//------------------------------//
// EPS 5 
// Story: The Dragon Riders 
// by Dragontamer99 
//------------------------------//

I gasped and looked at the magnificent creature staring back at me. It was red and black with green eyes that seemed to glow under the full moon.

I saw the mark on her wing and reached back to where I knew my own mark was. 

The dragon stepped forward and dipped its head. I stepped forward to and copied her movement. 

She walked up to me and nudged my shoulder turning me around. I looked back and pulled my shirt up. Silently the dragon studied my mark and then when I turned around she looked at her own mark. 

I finally found my words and managed to whisper "beautiful..." The dragon lowered its head and I reached my hand up to her nose but didn't touch her yet. I waited for her. She closed her eyes and touched my smooth hand and let out a warm breath.

I said, "your...your my dragon." She blinked in what I felt meant yes. I cocked my head and said, "in my dream, you could talk why can't you now?" She took a step back and touched my head with her long tail gently an then touched her head. I opened my eyes wide, She huffed and opened her wings. 

She drew her neck close to the ground and I figured she wanted me to climb on. I swung my leg over and say on her smooth scaled on the base of her neck just above the wings. It was like a built-in a saddle. I didn't even have time to grab something before we were launched into the air.

I think I screamed because my dragon looked back with a dragon smirk. I smiled and she flew more steadily. She flew up an up and even further up till the ground was but a speck. We flew above the clouds and when we broke through the top of the clouds all I could see where the top of the clouds tinted with blue and stars. Only stars. It was beautiful. I focused back on my dragon, she was looking back at me. She shook me and I fell.



I didn't scream or anything I just let it happen. I opened my eyes and my dragon was falling too. We faced each other and looked into each overs eyes. I somehow got closer to her and she engulfed me in her wings. 

I trusted Her not to let me die so when the ground started to get closer I smiled and let whatever happened next to happen. She turned over and flew under me. She floated for a few seconds till I alighted on her neck and when she folded her wings she touched the ground. I got off and stood in front of her. She stepped closer and she pulled her chin against my back and pushed me against her heart. I felt the pain then. I felt it like I was being stabbed. 

I think I cried out Maybe that or I had gone limp because the head pushed harder keeping me up. Something was happening that was hurting me. I reached out like I was hugging the dragon and pushed my head into the fold of her chest. It hurt so bad. After a moment of bearing the pain when I figured it wouldn't stop Darkness tried to settle in. I fought back the darkness and wanted to feel the pain. 

I endured it for what seemed like hours. But finally, the pain started to ebb away. After it was almost completely gone my dragon let her head move away from my back. I was still pressed against her but that was because I was still gripping her crest. When I felt numb I let go and looked into the eyes of my dragon. I saw sympathy there but also love and a tenderness I will never imagine. I relaxed and the dragon also relaxed.

I also realized that I was sweating. I looked at her wing and realized something new was on the wing. Two more symbols and a smaller crown. I figured the smaller crown was mine and it symbolized that I was fully bonded to my dragon. I looked back at the dragon and said in a rough breathless voice "can you talk- are we fully bonded...?" The dragon nodded and said, "Yes Lily I can talk now, I'm sorry I had to put you through that without warning..." She dropped her head.

I said "yeah it hurt but I'm glad you did, the flying was amazing... It's something I'll never forget. ... Now, what is your name? Do I name you?" She shook her head and said "no, I was named when I was still in my egg. A voice called and said " from the volcano and from the forest I shall call you Aradace (are-dace a is silent)." So I am called Aradace." I hugged my dragon again and I said, "Aradace I love the name." We fell asleep in the clearing under the stars next to the flaming tree.





I woke up to sunlight, I was curled under the wing of a dragon, a red and black one. I smiled and curled closer to the warmth. After a second a huge head peeked from under the wing and said, "Hello sleepy head, did you sleep well?"

I nodded and she moved her wing so I could get up. I stood up an stretched, I flexed and moaned in pleasure of the stretch. My stomach rumbles and I reached for my backpack.

I rummaged around till I found bread, water, and pastries. I sat down and ate while I watched Aradace. She moved with grace. 

After a moment I finished and said, "can we fly again?" She made a rumbling noise which was probably a laugh and nodded her huge magnificent head.

I smile and ran to her and swing my leg over. After a second we were launched into the air, I said "show me your best flying. Don't hold back!" She did a dragon smirk and started to pick up speed, on moments we were going faster than I have ever been, she looked back and did some rolls and then some flips. 

She did fancy loops and twirls and rolls then she went up real high and then stopped flapping and we started falling back to earth. 

The wind whipped past and once we were 20 feet above the trees her wings snapped open again and we flew straight. We did some more twirls and then for a second flew upside down.

We found and lake and skimmed over the water. I leaned over and touched the water. It was beautiful. After a long time of flying, we went back to our clearing next to the flaming tree and rested for a while.

Then I realized I had left my horse I stood up and started running in the direction of my horse. I got there in record speed and found my horse grazing at the length I left my rope. I was glad nothing happened. 

I went over and got a bottle of water from my bag I had grabbed after I started running and gave my horse some much-needed water. He pushed my head and made some whinnies like he was scolding me. I smiled and said never again. I untied him and mounted and stared along the trail I had made.

While I was running I had made the trail larger so Spirit manages to get to the clearing relatively easily. I came back to a pacing dragon.

She looked over at me and bounded over. She looked at the horse curiously. And said "is this horse yours? I've never seen such a creature before? Does it mean so much to you?" I nodded "yes this was a gift from my father. 

The king." She looked interested. Then you will be the next queen will you not, why do they call it? A queen in rising?" A queen in rising I mumbled a queen in rising! A queen rises! Wait does that mean that... "THAT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE!" My dragon looked startled and she asked, "what makes sense?"

I laughed and said "there is a prophesy...Two queens will rise and the new age will start, a species that has been dead for years never died completely.

Two will rise and change everything, I am a queen that is rising and that makes you a queen rising too! So two queens rising means you and me, a dragon species that was thought to have died out long ago never died completely, that means there must be another dragon out there! And... And two will change everything? That probably means...?" She continued in a whisper. "We will bring back the age of the dragons."


TBC