*Katerina's POV*

As Rakota took flight, I glanced at the village and smoking crater. Goosebumps prickled along my arms as I recalled how dozens of spells had flown through the air. I hoped the villagers had escaped unscathed, and I wondered if any of them had gotten a good look at me or recognized me from my earlier stop. It might be wise to avoid this place for many years, and I took careful note of the road as we gained height so I could mark it on my map later.

True to the dragons' earlier discussion, we flew southwest toward the lake we had camped at instead of following the road north. I took out the remainder of my bun and nibbled on it as I tried to decide if I wanted the dragons to find the mages quickly or search for five more days until Rakota said he'd fly me to the southern city.

Finding the mages would involve another heated battle. Dragons might be powerful, but as I had just seen, they weren't invincible. I could very well die in the fight if a spell got past Rakota's defenses or if he fell out of the sky. Not finding the mages would mean spending five days on the red dragon's back while he searched, and two more until we reached the city. That was a lot of time and a serious gamble.

I gazed at the roads and villages below, once more wishing that sneaking away was a viable option, but Rakota had made it quite clear that he'd track me down. Was it worth trying to wander off and then claim I'd just gotten lost while collecting firewood or looking for berries?

How did tracking and tracing spells work? From the hints dropped, it seemed like they needed something I had been in contact with, like an arrow. All of my belongings were in my backpack– I broke off that thought and closed my eyes as I internally called myself ten kinds of idiots. I'd been sitting in this saddle for more hours than I'd carried that arrow, which meant they could easily find me if they wanted to.

The dragons likely wanted Randel and me to check more villages to see if the mages were there, and Randel clearly lacked the imagination and skills to do it himself. I could have several dragons looking for me, which wasn't a welcome thought. There was also the risk of Rakota sensing my hidden magic if he used sensing spells to find me. I grappled with the unpleasant options and associated risks.

My best option was to ask Rakota if he'd be willing to consider anything else and hope for a different answer than my previous attempts.

"Rakota?" I tentatively asked.

His head turned to the side just enough to look back at me. "Yes?" Like our previous conversations while flying, his voice wasn't distorted by the wind and almost seemed to be right by my ears.

"Um, I appreciate your earlier offer to fly me to Emerson City, but after seeing that battle with the mages and knowing another one is coming, would you be willing to discuss other locations, such as a closer village? I don't mind walking..."

"No, a nearby location isn't an option. Other places roughly as distant might be a possibility."

I'd expected the first half of his reply, but not the last part. It wasn't wise to question a dragon or argue with one, but I still wanted to know more, so I said, "I don't understand..."

"There are rules," he replied vaguely, facing directly ahead once more.

His words were less than helpful but reinforced my theory about a code of honor.

He glanced back again. "And if you're thinking of wandering off on your own, I'd track you quite easily with magic." He continued watching me, waiting for a reply.

I felt my face flush. "Uh, thank you for that information."

Seemingly satisfied with that answer, he began a slow descent to the lake we had camped near last night. A quick scan of the surrounding forest confirmed there were no roads nearby. I could see one in the distance, but if I had to guess, it was a full day's walk away.

As the other dragons began landing, the wind from their wings blew some of the firewood across the grass and further scattered the remains of my shelter. I still wasn't sure why Rakota had flipped it on its side and inspected it so closely this morning.

Rakota continued circling as he waited for his turn. A shadow crossed the back of his neck, and when I looked up, I saw a blue dragon spiraling downward. When it reached our height, the rider on its back grinned at me and waved cheerfully.

At a complete loss, I awkwardly waved back. Rakota began his downward descent, saving me from having to figure out how to react to the new arrival. As I stared at my hands – only one of which was hanging onto the handle – I wryly realized my fear of flying had worn off enough that it barely even distracted me from my thoughts.

Rakota landed near the pile of firewood, fanning his wings as he drifted down. I slid to the ground and bowed my head in thanks. As he walked away, the harness shimmered and disappeared.

After glancing at the blue dragon landing on the other side of the large clearing, I began setting the campsite to rights. I had just started restacking the firewood pile when the new rider came over.

"Hello, I'm Brandon. I hear you're having fun with mages." He also started tossing pieces of wood onto the pile.

"I'm Katerina. As for the mages, I'd much rather avoid them."

"That's normally a wise plan when it comes to black magic," he agreed cordially as he continued helping me. "How did today's hunt go?"

"Well–"

"Brandon! Glad to see you made it," Randel said as he came over.

"Randel, fancy seeing you here." The greeting was polite, but the warmth and relaxed tone weren't as prominent.

"Yeah, we got dragged in since we were nearby. Katerina's tagging along. She's really good at cooking bread. Better than anything at the castles, although the bun she got in the village was pretty good too, so maybe the kings just serve the fluffy stuff to guests to look fancy."

I remained silent and kept working, still trying to figure out how to react to the new arrival while Randel told him about today's events. I'd only ever seen three riders before, but none of them had smiled, let alone seemed friendly or approachable. Had he been a regular traveler, I would have had no problem returning the idle chatter, but I wasn't sure where the boundaries lay or how closely the blue dragon might be watching.

The new rider also had scales on the shoulders of his shirt – blue to match his dragon – although that was pretty much where the similarities between him and Randel ended. The style of his clothing was simple but elegant, and it looked far more casual than Randel's almost uniform-like attire. Stature-wise, Randel was fairly heavyset with broad shoulders, while Brandon had a leaner build.

"–so we're going to continue hunting for the mages tomorrow," Randel finally concluded.

"It's unusual for mages to have that many spells pre-charged, so it's probably wise to rest before going after the others. What are our plans between now and then?"

"Relax and start a fire. Hey, Katerina, can I borrow your fire flint?"

As much as I wanted to tell him it was the middle of the day, it would keep him occupied for a while. I went to where I had left my backpack and dug out the stone and steel rod.

"Catch." I tossed them over to him one at a time. My aim was decent as long as I wasn't using a bow, so he caught them easily.

I carried an armful of scattered wood to the woodpile and turned my attention to my shelter. The carefully stacked branches and interwoven twigs hadn't fared well against Rakota's claws. I walked around the collapsed remains of the half-dome shelter and decided it would be easier to start from scratch than to try and salvage it.

Shifting it a bit farther upwind would be helpful, and it wasn't like I had anything else to do today. I began moving the larger foundational sections to their new spot and arranging them to face the fire. It was close enough to keep me warm while I slept, but far enough back that no stray embers would reach me. After examining it for a moment, I rearranged the pieces to make a slightly different shelter than the one I'd hastily built last night.

Randel sat on his heels on the other side of the firepit and began striking the flint above the remaining firewood. I hid a smirk as the sparks cascaded upon the half-burnt sticks. Brandon also watched for a few seconds, and after shaking his head, apparently decided not to tell Randel that he needed tinder and proper kindling.

He came over and asked, "Can I help?"

"I guess, although I'm mostly doing this to kill time."

"I've got nothing else to do. What size branches do you want me to bring?"

"Would you mind helping me grab more willow branches? They're flexible enough to form a frame."

"Sure."

As he helped me build the base, his laid-back demeanor and easy-going nature slowly put me at ease. Apart from Randel's grumbling and the clicks of flint, it was actually peaceful.

I began humming as I worked contentedly. This design was going to take a couple of hours to build, although I didn't mind. I wondered if Randel would get the fire started before I finished.