《Talons Uprising》


 Talons Uprising chapter 1: Harassment of siblings

    I''m tired. I mean, I''m awake, and I have been for an hour and a bit now, but I''m tired. I don''t even know why I''m tired. I have kind of just been just lying in my bed for 20 minutes now. Maybe I ate too much. Being bloated makes you tired, right? That sounds like something Snowstorm would say, at least. Neither darkness nor Smokewind have come to bother us, so I''m not exactly sure what I should be doing right now. Maybe harassing Snowstorm. Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.


    I toss my book to the side (which I have still not read despide owning it for 2 years) and haul myself off my bed. I put my legs under me and stretch, my wings encompassing around a quarter of the cavern we call our bedroom. My front talons press down against the carpet on the floor, and I slip forward, thumping on the ground with a yelp. So graceful, you know? Apparently, Snowstorm doesn''t think so, because I hear a small snort of laughter from the white bundle of white scales in the corner of the room.


    ¡°Hey, you wanna say that to my face, ya jerk?¡± I snort.


    ¡°No, I do not.¡± comes the reply from the wyvern, one wing lifting to reveal his face as he stares at me with slight amusement. A scroll on some complex shenanigans sits on his pillow. I would guess he was reading it. I mean, why else would it be there, right? I couldn''t imagine it would make the pillow more comfortable, but what do I know?


    ¡°I''m boooooored.¡± I whine. Snowstorm snorts.


    ¡°Go do something then. I''m studying the effect that the draconic system has on human physiology and psychology.¡±


    ¡°Nope. You''re coming with me!¡± I chirp and bound over to my icy companion. ¡°That scroll sounds complicated, so let''s go play!¡±


    ¡°Abhor, we are both 16. I do not play.¡±


    ¡°We played tag yesterday.¡± I point out.


    ¡°Only because you took my scroll on Iceling thermodynamics from me!¡± He retorts and bats his tail at me to shoo me off. I catch his tail with one talon and smirk.


    ¡°Well, too bad for you, smarty pants.¡± I say. With no other warning I yank his tail as hard as I possibly can out of bed. He yelps and flies out of bed and lands on the carpeted section of the floor with a resounding ¡°oomph!¡± before rolling onto his back and scowling at me. Yeah, thats right, I know you hate being forced to get your nose out of a scroll.


    ¡°Lets go!¡± I cheer and bound over to the hole in the cavern overlooking both the ocean and the forest.


    ¡°I hate you.¡± Snowstorm says dryly.


    ¡°Love ya too, buddy.¡± I say cheekily before leaping out of the exit, knowing full well that he is coming with me. I stare out at the ocean. The ocean is, like, really freaky. Who the hell would swim in waters that are kilometers deep without knowing what the heck is below your talons?! Not me, thats who. Im 100% sure Snowstorm would be with me for that one. The only difference is he actually reads the scrolls about under the waves, so he actually has the info to back up his discomfort. Just knowing the guy that knows the stuff is afraid of something will make me afraid of that thing too. I mean, i''m not afraid of practically anything, but the ocean just makes me feel¡­ uncomfortable, you get it? The ocean is beautiful, but I''m not flying out there. Not after last time.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    I quickly stop by the cavern we use as the kitchen and grab a bucket of water, since I''m feeling thirsty. Inside, I see Smokewind. The jittery LavaFlow dragon seems to be cooking a largw goat over a stove. What, did you think dragons were super primitive with technology or something? Heck no! Getting electricity to a cave is hard, but not impossible thanks to human tech. Smokewind notices me enter.


    ¡°I assume you are bothering Snowstorm to play with you?¡± Smokewind observes, turning to face me.


    ¡°He¡¯s totally willing!¡± I say, filling the bucket up in the sink. ¡°The most willing! Absolutely overjoyed!¡±


    Smokewind snorts, but doesn¡¯t add. Instead she smiles kindly.


    ¡°Darkness is out hunting. He will be back with a second goat or something soon. Be back for dinner at 5:45, ok?¡± She says. ¡°And don¡¯t tussle with anything like a bear. If I see a single scratch on you, you''re grounded.¡± I sigh.


    ¡°Yes, smokewind.¡± I turn and leave the cave, sure not to spill any of the bucket''s contents. Snowstorm is sitting on a log in the clearing nearest to our cave. I look up at the sky. I can instinctively tell that it is 1:13 Pm. Cool, right? I''m like a living watch. Also kind of a time machine, in a way, since I can quite literally sneeze myself to yesterday. I actually did that once. Actually twice. Alright, it was 6 times. Happy?


    ¡°Took you long enough!¡± Snowstorm shouts up at me as I make lazy circles around him. I debate dumping the bucket over his head, but discard the thought. I''m not into wasting water. Just because we are by the ocean and have an infinite supply doesn''t mean that we can infinitely distill and boil water into being drinkable. Ill just dunk him later.


    ¡°Shove a sock in it.¡± I say as I land beside him. Snowstorm just rolls his eyes and pokes me expectantly with one wing.


    ¡°So? What will we be doing now?¡± I stop in my tracks and make a face, which gives snowstorm a good idea as to the answer. ¡°You have no idea.¡±


    ¡°I do too!¡± I retaliate. ¡°We are going into the forest today!¡± Snowstorm just sighs.


    ¡°Im flying over the trees. It is way too difficult for me to walk around through the landscape without front legs.¡±


    ¡°Maybe we could practice our skills?¡± I suggest. Snowstorm just sighs and agrees, and off we fly.


    While flying, I noticed something. It''s a glint in the trees. A glint like glass or metal. Something is down there. Something reflective. I just ignore it and turn away. It''s not my problem.


    After 3 minutes and 48 seconds of flying (I''m a living clock) we reach a larger clearing than the last one, containing lots of rocks and trees to use our skills on.


    ¡°Ill start practicing.¡± Snowstorm says and moves to a farther clearing to practice blasting ice out of his jaws. It looks more like he is trying to vomit out a cat or something, since he still cant make ice come out on command. Once he does make it happen, I¡¯d bet he will be mighty powerful. His ice breath is insanely impressive. I saw him freeze an entire tree with a sneeze once. Another time I saw him freeze fire. FIRE! How does that work? Well, i might as well pull up my own stats and see what I''m working with;


    Name:Abhor


    [Locked]


    Titles:Timebreaker


    Strength:20


    Durability:20


    Speed:20


    Stamina:22


    Intelligence:18


    [locked]:0


    Species:[Locked]


    Skills: Night vision(low), enhanced stamina(medium), [Locked]


    Alright, what can I practice right now? I guess I can practice my breath attack. I wonder why it doesn''t show up as a skill. Maybe since I cant use it on command? I mean, I guess that makes sense. Snowstorm said that you get a skill for something only after reaching a certain proficiency in that thing. I''m pretty sure Darkness has a skill for field dressing. The better you are with a skill the higher its proficiency is. Apparently my night vision skill was unlocked for earning the ¡°timebreaker¡± title, and the Enhanced stamina was a species/racial skill. I rarely ever get tired, since not only is stamina my best stat, but my enhanced stamina has the effect of +50% stamina and -25% fatigue. Just a bunch of numbers nonsense I don''t understand well.


    ¡°Are you going to use your skills, or are you just going to stare at your stat board all day?¡± Snowstorm shouts from the distance. He moves over to me and I subconsciously hand him the bucket. He takes a sip, and then¡­ it''s frozen.


    ¡°Oops.¡±

 Chapter 2: The spire and the ship

    When Abhor was younger, he would stare out at sea. The ocean was so vast, so large and so beautiful, but he never flew above it. Not once. Abhor thought about it. Flying over the vast waters, launching himself from island to island.


    One day, when abhor was 10, he was upset. Darkness had scolded him for sneezing the dining room table into next week. It wasn¡¯t HIS fault though. His powers were like a storm. Who knows what it will do next?


    Not him. That was for sure. He was so upset about the predicament that he decided to do it. He lifted his wings, then slammed them back down, causing him to lift off the ground. He then went over the sea, searching for something that wasn¡¯t Darkness.


    What he saw, around an hour later, with the sky starting to turn as dark as his black scales, was not Darkness. He saw an island, with a massive pillar, spiraling up and up forever. Amazed, he landed, his talons sinking softly into the sand below. The spiraling building was made of solid obsidian, with five stones, each differently coloured, around it. He maneuvered around the spiral, touching the obsidian, but not daring to touch the stones.


    He passed a green stone, a blue stone, a yellow stone, a red stone, and a purple stone. The purple one was where he stopped. He stared at the markings on it. Three circles almost touching on one end. As he got closer, his scales began to pulse, as if drawn to the circular object.


    Abhor didn¡¯t touch it, no matter how much he wanted to. But he did do one thing. He promised himself something. One day, he would come back, touch the stone and reveal its secrets. There was a loud boom from behind him. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    He swivelled his head around to see the most enormous human creation to ever touch the ground. Except it wasn¡¯t touching the ground. It was hundreds of feet in the air, and firing at something. The warship shot cannons, missiles, railguns, everything. But at what, abhor couldn¡¯t tell. He leaped into the air, flying to the top of the tower for a better look. They were firing at a dragon.


    Abhor couldn''t get a good look from such a distance, but he saw red and black scales. The dragon kept dodging everything that was thrown at them. Once the warship stopped firing, the dragon turned and fled. What it didn¡¯t see was a yellow burst of light from seemingly nowhere coming out of the sky and soaring straight toward it. Abhor shot forward.


    He couldn¡¯t just watch that dragon die. It was wrong, and he wouldn¡¯t stand for it. He wouldn''t watch this dragon get killed like the rest of his clan had been. That was when it happened. He concentrated his power into his breath, took a deep breath, and, his scales glowing like stars going supernova, shot a concentrated purple beam, straight at the opposing one.


    The light disappeared as soon as it came. For a moment, all was silent. All Abhor could hear was the sound of the warships techy propellers whirring. Then, the beam reappeared, slamming into the warship, making it vanish into the night sky. Then all was silent.


    Fear battled with excitement in his mind. Where did it go? One side of Abhors brain said. Is that thing really gone? Where did that beam of light come from?


    Who is that dragon? AM I GOING TO DIE!? While the other side said OH HEAVEN ABOVE THAT WAS AMAZING!!! I used my POWERS on COMMAND! This was sort of a victory moment for him that he never felt before.


    But then he looked up, noticed the color of the sky and realized that he needed to get home, and fast. He looked at the red dragon. He exchanged glances. Neither could see each other very well. Then abhor turned and fled.


    Back home. He knew he would see both the dragon and the stone again. He didn¡¯t know how he knew, but he was sure he just got himself tangled up in something bigger than he had ever intended.

 chapter 3: Dammit Snowstorm!

    tap. tap tap. tap tap tap tap. Tippity tappity tap. WHAM!


    I slam the bucket against a rock. Me teeth and claws are nowhere near enough to break through the ice. If hell freezes over, I swear this will be the culprit. And Snowstorm is sitting in the corner sniffling to himself. Serves him right. This was me favorite cup, damnit!


    ¡°Ey, freeze face, stop moping and help me already!¡± I shout over to him. Snowstorm sighs and walks over.


    ¡°I dont know how to break the ice any better then you do.¡± he says, looking over the bucket. He sits down on his back legs (aka his only legs) so he can pick the thing up with his pointy grabber bits at the ends of his wings. He looks it over.


    ¡°It would be nice to have fire for once.¡± I mutter.


    ¡°Fire doesn''t work on my ice. Darkness tried breathing fire on it last time and it didn''t work.¡± Snowstorm responds. I groan. He never freezes his own damn buckets. Why only freeze mine? Are his powers biased? that sounds¡­ actually, they are his powers so they''re probably somewhat biased- anyway! Thats not the point.


    ¡°This is the third bucket you ruined this month.¡± I jab a claw at his chest with a frown and he takes a step back, looking now very nervous. ¡°What do you think Darkness and smokewind will do if they find out?¡± I smirk and Snowstorm glares at me.¡°You wouldnt dare-¡±


    ¡°Oh, i so would.¡± I interrupt. I may not be the smartest but I certainly know how to abuse a situation. Snowstorm looks like he wants to turn me into a popsicle though. Oh well.


    ¡°Fine. 1 week.¡±


    ¡°2 weeks, and i want a new bucket.¡± I counter. He slumps in defeat and nods.


    ¡°Fine. Ill make your bed for 10 days and give you a new bucket.¡± He says. ¡°Is that good enough?¡±


    ¡°12.¡±


    ¡°11.¡±


    ¡°Deal.¡±


    I smile, knowing I now have 11 days of relaxation ahead. I feel like im strangely good at bartering. Suddenly i feel something strange. I open my stats, and sure enough: Title:Bartering. Grants skill:bartering(low).


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    ¡°Oh, sweet!¡± I say. This is freaking awesome! Its so hard to get titles, and I''ve managed to scam Snowstorm so much I even got a title and skill for it!


    ¡°What? Did something happen?¡± Snowstorm asks apprehensively.


    ¡°I got a bartering skill!¡±


    ¡°Oh gods no.¡±


    ¡°What was that?¡±


    ¡°I said good job!¡± Snowstorm gives me a so obviously fake smile that makes him look constipated. Heh, this is going to be perfect in my oh so worthy hands.


    I plop down into the grass and yawn.


    ¡°Hey, how long have we been out here?¡± Snowstorm asks.


    ¡°3 hours, 24 minutes, 31 seconds.¡± I respond immediately.Snowstorm just blinks at me for a minute.


    ¡°H-huh?¡± he says. ¡°Is that an estimate or something?¡±


    ¡°Im a living clock.¡± I say with a straight, serious face as if i were telling someone their family is all dead. snowstorm just stares at me for a moment.


    ¡°What is wrong with you?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°What is that supposed to mean?!¡±


    ¡°It means yes.¡± I can¡¯t help but laugh at the way snowstorm stares at me. If you want to win an argument with a genius, bring them down to your level. then when its an argument between 2 idiots, the one whos been an idiot longer will win.


    <{(0)}>


    Me, Snowstorm, Darkness, and Smokewind all sit huddled around the fire. I just so happen to notice that we have accidentally arranged ourself from smallest to biggest. Snowstorm is the smallest, though i''m only a snout taller then him. Darkness sits beside me, turning the fish he caught over the fire. He is a shockingly good cook. The biggest is Smokewind, which I find hilarious, because she¡¯s also the most easily scare¨Cable. Like, he is the kind of gal where you could whisper ¡°Boo¡± in her ear and shes run off screaming her head off. She also is the size of a small elephant. to compare the rest of us, Me and Snowstorm are around the sizes of large ponies, while Darkness is the size of a big-ass horse on steroids. And They''re both only barely adults. We are 16 while Darkness and Smokewind are 19.


    I sometimes feel bad for them. Having to raise 2 little hatchlings while being only 3 years old is insane. Gods bless the weird way dragons grow. Dragons, both physically and mentally, grow extremely quick in the first¡­ I think 5 years? I''m not Snowstorm, I can only give the basics. After that they grow, like, super slowly for the next 10 years. They usually have a big growth spurt around age 15. Me and Snowstorm have only barely started ours, and it SUCKS. We get growing pains everywhere all the time. Speaking of which¡­


    ¡°Growing pains?¡± Darkness asks, noticing the way im hugging my tail like it might fall off.


    ¡°Yes, and i want to die.¡± I say, groaning.


    ¡°Oof, growing pains were the worst!¡± Smokewind says. ¡°You two¡¯re in for a real treat!¡± Snowstorm has an expression that suggests that if rolling on the floor while hugging your tail is a treat, he wants to take a break from sweets. Not that I blame him. My snout feels wet. Why is my snout wet? Oh, I''m crying.


    Splash!


    Oh, and darkness just dumped a green liquid on my tail.


    ¡°Oh, that feels nice.¡± I mutter, wiping my snout with one arm.


    ¡°Its a salve I made for growing pains back when I had them.¡± Darkness tells me, patting me on the back reassuringly. ¡°It helped a lot. Rub it in, then come eat dinner.¡± Smokewind looks at Darkness as if he just ate her Puppy.


    ¡°You didn''t tell me about this!¡± She says. Darkness grins.


    "well, you aren''t a child."


    "i technically was then!"


    "Can we not do this?"I ask flatly. I snatch a fish on a stick up and chomp into it. Darkness nods.


    "Yes please, I don''t want to do this right now, or ever. Ever is better." Snowstorm just sighs.


    "I am surrounded by idiots."