The Way We Rode

Aran

There weren’t always dragons in the Valley, but it was now stuffed to the brim with them. Winged creatures of all sizes and colours, flying in an invisible prison. Trapped behind The Barrier and forsaken to pay for atrocities committed in the past. Forsaken to birth and slaughter one another to stay alive.

Or at least that’s the crap his ancestors told him. But Aran refused that idea. He wasn’t one to believe tales blindly. He dangled his feet over the edge of the city, looking at a dragon covered in purple scale. It flew at great speed before hugging itself with its wings and rotating in the air. So beautifully.

Aran pulled out a small pot with porridge from his satchel before shoving his arm back inside, searching for a spoon. He found it.

‘Oh, look who’s here again,’ said a voice from behind. ‘Turd face.’

Aran rolled his eyes but didn’t turn around. Instead, he took a mouthful of porridge, ignoring the idiot behind.

‘What is it that you’re staring at, turd face?’

Aran continued to remain silent.

‘Oi, are you dumb? Deaf? Or a mixture of both?’

‘Piss off, Lu. I don’t have time for your nonsense today.’ Aran could hear more people approaching.

‘If you’re that in love with these winged mongrels, allow me to help you reach them faster.’

Laughter came from behind. Aran placed his pot down, stood up and faced Lu.

‘Well you should know better than most of us,’ said Aran, his words coated in anger. Since your mother dropped you on your head all the way down to The Barrier when you were but an idiot toddler.’ A long moment of silence followed before a girl spoke.

‘Are you going to let him talk to you like that?’

Aran has seen her many times before with Lu. He didn’t know her name nor cared to find it out. ‘He’ll first need to decipher the words that left my lips, but that will take hours,’ he continued. ‘I would ask you to help, but we both know that you’re as incapable.’

‘Oh, you’re feeling brave today, turd face?’ she asked, approaching. Lu stopped her by placing his arm in front.

‘Let me handle this.’ Lu rushed towards him, trying to grab him by the neck. Aran dodged, grabbed the back of his head and pushed him down. Lu’s face was hanging over the edge, his bulging eyes staring at the Valley.

‘Does it reminds you of your childhood yet?’ yelled Aran.

A bell rang loudly, calling all students back to class. He released Lu and wiped his palms on his trousers.

‘You’ll regret doing this, turd face. Trust me.’ Lu’s voice was angry. Humiliated.

‘Of course, I will.’ Aran placed the satchel on his back and scooped out the remaining porridge as he rushed back to school.

Lova

‘Here, have the last one,’ said Nuria, throwing a fish at her. Lova caught it mid-air and swallowed.

‘Thanks.’

‘So what’s on your list today?’ Nuria sat next to the pond, spreading her wings as further apart as she could.

Lova huffed. ‘For once, nothing.’

‘Oh, wow. ’

‘Yeah, I know.’

‘The historian of the clan decides to take a day off. This is monumental.’ Nuria stood up and roared. ‘We must celebrate. Quickly, someone inform the Shaman to prepare the festivities.’

‘Shut up, you mouth breather,’ said Lova, smiling. They both roared. ‘What about you? Anything interesting planned?’

‘Nah, I’m on defence today. Keep an eye on humans. Check if there are any changes… the usual.’

‘So, also nothing. Got it.’

‘Exactly.’

‘Well, I’m off then,’ said Lova. ‘See you tonight?’

Nuria nodded at her as she flapped her wings. Lova flew through the left tunnel following the illuminated crystals on the walls until she reached the Heart. She stopped in the air for a few seconds to admire everything. Her eyes moved from the Market to the Hunting Grounds to the hundreds of nests at the far end. She even saw her home from there. What a beautiful city they had, all adorned with plants and colourful lights. Lova fluttered her wings and she was on the move. She chose the tunnel at the very top of the underground fortress and flew at maximum speed.

And there it was. The infamous Barrier, an unknown force that separated them from the humans, separated centuries of bloodshed and pain.

Lova required a few minutes to adjust to the sunlight, before flying around the Valley, enjoying the warmth. She looked up and noticed her little ‘distraction’ as she called him. A boy with dark hair that always sat in the same spot at more or less the same time of the day. She regulated her vision to see him up close. He was eating something, his brown eyes looking at her.

‘You want a show? I’ll give you one.’

Lova sprinted towards him, placed one wing over the other and spun, morphing into a purple tornado. The boy laughed. She smiled in response and landed on a patch of grass, allowing her body to rest on one side.

The sky was bright with cotton white clouds spread all across it. Oh, how powerful her ancestors must’ve felt when they rode the Infinite Blue. One day, she was going to do it too. Lova placed her head on her front arms and closed her eyes.

When she re-opened them, it was dark, the moon taking dominion over the sky. Clouds had been replaced by bright stars and the boy at the top by a ginger girl. There were no dragons in the air, most of them asleep either in the Valley or down in the Heart. It was time for her to return home. She approached the hole in the ground and looked up one more time. The ginger girl’s frantic movements caught Lova’s interest. Was she narrating a story? Arguing with someone? Another boy with robust shoulders came forward. Was he… holding someone? Lova regulated her vision and her eyes widened as he noticed the third person. It was the boy from that morning. Her ‘distraction’. The girl punched him in the face and the other boy dragged him closer to the edge.

What were they doing to him?

They forced him down on his chest before stepping on his back. The boy was in pain, tears roaming down his cheeks. They each grabbed one of his legs and held him over the edge, swinging him like a leaf in the air.

Lova’s eyes were fixated on her ‘distraction’, her heart pounding strongly against her chest.

They released their grip and the boy was free falling. Without hesitation, Lova sprinted towards him, her wings straight, her mouth opened. She roared as loud as she could, embracing to crush into the Barrier. Instead, a gap formed around her and she caught the boy with her right leg.

Astonished, the ‘distraction’ looked at her and she at him, as they slowly descended into the Valley.