Ground and Glare

Rumble. Weight settles into my talons. Stone presses back beneath my tread. Ahead, intense golden lightning crackles across the open sky, blazing with fierce radiance. I do not retreat. I anchor my tail against the rock and hold my ground, measuring the brilliance. Breath stirs inside my chest. My jaws part, letting forth a low, measured vibration that cuts through the rush of falling water. One heavy step forward. My claw strikes the jagged ledge, testing the stone. It holds. I stand firm. The world remains beneath me.