[RedFur1322]

Username; ABeardedDragon
3 Species; Seashocker // Timberjack // Flightmare
3 Inspirational Images; x x x

This dragon is wary around humans, and caution is advised when approaching.

Rider: ABeardedDragon
Name: Ripple
Gender: Female
Species: TimberJack

Are all taks completed?; Yes

[ABeardedDragon]

Name; Ripple
Gender; Female

(Complete) Task #1 - Sighting - Writing
(Complete) Task #2 - Taming - Writing
(Complete) Task #3 - Bonding - Writing

(Complete) Extra Task #1 - Misc - Art
(Complete) Extra Task #2 - Taming - Art
(Complete) Extra Task #3 - History - Writing

[ABeardedDragon]

(Complete) Task #1 - Sighting - Writing

In the early morning, with the sun rising above the calm ocean, we stood on the shore of the island with our dragons. It was the annual dragon taming event. Riders from all across the world would gather at the Sanctuary to tame rescued dragons. Some of the riders on my home island were invited to attend, including myself. I sat on the back of my Timberjack, Radiance, looking at the horizon. I decided to take him since he was my strongest flyer. We gave our last good-byes and took flight.

I traveled across the vast sea, at the surface it seemed empty but knew it wasn't. After hours of flying, I was stood in the Sanctuary along with many other riders. Our dragons were allowed to stay in the Sanctuary; I already saw Radiance socialising with the other dragons. There were many dragons flying around in the open cave, but our dragons were more shy. After a small meal and greeting, we were allowed to find our dragon. I wandered away by myself and went to a more secluded area in the Sanctuary. I had never been here before and I was amazed by how beautiful it was. Then I saw her.

She was hidden in the corner of the Sanctuary, squeezed into a small cave. Her blue eyes were wild and filled with fear as she looked at me; she almost seemed to be shaking. To see such a magnificent creature in fear broke my heart. I sat and watched her for a while, but it was clear she would not approach me. I took a few steps towards the dragon and almost instantly scurried from the cave, threatening me. Her large black wings spread out fully and cast a shadow over me that made my body feel cold. Her white striped tail thrashed violently and she roared at me. At first I was in fear and could not move. But then I found courage and stepped closer. And closer. "Shush, it's going to be okay," I spoke gently to the dragon, my voice barely more than I whisper. With each step she became more threatening. Her displays became more wild and violent. When she realised her threats weren't working, she started to back away. I did not stop. I reached out my hand. My hand was shaking, just like her whole body. I had never been this scared of a dragon before. She was untamed, fearful and uncontrollable. Suddenly, the feral dragon cried out and flew straight towards me.

I cowered on the floor, waiting for her tough wings to catch me; those wings could slice through trees. But they never did. A cold breeze brushed over me and the sound of wing beats filled my ears. I slowly opened my eyes. She was gone. Had I ruined my chance? Then, there was was. Her wings were beating furiously in order to carry her away as fast as possible. The way she flew was nothing like the graceful flight of other Timberjacks. Her cries of terror echoed through the cave. It was a horrible sound I wish to never hear again. Her dark body stood out against the brightly coloured ice. Her blue head looked back at me to check if I was following her. I knew there was no point of chasing her. I couldn't keep up and I would only scare her more. This is going to be tougher than expected, I thought. I sat by the entrance of her cave and simply waited. What has this poor soul been through? How can I earn her trust? It was clear that my normal methods of taming would be redundant here.

Hours passed and I realised that she would not come back if I stayed here. Or maybe she had found a new hiding place. Or worse, someone else had found her. The thought made me stand on my feet. I was determined to get back and claim her before anyone else. But in my rush, I almost forgot something. I removed my silver necklace and placed it at the entrance of her cave. The small piece of jewellery carried my scent and hopefully the dragon would be less fearful of me. It was a common method to help an animal get to know you. With that, I ran back to the entrance of the Sanctuary, where everyone was staying. After claiming her as the dragon I would like to tame, I went to greet Radiance. I sighed and sat by him. He looked at me curiously as if he wondered if he could help. "You can't help, sorry," I said to him. With that he shook his head and turned away from me. I decided to leave and get some rest. If I was going to tame this beauty, I would need the energy.

[ABeardedDragon]

(Complete) Task #2 - Taming - Writing

The next day I returned to find that the beautiful female Timberjack was back at her cave. She still seemed fearful but not as much as yesterday. I sat and watched her for a while. This time I would make sure not to be so hasty. Even the slighest wrong move would probably cause our relationship, the little scrap of it we had, to crumble. I noticed a different emotion in her eyes. Curiosity? Guilt? I wasn't sure how she felt, but one thing was certain. She wasn't the same wild beast I first saw her as. Then I realised she was holding my necklace on one of her claws. Do you know it's me?

I decided to walk towards her. I was slower than before. I felt no fear, only my own curiosity. It was as if she and I mirrored each other's emotions; we both felt fear yesterday. I managed to get closer. She did not back away nor did she threaten me. There seemed to be a look of fear sweeping over her. "Everything's fine," I soothed. For a few moments, I was stood an arm length away from her. I could feel her heavy, more frantic breathing on my skin. The more I stood still, the calmer she became. That terror in her eyes faded away as quick as it appeared. "I hope you're ready," I whispered to her. My eyes closed as I thought about what I was about to do; I tried to calm myself. I held my breath. And then, I reached my hand out. She did not flee. My fingertips brushed against her nose. Then, a screech filled my ears. She was gone. I felt my heart sink in disappointment. I felt defeated yet again. I dropped a large fish on the floor, hoping it would earn her trust once more. Too soon, I thought. As I turned to return to my resting area, I saw something unexpected.

Radiance, the dragon I brought with me, was spiraling upwards with the female. They twirled around each other as if they were locked in a dance. Their wings were fully spread open. His golden speckled wings looked even more amazing than the day I met him. The way they looked against the ice, against the wild dragon's dark wings. It was beautiful. I noticed something strange. The female's eyes were filled with warmth and joy. Completely the opposite of how she was around me. I was so mesmerised in the beauty of the two that I did not notice Radiance swoop down beside me. He called quietly for me to mount him, so I did. I held tightly onto him as he returned to the new dragon and continued his elegant dance. She noticed me but I saw no fear, maybe a slight bit of caution. It felt like forever we flew for, but eventually they were side by side. I heard the pair growl and call to each other as their wings edged closer. Radiance wanted me to fall onto her. The dragon seemed to trust me more now. Oddly, I was the one with a lack of trust. I looked down at the seemingly endless fall beneath us while I walked across the golden wings. I didn't want to jump. However, I felt myself fall after Radiance flicked his wing.

Time seemed to slow, almost comimg to a halt. But it quickly returned to normal as I fell heavily on the black dragon. I was sat on her back and I quickly scrambled up her neck. Her muscles were tense underneath me. She began to speed up. Radiance nudged her neck and I felt her slow down again. The wild dragon relaxed. I dared not to control her flight but instead told Radiance to lead the way. Our flight lasted for minutes but it felt like hours. We managed to fly past the other riders who where amazed to see such a uncontrollable dragon being ridden. I felt her panic but once again she was quickly calmed by my dragon as he led her away. We repeated this several times. Circling around the Sanctuary and passing the riders. I managed to take control of her and could fly her closer each lap. Eventually, she landed among the crowd. I stroked her neck and she helped me climb off of her. She went to stay among the other dragons that flew here or were freshly tamed.

Later that night, all the riders who tamed a dragon on the second day gathered for a celebration. Those lucky enough to tame a dragon yesterday had already left. It was quite a joyful party but it was also fairly loud. I worried about how my dragon felt; she was still wary around humans. I went to visit her and Radiance. To my surprise, she was curled up tightly and sleeping. I decided to sit and watch her since I wanted to be away from the noise anyway. She lay peacefully next to a puddle of crystal clear water. Droplets fell from the ceiling of the cave, causing small ripples to travel across the body of water. Then I looked up at her and noticed her striking blue facial stripes and the white stripes on her wings and tailed. Stripes. Rings. Ripple. And then I smiled to myself. I knew her name. After a few silent minutes with her I returned to the celebration. It was time for the riders to share stories about their new dragon and announce their names. Eventually, it was my turn. I explained the beauty of my dragon and her flight, how much of a challenge she was. A warm sense of pride flooded my insides. "Ripple is her name," I said.

(Complete) Extra Task #2 - Taming - Art

Radiance, the dragon I brought with me, was spiraling upwards with the female. They twirled around each other as if they were locked in a dance. Their wings were fully spread open. His golden speckled wings looked even more amazing than the day I met him. The way they looked against the ice, against the wild dragon's dark wings. It was beautiful.

May add shading later.

[ABeardedDragon]

(Complete) Task #3 - Bonding - Writing

The next morning I was up early. I stood by my two dragons and I could see that Ripple was still wary of the other people; she only trusted me. I wished that she could see that not everyone wanted to harm her, which someone must have done to make her like this. Luckily, she was not as bad as when I met her. Maybe I helped to change her mind a little bit, or she just trusted me enough not to endanger her. I fed her and Radiance some fish, stroking both of them. Today we were leaving the Sanctuary. It was already the evening by the time the riders leaving were told to gather outside. Even though it was summer, there was still ice and a bitter cold howling wind. I mounted Ripple. If she was ever going to get closer to me, I would have to spend time with her.

We took flight and went our seperate ways. I had to travel across the freezing ocean to return to my home island. I remembered how far it was and suddenly I wasn't so sure if I wanted to ride this dragon. I had no idea if she was a strong enough flyer to carry me all the way. But I knew it was a risk I had to take if I wished to bond with this beautiful dragon. Radiance followed close behind us, I wasn't so worried about him. Hours passed by as I felt the black dragon becoming weak. She wasn't ready for this. I quickly looked around for a place to land. There was only a small, barren glacier. I tried to turn her towards it but she refused to land. Instead she attempted to fly faster, calling out. Even though she was exhausted, she was determined to carry me all the way home; there was no chance of her making it if she didn't stop. I felt that this wasn't her trying to impress me, but rather a consequence of her past troubles. I must have forgotten about Radiance as he was in front of us as soon as he saw the struggling. The male nudged the smaller dragon, trying to gently push her towards land. She screeched and snapped at him before heavily crashing to the ice.

I couldn't hold on and fell onto the ice. I was in pain but luckily I was not badly injured. When I looked up, I saw the female looking out into the distance as if she wanted to leave, as if she wanted to be free. I approached her and her head quickly turned towards me. There was the familiar look of fear in her eyes as she lowered her head, then her body. She started to tremble as I got closer. What are you scared of?
"There's nothing to be scared of," I said, confused, as I reached out to stroke her nose. I felt how tense she was but she relaxed. Radiance simply sat on the edge of the glacier, watching. I didn't want to fly her so soon after that ordeal and it was starting to get dark. I had nothing to set up a small camp with and the only place to stay was in the open. I managed to curl up on the freezing ice but soon found myself shivering. I couldn't possibly cope like this. After a few minutes, I heard one of the dragons move.

I looked up to see Ripple looming over me. She seemed upset. Here to hurt me and leave? I thought. She spread her wings before, to my surprise, enclosing me inside of them. Immediately, I felt warmer. I had heard rumours of Timberjacks saving their riders from the harsh cold like this. Of course, if she wanted to save me then she must trust me, or maybe even love me. Or, it could just have been the typical gentle nature of Timberjacks. I could stroke the inside of her wing membranes and her grey underscales. She was exposing her more vulnerable areas to me, which showed trust. I couldn't stop myself from falling asleep in the safe warmth of my new dragon's wings.

We managed to return home the next day. She was wary of the other people on the island. It was obvious that she would only bond with me. After a few days of rest, I took Ripple out to fly around in order to strengthen our bond and her trust in me; the female was starting to become more obedient and sensible in flight. I found that she loved to fly near the ocean. In fact, I found many things out about her. But, unfortunately, I would never know what happened to her before she was found by the Sanctuary. Though it only increased my interest in her, as if the black dragon was a mystery I had to solve.

(Complete) Extra Task #3 - History - Writing

The black dragon raced through the skies. She was stalked, hunted down, by dragon trackers. The creature feared for her life but not even fear could stop her from becoming fatigued. She had flown for hours and could barely keep herself in flight. Ripple crashed to the floor and was swiftly captured. Ropes were thrown around her to restrain her, although she could not resist this. She was carried to an island where she was locked away in a small arena. The days seemed to pass and nothing changed. All the Timberjack could do was sit and wait. But she longed to spread her wings and fly again.

One day, ropes were thrown over her while she rested in her cage. When she was securely captured, the cage door opened. Once more she could not escape. She was led away from the cages and out into the open. The dragon and the humans holding her stood on a cliff. Beneath the group, jagged rocks stood out of the ocean and waves violently crashed against them. A finely dressed man approached her. He did not bother to greet her or even look at her. Instead, he simply climbed on her. The ropes around her loosened. Was she free? She started to walk, ready to take flight. A sharp pain on her neck stopped her.
"You're my dragon, you listen to me," the human warned. She could take her freedom but she was too fearful to do so.

She remained still and listened to the sound of the ocean. Then, she was ordered to move and so she took flight. The feel of the air against her wings made her feel alive. In her cage she sat motionless but here she could fly. The dragon watched the larger fish near the surface of the ocean. She could even see wild dragons and she became envious of them. Ripple swooped down closer to the water. Maybe they could help her. A harsh pull from her rider hurt her neck. But the captured dragon refused to fly up. Water sprayed up as she nearly touched the water, it filled her with a happiness and also an empty longing that she had never felt so strongly.

The pulls became more intense but she stood strong and still fought against his will. Slowly, she lowered closer to the water. Suddenly, she darted under the water like a seabird would dive for prey. The grip on her body became looser. Behind her, the human who once controlled her was lost in the ocean. She took her chance and came out of the water before flying away as swiftly as she could. The dragon had forgotten how long she had been flying for. In her mind, she would never be out of reach of the trackers. Eventually, she became too tired to fly and had to land. Around her was nothing but snow and ice covered islands. The wind was bitterly cold but she had to rest.

Waking up, she heard the sound of many wings beating. Above her were hundreds of dragons, led by one human. She was fearful at first but the dragons seemed happy. Cautiously, she followed them. They entered a cave in a large mountain. Inside, there were pillars of stone although the top was covered with ice, there was still lush, vibrant greenery. The dragons rested here. She decided to stay with them. From a distance she would watch the woman who looked over this place, but she would never approach her. Ripple's presence was acknowledged though. A few months later, many dragon riders entered the Sanctuary in search of a new dragon. Would she be chosen?