Thunder rumbled, echoing off the great slabs of concrete and stone that littered the city's outskirts. The crackling atmosphere made Clover's hair rise, though no rain had fallen yet. She was not sure what she would do if another round of terrible storms blew over the territory; if Inferni could not survive, their tiny troupe of loners could not, either. She would at least have to move Vesper somewhere dry and sheltered if the floodwaters rose again.
She moved through the broken streets, sniffing around, the whites of her eyes barely visible in what amounted to near pitch darkness. It was midnight, whatever light cast from the moon and stars smothered by the layer of dark stormclouds. Clover did not like being out in unfamiliar territory at such a black hour, but the desire for food led her here -- hoping that the rats and cats that still crawled through the overgrown fringes of the Concrete Jungle would provide a late dinner.
It was the stench of cat piss that led her down this trail, though the sharp odor of ozone overtook that of amonia after half a mile. She doubled back, snuffling along the ground and pricking her matted ears at small plinks of scattered, solitary raindrops against metal.
Lightning flashed, and the white light illuminated a massive, draconic form in the darkness. Clover's insides clenched and twisted, and she jerked back with a startled bark --
Then blackness again, and a few beats later the thunder chased its bolt.
