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Chapter 7 : Lessons in fire

The recruits filed back into the stone corridors after the arena pairing, their faces pale with dust and fear, their numbers cut down yet again. Elianna’s legs trembled with exhaustion, but adrenaline kept her moving. Every corner of her mind hummed with Amethyst’s presence—warm, sharp, curious, a voice like velvet wrapped around steel.

You hesitate too much, Amethyst murmured inside her head. If you doubt, you die. Dominic does not doubt. Learn from him, even if you despise him.

“I don’t despise him,” Elianna muttered under her breath. Her cheeks burned instantly. “I hate him.”

Hate is a flavor of fire, Amethyst replied with a rumble of amusement. And fire can forge—or destroy.

Dominic, walking a few paces ahead, glanced back at her with that damned smirk again, as if he’d heard every word. Elianna’s stomach knotted. She hated the way his mismatched eyes lingered, hated that she noticed the curve of his mouth, hated—

“Eyes forward,” barked the handler, smashing his staff against the wall. “Welcome to your first day of training. Survive the next month, and maybe you’ll live long enough to wear the crest of a dragon rider.”

The recruits shuffled into a vast, torch-lit hall lined with banners—scorched and frayed, some stained with what looked suspiciously like old blood. Long tables were pushed to the sides, replaced by practice rings, weapon racks, and a sand pit for sparring. On the far wall, a massive slate board listed the day’s lessons:

1. Dragon Etiquette & Care

2. Weapon Familiarity

3. Aerial Strategy

4. History of the Bonded War

“Choose a weapon,” the handler ordered, pointing to the racks. “And try not to stab yourself. First blood today belongs to the clumsy.”

Elianna moved slowly, scanning the weapons. Swords gleamed under the torchlight, heavy and intimidating. Axes hung like threats. Her gaze caught on a slender pair of curved daggers—light, sharp, quick. She reached for them, and Amethyst’s voice purred approval. Yes. Swift. Precise. You will never overpower your enemies with strength. But speed… speed can kill kings.

Elias appeared at her side, choosing a long spear with ease. “Good choice,” he said warmly, giving her a grin that lit his whole face. His golden dragon—the excitable one, already dubbed Solaris—ruffled its wings proudly behind him, showering sparks of light. “Daggers suit you. Quick, fierce, dangerous if underestimated.”

Her cheeks warmed, but she forced herself to focus. “And a spear suits you. Overcompensating?”

He laughed, and the sound tugged at her chest despite herself.

Dominic’s voice, low and amused, slipped in behind her. “Careful, freckles. You’re blushing. Didn’t know you went for golden boys.”

Elianna’s jaw clenched. “Didn’t know you cared.”

Shadow’s growl reverberated in the back of her skull—dark, amused, dangerous. She’s sharper than you give her credit for, he rumbled to Dominic.

She’s infuriating, Dominic answered silently. His lips curled in the barest smile.

Shadow snorted smoke. And yet, you watch her.

---

Dragon Etiquette Class

The handler was replaced by an older woman with hair silver as moonlight, eyes like flint. She wore no armor, only a long tunic scorched at the hem. Her dragon—a massive green named Verdantia—coiled lazily behind her, the air thick with the scent of moss and smoke.

“Lesson one,” the woman said, her voice cutting like glass. “You are not masters. You are not owners. You are nothing but partners—or prey. Forget this, and your dragon will let you burn.”

A nervous ripple spread across the recruits.

Verdantia’s head snaked down, breath warm and damp, nostrils flaring as she examined the nearest boy. He flinched. In one smooth movement, she snapped her jaws an inch from his face, teeth flashing like ivory daggers.

The boy fell backward, scrambling. The dragon’s growl rolled like thunder.

The woman didn’t even glance at him. “Respect is survival.”

Elianna’s throat tightened. Amethyst’s presence pressed against her mind, steady but sharp. I will not tolerate fear, little flame. You will stand tall beside me—or not at all.

She swallowed hard, then stepped forward, squaring her shoulders. Amethyst’s satisfaction warmed her chest like embers.

Dominic, of course, looked utterly unbothered. Shadow loomed behind him, his golden eyes like twin suns, and every other dragon gave him space. Elianna wanted to punch his smug face.

---

Allies and Rivals

After etiquette came sparring drills. Recruits paired off, weapons flashing in the sand pits, dragons watching with eyes like burning coals.

Elianna found herself across from a new face—Kaelen, a wiry boy with sharp cheekbones and a wary gaze. His dragon, a lean green named Sylph, crouched behind him with twitching wings. “I’m not good at this,” Kaelen muttered. “Was supposed to be a scribe, not a fighter.”

“Then don’t get killed,” Elianna said, raising her daggers.

To her surprise, he laughed nervously. “Easier said than done.”

Nearby, Raven traded blows with Ivy, sparks flying as their blades clashed. Xavier cheered them both on, Kraken rumbling encouragement.

And then there was Elias—flipping his spear in dazzling arcs, grinning even as sweat poured down his temple. He caught Elianna’s gaze once, and his smile softened into something private, something that made her heart trip.

Dominic noticed. Of course he did. His smirk turned sharp, and when his blade sliced the air during his own spar, it was with unnecessary flourish, as if daring her to look at him instead.

She hated him.

She hated the way her stomach fluttered when she caught herself looking.

---

By the time the bell rang, dismissing them for rest, sweat dripped into Elianna’s eyes and her arms ached from the weight of the daggers. Dragons stretched their wings, tails coiling, scales catching the last of the torchlight.

Elias walked beside her, Solaris trailing behind with sparks popping softly in the air. “You did well today,” he said, his voice low, meant only for her. “Better than most.”

Amethyst purred in her chest. He admires you.

Dominic fell into step on her other side, Shadow stalking close, his vast shadow stretching over them both. “She did fine,” he said lazily, his voice all teeth. “For someone who nearly died five times in the Crucible.”

Elianna’s hand twitched toward her dagger, and Amethyst’s laugh rippled through her mind.

Elias glared at Dominic. “Don’t speak to her like that.”

Dominic’s smirk widened. “Touchy.”

Shadow’s growl vibrated the ground. Amethyst’s tail lashed in answer.

And Elianna realized, with a cold sinking in her gut, that the most dangerous battles here weren’t only with dragons or blades.

They were with each other