Wild Rider (Dragon Castaway Book 1) [Complete] {2018 Wattys Longlist}

Chapter 7

"Phew! That looks like everything" Jake thought wiping sweat from his brow as he tied the last of his choice pelts together into a makeshift backpack. Throwing on a bearskin cloak to protect against the cold, he stepped back to survey his gear and nodded in satisfaction. Despite his small worry about being separated from the twins, he couldn't help but feel excited. After all, he was finally about to head towards the settlement and experience how people in this world lived first hand.

A low croon came from behind him and turned to see Ragnarok peering at him with pleading eyes. Smiling he patted the dragon on the head as he sent a sympathetic feeling down the link. "I'm sorry Rag but you know you can't come with me, we need to keep a low profile for as long as we possibly can"

He could sense that Ragnarok wasn't happy but the dragon puffed out a plume of smoke and gave his equivalent of a human nod. "Glad I have your permission, make sure to take care of the place while I'm gone and remember that your sister is going to be watching for any of your tricks." Jake said as Valkyrie appeared and growled in approval.

Stepping back, he looked at twins and shook his head. The dragons never ceased to amaze him, six months had passed since the incident with the bear. In that time, they had doubled in size and despite such a fast growth spurt they showed no signs of slowing down. "Remember, no flying until I get back" he admonished as he sheathed his knife in his belt. Both let out low sounds of protest but Jake sent out a barrage of stern feelings which silenced them instantly.

"Don't worry you'll get plenty of time when I return, but the last thing we need is for you to be seen while I'm not around. We might have to give up our home if that happened" he said. He hated having to quite literally ground them but he didn't really have a choice. Not only had they grown quickly but they had become frequent flyers, now effortlessly moving through the air and they tended to be incautious if he wasn't nearby.

Hoisting the pelts onto his back he walked out of cave entrance and into the cold winter air, heading for a trail that he'd carved out over the last few months. "And Remember!" he called turning back to look at the cave one last time "Any funny stuff out of you Rag and I WILL make boots of you". A high-pitched chirp of indignation echoed out in response causing him to laugh as he trudged through the snow.

Reaching the top of a hill overlooking the road Jake peered down and saw, to his relief, that there were no travelers currently on this stretch. It might have just been his paranoia talking but he didn't want anyone potentially discovering the route back to his sanctuary.

Stepping out onto the flattened snow covered path, he turned towards the mountains that marked the town and began walking his senses alert to everything around him. Jake didn't know much about this world but he doubted that human nature would ever change, meaning that there would always be some people who made their living through banditry.

"Well, the locals here are definitely human, too bad, I was kind of hoping for lizard men or something, that definitely would have been a fresh take on a tired genre" he said to himself as he fell into step beside a group heading in the same direction. As he had moved closer to the town he had begun to see other travelers and despite his snark, he was relieved to find out that the inhabitants of this world were indeed as human he was. Cresting the final hill, he let out a low whistle as the town came into view. It looked exactly like something one would expect out of a medieval fantasy novel. High walls and a towered gate encircled a hodgepodge of wood and stone buildings. As he approached the gate he sighed as he saw a line of people waiting to be checked in by a squad of armed guards. He had expected something of the sort but that didn't make it any less irritating. On the other hand, it was a good opportunity to gather information, after all few would know more about the goings on here.