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Tanja drew in a breath, something odd crossing her face before she cleared it and began talking again. It was almost like she hated what she was about to say.
“You all have been chosen as the ones to protect our lands and our people by the Ancient Dragons. Your family and friends’ lives are now in your hands. It goes without saying that you have been given the highest honor possible in our country. You have been chosen as riders, as support for your dragons. Your duty is no small one, and here at Luxose, we will work as hard as you do to make sure you succeed. We want you to succeed because then we as a whole do too, especially against the Fae. They have been relentless since the beginning of time… since they discovered how strong a rider can be, especially when they are bonded with their fated dragons. They are a jealous bunch, trying to prey on you. We will not let them win.”
She paused, still watching us. Sadness slowly filled her expression, causing everyone else to feel even more serious.
“You have come to us at a time that is most dangerous. Neyil, the Fae king, has doubled his attempts at destroying what we have. He wants to kill our dragons and kidnap us. We cannot allow that. You will become that line to protect Fraitte and her lands. To protect our future. We cannot allow the Fae king to win. We cannot let him warp our existence in order to benefit him. We need to continue to fight back with everything we have, and unfortunately, that sometimes includes losing our lives. Training here is not going to be fun. It won’t be easy. Many of you will want to die, and in the future, you will also likely die in the war. That is the world we face to protect our loved ones. Remain vigilant. Remain true. Remain steady.”
Her words were heavy as she spoke, feeling all too real.
“Some of you already know what is in store for you. One of you in particular already faced the Fae just to get here. Remember what they did, what they are capable of doing, and let it fuel you.”
Soft whispers broke out at her news. I wanted to dip down and hide. Instead, I felt frozen as people glanced around, wondering who she was referring to. I looked down, desperately hoping they didn’t realize it was me. She said for me to keep my head down.
So why would she say that? Make people curious about me?
A man came up to the stage, standing next to Tanja but said nothing. She motioned to him and said, “Now, follow him. He will give you a tour of the academy and make sure you get settled into your dorm rooms. Rest tonight. Tomorrow begins the start of the new phase in your life.” Tanja slipped off the stage, disappearing through the same way she’d come in, leaving us all feeling speechless and anxious.
Chapter Five
We all shuffled after our guides, barely having time to look around as we weaved through halls and down stairs. The man guiding us didn’t seem to care if we kept up or if we were listening. He continued walking and talking, never really looking back at us.
We turned a corner and gasped. I tried to figure out what had the other students reacting like that, looking around with big eyes, and amazed at what they saw. Then, I realized that where we currently walked, everything was bigger. Much bigger—higher ceilings, bigger doorways, and grander archways. The doors into the classrooms around us could easily fit five of us to get through.
“This place has been designed so that the dragons can comfortably move through the halls without any hindrances,” our guide said as he stopped in an archway finally to look at us with a know-it-all smirk that made his dark eyes glint.
A girl cleared her throat as she turned to us with a big smile, her wavy, white hair framing a pretty, soft face. It took me a moment to realize she had been one of the girls in the baths with me. She hadn’t seemed impressed with me at the time.
The girl stated, “A dragon’s wingspan in human form can easily be twice the wingspan of their human body lengthwise. They need room to move around.”
“Correct, Coral,” the man said, smiling at her. “The academy was built to accommodate the dragons and allow them to more easily walk around, which means everything is larger and more spacious.”
Coral smirked as she basked in the man’s approval. “My brother’s a dragon, so I know everything there is to know about them."
"Then, I'm sure you will become a great mentor for the other riders.”
That only made her beam more as we continued to walk through the halls. Frankly, she felt full of it, but I wasn’t going to call her out. She walked with attitude, talked with attitude, and all the warnings were there telling me to keep my distance from her.
I didn’t want to get entangled with Coral.
I’d rather she didn’t try to lock me in the bathroom or destroy all my possessions, and she definitely looked like the type to do it.
Our guide continued with the tour, bringing us up higher in the building. He stopped us in front of floor-to-wall windows in a massive room fit to be a ballroom. “Right now, we are in the middle of the academy. As you can see outside, below us is where those who are in service stay and where they take off from when they take flight. Above us, though you can’t see from here, is the king’s castle. Our academy has the honor of being attached to the castle, giving us this magnificent view of Fyre.”
We all moved closer to the window to look, and he was right. Before us stretched a city full of life and lights, mountains surrounding the city on both sides but with completely open plains in front. The massive field we had landed on when we arrived separated us from the city. Right below us lay the barracks. Outside, I could make out dragons sparring with each other in their human forms.
With the view before us, I was reminded that the academy and even the castle had been built right into the mountain. It had only been a few short hours since I’d marveled at how the mountain seemed to wrap around the palace and academy. Now I was inside, and I was still amazed at the concept. We were literally inside a mountain. Looking out at the view, I thought we had found the best vantage point in all of Fraitte.
The sun was well on its way to lowering. To think it was only hours ago when me and my guys were fighting for our lives. It was surreal.
“The academy is separated in two halves,” the guide continued to talk while we gaped at the view. “One side are where the dragons are housed, and the other side is for the riders. We are in the middle now. The halls leading to the dorms are all guarded to prevent mingling. Only after you find your mate will you be allowed to see each other. Follow me. I will show you to your dorms, where you will be paired off and separated into your rooms.”
He was already walking away by the time we were able to turn around. Some of us scrambled to chase after him. I hung back, making sure to stay with the group but not in the middle of it.
Again, we were back to more stairs and more hallways. My legs were shaking as exhaustion settled inside of me. Too much happened today, and any bed sounded wonderful at the moment. Frankly, lying down on the plush-looking carpet would be good enough for me. I was halfway tempted to do it.
“We’re almost there,” a girl said softly, making me jump.
She stood to my right with a small smile, her white hair cut in a bob. The girl looked really cute, standing shorter than I did and with a skinnier frame.
