Nevertheless, I hoped the shaman would realize that my skills would be better utilized in the mapping department or crunching numbers in procurement and supply. I was much better with drawing maps and devising charts than I was with flame-throwers or other instruments of war, rifles being the exception.
I was lethal with those.
Gritting my teeth, I lifted my head, lowered my hands, and looked up at the sky.
Only, there was nothing to see.
The dragons must have flown away to continue their fight beyond the western peak.
Releasing a relieved breath, I started to rise, when suddenly they burst through the curtain of a shimmering green aurora that appeared as if rising from the ocean surface far below.
I dropped back into a crouch, but this time, I kept my hands away from my head and looked on.
Breathing, though, seemed optional at the moment.
The larger one, an obsidian-scaled beast similar to the one who had landed in front of my watchtower on that fateful night, had a wingspan easily twice the size of my house and was most likely a male. Its rider was barely visible as he leaned into the turn and banked hard to the right.
A smaller, copper-hued dragon emerged right behind it, matching the maneuver with tendrils of smoke curling from its nostrils. Given the smaller size, it was probably a female. While the male dragons were larger and stronger, the dragonias were faster, more agile, and could climb to higher altitudes.
If the two were riderless, I would have assumed that they were engaged in a mating dance, but since both had riders, they were most likely training.
Suddenly, the dragonia surged forward, snapping at the male's tail. Its rider yanked on the reins, and the dragon responded instantly, twisting mid-air to face its pursuer. A jet of blue-white flame erupted from its maw, forcing the dragonia into a desperate dive.
That didn't look like training.
Were they fighting for real?
Dragons, as well as their riders, were fiercely competitive, and those games could take a deadly turn. Suddenly, I became much less concerned with my own safety and more with theirs.
Elucia couldn't afford to lose any dragons or riders, especially not to a training exercise. They were our best, and at times our only defense against the scourge.
When the awe-inspiring aerial dance continued, with the dragons weaving through the jagged peaks, ducking behind mountain spires, and emerging from banks of mist that clung to the rocky slopes, I allowed myself several breaths to calm my nerves.
They no longer looked like they were about to kill each other.
Abruptly, the male shot straight up, climbing so fast he became a dark streak against the pulsing auroras. The dragonia followed, determination evident in every beat of her powerful wings. Higher and higher they soared, until they were little more than specks against the sky.
Then, without warning, the obsidian dragon folded its wings and plummeted. He fell like a stone, gathering speed as he hurtled toward the churning ocean below. The dragonia hesitated for a split second, then dove after her rival.
"They're going to crash," I murmured, my nails digging into the palms of my hands.
At the last possible moment, the male's wings snapped open, and he pulled out of the dive mere meters above the waves, so close that I could see the spray kicked up by the wings' downdraft. The dragonia, caught off guard, couldn't pull up in time and plunged into the icy waters with a massive splash.
For a terrifying moment, I thought the fight had indeed turned deadly, but then she burst from the sea, water cascading from her scales, and her rider clinging to her back. She shook herself mid-air, looking for all the world like a disgruntled cat before letting out a reluctant cry of defeat.
The male circled her, both riders exchanging some sort of communication by gesturing with their hands, and then the dragons turned to fly toward the Citadel and the eyrie above it, their silhouettes dark against the ever-shifting ribbons of light.
I stood up, my legs shaky from the adrenaline rush.
In just five days, I would be making the perilous climb to meet the shaman and learn if I was destined for the sky.
To be chosen was the ultimate honor, but I beseeched Elu to be passed over.
4
ALAR
"Wise words might avert unnecessary bloodshed, but when words fail, strike without mercy and aim to win."
