Dragons of Kings (Upon Dragon's Breath Trilogy Book 2) Read online

  I bet father never expected my inheritance to have to come to me like this.

  Studying the men’s fear-filled faces, doubts rose up in me. Were these people with their marks upon their skins and their wild ways the ones my father would have wanted me to lead against our home city?

  But I could almost hear him in the back of my mind, repeating the words from some restricted and prohibited book that he had entrusted to my care.

  The old kings ruled for all of the people, not just a few whom they liked.

  At the time, I’d been a boy and he had been talking about how the Maddox kings had relentlessly favored their friends at court, ignoring the common people and the older noble families who kept away from court. But I knew my father would have included the Three-Rivers clan and the island villagers and every dragon as those to whom a just rule must extend.

  Glancing at Saffron, I told her, “A king rules for all, not a few.”

  I stepped forward to meet Ryland and the others. I didn’t turn around to see if Saffron and Jaydra were staying or going. If Saffron felt strongly enough, she could go. And I knew Jaydra would go with her. But I was hoping both would stay. Saffron might be worried about something, but I wanted their support.

  Behind me, Saffron muttered, “Bower, you don’t have to do this.”

  I kept on walking. Of course I did.

  The sun was well up in the sky by the time all seemed ready for whatever test I had to pass.

  I stood on a patch of barren and blasted rock that had been cleared from the mountain side. Fifty spearmen from the settlement created a circle—an arena it seemed—standing alert and in their heavy leathers with their long spears. I stood at the center of the circle, tugging at the breastplate of stiffened leather strips they had given me. It formed a hard shell around my chest and back, but it made any movement difficult. Hardened leather wrapped my forearms and legs, and I thought this seemed a crude imitation of the drawings of Dragon Rider armor that I had seen in books.

  Opposite me, Ryland stood just inside the circle, similarly dressed. I had thought that perhaps we were to fight, but neither of us had so much as a knife in hand, and I could not see how we could possibly wrestle or grapple with each other. It was hard enough just to walk.

  Saffron and Jaydra had followed the crowd—it seemed the entire settlement, everyone except the youngest children, had turned out to see this test. Just now Saffron hung back, arms crossed over her chest, her expression sullen, as if she could somehow will me to end this. Jaydra hung back with her, almost as if she could hide herself. And it seemed almost as if everyone had forgotten them, for everyone seemed to be staring at me, eyes bright but also nervous.

  Stepping forward, Ryland turned and lifted his voice. “We have a challenge called. Bower who comes from the city of metal men says he can lead us in battle.” A few laughs rose up, but they sounded nervous to me.

  I could see Jaydra peering over the heads of those gathered. Saffron climbed up onto Jaydra’s back for a better view—and a better way to glare at me. I licked my lips. A part of me almost wanted Jaydra to swoop down and rescue me from this, but I squared my shoulders.

  I wanted both Saffron and Jaydra to be proud of what I had to do—I wanted to be proud of myself. And running would never give me that.

  Ryland held up his hand and the crowd fell silent. “This boy-king thinks to become our king—and I say we test him!”

  Shouts rose up from the crowd, but the men with the spears remained silent.

  Ryland held up his hands again. “We will see if he can hold his own against our wild mountain dragons. Let us see if he can sit atop one as I, your war chief, will!”

  The crowd shouted again.

  Heart thudding against my ribs, I stared at Ryland. Sit atop a wild dragon? That was the test? Well, I had managed with Jaydra, so perhaps this would not be so difficult a challenge after all.

  Ryland called out to the crowd, “If he can do this, if he can show to all that he is worthy to fight with us and really to rain fire and terror down on the metal men, then I will gladly fly at his side and so will we all!”

  This time the cheers seemed fewer and mixed with unhappy mutters. Perhaps some did not agree with Ryland’s offer for me to lead the Three-Rivers clan alongside him? Or maybe they were making bets about how long it might take me to fail?

  Turning, Ryland shouted, “Bring the dragons!”

  The crowd suddenly hushed and fear seemed to thicken the air around me. I didn’t have much time to wonder why everyone suddenly seemed so afraid of my being tested, for a roar broke from the mountain above me.

  A low hiss like a huge kettle boiling over followed the roar. The clatter of chains followed and the sounds grew louder. Gasps came from the crowd and some began to back away.

  Dragons. I heard the voice in my mind. It was almost like a voice you might hear in a dream, soft and sibilant. I had heard Jaydra like this a few times before, but this time her voice seemed stronger. Turning, I glanced at her.

  Jaydra very deliberately nodded, before flicking her tongue to one side of the circle where I stood. Her thoughts flowed freely into my mind. Do not show fear, Bower. Stand fast.

  Easy for you to say, I thought to her, but I had no idea if she heard.

  I turned to face the approaching hiss.

  The men with spears who circled me and Ryland parted and thirty or so more strong men now dragged two dragons into the circle. The dragons snapped at the men and at the chains holding them, but the men seemed to know when to duck back.

  I was riveted, aware of only the boiling dark blue and black shapes as they surged forward. I let out an involuntary gasp.

  Show no fear! Jaydra bellowed in my mind.

  These dragons were nothing like Jaydra and nothing like any of the dragons I had seen in books. Long and sinuous bodies and necks struggled against the chains. They were not as long as Jaydra and certainly nowhere near the size of Zenema, but they pulled the men holding them off their feet anyway. The black scales looked odd, seeming far more like studs than plates. Barbed spikes stood out from their faces and necks, extending down the sinuous backs. Their wings looked small and leathery. Long tails slashed out and men jumped to get out of the way.

  But the worst thing wasn’t just the dragon’s seeming savagery, it was the way they moved, curling their bodies around each other, using claws and wings for attacks. They worked almost as a pair and I could see immediately how it was going to make it almost impossible to try and mount either of them.

  Not that I wanted to.

  These wild dragons seemed to me deadly and now I knew why Saffron had wanted to go. She had gone up into these mountains and had seen the dragons. She had figured out these were not like the dragons of the Western Isles.

  I had no time to glance at Saffron, or shout to her that she had been right. Two men pounded stakes deep into the ground and the others left off holding down the chains of the dragons and all the men jumped back.

  “Guards!” Ryland shouted. The spearmen making up the circle around us snapped to an offensive position, spears lowered and facing inward. We were now surrounded by a glittering circle of points, and with two wild dragons chained to the ground, tails lashing and jaws snapping.

  The only parts of the dragons kept relatively still were their heads. Each dragon had about its neck a heavy, iron collar and from it chains thicker than my forearm extended to the ground.

  Sun! Jaydra’s thought hissed into my mind, but I had no idea what she meant. Perhaps it was some bizarre dragon-to-dragon greeting, but I sensed none of the nobility or the intelligence from these dragons that I had from Jaydra and her island kin.

  And now I was supposed to climb onto the back of one of these dragons? How?

  Spines, talons and teeth flashed as the dragons faced Ryland and me. I had never been much good at wrestling or any sort of sport—and now I had to jump onto a wild dragon. Shoulders slumping I wanted to give up.

  But then Ryland laughed.
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br />   The sound had me stiffening my back and turning to stare at the man.

  “I’ll go first, shall I?” Ryland said, loud enough so that the crowd could hear over the hissing dragons. He took a deep breath, rolled his shoulders and threw himself into a run.

  Had he decided one dragon was slower than the other? That one dragon might be easier to climb than the other? Did he know some trick I didn’t?

  As Ryland neared the dragons, one black head shot toward him, teeth glinting in the sunlight. The chain holding the attacking dragon’s neck pulled taut. Ryland threw himself into a roll to avoid being crushed by the dragon’s bite. Long teeth snapped together just inches from Ryland’s head. He jumped up, and darted away, breathing hard now with sweat pouring down his face. He had failed in his first attempt, but judging by his lack of frustration I had the impression this was to be expected.

  With another grunt, Ryland tried another charge at the other dragon. This dragon also snapped at Ryland, but Ryland did not throw himself to the ground this time. Instead, he leapt up. The dragon pulled on the chain, but could not raise its head high enough to snap at Ryland. Reaching out, Ryland caught one of dragon’s horns. The dragon reared up, almost dragging its chain from the ground.

  The move actually helped Ryland swing up and onto the dragon’s neck. He rested there, wedged between the dragon’s spines. The second wild dragon, seeing Ryland seated upon its companion, tried to snap at Ryland’s head, but it could not get between the spines, and the chain holding it down would not allow it to stand and claw at Ryland.

  The dragon whipped its head back and forth twice, then seemed to give up in near exhaustion. Cheers erupted from the crowd, but this seemed nothing like true dragon riding. I glanced at Saffron and saw her scowling at Ryland, looking ready to come at him with her knife. I knew what she must be thinking—there had been no respect in his approach to this dragon, no communication and no friendship existed between Ryland and the dragon.

  I did not even think Ryland could control this dragon—all he could do would be to hang on while the dragon flew where he wished. How could these dragons be useful in combat? They seemed to want to fight their riders more than anything else.

  Ryland waved a hand and shouted, “I will wait here and give you a chance.”

  I wasn’t proud. I would take any help offered, but Ryland’s approach of throwing himself at a dragon seemed a poor idea to me.

  The cheers subsided and an uneasy silence seemed to hold everyone. I was left staring at the second wild dragon, which looked from Ryland to me, its eyes glinting as if it wanted one or both of us dead.

  How could I do this?

  But how could I not?

  There might be other wild dragons to face. And I needed to show it would not be mere strength that defeated Enric. No—we needed to be far more clever than Enric could be. Meaning I needed to figure out a way to do this that proved just that.

  I clenched my teeth. Sweat dripped down my back under the leather the Three-Rivers clan had put on me. I glanced down at it and then tugged loose the straps and pulled it off. I didn’t need a turtle shell on me. I needed agility and brains. I needed to somehow talk to this dragon.

  Ryland, for all his muscle and skill—had just shown he couldn’t call any dragon to him. Zenema and Ysix had promised they would answer my call, but I needed to show the Three-Rivers clan that dragons were not here to be chained and abused.

  Remembering the pictures I had seen in so many books of dragon riders sitting atop dragons, soaring across the sky, I knew this was how it must have started. With someone facing a dragon—and becoming a friend.

  I took a step forward, and the black dragon lunged at me, faster this time. It obviously expected me to use moves similar to what Ryland had.

  I threw myself to one side. The dragon’s mouth snapped closed on the air above me. The dragon pulled at its chain, and I knew the restraints were simply making it even more angry.

  Sun, Bower. Sun! Jaydra’s thoughts echoed in my mind, but I didn’t know what she meant.

  The crowd shouted out calls, obviously not thinking I’d been brave enough. I rolled to my feet and blinking as I squinted up at the midday sun.

  Was that what Jaydra meant? That these dragons could not see so well in such glare?

  Taking a closer look at the wild dragons, I wondered if why this smaller, fiercer breed hadn’t been trained by the Dragon Riders of old—or at least I had never read of black dragons being trained. Any feral creature would respond to training, given enough time. Was there also a reason why these dragons were black as a night without moon or stars?

  Just as sea dragons are green and blue, like their environment.

  That was it! The colors of the dragons had to be directly related to where they lived. That meant these wild dragons preferred to be out at night. The sun might even hurt their eyes, which would only anger them even more.

  I studied the dragon in front of me the same way that I would study a new text. I saw what Jaydra had been trying to tell me.

  The two wild dragons were actually trying to shield each other from the bright sun. They must be used to darks caverns and moonlit nights.

  I had a clue now, but how to use it?

  Moving as fast as I could, I jogged around the circle until the sun was directly behind me. With the warmth of the sun on the top and back of my head, I turned to face the dragon that watched me.

  The dragon turned its head left and right, as if trying to see me better. My heart thudded hard and my fingers chilled. Could I manage to catch hold before it grabbed me?

  Having lived with dragons even for a short time I knew better than to do anything with a dragon without first asking and so I closed my eyes and tried to reach out to it, as I might to Jaydra.

  I promise you no harm. And I promise to remove that iron collar from your neck.

  When I opened my eyes again, it seemed to me that the dragon’s glittering eyes were now puzzled. I didn’t know if it had not heard me or perhaps did not really understand, but I knew I had one chance..

  A shiver of fear ran through me, but I pushed into a run.

  I covered half the distance between me and the black dragon before it had seen that I’d moved. But I had no intention of vaulting onto the dragon’s back. What had Jaydra said?

  Stand firm. Don’t back down.

  I saw my chance and jumped up, grabbing the chain that held the dragon pinned to the ground. It snapped taut, but I reached up and grabbed the pin that held its iron collar in place. From somewhere behind me, I heard Saffron yell. In the next instant, I’d pulled loose the pin and the iron color fell from the dragon’s neck.

  I fell to the ground and stared up at a wild, black dragon now free to do as it pleased. And it pleased to roar up on its hind legs clawing at the air with its front legs and spreading it’s wing wide. With one stroke of an arm, it knocked Ryland from his perch on the other dragon’s back, and then it turned to me.

  13

  Saffron and the King

  “Bower!” The scream burst out of me as Bower fell to the ground in front of the wild dragon. Somehow Bower had freed the dragon, but the hate within the dragon’s mind washed through me, leaving me in no doubt of its intent to kill Bower.

  The dragon reared up over Bower and I knew it intended to snap Bower in two with one bite.

  I flung out my hands, reacting as I had when I had caught him in mid-air over the ocean. Power burst from me, tingling on my fingertips and in my chest. But this time the magic went wild. Instead of flinging Bower away from the dragon and to safety, my power flew out in a burst around me. Raw energy flew from my hands, sparking green and golden in bright bolts that struck outward. It was as if my scorn of these people was fueling the magic, striking out at everyone and everything.

  A boom like that of a cannon shook the earth.

  People flew backwards, knocked to the ground. My magic struck the two wild dragons as well, sending them flying, but also tearing their chains to pie
ces.

  The wild dragons roared. Free of their constraints, they leapt into their air and took flight, spiraling up into the clouds until they had disappeared.

  I had no time to follow their departure with my thoughts for I feared I had killed Bower. He lay still on the ground. I jumped from Jaydra’s back and ran toward his side, leaping over the bodies of those I had knocked off their feet. Around me, those who had gathered were groaning, holding their heads and struggling to regain their feet.

  The horn that had sounded earlier was echoing again from the settlement, but I gave it no heed. I reached Bower, skidded to a stop and dropped down in the dirt next to him. He gave a moan and I put a hand on his shoulder. “Bower, can you hear me?”

  Checking him for injuries, I saw he had badly grazed his right hand and arm—the sleeve of his tunic had torn open. Thankfully, the stiffened leather wrapped around his arms and legs seemed to have prevented any broken bones.

  His eyes fluttered open and he asked, “Did I do it?”

  Jaydra landed with a thump next to Bower, spreading out her wings over us to keep us safe. She scanned the skies and thought to me, Wild dragons gone.

  I was glad of that, but just now we had other concerns.

  Glancing around, I saw the crowd was slowly getting to their feet. The men with spears seemed to have recovered first. The blare of their horn sounded again and again with an odd urgency. However, instead of anyone looking at me or Bower, everyone seemed to be staggering toward the settlement.

  Ryland ran past us, a gash on his head bleeding from his own fall from the dragon I had freed. “Get him up,” he shouted.

  “What happened?” Bower sat up and put a hand to his head.

  I didn’t want to tell him just yet that I had caused this mayhem, so I simply shook my head.

  However, Ryland paused not far from us and pointed to the eastern mountains where three black flags now fluttered, stark against the blue sky. “We’re under attack!”