Dragons of old, with eyes like stars,

Held truths more vast than mortal scars.

Their eggs, like jewels of breath and flame,

Now fall to hands that know not shame.

Skylar

I watch as my father and his soldiers enter the castle walls. My father looks smug and proud.

"My people, we have done it," he says, uncovering the golden egg and lifting it above his head.

Everyone around me gasps, then applauds, as if stealing a dragon egg from its mother is something to be celebrated. I ignore my own aversion to the practice and clap along with everyone else.

"Call everyone in and lower the portcullis! The dragons will be coming for this one." My father's voice booms through the courtyard.

He gets off his horse, carefully holding the egg, as one of the stable hands comes to get his horse.

"Get the horses secured quickly," he says, turning to his soldiers. "Get the torches lit and the harpoons manned! Hurry," he says, before striding quickly in my direction. "Prince Kenneth, Skylar, come with me."

Kenneth falls into step beside my father. "Where did you find it?" my betrothed asks quietly.

"High up in the mountains. I'll show you once the dragons are gone," my father murmurs. "I need to secure the egg, then I'll be back to fight."

"Where do you want my men?" Kenneth asks.

"Put your men in the turrets. They can protect my harpoon launchers."

Kenneth turns, stopping quickly to pull me into a kiss. "Be careful, Princess," he says before striding away.

I only watch him for a moment before turning to catch up to my father.

"Where are you putting this one?" I ask.

I need to know so I can steal it and return it to its mother. Each time I've stolen one of these eggs, my father has found a new hiding spot for it.

"This time, I've made sure the thief can't get it," my father growls.

He has no idea that I am his dragon thief. I am his worst enemy when it comes to these dragon eggs. Not only does it put our kingdom at risk every time he steals one, but in my heart, I know it's not right. Dragons were not meant to be tamed and used as weapons, which is exactly what my father intends to do with the dragons he's found. I have no doubt he would try to beat the poor beast into submission if it didn't submit to his will, and I refuse to stand by and watch that.

The first time my father found a dragon egg, I was too young and naïve to know what to do. Thankfully, that egg never hatched. It was a green, the most common of the dragons.

The next egg was a red, a female. I was sixteen years old. I was terrified, but I'd managed to get the egg out in the middle of the night, then sneak back into the castle while my father and his soldiers were out searching for the thief in the hopes of regaining the egg.

A year later, my father found a bronze egg. That one was heavier and larger than the first two and it had taken a lot for me to get it out of the castle unseen. By the time I'd heard the steady beat of dragon wings, telling me that the dragons were coming for their egg, my arms had been burning like fire from carrying the heavy egg.

It really isn't the size of the egg though. The eggs are deceptively small. It's the animal inside of it that gives the egg its weight. I have no doubt that the queen egg will be even heavier. Based on my father shifting the egg back and forth in his arms, I know I'm right.

"I'm glad I made special arrangements this time. Who would have thought I'd find a queen, Skylar! A queen!" he says, excitedly as he leads me down a narrow hallway.

He turns, looking to make sure we're not being followed, then continues.

Our castle is huge and there are many places to hide a dragon egg here. However, my father learned after the first egg didn't hatch, that dragon eggs need to be kept warm, just like most animals who are hatched from an egg.

The deeper we walk into the castle the warmer it gets. This is new. The castle is made of stone, it's not usually warm except in summer. Since it's spring and late afternoon, this part of the castle should be cold.

When we get to a door with a key in the lock, my father turns.

"Here, hold this. It's heavier than it looks, Skylar, so be careful."

I take the egg and, yes, it's definitely heavier than it looks. It's at least twice the weight of the bronze I stole last year. My mind begins reeling with how I'm going to get this heavy egg out of the castle without dropping it. I won't be able to move fast with this thing in my arms. I'm stronger than I was last year, having realized that I needed to strengthen my arms in case my father got another egg, but I wasn't anticipating this weight. This egg easily weighs a hundred pounds, maybe more. Since I have a slight frame, only weighing one hundred and fifteen pounds myself, this egg is nearly doubling my weight.

As my father opens the door, two things happen at once. I get a blast of hot air from inside the room, and I swear I feel the dragon move inside the egg.

I look down, half expecting the queen to begin hatching.

"Skylar! Hurry up," my father urges, drawing my attention back to him.

In the center of the room is what looks like a large nest. Underneath and around the edges of the nest, there are glowing embers, hot coals that will keep the egg warm. The nest itself has been filled with some sort of nesting material that looks a lot like sheep's fur.

My father goes to the wall and throws a switch that's hidden in between the cracks of stone.

"What is that?" I ask, as he comes to take the egg from me.

"That is a trigger. Once I place the egg on its nest, if the weight is removed, that flamethrower will burn our thief alive," he says, pointing up at the corner of the room, where a flamethrower is pointed directly at the nest.

 "Shouldn't you have waited to set the trigger until after you put the egg on it?" I ask, not wanting to watch my father get burned alive in front of me.

"I'll be fine," he says distractedly, carefully setting the egg in the nest. I hear the click as the trigger sets and my father pulls his hands away and steps back slowly.

When he turns, he has a haughty smile on his face.

"Let the thief get past that," he says.

We're just about to walk out of the stifling hot room, when we hear the roar. The walls of the castle rumble, sending dust and debris cascading around us.

The dragons have arrived.

"Find someplace to hide, Skylar!" my father says racing from the room.

As I rush after him I realize that, in his haste, he forgot to lock the door behind him. That will make it easier for me to get the egg and get out of here.

For kings and queens, their hunger wide,

Would trade all love to mount and ride.

They scorn the bond, they steal by night,

To claim the sky through wrongful right.

Ryuki

When a Queen calls, the dragons come. All of them.

As we fly toward the castle where the golden egg was taken, the setting sun glints off silver, bronze, red, blue, and green. And at the very front, it shimmers off our golden queen.

While I can't hear Ylys, all the dragons can speak to each other. I don't have to have a mind link with the queen to know that she's furious. I can feel it rolling off her in waves. Her fury is flaming the rage in the rest of the Thunder.

We're in flight formation, a typical V-formation which I thought was because they are winged animals. However, Bynjym brought to my attention that it's about their numbers not because they can fly. Ylys is in front, by herself, followed by the silver dragons, then the bronze dragons, then blue, red, and finally, greens.

There are only four silver dragons, and I am the only rider of a silver. There is a bronze rider, two red, two blue, and three green riders. That's all of us, nine riders. That's how selective the dragons are about who they will bond their lives to. It makes me even more proud to know that I was not only worthy of being a dragon rider, but worthy of being a rider to a silver dragon.

It makes what these royals are doing that much more infuriating. They think they can force a bond between themselves and a dragon. The dragon chooses the rider, not the other way around. You don't get to decide to become a dragonrider. If the dragon doesn't choose you, and you try to force them into a bond, they'll kill you.

If we weren't talking about fledgling dragons, it wouldn't be a problem. But young dragons can't fly right away. They need to strengthen their wings, and they eat constantly so they can support their speedy growth. Even Bynjym, who is five and a fully mature dragon, still eats a lot. Fledglings require care that a human who isn't bonded to a dragon would know nothing about.

As we race toward the castle, I pull my bow over my shoulder. As a rider, I always carry a bow and arrows. We never know when we might be attacked by royals, have to fight to protect a young dragon, or like now, have to attack to get our dragon egg back.

I can see the soldiers running across the ramparts, getting into position. The arrows that the soldiers shoot at the dragons only hurt if they slice through their wings, or hit them in a sensitive spot, like their eyes. It's the harpoons that we have to be careful of.

We are high in the sky and Ylys slows so we can look down at the castle. Because I can hear Bynjym, I know the dragons are planning an attack strategy. I don't want to interrupt him to ask what it is. I trust my dragon and I know from our battles in the last year that he is an excellent flyer. He's fast and agile in the air. We've spent thousands of hours working to strengthen my leg muscles so I can stay on his back while he dodges and twists in the flight. The stronger I am, the stronger my dragon is. If he's not protecting me, or catching me in the air, he can focus on what's important – finding the stolen egg.

Ylys screams a battle cry a moment before she dives. The rest of the Thunder follows behind her, answering her call to fight.

I lock my legs around Bynjym's body, leaning back as I nock an arrow. All of the dragons have tucked their wings and are barreling straight toward the castle.

I find my target, a person manning a harpoon, and I release my arrow, just as Bynjym extends his wings and blasts the soldiers with fire.

I hear a harpoon launch and Bynjym banks a hard left. I nock another arrow and aim at one of the soldiers on the rampart. There may only be nine riders in our group, but our dragons can all breathe fire.

I watch as several soldiers fall off the top of the castle walls in a fiery blaze, screaming until they hit the ground.

The soldiers have their own formation, but having a Thunder of dragons blasting fire at you causes chaos. There are screams of agony and smoke begins billowing around the ramparts, impeding their view.

I hear what sounds like a rock slide slamming to the ground. As Bynjym turns on his wing again, I see Ylys in the center of the fortress. She's landed and is shooting flames in every direction.

"PROTECT OUR QUEEN!" Bynjym bellows in the link.

The silver dragons all take a side and begin circling the ramparts, shooting fire over the soldiers who begin scurrying to get away.

As Bynjym turns to circle another side of the castle, I see one of the riders, Soma, free-falling in the air. Her dragon, Tyffyn, dives underneath her, catching her easily before lifting up in the sky.

I hear Bynjym rumbling unhappily. Tyffyn and Soma are our most recently bonded pair. They need more training. Soma can't fall off her dragon like that. Our focus needs to be proteicting Ylys and finding the egg.

I nock another arrow and let it fly, just as Bynjym turns another corner.

"BYNJYM!" I yell, watching as the harpoon turns toward Ylys.

Bynjym screams angrily and a bronze dragon, Vyctyr, who is closest to the turret where the harpoon is located, flies down, snatching the soldier manning the harpoon into his mouth and swallowing him whole. I know from experience that the dragon will vomit up the steal of the soldier's uniform later.

Another soldier races to the harpoon. I nock an arrow and just as I release it, Bynjym blows fire over the harpoon and the soldiers surrounding it. I hear their screams of agony, but I ignore it. Their king brought this on them. Not only did they steal a queen egg, but they killed one of our last remaining queens.

Suddenly, Ylys lifts into the air, screaming for the others to follow her.

'What's going on, Byn?' I ask as the silvers surround their queen while her giant wings pump air and lift her higher into the sky.

'The egg is on the move,' he says.

'The egg is on the move? What does that mean?' I ask.

'Someone has our queen. They are trying to escape with our egg,' he growls.

As Bynjym and the others take off in the direction where they can feel their future queen, I turn and look back at the castle. There are fires burning everywhere. However, there are still too many soldiers alive, running to put out the fires.

That means we'll most likely have to fight this group again.

Yet midst these lords who seek to reign,

One soul stands silent in her pain.

She walks in silk and royal thread,

But moonlight masks the life she's led.

Skylar

The moment my father raced off, I went straight to my bedroom. In the very back of my closet, I have the dark cloak that I wear when I steal eggs and sneak out of the castle. I quickly change out of my high heels and into shoes I can run in, and then put the cloak over me.

As I make my way back to the egg, I'm thankful that everyone is either panicking or rushing to fight. In my cloak, no one pays me any attention.

I can hear the roaring of multiple dragons outside, feel it in the shaking of the concrete walls of the castle, and smell it in the dust and debris that shakes loose as the walls quiver, fighting to maintain their position while the dragons roar threatens to bring them down.

The moment I'm back at the dragon egg, I wrap the long silk scarf I brought around my neck, tying in in a knot and letting it hang to my waist. I throw the switch to turn off the trigger, but with so much noise going on around the castle, I can't tell if it turned off or not.

I look up at the flame thrower as I reach out for the egg. Sending up a silent prayer to whatever deity might be listening, I slowly move the egg off the trigger. As soon as it's on the edge of the nest, I lift it, finally taking a breath now that the flame thrower didn't burn me alive.

I tuck the egg into my silk scarf, flip the switch for the trigger again, then rush out the door.

Unlike my father, I take a moment to close the door, but without the key, that's all I can do. Rather than heading back to the main area of the castle, I head to the farthest reaches of the castle.

Very few people come this way. There are no bedrooms, no meeting rooms, and no dining halls. This area is reserved for space as my father or I deem necessary, like hiding dragon eggs.

I keep one arm around the heavy egg as I make my way through the castle's corridors, listening to the sounds of the angry dragons above me.

Once again, I swear I feel the dragon in the egg move.

"Hey, little one. Do me a favor and don't hatch yet. I need you to wait until you're back with your kind. Just hang on a little bit longer," I say, rubbing my hand against the egg in what I hope is a soothing gesture.

I've just reached the end of another long hallway when it feels like the earth shakes around me. I hear another angry bellow of a dragon and several others screeching.

When I open the door to exit the castle walls, I stop. I am bombarded with the sound of warriors screaming in fear and in pain. Just before I take a step, a soldier smashes to the ground in front of me. He has literally been burnt to a crisp. His body is still smoking, and the smell of his scorched flesh makes me want to vomit.

I swallow the bile in my throat and turn away from the body. There's nothing I can do for him now.

Because this egg is so heavy, I can't run, but I move as fast as I can through the forest.

Our castle is on a hill, but the best place for me to leave this egg is higher up in the mountains. So, I make my way to a small pathway and I begin to climb.

"Geez, dragon, could you be any heavier?" I grumble as I walk up the steep incline carrying twice my weight.

When I come to an area where I can look to see what's going on at the castle, I'm shocked. There is fire everywhere. It looks like the entire castle is on fire and as I watch, I see a beautiful golden dragon lift up out of the castle's courtyard.

"Shit!" I exclaim. They've probably realized that I have the egg and I've left the castle. I need to drop the little egg off and then get back before my father realizes that I'm gone.

I begin moving faster, using my hands and legs to run up the steep incline of the mountain.

When I get to the top, I race through the forest to an area where I know there is an opening.

I've barely stumbled ten feet into the clearing when I feel the earth shake around me again. This time, however, it seems as if the entire world has suddenly been covered in gold. Even in the dark her body shimmers in the moonlight.

I stop, forcing myself not to scream, run, or lose my bowels, all things my mind and body want to do at this moment. I try to control my heartrate and my breathing. When that doesn't work, I pull the heavy egg out of the improvisional carrier I made from my scarf and, keeping my head bowed in deference, I extend the egg to the golden queen in front of me.

All around me, dragons begin landing. The space here isn't meant for so many large animals and it feels suffocating.

I feel the queen's snout touch the top of my head. She takes a deep breath, making me feel lightheaded and strange. Then I feel the heat of her breath as she exhales.

'What is your name?'

My head snaps up quickly, unsure of who was speaking to me.

I can't see anything past this huge dragon.

"Skylar," I answer, not sure who I'm answering.

'Why are you running away with a queen egg, Skylar?' the voice says. It's a female's voice, but it has an eerily ethereal quality to it.

"I was trying to bring it back to the dragons," I say.

It's quiet a moment and my arms begin to shake with weight of the egg.

"Please, I need to put the egg down," I say. "It's too heavy for me to hold."

The queen reaches out and takes the egg from my hands. As soon as the weight is lifted, I drop my arms at my side, but I don't look up. I continue to leave my head bowed in deference to her station as queen.

"She helped me, My Queen. She's the one who rescued my egg," I hear a higher pitched voice say.

I glance to the side and see a red dragon. She leans over and sniffs me, just like the gold did. Once again, I feel dizzy and I'm pretty sure I sway on my feet.

"She is the one who rescued me, as well, My Queen."

I turn to where I think I heard the voice, but standing there is a bronze dragon.

"So, this isn't the first egg that you're returned to us, Skylar?" the first voice says.

"No. I don't agree with the practice of stealing eggs from a mother. When I can, I return them to the dragons," I say.

"What would you say if I told you they killed this dragon's mother in order to steal her," the voice says.

For a moment, I forget my fear, the horror of what I just heard making me act without thought. I look up into the golden eyes of the queen dragon.

"They killed a queen?" I ask, appalled.

"That upsets you?" the voice says.

"Of course it does! She was a queen. They are so rare."

"There are only two of us now," the voice says.

"Wait ... I can hear you?"

"It appears so."

"I ..." how do you apologize to a dragon for what your father and the other royals have done to them? "I'm sorry."

"You are not to blame. According to Syphy and Yttyc, you rescued them after they were captured. You are, quite likely, the only reason they aren't being held captive in horrible conditions or possibly dead at the hands of incompetent humans.

I stand up straighter and realize that I'm not only surrounded by dragons on the ground, I'm surrounded by some in the sky as well. Of those in the sky, some actually have riders.

I've heard of dragon riders, people who are chosen by the dragons. I wonder if these riders were all chosen by their dragons. I push that thought away and look at the red dragon.

"Syphy? That's you?"

'Yes, human. I am Syphy.'

"I'm glad you're safe and that you didn't come to any harm because your egg was stolen," I say, then turn to the bronze. "And you are Yttyc?"

"Yes, human," a much deeper voice says.

"I'm glad you are safe as well. I'm glad my efforts weren't for nothing."

I turn back and face the queen.

"I am Ylys," she says.

"Queen Ylys, it's nice to meet you. Will the egg be okay, even though the mother is gone?" I ask, worried about the little dragon. "I think she's ready to hatch. I could feel her moving around in the egg."

The dragons around me all begin making a deep rumbling sound. I have no idea if that's good or bad.

Ylys lowers her head so her eye is at my level.

"I will be interested to see what happens with you, human. But no, this egg is not ready to hatch just yet."

She carefully takes the egg in her claws and looks at the other dragons.

"The human lives," she says and then lifts into the air, carrying the dragon egg with her.

The others lift off behind her. I notice the dragon riders watching me, but I ignore them.

I need to get back to the castle quickly so my father doesn't know that I was gone.