The Rider's Truth.

The Mountain Calls.

The students had been split between the camps. I had been left with Dem, Buzz and Jamie. Water, thunder and me. They had been greeted warmly, but when I emerged with Nethore trailing behind me, they had gone silent.

'Here she was' the shadows had whispered their thoughts to me.

I ignored them – copying Nethore who artfully just turned away, deciding that if they wanted to stare, they could. He was utter beauty.

"If you've got it, flaunt it." I had teased, to which he only blinked, slow and lazy and said. "Human."

I passed the Elves on the way to the Riders. They seemed to never turn their back to me, slanted, ethereal eyes watching me expressionlessly as I passed by them. Looking at Elves made my gut curl in envy: they were so beautiful and so elegant. I felt like a Cyclops in a crystal exhibition before them. I tried to stamp it down instantly like it was a weed whose roots just needed to be yanked out, but jealously was natural and –

"Human." Nethore said sternly. "No jealously. Maybe they're jealous of you."

"I don't think so Nethore." Jamie sat crossed legged beside the Thundun Rider, her tawny eyes riveted on the older woman like her idol was standing in front of her. She was an older woman with a greying tinge to her roots. Thundun Riders were rare, but not uncommon. Not many people had the soul or the will to be paired to a soul of lightening and storm.

This woman looked like she embodied it. Like Jamie, she had a certain gleam to her eyes. They were as sharp as flint, missing nothing but she gave Jamie a very weathered smile.

"- and that's who I got this scar." She showed Jamie a white scar that stood stark against her tanned skin. It roped around her muscled arm and disappeared underneath her sleeve.

Definitely Jamie's idol.

Her dragon curled around her tent. He was small compared to the other dragon but larger than Turana. He was a rougher, burnt gold and his eyes were tinged orange like the scorched sun-rise over the Traede Plains. His jaw was thicker, his shoulders broader with thicker muscles down his thigh. One horn was long and sharp, and the other was sheared in half.

Dem flittered around all of them. Cassare Rider or not-  he was overjoyed at the chance to learn. To soak in as much as could from these weathered fighters.

"That's the Vidalin Rider. I just can't believe it." The Thundun Rider croaked to Jamie. "She's tiny."

Jamie's smile faltered. "Neely can handle herself."

The Thundun Rider gave her a small, slightly patronising smile that I knew would send Jamie right over the edge on a bad day. "I'm not saying it's a bad thing. Just look at the Thundun dragon, but the poor thing- this can't be easy for her."

Another Rider leaned in to the conversation and I had to hear every word, unable to stop the stem of shadow whispering their words gleefully in my ears.

"We've read the papers of course. About her – you know – kidnapping and everything. They didn't really have much on it."

"And?" Dem's delight at their presence vanished.

"And?" One of the Riders, all blue-eyes and blond hair leaned forward. He was a Dreliv Rider too, with a deep, thick accent. "It's big news. How did she get out? What happened to her?"

I was getting close enough that I could see the anger flashing across Dem's face, but even that was masked by the deep red flush that ran up Jamie's neck. The Thundun Rider gave her young protegee a quick look.