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Description
Horse's Registered Name: WOS Midnight Moon
Link to Horse's Reference A1886 Midnight Moon
Handler's name: Henley Javez
Link to Tack Template Sheet: DFS - Official Tack - Midnight Moon
Link to Extra Image: DFS | Safe and Sound | Extra Image
Link to Advertisement: valiantshadow.deviantart.com/j…

Story:

The sounds of horses echoed around the barn, nickers and whinnies of anxious mounts ready for the dragon fight. Henley had to admit that he was a little nervous too, as he slipped into one of the stalls, where a seal bay mare was dozing, her head drooping against the far wall. As the human entered, Moon raised her head slightly, twitching an ear in his direction. Despite the fact that she had only entered one DFS fight so far, Moon was quite relaxed.

Henley was glad one of them was calm.
Slipping a periwinkle halter over the mare's dark head, he tugged on her lead, urging the peafowl Nordanner out of her stall and into the barn aisle. Everything here was futuristic, with grey walls and floor, accented with the blue light that seemed to be DFS's favorite color.

Tying Moon to a wall ring, Henley began to tack the mare up, slipping the mesh body suit over various limbs and sections of the horse. An official would be by soon to activate the mesh and guarantee that it was working correctly for the competition.
After fitting most of the mesh, Henley crossed to his trunk and dug around until he found a small golden vial. Pulling out the glowing glass case, he undid the stopper, crossing back to Moon and taking the horse's jaw in his hand. Gently, he slipped his fingers between the gap in the mare's teeth, and she willingly opened her mouth. Quickly, Henley dropped a few spatters of the ichor onto the mare's tongue, where they glimmered and dissolved. Stepping back, Henley stoppered the vial and waited as a golden glow began to concentrate around the mare's shoulders.

At first, only a few small feathers wormed their way out of the mare's coat, but suddenly, with a slight 'whoosh' of air, fully formed wings sprang from Moon's sides, extending until they brushed the walls of the barn aisle.
With a small snort, the mare folded her wings to her sides, making space so that Henley could attach the remaining pieces of mesh to them.

Finally, the mare was tacked, checked, and ready to enter the fight. Now, it was time for Henley to ready himself. Taking the mare back to her stall, he loosely tied her reins to an empty hook. Then, Henley rooted around in his case until he found his own "tack", a white, purple and blue catsuit with matching boots and helmet. Taking the items into the empty stall assigned to Wild Oak's staff, Henley changed quickly, doing up buttons and zippers with trembling fingers.

----

As the roar of the crowd intensified, so did the shaking in Henley's hands. He gripped Moon's reins tightly, leading the horse towards the chute that would pour them into the arena when the fight began. Adjusting his helmet one last time, Henley slipped his foot into the stirrup and swung over Moon's side, settling into the saddle and taking a deep breath. A DFS attendant motioned the pair towards the arena doors, signaling that there were only a few seconds left until the fight would begin.

Showtime.

The lights were blinding as Henley guided the mare into the arena. On the speakers, the tinny roar of Maleficent echoed throughout the building, shaking its walls. Moon snorted, laying her ears back as she and her handler scanned the arena for any sight of the beast.

There, glimmering blue, she emerged from the circular tower, spreading her wings and gliding towards the arena floor. She moved with slow, easy grace, but Henley knew that the holographs could be deceiving. And he was right. Within seconds, the dragon had crossed the arena.

"Let's go," Henley called, kicking his heels into Moon's sides and pulling up on her reins. The mare crouched, launching herself into the air and spreading feathered wings, catching a drift of recycled air conditioning. Higher and higher the pair spiraled, looking down to find any sign of weakness on the holographic dragon.

A second roar rattled the building as Maleficent sprang into the air, circling the arena with massive wingstrokes. In response, Moon pumped her wings faster, darting this way and that to avoid the dragon. Grumbling, Maleficent dropped back to the ground, waiting until her raven appeared beside her, zipping about her horns.

Gripping his sword tightly, Henley watched with growing concern as the dragon looked up, twisting her head this way and that. Shouldn't she be following the seal bay mare? Her behavior didn't make sens---

---A sudden bolt of green fire shot from the dragon's maw, barely missing Moon. Startled, the mare reared up, forgetting for the moment that only her wings were keeping her aloft.

Surprised by the jolting motion, Henley felt himself roll backwards, and he grasped vainly for the mare as her rump slid past him. He felt his stomach drop as his hand barely missed the stirrup iron, and he felt himself plunging towards the earth.

It couldn't have taken more than a few seconds, but they felt like hours to Henley as he flailed, searching for something - anything - to break his fall. The crowd gasped collectively, then fell into a hush.

Meanwhile, Moon was recovering from the shock of the dragon's green fire, when she spotted her handler spiraling towards the unforgiving - and very real - rocks of the arena floor. With a squeal, the mare slammed her wings to her sides, rocketing towards the ground.

Henley saw only a brown blur before he was violently slammed into the horse's saddle. Winded, he scrambled until his hands found purchase on the mare's breast collar. Feeling her rider somewhat secure, Moon took to the sky again, as Maleficent's raven swooped around her head, and the dragon herself extended her neck, snapping holographic jaws an inch away from Moon's tail.

With his heart still pounding in his chest, Henley secured himself in the saddle, making sure to grab a hunk of Moon's war-cut mane with his hand while the mare was climbing. As the pair swooshed past a rock outcropping, he reached out and grabbed the sword he had dropped during the fall. Behind them, Maleficent rose into the air, her raven close behind. Gripping the hilt of his newly rescued sword, Henley turned Moon to face the holographic nightmare bearing down on them.

"That dragon almost killed me," he wheezed, his chest still aching from the impact with Moon. Holding tighter to the sword, he glanced down at Moon, then back at the dragon. "Let's kill that bitch," he said. With a squeal of agreement, Moon opened her wings and shot forward, racing directly at her foo.

(1114 words)

Description
Horse's Registered Name: WOS Midnight Moon
Link to Horse's Reference A1886 Midnight Moon
Handler's name: Henley Javez
Link to Tack Template Sheet: DFS - Official Tack - Midnight Moon
Link to Extra Image: DFS | Safe and Sound | Extra Image
Link to Advertisement: valiantshadow.deviantart.com/j…

Story:

The sounds of horses echoed around the barn, nickers and whinnies of anxious mounts ready for the dragon fight. Henley had to admit that he was a little nervous too, as he slipped into one of the stalls, where a seal bay mare was dozing, her head drooping against the far wall. As the human entered, Moon raised her head slightly, twitching an ear in his direction. Despite the fact that she had only entered one DFS fight so far, Moon was quite relaxed.

Henley was glad one of them was calm.
Slipping a periwinkle halter over the mare's dark head, he tugged on her lead, urging the peafowl Nordanner out of her stall and into the barn aisle. Everything here was futuristic, with grey walls and floor, accented with the blue light that seemed to be DFS's favorite color.

Tying Moon to a wall ring, Henley began to tack the mare up, slipping the mesh body suit over various limbs and sections of the horse. An official would be by soon to activate the mesh and guarantee that it was working correctly for the competition.
After fitting most of the mesh, Henley crossed to his trunk and dug around until he found a small golden vial. Pulling out the glowing glass case, he undid the stopper, crossing back to Moon and taking the horse's jaw in his hand. Gently, he slipped his fingers between the gap in the mare's teeth, and she willingly opened her mouth. Quickly, Henley dropped a few spatters of the ichor onto the mare's tongue, where they glimmered and dissolved. Stepping back, Henley stoppered the vial and waited as a golden glow began to concentrate around the mare's shoulders.

At first, only a few small feathers wormed their way out of the mare's coat, but suddenly, with a slight 'whoosh' of air, fully formed wings sprang from Moon's sides, extending until they brushed the walls of the barn aisle.
With a small snort, the mare folded her wings to her sides, making space so that Henley could attach the remaining pieces of mesh to them.

Finally, the mare was tacked, checked, and ready to enter the fight. Now, it was time for Henley to ready himself. Taking the mare back to her stall, he loosely tied her reins to an empty hook. Then, Henley rooted around in his case until he found his own "tack", a white, purple and blue catsuit with matching boots and helmet. Taking the items into the empty stall assigned to Wild Oak's staff, Henley changed quickly, doing up buttons and zippers with trembling fingers.

----

As the roar of the crowd intensified, so did the shaking in Henley's hands. He gripped Moon's reins tightly, leading the horse towards the chute that would pour them into the arena when the fight began. Adjusting his helmet one last time, Henley slipped his foot into the stirrup and swung over Moon's side, settling into the saddle and taking a deep breath. A DFS attendant motioned the pair towards the arena doors, signaling that there were only a few seconds left until the fight would begin.

Showtime.

The lights were blinding as Henley guided the mare into the arena. On the speakers, the tinny roar of Maleficent echoed throughout the building, shaking its walls. Moon snorted, laying her ears back as she and her handler scanned the arena for any sight of the beast.

There, glimmering blue, she emerged from the circular tower, spreading her wings and gliding towards the arena floor. She moved with slow, easy grace, but Henley knew that the holographs could be deceiving. And he was right. Within seconds, the dragon had crossed the arena.

"Let's go," Henley called, kicking his heels into Moon's sides and pulling up on her reins. The mare crouched, launching herself into the air and spreading feathered wings, catching a drift of recycled air conditioning. Higher and higher the pair spiraled, looking down to find any sign of weakness on the holographic dragon.

A second roar rattled the building as Maleficent sprang into the air, circling the arena with massive wingstrokes. In response, Moon pumped her wings faster, darting this way and that to avoid the dragon. Grumbling, Maleficent dropped back to the ground, waiting until her raven appeared beside her, zipping about her horns.

Gripping his sword tightly, Henley watched with growing concern as the dragon looked up, twisting her head this way and that. Shouldn't she be following the seal bay mare? Her behavior didn't make sens---

---A sudden bolt of green fire shot from the dragon's maw, barely missing Moon. Startled, the mare reared up, forgetting for the moment that only her wings were keeping her aloft.

Surprised by the jolting motion, Henley felt himself roll backwards, and he grasped vainly for the mare as her rump slid past him. He felt his stomach drop as his hand barely missed the stirrup iron, and he felt himself plunging towards the earth.

It couldn't have taken more than a few seconds, but they felt like hours to Henley as he flailed, searching for something - anything - to break his fall. The crowd gasped collectively, then fell into a hush.

Meanwhile, Moon was recovering from the shock of the dragon's green fire, when she spotted her handler spiraling towards the unforgiving - and very real - rocks of the arena floor. With a squeal, the mare slammed her wings to her sides, rocketing towards the ground.

Henley saw only a brown blur before he was violently slammed into the horse's saddle. Winded, he scrambled until his hands found purchase on the mare's breast collar. Feeling her rider somewhat secure, Moon took to the sky again, as Maleficent's raven swooped around her head, and the dragon herself extended her neck, snapping holographic jaws an inch away from Moon's tail.

With his heart still pounding in his chest, Henley secured himself in the saddle, making sure to grab a hunk of Moon's war-cut mane with his hand while the mare was climbing. As the pair swooshed past a rock outcropping, he reached out and grabbed the sword he had dropped during the fall. Behind them, Maleficent rose into the air, her raven close behind. Gripping the hilt of his newly rescued sword, Henley turned Moon to face the holographic nightmare bearing down on them.

"That dragon almost killed me," he wheezed, his chest still aching from the impact with Moon. Holding tighter to the sword, he glanced down at Moon, then back at the dragon. "Let's kill that bitch," he said. With a squeal of agreement, Moon opened her wings and shot forward, racing directly at her foo.

(1114 words)