Wren
“What is that?” I ask, my eyes locked on the tall structure looming ahead of us through the trees. “Sheesh, it’s big.”
“That is Sky’s Edge,” Grim says, his voice a deep rumble.
“Sky’s Edge,” I repeat like an idiot. “It looks like…it…like…” I’m squinting, trying to decide.
We get closer, pushing through a large thicket of trees into a more open area, and I see more of the structure. My jaw literally drops.
“Wow,” I say, almost to myself. “It looks like an obstacle from an obstacle course, but that can’t be it. It’s far too high.” I tilt my head back, putting a hand over my eyes to shield them from the sun. It might be late afternoon, but it’s still glaring.
I whistle low. The thing has to be several stories tall. It’s constructed from wooden beams and covered with a sturdy-looking net. How it doesn’t topple over in a storm is anyone’s guess.
“Itisan obstacle,” Grim confirms. “One of seven that make up the course.”
“I know you shifters are quicker, stronger, and faster than humans, but this is crazy. Have you climbed that thing?” I ask him, looking his way.
“I’ve done the course.” He shrugs like it’s nothing.
“You climbed all the way up there?” I say, gesturing wildly at the monstrosity.
“It was easy,” he says with a nod.
I roll my eyes. “Right. If you say so.”
Then again, he is strong. Sooooo very strong. I have to force my gaze from tracking over him yet again. From his biceps to his broad shoulders and down his muscled chest. My eyes are drawn to his side. The wound has completely closed over. The skin still looks angry and puckered, but it’s nowhere near as bad as it was before. I still can’t believe how quickly shifters heal. My eyes want to drift some more.
Do not look down, Wren. Do not look at his abs, or his tight ass, or his…
Don’t look at that particular part of his anatomy.
I fail spectacularly, my eyes dropping for just a second before I jerk them back up to his face.
He’s looking at me with definite amusement dancing in his eyes.
“Where are we?” My cheeks heat instantly. Shit! Did he catch me staring at him again? I hope not. I really need to stop that, and right now.
“This is the Tribute Training Academy,” he tells me, gesturing toward the obstacle course and the area beyond. “It should be completely vacant this time of year. The new batch of Tributes are due to arrive in a couple of weeks.”
“Tributes… As in humans?” I sound shocked because I am. “The humans who are sent from the Mainland each year to come here to train?” I look back at the towering obstacle. “That’s an obstacle course for humans?”
He nods.
“No way.”
“Yes way,” he says. “They have to be successful before moving to the next phase, which is to see if they can mind-bond with a dragon. If so, then they start learning how to ride.”
“Mind-bonding.” I make a thoughtful noise as I process this information. “How does that work exactly?”
“It’s hard to explain.” He starts walking again, and I fall into step beside him. “It’s a mental bond between beast and human. Only certain humans can do it. Most don’t have the ability. Even then, dragons are very picky about who they mind-bond with.”
“Mind-bond,” I say again, trying to figure out what it is exactly.
“It’s a channel that develops between human and beast where they are able to communicate. The human has influence over the dragon, making them far less feral.”
“You’re talking about what dragon riders do with their dragons. I knew they had a special bond, but I didn’t know how it worked exactly.”
Grim nods. “Yep. Dragon riders mind-bond with their dragons.”
