"Fierra...." a voice whispered in the Dragon's ear. "Fierra..."
The red and gold guardian gasped as she looked up. A maroon dragon with flames coming from close to her head with the shape of a Wild Claw. "Flamecaller," Fierra hissed, standing up. "What are you doing here?"
"After all the years I spent taking care of you," Flamecaller said, beginning to circle her. "I rarely see any dragons from your clan coming to my service. Any dragons that seem to leave your clan seem to wander and find their way to other my siblings or Clans. The last dragon I saw come to me was your daughter."
"Lemondrop," Fierra growled. "She left behind 3 children when you took her!"
"It's your duty to keep sending dragons to me to strengthen our flight!" Flamecaller roared. "Now, it seems that I have to come to you or your clan members to even gain a single one. And your lair is rapidly becoming overcrowded." She stalked closer to the Guardian. "Tell your clanmembers that they may be losing their loved ones, not that they will be missing them for too long. I see Astral and Sunrose have moved on quickly when I took their mates. And poor Nightstinger seems to have abandoned the Clan altogether after I took Runescale..."
Fierra released a battle roar and pounced on the Flamecaller.
"Fierra!" a new voice called. The Guardian gasped and tried to bite whatever was shaking her. As her vision cleared, she realized she was back in her nest that she shared with her mate, Citrine. The mirror dragon was standing above her, his four eye looking at her worriedly. "Are you alright?"
"Just a nightmare," Fierra sighed, getting up and walking up to the nest where her third clutch of hatchlings were. Nudging the pale sand colored one, she gazed at them wistfully. Flamecaller could do whatever she felt like; but she was not going to take her children from her.
"I'm a serpenta!" Dosne, the sandy hatchling in her latest clutch called out. "I'm coming to eat you!"
"Not today," Riverrock declared. He was the son of Orchid and her mate, Desertshadow, from their second clutch. "Clayshield! Adamina! attack!"
Fierra laid down from her perch on a small ledge as the hatchlings attacked each other. They were always young for a short amount of time, and before you knew it they were fully grown. And it was always when they were grown that they were always at more risk for being taken... or wandering. She glanced over at her daughter, Sunray, who was watching her second clutch of eggs in the Nesting Grounds. Her only daughter had wandered off of their territory, By the time anyone could where the young dragon had wandered off to, they realized someone from the Shadowflight had taken her.
"Are they really always this loud?" a new voice called, distracting Fierra from her thoughts. She turned saw her only child from the second clutch. The younger red and gold dragon watched her younger siblings. "I'm going to have a headache if they keep this up."
"You get used to it after a few clutches" Fierra teased, nodding toward the nest where a coral and teal dragon stood watch over two eggs that were almost ready to hatch. "Don't you remember being this rowdy with Wisp and his siblings?"
"Nope," Aidanna replied shaking her head. "I was just a quiet little thing waiting for the day I could enter the coliseum and train to be the best defender."
"And most annoying sister in the process," another voice called. The two guardians turned to see a marigold and sunshine Guardian dragon. "Of course, now there's competition with four more hatchlings."
"Shouldn't you be hunting with Aine, Nightangel and Abeytu, Topaz?" Aidanna sneered. "Unless, of course, you have a secret mate that we don't know about."
Topaz rolled her eyes. "We've got plenty of food, Aidanna. Your hatchlings will be fine."
"Aidanna!" Wisp called from the nest. The red dragon walked over to her mate, while Topaz walked toward the hoard to grab something to eat. Fierra turned back to watch the hatchlings, who were now tumbling into each other.
Sighing, she rested her head on her paws, perking up when she felt a tail tap her. "Thought I'd find you here," a pink dragon said. "You're getting almost as bad as Sunrose."
They looked to where the tangerine dragon was sitting over her third clutch of eggs with her mate, Aedus. "Just have a lot of things on my mind, Orchid," Fierra sighed.
"Still upset over Lemondrop?"
"Not just thought..." Fierra replied, gazing at her friend. "The Flamecaller has been appearing in my dreams lately."
A low hiss came from the pink dragon. "She angry with us?"
"More or less," Fierra answered, glancing at the hatchlings. "She wants more dragons to come to her service..."
"Too bad she didn't catch Nile before she went on her search," Orchid shook her head, referring to her eldest child from her first clutch. "Although, I hear she's actually serving Dessertshadow's Protector, the Arcanist."
"I doubt Flamecaller was too happy to hear about that," Fierra chuckled half-heartedly. "Especially after the chaos that happened after she took Runescale."
"What do you plan to do about it?"
Fierra thought about it for a moment, then stood up. "Have Topaz up those without a nest or hatchlings. Have separate parties start digging and scavenging, while the rest tunnel to make more room for anymore hatchlings to come."
Orchid nodded, heading over to the younger Guardian. Fierra glanced to where a bunch of the clanmates were gathered. Her grandchildren, Breezy, Startree, Orange and Sulphur were sitting with Delmar-- the eldest son of Jadus and Lumos from their first clutch and Lemondrop's mate.
Beside them were Astral and Inkheart with their children without hatchlings-- Elstir, Asta, and Aranck.
Aquamarine, Nightangel, Aine, Adish, Adara, Blossom, Abeytu, Stonecloud, Ashera and Bloodnight. They were all young and strong dragons, some of them progressing really well as defenders of the clan. They all had their strengths and weaknesses, but they were also clearly united as a clan should be. Fierra just hoped it would be enough to keep the Flamecaller away and tearing up what was left of her family.
The red and gold guardian gasped as she looked up. A maroon dragon with flames coming from close to her head with the shape of a Wild Claw. "Flamecaller," Fierra hissed, standing up. "What are you doing here?"
"After all the years I spent taking care of you," Flamecaller said, beginning to circle her. "I rarely see any dragons from your clan coming to my service. Any dragons that seem to leave your clan seem to wander and find their way to other my siblings or Clans. The last dragon I saw come to me was your daughter."
"Lemondrop," Fierra growled. "She left behind 3 children when you took her!"
"It's your duty to keep sending dragons to me to strengthen our flight!" Flamecaller roared. "Now, it seems that I have to come to you or your clan members to even gain a single one. And your lair is rapidly becoming overcrowded." She stalked closer to the Guardian. "Tell your clanmembers that they may be losing their loved ones, not that they will be missing them for too long. I see Astral and Sunrose have moved on quickly when I took their mates. And poor Nightstinger seems to have abandoned the Clan altogether after I took Runescale..."
Fierra released a battle roar and pounced on the Flamecaller.
"Fierra!" a new voice called. The Guardian gasped and tried to bite whatever was shaking her. As her vision cleared, she realized she was back in her nest that she shared with her mate, Citrine. The mirror dragon was standing above her, his four eye looking at her worriedly. "Are you alright?"
"Just a nightmare," Fierra sighed, getting up and walking up to the nest where her third clutch of hatchlings were. Nudging the pale sand colored one, she gazed at them wistfully. Flamecaller could do whatever she felt like; but she was not going to take her children from her.
"I'm a serpenta!" Dosne, the sandy hatchling in her latest clutch called out. "I'm coming to eat you!"
"Not today," Riverrock declared. He was the son of Orchid and her mate, Desertshadow, from their second clutch. "Clayshield! Adamina! attack!"
Fierra laid down from her perch on a small ledge as the hatchlings attacked each other. They were always young for a short amount of time, and before you knew it they were fully grown. And it was always when they were grown that they were always at more risk for being taken... or wandering. She glanced over at her daughter, Sunray, who was watching her second clutch of eggs in the Nesting Grounds. Her only daughter had wandered off of their territory, By the time anyone could where the young dragon had wandered off to, they realized someone from the Shadowflight had taken her.
"Are they really always this loud?" a new voice called, distracting Fierra from her thoughts. She turned saw her only child from the second clutch. The younger red and gold dragon watched her younger siblings. "I'm going to have a headache if they keep this up."
"You get used to it after a few clutches" Fierra teased, nodding toward the nest where a coral and teal dragon stood watch over two eggs that were almost ready to hatch. "Don't you remember being this rowdy with Wisp and his siblings?"
"Nope," Aidanna replied shaking her head. "I was just a quiet little thing waiting for the day I could enter the coliseum and train to be the best defender."
"And most annoying sister in the process," another voice called. The two guardians turned to see a marigold and sunshine Guardian dragon. "Of course, now there's competition with four more hatchlings."
"Shouldn't you be hunting with Aine, Nightangel and Abeytu, Topaz?" Aidanna sneered. "Unless, of course, you have a secret mate that we don't know about."
Topaz rolled her eyes. "We've got plenty of food, Aidanna. Your hatchlings will be fine."
"Aidanna!" Wisp called from the nest. The red dragon walked over to her mate, while Topaz walked toward the hoard to grab something to eat. Fierra turned back to watch the hatchlings, who were now tumbling into each other.
Sighing, she rested her head on her paws, perking up when she felt a tail tap her. "Thought I'd find you here," a pink dragon said. "You're getting almost as bad as Sunrose."
They looked to where the tangerine dragon was sitting over her third clutch of eggs with her mate, Aedus. "Just have a lot of things on my mind, Orchid," Fierra sighed.
"Still upset over Lemondrop?"
"Not just thought..." Fierra replied, gazing at her friend. "The Flamecaller has been appearing in my dreams lately."
A low hiss came from the pink dragon. "She angry with us?"
"More or less," Fierra answered, glancing at the hatchlings. "She wants more dragons to come to her service..."
"Too bad she didn't catch Nile before she went on her search," Orchid shook her head, referring to her eldest child from her first clutch. "Although, I hear she's actually serving Dessertshadow's Protector, the Arcanist."
"I doubt Flamecaller was too happy to hear about that," Fierra chuckled half-heartedly. "Especially after the chaos that happened after she took Runescale."
"What do you plan to do about it?"
Fierra thought about it for a moment, then stood up. "Have Topaz up those without a nest or hatchlings. Have separate parties start digging and scavenging, while the rest tunnel to make more room for anymore hatchlings to come."
Orchid nodded, heading over to the younger Guardian. Fierra glanced to where a bunch of the clanmates were gathered. Her grandchildren, Breezy, Startree, Orange and Sulphur were sitting with Delmar-- the eldest son of Jadus and Lumos from their first clutch and Lemondrop's mate.
Beside them were Astral and Inkheart with their children without hatchlings-- Elstir, Asta, and Aranck.
Aquamarine, Nightangel, Aine, Adish, Adara, Blossom, Abeytu, Stonecloud, Ashera and Bloodnight. They were all young and strong dragons, some of them progressing really well as defenders of the clan. They all had their strengths and weaknesses, but they were also clearly united as a clan should be. Fierra just hoped it would be enough to keep the Flamecaller away and tearing up what was left of her family.