Winter sprinted through the grassland towards her target, planning to complete the task as fast as possible and return. She wondered what the vial contained and what it's function could be, but she didn't care much as Sapphire asked her to do it. She simply focused on the task at hand, knowing a simple wyvern won't be much trouble for her.
As she went further the grassland gave away to deserted barren lands. The trees reduced to barely a withered and dried up tree every now and then. Winter could see her footprints in the dry sandy soil for a moment before it dry warm winds blew new sand over them. The air carried little humidity and the land seemed to have forgotten that water even existed.
Winter didn't like seeing such a place, knowing that such a wasteland exists and being able to do nothing about it. She abruptly paused in her travel, making way to a fairly tall hill before continuing. After picking a dried twig lying near a withered tree she climbed the hill, making her way easily upwards. She reached the top just as the sun reached the horizon. Gazing around the land she froze the twig and raised it into the sky.
*Glacial magic: Clouds of Rejuvenation.*
Winter activated her spell and looked towards the sky, but to no avail. She noticed no sign of rain or any clouds in the sky as she lowered her head in disappointment. The dry warm winds from the south slowly died down, a cold breeze starting to blow from northeast. Winter could tell the wind suddenly became humid, and could even see signs of dark clouds approaching with the night sky, covering the few stars which were out on sunset like a dark veil.
Winter sat down on the top of the hill for a while, savouring the beautiful view of the sunset to the west and the clouds to the east. The cold breeze slowly picked up into a storm as the clouds neared and the surroundings became steadily darker. Winter got up and descended the hill before the weather worsened enough to cause her trouble.
She felt a drop of water hit her face as she looked to the clouds while descending. The light pitter-patter slowly picked up into a veil of water droplets, restricting view and dowsing the entire region. The wind blew the rain into Winter's face every now and then as she descended. Lightning lit up the darkening sky every now few moments, thunder roaring over the descending rain and the bellowing wind.
Winter's ears caught a roar above the sound of the roaring thunder and raging wind, the roar of a dragon. With the sound being carried by the wind Winter found herself unable to tell which direction it came from, or how far. She could only descend to the flat surface and hope the dragon did not reach her before she reached flat ground.
As she reached a steep descend she heard the roar again, much louder than before. She strained her ears to try and hear any other sound, hoping to somehow figure out it's direction or distance. Her ears picked up the sound of wingbeats over the raging wind and she jumped off the hill, launching herself off as the jaws of a dragon appeared through the rain and closed where she stood a few moments ago.
Winter rolled a few times as she landed on the ground before stopping. She stood back up after a moment and looked around, only to find no sign of anything. The rain continued to fall heavily, and she could barely see the hill she descended from before. The raging wind along with the rain and occasional thunder didn't allow her ears to catch anything either. The only sense left for her to rely on happened to her smell, and with the rain and wind she doubted that would prove very useful either.
She heard a loud thud, not of thunder, but of something hitting the ground. Winter turned towards it, having already guessed what it would be. She finally got a good look at the dragon she needed to fight, taking a few steps to be at a safe distance from it.
As Sapphire informed, it turned out to be a Storm Wyvern. It's entire body seemed to be covered in purplish-black scales, though Winter couldn't tell for certain due to the dark environment. It possessed one pair of legs and one of wings, large claws adorning both. The wyvern's eyes were purple, and Winter found it easy to tell that it's starving from more than just it's looks. Storm Wyverns have strong legs and wings to aid their flight and launch. This one on the other hand, possessed neither. It happened to be bony and weak, its scales dry and cracked. It didn't resemble a majestic beast, but a pitiful creature.
Winter looked sadly at the wyvern, finding her determination to fight it wavering slightly. The wyvern followed it's instincts and attacked Winter, being too starved to even care about who or what she happened to be. Winter sighed and prepared to fight it, not having forgotten what Sapphire asked her to do.
The wyvern launched itself towards her, using it's wings to increase its speed. Winter could tell that even when starved and weakened such a beast should not be taken lightly. Even Sapphire said once that out of all the species of dragons, a starved Storm Dragon or Wyvern would be the hardest to deal with, hundreds of times more in stormy weather.
Winter ducked and rolled to the side as the wyvern attacked her, easily dodging it. She attacked the wyvern with several icicles, most of which bounced off but two impaled through the scales, enraging the wyvern further. It lashed at her with its tail again. Winter summoned a wall of ice to defend herself but the wyvern's tail smashed through the ice and flung her away, not causing her any damage as it lost most of its force from the wall.
Winter landed perfectly on her feet and summoned more icicles and launched them towards the wyvern. Out of the eight icicles the wyvern dodged six by moving its body like a snake, but two were able to land a hit on its legs, out of which one impaled through. The wyvern opened its jaws and tried to eat Winter but she froze over the wet ground and jumped to the side. The wyvern turned it's head trying to enclose its jaws around her but failed to do so as it's claws lost grip on the frozen ground and the wyvern tumbled some distance before regaining control of its body.
*Glacial Magic: Hammer of Glacial Judgement.*
Winter unsheathed her katana and raised it above her head. Ice magic gathered over it and the blade froze as she brought it downwards with all her force. A beam of glacial energy unleashed from the blade as it descended, freezing the rain that came in its path. The blade froze over the wyvern and a large area behind it, dispersing the remaining energy gathered on it as cold mist.
Winter let out a deep breath, leaving a trail in the air. She unsheathed her katana and retrieved the vial from her pocket as she walked to the wyvern. As she got closer she noticed the wyvern's pupils still following her. The wyvern's body slowly lit up with a purple glow and the ice encasing it burst apart as lightning struck the wyvern.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Winter fell backwards from the force of the impact, quickly getting back up and inspecting her opponent. The wyvern seemed very much alive, and now unfrozen, its scales lit up with a purple glow by the lightning. There were glowing purple lightning-like veins visible in its wings now, and a purple glow visible between its scales.
"So we are getting serious now," Winter sighed.
The wyvern opened its jaws wide and a purple glow shone in the back of its throat, a crackling sound drawing Winter's attention to it. Winter summoned an ice wall in front of her as the wyvern unleashed it's breath attack. The attack easily decimated the wall and sent a static a small distance around it.
Winter dashed towards it, knowing letting it unleash multiple breath attacks will be troublesome for her. As she closed the distance between them the wyvern raised its wings to the sky and roared loudly. Winter tried to skid to a stop but slipped on the wet surface and fell, not daring to get up. Lightning struck both its wings which it channeled into concentrated smaller lightning strikes around it, destroying several stone formations that were higher than the ground. One struck near Winter, not striking her as she lay flat to the ground.
Winter got back on her feet and raised her right hand upwards, a light blue glow visible in her hand. As she did several ice spikes rose from the ground, some impaling and others trapping the wyvern. It flapped it's wings wildly in attempt to escape, failing to free itself.
*Glacial Magic: Ice Breaker.*
Winter launched herself towards the wyvern and punched at its chest, a blue glow visible in her hand as she did. The wyvern let out a pained roar as the ice shattered around it and its body fell to the ground. Winter jumped off the wyvern and landed a moment after the wyvern crashed onto the earth, sending water and mud flying around it.
Winter took a look at her somewhat muddy outfit and sighed. Continuing her task, she took out the vial and emptied it inside the wyvern's mouth, distancing herself from it immediately after. Knowing nothing about what the vial would do she thought being far from the wyvern would be a good idea.
She looked on as the wyvern's body slowly changed. It seemed to grow bigger, slowly but steadily. Its body began to look tougher and healthier too all of a sudden The wyvern opened its eyes coughing and shook it's head as it got up. Winter could tell it grew to atleast three times it's original size now, much stronger and healthier as well.
The wyvern looked around for a short while before locking its eyes on Winter. Lightning lit up the dark rainy environment as the wyvern roared at Winter, looking to continue their fight.
Winter failed to decide what to do now, whether to kill it or just leave. She wished to leave it as it was, but didn't know if that would be what Sapphire wanted. Winter felt confident the place will return to being a grassland soon and new life will begin to sprout here, so she didn't have to worry about the wyvern's survival, but she didn't plan to leave it be if Sapphire didn't want it to survive either.
As Winter wondered what to do the lightning wyvern charged a breath attack and shot a beam of lightning at her before Winter could prepare herself, catching her off guard by it. She failed to get away in time, and would've been hit if not for a magic barrier being summoned in front of her.
"You did good so far," Sapphire complimented. "Now, do you want it to live or die?"
"I don't want to it to die, but if that is what you want I won't hold back," Winter replied.
The wyvern roared in fury, spreading its wings, the tips pointed to the ground. A sign of a dragonoid recognising it's opponent's strength to be greater than its own.
"Rest, you have done your part." Sapphire smiled and walked towards the Storm Wyvern.
The Storm Wyvern shot a supercharged bolt of lightning at Sapphire. Just as it did unsheathing her katana Sapphire embedded it into the ground. She stumbled sideways slightly after the bolt hit her, having underestimated it's power. Her right arm holding her katana appeared completely crackled and burnt.
Quickly regenerating her arm she walked ahead with a sigh. The wyvern's eyes widened at her regeneration and it prepared to charge it's breath attack again. As it attempted to raise its wings they were grabbed by the jaws of two dragons made of dark shadowy matter.
"Summoning: Poison Dragon and Fire Dragon." Sapphire chanted as she walked closer.
The wyvern struggled against the two dragons, almost overpowering both. Sapphire stood right in front of it and paused, the wyvern also stopping it's resistance as it focused on Sapphire, knowing she is the real danger to it.
Stepping forward Sapphire extended a shadow claw from her right arm. The shadow claw ripped through the Storm Wyvern's chest, digging into its body and retrieving a shining purple crystal.
The wyvern fell to the ground with a low pained growl. Winter looked to it with a sigh, having expected the result but not liking the fact it needed to die before it could see how this place would change for the better. Dying after a long and painful existence seemed horrible to her.
"Let's see if this works." Sapphire sighed, crouching beside the Storm Wyvern.
Winter walked to Sapphire and stood beside her, watching as Sapphire placed her hand close to the chest wound. Sapphire closed her eyes with a deep breath and a blue glow illuminated in her chest and flowed through her arm to the crystal she held, pressed to the Storm Wyvern's chest. A purple glow spread through the wyvern's body from where Sapphire pressed her hand, the wounds slowly starting to heal.
Sapphire breath a small plume of blue flame every now and then to remove the water and keep the scales from getting waterlogged as the wyvern healed. After a couple minutes the wyvern seemed to be fully healed as it slowly opened its eyes and looked at Sapphire and Winter, glancing at the crystal in Sapphire's hand several times.
Winter worried what it would do, knowing how prideful dragons could be. After a short while, the wyvern bent its neck and gave both Winter and Sapphire an affectionate nudge with its snout. Sapphire gently patted it and sighed, Winter giggling slightly in joy.
"This land will soon get much more liveable, I hope you won't have to starve anymore," Winter reassured.
"I don't think it will." Sapphire sighed.
"Why?" Winter inquired.
"Firstly, it's truly spectacular you were able to make a copy of a high tier aqueous magic with your glacial magic," Sapphire complimented. "And it will not work because these aren't barren lands, but cursed lands, nothing will restore them back and help life prosper till the curse is lifted," She explained.
"Maybe, but I am sure that's not the case," Winter sighed. "My magic might not be very strong as it is, but I am sure this land will get better, and you won't have to starve again." Winter hoped, gently caressing the wyvern's head.
The wyvern seemed massive compared to Winter and Sapphire, and it offered to leave them outside the cursed lands about three-fourth of the way to their next destination. The wyvern returned to its nest after seeing the two off and giving Winter a small box as a gift, having produced it out of seemingly nowhere. Winter looked at the weird small purple box which the wyvern carried in its mouth.
"Must have been some sort of spell, because I don't think there is any other way it could just spit out a box which wasn't there before," Sapphire guessed.
Winter opened the box, finding a ring inside. The ring appeared to be made of a black silver like metal. A small crystal appeared on the top of the ring in the shape of a dragon, being finely detailed with eyes, wings, tail, and even a jaw. Winter put on the ring, as Sapphire insisted, regardless of her attempts to make Sapphire wear it. Winter believed it suited Sapphire better, but Sapphire didn't wish to take it as the wyvern gave it to Winter.
"Dragons can really be unpredictable," Winter sighed.
"Goes for all species, even in some of the most fearsome species not all are monsters," Sapphire added with a smile.
"What was the crystal you took from it by the way? Seemed kind of similar to the one from that Gorgon-Hydra." Winter inquired.
"A type of Ancient Dragon Crystal, I will see about how to use it later, I will just hold onto it for now." Sapphire answered with a shrug.
Winter nodded understandingly. "So, let's make a beeline for our next target," She cheered.
Sapphire led the way and Winter followed as usual, both of them laughing as they continued ahead.