Dragon Feared Read online

  I did so gladly and was equally happy the teacher didn’t pay me much mind other than handing over a textbook while he was addressing the entire class about today’s assignment.

  I tried to pay attention in this class, but every time I shifted on my stool, my knee bumped Jared’s.

  After the third time, I began to think he purposely shifted his leg the same time I did.

  The girly side of me ranted about my not wearing a skirt today.

  When it happened again, we glanced at each other and broke out into quiet laughter until Mr. Curtis shot us both a glare.

  I mumbled an apology and ducked my head, focusing on my notes.

  Class ended, and I was eager to get out of there and to my next class.

  “Mystical History is going to be great,” I said excitedly as we exited the science building. “And I love being outside in between classes!” I threw my head back and soaked up the warm sun as he laughed.

  “You have to be the only person on this campus excited for class.”

  “It’s history, and I am a history nerd,” I explained. “Besides, this will be a good chance for me to learn about my new world, right?”

  “Yeah, it will be.” His hand brushed over mine again, and I nibbled my bottom lip.

  How lucky could a girl get? Starting at a new private school, learning she’s a witch, and already stealing the attention of a handsome guy?

  I clutched the strap of my tote harder and let my hand nudge his back.

  He glanced down, eyes wide, and I worried I read the signals wrong, but then he did it right back, and we shared a grin before he held open the door to the history building, and we were swept up in the rush of other students hurrying to their next class.

  Two

  Everest

  We entered into the Mystical History classroom, and I smiled when I saw Amelie, Janelle, and Penelope, but I was not too pleased to see that Alana and her group of friends were also here. Not only that, but Jared had a group of friends here as well. They were all spaced out away from each other, and I realized this class had all the cliques in it.

  I climbed the few steps up into the seating and joined Amelie when she motioned to the seat right next to her. I felt all eyes on me and a very annoyed glare.

  Alana tapped her pen loudly on her desk, but all I did was offer up another sweet smile, and she squeezed her pen so hard, I was surprised it didn’t snap in half.

  Janelle and Penelope sat in the two seats behind me and Amelie. Jared was in the next section of seats in the middle of the room, joking around with some other guys about something or other. But every few seconds, he glanced strayed towards me and Amelie nudged my arm playfully, making me blush more than I already was. I decided that this was going to be my favorite class—despite Alana’s presence.

  There were still a few minutes left before class started when a charming young teacher entered, dressed in a black dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He couldn’t have been ten years older than us, and I could tell everyone in this room liked him. They immediately perked up, and the room fell quiet.

  “Morning,” several students called out happily as he set his leather messenger bag on the desk at the front of the room.

  “What’s up, everyone? I trust you all had a very productive day off classes?” he called back casually, and smirked when there was a burst of laughter. “Thought so.” He pulled out several books from his bag and tossed them on his desk. He scanned the group of students, and his red eyes landed on me. “Everest, would you come here for a moment?”

  I was nervous at how all the teachers already knew my name, but it made sense. I was the only new student at this school and apparently being mortal-raised made me a bit of a celebrity, in a bad way.

  He dug through his desk and pulled out a small book, handing it to me when I reached him.

  “You much of a reader?” he asked politely.

  “I love to read.”

  “Great, me too,” he exclaimed.

  There was something about his upbeat personality and that charming face of his that made me smile and relax.

  “This isn’t a heavy read here, and while I try not to assign students extra loads, I think it would be good for you to have a look at it. I see you have a lot of classes already, so just read it in your spare time. It will help you get a little caught up. From what Headmistress Elsa tells me, you probably do not know much about Mystical History, so I snagged this from the library this morning.”

  “Thank you, um…” I could not remember his name from my class list.

  “Professor Fredwin,” he said politely. “Now, don’t feel overwhelmed. Today is actually a review day for us, so just sit back, listen, and take notes. I’ll do what I can to make sure you get caught up. If you have any questions about what we’re discussing today, don’t be embarrassed to ask. We’re all about discussions in this classroom.”

  “Thank you, Professor Fredwin.”

  He sent me back to my seat, then slammed a ruler down on his table, causing half the classroom to jump—myself included, but he was grinning as he did it.

  “We awake?” he asked playfully, and some of the kids in the classroom chuckled.

  “Professor Fredwin is the best teacher on campus,” Amelie whispered.

  I nodded, already seeing how that would be so.

  “All right, everyone, last week we were discussing The Shadowguard War,” Professor Fredwin began. “Alana—year?” he asked and pointed to her.

  “It began in 1304,” Alana stated proudly from the back of the room.

  “Excellent, Miss Shannen, and what political event lead up to the war?” he asked, still pointing at her.

  “The Black Diamond Dragons formed an alliance with the Shadowguard Dragons,” Alana recited smartly, shooting me a haughty look as she did so.

  “Wonderful,” Professor Fredwin said, and then his eyes darted toward Janelle. “Why was this significant?”

  Janelle sat upright. “The Black Diamond Dragons at the time were already at odds with the Hollow Well over disputes on how to handle mortals. The Black Diamonds sought to rule over them, while the Hollow Well sought peace. Their alliance with the Shadowguard Dragons quadrupled their numbers.”

  As Janelle spoke, I jotted notes down as quickly as I could, fascinated by what I was hearing.

  Professor Fredwin bounced about the room engaging each student in the discussion, and it was endearing.

  I would have had a much harder time dropping out of school back in Jersey had I had a teacher like this, clearly dedicated to his students learning as much as they could in a fun yet enlightening environment.

  “Mister Winchester,” Professor Fredwin called. “Describe the Hollow Well’s initial strategy in defeating the Shadowguard and Black Diamonds. Go.”

  Jared sputtered for a moment in surprise, having just been whispering with one of his friends beside him, but he pulled it together. “Take out the Black Diamonds,” he said. “They were the ringleaders, so the thought was to get rid of them and that eventually, the Shadowguard Dragons would be willing to negotiate a peace treaty and stop the war. Within the first two years of the fighting breaking out, the entire Black Diamond clan had been completely exterminated, and they assumed the Shadowguard would surrender. However, that didn’t work.”

  “And why not?”

  I was watching him curiously, too, wondering how this war had ended, even though there was something familiar about all this, from what Edgar had told me.

  “Because by then, the Shadowguard had been hit hard several times by the Hollow Well attacks on their clan. Most believe it was about revenge at this point, claiming many innocents had been slaughtered by the other clan, and the Shadowguard knew they still had the numbers. Their leaders ordered heavier and heavier strikes against the Hollow Well, so the Hollow Well began forming alliances with every other dragon clan in existence at that time,” Jared explained, but there was something different about his voice.

  He sounded angry
almost.

  I knew he was a Hollow Well, but this was ancient history, right? Why was he so upset about it?

  “William,” Professor Fredwin called on a guy in the back. “This seemed like a good plan, wouldn’t you agree?”

  “I think so.”

  “Then why did this not work?”

  “The Shadowguard Dragons are comparable in size to a Hollow Well Dragons, but their strength and stamina are unique to their breed. And, even though it was rare, some Shadowguard Dragons at that time carried a mystic gene that allowed the manipulation of water. It’s very similar to some Hollow Wells or Black Diamonds who could breathe fire, but that’s pretty rare now.”

  That William guy looked my way for a minute as though he had just added that last part in for my benefit.

  I appreciated it; I had no idea some Hollow Wells could breathe fire, or that this talent was considered to be rare. Silly me, I assumed all dragons could breathe fire; apparently, not everything in the movies was accurate. Surprise.

  He continued. “Basically, a Shadowguard could swallow a Petite Emerald or even a Golden Sphinx Dragon whole, and then their specialty troops of mystic dragons could take out entire Hollow Well troops with their abilities,” William added. “If they had an entire unit breathing fire that is.”

  I was becoming more and more fascinated with this history lesson. My hand cramped from writing so much, but I didn’t stop, not for a second. Jared said I needed to know about my new society, and history was a huge part of what shaped that and their culture.

  “You’re missing one more strategic advantage the Shadowguard Dragons had, William.” He pointed. “Penelope, help him out.”

  Penelope sat upright. “Um… they used mortals as shields. They would set up within their villages knowing the Hollow Well Dragons would not attack if it meant killing innocent humans. The Shadowguard Dragons would take entire cities under siege and use humans as war slaves—often using them to lure in Hollow Well troops to ambush them.”

  “Bring it on home, Amelie,” Professor Fredwin said. “What was the tipping point of the war that would ultimately result in the Hollow Well victory?”

  “The Great Mystic Allegiance,” she said. “The First Communion.”

  I dropped my pen as I sat upright in my chair.

  They were talking about the same thing Edgar had been, and I strained to remember what exactly he’d told me, my hand straying to the necklace still hidden under my blouse.

  “I knew it,” I whispered, but the entire class had grown so quiet, they all heard me.

  I immediately blushed because I had drawn attention to myself and tried to hunker back down over my notes, but too late.

  Professor Fredwin smiled at me. “Are you familiar with this history, Everest?”

  “Doubt it,” I could hear Alana say from the back and then announced for the entire class to hear, “She’s mortal-raised. She doesn’t know anything about us, how could she?”

  A murmur went through the class.

  I glanced back, and I could see a few glares coming my way.

  “I thought they didn’t let mortal-raised students here?” a few people whispered.

  Professor Fredwin cleared his throat, and I looked back at him. He was smiling at me with this reassuring look.

  “Are you familiar with the Shadowguard War?” he asked.

  “A little,” I said. “My uncle told me about it once.”

  “So,” Professor Fredwin said, pulling me into the discussion now. “Can you tell me anything about the First Communion?”

  “Not much,” I said, shifting in my chair, hating how everyone stared at me. At least I had a good memory. “I know they were a group of six witches who used spells to protect the Hollow Well Dragons during battle…” I paused, remembering the dream I had the first night at Edgar’s home. I’d been on the back of a dragon, using magic to use a shield around it. Without thinking, I added, “They created shields and rode the dragons into battle.”

  Professor Fredwin’s brow rose at that, and I quickly cleared my throat.

  “And, I think that’s why the Hollow Well was able to win, right?” I finished quickly.

  “Exactly, very good.” He eyed me a few seconds longer before moving on, and I sighed in relief. “Now, the First Communion was not just any group of witches, mind you—they were the first group of witches. Before then, despite what your mortal history might tell you, magic had been reserved entirely for men—for warlocks. The warlocks at the time had refused an alliance with the Hollow Well, saying they did not wish to get involved with their war. A group of women, the First Communion, had been secretly practicing magic and went to the Hollow Well offering aid.” He turned back to Amelie. “And, Miss Amelie, what did the magic world learn about sorcery from these battles?”

  I noted a few of the guys—obviously warlocks—slumped down in their desks.

  Amelie beamed. “Women are nearly ten times more capable at controlling magic than men.”

  Professor Fredwin nodded. “Yes, sorry, fellas, but it’s a right of biology. Witches were able to cast larger, greater, more powerful spells that the Shadowguard Dragons simply did not see coming.”

  “Why?” I asked without thinking, but Professor Fredwin smiled encouragingly.

  “It is believed, women have a better understanding of their emotions, subconsciously, and power comes from emotions. You’ll learn more about it in your spellcasting class, but that’s the easy version.”

  I jotted a brief note down about it, and he moved on.

  “Once the Shadowguards were defeated, what group was formed? Jared?”

  “The Council,” Jared said proudly. “Which is still in existence.”

  I raised my hand this time as I asked, “What is the Council?”

  Alana piped up. “Wow, you don’t even know what the Council is?”

  “Miss Shannen,” Professor Fredwin scolded, and she clamped her mouth shut. “You know the deal, all questions are welcome here. Now, how about you be polite and answer Everest’s question.”

  She turned to me and smiled, but her eyes promised she’d get me back later, somehow. “It’s our government. It’s made up of both witches and dragons, and they rule over the mystical world. After the war, they decided the best way to keep peace and to keep mortals safe was to keep them in the dark about the mystical world. Performing magic in front of mortals became illegal. As did shapeshifting. And, they started the Hunters of Shadowguards.”

  “Hunters of Shadowguards?” I questioned.

  “Think of it as a police force,” Jared said. “They still exist today as well. In fact, that’s what I want to do when I graduate. They enforce the laws of The Council, and most importantly, they work to exterminate the remaining Shadowguard Dragons who have been in hiding since the war.”

  Professor Fredwin looked at me, and I could tell he knew I had a question. “Yes, Everest?”

  I remembered Jared’s warning about being careful what I said, but exterminating an entire clan after all these years sounded harsh and hypocritical. The Shadowguard tried to wipe out the other clan and slaughtered innocents to do it, and now the Hollow Well and others were doing the exact same to them? What happened to being better than your enemy?

  “Why are you still hunting Shadowguard Dragons?” I asked.

  “Have you not been paying attention?” Alana asked, and Professor Fredwin shot another warning look her way.

  “War crimes,” one of the warlocks said. “The Shadowguard Dragons slaughtered people at rapid rates during the war. They tortured prisoners. They used mortals as shields. That’s why they’re hunted.”

  “But what does that have to do with Shadowguard Dragons now? They weren’t there for the war, right?” I interrupted.

  “Well, no,” Alana said from the back of the room. “But, they are still from the enemy clan.”

  “But, have they done anything to deserve extermination since the war that was what, over seven hundred years ago? I know their ancestors
did, but what does that have to do with them?” For thinking they were so much different than mortals, they sure acted the same and let history repeat itself without realizing it.

  The classroom fell silent.

  Professor Fredwin smiled in my direction. “That is an excellent question, Everest. I suppose you can write it off as politics,” he explained, but he seemed almost sad at his own words.

  “That’s awful,” I said, and saw Jared slumping down in his seat from the corner of my eye. I had probably insulted him, but I could not get past this one. “What do you people do when you catch a Shadowguard Dragon?”

  None of the students spoke, but Professor Fredwin did. “The Council has them executed.”

  “For what?” I asked horrified. “For existing? For looking different?”

  “The Shadowguards still commit crimes today, Everest,” Jared said softly, looking down.

  Professor Fredwin held up his hand to stop me from saying anything else, and I shut my mouth reluctantly. “Okay, I think we need to move past politics. Let’s discuss the First Communion a bit more. That is a very interesting topic.”

  I glanced at Jared again, wanting to apologize; I there was no way I was going to let this go forever. For the moment I would, but later, I’d get more answers. Since we were back to discussing the First Communion, I wondered at the necklace Edgar had given me, knowing it had to be important and was suddenly worried about what priceless artifact I wore around my neck.

  I raised my hand, and I heard someone in the back of the room moan. Whatever, I didn’t care at this point.

  “Yes, Everest?” Professor Fredwin asked, and I had to admit, he looked as if he enjoyed having me in class, stirring up things.

  “What was the importance of jewelry to the First Communion?” I asked.

  Professor Fredwin looked at me like it was a rather peculiar question. “How do you mean?”

  I hesitated, but pulled out my necklace that had been tucked into my shirt all morning. Some of the kids shifted around, trying to see what I held, and I decided I might as well take it off, so they could see it better and all get a good laugh when it turned out to be nothing.