The Academy of Alactria

The Journey (Edited I)

I turned on my heel to go, but paused and glanced at Adam. "Thank you,".

He looked extremely puzzled. "For what?".

"For stopping me from falling. If my egg had smashed, I would have been stuck here, betrothed to Dhilan,".

He joined me as I left the tent, and we walked down the lane.

"You would have died,".

I frowned. "What do you mean? By marrying Dhilan? I would have hated it, but I wouldn't have died,".

Adam laughed. "I meant if your egg had smashed. When a Dragon dies, the Rider dies,".

I hummed in response, unsure how to reply as where I lived came into view.

"This way,". I led Adam round the side, to where my window was, and pulled myself over the ledge, being careful not to damage the egg. I didn't want to die anytime soon. Adam followed, and I rummaged in the wardrobe to find an old hunters bag, which I proceeded to fill with books, a small amount of jewellery and my spare bow and quivers. A soft knock on the door had Adam and I turning to the door, and I cautiously walked over.

"Amy? Amy, can I talk to you for a second?". Sending an apologetic look at Adam, I slipped out of the door, leaning against it as I faced my older sister. She was tall, and her brown hair framed her face, and accentuated her eyes.

"What is it Macy?". My sister and I were the antithesis of each other, but I could see the fear in her eyes.

"I just wanted to wish you luck. I know we haven't really been friends, but, just don't die out there. Hone your fighting skills. Here,".

I took the proffered package from her hand, and unwrapped the cloth. It was a silver bracelet, with a clasp in the shape of a stylised dragon's head.

"Thank you,". I said, raising my eyebrows. It wasn't quite her style of jewellery.

"I was going to give it to you for your birthday,". She replied, pulling me into a hug, before backing away and opening her door. "Good luck out there,".

Her door shut and I re-entered the room, sliding the bracelet onto my wrist. Perfect fit.

"Ready?".

"Yep!". I replied, and we slid out of the window, my possessions in a bag slung on my other shoulder. Adam was even faster than me at packing, and we entered the tent well ahead of the others.

Once the final boys had entered the tent, the man ushered us outside, to the field behind the stage. "The dragons are through here,".

The flap swung shut behind me, but I barely registered that. In front of me was my very first dragon!

He was awe inspiring. There was no other word for it. His steel-grey talons were long and curved, and complemented his scarlet scales which plastered the length of his body and four legs. The wings were made of a thin membrane, almost opalescent in places, with thick ridges that emphasised his immense strength in them alone. His entire body was beautifully proportional and his neck led up to a crimson head framed by four grey horns which extended upwards. I watched as the dragon rose from his crouched position, the darkened spines running along his back and tail quivering slightly as the burnt gold eyes focused on me. And narrowed.

Most of the boys took a hasty step back, except for Adam, who was studying the fire dragon intently, and Dhilan's friend who was looking at the dragon with disdain.

Most of them look so scared. Do you think our riders looked that scared? I took a hasty step back, unsure who had spoken. None of the other boys seemed to have heard anything, but as I studied the red dragon, I noticed a smaller blue dragon next to him. She was slimmer, and slightly shorter, with only two horns which were a light copper colour. Her claws were shorter, but her wings appeared to be a lot longer - she must be extremely fast in the sky.