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As I arrived at Level One, the purple dragon returned in a spectacular soaring dive. It caught the edge of the cliffs with outstretched talons and hung there for a moment. Its rider leapt off, landing solidly on the rim of the cliff – just inches from the edge. The dragon turned his head to the rider as if he were speaking and then ducked low and crept into one of the alcoves. What kept them there? Did they stay of their own accord? Was Raolcan there somewhere? I wanted to see him again. Maybe he would have some ideas for me about how to stay alive. The Dragon Rider gave me a mock salute and then ducked into the alcove after his dragon.
“Amel Leafbrought?” I spun at the sound of Grandis Dantriet’s voice. He smiled. “You must be very eager to be here before the bell has sounded.”
“I didn’t want to be late, sir.”
He looked at me for a long moment, his eyes trailing to my back where my crutch was still fastened. Blushing, I pulled it off my back and secured it under my arm.
“Good thinking,” he said at last. “The first class of the day is Tack and Stables. Your instructor is Anda Elfar.”
I nodded and followed his gaze to an alcove down the ledge. Red curtains swirled outside the door and leather tack hung from more hooks, pegs, and rails than I’d ever seen in one place. I made my way to the alcove and peered inside to see long wooden benches and tables polished to a gleam. They faced a raised dais with various maps pinned up behind it. I took a seat at the nearest bench, hoping I’d chosen correctly.
After a moment, a short, muscled woman with cropped gray hair and a pleasant but weathered face came in and strode to the front of the room. She acknowledged me with a nod but seemed caught up in her own thoughts. Voices from outside the door were soon followed by a wave of other Dragon Rider hopefuls. I recognized Savette and Daedru as well as the dark-haired boy from last night who pitied me, and the red-haired girl who slept below me and definitely did NOT pity me. Judging by their bubbling chatter, most of them were well on their way to becoming friends. I focused on the instructor, waiting for the lesson to begin. I might not be the social princess of our group, but I was here to learn.
“Your first work every morning will be with Tack and Stables. This is the only lesson in my class that will involve any sitting down,” Grandis Anda Elfar’s voice cut through any noise like an axe. “Come to class in the morning prepared to work. Servants clean and cook for us. We clean and feed the dragons. Servants will clean your clothes. We oil and mend the tack for the dragons. See yourself as a servant and the work will be easy. See yourself as above it and you won’t last the week.”
“You’d send us to the servant halls for being bad at Tack?” a golden-haired boy asked.
The Grandis lifted an eyebrow and crossed her arms. “Name?”
“Dannil Evermore.”
“When I began here I was like all of you – foolish and hopeful. A boy named Javen Taydon began in the same wave as I did. He was of high rank and blood.” Anda paused, looking out the massive open windows at the roiling clouds on the horizon. Was she seeing the boy from her past in her mind’s eye? “He was not attentive to his tack. A week into our training he slipped and the mid-strap meant to secure him caught him as he fell – only the stitching holding the buckle was worn. It snapped and he fell to his death. Every time I repair a mid-strap buckle I remember how long he screamed before he hit the ground.” Our silence was filled with horror. “If you fail at Tack and Stables you will not be a servant. You will be dead.”
I swallowed, imagining a boy falling, falling, falling to his death simply because he forgot to check the stitching on a strap. I’d have to take Tack very seriously.
As Grandis Elfar launched into a lecture on oils and stitching, the feeling that I was being watched crept over me. I tried to focus harder. Knowing the correct oils to use and what to look for in our tack was a life or death matter. I couldn’t afford to be distracted. The feeling remained.
“The tack in front of you is the tack assigned to your dragon. Every morning when you clean your dragon’s stall you will inspect and clean your tack.” The Grandis seemed unaffected by whatever was bothering me, her lesson rolling off her tongue like she’d said it a thousand times before – maybe she had.
I glanced over my shoulder and saw a Dragon Rider leaning against the frame of our class window, his bald head cocked to the side. He appeared to be studying me. Purple silk scarves of varying prints fluttered at his neck, elbows and knees and waist. I frowned. Was that the Dragon Rider who had grabbed my hand when I reached for Raolcan? I thought it might be. Somehow, I’d caught his attention and that couldn’t be a good thing.
He was at least five years older than I was, judging by his looks, and his face and head were dark from sun, his unshaven scruff black. I couldn’t tell from his expression if he was judging me or merely curious. Either way, I fought down a shiver. What could he want?
I redoubled my focus on Grandis Elfar. She was explaining what use different stitching was in in the proper function of our tack.
“You will care for your own tack and no one else’s unless asked. Every morning your first tasks will be to care for your tack, muck out your dragon’s stall and carry his water. Failure at any of these tasks will spell disaster. These are not only chores, they are life-giving work. Do not forget that in Dragon School the smallest of tasks is important. Your attention to detail and focus on the little things will determine your ability to do greater things. No one succeeds as a Dragon Rider if they do not attend their tack and stable.”
The red-haired girl from earlier raised a hand and Grandis Elfar nodded to her. “When we are full Dragon Riders and we have the responsibilities of executing the Dominion good, will others care for our dragons?”
I glanced at the window, but the Dragon Rider was gone. I felt strangely disappointed, even though I’d been trying to appear like I didn’t care what he was interested in. Maybe I’d see him here again.
Grandis Elfar looked at a list on the wall before responding, “High Castelan Starie Atrelan?”
“Yes,” the girl agreed.
“Your dragon’s health will always be your own responsibility. Today, to reinforce the need to care for your dragon, you will muck out both his stall and my dragon’s stall – under my supervision. I, like all Dragon Riders, would never leave such an important task to someone else without supervising it myself.”
Starie groaned and I heard a snicker from behind me. Grandis Elfar’s face turned dark.
“You think this is a laughing matter? Your name?”
It was the good-looking dark-haired boy. “Castelan Jael Woelran.”
“We don’t usually muck stalls on the first day, Jael, but it looks like this class will be doing it. They can thank you for the privilege. We’ll talk more about tack tomorrow. Today, we muck stalls. Form a line at the door.”
I hobbled over to where the line was forming and found my place right behind Starie. She looked back at me, grimaced and then sniffed and turned away. What had I ever done to her?
“There’s a hidden pulley system for the buckets,” a voice whispered in my ear.
I turned around to see Savette looking up at the ceiling, an indifferent look on her face. For someone who pretended not to care about me, she sure seemed to be going out of her way to help. I tried to catch her eye to thank her, but Grandis Elfar was already calling us to order.
We followed her brisk pace down the long line of Dragon alcoves. The name of each dragon was carved into the rock above his head. How old and permanent must they be to have someone carve their name in the rock?
The alcoves of the dragons nearest to us were lush and smelled of sweet hay and something nutty. Warm air drifted from them and I thought I saw the glow of braziers within.
“These are Dragon Rider mounts,” Grandis Elfar said as we walked. “They are to be honored and respected. Allies, not servants.”
After long minutes, we turned a corner to a new line of stables along the curve of the ridge.
“These are the mounts of visiting Dragon Riders.” The Grandis called back her explanations in a loud clear voice. I wondered if it was trained to be heard by others in the air. Would it be noisy to fly on the back of a Dragon with air rushing past you from the speed?
These alcoves seemed more uniform and no names or special decorations were present, but they were clean and fresh. They seemed to go on and on to the point where my crutch was irritating my arm pit. I was going to have to get used to this walk. My speed was flagging and the Dannil Evermore pushed past me with three other boys.
“These are the dragons of the Sworn and Inducted. Watch yourself here and do not go to close to the openings. These dragons are not fully trained.”
The stables here were alive with activity. Sworn and Inducted busily cleaned alcoves and hauled water, calling and laughing together. I watched with a hint of longing. They looked like families or very close friends. And they seemed to enjoy their life here as trainees. Perhaps there was a life here for me, if I could find my bearings and make friends.
I glanced behind me. Savette was the only one who hadn’t pushed past me, but I couldn’t catch her eye. She was focused on watching those who ranked above us. Knowing her, she was probably memorizing every detail of their work to lecture us about later. What made a high-born lady in pretty clothes so keen on understanding how things worked? It was an admirable trait to have. If only Savette wasn’t so cold, perhaps we could be friends.
“Don’t fall behind!” Grandis Elfar’s voice cut through my thoughts and I took a deep breath and picked up my pace. I was already winded, but I didn’t dare to show that I couldn’t keep up. “We have now reached the area of recently caught dragons. Watch your step with caution and follow the orders of the Green Dragon Riders. Recently caught or hatched dragons are in their care.”
Here, Dragon Riders with green silk scarves guarded alcoves or worked busily around the alcoves. I couldn’t tell what they were doing, but the work seemed focused and intent.
“Wild Dragons that are caught and then gentled here by a rider form a bond with only that rider for life. The ones raised in captivity lack the spirit and individuality of wild dragons,” Savette said, as if to herself.
So, that was why they had fresh recruits choose and care for a dragon. We had the opportunity to bond with our dragons. It was a very dangerous way to do things. And what kept them contained in their alcoves?
“See the Dragon Riders standing between alcoves? They are maintaining the ward that keeps freshly caught Dragons in their alcoves. Loyal Dragons don’t need to be contained, but Mustang Dragons – wild ones – need to be gentled first.” Savette was still pretending she wasn’t talking to me. Should I ask her a question or go along with her acting? I decided to ask. I needed to be sure I hadn’t heard her wrong.
“Are the Green Dragon Riders going to gentle them?”
She laughed. “No, Amel. We are. Our first job as trainees is to gentle a dragon and take the First Flight. If we live through that first flight, we will have passed the first test and we’ll be considered Initiates of Dragon School.”
Her words were punctuated by the crack of a whip. One of the Green Dragon Riders had cracked his whip to contain a snorting white dragon.
I swallowed. We had to ride a wild dragon to be considered full initiates? No wonder everyone kept thinking I wouldn’t last the week out. If I thought managing narrow rock walkways and ladders with a crutch was bad, how was I going to ride a wild dragon – even Raolcan who seemed to like me? I was going to need all my courage.
I wouldn’t have chosen a girl without courage.
I smiled at his words in my head. I wasn’t alone in this, was I? I had an ally.