Being Dex's spotter was obvious. Fate paired the Commander of the Draken Forces with the best archer in the world.
Cocky, but true. She was, and she knew it. Sue her.
No, working with Dex was not ideal. But when it came to Velkaris, they were co-parents and she would make this work.
This pack took her in and she would forever be grateful. Her word meant something, and she would protect them, crown or not. Dexmon was irrelevant to that.
As she walked, she was unaware that nearly every member of the Hidden Flame was holding themselves rigid to not give her a standing ovation.
Based on King Tiberon's tone alone, she assumed she had violated at least three protocols. Possibly five. Maybe seven? She'd honestly lost count.
Velkaris nudged her with his head. He was ready for round two and so was she. The improvement between them had been rapid, and they both knew it.
She grinned, patting his face with quiet affection. Then she jumped onto his back in one swift motion behind Dex, who fortunately had the sense to not try to help her or say anything.
Velkaris surged above the clouds and held position. Below them, a storm raged. But where they were, there was nothing but unsettling silence.
Serena drew in a steady breath and focused. The enemy dragons were much closer than she originally thought.
Could Dexmon feel their energy too? He wasn't mindlinking King Tiberon with an update, so probably not. She'd meant to ask Dex if he felt them the same way she did. But somehow, it never came up and now it was too late. She wasn't about to make casual conversation.
She shook her head. No. She would not think about Dexmon right now. Screw that.
She wasn't a little bitch and she had a job to do.
Should she say something about their E.T.A.? Was she overthinking this?
Either she says something aloud to Dex or she mindlinks and breaks another protocol.
Protocol it is.
Serena:Dragons approaching engagement range.
Velkaris dropped in front of the enemy dragons. Their eyes glowed gold immediately.
Dex didn't waste a second. "To land."
Arrows flew at them.
Velkaris did a Truebond Veil, disappearing like a phantom and reappearing at the bottom, parallel to the sea.
It was clearly superior to a nose dive. But damn, good to know it can be done with two people because as far as Serena knew, every attempt of that had been fatal.
King Tiberon:Status.
Dex:Twenty fire, two ice grounded.
Velkaris took his spot at the point of their arrowhead formation.
They flew much tighter than she had earlier. Serena couldn't help but be impressed. It was clear, these dragon teams were the best in Drakenfell.
She stood, loading her bow. The other spotters loaded but did not stand.
Noted.
She didn't know how to do it any other way to get a proper shot. So that wasn't going to change tonight.
She found Flareon immediately and channeled. Her Hidden Flame mark flared ice cold, and she pushed to Lunaris Stark on Solara, Silas Rane on Kronk, and Taren Calder on Zenith.
Serena:Lock.
Silas Rane:No lock.
Lunaris Stark:No lock.
Taren Calder:Lock.
Serena didn't wait, not wanting to lose her angle.
Serena:Fire.
Arrows were fired. Serena hit two bullseyes.
The flashes began in rapid succession, followed by shockwaves. Her protective orbs shattered, taking the brunt of the blasts.
Dragons and riders still went flying.
Because of course she did, she fired a third arrow free falling. Bullseye.
It was her signature move at this point, an unfortunate pattern for the enemy.
By the final shockwave, they were spread far apart. But every single one of them was covered under a golden dome that shattered upon impact.
It was the largest thing she'd ever fabricated and she timed it perfectly.
She couldn't help but feel proud of herself for that.
Velkaris knew the drill, catching her in his claws. He tossed her and she landed standing on his back.
"Good job, Velkaris. You're so good at that!"
He huffed, proud of himself too.
Dex dropped onto Velkaris behind her. She immediately started to scan the sky, bow drawn. Partly to spot for the other dragons and riders until they were settled. And partly to avoid any interaction with Dexmon.
Serena:Spotter taking aim at Kronk.
King Tiberon:Fire if you can make orbs.
Serena fired before Tiberon's mindlink finished. Gold orbs formed around everyone instantly.
A flash followed.
They were thrown off Velkaris at the shockwave.
Dex grabbed her this time. She blinked, stunned. He'd done it so quickly it took a second to fully register. Her ex was holding onto her like he had a right to show he cared.
No.
She shot him a look that should have made him let go.
He didn't.
Instead, he looked straight ahead.
She opened her mouth ready to give him a piece of her mind, but Velkaris flew up under them right at that moment.
Dexmon let go immediately, silently meeting her gaze for the first time up close in the entire night. He was completely unfazed by her glare.
She looked away, really not wanting to do any sort of that at the moment.
King Tiberon:Status.
Dex:All units recovered. Five hits. Weapons lost.
They flew back into formation above the clouds. Bows and arrows formed in everyone's hands. Ice was channeled instantly.
Silas and Lunaris both missed last time. Determined not to be the laughing stock of the Draken Forces, they oriented themselves to match Serena's angle, scanning with precision.
Serena:Lock.
Silas:Lock.
Lunaris:Lock.
Taren:Lock.
Serena:Fire.
First arrows were fired. Silas and Lunaris's hit the same spotter. A "Fuck" and a "Damnit" rang out in unison.
Second arrows were fired. Serena and Taren's arrows both hit.
The flashes and blasts were in rapid succession.
Velkaris tossed and caught Serena perfectly.
She was absolutely not thinking about the fact that Dex was witnessing her be this competent.
"You didn't even need a parachute that time!" Serena called to Velkaris, clapping her hands. He roared with pride. He loved it when she praised him.
Dex dropped down a second later on Velkaris. A grin on his face. The first grin Serena saw him give since he made out with Agnes in front of the Draken Forces.
She looked away before the grin could do any damage.
They soared back up above the clouds, waiting for the others.
King Tiberon:Hits.
Dex:Six. All spotters eliminated, two riders remaining.
Taren's voice came through the mindlink, dry as the desert.
Taren: For anyone keeping score across both passes, Serena has seven. I have three. Silas and Lunaris are sharing one.
There was complete silence for a moment.
Lunaris: My arrow landed first. Lunaris is in third place. Silas is in last.
Silas: That is debatable. My arrow was closest to the explosion. That means my arrow actually worked.
Hale: Focus.
Gav: No, no. Let them finish. This is important.
Taren: No comment on Serena's seven?
Gav: Respectfully, that's disgusting.
From the castle, unknown to any of them, the reactions were ongoing and loud.
Fists punched the air. Someone actually shouted, "Let's go," and slammed a hand into stone hard enough to sting. It sounded less like a command center and more like a crowd watching their best do the impossible in real time.
It was obvious to everyone watching that this unit was elite. The best dragon riders Drakenfell had and the best spotters. Five confirmed hits on the first pass. Six on the second. In conditions that should have made hitting anything a miracle. It was impressive as hell.
But when Taren's mindlink came through that Serena was responsible for seven of the eleven hits, everyone froze in stunned silence.
Then the dam broke with a buzz of disbelief.
"Seven. Holy mother of the Moon Goddess..."
"Frostborne starts them young."
At that moment, Velkaris performed another Truebond Veil. Again with both her and Dexmon riding.
Two riders. One dragon.
That alone made history. And it was executed in a storm. The buzz erupted again.
"Holy gods..."
"She doesn't remember the first time she flew, when she performed a Truebond Veil."
"That explains why it took King Tiberon telling her three times."
Fin inhaled sharply, listening to the conversations. His emotions cycled between disbelief, shock, and outrage on repeat. Every now and again, pure panic would wash into him through the matebond. Another close call.
Fin: Gods. I gathered this was her first battle. But this is one of her first damn dragon rides. Are you kidding me?
Xeon: This must be the Drakenfell way. Their culture is baptism under fire.
Fin: Do you see anyone else doing that?
The mage-librarians were having the same reactions as the Draken Forces, especially those who had watched her learn in real time the night before.
Every time one of Serena's orbs shattered or parachutes formed, a quiet "yes" passed through them, the instinctive sound of people watching timing land exactly where it should.
"To think she learned fabrication a few days ago," Archibald said shaking his head. "I still can't wrap my mind around it."
Aeron's mouth fell open. "She what?" He glanced at Hyran in disbelief. When Hyran didn't deny it Aeron gawked. "Then you are one hell of a master mage. She's the best I've ever seen."
Hyran shook his head with a rare grin on his face. "Yes. But she still has a long way to go. We were up with her half of the night working on release timing last night."
He left out the part where fire was involved.
Perhaps the most unsettling part was this: the Draken Forces had never fought anything but fire dragons before. Never storm. Never water.
Serena had assumed otherwise, watching them operate with such precision, such discipline, like a machine built for this exact fight.
On the ground, though, everyone knew the truth.
This was new territory.
And they were watching legends in real time.
Then everything went to chaos.
Shit went sideways, then underwater.