"That's not true,"Onyx protested."We only talk shit about you, as you have so eloquently stated, when you deserve it. Do you hear what I have to contend with, Kailin? It is so refreshing to have someone as articulate and wise as you to talk to."
"I'm offended," Ravel said. "You're such a ladies' dragon. You are still upset about not getting to bond with a lady rider and being stuck with me."
The whole conversation was happening inside my head, and even though it was strange, I was getting used to it. I had to admit that Ravel and Onyx's banter was amusing, and I wondered whether they were doing that to keep me entertained so I would forget to be afraid.
"I don't regret bonding with you, my dear friend,"Onyx said."But I've been listening to you for decades, and you have nothing new to tell me. Even your gossip is stale."
Decades?
How old was Commander Ravel? Given his incredible looks, I had assumed he was in his late twenties or early thirties.
He chuckled in my ear. "Thank you for the compliment, Kailin. I'm in my fifties, and I've been bonded to Onyx for over thirty years. Riders don't age physically once the bond solidifies.It's one of the benefits of the connection or one of the burdens, depending on your perspective."
I knew that. But I also knew that most riders didn't make it to middle age.
Oh, wow. Middle age. I almost laughed when I thought about Ravel being my father's age.
Talk about an attraction killer.
Ravel chuckled again. "I wish it worked in the other direction as well, and I could think of lovely young female cadets as daughters, but I have a secret to share with you, Kailin. When you don't age, the urges of the young don't lose their potency; we just learn to manage them better."
It was so embarrassing that he had heard my thoughts, and even more embarrassing that he'd admitted to being attracted to me but managed it because it wasn't allowed.
Had he admitted that, though? Or had he been talking in generalities?
"You are a lovely young lady, Kailin."
I was going to die.
I was so bad with that mental communication thing. I needed to get better at shielding. "It's just pheromones," I stammered. "I'm in a relationship with Alar Tekum. Well, calling it a relationship is somewhat premature, but we are close, and I like him a lot."
"No worries, Little Warrior," Ravel said. "I'm not interested in you that way either, but I would need to be dead not to notice how beautiful you are. And sweet. Let's not forget that."
"I hate it when people call me sweet," I admitted.
"Why? Is there anything wrong with that?"
"No, it's just not who I am. There is darkness inside of me."
"I know," he said softly in my ear. "I was there that night, and I've thought about you often since then, and wondered whether the event had shaped you. I was afraid that it would make youbitter, inured, or hollow, that it would make you lose some of your humanity. I was happy to find out that none of that had happened, and that you were just as sweet and lovely as your brother described you."
So, Dylon was the culprit behind the misconception.
I laughed. "I'm surprised that he described me in such complimentary colors. Usually, he either calls me a brat or a dreamer."
Onyx was oddly silent during our exchange, and I wondered if his silence meant that he was enjoying the juicy gossip material and was afraid to interrupt the flow.
A rumbling chuckle was my answer."Keep talking, Little Warrior. I haven't heard Ravel reveal so much in years."
"I don't have much more to say. Not right now anyway. But I have to admit that I'm surprised. Are many of the riders your age or older?"
"Many are," Ravel said.
"But I thought that most riders don't get to age because so many get killed."
Ravel was silent for a moment before answering. "It happens, but not as often as the rumors claim. The Shedun developed weapons that can cause a lot of damage to dragons' wings. When those are too badly damaged for their fast healing to fix, both rider and dragon can plummet to their deaths. We've developed more effective evasive maneuvers, mostly thanks to General Zorian, the Chief of Staff of the Dragon Force. The man is a brilliant rider, and thanks to him, casualties have drastically declined."
His words relieved a lot of my anxiety about my brother, though I knew the danger would always exist as long as the Shedun kept attacking, and regrettably, that was never going to stop.
