Rider Academy

There weren't always dragons in the Valley. Brianna didn’t remember it, but her grandmother told stories about that before-time, before the dragon-rider school came to Salt Lake City. It was hard to credit but Nana’s stories always focused on how much better she thought life was before the dragons came. Brianna just figured it was sour grapes because Nana wasn’t chosen as a rider and her best friend was. Not that Nana ever told that story. Brianna figured it out herself when she was flipping through Nana’s old high school yearbook, class of 2023. Right there on the inside front cover, surrounded by a huge heart someone had drawn, was an epic message signed by Mikaylagh Williamson, the Mikaylagh Williamson. It was all about how great it had been to share her senior year with Brianna’s grandmother and how much fun they were going to have over the summer before they started college together at the U. She even signed off with, “Hugs and kisses to my BFF (Best Friend Five-Ever!),” how epic was that!?

By the end of that same year, Mikaylagh Williamson was already riding a dragon. Brianna’s history textbook said she was head of her rider class and that she flew 37 combat missions in her first year alone. Unreal.

What did Nana do during that same time? Not much. She didn’t even end up going to the U, but then Brianna’s mom was born the next year so that probably had something to do with that. Just imagine it though – BFF with General Mikaylagh freakin’ Williamson and all Nana could talk about was how, when she was Brianna’s age, she used to have a cell phone! Internet this and television that. Maddening! As if all that media in the airwaves isn’t what opened the gates to begin with. Insane.

But still, Brianna loved her grandmother, even loved most of her stories. And as her best friend Maddi would say, everyone’s family had at least one crazy conspiracy nut, so Nana’s weird obsessions were nothing too far out there.

***

“It came, it came!” Maddi shouted as she crashed through Brianna’s kitchen door, waving an envelope in her hand.

“Oh cheese, they’re here!?” Briana responded, reaching for a kitchen towel to dry her hands so she could run out to the mailbox. Maddi followed her out because of course she couldn’t open her own letter until they could do it together.

Brianna was almost afraid her letter wouldn’t be there, which was just dumb. Practically everybody who requested an invite got one these days. The last two generations of dragon clutches had been huge and the number of people submitting requests had dropped steadily after the first fifteen years of fighting. Still, when all your future rests on one thing, it feels almost dangerous to believe it could really happen. But it was there, it really was! A letter from the rider academy with her name on it!!

The girls squealed and danced and then got down to the business of opening their letters.

The letters didn’t seal the deal, they both knew that. They’d still have to make sure they could link with a dragon. But they also knew that the empathy tests every high school gave hadn’t failed to identify good candidates in years. Their scores were high enough, they both fit the weight restrictions, they’d both passed all the physical assessment tests with flying colors. And now they had a date. A date that would mark the start of a whole new life. A life spent in the air. On dragons. They looked up at each other and shared smiles big enough to make babies laugh two towns over. The moment really did call for solemnity but what it got was a whole lot of screaming.

***

Six weeks later, on a Friday morning in late June, Brianna got into Maddi’s car and they drove out to the old Salt Palace on the Great Salt Lake. Both their moms had wanted to come with, but it just didn’t feel right to either Brianna or Maddi. Family day would be on Saturday, and everybody would meet their new dragon companions then. But this day, this glorious summer day, was just for them. Well, them and the other 500 or so candidates.

So many girls, from all over the country, all as excited as Briana and Maddi. Sure, there were some boys too, but riders had always been primarily female. They tended to have an easier time meeting the weight restrictions and they usually scored higher on the empathy test. They’d expected it, they’d known that’s what the crowd would be like, but it was still kind of heady. How much more awesome would it be when the whole lot of them were up in the air and screaming into battle!

After the welcoming speech – by General Mikaylagh Williamson herself! – all the girls were sorted into groups of 50 to start heading out to the dragonmeet docks. As they stood waiting, Brianna could hear a commotion over to her left, so she smacked Maddi on the shoulder to get her attention and then also tried to use her to steady herself as she strained up on her toes to see. And then she was pretty sure she lost her mind.

It would have been so much cooler if she could later say she was smooth and professional and adult. But instead, when she saw General Williamson passing by with her retinue, she dove in front of her and blurted out:

“You knew my grandmother!”

General Williamson’s eyebrows just rose up her forehead and she looked over at her aide wondering if she might need her to step in.

“You signed her yearbook, ‘BFF – Best friends five ever!” Really. Where was her dignity, Brianna wondered?? Maybe the aide would shoot her and she’d never have to live this down.

But now General Williamson’s focus was back on her. She looked Brianna up and down and then stared into her eyes a moment.

“Your grandmother is Kaycee Logan?” she asked.

“Yes! I mean, Kaycee Phelps, but yes!!” Brianna responded, shocked but excited.

“Phelps. Right. Yes, yes of course.”

She looked over at her aide briefly, and then over Brianna’s shoulder out toward the lake for several moments more. Brianna was starting to feel awkward again when the General’s eyes came back to her.

“Is she here today? Your grandmother?”

“Uh, no. I, uh… well, I never actually told her I requested an invite. Mom said we should tell her tonight. After.”

It sounded so terrible and cowardly when she said it like that. Brianna was all of a sudden terrified of what the General would think of her but instead she just blinked a couple of times and nodded her head, “Good plan.” And then her eyes went back toward the lake.

Brianna felt like it must be time to break off this epic conversation so she said, “Ma’am, may I just say: Clear Skies!”

This brought the General’s eyes back to her, this time with a small smile.

“That’s actually my line. In fact, let me say it to all of you,” she said as she shifted her stance to take in the group that had been edging closer around the two of them. “Clear Skies!”

“Strong Flying!” the whole group responded. And then they let out a massive cheer as the General patted Brianna’s shoulder and moved away.

“EPIC!” Maddi shouted as she gripped both of Brianna’s shoulders and shook them. “Did that just really happen!?”

“IT TOTALLY DID! Cheese and rice, it was all real! Nana really knew her!”

“And then our first salute! And it was to General Mikaylagh Williamson! Best. Day. Ever! Now come on, I think it’s our turn to meet our dragons.” And she pushed and pulled Brianna down to the docks with the rest of their group.

***

“Are you sure Mikkie? We had planned on holding Carlie off for another year at least. We’re not even allowing her a first clutch until next year.”

“I know, Evandie love. But I really think it will be a good fit. And besides, I owe the girl’s grandmother.”

“Love, you can’t keep blaming yourself. That was years ago, and you were all so much younger then.”

“I know, Evandie. I know. But it doesn’t stop me from feeling it. I still miss her sometimes. And besides, you should have seen how impulsive but also strong willed her granddaughter was. It’s Carlie all over. They’ll be a good fit, you’ll see.”

“I trust you, love, and I’ve already sent her. She should be arriving at the docks as we speak.”

“Thank you, love. We’ll talk later.”