Dragon School: Mark of Loyalty

Dragon School, Volume 12

Sarah K. L. Wilson

Published by Sarah K. L. Wilson, 2018.

This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

DRAGON SCHOOL: MARK OF LOYALTY

First edition. May 25, 2018.

Copyright © 2018 Sarah K. L. Wilson.

Written by Sarah K. L. Wilson.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Behind the Scenes:

To all those who stand for truth.

Chapter One

Leng was all business as we gathered around the fires. The rescued Lightbringers huddled together, damp and bedraggled from the storm and the days of imprisonment. I was just glad that we were free. I wasn’t born for a cage.

No one is.

“We rest for one hour,” Leng said. “I can’t afford longer than that. We recovered twenty horses. As many Lightbringers as can ride should scatter on horseback.  Jastar Leghorn, former purser for Umtal City.” He gestured to a greying man with a solid frame, “has agreed to help formulate a plan to help you divide up and reach as many cities and towns as possible. We need to rally the Lightbringers in other cities before they are rounded up and sent to Dominion City. Any Castelans who can be convinced to join our cause should join us. We must not allow the Dusk Covenant to succeed in destroying the Dominion.”

There were murmurs of agreement.

“We’ll leave the human prisoners – our former guards - in the cages here,” Jastar said. “I, myself, will lead those of us who don’t have horses on foot to the nearest Lightbringer safehouse. One of those who takes a horse will stop in a nearby village to tell them about these prisoners. That should give us enough time to scatter before we are pursued. We don’t have a place to keep them but leaving them here indefinitely is a death sentence.”

“What about their black dragons?” Haskell asked from the crowd of freed prisoners.

“Those will come with me,” Leng said, a dark look in his steady eyes. “We will bear them as prisoners to the lands of Haz’drazen.”

“We could use the aid of your dragons,” Jastar said, looking longingly at the wild dragons as they circled our camp. The rain had stopped, and it was easier to see their silhouettes pass across the moon now that the clouds were drifting away.

“Impossible, I’m afraid. Haz’drazen has sent word that all loyal dragons are to return to her lands to await her orders. We must leave before dawn, and the dragons with us.”

Jastar nodded and then called to two others to join him as they discussed the best course. They’d deal with this situation. We had our own troubles to deal with.

Leng gave them a brisk wave of farewell and then stalked toward Ahlskibi. He was resting beside Raolcan, Rasipaer, and Kyrowat, waiting for us to return.

I followed his quick strides, barely keeping up - even with my crutch flying at my side like a third leg. It had been amazing to walk – even for those few minutes – without difficulty or assistance. Since we’d healed Savette, my leg had slowly begun to ache. It felt worse after so many days without pain – especially now that I was injured on top of that. It was funny how you could get used to a thing. I’d gotten used to painlessness.

“Leng?”

He turned to me with a tired smile, a question in his gaze. He felt more – in charge – than he had the last time I’d seen him. And older. More weary and worn. I wondered what he’d seen when he liberated the captives of Saldrin. Because he must be the Dragon Rider rumor said had taken the city for a day - long enough for the refugees to flee for safety.

“We have a man named Shonan with us, riding Ashana Willowspring’s dragon. He needs to journey to the lands of Haz’drazen with us.”

Leng nodded, like his mind was on something else. “Shonan?”

“It’s important. Rasipaer was separated from Ashana.”

“Of course.”

Should I tell him that Shonan was the Dominar? Was it my secret to tell?

We joined the others where they were huddled, wet and dirty, in a ring close to the dragons. Shonan was missing, but I bit my lip as I considered whether I should speak his secret aloud. Hubric would probably caution against it. And Leng seemed preoccupied, like he’d suddenly been hit by a huge thought.

“All wounds bound up?” Leng asked.

“Yes,” Haskell answered him. “I saw to everyone.”

She’d even bandaged my leg where I’d been stabbed, tying it up with a poultice she’d made from supplies found in our captors’ tents.

“You’re not a Dragon Rider,” Leng said carefully. “You should return to the others. They have plans.”

“She’s with me,” Hubric said, protectively.

I felt my eyebrows rise. He planned to bring her with him? That was decidedly unlike the Purple Dragon Rider.

He has his reasons.

What reasons?

Like you, Hubric’s eyes are clouded with human foolishness.

Well, we were human, after all.

And you humans have the worst instincts about the right time to fall in love.

In love? Hubric? But he was so ... so old.

I’m pretty sure that doesn’t make him immune. It also doesn’t make him immune to flames and Kyrowat is considering that method to cure him of his foolishness.

Leng nodded, looking concerned, like his mind still wasn’t with us. “Then, we all need to leave together. I’m assuming all the dragons here are loyal to their Queen. We need to make haste. Haz’drazen has called all loyal dragons home, but more than that, Starie Atrelan and the Hand of the Dusk Covenant ride for the Lands of Haz’drazen. She’s been boasting that she will make the Queen of Dragons bend to her will. That can’t be good.”

I clenched my jaw.

Well, don’t fear for Haz’drazen. Fear for Starie. My Queen will rip her into pieces.

I shuddered.

Probably not while you’re watching.

That didn’t make it much better.

Probably.

“Can these dragons all fly?” Leng asked.

“Kyrowat can,” Hubric said. “Haskell will fly with us.”

“Raolcan can fly,” I said. Not that I wanted him to just yet. I was worried about those bites. “He’ll carry me and Savette.”

Stop fussing over me. I’ve told you so many times, I’m tough! I’ll be fine!

“Then we can leave almost immediately. Collect whatever supplies you can. There’s a safehouse to the south, but most of them have been destroyed by the Dusk Covenant or picked over by fleeing Lightbringers, so don’t expect much.”

“We’ve already collected whatever we could find,” Hubric said, holding up a meager bundle of blankets and waterskins.

I squinted my eyes and saw that he had saddled our dragons while we’d been busy.

I like this saddle. It’s a warrior one. You’re going to love it, too. Streamlined. Two-seater. Lots of straps for you and extra padding for me.

Leng cleared his throat. “I wish I could give you better news from the north and better hope, but our days are long and hard with many battles and more to come. It’s not time to whine about that, but there will be hardships and bad news without much good to help us bear it. I saw your signal – that burst of light in the sky and I came for you.” He smiled at me. “And I’m so glad that I did. It’s good to have you all join us for our flight to Haz’drazen. May she show us mercy when we finally arrive.”

She will. That boy has grown since you saw him last. He’s got a spine of iron.

He’d need it. We all would before this was over.

“Where’s the man you mentioned, Amel?” Leng asked, his forehead wrinkling in an anxious fashion. “We should get him here, so we can mount up and get going.”

“Sorry, I was just looking for a cloak,” Shonan said, emerging from behind Rasipaer. There was a cloak under his good arm, easy to see as the moonlight spilled over him.

Beside me, Leng gasped. “Shonan? It’s really you!”

“Leng?”

I gasped as Leng took off like a bounding puppy, rushing forward and throwing his arms around the ruler of our Dominion as if he was a childhood friend.

Chapter Two

“Leng! It is you!” Shonan’s deep voice cracked slightly as they parted from their embrace.

“Your arm!”

“Lost to the enemy.”

“I thought for sure ...” Leng’s own voice wavered and I realized as I listened to them both that there was a similarity to the sound of their voices. He started again. “I thought for sure I wouldn’t see you again in this life. When they came for you it seemed certain that ... that ...”

“That my path would be a lonely one?”

Leng nodded. His hand was clapped on Shonan’s shoulder.

“Older brother, it’s like you’re back from the dead.”

Shonan’s laugh was harsh. “I feel more like someone stole my life than that they gave it back.”

“That’s no life.”

“Trust me, the man who stole it will make death grow where once the living flourished. He’ll poison the minds of all who follow him and sow arguments and treachery in his path.”

So, Leng knew that Shonan had been the Dominar? He knew that somehow his mask and crown were taken?

Well, if they were brothers then he must have been there the day Shonan was chosen to be the Dominar.

How did that happen? How was a new Dominar chosen? I thought they were born in a family like Castelans.

We really should have made sure you read those textbooks back at Dragon School.

I did try before they disbanded the school.

Because if we had, then you would know that the Dominar is chosen by the Council. When the Dominar dies or is otherwise unable to continue to reign, the Council takes a bag of stones, each one with a district carved on it.

For the district that they draw out, another bag is produced – the bag containing stones from each city and village of the district. From that bag, a stone is drawn. The Council travels to that place and there, the names of each family are written out and the council draws out one name, burning the rest in a ceremonial fire.

From that family, the name of every person, unmarried between the ages of fifteen and seventy-five, is written out and again, a name is drawn.

That person is crowned and masked and their name is forgotten. There is a funeral for them, as if they had died that day – because they have. From that day forward, they have no family, no friends, no life. They will not marry or bear children. They are the mask and the crown and nothing else.

I felt my eyes sting with fresh tears. So Leng wasn’t lying when he said he’d received his brother back from the dead.

“Ride with me, brother,” Leng said, his voice rough. “We can catch up as we fly.”

And if Ahlskibi lets anything slip, I’ll be sure to let you know.

That didn’t quite help the jealousy souring my belly as I turned to mount Raolcan. I’d only just got Leng back and I already had to share him with someone he loved more.

Not more. Just different. Like how you love me.

I helped Savette up on Raolcan’s back - she was still weak from being healed – and then placed a foot in a stirrup. A hand on my back stopped me before I pushed up into the saddle.

“Don’t think I’ve forgotten you, Amel Leafbrought.”

I turned and was surprised by Leng’s sudden kiss and quiet chuckle. “I saw that jealous back you turned on me.”

Perceptive.

“I’m not jealous.”

Liar.

He laughed again. “We’ll catch up, too. We’ll try to get to the Sapphire Springs chalet. If it still stands, we can rest there this evening. I’ll show you the hot springs. They’re a sight to see.”

Now that sounded very good. I forced a smile. “I thought we were in a hurry.”

“Not too much of a hurry for that.”

My smile this time was genuine. “I’m glad that you have your brother back, Leng.”

“Just don’t listen to anything he says about me. None of it is true.” He was smiling as he warned me.

And now I was incredibly curious about what Shonan might say.

So am I.

He kissed me again, rushing away as soon as he was done. I cleared my throat and mounted Raolcan, carefully strapping my crutch in place while Savette adjusted her blindfold.

“Ready to go?” I asked her.

“There’s something different about this trip, Amel,” Savette said in a far-away voice. “Something big is about to take place.”

And with her portentous words ringing in our ears, we launched into the night sky.

Chapter Three

Our first stop was at a ramshackle farm just after dawn. Kyrowat dropped down from the sky to land in the farmyard and the dragons with riders joined him in the bare dirt. The house and barn stood with doors open, squeaking on their hinges. The grass had grown long and died around the doorstep and over the paths between the buildings. No one had been here for a long time.

“What is this place?” Savette asked.

“A dust storm came through this area about a decade ago,” Hubric said. “Most farmers picked up and left when their crops stopped coming up. The wells are still good, for the most part. The water came back a few years ago.”

He dismounted and hobbled over to the well, cranking up the bucket. I slid my crutch free, checking on Raolcan as he licked his healing wounds. He was healing remarkably quickly.

Told you so. We heal quickly and I heal even quicker than most dragons.

Why was that?

Willpower.

One of these days I was going to figure out when he was joking about things. In the meantime, I went to explore the house. We weren’t well supplied. If anything at all had been left behind, it could come in handy.

The house was built of wood slats and a dry dusty smell pervaded everything. Someone had taken the time to carve the ceiling beams and doorposts. They’d handcrafted shelves and the fireplace was river rock. Someone had loved this house once. Now, every room was coated in a thick layer of dust. I went from room to room, but each was bare and empty. Would my family home be like this after war swept through our land?

The last room I checked was an old panty. On the top shelf, a battered kettle and a twisted spoon were all that remained. I looked in the top of the kettle. It was clean on the inside, but black and battered on the outside. Maybe if we found some sort of herbs somewhere, Hubric could have tea again. That would cheer him up.

I turned to leave and almost ran into Leng. He leaned casually against the pantry doorpost, his eyes tired.

“When did you last sleep?” I asked him.

“There will be time enough for sleep when all this is done.”

“The war you mean?” He was pushing himself too hard. He was looking thinner. “Wars can take a long time.”

He shrugged. “Life, I guess. You only get one crack at it. I think it’s best to squeeze as much as you can out of those few years.”

“You aren’t a dragon, Leng. You can’t go into a deep sleep later to recover. You need your rest.”

He smiled. “You sound like a mother.”

“Your mother?”

His face went dark for a moment, but then he shook his head. “Getting Shonan back as a brother ... well, it brings back memories. Some memories hurt like old wounds. You seem to know about Shonan. Who he was. What happened to him. How is that possible?”

I flushed. Was he going to tear into me the way Hubric had when he found out? He had a dangerous look in his eye.

“When the Dominar lost his arm, it got infected. The infection was spreading, so we had to remove the rest of his arm to save him. He was feverish and sick. Someone had to take that mask off to help him.”

I jutted my chin out defiantly. I was sick of being judged for just trying to help. His expression was still grim. I clenched my jaw in response, holding the battered kettle between us like a wall. “You weren’t there, so you don’t know. It was inhuman to let him suffer without helping. I couldn’t let that happen. I couldn’t ... You weren’t there.”

I was looking at the ground now. I had nothing to be ashamed of, so why did I feel so bad? I let my compassion override the rules. So what? If anything was clear about me by now, it should be that I was always going to do that. I wiped my face with my sleeve. When had I started crying? The sleeve hitched up uncomfortably, but my other hand was full with my crutch and the kettle, so I couldn’t fix it.

“Amel? What’s on your arm?” Something in his voice had changed.

I looked down, surprised to see a bright mark on my arm, like a tattoo made of light. It was the sign of the Lightbringers, surrounded by swirling patterns, a mirror image to the one on Shonan’s arm. When he’d embraced mine and we’d fought to save Savette that mark on his arm had glowed bright. Now, here it was on my arm, bright as his. He’d left his mark on me.

Leng looked pale and his Adam’s apple bobbed, like he was swallowing while he was considering the mark on my arm. After a second, he took two sudden steps towards me and took my wrist in his hand. I flinched, expecting a rough grip, but his hands were gentle as he drew my wrist to his lips and kissed it. He tugged my sleeve down over my wrist and spoke quietly, almost reverently.

“Don’t show that to anyone else. Keep it covered up. Promise me.”

“I promise. Why do I need to keep it a secret?”

“It’s better if you don’t know.”

“Would someone else know if they saw it?”

He shrugged, looking uncomfortable and uncertain all at once, but then he gave me one of those brilliant smiles of his.

“Thank you for being you, Amel. For being the girl who cares so much about a dying man that she’s willing to face death to give him a little relief.” His voice faltered for a moment. “For being the girl so willing to sacrifice herself that she’s marked for the good of others. You ... I’m not worthy of you.”

What was he even talking about? Of course, I’d helped the Dominar. Anyone who wasn’t evil like Iskaris would have done that much. And all this symbol meant to me was that I’d been willing to help Savette. Nothing more than that. Nothing that anyone wouldn’t have done.

“You have it backward, Leng.” I smiled, taking his hand in mine. “I’m thankful every day for your friendship. Were you able to talk with your brother?”

He nodded gravely.

“Good. Then let’s keep going. I want to see these hot springs.”

We left the farmhouse hand in hand, but I was so curious now about the mark that I barely noticed Hubric’s excitement over the battered kettle. I barely noticed it when we took off again, flying south. It wasn’t until Savette tapped me on the shoulder to show me a mountain chalet in the distance that I even paid attention to where we were flying.

That’s why I do all the work around here.

Maybe Raolcan knew what the mark of light on my arm meant.

Maybe I do.

Maybe he’d tell me, then,

I think Leng is right. Best not to know. But definitely don’t show it to anyone.

I could have just about kicked him. Why wouldn’t he tell me?

Seriously? He wouldn’t tell you, so you told him how much he means to you. I won’t tell you and you want to kick me? That’s grossly unfair, Amel. It’s prejudice against dragons.

Chapter Four

The mountains, it turned out, were a series of foothills just north of the dormant volcanoes that marked the Lands of Haz’drazen. Nestled in their rocky protection, was a timber chalet, standing in a grove of trees so massive that they made the dragons appear to be the size of humans.

Exhausted wild dragons spread out through the mountainous forests, while we humans and our dragons made our way to the chalet.

We’re going to leave you humans here while we hunt. We haven’t eaten in far too long.

I hadn’t even thought of that, but I should have.

I caught sight of mountain sheep. If you wouldn’t mind, could you hurry up with that saddle? My mouth is already watering...

Savette helped me hurry to unsaddle Raolcan and while we were still dragging the last strap off his girth, he wiggled free and took off. Kyrowat leapt in the air right behind him, coughing a fireball at his heels and within seconds, we humans were left to fend for ourselves.

Savette was looking stronger and her steps were more sure as we settled Raolcan’s saddle on the ground. I kept watch on her out of the corner of my eye, but she didn’t seem to require any kind of help. The healing did exactly what Shonan had promised it would. Which was good, right? Because it meant I hadn’t given up my own healing for nothing.

“What is this place?” Haskell asked, wonder filling her eyes.

“A Lightbringer sanctuary, known only to us. A place for those in need to seek refuge,” Hubric said, smiling kindly. “Come, there should be tea and foods stored here, as well as clothes to replace our ruined ones.”

After what we’d been through over the last few weeks, that sounded like heaven. I followed them tiredly into the massive chalet, climbing the stairs up to the entrance with a smiling Savette. Leng and Shonan brought up the rear, silent, but in a way that spoke of contentment rather than coldness.

When we followed Hubric in the massive Great Room, I felt my whole body relax. Lush furnishings filled the room with wide windows that led out to a sprawling terrace. Bear rugs were laid out on the massive stone floor and wide tapestries hung over the shining, polished wood walls. In the center of the Great Room, a chimney led upward and under it stood a ring of stone masonry, wood for a fire laid out in the center of it.

“I’m going to find the storeroom. If there’s food, we’re going to eat,” Haskell said.

“I’ll come with you. This dress is a disaster.” Savette’s dress was so muddy and torn that it barely looked white anymore.

I didn’t want to go anywhere. I just wanted to stand here for a moment and drink up the beauty of this place. How long ago was the last time that I could just sit somewhere and enjoy the look of the place without fleeing for my life?

Hubric bent over the fireplace with his flint in hand and Leng went out to check on the dragons.

“After they’re done feeding, I need to send another messenger on ahead to tell Haz’drazen that we are drawing near,” he explained as he left. “It would be impolite to surprise her.”

Silent as a ghost, Shonan slipped out onto the wide terrace just outside the great room and I followed him. I wanted to sit down and rest, but this was more important. I stole a glance at his forearm. Could I see a faint glow under his sleeve? Or had he transferred his glowing mark to me?

He stood - as if he didn’t see me - looking off into the distance, a look of concern on his face.

“It’s not so easy to walk away, is it?” I asked.

He smiled slightly but didn’t answer, as if he was working out a problem too great for me to understand.

“Does your arm pain you?”

“Don’t concern yourself about it. I have endured worse.”

Worse than a lost limb? That was hard to fathom. It was hard not to take his injury seriously when I’d been the one to bandage it the first time.

“Haskell is an apothecary. She could help you to dress it.”

He nodded, and I could tell by his body language that he didn’t want to talk, but I had something to say and I needed to say it while Hubric and Leng were busy, because I had a feeling that they wouldn’t like it at all. It kept springing to mind every time I saw Shonan and every time that I thought about Iskaris behind his silver mask, lord of the Dominion and in charge of all our resources...

“I don’t think that the mask is the man,” I blurted out. “I mean. I see why they do it that way, but I think that you can’t separate an idea from the thing it’s meant to be attached to and that thing is you - not some inanimate piece of metal. To me, you’re still our Dominar.” My face was already hot, but I pressed on. “And if you want to do something about that – if, maybe, you want to fight back and try to take back what’s yours - then I think you should know that I’m with you. I’ll help you.”

He still didn’t look at me, and when he eventually spoke his words were slow and deliberate. “That sentiment is treason.”

“Treason is just a word that means you’re loyal to the wrong thing. I’m loyal to you. There’s nothing wrong about that.”

But I wasn’t ready to get in more trouble. My face hot with embarrassment and worry, I scurried back into the chalet.

Chapter Five

Leng was whispering to Hubric when I entered the great room. He smiled and held out a hand.

“Let’s look at those hot springs before it gets too dark.”

I took his hand with a smile but underneath I was worried. I just knew that both he and Hubric were going to be upset when they heard what I’d told Shonan. I didn’t want to admit it to him, but I didn’t want to have to wait and wonder if Shonan had told him, either.

We walked out of the chalet, following a narrow winding path along the side of the mountain.

“This mountain was a volcano at one point. I don’t know if that’s why the pool is hot, or if it’s a magical thing. Either way, I’ve never seen a pool like this one before.”

Above us, dragons circled, coming and going, guarding the prisoners they’d taken and bringing back meat. They filled the sky – even here where I could see a long way off from the mountain. I admired their various colors. The reds were crusted and thick-scaled and so were the golds. The greens and blacks were a little larger than the others, the whites almost ethereal in how they dove through the clouds. I almost wished I could know them all as well as I knew the purples.

Why? We’re the best color. The others are fine, I suppose, but you wouldn’t hear their thoughts and they don’t think much of humans. You’re like wolves to them. Interesting, possibly harmful, you disrupt the ecosystem from time to time, but not really interesting conversationalists.

Well, that put me in my place.

Like I said, that’s other dragons. Not Purples. We care about people.

He thought that Purples were the mushy-hearted ones? Purples who happily flamed people and were insulted at the slightest thing?

We’re still dragons. Don’t mistake our soft-heartedness for weakness.

Sometimes I thought I knew everything about him, and then he said something like this and I realized I knew nothing at all.

“Here we are,” Leng said as we rounded a corner that opened up into a round rocky pool with rock walls on every side except for the small winding path that snuck between them. The minerals in the pool and surrounding it were a bright blue that slowly bled into green and then a bright gold as it moved from pool to rock walls. No wonder they called this place Sapphire Springs! I gasped at the beauty of it. “Worth the wait?”

“Absolutely!”

His smile was infectious and joy threatened to chase my own worries away as I dipped my hand in the warm pool, and then with care, lowered myself to the ground, stowed my crutch to one side, and carefully worked my boots loose to let my tired feet soak in the pool. The warmth and a tingling sensation embraced my feet and slowly began to relax my muscles and clear my mind.

“The minerals of the pool – or the magic of it, if that’s what it is – have a soothing quality for the mind,” Leng said. “The last time I was here I had just joined the Lightbringers. I think I spent the entire night in this pool.”

“Did you really conquer Saldrin and save all the refugees?” I asked.

He blushed. “Is that what you heard?”

“I really admire that.” More than that. I thought he was the best of heroes. He hadn’t been ordered to fight that battle – he’d done it just to help people. He could have just turned around and fled when he realized the city was occupied.

“I just couldn’t let them hurt people who had nothing to do with all of this. You know? They didn’t ask for a war. They didn’t ask for their homes to be ruined and their lives destroyed.”

“This whole mess is like that. None of this had to happen. We were all fine before this started and our enemies could have just enjoyed their families and their work and eaten some good dinners and lived their lives without starting all this.”

He snorted. “People aren’t like that. They aren’t content to just live simple lives that don’t hurt anyone. There’s always this kind of undercurrent in people driving them forward to either good things or really bent, gnarled things. It’s not that they just wake up one day and decide to start a fight. This kind of thinking is just building up in them all the time, like the tick of a clock, like the beat of a heart, it’s the rhythm they think their thoughts to. Selflessness, courage, honor – these things are as strange and unintelligible to them as evil and cruelty are to you.”

But evil wasn’t always unintelligible to me. I’d wanted to murder Iskaris in cold blood, hadn’t I? Even if I hadn’t done it, the thought was there. Maybe I wasn’t listening to my rhythm as well as I should be. I stared at my feet and bit my lip.

“What are you thinking of, Wind-rider?”

“Why do you call me that?” I asked, avoiding the question. I felt my cheeks heating up. Maybe it was just the hot spring doing that.

“It’s the way I think of you. You’re like the wind. I never know where you are or where you’ll turn up.”

Personally, I like that. The wind is powerful and untameable – like me.

I smiled, still looking at my feet. “I like that.”

“Wind-rider?”

“Hmmm?” He was so sweet. Far too sweet. I didn’t deserve him.

“What were you thinking of?”

The sun was low now and dusk was upon us. I looked up into his dark eyes, twinkling in the last rays of the sun and I couldn’t help myself. He deserved the truth.

“I think your brother still deserves to be the Dominar and I told him so. I told him that I’d help him try to get it back.”

His face went ghostly pale.

Chapter Six

He leaned toward me and I stiffened, expecting a threat, but instead, he wrapped me in his arms.

“Chaos follows you, Wind-rider.”

“Chaos?” I was definitely not a chaotic person! People like Starie were chaotic. People like Iskaris. I just wanted to keep things on the right course.

“No one else but you would think that speaking treason aloud – and to him! – was a good idea. Listen, Amel, I love how you love truth and loyalty. I love how you’re full of compassion and want the best for your friends, but please, please, don’t say this to anyone else! You could get yourself imprisoned - or killed - with those words.”

He kept me in a close hug while he spoke, and I liked the feeling – like he was trying to protect me from myself. It didn’t mean I was wrong, though.

“When Shonan was the Dominar, I wasn’t allowed to know him anymore. I wasn’t allowed to speak about him. I wasn’t allowed to ever acknowledge that he was part of our family. I lost him. And I thought it was forever.”

I got that. After all, I had to leave my family for their own good.

“If Shonan is not the Dominar, then Iskaris is,” I said. “You haven’t met him. You don’t know what a terrible man he is. When we were in the warrens, he tried to kill Shonan.”

“My brother told me that.” Now that the sun was sinking, the only warmth was his arms around me and the warm pool. “He told me that you saved him, too. Thank you for that, Amel.” He leaned in to kiss my forehead and then pulled back again, pulling his feet out of the water and tugging his boots back on. “But you have to know that I just can’t ask him to go back to that. He wasn’t a man, he was a mask - living without love or friendship. He shouldn’t have had to give himself up like that – even if it was for the good of the Dominion - and I won’t ask him to do it again.”

I swallowed, pulling my own boots back on again. What had I hoped for? I guess I’d hoped he’d see it my way even though I was sure he wouldn’t like the idea. I guess I’d hoped that underneath it all, we had the same goals. He was a good man – but if he was good, why couldn’t he see what I saw.

Ha! There’s some dragon-level arrogance right there! Yes, if someone doesn’t see eye to eye with you, that’s a reason to question their goodness.

I felt my cheeks growing hot. It might have been an idle thought, but Raolcan was right, it was unfair.

“Amel?” Leng asked as I adjusted my crutch.

“Yes?”

“Don’t talk about this to anyone else, okay? He doesn’t need to get back into this.”

I put a hand in his and followed him back to the chalet, but I wasn’t ready to promise anything. I was certain I was right about this one. There had to be some way to prove it to everyone else.

“There will be other people who think he should be the ruler again,” Leng said as we walked. “I’m worried about that. There’s got to be some way that I can protect him from all of this.”

I felt a bit like a traitor as we approached the chalet. If I helped Leng, the Dominion would suffer for it. If I helped the Dominion, he would suffer. Either way, I was about to betray someone.

When we returned, food was ready, and water had been drawn for washing. I was delighted to finally get properly clean and full, but my mind was busy. I kept thinking through what it would mean to have Iskaris as our ruler permanently and I knew that wasn’t an outcome that I could live with. And if I couldn’t live with it, where did that leave me?

Savette had found clothing in the back and she was dressed in a fresh dress of soft-pink sky-silk and a white fur cloak. Haskell, Hubric, and Shonan were also wearing fresh clothing. Savette tossed a set of black dragon-rider leathers to me, cut in a female shape. I looked them over – still stiff with their newness - and sighed.

“I can’t wear them, Savette,” I said.

“Just put them on,” Hubric growled. “There are no trainee leathers here and I won’t have you embarrassing me with dirty ripped clothes at our meeting tomorrow.”

I hurried to one of the rooms in the back and changed, grateful, despite my misgivings, for the fresh clothes. They smelled clean and new and between that and a good meal, I felt like a new woman. When I emerged, Hubric was waiting for me in the hall.

“Come with me,” he growled.

Great. He seemed jumpy, looking both ways as he led me to a storeroom in the back and that couldn’t be good. He must have heard my words to Shonan while he was lighting the fire and he must be ready to add his warnings to Leng’s.

He shut the door with care, latching it behind him and then drew very close before saying in a low voice, “I heard you speak to Shonan and by your disappointed look tonight, I gather Leng was no more interested in treason than his brother was.”

“You don’t need to lecture me, Hubric.” I sighed. “I know, it’s not the man that leads us, it’s the mask. And it’s not for me to decide who gets to wear that mask. Suggesting anything else is treason.”

“Yes, it is.”

“So, it doesn’t matter that the man in the mask is a snake, it doesn’t matter that the good man who used to wear has been deposed or that our nation is in turmoil and this will only make things worse. The only person with the right to wear the mask is the one inside it, right?”

“Yes.”

I sighed. “Okay then, why did you bring me down here?”

He lifted one eyebrow.

“Sorry.” I shouldn’t be snapping at him. I just felt ... frayed around the edges. I couldn’t even explain it to myself. I just felt like something was grinding at me. Like a stone in a shoe or a piece of sand in the eye.

He lifted the other eyebrow.

“I will show more respect.” I really should. After all, there was no one I respected more than Hubric.

“Good.” His expression was deadly serious.  “Because I plan to join you in your treason. The mask isn’t the man - it’s true. But I think that you and I can find a way to put the right man in that mask. I’ve been thinking about it since Umtal. I just can’t see any other way to save this land. Now, say nothing to anyone else. Go to bed like a good apprentice, but know that I’m working on this, too. Together, we’ll find a way.”

Chapter Seven

“It’s like nothing I ever imagined.” Savette’s words were so awed that I barely made them out, but I agreed with her.

Before us, the black peaks of Haz’drazen’s volcanoes rose up from the landscape like black dragon teeth – the tops of some broken from the violent spurts of lava that sometimes rose up and flooded the mountain range. The slopes falling away from the jagged peaks were sleek with black sand and gnarled, stunted trees.

We were flying toward a very strange feature, a double-peaked dormant volcano with a wide shelf between the peaks. A massive arch made of stone – a dragon biting its own tail - was centered on the middle of the shelf. Its proportions were so gargantuan that a dozen dragons could have flown through in a cluster without breaking formation. I tried to follow the twist of the tail, which dipped down into the ground before rearing up again into the dragon’s mouth, but one edge of the pattern became another seamlessly and my eye lost its reference point as it twisted on in itself.  A winding road led to the arch from the low land below, like a ribbon twisting through a ring.

We were not the first to fly to this place. Tents were erected across the shelf and down along the road. People, horses, and carts packed the road leading up to the structures, while the land all around was filled with dragons of every color, size, and shape imaginable – far more than I had dreamed even lived in the Dominion.  On the twin volcano peaks, faraway figures moved just enough to pick them out on the landscape.

Dragons are there, too. Hundreds of us. We come at the request of our queen. Look carefully at the gate.

On either side of the gate, black dragons stood, tall and straight, their eyes ever vigilant. There were other dragons with them. Were they there to regulate who flew in and out of the gates?

The many wild dragons with us picked up speed as soon as the double peaks were visible – quickly outpacing us in their excitement.

They are on their way home. A feeling that fills the heart and speeds the wings.

Did Raolcan feel that way as we approached his home?

I can’t go further than the gateway. Not today, at least.

Perhaps we could enter his homeland together.

Not today.

He seemed very sure of that. Would we be denied entry?

Perhaps. It’s hard to say for sure, but humans are rarely granted entry into the Lands of Haz’drazen and you and I don’t have a good reason to enter. We will be dealt with at the door by the guardians and any emissary the Queen chooses to send.

I wished I could tell what he was feeling right now. And then, as if he was speaking to me, I felt a tiny gust of emotion – like a sad song longing for a distant past. It was the same feeling I felt when I remembered my own childhood, my own parents and siblings and home. I could never go back there, either. Not because they wouldn’t welcome me, but because there was no place for me there.

That’s how I feel. But this is how I feel, about you, Amel and it makes the sadness bearable.

And the next burst of emotion was one of sweetness and warmth and grass waving on a warm summer day with birds singing in the trees. It felt like a smile does from the inside.

I didn’t deserve that kind of love. Especially right now when I was in the middle of contemplating betraying the man I loved. He’d kissed me this morning and thanked me for understanding how important his brother’s freedom was before we mounted our dragons to finish the journey. I’d tried to smile, but my heart felt twisted inside me while Hubric watched us, his eyes hawk-like.

The problem was, I wanted Leng to be happy. And I wanted Shonan to be safe. But I also wanted all the little children of the Dominion to be safe in their own homes, their lives untouched by war, evil and the work of Ifrits. It felt like both things had a grip on one of my hands and they were pulling, pulling, pulling until it felt I might break in two. I’d been chewing my lip all morning as I thought of it. I’d hardly even noticed our flight until just now when Savette spoke.

It’s a heavy decision.

What would Raolcan do if it were him?

Why don’t you ask me that after we hear what my brother has to say?

Your brother?

I see him down there - the splendid White checking that long line of dragons approaching the arch.

That was a good thing, right? He would be on our side.

He’s a White. They see things in shades of grey. It’s hard to know where they’ll land on an issue but trust me in this – he won’t see things the same way we do.

We?

I also want to see Iskaris and Starie brought down. They are like rot in a root.

As we drew nearer to the mountain, the long line of people crowding the arch became easier to distinguish. Most wore Dragon Rider leathers and accompanied their dragons. At least fifty Reds stood in formation like a military unit and groups of Whites or single Greens also stood in the line or milled in the crowd. It was like they all were trying to speak to the dragons at that arch – whatever it was.

The “Dawn Gate” or “Dawn’s Gate” or “Gate of the Dawn” depending on who you ask. A place with history.

What sort of history?

The first real treaty between Haz and Haz’drazen was made here. The gate is the proof of it and also a tool. You cannot enter the lands of Haz’drazen without going through this gate or the warrens. There is no other way.

I looked around at the wide-open skies around it. I could see why people on land couldn’t come any other way. The mountains were steep and rugged, but there was nothing preventing me or anyone else from flying past in any way that we chose. Strangely, the road ended on the other side, but we didn’t need a road.

There’s a ... bend ... here.

A bend?

A bend in what is real. These volcanoes - bubbling up like a seam across the earth - divide one thing that is real from another thing that is real. Here, magic overflows, heating the rock, bubbling it up like mud, and twisting the world slightly. You can’t get through the twist without the gate. You’d fly toward the south, only to find yourself turned around again.

So, the land of the dragons was protected – perhaps even forever – from the evils of the outside world.

There is a lot of world behind that bend in the world – maybe even more than there is on this side. The Dominion feels very large to us, but it’s only a fraction of what is in the world.

The thought of a world so much bigger than I initially thought made me feel tiny in comparison. I stared off at the Dawn Gate and thought about the bend in what was real behind it. I wanted to go through that gate and see what it was like. Would I be disappointed? Would it turn out to be the same over there as it was here?

It’s ... more potent. Like everything is just more. More dramatic, bigger, more powerful, fuller. Honestly, I think humans are safer on this side. There’s enough “more” in your life as it is, Amel.

The wild dragons who had traveled with us flew straight to the arch with their knot of Black dragon prisoners. There was a bit of flurry at the gate as those humans in line protested the wild dragons dashing to the front, but a White Dragon reared up and settled the crowd down and the wild dragons disappeared through the arch, prisoners in tow, as if nothing had happened.

Why were they allowed inside so easily?

No humans. All dragons have free passage into our lands. It is only those with humans who must give a reckoning.

What sort of reckoning?

Time to find out for ourselves.

Chapter Eight

Hubric angled Kyrowat to land - not at the door, but at one of the camps on the side of the volcano. I strained my eyes trying to see if I could make out why. A cluster of dragons was gathered around a small fire and a dark pavilion there.

That’s an old friend of Hubric’s. Denu Blunthook of the Purple and his dragon Vincaud. With him are Jenanta Firethrown and her dragon Sareshy of the Gold and Kerch Bandcloth and Olarmas his dragon of the Black. They are old friends despite being of different colors. They came up in the same wave of Dragon School – like you and Savette.

Kyrowat landed delicately beside the other Purple, preening his wings as Hubric dismounted with a grunt. Ahlskibi and Rasipaer landed nearby him and Raolcan was right on their heels.

A robust man with a sun-lined face waved to Hubric from the pavilion where he and the others were sitting. “Four Purples in one place? You almost gave me a heart attack, Duneshifter! Come get some caf and explain this nonsense.”

That’s Denu.

“I was thinking of going first to the gate.” Hubric stretched, but he offered Haskell a hand down from Kyrowat and his eyes were fixed on the steaming pot of caf.

“It will take you all day and they still won’t see you. Go down in an hour and leave one of these younger ones in the line to hold your spot. That’s what we did. My apprentice is down there now, sweating and playing cards with Reds and losing everything he owns, poor fool. He should have been a Red. He seems to prefer their company over mine.”

Leng and Shonan followed Hubric as Savette and I dismounted. I listened to them with care as I unhooked my crutch from Raolcan’s saddle.  There was almost a festive air about them despite the feeling of the times. Leng must have felt the same way.

“Isn’t there a war north of here?” he asked when he drew closer.

“Is that Leng Shardson? We heard word of your exploits in Saldar. Excellent work!”

“You’re in a pavilion, drinking caf and playing cards,” he said disdainfully.

The woman – Jananta – threw her cards down and stood up, looking Leng up and down. “You’ve been a full Dragon Rider for how long? A year? Maybe two? Don’t you remember your studies, boy? Our dragons are Haz’drazen’s. When she says to report in and confirm their loyalty, we come. I was working on negotiations for a better supply chain when the crazed Top Rider of the Purple flew into Dominion City on the back of a dragon not her own. She wouldn’t be silenced. ‘The Queen demands all loyal dragons report immediately and be counted.’ Those were her words. You must know that, or you wouldn’t be here, either.”

Leng’s lower lip jutted out stubbornly. “It’s just not a party. It’s a necessity.”

“So, what?” Jananta asked. “Are we supposed to sit here looking dejected while we wait? No, thank you. Negotiations are a thankless job. I’m enjoying a brief break from the stress of it all, and if you had any sense you would, too.”

“Ease up on the boy.” Denu’s smile was warm. “We were all that idealistic at one point.” He waved Leng closer. “It’s fine to be passionate. Don’t lose that. But we have good news to celebrate. The Dominar is back in Dominion City, the Chosen One is on her way here, and with the aid of Haz’drazen, we’ll beat back our enemies in no time and be done with this war!”

“Is that what the Reds are saying?” Hubric asked, pouring himself a cup of caf and waving to the military-like ranks of Reds in the line below and waiting on the mountainsides. He seemed very at ease as he settled into one of the folding chairs of the pavilion.

“Reds always fear the worst,” Kerch, the black rider said. “And there are rumors that some oppose the Chosen One, though who would do that, I don’t know. We need her if our Dominion is going to survive this war.”

“And is Haz’drazen asking any dragons to enter her land, or is she simply taking their oaths of loyalty and sending them away?”

I limped closer, Savette walking slowly at my side. I felt tense and watching Hubric’s false air of relaxation and Leng’s straight back were enough to make me worried. If these Dragon Riders thought our hopes lay in Starie, then it was likely that the rest of the Dominion did, too.

“She’s bringing loose dragons in,” Kerch said, “I didn’t even know so many were flying around out there! But the rest of us have to wait and let our dragons re-swear our allegiance - or whatever they’re doing - to the Queen’s emissary and then we can be on our way. The dragons have a system, it’s just a matter of waiting our turn.”

“Why don’t you send some of these young ones down to claim a place for you in line, Hubric? That’s the way to get things done.” Jananta was seated again, dealing Hubric into their game of cards.

“Probably a good idea,” Hubric grunted, not looking at me. “Find us a spot in line, Apprentice.”

I knew this act by now. With a nod, I turned and began to hobble down the side of the mountain toward the road. They continued talking behind me.

“An apprentice in black leathers? Let’s hope you have a good explanation for that one, Hubric!” and “Why so many passengers? I thought Purples traveled light.”

Friends or not, I’d rather be headed for the line than wasting time with them. Didn’t they realize how urgent things were all across the Dominion?

“Hold up,” Leng said, trotting toward me. I stopped, but when he reached me, he glanced back at Shonan. He frowned, as if worried about leaving his brother there. It was strange that he was so protective. After all, Shonan had managed the Dominion for years without his brother watching him like a hawk.

People don’t see their family that way. To Leng, Shonan will always be his older brother – just a lanky teenager who was snatched away one afternoon.

“Will you walk with me, Shonan?” Savette asked in the distance. “I need to gather some herbs here.”

Leng ran a hand over his bald head before turning reluctantly back to me.

“Come on,” I said eventually. “If he’s safe with anyone, it’s with her.”

I didn’t want to mention that half the trouble I’d run into so far was from being with Savette. It was nice just to walk with him as we met the line of dragon riders and then trudged along it to the back. I heard snatches of conversation as we passed rider after rider and dragon after dragon.

“She’ll be here any day now. I can’t wait to see her. The Chosen One! She’ll save us all!”

“...says she’ll kill the imposter when she finds her. Imagine that? Going around pretending to be the Chosen One when you aren’t.”

“came at the right time, didn’t she? Just when our Dominar was missing, she was there to keep us strong. And now that he’s back, she’ll show that dragon queen who really runs things. It wasn’t Haz’drazen who was written about in prophecy.”

Every mouth was full of Starie and despite the fine weather and the rest I’d had from being chased and hunted, my heart sunk further and further the more we walked.

“It’s all a lie,” I whispered to Leng. He took my hand, a worried look on his face.

Didn’t he believe me? Didn’t he see that Savette was the Chosen One, or was he as easily led as the fools all around me? I felt a swirl of doubt in my belly – not about Savette. I was as convinced of the truth of who she was as I was of Raolcan’s love for me. But what about Leng? First, he didn’t want to pursue getting his brother back on the throne and now he didn’t believe Savette was the Chosen One? I thought we saw the world the same way. I thought that maybe we could be a team. Had I misjudged him?

I bit my lip as we continued down the line, jumping slightly as a Green dragon ahead of me coughed out a fireball.

“Try not to look like the world has ended,” Leng whispered.

But here, as I looked from smiling face to smiling face – friends, allies, my countrymen – I couldn’t help but feel like maybe it was ending. I didn’t fit with these people. Their sanguine attitude in the face of the destruction of our Dominion didn’t sit right with me. Acid burned in my throat and queasiness rocked me. I was too hot. I needed a breath of fresh air.

The world spun slightly and then I was blinking my eyes open, while strong hands pressed my shoulders down.

“Keep your head down and it will pass. Probably should have drunk more water,” Leng said above me. “No, she’s fine. Just needs a moment. That’s very generous, thank you.”

A cup of water was passed down to me and I drank, trying hard not to think about what was happening around me. If I thought too hard, I’d end up faint again. Leng bent down to take the cup, leaning closer to my ear than he needed to and whispering.

“Keep your arm hidden until we’re alone.” He unwrapped a scarf from his neck and handed it to me. It smelled like him – outdoors, fire, and salty breezes all mixed into one scent.

I glanced down at the black leather encasing my arm. A light was shining out of the cuff, far too bright to go unnoticed.

Chapter Nine

Hastily, I wrapped the scarf around my wrist, tying it tight. I glanced around furtively, but no one had noticed. Leng wrapped an arm around me and hugged me in close until we eventually reached the end of the line of dragons waiting for their turn at the gate. The road behind us was still busy with horses and people setting up tents and moving supplies or hawking food and other supplies. Someone ambitious had set up a board and a tent with a few barrels to sell ale to those coming and going.  I craned my neck to look for where we’d left Hubric and the others, but they were far in the distance now.

We’re still here. Call if you need something.

In the noise of the road, Leng tucked me in tight to his chest so that he could speak just to me.

“I heard them talking, too. Their mouths are all full of the same rumors.”

“Starie,” I said at the same moment that he spoke.

“The Dominar.”

We’d both heard what was worrying us the most. Leng’s eyes met mine from inches away. I wanted to rub every line out of his worried forehead. I wanted to kiss all his cares away and find a little house somewhere along a river...

“They see her as their only hope, but she isn’t

Leng. She’s no more the Chosen One than Iskaris is the Dominar.”

The lines in his face grew deeper, but his arm around me tightened, protectively. “Shonan isn’t the Dominar Amel, not now.”

I swallowed. I should just let it go, but I couldn’t.

“But he should be. And everything can’t go back to being right again until he is, Leng.”

He ran his hand over his head again. He seemed to do that a lot when he was worried. He leaned in closer to whisper to me.

“If Savette Leedris is the true Chosen One, she can make things right without my brother.”

“Can you be sure of that?”

His jaw clenched, and his eyes grew hard.

“Why are you so determined to draw him back into this?”

His arm fell away, like he didn’t want to touch me anymore. I bit back tears, my hand tightening round the white light around my cuff.

“When I got this mark, Shonan showed me that I could walk again, Leng. He asked me to give that up to heal Savette. I’m walking with a crutch today because I believe the world is better with her than without her. I’m asking you to do the same thing.” He wouldn’t look at me now. His mouth had taken a bitter turn and his gaze was far off. “We can’t defeat the evil that has come upon us without the Dominar. You know that’s true. It’s why you’re so mad because you’re fighting the truth and that doesn’t come easily to a Purple. You have the same option I had – you can get back the thing you always wanted, or you can choose to give it up willingly for the sake of everyone else.”

Leng cursed under his breath, his head gleaming with sudden sweat under the hot sun. I twisted the scarf in my free hand. Twist. Untwist. Twist. Untwist.

There was still time to fix things - time to rouse the other Lightbringers and the people and bring the real Dominar back and resist our enemy - but if we hesitated, we might lose that chance.

“One person is enough to hold our place in this line,” he said, still not looking at me as he strode away.

My heart sank in my chest. I knew this was coming. I knew he would hate me for saying it. But at least I wasn’t keeping it inside anymore like a rot slowly eating me alive. With a sigh, I ran a finger over his davari on my hand. Would he want it back now? Would he still want to make a life with a girl who just couldn’t agree with him about this? Maybe I should enjoy wearing it while I could.

See? That’s why kissing is bad. It makes you all wound up inside when you inevitably fight with each other.

I ignored Raolcan, too. I just wanted to be alone where I didn’t have to think about Chosen Ones or Dominars or the fate of nations. I was only a farmer’s daughter with a bad leg and a string of challenges I’d had to face. Who was I to be caught up in this anyway? Maybe I would be happier if I just believed the same thing as everyone else.

I saw a farmer slaughtering sheep once. I watched him all afternoon from a nearby hillside. He had them set up in a line with fences on either side and a goat would lead them through the line of fences into a barn and they wouldn’t come out of the barn. The goat knew, but he didn’t care, because the farmer never killed him. And the sheep trusted the goat to lead them somewhere safe. After all, if it was safe for him it was safe for them, right? But there was one black sheep in the pen and that one wouldn’t go between the fences or down the line. I bet he felt pretty alone, like no one else saw what he did, but at the end of the day he was alive and they were all dead. Moral of the story – just because the other sheep do it, doesn’t mean it’s a good idea.

Or maybe the moral was that you shouldn’t trust that goat.

Either works. Speaking of which...

A trumpet sounded from behind us and a loud voice rang out, “Make way for the Chosen One and her guardians, the Chosen One’s Dusk Covenant! Make way! Make way!”

I spun around and almost fell over.

“Here, let me help you.” A Green rider who had been just in front of me grabbed my arm, helping me to steady myself. “Look! It’s Grandis Elfar! She rides her Black dragon just like a regular Dragon Rider. You’d have no idea that she is the emissary of the Chosen One! And there she is! Starie Atrelan, the Chosen One!”

Awe filled her voice and I followed her gaze to Starie, sitting astride her frilled golden dragon, a black blindfold tied around her face and a large double-headed halberd in her slender white hand. Her red hair swirled behind her like a banner and a look of serenity painted her features.

The goat was ready to lead us to slaughter.

Chapter Ten

The Green beside me cheered so loudly that I covered my ears. All up and down the line of people spontaneous cheers erupted. I was pulled back as the crowd shoved ourselves off the road an on to the brushy rocks beside it to make way for Starie Atrelan. People further up the line threw down cloaks and blankets for her dragon to walk on.

Grandis Elfar yelled into the crowd, “Your Chosen One is here! She shall lead you to victory, both here and in the north. Bow to the Chosen One of Legend!”

Starie raised her halberd - like a silent victor - while around me, calls and cheers redoubled as everyone scrambled to kneel. I refused, clutching my crutch as hands on every side tried to pull me to my knees. This wasn’t true or right. Starie basked in a glory that didn’t belong to her!

Her blind-folded gaze ran across the crowd, settling on me where I fought off the ‘helpful’ hands trying to assist me in kneeling. The tiny smile that spread across her face sent a shiver down my spine.

She rode past, head high, dragon’s wings pulsing like he was fanning her with them to alleviate the sun’s heat.

He is.

That didn’t seem very dragon-like.

It’s not. It’s embarrassing.

What would she do when she reached the gate? Everyone else had the same question. They pressed forward, a mass of bodies with one goal – to see the Chosen One meet the dragons at the Dawn’s Gate. Any semblance of a line melted in Starie’s wake. I hobbled after the crowd, but with my bad leg, there was no way I could keep up. Person after person pushed past me. I strained my eyes to see, but all I saw was the heads of the crowd.

I can see from here. The crowd is making way for Starie. The line has dissolved. You may as well head for where we are. There will be no progress in that line today.

I changed my trajectory, moving to the rocky space beside the road, but even here the press of bodies was too much to see. A loud noise erupted from further ahead.

They chant her name. The dragons at the gate have summoned the Queen’s emissary and the royal interpreter. It’s ... yes ... it’s my brother, Taoslil. He’s got his nose up in the air. Doesn’t like this Gold Starie is riding. Thinks he should have more dignity.

He should have more dignity. If I was a dragon, I wouldn’t fan Starie. I struggled along the rocky mountainside. I thought I saw a shortcut, but it would wind away from the main path. I took it, breathing a sigh of relief when I broke free of the jostling crowd. I still couldn’t see, but at least I could move more freely.

He’s giving them the royal cold shoulder, treating them like supplicants.

Which is what they were.

Yes, but it’s rude to treat them that way. He has declared that he will hear their requests on behalf of the Queen. You should see this. He’d brought the gatekeepers and at least a dozen dragon dignitaries with him. They are a sight to see! They’ve worn the emblems of office and they carry flame from Mount Drazen. It makes me homesick.

I wished I could see what he was seeing! I scrambled up the stony side of the mountain. Maybe when I crested this rise I would be able to see.

She’s telling him she is the Chosen One of the Ibrenicus Prophecies, that she has passed the tests of the Dominion for that honor, that she has the backing of the Dominar-

The fake Dominar!

-that she seeks a meeting with Haz’drazen face to face to renegotiate the treaty. He’s in a bind. By our oath, we cannot turn aside a true request. He doesn’t have an alternative – not if she truly is the Chosen One. I can feel him thinking it through. He’s going to have to take her there to see the Queen and if he does, then the Trogs may demand she listens.

Trogs?

No time. I’ll tell you about them later. If they tell her to listen there will be nothing she can say. He is considering. He wishes there was another option. Any other option...

I crested the hill. I was getting close to our camp, but still too far away to be noticed. There! I could just make out the gate from here and the grand dragons standing within it. At their center, a semi-translucent White stood like a magnificent specter – like a king among dragons.

Hey! I’m as good-looking as he is and I’ve never heard you think of me as kingly!

In a semi-circle before him, Starie, the Grandis, and the throngs of supporters waited for his answer. I swallowed, but my throat was too dry for it to be of any help. He had no other option. He would have to agree to her request. But he just couldn’t!

He’s a White. He would never risk unnecessary conflict.

I jumped when I suddenly registered a dragon, falling like a dropped stone from the air above the gate. No – not falling – diving.

Starie threw her halberd above her head and her people scrambled back, pressing into the crowd. The magnificent White-

-Taoslil-

- reared up, flames snorting from his snout at the unexpected attack. The dragon finished his dive with a summersault and a flourish and landed in the cleared area between Starie and Taoslil. I recognized the people on his back. How could I not? Only Savette glowed like that. Behind her, Shonan raised a fist, his glowing forearm showing for all the world to see while Rasipaer basked in the sudden attention.

I thought my eyes might dry out, but I couldn’t shut them for even long enough to blink. This changed everything.

Chapter Eleven

“I am High Castelan Savette Leedris.” My mouth dropped open as Savette’s voice filled my ears. She was using that trick she’d used before that let her speak over a huge distance. Her magic always surprised me. As she spoke, she ripped the white blindfold from her eyes. Even from here I could hear the gasp of the crowd.  “Formerly a Dragon Rider, returned from death - and from the death of my dragon - to fulfill the Ibrenicus Prophecies in this life. I have come to add my own allegiance to Haz’drazen along with the renewal of the Dominion’s promises and to beg for her help in this war that faces us.”

My ears strained to listen for more, but Savette was silent.

She has given my brother an option and he is pleased with that. He says that Haz’drazen is not here, but that she will meet with the true Chosen One – whoever that is.

Good!

The true Chosen One will be determined by an ancient dragon test.

That sounded riskier.

It will begin at dawn tomorrow.

Why did these things always begin at dawn?

Each woman will present herself without weapons, gear or allies, at the Dawn Gate. At that time the test will be performed here on the mountain. The dragons of old cut out tunnels in these old volcanoes. Those tunnels are still hot with fire, and from time to time they erupt again. The dragons have a way to stir them up. Each Chosen One will go in, retrieve the sign hidden within her volcano and return. The one who returns with the sign of the dragon will be named Chosen One of the dragons and will be delivered to the Courts of Haz’drazen.

And the other?

Will die in the testing. Or, if they do not, will be driven out from this land and warned never to return.

Below, on the rocky shelf, a murmur rose up so loud that I could hear it.

The crowd is not pleased. They see Savette as an imposter.

What would they do between now and dawn?

Taoslil asked who speaks as witness for the parties involved. On Starie’s side, Grandis Elfar and a guard named Castelan Tobrias Jefran speak for her. For Savette, Rasipaer and Shonan have spoken for her. That alone should make her proud.

I was surprised Raolcan didn’t speak for her.

In the drama happening down there, he doesn’t know I’m here yet. I think I’ll save that tidbit to surprise him with if we need it.

He warns that if anyone tries to stop these two representatives from engaging in the test tomorrow, those who spoke for them are authorized to cut them down – Rasipaer has qualified that he prefers ‘flame them down’ and the distinction has been noted. The listing and checking of dragons loyalty has been put on hold until after the test begins. He demands that until the test we respect the peace of the Dawn Gate and refrain from fighting or violence.

He must have a clear view of the crowd. He must see how angry they are with Savette. Would his warning really keep her safe?

We can only hope so.

Who was that headed down the volcano side toward the gate? I squinted to try to make them out. It looked like a knot of dragons and riders.

That’s us. Hubric thinks we should run down there and form a protective ring around Savette and the Dominar, and since that’s all our eggs in one basket, I thought he had a point. Sorry that I couldn’t come and get you first.

Then this wasn’t a dream. It was starting to feel like one.

Not unless you frequently dream of Hubric’s stinky friends. This green dragon stinks to high heaven. She says it’s skin ointment, but I don’t believe that. No self-respecting dragon would use a skin ointment!

He was rambling. He must be nervous if he was rambling. I started out for our camp again, fighting the rocky terrain with my crutch. There was nothing else I could do, but as I dipped into another gully, I found the lack of sightlines worrying. I didn’t want anything to happen while I wasn’t watching. The dust kicked up with every skidding footstep until I was coated with it and still struggling from one gully to the next. I should have stuck to the road. I shouldn’t have been so headstrong.

I crested the next gully only to lose my footing and slide over the edge of it into the dip below. I was still skidding and trying to catch a rock or root when a set of strong arms grabbed me, stopping my fall and tugging me up to my feet.

“Leng?” Why wasn’t he with his dragon?

He didn’t give me time to ask anything more. His lips found mine and his arms wrapped around me.

Chapter Twelve

“I’m sorry.”

Relief filled me. He didn’t hate me. He hadn’t given up on me.

“I’m not against you, you know.”

“I know that. I just forgot for a moment. I feel ... complicated about this. I mean, they just took him. They just snatched him from us and I haven’t known him for years. It’s hard to realize that my brother – the boy I grew up with – has been running the Dominion for ten years. It’s hard to remember that he can make these decisions for himself. That it’s not up to you or to me or to anyone else.”

He looked away, still holding me tight, but his bottom lip quivering with emotion.

“Leng?” I said gently, reaching up to cup the side of his face with my hand. “You are precious to me. I love that you want to protect people. Don’t ever stop.”

“It’s hard not to be selfish about this.”

I nodded. “Just don’t push me away. I can help you with this. We can protect him together and we can also protect the Dominion together.”

He leaned his forehead against mine and his eyes were glassy despite a tender smile. “Agreed.”

“You gave me this for a reason,” I reminded, showing him the davari.

“And next time I see Ashana Willowspring she and I need to have a serious conversation again. This time, I won’t take ‘wait’ for an answer.”

I laughed, leaning in to kiss him gently.

He took my wrist in his hand and gently unwound the scarf from it, pulling back my sleeve to look at the symbol of the Lightbringers glowing brightly within.

“You’re marked. I thought at first that it might fade, or that I was seeing things, but it’s true.”

“I don’t know what it means.”

He kissed the bright mark on my wrist and then tugged the sleeve back down and wrapped my wrist back up with the scarf. That was the second time he’d treated that mark with reverence.

“I saw Shonan’s matching mark. They’re the only two I’ve ever seen. It means you’re chosen by the light as champions. It’s part of Lightbringer lore. Those who are marked are the champions of the people, to bring light and truth to the Dominion.”

“Then why do you want me to hide it?”

He chewed his lip, taking a respectful step back. “Being marked is dangerous. It makes you a target of curiosity – or worse, of the Dusk Covenant. I think you should guard it carefully.”

“Do I need to do something because I’m marked?”

He laughed. “I think it’s the other way around. You were marked because of the things you already do. Keep on doing them.”

If you’re done with your adorable moment, we could use some help over here. Or have you forgotten that we are surrounded by the enemy and guarding the only hope for the Dominion – and, I suspect, all of humanity?

That was Raolcan - always dramatic.

If your life is full of drama, then you’re dramatic. How is that a bad thing? Should I pretend I’m boring and dull? Stop fooling around and get back here.

“Ahlskibi is getting testy,” Leng said with a laugh. I guess we’d better get back.

I nodded, following him up the lonely trail.

“And I think Shonan is making his own choices now, too. Why can’t people just do what I want them to?”

It was my turn to laugh. “Because then they wouldn’t be people.”

“I wish I could roll everyone I love into a messenger cylinder and keep them safe in my belt.”

It was one thing we agreed on. My life would be considerably easier if I could do that. And I probably wouldn’t have a glowing mark on my arm.

Or much of a life. Lives are meant to be spent, not saved up for a rainy day. You are spending yours well, every moment and day devoted to truth and loyalty ... and love.

We climbed higher and finally took a new turn over the mountain-scape that threw the shelf back into view. A double line of dragons stood in ranks across the mouth of the gate as if they were guarding it. The white dragon, Taoslil, was nowhere to be seen. In front of the gate, the crowd surrounded Starie, cheering and waving makeshift banners in the air. Her servants had already begun to erect a golden pavilion directly in front of the gate and horses were being unloaded in a steady stream as she addressed the crowd.

She doesn’t have Savette’s gift of speaking over long distances, but at least she’s busy bragging rather than trying to kill us.

We continued to climb, and I scanned the hills, finally finding our dragons and allies. They’d reached the little camp, arranging themselves in a defensive pattern.

Good thing we slept last night. We’ll have to keep a close guard tonight. There are plenty of people below who think we disrespected Starie by challenging her. They’d like to remove the competition without a test.

Good thing we had the best dragons in the world with us. They would keep a close eye out for us.

Ha! Don’t use flattery to try to get out of taking your own turn. You’ll stand a watch, too. Oh, and you’d better hurry. Hubric wants to talk strategy and he’s waiting for you two.

Chapter Thirteen

When we arrived the dragons stood in a ring: Raolcan, Kyrowat, Ahlskibi, Rasipaer, Vincaud, Sareshy, Olarmas. They were an intimidating sight, hunkered low, wings raised and at the ready. I could imagine flames pouring from them in every direction like a dragon-made volcano.

Most volcanos are.

In the center, the pavilion and our gear were still where we’d left them, but the humans stood around a campfire in their own ring, worried looks and anxious movements the only thing common to them all - Hubric, Haskell, Savette, Shonan, Denu, Kerch, and Jenanta. Leng gave my hand a last squeeze before we separated to join the ring.

“We stood by you because you’re an old friend, Hubric, but we aren’t happy with this. We’re no cult members,” Jenanta said. “You should keep your Lightbringer nonsense to yourself.”

“But you will stand with us?”

She looked uncomfortable, not meeting his eye.

“It’s not that we don’t think she should have a chance to prove herself,” Kerch said abruptly. He waved toward Savette. “If she wants to die for no reason, that’s not our business. Stupid, but not our business. It’s just that there’s a war on. Why get in the way of the Chosen One when she’s trying to negotiate with our allies?”

Denu was silent, staring at the fire. He was Purple after all. His dragon must be telling him what was happening and that Savette was who she said she was.

He can tell him what we think, but he can’t know for certain. Like Taoslil, the best he can give us is a chance to prove it. Also, his apprentice refused to return to our encampment and it’s worrying him.

“Because that golden trollop down there isn’t the Chosen One, that’s why!” I’d rarely seen Hubric so irritated by someone other than me. “She’s an imposter. And what can an imposter do besides lie and deceive?”

“Tell that to them,” Jenanta said, practically. She was looking at the crowd below. “They are pretty sure she can save the world. Are you really saying that they’re wrong?”

“She’s also got the Dominar’s backing. This test would have to go pretty wrong to convince any of us that she isn’t the Chosen One.” Kerch stirred the fire with a branch as he spoke.

Unnoticed, Haskell began to cook on the fire. I was starting to find that endearing. Perhaps it was what Hubric loved about her. There would never be a hungry belly when she was around.

It’s definitely part of it, but not all of it. He’s lived a long time. He looks for different things than you do.

“What sort of symbol do they need to come back with?” I asked.

“What kind of training are they giving in Dragon School these days?” Jenanta complained. “In my day you couldn’t be Sworn without knowing the prophecies, never mind a Color. It’s a crying shame that you’d ask that question. Where are your teachers, girl?”

“One of them is down there, leading the Chosen One’s Dusk Covenant,” I said, keeping my expression neutral.

Jenanta grunted. “Fine. The prophecies say, ‘Marked by light and dark to stand for all. Marked not once but thrice to show the call, Marked and now a target for the foe, Marked to stand and fight and marked to go.’”

I remembered that, but there was more. Quick as a dragon landing, I slipped my book out and turned to the right page. There it was in Talsan Woodcarver’s cramped handwriting:

‘...marked to go. The unbelief in hearts is burned away and with the blood of many truth will spread. And scatter to the winds on every side the battle that began where dragons tread. When the symbol shows itself do not linger, but fly, fly from the trumpet sound. For light calls to dark to answer in kind. Who will stand in that day? Who will survive when dusk fights dawn?’

“Ha! Looks like she cares more than you thought, Jenanta,” Denu said. “No one knows what the symbol will be, apprentice. Maybe it’s a talisman of some kind. Maybe a crown. All we know is that we’ll know it when we see it. And I guess we’ll be seeing it soon.”

“Does that mean you believe them?” Kerch asked. “That you’ll stand with them?”

Denu shrugged. “They have the right to try to prove themselves. People have the right to make their own decisions – even my fool of an apprentice.”

“It’s a fool’s errand,” Kerch said. “I’ve listened long enough.”

He began to gather his things while we watched in silence. When he had them all, he turned to Jenanta.

“You should come with me. When those down below hear what they’re saying, I doubt they’ll be happy to let this ridiculous contest continue, dragons or no dragons. No need to get caught up in that.”

Jenanta shifted her weight from one foot to the other, a considering frown on her face. “I don’t know.”

“Well. Don’t take too long deciding.” He whirled away, his dragon following him. “Or you might get swept up in what comes next.”

We stood in silence until he was out of earshot.

“I don’t like being bullied,” Jenanta said. “I don’t think you’re right. I suspect this poor wisp of a girl is about to die painfully in the heart of a volcano - but that’s her choice. I won’t be told what to do and I won’t tell her what to do. And if Kerch thought he could intimidate me, well he thought wrong.”

“Thank you,” Hubric said quietly.

“I’m going to go for a walk. Don’t die while I’m gone.” She set off, her arms pumping with energy as she left.

Blowing off steam. Even with her big talk, she’s worried. The crowd below is growing agitated.

“Savette Leedris, High Castelan, and Chosen One of the Lightbringers has my support,” Shonan said quietly. “And it is my honor to give it.”

“Too bad you don’t matter, son,” Denu said with a coughing laugh. “We have the support of some travelling warrior and they have the support of the Dominar. Ha! Not much of a match. But I’m here to make sure the girl gets a chance to prove herself, however this plays out. Wake me when dinner is done.”

He stalked off to nap.

Little does he know, we have the support of the real Dominar. And while no one else seems to think that matters, I am certain that it does. Tomorrow, whatever happens, Savette will come back thrice marked and the curses in the prophecy will come upon us all.

Curses?

What would you call being marked for battle and having to flee for your life?

Yesterday? Last week? Last month?

Ha! A sense of humor! I was beginning to think you didn’t have one.

Chapter Fourteen

It was a good thing we chose to keep watch. At first, everything was quiet on the shelf below. They ate, lit fires, and settled in, but as the sun dropped in the sky the voices below grew louder. Occasionally a cheer or indiscernible chant broke out. The energy of it made me nervous. I shifted back and forth in my stance as a guard. I’d been given first watch. In the growing dusk, the occasional shadow shifted, making my senses tingle.

They’re testing us, running in and out of the shadows. No one of importance, no one serious, just thrill seekers ... for now.

The older Dragon Riders and Savette had turned in for the night, leaving Leng, Shonan, and me on first watch. Would she be able to get much sleep? I felt nervous and it wasn’t even me being tested in the morning. I stood in silence, watching the shadows. Behind me, keeping an eye in the other direction, I heard Leng and Shonan in quiet conversation.

“You helped her challenge Starie. That has to mean something.” I knew Leng well enough by now to know he was trying to keep judgment out of his tone.

“She’s the rightful Chosen One. The prophecies point to her.”

“Yes, but you could have let her challenge on her own. You went down with her.” Why was Leng pressing him on this? I would have helped Savette. Hubric would have. Why did he think it was so significant that Shonan helped her?

“The old man makes a good point.”

Hubric? Were they still talking in the cards? Better question – did Hubric ever stop talking in the cards? They were playing together when I left to wait in line. What had Hubric said to him?

There was a long silence between Leng and Shonan and my ears prickled from listening so hard. It felt almost as if they were speaking without words.

“Then you’re willing to commit treason.” Leng’s voice was so quiet that I barely made it out over the chirruping of insects around our camp.

“What is treason? Is it disloyalty to the Dominar or to the Dominion? Is it treason to stand for the love of the nation or treason to stand in the way of her enemies? Loyalty is complicated. My decisions around it even more so. When he stole ... what he stole ... from me, that didn’t take away my responsibilities to this place. I realize that now. I have not changed. My purpose has not changed. Only my enemies have changed.”

They were silent again and I saw a shadow skitter across my vision. Were there more people in the darkness outside the glow of our fire? I snapped my quarterstaff out of the crutch. I needed to be ready.

“Will you stand with me?” Shonan asked his brother quietly.

“Are you certain you want to fly these skies?” Leng countered.

“I’m becoming certain.”

“Then I’m as loyal to you as I ever was.”

“Brothers?”

“Always.”

I was smiling in the dark when a sudden grunt and clash from where they stood broke my concentration. Was someone attacking us?

“For the Chosen One!” a voice bellowed from the dark.

They must be rushing towards us, though I couldn’t see anything outside our ring of firelight. Light, sudden and searing, blinded my vision as all of our dragons flamed outward at once. The shadows around us lit up for a moment as charging dark shadows suddenly shifted into shadows fleeing into the night.

That will keep them at bay for a while. They aren’t Dragon Riders. Just servants and hawkers. People hoping to improve their lot in life by causing trouble.

We settled back into watching, but now every movement in the dark made me jump. Eventually, Hubric came to relieve me, whispering to me as we changed places.

“I think we have Shonan back on the right course.”

“Did you convince him to stand with Savette?” I whispered back.

“Not my place. Remember when he told you that you were healed, only to leave it to you to choose to sacrifice that? He had the same realization and choice to make. The idea of freedom for him was such a release from bondage – but it was never his to keep.”

I went to sleep thinking sadly of Shonan, who had to choose to give rather than gain. He’d had so much compassion in his eyes when he’d asked me to do that. I just hoped we could show him the same kindness as he made his own sacrifice.

I woke before dawn. Hubric nudged me in the ribs with a foot and I woke sleepily, leaning against Raolcan as I righted myself.

“Get ready. We’re heading down the mountain.”

Around me, the others were taking down the pavilion, packing what little we had and cinching saddles tight. Savette was calmness embodied, her blindfold snug, dress tidy, and light blonde hair swirling in the wind. I patted her shoulder as I walked by, but she seemed unaware of my touch, as if she were already somewhere else in her mind, preparing for battle.

Leng came over for a moment to give my hand an encouraging squeeze. His steps were lighter since last night. He had felt the weight of Shonan’s decision as heavily as his brother had. I smiled back in silence as we readied everything and mounted our dragons.

The sun wasn’t up yet, but a slight glow had begun on the horizon. Time to face what lay ahead. If Savette failed in this test, we wouldn’t be leaving here unharmed. Twice more in the night knots of troublemakers had rushed our guards, only to be sent back. But they weren’t the ones we had to worry about. They were just froth on the top of the wave about to come crashing down.

Chapter Fifteen

We rode in silence down to the Dawn Gate.

Well, the humans are silent. The rest of us have a lot to say.

What did the dragons down there think about this? They didn’t believe Starie was the Chosen One, did they?

The wild dragons care only for what Haz’drazen says. They will respect the results of today’s test. But dragons who work closely with humans take on human characteristics and loyalties. They are torn – conflicted – just as their humans are. For the most part, they agree that Starie is the Chosen One and they are simply waiting now – impatiently – for Haz’drazen to confirm it. Everyone is impatient. The longer we wait here, the longer the war goes on without us. There are rumors that the Rock Eaters have landed more ships. Ko’Torenth is also making noises that no one trusts. We can’t afford more enemies.

We were at the road now, where the shelf met the volcanic mountain where we’d slept the night before. Already, the shelf around the Dawn Gate was packed with people and dragons, pushing to get a good view of the gate. Our group shoved into the crowd, shouts of disapproval following us. A man in Dragon Rider leathers with a white scarf threw a chunk of bread – his breakfast? – at Savette, and then there were chunks of food and rags and other refuse being thrown.

Don’t flame them! How were the dragons going to control themselves in the middle of this?

With great difficulty. I’d like to “cough” a few times into this crowd.

The look in Kyrowat’s eye made me want to ask Raolcan to back up. I was nervous Kyrowat might burn me to cinders when he lost his temper and finally flamed someone.

We all know how important this is. It’s why Rasipaer is still here. He desperately wants to go north to look for Ashana, but he’s waiting until this challenge is complete.

If Raolcan and I were separated, I’d be desperate to find him, too.

We were still only halfway to the Dawn’s Gate when Savette slipped off Rasipaer’s back and spoke to us.

“He said to come alone with no weapons or allies. Wait for me here.” She turned and strode forward through the angry crowd.

Was she kidding? She needed our protection!

My brother will appreciate her respect for the rules. She needs to hurry, though. Starie is already in place, though her allies surround her. Ah! Here is Taoslil. His timing is perfect.

I peered forward. Even up high on Raolcan’s back, it was hard to see what was going on at the gate. There were just too many other dragons and too much distance. I thought I could make out an ethereal white dragon and a group of other glorious-looking dragons around him. Was that a human at his feet?

An Ilerioc. They live with dragons and serve as our interpreters.

It was hard to make out the details of his clothing, but I could see his face and head were wrapped in cloths and he wore a flapping cloak that caught the wind like a banner. So he wasn’t human despite how he looked?

Sort of but not exactly. Quiet. He’s speaking now.

What was he saying? I couldn’t hear from here. Around me the crowd murmured, jostling us as they also leaned in, straining their ears to hear.

The Ilerioc translates. He is giving a speech about the Queen and about her glorious son, Taoslil. Really, he is not as amazing as they’re saying. Seriously. He’s a White dragon who thinks he can tell everyone else what’s best for them. Typical White. A finger in every pie even though they have no business there. And anyone could do his job. It’s mostly listening to people’s arguments and making up compromises. I could do that.

Raolcan could compromise?

No, but I can make other people compromise. Okay, the speech is winding down. Now he’s laying out the parameters. Both women will enter separate doors to the two volcanos. Within there is a symbol. They will find and retrieve it. They are to bring no food, water, weapons or allies. We will wait for them to return. While we wait, the dragons here will pledge to Haz’drazen. When one of them returns – if she returns – we will know who the Chosen One is.

That simple?

Simple isn’t the same as easy. Okay, they are taking vows and doing a light purification ceremony. Starie is shooting poisonous looks at Savette. Yikes! I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of those! Savette is looking over at us – one last look for courage. Taoslil is spreading his wings ... and there. The doorways are opening up.

I strained my eyes, but through the various heads and wings I could only barely make out what might be dark caves opening in the sides of the two volcanoes on either side of the Dawn’s Gate.

And they’re off!

I strained to see, but all I saw was glimpses of movement. I hoped Savette was okay! Whatever challenges she was going to face, I knew she was up for them. She was the real Chosen One, after all. The one of prophecy. So much depended on her. She’d be fine ... right?

Are you asking me?

I was just worried.

Starie Atrelan is not the Chosen One and this test will prove that. It is she who should be worried.

I nodded, but as the golden sun rose to our left, I found a slick of sweat already forming on me that had nothing to do with the sun. Savette was alone and if there were enemies in there – of any kind – I wouldn’t be able to protect her.

And now we wait.

Chapter Sixteen

The sense of waiting that I thought had made me jumpy before grew worse with each passing hour. The dragons - led by Taoslil - came out from the gate and began to take the renewed vows of the dragons assembled with a kind of efficiency they hadn’t shown before.

They can feel trouble brewing - no matter how this ends - just as we can. They are hoping some will leave, but no one wants to leave. Even with a war behind us and orders to carry out – it’s a moment of history. A moment everyone will be talking about for the rest of their lives. How could you leave now when a few hours might be all you need to see that?

In my experience, “moments of history” were usually bloody, terrifying and risky. If I had the choice I’d leave now.

Ha! I don’t believe that for a second.

Starie’s supporters had set up a pavilion on the path to her cave entrance for Grandis Elfar. Every so often I saw her look our direction, but she was hemmed in there by hundreds of supporters, meeting together, waiting on her, cooking, tending dragons, and caring for tack.

Our tiny band of rebels was the only people waiting on Savette’s path, sweating and worrying under the burning eye of the sun. We hadn’t set up a pavilion – though perhaps we should have for shade. The side of the volcano didn’t have much in the way of tree cover and the air was dusty and smothering. Somehow, in the middle of everything that happened since we left Dragon School, the heat of summer had arrived with a vengeance. We wanted to be ready for when Savette returned. What if we had to flee Starie’s supporters when they saw that Savette was the one who was marked?

By nightfall, we were exhausted from waiting. Jenanta and Denu spoke quietly together and then approached Hubric. There were so few of us that even with their voices pitched low, we could hear every word.

“Leaving?” he asked them.

Denu startled, but Jenanta crossed her arms. “We didn’t mind backing your play, Hubric. You know we respect you, but our dragons have been noted and we have no obligation to stay.”

“And you don’t like the idea of that crowd turning on you when one of those girls walks out of there.”

Jenanta frowned, shifting from one foot to the other. “There’s a war to be fought. No point turning on our own with an enemy to tackle.”

Hubric sighed.

“Don’t take it personally, Hubric,” Denu said. “We want to remain your friends. We aren’t leaving out of cowardice. It’s just wise to use resources where they’re most needed.”

They waited long moments until Hubric nodded, grudgingly. He exchanged salutes with them as the two other Dragon Riders mounted up and flew out into the black night sky.

“We’d better post a watch,” Hubric said, but his voice was tired and older than usual.

“I’ll take first watch,” Shonan offered. “It’s wise to spend resources effectively, Hubric, but sometimes – some things – are worth risking everything for. There’s no shame in standing for truth when everyone else crumbles – even if that means they all think you’re a fool. Those of us who know the truth know better. And if we weren’t here, the Truth would know, and that is enough.”

“Mmmm,” Hubric said, noncommittally, but I noticed as we settled down against our dragons to sleep that Haskell slipped over to whisper to him in the dark and not long after she left, he was snoring like usual.

I couldn’t sleep. I was too worried about Savette. How hard was the trial she faced that she was at it all day? Could we trust the dragons with the Chosen One? Why hadn’t we thought about that before we let her go? What if they had taken her or abandoned her to some danger and she died in their charge? What if we’d risked the hope of the world just to satisfy their silly curiosity? Maybe we’d made a mistake ...

Skies and stars! Either go to sleep or walk around and distract yourself, but please, I am begging you, stop this nonsense. I can’t get a wink of sleep.

My cheeks flushed with embarrassment and I tried to cloud out my worries, thinking instead of a meadow near my childhood home and how much I’d like to take Raolcan there. As I started to drift off, Leng joined us there, sitting with me in the long grass by the river bank and talking to me about the horses he was going to breed there. I fell asleep dreaming of a future that would likely never be.

“Amel?” Leng was whispering beside me, shaking me awake. “It’s our watch.”

I blinked, reveling in the cool air after the heat of the evening before. We crept to the edge of the camp where we could sit on the hillside and watch the road to Savette’s cave, the Dawn’s Gate, and the fires of the other Dragon Riders at the same time.

“I dreamt of you and of raising horses,” I said sleepily as his hand found mine.

“No children?” he asked lightly.

“I can’t have children.” I slipped my hand out of his grasp. I’d told him that before – hadn’t I? – but it must not have stuck in his mind. Would that change things between us? “With my leg...”

He snatched my hand back. “There are always children who need a home. Not having your own doesn’t mean there can’t be children.”

We spent the last hours of the night talking about my dream – of what it would be like to have a home in the long grass by the river. Of raising horses – a passion of Leng’s. Of how he and Shonan helped their parents raise and train horses before Shonan was taken from them and his parents died of sickness. He’d like to make a home for children like that – children who had lost their homes. As he spoke, I found that more than anything, I wanted to do that with him. And there would need to be cliffs nearby for Ahlskibi and Raolcan. They wouldn’t like to be on flat ground for very long.

We were still talking when the first rays of light gilded the edges of the mountains and with them, the first shouts came from the other camp. I stood so quickly that my crutch shook under me, my eyes riveted on the path leading from the cave Starie had disappeared into. On the path, a dark silhouette stumbled and fell into the dirt.

Chapter Seventeen

Two figures raced down the path toward her, picked her up and raised her up on their shoulders. I couldn’t hear them from so far away, but in the camp shouts and cheers exploded through the ranks of people waiting. Behind Starie, the gold of dawn swelled, painting her shadow out long so that it reached all the way to the waiting camp.

Beside me, Leng froze, dropping my hand. When I saw what he was looking at, I gasped. Starie raised her arm above her head. A haze of dark purple-black light surrounded it. She had been marked. She had passed the test. What did that mean?

Not what you think it does, but it confirms some things I’ve suspected for a while.

Like what? Now I was worried – hadn’t he said that the one who didn’t pass would die? And Starie had passed so that meant...

Don’t get ahead of yourself. If they aren’t marked they die. Who knows if Savette is marked? Who knows if Starie even took the test or if she achieved that mark by some other means?

I shivered. The dragons were all awake, crowding behind Leng and me to get a good look. Hubric, Haskell, and Shonan joined us.

“Not good,” Hubric said. “But how could they fake that?”

“What if it’s not a fake?” Shonan asked.

“It’s not real. We know it can’t be, so all that remains is to discover how it was done. And it’s only two marks. The Ibrenicus prophecies said there would be three.”

“I don’t think anyone down there is worried about that,” I said.

Taoslil broke through the rippling Dawn Gate, a throng of free dragons with him. The cheering, jostling crowd carried Starie above their heads, marching her up to him to present their Chosen One and her symbol. I bit my lip. She looked the part with her long hair flying behind her like a flag and those dark signs swirling across her pale skin.  Had I been wrong all along? Was I only seeing what I expected to see?

I had to see for myself.

Without speaking or looking at anyone, I set off toward the Gate. I heard someone call from behind me. Leng, perhaps, or Hubric. I didn’t know. I wasn’t paying attention. My mind was sorting through every interaction I’d ever had with Starie and Savette. Every conversation. Every event. I had been so sure. Had I been just finding evidence to support what I wanted to be true? Was everyone else right? Were we Lightbringers just crazy freaks who represented a real problem for the Dominion?

Or had something terrible happened to Savette in those caves and despite being the original Chosen One, had Starie been chosen in her place?

I pushed into the crowd, ignoring curses and shouts as I pressed through the crowd, desperate to see for myself.

Always the doubter. Always the one who has to see for herself.

What was the alternative? Let someone else think for me? Not even Raolcan could do that.

I don’t even bother trying anymore.

The translator – the Ilerioc, I remembered – was speaking, “Starie Atrelan has fulfilled our bargain. She has gone into the mountains and has come out marked. We acknowledge this. We shall wait until the other contender has returned to make our decision.”

The sudden roar around me made me jump. I glanced around me to see the faces twisted with anger and frustration. One man shook his fist at the Ilerioc, and a woman beside me let off a string of angry curses. Would any of these people have cared whether the dragons named Starie Atrelan the Chosen One two days ago? But now they looked as if their homes and livelihoods had been stolen. Why the change? What had possessed them? Their faces, so human and normal only yesterday, looked almost animal in the bright light and dark shadows of early morning.

Get out of there. Now.

I was pushing again, but this time in the other direction. I needed out. I didn’t want to be caught up in whatever this was.

“This goes against your promise to us!” Grandis Elfar exclaimed.

She stood a half step back from Starie. Angrily, she took half a step forward towards Taoslil. One of the black dragons behind him stepped forward, snapping at Grandis Elfar. Taoslil looked past them all, over my head and up to where I’d stood on the hillside not long ago.

He knows I’m here now.

Starie raised a hand, without hesitation, her face blank of all expression. From her palm, a dark bolt of non-light shot out and spread across the surface of the black dragon. He fell in a shower of dust.

“Enough.” Her voice cut through every shout, every snarl, like the hiss of death. I felt ice form in my bones, so searingly cold that tears sprung to my eyes. I couldn’t move, but this was no magic. Terror froze me in place.  “We need no approval from you or anyone. We will speak to your Queen and she will make concessions.”

Around me, a cheer broke out again as Starie pulled off her blindfold and looked at a second dragon in Taoslil’s guard. He fell, instantly, just like his brother. Taoslil’s mouth pulled back, revealing a row of gleaming teeth.

Starie turned to the crowd. “No one can deny my mark of power.” She raised her arm up over her head, the dark mark that swirled across her arm revealed for all to see one more time – a dragon head amidst swirling waves and the spiraling sign of the Dusk Covenant. “I bear the mark of the Dusk. I bear the mark of the Covenant. I AM YOUR CHOSEN ONE.”

The cheering deafened me.  I fought through the last ring of the crowd, gasping for breath the moment I was free of them. She had been marked, yes. The people believed her, yes. But around them swirled a spirit of evil, deception, and power. It was like when Savette’s power broke free – but the opposite. Where hers was bringing truth into reality, this was the manufacture of something out of nothing – of a lie painted on reality itself. I would have called that magic before, but now, having seen the opposite, it filled my belly with cold and dread. If no one ever believed us, we would still have to fight this. Something within me rose up against it like a mother bear against a threat to her cubs. If I died fighting this, I’d consider it worth the price.

I clenched my jaw, determination filling me, and looked up. From the mouth of her cave, Savette stumbled free, white light shining all around her.

Chapter Eighteen

I might have been the first to rush towards her, but with my bad leg holding me back, I was the last to reach her. Hubric set her on her feet while I was still rushing forward. Shonan and Leng each slipped a shoulder under her arms, helping her stand. She swayed like a reed in the wind, her long hair hanging heavy across her face like the weight of it was pulling her down. Her blindfold had slipped and her gaze – brighter than ever – pierced me when she looked up.

Her dress had ripped in the cavern, and her arms were exposed, revealing a swirling tattoo of light on each arm – a dragon emerging over a hill in a burst of light. They glowed as brightly as her eyes – or the symbol on my own arm, for that matter – and across her face, a winding tattoo was drawn over her brow and down the sides of her hairline and jaw. It was too bright and too intricate to follow, but it was very clear to me – Savette had been marked three times, just as the prophecies foretold.

My heart leapt with pride. Now everyone would have to recognize who Savette was! There couldn’t be any more lies from Starie – not anymore. But why hadn’t one of them died in the testing as they’d been warned?

Savette must have passed the test. And I have reason to believe that Starie was never tested at all. How hard would it be to hide in the cavern and manufacture that mark?

I couldn’t do it.

But Starie has powers you don’t have.

“Fraud!” I heard the yell ring across the shelf and I spun to see Starie, her finger pointed at Savette. “Deception and trickery! This girl waited until I was marked to duplicate the markings! See how she wavers, requiring support to stand? She is worn out from the magic of forging the marks upon her body.”

“It’s true!” Grandis Elfar yelled from beside Starie. “Those are not the true markings, but a clever fake. See how they glow with light instead of sucking the light into them like the True Chosen One’s marks do?”

There was silence as the crowd looked from Starie to Savette and back again. Taoslil’s head was cocked to the side like he was listening to things we couldn’t hear.

Dragon voices. We have our own opinions about this.

And what were they?

We are as divided as the humans.

And what was he hearing from Raolcan?

That I’ll twist his tail if he’s a fool about this.

“Tell me, mistress of falsehood,” Starie said, from her place before the Dawn’s Gate. “What you saw in the caverns.”

Savette pulled her head up straight, pushing her hair behind her back with effort. She was weak after her ordeal, and it was true that Starie seemed much stronger. Why was that?

Because it’s Starie’s marks and not Savette’s that are forgeries. It’s why she’s so quick to shout about fakery.

“I saw visions of the future and the present. I witnessed the pain of our people and the lies that keep them tied down. I have suffered with the Truth this day and night - seeing things no one should see.”

Starie laughed, a merry, tinkling laugh that seemed at odds with her harsh demands. “This proves you were not tested by the dragons. Why would you have visions? What does that prove? I was asked three questions and when I answered them, I was given this mark on my arm. I only needed one mark. I didn’t need to overdo it to try to prove I’m something that I’m not.”

Her voice carried over the silent crowd, and Savette’s carried, too. Likely, she was using that trick she’d learned from Rakturan.

“I saw that you serve a Covenant of Lies,” Savette said. “And I watched as you and an army of Ifrits ripped the heart out of the world and held it aloft while all the earth was drained of life.”

“Did you stand in the heart of the volcano where the earth is still hot? Almost to the edge of the red soul of the mountain?” Starie challenged.

Savette pushed Leng and Shonan aside with such force that they stumbled. Each man fell far to the side, Leng catching a hold of Hubric as they both stumbled back. I opened my mouth to protest, but Savette began to glow red, heat from her body radiating as far as I stood. The others leapt backward, scrambling to get away from the intensity of her heat.

“Almost?” she asked. “There was no almost about it. I was washed by the fire of the mountain. I come back to you with a gift.”

“And what gift is that?” Starie asked, her eyes flashing in the sun.

“Truth.”

Grandis Elfar’s barking laughter jarred me. “Only children and fools speak of truth like it exists, child. Truth is what you make it when you let your power flow into changing the world. It does not exist outside our own designs. Worse, your statements prove you lie. No one goes into the heart of a fire and comes back unsinged. What say you, good people? Do you see as I do, that this girl is nothing but a copycat -  desperate to grasp some of the fame of her classmate – the Chosen One? Will you allow this counterfeit Chosen One to make her claim?”

“No!” the yell was as if it came from one throat, but as I looked through the crowd there were some who looked confused and concerned.

“Will you let her divide our great people now when we are in the midst of a terrible conflict?”

“No!” This time, the answer was unanimous. I bit my lip. There were so many of them against us.

“Then, dragons, you have our answer,” the Grandis said, spinning to face Taoslil. “This is our representative. She has answered your questions and come back with your mark. We demand that you acknowledge her.”

There was a long silence as every person waited to hear the answer. I felt a nudge and turned to see Raolcan behind me.

Mount up.

I didn’t question his order. When was the last time he’d given one? Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Hubric already on Kyrowat strapping Haskell in behind him and Leng tightening the saddle on Ahlskibi while Shonan ran toward Rasipaer. The dragons knew something we didn’t.

The Ilerioc cleared his throat, raising his arms in the air. Tiny bells rang as his clothing moved and it seemed as if even the breeze stilled to allow us all to listen.

“I speak for the dragons and the great Taoslil, emissary of the Queen.” He paused, was he nervous to say the rest? “Taoslil, on behalf of Haz, Queen of Dragons, acknowledges Savette Leedris as the Chosen One and-”

His words were cut off as Starie ripped her blindfold from her eyes. She looked him in the eye and he burst apart like a handful of dust thrown against a rock.

Chapter Nineteen

As if it had been kindled by that one action, a dozen things happened at once. Rasipaer dove toward Savette, snatching her up in his arms like a child’s doll. Taoslil flamed his fury into the crowd, his bodyguard dragons springing forward to surround him as they hurried him back through the Gate.

The crowd around Starie was like a barrel of snakes – pure chaos as people ran from the flames, mounted dragons, hurried to surround Starie in a defensive pattern.

“Take down the False One!” Starie roared and the crowd roared with her, surging toward us.

Raolcan leapt into the air, but we were four dragons to their many. Somehow Rasipaer had managed to get Savette on his back and Shonan strapped her in as we surrounded him, flying in formation together.

We weren’t fast enough. Dragon upon dragon leapt into the air in front of us, like an army of grasshoppers, leaping up at once and filling the sky. A Green was the first to actually press an attack, diving towards Raolcan with such speed that I gasped. Unconcerned, he rolled to the side, flaming the rider with a puff of breath before rolling back into formation.

The Dragon Rider screamed as he lit up like a torch, tumbling out of the sky, along with his dragon. There were cries from beneath us, and I realized in a flash that we were not the only ones who had chosen Savette, despite how much the crowd had seemed to be one living entity. All around us clusters of dragons fought in twos or threes against other clusters.

Fire splashed across the ground and flared through the sky. Screams and curses filled the air around us while chaos ruled across the ground. Servants and hawkers among the tents scrambled out of the camp like ants in a kicked anthill. Some carried bundles in their arms, but flames rose up from the camps below and anything that wasn’t carried away the first time would not survive the blaze. In the creeping heat of the morning and with no water anywhere nearby, it was sure to consume everything while the owners of the tents, barrels, and sacks below were busy in the airy battles above.

Raolcan spun to the side, lashing against a sudden attack from an artful Red while Rasipaer maneuvered to take the Red’s spewing fire on his belly, protecting his riders. A knot of twenty Reds attacked us at once, like a flock of birds descending. I held the saddle tight in both hands, my head spinning as Raolcan dodged and rolled and spun, flaming and clawing and snapping at our attackers. I was never going to get used to these battles!

They’re the best part of being your dragon. We are always at the heart of things.

Oh, skies and stars! I swallowed down nausea.

I know! Isn’t it the best?

Light – white and searing – flared across my vision and then we were climbing. By the time my vision cleared, I managed to see we were all there just before a second attack – this time with dragons of every color – rolled over us like a fiery tide. I smelled burning hair as flames licked too close to me, blistering the backs of my hands and leaving my leathers hot. I gritted my teeth hard to keep from screaming. That wouldn’t help anything. Neither would the pounding of my heart. Or my fast breaths from burning lungs.

We’re clear of that attack. Hold on!

But how much longer could I hold on for? Around me, the screams and cries of my friends told me we were all in the same situation. And then suddenly something changed. There was a roar from below and Raolcan banked to the side, leaving my view clear of the ground below.

Knots of dragons still fought, but below us, a wide gash tore across the earth. Starie stood before it, hands raised and head uplifted as scores of Ifrits poured from the ground across the landscape, snatching up fleeing servants, horses and hawkers. They disappeared under the shadowy forms of the Ifrits. How many were there? Dozens? More. Hundreds? Maybe.

Fear filled me, and I was not alone. All across the sky, the battles broke up as Ifrits pawed and snatched at dragons and riders.

The Dawn Gate suddenly went black, as if it had been shut.

It has been. They have blocked off passage through it. Taoslil must protect our homeland. It’s his duty.

There would be no retreating there. What would we do now?

We stay in formation and stick together.

A pair of Ifrits sprang up beneath us, mouths wide and teeth gnashing around the red flames within. One of them swatted at Kyrowat, only to have Savette flare her white power at him. He disappeared in exploding mist.

I held on tight as we fled, glancing behind my back to see dragons fleeing in every direction as Ifrits charged after them. They didn’t seem to care about whether they attacked supporters of Savette or Starie. A mindless force of death and destruction, they chased anything that moved and destroyed anything too exhausted to run.

I felt sweat form on my brow as my grip tightened further. In the middle of the chaos on the ground I could still see Starie, her arms raised and her hair swirling out from her in all directions. Was she laughing?

Whatever else happened today, one thing is certain, there may have been war before, but those were only the opening moves. The true challenge has been issued. The true war has begun, and it battles not just for this land but for our hearts, our loyalties, our affections. There is not a human or dragon in this land that it will not wound and scar before this battle is won.

My heart sank at the truth of his words, as I watched wave after wave of earth demons pour from the rip in the earth.

Read more of Amel’s story in Dragon School: Dire Quest.

Behind the Scenes:

USA Today bestselling author, Sarah K. L. Wilson, hails from the rocky Canadian Shield in Northern Ontario where she lives with her husband and two small boys. Her interests include the outdoors, history, and philosophy. Her books are always about fantastical adventures in other worlds.

Sarah would like to thank Harold Trammel, Eugenia Kollia, and Sarah Brown for their incredible work in beta reading and proofreading this book. Without their big hearts and passion for stories, this book would not be the same.

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Dragon School Reading Order:

Dragon School: First Flight

Dragon School: Initiate

Dragon School: The Dark Prince

Dragon School: The Ruby Isles

Dragon School: Sworn

Dragon School: Dusk Covenant

Dragon School: First Message

Dragon School: Warring Promises

Dragon School: Prince of Dragons

Dragon School: Dark Night

Dragon School: Bright Hopes

Dragon School: Mark of Loyalty

Dragon School: Dire Quest

Find them all on their Amazon series page.

Why Novellas?

I love watching television series. I don’t really like movies, because they’re simply too short of a story arc for me. I prefer long, drawn out stories in smaller, bite-sized episodes. Dragon School is my book version of the television dramas that I love. I’m writing the type of series I want to read – long and rich but with short episodes I can read in a single evening. I hope that you’ll enjoy this format as much as I do. I am planning approximately twenty episodes for the first season. The first season will be a complete, self-contained story. There is a second season planned for 2019 that will continue in the same world and timeline with a new main character and dragon. Stay tuned!

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Behind the Scenes: