Page 96 of Black Wing and Shadows
Zane.
“You shouldn’t be on the flight field,”I told him down our bond.
“And? I actually don’t care.”
“How is she, and how bad is it?” he said as he approached Ophelia.
“Not bad at all, a few stitches. She’s seen worse, as you know.”
“You can go now—” I started to say.
“No. I will sit with you until she’s done.”
Ophelia raised her eyebrows at me and gave me a smirk.
“He’s protective. Overbearing. Loving but a mother hen nonetheless,” I said.
“Well, it looks like you bonded with a beautiful dragon. One of the few silvers, according to the rumors,” she said, changing the subject.
I lifted my chin, pride tugging at my mouth. “Only two silvers, is what we were told.”
“What’s her or his name?” Ophelia asked.
“Esme is her name.”
“That’s beautiful, exceptionally fitting.”
“She is spicy,” I let out a laugh.
They both laughed with me.
Ophelia finished stitching me. She applied a salve on it to aid in faster healing and numb it for a little while. I gave her my thanks and a hug before heading back to the flight field. Overhead, I saw a red dragon flying, doing various maneuvers in the sky that made my heart skip a beat. Sometimes dragons took testing us on bonding day to the extreme. Reds are notorious for testing their new Riders to the limit to see if they're worthy of being aRider. The red started descending towards the field, she banked a little to the left, and I could see Lorenzo on its back, holding on for his life. They descended into the stadium field and out of sight.
Zane pressed a gentle kiss on my forehead and returned to the stadium seating. I moved to Esme and stood beside her. She kept her head down but opened her eyes as I approached before closing them again. Several Riders wandered around while some of the fliers lay down like Esme. Others stood nearby, their eyes alert as they looked around. I reached up and scratched gently under Esme’s neck before heading down the field to see if I could locate any of our platoon.
As I got closer to the end of the griffins, I spotted Sadie lying against a golden griffin. It was still standing, as she rested against its legs. As I approached, she gave me a big smile and jumped up.
“I am soooooo glad to see you here,” she said.
“I am glad to see you—”
She grabbed me into a bear hug, towering four inches over me. It caught me off guard at first before I embraced her back. She let go and stepped back.
“Have you seen any of the others?” I asked her.
“Only Micah,” she nodded towards the phoenixes, “He’s down there with one of the larger phoenixes.”
“Okay, good. I saw Lorenzo flying in on a red dragon. That leaves Akira and Jackson in our group.”
“There was so much screaming out there. I could hear dragons roaring, and I could smell flesh burning. It was intense.”
“Any injuries?”
“No, I am good. I found Korra within minutes. We locked eyes, tingles ran through me, and she told me to get on and let’s get out of here. We were one of the first five or six to land.”
“I am glad to hear that. She’s stunning.”
“What did you get?”
