“I won’t let anyone break our bond,” I vowed, speaking both of my bond with Killian and my wyvern. “This isn’t over yet.”
I’d been paying attention to a few of the conversations about Tunnels, and I knew a Class Seven was as high as it got. While the lower level tunnels could travel to multiple realms, including the Human Realm, Level Six and Seven had only one destination in mind. I wasn’t sure where they’d gone until now, with Level Seven going to the “Light Realm” as Killian had called it.
Did he mean… heaven?
If that was the case, I had to get to it first. Maybe I could find my dad… maybe he would know what to do.
With a mission in mind, I put one foot in front of the other, wincing as my bare feet scraped against the floor. Even the smooth wood felt like shards.
“We only need to get to the shore,” I assured my egg, although that sounded like an impossible marathon in my current condition.
I pushed the door open, gritting my teeth as the numbness in my fingertips transformed into jolts of pain. A faint hum in my ears sounded as I pushed myself to my limits, heading through the hall and outside.
I wasn’t going to last long… but maybe it would be long enough.
Seniors swept overhead in the night, riding their dragons as sentries over campus. I felt like I’d gained a sixth sense when it came to the dragons and I knew when they were about to fly in range. I hurried behind a pillar, resting my head against it as a low woosh sounded as a dragon swept by.
“Close one,” I told my egg, adjusting it again to make sure I didn’t hold it too tightly. The light cracks up its sides seemed to have grown.
Swallowing the lump in my throat, I kept up the pattern as I dodged sentries all the way to the gate. I stared up at it, woefully unprepared to jump it a second time when a loud click sounded, making me jolt as it swung open.
The Academy recognized me as an official student, a dragonrider who would soar in the skies and be worthy of the title.
That realization gave me a sense of pride, even if the dream might be fleeting.
If magic itself believed in me, perhaps I had a chance.
Setting my jaw, I picked up my pace, ignoring a sprinkling of rain that came in and hardened the grainy sands outside of the campus.
The wind kicked up the farther I wandered from the Academy as if the elements disapproved of my choice. It howled, throwing sand in my face and making my eyes sting. I didn’t release my hold on my egg to wipe away the sand and instead I pressed on.
The water came into view and the air changed to a salty, pungent scent. I spotted the Tunnel as well, this one glowing with golden light that contrasted against the dark vortex I remembered from the previous Tunnel.
The Light Realm…
Even though I could spot my destination, hopelessness crept in. I wasn’t sure how I was going to swim in my current condition. I dragged one foot in front of the other, sheer determination keeping me aloft as my vision darkened, homing in on the distant golden glow as a beacon.
Like a moth to a flame.
The phrase hit me as I dragged on, a sensation creeping over me that I was about to die if I kept this up, but I clutched onto my egg, determined that it wasn’t going to end like this.
“Just… a little bit… farther,” I ground out, taking one step, and then another.
My legs gave out when I reached the shore and my eyes fluttered, wanting to close.
“Please,” I begged as I held up my egg to the light. The Tunnel seemed so far away, but it glowed so brightly that I felt as if I could touch it if I could just reach a little bit farther. “Please, take him. Save him.” I didn’t care what happened to me anymore. All that mattered was my dragon.
The golden light responded to my plea, building in brightness until my eyes burned. I watched, hopeful as warmth enveloped me.
The hum in my ears rang louder, growing in intensity with the Tunnel’s brightness until it hit a climax…
And vanished.
“No…” I breathed, desperation hitting my chest and making me gasp.
I thought I’d lost everything, that the cold egg in my grip would never evolve into the wyvern it was meant to be, until my vision adjusted and I spotted a distant glowing spec.
It grew, growing in brightness until I realized it was a bird.
No… not just any bird.
“Solstice!” I cried, having never been this happy in my life to see that resilient little bird.
I jolted to my feet, swaying as I held up the egg, knowing that this was what I was meant to do.
“Go on!” I encouraged. “Fly!”
Solstice chirped, his delicate sounds echoing over the lapping waves. My heart swelled, excitement lifting me onto my toes until an explosion sounded, sending the waters crashing.
A massive dragon erupted from the waters, spraying droplets everywhere as its giant maw snapped, going for the bird.
“Solstice!” I cried, feeling helpless as I teetered at the edge of the shore. I didn’t have much power left, but I reached out anyway, feeling the last of my life-force drain into the air as I urged the bird to fly.
No… not my bird.
My wyvern’s spirit.
I’d been so stupid. All these years my wyvern had always been with me, always there for me and by my side with encouragement or a snarky little chirp that always made me smile.
I held up the egg, draining everything I had to give Solstice speed. His wings burst into golden flames as his dragon’s form took shape, reminiscent of what he would become once he hatched.
Once he came back to where he belonged.
The wild dragon on his tail cried out as an arrow pierced its eye, having come from over my shoulder. I didn’t turn to see who’d shot it. Instead I held up my egg and poured my heart into the little bird careening over the waves.
Solstice slammed into me—no, into the egg, sending light and warmth bursting through the shell. I drew in a deep gasp as if I could breathe again for the first time.
Solstice.
He’s alive.
A fissure formed through the egg as if this was the moment it had been waiting for. A tiny golden snout poked through, followed by horns. I waited, wondering if I should help the creature, but my instincts said not to interfere. He needed to do this on his own or risk being weak all his life.
The pained mewl that came from Solstice’s wyvern form made my heart melt, but I forced myself to be still as I held the base of the egg. His eyes remained closed as he worked, his glittering horn thrashing as he twisted, searching for a way out. He managed to hook another edge of the shell, breaking it off as he pushed all the way through.
There.
“Come here,” I whispered as he climbed out, and I scooped the tiny wyvern into the crook of my arm.
Solstice mewled again, but this one was a grateful sound. He pressed against my body and rumbled a low growl that sounded like a purr. Tears stung my eyes.
The moment would have been beautiful, had it not been tarnished by another warning roar ripped over the horizon.
“We can’t stay here,” I said, panic rising in my throat.
I just got Solstice back. I couldn’t lose him again.
Feeling as if I could collapse, I forced myself to move. I spun, dizzy and disoriented as I stumbled into a hard chest. Killian steadied me as if he’d always been there, ready to catch me before I fell.
My eyes went to the golden sword in his other hand, a blade stained with blood. It hummed with dangerous magic that was meant to break our bond.
But not anymore.
Now, it would be the only thing that stood between us and the wild dragons that had followed Solstice to the Academy.
“Hold onto me,” Killian ordered, hooking my arm around his neck. I cradled Solstice against us, careful not to drop him.
Jasmine swooped overhead, aiming her bow at the wild dragon that had surfaced again. A haze drifted over her as her dragon’s wings expanded, making her look li
ke a terrifying valkyrie.
A cascade of mighty roars responded to the threat and burst over the sands, making my ears ring. Killian turned so that I could see the nightmare rising from the deep.
Blue flames licked at the skies as massive, wild dragons launched into the air and headed straight for us.
Killian gave me a single command, one that I was keen to obey.
“It’s time to run.”
Will the wild dragons destroy everything that Vivi has worked for? What will Killian do with the Dean’s sword?
Find out in the next episode!
To be Continued in Dragonrider Academy: Episode 4!
Coming Next: Dragonrider Episode 4
Good news: Solstice is alive!
* * *
Bad news: Dragonrider Academy is under siege by wild dragons.
Solstice has been on a journey of his own trying to find me in this realm. I’ll have to get the story out of him one day of how he managed to survive long enough to find me.
* * *
For now, we need to figure out how to get these wild dragons out of our realm.
* * *
My plan? We lure them to the Human Realm where reinforcements are waiting.
* * *
Oh, and maybe we’ll burn Max Green’s house on the way. Win-Win.
Dragonrider Academy: Episode 4
A Note from the Author
Thank you for reading the third installment of Dragonrider Academy!
I felt this episode to my bones! Writing a whole episode about Vivi’s agonizing journey to hatch her egg made me just so anxious for her to get there, despite the odds. And just when she reunites with Solstice, of course a bigger problem bursts out of the ocean. Wild dragons attacking Dragonrider Academy? I think Episode 4 is going to be fun!
* * *
Also by A.J. Flowers
YA Fantasy Romance
Valkyrie Allegiance (A Complete Series)
* * *
Valkyrie Landing (Book 1)
Valkyrie Rebellion (Book 2)
Valkyrie Uprising (Book 3)
The Magical Realms Universe
* * *
Daughter of Dragons (Standalone)
Dragonrider Academy (Episode 1)
Dragonrider Academy (Episode 2)
Dragonrider Academy (Episode 3)
Dragonrider Academy (Episode 4)
Dragonrider Academy (Episode 5)
Dragonrider Academy (Episode 6)
Dragonrider Academy (Episode 7)
* * *
Crown Princess Academy (Book 1)
Crown Princess Academy (Book 2)
Celestial Downfall: Twisted Angelic Realms (Complete Series)
* * *
Fallen to Grace (Book 1)
Rise to Hope (Book 2)
Stand for Justice (Book 3)
Manor Saffron (Book 4)
Epic Fantasy
Soul Legacy: The Dweller Saga Duet
* * *
Soul Bound (Book 1)
Soul Child (Book 2)
The Ancient Realms Collection: Books 1-6
Grimdark Fantasy
GameLit
Reborn Online: Dungeon Worlds
Reborn Online: Dungeon Seeker
Post Apocalypse
40 Days: The Atomic Fall Series
Dragonrider Academy: Episode 3 Page 4
