Elaine Mairi had always known she would enter the Riders Quadrant. She was marked with a rebellion relic, leaving her with a future that could not be altered.
She had decided it would be better to make use of that inevitable future than give the peo...
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"Because you're not untouchable or special to them. To them, you're just the prey." _______________
Xaden's dragon is the most extraordinary thing I have ever laid my eyes on.
Sgaeyl, is the navy blue dragon's name. I've heard people talk about Xaden and his dragon. They are a match to be feared. With the size of Sgaeyl and the singet Xaden possesses, they are almost impossible to beat.
Someone screams, pulling me from my thoughts.
A red dragon towers over a cadet, a predator assessing it's prey. The cadet stares up at it in fear, his eyes glossed over. His face is ghost white, his mouth agape. I have never seen so much fear on a person's face, and I watched my parents be slaughtered.
I know fear like it is an old friend.
I realize what the dragon is about to do moments before the tragedy strikes. The cadet the dragon is staring us directly beside a girl, her eyes filled with the same wide gaze and horror. The cadet the dragon currently has it's eyes on doesn't stand a chance—the dragon has chosen and humans can't change anything once a dragon decides it.
"Get away!" I yell to the female cadet as the dragon takes a breath in, ready to release it's fire.
The dragon opens its massive mouth, revealing teeth the size of my forearm. I see the female cadet jump away, then my vision of her is blocked by the flame. The flame erupts from the dragons mouth, covering the spot with burning hot fire.
When the fire dissipates all that is left of the cadet that once stood there is a pile of ashes. Everyone in the courtyard is staring at our wing, their eyes wide and their mouths agape.
My breathing is surprisingly calm as I stare at the dead cadet. Sixty-eight dead. I'm grateful I'm not one of them.
I see the girl that had been standing with the burning cadet—she's alive, injured, but alive. She grips her arm which is smouldering red and welts have already formed. Her scream is painful to listen to. She stares at the pile of ashes, agony in her desperate calls.
I finally bring my eyes from the pile of gravel and ashes and look to Xaden. He watches the ashes too, but his face isn't clouded with fear like the others. He looks at the pile of ashes like he expected it.
And I suppose he probably did. He's been here three years. I keep forgetting that nothing I see is new to him. He's seen his comrades die—seen his friends die. This Xaden in front of me is not the Xaden I knew three years ago. This Xaden has seen things so horrific I'm not sure I would be able to handle them.
More and more screams echo through the courtyard. I'm unable to turn my gaze to all the cadets. All I know is that their is fire everywhere—and ashes that follow.
