Xerxes' new Journey chp7

The two soared through the air for hours.  The weather was much nicer that day…Straef felt like doing flips and dives, but he didn't want to knock off his passenger.  
The clouds surrounded the approaching peaks, making them look like flying islands…or were they flying islands?  Whatever they were, they were tall, dark gray, and keeping all the clouds away from whatever was on the other side.  The rain shadow was what would save them!
"Haaaw—HOOO!!  Haaaw-HOOO!!" Something called from high above.
Straef looked up to see a flock of giant golden birds gliding in the updrafts.  The big one, probably the leader, burbled at him.  It was a warning to not hunt, but they need not fear.  Straef had eaten breakfast already.  
"What is that?" Xerxes asked.
"Altrians," Straef explained, "They're really large birds…big, golden ones!"
Xerxes imagined what they might look like.
The telluridyan beat his wings quickly, darting past the startled birds and straight up the face of a cliff.  If he time it right…
"S, s, Straef!  What are you doing?!" Xerxes cried, holding on for dear life.
The very tip of the rocky crag they were flying up was only a few meters away.  At the exact right moment, Straef extended one talon and grabbed the point, pulling himself up quickly and flinging himself and Xerxes out into open sky and over the mountain range.
"YEAH!!" Straef crowed proudly, turning many loops in the air.
"WAAAAA!!" Xerxes screamed, curling up into a little ball.  His scarf trailed behind, wrapping itself around Straef's talon.
"Oh whoops!  Here, lemme get that…" Straef said, righting himself and untangling the wayfarer's scarf.
"Please don't make me lose my breakfast…"
"I'm sorry…I'll be more careful," Straef apologized, freeing Xerxes' scarf from his talon and letting it float in the breeze.
He looked around at where they were.  There was a gorgeous patch of forest below!  Straef headed down, but soon noticed something very out of place…
A dome was around the forest…but it wasn't an ordinary energy field or net…it looked like it was made of particles.
"What can you see, Straef?" Xerxes asked.
"Well, there is definitely life below…" he said, "But it looks like some sort of fence is in the way."
"Can we fly over it?"
"That's what I'm about to find out…"
Straef glided down toward the structure and saw that it was not a net…in fact, it wasn't one cohesive structure at all!  It was a field of floating silver balls.  They appeared to have no indentations or markings except for one very familiar one…the spiky "A" symbol.  Each one was about twice Straef's size and they had a good ten meters of space between each one.
"Arsenians…  I bet you anything these are air mines!" Straef informed, "They're so far apart…  This is probably for ahrehk'taurs."
The allure of a forest filled with prey was too much for Straef.  He was willing to take his chances with the sky mines.
"Be careful…" Xerxes warned in a whisper.
Straef glided casually between the mines, dipping under the field and then looking around.
"Ta-chunk…whiiiiirrrrr…"
The nearest sky mine twitched and expanded a little.  Black lines appeared across it, which suddenly glowed pulses of green and blue.  
Straef watched with curiosity for a second before he remembered something.
"Oh yes…" he said weakly, "These are not sky mines…they're double beams.  Into the talons, little guy."
Xerxes didn't respond as he was snatched up into Straef's talons.
Straef dove down as fast as his wings would carry him.
The silvery orb opened up, splitting along each hemisphere.  Two beams criss-crossed on the inside…one blue and the other green.  The menacing contraption shot like a rocket toward Straef.
"W, W, WHAT?!"
"Double beams…they chase you and shock you…" Straef explained shortly, peering back, "Oh Spliten, it's after us."
"Fly up to the mountains again!"
"And have more follow us??"
Xerxes became quiet and let the telluridyan do his work.  
Double beams were fast…so fast that it was unfair.  It was catching up to Straef easily.  The telluridyan bolted upward and let it fly under him.  The double beam stopped abruptly and hurried back after them.  
Straef dodged again and the double beam balked and continued to try to catch him in the crossing beams of energy.  It was a very strange bullfight with Straef as the toreador.  
The double beam was getting closer, so he decided it was time to try something else.
"Ok…I hate to do this, Xerxes…" Straef began, hastily gaining altitude, "But I'm going to have to drop you.  I'll pick you up, I promise!"
"Drop me!?  A, Are you sure about this?"
"That thing is attracted to metal…you aren't metal, but I am," Straef could feel the double beam approaching, "Ok happy landings!"
He released his hold on Xerxes.
"STRAAAAEFF!!" Xerxes yelled.
"I'm sorry!"
Straef turned to the double beam, talons open.    He charged at it boldly, withdrawing his claws at the last second and soaring over.  He looked back, making sure the double beam was following him.
Straef swooped down toward a rocky ledge, wings held against his head and sides to gain speed.  He flipped over to watch the double beam and timed his fall accordingly.  
The double beam was almost upon him.  His eyes burned looking at the intense energy in its core, but he forced himself to keep an eye on it.
"Allllmooosst…" Straef said to no one.
Straef knew he was close to the ground.  He had captured enough prey to know how quickly he could fall.  He shot out a talon, grabbed the double beam by the top part.  If he had missed or even slipped, he would be in a whole world of pain.  He turned upward again, swinging the captured mechanism downward into the rocks.
A crackling noise came from the double beam, but Straef was not done yet.  He latched his other talon on and flew along the mountainside in an oscillating pattern, bashing the double beam into rocks over and over.  The two beams of light inside died out and one of the outside casings fell off.  Straef smacked it into the ground several more times just to be safe, then let it drop on a boulder.  
What was left of the double beam broke into three pieces.  
Straef landed easily next to the largest of the pieces.  It was nothing more than garbage now.  
He grabbed the scrap in his talons and flew with it, looking proud as if he had captured prey.  
"Too bad you aren't here, Xerxes…you missed a heck of a dogfight!"
Straef glided over the treetops, retracing his steps back to where he dropped the wayfarer.