"Not even the shaman?"
I was sure Saphir needed to know what I could do.
"I will tell him, but first I want to tell my wing commander. He will probably want to test your ability with other dragons before we tell the shaman, so we have something of value to report."
As the weight of his words sank in, panic bloomed in my chest. I'd barely come to terms with the idea of becoming a rider, and now there was this additional expectation that would require a cool head during battles. I wasn't sure I was ready for such tremendous responsibility or that I ever would be.
I forced my expression to remain neutral, not wanting Commander Ravel to see my doubts. He and Onyx thought that I was brave, the fierce little warrior they'd seen that night five years ago, and I didn't want to tarnish that impression by showing the side of me that was anything but fierce and courageous.
"Let's get moving," Ravel said, gesturing toward an arched doorway set into the mountain at the back of the platform. "Captain Odinah is waiting for you."
As we walked into the chamber, my eyes were immediately drawn to Shovia, who had arrived before me. She looked perfectly fine, but a couple of the others who had been delivered in the first round looked a little green.
Not being the only one terrified of riding on the back of a dragon was comforting. It made me feel a little less of a freak.
The woman standing in front of them turned her sharp eyes on me, but only for a split second, and then shifted her gaze to Ravel.
"Commander," she greeted him with a nod and a shadow of a smile, then turned her assessing gaze back on me.
I felt as if I were being catalogued and classified, my worth determined in that single glance and found wanting.
"Allow me to introduce Kailin Strom of Skywatcher's Point," Ravel said. "Dylon's sister."
Something flickered in Captain Odinah's eyes. "Your special pick," she said, her tone carefully neutral, but her words causing heat to flood my cheeks.
Had Ravel made it clear to everyone that he'd singled me out?
And why had he done that?
Was it because he liked my brother and wanted to make sure that his little sister got a special welcome?
Or was it because of what he had seen five years ago?
"I look forward to seeing what you bring to the Dragon Force, Cadet Kailin," Odinah said, her expression giving away nothing of her true thoughts.
Ravel gave me one last smile before turning to her. "I leave her in your capable hands, Captain."
As his attention returned to me, I thought he might reach for my hand or say something personal, but he maintained his professional demeanor. "Good luck with your orientation, Kailin."
And with that, he turned on his heel and walked out the way we had come.
Through the row of expansive windows, I watched as he vaulted back onto Onyx's saddle with effortless grace. The great dragon rumbled once more, a sound I felt in my bones rather than heard, before spreading his wings and launching off the platform.
As they dropped from view, a gasp escaped my throat, but then a powerful upward sweep carried them skyward again, and I let out a breath.
"Take your place with the others, Kailin," Captain Odinah said.
47
ALAR
"Fortify against the enemy without, but guard no less vigilantly against the enemy within."
—Commander Darius Hawke, Elite Forces' Vedona Academy
Avida tried to engage me during the flight, making small detours to point out this or that peak and its significance in this or that battle, but I looked at it all with little interest. I was wholly preoccupied with Kailin and what I should do when I saw her.
One thing was for sure. Given the turmoil I was feeling right now, she wasn't the casual fling I'd attempted to convince myself she was, and my feelings for her ran deep. Regrettably, I might have arrived at this groundbreaking realization too late andblown up my chances with her by not showing her how much she meant to me.
