Isabella's Draconic Break — Story

The weather up here was frigid, to put it mildly. Large evergreen trees scraped the sky around land, with long, crisp blades of grass coating the ground, with the occasional bolder protruding out from the Earth. Much of the land was coated in condensated water, with millions of little droplets clinging to much of the plant life. The sounds of wildlife were mostly drowned out by the howling on the wind, which shook the branches of the trees to-and-fro, as a group of interdimensional adventurers made their way up a long, winding dirt path to their destination - a picnic spot with an amazing view.

The members of the Hawkmoths team had planned on having an outdoor picnic together, though the typical park or lakeside venue had unfortunately gotten a bit dull for her at this point, especially considering the fantastical worlds and dimensions they frequently found herself in. No, this time, they wished for something more exotic, though it seems as if being up the side of a Nordic mountain was pushing it just a little too far.

They had gotten here thanks to the help of Isabella, and her fancy dimensional portal making skills. As her paws pressed against the dirt, trudging up the mountain pathway, she knew that once the crew got to their destination, this short outdoor excursion would be well worth it.

At the front of the group was Alvis, who was carrying two large hampers in either one of their robotic hands; they didn’t have much use for the food inside personally, but they were still happy to spend some time with their fellow team members. Following close behind her were Ashley, Lilith, and Zachery - the former pair had been engaging in some casual nattering all the way up the path, whilst Zach kept to himself, having been too preoccupied with keeping himself warm, as even three layers seemingly wasn’t enough to block out the coldness of the alpine air here. Finally, at the very back was Isabella, who carried a smaller cooler filled with ice, and a large, freshly picked haddock fruit that she’d got the other day, hoping to smoke it around the fire. Her thoughts lingered on her friend, who was busy handling a personal project back at home, and was unable to attend with the rest of their team today; Isabella hoped they were doing well, at that moment.

“Jeez Izzy, could you really not have made the portal any closer to this spot you were on about? I should have brought my trekking boots with me, if I knew you were planning on us having a hike there.”

Lilith jokes, her head pivoting to face her wolven friend as they keep walking simultaneously, mud squelching under their feet, as they traverse over a slightly waterlogged section of the pathway. Her joke makes Isabella chuckle softly to herself.

“Hey, I thought you said that you were thinking of getting a bit more toned the other day - losing a little around the sides? Besides, nothing beats a country walk Lilith. Trust me, this is all part of the experience!”

“Oh yeah, there’s nothing like a hike through the middle of nowhere in the blistering cold… you can’t beat this. I mean, I thought it might be fun to stay home and have some hot chocolate together, but nooo, this is much better, of course. Ugh… I stopped being able to feel my toes around half an hour ago.”

Zach interjects sarcastically, prompting Lilith to roll her eyes, and Isabella to smile cheekily - he never had done well in the cold, though fortunately for him, they had just come upon an opening ahead! The trees gave way to a patch of land that led to a sheer drop-off. Even without peeking over the edge, the Hawkmoths could tell that it must be a long, long way to the ground below. Aside from that, the view was everything that Isabella had hoped - absolutely breathtaking. Without a canopy of leaves and dense foliage blocking the sun any longer, rays of sunshine breached the fluffy clouds in the sky and shone down upon the crew, providing a very slight amount of warmth for them all. It was enough to make the climate much more comfortable for them.

“Now then, shall we get that campfire and grill set up?”

Ashley asks, unrolling a large, flannel patterned picnic blanket that she’d hauled up the pathway, before laying it out flat upon a drier portion of the grass. The group look around at each other, their eyes jumping from person to person, waiting for someone to bring forth the requested campfire. However, all that came was a rather awkward silence.

“We… we did bring the grill, right? Guys?”

Still, there is silence, as a deflated groan escapes Lilith’s lips.

“You’re joking, right? You guys are seriously not telling me that we left the damn thing back home? After coming up all of this way!? Well… that’s just great.”

Zach sighs, as the crew look around at the area in disappointment… before then turning to face Ashely, and idea popping into their minds at the very same moment. She looks at them all for a moment, wondering if she was missing something, before she realises what they were all thinking.

"No. No, there’s no way I’m doing that, you lot. I'm not gonna go fire dragon because someone forgot the bloody stove. And besides, my powers are-"

“An ancient draconic tradition, only used for the greater good and not for cheap tricks or convenience - we know."

The group reply in unison - all except Isabella, that is. An idea had begun to brew in her head, as she laid her cooler down, and opened it to retrieve the contents inside. The fruit is slightly slimy to the touch.

“I guess we really should have stayed back at home… there’s not really much else to do around here. Though we still have some free time today… is anyone still down for that hot chocolate?”

Zachery suggests, as the group collectively nods in agreement.

“Welp, at least we got some exercise out of this! I suppose the walk back down the pathway will be a bit more pleasant too, with it being downhill for the most part… plus there’s certainly nothing wrong with working on our calves!”

Ashley jokes whilst stretching, as the picnic blanket is rolled back up after a few stray blades of grass get dusted off by Alvis. Isabella pauses for a moment, turning around and looking back at the cliff, then down at her fish, before facing her friends once more as they get ready to depart back to the portal.

“Actually guys… I think I might hang around here. You go on.”

Zach looks at the dragon, giving a rather bewildered glance at her, as he holds his thick parka coat tighter around his frame in an attempt to trap more of his body heat inside.

“W-What? What’re you on about, Izzy? Why on earth would you wanna stay here? I mean, I know all of that fur must insulate you well, and keep you more toasty than yours truly, but aren’t you… y’know, bloody freezing right now!?”

“I’m rather cold at the moment… but not for long…”

Isabella explains, once again looking down at her fish - its scales shine in the sunlight, with the coldness of the area doing well to keep it nice and fresh.

“It’s been a good while since I’ve had a break from… well, life in general. I think this’d do me a lot of good, honestly.”

Isabella turns around, confused for a moment, as she observes the concerned faces of their friends staring back at her. She thinks for a brief moment, before catching on to the probable cause of their worry.

“Oh! Sorry - I didn’t mean it like that. I just fancy a break from stress… routine… that sort of thing, you know? I have something planned which I can handle myself - it’ll just take a little bit of magic and concentration. Don’t worry, I’ll be back in around a fortnight, if that’s cool with all you lot?”

she clarified. The rest of the group smile, not saying anything, as they exchange quick glances.

“Alrighty then… have fun, I suppose! We’ll meet you back in Mailor. We'll let the menagerie know, and set a fortnight timer- usual protocol, if you don't make the rendezvous… though I’m sure that you already know that.”

Alvis adds, before they turn and begin heading back down the cliff side, towards the interdimensional portal that the crew had made in order to get here. Isabella watches them for a little while - the wind blowing her fur from side to side, as the sounds of her friends’ footsteps treading against the dirt pathway fade gradually, until they reach the portal. One by one, they hop through it, until the last member of the group hops on through to leave the dragon alone.

Finally… some proper quiet.

Isabella savours this for a while, concentrating on the sound of the wind blowing, and some birds chirping away in a nearby oak tree. Nature surrounded her as far as the eye could see, and it made for such a lovely respite… away from the hustle and bustle of regular life. This feeling of tranquillity triggers a gentle smile to spread across Isabella’s face, before she returns to the edge of the cliff, and takes a seat there - her legs dangling off of the edge.

The unusual fruit upon her lap looked far from appetising. Of course, Isabella’s initial plan had been to cook, season, and serve it to her friends, as a part of the now aborted picnic session. But now, this would serve as the catalyst for her transformation - her temporary escape. Right now, Isabella was planning on becoming a Night Fury for a while. The area was perfectly suited to becoming such a beast, and since she loved seafood so much, the dragon’s fishy fruit would make for the perfect trigger. Of course, she had to first bite-off a mouthful of it, in order to trigger the transformation, and in her current state, it certainly won’t taste the best.

Nevertheless, the unpleasant taste would only be temporary, and well worth doing in order to spend some much needed, care-free time as a mighty dragon - a Night Fury. With that in mind, Isabella lifts the haddock fruit to her snout, and takes a large bite out of it. She scrunched her eyes shut, trying to chew it quickly, but thoroughly, before gulping it down; with this act completed, her transformation would begin momentarily, as she stood up and looked down over the cliff…

She takes a deep breath, and jumps.

The wind rushes past her hair, as the dragon plummets down - the side of the rocky cliff whizzing past her, at least from her own point of view. The ground beneath her was obscured by a blanket of thick, fluffy clouds that resembled white cotton candy, and from this height, she seemed to be stationary down there, making it seem as if Isabella wasn’t falling that fast.

she didn’t have a great deal of time to ponder this fact, though, as her attention was then drawn to how tight her clothing had become… the sleeves of her thick, winter coat felt as if she were now a size too small, as the inner lining squeezed the dragon’s arms. Both the amount of fat and muscle contained within her body had begun to increase at an alarming rate, though any discomfort that this was causing was smothered by the thrilling sensation of falling. The wind blasting her body, the cool, crisp alpine air around her, along with that sinking sensation in the groyne… it was a real rush!

“WOOOO!!”

Isabella calls out, plummeting down with a big, silly grin smeared across her face, as she reaches to unzip her jacket, and throw it aside. She briefly considered the fact that she probably should have just asked her friends to take it home with them, before jumping; it’d have saved her losing a coat, but it was far too late for that at this point. Besides, she could just buy another when it was needed.

Underneath her fur, large, black scales begin to grow and spread, layering herself over one another as this pushes out the many hair follicles that cover her body. The rapidly shedding hair forms a trail behind her as she falls - much like a comet, and its tail. With each passing second, her body grows an inch wider and taller, as for a moment, her eyes sting. Isabella shuts them, her claws starting to lengthen during this time, as by the time she's opened, she now sees through brand new emerald green eyes. Blessed with improved, draconian vision, the clouds below can be seen in incredible detail…

It isn’t too long into her fall before the trousers which clung around the legs of Isabella give way, as she is torn apart to allow her growing hind legs some breathing room. Her new muscles bulge and swell, whilst her tail, now hairless and smooth, lengthens considerably. Stretching to around ten feet tall within a few moments, Isabella rolls over in the air to get a better look - out of her new skin, two ridges protrude out of opposite sides at the very end of her tail. These slowly develop, getting larger and larger until she’ve formed into fully-fledged tail fins, the appearance of which somewhat resemble the wings of a bat!

The fae-dragon hybrid flicks her tail up and down, and then side to side, finding that she still has complete control over it, as her hands begin to grow more girthy. An unpleasant assortment of cracking and popping noises emanate from that region, as her bones reshape. One may assume that this would be a highly painful experience, however, and fortunately for Isabella, the process feels oddly pleasant - even ticklish! After a while, either one of her hands has been moulded into the thick, chunky ends of her new front legs, complete with shiny, razor-sharp claws that could probably cut through metal.

Every single area of her body felt powerful… her musculature having been bulked up in all areas by this stage of her metamorphosis, as this feeling of power provides a real high for Isabella. This experience was shaping up to be everything that she had hoped for, and more!

her ears remain large in relation to her head, though the ends became less pointy - more rounded. her old fangs seem to get even sharper, as the width of her skull expands outwards. Two small flaps push out from her jawline on either side, as at this point, no more fur remains on her body - even her long hair has been removed, leaving only jet black dragon scales in her place.

A loud cracking sound echos out from her back, as her spine snaps and contorts to force Isabella into a new stance - one which would have her walking on all-fours once she were on solid ground… and on that note, Isabella had passed through the thick layer of clouds that she had spied a little bit ago. Of course, she had been too distracted with her transformation to notice the sizable distance she’d travelled whilst falling… the ground below could still not be observed, with the fog around them being too thick to see past, even for her improved eyesight.

Isabella worries as to if she should have transformed before jumping, as two large nubs poke out of her back. She lengthens quickly, stretching out before thick skin spreads out from these protruding limbs. This quickly culminates in a set of wings bursting out, and not a moment too soon! At last, the rocky ground comes into view - flying towards her face at terminal velocity, to be precise. Her wingspan is immense, as it spreads out and traps the air beneath her - woosh!

The former fae-dragon pulls up, her new wings and body feeling so natural to her, as she flaps her wings and rises above the floor before she could greet it with her face. It’s rather hard to form a smile in this new form, but if she could, Isabella would most certainly be sporting one at this moment. The view was awe-inspiring… unlike anything she’d seen before, even considering the many fantastical places she’d visited in her life.

She let out a mighty roar, before feeling heat rising out of her body, down her throat, and finally out of her mouth as a ball of plasma shot forth! She pumps her wings, gaining altitude as she soars over the forest below her… this truly was the good life, and Isabella couldn’t wait to take advantage of her new form! Maybe by catching some fish first… Her transformation had really made her work up an appetite!