sky; the skies; high-altitude sky; upper air
weird; eerie; ominous; creepy; uncanny; unearthly
to laugh; to smile; to sneer; to ridicule; to be dumbfounded; to be flabbergasted
mysterious bird; strange bird; eerie bird; monster that has taken the form of a bird
innumerable; countless; numberless
to dance (orig. a whirling dance); to whirl (in the wind); to flutter (about); to swirl
flapping of wings; wingbeat; flap; flutter
together with; as X, then Y (e.g. as we age we gain wisdom, as wine matures it becomes more valuable, etc.)
feather; plume; wing; blade (of a fan, propeller, etc.); shuttlecock (in badminton); shuttlecock (in hanetsuki); arrow feathers
to burn; to roast; to broil; to heat; to heat up; to make (charcoal, pottery, bricks, etc.); to bake
attack; assault; criticism; censure; cyber attack (e.g. DDoS)
in succession; one by one
shooting down (an aircraft)
thank you; thanks; much (thanks); very (sorry); quite; really; somehow
at a disadvantage; in an unfavourable position; having poor prospects; standing little chance
to fill to capacity; to pack; to complete; to tessellate
to run around; to bustle about
flame; blaze; fire; attack; aggression
here and there; in twos and threes; sporadically; now and then; from time to time; occasionally
watchful waiting; careful supervision
followers; subordinates; being under someone's command
selection; sorting; culling; screening; triage
another; one more; (not) quite; (not) very; lacking
to place on (something); to give (someone) a ride; to give a lift; to load (luggage); to carry; to send out (on the airwaves, etc.); to deceive
black; black stone; guilt; guilty person
to flutter (e.g. a flag); to wave; to reverberate (e.g. thunder); to resound
revolution; rotation; turning; turning (an aircraft or ship)
look; glimpse; apparently; seemingly; (arch.) first meeting
actually; really; truly; in practice; practically
to give; to confer; to bestow; to kindly do for one; to oblige; to favour
eagerly; earnestly; ardently
it cannot be helped; there's nothing for it; it's no use fighting back; it's hopeless; there is no way out of it
reins; bridle; control; the reins (on)
coach (horse-drawn); carriage; wagon; cart
impatience; irritation; frustration; fretfulness
to keep within limits (e.g. spending); to restrain (e.g. emotions); to control; to hold back (e.g. an enemy); to check; to curb
a short while ago; just now; already; for a long time
street; road; traffic; coming and going; flow (of water, air, etc.); passage; transmission (of sound)
battle; war; fight (against time, poverty, etc.); struggle (for freedom, survival, etc.); contest; competition