The morning air was thick with freshly bloomed flowers mingling with the scent of pine needles and damp moss. The songs of birds filled the space as the gentle murmur of a flowing stream eased the silent and peaceful forest. Shafts of light cracked through the canopy of foliage and ushered the rabbits and squirrels to leave their homes for daybreak. They quickly moved in an orderly fashion attending to their daily routines.

But the ground trembled, as it had every morning for the past month, sending waves of anxiety through the forest’s critters. They knew all too well the source of such havoc–a boy with slick black hair, tanned skin, and a large tail. The shaking intensified. DOOM* DOOM*. Leaves sank from the trees with every quake before an explosion of motion broke through the canopy veil. 

A pack of Direwolfs, feral and menacing, was tossed and thrown around by what appeared to them as a mere blur. “Bring it on, you say you’re wolves but, you’re nothing but sheep!” Azurae growls with a maniacal glint in his eye. He watches the way the Direwolfs heave. The way their paws dig into the ground and uproot soil as if it were sand or gravel. their snarling teeth, drooling maw, and bubbling growl all force a wicked smile across Azurae’s features. He was all for a fight. He was all for any confrontation. The morning was too dull for him, he felt the need for action and yearned for anything to happen and this moment gave him an excuse to bare some fangs of his own. 

He covers his fists in dragon-scaled gauntlets slamming them together to create a spark. His wings unfurl with a snap, and with one bound leap, he drives himself toward the nearest Direwolf. His fist connects with its snout in a resounding crack. The Direwolf gives out a pained yelp, and the smell of blood quickly fills its nostrils. It scratches at the soil beneath it before finally returning to its feet and scattering from Azurae. Three more Direwolfs closed in on Azurae–  a grey one and an orange one on his flank. Dead center was the much larger silver-furred Direwolf. He’s painted with scars throughout his body and his red eyes glare at Azurae refusing to stray. An alarm blared in Azurae’s mind. He first flashed to the orange Direwolf, there were no real reasons as to why, he merely moved off pure instinct. His fist connects as an explosive blow. His eyes glow like precious rubies as he shifts his focus on the silver-furred dire wolf. anticipation creeps through his veins like that of a snake slowly making its way to his dilated eyes. He laughs aloud triumphantly, like a child amused by his skills.

Nonetheless, despite his excitement his mother’s concern tingles in his thoughts, “Mom wouldn’t want me to dirty my clothes now, would she?” The question leaves him in thought for a moment, “No, she would like for me to at least look clean for my first day.” Just as he turns away a tree flies into his body forcing him through a dense collection of the woods. The wreck left him dazed but his body intact. He grips the tree by its trunk and lifts it overhead with a slight groan before tossing it aside. His wings fan out as he roots his feet in the dirt. He erupts forward.

“Oh, you’ve done it now!” He slips under the Direwolf grabbing hold of its tail before dragging it through the forest. “You shoulda known’ your place in the food chain ya mutt!” He tosses the Direwolf into a boulder ahead before flying back to the grey Direwolf. “Don't think I forgot about you!” Azurae in his flight grabs hold of the Direwolf’s throat and pins it on its back, the collision forcing the forest to shake. “Let's go for a ride sheep!” He drags the wolf through the forest tossing it into the silver-furred direwolf. The two fall unconscious but Azurae refuses to contain himself. He grips the Direwolf’s raged tails and soars to the clouds before hurling them down to Ethos. He remains suspended in the air, where the breeze above is better than in the forest. He took in the peaceful environment before flapping his thunderous wings. He shot down like a bullet placing his chest on the Direwwolfs before another burst of speed slams the two into the ground. Dust settles as Azurae stands over the immense beasts. He opens the mouth of the silver fur Direwolf and walks into its stomach, shortly after he returns with a backpack and blue Zenith suit jacket. 

His nostrils flare as he roars, “That’ll teach you to steal from Azurae Flourenzire!” He trails over to a small hill where he ties the bag and jacket around his waist while inspecting the area. He hasn’t eaten for at least five hours however, despite this, he feels it has been days. A defect in the eyes of many, yes, but for a dragonborne it is quite the blessing since their love for food trumps all. He scans the nearby area before spotting a bush full of berries. The berries are a vibrant scarlet with blue polka-dotted spots along its ridges, a clear sign of poisonous fruit. Azurae grabs a handful, scarfing them down without a second thought. He quickly devours the entire berry bush, eating as if it were attempting to escape him.

He overhears the steady murmurs of the flowing current “Mom would want me to eat something more nutritious besides berries.” He mutters, his eyes locking onto the rushing water as a thought quickly takes shape. He digs into the moist soil and overturns large heavy stones uncovering a cluster of worms. He collects as many as he can before tying them to the end of his tail. 

Refusing to stop there, he ventures further into the forest before discovering a buzzing beehive. He rips a branch from a tree and spits a flame onto it before tossing it under the hive. The bees quickly evacuate and he swipes the hive with his tail. A slight tap from his knuckle is enough to crack the hive into two. He dips his tail into the golden honey, finishing the perfect lure. He flicks his tail into the stream, the honeyed bait trailing in the current. He waits, feeling a gentle tug in the water until suddenly– there it is. A sharp bite. He reels in a beautiful rainbow-scaled salmon, its shimmering colors stay as a compliment to the season. These fish frequent the stream during these months and are a delicacy amongst the forest animals, so with such a successful catch, he accomplishes the task several times over, each going as victorious as the last. 

As he’s ready to devour his meal his ear twitches from a snapping twig in the distance. His head spins on his shoulders. “Who’s over there? Show yourself!” He commands with a growl.

Three dire bear cubs slowly emerge from the bush. Each one fearfully approaches him begging for food in their own right. Their adorable little bodies connected to their large heads made them appear as fuzzy bobblehead figures. “Oh, it's you three. You know, you should really quit following me around and find your mom. It's dangerous out here.” They seemed weak for what they were, and Azurae had noticed. Azurae tosses a fish to the cubs who quickly devour it. He eats some himself before giving them the rest. “You three are going to be alone from now on, I’m leaving this place and will probably never see you again.” He walks away from the three before spreading his wings. “Don't die out here.” He tries to take off but one of the cubs holds onto his leg gripping him tight.

“What the?” He rips away but the additional two cubs leap toward him, their teary eyes reflecting like diamonds forcing Azurae to look away. “Come on guys, don't do this to me.”

He peeks at the cubs and their adorableness is relentless. “Alright, what if I teach you all something, will you let me go then?” The cubs look at each other and back at Azurae nodding in compliance. He commands them to stand in a straight line shoulder to shoulder and they do so. He readies a stance before raising his fist. “This here is your greatest asset, the one thing nobody can take from you. You need a weapon, well look, here, ya’ got one.” He approaches a tree and takes a deep breath before cracking his fist into it. The tree easily splinters in every direction. You three practice throwing a punch every day until you can do that, alright?”

The cubs jump around in excitement and proceed to mimic Azurae’s instructions. They wail on the tree not so much as making a dent. “Oh and one more thing,” He says approaching the bears, “You guys are too small to hunt the usual way so just try to catch any fish attempting to jump upstream okay? You need to eat lots for the technique to work. I guess that's all, hopefully, we’ll see each other again, bye.”  His wings lift him to the skies. They beat like thunder before shooting him across the forest.

He soon arrived at Zenith circling the building once before landing at its entrance. He walked through its large towering gates and past its perfectly sculptured hedges before the smell of blood swam through his nose, and as a response his hair lifted from his neck and his fists were sheathed by dragon scales. He sprinted with a mischievous glint in his eye, hungry for a real fight he made his way to the main hall and was met by an eruption of flame. 

“Oh yeah, this is school? Im-a love me some of this!” He leaped into the fray not skipping a beat before locking onto his target: An amalgamation of slime and mucus, not worth his time. What he was really after was the girl, Kara. The explosion came from her and we wanted to see more of it. His mother always told him to find a strong woman his age and he had found her, an effortless quest for someone with his strength. Despite her previous display, all speculation of her strength was just suspicion, he needed to test it himself so, he shot himself forward, like a bullet or a bolt of lightning. 

POP* the slime boy’s head snapped to the side and he sank to the ground. Azurae could only giggle to himself before the girl began crying her head off. He didn’t care for her words, regardless. He simply wanted a fight. 

"Who the hell are you?" she demands.

“Who am I?” A question Azurae had heard many times before, “I’m Azurae Flourenzire! Are you strong?” His wings stretch from his back and begin vibrating with a low hum that rang in the air. He becomes a rabid animal eager for a fight impatiently bouncing his legs.

 The first explosion gave Azurae goosebumps, the second blinded him and the third signaled him to rush forward. They flashed toward each other, their eyes roasting in anticipation not wanting to miss what the other could do. Their sight glazed over as their mentalities were devoured by their own, perceived renown.

The smell of roses fills the air as cherry blossoms fall from the sky. Azurae and Kara look deeply into each other’s eyes suspended in the air for what feels like eternity. Their faces flushed, glowing like the warm light of a Christmas ornament.

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