Page 68 of Dragon Valley
Azel’s smaller green dragon crawled along the vertical rock wall toward us, greeting Dusa with a huff and a sniff.
“Hello, Ryo,” Nadiyah held a hand out to the overgrown lizard who walked across the jagged surface as if he were on the ground. Come to think of it, all the dragons looked completely comfortable perched on this steep cliff face.
“I hope you’re not too disoriented, lieutenant,” Azel called from his seat on the dragon’s neck.
“I’m just not looking down,” I replied.
That got a laugh out of several nearby Riders, all lounging casually on their dragons as if the ground was much closer than a thousand feet below us.
“Dusa won’t let you fall.” Nadiyah leaned her head back on my chest to look up at me. “The bond with a dragon is all about trust. You can slide right off and she’ll fly down to catch you.”
“That’s comforting but I think I’ll stay where I am.”
A nearby scoff made my head turn. The Rider next to us, a large burly man with many black dots tattooed on his face, looked at us like we were shit scraped off the bottom of his shoe.
“What kind of dragon allows an outsider on her back?” he snarled. “That thing should have been culled and served up to a superior beast.”
“Say that again!” Nadi and Dusa turned on him faster than I could perceive, both of them snarling. “Say that to our faces, you cowardly piece of—”
“Enough!” Azel’s dragon jumped in front us, letting out a warning screech to both sides. “We’ll squabble with outsiders later! Right now, we’re on the same side.” Azel glared daggers at Nadi. “Save your temper for the battle, Dragon Rider Nadiyah!”
“Yes, Chief,” she said meekly.
“And you,” Azel turned his red gaze to the other Rider. “Do not insult my mate’s dragon again, or I’ll feed you to Black Malak. That little beast destroyed their stores of dragon ice, and quite possibly saved us all.”
“Yes, Chief,” the man mumbled with a wide-eyed stare. “Sorry.” He looked confusedly between me, Nadi, and Azel but wisely kept his mouth shut.
“Mate, is it?” Nadi purred as Ryo climbed to the rock below us. “I like that. It’s very… primal.”
“Well, we’re not married. Yet,” Azel returned her smile and glanced at me. “I suppose we’ll figure out those details after all this is over.”
“You did want multiple husbands,” I nuzzled her ear.
“And how lucky am I that my wish may come true?” she kissed me over her shoulder.
“You mean, how lucky areweto have you,” I murmured against her soft lips.
“Chief!” A Rider yelled, his dragon perched about thirty feet above us. “The royals are close! They’ll reach the mountain pass within the hour.”
Azel nodded and Ryo let out a high-pitched screech to catch everyone’s attention.
“It’s been a few hundred years since our people have flown dragons into battle,” he began. “Let’s make this one worth telling our grandchildren. Riders! Fly and burn!”
26
NADIYAH
Fifty pairsof dragon wings beat as one as we all pushed off the cliff. Human and reptilian voices roared for bloodlust as we ascended over the ridge and down the other side. Shiny metal shields and armor reflected the early morning sun, tinted with specks of blue. The royal army stretched out wide and deep into the landscape. A wave of blue and gold indeed.
They brought several catapults with them, armed with man-sized boulders instead of dragon ice. Who knew how far or high those things could fly though they likely wouldn’t hit any of us.
The front line halted abruptly when they saw us descending upon them. Azel didn’t give them time to reassemble. Black Malak, leading our assault, opened his jaws and released the first breath of fire.
He scorched a long, black line in the earth. The bodies disintegrated into ash in the blink of an eye. Those right on the edges of the fiery path were unlucky enough to catch the cooler, residual flames. Their screams filled the air as their armor melted and seared to their skin, desperately rolling on the ground to put themselves out.
And then, chaos rained down.
Soldiers scattered like ants in all directions, running for their lives in this wide open terrain from the terrors in the sky. Dragons veered off in all directions, chasing their prey like cats hunting mice.
