I am Dragon (Dragon Fires Rising Book 2) by Marc Secchia (famous ebook reader TXT) 📕

my Dragon Rider, and I am honoured to fly together with her.”

Epic jaw-dangler.

He and Azania gave a wicked laugh at exactly the same time.

Turning to the men and women, the Princess said brightly, “So, given the rush to get to Zunityne, who would like to fly there aboard a Dragon?”

Exactly two women leaped into the air, shouting, “Me!”

The rest gasped as if she had slugged them each in the gut, simultaneously.

Chapter 28: Riders Aloft!

THE CHOSEN DRAGONESSES STARED at the Humans, and shuffled their paws in the sand. The chosen crack troops stared at the Dragons, and shuffled their boots in the sand.

Dragon pictured kicking sand in everyone’s faces.

Azania clapped her hands sharply. “Wake up, everyone! We’ve a kingdom to plunder!” Only Dragon chortled at her joke. She said, “Alright … uh, Dragon. Any ideas how to make this happen?”

“Me? I think … aye. Here’s what we’ll –”

He paused as Aria growled, “Would you two just like to take over?”

Oh dear. Issues of a romantic nature. He said, “Sorry. With your permission, my little Drag – oh, help! That came out all wrong!”

Withering glare. Keeping her lethal paws to herself, however, she purred, “I promise to make you pay for that audacity later, handsome.”

Whooooff! His fires raged to life at her coquettish tone. The watching Dragonesses chortled in smoky appreciation. Nothing for it. Before he conducted an unfortunate decimation of their new allies, Dragon jerked his muzzle aloft and let rip with a thunderous roar and a plume of flame that raged eighty feet tall. When he felt ready, he cut it off and returned to the conversation.

“Sorry, fire breathing is quite new to me,” he explained. “Bit of a lack of control, sometimes.”

Aria did not look unimpressed. Nor did the rest of their army.

“Permission granted,” she said, with a fangs-flashing smile coupled with a saucy wink.

Dragon almost lost it a second time.

Swallowing back all the unruly fire, he said, “Right. Dragonesses, I want you to sniff your way down the line. Trust your instincts. When you find the right person, pair up with them. Get them onboard and settled. Men, mind your manly jewels when you mount up. These Dragonesses are sharp.”

Many of the women chuckled; one called, “And what about us, Dragon?”

“Don’t pop those bosoms, ladies!”

That cracked the tension like a clay pot dropped off a cliff. Suddenly, an air of nervous excitement overtook the entire congregation as Aria led her way down the line, picking a tall, strong brown-haired woman. The other Dragonesses jostled behind, picking here and there until Dragon was left with the remainder.

All females.

“Are you trying to tell us something about male Dragons and harems?” Azania sniped, drawing a poisonous glance from Aria.

That would be a jealous Dragoness. One and one only, that glare told him.

Or, a fate indistinguishable from death.

“Let’s get these women tied on,” he said grandly. “Use your belts, little Humans, and hang on tight, especially on takeoff. My crew, we’ll try a running, skimming takeoff to make your first flight as smooth as possible for you.” He curved his head to eye the women seating themselves gingerly between his skull spikes. Eight above his shoulders and down his back, two behind Azania on his neck. “Hold onto one another, and trust me to do the flying. I’ve flown Princess Azania from T’nagru to the Archipelago without dropping her once.”

“We did have a long swim, however,” she put in.

“Not helpful, Princess,” he growled. “You see, she was inside my mouth at the time.”

Maybe that wasn’t the most helpful comment either.

He watched the Dragonesses launching into the sky. Their pretty but highly flexible wing structures did things he could only dream of. Soon he was left alone, along with the soldiers who would return some of the vessels to their base camp, before setting sail for Zunityne to support the Rangers there later. After walking up to one end of the sandbank, he dug his talons into the soft sand and called, “Ready?”

“Is that possible?” one of the soldiers called.

Her squad leader clipped her around the earhole. “Respect the Dragon.”

Azania said, “She’s right; there’s nothing quite like Dragon flight. Dragon, show them what you’re made of.”

The extra weight he bore had to be over half a tonne, he reminded himself as he raised and flexed his wings back and forth, loosening up the muscles. Time for a run. Digging in his talons, he pressed into a powerful sprint along the sandbank. Enough speed and the slight headwind in his favour, and he could call a warning before leaping into the air with a tilt of his wings that took him clear of the water for the all-important initial wingbeats that gained altitude and flying momentum. A couple of the Rangers whooped.

He gazed ahead at the Dragonesses disappearing into the bank of sea fog ahead. “Is it normal that it sticks around like this?”

“This weather can occur around the changing of the seasons,” said a Ranger on his neck, sounding breathless. She had the right idea. “Colder currents from the north bring in the fog; usually, it’s a sign that the Sea Dragon migration is near, because the cold waters bring important nutrients to the oceans around these isles. Used to be you could see them from this side of the islands, but nowadays, they pass around to the northern side. Some years they rest up and around the talons for a few weeks, playing, mating and hunting Sea Serpents, but they never stay long. Restless creatures. I do wonder what drives them.”

Will I want to take part in a migration one year? he thought privately.

Azania said, Do you feel the itch?

No. But what an experience it would be. Imagine seeing the world that way?

Incredible, without a doubt. He sniffed