Kings of the Skies Chapter 3 Dragon Duo
It's Monday, and Monday's are hard to get up on, and hard to get through, butt Scribbles is here to help with another chapter from Kings of the Skies. And this one's got dragooooons! Or one to be precise. Either way please enjoy! :)The dragon sailed over the tree line, rustling the leaves as it passed them by. Kip pulled up on the reins as they headed for an oncoming slope.
“Come on Jumper! Up! Up! You can do it girl.” She yelled into the dragon’s ear.
Kip let Jumper the ascent. She hung onto the reins and felt as Jumper angled upward, surging forward with broad strokes of her emerald-colored wings. Gravity tugged at Kip, trying it best to pull her from her seat, but she clutched on looking forward. A spectacularly pine tree rose above the rest of the forest and Jumper was headed straight for it. Kip laughed nervously.
“Jumper? Come on girl, spin!”
The tree closed in quickly. Just as the dragon’s snout was about to plunged headfirst into the tree, Jumper tucked her wings. Kip pressed her body against the dragon’s neck as it began to spiral. The world flashed upside down in a mix of green, brown, and blue. Kip held her breath the entire time. They leveled out with a jerk from Jumper. To Kip’s relief and excitement they were over the rise in the forest, the pine tree now behind and to the left.
“You did it jumpy!” Kip exclaimed with a tone of joy mixed in with more than enough relief. “I knew you could do it!”
Kip’s face split into a wide smile from ear to ear. The two had been practicing the spiral dodge for some time, and it was the first time they had done it without incident. Jumper registered the tone in Kip’s voice and responded by shaking her head and swishing her tail. Kip felt a small rumble throughout Jumper’s body as well.
“Now, let’s try one last time on the way back home.” Kip turned the leather reins wrapped around Jumper’s muscular, scaled neck.
Jumper turned with grace as Kip stood up on her stirrups. It was more than dangerous, but Kip was feeling pretty good. She’ll catch me if I fall. She’s done it before. The duo headed back down the slope.
Now that they had about-faced, Kip’s view had changed from rolling hills and forests, to a plain stretching to the edge of Revaltree. The cottages for the farmers speckled out about two miles from the large stockade of the outer rim of the city. Inside, although not visible from her vantage point, Kip knew, there was a bustle of activities complete with vendors, farmers selling produce, butcher shops, stables, and the blacksmith off near the back. Beyond that rose the strong towers and buttresses of the actual castle in all its grandeur of waving pennants, black-shingled roofs, and to the left of the main keep were the massive dragon barns, small brown blobs from the sky.
“Let’s do this right again, eh Jumpy?” Kip whispered. Jumper responded by shaking her head back and forth. Kip leaned back, just to be on the safe side. Don’t need have her stab me through the throat with her horn.
It was much more difficult to pick out the tall pine coming down the slope. The backdrop of the forest rather than the sky helped it to blend in with its surroundings. I’ll Jumper handle this. Her senses are better than mine. Kip patted Jumper on the neck before she gripped the reins and sunk down in her seat once more. The pine tree rose out of nowhere, barely a hundred feet in front of the duo. Flying downhill had already increased Jumper’s speed, and when she tucked her wings she dropped like a sack of potatoes. Kip sucked in a lungful of breath and hung on for dear life.
Jumper grazed her left wing against the branches as they shot by, knocking them off balance. Kip slid in her saddle, desperate to hold on. Her grip loosened as they spiraled again and again at an awkward downward angle. Everything passing by was a blur. Her hair flew out of its band and slapped her in the face. Her head felt like it was about to explode. Then with a tremendous jolt they were level Kip left the seat of Jumper for a moment before dropping hard onto it.
“Land jumper, land,” she coughed out, lungs sucking in air. They circled for a moment before Jumper found a clearing large enough for her, and they descended. The moment Jumper’s paws touched the lush green grass of the quaint clearing, Kip slipped out of her saddle and plopped to the ground. Her knees were or wobbly than she had expected and she tripped to her knees. She sat there for several minutes, trying to keep her stomach down. The clearing was still spinning in her view, but Kip managed to spot a waterhole which Jumper was drinking from like there was no tomorrow, and she dragged herself to the edge of it.
Kip plunged her head into the water, and came up spluttering from the shock of cold. Then she trust her head back in, holding it there for a good two minutes. She slammed her eyes shut, trying to stop the dizzy spell. She pulled herself from the water and took several deep breaths. The world was fairly calm down. The only motion was the ripples falling from her face and hair, and the woodpecker pecking away across the waterhole. Jumper’s eyes were wide, glancing back and forth from the woodpecker to Kip to the woodpecker.
Kip took one look at herself in the reflection of the stilling water. Her auburn hair was in a sopping tangled mess, with her hairband twisted around a few strands. Her cheeks were rosy, her wide lips pursed. Not that bad considering all the times we’ve crashed. Kip turned to Jumper who was still prancing back and forth on her paws, watching the woodpecker. Kip laid a hand on Jumper’s wet nose.
“Hey girl, let’s go.”
Jumper turned and looked Kip over, as if giving her an inspection. She sniffed Kip’s hand and hair, then took a step back as if the investigation was complete and Kip was free to go. But just as she took a step forward, Jumper extended her big pink tongue, and gave Kip a hearty lick on her face.
“Hey!” Kip said in a playful, kiddish voice, “How dare you insult the royal family like that?” She took a clump of dirt from the edge of the water and hurled it at the dragon. It splattered across Jumper’s underside of her whitish-green neck. Jumper Shook her head and barred her teeth, rising up on her hind legs.
“Wide open target, eh?” Kip smirked, pelting Jumper’s belly with the mud.
Jumper let out a small growl, followed by a sort of whimper similar to that of a dog, then she rose of and jumped into the water hole, head first. The splash sent water cascading onto Kip who held up her arms to shield the splash.
“You little brat,” she hollered, jumping into the water.
Jumper hopped to the side, sending a small wave that knocked Kip from her feet. She came up with hair all over her eyes. Wiping the auburn hair away, she ran to Jumper, slipped underneath the dragon, and smacked her. Jumper’s eyes went wide and she stuck her head between her two front legs. Kip meanwhile slipped around the other side and hopped into her saddle.
Jumper’s head shot up, confused for a second. She swung it back and looked Kip straight in the eyes. With a defiant buck she sent Kip into the water once more, before crashing to her side and sticking her legs up in the air. Kip pushed herself up and rubbed the dragon’s belly.
“You’re just a big baby, aren’t you?”
In response, Jumper stuck her tongue over one side of her mouth. Kip laughed.
Thanks for reading today, Scribblets! We'll be back tomorrow, and then Thursday and Friday. See you tomorrow!!! rawr
~SarChi
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