Heavy.

The rain threatened to open a hole in the sky at any moment. The air carried twice its weight in moisture; flying through the thickening sky made my wing beats twice as strenuous. Humidity not only from the air, but from the heart below pulled a final burst of sweat over my coat. I flapped away from him as he fell to my kick, massive, tobiano body swaying in the shoves of dark atmosphere. Rich eyes fought to pierce the navy shadow below to be swallowed by the thickening dark. I had no idea how far he fell because of the inky claim night had on us. New, steadying raindrops were but flinging into my face as I roared on, attempting to locate the emerald eyed stallion of whom I’d underestimated.

Visibility was key in aerial combat, and the true challenge was finding the white-winged warrior. I fled his presence as I knocked him down, hoping to the weight of the sun’s godly heat that the brute’s Thoroughbred flesh had succumbed to impact with the soil, but I was still somewhere in the sky, a prey to the flashes of lighting that came close enough to stand my hair on end. In each flash of cloud-contained energy I saw a red streak of fear blink in my vision. The inky night settled in at that moment, and I dove. My haunches curled under to a close range of paired lightning strikes and the pang of electricity. I was naked to the hungry arms of storm. My body flew alive and uncloaked. Rapidly, feeling the wind scream into my ears as my wings gave way to the loud, thundering of the chaotic striking behind me. I was far too high to hit the ground in an instant, but my eyes still searched the glow of the Heart. Perhaps I was too far from its radiant bloom of heat. Had it gone out to a few raindrops?

But my eyes readjusted to the wind, narrowing to let my lashes protect my lenses and found the Heart with a victorious slam of my tail. A smile formed on my lips and my wings took pilot of my amazon body, swerving right, to the direction of the red glow. The air felt heavier here, and the muscles in my wings pulled hard against the joint, ferociously slapping the helter-skelter drafts of upheaval. The warmth of the heart set my body a red glow as I came ever close to the squirming body of water and fire.

Just in that instant he hit me.

Murdock’s pale eyes found mine as he dove into my left side with a stronger surge of force. Gravity grabbed us both at that instant and we fell. He grappled me, pearly teeth connecting with the curve of my crest and pain shocked my neck. I felt frozen in his grasp, but the stillness and the stinging of the rain lit a fire in my thoughts. I twisted under him, feeling his teeth pull on my mane as I squirmed under his hold. There was a short amount of time before we’d connect with the ground so I shook my head, kicking out in all directions just in the mere attempt of freeing myself. That was when I realized my haunches were free from his tangle of hold. I flailed my right wing, finding purchase on the air in attempt to lift my balance enough to swing my legs around to kick the stallion’s ebony hide. I saw nothing but the white of his wings as I twisted away, trying to spin in the air, using my right wing as leverage. The only leverage.

But before there was anything more, he let go. My body tumbled in the air and I braced myself as I saw the fire lit grasses come strikingly close in my eyes as a flash of lighting lit up my tumble. My wings spread out as soon as I found balance, and my body straightened out under their hold. I was so close, too close. My haunches attempted to jam down against the wind, and I made a tiny swerve upwards. Just enough to keep from a deathly collision. My lowered haunches found the ground first and they dug into the grasses, dirt climbing up to my pasterns in depth, and I fell on my forehand. My knees smacked the ground hard and it tipped me into a roll. Wings were relaxed enough then to stay unharmed underneath my body’s spin. All movement stopped and I was flat out.

My eyes opened and my chest heaved. My head lifted and I pushed up. Eyes began to search for Murdock, but my body felt weak. I shook, soaked, muddied.

"Good fight", I muttered.

He got me good.

ooc; 800 words -- defense -- 1/1
Awesome fight, Gaz!