Dragon Rider (DragonMage Saga) (3 page)

It took him till the sun is just
above the horizon to get down to the hatchery. He heads into the Dragon Hall to
see if his mother was there, but finds she’s no where to be seen. He gets
something to eat as he felt really hungry still.

Finding his friends waiting
outside the young dragons’ chamber, Angel can see they are excited about
something and hurries. The boys both try to talk at once when Angel comes up to
them.

‘Angel’ ‘Angel’ they yelled
trying to talk at once.

Angel held up his hand. ‘Whoa one
at a time, what’s wrong?’

His friend Tas-Shy got in first
to tell him the news. ‘Did you hear there's a wizard here, he came in before
and is looking around? The dragons don’t like it but he is keeping his distance
from them.’

His other friend Pol-Orm got in
before he could say anything more. ‘They say he’s from the wizard school and
that it took a lot of control by the Dragon Rider to control their dragon with
him on its back.’

Angel was smiling as he told who
brought him in. ‘It was my mother who brought him in, I saw them coming in when
I walked here early this morning. I could see she was having a lot of trouble
with Nightwing. He just didn’t like it. I wander why he’s here we hardly get
wizards here at all, must really be important. Have you seen him at all?’

‘No just got here but everyone is
talking about him.’ Tas-Shy a smile from ear to ear. It’s not often they get
something this exciting happen here.

Pol-Orm casually looked at them
and spoke with an air of importance. ‘I had to show him where the head of the
rider council was.’

Angel looking at his friends was
thinking about yesterday. Shell I tell them about the young dragon nipping at
me yesterday or not. No they’ll just laugh and think I’m making too much of it.

Angel turned and moved to the
door going into the young dragons’ area talking to the others as he went. ‘I’ll
ask mum tonight what the wizard’s here for. What are we going to do to the
dragons today? We won’t be able to try that trick we did yesterday, so it’ll have
to be something knew’.

As they moved to go into the room
another boy was coming out and told Angel his mother was in there with the
wizard. They went through into the chamber; it was large as it had to give the
young dragons a good play area and also the area for the nests for the young.
Around the area just up out of reach a second level where adults could keep an
eye on the young dragons as they played.

Angel and his friends entered
looking up they could see his mother with the wizard.  Tish gave him a
wave and carried on talking. Looking at his friends he could see they were
looking at the young dragons. ‘Do they look ok with the wizard here they might
be a bit funny, what do you think?’

Pol-Orm spoke before Tas-shy
could. ‘They’re all down the other end well away from the wizard, can’t see any
difference in them so can’t notice the wizard, come on lets just go and play
rough for a while.’

Heading off to where the young
dragons were, but Angel was looking at his mother and the wizard as he went.
The wizard was looking at him as he moved over to the dragons. There was a
strange look on his face as if he was waiting for something; he looked away as
his mother started talking to him again. Angel and his friends stopped and went
into a huddle Angel speaking first. ‘Shall we just yell and charge them and
then see what happens?’

The others nodding turned and
they all yelled and charged into the young dragons. The young dragons were
screeching, flapping wings as they bowled into them. Angel, Pol-Orm and Tas-shy
each grabbed a young dragon and pushed them into the others all the time
laughing and yelling. They were being rough this morning but they knew the
dragons loved it and could get rough as well but were very good at knowing just
how much their human play friends could take before it hurt them.

While playing, Angels mother was
talking with the head of the Wizard School, watching what was going on down
below. ‘Gavrie do you think there's going to be more attacks on the Dragon
Riders? This last one was the worst yet four riders hurt. It’s the second
attack this year.’

‘I would like to say no but you
and I both know it won’t be the last, if there was a way of taking a wizard
with the patrols it would make things a bit safer but we both know how
difficult that would be.’ Looking down at the group below.

*

Tish-Niya and Gavrie could see
the young dragons were circling the boys. They could see the young dragons
looked a little agitated but didn’t think much about it, as they knew what the
boys did to the young dragons and the dragons would get their own back on them.
Gavrie was not sure and spoke his misgivings to Tish-Niya. ‘Are you sure the
boys are ok, the young dragons look just a little bit angry that’s the word,
they look angry don’t you think?’

Tish-Niya looked hard before she
spoke. ‘Now you mention it, they’ve never looked like this; they play with them
all the time even when they play rough.’

Moving to the edge of the level,
looking down at what was going on. They were just not quite sure what was
happening.

*

The boys could see, something was
not right, it looked as if the young dragons were picking more on Angel than
themselves. Pol-Orm spoke first. ‘Angel, are you alright they seem to be going
at you more than us, maybe we should stop?’

At that moment a dragon took a
nip at Angel but he moved just in time, speaking as he did so. ‘I’m not sure
let’s just see what happens we can always just stop the playing and go.’

Tas-shy was not so sure. ‘I’m not
to sure they are just playing like they usually do. I think we should stop now,
it could be the wizard up there disturbing the dragons.’

Angel was looking up at his
mother and the wizard when he got nipped and this one he felt for normally they
do get nipped but its just a sting, this was different and he knew it. ‘Ouch
that hurt’ throwing himself to the side and looking at the mark now appearing.

The look on his face was a pained
one and of surprise. He looked into the faces of the young dragons and could
see anger and hate there, something he has never seen in a dragon before. The
young dragons were starting to be a bit harder on his friends now so that made
up his mind. ‘Lets stop now and go there’s something wrong with them.’

Yelling at the young dragons to
stop, but they wouldn’t listen. Angel had the feeling it might be him they are
angry at because of what happened yesterday. Yelling to the others, ‘They want
me you go first while I draw them away get some help, ouch that hurt.’ Another
young dragon had got a good nip in, and Angel could see they were in trouble
and needed help and quick.

They started to yell for help as
the young dragons were now getting angrier. Angel’s friends were getting nipped
now but not as much as he was. Angel started to move to the side away from his
friends, he could see them coming after him and leaving the others alone.

Trying to work his way over to
the side door leading into the egg chamber, seeing they were following so Tas
and Pol will be alright. I’ve got to hurry as they are getting angrier by the
minute and it’s with me why. Why me I haven’t done anything to them, got to
keep moving. What’s wrong with them, no what’s wrong with me Tas and Pol are
fine the dragons have left them alone, its me they want, the look in there
eyes, hatred, I’ve never seen that before. Mum. Yes she’s up there call for
help work my way there.

Looking up at the second level
where she had been to see if she was there still. He could see her talking to
the wizard and yelling like he’s never yelled before. He knew they would kill
him if they could the look in the eyes had told him that. ‘Help mum help
me.’  Tears streaming down his face as he yelled for help.

Tish and Gavrie looking could see
the young dragons had circled him. His friends were running up the stairs
calling to Angel’s mother. Tish ran to the side as Angel had managed to work
his way to just underneath where they were standing. She yelled to Angel,
‘stand still and don’t move I’m coming down.’

She jumped down beside him and
held him up in the air. Gavrie, seeing the young dragons were still going for
him. Tish was not going to be able to fight them off while holding Angel. She
tried passing him to Gavrie but he couldn’t reach instead he jumped down into
the middle of them and moved to the side. They would sense his magic and go for
him for his magic was far stronger than Angels as he could sense it being this
close to him.

Tish was trying to pass Angel up
to Gavrie just above but was not quite tall enough. Suddenly Gavrie was beside
her yelling. ’Move to the side as I draw them away, now move quickly.’

Gavrie moved grabbing at the
young dragons, they could sense he was a wizard and turned on him for his magic
was overpowering that of Angel. Being an adult he towered over the young
dragons but they still went for him. He could move through them a lot easier
and headed off away from the stairs letting Tish get Angel to the stairs and
safety. The young dragons gave him a couple of hard nips but nothing serous.

When he could see they were safe
up in the second level he used his magic and lifted himself up there with them.
Once there the young dragons settled down. Being young they were not able to
sense the magic from that distance and so soon forgot all about it.

Gavrie stood and looked at
Tish-Niya holding Angel, he could see in Angel his father. He is definitely his
father at that age to be able to sense the magic it is just too young he can’t
go to the school yet so we will have to think on it.

Angel looked up at his mother
tears still running down his face with eyes not understanding what just
happened. Tish could see it there she was not quite sure why but had an idea.
She looked at Gavrie and the look he gave her told her what she knew deep down.
Angel was a wizard and would not or ever be a Dragon Rider like her or his brothers.

How do I tell him this was the
last time he would be near dragons without them trying to hurt him. His life
was now changed forever and what he had with dragons was gone forever, never to
be brought back. Just look at his eyes pain at not knowing why, I must tell
him, I must but how.

Gavrie looking on could see the
pain of not understanding, and then looking at Angel’s mother could see the
some thing the pain but of how she would tell him. He went over to Tish. ‘You
must tell the boy, he must know now what the future holds for him. This path is
now gone and a new one opens up for him. It will be hard but he is strong.’

Tish looked at Angel and knelt
down to his level and wiped away the tears, looking around at his friends’
faces and the not understanding there. Gavrie's face, there she could see pain
but not for himself, but for her and Angel. He knew what she was going through
and knew it was going to be painful.

Angel looked up at his mum ‘Why
Mum?’

‘If you go back in there with the
young dragons they will hurt you or kill you.’ Tish had a look of pain on her
face as she tried to explain.

‘I’ve always played with them, so
why are they doing this to me now?’ Tears streaming down his face as he looked
up at her.

Looking at him, the agony was there
on her face scaring him. ‘It’s alright it’s just something that we never
thought would happen and now it has we have to take you away from the dragons.’

Screaming Angel throw himself at
his mother yelling. ‘No I don’t want to they’re my friends.’

‘No Angel they’re not anymore,
you’ve changed and the little dragons know it. They will never let you come
near them again, so we will have to move. You don’t want the little dragons to
be upset every time you try to see them that's what will happen. Every time you
go near them they are going to get very upset and you know we don’t upset
dragons, they are very special to us all.’ Moving to hold him, she could try to
stop his hurting.

Angel just stood there ‘I can’t
see them any more! They were my friends and if they hurt when I am near then I
will not go near them any more, I will not hurt them. But where will we go?’
Angel knew the one thing he would never do is hurt a dragon, he loved them to
much.

She stood up and looked out the
window knowing she was going to have to tell him the rest. ‘We’ll go and move
up to an old place I had up in the mountains it’s a good place. But it's a long
way from here.’

He moved over to the edge of the
level looking down at the young dragons. ‘Why have I changed, what’s wrong with
me, am I going to die?’

Coming over she knelt down and
held him tight speaking with tears ‘No you’ll not die, the change is good but
you might not think so because it has taken you away from your dragon friends.
What has happened to you has never happened before in all the time of the
Dragon Riders. There has never been a wizard born into a Dragon Riders family
and that is what's happening to you. The law says if you have magic you must go
to the Wizard School. Also you know what happens with wizards around dragons.
The dragons go crazy and try to hurt or kill them. It is only the strongest
Dragon Riders who can carry a wizard and then they are fighting to keep
control.’

Angels eyes were bulging as she
told him and he waited until she finished. His voice quivering. ‘I'm going to
be a wizard, and then what happened yesterday is when it started.’

She looked at him. ‘What happened
yesterday?’

He told them about the feelings
he had and the dragon nipping him as he left, and that deep down he knew
something was going to happen today. All this time, he had been looking at the
young dragons playing as if nothing had ever happened. ‘I don’t want to be a
wizard, I want to play with dragons and ride them like you, Pol and Tas. I want
to be like them. I don’t want to be a wizard’