitiful expression, and wrapped on great black wing around her tattered form. "He's wrong about you, you know."

Shaking, Raelina hung her head and curled her tail around her legs, "No he's not, I'm a pitiful air dragon." She squeezed her eyes shut and let out a quiet sigh, "I'm useless."

Varun laid down his dark muscular body in front of Rael and wrapped his other bat-like wing around too, pulling her forward and sheltering her beneath them. He tilted her chin up with his massive claw and touched his nose to her's, looking directly into Raelina's blue eyes. "You tricked me." His smile took a grim little twist and he winked. "Brute strength is nothing without cunning." Lifting his wings from her for a moment, he tilted her chin up further to show her the sky. "He may have strength, but..." Then Varun suddenly shut his wings back around her and whispered, "Someone like you will always be the better warrior, because you will always outsmart him." Varun's eyes shimmered slightly. "He already knows that. And he's jealous."

"I'm... not a warrior..." Rael responded awkwardly, fidgeting from the much larger dragon's gaze and closeness. "He... hates me because I'm weak. I'm not smart..." She closed her eyes and finally stopped shaking, naturally extending her neck out to rub her soft cheek against Varun's. "I'm Raelina," She murmured to him.

He rubbed her's back, trying not to touch the wound on her neck. "I'm Varun."

Sighing, "It's nice to meet you," After all this time... I've been watching you. Raelina didn't move away, instead she leaned forward a little more, her nose under his jaw taking in his scent from the source.

The last rays of daylight streaked across the sky and faded. Varun, who had closed his eyes and was breathing in Raelina's scent as subtly as he could to keep her from noticing, shivered as the cold night air set in.

She flicked her claw slightly, instinctively bringing in warm air and took a step back from him, her cheeks turning slightly purple in a blush. "Varun... I don't want to go home..." Rael stopped herself from whimpering, "My father..."

He pulled her back again with his wings. "So don't."

"But... he'll hurt me..." The last part turned into a sob and her body shook against his.

"Don't breathe," Varun whispered, then picked Raelina up and set her on his back between his massive wings and shoulder blades. He turned around on the muddy bank, charged forward, and dove headlong into the dark water. Swimming with surprising agility, Varun dove straight to the bottom, weaving in and out of fallen trees, rock formations, and giant submarine plants that stretched to the surface. Suddenly, he made a sharp turn, twisting around into a cavern in the rock face, and sped through the tight passage up into the larger chamber within. Upon breaking through the surface, he laid Raelina on a large rock shelf jutting out from the wall and checked to be sure she was okay. "Don't mind the pressure change, you'll adjust and the headache will go away soon."

The air dragon was truly shocked and tucked her legs and tail to be as small as possible in the cave. She couldn't swim, she could only float and being under the water like this... Raelina was terrified. It was only a natural reaction to shake the water from from herself, and it was her turn to shiver from the cold. "Why... did you being me here?"

Varun dragged himself up out of the water, and curled his body around Raelina's. He whispered, "You're safe in this air pocket. You don't have to return to your clan tonight, and nothing can hurt you." The cavern was quite large, but in the pitch black it couldn't be seen, and their voices echoed throughout it.

Raelina let out a soft meep of surprise, reacting stiff to his contact before she finally relaxed as she began to warm up. "Why are you helping me Varun?" She whispered back, snuggling against his belly meekly, hesitantly.

After wrapping his tail up and around her, he said, "Get as close as you can. It won't get any warmer down here." Varun laid his head down next to her's. "Sleep. We'll talk more tomorrow."

"Ok..." She bent her neck then let out a sharp breath, "Ow..." And tried to lick the wounds her father gave her. When it didn't work she swallowed hard and tried to ignore the slow drip of blood.

Lifting his head over Raelina's and craning his neck slightly, Varun licked it for her.

She flinched from his tongue then stopped, sniffling softly before going still. A flare of heat grew in her stomach and Raelina started shaking, What if my clan finds out? What will happen to me...? She was sure her father would kill her.

Varun laid his neck over her body, rubbing his scent against her, trying to calm her shaking.

"I wish I was as strong as you Varun..." Rael muttered softly, lifting her head to touch his cheek with hers again, this time however, it was not meant as a greeting.

With one fluid movement, Varun stood on four legs, lifted Raelina's hind quarters up, and pulled her back underneath his muscular bulk. His large jointed wings spread out full, then folded again as he lowered his head down next to her's, and rubbed against her cheek in the same way.

Raelina yelped and her claws scratched the rock as he pulled her to him, creating sparks as she struggled against his might, then as she felt him behind her she stopped. She crooned to him, her legs going limp as she let him do as he pleased to her. Rael wasn't herself, instead now, she was a dragon with no hesitation.

Grasping Raelina's sides, just above her hips, Varun bit the back of her neck and penetrated the smaller dragon.

She whimpered softly as his teeth grazed her wound and in the darkness of the cave Raelina opened herself to him, losing herself to the water dragon in an open traitorous act against her clan... and of course, so was Varun. However he was a warrior in every right, where as Rael could be killed as a result of their union.

Being completely blind in the pitch black of the cave, Varun wrapped his arms around Raelina's smaller sinuous body, feeling every movement and every curve of her form against his.

Raelina hummed to Varun, lifting her head to his shoulder as she felt him inside her and she pulled her tail around him and her, trapping him to her.

---

Varun's eyes opened slowly and adjusted to the dim glow of the pools. He moaned and turned over. Why? I hate the sunlight. Why does it always come back? He closed his eyes again, but the empty cave amplified the sound of Raelina's soft breathing to an audible irritation. Varun did his best to shut out the noise, but couldn't. Reaching around behind himself, he nudged Rael with a claw. Who's the noisy air dragon? He asked himself, half asleep.

She responded with a flinch, gasping as she became awake. "Wha..." Raelina whipped her head up and jumped to her feet, "Where am I?" The air was stale here, still and her movement only caused a small stir in it. Beginning to panic, Rael flew to the ceiling of the cave, pawing at the stone and hyperventilating as she tried desperately to find a way out, I'm going to die here! Raelina didn't realize that Varun was there.

Eyes still shut, Varun turned back over and moaned, "What are you doing?"

Raelina let out a final gasp and her claws couldn't hold her to the ceiling anymore and she dropped, splashing into the water. Although she was floating, her head was heavy from her curled horns.

Suddenly aware of what was going on, Varun stumbled to his feet, a little lightheaded, and dove into the water. Grabbing her limp body with his claws, he pulled her back up to the surface and laid her on the rock ledge. "Raelina!" He laid his head to her chest, listening for a heartbeat. "Raelina!"

Sputtering, Rael coughed weakly, her body squirming under his, "Varun?" She coughed again, heaving a little bit of water out of her lungs.

"I'm here." He said, completely unsure of what to do. Water dragons never have problems with drowning, so this situation was completely new to him. He shifted his weight back and forth on his legs, and paced around her.

Twisting her body, Raelina coughed again, this time she was upright and managed to get most of it out and her coughing ceased. Her throat was raw and she turned this time to the water and drank eagerly and after that she faced Varun, slight fear in her eyes. "Varun..." Raelina stood on shaky legs and touched her muzzle to his shoulder.

---

A good distance away, where the world was hotter and damper and more uncomfortable in a cardigan sweater, Xiloxochitl curled her long, vibrant body around a rotting tree above a hot spring, sunning herself. Her limbs hung limply by her sides, and her feathered wings skimmed lazily on the surface of the water. She had eaten an hour before and bore a pleased look on her face. She fantasized that she was ruler of the wetlands, and had declared she was not to be disturbed for the next, oh, three or four hours. 'But--but--legislation!' Her subjects would cry, wringing their claws anxiously. And she would draw herself up to her most regal height and decree that they be banished for the very mentioning of such a thing during her royal sunning time. She snorted an amused sigh, the sunlight glinting off of her hard eyes.

The sunlight failed for a moment, just a brief second as the sounds of a battle came over the edges of the forest. Blurs of black and pure white raced through the cloudless sky, bouncing off one another in a mock fight, yelling to one another in a feminine and masculine voice. "You can do better than that Tiv!" Shouted the female and they finally slowed down enough to be visible. Two dragons, both identical in appearance came from the blurs from before, both beating their four wings in intervals to stay in the air. They talked amongst themselves for a moment before giving way to chasing the other once again.

Xiloxochitl's tranquility was gone. She glared up through the holes in the trees at the clear blue sky with a deep irritation, annoyance and an eagerness to let everyone around her share in her newfound foul mood. Wait a minute, she told herself, no need to be irrational; this may only be a momentary disturbance. It's not an act of war...yet. She flicked out her tongue, tasting the air deep. She gave a disgusted snort. Light and dark clan--naturally. Fine, she decided. We can have legislation if the first bill passed is the extermination of that crude and useless clan. But until then, she waited, shifted her weight, tried to get comfortable again, stared up at the sky irritably, assuring herself they would leave soon.

"Alright c'mon Vio, lets try the meld again!" Shouted the male as they chased each other through the sky, and they finally stopped again to face one another. A flash of light, a flash of darkness and they flew at each other till both light and dark collided creating a shift of color and a brilliant display in the sky. Finally though, they burst apart out of breath, unable to complete the technique of their clan.

The time for 'soon' had come and gone, and the long red serpent determined that the two had long overstayed their welcome. Xiloxochitl grumbled to herself, gathering her long coils and launching from her perch on the rotted tree with great beats of colored feathers and strings of muscle. Her flight was not unlike a decorated sea serpent, worming and rippling her way through the air. Shadows from the trees still stained her long, red body as she flew up to greet the two, much smaller dragons. "Gorgeous day for flying, ain't it, little ones?" She flicked her tongue at them conversationally. "You'll want to try a little bit further north, nearer to the volcano--some lovely updrafts there, I've found."

"Hello!" Vio replied, pleasantly, while Tiv just glanced at the huge dragon before flying around his sister, "We're just exploring, in the area our parents told us not to go!" They giggled and laughed as they chased each other briefly before settling down, flying near her. They were sure that if she attacked they would be able to avoid her and saw her as a mild threat, besides, she was being nice, "So the volcano? Can you take us to where it is?"

Xiloxochitl's smile somehow widened, and seemed sure to cut off the top of her face entirely. "Why, certainly!" She banked and flew toward the mountain immersed in clouds and smoke. "If you'll only follow me for a time, I am sure you'll find your way to the most glorious of airfields this far north." She was noticeably slower than the two in the air, but didn't seem to mind: she was looking forward to the games she could play with these two mouthfuls.

They had no idea what she was thinking, just flying around her playfully, not making fun of her, but just in a game. "I'm Vio!" Said the female, the one with white eyes and the one with black muttered, "Tiv..." before beginning to smile when his sister flew under him and tackled him in the air.

The huge dragon smiled endearingly at the little twins. "Xiloxochitl," She introduced herself, darkly amused and a little irritated at their antics. They were so close--! She could twist her neck like lightning and snap one up in her jaws this instant, and swallow it whole. It was an incredible temptation to fight, but she made herself wait a little longer. Might as well see how badly they could mangle her name, if they could pronounce it at all. So many outside of her clan insisted on an undignified pet name to replace it. Very shortly it became much easier to fly, and the closer they got to the mountain, the less work she had to do to keep herself aloft. The clouds curled and twisted from the beatings of her wings, as if they feared she could summon some gale to blow them away entirely. She looked back at her two companions with mischievous glee. "Here! You see?"

"Thank you... Xiloxochitl," Tiv said quietly, getting the name fairly close as he swooped towards his sister so fast that the eye could not follow him and Vio jumped away just as quickly, proving their speed to the much larger dragon, "Yes, thank you! This place is amazing..." The female said happily, rolling in the air over her then coming around to face her.

Xiloxochitl laughed at their playful natures, displaying soft pink gums and a black-tipped tongue. "Of course, little ones, anytime! How could I hide such a place from the likes of you for long?" She dipped and rolled comically in the light air, flashing her colors and licking at the clouds. She was harmless, of course, a kindred spirit, a playful thing. She brushed past Vio, nipping playfully at a wing.

A sudden spray of fire lit up the sky, which Vio dodged easily then hissed downwards. A fire dragon fought to gain altitude below them spouting more flame from its maw, its two legs kicking at the air while its wings beat the air, violence reflective in its eyes. However its size was in between Xiloxochitl and the twins but the fire that ran down its length was dangerous.

Xiloxochitl snapped out of the way, momentarily too quick to see. She could feel the heat of the flames against her flank as she twisted away. She hissed and spat at the fire dragon, her feathers flaring a warning sign and her rows of teeth resurfacing. Her long serpentine body writhed beneath her as she circled the new dragon warily, her hard eyes examining him, daring him to come closer.

The fire dragon instead turned to the twins, spraying more fire at them and they scattered, coming together as they used their abilities to flash forward, attacking together in a whirlwind of talons.

With the dragon distracted, Xiloxochitl got a better advantage. She hissed to herself, realizing that she was hungry again, and this other dragon would be a treat. It wouldn't be cannibalism, really; he was from the fire clan, and they practically asked to be fed upon. In one quick, fluid movement she sank her teeth into the fire dragon's throat, just behind its menacing horns. Her curved teeth stuck deep and true between the cracks in its scales.

It let out a squeal before violently swinging it's body around in an effort to free itself but the damage had been done. He died slowly, still kicking even in death. Vio and Tiv stopped their attack and looked at her in awe, "Wow Xiloxochitl that was awesome!" For being youngsters they had seen death before, "But what if the fire dragon hears about this?" Tiv wheeled around in the air nervously while Vio was still all dragon smiles.

Xiloxochitl grappled the corpse, twisting her torso around it and securing it with her small winglike limbs. She ripped out the part of the dragon's throat where she had bitten and swallowed it back with a snap of satisfaction. The dragon's head dangled loosely from flaps of skin and muscle. She smiled back at the two little dragons, blood on her maw. "Then I'll eat him, too." She was having trouble staying aloft with this new added weight. "Well, I'll to the ground; I can't eat and fly, it gives me cramps," She joked. "It's been fun, Vio and Tiv. Let's do it again sometime." She left them her snakey grin before twisting away and plunging down, down, down, into the foliage below, her native habitat. She needed to get the corpse away from the mountain, lest the other fire dragons indeed take notice and find its remains. She followed the streams, letting the blood drain away into the rushing waters with a pang of regret. She hoped that the two would not follow her; as small as they were, she wanted the kill all to herself.

However, they did follow her, but not intent on food, "Xiloxochitl, we've never met a dragon like you! What clan are you from?" Tiv snickered, "Our parents would kill us if they caught us with a dragon from another clan!" The other twin giggled, "Oh yes, they treat us like children..."

The larger dragon let out a short snort and looked back at them with her smile. "I'm Wood clan born, if you insist," Xiloxochitl assented. "But my loyalty lies only in my own abilities. Parents, Elders, those who might call themselves superior to you are misguided. They don't know you as well as they like to think they do." She found a spot she liked along the banks of the stream and sat down with her kill, encircling it in her coils before unlocking her jaw and pulling the dragon apart, each limb disappearing into her throat with ease. She paused and snapped off the head, offering it to the twins.

They sat on another rock near her, entangling themselves in each other as they both shook their heads at Xiloxochitl, "No thank you," Vio said with a smile and Tiv lowered his head to his wings, watching the light reflect off of the much larger dragon. "I guess its obvious what we are," They both said to her, Vio with a giggle and Tiv with a sigh.

The light of the water left stains on Xiloxochitl's ember-red hide, making an entrancing effect. She shrugged and dulled down the horns on a nearby rock before swallowing it whole. "Yes, well, don't worry, I won't hold it against you," She said with a mischievous glint in her hard eyes. So far, she liked them; they were good hunting buddies. "How old are you, if I may be so bold as to ask?"

"We're 129!" Vio peeped, excited that she had asked. They had just finished losing their adolescent markings, pretty young for them to be fully fledged color wise. "Our parents say we have been growing faster then most dragonlings our age in the clan. We're fully grown, and we have finished most of our training to become warriors!" Tiv lifted his head, "But our final test is to complete the meld of light and dark, which we haven't been able to do yet..."

"Ha!" Xiloxochitl barked in amusement, her hard eyes dancing. "129, are you? Hardly a century from a hatchling! I would not have guessed," She gestured at their size. She sat aside her kill for a moment, leaning her chin on her coils. "You are two formidable foes indeed. It must be a very difficult thing to meld, as you say. What does it..do? What happens?" She asked curiously.

"We join in one body," They said in sync, "We are two beings of one mind, but in two forms." Tiv set his head down and let Vio continue, "The meld is what we truly are... we are two halves of one soul." Their tails flipped this way and that, expressing their thoughts, "But its so hard!" Vio let out a noisy breath.

"It sounds it," Xiloxochitl agreed, tearing apart the dragon idly and squidging around in its chest for organs. "I'm sure you'll master it soon; you seem the persistent type. Aha!" She pulled out the dragon's steaming heart with a flourish. "Almost as good as a fire dragon's liver," she appraised, lifting it in a toast to the two before swallowing it with great satisfaction. "You should be proud to have come so far in so short a time. You seem very talented. Which brings me to think, should I be concerned to be seen with you so far from your territory?" She asked cavalierly. She meant that perhaps their talent was in their breeding, and that their parents may be of high rank in their own clan.

"No." Tiv said, "We hate being controlled by our parents... its annoying when we try to explore, they try to make us stay within sight and shit." Vio swiped a wing at him, "We have good parents, just, they don't understand that we hate being kept in one spot for long." They growled at each other playfully and spoke as one again, "We can't wait to be considered adults fully."

"Aye, that'll be the day," Xiloxochitl rumbled. She took a moment to devour the rest of the dragon, leaving only talons and horns and spikes that she would not risk swallowing. She snapped her jaws shut in satisfaction, leaning forward and drinking gulps of water from the stream. She used the same water to wash the blood and gore from her maw and talons. "Well, I'll not keep you free spirits; it's gorgeous weather for a nap and I aim to take advantage of it." She stretched out on the bank luxuriously, her brilliant color glistening in the sunlight. "I'll not ask your company for that when there's so much sky to occupy."

They leapt to their claws obediently, "Alright." Tiv said bowing before he flew over the river and into the sky, while Vio sat on her haunches and eyed Xiloxochitl with pleasant smile, "It was nice to meet you... You have two allies among the light and dark clan." With that said she joined her brother and they winged away quickly and disappeared, their presence and scent gone within a few seconds of their leave.

Vulgar had watched the scene unfold above the volcano. He watched with disgust as the wood dragon ate his comrade. He growled and waited until the light and darkness dragons left her before he made his presence known. With a triumphant roar he burst from his hiding place, rather disgusted with himself for hiding in the first place, he simply loved when everyone watched him, and why shouldn't he? He thought he was beautiful.

Xiloxochitl had just found a comfortable position when the fire dragon burst out from the trees. She was on her feet in an instant, hissing and spitting. Her tail lashed about wildly, occasionally shedding a feather, and she flared her wings to look bigger. This newcomer was almost as large as she, but entirely sharper than she was. She didn't really want a fight; she'd just had a meal and she wanted to sleep it off now, but if she needed to, she could.

Vulgar hissed a challenge as she rose to the occasion. He knew she'd be moving slower now because her stomach was full, and it infuriated him that it was full of his comrade. He shook his snake-like body and advanced on her. His mouth was spread wide open, revealing his multiple rows of teeth.

The red dragon pulled herself up and suddenly grinned, an idea sparking in her mind. She unlocked her jaw and projectile vomited the contents of her stomach right into his open maw. When the last of the dead flesh and stomach acids had emptied from her stomach, she gave a high, barking noise and leaped into the high trees with three wing beats, her native ground hundreds of feet above the forest floor. She ran.

He hissed in agony as the wood dragon's stomach acids burned at his flesh. His scales were burned away nearly instantly. As the raw skin was exposed to the cool fresh air, Vulgar let out a blood curdling cry of pain. Her acid burned through the sinewy flesh of his wings. He drifted slowly downward, spreading his wings out as wide as he could to catch the air currents.

Xiloxochitl couldn't help but laugh uproariously at her mischief. His cries of pain only added to her mirth. The fire dragon had obviously come after her in search of vengeance, and the irony of spitting him back up in his face was more delicious than the dragon had been to eat in the first place. A good three hundred feet away, she stopped her retreat to look back through the branches at the fire dragon, debating whether to run away and fight another day--those spines looked vicious--or to go back and fill her belly twofold.

Vulgar came to rest upon one of the lower branches. He curled his long snake-like body along the branch so he wouldn't fall off and he began to look back and assess the damage the acid had done to him entirely. He knew his wings had holes and his face was scorched, but he wanted to know what other damaged that bitch dragon had done to him.

Xiloxochitl hoped she burned his eyes out and made holes in his teeth. He deserved it for jumping out at her while she was trying to take a nap. Her civilized manner had been interrupted by his barbaric rudeness, and he got what was coming to him. Didn't he know that serpents had to stick together to get ahead in life? Turning against her like that was unprecedented and ill-mannered---if it wasn't dragon-eat-dragon before, it certainly was now. She gave a triumphant howl to the skies, her laughter echoing through the forest. What a trick! No, she would let him suffer through this offense and kill him some other day. This was certainly enough excitement for one day. She felt she deserved to treat herself to an elephant and take the rest of the day off. She leaped off her perch to hunt, disappearing into the noise of the hot forest.

Stretching himself out along the branch, Vulgar rested his head against the soft moss covered bark. The pain was unimaginable. Who knew that stomach acid could do such damage so quickly? He was more angry with the fact that she had ruined his flawless face than the fact that she had just vomited his comrade all over him.






















Drache