Sunburst

Project Feathers Dragon - "The Artist"

Rings: Forged by Sunburst, the small rings they wear allow them to initiate communication with each other from any distance, once a day for an hour at most. They also cannot be scratched, and only powerful magic can shatter the crystals.
Wings: Crafted by Sunburst, the wings and tail feathers are symbols of the Feathers. They are special in that in order to use the rings, the corresponding wing and tail set is needed. They are extremely durable - they cannot be broken or pulled off of the dragon easily.

Sunburst carefully set the tiny white jewels into the imperial figurine. It had been intricately carved out of shiny obsidian by Sunburst, the whole statuette small enough to fit in the palm of her claw. More tiny jewels had been placed onto different parts of the imperial's body to look like gembond. The miniature dragon was sitting on its haunches, looking up peacefully, wings slightly folded.

Sunburst looked at her finished figurine, satisfied. It was worth 25,000 treasure, at least, accounting for the gemstones(which were not fake and not cheap), the size, and the intricate carvings set into the obsidian. Sunburst smiled proudly and set it on one of the shelves in her crafts store.

Her shop wasn't large, but it was cozy and just what she needed. Sunburst had built it herself, along the road just a little ways away from a bustling trading post. Customers came by frequently but there were never enough for her to be overwhelmed. They sometimes asked why she didn't put her shop at the trading post, to which she replied that she wasn't looking to get rich. She wanted to live a quiet life practicing her passion, which was making things with her own two claws. All Sunburst wanted was to make enough money to get by, and for others to appreciate her work. However, as good as this life was, she would never tell anybody that deep down she longed for adventure.

Suddenly, the ringing of a bell alerted her out of her reverie. A customer! Sunburst rushed to the storefront, which was exactly like a vendor's stand - except it was built into her store.

The customer was a dark green ridgeback with a roguish gleam in his eye. Sunburst was immediately suspicious of him, but a customer was a customer. "Welcome ta Emberclaw Crafts! What'd you like ta buy tonight?" she asked, friendliness coloring her tone.

The ridgeback peered at the shelves over Sunburst's shoulder, and said, "You've got a fine collection here. What have you got?"

Sunburst fired off a quick list. "I make it all myself. I've got figurines, chess sets, wind chimes, various bits o' apparel, and decoration pieces. Take yer time deciding, there's no rush."

The ridgeback tilted his head, flicked his tail, and smiled. "I think that I'll take... all of it."

Sunburst was a bit confused. "All of - "

But then dragons were rushing into the shop from behind the ridgeback, overwhelming Sunburst and knocking her to the ground before throwing everything on the shelves into their rough burlap sacks. The ridgeback himself began attacking the walls of her shop, making the structure creak dangerously. Sunburst, shocked, picked herself up and tried attacking the nearest dragon. However, a larger dragon pinned her to the wall with one claw. "In case you haven't noticed, we're bandits," she taunted.

Sunburst lifted her chin and unwaveringly glared into the other dragon's eyes. "You will regret this," she snarled. Then she spat into the dragon's eyes and ran for her life. There were too many of them and just one of her.

And as she watched her shop burn to ashes from far away, she swore to have her revenge.

---

"She's over here! Are you alright?" a soft voice asked.

Sunburst yawned and cracked her eyes open. The light of morning was bright. "Who... who're you?"

"My name is Lemongrass. You look like you've just ran through a bush fire. Are you alright?" the dragon repeated.

Sunburst fully opened her eyes. There was a light green wildclaw standing over her, and some others were now joining her. She sat up and winced. Sunburst hadn't noticed it the night before, but she was covered in burns and small scratches where the bandits had attacked her and where the collapsing wood of her shop had fallen onto her. "Ugh... I feel like a digested sausage," she groaned.

Lemongrass began attending to her injuries. "Don't worry. We're here to help. This is Sapphire, that's Chestnut, and that's Crimson." The green dragon whispered additionally, "Don't get on her bad side."

"Hey! I heard that. And just because I ate your marshmallows last night doesn't mean that I'm mad at you," Crimson huffed good-naturedly.

Sunburst chuckled weakly. Then Sapphire said, "They're just trying to make you feel better. What happened? We found the burnt remains of some sort of structure, and you were passed out nearby."

Sunburst looked at Sapphire darkly. "I owned that shop - Emberclaw Crafts. Last night, a group o' bandits attacked me and took all I had." A fire smoldered in her amber eyes. "They will pay."

Chestnut said, "Well, we could help you. It seems like you're bent on revenge. I once had some trouble with bandits... let's just say that they got what was coming to them, with Sapphire's help."

Sapphire nodded. "Alright, team, let's go find a bandit camp."

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