King's Dragon: Chronicles of the Dragon-Bound: Book 2

by William Culbertson

  Dax winced. Second class was a transitional rank. Cadets were expected to spend no more than a year at that rank before they were ready to assume student command ranks. “Is he incompetent or lazy?”

  “Mostly lazy, but competence doesn’t seem to be his strong suit either. He’s the second son of the Duke of Bington. I get the impression he thinks his life is pretty well set at court. He is just indulging his daddy’s whim that he be here.”

  “So are there any in the squad with potential?” Dax asked.

  “Most likely, but this is a young group. Not many have been really tested, and ten of the twenty-four are girls.” Renshau sighed. “Sort of a test case for us.”

  The sun was now well below the horizon. A thin band of clouds split the darkening blue sky with a streak of gold along its lower edge. Dax took another sip. Impatient for Renshau to get to the point, he asked, “This new advising officer would be expected to do what?”

  Renshau smiled broadly. “Ah, there’s the beauty of it. This would just be a short-term appointment—a special assignment.” Renshau’s smile was now a full-fledged grin. “They need someone to get them ready for the Communications Relay.”

  Finally Dax understood. The Communications Relay was an annual event at the academy. Teams of cadets competed to send a message through a chain of tasks—coding it, carrying it by running, rowing, sailing, and riding, then signaling it over a short distance and decoding it at the finish line. Time counted, but so did accuracy, with winners needing a blend of important skills taught at the academy. Held at the blushing warm end of spring, squads competed within their companies for the right to contend for the regimental title. Dax’s smile stretched into a grin to match Renshau’s. “So naturally you thought of me.”

  “Of course.” Renshau set down his drink and gestured at Dax. “I think you need to get back in touch with the academy. The softer approach needed with cadets, especially our young women, should sharpen those political talents of yours.” He nodded, looking satisfied with himself. “Plus, I think you deserve to have a little fun for a change.”

  “Cutthroat though the competition may be.” Dax saluted the commandant with his glass and took a long pull at his drink. He set the empty glass aside. Happy memories came flooding back.

  #

  The next morning at breakfast roll call, or BRC in academy shorthand, Dax stood with Renshau on the balcony of the dining hall, looking down at the tables. They watched squad D of company three eat breakfast. The cadets all looked alike in their gray uniforms and close-cropped hair. First-Classman Mica Polver, commander of company three, was a compact young man to whom Dax had been introduced first thing this morning. Now Polver was delivering the message about the squad’s new advising officer to Second Classman Tagget. Tagget stood hipshot, not paying particular attention, while the rest of his squad continued to eat. After Polver left, Tagget did not say anything to the group. He sat down and made a comment to the two boys sitting beside him. All three laughed at the jest and went back to their breakfast.

  #

  Tagget had been ordered to assemble his squad in one of the meeting rooms in the first floor of Quenlin Hall after breakfast. Dax waited in the building unnoticed in a shadowed side hall until the squad members had all straggled into the room. He entered the room last. All the cadets rose to their feet and braced at attention. Tagget was the last on his feet and the first to sit after he released them.

  “Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.” Dax looked around the room. “I am Commander Daxdendraig, your temporary advising officer. I will be your supervisor while you prepare for the Communications Relay.” Tagget muttered something under his breath to the boy beside him. “A question, Mr. Tagget?” Dax snapped.

  Tagget grinned lazily. “No, sir,” he said and looked away.

  Dax looked around the room again. “Your first job is to choose your team leader.” He passed out slips of paper and writing sticks to each person. “I want you to think about who would be the best person in this squad to organize and lead your team in the competition. This person needs to be someone who can make sure the right people get the right jobs on the team. Your team leader will not compete as part of the team, but he or she will be responsible for organizing and training your squad. Your leader will make sure all team members do their jobs and do them the best they can.” Dax smiled and nodded. “If you are going to win the Communications Relay, the first step is to have the right leader.”

  There was a snort of what might have been laughter from Tagget’s direction. Dax looked at him. “Mr. Tagget. Did you have a comment about the Communications Relay?”

  “Why, no, sir.” The boy had an irritatingly lazy grin. “But were you aware we finished last in our company last year?” He looked at the other boys beside him. “That, and we lost four of our best people from that team?”

  “I’m well aware of that, Mr. Tagget. That’s why I want you all to think carefully about the best cadet to run this year’s team. Please write down two names. Take a moment, but decide now.”

  The squad members looked at each other uncertainly. Tagget glanced nervously around the room. One after another, they dropped their heads and wrote on their papers. After they were done, Dax collected the slips. “Very good.” He nodded a formal dismissal. “Now, off to drill with you, and my compliments to your instructor for allowing you to join late without penalty.”

  Once the squad had gone, Dax sat down and quickly flipped through the papers. He was amused to see that Tagget’s name appeared on only two of the slips. One had only the name Tagget, while the other read “not Tagget!” along with another name. It was quickly obvious that Tri Doic Hanny was the overwhelming favorite of the squad members.

  #

  Other than Tagget, Dax did not know the members of the squad, so he spent the morning doing research to learn their names and general descriptions from academy enrollment records. They were a typical mix of ages and backgrounds, with most from either West Landly or East Landly.

  Doic Hanny was a twelve-year-old girl from East Landly. In the two years she had been at Iron Moor, she had moved easily through the junior ranks of uni, di, and on to tri. She was ready for promotion to student officer, third class, this summer. Her academics were outstanding, and her instructors’ comments attested to her fine mind. Physically her skills were only so-so—archery scores above average, but swords, sabers, and knives only marginal. From that, Dax decided she was probably coordinated enough but lacked the fast reflexes necessary for combat.

  He sought her out during the free period after lunch and before afternoon classes. As she came out of the dining hall, Dax motioned her over. “Tri Hanny. A moment, if you please?”

  She appeared surprised and looked around. Tagget stood there and scowled at her for a moment before he walked away. She looked back at Dax. “Me?” After he nodded, she turned to face him at attention. “Uh, yes, sir.” She was a tall, slim girl, and she moved with a practiced motion reflecting her years in the academy’s physical-training program. Dax gestured to one of the wrought iron benches along the walkway to the barracks, and they sat down.

  Dax got straight to the point. “Your squad would like you to assemble and lead the team for the Communications Relay.”

  “Me?” She sat up even straighter than before. “I mean, sir, I don’t think I would make a very good leader. I’m not really very good at a lot of the events in the relay.”

  “That may be”—Dax nodded—“but remember you won’t be competing in any of the events yourself.” She shifted uncomfortably, and Dax smiled gently. “No, your squad mates were practically unanimous. They said you were the one for the job, and the fact they trust you to do it is the most important qualification.”

  “But what do I know about running a team, sir?”

  “The most important part is that you know your squad mates. You’ve been with most of them long enough to know who is good at what. Who will work well with whom. That sort of thing.”

  “
Sir, I know them well enough to know that if I start picking people for the swimming, the sailing, the running, and all that, they won’t agree.”

  “What if you did it based on tryouts?”

  “Hmm.” Her eyes got distant. “If they competed, it wouldn’t look like I was picking favorites. But . . .” She hesitated and looked at Dax. “We still don’t have anyone much better than we had last year.” After a pause, she added. “Uh, sir.”

  Dax smiled. The challenge was pulling on her. “What events could you improve the most through extra training or planning?” He raised his eyebrows questioningly. “That could make up some of the time difference.”

  “Well, obviously the coding and decoding processes take the most time and are the most involved.” She thought to herself and uttered an occasional hmm. After a time, her eyes focused on him again. “In the ten-furlong run, the time difference between first and last place is not that great. A good coding team could easily make up for that and way more besides.”

  “Are there any other events where more practice could make a big difference?”

  “Rowing and sailing, for sure. We don’t train for those events that much. They are more recreation activities.”

  “Hand talk and wigwag?” Dax asked, referring to the academy’s silent signaling system.

  “Right! We all learn the basics, but I’ll bet Booci and Rem would be a good team in wigwag. They like that kind of stuff.”

  “What about substitutes?” Dax asked. “What if your wigwag person breaks an arm the day before the competition?”

  Again she looked past him as she thought. “If everyone in the squad cross-trained in every event, we’d have plenty of substitutes.” She paused. “Plus, no one would feel left out like they did last year.”

  “Now you are starting to think like a team leader.”

  Hanny looked at him and blushed. “Thank you, sir.” Suddenly she got quiet. “What about Tagget? He was leader last year.”

  “And you finished where?” Dax waited until she nodded in reply. He smiled reassuringly. “Why don’t you let me break the news to Mr. Tagget? He might never be an enthusiastic member of the team, but maybe we can keep him from being a problem.”

  “Sir?” She met his eyes and nodded formally. “I appreciate the chance to do this. I’ll try my best.”

  “Don’t thank me, Ms. Hanny. It was your squad mates who picked you.”

  She sighed. “Still, don’t you think we’d do better if you led the training like Lieutenant Peffelette did last year?”

  Dax looked at her intently. “Now what would I know about running a team in the Communications Relay?” He allowed the corner of his mouth to turn up in the start of a smile. Hanny gave a little moue of annoyance at hearing her own words reflected back to her, but she politely excused herself and left.

  #

  Two weeks later, Dax watched from the sidelines as Tri Hanny ran the squad’s practice session during their afternoon drill. With the first trials just three weeks away, the corps now used each afternoon’s physical-training period to practice the different events. On the first day of practice, squad D had gotten their event groups sorted out. Hanny had ventured the idea to Dax of appointing event leaders to run their own training, while she and Dax consulted from group to group. Cross-training between events added potential for serious chaos, but Hanny had impressed Dax with the schedule she put together to keep things moving along. Dax had stepped in from time to time to help with basic skills, but by now most of the cadets had learned the fundamentals. They practiced enthusiastically, but the coding and signaling teams worked the hardest. They often carried their practice sessions over into their open-recreation period.

  Even Tagget participated, albeit reluctantly. He had volunteered for the ten-furlong run, but Dax knew he took advantage to loaf along the part of the running path that was out of sight. While the others came back hot and sweaty after a run, Tagget would trail in at an easy jog, scarcely out of breath.

  Across the parade ground where the teams worked, Dax saw a figure approaching. He smiled. Even at a distance he recognized Scarlet’s distinctive gait. When he was closer, Scarlet spotted him and waved. Dax clasped Scarlet’s hand in welcome. “Good to see you. How is Cella?”

  “Never better. She sends her love.” Scarlet scanned the squad as they worked. “So, is this your new command?”

  Dax nodded. “I am the temporary advising officer for squad D of company three.” He broke into a grin. “The Communications Relay is coming up. This was Renshau’s idea to keep me out of trouble for a few weeks.”

  “And it looks like you are doing your usual fine job of letting everyone else do the work.”

  “And you are just trying to give me a hard time,” Dax replied. “That girl over there.” Dax pointed. “Name’s Tri Hanny, and she’s a good one for organization. Give her a couple more years, and she’ll be company commander—at least.”

  Dax continued talking about the squad and their training for several minutes before Scarlet interrupted. “If I didn’t know better”—he smiled broadly—“I’d think you were actually enthused about this little project.”

  For a moment, Dax stared off across the parade ground toward the water in the distance. Stropping. The Great Mother had said he needed stropping as a final polish. He blinked and gave a little laugh. “This was Renshau’s idea. He said I was getting cold and hard. That I needed to get in touch with my political skills for a new job he may have for me this fall.” He looked back at Scarlet and sighed. “This is good. Maybe I should spend more time here.”

  “New job? Is somebody having more bandit troubles?”

  “Hmm?” Dax had distracted himself by thinking about working at the academy. “Oh, sorry. No, the job is a position as a political advisor. I won’t even have to get my shoes dirty this time.”

  #

  Kahshect and the other dragons arrived two days later. There was a large field on the opposite side of the commandant’s residence from the academy. Dax spent the next several evenings there conversing with Treyhorn, Renshau, and the dragons. The humans caught up with news from the Dragon Lands, and they informed the dragons about events in the world of men. When the dragons heard about Dax’s job of supervising a squad in training for the Communications Relay, Teycuktet and Namkafnir were not impressed, but Kahshect immediately sensed Dax’s enthusiasm for the project. In fact, Kahshect was so interested that he wanted to meet the squad. Dax mulled it over and told the dragon to come to swim practice tomorrow afternoon. Everyone was supposed swim the relay distance as backup for the two already picked for the team. After that, Dax wanted the squad to spend the rest of the afternoon recreation period just having fun in the water.

  #

  They practiced at the academy’s swimming pier on the far side of the parade grounds, a fair hike from the academy buildings. At the beach, Tri Hanny paired up her squad mates and sent them two by two out around the marker buoy. Dax showed up wearing swimming clothes, and the squad insisted he swim the last heat against Hanny.

  This early in the season, the water of the Circular Sea was bracingly cold. Although Dax had been swimming several times with the squad before, the water temperature always made him catch his breath the first time he dove in. Dax was a strong swimmer, but Hanny swam like a river otter. She beat him easily.

  “It’s a good thing you don’t have to chase fish to get a meal.” Dax was reaching for his towel when he heard Kahshect’s thought. He looked up as his large shadow swept overhead. Although the cadets had all seen Renshau’s bondmate, Teycuktet, from time to time, they were unprepared for Kahshect’s low pass over their heads, and many ducked low to the ground. The downdraft from the dragon’s wings tossed a few towels around on shore as Kahshect touched down in the water nearby.

  “Squad D, meet Kahshect, my bondmate,” Dax announced in his parade-ground voice. He dove back into the water and surfaced near the dragon. He stood up in the water but went down immediately as Kahshect’s tail t
ook his feet out from under him.

  “Oops.” The dragon’s thought was mocking.

  Dax got to his feet, laughing and coughing out the water he had swallowed. He climbed onto the dragon’s back, which rose several feet above the surface water. He faced the squad on shore and called, “I think he would make an excellent diving platform this afternoon. Don’t you?”

  Dax beat on his chest with his fists, and with a whoop, he jumped into the water with a splash. By the time he had surfaced, the members of the squad were all in the water, with the dragon at the center of attention. They climbed all over Kahshect, jumped from his back, and slid down his tail.

  “They remind me of you when you were this age.” Kahshect’s thought was clear through the noise of the excited youngsters. “Enthusiasm without a bit of sense.”

  “So I suppose you were the soul of reason in those days,” Dax thought back.

  “Well, someone had to be the grown-up.”

  The horseplay continued until Dax heard the bell tolling to end recreation period. He ordered everyone out of the water, including the group of six plebes who thought it was hysterically funny when Kahshect put his head under water and released great rumbling bubbles of air up around their legs.

  #

  Two days later, Dax saw Scarlet approaching across the parade ground toward squad D’s afternoon practice. His friend wore his dress uniform, with most of his medals pinned to his breast. “So where are you off to dressed like that?” Dax poked his finger at Scarlet’s chest. “Meeting the local nobility?”

  Scarlet flicked an imaginary speck of dust from his lapel. “In a manner of speaking. A delegation from East Landly arrived shortly after LRC this noon. I’ve been sent to tell you we are having a reception and dinner in their honor at the commandant’s residence tonight.” He poked his own finger at Dax. “You need to get ready.”