21. CHAPTER 21
"Auriella Blackcreek—promoted to first-year Flight Guide of Feather Wing, Electric Platoon, First Squad," Professor Fogg announced. I felt surprised but happy because it meant I would get a private room on the second floor and a leadership role. Micah had worked hard alongside me, leading our group, so I had thought he would secure the position before me. Michalova Sulivar was promoted to Flight Guide for the second squad. Moving to the second floor brought me closer to Zane and Lili, but it also meant sharing a narrow corridor with Alex, who still hadn’t spoken to Zane or me and avoided meeting my gaze whenever we crossed paths.
“Now I can sneak into your room and fuck you all wild,” Zane sent down the bond.
“Pretty sure, my room is much smaller than yours, Mr. Big Shot,” I teased back.
“True, but it will be fun anyway. Just means we have to be creative.”
“Alex… will be on my floor too.”
“Good mood, gone.”
“Sorry, we just haven’t really talked about it.”
“Nothing to talk about, he is throwing a tantrum because he can’t play with you anymore. He tried to make me choose his friendship over you, and I told him to go get fucked and I chose you.”
“I hate that you had to choose.”
“I didn’t want to, but I will always choose you, if I am forced to choose.”
“I will choose you too.”
** *
Professor Bhatta and Professor Vindex’s lectures got combined for the first-years, covering topics such as fliers and magic.
Since they were closely related, they co-taught us for a few lectures.
Seventy-eight of us packed into the room.
We were already down one Rider from when we started a week ago.
Last week, we discussed the different types of abilities that could be manifested when you bonded with your flier.
Most of us could use minor magic—lighting candles, closing doors, activating sound shields, warding rooms, or moving small objects.
Once bonded to a flier, we would manifest an ability.
Most of us would get a common power, but few would develop an exceedingly unique one.
Some common powers included elementals like fire, ice, water, air, or metal.
Even among these, some became exceptionally powerful—just because a power was common didn’t mean it couldn't be powerful, depending on the flier and Rider's bloodlines.
Psionics referred to powers of the mind, the rarest and most unsettling of the magical branches.
Two in particular—those who could read thoughts without touch and those who could manipulate another’s mind—were spoken of only in whispers.
No laws named them, no decrees outlawed them, yet the handful said to have manifested such gifts never lived long.
Their deaths were always described as accidents, coincidences, illnesses that struck too suddenly.
No one admitted it aloud, but the message was clear.
I just prayed I wouldn’t develop one of those abilities.
Other types included memory readers—which, honestly, seemed nearly as invasive, though those at least required physical contact.
That made them far less terrifying than a manipulator who could bend your will without a word.
Beyond those came a wide range: short-term memory erasers, precognition, force-shield projection, telepathic relays, vision manipulation, teleportation, astral projection, and telekinesis.
All of them sounded incredible—and utterly terrifying—and nearly all were kept tightly classified.
Some other unique abilities included menders, siphons, thermokinesis, lightning wielder, weather manipulator, or emotion manipulator.
We usually only encounter a few people in a lifetime who possess the same unique power.
Magic favored balance and only allowed a limited number of extraordinarily strong powers to exist at one time.
Not only magic, but fliers also helped keep magic in balance, as they could control the flow of power if they believed someone was abusing it or taking too much.
Of course, if you already had magic, they couldn’t take that away.
“Today, we will start discussing the different types of fliers available for bonding. Dragons can be the most temperamental of them all, griffins are more tolerable overall, and phoenixes are a serious type all the time,” Bhatta told us.
He flicked his finger and projected images of various fliers in front of the classroom.
He stopped on the phoenix. There were three of them.
All three looked different but still remarkably similar at the same time.
“Phoenixes are the only type of fliers that don’t have multiple different colors.
They all have shades of red and orange that vary with each phoenix.
Some start red and then graduate to orange, or vice versa.
All phoenixes breathe fire, and while their beaks aren’t as strong as a dragon's, they can snap someone in two just as easily. They are ruthless. You should never underestimate a phoenix.”
“Is it true that if a phoenix’s Rider dies, the phoenix will catch fire and die before they are reborn?” Jameson of Feather Wing, Electric Platoon, second squad, asked.
“Yes, and they are only granted to do that thirteen times before they aren’t reborn,” Bhatta said. “Oftentimes, we don’t see a phoenix wanting to bond when they are in their last life. When they are ready to bond for the final time, that bond is usually significantly powerful.”
Bhatta displayed a red dragon, then said, "fifteen red dragons are willing to bond this year. Red dragons are the most temperamental of all dragons. They breathe the hottest fire, and they also love their Riders fiercely.” The projection cycled through different red dragons.
While they all looked similar, they also appeared different.
He stopped on one with a scar running down the right side of their face, over their eye.
“This is Albalta. She is a beautiful, much older, and wiser dragon. If she chooses you, it would be an honor to bond with her. It is important to note that her bond with her last Rider nearly killed her when her Rider didn’t make it.
Some believe this bond may be the strongest she’ll ever have. ”
He snapped his fingers, and a group of grey dragons appeared.
“Ten grey dragons are coming forward to bond this year. Grey dragons are more levelheaded than other dragons. They also have the unique ability to blow poison gas. This means they have two forms of weapons at their disposal. Because of their calmer nature, they tend to choose Riders who are also reasonable. They are the quickest to stop the flow of magic if they believe you are not using it for the good of the continent.”
The projection cycled through the ten dragons before stopping on the last one.
It was the smaller one that I saw during obstacle training.
“This is Lakung, as you can see, he is a smaller dragon. Just because he and some others are smaller, do not count them out. While most dragons aren’t ready to take on a Rider until they are in their late thirties, sometimes for reasons unknown to us, some dragons choose to bond in their twenties.
Dragons continue growing until they are around fifty.
They experience their largest growth in the first three years, followed by another growth spurt around ten years and again around thirty years.
It is believed that Lakung is twenty-five, making him one of the youngest dragons presenting themselves for bonding.
Other than that, we don’t know much about him, as he has been in the Flier Vale. ”
He moved on to show us the six yellow-gold dragons available.
Each one was truly stunning. He didn’t highlight any of them specifically.
He did mention that the yellow-gold dragons were brilliant, often preferring Riders who were also intelligent.
They don’t care about the Rider's size. Statistically, they tend to choose more female Riders and can be particularly protective.
He flicked his screen and showed us four navy dragons, including the one that had a silvery tone.
“Navy dragons are an all-around dragon. They have intelligence, humor, tenacity, and strength. They can also be frightfully ruthless. They tend to prefer warmer areas over colder mountains. Navy dragons are generally more reserved and less open. They also tend to be excellent mothers and often raise other hatchlings, especially those from bonded dragons.”
“What about the larger one with silver tones to it?” I asked. I wanted to learn more about him since he spoke to me that day.
"Ahh, that’s Kekoa. He is truly a beautiful one.
If any of you are lucky enough to bond with him, he would be a magnificent dragon to be with.
He is among the top twenty largest dragons on the continent.
Kekoa is also an older dragon and has had three Riders in the past—two of them passing from old age and one in an accident.
He hasn’t wanted to bond since his last one, and it’s been over twenty years.
Like Albalta, when his last Rider died, he nearly didn’t make it," he told us.
“Is that how it is with all dragons? The more Riders they’ve bonded with, the lower the chance of surviving their deaths," asked one of the Riders from Eagle Wing.