The next chapter! Wow, I'm updating fast. After this, the real action begins! Enjoy, and please review!

Aika woke up, springing to her feet as a scaly dragon tail brushed against her leg. She glanced over her shoulder. Mivan was coiled up, his head resting on the stone and his tail flicking slowly.

"Mivan!" Aika muttered angrily, shoving the dragon's tail back up against him. Mivan raised his head, giving a huge, gaping yawn. He stared at her with innocent gray eyes. Aika stared sternly down at him, then turned and strode over to her small sack. She knelt down, scooping out a packet of herbs and a loop of rushes. She sat down cross-legged on the edge of the ledge, leaning against Mivan's side. She untied the small packet and dumped the contents into her hand. Some dried-up sunflower petals, a collection of multi-colored berries, sage grass, and several cloves of mint. She untied the rushes and started wrapping them around her leg, where she had been scraped by one of the black dragons. Once she had finished wrapping her leg and had slipped her torn silk trousers over it, she sorted the herbs into small piles. She used a rock to crush up the sunflower petals and the sage grass into a mixture, then sprinkled shredded mint onto it. She raised it to her mouth, and squeezing her eyes shut, she opened her mouth and popped it in. She forced herself to chew and swallow the bitter herbs. As soon as she was sure she had gotten every scrap down, she turned to Mivan.

He had fallen asleep again, and was lying on his side. She had a clear view of his ripped up belly. The soft scales that covered the belly had been shredded and torn off. Dried blood caked the area around the wound, and fresh blood still trickled out slowly. Aika frowned, creeping closer to examine it. A large wound had been gouged into him, short but deep. She looked down at her hand, where she held the remaining herbs in her palm. Not enough for a dragon, that was for sure.

"Mivan" Aika stroked her fingers along his tail gently "Wake up, now. We have to get out of here." Mivan didn't respond at first, then sat up drowsily. Aika grinned and started collecting her things back into the sack. She patted the herbs down between a book and a jar of animal teeth. When she had shoved them in firmly, she stood up and tied the string back around the opened side of the sack, tightening it down and swinging it onto Mivan's leather saddle. She carefully hoisted her wooden bow and arrow case back over her shoulders. She swept off any scraps from her camp that might attract attention. When she was satisfied, she backed up and wiped her hands off quickly with a silk cloth, then stuffed that into a small saddlebag.

Mivan stood up slowly, wincing every few moments from the pain in his belly. Aika waited until he had flexed his wings and stretched his legs before climbing on. She shifted to the front of the saddle, securing the sack to the back. She didn't need reins since Mivan could follow her orders.

"Go to the edge of the ledge." Aika ordered. Mivan strode over to the edge and stopped, waiting for her next command. Aika gripped the saddle tightly and yelled "Take off! Head toward the valley like last night!"

Mivan spread his wings, arching them high into the air. Then, with one powerful movement, he brought them down. He shot up into the air, leveling out quickly on the air currents. At Aika's order, he glided lower and flew along at a steady pace.

They had only been flying for about ten minutes when they heard a disturbing roar behind them. Mivan picked up speed, and Aika whirled around. The black dragon that had ripped up Mivan must have seen them leaving from where it had been resting on the mountain. Now it roared at them, gaining quickly. Aika started in shock. The wound she had sliced into it yesterday was gone, only a thin scar remained. Someone must have helped the dragon. Aika turned back.

"Mivan, lose it!" She screamed, flattening herself against the saddle. Mivan instantly dived straight for the ground. The other dragon screeched overhead. Only when he was close to touching the snow did Mivan pull up, beating his wings powerfully. The black dragon screeched again, this time confused. Mivan swerved in and out of the mountains, diving up and down. It was at least an hour of aerial stunts when they finally lost the black dragon. If it wasn't for the fact that Mivan knew where they were heading, they would be lost out here.

Aika heaved a sigh of relief, running her hand over the long scrape down her forearm. Mivan had flown too close to some rocky outcroppings, and she had banged it into along with Mivan's rear legs.

Mivan flew on for about another hour before Aika glimpsed greenery between the snowy mountains peaks. It wasn't long until Mivan rounded the side of the mountain and they were soaring out over a lush valley. A deep blue river carved through the middle of the valley. On one side of the river a dense forest stretched over the valley, but on the other side it was clear of trees. Except for the groves, of course. Hills crowded the bases of the mountains, but the rest of the valley was mostly flat. Marble buildings dotted the area, and many buildings made up the small town.

No one lived in the town, they only lived in the marble buildings outside of it. No one was allowed to live in the woods, either. That's where the elves hunted. The town was simple, a town square with a fountain in the center, and beautiful buildings branching out around it as shops. Aika could see her home, near the base of the mountains by the river. Her home was made of white marble, with a grove of trees off to one side and the huge garden behind it. It was right by the river too, making her home one of the farthest from the town. It was at least a couple miles away.

She glided over the city and the landscape around it, happy to be home again. It didn't take long for her to guide Mivan down and land him next to her house. The moment his big feet brushed the ground, Aika's father came running out of the grove, dropping a basket of plums as he did so.

He was an average height, skinny man with long golden hair and warm brown eyes. He was handsome, to say the least. His pointed ears were hidden behind locks of his hair and his olive colored sun hat. He was wearing a pair of comfortable leather trousers and a silk shirt. He had an old wooden bow slung over his shoulder, and a case of arrows on his back. This was her normal, typical day father, Sharr.

Yes, finished! Like I said, these were kind of like the introductory chapters, and after this the action begins! Thank you for reading, please review!