Blood and Gore [Open/Ki'Sha]

The blistering heat was expected, but still unpleasant. It came down in waves, wafting over the dunes to the streets of the Ki'Sha, where'd they'd stick to your scales and cause oodles of sweat to emerge. Being an ice type dragon, Athena was less then pleased. Her scales felt sticky and unclean, dust collecting between the ridges, and she spent every spare moment picking at the sand lodged between her fangs. Her feathers were damp and stuck together, plastered against her back with the weight of the moisture.

Taking a deep breath, Athena emerged into the streets and out of the home that had been assigned to her. Dragons slunk between the houses like rats, the low ambiance slightly intimidating. Still, she straightened and strode into the road, where glances of contempt were shot her way. She returned them with a steady gaze, although every once in a while, she'd harden her gaze at someone who held her stare for too long.

Rounding a corner, Athena gasped as she collided with a larger male. He stumbled backwards, a glare on his face. "Watch where you're going!" he exclaimed. Athena wasn't sure what rank he was, but the way he held himself as if he owned the place told the world he was at least a rank higher then she was. She huffed and lashed her tail, moving past him silently. "Hey, I'm talking to you!" he snarled, turning around and grabbing her by the tail.

That was when Athena turned and hit him in the face.

The dragon yelped and stumbled back, holding a paw to his cheek. Her tail recoiled next to her and Athena glared at him, growling quietly. "Don't touch me," she huffed, and then she started to walk again. She heard a loud snarl and running footsteps, and she quickly turned to deflect the male's talons. Her tail collided with his claws with a sword-like 'twang' and with a growl, she shoved him back.

Several dragons had turned their heads to watch the action. Athena snapped at the air in front of the male, before she turned to leave again. That was when he slammed into her from behind and the real fight ensued, both snapping, tearing and clawing at each other on the ground and a few feet in the air, only to land back down and continue the bloodshed.

The sun was like a blistering hell. It was like the gods themselves were punishing him. What had he ever done? Sure, he had probably hit a few dragons a little too hard, but why exactly should he be blamed for that? They probably had it coming, but the incident had occurred so often he couldn't accurately remember all the times it had occurred. Thinking about it made him cringe, though.

Adder was a relatively well built Ki'shan. He was a Brightscale Scorpion Dragon, a common species in the western regions of Verula, whom was only slightly larger than was usual. But just because he was a desert species didn't mean he hated the desert any less. At least on certain times of they day, right around the middle of the afternoon, when all he wanted to do was stay inside and groan.

First of all, the sand. Sweet goddess of all that is holy, it felt like a thousand sandcrawlers were stinging him at once. And it was also painfully dry. His scales seemed to weigh him down, not to mention the fact he was suppose to be on duty today, so of course he was also weighed down by his armor.

He trudged along the annoyingly hot sand with a scowl on his face, his wings practically dragging along the burning hot ground. His armor was a tough steel alloy, painted whitish gold. Adder personally didn't see the need for armor. He had scales!

But oh well. He wasn't about to argue with what the Ki'sha had been doing essentially forever. He would merely mumble to himself in frustration, glaring at nothing in particular, while several dragons his wings brushed past would snap at him. He didn't pay them any mind, but he was gradually getting more annoyed. And he was hardly showing off the stature of someone whom should be respected.

Adder's original thought was patrolling this area was stupid, and that the Ugaans should be focusing more on the borders. That was, until the sound of roaring bounced towards him. His ears immediately perked up, scanning his surrounding for the source.

It seemed to be coming from the north of the village. Quickly, Adder rushed towards the sound, and soon enough spotted two dragons in what appeared to be a hustle. Neither looked to be true warriors, so it wasn't really as urgent or serious as Adder had originally thought.

His excitement at something interesting actually happening died a bit. He paused by the edge of the group, observing the fight from a distance. Only once the fight was shot towards the ground did he figure he might as well intervene. Slowly, he began pushing his way through the observing bystanders, not really in any kind of rush.

Sonus happily trotted through the town, peeking in vender's booths and even at times buying something. She had bought multiple drinks, varying from bug juice to watermelon. Not a lot of dragons were out today, the weather was unbearable... At least for them. Sonus chuckled, her long wings skimming the sides of houses as she trotted through alleyways. This was one of the first times being outside of the castle, where she was kept for the time being as Scortia would explain to her what to and not to do. It was different, more savage to be here than in the Stormcaller's cold rainy climate. She absolutely loved the weather, the heat and the dryness. A dragon looked at her longingly, as she pattered away, wishing that he could withstand this heat.

Sonus rounded a corner, and maybe almost too fast, and slammed right into two dragons who were tussling. Her eyes opened wide as she ducked as a tail came around to smack her.
"HEY!" She roared, flames engulfing her rather large figure, catching the eyes of both of the dragons, and the dragons that were silently watching. Her claws came down on the large male, slapping him to the side with ease. The male roared out with pain, making Sonus wince. Hearing a painful roar always sent chills down her spine, remembering of the days she would hunt dragons for fun...

Sonus snarled, her deep vocals rumbling the ground. She spread her wings and roared, filling the square with her mass and filling it with the deafening sound of her thunderous voice. "That's no way to talk to a dragoness!" Sonus said, another threatening growl erupting from her throat. She landed back on her wings, making the ground tremble, "Scatter! Or I'll make you roasted lizard!" She exclaimed, slamming her tail on the ground as a challenge.

The feeling of talons like daggers digging into her sides was a sensation that would always remain unpleasant, no matter how familiar it was. Athena allowed a snarl of pain to escape her as the large male scrambled for a hold on the slightly smaller female. Her tail lashed and a loud yowl bounced off the walls of the houses as the half moon's sliced open a new wound along the back of his haunch. Blood gushed from the opening and he tried to scramble off her, roaring in pain.

That was nothing, however, compared to the might, deafening din that filled the air.

Everything fell silent. A shadow blocked out the sunlight and Athena looked to see an utterly MASSIVE dragon, with scales like shining rubies, towering over her. The weight was suddenly torn off her and the male rolled to a stop a few feet away.

Woah, Athena thought, envious of her incredible strength. The flames that danced across the incredibly colored scales caused beads of sweat to form beneath her scales. She was a titan.

The make didn't need to be told twice. He spread his wings and flew as if he'd been stung by a wasp, not even bothering to look tough. Athena almost laughed at the wary glances the silent bystanders were shooting the newcomer, as if she were an alien.

Rolling onto her stomach, Athena stood up. "Well," she said. "At least I've still got my dignity," she watched the disappearing form of her attacker fade into the cerulean sky before she met the stranger's intense eyes. "Thanks," she said, tilting her head slightly. Blood was streaming down both sides of her neck. She noticed a dragon in armor slowly approaching and eyed him for a moment.


(I don't have access to colors to shade the dialogue. Sorry!)

As Adder navigated his way through the fussy crowd of civilians, a sudden roar cut through the air, seeming to slice at his eardrums like the fangs of the gods themselves. This caused Adder to instinctively scrunch up his face, growling a bit in agitation at the horrendous noise. On top of that, he noticed a flutter of fiery, leathery wings just a couple meters of him, making him pause. Had someone been lit on fire?

This caused Adder to forcefully push through the civilians a little bit harder. Sure, if maybe one or two dragons had a couple scratches, the Kuz'a wouldn't care, but if news herald that someone had been lit on fire and severely burned, depending on who they were, Adder could seriously get his butt handed to him by her Majesty.

Finally, he managed to push through, only to be greeted by the sight of a massive purple dragoness, standing ominously over the dragoness whom had been attacked. It seems the attacker had put his tail in between his legs and ran as soon as the threat of actual death had arrived. But oddly enough, Adder was less than thrilled to see the dragoness. In fact, the very sight of her made him growl with distaste, his eyes burning.

He had heard stories of her. The Stormcaller whom had betrayed her own ruler to come live in Ki'shan territory, the one who had openly defied the Stormcaller queen right in front of her. If something like that had happened in the reverse, there was no doubt she'd be dead now.

Such insolence! Adder couldn't understand why his Kuz'a had allowed this dragon to join them. Sure, she was strong, but she also wasn't loyal! And loyalty was key to the Ki'shan kingdom!

Adder's heart beat with a red hot fury. Not only that, but the dragoness this one had saved was also an outsider! He should have known. Traitors protect traitors, after all. But Adder had a plan. He wasn't about to let these savages have free reign of his great kingdom, scaring the citizens of the Ki'sha, and prancing around like they were all high and mighty.

And so he decided to approach the two, his hackles raised. Now he was glad he wore his armor today. If this dragon was smart, she'd know to be submissive around an Ugaan.

"What is all this ruckus?" the Ugaan snapped at the two, stopping just a couple feet from Sonus. Now, Sonus was a big dragon. There was no way Adder could meet her face to face. He was only about as tall as her shoulders. Instead, he tried to direct his glare at both Athena and Sonus simultaneously, which... didn't really work very well. But at least he thought he was intimidating.

Sonus snarled quite ominously. The flames on her back rose as a tickle of uneasiness settled along her body. She suddenly roared at the crowed that was now gathered around them, whispers being thrown here and there as the Ugaan began talking to her. The dragons screeched in fear and dispersed rather quickly after the roar. She didn't turn around as the dragon spoke a few words to her. Her wings slowly came up, making her look bigger. She nodded to the dragon that still laid on her stomach. Sonus slowly turned around in a rather lackadaisical demeanor. Her tail swished in a large arch to come around and almost hide the dragon that was on the ground.

Her heterochromia eyes bore into the dragon with armor, a chuckle escaping her mouth as she thought that the armor wouldn't even protect the male from her fire. As her one blazing blue iris, and her other heavenly golden iris glowed with animosity, she looked down on the male. Scortia had warned her of such dragons, who would think that Sonus was a traitor. No one really knew exactly why she had left the Stormcallers, and no one would need to ever know. She could live with the hate and dislike.

Sonus took a deep breath, narrowing her eyes. Her body was still in flames, she tilted her head, her lips curling back in a slight snarl. This dragon was clearly a top dog in the system of authority, the armor giving it away, and the chutzpa of his nature. Sonus finally spoke, the flames slowly dying down to only embers that lifted from her skin into the air. Her own nature was defensive, she never really had good come-arounds with dragons like this.

She had remembered what these dragons were called. "Ugaan." Sonus said, calmly, voice steady, loud and noble, "I was just helping this... Ice Dragon before she got torn apart by a savage male, who you saw I took care of." She looked at the hunter, up and down before hissing slightly, "I saw you in the crowd, just standing around when you or another Ugaan should have been heaving that disgrace off of this poor dragon." Sonus said, the spikes along the crest of her neck rose. Sonus didn't want to challenge this Ugaan, but she did want to make it a fuss about how dragons should be doing their jobs. She was also was having a pleasant day, until her day suddenly got soiled with this mayhem. Clearly this male was on a defense, or maybe even offense, from the look on his face, she probably knew that he knew her.

Athena rose, shaking out her blackened feathers. They rose as chills danced along her spine at the female's roar, a noise that struck her like lightning and resonated in her bones like cries of thunder. The crowd quickly dispersed like hatchlings from their angry mother. Well, she thought. She certainly knows how to make an entrance. She arched her neck slightly and met her eyes with polite confidence, but knew it would be best to not make sarcastic comments like she usually did. Even she was smart enough to know when she would her hide beaten for upsetting a dragoness like this, so she held back the remarks for now.

Her sides were throbbing. She looked, and it was then the metallic scent of blood stained her nostrils. Hot red blood trickled down her sides, dripping onto the sand and leaving crimson teardrops against the golden earth. New scars, she thought, raising her eyes once more as a sharp, deep voice protruded the heavy silence.

"What is all this ruckus?" A male,  clearly an Ugaan by the armor he wore, snapped as he strode over. Athena bristled, feathers flickering with indignation, and met his glare with a frown. She let the female speak, but her lip twitched as she described her as a 'poor dragon. This isn't a tragic 'pity me, I'm a defenseless female' situation, she wanted to snap, but held herself back. She knew she ought to be grateful to this female for saving her tail, but she was embarrassed that she had saved her. She was used to doing things on her own, kicking tail without help.

Despite the male's less then savory attitude and tone, the female spoke with a steady tone that betrayed no vexation. Athena looked at her now, royal blue eyes gliding over her features. Like herself, she didn't give off any vibes of feminine weakness, instead of a swan reminding her of an angry bull, with thick muscle building up the masculine form of the female. It was then, as she scrutinized her face, she realized; she has two different colored eyes. From her diagonal position to her, Athena could see one sapphire blue eye, like the sea, and one golden eye shining like the blazing sun. How unusual, she thought, somewhat envious of the unique feature.

Deciding to speak for herself, Athena raised her head slightly, addressing the Ugaan, whose name she did not know, with a neutral tone, although it was possible to detect the hints of hostility that simmered beneath the calm expression she wore. "He put his talons on me, I retaliated," she responded, speaking sharply. "That was the 'ruckus.' I was defending myself," she swept her tail to the side, sending a wave of sand off to the left. The blade gleamed like polished diamond in the scorching sun's glare, and it tapped a slow, steady rhythm on the sand.

Adder listened as the females tried to defend themselves, both visibly bristling at his arrival. He mentally scoffed. They were fools, the both of them. Strangers to this land. Too hotheaded for even the desert to handle, no doubt. Adder questioned why on Nuira Scortia would even allow this fire hazard into her tribe. They both were clearly unsuited for tribe life, eager to cause trouble at the soonest chance they got. Well, Adder wasn't about to sit back idly by and watch as these two aliens brought their scummy ways to his proud tribe.

He looked over Sonus, remaining unwavering despite her rather intimidating appearance. With her massive size, black and purple body, and the small sparks that leaped from her body, she would certainly be a force to deal with if the Ugaan ended up delving into a fight. And while Adder certainly wasn't expressive of his distrust on the outside, a single claw tapped up and down in disgust as he stared up at the former Stormcaller's eyes.

"Helping? Looked to me like that white heathen was attacking that poor dragon without reason. You do know she's an outsider, don't you? She probably doesn't even speak Kishan." the Ugaan said in a dismissive attitude, barely even acknowledging Athena as he spoke to Sonus.

"And as for you, I suggest you keep walking. That performance you played was quite disruptive, and if you don't want to get reported I'd advice you to just forget any of this ever happened," he said coolly, watching Sonus with cold eyes. He managed to keep a straight face, but he wanted to grin in victory.

"Well I speak Ki'Shan and you need to shut your puny mouth!" Sonus spat, flames like lava splashing from her mouth onto the sand, instantly turning it to shiny glass. Some dragons that dare stuck around, narrowed their eyes at her. One dragon, a large male pulled from the crowed.

You don't belong here!" He roared, picking up a stone and throwing it at the fire dragon. It burned to ash before it hit her scales. Only a few crumbs bounced off and vanished into smoke. Her head snapped toward the male that threw the rock, a disgusting feature to dragons in this village. She surged forward, spraying sand in all directions before stopping, the sand that touched her scales glittering down as glass, making her sparkle in the sunlight as she turned back to the Ugaan. "I know she is an outsider. Her scales say so.
She huffed white smoke that covered her face as she thought for a moment, her body unusually still. The civilian that just stood there suddenly rushed forward with a sword, probably given to him by one of the other village members just as worried. Sonus' attention snapped to, her body instinctively twisting around, her tail whipped through the air, hitting the male perfectly in the side, sending him into a building with a deafening crack that echoed around the streets. Clearly all of his bones had broken with the impact, Sonus challengingly glaring at the dragons that stared in shock at what she had just done. Another dragon lunged at the Ice Dragon, and Sonus grabbed their arm, their body slowly turning into flames, a shriek being heard above the normal scream of pain. Agony... Dragons looked at each other in terror, yet another dragon, a female, stepped forward, "Don't you dare," She roared at them with such vicious authority that they shivered back in fear.

Instantly, her scales lit themselves on fire, throwing the burning body aside, her own eyes; little orbs that shone like the sun. Her wings opened suddenly, flames reaching far and wide, brushing Adder, making his armor uncomfortably hot, maybe even getting warm enough to burn his scales. She roared, starting toward the male with mighty steps, "No matter what I do, or what this dragoness does we will always be outsiders. But I have picked the Ki'Sha for the Queen, NOT for you villagers and Ugaan who think can challenge me." Her voice was booming again, and in this small space it wasn't perfect condition, as it rang through the ears of the dragons.

Adder took a few steps back, as the chaos quickly unfurled and raged out of control. Before he knew it, several dragons had seemingly lunged into action, poised to strike at the troublesome, feisty desert dragoness. But it was clear Sonus was having none of that, as she batted away the assailants as if they were nothing, sending them tumbling into the road and smashing one's side into a building. Adder was aware that the impact had likely broken some bones. This beast was clearly skilled, but she seemed to rely more on brute strength than tactics. The dragon let out a small growl.

The dragoness then had the gall to proclaim what one could consider 'loyalty' to the queen. Pathetic. How could one stay loyal to the queen without being loyal to their tribe? This dragoness clearly showed no compassion towards citizens she should be protecting. Not that Adder actually had that noble a moral compass. Rather, he needed a legitimate reason to shun the dragoness.

He puffed out his chest, painfully aware of how hot his armor had gotten. He snarled, extending his claws. "By the authority of the queen, you shall not attack one more dragon, or I will be forced to take... extreme measures." he warned, his eyes slit. Meanwhile, the dragons around him had started murmuring. Another guard had even noticed the commotion, and come to check out what was going on.

But no more citizens tried to attack Sonus after what just happened.

The streets seemed particularly rowdy today.

The lean luiaan had come back early from a hunt and had already deposited her catch at a place in the village that was much like the local butcher. The best parts of her catch would go to the higher members of their tribe, while the rest would be traded and sold to the rest of the tribe's lower ranking members. If she had ever brought back a kill to sell that she had eaten from Liella would be in big trouble.

Now on her way back from the village meat market she was met with the close sounds of roars and fighting. There did tend to be many smaller scuffles in the village that was normal. However this sounded like an all out fight, or like it was getting close to it.

Unfortunately for the emerald dragoness the sounds seemed as if they were coming from a path she had to take to get home, and already she could spot some dragons running between houses and alleyways suspiciously. She guessed that they were either running from the fight or positioning themselves to surprise an enemy.

Her senses on edge now, the serpentine dragon half slithered half walked further along the path hearing now distinct words roared from dragons right around the corner where she had to go. Before she turned it though,a decently tall villager around 50ish feet tall, ran around the corner with swords in his claws nearly bumping into her.

"Watch where you're going!" she hissed in kishin baring her venom soaked teeth daring the armed dragon to say something or attack her. She did not recognize him, but those swords were way too close to her for comfort.

The dun colored dragon had to crank his head and neck upward to look at the intimidating she dragon who'd curled her neck into a striking position. Upon seeing her length and height the villager thought better of it and ran off to her left cursing Gamli several times as he did so.

She then slowly turned the corner to see more than a few dragons all puffed up trying to either attack or frighten away each other. A white-ish dragon caught her green eyes. Gamliella knew her to be an outsider, much like she had been... or perhaps still was. She'd seen Athena before in the village, but had not approached or talked to her before. So the snake-like female didn't know much about her.

She did however at least know of the uugan and other Ki'sha warriors who were already there or starting to show up. She watched and heard Sonus's roars and viewed the civilians with narrowed eyes as some backed away towards her at the end of the crowd.

"Keep moving..." she said hissing to let the civilians know she was there, Gamliella simply coiled up, and then like a giant cobra raised her neck and head above her coils to stare them all down. Pretty nor fearsome words would really work on the civilians of the tribe, Gamli knew this after living here for so long. It was a show of strength and dominance that would get them to move. Though she feared the red dragon had gone a little far with this if she was the one who'd fried one of the civilians lying in a pile of embers dead on the ground.

Some of the villagers turned when they heard her and spat insults. She might have lived here since some of them were hatchlings but they still knew from her looks and her accent that she was not bred from the mighty Ki'Sha. However the fight was draining out of the crowd. They'd already spent much energy against the others in front of them. Slowly some of the crowd dispersed, but not all of them Gamli noticed. She was still sitting there looking as intimidating as possible. All she wanted to do was go down the street to her own home, but these guys were in the way first. Her eyes flicked to the uugan hoping they'd be a little more proactive with the situation.