The laundry was temporarily forgotten as they all gathered around the fire. The sun was no longer overhead and began to dip below the trees, making the area cooler than before. It didn't help that they had been in the frigid water, either. So as they all warmed by the fire, those who hadn't heard the entire story waited in anticipation for Nagan to begin. Nagan gave a slight chuckle, feeling a bit nervous about having all of his friends' attention on him.

"Before I say anything, I promise I'm fine now. The Arclovens have been taking very good care of me, and I can't be more grateful." He nudged his shoulder with Az's. "As you all know, except for Blaine, I was born in Tekanlab and stayed in Sa'aremak for most of my childhood. My mother, Ania, was a gypsy of the Rasek tribe and my father was Nageth Elvar, but he had recently been disowned by the Elvars for marrying my mother. Unfortunately, the last I saw him was when I was four and has been declared missing ever since.

"After that, my mother eventually had to rejoin her tribe when we couldn't afford our home anymore, and we traveled all over the desert and even into Mahta and Laurow a few times. We were attacked by another tribe, however, which...spiraled a whole series of events."

Nagan grimaced before continuing.

"They were a warring tribe and killed all the men before taking the women and children, but they refused to take me in since I had blond hair. So they told my mother that she could either abandon me in the desert or leave with me without any supplies." He huffed out a laugh. "You can guess what she chose, and they underestimate her ability to survive. We then headed to Hecatite to try to seek refuge with the Elvars, but they didn't want anything to do with us, and the feelings are still mutual.

"That's when we headed to Tarkon. I don't really know what for, but I think she was looking for Master Dagmire. He and my father were like brothers, and my mother was close to him, too. But...then we were caught there in the winter."

Blaine sensed the tone shift immediately and nearly insisted that he needn't continue, but Nagan kept talking.

"We weren't at all prepared. With only the clothes on our back from the desert, scraps of fabric we found in alleyways, and not a single coin, there wasn't any chance of us surviving." Nagan shrugged and looked at the fire, crossing his legs beneath him. "There was only one place that would let us stay and feed us, which was a brothel. And...well, we were desperate.

"Long story short, she was killed, I ran before the brothel master could think about selling me, and I managed to survive until one of the fae baby dragons teleported me to Carvolier," Nagan hastily summarized the story, chewing the inside of his lip.

"I'm...truly sorry for your loss," Blaine said, giving a worried look at Az, silently asking if Nagan was really alright.

"Thank you," Nagan replied with a small smile. "I've had time to accept it, and as I said, the Arclovens have helped a lot—"

Nothing more could be said as a dragon's shriek rang in the air. Nagan and Carthadeus were the first to stand.

"I don't like that," Carthadeus said, glancing at Nagan to gauge his reaction. Nagan gave him a nod, confirming his suspicion. "We go back. Now."

It took Blaine longer for the statement to sink in, and by the time it had, the teens were already on the move. Each had a hand on their weapon; Nagan, Carthadeus, and Az grasping the hilt of their swords, Gath slinging his bow over his shoulder, and Aitor with a glowing, open palm as a vine wrapped around his hand.

By the time they got to the village, the fight had already started. Villagers scrambled for cover. Soldiers were locked into combat with the raiders, both magically and physically. Houses were burning. There were bodies on the ground.

Carthadeus tore his eyes away from the wreckage and shouted his first order. "Get the dragons! We need to protect the supplies in the barn!"

Aitor nodded, and being the best at communicating with his dragon, he gave a high, loud whistle that carried in the wind, the sound laced with magic as it held a message only Gossamer would hear.

They began running to the barn, careful to avoid any of the conflicts. Professor Fai had instructed them to do so in the case of a raid, saying they weren't ready for a real fight, yet. None of them dared to protest the order now; not as they avoided wondering if the person they passed was unconscious or dead.

"Wait!" Gath stopped dead in his tracks, nearly making Aitor collide into his back. "Where's Blaine?!"

They stopped momentarily and looked around, paling when they realized the young man was nowhere in sight.

"I don't think he followed us," Carthadeus said. "He probably went to the prince. There are guards with them, so they should be alright."

A shout and crash came from the other side of the street, and Carthadeus motioned for them to keep going.

"We can't stay here. Let's go!"

Their dragons soared overhead as they reached the barn, flying low to avoid the enemies' dragons above. With another round of orders from Carthadeus, he and Gath slowly pried open the doors as Aitor used a detecting spell to make sure no one was inside. Az and Nagan, meanwhile, stayed near the perimeter to make sure the dragons weren't followed as they landed. Another terrifying roar sounded above them as the two riderless dragons continued to decimate the town. One swooped down into the field and lit it aflame while the other disappeared into the village, distant screams and shouts echoing along the walls.

Nagan knew these dragons were under the ritual of will. He had seen the same symbol that laid hidden on his hand on another fallen man's cheek, and the only other way to get any of the proud creatures to follow orders was to completely erase its will.

"Ravi," he quietly called to his dragon, beckoning her to come closer as the others were hastily arranging their dragons around the barn. "Up for a flight?"

Ravi trilled anxiously, the longer scales around her ears flattening as another roar ripped through the air, sounding as if it was getting closer. She gave him an unsure look, nudging him with her nose as she silently asked if he was sure.

"I know, I know. This is a little bit scary. But you only need to get me close enough to break the spell holding them." He reached out to stroke her snout, but she snorted fiercely and pushed him back harder. "Hey! Now's not the time to be—"

"Worried...about you..."

Ravi gave him a hard stare as the words barely brushed against Nagan's consciousness. Nagan huffed but didn't reply, taking hold of the saddle as he prepared to swing himself up. Ravi was strangely quiet as he did this, but he didn't get the chance to question it as a hand harshly ripped him back.

"What are you doing?!" Az hissed, standing hunched as he tried to hide behind Ravi and not bring attention to them. "Don't tell me you're gonna do what I think you're gonna do!"

"And what if I am?" Nagan bit back.

"Nagan, you can't do that...thing every time there's some sort of dragon attack!"

"I know this is the ritual of will again! It doesn't take much, I just need to—"

"Please, Nagan, listen to me!" Az grasped onto his shoulders and shook him. "When I healed you from it, you didn't—you didn't come out of it the same! It's like your body isn't attached properly!"

Nagan stared at him in confusion and horror.

"What?"

"It wasn't noticeable at the time, but every time I healed you since, it was this nagging feeling that something wasn't complete. I don't know how else to describe it, but I don't like it! Just...do as you were told and let the more experienced Dragonmages handle this."

Through the anger, Nagan saw genuine fear on Az's face. He glanced back up to the sky where the other Dragonmages—the true Dragonmages—had lured the will-less dragons to fight. It was at that moment when Nagan thought back in their dorm, after their first fight with dragons, where Az confessed his fear for him. He remembered promising to be less careless.

Nagan gave Az a faint nod before pulling away and turning to Ravi.

"Ravi, protect the hoard."

•______________________________•

Ok once again this isn't much but at this point I'm committed to keeping the word count below 2000 (plus, you know, more chapters equals more views XD scream to the tabloids, Samurai is actually a crook! What a shocker.)

But yeah in all honesty the pacing in these chapters are off XD like I was worried that this whole fight scene would be short, but now I wish I kept Nagan's backstory with the previous chapter.

Oh well. I've made many mistakes with this series, but you don't see me fixing them XD

So once again, expect a chapter soon cause it's basically done. Actually, you might see it in a few hours. Depends if I fall asleep while writing it or not. It's a toss up, really (says I at 1AM, well aware that I start classes today)

Hot tip, kids, college doesn't teach you responsibility, it teaches you how to somehow scrape by with coffee and permanent eye bags while squinting at "functional" people, wondering if they're really that peppy at 9AM or just better at hiding it.