Chapter 24

            With a sigh Cody awoke sometime before dawn. He started to panic before he realized that he was supposed to be there, in the dusty old room on top of a possibly bug-infested mattress. The rider yawned as he sat up just before stretching and pulling himself out of the bed. There came a small crashing sound from somewhere outside the room, followed by an angry grunting sound. He slowly walked over to the door and opened it before peering out into the much larger living room.

            Cody carefully sneaked from his room and walked through the living room until he got to the other side. At that end of the room there was a half-open door that probably led to the kitchen, which he assumed was the source of the noise. He pushed the door the rest of the way open and he saw Mora angrily scrubbing the floor for some reason, seemingly oblivious to his presence.

            “What are you doing?” Cody asked as he stepped further into the kitchen.

            Mora jumped, but didn’t turn to look at him when she replied, “I was trying to get some things packed up before we leave, and knocked over some food.”

            Cody would have helped but she seemed to be just about done with cleaning up, so instead he sat in a little wooden chair nearby. Soon enough the woman was done cleaning and continued to put supplies in a fancy-looking cloth bag. She seemed to ignore the rider as she sorted some food and put it in the bag along with the book she had been carrying the previous night, though Cody failed to read the title, instead remembering the last time he and his dragon had read “Valor of the Dragon”.

            Sick of the silence, the rider finally spoke up, “Perhaps you could tell me a little bit about that friend of yours and how they got kidnapped. It might help us find them.”

            Mora sighed before answering, “Her name is Pippi, and she isn’t exactly a friend. My brother, being an important man in this town and captain of the guard, is always told about new visitors in the city that could possibly be a threat, and in the mayor’s eyes everyone who isn’t human is a threat.”

            “Isn’t human?” Cody interrupted in surprise.

            Mora nodded and continued, “She’s an elf with blond hair with purple streaks, and unusually friendly towards humans. She was just looking for somewhere to live for a little while but being an elf made everyone dislike her greatly. My brother and I allowed her to stay with us for a while until one day she went out to buy some food for us. That was when one of the guards told my brother that a band of thieves had kidnapped her and intended to take her away with them, for whatever reason. Like a said, she isn’t exactly a friend of ours, but we still don’t want her to suffer worse than she already has as an elf in a human realm.”

            Cody began to think deeply about what she had said, especially the part about them going to save an elf. Perhaps Pippi could help them find the Hidden Mountain Pass if she had been there before, or maybe even the enemy stronghold. In the very least she could help in the fight against their foes.

            “Maybe you’d want to talk about your friends?” Mora asked politely, pulling Cody from his thoughts.

            The rider thought for a moment before nodding and explaining, “Well it all started when me and my friends were back in our hometown somewhere near Starling, and someone told us that we had to go find this mountain pass. We made some enemies along the way and we were ambushed in the night. Luckily, my brother, my poisoned friend, and I were spared, so we found someone to try and help save my friend and came back to Morgran to track down Dongoithu. Now we don’t know whether any of our friends are alive, dead, suffering, or what, but we are intent on finding them and avenging them if they are dead.”

            “What about your brother?” Mora asked in a motherly tone. “I saw you and your three friends late that one night in the tavern, but I never saw your brother at all.”

            “That’s an odd story, best saved for our travels,” Cody said, suddenly remembering Inferno, the one who she and Mordon thought was his brother.

            Mora smiled and looked out the window before saying, “I think we had best head out soon though, so we can get a good start on both of our quests.”

            Cody nodded just as the final member of their party, Mordon, arrived looking refreshed and ready to go. He grabbed a small piece of cheese that his sister had left out on a table and ate it quickly before grabbing the cloth bag and swinging it over his shoulder.

            “So are we leaving now then?” Mordon asked after he cleared his throat.

            Cody nodded and stood from his seat, feeling excited about finally getting to show off his dragon. The two siblings looked at him carefully as if they expected him to back out at the last second, but he certainly wasn’t going to when his favorite part was coming. He finally got to show Inferno to someone knew! It wasn’t going to be an entire city or even a village, but it would be two people and that was satisfying enough for the moment.

            “How should we do it?” Inferno voiced in Cody’s mind as the humans began to walk towards the door of the house and the rider pulled on some thicker clothes that Mora gave him.

            “Do what?” Cody asked in return as he began to imagine how the two beside him would react to the dragon.

            He faintly heard Inferno snort as he asked, “How should we surprise them? We improvised and I tried to make it fun with Omen, but what should we do now? I could do the same thing or something new, what do you think?”

            They began to scheme together, showing Cody that his dragon was equally excited about someone else seeing him, but he couldn’t tell why. When he asked, his dragon simply snorted again and claimed that he was excited for his rider, but Cody knew better. Once they had decided on what to do, Inferno told Cody his role.

            “Go just out of sight of the city and stand in the middle of the road and you’ll know exactly where to stand by a giant claw mark I’ve made. Then our plan will be in place. Oh, and there’s something else I wanted to ask you,” Inferno explained with a growl of enthusiasm.

            “Alright, what is it?” Cody asked after he didn’t continue.

            Inferno let out a growl, more of caring than anything else as he replied, “Perhaps we should wait and just walk for a little while until they get used to the idea that we have to fly. And when we fly, I think that I shouldn’t just carry you in my claws.”

            “Why?” Cody asked, not realizing that inferno had meant to continue anyways.

            The dragon quickly answered, “You are the dragon rider, not them. It is your honor and right to be the singular person that can sit on my back and give others permission to. You are supposed to be on my back, it’s the way things are. I know it sounds weird, but it just doesn’t seem right to have to carry you.”

            “So are you just going to carry one or both of them instead?” Cody asked, already deciding that it was the only option.

            Cody could feel slight joy coming from the dragon as he replied, “Like I said, you are a dragon rider. Riders have ridden their dragons before without saddles, so you don’t necessarily need one.”

            “I’ve never ridden you bareback when we’ve flown! Where would I sit anyway if there isn’t enough room for three people in that open spot on your neck?” Cody protested.

            “You can ride between two spikes anywhere on my neck you’d like; they should hold you a little bit. And if you fall, I will always catch you, just remember that.”

            Cody suddenly thought, “Where exactly do you think I should sit? A place that’s comfortable for both of us I would think, so it’s up to you.”

            “Either right behind my neck or directly in front of the spike that you use for the reigns,” Inferno replied confidently.

            Cody smiled at the thought of riding Inferno without a saddle. Somehow it just seemed to send a thrilled chill up his spine, and he hardly noticed when they passed by the gate without any trouble at all. The guards seemed to recognize Mordon as their superior instantly, and didn’t hesitate to raise the gate at his approach. The three of them passed by without a word and were on their way soon enough.

            The rider eagerly began to search for the mark on the trail that Inferno had told him about as they got further and further from the city. He quickly lost sight of the wall, and the giant flag soon after, which is when he increased his search for the scratch. Behind him the other humans seemed nervous, probably not too enthusiastic to be travelling with a stranger far away from their home. A smile grew on the rider’s face when he thought about how they would be even more startled.

            His smile widened when he caught sight of a faint little claw mark in the dirt about ten feet ahead.  He carefully led them all up to it and he studied it for a second while he waited for the dragon to appear and begin their plan. He had made the mark deep enough and long enough that to a rider’s eyes it was obvious that a dragon had done it, but anyone who hadn’t seen dragon claws or claw marks before would easily mistake it as something man-made like a wheel that had caught in the mud in a sort of strange way. Cody admired how much it looked like the claw marks he had seen in the cave. It made him feel strange, just knowing that his dragon was almost exactly the same as dragons from the distant past, and he wondered if he would be able to tell him from another black dragon his age if there was one. He could feel the dragon at the edge of his conscience, trying to hold back from saying something as he was preparing to put their plan into motion.

            Finally the growl Cody had been waiting for billowed from his right side. He turned to see that even in the increasingly bright sunlight, the trees were shrouded with shadows and the dragon was completely hidden from view, to the humans beside him anyway. He turned to see that they were surprised, but not quite terrified, yet. He looked back to the forest, and with his superior eyesight he could faintly see two ice-blue orbs gazing at them with excitement. He caught the sight of pristine white teeth as well as the dragon smiled at him specifically and disappeared.

            Cody looked back ahead just in time to see a black shape dart across the path and disappear again. The shape was such a blur that Cody would have thought it was his imagination, if he hadn’t known that it was his dragon. Another growl sounded from their left, and when the two others turned that way with fear beginning to gleam in their eyes, the rider looked over to see Inferno glide over the right side of the forest and emit a roar just loud enough for them to hear the menacing tone but not have anyone from the city hear.

            “What’s going on!?” Mordon asked in terror, seeming the more scared of the two siblings.

            Cody just smiled, but kept it hidden from them as he told Inferno to continue. The dragon spread his wings and leapt into the air, pausing just long enough for them to catch sight of his general shape before diving back into the undergrowth.

            “What was that!?” Both of the rider’s companions asked in fright, though very slight curiosity gleamed in Mora’s eyes.

            Cody smiled and replied, “That’s my “brother”.”

            Mora looked at him with understanding, somehow, while Mordon just gazed at the spot where Inferno had disappeared moments before with the same fear. With a roar Inferno jumped up into the sky a short ways before landing with a tremendous thud next to Cody, who had stepped away from the mark a few feet to get some space between the two humans and the dragon.

            Inferno seemed to have his blue eyes locked completely onto Mora, and she back at him. It was like they were suddenly having some sort of unusual conversation between them, but by the way it felt Inferno wasn’t actually speaking to her.

            “What’s happening?” Cody asked his dragon. “Are you talking to her?”

            “Impossible. I told you before that I could stretch out my mind to other beings, but I tried to do it with the guard on the wall that was being mean to you so I could threaten him, despite it not being such a good idea. I think I can only talk to people I know well, or people that you know well. I think I can talk to any wolf in any occasion though,” Inferno explained, not taking his eyes off of Mora.

            The woman watched him intently through her golden eyes, watching his blue ones that had softened slightly and returned to their more common stormy appearance. His tail swished over the rough ground slightly as he continued to gaze at her with fascination. Cody watched in wonder.

            “It’s like there’s something about her. Something…more,” Inferno said in a desperate attempt to explain his feelings.

            “May I?” Mora suddenly asked as she continued to stare at Inferno, though the question seemed to be directed at Cody.

            Cody studied her for a moment before asking, “May you what?”

            “Tell her yes,” Inferno said without explaining further.

            Cody thought carefully before telling Mora, “He says that you can,”

            The rider watched, very curious about what his dragon had just agreed to, and he noticed Mordon at a loss as well. They both watched as Mora slowly approached Inferno, their eyes still locked together. She walked around to his left side perfectly in between rider and dragon. Inferno turned his head slowly as he followed her movements, and she looked him over from nose to tail-tip.

            When Mora had completely circled him, she cautiously stepped forward until she was only a foot away from his snout. She tentatively closed the distance between them and raised her hand before carefully placing it on his snout, and he never even flinched. But as soon as her hand made contact he closed his eyes and let out a growling, purring noise of pleasure.

            “What’s happening?” Cody murmured carefully.

            Inferno never made a move of any kind as he replied, “I think it’s better if I kept this a secret from you, at least until our troubles are over.”

            Mora drew her hand away and told Cody, “I can’t tell you exactly what’s going on, for even I am a little confused about it.”

            Cody looked at Inferno, expecting him to explain at least a little bit, but he just looked at his rider with sincere but apologetic eyes as he replied, “You must understand that I wouldn’t keep this from you without good reason. I actually would tell you but I don’t think you’re ready for it.”

            “Come on, please just tell me?” Cody begged.

            “Cody, it was as if there was some sort of connection between us. I can’t name it, but it was as if something in our subconscious selves was trying to talk to each other. Now that I recall, it seemed similar to a sort of connection I felt with Autumn and Aval when I first saw them. I think it wasn’t as strong then because I was so young though.”

            Cody looked at him carefully before saying, “Why is that worth secrecy?”

            “It’s the part that I’m still not telling you that needs secrecy,” Inferno explained as he swiveled his head around to look at his rider. “I think it is a sort of thing that most dragons go through to gains someone’s trust. I seemed to subconsciously peer into her thoughts and read her, and while doing so I accidentally breached her thoughts where she saw futuristic visions. This sort of trust ritual can only be done between a dragon and…someone with a specific future.”

            “And you felt this way with Autumn and Avalsmokes. What future do they have in common with her, and how could you see it?” Cody asked curiously, suddenly worrying that his dragon was able to see death in some way, and he knew that Autumn and Aval were dead now, and Mora was next.

            Inferno gave him a disapproving gaze after reading his thoughts before replying, “No, something that I think you may find worse or better. Unfortunately, she doesn’t I don’t want to talk about it anymore, so can we please just drop it?”

            Cody reluctantly nodded, and not a moment too soon as Mora backed away and said, “Magnificent, truly magnificent. My brother and I frequently read about the tales of dragons and their riders, but I never expected to see one up close.”

            Inferno seemed to have come over the odd occurrence as he stuck out his scaly chest with pride. Upon seeing the other two less focused on what just happened as well, Cody decided to drop the subject like his dragon had suggested and just tried to enjoy the slight compliment. Mordon seemed to have gotten rid of his fear, and instead resorted to admiring Inferno through wide, yellow eyes.

            “I brought a book about dragons along even,” Mora said, but before Cody could ask anything she asked, “What is the dragon’s name?”

            Cody was overjoyed that she had the respect to not title Inferno as “his dragon”, so he replied happily, “Inferno. He is Inferno the dragon.”

            He was sort of startled by how strange it still was to know that he was actually a dragon rider, accompanied by a dragon that he felt closer to than any other being in existence, even in the short time they had known each other. Cody was pulled from his thoughts as he saw Inferno give him an affectionate look out of the corner of his eyes. Mora seemed to just stare at Inferno with renewed interest.

            “That completely explains that vision I saw of you,” Mora said with amazement and wonder in her eyes. “If the books we have are to be believed, I suppose I can sort of understand why you called him your brother.”

            “Is this our mount?” Mordon asked in disbelief, not entirely eager about the idea for some reason.

            Cody looked at him somewhat thoughtfully before saying in response, “We decided that we would walk for a little ways until you were used to Inferno and we were out of view of the city.”

            “Why can’t the city see him?” Mordon asked as he seemed to think about how his fellow guards would react.

            Mora was the one who replied sadly, “I would just love the look on the faces of those heartless people, but they really wouldn’t take kindly to it.”

            “Why not?” Cody asked, surprised.

            “Well,” Mora thought for a second and looked at the dragon before replying, “I can tell that he is a magnificent, caring, and tender creature that doesn’t mean to do unnecessary harm to anyone, but some people think differently. Black and darkness is thought of evil, and…Inferno…would be shot out of the sky without a second glance.”

            “We should head out as soon as possible,” Cody said as he remembered their task and the fact that he had forgotten for a long while.

            Mora walked a bit closer to Cody and Inferno before saying, “If Inferno will allow it I can be ready to fly immediately. It would actually be my honor!”

            Inferno bared his teeth in a grin before telling his rider jokingly, “She understands the honor, why don’t you?”

            “Uh, uh, no way!” Mordon said as he crossed his arms.

            Inferno, in Cody’s mind having taken this as an insult, let out a low growl and told his rider, “Tell him that I don’t appreciate his denying this honorable invitation.”

            The dragon seemed to be taking the honorable approach to it, however, and just sat on the ground, standing in an amazingly dignified matter as his now ice-blue gaze locked onto the guard. His tail swished angrily as he continued to stare at the man through narrowed eyes, though Cody got the impression that it was just his way of asserting his dominance.

            “Why not?” Cody asked instead.

            Mordon shot him the strangest look before replying, “I’m sure if you wanted to, you’d have him kill me already, but I’m not going to blindly allow some beast to lift me up into the air!”

            Cody suddenly felt a burst of rage, but it didn’t seem to be his own. He was correct, because before he or anyone else could react, Inferno had covered the distance between himself and the man in a fraction of a second, pinning him to the ground. The fury was clear in the dragon’s hostile blue eyes after being called a “beast”. Cody knew at that point that the dragon was no longer purposely overreacting for his rider’s amusement, he was in a blind rage for being referred to as simply a means of transportation or some feral monster, and the rider could feel these thoughts going through his dragon’s head.

            “If anything, this act makes you look like an even more feral beast,” Cody explained to Inferno, his own blue eyes filled with disappointment, but a little hurt as well after feeling the emotional pain in his mind link with him. “Why are you acting like this at insults? I always knew dragons were very prideful, but this seems like a little much.”

            “You’re right, I’m sorry. I can’t get over the fact that to humans, dragons are nothing more than a…outlet for their riders to express their hidden potential,” Inferno hissed, still seething with anger from the insult.

            Cody felt sympathetic for the dragon but still forced himself to say, “But still, release him. We need their cooperation and help, and we can’t get it if you threaten them.”

            Inferno let out a snort of reluctance and shot his rider a glare before pulling his paws away from Mordon’s chest. He turned around and moodily lumbered over to Cody before facing their companions once more and sitting on the ground. While there was silence between them, Cody felt bad about Inferno’s emotions that seeped through their mental link, showing that his pride had been hurt severely.

            “You and I both know that we are equals, and I believe that no matter what they think, all that matters is that I think we are equals,” Cody reassured Inferno. “Even though I haven’t known you long, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

            Inferno turned his blue eyes thoughtfully to his rider and pushed his nose against his chest before replying, “I promise I will stay strong, for your sake.”

            Cody gave him a grateful smile, and was glad that the dragon was so willing to put aside his pride for the time being for his own desires, but it was also surprising how readily he pounced onto Mordon then suddenly withdraw his attack after Cody voiced his concern about the consequences. He would probably have to ask Inferno later, but at the moment they had other concerns. The rider pulled his attention away from the dragon to see Mora gazing at Inferno with deep respect and admiration, and Mordon doing similar, but with loathing and reluctance plastered on his face.

            “So what should we do, since Inferno is too good for Mordon?” Cody said as he shot a glare at the guard, making his dragon chuckle mentally in obvious glee.

            Mora was pulled out of her daze and though she probably didn’t like her brother being insulted, she said, “I’m sure he’ll come around after a time, he just needs to be able to trust you. For the time being we should just walk along beside the two of you until he gets the nerve, and your permission, to ride. He has always been way too careful around strangers.”

            “And she isn’t careful enough,” Inferno joked.

            “Why aren’t you more careful around strangers,” Cody asked her so he could try to find the answer both him and the dragon were seeking.

            Mora sighed, “I always get a sort of feeling about someone that gives me a hint about whether they are good or bad, and exactly how so if I’m lucky enough. My brother follows these feelings to a certain extent, but you must understand that a dragon, and a black one at that, is a little startling. I believe that you are safe, for the time being. But my brother will need some convincing.”

            “I guess,” Cody said reluctantly, “But I hope it doesn’t take too long to get his trust, because we can’t catch up to these bandits of yours on foot.”

            Mora looked at Cody and Inferno thoughtfully before saying, “No offense to Inferno, but carrying himself, two grown and strong men, and I may be a bit of a struggle. If he does indeed get us to the bandits, he will be too exhausted to do much else. Plus, he wouldn’t be able to fly us off to pursue your quest.”

            Cody was about to defend Inferno before the dragon cut him off, “If you want to defend me, be nice about it with her because she has enough respect to at least concern my pride in her thoughts. Besides, she has a very valid point that I can’t carry three for very long when we could be flying around for thousands of miles before the quests are completed.”

            His rider shot him a defeated glare before turning back to Mora, and seeing a still dazed Mordon pull himself to his feet behind her. The guard shot Inferno a hateful glare before stepping up to his sister protectively. Cody could feel Inferno desperately trying to control a growl at the mistrusting gesture, but he did keep it in eventually.

            “We should set off quickly,” Cody said as he shot another look towards Mordon, daring him to argue.

            After nothing happened, Mordon said, “Oh it will take quite a while before I turn my back towards you, lead on.”

            “We will walk alongside each other,” Mora explained, leaving absolutely no room for argument from anyone, even Inferno and Cody.

            “Perhaps the dragon, rider, and warrior aren’t the only ones with attitude,” Inferno joked.

            While Cody laughed, too quietly for the other humans to hear, he pulled himself onto his now laying-down dragon’s bare neck right in front of the saddle. He was fascinated by the possibility of riding right behind his head and having the powerful horns to hang onto, but that would probably put far too much weight on the dragon’s front side. Plus, when Inferno walked at the pace of a human or even a horse’s walking speed his head was pulled almost straight up, which would put quite a lot of strain on Cody’s arms after he would try to hang on at the horizontal position. While walking, he decided, the best position would have to be right in front of the saddle.

            The rider found himself fitting perfectly between the seemingly unusually long spikes both in front and behind him. His legs automatically wrapped around the pitch-black scales as if it was what they were meant to do, and the little plates seemed to be conveniently flattened in that part of the neck which helped to keep his legs from being ripped to shreds by the sharp, tough edges.

            Inferno slowly stood and pulled his neck up to his normal walking position, which made his rider lean back against the spike behind him slightly, but it was otherwise alright. After he felt a little more used to the strange feeling of bareback dragon riding while they were still for the time being, Cody looked over to see Mora puling her unenthusiastic brother along to the dragon’s side.

            “And away we go,” Mora said with an admiring grin on her face as she looked up slightly to Cody, not seeming to notice that he wasn’t in the saddle, or that there even was a saddle.

            “Indeed,” Inferno said to Cody.

            The dragon took a large step forward, and right then and there Cody could tell that Inferno and Mora were going to be dear friends, and Inferno and Mordon would be very mistrusting beings towards each other, just headed in the same direction. Worst of it all, Cody felt a certain tie to his dragon in the sense that whether one of them had an extreme liking or disliking for anyone else, the other would feel the same way. The two could only hope that both of their companions would at least like them to a certain extent, or else they were in for some deep trouble. Or at least a long and agonizing trip with possibly no end.