Rhiannon - Dragonrider

Chapter Fourty Three - Summit Run

At the end of lunch, Zalibar had an announcement. After the longest time spent as noviate that anyone could ever remember, he was promoting Jenko to transitor. I only just managed to squish down a squeak and I wanted to give him a hug... but I just about managed to contain myself there too. They just didn't do that sort of thing round here.

But my cheerful mood didn't last long. Zalibar called me over to tell me that Rhiannas had sent word down from the Edifice. From now on, I'd be riding neck guard for him on his night patrol... twice a week... starting tonight...

Riding neck guard and trying not to let my thoughts about him leak out.

He was even going to come and collect me... which meant I wouldn't get to miss the run that afternoon...

And it was just starting to rain!

I volunteered to do the meat run on my own that afternoon. By using my will as well as my muscles, I could just about manage one of the little wagons with a double load. Maybe I'm just too kind hearted but it did give me the chance to chat to Psion as I trudged along the storm-lashed cliff-top path. I mean... there wasn't all that much he could do about it but it was nice to be able to talk to someone who understood.

Besides, I had a job to do. I had to go and see Iola. I didn't want to but I just needed to do it.

I had this horrible empty thing going on in my tummy as I trudged through the rain up the track from the bridge into the village but I forced myself to step into her little store.

I couldn't bring myself to apologise. I mean... both Carodoc and I had known that only one of us was going to survive the day... and she knew it too. I guess they'd all been living with this sort of stuff for much longer than me.

But I just needed to tell her how appalled I was at what I'd had to do to a friend.

There were tears, of course... from both of us... but, once it was over, I was glad I'd done it.

And I hoped I'd made her feel a little bit better too.

By the time I made it back to the academy, the sky was starting to darken towards dusk and there was already a gang of students gathered in the cold, wet quad, trying to find what shelter they could against the wall of the mews. I could pretty much taste the waves of dejection coming off them.

I dumped the meat wagon and my cloak in the mews and made it back out just before Zalibar appeared.

"Peak," he said simply and there was this quiet groan thing. I mean... nobody on their own was loud enough to be heard but, all together, you could sort of hear it.

"I can make it a double if you like," he responded with a bit of a grim grin thing. "These are the days that the training really counts. At this moment, your opponents are tucked up by the fire with a warm drink..." he let us enjoy that picture for a second... "and, because of that, when the time comes, you're going to have their guts wrapped around your sword."

I guess there might be something in that.

He hopped onto Lippit's back and, with a sort of mental shout, he sent us on our way.

Because I was already about as wet as I was ever likely to get, I didn't really have to waste time getting used to the horrible weather so I was one of the first people out of the gate and, by the time we got to the stupidly steep, slippery bit of the track down to the stream, I found I'd built up a bit of a lead with just one guy on my shoulder. I couldn't take my eyes off the path as I used both my weight and will to keep myself balanced but I felt back towards him with my mind and was medium astonished to find it was Jenko. His promotion must have given him a new burst of strength or something.