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Before her flight, Nicari loved to look over the chasers. Usually, any female would consider herself lucky to find five or six chasers when she flew, but ten wasa turnout no one could've expected. There were just so many! They all looked pretty nice, too, which was a plus.
Other females came to join her as she hid in the canopy. Her half sister, who had not elected to mix her line with outsiders, looked on in disgust. "Look, just look at that would you? They're huge! How can a chaa that big even think of chasing one of us?!" Nicari rolled her eyes "Oh stop it, Chara. You know the niaryalii brought in help just for that purpose," she gestured vaguely over to the serpentine draconic shape lurking at the edge of the field, preparing to shrink the larger chasers down to size. She kept her eyes on the field of chasers, as a couple more just arrived. Her sister hissed softly as she eyed the gathered males, unwilling to be deterred. "And look. Two heads! What on earth would any dragon need two heads for?!" "Chara," "And that last one just flashed, I swear he did!" Nicari glared at her half sister untill she quieted her fuming; if she made too much noise she'd attract the chasers' attention, and then her surprise takeoff would be ruined! She hadn't perched in this tree all morning just so her siblings could ruin her fun. One of the other females tittered, and Nicari was all set to deliver another glare, but the other is looking down at the field. "Look, look," she says, pointing a webbed claw. There was a soft chorus of 'awwww! he's so cute!' from several other females as they gazed at the smallest male of the bunch. He was so small, in fact, that he didn't even need a resize. Still, they were making far too much noise. Nicari hissed at them and lashed her tail, a clear sign to any dragon that she'd had quite enough and it was time for the others to leave now. Which they did, and in a hurry. 'Cari didn't know why she was so agitated this time, it wasn't like it was her first flight. This wouldn't be her first, no, but it would be the first time a Saa ever flew with a different species of dragon. And they all looked so different... Her sister had a point, she knew. Several, probably, but Nicari had already decided that she'd fly just as though it were a normal Saa chase. The end may be a little different, she thought slyly, but probably more fun. Down below, the males shifted uneasily. Some were nervous about the chase, others about their competition. Some were worried about the shrinking process. A few chatted idly with eachother or the curious Saa onlookers, but most sat alone, keeping an eye on the sky, just in case. The 'outside help' that had been hired to help with the chase was a serpentine, almost naga-looking dragon. She watched with little interest, simply sizing up the larger males and calculating the percentage they should shrink to be small enough to chase here. She was a Zy'Eketh from Lliyani's moon, Ish'aar. She'd been portaled in to live in the valley permanently, since it was noted that most dragons are ever so much larger than the little Saa, and might otherwize have been trouble if they'd tried to chase. She was largely ignored, however, as the gathered males all had other things on their minds. Until she began to use her talent and they started to shrink. When they were all about the same size, with nothing lacking and all in one piece, to the dragon's relief, the Zy'Eketh sat back and coiled up to watch the chase. This would be interesting. Every eye was turned to the sky, now that they were 'officially' allowed to chase, and none wanted to miss their chance because of a late takeoff. Nicari beamed to herself as she clung to the tree branch. She could pratcially feel the tension down below. She let it drag out, enjoying the hightening degrees of anticipation for as long as she possibly could stand. Which wasn't really very long. A few seconds later she burst from the canopy, trilling happily as she caught sight of the multitude of males below leaping into the air. Knowing that a flight may be quick isn't quite the same as winning said flight. Nicari was a tricky target to follow; she'd double back, hide behind trees, fly cirlces around a male she thought was a little slower than the rest, and generally make quite a show of being aerobatically adept. The first couple to miss one of her loops accidentally flew into eachother as Niteo's depth preception problem and a slight miscalculation on Mornevo's part as he tried to trick a couple of his competetors out of the chase, combined to tangle the two of them up. There was a startled flash and a frustrated yelp, followed by cursing that no innocent ears should hear and no innocent eyes read. Nicari glanced back. Oops.. oh well; she counted seven more chasers behind her, and flew on. This was about as long as she'd ever led her chasers on, but then, there were usually far fewer, and these ones looked much more interesting; no one dragon caught her eye, they all did! After a moment or two, Nicari realized that ten minus two was not seven, and turned back again to try a recount. She squeaked when she saw that Lughe-buu, the fluffiest dragon in attendance, she thought, had suddenly gained speed and almost caught up. Her instinctive dodge took her sideways through the air, and down into the canopy, weaving in and out of the branches skillfully. When she exited the trees again and looked back at her chasers, she breathed a sigh of relief... which turned into a startled squeak a split second later when she found herself tangled up in something sinuous and powder blue. The eighth dragon she'd missed counting, Aztis Tehn, coiled about her sinuously, and she smiled, letting his wings support the two of them as they glided back to earth. He'd caught her fair and square, or at least square, and he wasn't a bad catch. She wasn't even tired from the chase. Hee hee... The other males all returned slowly to the clearing they'd started from, disappointed, and prepared to return home. Some of their bonds which had been allowed into the valley comforted them as they each arrived. The Schattarmini was the first to leave, since he didn't need to be re-grown. The other dragons glumly lined up to be returned to their normal size, but even as they did, a trill caught their attention, and they all turned their eyes to the sky once again - Nicari hovered above them, eyes mischevious. She really wasn't tired out yet. For the second time that day, the remaining dragons took to the air, tumbling into eachother as they all scrambled to be first. Nicari giggled and winced slightly as three of them actually did get in eachother's way and fell behind. Solk, Lucio Rufasilex and Leivin finally disentangled themselves, after much arguing and general frustration, just before they hit the ground, but by then they were all so far back they hardly had a cance. Tired from the previous flight, Ryuki slowed slightly, leaving the two in the lead, Socanuj and Lynath, only eachother to contend with. Which they did, loudly. By now, Nicari really was tiring, and she didn't want to be exhausted by the time one of them caught her, so she flew between them, daring one or the other to catch her. Lynath made a dive, but Socanuj, with his multiple wings, was faster and more maneuverable. Having finally obtained his prize, he wasn't about to let go, and swerved away from Lynath, down towards the canopy below. Nicari couldn't have asked for a better ending to a fine chase. And she couldn't wait to see her sister's face when the old prude found out that she actually flew with the two-headed dragon. The other females looked on in awe; never had any other Saa mated twice in one chase. There was a buzz of gossip, and curious eyes followed every one of the males as they landed, returned to their normal size, and were sent home again. This would be quite a clutch. Quite a clutch indeed! |
| Nicari - SaaShiyovi Lacewing | Ryuki - Aqua Glestjer Winter Fox
Luceo Rufasilex - Pernese / Avengaean Fire Mutt Mornevo Landwerlen - Dragon Mutt Aztis Tehn - Pale Blue Mutt Solk - Blue K'marna Dragon Lynath - Blue Wyld/Eastern Mutt Socanuj - Dragon Whorling Leivin - Dragon whorling/catdragon Lughe-buu - "Miniature" Schattarneki Niteo "Nit" Soloculi - Biolumiclops |