Storm flew with his flock, Silvie at his side. He followed the distant pull, the desperate desire to reach it warring with his instincts for efficiency.

He could fly at this pace all day; if he tried to sprint ahead he'd pull ahead of his flock and be forced to wait for the slower ones to catch up, gaining nothing in the long run. He needed his flock, they needed him, and the binder needed them all.

Still the delay chafed at him, prickling the feathers of his back, flexing the metal of his claws impatiently.

Storm flew steadily, unhurried, unceasing.

Silvie fought his guidance, different instincts pulling her back, but Storm's influence was stronger than her binder. Her master had less confidence, less formidable will, and couldn't compare to the unbreakable bond Storm and Silvie already shared. They had been forced to leave one of the flock behind, Jayke’s stronger bond and sense of obligation holding him back, but the rest...

The chain shifted direction, and Storm shifted with it. The flock flew smooth and steady in his wake.

Storm flew onward.

Something awaited them. Storm felt it deep in his chest, a growing heat of anticipation.

Then he saw it. A cloud of dust billowed up from a tumult of chaos, thick enough to obscure the adversaries Storm knew awaited them.

Though he could not see them, he could sense the strength of their opponents.

For the first time Storm signaled the group to split; he flew ahead with the fastest scout, leaving Silvie and the others to follow at their own pace.

A large stone formation provided the perfect place to pause, allowing them to watch the thundering storm of chaos as it drew further away without it escaping their view.

Silvie shifted uneasily, glancing back toward where they'd left her master, but Storm called out a soft screech to draw her back into focus. All the rest of the flock were peering ahead with him, watching their prey. He felt the uneasiness ripple among them; they too could sense the overwhelming strength of their targets. The flock was young. Even if they had once been the masters of their domain, that position had been inherited and not earned. In the end they’d been bested and proven insufficient. Unworthy.

Storm knew they wouldn't be able to win a direct confrontation, but he knew his flock’s strength of will. This was a chance to redeem their pride. They would win.

The chain’s direction shifted again, but Storm ignored it this time. He’d already locked onto their targets. No one would escape.

The morning shifted to afternoon as they continued their pursuit, flying from formation to formation at steady sustainable pace, until finally the chaos slowed and began to break apart, revealing their targets for the first time.

Storm swayed in place for a moment, daunted despite himself, but there was no time to be hesitant.

Several of the enemy could fly, and a good half of those quickly zeroed in on the flock’s location.

Incoming!

Storm screeched and raised his wings, the rest of the flock jumping to attention. The creatures approaching them had armored shells, making them a difficult target for the harpies, but Storm was confident.

Dearest? He offered a wing to Silvie, who stopped looking over her shoulder and focused on him again. He nodded toward their assailants - five of them, snapping claws raised, snatching claws spread, unnatural creatures of brown and yellow.

We strike! Silvie agreed, and together they took flight.

Their four subordinates began firing at once, feathers arcing out and slicing into their attackers, while Storm and Silvie united their storms in a tilted circle. Behind each trailed a glowing sparking band of light. The electric power warped and twisted, the two powers becoming one as they built and built, weaving the ring into a full disc. Then, the moment their foes came close, they both disconnected the storm in the same moment. Together in perfect unison, Storm and Silvie raised their wings and pushed down and out to throw the massive shield straight into the oncoming group.

The front two dove straight through the sparking shield, faltering only a moment. The other three took the full blast as the disc exploded, stunning them and knocking them out of the sky.

Two of the underharpies flew at the stunned attackers, firing their feathers in an unbroken barrage before the trio could recover.

Storm and Silvie each took one of the two flying lobster birds who'd come through unstunned, reaching out to grapple them and hold them still while their remaining two underharpies attacked from the sides unhindered.

They were both strong, but their attackers were stronger still.

For the first time, Storm felt a worm of doubt in his heart. Before he could begin to worry, something shifted within him. New power sparked across his body, his storm igniting within him instead of only in his wake. With a thought, the claws grappling with the monster suddenly burned with electricity, pulsing out into his attacker with stunning force.

Alas, his foe was strong enough the storm stilled at its armor, not penetrating far enough.

Below, one of the three stunned by the Storm Trail blast had revived from the temporary stun, rushing at the two harpies pelting them with feathers.

Another had roused enough to hover in place, but still appeared dazed and uncertain. The last had crashed into the ground and lay twitching.

Storm had no time to further assess their enemies, for his own foe had more claws at its disposal than he did.

Even with Storm holding its snapping claws at bay, its slashing claws came up to tear at his chest. He redirected half of his storm there, sparking back at the attacker every time it connected, but he could tell it was hurting him far more than he was hurting it.

Silvie was faring even worse against her opponent. Storm had reached a higher level of strength through the constant conduit that fed him from the distance, but Silvie had no such protection. Her power waned, and Storm yearned to do something to help, but his own foe took all his focus.

With a cry, the second underharpy threw itself into the fight at Silvie's defence. Two against one was still hardly sufficient, but at least Silvie's health dropped more slowly.

But Storm was made of sterner stuff. He abandoned defence and stopped trying to grapple, instead firing his feathers at full speed in sharp clusters at Silvie's opponent.

For several moments that was all; only feathers and storms and power and pain. Then Silvie's adversary fell at last, stunned and tumbling to the ground. Silvie swooped down after it, tearing its feathered throat apart, cracking open its armored chest and leaving it a lifeless pile of feathers and chitin.

Storm's own health was waning, but he cared nothing for that. His underharpies were struggling with the two below, so he directed his fire there next.

Silvie flew to his aid, striking at the back of the enemy he remained locked with, distracting it from its attempt to slaughter Storm by turn.

They were strong, but so were Storm's flock. He knew they could triumph.

Just... perhaps not without sacrifice.

Unite! Storm screeched to Silvie, then abandoned his attack and defence both to shift his storm into his wake. He twisted away from his current adversary. Though it snapped at him and clamped down tight on one of his legs, Storm recklessly tore himself free, leaving his claw behind in the foe's confused grip as he detached himself and took to the sky.

Silvie swooped in beside him and again their storms merged, building behind them in an intricate braid of power. It hadn't grown any stronger, unfortunately, but at least it was no weaker.

The missing leg threw Storm's balance off for a few passes, the building power wobbling into an imperfect circle until he adapted.

But adapt he did. Before long, the fault was corrected, the course smooth, and the second disc of power blasted out, crashing over their two remaining foes. Neither fell, but both wobbled at the impact, giving Storm’s team a moment’s respite.

He took full advantage of the opening, firing down at the pair of flying crustaceans with all the stamina he had remaining.

Both charged at him at once, their anger and need for vengeance blazing clearly in their windborne flight.

Storm met their charge head-on, igniting his entire body with the last reserves of his fading storm. He grabbed one by the shell in his remaining claw, the other he stabbed with his beak and bit down. He hung on tight, tucking his wings and becoming dead weight.

The two strained and flapped, struggling to stay aloft. They could carry him, fairly easily, but they weren’t prepared for the sudden burden.

Storm felt the last of his life fading, yet even as he fell into the dark haze of the outer storm his claw tightened on his adversary, unwilling to let go even then.

Pride burned in his soul, unrelenting. His flock would triumph. Even if he wasn’t there to watch.