Valeria's outfit without the cape and the boots without heels ^

Valeria's P.O.V.

I was ready quickly and put on my favorite outfit (^). It was the one most comfortable for riding. Yvy was with me, lamenting the loss of her partner in crime which is me. 

I tell her, "We are going to be late. I need a ride."

Yvy bends down, "Get up!"

I leap on her back and she takes off towards the meeting place. It was going to be at the cliff, the closest point to the border which is high up. I am lost in thought of the human world. The last human I have interacted with was when I was eight year old and wanted to kill me. Well, these humans will want to kill me to according to Larius.

Too quickly, we arrive at our destination. I gracefully slide off her back and walk towards the eight waiting dragons. 

I greet Sonya, "Hey. Are you okay with this?"

She smiles as only a dragon can, "I will finally see humans up close besides you. It will be fun to scare them."

I turn to the next dragon who is a deep red, "I am Zate."

A blue dragon came up to me next, "I am Xozzo."

The next one who was introduced was a light green color, "I am Gyki."

The fourth one who is light red spoke up, "I am Zorgym."

I walked up to a beige dragon, "I am Nivri."

The before last one who was an indigo color flew over, "I am Ilby."

Larius was there and brought me over to the last dragon who was a dark green, "This is Darat, Val."

I nod my head, "Nice to meet you Darat."

Darat said, "Nice to meet you too Valeria. I am here to assist you in your attempts to help the human population."

With the introductions over, we needed to get going if we wanted to make it to the castle before nightfall. It wouldn't take that long, so I didn't even bring a saddle. Having a saddle could give the other humans the wrong idea about dragons.

I gave a hug to Larius, "Bye old man."

He hugged me back as best he could, "Bye Val. I'll see you when you come back for the weekend, remember your promise."

I moved on to Cygun, "Bye Cy."

I ran over to Yvy, "Don't do anything stupid when I am gone."

I climbed onto Sonya who we deemed looked the most impressive. She was really big and pretty. Sonya could pass as the leader of the group even though it was Darat. As we rose into the sky, I waved back at my only family. They waved good-bye as we flew off. 

Darat spoke in my head, "Valeria, remember to talk with your mouth while with the humans. Being able to speak in their heads like you do might make you even more a target, so do not do it unless in a dire situation. Same goes for your fire manipulation."

I give him a look, "I can barely manipulate fire when my life is threatened, so you won't have to worry about that."

Without another word, all of our group focused on the horizon and did not speak. I for one was curious about humans and if their cruelty was like I remembered as a child. 

It was going to be an interesting journey.

Meanwhile at the castle . . .

Third Person P.O.V.

Chaos reigned supreme at the castle. Ever since the first report confirmed that there were dragons heading here, everyone was panicking. It was the first time in 100 years that a dragon had been spotted. What shocked everyone even more was the fact that some reports claimed to see a human on the lead dragon's back.

In the throne room, there was a yelling battle, "They are going to kill us! . . . What about the Shadows? . . . We won't survive with a battle on two fronts . . . What about the news of a human rider?"

High King Dromio was getting a headache and being increasingly annoyed with the noise. He yells, "STOP!"

The room froze. High King Dromio's anger issues were legendary. In a bad mood, he was reputed to kill servants or even nobles. No one wanted to be at the receiving end, so despite their panic, they shut up.

Dromio paced the length of the room, "Malcom!" 

His faithful steward rushed forward, unafraid of his King in this state, "Yes, sir."

Dromio walked up to him, "What are the exact reports about the dragons headed here?"

Malcom looked at his own compilation of reports, "They left their territory earlier today and are headed in this direction. There are eight dragons in total, but none who appear to be Royal."

Dromio considered this new information before demanding, "Is there truly a man riding a dragon?"

Malcom looked up at his King, "Yes."

"Oh dear God!" exclaimed Dromio. The yelling resumed in the room. 

One voice was heard, "If a man forced himself upon a dragon, the Dragon King will seek compensation. We will die and it will be the end of the humans."

Another was yelling, "If the dragons now have riders, we could be saved from the Shadows."

A third was explaining, "They are dangerous animals that need to be killed!"

In the midst of all this chaos, Dromio was a point of calm and he yelled once more, "Be quiet!"

Everyone, including Malcolm, once again shut up and stood to attention to their High King who appears to be lost in thought. No one knew what was going on in his mind. It was well-known that Dromio was very intelligent and ruthless.

Dromio smiled and said, "If there is a man who is on that dragon, he will be betrothed to one of my daughters and link us together."

King Angus stepped forward, a man in his late forties, "High King, your eldest daughter Portia is betrothed to me if you have forgotten."

Dromio dismisses him, "Angus, I am sure you are willing to take the daughter that this dragon rider does not want."

It is true, both of his daughters were sights to behold. They were each beauties in their own right. Portia has been promised to Angus since her birth and she has resented ever since she found out when she turned 16. Portia would be delighted to hear that there was a chance to be with a mysterious dragon rider.

Angus huffed at the obvious dismissal, but still listened. Even though he was a king, Dromio was the High King. You don't become High King and stay that way if you are weak. Honestly, Dromio was scary.

Dromio announced, "We are going to welcome these dragons to our home and discover their intentions!"

Without further ado, Dromio turned his back and left. His words did nothing to quell the rising panic. Dromio was pleased with his plan and he vowed not to make the same mistake as High King Macbeth. Malcolm had to calm the people while Dromio stayed in his room. It was the unfair way of the world.

Little did anyone know that the human on top of the dragon was not a man, but rather a woman. Little did anyone know exactly what they were capable of.

***

Word Count: 1194