DragonRider by S. Rodman
of Thrones in here, isn’t it?” I say.
Harlen laughs, and the sound echoes around the cavernous underground chamber. Mordecai ignores me, as if he didn’t hear me speak at all. He just continues to stride ahead of me, holding his flaming torch up high. In the flickering shadows and eerie setting, he looks even more alluring. All haughty, mysterious and magical. Damn him.
“We were here long before George R. R. Martin,” says Harlen. “So he is copying us, not the other way around.”
“Is he copying you?” I ask in surprise. Has the author been here? It would certainly explain a lot.
“No!” snaps Mordecai. “Only Dragonriders know about Dragonriders. So it has always been and so it will always be.”
Harlen drops back so he can pull a face without Mordecai seeing. Even in the dim light, the sparkle of merriment in his dark eyes is clear to see. It’s hard to stifle my laugh. I’m glad Mordecai truly is sounding like a pompous ass and it’s not just me being over sensitive.
But as we walk deeper into the chamber the gravity of the situation starts to sink in. Our feet rustle over ancient flagstones. Our shadows dance along the impressive walls. I can feel the weight of aeons. I can taste the passage of time on my tongue. The stars have spun across the night sky a thousand times and shifted positions since this chamber was built. To the stone I am surrounded by, my life is as fleeting as a raindrop.
Greater people than I built this place. Greater people than me will come after. I’m merely taking up my place in the weave of time. A placeholder.
A Dragonrider. Protecting Earth.
I barely understand what it entails, as I only have Harlen’s brief explanation to go on, but it’s enough to understand the magnitude of the role. The importance of it.
A wave of dizziness washes over me. Am I up to the task? The sheer responsibility is overwhelming. Ri is wonderful, but will I be any good as a rider? Am I good enough? Just because I want to do it, doesn’t mean I should.
I’m excited to see Ri again, and complete whatever ritual officially binds us, but am I doing the right thing? Hanging out with a dragon is one thing, flying around on one and battling invaders and closing portals is quite another. It sounds like an exhilarating life. One of meaning. One I would be honoured to lead. But my desires do not make me worthy.
A warm hand envelopes mine and gives me a reassuring squeeze.
“There is no need to be nervous,” whispers Harlen.
Shit. Am I that easy to read? I don’t mind Harlen knowing I’m scared, but I want to impress Mordecai. Fuck knows why. I shouldn’t care about his opinion of me. But I do. I’m yearning for his respect like a flower seeking the sun. It’s absurd but I’m powerless before it.
We’ve reached a large stone altar. Mordecai and Harlen place their flaming torches in sconces set into pillars near the ends of the raised altar. I can’t see Ri or any dragons, but the spicy smell that I have already come to associate with the magnificent beings, is everywhere.
“You need to lie on the altar,” says Mordecai.
“Naked,” adds Harlen.
I stare at him in horror, and he bursts into laughter, doubling up with the force of it. It takes my startled mind a moment to fully process that he was joking and he finds my horrified expression greatly amusing.
“Child,” mutters Mordecai disapprovingly, and for once I actually agree with the moody bastard.
“Sorry!” wheezes Harlen, still not able to stand up properly.
He doesn’t sound the least bit sorry to me. And it hurts. It’s unsettling. He probably meant well, but what if he didn’t? What if he had played it out for longer and I had actually stripped? What if he is not as nice as he seems? My ex totally fooled me into thinking he was a good person. Clearly my character judgement skills suck big time.
“Wing Commander Harlen Bracebridge. Your behaviour is inappropriate.” Mordecai’s voice is cold and deadly serious.
Harlen winces and straightens, nearly to attention. “Apologies, Flight Commander.”
At least he sounds genuinely contrite now. Mordecai nods and I can tell the matter is dropped. I flash him a smile of thanks and am surprised by the tiny smile I get in return. These men are so confusing. And they have so much responsibility, as evidenced by the way they both just effortlessly jumped into their formal roles. They aren’t much older than me and it’s disconcerting. I always thought I was mature for my age, but next to them I feel juvenile. Despite Harlen’s childish jokes.
“You do need to lie on the altar, that part wasn’t a joke,” says Mordecai.
I love his voice. The timbre of it. The rhythm and lilt of his slight accent. It’s deeper than you would expect from looking at him, and there is a gentle rasp to it. It’s very manly. Very sexy. And it seems to dance along my skin leaving goosebumps in its wake.
Damn him. Why does he have to be such an asshole? He shouldn’t be this incredibly hot and an utter bastard. He should pick one. But then again, if he was nice I’d probably just melt into a puddle of goo whenever I was in the same room. Crushes are awful and inconvenient and embarrassing. And he is like my commanding officer or something, so crushing on him would be inappropriate as well as everything else.
As my mind rambles helplessly, my body awkwardly climbs onto the altar and lies down. The stone is surprisingly warm, but it is harder than hell. I really hope I don’t have to lie here for long.
Suddenly, Ri’s head looms out of the darkness to snuffle at my chest. My body flinches in surprise at his sudden appearance, but no part of me is scared by this giant being. Even though his wicked looking teeth are inches from my soft, defenceless body and he could chomp me in half in one swift bite, I’ve never felt safer.
“Hi Ri!” I exclaim as I reach out and stroke his elegant nose.
Cool fingers run through my hair before coming to rest at my temples. Mordecai is holding my head. I shiver at the touch. It feels far too nice. But this is a magic ritual, not any type of intimacy. It’s not the right time to be all touch starved and needy.
Harlen wraps his hands around my ankles. I swallow. I wish I had asked more questions about this binding ritual instead of just assuming that it was no big deal and mostly ceremonial. Surely they would have warned me about anything intense or dramatic?
Mordecai and Harlen start chanting in some language I have never heard before, which is a little bit disconcerting because I thought I knew all the arcane tongues. Their magic coils and twists around me. Seeping into my every pore, pouring into my lungs with my breaths. Ri’s exotic, unhuman magic joins theirs. I feel as if I am glowing. Every cell of my body is soaked in magic. Any minute now I’m going to start floating.
Power tingles and itches along my skin. It flows from Mordecai and Harlen. It’s their magic, the very essence of them. My mind interprets Harlen’s as ruby red, but laced with darkness. The ruthless edge of a man that gets what he wants.
Mordecai’s is pure gold. Full of flavours of love, loyalty and devotion. It’s beautiful.
Ri’s is so inhuman, so unlike anything I have ever experienced before that I can’t interpret it at all. But I feel its strength. It’s as strong as the men’s.
I wonder what they can feel of me. What secrets of mine are laid bare. Do they like what they see?
“Hello, Kirby,” says a voice in my head. Rich and melodic and as clear as a bell.
I jump but Mordecai and Harlen hold me in place with firm, strong hands.
“Ri?” I say back silently, with complete astonishment.
“Yes.”
“We can talk? Telepathically?”
“Yes.”
“Oh wow! This is amazing!”
A strange rumbling sound echoes around my mind. The amusement of a dragon. It’s Ri’s laughter.
I glare at Harlen since Mordecai is behind me and I can’t see him.
“Why didn’t you tell me I’d be able to talk to Ri!” I demand, and I don’t care if I’m ruining the ritual.
Harlen flushes and looks guilty. “I thought you knew.”
“How the hell would I know? Not from a rider family, remember?”
Mordecai’s hands disappear from my head, and Harlen releases my ankles. I guess the ritual is over. I scramble up into a sitting position. Part of me is furious at the pair of them for being such idiots for neglecting to tell me something so crucial. But I’m also full of glee and excitement. I can talk to Ri. It’s incredible. It’s mind blowing. It’s better than all my wildest dreams.
“I can’t believe you picked me!”I exclaim in delight.
Ri’s amusement washes over me. “Of course I picked you.”
A shiver of anticipation washes over me, flipping my stomach over as it passes. Is Ri about to tell me that I was the most worthy one there? The most powerful mage? Or that he felt a soul deep connection and knew we were meant to be dragon and rider?
“You thought of me as magnificent.”
I stare at the dragon. Did I just hear that right? Was I chosen merely because I flattered his ego?
“Everyone tells me I have the biggest ego they have ever known,” says Ri with immense pride.
A laugh bubbles out of me despite the horror of the situation.
“You are definitely related to a cat!” I tell him.
He preens and doesn’t seem the least bit offended. I guess he approves of cats. That’s good to know.
“You are going to have to teach me how to keep some thoughts to myself,” I say.
I hadn’t said the ego thing, and I’ve only heard Ri when he has been speaking. I can feel a whisper of his emotions, the gentle tug of his presence. I’m aware of his vast intelligence and the experience a long lifespan has given him, but his thoughts remain his own.
“You are right, I am very intelligent and wise, but Cai and Harlen will be better at teaching you than I. They know the limitations of a human mind.”
He gently butts my hand, and I resume stroking his nose.
“Okay. That does make sense,” I say.
“Time to go,” says Mordecai abruptly.
I look at him in alarm and with a little jolt of surprise. He is standing by my feet now, with Harlen. I didn’t notice him moving from his position by my head, so either he moves as quietly as a predator or I was thoroughly distracted by talking to Ri.
“We just got here? I want to hang out with Ri.” Gross, I sound so whiny.
“You’re bonded now, you can talk from anywhere in the world,” explains Harlen.
“But I can’t give nose rubs,” I protest.
Mordecai rolls his eyes and gives me the most disparaging look I have ever seen. But then Ri moves his head and butts Mordecai in the chest, hard enough to make the rider stagger back a few steps.
“Fine,” snaps Mordecai. “The sacred chamber is not supposed to be used for hanging out, but whatever. Just remember to leave before the torch burns down. I don’t want to have to rescue you from crawling around lost and crying in the dark.”
With that, he grabs the nearest torch, turns sharply on his heels and storms off. Harlen gives me an apologetic look and a shrug before scurrying after the other rider and the only other source of light.
And now I’m alone in a vast underground chamber, with a dragon. A dragon I am bonded to. My dragon.
Definitely the best day of my life.