Secret of the Dragon Egg (Dragon Riders of Avria Book 1)

by N. A. Davenport

  When they got back, the first thing Will noticed was a loud whistling noise coming from inside. They opened the doors and saw Tavin, leaning over the side of Dancer’s gate and whistling loudly at her. His two friends were looking in, waving their hands at Dancer and grinning.

  “Hey, boys, cut that out!” Gellan snapped.

  “I just wanted to get her to move. I want to see her egg,” Tavin grumped.

  “She hasn’t laid it yet, now stop harassing her.”

  “Well, what’s taking her so long?” one of the other boys asked.

  Gellan didn’t bother answering that question.

  “And anyway, what’s wrong with Slash’s talons?” Tavin crossed his arms and scowled. “His claws are all short now! They were just starting to look really deadly.”

  “Long claws may be in fashion among the cormants of young people these days, but they’re not good for the birds. Believe me, Slash’s talons are still quite deadly.” Gellan pulled a leather saddle off a mount on the wall and stepped through the gate into Slash’s stall. “Stay in the aisle until I call you, but watch closely, Will. You’ll need to learn how to do this.”

  Will rested his arms over the top of the closed gate, leaning in to get a closer view.

  Tavin and the other boys seemed to notice him for the first time.

  “Who’re you?” Tavin asked. His tone made the question sound like a challenge.

  “I’m Will.” He didn’t bother adding anything more, he needed to watch what Gellan was doing so he could learn, and he already had a very low opinion of Tavin.

  “Will? Just Will?” Tavin scoffed.

  His friends grinned at one another.

  Will nodded.

  Gellan had placed the cormant saddle very high on Slash’s back, a little over his neck, and looped one of the leather straps under the bird’s wings.

  “The saddle has to start up high,” he said. “So when you tighten the straps, the feathers don’t get pushed up the wrong way.”

  “So, who are your parents?” Tavin asked, leaning against the stall door next to Will.

  “Mike and Kim,” Will said, not looking at him.

  Gellan looped a leather strap through two of the metal rings several times, then tightened them and finished with a complicated knot. Will tried hard to replay the motions of the knot in his mind, but Tavin spoke to him again.

  “So you work for Elder Madoc, huh? Do you have an apprenticeship, or are you indentured?”

  “I don’t even know what you’re talking about!” Will said.

  “Sounds like you’re indentured to me.” Tavin chuckled and nodded knowingly to his friends, who smiled nastily back. The other two boys seemed to just sort of hang around Tavin, mimicking his moods like they didn’t have their own personalities.

  “My friends and I are going egg hunting. Is Elder Madoc going to let you egg hunt? You don’t look older than fifteen to me.”

  Will didn’t answer. He tried to pay attention to how Gellan strapped the halter around Slash’s beak, but he couldn’t help noticing this interesting new information. Egg hunting?

  “He probably won’t let you go,” Tavin said. “If you found a dragon egg, he’d have to let you go to the hatching ground.”

  Will stared at Tavin in amazement now. Dragon egg? “Wait, what? What do you mean, a dragon egg? What hatching ground? I’d get out of working for Elder Madoc if I found a dragon egg?”

  Tavin and his friends stared at Will like he’d just babbled a stream of gibberish.

  “Are you trying to tell us you don’t know about the egg hunt?” one of the other boys asked, his face scrunched up incredulously.

  “Everyone knows about egg hunting,” the other boy said, rolling his eyes.

  “Did Madoc keep you chained up in a basement your whole life or something?” Tavin asked, grinning smugly.

  “No, I’m an off-lander. I’ve only been here for a few weeks. Now, what about this egg hunt? You’re looking for a dragon egg to take it to a hatching ground? What happens there?”

  “The eggs hatch, of course! What a stupid question!” Tavin said, laughing.

  The other two boys leaned in and stared. “Whoa!” they said almost in unison, giving Will their full attention.

  “You’re really an off-lander? No kidding?” one of them asked.

  “What’s it like out there? Do they really have machines that can fly like dragons?” the other blurted.

  “Are the off-lands bigger than Avria?”

  “Is it true there are places where it never snows?”

  Tavin watched as his friends pelted Will with questions, a sour expression growing on his face. Finally, he shoved his friends aside and glowered at Will. “You’re no off-lander!” he spat. “How could an off-lander boy be working in Elder Madoc’s breeding stable?”

  Will shrugged. Even though he seemed more hostile now, at least Tavin was giving him the information he wanted. “So what happens when the eggs hatch?”

  “A hatchling will bond with me, and I’ll become a dragon rider.” Tavin lifted his head smugly.

  “And us, too,” one of his friends said, puffing out his chest.

  Will’s breath caught in his throat. He swallowed. “Become a dragon rider? Really?”

  “You’re not messing with us, are you?” one of Tavin’s friends said, amazed. “You really didn’t know.”

  “I think he really is an off-lander, Tavin,” the other whispered.

  Tavin’s jaw tightened, and his eyes flashed. Will wondered what he could have possibly done to anger the spoiled, arrogant boy.

  “Will, I need you to come in here, now,” Gellan called from in the stall.

  Will jumped in surprise, remembering that he was supposed to be learning how to put on a cormant saddle. He slid open the gate and stepped inside.

  Gellan was holding Slash’s lead, trying to steady the bird while he moved toward his legs with a roll of blue cloth strips. Slash didn’t seem to trust this maneuver and was prancing around, not letting Gellan get anywhere near his feet.

  “Think you can calm him down?” Gellan asked. “I need to bind his legs. Tavin keeps running him through bushes, so he needs protection from the briars.”

  “Um . . .” Will studied the cormant, who jumped away whenever the suspicious roll of cloth strips got too close to him. “Here, can I see that?”

  Gellan handed the roll over and focused on holding Slash still.

  Not sure whether his idea would work, Will held the wraps in his open hands up toward Slash, letting the bird get a good look at it.

  Slash seemed nervous, so Will held still, waiting for him to calm down. When Slash’s feathers smoothed out and he stopped prancing, Will took a slow step forward.

  It took a few minutes, with Will stopping to wait whenever Slash seemed too nervous. When he was within arm’s reach, the bird’s curiosity took over, and he lowered his beak to nibble at the wraps. Satisfied that it wasn’t either a treat or anything dangerous, Slash lost interest.

  Will took the wraps and stroked the cormant’s neck with them.

  Slash watched him and blinked his yellow eyes.

  He ran the wraps over the cormant’s wings.

  Slash gently ruffled his feathers.

  He ran the roll of cloth wraps down Slash’s leg.

  The bird ignored him.

  “I think he’ll let you do it now,” Will said, handing the wraps back to Gellan.

  Gellan chuckled and wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. “I tell you what, boy, you’ve got the makings of the best cormant trainer I’ve ever seen. Taking your family in is going to pay off for Elder Madoc with you in his stable.”

  Will beamed at the praise and couldn’t help glancing back to see what Tavin thought.

  Tavin’s friends were leaning over the gate, watching in amazement. Tavin had his lips pressed together and his eyes narrowed.

  Will shrugged and turned his attention back to Gellan, trying to figure out the wrap pattern he was using on the
bird’s legs, just in case he would need to do it himself some time.

  When Slash’s legs were securely wrapped in the dense blue cloth, Gellan motioned for Will to open the gate and then led the cormant out into the aisle.

  “Well, it’s about time!” Tavin snatched the reins out of Gellan’s hand.

  “Remember, Tavin, Slash isn’t big enough to carry all three of you,” Gellan warned with a frown. “He’s still young. Don’t overburden him.”

  “Whatever, old man.” Tavin yanked on the reins, making Slash squawk in alarm. “See you later, off-lander!” he called mockingly to Will as his friends followed him out.

  Chapter Eight

  For the rest of the day, Gellan kept Will busy oiling the leather cormant saddles, shoveling soiled straw from the stalls every hour, sprinkling fresh cedar chips among the bedding to deter feather mites, and sweeping and mopping the wide aisle between the stalls until it shone.

  Will wanted to ask about the dragon egg hunt. Was it possible that he could find a dragon egg? If he did, he would probably meet dragon riders at the hatching ground. Maybe they’d be willing to help look for his uncle. Maybe they’d know a way Will and his parents could get back home. Or—Will’s heart raced at the idea—maybe he could become a dragon rider.

  If he did become a dragon rider, would he ever be able to go back home? Would they be stuck here in Avria forever? If he had a dragon, would he be able to give it up to go back to “the off-lands?” Would he want to?

  Will wanted to talk to Gellan about all of this, to see if there was any hope at all that he might go egg hunting, but the stable master seemed so pleased with Will’s natural skill with the cormants that Will didn’t want to let him down. The more they worked together, the more Gellan seemed convinced that Will was going to be the greatest cormant trainer ever.

  “I don’t want to be a cormant whisperer,” Will said as he brushed under Dancer’s wing feathers. She’d started roosting in the corner of her stall, but she still hadn’t laid her egg. Gellan said that it wouldn’t be long now, another week at most.

  Dancer squabbled at him when he slowed down his brushing.

  “Sorry, Dancer.” He went to her other side to continue smoothing her feathers and working the dust out with the soft-bristled brush. “Nothing against you, of course. You’re a really cool bird. I’ve never seen any bird with so many bright colors before. I just don’t think I want to spend the rest of my life brushing feathers and shoveling poop.”

  Will frowned at his confession. Did this make him no better than Tavin, who couldn’t appreciate Slash but only wanted to go get himself a dragon because he thought they were better?

  Will knocked the dust out of the brush and stood.

  Seeing him about to leave, Dancer tapped his arm with her beak imperiously.

  “Sorry, girl. I still have to brush Dizzy and Strider.” He stroked her head, then slid the gate open to leave.

  Just then, the big entrance door rolled open and a young, angry voice shouted, “Gellan! Where are you, old man? What’s wrong with my bird?” Over him, frantic screeches echoed through the stable.

  The other cormants squawked and scuffled in their stalls at the sudden racket. Will saw that Slash was in a wild-eyed frenzy. His beak snapped in the air.

  Will raced down the aisle and grabbed one of Slash’s reins. The bird aimed kicks at him and Tavin as the boys tried to bring him into the stable.

  “What happened to him?” Will demanded, struggling to hang on to his side of the reins.

  “I don’t know!” Tavin yelled, dodging a blow from Slash’s claws. “The stupid bird is crazy!” He yanked on the reins, jerking Slash’s head down. This only made the cormant more scared. Slash pulled back and whipped his head violently.

  “Easy, Slash. You’re okay,” Will said, but the cormant was in no mood to listen. He pulled at the reins and kicked the air with his deadly claws. Will thought he could get him to relax a little if he didn’t feel so trapped, but Tavin kept yanking on the reins.

  “Tavin, you should let go and let me handle it,” he said through gritted teeth.

  “What do you know!” Tavin roared at him. “You’re nothing but a stupid off-lander! This is my cormant, not yours!”

  “Well, if you keep shouting and scaring him, what do you think is going to happen?” Will growled.

  Tavin’s face flushed even redder than it already was. “This bird is obviously inferior. No proper cormant would get spooked so easily. A proper cormant would be strong and not overreact to a little extra weight! Where’s that old man?”

  Will snatched the other rein out of Tavin’s fist to keep him from yanking on Slash’s beak. “You made him carry your friends, didn’t you?” Will asked, seething.

  Tavin blinked in surprise for a split second, then his face went white with rage. “How dare you—” he started.

  “You disgusting bully! After Gellan told you it would be too much, you did it anyway. No wonder he’s jumpy, after you nearly broke his back! You’re a spoiled brat, and you don’t deserve a bird like Slash!”

  Will didn’t quite know what to expect Tavin to do, but when he saw the other boy pull his fist back to punch, all he could think was that he couldn’t let Slash be in the middle of a fistfight. The scared cormant would likely gore both of them in terror.

  He let go of the reins and turned to see a fist flying at his face, right before Tavin’s knuckles crashed into his jaw. Will staggered back with stars in his eyes.

  Slash let out a raucous squawk and ran down the aisle, flapping his wings.

  Tavin had already brought back his other fist to deliver a second blow, but Will didn’t have to worry about Slash anymore. He dodged the attack and swung hard with his right fist, punching Tavin’s nose so hard his knuckles stung.

  Tavin squealed and grasped his nose in his hands.

  Will braced himself for another attack.

  “What is going on in here?” Gellan’s voice demanded from the doorway.

  Will turned to see the stable master standing in the doorway, frowning at both of them.

  “Your stable boy dared to insult me,” Tavin wailed. “And he bloodied my nose!” He waved a hand in front of his face. Blood was starting to trickle from his nostrils, but the injury hardly seemed dangerous. Will had gotten worse bloody noses from riding his mountain bike with his friends back home.

  He scowled at Tavin. “This spoiled rich kid put three riders on Slash, after you told him not to, and brought him back so jumpy he almost gored both of us.”

  “You can’t prove I put three riders on him. I never admitted to that!” Tavin said, wiping a drop of blood from his nose with his sleeve.

  “Stop, both of you. I’ve heard enough.” Gellan sighed. “Will . . . apologize to Tavin.”

  “What? What do you mean? What for?”

  Tavin grinned triumphantly.

  “For insulting the son of one of our best customers and business partners. For striking him. For causing him injury. You don’t seem to understand the significance of what you’ve done here.” He stared hard at Will, making him fidget nervously.

  “Fine. I’m sorry,” he muttered.

  Gellan kept staring at him.

  Will took a deep breath. “Tavin, I apologize for calling you a disgusting bully and a spoiled brat and for giving you a bloody nose after you hit me when I wouldn’t let Slash gore you.”

  Gellan raised his eyebrows at Will.

  Tavin glared at him. “I don’t think an apology is enough,” he said, lifting his chin and looking down his nose at Will.

  “What else can we do to help make things right?” Gellan asked, without a hint of resentment. “We will do all in our power to make it up to you.”

  Tavin grinned in a way that made Will’s stomach go sour.

  “I want Will to pay special attention to Slash from now on. I want my cormant’s feather’s gleaming by morning. I want fresh straw in his stall three times per day. I want him smelling nice all the time. And
I want Will to be the one to put his saddle on whenever I come to take him for a ride.”

  “Yes, of course.” Gellan made a small bow. When Will hesitated, Gellan shot him a look, and Will sulkily bowed, too.

  “Yes, of course.” Will ground the words out between clenched teeth.

  When Tavin couldn’t immediately think of anything else to make Will do for him, Gellan gently led the boy out of the stable and helped Will get the fidgety bird back into his stall.

  “How could you listen to him? Don’t you believe me?” Will asked as they closed the stall door on Slash. “Tavin brought that cormant back ready to murder someone!”

  “Of course I believe you,” Gellan said. “But if I take your side over his with no proof, just your word over his, it could destroy our relationship with his family,” he huffed. “I like you, kid. But I’m not ready for both of us to lose our jobs over this.”

  Will grimaced and rubbed his sore jaw. He hadn’t thought that standing up to a bully might cost him or Stable Master Gellan his job.

  After completing the rest of his usual chores, Will took a few hours to give Slash’s stall an extra good scrubbing. He rubbed in a generous portion of feather conditioner to help the cormant’s coat shine. Slash was more sensible than some of the other cormants and wasn’t likely to roll in his own droppings during the night, but Will sprinkled some extra cedar shavings into his bed just in case.

  When Will finally crawled back into the loft that night, his parents were already asleep in their bed. As he quietly slid under his blanket, his mom stirred and woke.

  “Is that you, Will?”

  “Yeah, sorry. I just got back.”

  “You had a long day today.” She yawned.

  “Yeah . . . a long day. So, any more news on finding a dragon rider to help us?” he asked.

  His mom sighed. “Lots of information mixed in with gossip and speculation. Here in Avria, it’s the family’s job to search for missing people. They don’t have a government agency or volunteer system for that, so getting help from one of these dragon riders seems to be our best bet. But dragon riders don’t often visit here. Elder Madoc’s livestock is too valuable for the dragons to eat.”