Page 29 of Black Wing and Shadows
“Which one?”
“I am not sure yet. I don’t want to make an impulsive decision about this.”
“That’s fair. Super cool that three fliers wanted you.”
“I am honestly not sure what to think about it.”
We both entered the arena. There were two large gates for dragons to pass through, one on the flight field side and the other in the courtyard. The entire perimeter had a twenty-foot-thick stone ledge to support landing and perching fliers. There were seats lining the walls, similar to a stadium classroom. In the center was a large open field. In the upper corner, where it met the dining facility, there was a stage with twenty high pedestal chairs overlooking the arena. Officers occupied the area.
On the ground, numerous cadets gathered, most of them clad in black uniforms. The seating area near the stage was sectioned off, with signs reading “Feather Wing,” “Dragon Wing,” and “Eagle Wing.” In the center, a sign marked “First-Years.” Looking around, I saw that the seats for upperclassmen were filled, while the first-years stood together, mingling among themselves. Standing there felt awkward, as we were the center of attention for all the commanding upper-class students and officers. I scanned the sections, searching for my friends, but I couldn't find them.
An hour passed, and it looked like most of us first-years who went through judgment were here.
“Fall in, first-years!” an officer shouted.
We all moved into formation, standing at attention. Since we hadn’t been assigned to specific platoons or squads, we created a line of ten across and filled it in. Loud wing beats approached. It didn’t sound like just one, but I couldn’t turn to look. I heard them land on the arena ledges behind us. A tremendously large yellow-gold dragon landed on the edge near the stage, causing the ground to shake. At that moment, I saw an average-sized grey dragon circling to land. As it drew closer, I noticed the black dappling in its wings—Kim. My father had to be there. I shifted my gaze back to the stage, where he sat in the front row. I was pretty sure he glared at me. I kept my face neutral and stayed at attention. Kim touched down between the yellow-gold dragon and the stage. All around, we heard other powerful fliers landing.
“At ease,” an officer yelled.
I finally looked around and saw all the fliers up top, looking down and watching us. These belonged to officers and leaders. Next to the yellow gold, there was a significantly large, beautiful phoenix. As I looked around, I counted ten dragons, ten griffins, and four phoenixes.
"Congratulations and welcome, new Riders! I am Major General Kamban. I command all Sandorg. Above you are the fliers bonded to the officers sitting here, as well as the Wing Commanders for your wings. Ninety-four of you entered the Rider’s Judgment. Seventy-nine of you made it through alive, making this one of the smallest years to start.Now, I’d like to introduce some of the fine officers joining me. General Blackcreek, who oversees the military, has joined us. Brigade General Scullin oversees the Rider’s branch. For instructors, we have: Captain Vindex, Captain Pascal, Captain Wormald, Captain Gile, Captain Rivet, Major Fogg, Major Duft, Major Bhatta, Major Melamora, Major Quillet, and Major Hildegard. Now I will turn this over to Brigade General Scullin."
"I also want to say congratulations and welcome to my command. There are three wings: Feather Wing, Dragon Wing, and Eagle Wing. Each wing has two platoons: Electric and Fire. In each of those platoons, there are two squads. Breaking it down further, each squad has four flights representing their academic year. In one wing, there are twenty-four cadet leadership positions. The only position not filled is flight guards for first-years. This will be filled in a couple of weeks, chosen by the leadership of your wing."
A Historian walked up the stairs to the stage and handed Captain Wormald a thick, rolled-up paper. He took that paper and gave it to Brigade General Scullin, who nodded his head in thanks.
“Let’s assign your new roles. Wing Commander of the Feather Wing is cadet Nikolai Corson. Wing Commander of the Dragon Wing is cadet Casey Verlander. Wing Commander of the Eagle Wing is cadet Arya Cusick. When I call your name, please move to the section with your new wing. Feather Wing, Electric Platoon, First Squad, first-year cadets: Auriella Blackcreek, Lorenzo Carnethon, Sadie Devins, Akira Faraday, Clara Heston, Micah Riggins, and Jackson Zardes.”
The six other cadets and I moved out of formation and headed toward the Feather Wing section. He kept calling out names, and cadets broke off, moving swiftly to their assigned positions. I saw Thora heading toward our section. Thank the gods, someone I recognized! She was in the same platoon but in the second squad. I looked up into our wing—my heart thudded with joy—Lili. She looked just as stunning as I last saw her a year ago during summer break. Her dark brown hair was braided and pulled into a neat bun. Her light golden eyes gazed at me, filled with genuine joy. She had been my best friend since birth. She was a year older than me andhad arrived here when she was nineteen, while I started at twenty. Both of her parents were skilled fliers—her mother rode a majestic griffin, and her father bonded a fierce dragon. Our parents served at many of the same forts during our childhood. Our mothers had been best friends until my mother passed away.
“Wing Commanders, they are now yours,” Brigade General Scullin said.
At the exact top row, a quite handsome guy stood up. Shit, he was tall too. Standing easily about six feet three, he had medium-brown skin with eight tightly woven braids. His eyes were the real showstoppers—they were green. It was a little hard to tell down here, but I thought there were flecks of brown in them.
"I am Wing Commander Corson. Welcome to the Feather Wing. I will have the first-years move into four lines, based on their platoon and squad. Electric platoon, First squad all to the right, then Electric’s Second squad. Fire platoon First squad next to them, and Fire’s Second squad all the way to the left.”
We all shifted and moved into four single lines. As we did that, seven other upperclassmen stood up.
“For our entire wing, my Executive Officer is Aelina Kasteel. Electric Platoon, your Platoon Leader is Lilian Beverli, a third-year cadet. For the First Squad, your Squad Leader is a fourth-year, Persephone Emmen. For the Second Squad, your Squad Leader is Victor Corzine, a third-year cadet. Fire Platoon, your Platoon Leader is Eleanor Kapel, a fourth-year cadet. For that first squad, your Squad Leader is fourth-year, Adrian Holmstock, and the second squad’s leader is second-year, Josephine Nieman.” Corson told us.
I stood there with pride and joy, knowing that my best friend was a Platoon Leader and was in charge of my platoon. She had done well for herself while here.
“It is important to understand rank structure. If you don’t come from a large military family, you might not know. The basics are that I trump everyone in this wing. When I am unavailable to make decisions, Kasteel stands in my place or makes decisions based on the best interests of thewing. Platoon Leaders outrank Squad Leaders and then Flight Guides. However, the Fire Platoon Leader can’t discipline or command the Electric Platoon’s cadets, and vice versa. However, it is recommended to follow their guidance. Any questions?” Corson looked around at all of us, taking us in.
“Now, Squad Leaders will be taking first-year students to the first-year chambers on the seventh floor. As first-year students, you will all have to share rooms. Each room contains a Military Manual and a Code of Ethics, as well as a Riders’ Code of Ethics. If you aren’t familiar with these, make sure to study them. All branches will host a celebration evening in the courtyard and arena. The gate between the two will be open. Food and refreshments will be available at dining facilities on both sides. You are now dismissed to your Squad Leaders. Kasteel, Kapel, and Beverli will be with me. We need to set up for this evening’s festivities.”
I guessed I wouldn’t get a big hug from Lili until that evening. Emmen motioned for our squad to follow her. She led us out of the arena into the flight field, circled to Watch Tower One. We climbed seven stories and went through the door to the first-year chambers.
"Each room has three beds. Rooms one through twelve are for Feather Wing, thirteen through twenty-four are for Dragon Wing, and twenty-five through thirty-six are for Eagle Wing," she told us.
The second squad joined us, and Corzine stood next to Emmen. They looked at each other and whispered among themselves.
“Cadets Blackcreek, Devins, and Stoot are in room one, and cadets Aamir, Heston, and Faraday are in room two,” Emmen said.
“Cadets Leon and Sulivar are in room ten, cadets Zardes and Zufall are in room eleven, and cadets Carnethon, Nanda, and Riggins are in room twelve. Due to lower numbers, some people will only have two in a room,” Corzine stated.
“Place your things in your room and meet back out here, as we will be doing a tour and getting your uniforms,” Emmen said.
