Dragon Conjurer 5, page 3
Their impatience had started to seep into my own nerves, and a sudden sense of buzzing, excess energy built in my body.
“So, what should we do with the rest of our evening?” Elisabeth asked. “It is still early.”
“Aaah,” I sucked in another sharp breath as my dragons made their desire perfectly clear. “I need to let these guys out for a while, they’re really restless. I’m going to take them out to their private grounds.”
Chapter 2
The afternoon light cast the grass in a beautiful, orangey hue as my team and I strode out of the main building. We were headed toward the huge open space between AIMM and the forest of pine trees, and the further we walked, the fewer cadets we passed, because as of last week, this area was now my dragons’ private training acreage.
The Academy was hidden away between the mountainside and an enormous forest, so it was an ideal place for a secret agency of magic-wielding cadets. Not all of those cadets were so accustomed to mingling with dragons, though, and the hundred acres of land ahead of us turned out to be the perfect spot for my scaly beasts to roam free without a care in the world.
“I think it’s so great that Burkhard set aside all this acreage for Ky and the others.” Steffi wrapped her hand around my bicep as we stood in the rolling field and looked out over my dragons’ training grounds.
Ky nuzzled up under her gentle touch, but his restlessness was still clear beneath his affection for my fairy-girl.
“He said they needed space to run around and get some exercise,” I replied, “and that they were just as much a part of the team as the rest of us.”
“They sure are,” Steffi agreed.
“We wouldn’t be Dragon One without them.” Nick smirked.
“It is such a lovely evening,” Elisabeth said and turned her face toward the low-hanging sun. “I’m going to practice shifting while your dragons run.”
“That’s a good idea.” I smiled at the French beauty.
“Oui.” Elisabeth nodded. “I believe a smoother transition between different forms will be helpful to our team.”
Ky wriggled impatiently once more, and I got the feeling he also wanted to get straight to his training.
“Alright, buddy, I know,” I chuckled. “Exokyzo.”
Ky snorted happily when he appeared beside us, and little clouds of cold mist rose from his nostrils.
“Hey there, handsome,” Steffi purred at my dragon, and Ky lowered his head to her hand so she could pet him on his large snout.
Then the blue dragon let out another icy snort and took off without a moment’s hesitation, and he soared swiftly over the rolling hills of the grounds and disappeared between the enormous pine trees.
I grinned and shook my head as I heard Ky let out a happy snarl, and then I summoned my other scaly beasts.
“Bianxifa, Sokisaseru, Trylle frem,” I recited.
The cool evening air sizzled slightly around Beyblade as he appeared in a flash of light. Goldie and Thor joined us in the grassy field a short distance behind the main building, and the trio seemed to almost smile as they looked around the huge open space.
“Go ahead,” I said to my magnificent beasts and gestured out to the open land and forest before them. “I told you, this whole area’s for you guys to run around in, so you don’t need my permission.”
Goldie didn’t need another invitation, and she slithered off happily to explore the hundred acres of rolling hills and pine trees, with Thor and Beyblade trotting off behind her.
The acreage really was very generous, and seeing my dragons so free made me even more grateful that Headmaster Burkhard had allocated the land specifically for my dragons to use. The holographic training room was great, but it wasn’t the same as having a real outdoor space where they could roam freely in the open air and hunt whatever wildlife lived in this part of the forest.
I spotted a flock of crows launch themselves into the air about a hundred yards away, and they cried out in either fear or irritation. I suspected Ky had startled the birds from their resting place in the upper branches of the enormous pine tree.
Goldie and Thor had wandered a little ways away from me, but they’d stayed in the open area of rolling hills. I watched them pounce and play with one another, and Goldie bounced off the ground and tucked into a roll as Thor chased her.
The dragons were becoming as much of a cohesive team as the rest of us, and they seemed to be communicating well together both on and off the battlefield. My connection with each of them was growing stronger, too, and today’s battle in the swamp really made me see it more clearly.
Goldie had seemed to know exactly when I wanted her to blast her wind at the Grunch, and this was the tenth time in the last week that Ky had been ready to give me a lift without me asking. My dragons and I had always seemed to have pretty solid communication, but now it was like they could hear my thoughts before I even spoke them.
I wondered how strong that connection would get as my dragons continued to grow and become more powerful.
“Hey, cutie.” Steffi’s voice drew me out of my thoughts as she wrapped an arm around my waist. Then she leaned in close to my ear and lowered her voice so no one could hear her but me. “I love you.”
“I love you, too,” I whispered back, and my fairy-girl blushed a beautiful pink as I leaned down to give her a kiss.
Even though Steffi, Nala, and Elisabeth were all cool about sharing me, and even each other, I wasn’t totally sure how the others would feel about Steffi and I being in love. I hadn’t gotten the chance to really broach the topic with Nal and El, but as far as I was concerned, I knew I was falling more in love with both of them every day. I just needed more time.
“How are you doing?” I asked the pink-haired girl.
“I’m good,” Steffi said and squeezed herself tighter against my side. “How are you?”
“Better.” I nodded and glanced once more at Goldie and Thor as they bumped playfully against one another and walked off into the tree line. “Ky, Thor, and the others were really restless, they needed this.”
“I’m glad we’ve got the land for them to explore and run around in,” Steffi said. “It seems like so many exciting things are happening lately.”
“Like Ronin and Phoenix!” Nala said and bounced on her toes like a little kid.
“Oh, yeah,” Steffi chuckled. “After all the excitement in the swamp, I’d forgotten about that. I’m really looking forward to meeting them.”
“Burkhard said they’ll be here tomorrow,” Nick said before he walked idly into a nearby hedge.
“It’ll be great to show them around AIMM,” I said. “They were so welcoming to us when we went to Japan.”
“I think you’ll like Phoenix,” Nala told Steffi. “And once Ronin warms up to you, she can be pretty cool, too.”
“I’m excited to meet them both,” the pink-haired fairy-girl said. “From the way you three described your time in Japan, they both sound amazing. Do you think they’ll come alone, or will they bring a few other Japanese cadets with them?”
“I’d be a little surprised if they came alone,” I said. “MAJK’s teams work in groups of five, so I expect they’ll probably have three other cadets with them.”
“Oh, that’s right,” Steffi said with a nod. “I forgot that suggestion from you got us El here on our team, too!”
“I am very glad that Headmaster Burkhard decided to take some of your suggestions to heart, Dylan,” the red-haired girl said.
“So are we.” I smiled. “Our team feels complete with you here.”
“And I like it very much here with all of you,” Elisabeth said as a soft blush spread across her fair cheeks.
“I just hope Dragon isn’t one of the other cadets with Phoenix and Ronin,” Nala groaned.
“Me, too,” I said.
“Me, three!” Nick laughed as he appeared suddenly from a hydrangea bush beside us.
“Who is Dragon?” Steffi giggled.
“A cadet from MAJK who is determined to marry Ronin,” Nala snorted, and she rolled her eyes. “He stands no chance, by the way. The poor girl can’t stand him.”
“He was kind of a dick,” Nick added, “but at least he had some honor underneath the dickishness. Unlike some other dicks we know.”
“That’s also true,” I chuckled and thought about the last time I’d run into Bruce and his team of dicks.
They’d been keeping quiet for the most part, and I suspected they were a little too exhausted and overwhelmed with all the monster attacks we’d been sent on recently.
While AIMM hadn’t seen any displaced monsters since the Hydra, there had still been plenty of issues to handle in the last two weeks. All the teams had been busy with daily missions, and aside from us, they’d been coming back pretty roughed up. Burkhard and Dr. Hastings had been sending my team out to deal with the biggest threats, and I suspected that the rest of the teams were struggling a little to complete their missions without major injury.
More than one cadet had been brought back to AIMM on stretchers and with heavily bandaged wounds. Steffi said the infirmary was more crowded than she’d ever seen it before, and it only added to the feeling of world-ending level events on the horizon.
“Having fun?” Steffi chuckled at Nick and drew my attention back to the conversation.
The blond nymph was popping in and out of little blades of grass while we strolled along, and it was jarring to see how quickly he could dissolve and reappear.
“Yes, thank you.” Nick smiled. “I’m trying out some new things.”
“Oh, yeah?” I asked. “Figure anything out yet?”
“Sort of,” Nick said. “I figure, since I’m still just a yellow, there’s got to be way more I can do with my powers, and I’m determined to figure them out.”
“That makes sense.” I nodded. “I’m sure you’ll be an orange before long.”
“Maybe you can use your connections to plants like I use my connection to the earth,” Nala said as she rode a rippling wave of earth in a wide circle around us.
“What do you mean?” Elisabeth asked, and she bounded back over from where she’d been admiring a flower bed of irises.
“Well, I’m starting to be able to sense more things through the earth, not just sound, but almost like an echolocation,” Nala explained. “I can almost see where things butt up against the rock and dirt I’m focusing on.”
“That’s really cool,” Steffi murmured.
“So, I was thinking Nick might be able to feel the, I don’t know, vibrations of the plants.” Nala shrugged.
“Huh,” the blond guy’s mouth hung open a moment as he pondered that idea. “You know, I have been wanting to spend more time connecting with the plants instead of just hopping from one to the next.”
“That’s a good idea.” I nodded. “In fact, we might as well all use this space to train more. It’s such a great area.”
“I’m going to work on refining my construction skills,” Nala said as she leveled the earth back out and waggled her hands in the air. “It was pretty tough to shape the mud in the bayou today, and I think I can do better.”
“You were amazing, Nal.” I smiled at the dark-haired girl.
“I know,” Nala said with a cocky smirk. “But I also know I can be even more amazing.”
“So true,” Steffi giggled. “I’m going to work on shaping my magic into different things. That shield technique is super useful, and I was wondering if I could manage other shapes, too.”
“Sounds like we have a lot to work on.” I grinned at my team, and a wave of pride swelled in my chest. “Let’s get to it, then.”
“Well, wait, what are you going to do, Dyl?” Nala asked.
“I wanted to explore my connection with Ky and the others more,” I said as I looked where my ice dragon had disappeared into the edge of tall trees. “They’ve really only ever come out during battles and training, so I haven’t had a calm moment to test that connection much.”
“What do you mean?” Elisabeth asked as she transformed her delicate hands into the dark, wrinkled, skin of a gorilla and back again.
“I’m not totally sure yet,” I admitted. “Ky and Goldie, even Beyblade and Thor, have all started to follow my commands before I can even speak them. It’s like they know what I need them to do without having to be told.”
“Wow,” Nick muttered and popped out of the grass again. “That’s really cool.”
“There’s more, too,” I continued. “It’s hard to explain, but it’s like I… know where they are, even when I can’t see them.”
“Really?” Steffi gasped softly, and her eyes were wide. “That’s wild.”
“So, where are they now?” Nala asked.
“I don’t know exactly,” I chuckled. “That’s what I want to work on.”
“Oh, right,” Nala giggled. “Okay, I’m going to get to it.”
“Me, too.” Steffi smiled brightly and fluttered into the air.
Nick had disappeared once more into some vegetation nearby and was quickly phasing in and out between the bushes in the direction of several flower beds behind the main building.
Then my team spread out to practice their individual talents in the huge open space provided for us. They were all so amazing and so powerful, but we still had so much more to learn about our powers. I knew we would all keep improving, and as we got stronger, there would be more and more we could do to keep the world safe from the growing monster threat.
As I watched Elisabeth shift from a large brown bear into a gorgeous white tiger and back again, my mind wandered back to the Siguanaba Dr. Hastings had me talk to a few weeks back.
“You cannot stop it…” the demonic siren had said in a voice like tattered tissue paper. “For every one you kill… two more will rise.”
I knew the monster threat was growing every day, and the fact that it had been sort of business as usual since our battle with the hydra made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
Well, as “usual” as fighting powerful mythical monsters across the entire western hemisphere could be.
Something big was coming, though, and it felt like AIMM and the other academies were the only thing standing between this looming threat and the end of the world.
I shook my head to clear away the disturbing thoughts. It was no use dwelling on what could be coming until we knew it was actually coming, so I focused my attention back to my teammates.
Nick was hopping slowly from flower beds to bushes, and he lingered much longer than usual in each new plant as he made his way around the open space around us.
Nala furrowed her brow in fierce concentration as she raised the earth and rock around her in various shapes. She’d constructed several tall pillars like a huge staircase to the sky and had begun to shape basketball-sized boulders into marble-smooth spheres. Then the dark-haired beauty lifted them one by one to balance them precariously on the pointed tips of the pillars before she lowered them once again.
Steffi hovered overhead and stretched out large pieces of golden pixie energy into various shapes. She pulled and reshaped the energy like Silly Putty as she formed a shield. Then she shrunk it back into a sphere the size of a golf ball that looked incredibly dense and glowed with a bright light.
I figured it was well past time that I quit procrastinating and actually focused on my own training, too. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, and I decided to start with Ky, since he’d been with me the longest, and I felt like our connection was the strongest.
I couldn’t see my dragons at the moment, but I felt a vague string of attachment to each of them. I knew that Ky was further away than the other three, and that Goldie had wandered away from Thor after their playful games.
I pictured my huge sapphire blue dragon in my mind and focused on the icy sensation that slithered along my arm whenever I summed Ky back into my tattoo.
There was an awareness that slowly rose in my mind like hair-thin strands of silvery thread that wove together and floated off in the direction of the forest. I mentally tugged on the thread and felt it tighten like a violin string. The silvery filament tensed and strengthened, and I got a hazy sense that Ky felt it, too.
Then I plucked gently at the connection with my mind and felt a vibration ripple down the thread.
I wasn’t sure if I imagined it or not, but I could almost see Ky as he sauntered happily between the enormous pine trees. Whether I was actually seeing him or not, I knew that he was happier than he had been earlier, and it reminded me that these dragons were wild, monstrous beasts. Wherever they’d come from when I first conjured them, they’d been made for freedom, and while they were happy to be a part of our team, and to be mine, they also longed for the opportunity to run freely from time to time.
I made a promise to myself to make sure Ky, Beyblade, Goldie, and Thor got more time outside to run freely, and I could feel a sense of gratitude and peace ripple back to me down that silvery thread from Ky.
The connection with Ky felt strong, like carbon steel, so I tested its solidity and let my focus relax. I opened my eyes and turned slightly away from the silvery tether than I sensed running out from my heart into the tree line, but it felt just as solid.
Somehow, I knew this connection was permanent. Now that it had formed it wasn’t going away, and I smiled to myself as a sense of calm washed through me at the thought.
It seemed like a logical idea to try to connect to Beyblade next, since he’d been with me the longest after Ky. I closed my eyes again and tried to reach out with my mind to find the fiery Chinese dragon.
Silence filled my mind, and there was nothing.
I pictured Beyblade, with his bright red scales and the flames that licked at his body when he turned into a twirling top of fire.
Still nothing.
I could almost sense a vague direction of where Beyblade was, but there wasn’t anything like the silvery tether of connection that had formed between Ky and me.
I tried next with Goldie, and then Thor, but I had the same trouble I’d had with Beyblade.
“Hmm.” My brow furrowed, and I placated myself with the idea that it would just take more time with the others because they hadn’t been with me as long as Ky.
