⋅⊰∙∘ Heldor ∘∙⊱⋅

You flew over the boundless ocean, resting on your dragon's back and reveling in the freedom of flight. Soon, a dull unease replaced everything. A storm wall rose on the horizon, darkening and gathering strength. You sensed the dragon's tension and urged it to turn around, but it ignored your pleas. Seeing its inflexibility, you only gripped the base of its spikes tighter, bracing yourself for the storm. Bursting into the heart of the storm, you found yourself at the mercy of the furious elements. A wall of rain fell upon you, blinding lightning ripped the sky, and the rumble of thunder merged with the furious roar of the enraged ocean below. You clung to the dragon's scales, trying to hold on. When you reached the epicenter of the hurricane, the darkness was pitch black, broken only by flashes of lightning. Your dragon froze, hovering in the thickest of leaden clouds, and at that moment, in a flash of lightning, a huge dragon emerged from the black depths of the clouds. This colossus was four, maybe even five times your size. Its dark, blued-iron scales blended with the storm, making its outline ominous. Only two crimson eyes, burning with hatred, blazed in the darkness, piercing you. A rider in dark armor—Heldor—sat upon the colossus's ridge. One steel-gloved hand gripped the iron reins, and his cold gaze was fixed directly on you, as if you were his long-time enemy. Each time lightning pierced the darkness, other silhouettes appeared for a moment through the gaps in the clouds. The shadows of dragons and their armored riders. They did not approach, did not break the ring, only glided in the darkness, dissolving into the leaden clouds, awaiting orders from their leader.