It was good to be traveling again. Drachiathoryx angled her wings carefully, stoically ignoring the deep ache in her chest and back as she struggled hard to keep her place in the slipstream off the wings of the dragon slightly below and ahead of her. It took near-constant vigilance and strict timing to match her wingbeats with the young [i]Harrok[/i] so that she didn't fall behind. 

Not many would have considered the grueling struggle worthwhile, but after the last few months in Pyresia, this particular half-Ixen was ready for a break. The flight to Gold Ridge was the perfect opportunity to step away from the attention her accomplishments in the last few years had earned, and to continue her search for the Elemental Temple of Fire when she got there. The life of a celebrity was a delicious whirlwind of acknowledgment and rewards, but not all of her journey around the continent had been a cakewalk. Flying like this gave her a chance to turn her thoughts inwards, a luxury she hadn't recognized as such before returning from the Auric desert.

[color=0072bc]"...can't [i]believe[/i] I'm ferrying foodstuffs across my back for bipeds! Like a common ox!...what is the world coming to? ...damnedly unacceptable if you ask me..."[/color]

Glancing over, Drache grinned at the stout blue dragon to her left. The venerable female had a rather blunt snout that gave her a decidedly ornery appearance, which matched the nearly constant stream of griping that had followed them all the way from Pyresia. 

[color=ed1c24]"You'd think that after three days of flying you'd have started to believe it by now, Sky Talon,"[/color] Drache teased, speaking in perfect Draconic. The obstinate [i]Schochra[/i] sniffed rudely, shut her nostrils and surged ahead a little to snub the half-dragon, who simply chuckled as she watched the heavy-bodied female grump her way through the air. The blue dragon's wings were painted with many lines of colour, a testament to her dedication to the Aerial Host and her skill in combat. Not for the first time, Drache felt a pang of jealousy for what it must be like to possess the sheer physical strength and power of a 'real' dragon.

The copper creature ahead of Drache turned his head also to watch Vesenthicar go. The stout spines on his chin made the wind whistle when he did so. [color=7bcdc8]"Indeed, Vesenthicar, it's not as though you're not getting reimbursed quite generously for carrying on a trip you were to take anyways."[/color] He glanced back at Drache and winked the seafoam green eye pointed at her.

[color=0072bc]"You will address your superior as [i]Sky Talon[/i], young Mojavico,"[/color] Vesenthicar snapped, a sparkle of white static crackling around her jaws and the massive horn on the front of her skull. But Mojavico was not impressed. He flared his wings grandly and performed a quick barrel roll, which would have been impressive if it hadn't buffeted Drache and nearly knocked her out of the formation.

[color=7bcdc8]"I may be young yet, but you're no longer my superior, or had you forgotten?"[/color] he proclaimed, obviously quite proud of himself. Just before Drache returned to the volcano city apparently her friend had exchanged the blue bars on his wing membranes for a pair of chevrons that flaunted his promotion. Somewhat more subtle (and a great deal more expensive) lines of gold flake down the phalanges of his wings advertised something else entirely.

Rolling her eyes at the copper drake's flamboyant display, Drache was wondering if she'd get a chance to spend some time with the acid-breather in his [i]munthrekadon[/i], his human form, in Gold Ridge before they parted ways again. For a long time she had lived in his balcony on the steep face of the mountain, and now that she'd been awarded her own luxurious quarters she missed him. Though, not nearly so much as she missed Raffey.

She didn't get a chance to think on it long, nor did she hear Vesenthicars snarling retort, because at that moment a blinding flash of green and a loud report ahead of them. The Elementalist didn't lend her roar to the others' having just enough time to glance down at the ground to see what had caught the attention of the dwarf on the large gold-scaled dragon at the head of the formation. 

The settlement below must be Gold Ridge! And in the distance across the vast plains she could see a tall spire sprouting up from the flatlands like a spear struck into a haybale. [color=ed1c24]"Hr'kret!"[/color] Crossing the distance in an amorphous swarm were dozens of dark creatures like a swarm of locusts or birds.

Feeling a sudden thrill at an opportunity to use the arcane skill she had been developing for several years, Drache put on a burst of speed and reached out to seize Mojavico's tail. Hoping the copper dragon wouldn't fart at the most inopportune time, Drache glanced back, trying to pick out the other half-dragons in the group to see how they were responding. It amazed her how many of her own kind had begun to appear as Pyresia prospered and made contact with other great cities. Half-dragons were not at all common, and most of them were not born with wings that could keep them in the air. She still hadn't quite decided how to approach them.

[color=ed1c24]"Cinder, get ready. We're about to have a very good time,"[/color] Drache snarled between sharp bared teeth. In her mind she felt the radiating heat of her Familiar's presence. The pack strapped tightly to the small of her back grew warm as the Fire Sprite woke, emerging from his glossy black orb amid her gear.

[color=f26522]"Oh? It's so nice to be needed,"[/color] he replied dryly in her thoughts. Out loud his voice was a series of sizzles and crackles. But for some reason she understood him well enough.

The Flight of dragons and their allies dove towards the city and Drache felt a surge of heat in her veins.