~A Wattpad featured and Wattys Longlisted story~
Lana can hardly remember what it's like to be free. After nine years as a captive on board a ship ruled by ruthless bounty hunters, sailing across Maris with no clear direction, she's desperate for so...
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LANA FINDS HERSELF awake way before any of the others. It's early, right when it's still dark outside but the morning mist has settled in and there's a chill in the air. She doesn't hear much beside the occasional shuffle, faint snores of others in the room, and the peaceful chirps of birds outside. It sounds tranquil, as if nothing is wrong, but as she opens her eyes she is brought back to reality.
Most of the Riders are still in their leather armor as they sleep, holding their swords or bows close to them even as they rest. When she looks to her left, Bryan is covered in blood spatters and dirt, his lips pursed tightly. To her right, Skye seems to be sleeping like the dead. For once, this hardened mask that she never really noticed that he wears has slipped. His eyes aren't slightly narrowed in mistrust or concern, and all the worry lines have smoothed over, making him look several years younger.
She looks away after a long moment, and lets out a small sigh of annoyance. It's extremely early but she's too awake to fall back asleep.
She pushes herself off the ground slowly so she doesn't disturb Bryan or Skye and tries to tip toe over the other Riders. The floorboards don't seem to sense her urgent need to be silent however, groaning under her weight as her boots make a loud slap as they hit the wood. She winces at every step, waiting for someone to wake up and yell at her but somehow she makes it to the door before that happens.
She bursts out into the crisp morning air and her breath puffs out before her. It's refreshing for only a moment as she burns off the stifling heat from inside the hall but then the chill creeps in, and she shivers. She's tempted to go back inside but as she catches a glimpse of the stables and thinks of Andena, she can't resist the urge to see her dragon.
Her dragon.
It sounds like such a foreign notion. Dragons were once fables to her, nothing more than a daydream and now she is bonded to one. The revelation suddenly seems to catch up with Lana and the surprise knocks the wind out of her with both excitement and trepidation. She knows the troubles it brings but as she thinks of that moment where Andena and her just soared through the air for the first time, it felt like she had just been born. Like she hadn't been living until that very point and now she is anew from that flight.
It made her feel like she never was a slave and was born to be a Dragon Rider.
As Lana finally reaches the inside of the stables, it miraculously seems to have doubled in size from what the outside hinted at. It could fit dozens of dragons and still have plenty of room for more, and that barely scratches the surface. The stables are also richly decorated with signature woodwork from likely the best carpenters in Halsa. There are six large pillars on each side of the building, supporting the large roof, which is elaborately decorated with interlocking wood panels. All of these panels vault towards the center of the roof, as if bowing down to the circular window there. The window is the only source of light besides the open bay doors in the front and back of the stables.
