Avian (The Dragonrider Chronicles) (25 page)

I was stunned. Jace had outright ignored me! Surprisingly, that hurt even worse than being yelled at. It stuck in my pride like a splinter. I hated it. Sure, I had been ignored and even pitied plenty of times when I was floundering through ground combat training. But I had never been a disappointment in the air. It was like Jace was so disgusted with our performance that he wasn’t even going to acknowledge how bad it was.

Being disregarded like that lit a raging fire in my chest. I looked at Mavrik. He was bristled and hissing, swishing his tail bitterly. I nodded and clenched my teeth. Next time. We would be better next time. I wasn’t going to get shown up like that again.

Jace gave us all a short pep talk about keeping our morale up before he dismissed us. He passed out our new avian uniforms, and gave us our schedule. It was basically the reverse of last year. Instead of starting the day with combat training, we would be attending classes on survival techniques, orienteering, and battle planning until lunch. After the noon break, we would assemble at the gymnasium for combat training that would last for the rest of the day.

I raised my hand to ask, “What about interrogation training? I thought that started this year.”

Jace smirked like he found my enthusiasm hilarious and cute. “It’s coming. But you’re not ready for that, yet.”

I was still so angry about the flying at breakfast that I couldn’t force myself to eat much. It was a stupid thing to get so upset about. I knew that. I still couldn’t help it. I had never had much to be proud of. Our speed had always been our advantage, something about us that was special, and now… it wasn’t.

The dormitory was alive with activity as the sun began to rise. We hurried through our morning baths, fighting our way through the other avians who were trying to do the same thing. We got dressed in our new uniforms, grabbed our stacks of maps, and filed down toward the breaking dome with everyone else. The horns on the academy walls began to blare, giving the call to arms. That was our signal to report in for our morning brief.

I can’t explain what it was like to stand with all the other dragonriders of Blybrig Academy. But overwhelming would probably be the best place to start. I stood with Felix on one side, and Lyon on the other, lined up according to our rank in the breaking dome. We stood at attention even before the command was called, and we didn’t talk to each other. Last year, I hadn’t really understood what I was doing there, or what would happen to me. But now, things were different. I was starting to understand my place here. I knew I had an objective, and that was to survive.

Dressed out in our black tunics and pants, with our navy blue cloaks brushing at our heels, and the king’s golden eagle pinned around our necks, I knew we looked intimidating to the younger riders. It made me want to stand up a little taller, to put on my fiercest face. I wanted to look capable. I wanted to be a standard that someone could strive for.

Before us, Commander Rayken and the other officers were assembling. They were all dressed out in their formal armor, wearing swords at their hips, and talking in low voices. I recognized many of them. Jace was there, frowning like always. Lieutenant Morrig glanced my way for a second, and then did a double take when he realized who I was. He had been my combat instructor last year.

Even though it wasn’t appropriate, I wanted to thank him for putting up with me. Lieutenant Morrig had worked hard to find something I could do when it came to hand-to-hand combat. Not many others would have even bothered, especially considering how I had looked back then. When we locked gazes, I gave him a small nod. I wanted him to know he hadn’t wasted his time on me. I wouldn’t be a disappointment this year.

Lieutenant Thane’s glare caught my attention next. He was standing off to the side, away from the other instructors, with his burly arms bulging like two giant, overstuffed sausages. His dark eyes were narrowed right at me. I could practically taste the cold pressure of his presence. Even after Commander Rayken started calling everyone to attention, he kept glaring at me like he hoped the heat of his wrath might make me burst into flame. Thankfully, it didn’t.

“Welcome to Blybrig Academy. For some of you, this is your first time to stand in our midst. For others, you are already a part of our brotherhood and understood the importance of what lies ahead of you this year,” Commander Rayken started with basically the same speech as last year. Then he started telling a brief history of dragonriders. It hadn’t meant all that much to me as a fledgling, but now the history interested me a lot more. Now I was a part of it.

“There are only a few savage beasts upon this earth that share a bond with man: dogs, horses,… women,” he paused. Some of the other instructors snickered and elbowed each other. I guess that was supposed to be a joke. “But greatest amongst these is the dragon. His kind first came to us in our darkest hour, when foreign enemies struck our soil with intent to destroy and enslave us. When we were faced with the greatest foe our kingdom had ever known, one who dared to call himself God Bane. Upon the smoldering field of battle, the first dragon chose a humble infantryman to be his rider. Their strengths and desires were united, bonded for life. They became an image of hope to others, who began to look to the sky as they prayed for victory. More dragons came from their nests far on the eastern coast and followed that example, choosing men of merit and strength as their riders. That was how our mighty brotherhood was formed. We were born from the ashes of devastation, to rise and bring the flames of war upon any enemy who would try to invade our beloved kingdom.”

Commander Rayken paused again and looked across our company. No one said a word. “Time has indeed changed us. The ways of old have become a distant memory. But you are all here for that same purpose. The reason for our existence has not changed. We fight and die as one, as brothers, as dragonriders.” He saluted, clasping a fist over his breastplate. “For his majesty’s honor!”

We all responded without hesitation, snapping a fist over our chests and mimicking that gesture with a shout. That’s when I realized my pulse was racing. The sense of purpose that surged through my veins was overwhelming. When I glanced beside me, I saw that Felix looked flushed, too. His face was the picture of fierce determination.

After we were dismissed, we split up according to our classes and started making our way out of the dome. Felix, Lyon, and I were assigned to a survival class first. I was already excited when we hit the door. The huge, sloping room had seats all the way around it like an amphitheatre. We sat together, listening as the instructor stood at the center of the room and explained what we would be learning.

“If you are shot down in Luntharda, or find yourself a prisoner of the gray elves, you will most likely die,” the instructor said sharply. A few students shifted uncomfortably in their seats. “If you do survive, it won’t be because of your sword or fighting techniques. It will be because of what you learn here, in this classroom. Survivors pay attention. Survivors listen, learn, and remember. My name is Lieutenant Haprick. Welcome.”

I swallowed hard. I didn’t feel very welcome. Panicked was more like it. I quickly made a mental note never to zone out during this class. It wasn’t hard, though, because most of what he talked about was interesting.

After his introduction, Lieutenant Haprick launched right into listing off exactly what we would be given in our saddlebags to help us survive a worst-case scenario. He had a table set up in the center of the room with a bag exactly like the one we would all be issued. He called it a “go-bag” because in the event of an emergency, we had to grab it and go. We all scrambled to take notes as he took each item out, one by one, and quickly demonstrated how to use it.

The first item was a thick candle made from beef fat. He explained that it would provide light, but it could also be eaten if you were ever in a situation where you were starving. Next was a piece of flint, which he intended to teach us to use in order to light a fire. There was a small sewing kit for treating wounds or mending clothes, several spools of gauze, and a small round tin of an herbal salve that would keep open wounds from getting infected. He went on to list a lot of other things like rope, a knife, a canteen, and snare wire. I lost count, and it took all my focus to keep up with him while taking notes. He said he would teach us more about each item, how to use it, and what to do if we lost it. Then and only then would we be getting go-bags of our own.

“These are tools,” he insisted. “Not trinkets or toys. Only once you understand their use and respect their value can you be trusted with them.”

Our next class was about memorizing maps. This, at least, was very familiar to us. Last year, Felix had struggled some when it came to memorizing maps. He groaned and slouched in his seat when we were given the same assignments as last year. We would have to duplicate a map of the kingdom down to the very last detail. I hadn’t struggled with it that much, so I was confident. Sile had shown us how to divide the maps up into quadrants, and memorize them one by one, to make things easier.

A little before lunch, we finally shambled into our last class of the morning. Battle planning sounded boring, but we had only gotten a small taste of it last year. This year, the instructor promised to present us with problems and battles that we had to present calculated plans for. It looked a lot more difficult than I was expecting.

“An effective plan is half the battle, boys.” The instructor, Lieutenant Graul, gave a deep, throaty laugh. “Otherwise we’d all be buzzing around randomly, just as liable to kill our own men as the enemy.”

When morning classes ended, we were all dismissed to have lunch. We stood in line, got our ration of food, and sat down at our usual place at the end of one of the long dining tables. Felix was staring down at his food with a glazed look in his eyes. Lyon was swirling a fork in his potatoes. I was starving, as usual, but my head felt like it was going to explode. This was only the first day, and already it seemed like there was a mountain of knowledge looming over me.

“I don’t know if I can do this,” Felix admitted.

The rest of us looked up at him. I was surprised to hear him sound so defeated already.

“It won’t be so bad once we get into it.” I tried to sound confident. “It seems like a lot because we just started. It’ll get better.”

He grumbled angrily, and started stuffing food in his mouth. I couldn’t understand most of what he said, but I did catch the words, “I hate maps.” The rest was probably a string of curses.

After lunch, we had a few spare minutes to shed our formal cloaks and put on our vambraces and sword belts before combat training. I tucked Beckah’s handkerchief into its usual place against my arm, and followed Felix and Lyon to the gymnasium.

I assumed Lieutenant Morrig would be instructing us again. After all, he’d done a good job last year. But as we joined the rest of the avians flocking into the building, I heard a voice that made my insides turn to jelly.

Lieutenant Thrane was standing in the center of the gymnasium, his bulging arms crossed, and his huge bald head wrinkled in a scowl. He was looking at the crowd of students filing in like he was searching for someone. I got the immediate sense that the person he was looking for was most likely me.

Thrane wasn’t alone. Jace and Morrig were standing there, as well. There were a lot more avian students than fledglings, so Morrig probably needed the extra help. As soon as we were all inside, Morrig called us to attention and began doling out orders. He divided is into three large groups and announced that we would be working in stations. After two hours at one station, the groups would switch until we had all visited each one.

Station one was basic sword dueling with Jace. Station two was for learning dual wielding with two weapons or with a shield with Morrig. And finally, station three—which was bound to be my favorite—was grappling and barehanded combat with Thrane. All three sounded like they were going to be unpleasant. I was determined not to think about it too much.

I had a lot to prove. Last year, things hadn’t gone so well in combat training. Being half the size of everyone else in my class hadn’t helped. But that wasn’t the case anymore. Now, I was one of the tallest. I knew this was my chance. My performance here would decide the fate of my friends and myself when it came time for the battle scenario. So I clenched my teeth, and did my best not to look at Thrane.

Lyon, Felix, and I were grouped together with twenty other avians and sent to station one. After retrieving a wooden practice sword from the armory room, Jace lined us up in a grid, and unfurled his long, leather whip. He stalked back and forth in front of us like a prowling jungle cat, staring down every student he passed.

“What you did last year was child’s play. You are not children anymore. You are men. And you will be held accountable for not knowing your maneuvers. Be glad that it is just the taste of a whip that is your punishment, and not the bite of an enemy’s blade.” Jace spoke so calmly that it made me nervous. His eyes scanned us as though he were looking for weakness. “Now, show me an opening stance!”

The gymnasium filled with the sound of shouts, of grunts, of Jace snapping his bullwhip, and Thrane bellowing out orders like an angry bear. The first time someone slipped up, it was an avian standing right in front of me. I saw it happen. Jace called a parry maneuver, and the student moved into the wrong stance. In an instant, Jace was there, looming right in his face and demanding to know why he couldn’t do something so simple. Then came the crack of the whip. The student screamed. None of us dared to move.

“Now, do it again.” Jace snarled. His eyes locked with mine, and I felt my stomach do a back flip. “No mistakes.”

Jace had threatened us with that whip before. He was good at popping it right in front of our noses if we stumbled, but he’d never actually used it. It made me realize that practice was officially over. This was the real deal now. And the consequences were going to be just as real.