by Logan Jacobs
“Oh, I know they seem adorable,” Evanora’s voice echoed, “but they won’t be all cute and cuddly once you see their full size… which will be soon, depending on how well you can manage their replicas. Now the species you see in front of you is the standard Green Bellied dragon, but these are the easiest to tame, according to the texts. They seldom eat anything larger than a deer but have been known to consume greater creatures such as bears or moose from time to time.”
The class all oohed and ahhed as they stared down at their dragons and began to marvel at the small, curious creatures.
“Now,” the professor continued, “whoever can tame and control these feral animals will be able to progress to a more deadly dragon, but we’ll start small in order to separate you into the appropriate groups.”
“Umm, why are there going to be different groups?” Nyx whispered as she narrowed her blue eyebrows.
“Some students will be more advanced than others,” I answered in a faint voice. “Theodora and I agreed it would be best to see which students should stick with less advanced material.”
“Now, the first thing I want you to do is to try and cast an obedience spell on these little beasts,” Evanora instructed as her green eyes devoured the text from the red book in front of her. “You will need to look into your dragon’s eyes and mutter the ancient incantation ‘et erunt morietur.’ Once the spell is complete, you and your dragon should be bonded for life. It is nearly the same concept as with your familiar, only you will not hear any voices from them. You must rely on your instincts to understand them.”
When the professor looked up from her book, no one made a move, and her eyes darkened as she looked around the room with an impatient sigh.
“Well, what the hell are you waiting for?” she demanded. “Do it!”
We quickly looked down at our small green dragons, and I couldn’t help but grin as my little monster began to swirl in circles and attempt to blow fire. When I finally met its small, glowing yellow eyes, I pulled out my wand and whispered the incantation.
“Et erunt morietur,” I repeated.
A blast of orange light hit the small creature, and it squealed in protest. Then its small wings flapped wildly as it cried out in pain and agony. It swerved its long neck back and forth and wailed as if I’d tore off one of its small, delicate wings.
“Fuck,” I whispered, and my heart skipped a beat. “What the hell did I do?”
Evanora caught my eyes and then glanced down at my small creature. She then looked back at the textbook before she slowly smiled at me and nodded.
“You’re fine, Cole,” the pink-haired professor reassured me. “If your dragon seems to be in pain, it just means it’s abiding by your will. Dragons are extremely willful and headstrong beings, and you need to show them you’re the one in control.”
The rest of the witches at my table all subtly shrugged at one another before they rolled up their sleeves and then aimed it at their own miniature dragons. Orange blasts of light hit their creatures all at once, and most of them began to wriggle in protest. Faye seemed to get hers under control the quickest, but the twins seemed to be struggling since their dragons were still ramping around the table without a care in the world.
Finally, all the dragons affected by the spell stopped squirming and then turned utterly still. As I stared down at mine, it met my eyes and then flared its small nostrils. He seemed to be waiting for something, and I chuckled at his obedient little posture.
“How cool is this?” Faye whispered in excitement as her golden-green eyes wandered around the table. “Satan, I’ve never seen such a gorgeous being.”
“Very cool.” Akira nodded in agreement. “Until they bite your head off, of course.”
“I happen to think they are quite majestic creatures,” Vesta purred, “almost quaint… once you get past the smell, of course.”
“I wonder if you’ll think the same thing when you come across the full-scaled creature,” Evanora tutted from her desk. “Taming and riding dragons is no quaint matter. It requires getting your hands dirty, and your knuckles bloody.”
“And when exactly will we be practicing with full-grown dragons, Professor?” Morgana asked in an excited, but slightly hesitant, tone of voice.
“Well.” Evanora smiled as she looked around the room. “Now.”
Before anyone could respond, the pink-haired professor snapped her fingers, and then the chosen, more advanced students began to disappear from view as we tumbled, tossed, and turned through realms.
When everything grew still, the entire class was splattered across a wide, open green field with a beautiful rose-gold colored sky above us. In the distance, I could see rolling, lush emerald green hills and a deep valley, where a sliver of a glittering river ran through. No doubt, that was where the dragons rested when they weren’t busy drifting through the expansive sky, but I was slightly disappointed when I didn’t see any magnificent beasts roaming through the air and drifting past the clouds. Still, this seemed like a gorgeously serene realm, and I took a moment to appreciate the tranquility.
Everyone gaped at the calm and natural beauty around us, but then the air’s serenity shattered as blood-curdling screams filled the air.
“What the hell was that?” Nyx screamed with her hands over her ears. “Satan, my eardrums are bleeding!”
“Well, what in Satan’s name do you think it was?” Evanora sighed impatiently. “It’s a herd of dragons, and you’re going to be taming them the same way you trained them in the classroom. Except, of course, this will be the real deal. So, prepare yourselves, and be sure not to show them any fear… that will certainly give them cause to kill you. Even the brightest witches have been murdered by just one misplaced look or wrong move, so proceed with extreme caution. They may be the Green Bellied dragons, but they are still capable of anything.”
“No pressure, though,” Akira muttered at my side.
“Yeah, I’m not sure how I feel about this,” Morgana added in a faint voice.
“Oh, come on,” Faye whispered, “how bad can it--”
Before the redhead could finish her sentence, another high-pitched, animalistic scream filled the air, and in the next moment, hundreds of dark shadows hovered above me. When I looked up, I saw countless pairs of menacing glowing eyes staring down, ready to devour us whole. A feral hunger filled the air, and I knew this was going to be unlike any kind of lesson we’d had before. Sure, we’d dealt with monstrous creatures before, but this was an entirely different league, and a part of me wasn’t sure how ready we truly were.
As the dragons’ glittering scales and grand-scaled wings loomed high above us, their echoing, terrifying screams grew even louder, my blood ran cold as my palms began to sweat. I could feel the other students’ fear growing as well, and as the lethal creatures descended upon us, I couldn’t help but wonder one thing.
What the hell were we getting ourselves into?
Chapter 10
The massive dragons continued to hover in circles above us, and their silhouettes crossed over the field like great, dark clouds shadowing the earth. They screeched and roared until the ground trembled beneath our feet, and their glittering emerald bellies sparkled across the dusty sky. Each time their massive wings beat up and down, a wave of heavy wind came swarming down on us and nearly knocked us over.
“Do not be alarmed,” Evanora said as she glanced upward, “as I said, if you were able to control their replicas… then I’m sure you will be able to handle them at their full size.”
“She doesn’t sound too sure about that,” Akira groaned by my side.
“We’ve got this,” I said with my most reassuring smile. “You just need to maintain a positive mindset.”
“Exactly,” Faye added with a broad grin across her freckled and flushed face. “This will be a piece of lemon newt pie.”
“Easy for you to say,” Penelope mumbled.
The dragons continued to fly above us in circles, and when I glanced at the pink
-haired professor, she quickly flicked her green eyes downward and began to flip through her red book. When she seemed to locate the correct page, her face scrunched up in concentration before she lifted her head to glance back toward the burning, rosy sky.
“Class… stand behind me,” the professor ordered. “Right now.”
We didn’t need to be told twice. As soon as the hasty command left the pink-haired professor’s lips, we all hustled behind her, and when I glanced around, I realized a large chunk of students were missing. My coven, as well as Nyx and Beatrix, stood close by my side, and I could feel everyone’s fear and apprehension as we stood obediently behind the pink-haired professor.
“Ivy and Iris aren’t here,” Beatrix said as she looked around with her wide, dark eyes.
“That’s probably because they couldn’t even tame the fucking lizards,” Akira scoffed. “I bet they’re still in the classroom practicing.”
“That makes the most sense,” Morgana breathed in both amazement and horror as she stared up at the shrieking dragons. “Professor Evanora did say we’d be in groups.”
“Well, they’re certainly missing out,” Faye added in a giddy tone. “These dragons are amaaaazzzzzinnnngg!”
“I’m glad to see you’re excited about this, Faye,” I chuckled as I squinted up into the sky.
The dragons continued to fly high above us, and I could tell Evanora was waiting for the right moment to make her next move. She finally took in a deep breath before slowly turning around to face the students.
“Alright,” she said with her chin raised. “Firstly, I will summon the dragons down here to our level. Once they land, you must find the dragon you think is most drawn to you. Be cautious when approaching these creatures… do not show them any fear, and be sure to let them know you are the ones in control. They are perfectly capable of sensing distress, and I cannot stress this enough, they’ll kill you for it. Understood?”
I could hear several students collectively gulping in terror as she uttered those words. I knew they were afraid, but at the same time, we needed to learn how to control these beasts. They would be useful to us, especially during combat. So, I took a small step forward and then gently placed my hand on the professor’s shoulder.
“May I have a quick word with you, Professor?” I whispered softly into her ear.
Evanora whipped around and then focused her bright, emerald eyes on me. Her pink eyebrows furrowed in contemplation, but she sighed and let her shoulders fall down as she slowly nodded.
“Fine,” she relented, “but be quick.”
I gently pulled her away from earshot and then stared deeply into her vivid eyes.
“Look,” I started, “we’re going to have to find a way to encourage the students… not frighten them into perfection.”
“Are you trying to correct the way I’m teaching my own class, Cole?” she asked in an icy tone before she crossed her arms over her chest. “I certainly hope that’s not the case.”
“Not at all, Professor,” I answered with my hands raised in defense. “I just… believe a slightly different approach would be more advantageous.”
“Oh?” she hummed with a raised, pink eyebrow. “And just what exactly do you propose we do, Cole?”
“Let me try and tame one of them first,” I urged. “If the class can watch me successfully control one of these beasts, then perhaps an imminent and painful death will not be their first concern.”
Evanora regarded me with a quizzical, arched eyebrow before she sighed and then rubbed at her temples.
“Fine,” she said after a long moment, “but if you fall and break every bone in your body or are devoured by the beast, then Theodora will never let me hear the end of it.”
“I promise I won’t die,” I responded with a repressed chuckle. “You can count on me, alright?”
“Alright.” Evanora pressed her rosy pink lips together and firmly nodded in my direction. She then took in a slow, deep breath and gradually turned around to face the students once more.
“Class,” she began, “it has been decided that we will first demonstrate what needs to be done, and Cole has so graciously offered to be the first one to tame his dragon. I will summon them down to us, and again, please do your best not to show any signs of fear. They’ll smell it off you like a wendigo smells blood.”
“Yes, Professor,” the class responded in unison.
“Very good,” she answered as she tossed back her long, wavy pink hair.
Evanora turned to look at me and then gestured for me to take a few steps forward. We walked together through the lush, green field, and when the professor stopped in her tracks, I did the same. She still had the crimson book held tightly in her grasp, and after she glanced at it one more time, she lifted her head to stare at the flying, deadly creatures above us. Then she closed the book and raised both hands into the air.
“Fugere et iungere mihi magna creatura in caelum,” she chanted.
As soon as the words left her lips, the sky darkened for a moment, and then the dragons began to screech louder as their wings beat like echoing thunderous drums. I stood my ground as they began to lower their massive bodies down to the earth, but I swallowed hard as each creature swiftly landed on the ground with a heavy thump, just a few feet in front of us.
Now, we were face to face with death, but it didn’t frighten me. If anything, I felt more alive as I peered into the eyes of the beast right in front of me. It was the largest of the herd, and like his small replica, he had shimmering, emerald green scales spread all over his massive body that glittered and gleamed under the rose-colored sunlight. The creature was as tall as the trees of the black forest and was large enough to take down an entire village on its own. Its haunting eyes were as bright as a flickering flame and filled with a desire for blood and freedom. Its claws were black and sharp like curved ebony daggers that could lacerate the heftiest of creatures into mere, bloody ribbons, and it had a pair of deep green horns on the top of its head that appeared to be as piercing and lethal as the finest crafted knives.
As soon as our eyes met, the dragon took a step forward, beat its wings, stretched out its elongated neck, and then roared. I didn’t flinch, and I didn’t even shift my feet. Instead, I continued to stare right at the creature and then raised my hand. My wand didn’t shake as I kept it aimed at the beast, and its eyes refused to leave mine as I lifted my arm even higher.
“Don’t alarm him,” Evanora whispered. “Just keep eye contact with him, and when you feel as if you’re ready… recite the spell.”
“Got it,” I whispered.
Evanora didn’t say another word as I took a small step forward, and not one of the beasts moved an inch. For some reason, they didn’t even growl or hiss as I drew nearer and nearer, and the most enormous dragon simply stared at me with his golden-green eyes and flared nostrils. Finally, when I was close enough, I parted my lips and recited the spell.
“Et erunt morietur!”
A swift blast of orange light hit the beast right in the chest, and he roared as the spell illuminated his massive body like a current of electricity coursing through every single vein in his gigantic frame. He then swerved his head in protest, and the other dragons all cried out in unison as if they were speaking their own language.
“Stay calm, Cole,” Evanora advised in a loud whisper. “Do not falter.”
“I won’t,” I muttered without taking my eyes off the giant beast.
He continued to sway his head in protest, and then finally, when the spell seemed to have taken its full effect, the dragon stared deeply into my eyes with its nostrils flared and its mouth parted slightly open.
I stared at his sharp, yellow jagged teeth and bleeding gums, and for a moment, I thought he was preparing to burn me to a flaming crisp, but instead, he lowered his head and then bent one knee slightly forward, as if it were bowing before me.
“Well done!” Evanora exclaimed as she clapped her hands together.
The class softl
y clapped alongside her, but the sound seemed to agitate the other beasts, which were not yet tamed. Aside from the largest one, they all began to beat their wings and then screech at the witches behind me.
“Calm your brothers and sisters,” I found myself whispering as I stared into the dragon’s eyes. “Tell them we mean them no harm.”
I had no idea what compelled me to speak with the leader, but as soon as my words drifted through the air, he turned his elongated and elegant neck and stared long and hard at his counterparts. Then he lifted his massive body and let out a long, drawn-out, commanding screech.
The other dragons immediately fell into deafening silence and remained as still as stone, and I could hear the other students gasping and whispering feverishly amongst each other as I took another step closer toward my dragon.
He was mine to command now.
“Easy there,” I whispered as I took another step closer.
I raised my free hand, and when I was inches away from the creature, I gently placed my palm on his chest. His skin was warm, rough, and thick, and I could feel fierce vibrations pulsating against my hand as I rubbed his scales.
“Would anyone else care to try?” Evanora asked in a perkier and hopeful voice.
“I would!” I heard Faye’s voice echo from behind me.
I gently retracted my hand and then turned to look at the eager redhead, and her freckled face broke into a small smile as she took tentative steps toward me. She had her wand raised and hand steady as she approached the line of ferocious beasts, and I didn’t sense any fear radiating off her body as she stood next to me and stared at the dragon to my right.
“She’s a beauty,” Faye whispered as her golden-green eyes locked onto a smaller, paler green dragon. “I want her.”
“So, tame her,” I encouraged. “You’ve got this.”
Faye nodded in agreement and then took a steady breath as she faced the dragon of her choice. The gigantic creature stared back at the redhead, and its glowing, yellow eyes narrowed at the wand in Faye’s hand.
