This was my entry for the Nordanner Dragon Hunt 2018, which was in August but I couldn't remember if I had posted it here or not. Sorry. Anyways, here it is.

This took me about 40-some hours, I'd say. I'm not super happy with how it turned out, since I didn't really have enough time to get everything I wanted in there. But at least it's finished (note: finished, not up to my perfectionist standards)

From left to right, as featured:
Autumn Storm, Cavalier (group horse), and Dutchess (group horse)

————

Here's the literature that I wrote for it:

The queen stood, watching the clamor in the courtyard. The smell of leather, hay, and sweat mingled in the air--the smell of a stable. Horses snorted and people rushed around, carrying tack, donning armor, or buckling straps.

It was time for the annual dragon hunt, and it couldn't have come at a better time. It had been a rough year, and the people had needed something to look forwards to. Queen Alora sighed, running a hand through her hair. A lot of the new recruits were heading out, and this would be their first time out in the field, with real, wild, dragons, and real danger. But she had faith; she'd seen them train and everyone had progressed spectacularly.

She held a regal stance as knights mounted up, squires and pages and grooms bustling about, making last-minute preparations. There was a pang in her heart, knowing that with some of the old generals, this would be their last dragon hunt with the palace. She shook her head, ridding herself of the thoughts. 'This is a time to be excited,' she chided herself. 'Enjoy it.'

Once everyone was settled, the knights turned to salute their Queen, who gave a single nod in reply. In that one gesture, it held all she wanted to tell them: "Do us all proud, be safe, and don't die."

The rumbling of hoofbeats shook the ground as they charged out the gate, splitting off into different directions.

"Your Majesty," a messenger boy bowed to her, announcing his presence.

"Yes?" She turned to face him, a small smile on her face.

"We have just recieved news--the royal brewery is running low on supplies. They require these materials to be restocked: skin tissue, scale, or neurotoxin-laced water from a Demophon, any colour gemstone from one of the Gemstone Dragons, an egg from a Vrux 's nest, and tooth, scale, or claw from any dragon."

Queen Alora closed her eyes, mulling over the new information. There were a few horses that hadn't gone, with there being more knights than horses, even though some of the royal Nordanners had been leased out or horsenapped from the pastures. Many were newer recruits whom she felt were not ready to tackle an actual hunt. But others....

She frowned, mentally going over which horses had been leased out or she had seen go through the gate. 'Balthazaar, Durango, Conquest, Marina, Lunesta...by my count, there should still be Cavalier, Dutchess, Zephyr, Cosmos, and Bourbon of the generals I'd trust to tackle a dragon on their own.'

A groom was waved over, greeting her with a "Your Majesty" and bowing.

"Tack up Cavalier and Dutchess, please. They're going on a hunt."

<><><><><><><><>

Autumn snorted, pale blue eyes on the sky. The sky that was dark, even though it was August and there weren't any storms to be seen. The sky that was dark, because clouds of ash hung heavy in the air and blotted out the sun. The sky that was dark, because there was a dragon around.

An echoing roar sounded, and the mare's head immediately snapped towards the sound. Agnerder and Lauroans sidled up beside her, eyeing her warily.

"She's thinking about it," Lauroans sighed, pawing at the ground. "I can tell."

Agnerder nodded, a scowl etched onto his muzzle. "You're right, she totally is. I'm not sure we can do anything to stop her, even though I'd rather not have our lead mare charging into battle, alone, against a dragon."

Autumn Storm turned to face the pair of stallions. "Can't you feel it?" she asked, eyes ablaze. "The thrum in your veins, the blood rush, the itch to fight?"

The boys turned their heads and briefly shared a look. "Yes," Agnerder replied evenly, "but I choose to ignore it." Lauroans simply shrugged, opting to nudge gently at a turtle instead. He was so mellow, Agnerder realized, that it was possible he didn't feel much of that pull to fight dragons at all despite him being willing to fight and die for his friends.

Autumn affectionately bumped noses with the two, her way of telling them--without words--how much she cared. "I need my armor."

The pair helped her into her armor, the mare feeling a thrill run through her bones as chainmail slid smoothly over her back. She inhaled deeply, closing her eyes while the helm was slipped on. She pawed, testing the fit, but she needn't have worried, for the armor was as comfortable as it had always been.

She sighed, shifting restlessly. "I'm going to go. Agnerder, stay here with Lauroans. If there's a need for you to get out of here, then do so. I'm trusting you have at least enough initiative to stay alive. Don't worry about me, I'll follow your scents once I'm back."

The taller stallion nodded seriously, peacock green eyes eyes somber. "Be careful."

"I will." She whirled on her haunches, loping away towards where the dragon sat, bringing death and destruction.

Lauroans turned to face Agnerder after watching her go. "What are the chances she'll actually listen to us?"

Dark jaguar rosettes, light fawn spots, and bright peafowl speckling shimmered as Agnerder shifted, eyes drifting towards the darkness above. "She knows to stay safe. We'll just have to wait."

<><><><><><><><>

Cavalier held a steady pace beside Dutchess, hooves thudding softly against the ground. They ran together in silence, save for the squeaking of leather and occasional groan of metal.

Dutchess was thankful for the quiet, not that she would've known how to fill it anyways. Having grown up side by side with the chatty, energetic Astrolab, it was a nice change of pace. She loved Astro with all her heart, but sometimes her best friend could be a bit much.

A low rumble broke the silence, reverberating across the earth. The two Nordanners felt the echo in their bones, blood thumping in their ears.

"We're close," Cavalier murmured, turning to adjust their course a bit. Dutchess followed, changing leads so it was more comfortable on the curve.

Out of the corner of their eyes, movement flashed. It was another Nordanner, a light mare. She wore dragon tack, despite there not being a rider on her back. Cavalier tilted his head in intrigue.

Wordlessly, the pair of frostsplash Nordanners increased their speed, pushing to catch up with the foreigner. Autumn could hear them approaching, and based off their footfalls, she knew she couldn't outrun them, with their pace so quick and them so close. She opted to slow, eventually coming to a halt.

Dutchess and Cavalier shared a look as the mare in front of them ground to a stop, swinging around to face them. Eventually the two came to a standstill as well. For a moment they all stood, eyeing each other.

Autumn sensed no hostility from them, although they were understandably wary--and curious, for that matter. She ran her eyes over them, noting that they wore leg guards and that their armor was impeccably clean. Her nostrils flared as she took in a breath, getting the scent of leather soap and pine shavings.

This close, the two royal Nordanners could see that her armor seemed relatively well taken care of, although there were slight spatterings of blood to be seen here and there. Her bright blue eyes watched them carefully, and she was tense and coiled, prepared to fight or flee if she had to.

"We mean you no harm," Cavalier finally spoke, smooth baritone soft.

Autumn nodded, relaxing slightly. "I know."

"Are you hunting the dragon around here?" Dutchess questioned, emerald eyes unreadable. She stood calmly, flicking her tail to swat at a fly.

Blue eyes flashed fiercely. "I am." Autumn hesitated a beat, before continuing. "You're from the castle. You're Generals."

Cavalier and Dutchess shared a brief look of surprise, and the sabino mare in front of them chuckled. "It's not that hard to figure out. Anyways, I could use the help." She turned, beginning to walk. "Unless you'd rather not?"

The Generals came up beside her, settling into an easy trot. "Are you from around here?" the stallion rumbled, questioning eyes glancing her way.

Autumn Storm nodded in reply. "Yes, I live nearby with a pair of stallions, Agnerder Blob and John Lauroans."

What kind of names are those? Cavalier mouthed at Dutchess, who simply shrugged in response. Beats me, her expression read.

The group moved in companionable silence for a while, covering ground quite quickly. With luck, the Generals would be home by the next evening. Around them, the landscape changed. It went from rolling hills to steep cliffs, and now they were in a landscape one could only describe as alien. Large, sharp, pointed rocks jutted up from the ground at odd angles, as if they were in the maw of a beast wishing to devour them. The ash became heavier, the sky darker. Whenever a hoof was put down, a small puff of ash rose up.

Another roar sounded, much closer--louder--than the last. But instead of being intimidated, the Nordanners were more excited than anything. That guttural cry had awoken something inside them, something dark and ancient. It flowed through their veins, made their eyes flash and their skin tingle.

The thrill of a hunt.

<><><><><><><><>

Before them, a dragon loomed, huge and terrifying. Its massive feet held wicked-looking talons that could easily slice a horse into shreds. The creature opened its mouth in a soundless roar, challenging the intruders to a fight. Impressive wings spread, blotting out what light from the sun (or was it the moon? It was too dark to tell.) there was, while in the distance, the horizon glowed from blazes afar.

Autumn snorted, refusing to back down. 'You come in, desecrate my home, and think you can just have control over all?! How dare you!' she fumed, a storm of sheer fury brewing in her eyes.

Neither Dutchess nor Cavalier were cowed as well. They stood their ground, ears flat against their necks, hooves firmly planted.

The dragon let out a screech, lips peeled back to bare pale fangs as large as their heads. The head snaked down, intending to munch a horse, but jaws snapped on empty air instead.

Autumn let out a scream as she charged the dragon, hooves flashing and ears pinned. The Generals joined the onslaught, aiming blows at the thick scales. A large foot came down, toes flexed and claws prepared to slice anything in their way into ribbons.

If there was one good thing about fighting something this large, t'was that the monster was horrendously slow. The horses nimbly dodged each blow, ducking beneath feet that could crush them and sidestepping jaws that would tear them in two.

Lightning struck from the sky, causing the Nordanner's fur to stand on end, but they ignored it. The dragon reared back, inhaling. All realized what this meant and ducked for cover, just before searing flame came spewing from its maw, singing hair.

The creature was getting tired and desperate, resorting to more defensive maneuvers to protect itself from the furious onslaught of the hunters. Finally it broke under the stress, letting out a low snarl and leapt into the air, massive lings stirring up clouds of ash in its wake. As it winged away, a rumbling bellow hinting at promises of revenge echoed across the suddenly empty battlefield.

The horses stood, sides heaving while they panted. As the adrenaline and need to fight slowly drained from them, they were quite aware of the exhaustion in their bones. Heads hung low, and heartbeats eventually returned to normal.

Autumn turned and nodded a respectful farewell to the frostsplash horses before turning and making her way back home. The pair watched her go, tired to no end. Dutchess, remembering why they were there, moved towards where the dragon had stood, picking up shed scales. She looked at Cavalier, and they headed back towards the castle.

<><><><><><><><>

Grooms rushed to attend to the riderless horses that came through the gate, ushering them into the courtyard. Queen Alora watched as armor was unbuckled and slid from backs and legs, noting the horses' utter fatigue. But a glint of triumph shone in their eyes, and she knew they had been successful. She nodded to herself, smiling. Dutchess and Cavalier were good horses, and they deserved a great retirement, befitting of such noble Generals.