The dragon, Saphira, quickly grows to adulthood and the two form a close bond. Weta Digital handled the transformation sequence that moves Saphira from fledgling to adult as she flies alone through the clouds as well as the opening sequence with multiple dragon riders fighting in a fiery landscape and the end battle during which a helmeted and armoured Saphira fights a grotesque smoky beast. They created the vast battle environment using the CityBot software developed for King Kong. Animators sold the intimate performances between dragon and child through carefully crafted expressions of emotion that kept the magic of the story alive.